Subterfuge

Onyx and Ivory

Another Sandstorm, she thought dully as she gazed out the small, round window. Sand and dust ferociously blew past her vision. She could faintly hear the roar of the wind over the mindless chatter of the Suna council to the side of her. She had come to hate sand—and wind. She hated how it could find its way into every crevice of her body and cause her extreme discomfort until she had fished every last piece out. It had made the skin on her hands and face rough and hard. Not that it was exactly her face to begin with...

"Yakeru!"

Hoshiko jerked suddenly, her head snapping round to face Yuura who was glaring at her slightly. The council member was motioning to the papers in her hand as Hoshiko scampered forwards and set copies of the trade negotiations down at every council member.

She had been doing that a lot lately—daydreaming. Yuura was yelling at her more frequently and she was forgetting tasks and memos on the daily now. She couldn't help but feel dejected and depressed all the time. It has been a hard five months. living in Suna by herself, and she wasn't even able to be herself completely.

Hoshiko finished setting down all the papers, hurrying passed the Kazekage and his sibling, Kankuro. The Kazekage's sister was currently on her way to Konoha to be the ambassador for the Chuunin Exam otherwise she would have been in attendance too.

"Please all turn to the second page of the leaflet." Yuura instructed as he rose from his chair. Hoshiko glided back into her place behind Yuura and clasped her hands behind her back. "I have outlined the new trade negotiations between Konoha and our village." Yuura continued. "They have agreed to a 6% increase in their harvest for an increase of our medical herbs and supplies..."

Hoshiko stopped listening after that. She had heard about this negotiation for weeks now and it was probably the most boring topic she had ever come across. She hated to admit it, but she wished for the fighting, the adrenaline. She wanted to be soaring through the trees again.

She missed Itachi.

Her heart hurt thinking about him and how much little time they had left together. He only had, roughly, a year left. And she was stuck in Suna listening to old men drone on about shit that isn't going to matter at all in a few months' time. That's if Pein can go through with his plan of exterminating all five villages.

There had been no contact with him for about 3 months now. His last message had said that he was also going undercover for reconnaissance and couldn't risk getting found out. She longed to see him. She had almost forgotten what his voice sounded like.

Hoshiko came too once more when she noticed the council members rising from their chairs. The meeting was finally over. She hurried around the large, round table collecting up all the papers and hurried after Yuura. Yuura was walking alongside another council member, Sajo. The pair were speaking together as. Hoshiko caught up to them.

"My team returned this morning with information that I think you will find quite interesting, Yuura." Sajo said.

Yuura glanced over at him. "Oh? Did they finally locate his base?"

From behind, Hoshiko's brows furrowed. She hadn't heard anything about some mission. What was going on?

"One of my men managed to infiltrate for only a few short minutes but he confirms that the location is that of Orochimaru's base."

Hoshiko's eyes widened in surprise. She had no idea that Suna had been trying to track Orochimaru. Yuura had never told her, and she was supposed to be his assistant!

"Finally." Yuura spoke, venom in his voice. "We can put an end to that snake. He deserves everything that's coming to him after he betrayed us and killed Kazekage-sama."

Oh, so that's why they were looking for him. He had killed Gaara's father. Orochimaru really just liked killing anyone and everyone, didn't he? Hoshiko continued after the two men as she listened closely.

"I'll organize a specialist team to head out to his base in a few days' time. Please inform Kazekage-sama of this new development too, Sajo."

Sajo nodded and excused himself as he traveled back the way they had all come. Hoshiko took this opportunity to hurry ahead of Yuura by a few steps and reach for the door to Yuura's office. She pulled it open for them both.

"I didn't know you were tracking Orochimaru." Hoshiko stated as she followed Yuura into the room. The heavy wooden door shut behind them. Hoshiko started to file away the papers from the meeting.

"You didn't need to know." Yuura stated as he fell into his chair and glanced over some papers.

"Will you be going on the mission?" Hoshiko asked him nonchalantly.

Yuura rubbed his hand across his forehead. "More than likely, Yakeru. I'm the one who orchestrated the whole thing."

"Am I coming?" Hoshiko asked, trying to keep the pleading tone out of her voice. She needed to keep her cool. She couldnt be too eager about the whole thing otherwise it might cause suspicion.

Yuura looked up at her in confusion. "And why would you want to come, hmm?"

Hoshiko sent Yuura a playful smirk as she gathered the new folder and brought it to the desk. "Well, I am your assistant."

"You're not selling it for me." Yuura chuckled and leant back in the chair, crossing his arms over his chest.

Hoshiko flopped down into the chair opposite Yuura. "I want to see justice delivered." She said seriously. Yuura's brow quirked in an inquisitive manner. Hoshiko continued. "He betrayed us. He killed Kazekage-sama. I want to be there to support my village."

Yuura studied her face for a few moments, thinking it all over. He looked skeptical at first, but his face slowly morphed into a smirk.

"Very well, Yakeru. You may be a part of the team. It is always one's greatest honor to defend their village."

"Thank you, Sir." Hoshiko bowed her head respectfully. She organized the office for a couple more minutes before she announced that she was done for the day. Yuura waved her off. "I shall keep you informed about the mission. We shall be heading out in a day or two."

Hoshiko left Yuura's office. She turned and strode down the hall, a cunning smirk appearing on her face. Not only could she get some payback on Orochimaru, she could use this to her advantage with the Akatsuki. She knew that Pein wanted information on Orochimaru's whereabouts. She could actually pinpoint the location of the exact hideout that she was going to be traveling to. It was on the border between Fire and Wind country. If she could somehow get word to Akatsuki that Orochimaru was currently at this one base then Pein could send some reinforcements.

There was no way that the Suna-nin were going to have any chance against Orochimaru. He was too smart to be caught off guard. Chances are, Orochimaru knew about the Shinobi that had infiltrated his base and he was currently packing up and moving on. He wouldn't be caught in some silly little ambush. Nonetheless, it would be the first time she would be getting out of Suna in five months. She couldn't wait.

A day and a half later, Yuura had told Hoshiko that they would be leaving on the mission on the following day. She had hurried off to pack her bag and prepare herself for the road ahead. It had been five months since she had done any real fighting or training and she didn't know what to expect.

It was sunset as she packed away her things into her traveling bag. This small room had become her home over the months, it was all she knew for almost half a year. It felt strange to be leaving it, even for a short while.

Once she had double and triple checked that all of her things were ready she tried to get some rest, but it was no use. She was too excited. She tossed and turned for most of the night, falling asleep for maybe an hour or two. Soon enough, her room began to lighten. She hurried out of bed, not feeling tired at all and dressed ready for the day. She turned to face her mirror and was taken aback for a moment. She had been prepared to see herself in the mirror, but had forgotten that she was currently Yakeru. A young, small girl with big brown eyes and honey coloured hair. She was far from being Hoshiko at the moment. Her reflection had caught her off guard as she lowered her gaze and sighed. One day soon, she would be out of here–and after that, she would never be changing into someone else again.

Most of her life she had spent it in hiding, forced to become someone she wasn't. She was tired of being anyone other than herself. She wished for a normal life, a life that didn't have so much death and betrayal in it. Hoshiko knew that she deserved it, but it was so hard to achieve. You could change your destiny, but you can't who you are born to be. For Hoshiko, she could have not joined ANBU, she could have never met Itachi and Shisui and never gone through the heartbreak she had. But she had been born a Ginyoru. She would have always been the last of her clan. In some way or other, Danzo would have targeted her and she could still be in the same position. That's what she meant by being born who you are meant to be.

But after this was all done, she was finished being someone's pawn. She would answer to no one no more. She was going to find out who Hoshiko really was and live the life she always wanted.

Hoshiko blended in with the group. There were about twenty of them, all dressed in Suna-nin gear. Yuura was at the front briefing the team. Hoshiko didn't pay much attention to his words, she knew what the mission was about and where they were going. She could probably lead the team if he asked her. Not that he would. In Yuura's eyes, Yakeru was but a high level Chuunin. Hoshiko glanced around at the other Shinobi's faces, they were all fixed with determination and anger. They all wanted revenge on Orochimaru for their Kazekage's death. Hoshiko realised that she needed to be like this too. She worked for a council member, surely she would have known the previous Kazekage also.

Hoshiko fixed her expression just as Yuura finished up his speech. He gave the command for them to move out as the group headed out of Suna's walls. As Hoshiko emerged into the barren desert she took a deep breath in. It smelt the same as the village air but for her own sanity she forced herself to imagine that it smelt like freedom.

They traveled in a long line of pairs through the tortuous desert. Hoshiko knew that she couldn't complain but the constant stream of sand flicking up into her eyes was going to drive her insane. Her anger was growing by the second, all she wanted to do was scream at the person in front of her but that wouldn't look good. She needed to remain the sweet and innocent Yakeru.

The anticipation of a battle enticed her to keep her composure. It wasn't only the thought of a battle that drew her forwards. It was of the knowledge that they were going to potentially encounter Orochimaru, and in retrospect, Sasuke as well. Of the few meetings that had been about Orochimaru, his name had only been mentioned once, and it was that he was still with the snake. Hoshiko desperately wanted to see him. In her head she had the image of this timid eight year old boy, tears streaming down his face.

She had caught a glance of him at the Chuunin exams, but it had been from a distance. She wanted to see him so that she could apologize for abandoning him all those years ago. He probably wouldn't forgive her. If the roles had been reversed, she wouldn't have forgiven him. Sasuke was too much like her. All those years spent together, her worst qualities had always rubbed off on him.

They continued on their advancement for a full day's run. Hoshiko was slightly winded from the exercise. For the last five months, she had been doing basic training to keep her stamina up but this was overkill. Her mouth was as dry as the desert sand beneath her feet. The sweat was dripping off her like a stream and she felt like she could vomit for an hour straight. The group only stopped when the sun had dived behind the horizon and Hoshiko had never been happier to see the night sky. With the darkness came the freezing cold temperatures.

A few of the Shinobi that had the rare Fire affinity had started a couple of fires for the group to huddle around. Hoshiko sat as close as she could without singeing her eyebrows off. The group were quiet, having nothing to talk about. The only sound was the crackling of the flames from the dry wood of dead desert trees.

The rotation of the watch came all too soon for her. She wanted to sleep longer but Yuura had shook her shoulders roughly. She had awoken with a jump, kunai in hand immediately as Yuura jumped back.

"Sorry," Hoshiko said as she holstered her weapon at her side and rose to her feet. "It's been a while since I've left the village. I'm a little on edge."

"As we all are." Yuura said with a knowing smirk.

Hoshiko watched him wander off to the edge of the group. He sat down with another Sand-nin as they began to speak quietly with one another. Hoshiko spun on her heel and went in the opposite direction. The further away from the fire she got, the colder the temperature got. She folded her arms over her chest to retain some form of body heat and gazed out across the desolate landscape.

The sand dunes and dead trees cast suspicious shadows from the moonlight. Hoshiko had to rub her eyes a few times to make sure she wasn't seeing things. She expanded her Chakra senses just to be sure and was at peace knowing that her group were the only crazy people in the vicinity for the time being.

Hoshiko knew all too well about what could be hiding just out of reach. She had seen and done much in her almost twenty years of life.

Twenty years…

Was that really how old she was?

Was that it?

She felt years older than what she was. Some people would only just be finding their feet at twenty. They'd be falling in love, starting families. Hoshiko had lived a whole lifetime within four.

She had seen murder, betrayal, anger and sadness at ages where she should've still been squealing over the cutest boy in the teams. Not that she had ever done that as a young teen. She was a double spy for Jiraiya, working in the shadows while teetering on the edge of Akatsuki. She could hardly believe that this was her life. It was full of dread and sacrifice.

At twenty, she had given in to her love. She understood what it meant to love someone, and she had the impending doom of losing it. She hoped that maybe if she could speak to Sasuke about his brother, tell him everything, that he would forgive and understand Itachi. And they could work on finding a way to help him.

Itachi needed to be saved. Not because of the fact that Hoshiko loved him and didn't want to be without him, that was a given of course. Not because she didn't want him to die before he had told Sasuke the truth of why he had hurt them so much so many years ago. But because she was generally terrified of what would happen to the world with him gone.

With his determination and sacrifice, he had averted a war. She was terrified to think about what would happen with him not around. What other plans did he have up his sleeve that he had told no one about?

She knew that he didn't agree with Pein's plan to exterminate all five villages. He had said he wanted to protect Konoha, and they didn't line up at all with each other. So what was his end game? What was he going to do? Take down Pein? Was this all going to happen before or after he had Sasuke kill him? She needed to reunite with Itachi so that she could ask him all of these important questions. She didn't want to be left in the dark when the time came. If the time came. She was determined in her cause to save Itachi. She would not let him die. She would rather herself die than let him be killed at the hands of his own brother.

When dawn came, the team was ready to go. Hoshiko had little sleep. Her worries swirling around her mind ever since her watch ended hours ago. They set off at a steady pace. The scorching sun not yet hitting their skin. Hoshiko moved on autopilot.

It was an hour into their running when someone exclaimed that the desert was coming to an end and the neighboring forest could be seen on the horizon. Hoshiko smiled at the scene. It had been ages since she had seen real greenery that wasn't from a greenhouse. The temperature dropped the closer they got to the border of the desert and she even heard some of the shinobi around her release small sounds of relief from getting out of the burning sun and into the pleasant forest.

They took a small break to drink water and group together. Now that they were out of the desert it was only a few short hours until they reached Orochimaru's hideout. As one of the few women in the squad, Hoshiko took a moment to ponder on what she could say to get a few short moments of privacy.

"I'm going to use the bathroom." She declared to a nearby Shinobi. The middle aged man looked down at her weirdly for a moment before waving her off. Hoshiko hopped over a shrub before leaping off into the trees for a few meters before dropping to the floor and expanding her chakra senses to make sure none of them had followed her.

When she was positive she was alone she pressed her index finger to the pinky of her other hand and muttered, "Kai."

The pale ring faded into vision with the Kanji symbol for Void. She constantly wore the ring, but had cast a Genjutsu over it. She continued to keep her index finger on the ring as she sent a flare of chakra into it to let Pein know that she needed to convene with him.

It was barely ten seconds later when she felt the returning pulse. She created the hand signs for the Jutsu and felt her corporeal body thrust through the air. She opened her eyes and recognized the Ame hideout. Pein and Konan stood before her. Neither of them had changed within the five months.

"This is unexpected. You were to report on your six month mark." Pein addressed her coldly.

"It couldn't wait." Hoshiko began. "I'm on a mission with Suna Shinobi to one of Orochimaru's hideouts where he's been spotted. I thought you might want this location and information as I'm sure he's too smart to be outwitted by some stupid Jounin's."

"Interesting." Pein mused

"His base is passed the Fire Country border. I located it on the map that I showed Itachi when I first arrived. If he's not there he has a smaller hideout in Kusa."

"I shall send this information to our teams. If anyone is near they shall scout out the base to see if he has scuttled off to it."

Hoshiko nodded in agreement. "I need to go before they get suspicious. My mission has been completed here in Suna anyway. I can give you all the information I have learned on the Ichibi when I return to the village."

Pein nodded. "Go. We shall await your message."

Hoshiko released the connection as she was thrown back into her own body. Her vision doubled for a moment before she recast her Genjutsu on the ring and hurried back to the squad. None seemed particularly annoyed that she had taken a while so she took that as a good sign.

A minute or two after she got back Yuura gave the command to move out. Hoshiko moved herself up to the front of the group slightly so that she could expand her senses to see when they would be arriving at the base and if Orochimaru was going to be there with his men anyway. She may not be there for the right reasons or as a true Suna-nin, but she still didn't want to be caught off guard.

"Halt!" Yuura commanded as he raised his fist into the air. The whole squad stopped in their tracks and crouched down low to the grassy underbush. Hoshiko was a few rows back from the front. They were about fifty meters away from the base. Silence descended over the Suna shinobi as Yuura looked them over with determined eyes.

"We are here to apprehend Orochimaru. Not to kill him. This is on our Kazekage's order. His minions can be dealt with appropriately. Do not go for Orochimaru alone, wait for backup. He is not to be underestimated. Are we understood?"

The group all nodded in sync as one. Hoshiko in time too. Hoshiko fixed her gaze ahead of the group and in the direction of the base. She expanded her chakra senses and let out a groan. A few heads turned to look at her, confusion in their eyes. Hoshiko cleared her throat and focused on the many chakra signatures that she could sense emerging from the base.

"They know." She stated grumpily. Yuura met her gaze for a moment before he dodged to the side and missed a flying kunai to the head. The Suna-nin all jumped up and spread out in a fan just as the Sound-nin broke through the trees and bushes to catch them in their own ambush.

Hoshiko dodged out of the way and leapt up high into the trees just as the battle began. Wind and water was flying around the place as she avoided friend and foe attacks. She noticed a Sound nin coming for her as she dropped down off the thick branch and weaved through the battling shinobi. The one that had been following her was then caught up in a new battle.

Hoshiko kept tabs on Yuura. He was the one person she couldnt let die today. He was Sasori's sleeper agent and if he died then she assumed Akatsuki's whole plan for their Ichibi extraction would be ruined.

He was currently fighting off two shinobi at once so Hoshiko thought it best to lend him a hand. She dropped down behind one of them and drew her kunai. She longed to have her Wakizashi but she knew that Yakeru had never used one so it would probably cause suspicion if she just whipped it out and used it with expertise. The shinobi realised they were about to be pincer attacked as the taller of the two turned to her and lunged. Hoshiko dodged gracefully. She twisted and turned, avoiding the kunai like it was child's play. Their kunai clashed a few times, sparks flying by her face. She noticed that Yuura was struggling a little with his opponent so Hoshiko whipped out another kunai. She wielded them in both hands as she continued to parry her opponents' attacks. She saw an opening and unleashed an almighty upwards kick to the sound nin's chin. He went up just as Hoshiko threw her spare kunai into the air and using the other one she thrust as much force as she could into the connection between the two blades. The one she had thrown went flying straight into the back of the one Yuura had been battling. He screamed in agony as Yuura took the opportunity to strike by slitting his throat.

Hoshiko's opponent came back with a vengeance as she flipped behind him and kicked his legs out. He tried to regain his balance as Hoshiko put all of her force into a powerful roundhouse kick that sent him into a nearby tree. She followed up by driving the kunai into his chest, finally killing the poor soul that had unfortunately gone up against her.

Hoshiko glanced over her shoulder at Yuura. He was standing and staring at her, a perplexed look on his face as he studied her. Hoshiko knew that she probably didn't fight like Yakeru, but she didn't have time to worry about whether Yuura was figuring out if she was Yakeru or not.

Something had caught Hoshiko's attention.

There was a chakra signature nearby. It was unfamiliar but familiar at the same time. It made her heart skip a beat at the thought of who it could be. Underneath the sinister dark chakra she could make out the warmth of Sasuke's own chakra. It was faint, and she didn't quite know what it meant but she didn't think about Yuura or anyone else as she raced off to intercept him.

He was a little distance away, and she could sense two Suna shinobi within his area. no doubt they were all fighting it out. She wondered how he battled? Was he like Itachi? Calculating and calm? Or was he still that little overconfident shit?

She emerged into the vicinity of the three way battle, and saw Sasuke for the first time up close. He was strikingly similar to that of his brother. He was tall, his hair in that same short and spiky updo. He looked different in the white robe and purple pants. The thing that was the most distressing thing for Hoshiko to see was the complete darkness behind his eyes. There was no warmth, nothing of the young Sasuke she had teased and tortured as a young boy. Was that her fault? She could have stopped this outcome had she stayed with him. They could have been each other's family and healed from the monstrosity of the massacre. She felt responsible for the Sasuke that was before her right now. His expression looked to be that of boredom. Did killing people make him bored? How far had Sasuke walked into the darkness, how long has he been lost to the abyss. Could she get him back? Sasuke used his blade to parry the attack and then sunk his sword into the chest of Hoshiko's supposed 'teammate'. Sasuke removed his blade from the chest of the Suna nin just as the other was coming for his back.

"Sasuke!" Hoshiko yelled as she threw her kunai. She knew that with all his training from Orochimaru, he wouldn't have been taken down by a stupid back attack, but her instincts had kicked in. She instantly felt the need to protect him once again. The Suna nin wouldn't have suspected Hoshiko of betraying him, so why would he have protected his back?

He fell to his death with Hoshiko's kunai in his back. Hoshiko balanced on the thick trunk of the tree as the other Uchiha brother stared at her with an irate expression that she recognised from his youth. His bloodied blade dripped blood onto his sandals as his red crimson eyes bore into her own.

"Sasuke." Hoshiko muttered quietly. She wanted to release the Henge on herself. She wanted to face him as herself, not someone else. He wasn't going to believe that it was truly her otherwise.

"We need to talk…"

Greetings from another planet!

No but seriously hi. I feel the need to apologise for my long absense. I couldn't believe it has been over 2 years since I updated this story. Time flies when you have a kid...yes you read that right. My absense was due to having a baby girl who is now 14 months old. She has been the most rewarding gift I could ever receive but also post partum hit me real hard. For almost 2 years I havent felt like myself, and how could I write this story when I no longer felt like the woman who had started it? This chapter took me almost a week to write but boy did it feel fuckinggggg good. its short and sweet but i thought it a good introduction into coming back. This story has always been on my mind, and i want to finish Hoshiko and Itachi's story even if im writing this thing 5 years from now.

I'm not sure how updates will go but I will try my best and I am determined to see this thing through.

Thank you all, I know you've been waiting patiently :)