Konoha Academy

Iruka had started his day in better ways...

"Sakura. Naruto-"

"There's no way that a predator can be a good parent!" Sakura shouted at a frowning blond. "Sakina told me that lions hurl their cubs off cliffs and eat half of the ones that climb back up! Stupid!"

"I'm not stupid!" Naruto yelled back, the rest of the class listening on with varying degrees of interest. "You're the one who's stupid! Lions are really good parents to their kids and would never throw them off of a cliff!"

"Then how come only 1 in 5 of those monsters ever live to adulthood?"

"Children-"

"Cause other predators and lions that aren't their parents are trying to kill them before they grow up!" That pink-haired girl was definitely Kizashi and Mebuki's daughter. Though she had softer features than her older sister Sakina.

Especially after Sakina was discharged by the SRA after losing her arm.

"Good riddance I say! Those monsters do nothing but kill anyway!"

"They're not monsters! They just eat other animals or they'll starve!"

Iruka loudly coughed.

"Since your conversation seems so much more interesting than class, perhaps the two of you can share it." Iruka decided and motioned the two children towards the front of the class. "I'm sure that your classmates would love to hear about your conversation."

"Fine!"

"Fine!" Both kids pouted as Sakura went first. "Naruto thinks that savage predatory animals can be good parents even though they eat their own young."

Naruto scoffed. "I told Sakura that she's stupid and that predators are really protective of their young."

"Even though most of them die in their youth because the predators are bad parents."

"It's not their fault!"

"How so?"

"Other animals kill them cause they don't want them to grow up! It's one of those things about wildlife that just sucks!" Naruto shouted and looked to Iruka. "You've seen animals in real life right? You know that Sakura's being stupid!"

"I am not!"

"Naruto, calling names isn't how you make people understand things." Iruka neutrally replied. "Sakura is a smart girl, but she just doesn't understand because she was never taught about lions like you were. That doesn't make her stupid, it makes her ignorant about lions. Now apologize."

"Sorry..." Seeing that Iruka wouldn't take his muttering, Naruto raised his voice. "I'm sorry for calling you stupid Sakura."

"Serves you right baka-"

"Sakura, you too."

"But I-" When she saw Iruka fold his arms, Sakura knew that she wouldn't win. "Sorry for calling you stupid Naruto."

"Much better. Regardless of your disagreements, the two of you need to remember that you're still comrades. Neighbors and fellows within the same village, you'll learn in time that things will be harder when you're constantly picking fights with each other." Iruka stated for all of the children to hear. "That goes for all of you! We are all comrades with the same home. Fights and arguments will happen, but don't let them divide you or keep you from being friends."

Iruka had seen too many friends die because they couldn't trust someone that they didn't personally like.

Even now, he knew of one friend who nearly got himself killed because he mistrusted and held a grudge against their own sensei.

Rendezvous point: Mizu, Uma, Burijii, Kusa

Hoping from tree branch to tree branch, Shishi's hidden byakugan were on constant watch for any incoming intrusions.

"Other than me." The Anbu laughed to himself before setting down near a fallen tree, the same tree which had been identified as where he would find Shunshin. However, the ANBU Taicho was absent which raised Shishi's concerns and guard. He stood up with blade drawn and searched for any incoming friends or foes.

Fortunately, the first chakra signature that he saw was a friend.

"Karosin." Shishi sheathed his blade as his fellow ANBU landed next to him, "I actually beat you here for once-"

"I have been here for two hours, I merely returned from surveying the area." Karosin corrected, earning a scoff from his fellow shinobi, "So he hasn't returned yet?"

"Shunshin? Did you see him?"

"Briefly." Karosin answered just as three more ANBU appeared, "Hihi, Haiena, Jakkaru."

"Karosin, Shishi." Hihi greeted in turn. Shishi observed Hihi to be a male in his early twenties with red hair tied in a tail and several clan tattoes etched upon his cheeks and chest. Jakkaru was in his late teens with two scars running from his mouth down to his neck and black spiky hair with a bald spot along the left side above his ear from an old burn wound. Hihi was a kunoichi who was a year or so older than him with pink hair and a bandage wrapped around her left arm.

"Any idea why we're here?" Shishi inquired with his eyes continually searching for any unwanted additions to their group.

"You're guess is as good as mine. You know how brief Shunshin is." Jakkaru muttered in protest.

"Shunshin called us here because we were commanded to come here." Karosin countered without emotion, "Nothing else is required of us."

"Get off of Shunshin's lap." Hihi spat, "He's a better shinobi than the five of us combined. Why does he need us?"

"Six." Unknown to even Karosin and Shishi, Urufu was sitting in a branch up above the group, "Oi! Sorry that I'm late. An old man was lost and needed directions."

"Right...and he has a house filled with pets?" Haiena mocked as Urufu joined him along with another visitor who emerged from Urufu's shadow, "Oh...are you the old man?"

"Old? Guess I am." All of the ANBU immediately recognized the Toad Sannin Jiraiya and immediately bowed in reverence, "Get up! I'm not going to knock you around for gossip. I'm here to help you save Uchiha Shisui."

"Shisui? If I recall he is back in the village-"

"No. He's out here on orders from the Hokage under the ANBU codename of Shunshin." Jiraiya countered with Karosin simply conceeding in defeat, "Speaking of which. I'll need all of you to take off your masks."

"Like hell we will!" Hihi protested and quickly corrected his tone to a more modest one, "All respect Sannin-sama. But our identities are secret to all except the Hokage-"

"Everyone in your district knows who you are Renji Sanbo." Jiraiya stated to quiet the shocked Anbu and proceeded to point to each ANBU as he made his point, "Uchiha Itachi, Kuromuton Satoshi, Tentōchū Yachiru, Rosita Kaien, and Hatake Kakashi. This is only temporary and for the sake of your mission."

"How did you know?"

"Trade secret. But let's just say that I know about the identities and locations of every Konoha ANBU. And have kept silent for all of them." Jiraiya answered the defeated and stunned Hihi, "Now will you take off those masks?"

"But you'll be disappointed because under this mask..." Urufu quickly lifted off his mask, "Is another mask."

"Show off." Satoshi remarked, ruffling the fur mane on his mask and looked over to the sole kunoichi in the group, "I thought that you were a man all this time."

"Did I disappoint you?" Yachiru asked with mock concern while Sanbo and Kaien grinned in amusement and Itachi just smirked, "Oh...oh wait, you do like girls! I couldn't believe it when they said you were male...but alas, you're just a kid."

"As flat as you are, I could've sworn that you're still a little girl."

"Where's the bulge in your pants?"

"Friends, you're both adorable...now hug and make up." Kakashi laughed while patting both younger shinobi on their shoulders, "And no...that's not a suggestion, that's an order."

"What?"

"You heard your captain." Jiraiya asserted while writing in his notebook, Itachi could practically see the steam that rose from Yachiru and Satoshi when they forced themselves to embrace, "We're all friends now right?"

"Yes."

"Good! Cause I've got an important message from Shisui." Jiraiya began while the ANBU all listened for the sannin's message, "He didn't want to risk losing the target, so Shisui went on ahead to secure them in this location."

"What went wrong?"

"Nothing that he didn't plan for. Shisui's inside-man got caught and set-up Shisui to save his own skin." Itachi's eyes narrowed with warning as Jiraiya continued, "Don't worry, I summoned a "friend" to keep an eye on Shisui and so far, he's still alive and well-treated. In fact, he doesn't want anyone to try and break him out, he'll handle himself."

"Understood...what is our task?"

"Find and capture the target. Find any information that would solidify his ties to the defector, Orochimaru." Jiraiya stated for the steeled ANBU, "The place is highly guarded and there's a few ronin and off-the-grid nuke-nin mixed in as well."

"Highest level?"

"Two jonin-level and a handful of chunin-grade missing-nin." Jiraiya answered Kakashi, "I'd lend a hand, but exposing my involvement would compromise other investments that I have around here."

"Then why did you make us take off our masks?" Sanbo inquired, "ANBU have secret identities for a reason-"

"Two of this target's guards are notorious as an ANBU-killers." Jiraiya remarked to the shock of most of the team, "Your best chance of infiltration is disguising yourself as either guards or civilians. The area is heavily regulated and every civilian wears specially chakra-coded clothing to mark them as approved "servants"."

"Shouldn't be too hard." Satoshi concluded though he was a little nervous, "What can you tell us about his place?"

"As you can guess from the smell, it's a Mining and Processing Colony privately owned and heavily used as a port for mineral and human trafficking." Jiraiya explained while the ANBU looked upon the fumes that rose from the industrial complex nearby, "It used to be a training ground for the Kimora Clan, but after my boys took them down, it's become a good waypoint for nuke-nin trying to evade Oi-nin."

"I thought Oi-Nin were only from Kiri?"

"I'm using the term liberally. All ANBU in every village has a search and destroy division, Kiri's the only one whose bothered to make it official." Jiraiya said to Kaien, "Anyway...that's the big reason why this is a death trap for ANBU apart from our target's guards. The servants are used for menial labor to forge weapons or as sex slaves for cheap prices. You'll find all kinds of scum and filth here."

"Do the workers ever leave the village?"

"Not often and only when guarded by at least three people." Jiraiya answered the pondering Kakashi, "But none of these mercenaries really give a shit about each other. I've seen them fight and kill each other over anything from a small amount of a cut in a job to the last bit of cooked beans."

"Division and conquest coupled with infiltration and stealth may be our best option." Itachi's calm demeanor underscored the danger of mission ahead of the six ANBU, "Kakashi-taicho? How shall we proceed?"

"Sanbo, Kaien, Itachi. Head around to the west side of the facility and wait for my signal. Satoshi, Yachiru. You find a guard patrol, neutralize them and infiltrate the base. Locate the target, find any useful information and pick off as many nuke-nin that you can risk."

"I'll watch your progress from the Northwest. I'll have one of my dogs mark my hiding place for one of you to find me." Kakashi continued, "Then I'll signal the rest of you to start a fire. That should cause panic in the camp and cause a lot of guards to go out to put out the flames and track down whoever set them. Once you've found three more disguises that fit you, reenter the camp, meet up with our remaining friend on the inside, and capture the target before the rest of the guard detail returns. Then head back to this spot and double-time it home."

"What about Shisui and the workers?"

"Let Shisui handle himself. As for the workers, I am certain that he will take care of them." Itachi didn't need to guess that Satoshi wasn't comforted, "Stay focused on our mission."

"Once we've captured the target, we'll give Shisui sometime to find us on his own. If he doesn't return, then we'll go after him."

"Taicho-"

"I'll get some flack for disobeying an order from a senior taicho. But it's better than leaving a comrade to die just for some stupid rules."

"Rules exist for a reason."

"As guidelines for the conduct of a shinobi. But, I don't believe guidelines are more important than the lives of a fellow shinobi." Kakashi asserted earning a smirk from Jiraiya and most of the squad except for Satoshi and Itachi, "But for now, we focus on the mission. Shisui broke himself out of worst situations anway."

"Unfortunately." Itachi gave a cold glance at his former squadmate, Satoshi returned the stare with one of his own. "You know my feelings about Shisui-sama. Why act so surprised if I don't care if he dies?"

"I would have thought you wanted that honor for yourself." At Itachi's question, Satoshi chuckled and rubbed his former squadmate's hair.

"In enemy territory? I hate the man, but I'm not stupid."

xxxxxxxx

One year ago...

"Can't believe that we're all chunin!" Iruka cheered while padding down his new vest as Itachi and Satoshi sat on the dock looking out towards lake in silence, "Come on guys! I know that you're bummed out about losing, but who cares?"

"A rank is meaningless if you do not have the strength to survive." Itachi stated with his eyes observing a storm on the edge of the clear sky, "In a live combat situation, all of us would be dead."

"So would our enemies and that's a victory in itself, right?" Satoshi brought up before lying on his back and pointing to Iruka's vest, "How does the vest feel?"

"You should try it for yourself, didn't they give one to you guys?"

"I declined to wear it." Itachi answered, "Once we join the ANBU, possessing a vest that we will not use shall be pointless."

"Remember what sensei said?" Satoshi's smile wavered at the mention of their recently passed squad leader, "A resource is a tool, no matter how mundane. The shinobi who says that he brought along an explosive tag and found that he did not need it, likely said this after returning home from a successful mission."

"But the shinobi who cries out that he left his spare sword when he needed one...likely said it right before he died." Satoshi finished, "I know Iruka, I kept my vest just in case we go on a mission where we'll need extra padding."

"Never hurts...especially where you guys are going." Iruka chuckled before sitting down and looking at his reflection in the water, "So where do we go from here guys?"

"Forward." Itachi flicked a stone out into the lake, watching it skip a few hops before it sank into the water, "It is the only direction which one can move."

"What other choice do we have?" Satoshi added, his eyes staring up at the sky, "Staying still only makes you an easy target for a smart enemy...like sensei always said."

"I'm going to miss that blind bastard." Iruka lowered his head and exhaled, "It's unbelievable that he's gone. I knew that it could happen but...I always thought that he had a plan against dying."

"No one can plan against death, you know that." Itachi replied while Iruka quietly nodded, "How did your Exam go?"

"Passed with flying colors." Iruka boasted with rising confidence, "I'm entering a shadow program under Daikoku-sama. Hopefully I'll be able to become a full-fledged instructor soon."

"I'm surprised that you passed."

"Shut it Satoshi!" Iruka shouted to Satoshi's humor, "The Academy Teaching Exam is a hard test for any shinobi especially a chunin! None of the jonin who took the test with me and Mizuki passed! So suck it!"

"Calm down, the binjiketa is just provoking you." Itachi said without much concern, "To be honest, this exam shows that you were never cut out for the hard life of a shinobi Iruka."

"The hell?"

"You wear your emotions on your sleeve, even sensei saw this." Satoshi added, "Don't get me wrong, you're a more balanced shinobi than either of us in terms of skill and you're great for surprises. But you're also both big-hearted and soft-hearted. If you lost that, you'd become a sad and boring person...from this point on, the life of a shinobi would just make you harder. No one wants to see you harden."

Iruka shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe you're both right. Plus, I'm more likely to live and die at an old age unlike the two of you."

"Probably."

"Likely."

"Well...I've gotta get going. I need to sort out some things for tomorrow." Iruka sat up and turned to depart, as he walked he waved back at his former squadmates, "Keep in touch and don't die too soon, got it?

"No promises."

"Kuromuton's honor!" Satoshi and Itachi remained upon the dock within their own thoughts as they had before Iruka arrived. Satoshi knew that Itachi wanted to say something to him, but was quiet as if waiting for the best moment to speak.

Finally, Itachi made himself clear. "Usagi-sensei's death still bothers me to this day."

"Understandable."

"Not the death itself, but the supposed circumstances around it." Itachi clarified, "Circumstances which have led me to a theory concerning the true cause of his death."

"I'm all ears."

"Sensei's kekkei genkai allowed him to see anything with a heat source and determine fluctuations within said source. Coupled with his ability to manipulate this same heat alongside his chakra and his experience with hot and cold sources, our sensei was a potent foe for any shinobi."

"But as he said himself, no one is invincible. We barely got out of that hideout alive...sensei sacrificed himself to ensure that we would survive."

"Except that the last of the Hachi Juu Kureijī had been dead for seven minutes before sensei's body destroyed itself." Itachi said while Satoshi sat up and looked out towards the storm, "The seal on Sensei's body was not to activate until he choose to self-terminate or until his death was inevitable. If sensei had sustained a mortal injury from any of the Hachi Juu, he would have entered a meditative stance to prevent it from worsening until reinforcements arrived to assist him."

"Is there a reason why you brought this up?"

"Specifically, because you were the last person to see sensei alive and because you were at the scene of his death." Itachi stated without looking at his comrade, "I am not a fool, I know that you killed sensei because of his crimes against your family. Just like you had killed Hizashi and Keimune for the same reason."

"I was 8 Itachi and now I'm 10..."

"You don't have to deny or confirm anything, it changes nothing between us." Itachi assured his friend, "Sensei taught you well enough to hide your own tracks and to ensure that your actions are swift and effective. I will not presume to pass judgement on your actions whether your motivations or just or not."

"But know this..." Suddenly, Satoshi saw the water turn red until the pattern of Itachi's sharingan was reflected within the waves, "If the flames of your revenge threatens the village or my family, then you will contend with me."

"Don't speak as though your family is innocent." The red of the water blended with gold as Satoshi's shinrigan activated, "Neither is the damn village..."

"Because they did not strike down every shinobi who was responsible for your family's massacre?"

"Don't patronize me...what if it were your family?"

"That is why I do not presume to judge your actions." Itachi repeated as both comrades deactivated their dojutsu, "Just remember what sensei said about those who seek revenge."

"There's a difference between revenge and justice."

"Is there?" Itachi asked with a chuckle, "Maybe there is...maybe there isn't...this is a sad and blood-stained world that we live in Satoshi."

"So we should roll over and let it be one?" Satoshi shot back, "Acceptance is condolence...Apathy is death...Action is unlimited."

"There are alternative methods to achieving justice Satoshi."

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Itachi was uncertain of whether his comrade cared to find those methods. "I do hope so. Konoha would suffer great harm if he were to die."

"Noted." Satoshi sped off from the group with Yachiru following suit in a different direction.

"If I'm late, assume that I've been compromised and act as you see fit." Kakashi then vanished in a swirl of leaves, leaving Itachi as the de facto leader of the remaining ANBU.

"Jiraiya-san, where is the most densely foilaged area in the western section of this base?"

"There's a few good peeping spots that could help. But they're next to bath ponds, so make sure that you're not caught or give in to temptation." Jiraiya advised when the Ero-sennin suddenly had a thought to come to his mind. "You know...maybe I can risk helping you-"

"And compromise the rest of the team? Not happening." Itachi stated while the deflated Jiraiya admitted defeat. "You stay here and alert us in the event of something going amiss."

"I can do that."

"Everyone else. Move out." The Three Anbu sped off and out of sight into the night. Leaving no trace of where they and three others had gathered. Left behind, the Toad Hermit was already hiding in the shadow of a nearby hanging corpse which even the ANBU had not seen.

Author's Notes:

Back at it.

For those worried that Satoshi is a semi-Sasuke in his apparent revenge arc, it's a lot more complicated than what it seems. Satoshi's desire for revenge (which he understandably views as justice) is not something that I'll condone or condemn nor demand that the audience goes one way or another. One thing that Kishi did well (most of the time) was deconstruct how revenge is a good thing and I want to carry that into this story.

The fine line between justice and revenge will be heavily analyzed through discussion and events (as you read with the hospital scene between Naruto and Satoshi concerning Satoshi's clan). There's also other issues such as:

Is revenge appropriate when the proper authorities either can't or refuse to deal out justice for a wronged party?

Does regret alone absolve someone of their guilt and actions?

Is holding a grudge truly wrong for the offended party? What if the offense was something truly unforgivable and unjustified when all is said and done?

Should the offended party be obligated to forgive those that wronged them or allowed them to be wronged?

Is allowing an offense to go unpunished or "under-punished" just as bad as the offense itself? Does this stain the hands of the justice system in question with that of the offenders?

PS: The situation that Satoshi is holding a grudge over will be very different from the Uchiha situation (which will come up later in this story) as the later was a coup which required difficult choices to be made. (Sasuke is just refusing to see all of the facts, hence going off the deep end)

Also, Sakura won't suck in this story. Not that I hate the character, but Kishi really misses the mark in regards to developing or naturally setting up any great progression for his supposed "main heroine". So consider this a first step towards "fixing" Sakura by giving her hints of a more complex background for character growth and motivation.

Which I found to be two of the main problems with the character among other things.

Translations:

Haiena - Hyena

Hihi - Baboon

Jakkaru - Jackel

Nuke-Nin/Missing Nin-Rogue Ninja/Runaway Shinobi

Oi-nin - Hunter-Nin

Kanashibari no Jutsu - Temporary Paralysis Technique