They are to be a pair of siblings born in Ame, Snake the elder sister of twelve and Kakashi the younger brother of eleven. Their names are Sachi and Kazuo, but they have not spent their young lives in bliss or peace*. Ever since their parents were caught in the crossfire of battle and killed by the Akatsuki a year ago, they've lived on the streets. Homeless and starved, they've barely fed themselves by scavenging, stealing, or pick-pocketing. They are children with a grudge against the Akatsuki, yet vulnerable and frightened enough of shinobi to pose no threat to Hanzou.
If all things go well, they'll go undercover as servants at Hanzou's headquarters.
Since Snake and Kakashi are to maintain cover as these young civilian children for months on end, they have to have their chakra suppressed. In the ANBU's medical wing, a Hyuuga closes ninety percent of their tenketsu and draws seals over the already bruising skin to maintain the blockage.
"You still have ten percent of your chakra," the med-nin assures. "If you need to access your full chakra reserves, flex your remaining chakra hard and the seals will break. Try your Henges, please."
Their forms shimmer, shrink and de-age, leaving two scruffy children seated on the examination table. Kakashi becomes a plain-looking boy who no-one would look twice at; his scar is gone and his memorable silver hair replaced with slightly curly brown locks. Snake has similar, not-quite-pretty features, her limbs lankier than Kakashi's and her hair longer, just touching her shoulders.
They're both washboard thin, with ribs prominent enough under dull skin to look painful. They're homeless orphans after all. The only vaguely pretty thing about them are probably their light hazel eyes, but their depths are too dark and jaded to bring joy. At their malnourished fragility, the med-nin can't help but flinch.
"Poor things," Rin murmurs. "Are the children in Ame starving so badly?"
Knowing only too well the devastation the the Second Shinobi World War had wrecked in Ame, Sakumo nods with sincere regret. "War has made Ame a very poor country."
The Hyuuga med-nin recovers her brisk and professional manner quickly. "Please check if any of the seals are showing; they shouldn't be." The two ANBU go beyond, leaving no sign that they are shinobi, not even any callouses from the handling of kunai, shuriken, and sword.
"Hound-sama, please test if you are still able to use the Sharingan."
Kakashi shakes his head yes. "It's still activated. I can't deactivate it, but I can alter the colour of the cells in the irises."
The med-nin blinks her pale lavender eyes in surprise. "Fascinating." She gives both Snake and Kakashi a bow. "That will be all. I wish you both a successful mission, Snake-sama, Hound-sama."
"Our thanks, Hyuuga-san."
The morning dawns over Konoha's gates, spilling a palette of yellows, oranges and red over the wall, bringing with it Minato and Kushina. Kakashi and Snake have transformed back into themselves and dressed in worn civilian clothing — no point in ripping out Minato's heartstrings and making Kushina worry overly much.
The red-head gathers Kakashi into a bone-cracking hug - slightly awkward because of her swollen belly - while Kakashi wheezes dramatically and Snake laughs softly in the distance. When the teary-eyed jinchuuriki finally relents her grip on the teen, Minato swoops in and squeezes the breath out of Kakashi again.
"Stay safe and write home often!" Minato instructs, fussing over Kakashi in a way he hadn't been able to in his office.
"They're called status reports, Minato-sensei," Kakashi sighs, though he cannot hide the unmistakeable fondness in his eye. "You should be worried about Kushina-san — make sure she feeds the baby more than ramen."
"Hey!" Kushina squawks, reaching forward to ruffle his hair hard while Minato chuckles. "You brat!" She's grinning widely, glowing the way only mothers can.
Kakashi smiles behind his mask, his eyes closing into happy arches as he turns and starts towards the gate. "Decide on a name before I'm back, okay? Or I'll get to choose!"
"No way I'll let you choose, scarecrow," Kushina laughs and Kakashi raises his hand in farewell, smiling over his shoulder as he joins Snake by the gate. Snake salutes Minato jauntily and the two ANBU set off at a jog.
"Let's get moving," Hyaku says cheerfully, tightening the knot of rope that held a heavy scroll against the small of her back. Even though they can't see her, Rin waves at Minato and Kushina before hurrying after the older Uzumaki.
"Bye Minato-sensei, Kushina-san! Bye, baby-chan!"
As Sakumo steps on the path leading out of the village, he can't help casting a wistful look back at the familiar shape of the Konoha landscape. The golden sunlight shines down upon the waking village, warmly blanketing the two small figures framed by the open gates.
'We'll be back soon,' Sakumo promises. 'Stay safe.'
*Sachi (幸): short for Sachiko (幸子) meaning "child of bliss" ; Kazuo (和男): 和 for "harmony"/"peace" and 男 for "man"
A/N: I'm feeling a bit burnt out, so I'll be taking a day off to refresh myself :) I'll be back soon~