XIX: Reorientation
Tsunade was tapping her foot on the ground, an expression of profound annoyance on her face. "I knew I shouldn't have come back," she said to the Hokage. "I had just finished with those civilians and as soon as I'm done with them you give me more patients to treat."
Itachi stood to the side of the Hokage and his old student, watching the pair of legendary shinobi as they stood in a hallway at the hospital. It was the morning after the incident at the Military Police Headquarters, Itachi and the Hokage having arrived to check on the status of the previous day's casualties.
"I am sorry about that," the Hokage said, once again wearing the robes of his office. "Unforeseen circumstances."
"Can we see them?" Itachi interjected.
Tsunade turned her attention to the Uchiha Clan Head before nodding. She took a step back and opened the nearest door, the trio walking into the hospital room.
"Aside from some cuts and lacerations that were treated in the initial first aid, Kakashi has a straight forward, if extreme, case of chakra exhaustion," Tsunade said, gesturing to the unconscious ANBU laying on the bed.
"Is it because of the jutsu he used?" Itachi asked.
Tsunade nodded in response. "I don't know how he acquired an ability like that, but I would recommend against him using it if at all possible. He just doesn't have the chakra reserves to perform it safely."
"I thought that might be the case," Itachi stated. "Considering he uses the Sharingan without the Kekkai Genkai."
"If you want my opinion, he's still young and his charka reserves should continue growing for a good long while, so maybe with some hard training and improved control he could use it effectively sometime in the future," Tsunade commented. "Still, seeing as you are the Uchiha Clan Head I would say that this falls more under your expertise than mine. I'll leave it up to you to discuss it with him."
"What of the young lady?" the Hokage interjected.
"Right next door," Tsunade answered as she walked back into the hallway and led the other two to the next room over. She opened the door to reveal the sleeping Jun Uchiha.
"Shizune had to amputate what was left of her knee, there were so many shards of bone in her flesh that it wouldn't have been able to heal properly," Tsunade explained, gesturing to where the blanket that laid on top of Jun fell flat where her lower right leg should have been.
"We're building a prosthetic limb for her right now," Tsunade continued. "It'll give her some basic mobility, but her days as a frontline shinobi are over."
Itachi took a deep breath as he absorbed this news. "I see. I figured that was the case, but it's disappointing to hear regardless."
"Keep an eye on her," the Hokage said, putting a gentle hand on Itachi's shoulder. "Injuries like this can be difficult to deal with emotionally, especially when it prevents someone from doing something they've worked hard for."
"I'll keep that in mind," Itachi replied, filing the advice away in his head.
The Hokage turned his attention to his old student. "Have you been able to find the time for the other matter that I called you back for?"
Tsunade nodded in response. "Follow me."
Follow Itachi and the Hokage did, out of Jun's room and down the hall to a small break room. After making sure that they were alone, Tsunade closed the door behind them and locked it.
"Did your research turn anything up?" the Hokage asked.
"There were several records in the archives of techniques and methods that can extend the user's lifespan," Tsunade answered. "However, the majority of them were invented after Madara was supposedly killed by my grandfather, so I find it unlikely that he could have used them. Most of the rest have damaging side effects that, even if they kept him alive, would have sapped him of so much of his strength that I doubt he would have been able to fight someone like Minato on even footing."
"So it was a dead end," Itachi said.
"There was one that I think has a real, though still slim, chance," Tsunade commented. "The Earth Grudge, a forbidden jutsu of the Hidden Waterfall. I couldn't find anything as to what exactly its capable of, but what I did find seemed to suggest that it provided some means of slowing aging. It was invented before Madara's defection, so it fits within the timeframe, but the only manuscript describing it was stolen from the Hidden Waterfall by one of their jonin who had gone rogue, way back in my grandfather's day. It's possible that knowledge of it somehow ended up in Madara's hands, but there's no real reason to suspect that at the moment."
The Hokage took a deep breath as he took this information. "Thank you, Tsunade. It was always a long shot, so I'm not terribly surprised that you turned up nothing concrete. Still, it is often just as valuable to know what something is not as it is to know what something is."
"Hold on," Itachi interjected.
"What is it?" the Hokage asked.
"What about the First Hokage?" the Uchiha asked. "You mentioned that his chakra had life giving properties and could even slow the aging process. Just yesterday we saw Danzo using Lord First's DNA to enhance his physical abilities."
Tsunade perked up as she began putting the pieces together in her head. "Of course. All this other research, running around in circles, while the most straightforward explanation was right under our noses. I never knew my grandfather to use his chakra to extend his or anyone else's lifespan, but it would certainly be possible. Well, theoretically at least. And Madara could have gotten it directly from the source. I'm sure he could have acquired a blood sample from any of their battles. Possibly even from their final one."
"That still leaves the issue of Madara's death at the Final Valley," the Hokage commented. "Lord First was never eager to discuss it, but so far as I'm aware he was never less than certain that Madara had died by his hands."
Itachi considered this for a moment before his eyes went wide and he stood up straight, realization hitting him with great force. "Danzo, he's given us all the answers. Lord First's DNA, then the Izanagi."
"The what?' Tsunade questioned.
"A dangerous Sharingan technique that Danzo used in our battle yesterday," the Hokage explained. "One that allows the user to alter reality itself for a short period at the cost of an eye. Danzo used it several times to undo lethal damage to himself."
"That's the most reasonable explanation yet," Tsunade said. "Madara could have acquired a sample of my grandfather's DNA during one of their battles, then used the Izanagi to fake his death."
"It would also explain why Madara went into hiding afterwords," Itachi continued. "The loss of a Sharingan would have significantly reduced his strength. It even fits Tekka and Inabi's description of the mask with one eyehole. He could have been covering up a Sharingan that had been sacrificed for the Izanagi."
The Hokage nodded as he took in this line of thinking. "It certainly fits better than anything else we've discussed. Still, I must caution against assumptions. We don't have any hard evidence, for all we know the Madara story was a cover for whoever the true mastermind is." Turning to the door, he added, "thank you for the report, and keep me posted on your patients. Come, Itachi, we still need to hear from Jiraiya and Shisui."
The Uchiha followed after the village leader, leaving the hospital and heading towards the Hokage Residence.
Sasuke sat in his seat, waiting for classes to start at the Academy. Naruto had returned to a much more joyous audience than his previous go around after the kidnapping incident, with Choji and Shikamaru greeting him smiles and high fives. That was two more people than the zero he had gotten last time. Hinata, as per her usual as Sasuke was increasingly noticing, sat in the corner and smiled on the scene from afar.
Now all there was to do was to sit and wait until the substitute teacher arrived. Or at least that's what Sasuke assumed
"How's everybody doing?" Iruka called out, waving a bandaged hand at the class as he stepped in through the door.
"Sensei, you're back," Sakura said, sitting straighter at the sight of the class's normal teacher. Most of the other students reacted in similar fashion.
"Yes, I am," Iruka replied. "My injuries were pretty bad, it took a while to recover. I hope the substitute did an OK job while I was in the hospital."
Ino was visibly taken aback. "Hospital? Iruka-sensei, were you that sick?"
It was now Iruka's turn to look surprised. "Who told you guys that I was sick?"
"I mean, we just kind of assumed," Kiba spoke up. "The sub didn't tell us anything other than that you'd be gone a while."
Iruka scanned the room, looking at all of his students. "So then, did they not tell you guys anything about Naruto's kidnapping?"
"Kidnapping?" Sakura echoed in a disbelieving tone before turning in her seat to look at Naruto. "There's no way that's right. Nobody would want that twerp so much that they'd kidnap him."
"Sakura..." Naruto said pleadingly, hiding his head under his arms.
Most of the other students began laughing.
"Yeah, Iruka-sensei," Kiba managed to get out through his hysterical fits of laughter, slapping his desk. "You're going to have to come up with a better story than that if you want to impress us!"
Sasuke sat in his seat, letting the laughter roll over him. His eyes scanned his classmates, seeing how all of them, save for the trio who had gone with him to the Military Police Headquarters and the ever stoic Shino, were laughing at the expense of his friend. Gritting his teeth in a quickly thwarted attempt to hold back his anger, he stood up and slammed both hands against his desk.
"Shut up!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.
The room fell silent, everyone looking at the Uchiha boy, stunned. Sasuke turned and stalked out the room, determined not to give his classmates any more of his time.
Going out the back entrance at the rear of the classroom, Sasuke slammed the door behind and stared up at the ceiling. Breathing heavy, forceful breaths through his nose as the anger stewed within him. It took him several seconds to realize that he wasn't alone.
Looking to the his left, down the hall to where the front entrance to the classroom was, he saw a boy, pale skin and dark hair that was styled in a way that obviously gave no thought beyond mere function. He was just standing there, staring at Sasuke. No surprise, no worry, not a hint of detectable emotion on his face. There were only these dark eyes that watched dispassionately.
Both Sasuke's and this boy's eyes were distracted by the arrival of Iruka from inside of the classroom.
"Sasuke!" the teacher yelled as he threw the door next to the other boy open. "Oh, good, you're still here," he said once he realized that the young Uchiha was just standing out in the hall. "Look, I understand how frustrated you must feel with how the other kids are treating Naruto, but you mustn't let that get to you. How about you go back inside and maybe, just maybe, both you and Naruto will have a chance to prove everyone else wrong."
The young Uchiha stared back at his teacher for a long moment, considering everything Iruka had just said to him. "OK," he finally replied, opening the back entrance and walking back to his seat.
"Alright, now that everything's settled down," Iruka said with forced cheer as he walked back to his desk at the front of the classroom. "Let's get to the first order of business that I wanted to get to today." He gestured at the still open door, but nothing happened.
Iruka started waving for the boy in the hall to come in with more obvious, sweeping movements. "Come on, there's no need to be afraid, you can come in."
"I'm not afraid," the boy replied in a monotone voice, still standing out in the hall.
"Who is that?' Sasuke heard one of the girls ask the kid sitting next to them.
Iruka sighed. "Listen, can you just come into the room, please."
The boy walked into the room without giving Iruka the benefit of a verbal response. Then he stood by Iruka's desk. Nothing else, just standing.
"Um," Iruka began as the awkward silence in the room started feeling thicker and thicker. "Why don't you introduce yourself? Your name, why you're transferring to our class, so on."
"My name is Sai," the boy said. "The owner of the orphanage I was living at passed away recently and it had to close down. The village is taking me in, so I am to start attending these classes."
"Very good," Iruka said with a smile. "Why don't you take a seat over..." he started scanning the room. "There," he finished, pointing at an open seat near the windows.
"Now, I want you guys to be extra nice to Sai," Iruka told the class as the boy started walking to the chair. "He's been going through some hard times recently and I'm sure he has some catching up to do."
Sai came to a stop, standing over his new chair. "There's no need for that," he said in that same monotone voice. "I'm not in any kind of pain. Besides, I'm sure that I am more advanced as a shinobi than any of the students here."
In an instant the awkward silence in the room transformed into a stunned one. Just as quickly it turned into a cacophony of screaming and yelling.
"You think you can get away with dissing us like that, punk?!" Kiba yelled, cutting through the tangled mess of sound.
Sakura's voice was the next to pierce the noise. "There's no way you can be better than all of us!"
"Yeah," Ino joined in. "I bet Sasuke is definitely better than you!"
From across the room the young Uchiha met Shikamaru's gaze. The Nara boy had his chair turned, leaning backwards against the wall. He let out a performative sigh once he was sure that he had the other boy's attention. Sasuke gave a short nod to communicate his agreement with the sentiment.
It was only after further scanning that the Uchiha made out Naruto. The blonde wasn't screaming like most of the rest of the students. Instead he had a devious grin on his face as he looked headlong at the new arrival.
Itachi took a deep breath as the Hokage took his seat at his desk, Jiraiya and Shisui there in the office with them.
"I'm sorry that we weren't there to help you guys deal with Danzo," the Toad Sage said before anyone else could make a comment. "If I had known that old war hawk was planning something like that I would have put our mission on hold."
"Don't blame yourself," the Hokage replied. "It was my decision that you and Shisui push ahead with the investigation while the rest of us dealt with Danzo."
Jiraiya nodded in response. "Speaking of which, Shisui and I made some progress."
"That's correct," the Uchiha echoed. "We were able to find a few of Lord Fourth's safe houses in the forests and hills surrounding the village. We haven't found any evidence of a battle or confrontation with the Masked Madara like we were theorizing, but we have a methodology and pattern to follow to find more safe houses."
"Good, keep it up," the Hokage replied.
"I would like for us to have more manpower," Jiraiya commented. "Itachi will be a nice addition, but we need more than that."
"I actually have a request along those lines," the Uchiha Clan Head said.
"Oh?" the Hokage questioned. "Go ahead."
"It turns out my mother is aware of Naruto's identity, Kushina told her shortly before her death," Itachi explained. "I have made an offer for her to join our mission."
The Hokage nodded in response. "Very well, I will send for her so that we may discuss it."
"What about Kakashi Hatake?" Shisui asked. "I remember you saying that he is also in the know."
"I had originally hoped to have him work on another project," the Hokage replied. "However, with the recent events involving Danzo we've had to reorient the ANBU towards the dismantling of Root, so the mission I originally had in mind for him has been put on hold. Once he has been released from the hospital he may join your investigation." Taking a moment to study the other shinobi in the room he added, "if there is nothing else, you are dismissed."
Jiraiya walked out of the office while Itachi and Shisui bowed to the Hokage.
"Actually, Lord Hokage," the Uchiha Clan Head said. "I would appreciate it if Shisui and I could inform Kakashi tomorrow. There is something I believe we need to discuss with him, so it would be convenient if we could also tell him about the investigation."
The Hokage nodded in response. "If that is what you feel to be best, you may."
"Thank you, Lord Hokage," Itachi replied before he and Shisui turned and walked our of the room.
The older Uchiha waited until they were further down the hall before speaking. "What do we need to speak with Kakashi about?"
"He's in the same position as us," Itachi answered, pointing at his eye.
"Oh," Shisui replied. "Frankly, it's amazing that a non-Uchiha was able to acquire it. But you're right. In fact, there's a conversation I've meaning to have with you about it, might as well include him."
Itachi nodded as the pair continued down the hall. As they walked Shikaku Nara came up from the other direction.
"Oh, Itachi," the Nara Clan Head said. "How are you doing after yesterday?"
"All things considered, OK," Itachi answered. "I imagine you're in the same position as us with having to regroup after everything that happened."
The Jonin Commander scratched the back of his head as he responded. "Yeah, it's been a drag trying to make sure that everyone's on the same page with the Danzo attempting a coup stuff. But we're getting there."
Itachi nodded in a show of understanding. The coup story was something he and the Hokage decided on, in order to distract the public from the situation involving Naruto.
"By the way, Itachi," Shikaku continued. "What's the condition of that clanswoman of yours? Jun, right?"
"Hm?" the Uchiha Clan Head voiced, surprised to hear the young Chunin being brought up. "Oh, sorry. She'll live, but her lower right leg is gone. They're making a prosthetic for her, but she'll never work as a shinobi again."
"I see, I was afraid of that," Shikaku replied. "Can you send her my way once she's released from the hospital? There's something I'd like to discuss with her."
"Does it have something to do with the incident at the Military Police Headquarters?" Itachi asked.
"I guess you could say that," Shikaku replied.
Itachi nodded. "I'll be sure to let her know."
"Thank you," Shikaku said as he resumed his previous path.
The two Uchiha continued on their way as well, Itachi thinking back on the events on the past couple of days as they did. He had told Danzo that their confrontation seemed like a distraction, but now he wasn't so sure. The Root leader had unwittingly demonstrated to them the method that Madara would have been most likely to use to survive in the shadows in the decades since his death. Beyond that, the discovery of Kakashi's Mangekyo and the deepening of the relationship between not just Sasuke and Naruto, but also between the latter and Mikoto, could very well end up paying dividends down the road.
Itachi smiled softly to himself. Despite the trials and tribulations, he could not help but feel that they were making steps in the right direction.
