THREE
MISTRUST
...
IF Danzo was being honest, he was over Minato's bullshit. The newest and youngest Hokage was popular with the villagers, Fire Lords and Jonin Council alike. And even Danzo could admit, the man had his talents. But the naïve, peace seeking rubbish he spouted made Danzo's icy blood boil.
Danzo closed his eyes, contemplating… Of course, Sarutobi was around too. His personality was similar to Minato's, but the man was milder and already too old to be of much concern. In Danzo's eyes, there was only one real contender who held the title Hokage. For now.
"Lord Danzo."
Danzo opened his eyes as one of the ANBU – Jai, a Foundation member – appeared before him, kneeling respectfully. Jai's face was covered by the standard animalistic mask – his resembling a bear.
"What is it?"
"Lord Fourth… has approved the mission."
Danzo almost smiled. "Good. Dismissed."
The agent vanished wordlessly.
Danzo slowly stood up from the chair he'd been resting in. He moved to an open window, watching the day unfold below him. His office was housed in a tall building, located in the centre of Konoha; it made for an excellent view. Villagers and shinobi alike rushed about, minds on their daily tasks. They certainly didn't realise that Danzo was watching… that he never really stopped watching…
His sharp eyes picked out a flash of blue hair, decorated with an origami flower. He narrowed his eyes. A valuable player, one he could fit into his plans very easily… The only question was, would she pass his little test?
Yes, Danzo was always watching – more closely than even Minato could have realised. And what those that secretly brandished him as overly ambitious failed to realise was that every single move he made was coldly calculated.
Another piece in position, he thought dryly as young Konan made her way to Hokage Tower…
...
"Ahh, Konan, Kakashi." Minato looked up from piles of paperwork as the shinobi entered his office. "Good afternoon."
"Minato-sensei." Kakashi inclined his head. Konan followed suit, giving her Hokage a hesitant smile.
He'd been elected a full year ago, and of all the candidates, Konan was glad he'd gotten the role. Wartime hardly bred trust, and when she'd first arrived in the village, many of the village elders had been disdainful towards her. Konan had never really understood why – she figured it must've had something to do with her origin; she was yet another homeless orphan from a no-name village that hadn't ever produced any shinobi. The sour feelings of an influential few had slowly spread, bleeding into their neighbours, friends and children – even tainting the attitudes of some of her Academy classmates and tutors. Minato, however, had never treated her coldly. Not even when, at fourteen years of age, she'd been sparring with Kakashi, tried out a fire style jutsu, missed badly and left Minato without eyebrows for two weeks (Kushina had taken to drawing them in until they finally grew back, cheekily giving him a different expression every day).
"Let's get right to it, shall we? I've called you in for a mission. But, knowing you two…" Minato assessed them carefully. "How much have you pieced together already?"
Konan shrugged. "Guy was talking about some ANBU test mission…?"
Minato nodded. "The higher ups that be… have deemed it necessary to recruit new ANBU members." He didn't sound very happy about it. "Konan, you're a splendid ninja – that hasn't gone unnoticed." He met her gaze. "You're reliable and hardworking and have successfully led your past teams through some precarious missions. If you would like to join the ANBU, I'm officially extending a provisional offer."
Kakashi looked at her curiously, probably wondering what her final decision would be. Konan, for her part, had thought about this all morning. She didn't hesitate. "I accept."
Minato smiled a little sadly, looking as if he'd expected such a response. "Then I have a mission here for you both. Konan, you'll be leader. I don't think I need to emphasise just how important succeeding will be for your career." He held out a file towards her. "The ANBU, above all, value results." Konan nodded. But when she tried to take the file from him, he held on firmly, refusing to release. "As your Hokage," he added in a low voice, "I have different priorities." He exchanged a stern look with her, then Kakashi. "I implore you to return with your entire team intact."
Konan finally pulled the papers towards her and a second later Minato's words made a lot more sense.
Well, well, well, she thought, eyes skimming over the brief. This certainly isn't a walk in the park. She was well aware that both men were watching her. Kakashi claimed he didn't know about the mission, but he wasn't lying when he had told Guy he could be professional. When exactly did the ANBU evaluation begin? Was her reaction something that mattered?
Keeping her face impassive, Konan raised her eyebrows. "Do you have so little faith in me, to think I can't do both?"
Minato shrugged. "Put it this way, I'm not even sure if I could pull this off." Konan frowned. That was a lie – Minato was a genius. "Prioritising is a skill too, Konan. Besides," he chuckled, looking a little sheepish, "I suppose I have a vested interest in your wellbeing. Kushina and I fully intend to use you both as babysitters once little Naruto is born."
...
"This is weird," Kakashi murmured, as he and Konan made their way towards the training grounds. He was flicking through the file with great interest. "And that guy – I get that they need to test him out too, but to include him on a mission such as this?"
Konan glanced down. The young man she'd seen in Mama Katsu's that morning stared back at her, grinning from his passport sized ID photo. Tan skin, fiery hair, determined eyes. "From Rain, no less," she murmured thoughtfully.
"Even if he was taught by Jariyah," Kakashi said. "Can we really trust him? In a time such as this, wanting to defect to Konoha is awfully suspicious. The Jonin Council have been assuring us the tides of this war will soon turn decisively in our favour…"
Yes, that had been the word on the street. But no one except the Hokage, village elders and head of security, a stern man named Danzo, really knew where this newfound confidence was stemming from.
"Well, he passed Inoichi's inspection." Konan shrugged. "And Ibiki's interrogation." They both shuddered.
"Yeah, but still…"
"I'm not saying I trust him either, but I'm not surprised by the decision to involve him in our military. Despite what the other lands believe, this village is short of manpower," Konan reasoned. "He feels a sense of kinship with Jariyah-sensei, and Rain is a pretty bloody place to be right now. Defecting isn't that absurd an idea. Besides…" She sighed. The more she thought about the Hokage's words, the less appealing this mission was becoming. "A dangerous mission such as this. Minato-sensei was right – it will probably require sacrifices to be successful. Or, at the very least, one sacrifice…"
Kakashi's eye widened as he connected the last dot. "When Minato-sensei said our entire team was to return intact…"
"I'm guessing certain members will need to take greater risk than others to pull this S rank off," Konan said grimly.
"Shit." Kakashi whistled, low and flat.
"Yet if Lord Fourth didn't want us to use him as a scapegoat," Konan began.
"Why even roster him on?" Kakashi summed up. "Think about it. Because you're right. It's not like Minato-sensei at all."
Konan grunted, her thoughts jumping to the same place as his; there were only five people in Konoha who had the right to influence mission rosters – the same five that were privy to all the village's secrets – the two Hokage, the two village elders and Danzo (of which the latter three were infamously ruthless).
Konan pursed her lips. The thought of using a foreign shinobi as a sacrificial pawn bothered her. But the mission's hidden message was as clear as, and so at odds with, the brilliant sunshine bathing them. "Tell me something, Kakashi. Is this the worst thing you've seen a shinobi being asked to do?" Is this as grey as it gets? After all, he'd been associated with ANBU much longer than she had.
"Honestly? No," Kakashi said quietly. Then, after a minute, "Still think you can do both?"
Succeed at the mission and keep the entire team safe. When she thought over the mission objectives, it certainly didn't seem likely…
Konan stopped abruptly, causing Kakashi to slow his steps and turn his head back. His gaze was questioning. No doubt this would be bringing up all sorts of memories for him. Konan tilted her head, pouring confidence she didn't have into her answer. "You can bet on it."
Oh? A cynical voice inside her piped up. Yet if push came to shove, do you really know what would you do?
She glanced behind Kakashi, her eyes roving training field two – the un-official meeting place for newly formed teams. She could make out two figures gathered under the shade of some birch trees. Gritting her teeth, Konan forcefully pushed her doubt away and pointed. "Now let's meet the rest of the team."
...
As Konan and Kakashi neared the duo resting in the shade of the second training field, the two young men looked up.
One of them was the Mama Katsu's noob, the controversial Rain shinobi – although, Konan mused, she supposed he was technically a Konoha shinobi now. He was sitting on the ground, one hand casually resting across his bent knees. He surely had to be feeling uncomfortable – at best he was an unlucky orphan fleeing to a foreign land, seeking safety and being put through the paces, and at worst a spy of some sort – yet he looked completely at ease. He stood as they approached, his eyes snapping to Konan in a way she found mildly disconcerting.
The final member of their team was Tekka Uchiha. Konan had been his junior by one year back in her Academy days and knew for a fact that his dark hair, dark eyes and polite demeanour were deceptively mild. He could get fired up in an instant – his merciless eyes flicking to life at the drop of a pin.
Today, it seemed he was already halfway there – the nineteen-year-old Uchiha was glowering, arms crossed, shoulders tight and tense.
"Yo." Kakashi gave them a slow wave. "Kakashi Hatake, at your service." The introduction was wasted on everyone except the new recruit.
"Yahiko," he held out his hand, shaking Kakashi's, then turning towards Konan.
She stepped forward. "I'm Konan," she said, again purely for his benefit. "I'm the acting leader for this mission." Yahiko's grip was surprisingly gentle. "I take it you've already become acquainted with Tekka, here?"
"He has," Tekka replied. His eyes flicked restlessly between the other three shinobi, making Konan's trepidation grow. "Forgive me, Konan. I mean no disrespect, but…"
Here it comes, thought Konan tiredly. The Uchiha were a traditional bunch, their beliefs often strict and heavy handed. She'd been expecting Tekka to voice some concern about Yahiko, but she hadn't expected to have to defend him so soon.
Konan knew all successful missions stemmed from a strong foundation of teamwork – but it was hard to keep a team together when she didn't really know much about some of the members.
"I had no clue he'd be on this mission too!" To her surprise, Tekka pointed accusingly at Kakashi, the contempt clear on his face. "I vote we kick him off."
...
Kakashi, for his part, merely blinked.
"Kakashi?" Konan looked between the two of them. "Well, hell is more likely to freeze over before he's ever on time these days, but let's not be too hasty." To the untrained eye, she appeared unconcerned by Tekka's words. But Kakashi had known her since his own Academy days. She was pissed off.
"He – " Tekka began, but Konan immediately cut him off.
"Let me stop you right there. Undermining your teammate is serious business. You better have a good reason for saying that, one that's based on more than just uncontrolled testosterone..." She deftly removed two kunai knives and started twirling them in her hand. Some shinobi still looked awkward with shuriken and kunai, even as Chunin – they had never learned to properly hold the weapons, let alone handle them efficiently enough to deal significant damage. Konan was not one of those shinobi – she handled blades as if born to do so, the dark metal flashing threateningly between her nimble fingers. "So?" She said, her voice deceptively lazy. "Do you actually have a good reason, Tekka, hmm?"
Underneath his mask, Kakashi's lips twitched. You could really see where Anko had rubbed off on her.
Tekka opened his mouth, then closed it. Kakashi could practically see Tekka's mind working desperately to come up with any legitimate reason to throw him off the mission – but you can't, can you? Tekka's cheeks became flushed, his frustration growing. Kakashi knew exactly what Tekka's problem was – and he'd be a liar if he said a part of him wasn't dreading what the Uchiha was about to dredge up.
When Tekka spoke next, his eyes were red, the Sharingan quick to answer his fury. Quicker than Kakashi's was at this point, anyway.
"That – that - that butt-faced miscreant – he has no right to the Sharingan!" Tekka all but spat. "My clan's Sharingan! Obito's – " He choked off abruptly, clenching his fists, looking away. Then he was glaring at Kakashi again, pointing for good measure. "I don't care that it happened two years ago. It shouldn't have happened at all. And you certainly don't deserve his gifts when you couldn't even save him!"
For a man perpetually haunted by his biggest mistake, Kakashi was surprised at how much the mention of Obito still stung. "And you don't think I'm aware of all this?" He said quietly.
Tekka narrowed his eyes. "No, I don't," he said, his anger cooling to give way to something darker. "Because if you truly were aware, you'd do the honourable thing and just – "
"And that," said Konan, her tone sharper than either of the kunai dancing in her hands, "is enough."
She flicked her fingers; Kakashi found himself moving aside and wrapping his hand around the handle of a kunai knife – Tekka, less prepared, dodged his more clumsily, tumbling to the ground with the blade lodging itself firmly in the grass, mere inches from his crotch. "Obito was a great ninja." Konan's hazel eyes flitted to Kakashi, strands of her hair wafting in the breeze. "The Fourth himself declared that his death was not the result of any individual, rather our country's current situation. Besides," she turned towards Tekka, frowning. "Obito's dying wishes were clear. We all know that families don't always know what's best for an individual." Tekka's face flushed a darker shade of crimson. Kakashi had heard too, about Tekka's recent revelations… "This mission," Konan added, more loudly, "is not about airing out past grievances."
"But this is about honour – " Tekka protested.
"Did I say I was finished speaking?" Konan asked frostily. "That was a rhetorical question, Tekka, the answer is clearly no. I'm going to give you one chance. You and Kakashi will spar, the aim being to take those particular kunai from one another." Kakashi glanced down; the knife she'd thrown at him had a blue string attached to it, tied in a measly bow at the point where base met blade. "You get his, he goes. He gets yours; he remains with this team and you stop being a massive dick."
"Stop… being a dick?" Tekka spluttered, mouth dropping open. Kakashi himself had never heard the elite Uchiha swear a day in his life, so he wasn't surprised that Tekka was appalled at Konan's language, mild though it may have been. Tekka frowned. "What, for ever?"
Konan's mouth twitched. "That would be nice, now wouldn't it? But, as a bare minimum, if Kakashi wins, I expect you to behave courteously towards your teammates for the duration of this mission."
"Fine! It's not like he stands a chance. But, really Konan, why even bother with this?" Tekka pouted, even as he got up and picked up his own kunai, decorated with a green bow. "I'm not going to hold back; he's just going to get badly injured."
"We'll just see who injuries who," Kakashi murmured, flexing his shoulders, readying himself.
Konan rolled her eyes. "We all need to get an idea of everyone's strengths and weaknesses. It'll help us work more efficiently on the mission. Speaking of which, you and I will go next." Her eyes rested on Yahiko, who had been watching the whole scene unfold with a mixture of curiosity and concern. Yahiko blinked, arching an eyebrow.
"Alright," he said, looking a little amused.
Konan narrowed her eyes, but didn't press him. "Begin," she said quietly, moving back.
"What?" Tekka frowned.
"She means us," Kakashi explained, throwing a few shuriken at his easily distracted opponent. Tekka growled and dove into action – but Kakashi was ready for it, already pulling up his headband.
Konan hadn't been lying – she did want to evaluate everyone's skills. But she was also giving Tekka and Kakashi the opportunity to talk with their fists now rather than in the middle of their sensitive mission. Kakashi knew Tekka would go all out, even for a simple capture-the-kunai game such as this. He figured he might as well meet Konan halfway and really fire Tekka up, to truly clear the air.
Let it all out, big guy, he thought grimly. With both eyes, and his illegitimate Sharingan, fully exposed, Kakashi charged at the Uchiha.
A/N:
Full discloser, I've played with the time line and made everyone a little older (sometimes a lot older) in regards to canon events. But I have tried to keep the order of the events the same (more or less).
As for Mei's excellent question - HOW did Konan end up in Konoha - well, I *could* explain it here - but then I'd just be spoiling large parts of this story : P
Although the next two chapters touch on it a LITTLE bit more, for now you'll just have to trust me when I say there's a method to the madness (that will be explained with time). 'Tis an intricate plot, this one.
Finally, thank you to those who have shown interest in this story!