Chapter 21: How Genma Found Himself with a Brand New Charge: No, everything was not okay. Genma was seriously hurt by what Naruto and Haku had done, even though he chose to (foolishly) allow bygones to be bygones. Even though he was set on forgetting all about the kids' trip, his friends were not. And while these tensions were resolved, Genma found himself with a brand new stray to bring home. Although this one... Isn't like any of the other kids...
..~..~..
Raidou wasn't the kind of guy to butt his head into things that didn't directly affect him. Usually he chose to stay on the sidelines and allow things to resolve themselves. For if he had learned one thing from having been raised with five overly dramatic sisters, it was that no matter how much you love someone, it's not worth it to involve yourself into their drama.
But for his best friend, he was willing to dive into the pits of hell itself.
So he was willing to give the stern talking to these idiots needed.
The kids he had seen grow up before his very eyes had matured a lot ever since he had met them. They didn't try and kill him too often, only when he made fun of Genma being their wonderful mother hen, and actually were smart enough to be good shinobi. It had been a shame only one of them had been promoted to chunin, but there wasn't much Raidou could do about that.
But even though they had grown a lot, they were still no older than thirteen. All of them were still immature, no matter how much Genma might insist they weren't. They were still susceptible to being extremely stupid and not being aware of how that stupidity might hurt those around them.
Genma was not the kind to actively seek out confrontation from those he loved. Like any other well-adjusted ninja, he didn't back down from any challenge. But he certainly didn't instigate them whenever it came to those he considered he was close to. Which was the reason why he didn't really want to give Naruto and Haku the stern talking to they needed.
Raidou didn't hate Jiraiya as much as Genma did. But he didn't like the man and couldn't stand being near him. He'd never been the kind to enjoy the company of cowards, after all.
Genma hated the Sannin because of everything he hadn't done for Naruto. He had not been around to take care of him as the Fourth Hokage would have wished. He had not been around to keep hordes of villagers from hurting the kid. And he had not been around to take him in after knowing how cruelly the villagers treated a child.
Even though he'd never admit it, Genma hated Jiraiya because he felt like the man and he were much too similar. In the beginning, right after Minato's death, they could have done so much for the blonde, but had left him floating in space. Had left him completely alone. They'd refused to acknowledge him. But then Genma had been forced into a change of heart and he'd allowed Naruto into his home. Now the kid was part of his kids. His little minions.
To have Jiraiya suddenly come back and muscle his way into Naruto's life like he had done felt like an insult to him. Hell, it felt like an insult to Raidou and he wasn't close to Naruto. Especially because the man hadn't even tried to say sorry over having abandoned the child as a newborn. He'd just appeared as if he had never even known his father.
The only reason Naruto knew anything about how his real parents were was because he, Genma, and Iwashi had told them bits and pieces. Only the things that would keep him from connecting the pieces, though, for they couldn't let him know that his father was the Yellow Flash. But they let him know all the good times they had spent together without giving too much information on his skills.
All Jiraiya had told him about Minato had been how he'd created the Rasengan.
"Rai? What are you thinking so hard about?"
Because of the large amount of work to be done, it was now pretty usual for a seasoned tokubetsu jounin to be accompanied by one or two genin to complete missions that were too important for a squad of rookies, but too simple for more than just one knowledgeable ninja. This was the reason why he currently found himself accompanied by two of Genma's munchkins.
The mission was a simple snatch and grab from some hidden town trying to force itself on an even smaller populace through the use of (dishonestly acquired, they were all sure) contracts that stated the land used was theirs for the taking. But if the papers disappeared, then the Hidden Leaf would have a large sum of money to acquire and the dishonest town would have no way of muscling their way into the town.
Neji was perfect because of his kekkai genkkai. With it, Raidou was sure that they wouldn't have any trouble finding the documents they needed to make disappear. And Ino had been assigned onto this mission with the hopes of beginning to push her into the direction that her father had once followed.
Ino was a good kid. Just like Neji. Just like the rest of them. But she was a bit too perceptive for his liking... Just like the rest of the little mongrels...
"What Naruto and Haku did." The man answered honestly and in a blunt tone, for he did not really care if these two found out about how bad he thought of these two kids at the moment.
Genma hadn't gotten soft when he worked in the field. If anything, he had become just a tad bit more ruthless when it came to their targets. Especially the ones that hurt kids. But he was too permissive with the kids he surrounded himself by, even though he insisted he wasn't.
"They trampled all over Genma-san." Neji murmured softly, "Lady Hanabi says that they have yet to apologize."
Ino huffed out in clear annoyance, "That's because dumb old Farmer man didn't let them apologize! He just accepted them like some big idiot." After she had said this, Ino turned to look at Raidou, who quirked a curious eyebrow up at her harsh words. "I love him. But you've known him for years now. He's an idiot."
Genma was an idiot. No doubt about it. Especially if Ino, a girl that loved and revered him in just about every aspect of the world, said so.
"I do not understand why it is that Genma-san hates Lord Jiraiya. But, even if I do not, I understand that there is something he does not trust about that Sannin. It is obvious he doesn't like him. There is no logical explanation for Naruto and Haku having gone off other than the fact that he was getting the only person in the world that could save Zabuza-san." Neji spoke in somewhat objective manner, "But, even with that, they did not have to leave without telling him."
Raidou's frown became heavier after hearing how even Neji wasn't about to back his friends up on the matter. Then, when he looked over the horizon, he found that they were nearing their destination.
"Don't worry kids, I'll set them straight."
Genma was sent off on a new mission.
There was nothing wrong with it on paper. A simple courier mission to hand in some important documents to the Sand that would help both villages begin to form an alliance after the horrid invasion planned by Orochimaru.
The man did not feel right going into the desert. It felt as if he was entering his death simply because of the fact that they had attacked the Hidden Leaf without any kind of hesitation. They'd killed many of his allies simply because they were just 'following orders'. They had almost gotten Zabuza killed.
Baki was waiting for him at the front gates of his village when the senbon enthusiast arrived. The older male looked much better than the last time they had seen each other, seeing how he was no longer sporting bandages that screamed out the injuries he had suffered.
"How are you, Genma-san?" Baki asked in a polite yet friendly voice as he motioned for the man to follow after him.
"Good, considering everything." The younger male offered a small smile at the curious eyebrow quirk from the older, then shrugged, "Kids are driving me insane. But that's nothing new, now is it?"
"Not at all." Baki hummed out as he led Genma through the hot streets of his home village. "Gaara has decided to become Kazekage, though. So Temari and Kankuro have decided to 'step up' his training so he's ready for anything." A pause came now, then the man was offering Genma a tight, annoyed, and irritated smirk, "I am sure you understand just how interesting things have been because of this."
If the Sand Siblings were anything like Genma's own kids, then the man did understand how interesting things might have become. He had the Second Hokage teaching Kiba, Naruto, and Tenten how to not get themselves killed with the forbidden jutsu they'd learned all the while the First Hokage helped many of the other kids with their stances and fighting styles.
How his life had come to this, Genma would never be able to truly understand.
"It is good you have arrived with those documents, though." Baki murmured in a much looser tone, although his voice became a tad bit more professional. "We managed to find the spies that were sent after you to stop their delivery."
"Spies?"
With a heavy sigh, Baki nodded, "Two of them. One managed to get away but the one we were able to capture is a vocal kind of person. He enjoys shouting and insulting my men. Which means he'll be easier to break."
It was a kind of unspoken agreement around the world. The more a ninja enjoyed screaming, shouting, and insulting, the easier they usually were to break. People that were vocal about the things they liked or didn't were more likely to trip up and give away information they didn't want to lose. And it was usually easier to play them into giving away what was needed.
Of course, this wasn't always the case. But it was one of the reasons there were some talkative shinobi that were never given too much information about their missions.
"If you'd like to get some rest, I can drop you off at the quarters that have been separated for your stay now. After that I can bring you to the Town Hall so you can give in the documents."
Genma was confused as to why there would be any spies trying to stop him from reaching his spot. Especially ones that had been caught by the Sand rather than himself.
"I'm good." He murmured, "If there's someone after the information, then we should hand it in as soon as possible."
Baki agreed and soon led him towards where shinobi handed in their information and mission reports. Genma quickly gave them to a surly looking old woman that didn't seem happy at all to see him. But she took the documents without too much hassle and informed them both that the Council would be reading these over immediately.
After that, Baki began to walk him towards the quarters laid out for his small stay. But on his way there, Genma couldn't help but worry about the spies that had been sent after him.
"It just doesn't sound right, Baki. The document is important, yeah, but it doesn't hold any secret information or plans. It's all just ideas the Council from Konoha came up with so that Konoha and Suna could begin to fix our relations."
Baki agreed, "Must be someone, though, that doesn't want Konoha and Suna to be allies once more."
It wasn't right, though. Even though Konoha was large, Suna was small and struggling. Their ninja were good, but they weren't good enough to be considered a true nuisance. And Konoha was currently working on better relations with the Hidden Mist as well, which was much bigger and more powerful than the Village Hidden in the Sand.
"Can I go meet the captured spy?"
For a second, Baki stopped walking. The exposed half of his face was clearly pensive and Genma could just see the wheels in his head turning. With a heavy exhale, the man shrugged, "He is under my watch at the moment. Because of heavy losses, not many shinobi are around to keep dangers like him under lock and key. So I've got Gaara looking over him at the moment... I don't think you getting a crack at him would hurt."
With this, Baki began to fill him in on the situation with the spy as he led him towards a nondescript building at the edge of the village.
Apparently, this guy had quite the mouth on him.
~/~
They did not know his name. They did not know the specifics of his mission. Nor did they know who his dark haired partner had been.
They did know he was from Yugakure because of the headband he wore wrapped around his neck. And they also knew that he was one of the most foul mouthed individuals they had ever come across.
At first, Genma just watched from the corner, allowing the gray haired man to run his mouth as Baki tried to steer the interrogation in some kind of direction that would lead to answers.
But as some time passed, the only man from Konoha began to notice some oddities within the man.
First of all, he didn't sound like a man. Sure, one could say he was immature and brash, which was pretty normal to find in a prideful man. But the way he spoke didn't sound like someone that had been alive for a long time; immortal or not.
Second of all, he didn't look as if he enjoyed what he was doing. There were moments in which he would wince subtly and spout off a long line of harsh insults that would make Baki bristle and the T&I ninja with him move to hurt him. Baki would always stop them, though, for it seemed that the man got off on pain and giving him some would only make him happy.
And third of all, his eyes did not match his image. They were expressive, young, and bright. All the while he tried to portray himself as a hardened criminal that didn't give a damn about those he had killed.
Genma had met heartless killers before. He'd looked into the eyes of men that would have rejoiced in murdering him and anybody that had been with him. He'd met men and women that didn't give a damn about their lives and didn't care what happened to anybody around them.
This kid's eyes were not the kind he'd seen. Instead, they reminded him a lot of his kids' own.
Eyes were the windows into a soul. If one paid enough attention to them, they'd be able to read a person. And this kid's eyes screamed a very different story to what his words and demeanor were trying to give.
~/~
"You're just a kid, aren't you?" Genma frowned heavily as he asked this.
He had waited for the gray haired male to finish his insults to Baki's family to finally speak up. He'd waited a few more minutes after deciding on who this person actually was to say anything. He'd wanted to observe him a bit more to make sure that he wasn't wrong. And the more this kid had screamed, the more Genma had become.
The gray haired male didn't react surprised or as if he even believed Genma's question. Instead he glared harshly and spit out, "I killed thousands of my fucking neighbors! I'm not some fucking snot nosed little shit!"
It was an act, though. Genma knew it. He could see the fear within his eyes, the broken innocence... He could see the underlying wish for hope beneath so much unsurity and doubt. He wasn't wrong about this kid trying to act as if he were someone he was not.
"You're trying to make yourself seem older than you are. I can respect that." Genma murmured with a soft shrug, "But kill counts don't dictate age. I had killed more than a hundred by the time I was fourteen." Then he narrowed his eyes, making sure to look straight into the odd, almost purple colored, incredibly terrified eyes. "You're no older than nineteen. And this whole tough guy act? You're using it to protect yourself."
The kid frowned heavily because of this. Then he turned his glare onto Baki and his fellow Sand Nin. "I ain't sayin' a single fucking thing with these cock suckers in the room."
There was a moment of silence in which Genma wondered if Baki or the Sand Jounin might say or do something to stop the kid's nonsensical growling. But his friend soon nodded stiffly and motioned with his head for his partners to follow after him.
The man and woman weren't all that inclined to leave a Leaf Shinobi alone in the room, but didn't try and argue with their commander. They walked out before Baki, exchanging confused looks on their way out. And when Baki went through the door, he stopped, gave Genma a small nod, then closed the door behind himself.
Soon enough, it was only Genma and the kid trying to masquerade as a man in the room.
Then, in a soft, almost broken whisper, the kid said, "My name's Hidan... And I'm just eighteen."
Genma was surprised by the sudden change in his voice, and quickly asked, "Then why are you acting as if you were older? You're just a kid."
"Because I can't stop myself!" He almost shouted, tears beginning to well up in his eyes. "I've got a curse or something on me... I can only be a bastard. I can't be nice. If I try to be nice, my body turns against me."
The man sucked on his senbon as this kid- Hidan, now- tried his best to keep from breaking down.
This could all just be some kind of ruse. The kid could have sensed worry from Genma and could be trying to abuse of his innate sense of protecting those that he deemed worthy of it.
But Genma's gut had never led him wrong. Every person he ever felt compelled to protect wound up deserving it in some way.
"Then why are you telling me this? Won't your body... What was it? 'Turn against you'?"
The kid's face suddenly broke into an almost maniacal grin, his eyes shining with a hope Genma had been sure didn't live within his body. "Only someone that can care for a monster would be able to hear me out. I thought I'd never meet anyone that might give a single shit about me... But... You are. You care."
There was so much hope in the male's last words that Genma couldn't find it within himself to argue.
When Raidou returned from his mission, it was to find Iwashi waiting for him at the Village Gates. And from the way he was frowning harshly, the scarred male immediately knew why.
"You two go on ahead. I'll file the mission report." He told Neji and Ino, who looked up at him with confused glints in their eyes.
"We wish to help in disciplining Naruto, Raidou-san."
"Yeah! I want to kick some ass!"
It was reassuring to know that, even though they were friends with the troublemaker, both these kids knew that what Naruto and Haku had done was wrong.
It seemed that everyone but Genma knew...
"Raidou! Guess where Naruto is right now!" Iwashi smirked tightly, without any humor to be found in his face, "Making Jiraiya some lunch with his team's help."
Iwashi hated Jiraiya. Hell, he hated all of the Sannin. The younger male had never explained why it was that he hated the three so vehemently, but Raidou never questioned it. Just like Genma, he must have had his own reasons.
"That idiot!" Ino shouted, "Where's Farmer man?"
Iwashi looked at her in slight surprise, but soon answered, "Suna. He was sent off on a mission to deliver some things."
The blonde breathed out a sigh of relief at this, "At least he's not around to hear this." Neji murmured. "I cannot understand how someone could be so unbelievably ignorant."
"Don't worry, Neji." Iwashi's smile suddenly took on a sinister edge, "I'll make sure Naruto and Haku understand just how much they've hurt Genma."
Raidou did not like the evil glint in his eyes. So he grabbed the younger friend by the arm and began to remind him how, no matter how much he thought it might be a good idea, hurting any of the kids was not a good idea and would never be.
Convincing Baki to let Hidan out of the handcuffs was not as difficult as Genma thought it would have been. But, then again, that may have just been because he had been the only one to actually get information out of the kid rather than just insults and hisses.
"My partner was supposed to be a guy from some village I don't know named Kakuzu. He's supposed to be immortal like me; with a nasty temper. 'Cause he can't kill me, I was assigned to work with him."
Currently Genma found himself sitting cross legged on the balcony of Baki's home, his left hand tied to Hidan's right.
Even though he'd been trusted enough to be brought out of the interrogation room, for all the information he had given Suna was valuable and deserved some kind of reward, they weren't about to let him escape. And the only person Hidan was actually civil towards to was Genma. It was a no brainer when it came to deciding who would look after him.
"But he was given a last minute assignment that was too important to pass up on. So I was teamed up with another guy..." Hidan's face scrunched up as he thought, then looked up at Genma's face. "Can I see your village's design?"
Genma was kind of confused by this, but soon nodded and raised his right hand to pull his bandanna off. Then, after he shook his head a bit to try and loosen his hair, showed the kid his village's plate.
"Konoha." He supplied, only to find Hidan pointing in alarm.
"He's from there! An emotionless jerk with red eyes from Kohona!"
Either Hidan was an excellent actor, or he truly was a kid dealt some pretty shitty cards in the game called life.
"Konoha." Genma corrected, "Red eyes?"
No clan in the history of Konoha had purely red eyes. That was an ability that came from one specific clan. And there were only two people from Konoha that had the ability to turn their eyes red that were still alive. But only one that had not been anywhere near Konoha in years.
"From a clan or somethin'." Hidan murmured with a noncommittal shrug, then turned his head to the side so he could look into Baki's apartment. "Oy, fucker, where's my food!? You too retarded to finish anything on your own!? Need someone to guide your pussy ass hand?"
With a heavy groan, the teen shoved his face into his left hand. "I don't want to say these things! But I can't stop myself."
The matter of a red eyed man from Konoha was pressing and Genma wanted to solve it as soon as possible. But the pain in the kid's voice made his heart squeeze tightly, which made the red eyed man leave Genma's mind and instead be taken up by the odd curse Hidan said controlled him.
"You said it's a curse, right?" He asked, only to receive a small, almost shy nod from the teen. "Have you seen a curse mark on you? Maybe we could break it so you don't suffer any longer."
Explaining to Baki just why the kid was a complete dick to everyone had not been easy. Especially when Hidan insulted Genma in front of him. But, apparently, the curse only allowed Hidan to be himself when it was only Genma around. If there were others then he was forced to be rude and crass.
"I haven't seen any." Hidan murmured, "But the bitch that put it on me was smart and a master in this kind of thing. She made sure to hurt me right where it hurt."
In the few hours they had spent together, Genma had come to learn a lot about the young teenager. He had once had a loving family and lived to serve his village. But when he laughed at the wrong person, his whole world came spiraling down. Hence why he couldn't stop himself from spouting off angrily. Why he couldn't stop himself from killing innocents.
Genma wasn't completely sure, but last he had heard of Yugakure, it had long ago established itself as a vacation spot. It hadn't produced shinobi in at least a decade.
Even with this, it was odd that Hidan hadn't seen anything. But... "Whenever you try to be nice, does your body begin to ache?"
"Yup."
The screen door that divided Baki's apartment with the balcony outside slid open at this point. And the large man stepped out with a tray piled up with food that was for all three of them.
"Finally!" Hidan growled, smirking threateningly up at Baki.
But his eyes, even with the threat his whole body was trying to showcase, shined with pain and regret.
"Have you managed to get more information out of him?" Baki looked directly at Genma, ignoring the wickedly smiling Hidan.
"Yeah. I've actually learned a lot..." He drifted off as he continued to look at Hidan, then frowned, "Hidan, I want you to try and be nice to Baki-"
"No fucking way!" The purple eyed teen hissed, but Genma merely smiled reassuringly at him.
"It's to try and figure this curse out, Hidan. When you try to be nice, your body forces you to be mean, right? Do you feel any pain when this happens?"
All of the anger that had suddenly overcome him quickly dissipated to leave only confusion and slight curiosity. "Well... Yeah..." The teen murmured, then his eyes widened marginally before he growled out, "But it happens so fucking little that I don't give a damn anymore!"
The hand tied to Genma's own was suddenly gripping Genma's wrist tightly. The sudden action made the man jump and looked down at Hidan's hand.
Hidan wanted to tell him... But he couldn't with Baki around.
"Alright." Genma nodded softly, then looked up at Baki. "Do you want us to continue finding stuff out? Or would you rather stop and eat?"
"I want some fucking grub!"
"It seems Hidan has answered for me." Baki answered with strained patience.
Undoubtedly, he was tired of listening to Hidan always cursing when around him. And Genma couldn't really blame him. But they were actually getting answer from the teenager with the kind approach.
"Let's eat, then."
Naruto had thought that this day would be a normal one. He'd woken up, had breakfast with Sasuke and Haku, gone out to train with his team, checked on a still recovering Zabuza, then gone ahead to get some extra training finished up with Jiraiya. After that, they'd prepared some food for Jiraiya to keep him around so he would teach all of Team 7 some new jutsu he said might be good for teamwork.
He hadn't thought that being taught by the old pervert would be a bad thing.
Farmer man had come to accept the guy, even after that one odd episode when Jiraiaya had first returned to the village. And if Genma accepted Jiraiya, then there was nothing wrong with the world.
Or, at least, that was what Naruto had thought until today.
"Genma's too much of an idiot to tell you anything, kid. But I'm not. And I don't feel bad about hurting your feelings by telling you the truth. So I'm going to tell you how much you hurt that idiot of a man that decided to adopt you."
Raidou and Iwashi had walked up to him with heavy frowns. And they'd asked if they could speak alone with him and Haku with serious and heavy tones Naruto had not heard in a long time.
Last time Raidou had sounded like this... Well, had been years ago. Back when he'd gotten the scar that now marred his face.
"Look, Naruto," Raidou breathed out after Iwashi's somewhat upbeat words, "Genma loves all of his kids. I may joke about him being a mother hen, but he actually is. All of you have weaseled your way into his heart and he holds you guys really high in his heart. For one of you to betray him... Well, it hurts a lot."
"But..." Naruto blinked, more than confused, "He didn't yell at me."
Haku remained quiet, though. And when Naruto turned to look at him, he found that the other boy was frowning heavily with his eyebrows scrunched up. He was thinking about what was being said.
"Of course he didn't. Because he's too nice to bring you down when you're so happy." Iwashi grunted, crossing his arms over his chest. "He saw that you and Haku were happy over having saved Zabuza and wasn't about to scold you. And after a month of seeing you running around with Jiraiya, he most probably decided to just suck up all of his hate and deal with it."
"He's had a long history of being too selfless." Raidou continued, making both teens turn to him. "But what you two did was horrible and there's no way we can just let it slide without letting you know just how much you hurt your precious Farmer man."
(Naruto and Haku promised themselves that, as soon as Genma arrived, they would apologize profusely. And promise to never talk to Jiraiya ever again. Because Genma was much too nice to be alive and they should never have taken advantage of him or his kindness.)
(Iwashi was left kind of disappointed that he had not been able to exact some revenge on Genma's part. The idiot deserved people to stand up for him. But he was glad that Ino- secretly- promised him to help him get some revenge on the Sannin later on.)
(Shino, Kiba, Chouji, and Hanabi may have all helped with that.)
The curse mark only appeared whenever Hidan tried to be nice. And it appeared at the base of his neck, causing a painful sensation to shout up throughout his whole body it was taken over by the need to be a jerk.
Hidan had stopped trying to fight it a long time ago. He'd learned quickly enough that the more he fought, the more it would hurt. So he hadn't tried to actually be a good individual in a long time ago. But now that Genma was around and actually able to help him, he'd made the effort to do so, even with the pain that overtook him.
It was a seal unlike anything Genma had ever seen before.
The easiest way to explain the design was a full circle with an upside triangle held within. But within the triangle there were three different pieces, all colored in a different manner. The upper left corner was red, the upper right corner was black, and the pointed tip was a dark, somewhat purple color.
"I've never seen a seal with colors before..." Genma murmured in awe at the design, then raised his hand to trace the lines.
The skin beneath his fingers was smooth yet cold. Almost as cold as a corpse.
"Hidan, are you okay?" He asked in alarm, making the teen glance over his shoulder in confusion, "Aren't you cold?"
"Na." He shrugged, "I feel normal. But if you think that's cold, you haven't been anywhere near the worst of snows, huh?"
It wasn't normal for any human to be this cold. But Hidan seemed to be fine.
"I've been like this for a long time now." The teenager sounded much too accepting than Genma thought was right, "I lost count of how many years have passed since I was cursed."
One would think that years of immortality would help one mature. But it seemed that Hidan was just stuck in a horrible hell from which there was no escape. He was quiet and pensive whenever it was only Genma, although he acted brash and foolhardy when other people happened to be around.
Maybe part of the curse was to make him seem as immature as the day he had been when he had first been cursed?
"Don't worry, Hidan." Genma turned the male around so that he was looking into his odd, purple eyes. "We'll figure this out. We'll free you from this thing. I promise."
Hidan's smile was shaky but his eyes were wide and hopeful. And that was all Genma could have asked for. Just a tiny bit of hope from the kid.
Hashirama enjoyed being alive once more. It was fun to live in a period where he could just relax and help the future generation of shinobi train.
"No, brother, it is time for Tenten to learn-"
"The basics of the Edo Tensei she managed to learn by being a thief?" Tobirama interrupted with a soft frown, "I agree completely. Now come along, girl. I wish for you and Kiba to learn all of this as quickly as possible."
Tenten blinked at both brothers as she continued to chew her breakfast, then asked, "Didn't you two get the memo? Kiba, Hinata, and I are going off on a mission. We're supposed to leave in a couple of minutes."
Both men froze up when they heard this, then Hashirama asked, "Why didn't you tell me?! I had a whole obstacle course prepared for you!"
The kunoichi soon shrugged, "I dunno..." before she finished up her breakfast and stood up from her table. "What are you two even doing in my apartment? When did you find out I lived here?"
"It's not difficult to find anybody in the village." Tobirama huffed softly, "And he followed me once he figured I was going to find you."
Hashirama offered a completely unapologetic smile, then cocked his head to the side curiously. "Wait a minute, didn't you say you had to leave in a couple of minutes?"
"Yeah."
"But... You're not... At the village gates..." Hashirama was completely confused by how nonchalant and calm Tenten seemed.
His brother, though, just seemed annoyed.
"You are not going to be leaving late for your mission." The white haired man growled, "Hurry up and move."
Tenten waved them both off as if they weren't some of the shinobi to have ever lived. And Hashirama found his admiration for the kunoichi only grow.
~/~
"Alright, guess we'll be seeing you two later."
Tobirama was not amused with how relaxed Tenten was. He'd always believed that, no matter how simple, a mission was always to be taken with as much severity as possible. There was always the possibility of everything going wrong and a shinobi losing their life.
"Take this mission seriously." He grunted, only to have Kiba wave him off.
"We'll be fine, old man!" Then he smirked viciously, making Tobirama truly wish he had been able to extract the knowledge of his jutsu from the three kids.
It was still a wonder to him how they'd managed to get the scroll. Even more so, though, now that he knew how close the three were to their other friends. Why they had not passed on knowledge of the jutsu was a mystery.
"And if anything bad happens, I'll just use my summons!"
"And I could use Edo Tensei too!" Tenten added sarcastically, rolled her eyes at the Inuzuka, then began to move forward. "Let's go. We don't have all day to finish this thing."
Both loud mouths began to walk away at that point. But the last of their team, a young Hyuga, faltered for a few seconds. Her eyes went from her friends over to the ex-Hokage, apparently at a loss for what to do.
Quickly, though, she decided what had to be done. "I'll make sure neither of them try anything dangerous, Lord Second!" She rushed extremely fast before running behind her friends.
Tobirama was caught off guard by the sudden shout. But, for some reason, he was reassured that he wouldn't have to worry about either of those idiots doing anything stupid. At least there was one intelligent person on their team.
"I'm gonna be bored now." Hashirama muttered softly, then glanced up at the sky. "Wonder what's in that one's claws."
Tobirama didn't have to look up to know that his brother was talking about a messenger bird. "Something important to the village's safety." He answered then turned around to head back towards the inside of the village. "Let's get going, Hashirama."
When Genma returned to the village, it was two weeks later than he was supposed to have returned. Two weeks which were spent trying to convince Suna's Council to allow Hidan into Genma's custody so the Hidden Leaf could try and help the poor kid out.
In exchange for allowing Genma to take him back, there had been a lot of things Konoha had ended up having to promise. First of all, they would come to Suna's aid whenever it was necessary, no matter when or who they would have to fight. Their partnership as villages came before any others and Suna refused to be looked over for bigger villages. Second of all, once Orochimaru if they captured Orochimaru, then Suna would not have to hand him over as was normal to do with village traitors.
There were a few more points that had been agreed to, but most of these were inconsequential. And a few were even good for both villages, like opening up trading routes and beginning a kind of ambassador exchange program.
Baki had been one of the loudest voices when it came to drafting these agreements. And it was most probably thanks to him that moving Hidan had even been considered.
"Yeah, no. Fuck you, puppet fucker."
"I like this guy, Genma. He's not afraid to be honest!"
Kankuro, unlike his siblings, seemed to enjoy Hidan's crass friendship. There was no underlying care or wish to help. The kid just enjoyed being around someone as rude as Hidan.
"Kankuro, stop taunting him." Baki scolded lightly as they approached the Village Gates, "I will go and meet with the Hokage. But we've made immediate arrangements to have the best get a look at his curse seal."
Faintly, Genma could make out blue and white standing firmly at the front gates. Which meant that Tobirama was there and would be part of the receiving party.
"Hidan's given us a lot of information on this 'Akatsuki' group, which means we'll all be able to protect ourselves." He told Baki, then smiled over at Hidan. "Looks like it did matter."
At first, Hidan had refused to give away any information about the group that had sent him to his apprehension. But once he'd come to see that Genma truly wanted to help, he'd decided to help himself and tell them everything he knew.
Itachi... He was a damned fool.
But Genma refused to give up on him.
He'd never told another living soul what he thought about the Uchiha massacre, but he'd never given up hope on the wayward Uchiha. And now that he know who it was that he had joined, Genma knew that he would do everything he possibly could to help him. He refused to leave any of his kids behind. Even if they ended up making some pretty bad decisions.
Once they got into the village, Tobirama would take a look at the seal on Hidan and decide how to proceed with trying to free him from his curse. Baki would meet with the Hokage to finish up negotiations. And then a new Hokage would be announced.
Even with a dark cloud that threatened to bring down everything good in the world looming nearby, Genma knew that everything would be fine.
..~..~..
Oh! One more chapter to go, then this story is finished! Aren't you excited for this?!
Hidan is now a sweetheart forced to be a dick. My story. I love him and he deserves more love. So this was only a purely reasonable decision. Besides, this story is a pretty huge AU at this point. Why not continue with the canon divergence?
Please review!