Author Note: Rating raised due to graphic depictions of post-violence.
Chapter 4: No Secrets Here
Naruto and Sasuke slipped off their backpacks and sat at opposite ends of the edge of a floating cube. Obito stood behind them, his demeanor far more casual than one would expect for someone who just kidnapped two children. Or at least, Naruto thought so.
"We'll need to hide out here for a while," Obito explained. "The Leaf will search high and low for you once they notice you're not in the village anymore."
Neither of the kids spoke, instead busying themselves with various items in their travel bags. They shared a suspicious glance, sizing one another up.
"What's the matter?" Obito said, craning his neck. "Having second thoughts?"
The silence continued. Removing his mask and sighing, Obito approached the cube's edge and sat between the two boys.
"Look," he said. "I am here to help both of you. Whatever you were to each other in your old lives isn't important anymore."
Flashbacks of being looked down on by Sasuke made Naruto ball his fists. Whatever Sasuke was thinking about him produced similar results.
Obito held out a hand in either direction. "If you really must hold onto this grudge, then here's an idea. Use that emotion to fuel your training. Do your best to surpass one another, and become stronger together."
Sasuke scoffed. "I'm already stronger than him."
Naruto flushed red, blubbering out, "Oh yeah? That's what YOU think! I've got the power of a-"
He put his foot in his mouth, throwing his new guardian a nervous glance. Was talking about the Nine Tailed Fox off-limits? He hadn't thought this far ahead.
Sensing the reason for his silence, Obito nodded. He got up and stepped back to give them space. "You can tell him. There are no secrets here."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation. His gaze drifted from Obito back to Naruto, who was looking down.
"S-Sasuke, I…" Naruto shook his head. "Do you know about the Nine Tailed Fox's attack on the village?"
"You mean the one from when we were babies?"
Naruto gave a soft nod.
The Uchiha boy's face scrunched up in understandable confusion as he tried to fit the puzzle pieces together. Finding no connection, he said, "Of course I know about it. Why?"
Taking a steadying breath, Naruto looked to Obito again, who spectated in silence. The man oozed an aura of almost mocking curiosity. This would usually have irritated Naruto, but he drew strength from having Obito there for support. He had no idea how Sasuke might react to the news. Would he shun him like the other villagers, right after they just shook on starting over as a family?
Well, here goes nothing, he said to himself.
"Sasuke, the fox wasn't just defeated that day. The Fourth Hokage sealed it away."
"Sealed it away? Where?"
Naruto gulped. "In me."
The overwhelming quiet that fell over the three of them made Naruto buzz with anxiety. What would Sasuke say? What would he do? Antsy and uncomfortable, the blond began to shift from one foot to the other.
Sasuke cocked his head to one side. "You, really? You've got a monster like that sealed into you?" He walked closer to Naruto and peered into his eyes, as if trying to confirm the tale.
"Y-yeah." Naruto arched his back to avoid Sasuke moving so far into his personal space. "Wild, right?"
The latter's hard squint pierced Naruto, as if his former classmate was looking straight into his soul. The black-haired child pulled back and crossed his arms, his expression blank. When at last he spoke, it was with a tone much calmer than Naruto would have expected.
"Then why are you so weak?"
The words were delivered with such genuine confusion, lacking any of Sasuke's usual snark. He was so earnest, Naruto almost forgot to get upset.
Almost.
"You jerk!" he bit back.
He hit Sasuke on the shoulder in what he hoped was a playful manner. They'd promised to put things behind them, so Naruto figured he would try his best to be nice to the Uchiha. Even at times when he was a hard guy to like.
The gesture was well received, for the most part. Sasuke flinched at first, unsure what to make of the reaction. Then he registered that it wasn't an invitation to fight and chuckled in his typical, annoying way. Naruto growled, but Sasuke just shook his head in amusement.
"Wipe that smug look off your face," Naruto said. "I'm not weak, you hear me? I'm Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm gonna surpass you someday!"
"Whatever you say."
They held one another's gaze, neither wanting to look away first. Their matching intensities sent a charge through the air. Despite their young ages, they had history. They'd butted heads for the entirety of their academy days. That kind of rivalry wasn't going to disappear overnight.
Obito's suggestion repeated over and over in Naruto's head.
They were supposed to become stronger together? That seemed impossible. Naruto found it hard to see Sasuke as anything more than an overrated jerk who looked down on everyone else. If what Obito said was true, though, The Leaf had hurt them both. So maybe Sasuke had his reasons.
Memories of seeing him down by the water, staring off into the distance, resurfaced. Sometimes, when no one else was around, Naruto would look at Sasuke and wonder if he hated feeling alone too. Maybe, if they were both going through the same thing, they could understand each other. Every time, though, the kid's angry scowl would erase any hope of that from Naruto's mind. He'd glare or stick out his tongue and go on about his business. Even so, the desire to connect with Sasuke always came back for some reason. Whatever Obito knew about the young Uchiha, it seemed to confirm what Naruto always believed. He and Sasuke were the same.
Trying to be the bigger person, Naruto swallowed his pride and broke eye contact. Obito hummed in detached interest, but didn't intrude on the interaction. Sasuke followed Naruto's example and tried to move on. His hands found their way to his pockets.
"Anyway," Naruto said, "let's worry about getting to Mr. Obito's place first."
Sasuke redirected his attention to Obito. "When can we leave?"
"Soon," Obito assured him. He made a wide gesture. "I have a friend on the outside who's making preparations."
"Preparations?" Naruto parroted.
"Yes. When we leave this dimension, my friend will be waiting for us. He's going to watch over you when I can't be around."
"What?" Naruto almost whined. "Why won't you be able to stay with us?"
Sasuke directed a sharp stare at Obito. "You never mentioned that before."
"That's because it's not important," he was quick to defend. "I have to go out sometimes to take care of things. To meet with others like you, who have something against The Leaf Village. But you'll still see me just about every day when I have free time."
"Wait a sec," Naruto said. "Are you taking care of other kids besides us?"
Obito laughed. "No, they're not kids. Actually, I run an organization called The Akatsuki. Together, we're going to make a better world for everyone. Reaching out to the two of you was part of that goal. It's one more step toward us building a world where no one has to suffer the way you two did." He looked from one boy to the other.
"So what does this 'Akatsuki' want with us?" Sasuke probed. He was much more difficult to convince.
Obito's jaw twitched in what Naruto guessed was mild irritation, but he didn't lash out. "The Akatsuki take my orders. It's not them who wanted you on our side. I made that decision on my own."
Sasuke relaxed his shoulders, seeming satisfied with the answer. Obito donned his mask again and turned away.
"I need to go take care of some things, then I'll bring you two some food." The smirk in his voice was audible as he spun another portal to life. "Try not to kill each other while I'm gone, okay?"
With a hollow whir, the portal carried him off to someplace else. Naruto and Sasuke turned to each other.
"You think he'll forget about us?" Naruto said.
Sasuke didn't reply.
The blond's face dropped in terror as a million awful scenarios played out in his head. "What if Obito was just tricking us to get us here and then leave us stranded? Or what if he doesn't remember to bring back food? I mean, I brought some ramen, but there's no hot water to boil it with. And I only have a few. I guess it's enough to live off of for a few days even if I have to eat it dry."
Still, there was no response.
Naruto gasped. "Um, I mean, you can have some too if you want."
His fellow rogue ninja snorted.
"Would you cut it out? I'm being serious here!"
The raven-haired boy rolled his eyes. "I don't want any of your ramen, Naruto. Besides, I brought some nutrition bars with me just in case."
"That stuff's gross! Ramen's way better."
"You're such a child."
"Whadda ya mean? You're not that much older than me!"
Their conversation carried on in this fashion for quite some time. Sure, Naruto got more riled up the longer it went on. Sure, Sasuke was just as much of a smelly turd as always. But something about this time felt different than all of the others back at the academy. The village was a thing of the past. All they had now was each other. No words were needed for Naruto to tell Sasuke could feel it too.
There was an unspoken shift in their relationship. They both knew loneliness, and something told Naruto that neither of them liked the idea of being stuck in a strange place for who-knew-how-long with someone they hated. However, Obito may have been onto something. If they could find a way to hate each other a little less, maybe this could work. Maybe he and Sasuke really could become like brothers.
Time flew by, and before long, Obito landed with a gentle tap on the floating cube's surface. He reached out to present the bags of food he promised. Both boys took hesitant steps toward him, grabbing one bag each.
Obito removed his mask and grinned. "It's time to go home."
Hiruzen Sarutobi glared at the delirious man behind a one-way glass partition. Two fresh-faced, motionless guards were posted on opposite sides of the entrance. A man whose Leaf headband covered his head like a bandana let himself into the interrogation room. He kept a perpetual stern expression, and two long scars marred his face.
Ibiki Morino closed the door behind him with a foot. The two subordinates by the entrance turned a few shades paler the second they laid eyes on him. Ibiki strode around to the front of the chair where Danzo Shimura awaited him. He reared back and roused Danzo to consciousness with a resounding smack. The elderly man's body gasped to life. He swept the room with a wild, unfocused eye, the other covered by bandages.
"Danzo Shimura," Ibiki said in a monotone but firm voice, "you are in violation of a direct decree by Lord Third. You have continued covert operations of The Foundation without the public's knowledge after The Hokage's official disbandment of the organization. How do you respond?"
Danzo examined the chakra-infused binds on his hands and feet, grunting and trying to free himself rather than answer. Ibiki's icy gaze fell on the disgraced Leaf Elder, refusing to relent.
Hiruzen whispered into his earpiece. Ibiki froze for a moment to take in the words, then kicked one leg of Danzo's chair. The guards twitched at the unexpected move, eliciting a soft smirk from Ibiki. He always took a rather sick pleasure in watching the new recruits get broken in. However, what mattered most to Hiruzen was his loyalty and stellar ability to get results.
"You're not leaving here until you're permitted to do so," Ibiki said. Danzo stopped resisting and slumped into his chair.
"Is Hiruzen there?" Danzo asked, casting a weary glance up at the tinted glass.
"Don't worry about who's back there," Ibiki said, stepping into his captive's line of sight. "You're dealing with me."
The Hokage's breath caught. In spite of everything his childhood best friend had done, in spite of all of his insubordination and extreme views, it hurt Hiruzen to see the man he once fought alongside in such a pitiful condition. Sweat drenched him, and he was bruised on his face and shoulder, the latter of which looked mangled almost beyond recognition. The copious amounts of gauze dressing his various wounds were stained with splotches of red. Itachi really hadn't been joking about Danzo being left in bad shape.
"I want…to speak…to Hiruzen," Danzo spat through labored breaths.
"Answer for your crimes," Ibiki countered, "and perhaps that can be arranged."
"Hiruzen!" Danzo cried out, ignoring his arbiter. "You're listening, aren't you?"
While Danzo struggled against his bindings, Ibiki nodded toward the two guards, who sprang into action. They approached from either side and grabbed Danzo's shoulders at Ibiki's request.
"Hiruzen! Hiruzen!" the subdued man continued to shout. "We need to talk. I have urgent intel about Itachi Uchiha!"
Ibiki tuned out the Elder's ramblings and raised a gloved hand. Chakra gathered in his arm in preparation for casting a jutsu. However, he stopped short and dispersed his buildup of chakra. His earpiece crackled to life with new orders. Ibiki held up a finger to silence the guards so he could absorb every word. When the message was finished, he sighed before gesturing for the guards to release their holds on Danzo.
"Well, well," the interrogation specialist said, "today might just be your lucky day, Mr. Shimura."
The funeral service for those lost on the Naruto and Sasuke search party mission took place on what should have been a pleasant morning. Bright rays of sunlight blanketed the Leaf Village. Sparse clouds floated along overhead. The nice weather seemed to shift the moment the event began, however.
A light rain overtook the sunny sky, poetically mixing with the tears of those in attendance. While the previous day's casualties numbered in the single digits, the hurt their deaths caused ran so deep that it felt as if a hundred were slain. Many of the ninja involved in the tracking mission were beloved in the village. Even those attendees who only knew the deceased in passing had nothing but positive things to say.
Hiruzen grimaced when his turn arrived in the funeral procession. He approached the row of graves with a heavy heart, stopping to examine each name. If there was anything he felt he could credit himself with as Hokage, it was taking the time to get to know everyone in the village on a somewhat personal level. The downside of this virtue was feeling as if he lost family every time a Leaf shinobi perished. Ah well, he told himself. That was the price of carrying The Will of Fire.
He laid a flower in front of each of the six graves, then made room for the next person in line. A tremendous amount of fortitude was required to hold his head high after reading the engravings on the headstones. Somehow, seeing the names in physical form had a more powerful effect on Hiruzen than receiving the grim mission report from Kakashi, or even seeing the bodies. Rather, what was left of them.
Two names hit closer to home than the rest.
Iruka Umino
Yugao Uzuki
Allowing himself a moment to lament their loss, Hiruzen took his place at the front of the crowd and bowed. The conversation with Kakashi hung fresh in his mind, a bleeding wound that he couldn't ignore.
"Iruka begged me, Lord Third," Kakashi had said. "Begged me to let him go on this mission. He was concerned for Naruto, and wouldn't take no for an answer."
Off the top of his head, it was difficult for Hiruzen to pinpoint any time in Kakashi Hatake's life that he sounded on the verge of breaking down. Seeing someone as strong as him this shaken made Hiruzen uneasy. In childhood, Kakashi remained stoic even after the loss of his father and comrades, soldiering on to serve the village. His repressed pain was easy enough to notice; he became more aloof, more ruthless on missions, and terser in his communications.
Years went by before Kakashi emerged from the dark cloud hanging over him. This was in no small part due to the help of those close to him. His life was full of experiences that would break the average person, but he remained an active ninja and stayed loyal to his home through it all. Hiruzen was nothing short of impressed by the man's tenacity. Something about this particular mission was different, though. Pangs of doubt shook the Hokage to his core. Had this disaster succeeded where other traumatic events could not? Had it broken Kakashi the Copy Ninja beyond repair?
The troubled Jonin in question ran a hand through his crimson-smudged silvery hair. He threw a written mission report down on Hiruzen's desk, his stony gaze reviewing its contents. While he was technically showing a fair amount of disrespect to the Hokage, it was hard to hold against him, given recent events. Kakashi's stare was so intense, the Third half-feared he might burn a hole through the paper. But he was only torturing himself further, so Hiruzen slid the papers out of view.
"Kakashi," the latter said, putting a hand on his trusted subordinate's shoulder, "this isn't your fault."
"But, sir! I led this mission. I led them all to their deaths." Kakashi's mask twitched, giving the impression he was gritting his teeth. "And Yugao…I fought alongside her in the ANBU for years. Now she's gone. I don't know what I'm supposed to tell Hayate."
"You don't have to worry about that. I'll inform their families for you. Hayate as well." Hiruzen sighed deeply, adding, "Whoever did this was far more prepared than we could have imagined. Blaming yourself only cripples our military strength further. Kakashi, I need you. The village needs you. You did the best you could under the circumstances, and no respectable shinobi would fault you for that."
In terribly timed fashion, a piece of something fell from Kakashi's hair and landed in his gloved palm. He and Hiruzen went silent as they observed what was, without a doubt, a segment of a charred human finger. The blackened body part was smeared with blood. Kakashi's demeanor grew ever more defeated at the realization that Iruka's remains had kept him company all the way back to the village. He almost collapsed, and only pulled himself together because Hiruzen had a couple of Chunin attend to him. They checked his hair and uniform for any lingering bits of the victims, then escorted him home.
Watching the group leave from his office window, Hiruzen found himself smiling at the sight. While Kakashi was still not at one hundred percent, the support he received seemed to prevent him from descending into full on panic. He regained his composure and strolled away from the Hokage's Residence with his assigned Chunin companions. The Jonin had avoided relapsing into the severe depression he spent years fighting against.
At least I haven't failed one of the loved ones you left behind, Minato.
Naruto was another story. The boy was out there somewhere, without anyone to look out for him. Hiruzen knew his soul would be unable to rest in the Pure Lands if he forsook Minato's child. The problem was that options were few, and time was ticking away. Every second, every minute, every hour, that Naruto and Sasuke remained missing was more time for someone unsavory to do with them as they wished. Whatever that was.
Snapping back into focus, Hiruzen returned to the funeral proceedings. When he was done here, he would send out new search parties. Every available moment had to be spent looking, or he would be unable to live with himself.
Naruto gazed in awe at the room around him as he stepped into the house meant to become he, Sasuke, and Obito's new home. Its walls were painted a soft blue. Cream-colored tiles accented the blue, creating the illusion of even more space. Sasuke stood by unimpressed, but the simple trick worked on Naruto in no time. The energetic blond shouted with joy, dashing from room to room while making silly noises.
He turned a corner and came speeding back into the room. Naruto stumbled to a stop in front of Obito, Sasuke, and the mysterious weird-looking guy who brought them here. "Whoa!" he said. "It's huge! Way bigger than it looks from the outside."
"So it's to your liking, then?" said Obito's friend from beneath a black and red cloak.
"Mm hm!" Naruto gave him a vigorous nod. "Thanks, Mr. Zetsu!"
The cloaked figure bent forward and grinned. "My pleasure, Naruto."
'Mr. Zetsu' looked like a monster out of a picture book, in Naruto's opinion. He had pasty white skin on one side and pitch black skin on the other, scary yellow eyes, half of a mouth, and a smile that didn't look real. Sure, it checked all of the boxes of what made up a smile, but it was missing something the boy couldn't describe with words. This resulted in a hollow imitation that didn't seem natural. It was almost like someone taught Mr. Zetsu what smiles were supposed to look like, but not how to really feel the emotions behind one. Naruto resisted the urge to back away or cringe. Despite his appearance, Mr. Zetsu had been kind to Naruto and Sasuke the entire way here. Plus, he prepared this house just for them to live in! So the Uzumaki decided to trust him.
That wasn't the only reason to trust him, Naruto reasoned. If Mr. Zetsu was a friend of Obito's, he couldn't be all bad. If it weren't for Obito, neither of the two boys would know anything about how the village was using and lying to them. Why would someone who risked his own life to make sure they knew the truth be friends with a bad guy?
"You and Sasuke should settle in," Mr. Zetsu suggested. He nodded toward a hallway. "Your room's that way."
Obito took off his mask and coat, striding along beside Naruto. "Come with me. I'll show you where."
Naruto beamed. "Thanks, Obito!"
He wondered if it would be okay to jump up and hug Obito. The guy was like his dad now, in a way. Wasn't he? Or was that too weird to say so soon? Since the blond wasn't sure, he gave Obito's pantleg a gentle squeeze instead. The latter flinched and looked down, not with hostility, but with a grimace of confusion. A moment later, his brain caught up to what was happening and he offered a stiff nod, walking out of the child's unexpected embrace.
"Y-you're welcome."
When they reached the room meant for Naruto and Sasuke, the boys each claimed one of the beds. They were positioned against opposite walls. Obito and Zetsu left them to unpack their belongings in peace. Naruto's cheerful humming was in stark contrast to the cold silence on Sasuke's side of the room.
"You know," Sasuke said as they unpacked, "this isn't going to be like a normal family dynamic."
Naruto strained to grasp what the big word Sasuke used meant. Failing to do so, he flared his cheeks and defiantly spat, "S-shut up!"
"You don't know what dynamic means, do you?" the stuck up kid responded. Naruto sensed that Sasuke's gaze was trained on him.
The blond could do nothing more than hang his head in silent admission of the truth. His fellow rogue let out an arrogant hum of triumph. Naruto continued to sing a hushed tune until Sasuke broke the silence yet again.
"It means we aren't gonna be the happy, picture-perfect family you're imagining in your head. We're here to train, to learn, and to one day go back to The Leaf Village so we can exact revenge for what they've done to us."
Flashes of the information on the scroll hit Naruto in waves. He'd done his best not to think about it all, but Sasuke's words brought everything rushing back full force. Old Man Third, Iruka-sensei, Mizuki-sensei, everyone! They all fed him lies for years. How could they treat him that way? Back in the moment, he gave his so-called brother a snippy reply.
"Don't be stupid, Sasuke. I know that."
"You do, huh? Then why are you acting like-"
Naruto whirled around, his face red and his fists balled.
"Because these are the first real bonds I've ever had!" he said without thinking.
Then he froze, realizing he'd revealed much more of his vulnerable side than intended. Doing his best to smooth the moment over, Naruto spun around and went back to unpacking his things. He busied himself with sorting his ramen cups by flavor preference. Sasuke fell silent. Of course, that didn't last longer than a few seconds.
"Stuff like that's pointless, you idiot."
Naruto's lip quivered. "It figures you wouldn't get it. You're always having all the girls and the teachers fall all over you, praising you and saying how you'll be a great ninja someday. But you shut them all out. You're the idiot!"
"We may not be in the academy anymore, but just like back then, I'm not here to form new bonds. I'm here to avenge my old ones."
The boys cut their eyes at each other from across the room. Obito appeared in the doorway, looking from one child to the other. He let out a defeated sigh. A single thought ran through Naruto's head during the sudden staring contest.
Maybe this family thing really won't work out after all.