Warnings: see below if you're curious/worried because I don't want to spoil the chapter here. It's pretty dark. Other warning for swearing.
Otsu approaches Hanzou the next day with a piece of paper in his hand. Kakashi is there with Hanzou as well, having eaten the sampling of food taken from Hanzou's plate. Only after waiting out an hour's observation to see whether Kakashi keels over and dies will Hanzou take his meal.
"Hanzou-sama. The assassin's brother has confessed."
The Ame-nin looks up from the scroll he had been reading, a blonde eyebrow arching as he takes the report offered. He sets it down after a quick scan. "Anyone will confess after being subjected to the third degree." He pauses briefly. "But I will take note." His fingers tap against the low table before he comes to a decision and waves his hand in an almost careless gesture. "Execute him anyway."
Rin slumps and lets out a soft "oh". Sakumo leans over to pat her knee sympathetically, having expected that Hanzou would make an example of Rai.
"It will be done." Behind his fox-mask, Otsu's shadowed eyes flit to Kakashi, who is seated in the far corner of the room. "I would also like to speak to you about the next transfer."
If anything, Hanzou seems even unhappier at this new topic, though his face is mostly hidden behind the rebreather he wears even indoors. He waves for Otsu to sit. "Kazuo, where are you going?" Sakumo is faintly surprised that Hanzou bothers to remember his servants' names.
Kakashi freezes halfway across the room, whirling to face the Ame-nin, his hands clasped behind his back. "Um, the tea, Hanzou-sama?"
Hanzou gestures for Kakashi to continue, amusement crinkling his eyes slightly. "I don't drink tea," Otsu says in his usual blunt manner just as Kakashi picks up the teapot, making him falter.
"Humour the new boy," Hanzou says dryly. Everyone in the room looks at him in varying degrees of incredulity. "He's being such a good host." Is this his bizzare way of getting back at Otsu for bringing up an unwanted topic?
Otsu nods stiffly and Kakashi pours the tea. The ROOT shinobi drinks discretely behind his mask, one cup and no more. "About the transfer—"
Sighing, Hanzou leans his elbows against the table and clasps his hands. "I've already gotten Youta to look around the city. I'm not sending any of my servants this time though, it's a pain to replace them even with Murakami's test."
Otsu considers his words. "I understand. A greater risk of infiltration naturally comes with a high recruitment rate."
"Oh, what about Rai's brother?" Hanzou seems pleased at the idea. "Might as well make use of him."
But the ROOT shinobi shakes his head. "He is above the age range required." Hanzou scowls but Otsu misunderstands the reason for Hanzou's displeasure which, Sakumo now realises, are probably the stirrings of guilt from this deal to traffic Ame children. The conversation turns Sakumo's stomach in a way nothing has for a long time, the situation made only worse because this is only the latest deal amongst many. "His abilities are mediocre at best," Otsu tries to reassure. "The ROOT agents whom Danzou-sama will send in return will compensate for the decrease in manpower several times over."
"What—" Rin swallows heavily, looking pale. "What does ROOT need Ame kids for?"
Is Hanzou really so desperate for more military power that he will stoop to sacrificing civilian children, trading them off to who knows where? Yes, it's Danzou behind it, an elder of Konoha, but what does that even guarantee?
And then there's the fact that they're civilian children. Civilian. The rationales for stealing shinobi children, especially those with kekkei genkai, are obvious. (When he had still been amongst the living, Sakumo himself never spoke of Kakashi outside of Konoha.) But civilian children... It makes Sakumo clench his fists in nauseated fury just to consider what could be happening.
'Oh god.' Sakumo's thoughts are in turmoil. 'No... ROOT is a military organisation. They have no reason to dabble in such... immorality*.' It still doesn't explain what kind of benefit ROOT is trying to obtain. 'And just how many people know about this?
'...how can Hanzou do something like this and still be able to smile at his own son?'
Almost instinctively, his eyes search for Kakashi and find him back in the room's corner, his legs folded neatly beneath him and his gaze fixed on the floor. The only indication of anger is the near-imperceptible tension of his bony shoulders and the blankness of his expression — the same look Kakashi gets before smashing Chidori through an enemy-nin's chest.
The thought lets Sakumo breathe again. They might think that they have it all under wraps but it'll be their very disregard for mere civilian children that spells their downfall. Between the efforts of the living and the dead, they'll find out how far this corruption goes and when they do...
They'll purge this poison.
"He's fine. You can finally move on without any regrets," Sakumo reassures with a smile, or at least what he hopes is a convincing facsimile of one, because he has never been good at lying. "We heard Otsu making arrangements to send him back to Konoha just this afternoon."
Rai looks up from his glowing, disintegrating hand with pain flashing through his eyes. "Don't bullshit me," he snaps. "I know that—" his words falter and his throat works harshly. "He's already dead isn't he."
None of the ghosts can look him in the eye. Without their anchor, ghosts can't stay in the mortal world.
"You'll see him on the other side," Sugi whispers, her eyes glittering with tears.
He turns on her, baring his teeth as anger resurges hotly. There are more shimmering shards of light coming loose now, floating through the dark garden like those fireflies Sakumo had watched with Rin all those years ago. But this time it's a macabre beauty; Rin's silence is shadowed by the weight of what had transpired.
"Why didn't any of you kill him?" Rai rage. "You are shinobi! I know you can just put a jutsu through his chest and end it all, so why don't you? Meiko-san, he's trying to sabotage Murakami-sama, why aren't you doing anything?"
Meiko's face twists but she knows better than to try to explain that killing Otsu will only put more suspicion on Murakami. Neither can Sakumo or the others do anything, since a mysterious death will put more pressure on Kakashi and Snake's cover. Again and again, their hands are tied.
Expression crumpling in the face of their silence, Rai sinks into a crouch, burying his head in his arms. A low wail escapes him, raw and steeped in grief, ending in a shout full of helpless fury. "You fucking bastards," he spits out with scalding vehemence. "Always thinking you're better. Using us like we're not even human." He rises on unsteady feet, tears tracking down his cheeks even as he turns hate-filled eyes on them. "Someday someone will laugh and kick you when you're already down on your knees — then you'll know what it feels like." Gritting his teeth, he turns and limps away.
They let him go. There's no point stopping him now. His edges lose definition with every step he takes (falling apart, crumbling, his very self slipping through the bindings of regret) until finally he falls and shatters in a shower of white embers.
Like stars thoughtlessly strewn in the grass.
He's just shy of the walls bordering the compound.
Warnings: implied child trafficking.
*If you've caught on to what Sakumo was freaking out about, don't worry, I won't spring something like that on you guys. That's too dark for me to write about and like Sakumo reasoned, ROOT has no reason to do things like that. If you didn't get my vague waffling, don't worry about it! What's actually happening is an extension of canon. (Though some pretty horrible stuff happens in canon too right?)
A/N: Poor thing, Rai's brother. Not everyone has crazy powerful ninja abilities that ROOT wants to steal.
And on a more cheerful note, happy 50th chapter! :D huge, huge thank you's to every single one of you, this story would have never come this far without all the incredible support you all have given me. You all are better than a whole basket of puppies! Seriously.