Part 2: The Fallout
Sasuke
Defection. Of course they would go with that.
Sasuke watched silently as the Sannin grabbed the blond by the back of his jacket, pushing him roughly towards the side of the road. The blond didn't seem particularly happy about the situation: he was gesturing wildly, pointing back towards Sasuke and yelling something about them all being absolutely insane.
He cocked his head to the side, allowing his Sharingan to carefully slide into place. A thick ball of chakra became visible in the blond, collected tightly together in his abdomen. It was distinct, completely separate from the blond's own pathways; a fierce, pulsating orange force lying like a bomb in his stomach.
So he's the Jinchuriki.
Sasuke found himself mildly surprised by the realization. He only vaguely remembered the blond (Naruto, Sasuke suddenly recalled, the name materializing out of some far recess in his brain. The annoying loser from the Academy — his name was Naruto), but he didn't think he'd exhibited any remarkable talent — if anything, Sasuke thought he remembered Naruto struggling quite a bit, unable to properly grasp even the most elementary of lessons. And he also had a dim, blurred memory of the dipshit hitting him with a crumpled piece of paper at some point.
He remembered something his mother always used to say about still waters, and he couldn't help but think that it was a decidedly apt way to describe the situation. Because, really, who would've thought that blond dumbass had a tailed beast inside of him.
Sasuke saw a slight movement out of the corner of his eye, and he turned to see that Kakashi had started ambling towards him, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. He cursed under his breath — Tobi hadn't mentioned anything about Kakashi being with the Sannin. Damned bastard. He felt his chakra beginning to seethe, bubbling hot and angry in his body, and he forced himself to take a breath. It wasn't an issue, per se; it had just caught him off guard.
He fought the urge to rub at the ache that had settled in his chest. It was ridiculous — he wasn't under the illusion that Kakashi had ever cared about him, not anymore. He'd had years to let the betrayal overwhelm him, let it wrap around his organs and shove its way up his throat until he could barely breathe, reminding himself of the pain day after day so that he would eventually become numb to it. Kakashi didn't care. Kakashi didn't care. Kakashi didn't care.
And yet.
Do you believe that? He shouldn't have said anything. It had nothing to do with the mission, was a complete distraction from what he was trying to accomplish. But that word — defection — it had cut straight through him, slithering past his ribs and flooding his lungs. And he couldn't stop himself from looking at Kakashi as the letters fell apart and trickled into his bloodstream, from wondering whether the man had helped concoct the story. Had he been able to find Danzo's damned files, maybe he would've known to what extent Kakashi had been involved, whether the man had sat with Danzo in the dead of night conspiring against him and his brother. But, as it stood, he was left wondering.
The ache swelled as he watched the jonin draw closer. He pressed his tongue hard against the back of his teeth. Kakashi didn't care. He didn't care. But Sasuke wanted to find out the truth, nonetheless; he needed to find out the truth. Did you know about the doppelgänger? Did you know what Danzo did to me? What Danzo did to my clan? Did you help him try and kill me?
His skin was burning. How much did you know?
Kakashi stopped in front of him, digging his hands further into his pockets. He kept his gaze firmly on the ground, and Sasuke's fingers itched for his sword. He could ask right now, could let the question drip from his mouth like acid. How much did you know?
But the mission. He needed to focus on the mission.
He swallowed and the words tumbled back down his throat, scraping hard against his flesh. Now wasn't the time.
He gave Kakashi a quick appraisal. "I suppose you're meant to stop me from leaving?"
Kakashi looked up, shrugged. "I suppose," he echoed. "You're free to do what you want, really."
I'm sure. "Am I?"
Another shrug. "I'm not going to stop you." He inclined his head towards the blond. "I'm just here to look after Naruto." Sasuke's eyes drifted back to the teen. He was looking at the Sannin, his face terribly puckered and his eye twitching. But he'd seemed to calm down, somewhat.
Then he glanced over at Sasuke, perhaps sensing the fact that he was being watched, and proceeded to lose his shit again.
Naruto threw his hands in the air. "That's so stupid! So you're telling me that —"
Sasuke looked back at Kakashi, nodding his head. "Right." A tense silence fell over them then as Kakashi diverted his eyes back to the ground. He stared at the jonin, waiting for him to do something, anything, but Kakashi simply stood there, his eyes trained on the dirt.
This is odd. Tobi had said the Sannin was only looking for information, but he figured Danzo would've ordered his assassination as well. Or, at the very least, his detainment. The fact that neither Kakashi nor the Sannin seemed overly intent on doing either was rather peculiar, in his opinion.
He felt the question beginning to inch its way back up his throat.
"You got taller."
His thoughts skidded to a sudden halt. Sasuke frowned at Kakashi, the man's asinine comment not entirely sinking in. "What?"
Kakashi moved slightly, shifting his weight between his feet. "You got taller." He took a hand from his pocket and held it flat, lining it up in front of his chest. "You used to be about here, I think."
It took Sasuke a moment to recognize what Kakashi was trying to do. Small talk. After everything that had happened, he was trying to make small talk.
Sasuke felt his head start to pound. "Yeah, well." He had to spit the words out. "It's been a few years."
Kakashi nodded and shoved his hand back into his pocket, looking away again. "It has."
They stood in silence.
This is fucking ridiculous. Sasuke peered past the jonin, locking his eyes on Naruto again. He needed to forget about Kakashi. He just needed the damned Jinchuriki, and then —
"I could've taught you how to use a sword."
Fucking hell. He looked back to see Kakashi motioning towards his scabbard. The jonin had his head tilted, considering it. "I didn't know you had an interest."
Sasuke bit down hard, locking his jaw in place. An interest — as if his interests had been of any priority to the man. Kakashi was ordered to train him, probably had been given a nice list of techniques that he was expected to cover with Sasuke to expedite his progress. It was all part of the plan, Sasuke was sure; Kakashi didn't care what Sasuke had or hadn't wanted to learn.
But. A quiet voice surfaced from deep inside of him. But he gave you his technique — he gave you Chidori.
Sasuke stayed silent, not quite trusting himself to speak. Did you ever care?
"I suppose it doesn't matter now, though," Kakashi continued. "You learned how to use one, anyway." He paused a beat. "You probably learned a lot since you've been gone."
Sasuke glared down at his sword. He'd learned a lot, it was true. But Chidori was still his base technique, and he wondered idly how Kakashi would react to that if he found out.
Why did you teach it to me?
He took a breath. The mission. He needed to focus on the mission.
He tried looking past the man, willing himself to keep his attention pinned on Naruto and the Sannin. But his gaze kept flitting back to Kakashi. The question swirled around his tongue, squeezed in between his teeth. How much did you know? It pried his mouth open, and he was just about to speak, to release it into the air so he could finally find out the truth, when Kakashi spoke again.
"You shouldn't go after Itachi."
A pause. Sasuke closed his mouth with a sharp click and felt his eyes narrow ever so slightly. "Who said I was going after my brother?"
Kakashi leveled him with a flat stare. He sounded tired when he spoke, disappointed, even. "You want revenge, don't you?"
Sasuke angled his head. Not against my brother. But you should know that.
The second thought followed naturally. Unless he doesn't know.
He pushed the notion aside, shoving it down hard. He was beyond such childish hopes. Kakashi knew, he had to. This was just a test, a way to figure out how much information Sasuke himself had about the situation. Danzo likely never determined how much he knew before he'd ordered his assassination; Kakashi was just assessing him, gathering more material that could be put in Danzo's damned files.
His chakra flared. Let him find out, then. "I'm not trying to get revenge on my brother."
Kakashi's visible eye widened ever so slightly. "No?"
"No."
The jonin froze. Then he nodded, his gaze softening. A choked sound escaped his throat, a huff of air that sounded almost mystified. "That's good to hear, Sasuke." He appeared to be smiling. "That's really good to hear."
Sasuke frowned. He hadn't quite expected that reaction. It shouldn't have been good to hear — it meant that Sasuke knew his brother was innocent, that he knew the Hidden Leaf was to blame for the death of his clan.
The thought crept back into the periphery of his awareness. Does he not know?
He was distracted by a sudden movement over Kakashi's shoulder. Sasuke looked to see the Sannin making his way towards them, Naruto dragging his feet and muttering behind him.
Tension prickled under his skin. The conversation had left him off-balance; he shouldn't have wasted his time on Kakashi, should have left well enough alone and simply made off with the Jinchuriki at the first opportunity. Now he was unsteady, unsure. He wouldn't be able to win against them.
Tobi's voice echoed in his head. Find a way to bring the Jinchuriki to your brother and his army.
His fingers tapped dully against his sword. Find a way.
The Sannin stopped beside Kakashi, eyeing Sasuke carefully. "You willing to talk, Uchiha?"
Find a way. A direct attack wouldn't work, and he'd already given up the element of surprise by following them into the shop. He knew it was in his best interest to act as soon as possible, to prevent the Sannin from getting whatever information he was after. But he felt himself being lulled by their apparent lack of urgency. The Sannin had left him alone with Kakashi, after all. It had been a test, most likely, a way to see whether he'd try and attack them once his odds of winning were made mildly better. But, nonetheless, it had proven that the Sannin was in no real rush to deal with him. He was willing to wait, to gauge Sasuke's intentions. Which meant Sasuke had time — precious time — to gather information of his own.
How much did you know?
He carefully moved his hand away from his sword, met the Sannin's gaze. "Yeah, I'll talk."
Jiraiya
Sasuke Uchiha is dangerous.
He needed to remember that.
Jiraiya gave the boy a smile. "Fantastic." He slapped a hand on Kakashi's shoulder, indicating Naruto with a jerk of his chin. "Your turn to deal with the pipsqueak." Not waiting for Kakashi to respond and ignoring Naruto's protests at the nickname, he walked forward to Sasuke.
The Uchiha was still, watching Jiraiya carefully. He'd taken his hand away from his sword — a deliberate move, Jiraiya believed, a gesture to show Jiraiya that he didn't intend on attacking. The boy appeared to be making an effort to behave himself, something that Jiraiya couldn't help but think was wildly out of character. The Sasuke Uchiha he'd watched had been rash, impatient. For the boy to mysteriously show up and then miraculously become cooperative was odd, and it set off the alarm bells in Jiraiya's head.
Sasuke was planning something, he was sure of it. I just don't know what it is, yet.
He waved a hand at the Uchiha. "C'mon, let's walk and talk. I have places to be." Sasuke raised a brow, but he fell into step beside Jiraiya easily enough.
They walked a few yards in silence. Jiraiya wasn't quite sure where he was leading them; he had, in all honesty, just started walking in the direction Sasuke had originally been going. Jiraiya thought it might serve to ease the boy's guard a bit, let him get comfortable around Jiraiya before he started probing him for information. It's partially why he'd let him talk with Kakashi alone; it was something familiar to him, something that would've hopefully served to lower his defenses. But the Uchiha had remained stoic, and Jiraiya could still hardly tell what he was thinking. So he figured it wouldn't hurt to try and soften the bristling Uchiha a bit further, to give him more reason to relax.
"Nice weather, huh?" He saw Sasuke glance over at him. "I don't typically travel these parts much, but damn, do I enjoy it when I do. Far nicer than the Land of Fire. And," he stretched his arms above his head, made sure to let his joints crack, "the Hidden Waterfall Village is very accommodating." He gave the Uchiha a wily grin. "If you know what I mean."
Sasuke ignored him entirely.
He felt his grin falter. Tough crowd. Jiraiya put his arms back down. "The Land of Earth isn't too bad, either, depending on where you're going," he continued, forcing himself to remain nonplussed by the Uchiha's lack of engagement. "I got sent there a few years back for a mission. Had to stay out there for five months — five months." He held up a hand, wiggled his fingers. "Spent three of those months sleeping on the ground, but eventually I found this real nice town. It had a hot spring and everything, holy shit," he sighed, made sure to sound wistful about it. "I didn't want to leave."
He laughed then, waved a hand in Sasuke's general direction. "Sorry, I can't imagine you're interested in hearing any of this. Probably haven't even been to the Land of Earth, eh?"
Silence. He paused, peering at Sasuke, waiting for him to contribute to the conversation. Sure, I've been to the Land of Earth, he'd say. I was just there last week.
The Uchiha stayed quiet.
Motherfucker. Jiraiya had to stop himself from scowling. "Really, though, if I were to recommend that you travel anywhere," he continued, trying to keep his tone ever so friendly, "I'd tell you to go to the Land of Hot Water. It's absolutely —"
"Get to the point." The boy had turned to look at him, a considerably annoyed expression marring his features. "I thought you had questions."
Jiraiya narrowed his eyes at the Uchiha. A dull pain spread through his jaw, and he realized he'd started clenching his teeth at some point.
Fine. He rolled his shoulders back, straightened to his full height. Punk wants to get to the point, then we'll get to the point.
Jiraiya moved closer to the boy, invading his space. "I've been looking for you for quite awhile, Uchiha."
Sasuke's eyes drifted back to the ground. He seemed to subconsciously angle his body away from Jiraiya. "I've heard."
"Is that so?" Jiraiya looked Sasuke up and down, made sure the Uchiha was painfully aware of the scrutiny he was under. "I'll admit, I'm impressed. Not many people can elude me for longer than a few days." Their arms brushed. Sasuke took a step to the side, increasing the distance between them.
"Yeah, well," the boy glared at him, "maybe you're not as well connected as you thought."
Little shit. He stepped closer, crowding the Uchiha once more. "I suppose I'm not." A shrug — best to appear unbothered by the comment. "My sources extend across the continent, and yet none of them saw you for months. So, I'm curious." He placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, leaned down to bring his eyes level with the boy's. "Where were you?"
Sasuke gave the appendage a disdainful glance, his nose crinkling at the intrusion. "Around."
Smartass. "Humor me."
An annoyed huff left the Uchiha's mouth. He shrugged Jiraiya's hand away and increased the distance between them once again. But still, he remained silent.
Jiraiya looked down to see that the boy had started tapping his fingers against the hilt of his sword. He'd caught Sasuke doing it a few times now. There didn't appear to be any sort of pattern behind it, the taps largely inconsistent and random — a nervous habit, perhaps?
His fingers stopped.
"Here." Sasuke's eyes were locked on the road. "I've been here."
"Yeah?" Jiraiya eyed him, mildly amused by the Uchiha's attempted lie. "Where exactly?"
Sasuke shrugged. "I don't know."
"You don't know where you've been for the past few months?"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. He waved a hand, encompassing the area they were walking through. "I've been out here, in the woods." The boy leveled him with a glare. "Want me to point you to the tree?"
Jiraiya pursed his lips, fighting against the smug smile that was threatening to appear on his face. Now this was the Sasuke Uchiha he had expected to deal with.
"Your brother's out east, you know," he pointed out.
A pause. "I know."
"Any reason you didn't go to him after leaving the Sound?"
He kept an eye on the Uchiha's fingers, but his hand laid still against his sword. "I couldn't."
Jiraiya raised a brow. Is he telling the truth? "Why not?"
The Uchiha's features curled into a sneer. "Why do you think?"
He...honestly wasn't sure. Which was entirely why he'd asked. Jiraiya peered at Sasuke, tried to guess at what he might be referring to. Did he mean he physically couldn't reach his brother because of something Danzo or Orochimaru had done? Or was he referring to something figurative, a distrust that had grown between him and Itachi after Sasuke found out that his brother had been the one behind his memory loss? Or did Sasuke not even know that Itachi had performed the jutsu on him — perhaps he was still convinced his brother killed their clan, and that was what he was referring to?
Best not to try and assume what the Uchiha did or didn't know, he figured. Better to make as neutral a statement as possible. He settled on something easy, something that would've been obvious to anyone. "I can't imagine getting away from Orochimaru was easy."
The Uchiha's fingers suddenly wrapped around the hilt of his sword, tightening until the knuckles of his hand were stark white against the skin. He stopped walking.
Shit. So much for playing it safe.
Jiraiya turned and jumped back a step, preparing himself for an attack. He was just about to call out to Kakashi and Naruto, to tell them to retreat and take cover while he dealt with the ballistic Uchiha, but, to his surprise, Sasuke was merely standing in the middle of the road, staring at him. His eyes had turned a murky maroon, the familiar brightness of the Sharingan not quite coming through — he was making an effort to withhold his kekkei genkai, to keep it from wheeling to life. But for what reason, Jiraiya wasn't sure.
Kakashi and Naruto had stopped a few yards behind Sasuke, pausing their conversation in favor of watching the scene in front of them unfold. Jiraiya held up a hand: stay back. Whatever stunt the Uchiha was pulling, they didn't need to be part of it.
Jiraiya watched as Sasuke took in a large, shaky breath. "Getting away from Orochimaru wasn't the problem," he ground out.
"No?" Jiraiya kept a hand hovering over his kunai pouch.
The Uchiha's eyes flashed a bright red before slowly devolving back into that odd, deep vermillion. "No." Another breath. "The problem was staying away from Danzo." The name was spoken forcefully, the Uchiha practically spitting it from his mouth.
So he knows, then. Jiraiya took a breath. Or he knows some of it, at least.
Kakashi moved, surreptitiously placing himself in front of Naruto. Sasuke didn't appear to be paying them any mind, however, his attention wholly zeroed in on Jiraiya.
Good. Jiraiya crouched slightly, readying himself. We'll be able to detain him if he's distracted.
Sasuke still made no move to attack, though. The boy was still, his arms now slack against his sides. But the color of his eyes was pulsing, shifting wildly between shades of red. He's trying to control himself, Jiraiya realized. He doesn't want to fight.
The boy sighed and shut his eyes, rubbing a hand over his face.
An image of Kakashi sitting across from him flashed across Jiraiya's mind, and the jonin's voice rang loudly in his ears: Sasuke's only a kid.
No, he told himself forcefully. Sasuke's dangerous. He knew it was true, could feel it in his bones. But, for some reason, all he could see now was how young the boy looked, how tired.
Sasuke's only a kid.
He'd risked his ass to give the Uchiha a chance, to convince Danzo that he deserved to live. And now here he was, making the same assumptions about Sasuke that had almost gotten him killed in the first place.
Bile churned in his stomach as the doubt began to bubble through his veins. Maybe the boy had been out here for two months, hiding away in the trees, believing both Orochimaru and Danzo were out hunting him like an animal. And that was the truth of the situation, wasn't it? Both men treated Sasuke like a prize to be won, a thing to be possessed. And with no clan and no village, there were few places the boy could turn to for help. He was on his own, cornered between two enormous enemies. It seemed so obvious that he would have tried to go to his brother, the only family he had left. But, perhaps Sasuke had known that. Perhaps he didn't trust the lure of his brother's presence, suspecting that either Danzo or Orochimaru would use it against him, find a way to trap him with it. So he'd subverted their expectations and gone in the opposite direction, decided to hide in the woods and bide his time. Maybe he hoped Itachi would catch wind of his travels, believed that his brother would eventually come for him himself.
But then Itachi marched east. And the littlest Uchiha was left all alone.
Is that what happened? He stared at Sasuke, willing the truth to reveal itself. But why show yourself now, then?
Sasuke's eyes had darkened back to their natural obsidian. He was staring blankly at the space between them, his hand resting on his sword again. His thumb was tapping a short, chaotic rhythm against the hilt.
Suddenly he laughed, a dry, ironic burst of air. "I just want to find my brother," he admitted, looking back up at Jiraiya. His thumb stilled. "That's it."
The muscles in Jiraiya's legs began to cramp. Sasuke's dangerous. He's dangerous. But perhaps he was just tired: of running, of hiding, of spending every day afraid of being discovered.
He could see that Kakashi had straightened behind Sasuke. He was staring at Jiraiya, his head tilted to the side.
He's dangerous.
A shock of blond hair was visible right above Kakashi's shoulder. He's the same age as Naruto. His eyes flicked back over to Sasuke. They're kids.
Jiraiya sighed, stood up fully. He was going to regret this — he was sure of it.
Holding out a hand, he approached the Uchiha slowly. "I know where your brother is," he murmured. He met Sasuke's gaze, tried to convey the significance of what he was about to do for the child with just his eyes. "I'll take you to him, under a few conditions."
Kakashi
Kakashi nearly sagged in relief. He'd been convinced Jiraiya was going to attack.
"Damn," Naruto muttered from behind him. Kakashi looked over his shoulder at the blond, saw that he was staring at the Uchiha with wide eyes. "Fake Sasuke almost got his ass kicked."
Kakashi sighed, pinched the bridge of his nose. "Naruto —"
"I know, I know, he's really Sasuke," the blond parroted, rolling his eyes. "You realize how ridiculous that sounds, right?"
"I'm aware." He glanced back over at Sasuke. Jiraiya was still talking to him, his voice low. And I don't think we even know the half of it, yet.
In his defense, Naruto had been handling it all relatively well. The teen had been needling Kakashi with questions the entire time they walked, Jiraiya apparently not having adequately explained the situation to him beforehand, but he wasn't losing his shit, at least. He mostly just seemed absolutely and utterly confused. Which, Kakashi had to admit, was a fair reaction, given how much had just been sprung on him.
Hey, Naruto, you know that Sasuke Uchiha kid on your genin team? The one that you thought died but then found out was really with Orochimaru? He really wasn't Sasuke Uchiha. This kid we just ran into is. See, he was kept away from the Leaf because of his brother. Why? Well his brother killed his entire clan. It was for his own safety.
That makes no sense? You're telling me.
What was that? Oh no, this Sasuke was with Orochimaru, too. You want to know what happened to the Sasuke on Team 7? Honestly, not sure. He could be dead, I suppose.
Who the hell came up with this? Good fucking question.
Really, Kakashi figured it all could've gone much, much worse.
Jiraiya was nodding his head now, motioning towards Kakashi and Naruto. He appeared to say something quietly to Sasuke before giving the boy a hearty slap on the shoulder.
"I mean, seriously." Naruto had moved to stand beside him. "You and the Pervy Sage both sound insane."
That was a given, really. "Jiraiya told you this is classified, right?" He eyed the blond. "No one can know about this besides us."
"Yeah, yeah." Naruto shoved his hands into his pockets. "I know."
Jiraiya had started walking towards them, a regretful smile already on his face. This should be good, Kakashi thought wryly.
Jiraiya held his hands out once he reached them. "Okay, new plan. We're going to the Land of Lightning."
Kakashi raised a brow. The Land of Lightning? But that's —
"But that's so far." Naruto groaned, his shoulders sulking. "Why're we going there?"
Jiraiya tilted his head back towards Sasuke. "We're bringing Uchiha to his brother."
Silence.
Naruto twisted towards Kakashi, throwing his arms in the air. "I thought you said his brother killed his clan!"
"I —" He turned to Jiraiya, grasping for the words. "He did." His eyes darted over to Sasuke. The Uchiha was standing a few yards up the road, watching them all idly. But he said he didn't want revenge?
Naruto threw his hands out, waving them wildly in Sasuke's direction. "Then why are we bringing fake Sasuke to him?"
"That's the real Sasuke, Naruto —"
"Whatever!" Naruto placed his palms against his face, digging the heels of his hands hard against his cheeks. "None of you are making sense."
"Naruto, Naruto." Jiraiya leaned forward, lightly placing his hand on the blond's shoulder. "I really need you to just go with it."
Naruto's jaw dropped. "Go with it? You want me to just —"
"Yes." Jiraiya turned to Kakashi. "That's what I want you to do."
Narrowing his eyes, Kakashi considered the Sannin. It was only a short while ago that he'd sat across from the man while he listened to him insist that Sasuke was dangerous. And now he was going to have the Uchiha traveling with them, leading the boy to Itachi, of all people? It didn't make sense.
What are you hiding?
"What about the Hokage?" Kakashi asked instead.
Jiraiya stood up suddenly and took a step towards him. The abrupt movement caught Kakashi off guard, but he forced himself to stay still as Jiraiya advanced on him, coming close enough for their chests to touch. Kakashi had to look up in order to meet the Sannin's gaze.
Jiraiya motioned towards Sasuke with a small jerk of his head. "Do you care about this kid?"
Kakashi stared at Jiraiya. It seemed like a stupid question, all things considered. He'd trained Sasuke for over a year, had spent hours of his time with the Uchiha — how could he not care about the punk?
"He's my student," Kakashi said.
"He was your student," Jiraiya corrected, still watching him with a sharp, focused intensity. He was waiting for Kakashi to acknowledge the distinction, to admit that Sasuke wasn't his student, not anymore.
"He's my student." Kakashi repeated, making sure his gaze didn't waver from Jiraiya's.
They both stood still for a moment. Then Jiraiya nodded, took a step back from Kakashi. "Good." The tension dissipated as he gave Kakashi a wide grin. "My mission was to find Sasuke before he reached Itachi. I was given no instructions past that. Though, of course," he eyed Kakashi again, "it would be in all of our best interest to keep this little field trip between us."
The insinuation was clear. Don't tell Danzo.
Kakashi sighed, rubbed at the back of his neck. It was a fine line they would be walking. Danzo would surely consider it treason if he found out, regardless of whether he had directly ordered Sasuke's immediate arrest or not. And Kakashi could only play the protecting Naruto card so far — he'd be complicit in this, especially if he decided not to report it once all was said and done.
Jiraiya was still watching him, the weight of his gaze heavy on Kakashi's shoulders.
What a shit show.
He looked over, saw that Sasuke was still looking at them.
...but there's just something about this damned kid.
"Yeah, alright," he finally agreed. "It stays between us."
"Great!" Jiraiya slapped him on the arm, and Kakashi nearly fell sideways at the unexpected force of it. The Sannin turned and started walking back towards Sasuke, speaking loud enough for them all to hear now. "Let's get moving, then. We're wasting daylight."
Kakashi saw Naruto look at him, his mouth still open. "What the hell is going on?"
Kakashi shrugged, shoving his hands deep into his pockets. "Beats me." He nodded towards Sasuke and Jiraiya as they both started walking. "Come on, we don't want to fall behind."
• • •
The first thing Jiraiya did was direct them off the main road. We're trying to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible, he'd explained. The fewer people that see us, the better.
He held out a hand to them, then, making sure each of them was paying careful attention. You all need to follow me exactly, he'd warned. No shortcuts, no detours. We go where I say we go, and that's that. It'll take us a lot longer to get there, but we'll be safe, at least.
And so Jiraiya led them through the forest, Sasuke trailing a few steps behind him while Kakashi and Naruto brought up the rear. They picked their way across rivers and streams, made their way around fallen trees, avoided every hint of civilization they came across. And, slowly, they made their way east.
They spent most of the time traveling in silence. Sasuke's presence had disrupted any air of comfort their small group had once had, throwing a thin layer of tension around every step they took. The Uchiha had done nothing untoward, nothing to put any of them on edge. In fact, he'd been ignoring them all for the most part, hardly acknowledging anyone. But there was still a level of uncertainty surrounding him. And Kakashi couldn't help but wonder.
Why are you going to Itachi?
But he buried the question and stayed silent, following Jiraiya dutifully. It wasn't his business — he didn't need to know.
Naruto, on the other hand, wasn't as patient with his questions.
Kakashi should've expected the boy's eventual outburst, really. Naruto had decided to start hovering around the Uchiha, trying to engage Sasuke in some level of conversation. He wasn't bombarding Sasuke with questions, simply talking to him about mundane, inconsequential things — Kakashi was pretty sure he even heard the blond mention ramen once or twice. But Sasuke, as expected, ignored Naruto entirely. And Naruto, as expected, didn't react kindly to it.
"Hey, I don't know what your problem is asshole, but —"
Kakashi rolled his eyes. Here we go.
Sasuke stopped, and Jiraiya was suddenly walking past him, holding an arm out and catching Naruto across the chest. He dragged the boy back a few steps before roughly pushing him around to face him.
Jiraiya leaned down so he was eye level with the fuming blond. "Naruto."
Naruto scowled at Jiraiya, petulant. "What?"
Jiraiya didn't answer; he only continued to look at the boy, his gaze hard. Naruto shifted side to side, the scrutiny evidently making him uneasy. "What?" he repeated.
Jiraiya sighed. "Listen," he started. "I need you to stay away from Sasuke, alright?"
Naruto made a face. "Why?"
"Because I said so." Jiraiya turned to Kakashi, leveling the same, intense stare at him. "Okay?"
So Sasuke was harmless enough to travel with, but dangerous enough that Jiraiya wanted to keep him away from Naruto. Not for the first time, Kakashi felt himself questioning the Sannin. What do you know?
"Yeah, fine." Naruto grumbled, turning his head away from Jiraiya. "I'll leave him alone."
"Good." Jiraiya stood. He began to make his way back up the road, but he paused alongside Sasuke momentarily. The Uchiha had evidently said something to the Sannin, because the man turned to the boy immediately, talking to him in a low, stern voice. Kakashi couldn't see Sasuke's face, but he watched as the boy's hands wrapped into tight fists.
What are you hiding?
The odd confrontation ended soon enough, Jiraiya resuming his position at the front of their group. And then they kept walking, a suffocating, tense silence now wrapped around all of them.
He looked at Sasuke and saw that the boy still had his hands clenched.
What do you know?
Kakashi shook his head. The mission, he reminded himself. The mission was to watch Naruto. Not to get involved in whatever this was. For his own sake, he needed to stay out of it.
But, of course, this was Sasuke he was talking about. And, for some damned reason, he never could quite convince himself to leave well enough alone when it came to that kid.
He waited until the middle of the night to confront the Uchiha. It was Kakashi's turn to keep watch, so the other three were sound asleep: Naruto and Jiraiya off to the side, both snoring lightly, and Sasuke lying a ways away, his back turned to them.
Kakashi quietly brought himself to his feet and walked over to the boy, the dirt and rocks crunching quietly under his shoes.
Sasuke whipped around when Kakashi was only a few steps away. A kunai was in his hand.
Kakashi held his arms out, a silent gesture. I'm not going to hurt you. He brought a hand to his mouth, lifted up a single finger. Quiet.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed, the boy considering Kakashi silently. He nodded then and swung his legs around, settling into a seated position. He didn't put the kunai away.
Kakashi crouched in front of Sasuke and took a seat on the ground himself. He made an effort to speak quietly, but the words still seemed to land loudly in the silence surrounding them.
"Tell me what happened."
Sasuke tilted his head. He'd started twirling the kunai between his fingers, playing with the knife as he thought. His fingers halted suddenly, and Kakashi watched as his Sharingan suddenly wheeled to life. He motioned the knife upwards, towards his eyes. A silent question.
Kakashi nodded.
A sudden force pulsed through Kakashi's brain, paralyzing his entire body. The world slowed around him.
And, suddenly, Kakashi was at a dinner table, staring at a plate of food.
What the hell? He tried looking around the room, but his head wouldn't budge, his eyes locked on the space in front of him. A pair of chopsticks moved into his field of vision, poking at the food. The hand holding them was small, childlike. And only then did Kakashi understand what was happening.
A memory, he realized. Sasuke's showing me one of his memories.
His vision blurred as Sasuke quickly looked to his right. A stern looking man came into view, sitting tall at the head of the table. His face was mildly out of focus, almost blurry, but Kakashi was able to recognize him immediately. Fugaku Uchiha. Sasuke's father. The leader of the Uchiha clan and the planned coup.
A terribly garbled voice began to speak, low and distorted. Kakashi could only make out a few words, Academy and graduation among them. Fugaku appeared to be smiling. He opened his mouth to speak, beginning to say something to Sasuke.
He felt Sasuke's body jerk back when the man's neck split open, blood bursting from the wound.
A cacophony of noises erupted around him, and Sasuke's eyes jerked around the room wildly. He caught sight of Itachi, the boy's eyes wide as he stood beside the table. Kakashi registered a dull pain spreading across Sasuke's leg as the boy awkwardly launched his body towards Itachi, wrapping himself tight around his brother's leg. The world went dark, and Kakashi could feel the rough fabric of the Itachi's pants scratch against his face. A hand gripped Sasuke's shoulder.
Seconds passed, and suddenly he was moving again, being pulled up and over a shoulder. An Uchiha crest was emblazoned on the back of the person's shirt. Itachi. The room had erupted in chaos around him, dark, blurred creatures darting every which way. He caught sight of a woman on the floor, her head pulled back and a floating kunai poised at her jugular. Mikoto Uchiha. Sasuke's mother.
He was outside, now, listening to Itachi's ragged breathing as he ran. Bodies littered the streets behind them.
The incident is currently under investigation.
Itachi lurched to the side suddenly. The world around the brothers darkened as Itachi brought them under the overhang of a shop.
But the preliminary inspection suggests that Itachi Uchiha was behind this massacre.
Kakashi felt himself heave.
The illusion broke apart then. Kakashi was falling backwards, and he shot his hands out to stop himself from hitting the ground, his fingers digging hard into the dirt. Sasuke's eyes were still locked on his, and it took Kakashi a moment to realize Jiraiya was crouched beside the boy, holding a kunai against his neck.
"You alright, Kakashi?" the Sannin asked quietly, glaring down at Sasuke.
Kakashi couldn't get enough air into his lungs. It's for his own safety, Danzo had said. Itachi's a threat to him.
The world wobbled around him, and he felt himself begin to shake his head, moving it mechanically from side to side. "I didn't —" He choked on his own breath. His hand extended towards Sasuke, willing the Uchiha to understand, to realize. I didn't know. I swear to you, I didn't know.
Jiraiya tightened his grip around the knife. "The fuck did you do, Uchiha?"
The horrid realization pulsed like a tidal wave through his body. He looked at the Sannin, his mouth dry. You knew.
Sasuke remained silent, his eyes listless as he watched Kakashi. He made no move to attack Jiraiya, to defend himself against the kunai threatening his life. Kakashi stared at the boy, wide eyed. What the fuck did Danzo do to you?
Jiraiya cursed under his breath. "Here I am trying to help you, and you go and pull some —"
"Itachi didn't kill my clan." The words were spoken carefully, an unbridled ferocity lying behind them. Sasuke kept his eyes trained on Kakashi.
Itachi Uchiha was behind this massacre.
Kakashi leaned to the side, desperately ripping the mask away from his face. And then he promptly threw up.
"Damn it." He heard something shuffling off to the side, felt a large hand settle on his back. "Great job, Uchiha."
"He asked."
"I thought I made it explicitly clear to you. The deal was —"
"He asked."
Kakashi gagged.
"You pull this shit with Naruto, and I swear, I will break every damn bone in your body."
"Then make sure Naruto doesn't ask me about it." Jiraiya twisted next to him and Kakashi flung an arm out, a pathetic attempt to stop the man from moving towards Sasuke. Leave him alone.
There was a long exhale. "This is a shit show," Jiraiya muttered, settling back down beside Kakashi. Sasuke grunted. The only sound that could be heard in the silence that followed was Kakashi's retching.
He was still breathing hard when he finally looked up. Both Sasuke and Jiraiya were watching him.
"You good?" Jiraiya asked. Kakashi nodded, waving a hand back to shoo the man away. He sat up and wiped at his mouth.
"Itachi —" He had to pause, swallow past the rawness of his throat. "Itachi didn't kill the Uchiha clan."
Jiraiya sighed. "No." He glared at Sasuke. "He didn't." The Uchiha was leaning back, looking relatively smug about the situation. The kunai was lying untouched in his lap.
Kakashi nodded. He rubbed a hand over his face, dragged it slowly down his skin. "What the fuck, Jiraiya?"
"It's classified, alright? Only a few people know," the Sannin grumbled. He leveled another glare at Sasuke. "And it was supposed to stay that way."
The Uchiha only shrugged. "He —"
"I swear, if you say he asked one more time, I will fucking throttle you," Jiraiya growled. "Don't test me."
Sasuke rolled his eyes, but he stayed silent.
"I did ask," Kakashi admitted, trying to divert some of Jiraiya's anger away from the Uchiha. "You weren't telling us everything."
Jiraiya's voice rose. "For your own safety —" he stopped, eyes wide. They all glanced over at Naruto, but the blond was still sound asleep, oblivious to everything around him as he snored. Jiraiya sighed, put a hand against his temple.
"I didn't tell you because it wasn't safe," he repeated, quietly now. "You understand this could get us all killed, right?" As if to emphasize his point, he jabbed a finger in Sasuke's direction. "He could get us all killed."
Kakashi tilted his head at the Sannin, his throat still burning from the vomit. "Then why are you helping him?"
Sasuke looked over at Jiraiya, evidently interested in the answer himself. But Jiraiya only stared at Kakashi. Then he scowled and stood up. "Go to sleep, both of you. I'll keep watch for the rest of the night." He looked back at Sasuke. "And if you try anything like that again, I will personally escort your ass to Danzo." His voice was low, menacing. "Is that understood?"
Sasuke returned the man's gaze apathetically, appearing almost bored in the face of his threat. But he nodded, nonetheless.
"Good." Jiraiya rolled his shoulders back. He rubbed the base of his neck as he returned to his bedroll, muttering a litany of curses under his breath.
Kakashi knew he should've moved to follow the man, but a deep exhaustion had pervaded his limbs, making it feel as if they were encased in concrete. He fell back to the ground with a low groan. Sleeping right here wasn't too different from sleeping a few feet away, he figured.
He'd almost fallen asleep entirely when he heard Sasuke speak, low and quiet.
"You didn't know?"
Kakashi blinked up at the sky above him, not entirely sure whether he'd imagined the Uchiha's voice or not. He leaned up slightly, squinting his eyes against the shadows to look at Sasuke. The boy was still sitting up, still watching him.
Kakashi shook his head, let it fall back to the ground with a dull thud. "No," he admitted. "I didn't know."
Silence. Then a brief shuffling, the sound of fabric scraping against the ground. He assumed Sasuke had laid down again, though Kakashi was far too tired to actually check.
He fell asleep soon after.
Itachi
Itachi rubbed at his face. He was tired, hungry, and his legs ached terribly. All he truly wanted to do was sleep, though — he would've given anything to just get some sleep.
Aoi had a map spread in front of him, pointing to a general area in the Land of Lightning. "We should be fine if we continue along the coast here," he was saying, dragging a finger along the paper. "It'll keep us far enough away from Kumogakure that the Raikage shouldn't feel the need to bother with us."
Itachi nodded. He squinted his eyes at the map. "Keep the groups scouting the area close. I don't want to open them up to an attack."
"I'll let them know."
Itachi tapped his fingers idly against his leg. He tried to keep his eyes trained on the little illustrated Land of Lightning, tried to focus his attention on where the group was, on what they needed to do.
His gaze flicked over to the middle of the map.
There's been word on your brother, Itachi. The people who just joined — they said he was in the Hidden Waterfall Village.
Itachi considered the paper quietly, tracing his eyes over the area his brother was rumored to have been seen in.
A few days had passed since Aoi brought him the news. Since then, he'd been painfully aware of each passing hour, the seconds steadily eating away at his skin as he went through the motions of each day, the echo of his brother's name punctuating his every action.
Sasuke. Sasuke. Sasuke.
He'd had Aoi bring him to the people claiming to have seen his brother immediately, dizzy with anticipation as the man led him through their impromptu camp. They'd had to pick their way around tents and the remains of campfires, stopping every few yards to engage in some polite conversation, to find out what was going on with the group. The food supply is running low in the southern quadrant, Itachi. Ena and her brothers chased off a pack of wolves last night, but they killed three of the horses, Itachi. We need more medicinal herbs: the healers are requesting a group be sent out to collect them, Itachi.
He tried to give them each his due consideration, he really did. Food, wolves, and herbs. Very interesting. No, sorry, concerning. Yes, he was very concerned by it all. He'd get on that right away, would make it his top priority. He just had to do one thing, first. Just one little thing.
The newcomers had been on the very outskirts of the group, a middle aged woman and a young teenage boy. They had a single bag between them, a midsized satchel that was lying in the dirt at the woman's feet.
Aoi bounded up to them with a grin, indicating Itachi with a gallant wave of his hand. "Sato and Koshiro, I present to you, Itachi Uchiha." He turned to Itachi. "Itachi, this is Sato and Koshiro, from the Land of Earth."
Itachi would've preferred to bypass the introductions completely. But he knew he had to mind his manners, to present himself as a capable, dignified leader. And so the pleasantries began.
Itachi raised a brow. "The Land of Earth? That's quite far."
"Oh, very," the woman — Sato, Sato, Sato, remember, her name is Sato — trilled. "We've spent weeks traveling."
Itachi looked them both over. They seemed in good enough health, no apparent injuries. "I do hope it wasn't too difficult a journey."
"Not at all!" The woman waved a hand at him, dismissing his concerns.
The boy — Koshiro, Itachi reminded himself, trying to commit the boy's name and face to memory. Koshiro and Sato, Koshiro and Sato, Koshiro and Sato — had his arms crossed over his chest. He looked at the woman from the corner of his eye. "Well —" Koshiro lurched forward as Sato slapped him hard on the back.
"You hush, now." She gave Itachi a small smile while the boy stood beside her, grimacing. "Sorry, please ignore my brother. We had a fine journey."
Koshiro and Sato, brother and sister, from the Land of Earth. He could remember that.
He returned her smile. "It's quite alright. Do you need anything? We have medicine, food —"
"Food." Koshiro answered immediately. "Food would be great."
"Koshiro —"
Itachi held out a hand, angled his head back towards the center of the camp. "It's fine. We have plenty."
No, you don't, a cynical voice reminded him. There's a shortage in the southern quadrant.
He waved an arm as he turned. "Follow me, we'll get you settled in." He'd deal with the low food supply after. Perhaps he could bring them to the northern quadrant in the meantime — last he'd heard, they were doing well on food. They could surely support two more mouths.
Koshiro and Sato hurried to follow him while Aoi trailed a few paces behind them. Itachi began to lead them around the outskirts of the group — he didn't want to overwhelm them, to expose them to too many eager and curious faces so soon. Additionally, he wanted to give himself time and space to talk to the newcomers, to ask them about Sasuke.
Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke.
Itachi slowed his pace until he was walking beside Koshiro and Sato. He'd start with an easy question, make sure he didn't seem too desperate for information. "Are you shinobi?"
Sato shook her head. "I'm not, but my brother here is." She gave him a disapproving look, but Koshiro was staring off to the side, pointedly ignoring her. "He got us in some trouble back home."
"Most ninja here have found themselves in a similar situation," Itachi assured them.
Sato was nodding vigorously, clearly aware of the fact already. "We heard. It's why we came looking for you." She sighed. "Shinobi have so few options when they find themselves in trouble. To hear that you're planning on starting a new civilization, a place where shinobi can find shelter, it's just —" She waved her arms, unable to articulate the feeling. "I mean, to think that my brother might have a future somewhere, a future where he's not being hunted like some sort of animal." A small sob escaped from her lips, and she reached up to rub at her eyes. "We couldn't get out of there fast enough, Itachi. They —"
Koshiro scowled at his sister, grabbing her roughly by the arm. "Don't tell him —"
She turned on him. "He deserves to know, Koshiro —"
"You don't have to explain yourselves." Both siblings turned to him, Sato's eyes wide and Koshiro's narrowed into a glare.
"No?" Disbelief coated the word. The boy was suspicious, clearly. "You don't want to know what I did?"
Itachi shook his head. "Not unless you want to tell me."
"I don't." Sato moved to hit her brother, but Itachi placed a light hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
"And that's fine," he said.
Koshiro still didn't look entirely convinced, but he seemed to relax slightly at Itachi's reassurance. "Good."
Sato thumped her brother on the back of the head. "Manners," she growled, wiping at her eyes again. She turned to Itachi, a strained, apologetic grin on her face. "I'm really sorry about him."
"It's fine, really," he laughed. "Reminds me a bit of my brother."
Sato's smile faltered. "Oh, yeah," she mumbled, sounding almost sad. "I almost forgot. I think we ran into your brother on our way here."
There we go. Itachi kept his eyes straight ahead. "Yes, Aoi mentioned you had seen him." He turned to her. "You're sure it was him?"
Sato shook her head. "Oh no, I didn't see him. Koshiro did." She nudged the boy with her elbow. "Go on, tell him."
The boy mumbled something under his breath.
"Louder, please, no one can hear you."
"His brother's scary as hell."
And just like that, the hope that had kindled inside Itachi began to diminish. His brother? Scary? Itachi couldn't even begin to imagine anyone describing Sasuke in such a way.
He sighed. It certainly wasn't his brother, but he figured he might as well ask the boy, just to make sure. "How did you know it was him?"
"He had those eyes." Koshiro motioned vaguely towards his face, making a circle with his finger. "The Uchiha eyes — the red ones with the dots? The Sharoojan, or whatever you call it."
Itachi paused. "The Sharingan?"
"Yeah! That one." Koshiro shook his head. "We went to this shop by the Hidden Waterfall Village. I saw him standing across the road when we left. Guy was intense." The boy nearly shuddered at the memory. "But he had those eyes. And you're the only two Uchihas left, right?"
We are. Itachi stayed silent, considering the information. Maybe it had been Sasuke, after all. He tried to reconcile what Koshiro was saying, tried to imagine Sasuke as a person that other people would find scary and intense. But all he could see in his mind was a smiling, happy child.
He shrugged the image away. He could think about it later. "Sounds like it could've been him."
"Is he —" Sato swallowed. "Is he coming after you?"
Itachi pursed his lips. "Possibly," he allowed.
"Because you killed the Uchiha clan?" Koshiro asked, peering around his sister. "He wants revenge, then?"
"Koshiro, don't —"
"He might." Itachi answered quietly. Because, really, his brother could want him dead. He wasn't really sure what Sasuke knew, if he even knew anything. All Itachi understood was that Danzo had exposed Sasuke to Orochimaru, had given that snake enough access to his brother that he was able to make off with him completely. Itachi had been at the outpost, after all, he knew the level of security present there. Orochimaru couldn't have gotten in without Danzo knowing about it.
As long as you follow my orders, your brother will be safe, Itachi. You have my word.
He'd done everything Danzo had asked of him. And still, his brother was gone.
A familiar rage welled up inside of him, but he did his best to swallow past it. He wouldn't lose his temper, not now, not in front of his followers.
And, besides, they'd just arrived at the northern quadrant.
He waved an arm at Sato and Koshiro, urging them inside the camp. "There's a green tent straight ahead. Ask for Ko Ose — she'll get you everything you need." He forced one last smile on his face. "I'm in the center of the camp if you ever need anything."
Sato nodded, her eyes welling up with tears once again. "Thank you." Koshiro had started walking forward, but she grabbed his arm, pulling him back.
Koshiro rolled his eyes. "Yeah, uh, thanks."
Itachi nodded. "You're welcome." And then he walked away.
Aoi was standing a few meters away, his eyebrow raised. "Well, they seem harmless enough." He fell into step beside Itachi, craning his neck back to watch Sato and Koshiro. "Do you believe them?"
Itachi felt a headache beginning to pound through his skull. "About what?"
"Sasuke," Aoi clarified. "It sounded like it could've been him, yeah?"
Itachi sighed. "Maybe." If they were even telling the truth.
Itachi wasn't stupid — he knew that they could've made the story up entirely, possibly thinking it would somehow get them in his favor. The fact that Sato had asked if Sasuke was looking for him made the possibility seem entirely feasible. Maybe they thought they could warn him, tell him about the travels of his fratricidal brother in the hopes that he'd be grateful for the information.
But that, unfortunately, was where their story seemed to fall apart. Had they seen Sasuke, and had Sasuke actually been trying to find him, his brother should have arrived around the same time as them, or maybe even before them, given the fact that Sato supposedly wasn't even a shinobi.
Unless Sasuke isn't trying to find you at all.
Itachi knew it was a possibility. He tried not to think about it, though, tried to remain hopeful that if his brother did resurface, he would try and find Itachi, whether it be to kill him or because he knew the truth. Sasuke would come for him. He had to.
Itachi rubbed at his eye. "I don't think they saw him," he admitted. "It makes no sense for him to be near the Hidden Waterfall Village."
"Stranger things have happened," Aoi shrugged. "Maybe he's on his way."
Maybe.
But now, days had passed, and there was still no sign of Sasuke. And Itachi let the hope start to die in his chest.
Aoi had begun to wrap up the map. "You're still holding counsel tomorrow afternoon, right?"
Itachi nodded, leaning his head against his hand. He could feel himself dozing already.
Aoi laughed. "Try and get some sleep tonight, alright? I'll swing by again in the morning." He stood up and gave Itachi a small wave, slipping quietly out of the tent. There was a low murmur outside, likely Aoi bidding the men standing guard goodnight. And then — silence.
He sighed, closing his eyes. He knew he ought to move to the bedroll, but he couldn't bring himself to get up, not yet. There was so much to plan, so much to take care of. But only one name pounded through his head, incessant and all consuming.
Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke.
He'd never get to sleep.