Alright here we go with another chapter. I felt like writing today, despite also wanting rest, so here you go! This chapter is a bit of a Sasuke Centric, with a fair amount of Hinata. The two finally get to choose what they will do as the end of the first part of this story draws closer. Enjoy!
I~~~~I
Sasuke dropped down next to the river, the water rushing by as he saw images of Akihane, of the younger version of her at his bedside as she looked at him with sad eyes. Sasuke saw the girl he had come to care for, and then he saw his father…His father standing over her as she clawed at her head and screamed for it to stop.
Sasuke gasped and heaved, gasping as he threw up in the dirt. The rushing of the water faded out like white noise, and instead of his father in the image…It was replaced with Itachi. With the man telling him to protect Akihane because he would take her away.
Itachi had known. Itachi had known. His brother had known the plan of the Uchiha, had destroyed it before it could take place and murdered everyone that Sasuke knew or loved except for Akihane. He had saved Akihane.
Would Sasuke have cared for Akihane if he had known? If his father had told him of the Coup and the plan to use Akihane…At the time, would Sasuke have fought for her like Itachi and Shisui had?
The image in his mind change, and Sasuke saw not his father bending Akihane to his will, but Sasuke.
Sasuke, who ignored her cries for help as he looked at his father for any light of the pride the man once held for Itachi.
Would Sasuke have done what Itachi had done?
I~~~~I
There is a time when two sides diverge. When a river splits, each tail chasing its own path.
Staring up at the gates to the Hyuuga compound, barely managing to hold himself steady, Sasuke felt like he was on one of those paths.
Beside the Uchiha stood a stoic guard, one of the Hyuuga Branch members that eyed the boy in suspicion ever since he had arrived and requested that Hinata come meet him.
Sasuke didn't want to be here, dealing with the suspicions and the heated glances of the Hyuuga as they spotted him outside their gates, but he couldn't help it. He had no one else to turn to right now.
His only other option was to turn to Akihane, and at the thought of her, at the image of that glowing beacon that lit up Sasuke's world…
Sasuke felt like he was back at that river, staring at his reflections as his stomach caked the ground.
He couldn't face Akihane, not yet. Not until he understood what his Clan had done, what they had tried to do. He had spent the night pouring through the endless information that was now stored in his head, trying to find out what had set the Uchiha to the brink.
He found nothing but repeated misgivings. Talks about distrusts, about seclusion and about the Senju destroying their station inside the walls of Konoha.
Sasuke read hours' worth of scrolls that dated back to the warring clan eras, to the founding of Konoha had how since then the Uchiha had felt like they were being choked, destroyed.
The mentions of Tobirama, of how his actions were only meant to hinder their growth and keep them from gaining power in the village and how they were not getting the trust they deserved-
And yet Sasuke wanted to laugh. There were a lot of shitty laws that held the Uchiha back, but they hardly lacked power in the village. They controlled the Police Force, and in many cases, the strongest shinobi in the village.
Many Uchiha were Chunin or Jonin and Sasuke knew that the number of ANBU officers had dropped significantly with the death of his clan.
The only forced segregation had been the actual removal of the clan and placement in their own district, and that hadn't been done by Tobirama.
To the best of Sasuke's knowledge, which had been done after the Kyuubi Attack and only right after the Sandaime had taken the mantle of Hokage again.
Sasuke grimaced, because of all times to wish for the old Hokage to be alive, now was one of them. He couldn't very well ask Tsuande either without probable cause.
Sasuke needed help, he needed someone who he could sort through his thoughts and all of this information with. He needed someone he trusted enough that they wouldn't stab him in the back and that they would hear him out.
Sadly, that left a very short list.
For Sasuke, that was only a list of two people.
And one of them he couldn't even think about without growing sick to his stomach.
"Uchiha, is there a reason you are standing outside my gates?" A harsh voice sounded, and Sasuke dragged his eyes up to meet the head of the Hyuuga Clan, Hiashi Hyuuga. The man looked almost murderous as he gazed down darkly at Sasuke.
Sasuke frowned when he noticed one of the guards who had been at the gate standing behind Hiashi. The Chunin flinched at his glare. Sasuke wasn't amused.
So, the Chunin thought that fetching the Clan Head would fix things? Sasuke wasn't in the mood to play nice.
"I asked for Hinata." Sasuke said, turning his narrowed eyes to Hiashi as the man narrowed his further on Sasuke.
They were in a stalemate, and Sasuke wasn't going to let things slide. He pulsed his chakra this time, a small beacon that made the nearby Hyuuga turn to him warily, while Hiashi opened his mouth to demand answers from him again.
"I don't think you have any business with my daughter Uchiha." The man said sharply.
Sasuke raised a brow at the man, before shaking his head.
"And I don't think this is any of your business. What Hinata does hardly mattered to you before, why should it now?" Sasuke asked the man, his tone bitter.
Hiashi flinched even as he opened his mouth to give the Chunin a scathing reply.
"It's fine Tou-San, I said I would meet with him." A soft voice called out from within the compound.
Sasuke looked past Hiashi to find Hinata walking toward them, her steps measured. Behind her was a smaller girl with very similar looks to her own. Her little sister Hanabi most likely.
Sasuke sighed and stepped around Hiashi even as the Guard next to him tensed.
"Sorry Hinata, I merely needed to talk to you. Alone." The Uchiha offered, tacking on the last part as she gave Hiashi a sideways glance.
Hinata nodded and Sasuke turned and walked away, ignoring anyone else after getting the confirmation from Hinata.
Hinata sighed and turned to face her sister.
"Training will be cut short today Hanabi, but you can work on the Jutsu I showed you while I talk with Sasuke." Hinata told the girl, earning a pout and a nod.
Hinata turned to her father, meeting his gaze. She could see the furry swirling underneath his calm façade, and it nearly made her laugh.
"Hinata- "The man started, but Hinata raised a hand to stop him.
"Sasuke was right Tou-San, you hardly have the authority to control me now." Hinata told him, before bowing to the guards at the gates before she slipped into a calm pace after her friend.
When Hinata met up with Sasuke, she took a moment to look the boy over.
He was tense, more than normal. He was also annoyed if his previous actions said anything.
For him to seek her out, without a familiar blonde in tow…Well that was telling in of itself.
"What is it?" She asked the boy, feeling her tone drop to be more annoyed than normal.
Sasuke had to have done something stupid again, if he was avoiding going to Akihane over something that was obviously affecting him. If the boy didn't stop causing problems, then Akihane would ensure he didn't live to cause any more.
Sasuke met her gaze and huffed, blowing out a waft of air before he whipped around and grabbed Hinata's arm.
The Hyuuga let him, even as he dragged her in a Shunshin across the village, right in front of a familiar apartment.
"Come on, I don't want to deal with people overhearing this." Sasuke told her as they dropped next to Akihane's home.
Hinata raised a brow but followed along anyways, smiling softly as they trailed past the areas that Akihane was working on. More rooms, more sections and added areas. When they unlocked the door they opened it to a larger living room, the dining room relocated to another repurposed room to have more space for their Team Dinners.
Sasuke didn't stop at the living room though, walking further down the halls.
Hinata felt slightly queasy as she looked down the halls, her thoughts trailing back to the last time she had been in this hallway, fighting for Akihane.
Her hands trailing to her neck, to the place she had been stabbed in the shoulder, and then to her other arm as she remembered the tingling of Yang chakra. Highly concentrated and bursting with energy.
She glanced up as Sasuke lead her into his room, and he closed the door after them.
The room was sparce, walls colored grey with only a few items. A few pictures, scrolls, a change of clothes, and a bed that was frequently used.
Hinata turned to Sasuke as the teen leaned on an empty wall, turning to face her.
"So, what's up?" Hinata asked, her chakra thrumming along her fingers as she felt an edge creep into her voice as her earlier thoughts resurfaced.
Sasuke dragged a hand through his hair, turning sharply. Hinata watched, unflinching as the boy punched the wall beside him.
"I…I need…I need help." He spoke softly, glancing up from where he was looking at the floor.
Hinata sighed, walking over to the only chair in the room. She took a seat, crossing her right leg over her left as she leaned back.
"Start from the beginning. I don't have training today…so you can take your time." Hinata told him.
Sasuke stared at her, at her impassive gaze and the nonchalance she radiated.
Then, he dove into his explanation of the last few days, of the Uchiha Massacre, of everything. He left nothing out, not even the vision of Orama Hyuuga that had graced him, or the plans that his father had set into motion.
Hinata didn't interrupt and instead sat impassively as she listened to every detail.
They stayed that way for some time, the twining of two unlikely comrades, one trying to find his place again, the other standing as a support, as something to lean on.
Only once Sasuke had finished did Hinata speak, though it started with a sigh as she leaned forward, her legs settled so neither were crossed. She held her head in her hands, thinking heavily as she pondered everything that Sasuke had told her.
"So…The Uchiha wanted to take over? To stop the injustices that they felt were growing more frequent?" Hinata asked Sasuke.
Sasuke nodded, biting back bile as he looked away, at the set of photos on his desk.
Akihane was in most of them, laughing or quietly smiling next to Sasuke or Hinata.
"They were going to use Akihane to do it…but were stopped by…Well you believe by your brother and Akihane's Shisui-Ni?" Hinata asked again, earning another clipped nod.
Hinata rose her head, pausing as she thought about Akihane, about her smiles and her strength. She thought about the weeks following Shisui's death and how afraid Hinata and Sasuke had both ben when Akihane seemed to draw into herself.
It was until the rest of the Uchiha were killed that Akihane dragged herself back, until Sasuke became the one with no ground to stand on that the girl set herself on a new path without the aid of her brother.
Hinata looked back at Sasuke, finding the boy still staring off at the pictures on his desk with a weight weighing down on his shoulders.
To think, the event that had nearly broke both of Hinata's friends had also been the one to cement the two together. The spite and anger and bitterness toward the Senju and Konoha had been the thing to cement the loyalties of Sasuke and Akihane, Uchiha and Senju, together.
Hinata took another deep breath and stood.
"We need to know more." She finally said.
Sasuke turned to her finally, his eyes narrowing as she pondered her next few words. After careful consideration she met Sasuke's gazer again and started to speak.
"We need more information about that night. As much as I trust in the knowledge that Itachi was stronger than most nin…I've been doubting that he could strike down the whole Uchiha Clan all on his own." Hinata revealed to Sasuke.
Sasuke's eyes went wide. He opened his mouth but stopped when Hinata held up her hand.
"You and Akihane were both fixated on Itachi, so of course I did what I could to look into the matter…It…It didn't look good Sasuke. I will share what I know with you, but you have to understand that the moment we agree to this we can't go back. This will just be you and me, Akihane will not be involved." Hinata told the Uchiha, her eyes meeting his sharply.
"This path is dangerous, borderline treasonous if not already crossing that line. Akihane can't have any part in this until we know all of the pieces at play. Do you agree?" Hinata spoke, and for a moment she felt like Sasuke wouldn't agree with her.
Sasuke had always been a creature of habit, and one of those key habits was sticking with Akihane. Akihane was his go to, his north star and the person he turned to first.
Much the same could also be said about Akihane, which was why Hinata wouldn't allow the girl to be involved. To Clan Head Heirs were in a lot less danger for their actions, even ones as significant as these, than a Jinchuuriki. Even with Tsunade watching out for Akihane, even with her titles and her training and all of her brothers offering her protection…Hinata wouldn't risk it.
She cared too much about Akihane, because like Sasuke…Akihane was very much her own North Star. She was Hinata's melody, her muse, and her soul song. Wherever Akihane went Hinata would follow, no matter where it would lead.
Sasuke met her eyes, and the boy nodded, taking her outstretched hand.
"Akihane won't be involved." He agreed.
The two barely noticed that as their eyes met, their dojutsu activated. They each met the other's gaze unblinkingly, unflinchingly. They weren't afraid. They had chosen their path, now it was time to follow it.
I~~~~I
Jiraiya sighed, sitting across the way from Akihane's apartment. He had watched the whole ordeal between Sasuke and Hinata and was debating on intervening.
These two kids, no, these two shinobi were going to have their hands full.
Chuckling, though the sound was surprisingly bitter for Jiraiya, the Sannin shook his head. The Uchiha and Hyuuga alone were caused to worry, but give them someone to protect, someone like Akihane who they would follow through hell and back? It was a recipe for disaster and Jiraiya wasn't sure he had the heart to stop them.
They were on to something. They had found a link of clues that Jiraiya himself had followed into a dead end until now. Jiraiya had always been suspicious about the Uchiha Massacre, about the convenient timing of Uchiha Shisui's death prior to the matter.
Jiraiya had brought the matter up to Hiruzen once, and in response he had been ordered to stop looking.
The Old Man had known something, something so dark that Jiraiya had actually listened to his Sensei, if only for that time being.
Now, with a renewed mind and a set of details that Jiraiya didn't have before, he was beginning to think he should have pressed harder instead of backing off.
Jiraiya looked over the Hyuuga and Uchiha again, allowing his chakra to flicker out of the seal that he had used to eavesdrop on the two.
He stood, ignoring the surprised flickers from the two chakra signatures inside of Akihane's apartment.
If these kids were going to get involved, then Jiraiya supposed he should offer them help. If it kept Akihane out of the mess, then that was nothing but a pact between the three of them.
Jiraiya opened his eyes to see the two Chunin in front of him, Hyuuga and Uchiha both staring him down with deadly intent.
Smirking, the Toad Sennin raised a hand to halt them, exactly as he had seen the Hyuuga do.
Hinata narrowed her eyes on him, slightly in distaste, and boy did the girl remind him of her mother. Calm but deadly, just as a Kunoichi should be.
"How about we start with a bit of tea, aye Hinata-Chan, Sasuke-Kun? I think we could use a nice long discussion." Jiraiya offered the two, smiling even as they felt the edge of a threat in his voice.
Jiraiya thought of Akihane, thought of the boy who had taken care of her and died at the bottom of a ditch. He thought about Itachi Uchiha and about the night when he had heard the news of the Uchiha Massacre.
Looking up at the two shinobi in front of him, Jiraiya pushed away any doubts he had.
Hiruzen had left far too much in the dark with his death, Jiraiya could only handle so many shadows without knowing their source. These two, with a harsh set of minds and an even fiercer devotion to the girl who stood in the darkest shadows of them all…They would help him to fix that.
I~~~~I
Sasuke glanced down at the mask in his hands, tracing a hand over the surface of the pure black mask.
He thought back to that afternoon, to when he and Hinata had sat across from Jiraiya and been given two options.
One, keep to the two of them and try to hide their snooping in a ninja village without stirring up trouble, or two, join Jiraiya and get to the bottom of the mess with the backing of the village's own spy master.
Holding the mask in his hands, not ANBU, because that was the Hokage's, but instead Jiraiya's own personal division of spies that now included two more Chunin.
Blank, black, with no ties to anything but the shadows that they fought to understand or eradicate.
Sasuke's eyes morphed into his Sharingan, taking in the intricate seals that decorated the surface of his mask.
Jiraiya had told them about his plans for Akihane. He had told them how she was going to take up his mantle as the Spymaster of Konoha and how she would be going off with him for two years to learn how to run the system.
He had told them how there was always a need for people someone could trust when you were in a position like that, how Akihane was very much in a place were having her friends close was the best option.
Jiraiya had told Sasuke and Hinata about the rumors circulating about the Jinchuuriki and how if no one stepped up, if no one who he trusted to side with Akihane always took the mantle of her shadows…then that space would fill with the shadows that lingered around her.
Sasuke stared at the mask, and for once didn't feel an ounce of regret over a decision he had made for himself these past few weeks.
He took a deep breath before pulling the mask up, setting it down on his face.
The seals sparked, setting themselves against him as his hair shifted, growing longer, and turning from an inky black to a pure white.
The seals hid his Sharingan from view, changed the way he appeared to others around him.
He looked to the mirror. He wasn't surprised when he saw nothing in his place.
Vanish, like the shadows that grow below the surface. Become one with the darkness of the village, because only when you know exactly what you are dealing with can you eradicate it.
Sasuke vanished in a blur of black, his resolve firming.
I~~~~I
Hinata looked at the mask in her hands, trailing her hands across the black surface. She could feel the hum of chakra, could see each line of seals across the mask that turned the white into black.
She closed her eyes, placing the mask over her face. Her hair, bound in a ponytail at the top of her head, glimmered as it shifted from black to white.
She leaned on her window, overseeing the village as night descended and the lights reached up into the cloudy sky.
She smirked underneath her mask, vanishing into the night.
She had decided on her path, on her purpose. She was to protect Akihane in any way that she could.
If that meant losing herself, well Hinata had never been too attached to the façade she wore around other in the first place. She would become anything, a monster, a killer, or a shadow, all for Akihane. She would do anything to keep her safe.
Hinata knew that much like Sasuke, much like Shisui had been, she was someone who would die for Akihane.
So, Hinata chose Jiraiya's second option. She chose to side with him and take his help, if only because she now stood with two others who held her ideals, two others who cared for Akihane as much as she did.
I~~~~I
This chapter was a little bit shorter than I normally make them, but I was enjoying the way this went and wanted to continue the chapter from here would cut into the significance of what was happening. I hope that you all enjoyed, and thanks for reading!
