Warnings for Sakumo's suicide and the ensuing imagery and feels. Also bodily fluids.
Poison: Nerveweed and Teeth
"Asuma?" Kakashi blinked. "Sorry, I didn't recognise you for a second with that scraggly goat-beard."
Asuma rubbed his chin ruefully. "Yeah, yeah. It'll look cool, give me time. And is it just me, or did you get skinny? You look like I could snap you in half without breaking a sweat." And that wasn't the only thing. Kakashi was missing his flak jacket, dressed in casual clothes and looked positively relaxed. Looking after a kid really had done a number on him.
"I'd like to see you try!" Kakashi barked out a laugh. "Are you back for good, or...?'"
"Just temporary leave," Asuma sighed. "Check with the Old Man and my new nephew, catch up on all the gossip. Only a week, then back to the capital. Oh, and on the subject of gossip, I picked up a Bingo Book from a Bounty Office on the way here and guess what I found?"
A groan. "He's not my son; just my Apprentice."
Asuma nodded sagely, his theory confirmed, as he steered them both down a quiet side-street for the privacy. "I thought that had to be it. Kumade Toriichi couldn't have been the only one, and the timing works out about right-"
"What are you babbling on about?" Kakashi was incredulous.
"You know..." Asuma fumbled. "How every so often the Hatake Retainer Family gets a promising cadet and sends them to be tutored by the Main Line? Like Kumade was?"
"Correct, but not in this case," was the firm reply. "Kimimaro is not related to me or the Hatake in any way, shape or form. He's actually the last of the Kaguya Clan, you know, that incident some years back when Kiri got attacked and it made the Purges worse? The brat just thinks it's funny to make himself look like me. And he also thinks it's funny to make Inoichi-san's blood-pressure skyrocket and make Shisui Uchiha chug alcohol to dull the insanity."
"..."
"And don't get me started on the Itachi situation."
"I know I'm probably going to regret this but...tell me everything."
"I was wondering where that went," Itachi said, looking at the kanzashi Kimimaro had just handed him. "Thanks for picking it up, but why didn't it transform with me?"
He received a non-committal shrug in reply. "Well, clothes only transform because they contain residue of your own chakra. Recently-added accessories don't have enough to register."
"Huh." He examined the feather-covered chain and fed a little chakra through it to hold it still. It worked; good. He could still be as silent as he wished and not have to worry about the jingling giving him away. Putting it down for a moment, he took out his hair tie. Twisting his hair into a knot, he tied it and slid the kanzashi in.
It was weird, having his hair tied up. And it wasn't perfect. His bangs still stubbornly framed his face, being relatively too short to tie back, and a few wisps of hair at the nape of his neck had escaped. "How does it look?"
"Like a Daimyo's rebellious son trying to join the Yakuza."
He scowled good-naturedly. "Speak for yourself, paint-face. You look like a noble from two hundred years ago ran into an Uzumaki, with all those seals all over you."
"Hey, they are very useful. Don't think I'd ever get a proper tattoo though; how about you? Because, seriously, new hairstyle and a tattoo? All but screaming 'rebellious teenage phase'. It would probably be the tipping point for Inoichi-san's blood pressure."
A shrug. "Can't say I ever thought about it before. And the ANBU tattoo doesn't really count. Maybe a small one on the inside of my arm? Or something on the side of my ribs; somewhere discreet."
Kimimaro grinned evilly. "So, you are considering it?"
He flushed. "No."
"Your denial betrays you, brother mine. You know you secretly want to watch people's brains explode when they see that perfect boy has a tattoo."
"Fine! But only if you get a tattoo as well; and you said you wouldn't."
"Well," Kimimaro thought for a moment. "How about, if we both get to age 18, we both get tattoos to celebrate."
"I'll take that deal." Itachi was resolute. "As long as they're not matching."
"Get a cat."
"No!"
The coil of hemp string flexed lazily through the air, joined by a second, then a third, and so on until there were ten.
Sweat beaded on Toshiki Hyuuga's brow, the tenketsu on his fingers aching as he channelled chakra through the strings to keep them aloft, unfurling them longer and longer until his concentration stuttered and they fell to the grass. So close!
Still, he had made more progress than he ever had with Gentle Fist. He could consistently channel a stream of chakra through his fingers and into string without breaking and therefore expending it, it was the length and then the dexterity he had to work on. Once he got to 20 metres and could control it enough not to lash it around with abandon, he'd get hold of some actual wire, which would be easier than string.
"Your progress is commendable," Yuyu Aburame noted as she made her way towards him, out of the foliage. "Stopping for a while would be beneficial, however. Come; we shall visit Kimimaro."
Toshiki groaned in what he hoped came off as vaguely affirmative, and hauled himself to his feet. Channelling chakra once again, it was the work of a moment to wind up his string before unknotting it from his fingers. Checking the sun, he realised how much time had gone by. And how long it had been since he had eaten. "Can we, uh, get a late breakfast on the way?"
silent disapproval. acquiescence.
Toshiki shuddered at the projected emotional miasma. Seriously, did she have to do that? It was funny used against other people, but he was her friend! Nope, the only one Yuyu spent her words on was Kimimaro; she turned into a right chatterbox around him. It wasn't fair! How come he didn't have to suffer their pain?
"What's that lump under your coat?"
The question slipped out before he could stop it, and he mentally prepared to die. You did not ask to see under an Aburame's coat! And with the...mood...Yuyu had been in the past week, he'd be lucky if death was all she did to him.
"Project." She merely replied curtly, nothing else forth coming. Toshiki allowed his breathing to resume. On second thoughts, Kimimaro suffered enough pain from Yuyu. And also apparently had no way of getting away from it, since she had sworn him to her. Poor bastard.
Toshiki knew that when Yuyu said 'project', she meant 'I have genetically engineered a new species of kikaichu specifically designed to scare the shit out of people with their abilities, you may admire when ready'. At least, that was what it usually meant.
To a Byakugan(at least, on a normal setting), Aburame were human chakra networks dotted with tight gatherings and continuous flitting specks of other tiny points of chakra. The lump underneath Yuyu's coat had a chakra signature, yes, but only one. A rather...young one.
It was fact that the lump was situated on the left of her sternum, among other bits of information, that stopped Toshiki drawing the worst sort of erroneous conclusion and fainting dead away.
He soon got his answer when they, eventually and predictably, ran into Kimimaro and Itachi. Kimimaro blinked curiously down at what Yuyu was holding out to him.
"That is an egg."
"..."
"Why is it green? And the size of my head?"
"I made it."
"Of course, it's just that I'm wondering how big this thing will be when it hatches based on the egg size, then how big it's going to grow, and that it would need actual lungs and an endoskeleton, and what the fucking fuck sort of DNA did you put into it to achieve that?"
"Clan secrets. Later."
"Can you at least tell me now if it was human DNA?"
"No human at all."
He visibly slumped in relief, colour returning to his face as he muttered something about flies, men dressed in black and 'Kuronenburgu'. Disregarding his nonsense, Yuyu held out the egg to him again. "I need some chakra. About a C-rank jutsu worth. Before I use your spine as a coatrack."
"Words cannot adequately express how much I dislike this," Itachi said flatly, seemingly disinterested, but Toshiki could see the tensing of the hand upon Kimimaro's shoulder, ready to hurl him away from the ominous orb. Kimimaro merely rolled his eyes, seemingly unconcerned, and put his hand on it.
His proffered chakra was not eaten, drained, tugged on, as he had expected. Frowning, he pushed instead, shoving his chakra in before withdrawing his hand. "That was more anti-climactic than I thought, but oh well. Was that all you wanted me for?"
She shook her head as she stowed the egg back into her coat. Having unbuttoned it slightly in order to do so in the first place, Kimimaro could see the pouch on the harness she was putting it into.
"Oh, hey, you liked your present then?" He asked cheerfully.
"Yes; it is very useful." Was the clipped reply, but he still beamed happily.
"I am officially inviting you to the Aburame Compound," Yuyu continued. "As I have said, there are secret things I need to talk to you about. When would be an optimum time?"
"But I've been to your grandmother's house before, why would I need an official invite this time? And how long would this be for?"
She huffed, as if he'd missed something glaringly obvious. "Last time, you were Obaa-san's guest, her responsibility and under her aegis. Now, you are being approached as your own authority and responsibility. You are being recognised. And roughly one evening."
Kimimaro nodded. "Cool. Can't do it tonight, Kakashi-shishou's expecting me for training early in the morning, but maybe tomorrow?"
"That would be acceptable."
"-Once she's calmed down, I'm running towards their chakra signatures and half-expecting the kid to be half-drowned given the predicted impact speed. Nope, Tenzo's fished him out with only a mild concussion and spitting out pondweed, brat looks up at me and says "Do I still have a house?"
Asuma snerked into his glass. "Oh kami, it's Genma dialled up to eleven and hyped on sugar."
"Oh, I wouldn't say that," a new voice interrupted, a shinobi Asuma didn't recognise at all sliding into the seat next to them. His hair was a non-descript brown in clipped-short spikes, a faceplate like the Nidaime's framing large, dark eyes.
"Senpai," the man nodded toward Kakashi, before settling his attention fully on Asuma. "Sarutobi-san. I am Tenzo; I think senpai had just mentioned me. I was a Career ANBU under his supervision, though I am no longer a Career due to certain changes in my situation."
Good grief, Asuma could believe it, from the terse speech to the carefully blank expression and tightly leashed chakra. Then the illusion was shattered when Kakashi cleared his throat and uttered the words '"apple juice"'.
Tenzo flinched, a full body cringe as he was caught off guard, nearly leaping off his stool. "No! We don't mention that accursed substance senpai!"
As Asuma stared in disbelief, Kakashi chuckled. "As you can see Asuma, Kimimaro tends to have that sort of mentally scarring effect. He looks at things a little bit sideways and has an infectious personality. I think 'functionally broken and irritatingly perceptive with little-to-no sense of proportion' was how Inoichi-san described him once."
"Why isn't he a Chunin yet, then?"
Asuma's question cut straight to the point. "If he's half as skilled and experienced as you've described, he wipe the floor with half the Genin in the Elemental Nations. Sure, there's the whole refugee/recentness of citizenship thing the red tape will pull up, but he's got Kakashi Hatake to vouch for him."
"As Inoichi-san has said, he has a skewed sense of proportion," Tenzo was the one to answer, having regained his composure. "I don't think he truly understands how strong he is. Orochimaru trained him to the highest of standards and it shows, but he sees himself as weak for being under such control in the first place. Sure, he enjoys causing chaos, but if he ever pushed himself I shudder to think what he could do. He needs equilibrium before he can advance. That, and he's made friends of his own age, if not skill level."
"Oh yeah, the Aburame who ate a wall, I've heard," Asuma nodded. "I didn't know Aburame kikaichu could eats things other than chakra, but you learn something knew every day, I guess."
Swigging back the rest of his glass, Kakashi rose to his feet. "Well, it's been fun Asuma, but I need to be going. Got to pick up a few groceries and put some finishing touches on a new bit of equipment before I turn in for bed, then early morning training. I'll see you two around, don't let Tenzo stay up late, remember to put the cat out, don't drink the water and tell Kurenai that her relatives are mildly scary."
With that, he swanned off out of the bar and into the evening light.
"He's reached a new level of infuriating; there's less Obito in it than I remember," Asuma commented solemnly.
"I wonder what he meant by 'tell Kurenai'?" Tenzo pondered out loud, not noticing the flush rising in Asuma's face. "I think I've been introduced before but I don't see her often enough to-"
"You've had enough to drink!" He was interrupted loudly with a hand on his collar.
Bodily dragged out of the door, all that could be heard was his plaintive cry of, "but I didn't drink anything?"
Kakashi idly noted that the sunset was rather pretty, all pink and orange with the dark indigo of clouds. The day had gone by so fast. Aside from dropping a note in to Kimimaro to expect training tomorrow morning, he'd done pretty much nothing with his day. Yesterday had been for Kimimaro to catch up with friends and for Kakashi to work on those tekko-kagi(he was going to finish those tonight, Kimimaro would need them for tomorrow), but time had completely slipped by him. Either he was getting lax, or there was something to this 'down-time' thing, because it had been worth it to catch up with Asuma. Nice bit of intel direct from the capital.
Plus the opportunity for some light teasing. That was always fun.
Shifting the bag of groceries under his arm, Kakashi decided to drop by and check that Kimimaro had done something with his day, but after he'd dropped this bag off at his flat and put everything away. Yes, that sounded like a plan.
He flicked on the light switch as he stepped into his apartment and locked the door behind him, wincing at the brightness all the while. Maybe it was getting dark outside in contrast; it was way too bright in here and it wasn't like he'd changed the lightbulb recently either. Never mind, he'd sit down and unpack this stuff, maybe have a cup of tea. Drinking on an empty stomach didn't agree with him, he could feel a slight burn in his gut from the alcohol.
The bag slipped from his suddenly weakened grasp, vegetables and fruit rolling across the floor as pain exploded behind his left temple.
His legs buckled beneath him and he bashed his shoulder on the corner of the table as he fell, in shock more than anything. Mind racing out of control and in ever more fraying patterns, what washappeningwhatisthishelpmestopstopstop...….
.
blackness, wake up, whatishappening?….
.
back hurts arching, spine pulling taught….…..…
.
his mouth tastes like metal drowning can'tbreathe maskmaskmask…!
Somehow, despite arms that refused to coordinate, Kakashi peeled down his already-soaked mask and gasped for air, thankfully already on his side as he gagged on the saliva oozing from his mouth in strings, staining his carpet.
He lay there, exhausted and still, save for the tremors that periodically shuddered through his body. He couldn't flex the muscles below his knees, and nearly every muscle above his knees ached like they'd been individually pounded with a smith's hammer.
Poison.
thumpathumpathumpathumpathumpathumpathumpathumpathumpathumpa...'
Heart racing.
Numbness slowly creeping upwards, towards his lungs. Respiratory failure, pending.
Can't move; muscles lax and limp.
"...aauuh…"
Can't speak, can't cry for help.
Chakra paths were deeply intertwined with organs and muscles. The poison was attacking his nervous system; his chakra flow was sluggish and restricted, frequently disrupted.
.
.
.
.
It was evening.
.
No one would think to look for him until morning.
.
.
.
He was afraid.
"It's permanent, you say?"
Shisui resisted the urge to cower, and not for the first time. "As far as I am aware, Hokage-sama. I haven't really had a chance to study my former enemies."
"I am aware that a normal Sharingan can implant compulsions, but to change behaviour completely, to even bypass the instinct to live, is frightening." The Sandaime paused for a moment, stewing the implications over in his mind. Then considered what Shisui had actually done.
"I am proud of you."
"Uh..." Shisui rocked back on his heels, stunned at the praise. Hiruzen rose from his chair, walking over to the younger man and placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
"Righteous anger is a far more dangerous thing than usual rage. Yet you restrained yourself, and allowed them free will; merely diverting them from their path instead of strangling their minds. I doubt even Kagami could have resisted such a temptation."
"Hokage-sama, I'm-"
"A good man, Shisui Uchiha. A great shinobi and a good man."
Shisui shook his head numbly. "I let Itachi suffer for too long. I let them plot for too long! I was only fulfilling a duty long overdue. And I only acted to protect Itachi, in the end."
Hiruzen didn't even disguise the poor attempt to bite back a chuckle. "Shisui-kun...you have quite literally just described to me the Will of Fire. You held back, tried to reason with your Clan, yet kept yourself in check when time came to mete out justice. You wholeheartedly spring to the defence of the next generation, becoming an example for them to follow in the process. And despite your undoubted edge of ruthlessness, you admit your failings and show compassion."
Unbalanced and feeling flayed by the benevolent verbal dissection, Shisui's voice bordered on tremulous. "What are you trying to say, Hokage-sama?"
Old, tired eyes glinted with a cunning light underneath the pentagonal hat. "That you have all the makings of a fine Hokage."
The words sank into a whirling mind, stunning Shisui with the blatant underlying message. Conscious of the boy's shock, Hiruzen gently guided him down into a nearby chair. Minato had reacted in a similar fashion to that statement, if he recalled, fond memories briefly resurfacing; in stark contrast to Orochimaru's smug coldness that had tipped the balance in favour of the younger, clanless blond.
"You want me to...?"
"Not at once," Hiruzen reassured. "In a few years maybe. But I would take you on as my student, build you up, help you cultivate the necessary connections and skills. You would be a great Hokage."
"Hokage-sama," Shisui finally said, words falling from trembling lips. "I...I need time, please, I beg you, give me time to think."
"Of course, Shisui-kun. Go; relax and mull it over. But be warned that you cannot postpone this indefinitely. I expect your answer, negative or affirmative, in two weeks time."
Now dismissed, Shisui fairly bolted from the room into the slowly cooling night air, his breath catching and stomach churning as he felt the monumental decision looming over him.
The numbness had reached Kakashi's hips.
From his position on the floor, he could see the digital clock on a shelf. He would be able to see his death tick by.
The sun had set, and from the corner of his eye he could see the first glimmers of stars through the tree branches that framed his window.
It would be a long, slow night.
He didn't dare succumb to sleep; he might not ever wake up.
I suppressed a yawn, and sternly forced myself to put down the book. Kakashi-shishou had left me a note, to meet him at the old house for my promised remedial training on chemicals and kyakujutsu, and to be there early. If I didn't want to be splitting my skull in half with yawning, I needed to go to sleep soon. As in, right now.
It had been nice to have a second free day, just hanging out. Itachi had gone to take care of Sasuke for most of the day, and I didn't begrudge him. Though I didn't envy having to explain the mysterious disappearance of a new pet to a small, emotional, nearly-seven-year-old child.
And I had an invitation to the Aburame Compound for tomorrow, can't forget that. I'm sure Kakashi will agree once I tell him about it. It'll be nice to hangout with Yuyu and see how her experiments are coming on. She said she'd tell me why she was moody while I was gone, and what the deal is with that huge egg.
I'm just happy that she likes her present...
There was a sharp, stabbing pain under his ribs, quickly swept away by the steadily encroaching numbness.
A wave of nausea swept through him and Kakashi's stomach convulsed. A stinking chemical soup of acid and digested food surged over his tongue and made his already damp carpet ever more foul and acrid-smelling. He coughed and spat out all he could, but his mustered strength was quickly sapped and he fell limp again with a soft groan.
Already the dull ache of nothingness was tugging at the bottom of his ribcage.
It was only a matter of time until he would draw his last breath.
And it wouldn't be long.
A dry chuckle forced itself from his throat. Who would have thought that it would end like this? Curled up on his side like a dying spider, all alone. They'd find his body eventually, once they broke through the security seals on his apartment.
A thought occurred to him. Would Kimimaro find his body first? It was likely, given the promised the brat remedial training. What would he think? What would he do? He'd be alone; Kakashi had promised to protect him!
"C'mon kid." A gloved hand plucked at his sleeve. "Let go, that's enough. We'll clean up for you."
Kakashi growled, digging his nails into his father's cold arm in defiance. The heat had long since fled, the pool of blood congealed and there was the beginnings of the smell of urine as the bladder voided.
Kakashi was no fool. There was no pulse when he arrived. The glimmer of pink torn intestines behind the yellow flaps of exsanguinating fat that held the blade of a familiar sword in place, heralded an injury enacted with a deliberate hand.
His father had abandoned him.
He had known that his father had been broken by the Village's rejection and vilification, Kakashi hadn't approved of the mission outcome himself, but to just give up?
WASN'T HIS OWN SON WORTH LIVING FOR?!
Kakashi had screamed. Raged. Kicked and clawed at his coward father's corpse until he cried, tears falling onto the bruises and welts pummelled and carved into unfeeling flesh.
He didn't know how the ANBU had found out, but now they were here, endeavouring to separate the both of them.
How dare they.
A part of him welcomed their offer to remove and preserve the corpse until the proper arrangements could be made. It rationalized that Kakashi could return later to give directions on the proper Clan funerary rites.
But the second voice that drowned it out was the one screaming that he would not abandon his father's body, that neither of them had suffered enough.
The ANBU, tiring of Kakashi's resistance, took a firm hold of his shoulder in an attempt to start extricating the kid as gently and firmly as possible. In one swift move, Kakashi pulled down his mask and bit the ANBU on the arm.
From a taijutsu and general self-defence standpoint, biting was viewed as a last resort, as it left the sensitive tissues and organs of the face and neck withing easy striking distance.
But Kakashi was distraught, the ANBU was caught off-guard, and there had been good reason for Sakumo instructing his son to never take off the mask until he had gained sufficient control.
Prepubescent milk teeth clacked against the ANBU-issue ceramic arm-guard.
The jolt of high-voltage Raiton chakra arced across the plate and burrowed into the conductive flesh of the under-arm.
Even as the masked shinobi cried out in pain, arm spasming, his two comrades took full advantage of the distraction. It was the work of a moment, with Kakashi's neck exposed in the aforementioned manner, to put pressure on a certain point and catch him as he collapsed unconscious.
Kakashi stirred from his memories as his breathing hitched, the poison beginning it's assault on his lungs. Dawn was hours away; too long. Far too long.
He was going to die.
You thought this was going to be a fluffy slice of life chapter, didn't you?
You fools.
(I'm sorry, I love you guys really. Cuddles and hugs.)
But no, I have been planning this for a while, this turn of events isn't just a random asspull for the shock factor, this is actually plot.
…
Here, have my writing playlist!(Throws it at the gathering angry mob and runs like hell):
This fic in general= Kings and Queens and Vagabonds by Ellem
A vaguely surreal, kind of introspective tune, but slightly hopeful at the same time.
Kimimaro= Human by Of Monsters and Men
About not fitting into your own skin, the dichotomy of different lives/roles, and the changes you make.
Yuyu= A Little Wicked by Valerie Broussard
Menacing, smug and cold-hearted . Great for getting into Yuyu's morally inhuman mindset.
Itachi= Illusion by VNV Nation
It fits his general mood, okay?
Toshiki= Winter Sound by Of Monsters and Men
Get used to the crazy dude, they're not letting you go and it'll be better in the long run.
Erumi= Don't Look Down by Hidden Citizens
*mumbles* I dunno, it just kind of fits.
Kakashi= Lost Within by Fivefold
My Kakashi's slowly coming out of his shell, at least.
Shisui= Demons by Extreme Music
He's stuck between a rock and a hard place, and he keeps choosing to stay there.
Sakumo Hatake= Remember We Die by Gemini Sydrome
*mutters* The guy deserved more characterisation and screen-time.