AN:
Guys I forgot to say this before but HOLY SHIT! As I'm writing this AN we have 11,613 views on this story! I never thought anyone would be this interested in this little fic of mine! That's not even talking about the 236 favorites and the 282 followers! HOW?!
(As I finished this chapter it's 263 favorites, 314 follows and 14,542 views, and 59 reviews. Guys, what.)
This is a long-overdue "Thank you!" for anyone reading this! I love ya'll!
Also question, I want to make Biwako a badass (if it wasn't obvious already) but I sometimes get the feeling that I'm simping on her. Should I keep it this way or lay off it a bit?
Reviews!
Nithi velu: Thanks!
Guest((s) since I don't know if you are the same person or different): Yoshihiro-sama is an OC I made. He is part of the rebel forces (so not Mifune's) that I made just to give some conflict.
Naruto was flustered because of puberty and since I think girls stretching is HotTM so, naturally, Naruto thinks so too.
Itachi isn't really bothered by Biwako's "elopement" (he lowkey ships them) but more by the chaos they'll make.
(The lullaby is O' Death (the Until Dawn version) BTW)
She never fought against someone so skilled.
No wait, she fought against Mifune-sama. Second best then.
No wait, Tanjiro-sensei. Then third best?
She slid under a horizontal slash. Utilizing the momentum she torqued back and slashed at the back of his knees. Akahime was stopped by the Nodachi vertical to the ground. He rose his foot to stomp on Akahime.
'Unforgivable.'
She countered before he could go further than slightly lifting his boots. She withdrew and threw four kunai with her left hand. Head, thigh, shoulder then foot in that order.
Unsurprisingly he deflected everything perfectly. She faltered when instead of a hard block he only softly deflected the last one upward. Imagine the sheer amazement when he jumped and kicked it towards her face.
She got over the bewilderment in the nick of time and dodged right with her left hand snapping back and catching the kunai sailing past her. She put it away into its holster in the same motion. No reason to waste some perfectly good kunai.
Only because her eyes never left his did she notice the slight widening. Then he frowned severely.
'Thought that would do me in did he? Arrogant bastard.'
He kicked it up a notch and dashed at her with new speed. She quickly brought up her beloved katana to guard against an overhead strike. Her knees buckled under the force. She tried disengaging once more by kicking him in the chest.
Instead of her foot finding purchase, his hands found an ankle.
She only had a moment to panic before she was hauled into the air and slammed into the ground. The force almost made her bounce as spit and breath escaped her mouth. She bulldozed her way through the black-out like Tsunade-sama takes down a building and rolled with the motion.
Thus saving her heart from being speared.
She stopped rolling and stood up a few steps away. In the dark and cold night, she could see as the lantern light barely illuminated their breath.
"You are good, girl," he tried to squash his panting by scrutinizing her. Uncomfortable is a weak word to describe her feelings. He hadn't finished talking yet, "for your age at least." He scoffed, "who is your master?"
"Whyever should I tell you?" exhausted and fake-innocent curiosity filled her panting, "you will die here either way."
"Insolent child!" His glare almost could've competed with her Katon jutsu. He seemed to be satisfied with their little rest and rushed at her.
They fall into a rhythm. Both learned the other's moves by now and know what to expect. At this stage, only trump cards could surprise either.
She contemplated plans furiously. The fight has started around five minutes ago. Meaning both are getting exhausted, fast. She can't turn this into a battle of attrition since she isn't Naruto to shrug off a severed head like an everyday scratch.
Okay, she might be exaggerating but still.
She needs to get into a position where she can use her Thunder Breathing. She needs a second more than usual to charge it up since her Sharingan is inaccessible. That comes with the coupled blessing that she can only use one step at a time otherwise she loses control and sight.
All in all, she needs around 2.5 seconds to sheath Akahime, get into stance, build up chakra, activate the technique, and draw Akahime completely.
This guy could bisect her in 0.4 seconds flat. Just for reference. She needs something to disrupt the flow.
Something glinted under the snow because of the lantern light that made her glimpse there momentarily. Fortunately, the sparks from blades meeting masked her glance.
As well as the ephemeral smirk.
She knows what to do now.
She switched to the offensive. The Old Man didn't even blink and parried her attacks.
They were locked into a stalemate. The Old Man countered every one of her attacks but couldn't hit her. While she attacked with –seemingly- the intention to overwhelm him. Couldn't be farther from the truth but he doesn't need to know that.
In the moments between sparks, she could see his growing smirk. She could even hear his thoughts.
She is panicking. She wants to end this quickly. She will make a mistake soon.
That's what he would think.
Only two are true. And only because she will make a "mistake".
She fake-and-not-so-fake-attempted to stab Akahime into his right kidney but she overreached. He caught her hand and squeezed hard enough to make bone creak.
Akahime sunk into the snow.
She tried to use him as leverage and kick him. His legs were faster and she went flying no less than six feet. She flipped mid-air and sent a quick 'thank you' to Nezuko-chan for training her flexibility. She landed in a crouch and spit out some blood from biting her cheeks as well as collapsed to one knee with heavy panting. She faked being unable to move –not hard since a kick to the stomach from a giant hurts.
But it is okay. She is in position.
He took a step and gained a cocky smirk unfit for his wizened face, "is that it?"
Another step, "I thought you would've been better." The disappointment in his voice would've been more believable if wasn't panting so heavily. The little nicks of blood on his face she won help too.
The third step, "You could have been something else if you grew up." The poorly hidden glee made her hackles raise, "truly, what a shame." He shook his head like he truly believed those words.
'Disgusting.'
He seemed content with staying there and monologue about something she didn't particularly care about. She tuned him out to make sure everything goes according to the plan -this time. Until something akin to a question sounded and she refocused on the present. He looked down at her –her fist tightened until it was as white as snow- with questioning eyes.
She spat at his boots and glared into his frowning face, "go to hell rebel scum."
He sneered severely and took a step forward.
His first mistake.
Moments before he put his foot down no less than half a dozen kunai flew at him from his left. Deep in the shadows where the lanterns don't reach. He showed his skills by cutting all but the last that landed before his feet. His eyes widened at the same rate as her smirk did. She, unseen, ripped her right hand back in an arc. Thus making an impossibly thin steel wire glint off of the light.
Both recognized the markings adorning the handle. Even if he doesn't know their meaning
Not a blink later smoke exploded from the ground and the Old Man, off-balance both mentally and physically, swung blindly at the mist.
Only to find nothing.
His second mistake.
A warrior of his caliber recognizes a trap when he sees one. He also has more than enough experience to feel the slight disturbance in the air behind him. His reaction, swinging his sword again, was justified by the chill on his spine as well.
The third mistake.
He only cut through the air. His eyes widened and immediately brought his blade up to block the overhead strike trying to bisect him length-wise. 'If not behind then above' right?
Not wrong.
Sparks flew and he had put his left hand on his Nodachi's spine to brace himself. He looked up, trying to identify the attacker.
There, in all his glory, was Naruto Uzumaki with his red hair glinting off the light ominously. His grin could only be described as diabolical, enhanced by the many new and old injuries on his face and arms dripping blood on the Old Man.
"Hey," his visible breath dispersed on the old man's face, "miss me?" He took advantage of the Old Man's visible distress and used his face as a jumping pad.
The Old Man, predictably, recoiled and tried to rub his eyes free from the snow and mud and blood found on Naruto's boots.
His last mistake.
First to be noticed was the ozone smell around him.
Then he heard the thunder.
He whirled around, only one eye open, and raised his hands to defend against whatever was in the dark.
"Raiton: Hekireki issen." His only warning was a flash of blue-hugged-by-yellow lightning.
His head falls to the ground. Lifeless and rapidly cooling as both halves of the neck color the ground crimson.
"WoOhoooOO!" A slightly deranged voice sounded behind her. She looks behind her to find a cheering Naruto with his hands put up haphazardly stumbling towards her. She only has a moment of surprise before he falls into her arm making both of them stumble.
The snow feels wet against her back. Though she cares not as a babbling Naruto is making various gestures atop her.
"-and have you seeeeen meee?! I was like whoosh and 'missed me?' and FUouvhs! And-"
She examined her friend –trying to ignore her burning cheeks.
Dread curled in her stomach.
His skin is clammy and pale. His breathing is shallow and labored. He feels cold, colder than he should be after all this fighting. His head lolls side-to-side like he might fall asleep and wake the next moment.
The blood is apparent even through his clothes. Especially his right shoulder –scratch that, his whole right arm looks like it was submerged in a pool of blood. That's not even talking about the innumerable little injuries riddling his body.
'Blood loss. Soon severe of not treated immediately.' The diagnosis didn't even take a second to form in her head.
She put her arms under him –ignoring the burning pain in her wrists- and hauled both of them back onto their feet. She cared not for Naruto's surprised whine. She has to get them somewhere warm.
The Twins shall fulfill this purpose.
'Whe'e?' Confusion colored his mind like an uncomfortable blanket in the middle of summer.
You know, based on the weight he feels on him it really might be a blanket. But why is the blanket vibrating?
'Why can't I hear anything by the way?' like a spell the previously muted outside started to turn up the volume.
He can hear someone… humming? No wait, it's coming from atop him.
The blanket is humming?! And the blanket is tapping a rhythm on his chest.
'Wait,' he would've blinked if he could, you know, move, 'I heard this before. But where?'
An old memory surfaced in front of his mind's eye. He can't remember much. It feels like a dream or more déjà vu.
He, and two others, are sitting somewhere… green and dark? Outside? Yeah, they are sitting outside. It's humid, maybe it's a summer night? One of those comfortable ones. He can feel some rocks digging into his back even though his head is on something soft. He would've said pillow but it doesn't feel like that. Oh! Hands are carding through his hair, hair that feels really short. He is young here.
WaitWaitWait, there is a voice. Low like a whisper, it has an old quality even though it sounds young. Older than him back then but younger than him now. The voice sounds so familiar… he can't put into-
Oh.
Oh.
Itachi.
The voice is Itachi's.
He remembers now.
They were, they were outside. It was early summer, the time when it was not too hot but not too cold to sleep outside. He remembers being excited since 'I will start the academy the next year Itachi-nii! Isn't that amazing?!' He remembers Biwako trying to be as cool as Itachi by not showing her excitement. She failed miserably of course but it's the thought that counts.
They, Naruto, Itachi, and Biwako, spent the whole day playing ninjas. With occasionally bugging Itachi to teach them "something cool. Pretty please? Pretty pretty please?"
At the end of the day, even Itachi was tired and the sun was almost down. Biwako didn't want to go home for some reason and pleaded Itachi to not go home. Naruto, of course, immediately gripped his other hand and made the biggest puppy eyes he could.
Itachi stood no chance.
After that, the only thing he remembers is waking up in the middle of the night with his head in Itachi's lap. It might have been a nightmare though the detail escapes him.
Itachi simply smiled and gently placed his head back down on his lap. His hands started carding through his hair and singing a lullaby that lulled him into sleep.
He thought only the two of them had been awake.
Clearly, he was wrong.
"O' Death," she sings low, barely above a whisper, sometimes slipping into as well," O' Death, won't you spare me over 'till another year~?" She hums. Slow and reverberating in his chest.
She takes a deep breath, "But what is this, that I can't see, with ice-cold hands taking hold of me.~"
She takes another breath and continues humming. The tapping hadn't stopped since.
He, once again, lets the song lull him into sleep.
The next time he awakens he is significantly more coherent. He can move his body without, much, pain. His head feels like slitting and melting at the same time so he doesn't do much.
He looks around. This time he is alone, no Biwako-shaped blanket, in a room he vaguely recognizes as one of the Twin's rooms. He can also see another bed beside his but it shows no disturbance. Either Biwako made the bed perfectly or she slept in his. Judging by the smell he'd bet on the latter. There is water at the bedside.
He raises a hand to pick it up since he is something ungodly thirsty.
"Ouch." He whispers since he doesn't feel like being loud.
He looks down at his right hand, the one he tried to raise, and takes in the bandages.
To say he looks partially mummified is an understatement. His whole right arm looks like he grew a second skin made of bandages. It even looks like it's spreading since his shoulder, as well as his collarbone and chest, is wrapped up as well. They only look slightly bloody so they must be fairly new.
Done with his bodily inspections he raises his hand, this time the left, for that accursed water bottle. Tastes a little stale and warm but at this point, he'll take anything. He puts down the glass and slinks back down to lie on the bed.
A door creaks to his left so he turns towards it.
In came a sleepy Biwako, wearing a red pyjama, with a tray of food in her hands.
"Ah." Her whole body froze at the sight of him awake.
He tries chuckling sheepishly but it comes out as more of a croak, "Hi there."
She looks down at her food and then at him. Food, him.
"Would you like some?"
"Please."
As she walked towards him she snagged a random chair to sit down on. Naruto, for his part, took off the sheet from his body and sat up. He turned towards a sitting Biwako and sat cross-legged on the further edge. She put the tray between them on the bed and began to eat her half.
He doesn't eat though. He just stares down at his crossed ankles.
"Naru?" She called out to him when she noticed he didn't start eating. That's no good, he lost a lot of blood, and he needs to eat.
"Naru?" This time she reached over the tray to see if anything is wrong.
She is unprepared for him to pull her into a bone-crushing hug.
She, however, simply readjusts her position. She hugs him as she feels teardrops trickling onto her shoulder.
"I'm so sorry." His voice cracks halfway through the sentence, "I'm so sorry." He trying to stifle his sobs.
She doesn't respond, merely making circles on his back and caressing his head.
"I'm, I- I am so sorry." He stopped trying to swallow his sobs, "Biwako I am so sorry." His hands dug into her back, trying to find a way to pull her closer.
"What are you sorry for?" Her voice is like a beacon. Pulling him away from the dark.
"Biwako I can't- I- I almost- I almost broke our promise. I am so sorry." He feels her pulling away. He urgently tried to pull her back. Instead of shoving him away -as she should have- she simply took his left hand and held it.
"Naru?" She asked gently. He didn't dare look up for fear of what her face might show, "Naru, please look up."
He didn't, "Biwako you- you don't get it. I was- I was- I was ready to-" he couldn't finish the sentence due to his sobs.
"Naruto," this she called out firmer, "look at me," when he still didn't she decided to take the matter into her own hand. Literally.
She grabbed his chin gently and forced him to look at her.
His face must've been miserable. He can feel tears running down his throat, his eyes must be completely red. So he not only feels but looks miserable? Perfect.
"Oh Naru," Her face softens as a small and sad smile plays on her lips. She gathers him into her arms and cradles him, "oh I'm so proud of you."
Baffled laughter bubbles from his throat, "proud? I GAVE UP!" Bewilderment turns into anger and sorrow. He tries to pull away but her grip is too strong so he settles for simply shouting into her shoulder, "I almost broke our promise Wako! I- I was so scared." The anger died away into simple sorrow, "I was so scared Biwako." He returned to hugging her with all his might.
"Yet, you are still here." Her voice cut through the haze, "it's okay to be scared. You stood back up, didn't you? That is what matters. You are here-"
"It's okay, I'm here with you."
Have you ever had that feeling after crying?
You know, that feeling like it's after the storm. Like you took off a heavy coat that you didn't even know about. You don't even care about what you were crying about, you just did.
It feels therapeutic.
Doesn't make him any less bored.
"Stop whining you big baby." Ah, Biwako is always there to insult him. Honestly, if he did die she would just insult him back into living.
"I'm not a baby." He is most definitely not pouting, "Also, I'm not whining." He whined.
"You are," She looked over the edge of her book with amused eyes at his bed-bound form. He can just imagine the little smile on her lips, "you've been grouchy ever since you woke. That's the dictionary definition of a baby."
"I'm not that gullible as to believe that. Ugh," he tried turning in his bed but pain from somewhere warned him against such foolish action, "I'm so boooooored!"
"What do you propose I do then?" An exasperated sigh escaped her lips hidden by the book, "you can barely move after that stunt you pulled earlier," she ignored the awkwardness rolling off him, " you got bored by reading already."
"Why don't we just… teleport home?"
A glare answered the question, "I won't let you Hiraishin that far. Especially not with cargo."
"Must you call yourselves cargo?"
She licked her fingers and turned a page, "like it or not," she glanced back up before looking at her new book as she ignored the question, "we are stuck here until you heal." She blinked and snapped confused eyes at him, "speaking of healing, why aren't you already?"
A sigh filled with frustration escaped him, "The Fox is cranky."
She raised a fine eyebrow, "over what?"
Averted eyes and silence answered her.
"I see."
"Freedom!"
"You can walk around the room unaided. I don't think that counts as freedom."
"Freedom!"
Her eyes rolled involuntarily at his star-like pose and took a sip. He just barely gets up and is already making a fool of himself. Then again, what else did she expect?
"You should stay close to the walls," the warning seemed to pierce through his idiocy, " so you can catch yourself when you fall." The stressed when lets him know how much faith she has in his ability to not trip.
In response, he just started walking towards her diagonally from one corner of the room to the other, "Please, as if-" just as he got three feet of her, he tripped forward.
Forward, where Biwako was leaning against the chair with coffee in her hand.
As he fell two things happened. One, Biwako dived forward to save him a broken nose. Two, he grasped for something to halt his fall.
In the end Biwako, somehow ended up sprawled under him with the coffee spilling away from her.
She glanced at the coffee, looked up at Naruto on top of her doing a plank. Looked at the coffee, back at a very pale –yet blushing? Why?- Naruto.
"Bed. Now."
"That's what she- OUCH!"
"Have you ever wondered about him?" A question rang out in the relaxed silence of ink brushes and page-turning. It is a rare moment of peace, they will soon leave their temporal shelter since Naruto is almost healed after three days of rest.
"Hm?"
"About Itachi."
The relaxed atmosphere disappears like it was never there. The only thing remaining is unexplainable. Something that curls in his guts like anxiety. Twists like dread and weigh on him like despair. Yet none describe the cacophony of emotions filling the room. Just as he opens his mouth he is cut off.
"How are your fuuinjutsu projects?" She questions in lieu of answering the question she is nowhere near ready to answer.
He sighs heavily, truth be told he expected the subject change. Either that or just her straight up leaving the room. Still, a smile edges it's onto his face, he loves talking about seals! "Pretty good actually," his grin widens as she hums, the previous talk ignored, "I'm working on both the chains and the sensor thingy since I hit a block with the healing," his grin gain a mischievous quality as his arms spread wide like a showman, "Do you wanna see something really cool?"
She doesn't even bother doing more than raising an eyebrow. Her lips, hidden by the book, twitch upwards as he pouts at her lackluster reaction.
A reaction that is short-lived as she feels something cold poking her hips.
She does not scream
An Uchiha never screams out of fright. Uchihas are far too refined for something as inane and embarrassing like that.
Instead, she squeaks like a mouse.
"EEEEEK!" If she was a cat Naruto would bet she would be clinging to the ceiling right now. 'Looks like she'll do it anyway,' he stifles a snicker as she jumps on the round table between them and covers the spot where the cold metal touched her. She looks down wildly like a frightened cat trying to spot the culprit. She only looks away when she hears the escaped snickers of Naruto behind her.
A glare response to his now unrestrained laugh. A moment later her eyes widen and her mouth might or might not have slackened.
"See?" The laughter finished –though an amused and proud smile took its place- as he held up his palm, "pretty cool eh?" There in his palm stood a little golden chain poised to strike like a cobra. It was a little thing, no more than a finger in it's thickness and swaying to unexisting wind.
He beckoned her closer with the hand not displaying the golden snake. She jumped off the table and walked closer.
"When did you…?" Her voice was filled with awe. He not only proved his theory about the chains being a hiden, but he also unlocked it. This means that all their other theories about the wackiness of the Uzumaki bloodline are more than likely true. Oh, they hoped they were right. They hoped that they could rebuild his family from scratch. That the millennia of knowledge culminated by the Uzumaki wasn't lost completely.
He managed to save a piece of his family.
As she stepped closer she noticed odd little markings etched into it. No- not edged, but drawn?
She tilted her head down, "The characters?" Her question hangs in the air as she plays with the chains. They are surprisingly cold for chakra constructs.
"Dunno," he shrugs carefully, "but they are definitely fuuinjutsu characters. My guess is that they are the old language that my ancestors used when creating the chains. Or maybe when they grafted the formula into their body. Either way, I have no idea what they say."
She glances up and raises an eyebrow as if to ask 'You? Not knowing what these mean?'
He blushes and scratches his whiskers, "you have to remember that my family is older than recorded history. Publically recorded at least. I don't know if any private ones mention how the clan was formed or when. Anyway, fuuinjutsu is as old as us. While I have hunches about what they could mean you have to remember that this is a language so-"
"-so it changes with time." With the words stolen out of his mouth, he has nothing to say.
She hums as they sit on the floor with her simply examining the links and him watching her with curious eyes.
"You still haven't told me when you awakened it." She doesn't look up, the flinch of his fingers are telling enough when it was. Now, will he bring it up, or is he not ready yet?
"Remember what I said about the activation?" His voice is low and slightly blank though not in a worrying way. More like he is trying to stifle any stronger reaction. Still, she doesn't say anything.
"It seems like I was right," Not exactly the voice he uses when he has a breakthrough with seal but she can understand it this time, "kinda." This time he sound more uncertain than anything.
She glances up, ignores the slightly pale skin, and asks, "kinda?" her head sideways in confusion.
"Yeah, I think I was only half-right. AND HALF LEFT HA!" He laughs at his own pun. If it was slightly forced they don't say anything. Mainly because Biwako stares at him so deadpan that he wheezes.
'Don't hit him, he is still healing. Don't hit him, he is still healing,' like a prayer she chants in her mind. Ultimately deciding to get the conversation back to track she raises an eyebrow.
"I think," he chuckles again before trying to get serious even though the smile is undeniable, "I think that chakra quantity played a bigger role than I thought. Or quality since it could be either." He summons another chain –this one significantly thinner than the other- on his other palm. Huh, she only notices now that the links disappear under his sleeve, "based on whatever record I could find I don't think my 'Cataclysm Event'," the air quotes are audible in his voice, "should've been strong enough to trigger it's activation."
He gets a glare for trying to downplay his trauma. Hands fly into the air –since Biwako finished looking at the chains- as a sign of surrender, "I'm not saying that mine wasn't horrible enough. I'm saying that others' were worse. I think my chakra played a big role in being able to summon these bad boys, "he kisses the chains' tips like they were pets before summoning them back to wherever they came from. Readjusting to sit cross-legged he puts his hands between his ankles, "since there are only two other Uzumaki with my condition –both of whom already had their chains by the time of sealing the Fox- I'm not sure."
She hums before standing up. Extending an arm towards Naruto –who takes it- she walks the both to the close-by kitchen. It's literally next door so it's pretty close.
"Biwako?" Naruto's amused voice sounds behind her.
"Yes?"
"Why are we going to the kitchen?"
"I'm tired. I want coffee."
"Coffee doesn't replace-"
She doesn't hear him anymore though. She is already opening and closing the cabinets in search of the ingredient. Sighing, he goes around the little island separating this corner of the kitchen from the rest. Taking a seat he watches her move around the kitchen with all the skills of someone who drinks five cups a day.
He props his chin on his fist, "you do know that too much coffee is bad for your health, right?"
She glances back as she drags a chair under one of the cabinets higher up.
'She is so small! It's adorable.'
"March 17." Then she is back to dragging the chair like she hadn't just dropped a bomb.
Spluttering so much that he almost falls off the stool he exclaims, "Hey! The ducks weren't my fault!"
"Mm-hmm."
"Anyway- I actually had it for some time now."
"I would've expected you to show it off like it was a cool rock."
"Yeah, I would have. But I wanted to prank you. By the way, your squeak was adorable."
He ducks under a frying pan and rushes out of the room as metal clanking chased him. His cackling filled the hallway thus eclipsing the "Come back here!" shout.
A lonely figure sat on a hill. The sun shined above though they were unbothered by the harsh glare thanks to the tree they leaned against.
They propped a right arm on their knee and looked towards to nearby town. Though they only looked but do not see, instead they reflect on the past. On everything leading up to this moment. On-
-The butterfly that landed on their hand.
Huh.
It's a pretty little thing. Black edges and yellow wings with flecks of white. It's wings move slowly as it rests. Curiously, it landed right on the vermilion ring they need to wear.
They smiles lightly even though none could tell behind their cloak.
'Both of them liked butterflies too if I remember correctly.' What a stupid thought. Of course, the figure remembers.
They could never forget.
"Yo!" A voice shouted from behind disturbing the butterfly and making it take off.
The figure closed their obsidian eyes and answered, "Kisame. Must you be so loud?"
Snickering answered him, "Don't be so lame Itachi! It's almost summer, you need to loosen up!"
"Have you completed what we came for?"
"Yup," Kisame popped the p as he sat down beside Itachi, "but man, I don't envy Sasori. All of these damned informants are so pesky! The only reason I didn't kill them is that they knew some interesting thing," his tone turns jeering, "for example, did you know that your sister and some brat eloped to Iron?"
It takes all of Itachi's ANBU training to remain calm.
Outwardly?
'Biwako? In Iron?! What is she doing there?! Why is she not in Konoha where it's safe? Wait-'
"-eloped?" He tries to keep his voice steady and not like he is having a mental meltdown.
"Yeah," Kisame didn't notice his tone, "some redhead. Do you think it's an Uzumaki?"
'Naruto? Oh thank god- no wait it's Naruto!' Instead of calming down Itachi just upgraded to a higher form of panic. Those two together? Without supervision? He almost pities Iron Country. Still, he needs to make sure Akatsuki doesn't know about Naruto yet, "An Uzumaki? Don't be foolish! Nevertheless, my feeble sister could not have avoided a chuunin, much less ANBU long enough to enter Iron." That is not true. Itachi knows for a fact that if Biwako wanted to leave Konoha she would find a way. And make one if there isn't one. Especially if Naruto is thrown into the mix, which is almost always since those two are inseparable.
At least they were last time he saw them.
"Yeah, the rats hadn't had any idea either. Hell, some say that they used the Hiraishin. Ridiculous if you ask me."
'Why do I have a bad feeling?'
Guys, uh. I just watched Techno's last video as I'm writing this. A legend died.
Technoblade never dies.
In my heart at least.