Scarlet Justice - ep. 123
"Positive Pressure"
[Days of Thunder: Chapter of Spiral Fox, Part 1]
The calendar says that it's the edge of spring, but I know better. Summer has been here for a while.
It has been a week since that cool night where I danced with Hina. She ended up none the worse for wear, and the same could be said for those stubborn boys who tried to block my path. I spend a comfortable night telling Hina and Hanabi a whimsical tale of my senpai's past - I'll be sure to add more details and flourish by the time I get to sit down with her nieces and nephews in Frost Country. I assume that I'll have a sizable audience, with Ittan's enthusiasm towards family and everything besides.
The Hokage has been busy, to his great regret. He really has wanted to discuss the package that I sent him many weeks before, but between administrative work and his handling of Sasuke, he hasn't had any time to set aside for a proper meeting. Tamaki and Imari are doing everything they can to help, while fielding a great amount of work that has come from the Hidden Cloud. I have no idea what kind of paperwork it is, but the hush around it means that it's something secretive, and thus very important for the future of the village.
Ah, but there is plenty to smile about in this season. One of my favourite times of year, for quite a few reasons. For one, clothing on the women folk are greatly reduced. And the weather is to my liking on most days. However, today is easily described by one word...
"Hot!"
Fio lets out a breath as she steps inside, quickly closing the door. From where I lie on the couch, I can hear the clinking of soda bottles. "Thank goodness you're rich, Lili. Central air is the absolute best!"
"Indeed," I reply. Today is an off day, and so I've dressed lightly in a camisole and shorts to help ward off some of the heat. "Anything of interest to report?"
"Nothing much. Just people shuffling around in the heat and all, the usual stuff for hot days like this. Suigetsu's got it pretty bad, though."
"A Hozuki Clan member would be terrorized by this heat. Did you pay him a visit?"
"Yeah, went out and got some extra stuff for him," Fio says as she puts her things on the table. "Just in case he wasn't able to come out for a while – apparently there might be a heat wave or something similar starting this week. He'll have his eye on the weather either way. But yeah, he was doing okay."
"And our other member?"
"She wasn't at home. Guessing it's top level stuff...she's kinda special, so I don't mind it if that's the case. There's one more guy that they're trying to add on, but..."
A knock on the door interrupts us.
"Hm. I'll get it. Are we expecting anyone?" she asks.
"No. You have permission to chew out whoever it is if we don't like them."
"Heh." Fio bounces towards the door before opening it. "Oh, Hina! Long time no see!"
"It's lovely to see you, Fio. Is Lili in, by chance?"
"She is. Come on in, we wanna keep all the cool air to ourselves, hehe."
"Yes, my apologies. Oh, it really is nice..."
I lift my head and see that Hina is in a blue sundress today, with her hair formed into a neat bun.
"A pleasant day to you, Miss Hyuuga."
"Did I interrupt a nap?" she asks.
"No, Fio and I were just talking about her new teammates. Let me get up and properly greet you." I do so and we exchange light kisses on the cheeks, same as always. "An unexpected but very welcome visit on your part. Did you want a girls' day in?"
"Actually, it's something quite important. I didn't want to talk about it over the phone..."
"I understand you completely. Anything to eat?"
"No, I'm quite fine. But a soda would be nice, if you could spare one or two."
"Sure can!" Fio says with a smile.
"We're having another guest soon, aren't we?" I ask Hina.
"Yes. It's something I want to cut down at the source, before things get too troublesome. I stopped over at Naruto's place, and he should be here in about a minute or two. There's a bit of trouble afoot."
Fio ties off her shirt above her waist and opens bottles in the background as I look at Hina. "What happened?"
"He's...become a bit moody lately. Things are tense between him and Sasuke, to the point where Sakura is visibly worried."
"Her, of all people. The very picture of stoicism at current...if this is causing her to worry, then it must be serious."
"Sheesh. What do you think it could be?" Fio asks as she hands us each a soda bottle.
"I have no real idea, but...well, my intuition tells me that it has something to do with Lili," Hina says.
"That doesn't activate without reason," I assure her. "We'll figure it out in time. It's good that you came to us early on."
"I wish I could have figured it out myself...hm..."
"It's not a sign of weakness to ask for help when you're overwhelmed. Always remember that, Hina."
"Yes."
There's another knock on the door. Fio sets down her bottle and goes to get it.
"Hey! We've got two guests this time!"
I poke my tongue out for a second. Naruto and...Kakashi, then? I wonder what he wants.
"Come on in! Enjoy the pleasures of aircon! Hahaha! We've got ourselves a full house today, looks like. Lili, I'll be right back! Gonna grab some munchies down the road!" Fio says.
"Be quick, darling."
"Yep!" The door closes behind her as our two guests step inside. Kakashi is wearing a short sleeve shirt for the first time that I've seen, and has a glass bottle in his hand. I can only assume it's an adult beverage. Luna made a habit of keeping some stocked in the refrigerator, and I have kept up that tradition with some help. It's good that they don't spoil easily. Naruto is without his usual jacket today, and he seems just a bit tense. It's as Hina said...something is troubling him greatly.
Kakashi nods and greets us. "Afternoon, ladies."
"Hey," Naruto says with a lazy wave.
"We met up on the way over. Naruto mentioned you were going to have a little meeting, so I was hoping that it would be okay if I dropped in and gave some input if needed."
"Of course. That much is always welcome," I say. "Will you be needing a refill, by chance?"
"Depends on what you have in stock."
I go over to the refrigerator and open it up, grab one of the bottles and present it to him. "Will this do?"
"Fancy. That works. Bottle's fine."
"Naruto, a drink for you?"
"Ah, yeah. Soda's fine."
Hina hands him a bottle and I open it for him. He nods his thanks.
"It seems that everyone's well. Fio can be filled in once she gets back, so let us make use of the living area," I say. I lead everyone over to the three couches placed in a U-shape on top of the thick carpet. Naruto and Hina take the seat to my left, sitting comfortably close to each other. Kakashi lounges back on the couch to my right, and I sit in the middle by myself for now.
"I think we know the reason for this little meeting," I say casually, crossing my legs. "Before we start, though...there will be several pieces of sensitive information passed between us. All I want is an assurance that none of it will leave this circle. Fio will be held to that rule as well. Any further distribution of information will be handled by me. Is that much clear?"
Everyone nods at that.
"Good. Now...which of us wants to begin?"
Naruto lets out a breath, and Hina rubs his back gently. "I...I've been hearing a lot of things lately, and wanted to see if they were really true. I've also been sort of...distant lately. Not really like me."
"I can see that. Is everything okay?" I ask carefully.
"Yes and no...I think."
"He's only been talking to Lord Jiraiya lately," Kakashi says. "I've been out of the loop...both of them have been pretty mum about this whole thing. It's likely to be something that he can't tell me about, but that Lili knows already."
"..." It hasn't been terribly long since our last talk, but Naruto has put on a bit more muscle, I've noticed. Not enough to distort his familiar form, but I can see the extra bits of definition that weren't there before. And the strips of bandage on various parts of his hands. Has he been doing nothing but training? I have to wonder if that's part of this change in attitude. Maybe if I reach out and-
"!"
"Lili? Is something wrong?" Hina asks me.
"It's...it's something I have to explain later," I say. No wonder he felt so different today...that chakra is...
"I understand."
"Naruto, what have you been hearing?" I ask him. "Did Jiraiya mention something classified off hand?"
"The first thing wasn't from him...Kiba was going on about it the other day. He said that you whipped him, Neji, Shikamaru, Lee, and Choji all at once. Hinata told me about the fight between you two, and I was expecting that...but the other thing was really hard to believe. You're really that far above everyone else?"
"Yes. That event did happen, and I am at a level quite a bit higher than others of my age. More than the difference between chuunin and jounin...it's the difference between the merely talented and the children of the divine." I take a drink from my bottle.
"That's...kinda crazy to hear. Something like that would get me pumped up by itself. But there was another thing. That's the thing that Pervy Sage told me about. And it kind of got me...I dunno. I just feel agitated, you know."
"What was the thing?"
"It..." He sighs and rubs at his head. "Did you really get Sasuke in with the Third Hokage? Is it true that the old man is gonna personally train Sasuke from now on?"
Hina and Kakashi look at me with surprise. My face is neutral...but on the inside I am fuming like nothing else. I am going to fucking strangle that useless pervert bastard Jiraiya, with his own damned intestines. None of that was his secret to tell. What the fuck is he trying to do?
Naruto would be agitated at that sort of news, no matter the context. And it's possible he thinks that I was hiding something bad from him, or worse, trying to betray him. It would hurt, but if meant keeping everyone safe, I would rather him hate me. Still, the only problem at this moment is that it's an early revelation. I can try and work with that much...put these problems to bed here and now.
"There is truth to those words," I say as I fold my arms. "What do you know so far?"
"Just that right now," Naruto says.
"I see. The truth of the matter is that I wanted to wait until things were properly in place before telling you anything, Naruto. And I'm going to be honest, you have a hard time keeping certain things to your chest, especially if it involves people that you're close to. Case in point, learning about this arrangement with Sasuke set you off so much that it made Hina worried."
"Yeah, I know. Sorry about that."
"It's fine," Hina says.
"Yes, it's very much fine. At least we're here, talking about it together. I will enlighten you on Sasuke's current situation. You remember the talks we've had, relating to shadowy organizations such as ROOT, and individuals who would seek to use Sasuke's potential power for their own ends?"
"Like that Danzo guy," Naruto says.
"Yes, exactly. We know where we stand with Sasuke. You have a deep bond, deeper than he realizes at this time. And because he's so unaware, combined with his frantic reach for power, he left this village once before and was ready to become part of Orochimaru's legacy project. The ties to this village, which include the gifting of Chidori as a technique to protect himself and his most important relationships, were not enough to keep him anchored. The arrangement with the Third Hokage is meant to solve several problems at once." I move one of my hands to put a finger upwards. "First, mentorship. While Kakashi here is of the same type as Sasuke, he is also an elite soldier and will be needed in other areas consistently. There are other teachers, but very few of them have the same discipline and most importantly, impartiality to correctly guide Sasuke on his way. His status within the village before the retrieval mission was complicated, as the last scion of the Uchiha. Now it is even moreso. He is a village hero, and as such will be treated differently. It will be awkward for some to teach him, knowing that their progress will be heavily evaluated and monitored at all times by the upper echelons of the village. The Hokage has the right amount of familiarity and experience, as well as personal space, to do the necessary work correctly."
"So that's the reason for the new special aides. To clear up enough time that Lord Hokage can have sessions with Sasuke," Kakashi concludes.
"Correct. Tamaki and Imari have been great additions, and I was the one who scouted them before they were cleared and hired by the Hokage's Office. This was a vital part of the scheme we had created to keep Sasuke in line. If this looks bad, to have Sasuke train with the God of Shinobi after his transgressions, then so be it. This might be the only way to keep him safe. We had other options, but I doubt you would be able to swallow them properly."
"Like what?" Naruto asks.
"Leaving Sasuke to his own devices," I say as I put up another finger, "but that would be disastrous, as you and I both know. Shimura would launch his harpoons before we could blink. Among the options was splitting up Team Seven and assigning you to different groups. We would be able to confine Sasuke much more easily in that scenario. But the downside to that is he would lose vital interaction with both you and Sakura. I believe that you can make it through to him, that you can wake him up at some point. I wanted to give you a proper chance, Naruto. To have him train with the Hokage, learning discipline and compassion...I think that, combined with your love for him, will make a great difference."
"..." Naruto looks towards the ground for a few moments.
"That is all there is to it," I say as I grab my soda bottle and sip from it again.
"It's...definitely a lot more than I realized. No wonder you didn't want to say anything until later. Huh. I'm really sorry for getting all worked up, it was just that...it's gonna sound really bad to say..."
"It doesn't matter. I want you to be honest with me. With all of us here. We care about you," I say.
"Between this stuff and hearing about what happened last week, I kinda felt...left behind." He blinks a few times. "I think that's what Sasuke was feeling all that time. That people weren't thinking of him, that things were happening behind his back...that all of his training and talent didn't mean anything ahead of all the walls. Itachi, me, Lili...being told that he was special, and more than that, the one chosen to restore his whole clan. All of this pressure, building up every day."
"You wanted to reach a new level, in the hopes that those unsettling feelings would disappear. In your head, you reasoned that more power was the key. More strength, more knowledge. That ultimately, it had to be on you," Kakashi says.
"Yeah..."
"It's not an uncommon feeling. Especially for those called elites," he continues while looking at me. I nod to acknowledge him.
"What do I do, then?" Naruto asks.
"Have faith in your comrades. Love the people you call family," Hina says. "Remember that you are not alone, and that together, we can make it through any struggle. Sasuke and Sakura need to realize those feelings as well. No matter what they have done in the past, they are part of this great family we call the Hidden Leaf. That comfort should belong to them as well."
"That makes sense. I...feel a whole lot better now."
"You're still young, and have a lot of room to grow," Kakashi says. "Don't beat yourself up for making a few mistakes."
"Right. I'll try and remember that!"
"Yahoo~! It's your girl Fio, back with some tasty treats!"
"We're back already, are we?" Fio sets a few wide boxes down on the table and hands paper plates to each of us. "Pizza today?"
"Nice and warm! The place with the wood fired oven down the street. Eat up, my lovelies!" She distributes the slices evenly, and we pause a while to properly eat. Delightfully crunchy, and not too greasy either. I could have lots more of this without worrying about my figure...
"You didn't miss too much, I think," Kakashi says after presumably taking a sip of beer. It's odd how my attention is always drawn away the moment he moves to consume something. A mystery to be solved later. "Classified information about the Hokage's training program."
"Ah, the thing with Sasuke. Lili filled me in a while ago." Fio finishes eating and puts an arm around my shoulder. "So, who leaked it to Naruto?"
"Lord Jiraiya."
"Oof. A little out of line, I think."
"More than a little," I say. "I'll deal with him very soon. But we've resolved the first matter easily enough. Naruto seems to have accepted the reasons for that decision."
"Yep. Everything's cleared up now."
"Almost everything. There is another matter. Hina, I take it you know what I'm getting at."
She nods slowly. "Yes. I should apologize for keeping it to myself all of this time. But...Naruto, I did notice the chakra shifts. Since you and Lord Jiraiya have been training more often, I left it alone, thinking that it was a private matter. But with this meeting, and the increase in your agitation and aggression at points...it needs to be dealt with."
"..."
"This doesn't sound like a grand old time for any of us," Fio says. "What's happening?"
Kakashi lifts his headband to reveal his Sharingan. He looks at Naruto for a moment before nodding, setting the headband back down again. "I see. I should have paid closer attention..."
"The chakra of the Nine-Tailed Fox," I say. "It's much stronger than before, and much more distinct from the rest of Naruto's chakra. I imagine they usually blend together to the point where they seem one in the same, but recently that hasn't been the case. It explains some of the added aggression and anxiety that he's been feeling. I don't know what has been going on, if the seal has been weakening, or something else. But at the moment, it is a problem. I will have to talk to the Hokage about this at some point."
"That's...sort of what's going on, yeah," Naruto says. "I don't really get it, but Pervy Sage did something and wanted me to go around like this, so that I could get used to handling more of the dumb fox's power to better take care of myself in fights. But it's been weird and a little bit uncomfortable. I end up training a lot, and it really helps calm me down most of the time...so since it's the only thing that works, I've been putting a lot of time into it."
"I take it none of us are familiar with sealing arts," Kakashi says.
"Something I will definitely start working on when I have the time," I quip back. "But for now, this is out of our hands. Naruto, all I want you to do is keep to your daily tasks. Since we've cleared up quite a few things, I believe that surging power inside of you will be much easier to handle. I am going to have a few high level talks, then we will decide together what to do next. Is that okay?"
"Sounds great. Whatever you've got planned, I'll go with."
"Good. Hina, are you alright?"
"Yes. Now that I know what's going on, my mind is at ease. Thank you, Lili."
"Of course. Kakashi?"
"I have a better handle on things thanks to this meeting. Maybe I can catch up with Sasuke, provide some input on his end too."
"Very good. Fio, any comments?"
"Just happy we worked everything out so far."
"I feel the same." I sigh. "But I suppose the real work is about to begin soon enough. Such is the life of an elite."
I take up another slice of pizza and bite into it.
One more meddling old man to take care of. Jiraiya...I didn't think I would have to voice my discontent to yet another one of the Three Shinobi. But I don't cower before mere titles.
If he wants to be an irresponsible buffoon, then he will be treated the same as any other...without mercy.