A/N: If you all recall, some time ago I asked whether Naruto should be able to see ghosts :) Thanks to everyone who responded! After reviewing your responses, the answer will be YES :) Theory wise, it will be because of the shard of Minato's chakra left in Naruto.

I kept forgetting to let you all know, oops.

Sakumo isn't sure why he's here, seated on top of one of the Konoha library's wide wooden shelves as part of what he dubs as the "Dead Shinobi Alliance". "No wonder we haven't seen much of Kagami and Hyaku lately," Sakumo muses, noting the various hitai-ates present in the rough circle they had formed. Just getting word out for this meeting must have been a nightmare.

There are several representatives for each major village and several other minor villages as well, including Ame, either floating about or seated on one of the shelves. Rin had been excited to see Yahiko again, in Konoha no less, but she had not been invited to participate in this meeting. If Kagami had not insisted that Sakumo attend, together with Hyaku, Kara, and two other ANBU, Sakumo would have excused himself as well. Kakashi and Snake are probably working out the details of their plan now, as they have been for the past week under the guise of paperwork or some other mission needing planning.

Sakumo wonders if he is a prop, an example of Konoha's capabilities, meant to lend extra weight to Kagami's words. Thankfully, while Kagami hadn't asked him to keep quiet, he hadn't asked Sakumo to say anything either. While the elder Hatake understands politics just as well as any other clan head, it is neither his forte nor his interest. Any hot-blooded battle would be better than this painful to-and-fro.

Schooling his expression, Sakumo focuses on maintaining his mask of attentiveness. The death glares of the Suna-ANBU opposite him stopped triggering his defensive instincts two hours ago and he is steadily losing track of the head Iwa ambassador's endless waffling. Even Yahiko, who has enthusiasm on par with Kagami, meets Sakumo's gaze and subtly rolls his eyes. Sakumo tries to convey his amusement without moving his face too much, in case the Iwa-nin glances his way.

But it is not as if they don't have the time to waste.

The kunoichi beside him elbows him in the ribs and he barely suppresses a flinch. "Hey," she whispers, her shark-like teeth glinting as she gives him a wide, uninhibited grin. He smiles back briefly, remembering how she had headed straight for the seat beside him. "Kenjutsu users should stick together," she had said, winking.

"Ringo Ameyuri," he recites from memory. "The only female member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and one of the most powerful." He notes the distinctive way her red hair has been styled and her filed teeth- surprising considering that the modification is far more common amongst Kiri men than women. Of course, Hoshigakis (such as the head of the Kiri delegation) are born with an all natural set of pearly white razors.

"Can I see your sword?" she asks, prodding him again. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours." Before Sakumo can decide whether the innuendo was intentional, she snickers. "Hah, your face. I mean it literally. They don't need us to talk anyway, so wanna fight? It's a pity we missed the opportunity to cross blades during the Second War. I've heard good things about you."

"I don't think my boss will appreciate me skiving off work," he jokes, hinting at Kagami with a small movement of his chin. "But don't you worry about draining your anchor?"

She shakes her head, her grin turning proud. "His chakra control is in the 99th percentile. If I build my Raiton up slowly, he'll be a little confused but he'll adjust."

Sakumo raises his eyebrows and files the fact away. "Interesting."

"Anyway, a pure kenjutsu spar will be just as good." She's as persistent as a hunting hound.

"Maybe later," he says out of the corner of his mouth, self-conscious now that the others' conversation has lulled. With a satisfied smile to herself, Ameyuri falls silent.

"Now for the next item on our list," Kagami announces, clapping his hands. "Konoha would like to suggest a hit list to eradicate threats common to all of us. This will be a departure from our alliance's general policy of non-interference, but I believe that we are at a juncture where this may be beneficial."

"Is this related to the Kyuubi attack, Uchiha-san?" a Kumo kunoichi with bleached hair questions.

"Indeed." Kagami agrees solemnly, his dark eyes scanning the circle of ghosts. "There is an unknown threat out there that is capable of using Mokuton. We hardly know anything about who it is. Given how they targeted the Yondaime and his jinchuuriki wife, there is every possibility that it will do the same to the rest of the villages. Konoha would like to put threats like these on the hit list."

Yahiko crosses his arms, his mouth set in a line. "What of the smaller villages? Ame does not have a jinchuuriki nor a kage. Neither do we have much manpower. In fact, it is because of this shortage that I have come all this way to join this non-interference treaty."

"But the Akatsuki has a leader all the same," the woman leading the Suna delegation asks suspiciously. The green tattoos on her face run in stark stripes along her cheekbones. "You have a vested interest in this too."

"We do," Yahiko agrees, smiling peaceably. "I am merely pointing out that the smaller villages may not be as capable of contributing as much." The Kusa ghosts nod, as do the delegates from Taki and Yu.

Kagami holds up a hand. "No worries. We can sort out the contents of the list and enforcement later. For now, does anyone have any objections to the establishment of such a list?"

There are several questions, but once everyone is satisfied that they'll have a say, it is agreed. Kagami quickly briefs everyone on the details of their Mokuton-using attacker. The other villages are visibly frustrated by the lack of information, some even insinuating that the Konoha ghosts are not being completely honest. It's a ridiculous expectation - no village will be completely transparent even to their allies - but Sakumo is gratified to see Kagami turn the conversation around, focusing instead on how they can set up an information sharing system. Suna suggests joint missions; a plan met with a surprising amount of approval.

When the mysterious attacker behind Minato and Kushina's deaths goes up on the list, a grim sort of satisfaction fills Sakumo. It might not be much, but at least they are doing something.

Next on the list are the Jashinists, a cult that has supposedly achieved immortally. How the ghosts will deal with them is up in the air, but they'll figure something out. A group of particularly bloody missing-nin are also agreed upon, though it is also agreed that missing-nin in general will be left to the living. Ghosts cannot collect bounties, after all.

"What about Shimura Danzou?" the Hoshigaki asks, his ice blue eyes sweeping the room. "He has an extremely poor habit of interfering with other villages." He catches Yahiko's gaze and inclines his head briefly. "I'm sure the Akatsuki will support my proposal to put him on the list."

The young man gives the Kiri-nin an appreciative nod. "Of course."

Sakumo catches the way Kagami mouth tightens, a faint tell in his otherwise relaxed demeanour. "I understand your concerns. Unfortunately, this will affect Konoha politics as well, since he is an elder."

"But won't that benefit Konoha as well?" the old Iwa ghost presses. "From what I hear, there are certain tensions within your village. I've had Hanzou's ghosts tell me of his ambitions to become Hokage. I can't imagine that has changed since Sarutobi Hiruzen took the hat again..."

There is a chorus of murmurs, concern threading clearly through their voices. The Sandaime's and the Yondaime's pacifist policies have been good to the other villages. If there is any chance of Danzou becoming Hokage, the current balance of powers will be thrown into doubt once more. There might even be war.

Sakumo shifts uneasily, his muscles tense as he picks apart the implications of Kiri's proposal. If Danzou dies, many of Kakashi's problems will be solved. But at the same time, ROOT will also become completely unpredictable, which might completely ruin their other objective of rescuing ROOT agents. Lowering his head in thought, he lets his gaze wander along the rows of weapons scrolls piled along the shelves. Words are weapons, too. How can he influence the negotiation? Should he?

"As much as I understand your sentiments, this is a matter which affects Konoha's internal politics," Kagami insists, not unkindly. "The list is meant to work in concert with the non-interference treaty, not to supersede it."

There are protests, of course, and strongly worded requests to know why the Kagami is choosing to keep a person who even the Yondaime was at odds at. "We should be concerned about the bigger picture— the peace of the nations!" another declares grandly. "Danzou's disruptive methods prevent that!"

"That's a little hypocritical, isn't it?" Sakumo frowns to himself. "Konoha isn't the only village with personalities like Danzou. Are they prepared to execute the warmongers from their own villages too?" The Hatake pauses mentally. "Now that's a dangerous thought..."

"It is a matter of principle," Hyaku cuts in firmly, her arms crossed before her chest. "Whether Danzou dies or not is at our discretion because he is a Konoha-nin."

There is loud grumbling. "Neither side is wrong," Sakumo muses, "but Hyaku is definitely right about one thing: Danzou is a Konoha-nin. His death is a matter that only Konoha should have a say in."

Decision made, he steels himself and stands.

The immediate, razor-sharp focus of more than twenty-five shinobi crashes over him for a single, overwhelming moment before he grasps that battle-calm inside of him. He lets it sink into his bones like how he mentally prepares for a mission, because projecting confidence is half the battle won.

"Perhaps I can give all of you some reassurance," he says smoothly, catching Kagami's eye as he does. Seeing no obvious disapproval, only curiousity, he turns back to the assembled nin and continues. "There are Konoha-nin who disapprove of Danzou's actions just as much as you all do. I was in Ame for several months and what I saw of Danzou's dealings with Hanzou shocked me." He nods at the orange-haired ex-Akatsuki leader and the young man smiles back grimly. "Under the Yondaime's orders, the ROOT outposts in Ame were eliminated. One of the shinobi who carried out the mission was my son."

"Ah, the Yondaime's surviving student...!" Ameyuri exclaims.

"Yes. However, a short while ago Danzou approached Kakashi and attempted to convince him to join ROOT." From the way the Kagami stares at him out of the corner of his eye, Sakumo deduces that this is news to the Uchiha too. "I shall not bore you all with Danzou's convoluted reasoning, but long story short, Kakashi has plans to infiltrate ROOT and bring it down from the inside."

"How?" the Hoshigaki asks, his gills flaring slightly as he leans forward in interest. "That can't be easy."

Sakumo shakes his head. "We know too little about ROOT to concretise any plans. Much will depend on what Kakashi encounters while in ROOT itself. I do not wish to give you all any false expectations, but I hope this piece of information will be encouraging. As we all know, assassination is our only tool, but the living can come up with more nuanced solutions. It will not be too late for us to revisit this question after two or three years. Much of Konoha's efforts will be focused on rebuilding, anyway."

"Perhaps," Sakumo adds to himself, "letting them know of this will also grant Kakashi a measure of safety from the foreign ghosts, particularly if he needs to carry out missions on behalf of ROOT."

"And how many people are carrying out this infiltration mission?"

"Kakashi alone."

There are some disbelieving looks. "He's just, what, ten?" the Suna-ANBU sneers dismissively.

"Fourteen," Sakumo replies evenly. "Like I said, I do not wish to give you any false expectations. But I do believe that Kakashi will be able to make a difference, even if it is only to prompt the Sandaime to restrain Danzou further."

"That's not much," the Suna-ANBU snarks, turning up his nose.

The Kumo ghost beside him sighs and presses two delicate fingers against her temple. "Hatake Kakashi's brains are worth twenty of you," she mutters to herself.

"What did you say?!" the desert-dwelling shinobi growls, advancing a step threateningly.

The leader of the Kumo delegation steps before her, a burly arm swung protectively over her shoulders. "Now, now..." he chuckles loudly. "I for one am sick of hearing about that old man. Hatake-san is right. With Konoha in the poor state it is," he declares loudly, making Sakumo wince, "Danzou will have his hands full for a while. Let's see what the Baby Fang can do and we can argue about this again."

Restraining a snort of amusement, Sakumo gives the man a smile of thanks. Now, Kakashi will at least have some time to do whatever he thinks fit.

"Alright!" Kagami exclaims, clasping his hands. He beams at everyone, especially Sakumo. "Thank you everyone for contributing to today's meeting! Let's adjourn until... five hours later?" The elder Hatake stifles a groan. "If you would like a tour of Konoha, feel free to approach any one of our friendly ANBU!"

A/N: I have a lot of headcanons about Kiri! Canonically, Ameyuri died of an incurable chronic disease at a young age, but she's a ghost here because I thought she might be the type to die à la Rin (by a friend's hand) in one last kenjutsu match.

I put her around Ao's age, maybe a year or two younger, and I think it's hilarious that they might have been tsundere friends. They'll have training sessions that end up as shouting matches because neither of them will be able to beat each other. One's a kenjutsu/ninjutsu type and the other is a sensor/genjutsu type, so they're terribly mismatched, haha.

And yes, Ao is her anchor :'(