Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Normal Text
'Person thinking'
"Person talking"
"Jinchuriki talking inside his head with Bijuu"
'Bijuu thinking'
"Bijuu talking"
"Bijuu talking inside jinchurki's head"
Chapter 17 – Cloak and Dagger
Three days after Naruto's fateful visit, three elders entered Hiruzen's office: Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, all former teammates of Hiruzen's and now trusted advisors on Konoha's council. The room was prepared beforehand with the necessary seating arrangement, small tables and beverages. After all, his guests held political clout within the village and protocol must be observed.
"Why did you call us in so suddenly, Hiruzen?" asked Koharu curiously.
"Indeed. I am certain this is not just for the sake of having a chat between old war buddies." Supplemented Homura.
"Please, sit. There is much to discuss." As he said that, the Hokage motioned towards the seats, thus inviting them to make themselves comfortable.
After taking their seats, Hiruzen motioned for his ANBU to leave the room. Danzo opened the discussion. "If not even the ANBU are allowed to witness this conversation, this must be serious."
"Indeed it is." Responded Hiruzen.
"Well, don't keep us guessing. Out with it." Said a slightly irritated Koharu. Sarutobi then remembered that she never liked how he tended to stretch conversations needlessly. Little did she know that he found her irritability concerning his habits very entertaining.
After scanning the three, Hiruzen responded: "It has come to my attention that the Uchiha clan intend to execute a coup d'état sometimes in the next six months, unless we choose to agree with a set of demands that they intend to bring before me."
All three council members showed slight surprise at the news, but none seemed shocked.
"How come you by this information, Hiruzen?" asked Homura.
"Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Shisui came forth with it, following one of the clan's gatherings."
Homura, ever the cautious man, decided to probe his former teammate a little "And are you certain that this information is accurate? Such accusations are serious. Were we to act on a false assumption, it could spell disaster."
"Yes, Homura. The information is accurate. I have no reason to suspect either of the two of ill will. Neither Itachi nor Shisui have any reason to slander the clan. They are their clan's pride after all. They would have every reason to maintain their statuses."
After a moment, Danzo intervened. "What else did they tell you?"
"Itachi and Shisui were to spy on the council and its movements in preparation for the coup, while Fugaku would attempt to solve things diplomatically."
"Do you know what their terms are?" Koharu was quite curious to find out what the Uchiha wanted. Perhaps there really was a diplomatic solution.
"Fugaku Uchiha to be named Godaime Hokage. Public apology for the slander against the Uchihas concerning the Kyuubi attack. Removal of all ANBU surveillance of the clan. Permission to move back to the compound in the middle of the village. One permanent position on the Hokage's elder council for an Uchiha member."
Hearing this, Koharu scowled in disgust. "Bah! This would be the same as the coup, but without all the bloodshed."
Homura decided to add his two cents on the matter. "Their arrogance knows no bounds. They need to be put in their place."
"The Uchihas need to be eliminated. Nip the problem in the bud. Their dojutsu might be a great asset, but with an attitude like that, they do more harm than good to the village."
All council members aside from Danzo were taken aback by the extreme solution proposed by their colleague. Soon after however, Koharu's and Homura's body language relaxed and seemed to convey that they approved this option, even if they might not enjoy it.
During the stare down, Hiruzen contemplated 'So he wants to destroy the Uchihas, is that it? But why?' A moment later, he stopped his musing and asked for clarification. "Danzo, do you mean, all Uchihas or just the adults?"
"All of them. If you leave even one of them alive, they will swear revenge against the village and cause more problems in the future. It's all or nothing."
"We could allow them to move back in the middle of the village and decrease the ANBU presence in their district. That could appease them for a while and buy us more time. The logistics of moving from the outskirts to their previous compound should delay their plans for a month or so. It would also be a sign of good will between the leadership of Konoha and the Uchiha clan and it would make their case weaker." Reasoned Homura.
"Those are peanuts. They will feel insulted more so than appeased, Homura. What they're really after is to take over the leadership of Konoha. Everything else is smoke and mirrors." Koharu's face did not hide that she'd had just about enough of this clan.
"I must agree with Koharu. They obviously want to rule and they will step on corpses in order to do so. They must be eliminated." Hearing Danzo say that, Hiruzen couldn't help but wonder 'would they, or would you?'
Silence settled in the room. Everyone said their piece at this point and now they wanted to hear Hiruzen's answer. Sarutobi pondered for a while, after which his expression changed to one of resolve as he voiced his decision.
"I will await Fugaku's invitation to a dialog, which I expect to receive within a week or so. I want to hear what the man has to say. I cannot in good conscience order the genocide of one of Konoha's founding clans before exhausting any and all alternatives."
"Your kindness will be the death of us all, Hiruzen. If this spirals out of control, it will no doubt lead to a civil war and then, the Fourth Shinobi War." Danzo may have kept his face composed, but to those who knew him, they could feel that the man considered Hiruzen's decision to be a weak man's choice.
"That is my final decision, Danzo. Also, a word of warning to all of you: if I hear so much as a whisper that any of you even considered going behind my back concerning this matter, I will end you." As he said that, Sarutobi released enough killing intent in the room to make Koharu and Homura tremble in their seats. Danzo maintained his stoic façade, but even he showed a drop of sweat falling on his temple. Internally, Sarutobi smirked 'Hah! Still got it.'
After the elders left, Hiruzen called his ANBU back in and waited whilst smoking his pipe for about another half an hour. He then got up, left the office and made his way two stories up, where the Hokage's private study was positioned. This was also the room where various kinjutsu (forbidden techniques) available to the Hokage only were stored. For the purposes of today's activities however, that section had been concealed, in order to prevent curious young minds from straying from their mission objectives.
Entering the room, the old man tested to make sure the privacy seal was still active and then asked in no direction in particular "All clear?"
"All clear." A somewhat young voice answered.
"Good. How about we get this show on the road?"
On the far side of the room, two entities slowly made themselves visible: one wearing classic ANBU attire with a crow mask and another one boasting a mop of blond spiky hair, cerulean blue eyes and whiskered cheeks. Of note was a crystal ball present in the right hand of the Crow masked ANBU agent, his left hand resting on the young boy's shoulder.
"Jiji, I really thought that was gonna take longer than it did. Can't say I'm sad that it was over that quickly though. Meetings are booooring."
Chuckling, Hiruzen answered "Well, if you ever aim to become Hokage, you should know that you'll have to deal with quite a few of those."
"Then I'm gonna make sure to have my fun before I get that hat, old man."
"Good thinking. Now did you find anything interesting?"
"Well, there were a couple of things that were weird. The first was when you mentioned the coup for the first time. Bandage Face felt eager for a moment and then checked himself back to stern and focused. Old Lady and Beardy felt concerned. None of them were surprised though. So, they either knew already, or they were expecting this to happen sooner or later."
"Also, there was a weird moment when you mentioned that Shisui guy… Bandage Face felt greedy all of a sudden. I felt the same feeling from him when he first saw me three days ago, when I came to visit. Soo creepy."
"Old Lady and Beardy felt annoyed with you when you said your decision. Bandage Face was super angry, but weirdly, also desperate. Like the clock was ticking or something. So, not sure what that's about."
"Ah! And when you threatened them, Old Lady and Beardy felt afraid and felt like they would listen to you, but Bandage Face felt afraid but also angry and like he wouldn't want to listen."
"The words you are looking for are obedient and disobedient." Said the Hokage warmly.
"Huh?"
"When one is willing to follow orders or instructions, they are obedient. When one is not willing to do so they are disobedient."
"Oh…Good to know. Thanks, jiji!"
"Anything else I should know?"
"Umm, no. That was it."
"Good job, my boy. As discussed, Crow will take you back home now. There is a good chance we will require your assistance again throughout this endeavor. Once this entire operation is over, you will receive an S rank mission pay. However, the mission will not go on your record until you make chunin, as it would draw too much attention to you if the wrong people got their hands on such information. Until I am certain that you can protect yourself from most threats, keeping your unique abilities a secret is of utmost importance."
"I understand, jiji."
"Good. Now Crow, report back to me once you ensured Naruto-kun's safe return."
"Understood, Hokage-sama."
And with that, Naruto's world went black while Crow discretely "moved the package to a safe location".
When the world came back into view, Naruto found himself back in his apartment.
With a whispered tone, he exclaimed "Whooaa. That was awesome! Being all sneaky-sneaky is super cool!"
"I am glad you enjoyed it, Naruto-san."
"ANBU-niisan, how did you make me go all sleepy and then all wakey?"
"That would be genjutsu."
"Huh, that's a little freaky. I didn't really care about genjutsu until now. Maybe I should pay some attention to it after all. I mean, I trust you and jiji, but if other people tried that on me, yikes! Can I protect myself from it in some way or am I dead meat?"
"There are ways to break out of genjutsu, yes. One would be to disrupt your own chakra flow for a fraction of a second by sending a pulse through your tenketsu. Another would be to cause yourself some level of pain so the body's reaction to the pain helps you escape the jutsu. Examples for the latter would be breaking your own finger, biting your lip tightly or stabbing your leg with a kunai."
"Huh, the first one sounds complicated and the second one just straight up sucks." replied Naruto despondently.
"I am certain you will manage to master both techniques in time, Naruto-san."
"Yeah…"
After a moment, Naruto became slightly melancholic.
"ANBU-niisan… Do you think everything will turn out alright?"
"I certainly hope so, Naruto-san. But no need to worry. You have done your part splendidly. Leave the rest to us. For now, focusing on your studies and on becoming stronger is the best thing you can do."
"Thanks, ANBU-niisan. And I'm happy to help!"
"Have you thought of an alibi for tomorrow when you go back to class?"
"Ali-what?"
"Alibi – an excuse for missing class so people don't get suspicious."
"Oh… yeah, I'll just act a bit sickly and tell them that I had some bad milk or something."
"That should work. I must return to my post. Stay safe, Naruto-san."
"You too, ANBU-niisan."
An invisibility technique and a shunshin later, Naruto was left to his own devices in the apartment.
Crow reported back to the Hokage's study, knowing that the office itself might not be the safest spot for private conversations anymore. Once he entered, the Hokage invited him to take his mask off and take a seat next to him at the table.
"So, Itachi-kun, what do you make of all this?" While the situation was indeed dire, Hiruzen was happy to have such a bright mind share in the journey with him.
"That Danzo seems so eager to have our clan annihilated is quite disconcerting. However, that in itself is not evidence. It is merely probable cause, if that. His desperation concerning your decision does not bode well either. It might mean that, whatever he intends to do, he will likely move his timetable up and, since we don't know on what timeline he operates, this can mean tonight, tomorrow or a few months from now for all we know."
"And the statement about his greed towards Shisui?"
"Kotoamatsukami. He probably wants that ability for himself, or wants to force Shisui into using it for his benefit."
"Ah, yes, the ability to inject subtle genjutsu that manipulates a person's decision-making to the point that they think they had complete autonomy. With such an ability, he could make the entire council his puppets and they would be none the wiser. We are indeed lucky to have Shisui on our side and that his own morals prevent him from acting in such devious ways."
"Yes, but it seems his safety is at risk. I do my best to stay impartial in all matters, Hokage-sama, but Shisui is my best friend. Knowing what I know, I could not forgive myself if I did not protect him somehow."
"How about I assign him to my personal guard? That way, I could watch over him and Danzo would not be able to attack him without incriminating himself. It would also serve the clan as they would think they now have a better mole and we could play that game a little better as well. That would leave using personal connections as leverage against him as a final risk to account for."
"His father has passed away and his mother is an accomplished jonin. That said, even jonin can be bested by a genin if taken by surprise and the conditions are just right. He has no girlfriend and the only other person truly close to him is myself."
"So we would have to ensure that his mother is protected, and from within the clan no less." Reasoned Hiruzen. This was going to be tricky.
"Indeed."
"I find it hard to believe that getting his hands on Shisui is Danzo's primary objective. And I am worried about what he will do next. There are too many unknowns… Tell me, Itachi-kun, do you consider your father a reasonable man?"
"I wager to say that he is. I know for a fact that he is not happy with the coup idea and is quite anxious to meet with you next week. He is well aware of the ramifications of such an act and would rather avoid it if he could."
"Then here's what we will do…"
Dinner at the Uchiha household was a quiet affair. Not that it was ever noisy. Sasuke was happy to have his niisan around, while Mikoto and Fugaku talked about small nothings as they enjoyed each other's presence. Fugaku cherished these moments deeply, even if he didn't have it in himself to show it. He loved his family and would do anything to keep them safe.
Sooner than he expected, dinner was over and Mikoto went upstairs to ensure Sasuke actually went to bed instead of studying under the sheets.
He was about to go to his room himself when Itachi called to him.
"Father, there is something I would like to inform you about."
"And I am guessing it can't wait until tomorrow."
"Unfortunately, no. Can we go to your study to discuss it? It is a private matter." Private meaning it pertained to the coup.
"Sigh… Fine, let's go."
Fugaku was not prepared for what he found in his study, but, being the seasoned shinobi that he was, he did not let that show on his face.
"Itachi-kun, I thought your rebellious days were over."
"Come the morning, I will accept whatever punishment you deem necessary, father. For now, however, I will retire to my bedroom." Having said that, Itachi quietly retired and closed the door of the Uchiha clan head's study.
"And to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit so late in the evening, Hokage-sama? If I had known, I would have prepared another seat at my table this evening."
"It is quite alright. I appreciate the hospitality nonetheless. Now, shall we take a seat? It seems we have much to discuss."