Uchiha Itachi walked down the road with his nine-year-old sister Aiko at his side. The two of them were on their way home from running an errand for the clan in Sora-ku. Their brother, Sasuke, had been unable to come (and was no doubt sore about it). Suddenly, Itachi stopped walking and placed his hand out to halt Aiko, even though it was unnecessary. The young girl had sensed him stopping even before he had and instantly followed his lead. She looked up at him with her large black eyes.
"What's the matter, Oniichan?" She asked with concern. Itachi didn't answer, prompting Aiko to instead follow his gaze to the dark-haired man walking down the road, approaching from the opposite direction. She didn't recognize him, nor did the black cloak with red clouds that he was wearing tell her very much about him. "Who is that?" She asked. Judging by Itachi's behavior, he recognized the man even if she didn't.
"Stay close and walk directly behind me for a bit." Itachi instructed without answering her. Aiko understood without his saying it that he would explain who the man was after they had dealt with him and hid behind her brother's larger body. Itachi was relieved now that Sasuke was not with him as well. Aiko often understood his meaning without him having to say it and obeyed him without question in moments like these. Sasuke would've pestered him for more information. Itachi could see farther than the average person, even without the Sharingan for which their clan was famous, so there was a chance that the man approaching them would not realize Aiko was there. Instinctively knowing that was what her brother wanted, Aiko had suppressed her chakra to the point that even he could barely feel it and synchronized her steps and even her breathing with his to avoid being heard as she walked behind him. She had probably killed her own scent too. Aiko was intuitive by nature, and stealth was her forte. Itachi was glad for both at the moment. However, the feeling of her lightly clinging to the back of his shirt, a habit she had a developed as a small child, told him that she was anxious.
Orochimaru couldn't contain the grin of anticipation that crossed his face as he approached Uchiha Itachi. It looked as if the teenager had every intention of ignoring him—perhaps Itachi had forgotten who he was, he'd been a child when they last met—but no sooner had they passed by each other than Itachi suddenly found his upper body restrained by a massive snake that Orochimaru had summoned through his sleeve. He gasped and glared over his shoulder at the Sannin.
"Do you know what eternal life is, Itachi-kun?" Orochimaru asked. Itachi grunted and struggled to get free as the snake coiled more tightly around him. "I don't know yet either." The man continued as he lifted Itachi into the air, "That's why I need a new body. A magnificent body to link me to eternal life."
"First of all, the problem with you... is your greed." Itachi said calmly. Suddenly, Orochimaru realized that he was actually still a good six feet in front of Itachi, rather than having captured him from behind.
"Impossible! Have I fallen prey to the Paralysis Jutsu?!" The snake man exclaimed in alarm. Suddenly, his eyes were drawn to the young girl with brunette hair peeking out at him from behind Itachi, a kunai poised in her right hand. Of course! That should've been his first clue that he had been caught in a genjutsu! He had known that Itachi was being accompanied by his younger cousin Aiko today, but he hadn't caught sight of the girl until just now! Orochimaru's face twitched as he struggled to free his movements. "What incredible Visual Prowess..." He muttered, referring to Itachi's Sharingan, which he had only just now noticed was active. "Magnificent!" Within Orochimaru's mind, his body was impaled by several stakes, yet he only seemed more excited than before. With a gasping breath, he struggled to bring his hands forward to form a sign to free himself, but suddenly, Itachi was directly in front of him, effortlessly severing his left hand with a kunai. Orochimaru gasped in pain, instinctively grabbing his wrist with his still intact right hand. The look on Itachi's face was unreadable to him.
"Orochimaru..." The fifteen-year-old began, "Try all of the jutsu you wish... But, my eyes can see through all of them."
"You're so blunt..." Orochimaru managed. Suddenly, he inexplicably grinned.
There was a small shriek behind him, and Itachi's eyes widened. "Aiko!" He exclaimed, partially turning to see the girl being held by a silver-haired, bespectacled young man a few years older than him, a kunai to her neck and her own kunai on the ground as she struggled to pry the man's arm from her body. Despite this, he made sure to keep Orochimaru within his peripheral vision.
The young man smirked dangerously at Itachi. "Don't move, Itachi-san, unless you want her to die. Surrender yourself to Lord Orochimaru, and I'll let her go." Aiko opened her eyes a bit and suddenly smirked at Itachi. Itachi's eyes widened momentarily before the smallest of smiles crossed his face. The shinobi holding Aiko looked confused by this, and the next thing he knew, Aiko disappeared, only to be replaced by a swarm of loud, pecking crows. "Aah! What the?!" He exclaimed as he shielded his face.
"Katon! Ookakyuu no jutsu!" Came the sound of Aiko's voice. The crows dispersed as quickly as they came, only to be immediately replaced by a highly controlled stream of flames that remained concentrated and narrow before suddenly mushrooming where the shinobi was standing. The shinobi was heard crying out, and after a good fifteen seconds, the flames finally disappeared. As Itachi quickly returned his full attention to the man before him, Orochimaru's eyes were drawn to where Aiko was now standing by the side of the road, looking startling unnerved by what had just happened. His smile turned grim as he looked at the young girl.
"Well, well. I would never have guessed that Nichi and Megumi's daughter was already so adept. She doesn't even seem the slightest bit frightened by all of this." He remarked.
"I've seen far more horrific things than a traitor to the Leaf losing his hand." Aiko replied calmly.
Suddenly, Itachi pointed his kunai at Orochimaru. "Aiko, I'm not sure what to do with him." He admitted to his adoptive sister, "Whether to kill him now or capture him and bring him back to the Leaf."
"He's listed in the Bingo Book as an S-rank criminal, with orders being to either kill him or flee on sight." Aiko stated calmly, "Capturing him would only provide him with a chance to escape."
"I-Itachi!" Orochimaru exclaimed, seeming afraid for the first time as the kunai neared the junction between his eyes and nose.
"You just don't have enough..." Itachi began, "No, you lack it completely..." He amended, "The greed... for human life." Orochimaru trembled where he stood, unable to move as he glared at Itachi. Suddenly, a flurry of shuriken forced the boy to jump back.
"Lord Orochimaru!" The shinobi from before exclaimed as he landed in front of Orochimaru with a kunai in his hand.
Orochimaru looked up as Itachi landed a few feet away from them, "I'll definitely get you back for this!" The Sannin exclaimed. A few paper bombs drifted towards him and Itachi jumped back as they exploded. When the smoke cleared, Orochimaru and his subordinate were gone.
The Uchiha prodigy sighed as he deactivated his Sharingan, "You were right, Aiko, I should've killed him immediately..." When there was no answer, Itachi frowned in concern and looked over at where Aiko had been standing, "Aiko?" He called again. He expanded his senses a little and suddenly realized that she wasn't there. Eyes widening in alarm, he rushed over to where she had been standing. He could see where the grass had been crushed by her feet, but there was no sign of her walking away. He frowned in concern and looked around. Could Orochimaru's subordinate have taken her with him? No, that was impossible. He wouldn't have been able to take her with the condition that Orochimaru was in. Somebody else had been involved. His eyes narrowed. There had to be a trail, somewhere. Whoever had taken his sister and wherever she was, he would find her.
兄弟
Several hours later, Aiko groaned as she came to. She was disoriented at first, but her mind quickly pieced several things together. One: She was being carried over somebody's shoulder. A shinobi, judging by their speed. Two, her forearms were tied together behind her back. She tested the bindings and quickly cursed her luck when she realized that she'd been bound with wire instead of rope. Three, for some reason, she couldn't feel her legs.
In the time it took her to determine these things, her captor apparently noticed that she was awake. "It seems the sedative wore off..." He remarked without concern. "Don't bother trying to scream. I don't want to listen to it." He told her bluntly, "And don't bother trying to get free, either. The wire on your arms aside, I injected a poison into base of your spine while you were unconscious. It will leave everything below your waist paralyzed for the next three days. Even if you got free of the wire, you won't be able to run."
"Who are you?! And where are you taking me?!" Aiko demanded.
"I have no reason to answer either of those questions." He said calmly, "You don't need to know who I am, and as for where I'm taking you, you'll find that out when we get there." Aiko sighed in frustration, and then shivered. At first, her captor thought she was just frightened, but after a few minutes, he realized that she was shivering not out of fear, but due to the temperature. "Are you cold?" He asked.
"Of course I'm cold!" Aiko snapped in frustration. "We're in the Land of Stone, right? The Land of Fire doesn't have an arid climate like this, and there's no sand, so we can't be in the Land of Wind. Arid climates like this get very cold at night, and the Land of Stone is north of the Land of Fire and higher in altitude, so it's colder to start with!"
"I see..." The shinobi said thoughtfully, "I had forgotten about that..." Confusion crossed Aiko's face at that statement, and it grew as he stopped and set her down. She saw that the man who had taken her was relatively young, with red hair and bored, brown eyes. As if she wasn't already confused enough, he took off his cloak—the same one Orochimaru had been wearing, she noticed—and wrapped it around her. "I don't have time to stop and make camp, so you'll have to make do with this." Suddenly, Aiko's abductor seemed to sense something. "Sit tight for a moment." He remarked, as if she had any other choice, before forming a sign with his hand. "I'm here." He said, speaking to somebody that she couldn't see, "Yes, I have the girl, no thanks to Orochimaru. That darned snake almost ruined the mission. When he said that he would take Itachi, I didn't think he meant that he was going to try and literally take him. I suppose it wouldn't have been a problem, if not for the fact that he lost to that boy very badly." There was silence for a moment, and then he nodded, "Yes, just barely. The mission brief never mentioned that in addition to Itachi, the girl herself is a prodigy. Right. I'll finish the mission and then report back." He ended whatever Jutsu he had been using and then scooped Aiko back up, this time using both arms to carry her as he continued on his way.
兄弟
Meanwhile, Itachi stood at the border of the Land of Fire, an ANBU mask covering his face as he waited, unable to help feeling impatient. Sensing something, he turned to greet the people he was waiting on as three other members of the ANBU joined him. One was his best friend, Uchiha Shisui, who was literally in the ANBU only for times like these. Another was a man with light brown hair, Itachi's partner in the ANBU on his long-term protection assignment. He went by Tenzo. The last was a silver-haired man who was the de-facto superior of Itachi and Tenzo, Hatake Kakashi.
Itachi nodded to the three of them and began to bring them up to speed. "The trail runs cold here. It's more difficult to track them in such a barren environment, but that shouldn't be a problem for you, right?" At this, he inclined his head toward Tenzo.
"Yeah." Tenzo said with a nod, "There are tracking seeds embedded in the soles of Aiko-Chan's sandals. It seems that whoever abducted her is still on the move with her in tow."
"They probably don't want to risk taking a break and Itachi catching up to them." Kakashi surmised, "How did they manage to steal her away from you, anyway? It's unlike you. There hasn't been a single incident like this since you joined Tenzo on this mission."
"At the time, I was engaging Orochimaru and his subordinate. I suspect that her abductor is an acquaintance of his, but it seems that they had very different goals." Itachi replied, "Although I'm not entirely sure of his reasons, Orochimaru undoubtedly had his sights set on me. It seems that he didn't even give much thought to Aiko's presence... at least not until she used a substitution jutsu to escape when his subordinate tried to take her hostage and then nearly roasted him afterwards."
At this, Shisui laughed. "I bet neither of them were expecting that!"
"I suspect that she was taken by a second party while I was distracted by the efforts of Orochimaru's subordinate to defend him." Itachi explained.
"Orochimaru needed his subordinate to defend him?" Kakashi asked incredulously.
"I severed his left hand with a kunai." Itachi said bluntly before clenching his fist in frustration, "I should've finished him off quickly as Aiko advised me."
Kakashi sweat-dropped and made a mental note to recommend Itachi be made a Jonin when they returned. Due to his frustration regarding Aiko's abduction, Itachi was obviously underestimating how amazing it was that he, a fifteen-year-old boy, had faced one of the Sannin and come out on top; rather effortlessly from the sound of it. "Well, let's get going then. Judging by the current trail, it seems likely that she's being taken to the Hidden Stone." He told the team.
"Good grief." Shisui said, "Himechan just can't stay out of trouble, can she?"
Kakashi had to agree.
兄弟
Aiko awoke a bit before daybreak the next morning to find that she was still being carried by the red haired shinobi who had abducted her.
"I'm amazed you fell asleep so easily while in the arms of a captor." The man said.
"We've already discussed that I can't escape from you." Aiko said flatly, "I'm better off to conserve my energy for later. But I usually wake up around this time."
"Hm." He nodded to her before stopping and setting her down. "We've almost arrived at our destination. I'll be taking my cloak back now." With that he removed his cloak from around her small body and put it back on before throwing Aiko back over his shoulder. The young brunette just sighed as he carried her off. The sun was just coming over the horizon when he carried her through the entrance to Iwagakure and made his way to the Tsuchikage's office.
"Ah, Sasori." Came the voice of an elderly man as Aiko's captor carried her into the room, "Weren't you with Orochimaru before?"
"Long story." The shinobi replied before dumping Aiko on the ground in front of him. "Here's the girl, as requested."
Before Aiko could even struggle to get up, she felt a large hand on her back, gently forcing her to lie still, and the wires binding her arms were cut loose. She sighed in relief, sitting up with the assistance of the massive man beside her, not even bothering to pay attention as Sasori collected his payment and left her there. She turned her head and glared at the Tsuchikage.
"The Hidden Stone." She said irritably, "You guys just don't learn, do you? Do you really think that hiring unaffiliated mercenaries is going to make a difference in how this plays out?"
"Wow, you've sure got an attitude for such a little thing!" A preteen girl with short black hair said, and Aiko glared at her.
"This time, things are different, Uchiha Aiko." The Tsuchikage said as he came to stand before the young girl. "This time, you are already inside of our borders. It will be much harder for Konoha to take you back."
Aiko snorted in contempt, "You really think that's going to be a deterrent?" She asked, "You faced Uchiha Madara when you were young, so I would think that you would know more of what the Uchiha are like. There's no way that my clan would allow someone else to just steal one of their own."
"Hmph, it's funny that you would bring up Uchiha Madara." The Tsuchikage replied, "As I recall, you are his great-granddaughter, and I can certainly see a bit of him in you."
At that, Aiko grinned almost viciously, "Yeah, that's right. I am his great-granddaughter, and his only female descendant. That's why my clan treasures me and calls me 'Himechan'. My clan is my family, and my family won't abandon me. I'm certain that Itachi-niichan is already on his way to find me."
"He's welcome to try." The Tsuchikage replied. At that moment, a young man with long, blond hair entered the room.
"Hey! Old man!" The teenager called in annoyance, "You wanted to see me, un?"
"Ah, Deidara." The Tsuchikage replied, "This is Uchiha Aiko. She's going to be joining our ranks as a genin, once she is ready."
"Ohh...?" Deidara said with mild interest as he knelt down to look at the girl. "So this is the girl that you've been so keen on stealing from Konoha..."
Aiko reached back to brush her hair from her face and snorted. "Well, at least you're accurate about it."
"For the moment, Aiko is unable to walk due to a poison used to subdue her. It will wear off in a few days." The Tsuchikage explained, "I want you to look after her while she recovers."
"Huh?!" Deidara exclaimed. "Why me?!"
"Don't underestimate how valuable this girl is, Deidara." His senior told him, "Her parents caused our village quite a bit of trouble in the last war."
Deidara exhaled through his nose, clearly annoyed. "I get it! I'll make sure she doesn't go anywhere, un!" He picked Aiko up and walked out of the room.
兄弟
"Hey, Jiichan..." The preteen with black hair began sometime after Deidara had left with Aiko.
"Hm?" The Tsuchikage replied without looking up at from his paperwork.
"What was up with that girl's eyes?" The young girl asked.
"What do you mean, Kurotsuchi?" The old man asked in surprise.
"For the briefest of moments, I saw her eyes turn red, right when Deidara-nii leaned down to look at her. It was for less than a second though." She explained.
The Tsuchikage dropped his pen. "You saw her eyes turn red when Deidara looked at her?!"
"Yeah. Is that bad or something?" Kurotsuchi asked in surprise.
"That's very bad!" Oonoki confirmed as he stood up, "What you saw was her Sharingan, the Uchiha Clan's Kekkei Genkai! She must've used it to catch Deidara in a genjutsu!"
"Eh?" Kurotsuchi said in confusion, "But it wasn't even a full second."
"If she's received training from Uchiha Itachi, then that's plenty of time!" The Tsuchikage explained. "She probably intends to make Deidara take her home to Konoha! We've got to locate them!"
"Ehhh?!" Kurotsuchi exclaimed as she and Akatsuchi quickly followed the old man out the door, "But Deidara-nii isn't that weak against genjutsu!"
"Against the Sharingan, it wouldn't matter!" Oonoki replied.
兄弟
Aiko smiled as Deidara rushed through the Land of Stone with her. Ensnaring him in her genjutsu had been a piece of cake. Brushing her hair from her face had only been a feint to conceal the brief activation of her Sharingan from the Tsuchikage's view. Now if they could just make it to Konoha or somehow meet up with Itachi before...
"Deidara! Stop!"
Aiko sighed in frustration. Drat. The Tsuchikage had caught on too soon and had already caught up to them. Deidara blinked in confusion and came to a stop before looking around. "What the?! Where are we?!"
"You were under a genjutsu, Deidara!" Oonoki explained as he flew over to his subordinate, "Although it seems that Aiko released you from it on her own."
"It was never my intention to make him fight his own comrades." Aiko said without looking up, "I was just hoping to make it home."
"You had me under a genjutsu this whole time?!" Deidara realized, "Since when?!"
"From the moment our eyes met." She answered, "But even though I'm good at genjutsu, I don't think I'm strong enough to take on the Tsuchikage."
"Then I take it you're not going to try and fight anymore?" The old man asked, and when Aiko shook her head, he nodded to her. "You've got a strong will at least, I'll give you that."
The large man who had cut Aiko free of the wires earlier held out his hands towards Deidara. "Here Deidara, I'll carry her back to the village." Deidara promptly dumped the girl into the man's large hands.
"Good! I've had enough of this kid, and it hasn't even been an hour, un!"
兄弟
"...I'm sorry about placing you under a genjutsu." Aiko said to Deidara after she had been properly escorted to the teenager's home by Oonoki and his assistant (whose name she had learned was Akatsuchi).
"As far you're concerned, I'm your enemy, so why are you apologizing, un?" Deidara asked without looking over at her from what he was doing.
"Because even if we're enemies, I don't like using my genjutsu to put somebody at odds with his own comrades."
"I couldn't really care less about that." Deidara told her, "What irks me is the complete lack of respect that you Uchiha have for art! The old man is so interested in a little girl like you because your Kekkei Genkai makes it so easy for you to cast genjutsu, but he doesn't even pay any attention to my sculptures, un!"
"Your sculptures?" Aiko asked as she looked around the room, "So you made all of these?"
"That's right." Deidara said, "But since it 'doesn't benefit the village', the old man doesn't have any interest in it!"
"Wha...? But you're so good!" Aiko exclaimed before shaking her head. "At any rate, you have nothing to be jealous of. At least you weren't abducted as a child because of your abilities." She flopped back on the pillow of the futon she was on, "It's not like he has any real interest in my art either, just how it can be used."
Deidara snorted in contempt. "Are you saying that genjutsu is an art?"
"Of course it is!" Aiko insisted, "Well, maybe not as much when cast by a regular shinobi, but with the Sharingan, it's different. By meeting somebody's gaze, I can make them see any illusion I want. In order to fool them, it has to be extremely subtle, like a painting that looks true to life." Deidara turned slightly to look at her as she continued, "And I have to adjust it to the individual's unique personality and experiences to avoid them noticing. Because of that, every genjutsu is unique and once it's broken, it's gone forever. Only the caster and the person who experiences it will ever know its contents." She tilted her head as she smiled serenely at the teenaged boy, "Don't you think there's something beautiful in that transcience?"
Deidara smiled a bit, "Heh, guess I just never thought about it like that." He closed his eyes in thought, "Beauty in something that last only an instant, huh?"
"All the same, I wish I could also pursue art in a way that's more permanent like yours." The brunette said, "All I ever do is study and train. I mean, sure, I do some ikebana and dance and things like that, but even those are for the purpose of training. I wish I could find something to enjoy for the sake of enjoying it."
"What about painting?" Deidara asked as he stood up and walked over to her. "I've got a ton of stuff around here that you could try painting. I like making ceramics, but painting them isn't really my thing."
"I don't know if I'd be any good at it, but I'd like to try." Aiko agreed.
"Here." Deidara said, lifting Aiko up and carrying her over to his work table, setting her down on the other side of where he was working. He reached onto a shelf and took down a simple, ceramic bowl, placing it in front of her. "It's amazing that I even have paint lying around, but whatever, un." He remarked as he set multiple jars of paint in front of the girl as well, along with a few paint brushes. "Go ahead and paint that first. Let one color dry before you add the next. I'll show you how to varnish it when you're done."
兄弟
"How does this look?" Aiko asked some time later as she carefully set the bowl down. Deidara bent over to examine it without picking it up.
"Yeah, this looks pretty good, un!" He reached up onto a shelf and retrieved a small bird before setting it in Aiko's hands.
"It's so tiny and detailed!" She marveled, "It's adorable!"
"Keep working at it, and someday, you'll be able to paint even something like that bird with precision, un." The blond replied, "Keep that as a goal to work toward."
"Okay." Aiko said before stifling a yawn. "I'm a little tired. Would you mind if I read a book about painting while lying on the futon instead?"
"Yeah, sure." Deidara said as he moved over to his disaster of a bookshelf, "Which one do you want?"
"The one titled The Basics of Ceremics, please."
兄弟
Later that night, Aiko lay on the futon as Deidara slept in his bed. Unlike her host, she was not asleep. In fact, she was rather alert; enough so that when two shadows suddenly dropped into the room, she only grinned, her Sharingan shining brightly in the dark as it was met by two other pairs. Aiko carefully sat up as Itachi walked over to her with Shisui close behind. She placed a finger to her lips before pointing at Deidara, causing Itachi to nod. She then used some hand signals that her brother had taught her to inform him that she was currently unable to walk, and that her shoes were by Deidara's front door. Itachi nodded and signaled to Shisui, who went to retrieve the girl's sandals while Itachi lifted her up quietly. Aiko's waistpouch and shuriken holster were handed to Shisui as well and then the three Uchiha were gone.
兄弟
"Are you all right?" Itachi asked as he carried Aiko through the rocky wastes with Shisui, Kakashi, and Tenzo beside them.
"Yes." Aiko said, "The mercenary who abducted me used some sort of poison to paralyze my legs. It should wear off in a couple of days."
"So they've resorted to hiring mercenaries now?" Kakashi asked.
"From what I could gather, this wasn't the first time they've used this particular group." The girl told him, "I didn't catch the name, but I did catch that Orochimaru is one of their members, or at least he was. His attack on Oniichan was, apparently, a deviation from their actual mission, which was to kidnap me. The one who took me was called Sasori."
"Sasori as in Akasuna no Sasori?" Tenzo asked.
"I'm not certain." She admitted, "He did use Puppet Master Jutsu and he was clearly well versed in poisons, but something seemed... off... for lack of a better way to describe it."
"Aiko-chan being poisoned and unable to move will make it harder for us to get back to Konoha without any further incidents." Shisui pointed out.
"It's a little out of our way, but perhaps we should make a stop in the Hidden Grass, first." Aiko suggested. "They're technically our allies. They may be willing to shelter us until I can move on my own again. Or perhaps they'll have a medic who can treat me."
"There's a chance they'll turn us away, but I think it's a chance worth taking." Kakashi agreed. The decision made, the four of them altered course to head for Kusagakure.
兄弟
When they arrived in the Hidden Grass the following morning, Aiko was taken to the village's hospital. Once there, a young girl about the same age as Aiko with red hair and eyes was brought to her room.
"This is Karin." A Hidden Grass Shinobi told Aiko, "If you bite her arm and consume some of her chakra, you'll recover from that poison immediately." Karin silently walked over to Aiko and offered her arm, but Aiko just frowned before looking up at the man who had brought the young girl.
"I'm sorry, but... could you give us a bit of... privacy?" The brunette asked.
The shinobi seemed confused, so Kakashi followed the little girl's lead. "No problem. One of us has to stay with you for safety's sake, but since Itachi's your brother, he can just stay here and the rest of us will step outside." He led Tenzo and Shisui out, guiding the Hidden Grass ninja out the door as well and shutting the door behind him.
"Thank goodness the captain is quick to catch on." Aiko remarked before looking at Karin. "Go ahead and just take a seat on the bed. There's no way I'm biting you. You're already covered in bite marks. And given that your chakra possesses regenerative properties, that's just scary. Itachi-niichan, would you please bring that table over here to me?"
"Do you intend to treat yourself?" Itachi asked.
"Well since their plan was for me to bite somebody as if she were some kind of living medicine dispenser, yes, I do. I memorized a poisons catalogue when I was four. I'm sure I can find an antidote."
"Um... then why did you ask me to stay here?" Karin asked in confusion.
"So you wouldn't have to go back out there and let other people bite you instead." Aiko said bluntly as she spread a scroll on the table Itachi had brought over to her and painted a seal onto it. "Karin-san, you're from the Uzumaki Clan, right?"
"Y-Yeah... how did you know?" Karin asked.
"I could tell by your hair." Aiko said. "It's just like Auntie Kushina's. Seriously, what is wrong with these people? Are you a member of their village or aren't you?"
"Why do I get the feeling you're planning to stick your nose where it doesn't necessarily belong?" Itachi asked as Aiko pricked her finger and allowed a drop of blood to fall onto the seal she had created.
"'To know what the right thing to do is and to ignore it is an act of cowardice.'" Aiko quoted before glancing at him sidelong as she pulled a vial out of her waist pouch. "Are you going to tell me that I shouldn't follow the teachings of the founders that you taught to me in class at the Academy?"
Itachi sighed.
A few minutes later, Aiko walked out with Itachi and Karin after having confirmed the right antidote from among the vials she carried and looked up at the man who had brought Karin to her in the first place. "Pardon me, but I would like to speak to the leader of your village."
The man raised a brow at the audacious child. "Who should I tell him is asking?"
"Uchiha Aiko, daughter of the head of the Uchiha Clan."
Itachi stepped forward, in case that wouldn't be enough to sway the man, "I'm her older brother and the next head of our clan. If he won't talk to my sister, perhaps he will talk to me."
The man sweat-dropped and led them to where they wanted to go.
兄弟
"So what was it that you two wanted to talk to me about?" The village leader asked. He obviously thought that talking to two children was a waste of his time, but he had accepted the request if only because of the fact that they were being accompanied by ANBU.
"Uzumaki Karin." Aiko began, "Does she have any family here in Kusagakure?"
"No." The man answered, "Her mother died just recently."
'Why doesn't that surprise me?' Aiko thought to herself. "I would like for her to come to Konoha with us. She may not have any close relatives, but there are other members of the Uzumaki Clan there. The Fourth Hokage's widow, Uzumaki Kushina, for example."
The man blanched at this. "The Fourth Hokage's... widow...?"
Aiko nodded, her expression blank, "The Uzumaki Clan has very deep ties with Konoha. We were close allies with Uzushiogakure prior to its destruction. In addition to Lady Kushina, Uzumaki Mito was the wife of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, meaning that Shoudaime's granddaughter, Lady Tsunade of the Sannin, is also of Uzumaki heritage. The Senju and Uzumaki have been allies since the age of shinobi began. Personally, I think that Lady Kushina would be horrified to know that a member of her clan is being forced to offer her chakra to people who are sick and injured, even if it kills her." At this, she narrowed her eyes slightly, and the man was obviously unnerved by both her hidden implication regarding Karin's mother and the subtle threat that was hidden in her words.
兄弟
"I can't believe you convinced the village leader to let me come to Konoha with you guys!" Karin exclaimed once the group was on the road.
Aiko shrugged, "No biggie." She said, trying to stay humble about the matter. "Auntie Kushina is known as the 'red-hot habanero' because of her temper. That, coupled with a bit of historical knowledge made for a convincing enough argument."
"Please tell me I'm not the only one who's scared by how easily Himechan had that guy bending to her will." Shisui muttered with a sweat-drop as the four shinobi followed behind the two girls.
"She does realize that she could've turned that into an international incident?" Tenzo asked.
"Aiko's not that stupid." Itachi told him, "Or perhaps I should say that she's not that naive. She knows full well what could've happened if things had gone wrong. She said that to me beforehand. But I wouldn't have allowed it to get out of control. If he had gotten angry with her, I would've found a way to smooth things over."
"She's really mastered the art of conversation at an early age, hasn't she?" Kakashi remarked.
"She's much more well-spoken than I was at her age." Itachi agreed, "But then, she's always been more well-spoken than me."
"Don't let her cheerful appearance fool you, though." Shisui added, "She may not be showing it, but she's annoyed that she had to rely on the size and strength of Konoha compared to Kusagakure, as well as the names of a bunch of important—and mostly dead—people to accomplish her goal. The former makes her feel like she's somehow using Konoha's size and status to bully them, while the latter frustrates her because her own name doesn't hold any weight yet."
"It should." Kakashi remarked. "Any nine-year-old who can outmaneuver a grown man in adult negotiations is one that people should be scared of. In some ways, she's already more formidable than most ANBU."
"Besides, what does it matter if she used the power of the village to accomplish her goal?" Tenzo asked. "It's not like they weren't bullying Karin-chan."
"It was a risk, and Aiko doesn't like taking risks unless she feels the odds are at least 75% in her favor." Itachi remarked, "She prefers to act with certainty, especially if she's going to involve the village. But I'll talk to her about it. It's a chance to teach her and help her to grow."
兄弟
To say that the Third Hokage Hiruzen was surprised when the four ANBU showed back up with not one, but two grade-school girls in tow was an understatement. To say that he wasn't surprised about why the second child was even there would've been a bald lie.
Mikoto and Fugaku were just as shocked to learn what their daughter had achieved in Kusagakure.
Sasuke was just darn relieved that his sister was safe. Naruto felt the same.
Kushina, apparently, was unconcerned by the circumstances and was all too happy to take Karin in as her foster daughter. After the redheaded chatterbox had left the otherwise flummoxed occupants of the Hokage's office with Karin and Naruto in tow, Hiruzen cleared his throat to return to their discussion of the incident, just as Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura entered the room. Hiruzen was secretly grateful that they had missed hearing about Aiko's exploits in the Hidden Grass.
"Yes... well... now that the matter of Uzumaki Karin has been settled, we need to discuss how to proceed with regards to Aiko's abduction." The Hokage began as Homura shut the door to his office. "Naturally, this will have to be discussed with the entire Jounin Council, but we wanted to talk about it privately with your family first."
"Aiko-chan." Koharu began, "The last time, you insisted upon dropping the matter in order to preserve peace."
"However, this time, you were actually taken into the Hidden Stone and your brother and his comrades from the ANBU were forced to retrieve you." Homura added. "We can't allow this to go unanswered."
"The members of our clan are already saying the same thing." Fugaku pointed out to his daughter.
"Everyone is very upset about you being kidnapped, sweetie." Mikoto added.
"They can't just take you and think they can get away with it." Sasuke put in for good measure.
"I know, I know." Aiko said, putting her hands up in surrender, "We can't just let this slide. But going to war isn't our only option. There are other forms of retaliation."
At that, Fugaku raised a brow, "Such as...?"
A conniving grin crossed Aiko's face. "Information. Since they saw fit to try and steal me, I made use of my time there to steal information from them while I waited to be rescued."
Shisui sweat-dropped. "How did you do that? We found you in an art studio."
Aiko's smirk grew and she crossed her arms, "My host so happened to have an Iwagakure codebook sitting on his bookshelf. When I asked to read a book from the shelf, I used a genjutsu field to make it look like the codebook was the book I had asked for, whereas the book I had actually asked for was on a different shelf, disguised as the codebook. Of course, I picked a title that had similar dimensions to the codebook. Then, while he thought I was reading about the art of ceramics, I memorized the entire thing with my Sharingan and then gave it back to him. He never even knew the difference. Fortunately for me, he's not half as fastidious as my brothers. His bookshelf was an absolute mess." She shrugged nonchalantly, "At any rate, now that I've committed the codes to memory, I can pass them on to the members of my clan via genjutsu, as well as write them down to be used by the Cipher Corps. Intercepting and decoding information meant for the Hidden Stone will be a breeze. I'd say that's sufficient 'compensation' for this ordeal, don't you think?"
The adults and Sasuke all stared at her in mute astonishment before Fugaku smiled proudly. "As expected of you, Hoshi."
Kakashi placed a hand on Tenzo's shoulder. "You see? I told you other nations should be afraid of her. And she's not even a shinobi yet."
兄弟
Aiko was preparing for bed that night when Itachi knocked lightly on the frame of her door.
"Hey." He said as she turned to look at him with a hairbrush in hand, "I wanted to talk to you about our meeting with the leader of Kusagakure. I thought it might be good to review for the sake of your growth."
Aiko looked a bit troubled as Itachi sat down beside her. "Are you mad at me?"
"Not at all." Itachi assured her, "If I didn't approve of what you were trying to do, I wouldn't have backed you up to start with, Aiko. But that's what I wanted to talk to you about." He elaborated as she looked back up at him. "Shisui mentioned that you felt like using the village's size and status was bullying Kusagakure in a way, even though they were severely mistreating Karin-chan. But you shouldn't think of it like that." He said gently while tucking a stray hair behind her ear. "If you saw some kids who were older and presumably stronger than you bullying another child, what would you do?"
Aiko pursed her lips and furrowed her brow in thought. "I wouldn't take them on alone. I'd find some other friends who are strong to help me confront them, or I'd find a shinobi like you or Shisui-niichan or Iruka-sensei to stop them."
"That's right. And is it bullying them to find somebody to help you stop them?"
"No." Aiko said with a shake of her head, "Taking them on alone would be foolish. Asking for help from someone I trust would be the smartest thing to do."
"Exactly." Itachi said to her, "And today, you did the smartest thing you could do. You used the village's strength today not because being from Konoha made you feel superior to them, but because you trusted that our comrades in the village would back you up if it came down to it, right?"
"Yeah." Aiko said with a nod, "I don't think I would trust everyone in the village, but... I know that, if nothing else, enough people would be on my side to convince Lord Third to support me."
"And that was exactly the right thing to do." Itachi told her with a nod. "When you don't have the power to do something on your own, then you should trust and rely on your comrades, understand?"
"Mm-hm."
Itachi smiled gently and tapped his sister's forehead. "Don't be in such a rush to grow up, Hoshi. You haven't entered the world of shinobi just yet, and I'm grateful for that."
I decided to write a prologue to this story to avoid having to expound on certain things later. As a side note, "himechan" is an affectionate way of saying "princess". It is a nickname which only members of the Uchiha Clan use to refer to or address Aiko. It's meant to show endearment towards her, more so than respect, but it also alludes to her lineage as the great-grandchild of Madara and her position as the adopted daughter of the head family.
As reminder from the first book in this story, Hoshi is a pet name that is only used by Aiko's immediate family, and means "Star".