I'm back guys! Sorry for the update delay, but I've been completely covered up with work, plus NaNoWriMo, and my other ongoing fanfiction. It's a bit shorter than my last one, but I expect some stuff to really start off with the next chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
It was about thirty minutes before the Kage meeting was supposed to start, when the shadows near the meeting room rippled and three shinobi emerge from them.
Kakashi and Tsunade had both just closed their eyes for the trip, so thankfully neither of them were dizzy. The three elite shinobi made their way into the conference room and were first to arrive except for Mifune, who just welcomed Tsunade to the Land of Iron and the two continued talking for a few moments while Katsumi and Kakashi moved to take a seat on the benches further back from the curved Kage table.
It was not long before the other Kages entered the room. Tsunade was greeted with respect and the Mizukage seemed pleased to have another female Kage in the room, but the Tsuchikage seemed less than happy at her choice of guards.
"Is it really necessary to have two Kage level shinobi as guards?" the oldest Kage asked, narrowing his small eyes at Katsumi and Kakashi.
A, the Raikage, did not seem to mind the fact and wanted to get on with the meeting. "Katsumi and Kakashi have knowledge of the situation and will be beneficial to the meeting," he said to Ōnoki, who just nodded reluctantly.
"I wish to know, Tsunade-sama, how you managed to travel such a far distance in three days," Gaara said in his quiet voice, though his teal eyes flickered over to Katsumi, signifying that he had his suspicions.
"That is a good question," A said with a nod. "I suspect we haven't been told he full powers of the Shisou clan," glancing at Katsumi, who smirked in amusement.
The Mizukage just waved off their question. "Would you tell the other Kages about all your abilities? I think not," Mei said and then turned her light green eyes on the Hokage. "Do you have anything to add before we continue discussing battle tactics?"
Tsunade nodded and addressed the other Kages. "I sent Katsumi on a reconnaissance mission. As you might have guessed, she can travel through shadows and cover great distances in minutes, so she was the obvious choice to spy on Madara's hideout," she said, going over the best excuse for Katsumi's knowledge. "We now have an accurate estimate on the number of Madara's forces. It has also become apparent that he has teamed up with Orochimaru's former apprentice, Kabuto."
The announcement caused quite a stir among the Kages and guards.
"This is great news. We will be able to refine our plans better. What are the current numbers?" Mei asked the blonde Hokage.
"Katsumi reported that hidden in an underground cave, there are around one hundred thousand white Zetsu clones. The actual strength of the clones is unknown, but all records show that Zetsu is not a powerful frontline fighter, but the numbers are enough to be concerned about," Tsunade explained and then held her hand up to hold off the others replies. "The bigger concern is that Kabuto has mastered the summoning Impure Resurrection and has revived thirty-two elite shinobi from all the villages."
"Revived?" the Tsuchikage repeated in disbelief. "How is that possible?"
Gaara tilted his head towards the Hokage. "It's the same jutsu Orochimaru used during the Chunin exams, isn't it? I heard about from several Suna shinobi that saw the fight between the snake sannin and the third Hokage," he said, grabbing everyone's attention.
Tsunade nodded and then answered Ōnoki's question. "The jutsu was invented by the first Hokage, but it was quickly declared forbidden."
The dark skinned Raikage frowned as he considered what could be done with such a jutsu. "Do you know who Kabuto has resurrected? Also, if he brought back our allies, why would they fight against us?"
"That's taking into account they have a choice, Raikage-sama. I would assume such a jutsu would have control over the resurrected," the Mizukage said wisely, though she was also considering who could be brought back from her village, but the results were not good.
Tsunade nodded to the Mizukage. "You are correct; the seal he uses allows total control, though he can still allow the resurrected to keep their personalities, making them even harder to fight," she said and motioned for Katsumi to speak.
Katsumi stood up and moved to stand next to Tsunade and told everyone who exactly had been revived, shocking everyone and causing mummers of concern to echo around the room as she went to sit back down next to Kakashi.
After getting past the shock, Tsunade and the other Kages started discussing how to seal the souls of the revived shinobi and how to get the space-time jutsu suppression seal on Madara.
Katsumi and Kakashi had been listening intently to the conversation, making sure the fact Katsumi had found out all the information by being dead was not revealed. Once the Kages had switched to war plans, the guards started talking amongst each other.
It seems the other Kages bought the excuse about Katsumi's spy mission. Now she'll have to really go find the hide out for two reasons; to speak to Sasuke, and to get the coordinates.
Kakashi wanted to speak to Katsumi privately, but knew he could not while they were in range of the others.
I need to know when she needs to drink. I'll have to keep pushing her about it or I know she won't bring it up.
Chōjūrō, one of the Mizukage guards, was eyeing Katsumi curiously. "Katsumi-san, may I ask what it's like in the shadows?" he questioned her.
Kakashi suppressed a chuckle as the other guards glanced in Katsumi direction before catching themselves and feigning a look of disinterest.
It is a good question, but I've been too busy thinking about other things to consider asking her.
Katsumi turned her gold eyes on the seemingly shy swordsman. "The shadows are like a parallel dimension. The areas of shadows are black at first glance, but the closer I get, the clearer the shadows get until it's like looking through a tinted window. The area I travel in though is a light grey or dull white, so not many people can stand to keep their eyes open as it speeds by at a blur," she replied kindly, not minding the question at all.
She sent an amused glance at Kakashi during the last sentence, reminding him of his dizziness from his first trip.
It wasn't that bad, but if it happened in the middle of a fight, such dizziness could lead to death if an enemy took advantage of it.
A sudden stir at the Kages' table drew the guard's attention once again.
"This plan could work, but depending on the enemy's tactics we will have to adjust the plan during the battle to make sure the wind users stick together," Gaara said and glanced at the Hokage. "Will Katsumi-san be able to apply the seal with this strategy?"
I heard most of the plan and it sounds like it will work; I just wonder when any weaknesses in her kekkei genkai will start to show.
"Katsumi, will this plan give you enough time to apply the seal?" Tsunade asked and Katsumi narrowed her eyes a moment as she considered the idea.
"Yes, but Madara will have to be on the ground for me to do it and you will need to find a way to distract him from my chakra signature," Katsumi replied as she straightened to address the Hokage.
The Kages nodded and started discussing the plan once more, including Katsumi's requirements and how to fight Madara once the seal was on him.
Kakashi narrowed his eye a bit at the plan it was a good strategy, but it would require patience from Katsumi.
I'm just not sure how long Katsumi will be able to stay hidden while watching others fight. She won't be able to help at all until the seal is placed on Madara and I know if anyone is in danger she won't be able to stop herself from helping. Perhaps she could be discrete about it and still assist.
Mentally sighed, Kakashi decided that Katsumi would be able to handle it, but he would talk to her about later when he got the chance. His decision made, he sat relaxed in his seat and waited for the meeting to conclude.
….
The meeting continued on a higher note after they had decided on how to use Katsumi for the battle, so once dinner time rolled around, the meeting was concluded for the day.
Katsumi and Kakashi immediately moved to stand next to Tsunade and played their part as guards as they exited the room and headed towards the sleeping quarters.
The journey through the halls was silent except for the echo of Tsunade's high heeled shoes clicking against the floor and Kakashi glanced over at Katsumi with pointed look in his eye that he knew she could interpret.
Katsumi's gold eyes met his black one with an exasperated glance as they came to a stop outside Tsunade's room and waited on any final orders from the Hokage.
Tsunade opened her door and looked over her shoulder at them. "Meet me out here at six in the morning, and don't forget to eat supper," she said the last part with a pointed look at Katsumi and her tone made it an order.
"Hai, Tsunade-sama," Katsumi said as she and Kakashi bowed.
Tsunade nodded and then stepped in her room, closing the door behind her as the two Jōnins turned and entered their room.
It was a fairly plain room with a bare floor and curtainless windows, since most shinobi tend to use windows as exits and bring their own sleeping rolls. Katsumi looked around and two beds instantly formed from the shadows.
Kakashi sent her a questioning look. "We do have our own sleep rolls in our storage scrolls," he commented as Katsumi stepped over to each bed and set them with a bit of chakra.
She turned her slitted eyes towards him and lifted the corner of her mouth in an amused smile. "I know, but this is more comfortable and it's still very easy to do," she replied with a shrug and pulled a scroll out her pocket.
Katsumi set it on the bed she had evidently claimed for herself and unrolled it. She touched the seal drawn inside it and with a cloud of smoke, a change of clothes appeared and Katsumi glanced at the door to the bathroom. "Are you going to shower first, or do you want me to?"
She is determined to ignore the fact she needs to drink even though Tsunade made it an order. Why do I always end up being the one to enforce such things?
Kakashi sighed and slipped off the white cloak they had been wearing for the colder weather, hanging it on the hooks on the wall before doing the same with his Jōnin vest. He turned to Katsumi, who was giving him a slightly impatient look as she waited for answer. "You heard the order, so you have to drink from me, tonight," he said as stepped forward until he was in front of her.
Katsumi sighed and gave him a challenging look. "I'll do it if you can honestly tell me that it isn't painful," she replied and without even waiting for an answer, she turned around and slipped off her weapons pouch and double checked the content as shinobi were taught in the academy.
I know if she wasn't so stubborn, she wouldn't be the same Katsumi, but this is getting ridiculous!
Knowing better than to grab another Jōnin from behind, Kakashi stepped up beside her and then grabbed her shoulder, tugging on it so she had to turn and face him. "As I said before, I'm not going to let you starve yourself. You know I've been in enough pain before that your bite is just a small twinge compared to other injuries, so there is absolutely no reason for you to be so stubborn about it," he said in a calm, collected voice, though putting it bluntly as possible as to get the point across.
Katsumi narrowed her slitted eyes at him in irritation, making Kakashi mentally compare the Shisou eyes to the Uchiha's in terms of glare effectiveness and at the moment, the golden eyes were winning.
"Fine, but I think you're just enjoying it too much thanks to your perverted books," Katsumi replied, a teasing glint appearing in her eyes along with another emotion he could not identify.
Wait... What? How can she think...? Okay maybe there is a bit of truth in the matter but that doesn't me I enjoy enough to ask her to do it just for the fun of it! Then we are brought back to the issue of my feelings which are becoming stronger than friendship. Eh, I want to talk to some of my other friends and get their opinion on the matter, but not Gai of course. Perhaps Shikaku.
Kakashi blinked and drew out of his thoughts once he realized his train of thought had veered off the current issue. "That isn't true and besides, it has nothing to do with the matter," he said and pulled down both layers of his mask.
Katsumi's gold eyes met his for a few moments longer before she suddenly turned away and focused her attention on the weapons she had spread out on the bed, but he noticed that her movements were a bit stiff.
She cannot honestly be this stubborn. I guess I will just have to match her.
"I can stand here all night, Kat, and then you'll feel guilty because I was awake all night," Kakashi said, and leaned against the wall close to the head of the bed, placing his hands in his pockets to make it look as if it was no big deal to stand there all night.
He felt slightly pleased when a tic formed above Katsumi's left eye and she shot him a glare for using her nickname.
"You're really not going to leave this alone are you?" Katsumi asked in an irritated tone and flipped her hair back over her shoulder as she turned towards him.
"No," Kakashi said in a tone that said he was not joking and he took a step closer.
Katsumi sighed heavily and he saw her shoulders drop and he let his stance relax a bit as well. He knew her signs of defeat and knew she would not argue with him any longer.
It took long enough to wear her down. I honestly don't believe anyone could be more stubborn, except for me of course, but at least I give in when it's for my own good.
He watched as Katsumi stepped up onto a shadow stool as she had done the first time and she placed a hand against his chest before leaning in and he forced himself to try and think of something totally different, but his thoughts still kept going to Ichi Ichi type scenes.
Katsumi's right, those books have corrupted me.
He managed to keep from tensing up as Katsumi bit down, but he noticed that she seemed to have studied anatomy a bit more and she managed to avoid the largest nerves.
As she continued to drink, Kakashi closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around her, ignoring the warm feeling in his chest. Yep… he was definitely going to have to talk to some of the guys when they return to the village.
….
After another day of discussions, the Kage meeting was drawn to a close and the leaders started leaving to go and prepare their villages for war.
Kakashi watched as the other Kages and their guards left the room.
That went smoother than expected, but now Katsumi has to go find Madara's hide out. I suppose Tsunade will allow her to confront Sasuke at the same time, so that will mean she'll send a team with her.
"Katsumi, take us back to the village," Tsunade said one the last guard had left the room and the Jōnin nodded and moved over to the shadowed wall and held her hands out for Kakashi and Tsunade to hold onto.
As soon as he gripped Katsumi hand, he felt the floor disappear out from under them and he quickly closed his eyes. It was just as strange moving at such speeds blinded the second time as it was the first time, so he was thankful when Katsumi finally pulled them back to the real world and he looked around to noticed that it was a bit earlier in Konoha then it had been in Iron Country, so they still had about an hour before the sun set.
Tsunade turned her golden brown eyes on Katsumi. "Katsumi, come with me to my office and I'll give you the details on your mission," she ordered and then looked to Kakashi. "I want you to find Inoichi and Shikaku and start planning out the battle plan, getting supplies, and figuring out which teams to put together; I'll look over it afterwards."
"Hai, Tsunade-sama," Kakashi said with a bow and then nodded to Katsumi before he jumped onto a roof and headed off to T&I.
Obviously I won't be sent on the mission with Katsumi, I just wonder who her teammates will be. Anyway, I'd best focus on the battle strategy.
The silver haired Jōnin soon reached the entrance to the Torture and Interrogation headquarters and he made the signal that would allow him to enter without getting attacked by ANBU.
He entered the building without any confrontation and did not meet any resistance until he reached the stairwell that led down to the lower levels. A Jōnin guard stood next to the door and Kakashi made the signal once more and waited for the Jōnin to touch his shoulder and disrupt his chakra, which would remove any Henge.
The Jōnin opened the door afterwards and Kakashi stepped passed him and soon knocked on the door to Inoichi's office.
"Come in."
Kakashi opened the door to see the Inoichi leaning over his desk, filling out paperwork. He looked up at Kakashi and he straightened up in his chair. "I see the Kage meeting must be over. I take it you are here to strategize?"
"Yes, we've come up with a plan to stop Madara by using Katsumi to place a seal on him with will block his space-time jutsu," Kakashi said and pulled up a chair as Inoichi pulled a blank scroll off the shelf and spread it out over the desk.
"First we need to go over who all we will be facing, and what plans the Kages came up with. Once we have that written down and sorted out we can go find Shikaku and go over it with him to formulate a battle strategy," Inoichi said and then he and Kakashi started working on the summarizing the amount of shinobi each nation had and then making the possible teams each shinobi could fit into.
We'll have to strategize with the other countries before this is finalized, but for right now this plan works pretty well. We'll just need to catch up with Shikaku now. It's been a few hours, so I supposed Katsumi has left by now. I wonder who Tsunade sent with her.
Kakashi stood up and Inoichi rolled up the scroll and they started to head out to find Shikaku, who was actually on the first floor at the moment.
"So how has it been going with Katsumi?" the blond asked as they headed up the stairs, his blue eyes glancing over at Kakashi with a knowing look.
Kakashi mentally sighed. Well he wanted to talk with some of his friends about Katsumi, now was his chance. "I wanted to talk with you and Shikaku about her anyway."
Inoichi knocked on the door to Shikaku's office and raised an eyebrow at Kakashi. "Did she finally ask you out?"
"I don't know what you mean," Kakashi replied instantly, though his mind was reeling.
Does Katsumi really care for me that way? Enough for it to be obvious to the other shinobi? I was trying to avoid reading too much into the situation, but it would seem that what I was correct in my first assumptions.
The Yamanaka chuckled and opened the door after hearing Shikaku's invitation. "I think everyone that has met her knows she is attracted to you. I can tell you feel the same way about her," Inoichi replied and earned a raised eyebrow from the scarred Nara who was standing at the book self, scratching his chin with a thoughtful expression.
"I take it you are cluing Kakashi in on the news that all the Jōnins know by now?" Shikaku asked with an amused smirk.
Kakashi rolled his eye. "My best friend, who I haven't seen since she was eleven, has just returned from the dead. I was trying not to read too much into the situation since that last time I saw her was as a child," he said in a dry tone and took the scroll from Inoichi and spread it out on the desk.
"Well when you put it that way I can see how you would be cautious, but I honestly believe you are overthinking it. It's obvious to all of us that she can't take her eyes off you," Shikaku told him before he started focusing on the plan.
Deciding they could continue the discussion later, Kakashi focused his full attention on the upcoming war.
…..
Katsumi jumped through the trees, her two teammates right behind her as they headed to where Katsumi know Madara's lair was located.
"Now tell me again why you can't just shadow travel us there instead of making the trip last for three days?" Anko asked, speeding up a bit so the she landed next to Katsumi and could look her in the eye.
Katsumi sent her a patient smile before replying. "Just because I can doesn't mean I should use it all the time. I'd get out of shape if I just travel everywhere like that. I have to keep my youthfulness alive somehow."
Anko shot her an annoyed look. "You just had to use that word, didn't you?"
"Katsumi! Your youthfulness will never die out! Your flames of youth burn even brighter than my own!" Gai said, shouting since they were still in Fire country. He was traveling on Katsumi right side and flashed a thumb up.
Anko seemed to be quite annoyed with him by that point and her hand kept twitching toward her kunai pouch. "Gai! Do you really need to shout everything that you say? This is supposed to be a stealth mission!" Anko hissed under her breath.
Her own craziness was one thing, but someone else's as another and she knew Gai was not afraid of her at all thanks to being around Orochimaru when he was young. She could count the number of missions she hand been on with Gai on one hand, and she had been ready to kill him by the end of each of them.
"Will you two get along for five minutes?" Katsumi asked, not that she really minded since she knew they would be fine, but she had some stuff she wished to talk about now that they were out of the village.
"What's on your mind, Katsumi?" Gai questioned, knowing her well enough to guess she wanted to talk.
Rolling her eyes at Gai's suddenly normal tone, Anko licked her lips as she had a guess at what it was about and knew it was already a rumor. "Is it something related to the mission? Or something personal?"
Katsumi noticed Anko's tone and rolled her golden eyes. "I take it everyone else has noticed?"
To her slight surprise, it was Gai that replied. "Actually I could see it coming from when we were kids," he said and Katsumi stumbled a bit before catching her stride as she stared at him.
"Seriously? I didn't even like him that way then!" she protested and Anko chuckled.
"Since you've come back, yours and Kakashi's relationship has become the worse kept secret in Konoha since Asuma and Kurenai," Anko stated rather bluntly.
Katsumi mumbled something inaudible under her breath and then focused her eyes straight ahead. "So do you think he is interested?"
Gai laughed and flashed a blinding smile. "Of course he is! I think everyone has noticed by now. Why don't you just ask him when we get back?"
She sent him a smile and nodded. "I think I'll do that," Katsumi replied and then turned her slitted eyes towards Anko. "You will tell no one of this conversation," she said in a tone that demanded nothing but compliance.
Anko simply flicked her wrist in a dismissive wave at Katsumi. "Whatever you say."
…
Two days later around noon, the three shinobi were crouched behind a row of bushes close to Madara's hideout. They had almost been caught by one of Kabuto's snakes, but Katsumi had sensed its shadow movement and had warned the others in time to avoid it.
Gai caught Katsumi's attention as they stayed hidden and he started signing to her. How long should we wait before coming after you?
Katsumi held her hand up and closed her eyes in concentration, checking to see how many were in the hideout with Sasuke. A few scans told her Kabuto was in one of the lower levels, while Sasuke was up in on ground level inside the cave. The Zetsu clones were far underground, so she did not need to worry about them.
It should not take me more than ten minutes, but if I am not back in thirty you should head back to the village. If I am caught I will try to mask my appearance and not let them know about my shadow traveling abilities until I can safely get away. Katsumi replied firmly and waited until she received reluctant nods from Gai and Anko before she sank into the shadows.
Katsumi made sure not to travel to close to the surface of the shadows, not wanting to alert the others of her presence since dealing with Sasuke would be difficult enough. It only took her a moment to locate Sasuke and she could see him through a tinted shadow that he was still in his shinobi gear, but was lying on a bed with white bandages covering his eyes.
Bracing herself for the following conversation, Katsumi moved towards the shadow and phased through it. Thankfully she anticipated jumping to the side just as a kunai whizzed past her head and became imbedded deep in the wall.
A quick glance showed her Sasuke was sitting up, facing her with several more kunai in hand and she had to dodged several more kunai before she could speak. "Sasuke! Is the anyway to greet a relative?" Katsumi asked and the Uchiha paused in his throwing, keeping his head turned towards her.
Like any decent shinobi, Sasuke's abilities were not terribly hampered from being blinded, though Katsumi knew she would be able to beat him in a fight right then if she had to.
"Who are you?" he asked in a demanding tone, still keeping a kunai pointed towards her.
"I'm Shisou Katsumi ," the Jōnin replied instantly, knowing she would have to be completely truthful if she was going to get anywhere with him.
Sasuke's forehead wrinkled as he frowned in her direction. "Impossible. All the members of that clan have been long dead," he replied and Katsumi had to catch a kunai that was aimed at her forehead.
"That's true. I know you won't believe me at first, but I have been dead to past nineteen years after being killed on a mission with Kakashi. I've only been recently revived and before Kami revived me… I spoke with Itachi," Katsumi told Sasuke in a calm voice as he jumped off the bed, his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"That is the most ridiculous story I've heard, and you just made it personal by bring my brother into this," he said and the sword started sparking with lightning chakra as he pulled it out of the scabbard.
Katsumi knew she only had a few moments before Kabuto heard the noise, so she had to act fast. "You always asked Itachi to train with you, but he refused. The reason he did was because he wanted you to stay an innocent kid rather than a killer. I know the truth behind the massacre and I also know something important that Madara is keeping from you," she said in a rush and the light show died down as Sasuke considered her words.
"Tell me something only Itachi could've told you," he said in a cold voice, but was obviously willing to listen for the moment anyway.
Katsumi closed her eyes a moment as she recalled the conversation with Itachi that took place a few weeks ago. "After Itachi joined ANBU, he gave you a code word to say to him whenever you approached him in case one of his enemies tried to disguise themselves as you. The word was 'anzen' followed by a mention of your mother."
Sasuke carefully sat back down on the edge of the bed, but still kept his sword in hand. "What is it you have to tell me?" he said, knowing that it had to be something to do with Itachi.
Sighing, Katsumi leaned back against the shadowed wall so that if needed, a simple thought would allow her to escape quickly. "I know Madara told you about the Uchiha massacre, but did he tell you it was he that wanted the clan wiped out? Or that Itachi only did it to protect Konoha, which is something he died to protect, yet you still wish to destroy."
Katsumi barely managed to avoid a stream of Chidori as it shot towards her from Sasuke's hand.
"Do not act like you know what Itachi would want! I believe he would want me to avenge his death and exile by erasing Konoha, who turned their back on him," Sasuke said in a very dangerous voice, but still was not loud enough to draw attention.
She knew it was close to time for her to be leaving, so Katsumi decided to give him some food for thought. "If you don't believe me, then you should ask Itachi yourself. These people you have sided yourself with have done nothing but try to use you for their own gain."
Almost too fast for her eyes to see; Sasuke crossed the room and his hand slammed against her throat, pinning her to the wall. "Explain what you mean about asking Itachi! I saw him die; his eyes are mine. How can he be alive?"
"I'll tell you in exchange that you don't tell anyone I was here, at least until we meet on the battlefield," Katsumi told him, her gold eyes looking over the fresh bandages and knew it would still be a while before they would see each other again.
Sasuke only hesitated a moment before giving a short nod. "Alright. Now tell me."
"Kabuto, who has implanted Orochimaru's DNA within his skin, is working with Madara and summoned over thirty shinobi back from the dead using Impure World Resurrection. Included in those numbers are the former Akatsuki members. Itachi has no control over his actions now, but Kabuto wishes to play mind games with his opponents, so all of the shinobi still have their personalities," Katsumi told him and then used the shadows to force him back as she merged back into the shadows.
"Don't do anything rash, Sasuke, but think over what I have told you and look for the evidence yourself," she said, her voice echoing around the room from the shadows and Katsumi left him standing in shock in the middle of the room as she left to rejoin Gai and Anko.
Review please!
I've got about half of my Orochimaru fanfiction written thanks to NaNoWriMo, So expect it up sometime during early 2012. It will be much longer than this one.
