Pre-word: So that last chapter definitely made quite a splash.
As expected, I did have quite a few people drop off. I won't defend the decision in these ANs. Either you bought into it or you didn't, that's really all I can say.
I was actually far more surprised by the more overwhelming show of support for the turn that this took. So to everyone who is going to stick it out to see how this goes, thank you. And a thanks to everyone that reviewed, whether it was to criticize the idea or in support of it, I appreciate every voice as it continues to help me grow as a writer.
Heart Under Shadow
Truth and Lies
It had been a week now since the mysterious disappearance of Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuga Hinata.
Hinata was the first one to have her absence reported. Of course, this was only to be expected. She may have been the disowned heiress of the Hyuga clan, but she still had a place for which to call home. So when she did not show up that night, there had been an immediate search warrant put out for her whereabouts.
An orphan like Sasuke, was only later noticed. Albeit not by much. As the sole surviving heir of the Uchiha clan and the one likely to one day possess the Sharingan, his importance in the village could not be stressed enough.
So when it was taken to note that his last appearance coincided with the disappearance of Hyuga Hinata… to say it had caused an uproar would be an understatement.
Two of the people that held the great Dojutsu of Konohagakure no Sato in their eyes disappearing at the same time… it was too much to be a coincidence. Even if it was. The first ones suspected of committing such an act was Kumogakure. They had been after the Byakugan before, why not now? It was too early to make any final judgements, but for now that was the final verdict that had been determined.
If things continued as they were on this path, war with Kumogakure no Sato was all but inevitable. That was the general consensus among the rumor mill of Konoha at the current moment.
Uzumaki Naruto, as excluded from this rumor mill as he may have been, was unable to ignore the whispers around town. War was a concept that was terrifying to him, who had only known relative peace up until now.
It was true, his life had been far from what one would be able to call easy or even comfortable. But despite all the hardships he had overcome, it was undeniable that they had lived in a time of peace. Had there not been, would he have been allowed the freedom he had been until now? As the supposed Kyubi Jinchuriki, in a time of war, his power would have no doubt been put to use and he would have been under much stricter control than before. What little freedom he had would have likely been stripped from him.
A reality he may soon face, if war was officially declared. A war that didn't have to happen, if he would just tell the truth. Yet that was something he could not do. Because to reveal the truth would also be the same as revealing his own complicity in the disappearance- no, the murder of Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuga Hinata. For he was among the select few that knew they had in fact been murdered.
So what was Uzumaki Naruto supposed to do but keep his silence?
For the past week, Naruto was not able to talk to anyone he knew about the truth, with the only exception being Kaguya. She, who had been the one to enact the crime to kill those two. Of course, Kaguya knew it wouldn't simply end with their disappearance. It was inevitable that an investigation be launched, considering the asset those two would bring to the village. At least, what their eyes might have brought.
However, there was nothing to trace the truth back to them. She had made sure of that. No one had paid attention to Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke as the two orphans left the academy on their own, sneaking out the back so as not to be seen. No one except for Hinata, that is. Now they were nothing more than piles of ash, which was indistinguishable from even common dirt after being blown away by the wind.
There was no body of either child to be found, and as such nothing to implicate her master, Uzumaki Naruto. This was actually a case in which the rumor mill worked against all the people who sought to keep him down all this time. Naruto had been blamed so much for all the things wrong with the village, that when he actually was in a sense at fault, it could not reliably be blamed on him.
The boy who cried wolf, as it was. Only in this case it was the village who cried wolf on the boy too many times. Without any proof to bring forward, everyone was only able to bide their breath and seek out other avenues to place their blame on. Which is what led to the current situation.
It was in such a situation that the day to assign teams to all those who graduated from the academy and became official Ninja returned to school for one last time had come. As such, there was a heavy atmosphere that settled over the gathered Genin who now waited for their team assignments. One would have normally thought there would be excited chatter as they discussed the possibility of being put on the same team as their friends, but with two of their own absent, it hardly seemed the place for such conversation.
Even among the unsociables; Nara Shikamaru, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto, the silence seemed especially heavy as they simply waited for Mizuki to begin announcing where they would be placed for the duration of their Genin years. If he was even capable of making such an announcement under such extraordinary times.
Even their teacher seemed at a loss for what to do. Did he mention the elephant in the room? Hyuga Hinata and Uchiha Sasuke were not here, that was something no one could deny. With all the rumors spreading throughout the village, to voice it now would make it only more real than it already was. So he simply cleared his throat, proceeding to call out the teams as they had been assigned.
It was only when he got to the last few teams that he seemed to finally struggle with what to do. "Shikamaru Nara, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Choji!" Mizuki called out. "Your Jonin-sensei will be Sarutobi Asuma!" Like before, but the moment he stated the name of their new team leader, a man entered the door to pick up his new team assignment.
"Well, I guess this is it." Shikamaru stood from his seat. He paused awkwardly for a moment, before turning to look at Naruto who was next to him. "Hey man… uhh…" No further words left his mouth.
"It's cool." Naruto stood up, reaching forward with an open palm. "Men don't need any words, right? See you on the field someday." It wasn't much, but it was the most Naruto could muster at this time. As he tried to put everything else behind him.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Shikamaru nodded as he shook Naruto's hand. He then looked over the blond's shoulder. "See you around, Sakura."
"Good luck, Shikamaru." Sakura returned his kindness with words of her own. Even if the two had never gotten along, they both couldn't deny the feeling that they would always be together, along with Naruto. Yet now they were being split up officially. The unsociables were a group no longer.
Just like that, Shikamaru descended the stairs, leading to his new team assignment. With the members of squad ten having been assigned, there were only four students left over now. It went without saying, but this was an unfortunate number for the gathered group. With Hinata and Sasuke still accounted for, there were two full teams left. Without either of them here, however, there was no way to tell how things would proceed.
"Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino…" Mizuki paused after reading only two names, seemingly debating with himself how to continue. "Your Jonin-sensei is Yuhi Kurenai." He seemed to determine not to tell them who their last teammate would have been, passing the buck to their sensei, as it was.
A younger looking woman walked in, here to collect the two whose names had just been called. Both boys immediately left with their new sensei, the first of the incomplete teams to set foot into the world of Ninja.
Finally, it was just Naruto and Sakura left now.
"Right…" Mizuki continued awkwardly, unable to meet either of their eyes. "Your Jonin-sensei is a man named Hatake Kakashi, but… he's late. Can I just ask that the two of you wait here for him to arrive?" He didn't wait for their answer, already making his way to the door as if to run away. Neither one of them stopped him as he fled the classroom.
"So… who do you think it would have been?" Sakura suddenly asked.
"Huh?" Naruto either didn't understand her question or hadn't heard her in the first place. Even he wasn't sure. He had been so out of it the past few days, it was getting harder and harder for him to tell what was in his head and what wasn't.
"Sasuke-kun or Hinata?" Sakura clarified, not seeming to even notice. "Which one of them do you think would have been our teammate?" Even she had heard the rumors, but of course had no idea what had really happened to either of them. It was simply the reality that neither of them were here now. That was what she thought of it, unable to think of anything more.
"Oh…" Naruto paused for several moments as he considered the question. "Sasuke." He then answered, no doubt in his voice. Sakura didn't question why he thought as such, because she had been thinking the same thing. Even if both of them couldn't explain it, they felt like he was supposed to be the one on their team. As if they were the complete picture when all put together.
"That's right, it was supposed to be Uchiha Sasuke." Hatake Kakashi said, having entered the room without either of them noticing. "Together, the four of us would have formed Squad Seven. Well, we still might be able to. It depends if they're able to locate him anytime soon or not."
"What happens to us now then?" Naruto asked, eyeing Kakashi wearily. He couldn't help but feel that the Copy Ninja had to know about what really happened. He was the only other one that knew about Kaguya and her ability to turn people into ash, after all. Of course, he couldn't just ask him. To ask would be to throw away any doubt that it had been Kaguya and him.
"For now, we'll operate as a three-man cell." Kakashi answered, before then nodding to Sakura. "Nice to meet you, by the way. I'm your Jonin instructor. As you may have figured out already, but Naruto and I are somewhat acquainted. I look forward to working with you."
"Likewise." Sakura bowed to their new sensei. When she stood back upright, she gave one more glance between him and Naruto. "Now that we're all together, what should we do?" She asked.
"Good question…" Kakashi put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the door. "Ordinarily, I would have liked to take a day to get to know you guys and perhaps do a teamwork exercise. However, because of the unusual events happening in the village right now, we're on a special lockdown. Most of the Shinobi not on the hunt for the whereabouts of Sasuke and Hinata have been recalled to the village. All new Genin are to be given a special assignment. That means us too, of course. So the first thing we'll do is go right to meet with Hokage-sama."
"Right." Naruto and Sakura voiced their acknowledgement, before descending the stairs. The three Ninja then all left together, making their way over to the Hokage Tower from the Academy. As they walked, Sakura jogged up to be side-by-side with Kakashi, making small talk in an attempt to better get to know their teacher.
Naruto used this opportunity to fall back, glancing down at his shadow. "What should we do?" He whispered, hopefully just quietly enough that Kakashi didn't overhear him. A single Byakugan eye popped out from his shadow, looking up at him.
"If this Hatake Kakashi had wished to turn thou in, it is likely he would have already done so." Kaguya assured him. "For the time being, you are more valuable to him and his plans to dethrone the Hokage. All the same, we do not trust him. Anyone that knows as much as that man does is better off being eliminated. Unfortunately, we cannot be sure if he has even presented his true self to us or if it is merely another clone. So for now, we shall simply help with his agenda. Until such a time we can do otherwise."
Naruto could only nod along to what she was saying. Talking too much was certainly going to get him noticed, and that would make everything Kaguya had done for him until now mute. Kaguya was only doing all of this out of his best interest, he knew that. However, her methods were starting to frighten him. No, in the first place didn't he know this was how she was? It was just the first time she had turned people to ash, they hadn't been people he actually knew.
"You okay, Naruto?" Sakura asked, having seemingly noticed he had fallen behind and was quiet, even for him. Kakashi was also glancing back at him over his shoulder, but it was impossible as always to tell how much he knew, if at all.
"Yeah, I'm good. Just excited to finally get a mission is all." Naruto lied. Of course he wanted to be glad they were finally getting missions. Right after just getting their team assignments no less. As things were, he couldn't bring himself to get excited about much of anything these past couple days. It felt like walls were closing in on him from every side and any minute he might start suffocating.
"Speaking of that," Kakashi stopped walking as they arrived just in front of the Hokage Tower. "We should probably lay down some ground rules for how to act in front of the Hokage."
"Sir?" Sakura asked, tilting her head in confusion. Of course, everyone in the village that trained to be a Ninja knew what level of respect was to be expected with the current Hokage. It was one of the first things you learned at the Academy.
Kakashi's words hadn't been meant for Sakura though, they were targeted at Naruto. That was because Naruto knew the truth about the Godaime Hokage now. That he had been responsible for the death of his predecessor, Naruto's father, and had an active hand in instigating his abuse all this time. What kind of expression was Naruto supposed to make when confronted with such a person?
Of course, as a Ninja, there was only one thing he could do. He had to endure it. At least until Kakashi told him otherwise and they could achieve their goals of exposing him for all the evil he had committed. A plan for which Naruto still didn't have any idea what the specifics might be.
"Well, just leave all the talking to me. You two just need to be quiet and stand behind me, alright?" Kakashi seemed to realize what Naruto was thinking and attempted to reassure him. Naruto, along with Sakura, nodded. With that decided, the three then walked inside, making their way to the Hokage's office.
As they reached the double doors, the two guards posted outside of the office beckoned them to hurry inside. As they entered, those doors were shut behind them. Naruto was finally within reach of the man that caused him so much pain.
"You're late, Kakashi." Danzo looked up from the scroll he was reading. The Godaime Hokage sat at his desk. He had no other guards in the room, leaving himself completely unprotected if someone already within the room decided to make a move.
Naruto almost hoped Kaguya would take the opportunity to come out and shoot at him without warning. No matter how much he wished for it, however, she did not. They had already gotten enough trouble swirling around them as it was, they couldn't risk creating anymore for the time being.
"My apologies." Kakashi said, not actually sounding very apologetic. "I took a bit of time to properly introduce myself and get to know my new charges. I hope you'll forgive me for deciding such things on my own." Neither Naruto nor Sakura said it out loud, but they both thought about how much of a liar Kakashi was in their heads. He hadn't taken the time to get to know them at all. He had just plain been late to even pick them up.
"Well, it's fine." Danzo didn't appear convinced either, but for the time being let it go. "I have many other matters to attend to, but I have an important mission for your team as well." He placed a scroll on the desk for Kakashi to come and take. "This is a map and time schedule. Over the next few weeks you will be routinely placed on guard duty at the various entrances into Konohagakure."
"Is there anyone in particular you want us on the lookout for, Sir?" Kakashi asked as he accepted the scroll. The number of possible intruders could be vast, but it seemed unlikely that there would be an invasion with this kind of timing.
If Sasuke and Hinata had been kidnapped, as the Hokage no doubt expected, there was no reason someone would be trying to enter the village. The opposite, in fact, they would be trying to flee. Any aggression was likely to be on Konoha's end as they pursued any possible suspects.
"...There is one." Danzo closed his one eye, leaning back and letting out a long sigh as he seemed to debate whether or not to tell them who they were looking for. As if just saying the name was forbidden. A moment later and Kakashi knew why.
"Uchiha Itachi."
Even Sakura let out a small gasp, unable to control her surprise long enough to suppress it. Everyone knew that name. The one who had killed his whole clan in a single night, sparing only his younger brother.
Kakashi had gone still, unable to move as he stared in shock at the Hokage. "Perhaps this mission is a little much for this team…" He trailed off, but his meaning was clear. This was a man far beyond their calibre. To put Genin on a mission that had even a slight chance of encountering him. It was beyond reckless, it was practically asking for them to sacrifice their lives for no purpose.
"No, your team is excellent for this mission." Danzo sat forward, his gaze shifting ever so briefly over to Naruto. As if to cover that up, he quickly began supplying another reason, "Sasuke was originally going to be on your team. So it is likely Itachi will target you if he gets his hands on such information after infiltrating. This is… provided he hasn't already infiltrated. The fact is, your team will only be one of many on this mission. Just a couple hours everyday is enough to fill in for the others. That's all."
"...I understand." Kakashi relented, bowing deeply before the Hokage. "We'll take our leave then." He said, turning around and beginning to walk out. Sakura turned to follow after him, but Naruto was a second slower. He couldn't help but look at Danzo for that extra moment, in an attempt to sort his emotions.
"Can I help you, Uzumaki?" Danzo didn't let the momentary pause go unnoticed, looking directly at the blond. As he did, Naruto felt some kind of pressure on him. His temper flared and he bit at his lower lip.
Should he do it? Let the Hokage know right now that he was on to him? Declare his intent for revenge right here? Right now?
"Calm down, Aruji-sama." Kaguya's chakra suddenly flowed into him and the urge disappeared. "Some kind of persuasion Genjutsu, it would seem. Thou were being compelled to speak the truth. Thy Chakra flow was erratic, but no need to fear. We already cancelled its effects."
He would have to thank her later. In front of the Hokage, Naruto couldn't even risk responding to her non-verbally. However, with this, Naruto had finally gotten his answer. This Hokage… he had to go down. If he was going to attempt to manipulate his free will, then there was no conversation that needed to be had between them.
"Nothing at all." Naruto answered the Hokage's question, a feral smirk spreading across his face.
If the Hokage was surprised that Naruto had broken the spell of his Genjutsu, he didn't show it. If anything, he looked silently pleased. For Jinchuriki, Genjutsu was mostly impossible to cast on in the first place if they were on good terms with their Biju. Which meant they may have just unintentionally answered an unasked question of his. Naruto didn't get a chance to figure this out, as Kakashi called for him to come after them. Nothing more to it for now, Naruto did as told and quickly set after his team. He felt Danzo's eye on his back the whole way.
As they left, Kakashi unrolled the scroll to look over it while they walked. "...Is this really okay?" Sakura asked. "Uchiha Itachi took on his whole clan by himself. There's no way we are going to be expected to fight him, right?" She knew they were expected to give their lives for the village, but to be given a mission like this as their first one...
"No, of course not." Kakashi assured her. "This is simple guard duty. We won't be the only ones at the gate. There is all kinds of extra security right now. It would be more accurate to say that you're being put with more experienced Shinobi for our safety. Hokage-sama said it himself, but Itachi may target us if he finds out Sasuke was supposed to be on this team. That means he may suspect we have some kind of information on his whereabouts."
"I think I get it…" Sakura slowly nodded, placing several fingers on her chin as she thought through the facts they had. "So if Uchiha Itachi really does target us, it will also be better for us to be near the edge of the village? That way it will keep the fight outside of the central area where civilians will otherwise get caught up in it?"
"As expected of the top academic, that's exactly right." Kakashi smiled down at her, rolling up the scroll. Just after, they reached the bottom of the tower and walked outside into the warm spring air. "Well, our first shift isn't until tomorrow anyways, so let's split up for the day? We can meet at Ichiraku Ramen at around noon and go from there to the gate."
"Yes, sir!" Sakura nodded. She then waved goodbye to the both of them, taking off first. As they watched her go, Naruto got the distinct feeling Kakashi wasn't done talking with him yet.
"...Danzo suspects you." Kakashi said after Sakura was thoroughly out of earshot. "It's highly likely that Itachi is already in the village as we speak. If he approached the Hokage already, then it's possible you're in danger."
Naruto didn't have the time to be surprised. "I thought you said I was important to the Hokage as the Kyubi Jinchuriki? Why would he do that?" He was just tired of all these games that it felt like everyone was playing with him.
"...I'm not sure." Kakashi answered, but it was hard to tell if that was the truth or not. "In the first place, it's weird that he would think Itachi would return to the village at all upon word of Sasuke's disappearance. What's more, the timeline is too fast. Itachi would have to know almost immediately after news got out, which implies he was keeping an eye on him for some reason."
"That is only logical." From within Naruto's Shadow, Kaguya slowly began to rise out. "He desired the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. To accomplish this, Uchiha Itachi would one day need Uchiha Sasuke's Sharingan eyes. Otherwise, he will go blind." She explained as if it was common knowledge that anyone would have.
"...You're well informed. I would like to ask for more details on that, but... " Kakashi didn't appear surprised by her appearance, but he did check the window at the top of the tower still above them.
"We would not have come out if we thought someone was watching." Kaguya snapped her fingers, drawing Kakashi's attention back to her. "More importantly than that, what is thy plan? Certainly after hearing all this, thou do not intend to keep our Aruji in the village."
Kakashi sighed. "I suppose you're right. So to do that, I'm going to have to make some preparations. Until then, try and lay low, alright?"
"Wait, what are we talking about?" Naruto asked, looking back and forth between the two. It sounded to him like they were going to ask him to run away and hide.
"Aruji-sama." Kaguya folded her arms as she looked up at him. "This opponent is too dangerous for thou. Besides, it was no doubt the intention of young Kakashi to have thou removed from the village in the first place. That is where thou will do the most harm for the Hokage." She didn't have to explain it, but if Naruto was to disappear it would put the Hokage in a bad spot.
It would then shine a light on Naruto himself, his treatment, and how the Hokage could be so irresponsible as to let this happen until now. If it was suspected that his bad treatment had caused Naruto to defect from the village, inquiries would be launched and it was entirely possible the entire story could come to light… or rather, Kakashi would ensure that it did.
The only thing necessary to hatch this plan was for Naruto to disappear for a while.
"So you've figured it out that far already." Kakashi almost sounded embarrassed that his plans were exposed by such a little girl. "Well then, I'll take my leave to prepare things on my end. Just be on time tomorrow." He formed a single hand seal and in a poof of smoke was gone, not having waited for a response.
"Cheeky brat." Kaguya began sinking back into Naruto's shadow as he started setting course for home. "Well, leaving the village is beneficial for us as well. Wouldn't thou say so, Aruji-sama?"
"Yeah…" Naruto mumbled, looking down at the street as he walked. The village was all he ever knew. Of course, he had dreams of leaving it one day and going on missions. What these two were proposing however, it didn't sound like a mission to him. Just hide and wait for things to blow over.
If Naruto was going to do something, he wanted to do it for himself. That had been his problem until now. He let Kaguya do things for him and now Kakashi was trying to do the same. If things continued like this, he would never get to move for himself.
"If our Aruji does plan to go against Hatake Kakashi's schemes, we will support thou." Kaguya assured him from within his shadow. "Thou should understand though. If it comes to a battle against Uchiha Itachi inside the village… he will not be an opponent we can hold back against. The village will get caught up in such a conflict."
"I'm prepared for that." Naruto understood what Kaguya meant, but he didn't care anymore. He was already a murderer now. Nothing was going to change that. If Itachi really was in the village to get revenge on them… then Naruto would meet it head on.
Chapter End
Post-word: This was more of an intermediate chapter to kind of soak in what happened last time and then set up for the next one.
Not much else to say, so I'll see most of everyone next time!
