Notes: Sorry for the long wait. Life got very complicated. To make it up to anyone who is reading this, I'm publishing three chapters today.
The bar is rather subdued, as far as such places ever are, by the time Inoichi finally manages to finish taking report and clock out. Shikaku is draped half asleep across the booth and Chōza is working his way through more food than Inoichi even wants to consider eating. Still, seeing them relaxes him in a way that he's never been able to fully articulate. He's worked with them for so long that meeting up is almost like going home. Which isn't to say he doesn't love his daughter and wife with every fiber of his being, it's just that his team is… special. A different sort of family.
He doesn't register walking over. The past few weeks have been so busy that this is probably the first night he's actually managed to clock out before midnight. Between working with the new Hokage — the Uchiha — and Hatake, he's been pulling hundred hour weeks just trying to keep on top of everything. And that's on top of acting as Interim Director of Intel while Ibiki assists ANBU with some sort of highly classified joint Internal Affairs investigation into what the hell happened with the foreign agent and the civilian girl. Rumor has it Hatake's on a similar assignment, but, as has become the norm under this new Hokage, no one knows anything. And while such secrecy might be effective in keeping their enemies guessing, it's a pain in the ass trying to anticipate or organize his department when no one tells him anything.
Inoichi just sort of collapses into the seat next to Chōza, Shikaku, unsurprisingly, having opted not to make space. While it's a little tight, he's just grateful to be out of the tower.
"Our triumphant hero returns," Chōza says, wordlessly offering him the plate of grilled chicken sticks. "I've have to admit, I'd all but given up on you tonight."
Inoichi takes one of the skewers and grins, "That's fair, I almost didn't come," and it's true, the thought of just going home to Ino and his wife and falling in bed had been quite tempting. But it's been nearly three months since they'd last managed to schedule some time off together without children, wives or missions, and he couldn't pass up actually spending time together without the threat of imminent death or maiming.
And despite how long it's been since they were last together, they easily fall back into easy conversation. They talk about their children, their wives, the appalling state of the academy. Shikaku complains about how hard it is to deal with a job and a family despite the fact he's probably the most underutilized of the three of them. While he's been officially named Jonin Commander, the kid Hokage has been managing most of the mission assignments and reports himself, only leaning on Shikaku once he's been completely overwhelmed. With the state of Konoha's forces and their need to project their strength to the world, the fact Shikaku isn't on active duty is a fairly big oversight. Though, it's really a symptom of the greater organizational and communication issues the village has been experiencing.
Sitting down and talking is nice. It's a pleasant break from the chaos of being on duty. Eventually the dining room begins to empty and the staff politely suggest they should probably stop drinking and go home to their families. Shikaku is almost too drunk to stand and after watching the room spin a bit when he himself gets up, Inoichi realizes he's not much better off. Chōza has always been the best at handling his drink and he gamely steadies both of them, grabbing them by the arm to make sure they don't embarrass themselves too badly by tripping over their own feet or walking into something.
They wind up at Chōza's home, though Inoichi's not quite sure how they made it. The Akimichi residence is almost on the complete opposite side of the village from the bar. Still, it's nice sitting down. With Choji and Masako asleep, the main room is pleasantly dark and empty.
As soon as they're in the door, Shikaku drunkenly makes his way to the kitchen and liberates some more to drink. Despite his clear inebriation, he's actually pretty dexterous and manages to pour them each a glass without spilling.
In the relative privacy of the Akimichi home it doesn't take long for the conversation to drift to politics. Without having to worry about who will overhear them, and tongues considerably loosened by more alcohol than is wise, they begin to gripe about work, Konoha's tenuous relations with the other villages and some of the more inane policies of the new Hokage.
While perhaps one of the most directly affected by the newly heightening international tensions, Chōza actually has the least to say on the subject. He's spent far more time out of the village than in and has only spoken to the new Hokage a handful of times, most of them before he took the hat. Still, he's more than willing to act as an understanding audience.
Inoichi vents a little about the constant state of secrecy in the tower. "It's like operating in enemy territory," he exclaims a bit louder than he'd meant to.
Ever the voice of reason, Chōza points that with an unknown number of enemy operatives within the village, secrecy is probably the only thing keeping them all alive. And while it's a valid point, Inoichi is still frustrated.
"I had to pull a double shift yesterday," he says, "because all the work my team had done was declared 'useless'. It's impossible to do a thorough investigation when no one will tell you what it is you're looking for."
Shikaku shakes his head, "Yoshino keeps nagging me to do more around the house. It's such a drag."
Inoichi is fairly certain he'd be willing to kill someone if it would give him a few more hours of sleep each night. The idea of complaining about a lack of work is inconceivable.
Shikaku winds up pouring them each another few cups before they run out of things to gripe about. And, as he stares lifelessly at his knees, he voices his real concern, "Do you think the Uchiha, Shisui, should be Hokage?"
Chōza answers first, "While he's a bit young, so was the Fourth when he was appointed. The kid is talented, very bright. He might be making a few mistakes here and there, but most of the problems with the village have their roots from before he took power. Not to mention, even Minato made a number of mistakes."
Inoichi is silent, thinking briefly on that night eight years ago, when Minato's wish for a child of his own blood almost wound up costing him the entire village. Did wind up costing his and Kushina's lives.
Shikaku shifts at the table slightly, "I don't think technical skill's quite what Inoichi's referring to," he says slowly, looking between the two of them, "is it?"
At that, Inoichi isn't quite sure what to say. He's not entirely sure how he feels about the new Hokage, and no matter what, Hiruzen did appoint the boy, the man. To suggest otherwise is practically treason. "No," he whispers, "it's not."
Chōza immediately looks wary. "What exactly," he presses, "are you suggesting then?"
Inoichi licks his lip, his eyes refusing to stay focused on any one thing. He's always considered himself loyal to the village and loyal to the Hokage. Before the Uchiha, he'd considered them the same thing. But now… "I mean," he says more confidently than he feels, "that the entire appointment happened quite quickly. Hiruzen had never seriously mentioned stepping down and then all of a sudden he did. Uchiha Shisui is a talented ninja, but not one who was ever considered on the shortlist, Tsunade or Jiraiya would probably have gotten it, if they'd been willing, or Kakashi if they weren't. Even Danzo was a more likely choice. And to have been appointed at the very height of the tensions between the Uchiha and village? Almost immediately afterward the Uchiha began cooperating again. It's just a bit… suspicious I think. Especially with how closely he works with the Uchiha heir. The two are inseparable."
Before Inoichi is even done talking, Chōza is looking around, as if to make sure no one else was listening in on them. Even Shikaku is more attentive, his gaze sharp and focused. Inoichi stops talking. He's not sure what to think. Even the suggestion that there might be something untoward going on with the Hokage is all but unthinkable. And even if there were, what could they do about it? What should they do?
"That's preposterous!" Chōza is visibly agitated, his hands gripping his thighs with bruising force. "Hiruzen chose the Uchiha, he would never have picked him if he doubted his loyalty. He would never have picked him if the Uchiha had tried to coerce him into it. The very idea—t o even suggest such a thing—it's insane! I'll admit the whole thing was a little fast, but Hiruzen has been talking about stepping down for years now. If Minato hadn't—if the whole business with the masked man and the kyuubi hadn't happened—he'd, if he'd has his way, he'd never have taken back the hat."
Inoichi is far too drunk to be having a conversation like this, though as he's the one who brought it up, it may be a little late for that. He doubts any of them would have been willing to speak so freely without the alcohol. However, even with his mind as slow as it feels right now, something isn't adding up. The Hokage came out of retirement after Minato's death. He often complained about being old, but hadn't been actively looking for a successor. The Uchiha had been upset, some had even suggested they might revolt. Hiruzen had been in peace talks with them for months, but nothing was changing. Then, without any warning, he appointed one of their more talented ninja to be the next Hokage. Uchiha Shisui wasn't exactly unknown, but he wasn't one of the village ninja like Kakashi or Gai who had managed to achieve almost superstar status. He also wasn't the best the Uchiha had to offer. If anyone was going to be chosen to appease them, it would probably have been Uchiha Fugaku or their heir, the prodigy.
But what does it all mean? Chōza has clearly made up his mind to support their new Hokage no matter what. The Akimichi's have always been loyal to the village and Inoichi respects his judgement, but even so… He can't shake the feeling that this was all part of a bigger plan on the part of the Uchiha to finally wrest back control of the village. There's certainly no evidence for it, and more than anything, Inoichi wants to believe the best of people. But almost every interaction he's had with the new Hokage has been… off. He isn't sure what exactly it is, but Uchiha Shisui acts almost guilty. As if his every action is meant to atone for some past transgression.
"You're right," Shikaku's voice cuts through his thoughts. "The appointment process was irregular." His offhand tone makes the statement sound even more damning. Beside him, Chōza stiffens. "With the tension between Uchiha and village as bad as it was, of course it was a political move." He shrugs, "I'd give it about a 98% chance that the Uchiha were only a day or two from openly revolting, and with Danzo still leading his branch of ANBU, the village probably wasn't far behind, planning retaliatory action if not something more preemptive." Shikaku shrugs again. "Not that any of that really matters."
Inoichi gapes. Revolt? Village retaliation? How could that not matter? "If Hiruzen was coerced into his appointment…" He trails off, not sure where he had been going.
Chōza shakes his head. "No," he says firmly, "you know Hiruzen, we've worked with him all our lives. He would never be forced into something like this, not by a single clan. If an Uchiha was appointed Hokage, it was because Hiruzen made the choice of his own free will. I trust his judgement, there is nothing he values more than the safety and security of the village."
And with that Chōza stands up, puts his cup by the sink and pointedly leaves the room, the matter finished to him.
Inoichi feels his shoulders droop in exhaustion. He glances over at Shikaku, who is staring absently at his own empty glass. "What do you think about all of this?"
Shikaku is silent for so long, Inoichi thinks he might have fallen asleep at the table, it wouldn't have been the first time. Finally, he sighs, " 's all so troublesome," he mutters, "but no matter what," and here he looks up, his expression sharp, "Hiruzen chose the kid. For whatever reason, he's decided the Uchiha has what it takes to lead, and, for all his faults, the kid has the potential to be great. He may have originally been just a piece in some larger game, but the kid's not anyone's puppet." Shikaku sighs again. "For what it's worth, I like him, he's got a tough job and he's made some mistakes. He's stubborn and doesn't like listening to others, but he's also bright, intuitive and has a way of motivating others I haven't seen since Minato. Not to mention, there isn't exactly a line forming to be the next Hokage." Shikaku looks back down at his hands, "No matter what happened behind the scenes, and despite the fact that I don't particularly trust the Uchiha, I do think Uchiha Shisui was good choice of successor, and both me and the Nara clan will support him."
And that's that. Despite his own misgivings, Inoichi nods. His teammates are right. Uchiha Shisui might not have been anyone's first pick for next Hokage, but he's not the last pick either and ultimately, he trusts Hiruzen. He swore loyalty to the village and the Hokage, and if Hiruzen believes the Uchiha is what's best for the village, then Inoichi does too.