Chapter 32 – The Map That Leads To You
Contrary to what people more than likely believed, he was not risking his sight simply because Sakura's attention was not on him. Did he dislike witnessing her moment with Sasuke? Definitely. It sucked. Was he childish enough to let it get to him? No.
He understood perfectly that she possessed a bond with the other two just as she did him – they'd all come together in different ways, each of their bonds unique and theirs, making her love for each of them so very distinct. Were there some similarities? Somewhere down the line perhaps there were, yes, but they couldn't get hung up on them. Just as she'd told him earlier that day: she had to find herself again and he would never get in the way of that important self-discovery.
Feigning indifference to the indignant stare boring into the back of his head, Shisui held out his arm, sharingan activating the moment he met the crow's eye and transforming straight into the mangekyō.
What he wanted to do was something he'd only ever tried once before in his life. The results were shaky at best and now, he was pushing the unperfected ability to the maximum, stretching it over the expanse of hundreds of miles. However, he was aware of the risks and he knew his limitations and when to retreat – he merely hoped it wouldn't happen too soon because despite his previous words, there was still an insanely beautiful woman standing behind him, her whole focus being on him. Messing up at a moment as big as that was simply too tragic.
"Be careful, Shisui," Sakura told him.
He smiled faintly. "I will do a test run to ease your mind."
That seemed to brighten her spirits somewhat. He could tell because she came to stand by his side and in front of Itachi, her close proximity to the crow and blasé attitude towards its presence alerting Shisui to her potentially being around them enough to grow comfortable with them. Many feared crows and believed them to be a bad omen – but not her, it seemed. Would she have felt the same had he been able to summon them (he did actually have a contract, but he was way of summoning them himself due to his unsteady chakra control in addition to the fact that he'd supposedly abandoned them for eight years)?
Shisui allowed his gaze to travel upwards, taking in the sight of how close Sakura and Itachi unknowingly stood to one another.
Going against the evidence of their supposedly unwavering love, Shisui believed Itachi to be his biggest competitor in Haruno Sakura's heart, not Sasuke. While the acute awareness of the latter's presence did make him somewhat wary (for there was no denying that level of tension between them), it was, in fact, the blissful peace Itachi and Sakura radiated when in one another's presence that struck him deeply. It was the companionable, relaxed silences. The meaningful glances like they knew exactly what the other was thinking because they were so in tune with one another. The happy little smiles–
No.
He shut his eyes, taking a deep, calming breath.
Should he allow his mind to continue that downward spiral, then he would end up in the same predicament as Sasuke and lost to the Curse of Hatred that plagued their clan. That couldn't happen, not when Sakura was trying her hardest to prevent it by distancing herself emotionally from her loves, more than likely hurting herself in the process.
"What do you plan to do?"
Shisui looked to the Kazekage, informing him simply, "I will go somewhere on the other side of the village and find something to bring back."
"Do you believe that to be specific enough compared to what you're attempting?" questioned Kakashi and his single eye narrowed.
Ah, so he'd caught on already? "I have something specific in mind, although my pride won't allow me to share it with any of you until it is placed into my hands."
"Shisui–" Itachi and Sakura reprimanded simultaneously, unknowingly striking his heart.
"Trust me," he assured them both, cutting them off without hesitation.
He knew that it had nothing to do with trust – not for Itachi and Sakura, anyway – but more so to do with the fact that, should he not take his self-imposed task more seriously, he was at a high risk of causing great strain and injury to himself. And while Shisui knew that what he was about to achieve had never been done over such long distance before (by him, at least), he couldn't help but to feel as though he should be able to do at least this one task. It was frustrating that his sharingan was under so much question, that everything he'd once been able to do were now just rumours.
He was Uchiha Shisui. Shisui of the Body Flicker. Infamously known for possessing a sharingan that was the most powerful since Uchiha Madara's days, his abilities to warp the mind to his bidding terrifying people into committing suicide before they could battle. Yet he'd done nothing to prove that fact and had done nothing but make a nuisance of himself. He was nothing more than a myth used to keep children in line.
Raising his arm as the Kazekage moved to the window and assessed the street outside his mansion calmly, Shisui forced himself to shove aside his self-pity and loathing, knowing that it would only be a hindrance to him during his mission.
"It's clear," Gaara informed him and stood back once the window was opened, nodding once. "Go."
Shisui shut his eyes and breathed out slowly.
Concentrate.
He heard Sakura gasp and move when something wet trailed down his cheek, but thankfully, somebody intervened – Itachi, no doubt – and kept her from disrupting his concentration.
At his command, the crow instantly took off out of the window and he could sense it soaring through the skies. It kept on track, never once wavering and the same was applicable to his jutsu, also.
He couldn't see through the crow's eyes, but he didn't need to the longer the jutsu was activated, allowing their minds to temporarily merge, in a sense.
It was a less damaging version of his Kotoamatsukami – still allowing him to control another being's mind to do his bidding, though not permanently. The effects would wear off and he had a sneaking suspicion the target would know of his control too, but until his visual prowess was back up to standards, it would have to do. The simple fact his eyes were bleeding while executing a jutsu that wasn't even half the strength of his infamous Kotoamatsukami had his stomach feeling like lead, but he didn't allow it to distract him.
It was ten minutes before the crow was returning and dropping a carrier bag in front of Sakura, who was now seated at the table.
Breathing out a sigh of relief, Shisui smirked and damned himself for the way his heart reacted in response to her slack jawed expression. That damning doubled when she looked his way with that same expression, only for it to shift into a wide smile moments later.
"How did you…?"
"The smell."
"Sure, when an Uchiha says it, it's romantic, but if I said stuff like that, it'd be creepy," muttered Naruto, the undeniable pout in his voice making it so they didn't have to look his way.
"I-I don't think it would be creepy, Naruto-kun."
Their inane conversation became unimportant to him (not that it ever was important) when Sakura glanced down at the bottles in the bag, her smile dimming in size but never losing so much as a fraction of its warmth.
"Thank you, Shisui," she told him earnestly.
But their tender moment was shattered when a gloved hand reached into the carrier bag, soon holding the bottle up into the cheerful face of Hatake Kakashi who said in an equally cheerful manner, "Maa, Sakura. Pakkun will be happy to see this. You don't mind sharing, do you?"
She was brutal in her snatching it back and glaring at him angrily. "Like hell I'm sharing with your ninken!"
That…
Shisui took a step back, admiring the fiery display as the woman he'd gotten to know during his darkest days clawed at the surface of her prison, revealing snippets of herself to them. That time, it was in the form of her superficial streak (that he couldn't even deny he appreciated, for it had always meant a fresh smelling home and a wonderful smelling woman on his arm), but the next, it could be something even greater.
"What are you thinking?"
He didn't look to Itachi as he came to stand by his side, speaking quietly enough so that he wouldn't be heard over Sakura's angered growls or Naruto's laughter, though his pause in reply was solely due to the wholeness of the picture in that moment, the sight of Team Seven (yes, including Sasuke) bringing forth a strong emotion in his chest as he witnessed how relieved and happy each of them felt about their reuniting (in their own individual ways).
"About the jutsu?"
Faintly, Itachi nodded once and Shisui bit back a sigh, because honestly? He didn't know. Taking such a gamble wasn't usually his style, not when it came to his most prized possession, however, his sight simply… Well, it just wasn't as important to him as it once was.
No, what was important to him was the way Sakura had wailed in his arms about the future Danzo had stolen from her. What he cared about was her heart being trampled on like it meant nothing. What infuriated him was that she was being used as a pawn to get to him and his family.
"Shisui–"
It was with renewed vigour that he lifted his arm, beckoning the crow to come to him and in a matter of seconds, it was departing once more and he ordered of Itachi to summon more to follow after it. He paid no attention to the reluctance in his agreement, just as he refused to acknowledge any of the others as he suddenly held out a hand to one of the last crows, the clashing of their eyes, his heightened emotions, linking their minds in a more secure way.
And that time, when the crow took off, Shisui sat down as a wave of dizziness hit him, though it wasn't due to overusing his sharingan.
It was due to delving deeper, adding a deeper wish to his original plan.
"What did you order them to do?" questioned the Kazekage as he continued to stare after the murder of crows.
He kept his eyes shut. "Find an opening."
"They'll be killed–" someone tried to argue.
"They won't," disagreed Itachi calmly. "When I first signed my contract with them, I ensured they knew of their ability to disobey orders and return to their world, should they feel I was unnecessarily and recklessly endangering their lives." He could feel the younger Uchiha's gaze fixed on him (probably everyone else's too), but he didn't care. "Even if you are controlling them temporarily, they are my crows, Shisui and they are loyal only to me."
Was Itachi attempting to appear as the more dominant–
What the hell was he thinking?
Gods, he really was going to fall into the darkness if he continued to allow his mind to stray like that.
It wasn't Itachi trying to present himself as the alpha in their messed-up situation – it was a warning from one concerned friend to another. He was warning him that the crows would turn on him by disappearing, that even though he was controlling them with his sharingan, they were Itachi's crows, therefore immune to an extent or most likely possessed an ability to overcome genjutsu of an insignificant level (insignificant when compared to his ultimate genjutsu Tsukuyomi, of course). His half-assed version of Kotoamatsukami was insignificant. His genjutsu was insignificant.
Focus, he scolded himself.
Through the eyes of the crow, he relished in the freedom of soaring through the clear blue skies. He cherished the wholeness of travelling with the other crows in the flock, the feeling of being united bringing forth a painful reminder of what he'd lost the day his clan had been slaughtered.
It evoked a stronger bond between them and he added another order to the list for the crow.
They were fast – he would compliment Itachi on that after it was over, for he wasn't so sure if his own crows could travel at such speeds – though it still took a while to reach Konoha.
He wondered what the villagers thought of the murder of crows that suddenly darkened their skies, interrupting their miserable days. Even something as simple as glancing at them wasn't possible, however. He was on a mission and he had to use his chakra wisely. Nothing else was allowed to matter.
Due to being mere birds without any special chakra or other suspicious features, they were not stopped by the barrier, Shisui found and in response to the discovery, adrenaline rushed through his veins. Did he let it go to his head? A little, he relented. But how could he not when he was so close?
At the sight of the Hokage Tower still standing proudly even when the rest of the village was in shambles, Shisui felt the adrenaline become tinged with anger and it scorched him, aiding him in sending more of his strength to the crows.
He blocked out the others, brows mashing together in concentration, fists clenching when he witnessed ROOT making an appearance, finally deeming the murder as suspicious and necessary to intercept. No doubt Danzo knew of Itachi's summons and had put two and two together.
Good.
'Attack,' he ordered mentally, praising the crows when they swooped down without warning, taking a handful of the operatives by surprise as they pecked at their eyes mercilessly.
The one he was fully in control of kept moving and he willed it to increase its speed, using his own chakra to coat it in a way similar to what he'd sensed Sakura do before the attack on Konoha.
Without even realising what he was doing, he stripped the bird of its natural survival instincts, using his hold on its mind to assure it that what they were doing was possible.
Do it.
Do it!
The loss of control over several of the crows didn't occur to him.
No, he was too focused on the shattering of the window to the Hokage's office, the crow hurtling into the room without hesitation.
The sight of Danzo seated behind the desk had his clenched fists trembling, his uncaring aura making his anger multiply. As Naruto had stated: he didn't deserve that seat. He would never be Hokage.
And he was no match for his sharingan, no matter what he armed himself with.
That fact was proven when he made the rookie mistake of meeting the crow's eye, allowing Shisui to manipulate everything he saw from that moment on (had he been at full power, he wouldn't have even needed to meet his eye and that fact made him angrier, because he was in his predicament because of that bastard).
He didn't change the surroundings. Didn't do anything to confirm in Danzo's mind that it was genjutsu, outside of taking his ability to move away from him, of course. Instead, he had the crow morphing into him, allowing Shisui to glare hatefully into Danzo's widening eye. He relished in the momentary fear that flashed through his features.
"Do you see how easy it is to get to you?" questioned Shisui coldly.
Knowing that he was on a time limit and at any moment, the crow would be stopped by his guards, he approached the paralysed man with purpose, ripping the bandages from his face. In reality, the crow tore them away, its beak drawing closer and closer to the wide sharingan that focused on him and–
"You have no right to be using this."
Just as he sensed the shift in his control, Shisui acted, removing Fugaku's mangekyō and having the crow swallow it whole, ensuring it would not be recovered.
"Even with the mangekyō you are powerless against me," he muttered, readying the crow for disappearing. "You should have killed me when you had the chance, Danzo."
The second his operatives burst onto the scene, Shisui relinquished control of the crow's mind, allowing it to return to its own world with its companions.
The room he returned to was completely different than what he'd been expecting, startling Shisui as he realised that he was lying in a bed. Gone were the extravagant, blood red curtains and the mahogany table capable of fitting at least two platoons around it. Instead, he was greeted by pale yellow walls and a single futon, the girl collapsed at the bottom of his bed, across his feet, frowning even in sleep, hand grasping at his ankle securely.
Shisui smiled despite himself, the sight of such beauty forcing back his anger, causing it to crumble away bit by bit.
Refusing to move for fear of disturbing her, he admired the sharp lines of Sakura's features, the careful slant of her eyes, the fullness of her pouting lips as they parted, allowing a soft sigh to fall from them. It appeared the activation of her seal had healed her wounds in full, although a few scars remained due to the extent of said injuries.
The scar that stood out the most to him was the one around her neck, the one that broke his heart a little more every time he caught a glimpse of it. He was aware of the torture method – had witnessed it once himself and even said to himself on that day that he would rather die than face such torture.
He'd been around nine at the time, he believed and completely new to torture. According to the clan elders, they'd needed him experienced in all areas, so asked that he participated in interrogating a potential traitor of the clan who was after their dōjutsu. There, he'd watched as a young man was repeatedly suspended from the ceiling, left to hang until he was close to death only to be dropped mercilessly to the ground before it could claim him, hacking and spluttering and begging for death.
Just the mere thought of Sakura experiencing such cruelty was enough to shatter his composure and Shisui dropped his head back onto the pillow, glaring angrily up at the ceiling.
The man had almost died fourteen times before giving up the information his clansmen had demanded, but Shisui – even to that day – believed he'd made it all up to be released from his suffering. He'd cried like a child, swearing that his words were nothing but the truth. And when he'd died? He'd done so with a smile of relief, glad that he was finally free.
For Sakura to remain silent for so long throughout her torture, how many times had she been pushed to the brink of death only to be yanked back at the very last second? Had she ever longed for the peace of eternal darkness?
"Shisui?"
Her lip had healed nicely, as had the gash on her forehead, he noticed when looking back to Sakura's tired concern.
"Sorry," he apologised with the same exhaustion he could see in her eyes. "I didn't mean to wake you."
She huffed at that and sat up straighter, stretching in a way that allowed him to appreciate the gentle swells of her curves in her kneeling position. Then, he followed her movements as her hands settled back onto his futon, gaze trailing up her slender arms until he was met by her daring, angry expression.
He dared to smile apologetically, even though he didn't mean it in the slightest.
Apparently deeming the blatant staring unimportant, Sakura muttered in regard to their previous conversation, "It wasn't a good sleep." Narrowing those hard green eyes in a way he strangely enjoyed, she added, "I would've slept much better in my bed."
Nobody had forced her to sleep at his bedside. "Then why didn't you?"
"Because you–" She sucked in a sharp breath and glared angrily at him, however Shisui was too enraptured by the openness of her expressions. They were a sharp contrast to what he grew up surrounded by and he thoroughly enjoyed every angry line of her face. "You're my patient."
What a lame excuse, he wanted to laugh at her. Instead, he raised an eyebrow.
It was enough of a push for her to mutter, "I was scared you wouldn't wake up."
Shisui was unable to continue teasing her after her admission and he sighed, sitting up and ignoring the dizziness that tried to knock him back down. He was wary of pushing too hard, or coming across with impure intentions as he closed the distance between them, watching her reactions to ensure he didn't push his luck (witnessing her raw strength and watching Uzumaki Naruto's throat almost be crushed beyond repair had been thrilling and terrifying – a strange combination for him).
"How long has it been?"
"Nearly two days," she snapped, anger returning. "Why the hell did you have to push yourself that hard?"
Ah. Being so close and being able to see her was way too distracting for his own good. He could see so many different shades in her eyes, the light hitting them in such a stupefying way.
Gods, he was such a sucker for pretty eyes and he'd never seen eyes prettier than hers.
"–and now you're zoning out when I'm shouting at you!"
He put on a show of feeling guilty with his sheepish smile, even though he felt anything but. How could he when she suddenly leaned in closer, demanding his full attention? Sakura could yell at him all damn day and he wouldn't complain.
"Shisui!"
"Where are the others?" he questioned, (hopefully) gently diverting her attention. "Has Itachi summoned his crows at all?"
She frowned at that. "Why should he?"
Sighing, he asked, "Could you ask everyone to meet in the dining room?"
It was with agitated reluctance that she did so and half an hour later, everyone was gathered and waiting for his news – he was impressed that the Kazekage himself had managed to join them, but he could sense that it was a clone. Even Sakura's childhood friend (Yamanaka Ino, he reminded himself after several moments) was there, although he'd been certain they wouldn't see her any time soon after the spat with Sasuke.
Was he angered by her carelessness? Oh, definitely. He loathed the mere notion of Sakura going through something that even hinted at the torture she endured at the hands of Yamanaka's shishou, Morino Ibiki. However, he knew that was the emotional side of him talking. As twisted as her thinking was, the blonde had a point. Sakura was dangerously unstable (the fact that she'd unknowingly crushed Naruto's throat solidified that thought) and the only way to help her at that point was to figure out her triggers and help her find ways of managing them.
However…
Shisui sighed and decided that it was not the time to think about such things. He couldn't allow his feelings to cloud his judgement.
"You gave us quite the scare," Kakashi informed him. "Those two especially."
That didn't surprise him. His gaze shifted to Itachi and Sakura, each displaying their displeasure in their own individual ways (though he had to look much closer for Itachi's), letting him know that they were unhappy with him.
"So?" questioned Naruto impatiently and he stepped away from the Hyuuga trio, approaching him. "Did you find an opening?"
"Aa." He really was the double of his father, wasn't he? How stupid did that make him for not noticing the similarities sooner? That it took seeing the Hokage monument to recall the Yondaime's features? Shisui smirked. "Itachi, summon the crow I took control of."
He knew his friend wouldn't struggle in summoning a specific crow – he'd seen him do so on missions before. And Itachi proved he was still more than capable of doing so as it popped into existence, coming to rest on his shoulder loyally.
Shisui wondered if it hated him as he recalled the way he'd cruelly taken away its ability to think and move for itself. Would it make his own contract void (if it wasn't already)?
Approaching carefully, he held up his hand. "Firstly, I would like to apologise for how far I pushed you. It was inexcusable of me. You're not hurt, are you?"
The others looked at him like he was insane, but Shisui dismissed them without a second thought. Just because the crow wasn't a human like the rest of them, it did not mean it was without emotions. It was capable of experiencing fear or grief like the rest of them.
And Shisui knew he was forgiven when the crow came to stand on his hand, head tilting until their eyes met, telling him in the only way it could that he did not fear his eyes.
He smiled gratefully. "Thank you."
"I take it you had it collect something," theorized Sasuke. He was leaning back against the wall, much closer to Kakashi than Shisui had thought he'd be comfortable with (since he hadn't failed to notice the tension between the two, indicating their unfinished business and issues). "What is it?"
"For those of you who don't know, I took control of this crow with my mangekyō," Shisui told them all after nodding in confirmation to Sasuke. "Danzo and his ROOT operatives were not expecting it or wholly prepared for a confrontation. If anything, it was unsettlingly easy to get to him."
Sakura's eyes were wide and she stepped closer to him, eyes darting between his and the crow's. "What did you do to him?"
The fear in her features wasn't towards Danzo dying – no, it was because she wanted to be the one who ended him. Shisui could see that in his brief search of her eyes. Not only that but having him die at the hands (or feet) of a crow was deeply unsatisfying to her, no doubt.
"Show them," he ordered quietly and held the crow up higher as it began the process of bringing the eye back up, making several cringe when it landed in his outstretched hand, mangekyō still activated somehow. That was probably due to Danzo's experimentation, however.
Luckily for him, it hadn't started to digest and had only remained stored away in the crow's stomach, waiting for his order to return it.
Sasuke pushed away from the wall. "That's…!"
"Father's eye," Itachi finished for him.
The two brothers were unable to turn their wide-eyed gazes away from the eye, as was everyone else as they realised just how far Shisui had managed to go.
"What was the point in taking it?" questioned Naruto with a frown. "Danzo'll just use the other, won't he?"
While true, Naruto wasn't aware of the fact that even a complete set of mangekyō was rarely ever the same. Without that specific eye that somehow managed to link him to Sakura, it was possible he wouldn't be able to control her again.
"I can only use Amaterasu with one eye," Itachi explained patiently after repeating his thoughts.
Shisui was glad he didn't share which eye – while it did no good to be so suspicious of those surrounding them, it never did any harm, either. Itachi's sharingan was powerful to say the least. They had to take extra precaution to ensure they were not stolen, as they knew others longed for such power.
"And Tsukuyomi with the other," Sakura added.
Did she know the secrets of Itachi's eyes? Shisui couldn't help but wonder. If he'd divulged such information, then that meant she had more trust than Shisui had originally anticipated. To some, sharing secrets of their eyes was strictly forbidden and there was no excusing it or finding loopholes that allowed them to do so. Some had even died for it, in the past.
He could see Sasuke was having similar thoughts, for he watched the pair with a narrowed, suspicious glare.
But he'd promised Sakura he would not get hung up on it. He had to respect her decision.
So back to the discussion on eyes: as for himself, he was able to use Kotoamatsukami in both eyes. Due to many different factors, however, he couldn't use it repeatedly. If he used it in battle, it would be a while before he could use it again – it had to recharge, in a way. Of course, there was Susanoo also, but they could all use that considering–
"Kazekage-sama, is there somewhere private we could train?" questioned Shisui. He noticed how his abrupt change in conversation confused the others, so he clued them in, saying, "You see, with the mangekyō, we're able to use an ability known as Susanoo, but it takes time to fully develop it without blinding ourselves in the process."
"I've heard of that before," Sasuke said, his features twisting ever so slightly with a frown. "It was on the–"
"It was."
If he roused suspicion by cutting him off so suddenly, nobody said anything. There was no need to be so paranoid considering people without the sharingan were unable to read the stone tablet, but Shisui was not willing to take any risks. Granted, there wasn't much left of a clan to protect, but for those who were left, he would protect them with every fibre of his being.
"While I was training with Shukaku, I trained in the desert at a location only the jinchūriki of Suna are aware of," explained Gaara. Folding his arms over his chest, he said, "You can train there undisturbed."
"Susanoo is possibly bigger than a tailed beast – in some cases, at least." Itachi looked to the Kazekage, asking, "Will we be seen?"
"No."
"If I remember correctly, even with Father's other eye still in his possession, Danzo cannot use Susanoo if he's never implanted the set together and awakened the mangekyō with both eyes. That leaves him at a disadvantage if he faces us directly," Sasuke muttered thoughtfully. "You can both use it, right?"
Oh? Had Itachi mastered it, too? That would certainly explain the "in some cases" comment, wouldn't it?
"I can," Shisui answered without pause, nodding once. "It's imperfect, however."
"As is mine."
There was a pause. An awkward one, where Sasuke glanced at the group watching them.
A ghost of a smile crossed Itachi's features. "Considering how young you were when you left, you no doubt didn't have the chance to fully educate yourself on our clan's jutsu," he said at length, no doubt wary of disclosing too much information despite how much Sasuke had just shared. "I will share all I know with you."
"I don't know what the hell you're talking about," Naruto began suspiciously before folding his arms across his chest, nodding wisely. "But it sounds like a good plan."
Shisui's expression deadpanned as he replayed the Kazekage's words in his mind and he knew Itachi was thinking the same thing, because the younger Uchiha looked straight to him, the pair of them nodding in agreement.
"What is it?" questioned Kakashi.
While they were on the subject, perhaps having Hatake Kakashi train with his own sharingan wouldn't be a waste of time, either. Shisui had known of Obito and knew of his abilities – his sharingan, even though it only activated before his death, would be powerful also and would come in handy.
Glancing back to the blond, Shisui raised an eyebrow, asking, "How much do you trust us, Naruto-kun?"