so, someone pointed out that it would be far easier for sasuke to just ally himself with voldemort and assassinate him from there. and that does make a lot of sense. but i write stories based off of characters and their interactions. i want sasuke to interact with the order (regardless of how they'll most likely slow him down). but worry not, he'll be doing shady things soon enough!


PART THREE

To anyone else, it might've looked like Uchiha Sasuke was sleeping. But his mind was working overtime, trying to figure out why he couldn't see or sense anyone in the room, despite there being a very clear presence approaching him in a manner which they probably thought was stealthy. He resisted a frustrated frown, despite the fact that his mask would hide any such movement.

Sasuke had been explicitly ordered to not use Sharingan in the presence of others, not unless there was a real, pressing emergency. But Tsunade's on the other side of the world, there's no way she'd even realize… and I could probably just pass it off on something all shinobi can do, Sasuke reasoned. Of course, there were also ways to erase memories entirely, but he prefered to not use those.

After a few more dragging moments of thought, he decided he had more immediate things to worry about. The intruder was right in front of him, trying to be as still and silent as possible. It was a decent attempt, Sasuke supposed, for someone who wasn't a shinobi.

Suddenly, the light rustle of fabric interrupted his thoughts.

The Uchiha reacted along three different lines.

The first was the explosion of realization that the wizard was hiding under an Invisibility Cloak, which explained why he couldn't sense any magic. The second was the knowledge that the magic user, whoever they were, was trying to take off his mask. The third purely physical, and the result of two-and-a-half years training with Orochimaru (who had experimented on him as well; giving him someone to thank for the slight but still very important advantage of mildly enhanced senses and increased reaction speed). His eyes flew open, and his hand reached out and wrapped around the Invisibility Cloak, ripping it off the intruder.

The intruder was actually three younger wizards. Two male, one female… and it included a wizard he recognized as Harry Potter. He was entirely different from the reports that the files Sasuke had read before leaving the Leaky Cauldron had on him. For one, the aura of fear emanated from the kid so strongly, Sasuke could practically smell it. Killed a Dark Lord as an infant? Don't make me laugh.

"You know," he growled, every syllable clipped and weighed carefully, "you're awfully lucky you're so important to this Order of the Phoenix; they're paying for your protection. Had you been anyone else, I would have killed you." Sasuke stepped close and knelt down to be eye-to-eye with the Boy-Who-Lived, whose face had turned paper-white in the face of the killing intent being directed at him.

He hasn't pissed himself yet, that's actually not bad.

"I - I'm not…" the Uchiha found himself mildly impressed as the kid somehow grew bolder. "I'm not afraid of you." The statement nearly made him laugh, but Sasuke commended his guts. Not many people really stood up to him, not even before he went with Orochimaru.

(Of course, the mindless insolence still grated on his nerves.)

Sasuke shrugged. "Did I ask you to be?" he said as he stood up and walked past the trio to pick up the Invisibility Cloak. "I'm not really the type to give warnings, but I'll say it this time, 'cause my paycheck kind of relies on your wellbeing: Do not try anything like that ever again," he hissed, sending out one more blast of icy, suffocating chakra, and left.

A small smirk grew on his face when he heard the quiet, breathless "what the hell was that", although it quickly faded when he realized he would have to deal with those three for an entire year.

This mission was shaping up to be a real headache, and for a moment he considered going back to Konoha.


Sycophant. A person who acts obsequiously toward someone important in order to gain advantage.

That was the one word he decided that would be a pretty accurate description of the Minister of Magic (and virtually everybody who surrounded him). And honestly, the laughable attempts at manipulation made Sasuke dislike the pudgy man even more. At the very least, Wizarding Britain could respect him enough to try to influence him with finesse. Like Dumbledore, who at least had the decency to try, although Sasuke, thanks to years and years of being pushed and pulled around like one of Kankuro's puppets, would have still remained impervious to the attempts. Of course, the poor "diplomacy" on the Minister's part made his job that much easier, he supposed.

Just do the mission and get out of here.

"Wait," Sasuke interrupted, hoping that what he had just heard was the result of not paying much attention. "Repeat that."

The Minister looked extremely flustered, but also rather pleased with himself - a bad combination. "The Ministry will be sending an official to Hogwarts to survey the Professors teaching there. I hope this will not be an inconvenience?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, concentrating on his next course of action. When he spoke again, he took care to seem nonchalant. "As long as it doesn't interfere with the job," he said.

"If you don't mind me asking, what is the job?"

"The Headmaster asked me to defend the castle in case of an attack," he explained. "Something about a Lord Voldemort."

"You-Know-Who is not back!" the Minister protested vehemently. "I'm sorry, Mister, uhm… Uchiha."

(Sasuke internally winced at the poor pronunciation.)

"Dumbledore has been leading you astray, You-Know-Who was defeated years and years ago!"

"Well, regardless of the presence of a real threat, the agreement was that I protect the residents of Hogwarts and deal with this Voldemort, should the need arise," Sasuke explained, "If nothing happens, I'll just be bored for a few months and go home with the gold."

Minister Fudge pursed his lips, creating a white line in a mass of purple-red flesh. "Of course," he said through gritted teeth.

Hook, line, and sinker.


thanks for reading!