Chapter 3:

Sakura loved the crisp morning air she felt, curling over her skin. Mornings in Konoha started early, right as the sun began to peek over the horizon. The entire village was active under it, already busy with their lives.

They bustled about with a quiet contentment. She still remembered when a tense feeling had blanketed the entire village.

She had been young then. Things were different now. People had simply gotten used to the new system. Many didn't leave the village she knew, and wouldn't see much of the other great Villages.

She didn't know much, but it was clear that their systems were quite different.

Asking whether they were better was treason.

People smiled at her as she passed, an action she reciprocated. Everyone had been forced into friendliness so often it was instinctual at this point. No aggressiveness. Nothing that could be interpreted as hostile.

Yet it still felt so fake. Habitual rather than genuine. She tried not to let it bother her.

She spotted a bandage-covered Kabuto talking with a shopkeeper. The side of his face was covered with patches, and his arm was in a sling, but he still acted perfectly cheerful and amiable.

He was radiant in personality. Not a person walked past him without gaining a little grin, or perhaps walking with a little more energy.

Then he turned to see her, and widened his crooked smile further.

"Sakura!" He called.

He turned back to the shopkeeper and gave a small handful of coins. The teen grabbed one of the peaches on display, and left with a quick thanks to the man at the station. The man waved in return.

Sakura idly thought how nice it must be to live that openly, and have people respond like that. She knew of course that everyone was friendly in Konoha, with a few exceptions, but this was different.

People genuinely liked Kabuto, and he was so humble about it too.

He caught up to her, and began walking alongside with exuberant energy.

"How have you been lately?" He asked.

She looked him in the eyes for a second, before responding.

"Ok, I guess."

She had been an embarrassment. Sasuke, Kiba, they knew what they were doing. Just like the others did.

What was she?

The teen seemed to pick up on the mood immediately, and said, "Don't feel bad about the battle. None of us were really prepared for it."

"But you at least put up a fight!" she said. "All I did was get in the way. Don't try to deny it."

He sighed, stopped, and turned to face her.

"What you did on that wall was something I've never seen." He said with intensity. "Come with me. I have a couple things I want to teach you." She didn't see much point, but followed anyway. Kabuto had that sort of aura about him.

As they walked, they discussed the team and battle.

Sakura asked why the others weren't training, at which the teen merely shrugged. "Kiba has his own problems to deal with." he said. "As for Sasuke, well, his stay at the hospital has been extended."

She felt terrible. They had all put up a fight before falling. Compared to Sasuke, her contribution was minimal at best.

They walked down a handful of streets until they came to the training ground area. Kabuto had seemed to know where he was going, so she'd followed behind dutifully.

A grove of trees stretched as far as the eye could see, reminding her once again just how massive Konoha was. It was one thing to walk around town where the wall was clearly visible, but another entirely to be lost in one of the training grounds.

Kabuto lead her deeper and deeper into the forest, until finally he stopped, and turned around to face her. They had reached a grove of sorts, with just a small patch of sunlight peeking through the treetops.

"I want you to attack me." He said.

Sakura felt uncomfortable. She knew she wasn't the strongest, but still. Hitting someone while they were injured?

"I'm not sure that's the best idea.."

Kabuto sighed, and focused her with a powerfully intense look.

"Sakura, please."

She paused for a long moment. Then, she slowly pulled out a kunai from her pouch. His face remained impassive.

She took a few steps forward, picking up speed ever so slowly. The girl breached the distance in a few seconds, but before she could bring the kunai down in a slash, she stopped.

"I can't do this." Sakura muttered.

She felt the cold steel of a kunai against her neck. Her eyes flew open, and her breath caught in her chest with fear.

"What? But how.."

Before her, the figure faded away, leaving only the grassy forest floor. The kunai was pulled back, and Kabuto walked around to face her. "Come now, you're a clever girl. Surely you can discover my secrets?" He prompted.

"A genjutsu?"

"Ah. The most obvious explanation. An illusionary technique." He countered, walking in a slow circle around her. She had to follow just to watch him. "Don't guess, Sakura. Guessing leads to death in our world."

He stopped moving, and faced her.

"Too often shinobi mistake simple deception for Genjutsu." The teen lectured, his grin returning somewhat.

"Did you think they taught the Bunshin as a joke? The greatest defense a Shinobi can have is mystery. Who is to say whether this was a clone technique, or a genjutsu? Can you really trust your perceptions?"

His expression softened.

"Tell me. What are the three basic techniques."

"Henge, Kawarmi, and Clone." She replied without a thought.

"And why are those the ones taught in the academy? Why not other techniques?"

"They're too.. chakra intensive?" Sakura guessed. "Most students don't have the chakra capacity for elemental techniques."

"So if it were possible, they'd simply teach elementals?"

Her expression turned thoughtful.

"No, that's not quite what I meant. There's also a greater possibility of injury."

"I'll let you in on a little secret." Kabuto said. "These three techniques have been the teaching basis since before the third Hokage."

"What?" Sakura blustered. "But that doesn't make any sense! I thought the villages-"

"Always changed their exact teaching formulas to avoid exploitable weaknesses. Yes, I'm aware of the textbook analysis. This should also tell you something about the importance of those techniques, considering how long they've lasted."

"I don't understand..."

Kabuto started moving his free hand animatedly, and resumed his pacing. "Here's a puzzle for you. You're a Genin; lowest on the Shinobi food chain, yet still expected to be able to perform missions. Suddenly," He waved his hand. "An enemy Jonin appears. They are armed, powerful, and dangerous. You've been isolated from your team."

"For most Genin, that is the end, but thankfully you've been raised in Konoha. You have the three techniques under your disposal. How do you survive."

"You'd have to be incredibly lucky to beat a Jonin," Sakura began, but the teen raised his hand to silence her.

"I didn't say beat. I said survive."

She paused. It was clear that Kabuto didn't want some brilliant strategy involving smoke bombs. He wanted a survival tactic; one that would apply the three techniques in some way that could be used and replicated.

"These techniques are incredibly versatile Sakura. Disguise? A false body? Let's simplify things further: How do you convince the Jonin not to fight you?"

The answer came almost immediately.

"The Henge. Disguise as a higher level Shinobi, or as a comrade."

"A simple solution, isn't it? In the time we've been talking, I've already figured out fourteen different ways to survive a Jonin encounter using nothing but these techniques."

Sakura stopped. Were there really that many solutions?

And she'd only come up with one. Feeling sub-par was not exactly a new feeling, but that didn't make her like it anymore.

"Improvement for most Genin is not bigger and flashier techniques. That does little but give them more powerful ways of wearing themselves out. No, it is creativity that allows the best to survive. Why else would we have such a seemingly random and unstandardized program?"

She nodded at appropriate times, but inside her head was abuzz. Where was this coming from?

"Sakura. I'm not going to teach you some new elemental attack that won't do you much good. Instead, I want to focus only on the intelligent use and application of these techniques. Then, I might give you a Genjutsu to use, if I think you can put it to good use."

"How do you know all this?"

"I had a brilliant teacher. Now, suppose you're in a desert with no rations. In the distance, you spot a cart traveling..."

"He's not getting better is he?"

The nurse shook her head after a moment. Sasuke nodded, and stepped into the room.

Itachi looked even worse than usual. Where before his face had merely been worn, now it was deathly pale, and his eyes were half lidded, even as they turned to look at him.

The smile Sasuke had once found so warm, now only brought pain, seeing the complexion that surrounded it.

He wanted to look away. Itachi raised a hand, calling his brother closer. Sasuke came dutifully, even as his mind desperately tried to remember his apology. How had the words gone?

"Itachi, I'm.." Sasuke began, but Itachi waved his hand at the chair. Sasuke looked at it, before slowly making his way over, and sitting down with a thump.

The bedridden man spoke. "Shisui told me of your recent loss." The voice was quiet and wheezing, but still held his brother's firm resisted the urge to grimace at the name, and nodded.

"I know you do not like him, but he cares deeply about you. We have made arrangements for you to be transferred to his custody should I pass on."

Sasuke had always understood his brother's grave condition, but had always seemed so far away. His big brother was always strong.

This meeting was quickly disillusioning the boy of that. His brother was dying. Sasuke wanted to hold his hand. Wanted his brother to tell him how they'd always be together. It was a futile wish.

"He wants to bring you back into the clan." Itachi continued. "He believes that these competitions will convince the others of your importance."

Sasuke froze. Was that really what he wanted? He honestly didn't know anymore. It just seemed hollow. Where before it had been a goal, now it was supposed to be compensation.

He didn't want a replacement.

Itachi's hand wove around his smaller one, even as tears began to fall from the boy's small form.

"I'm sorry for failing you Sasuke."

"No." The boy ground out. It was like a snake had coiled around his neck.

"You never f-failed-"

Why, he roared at his mind. Why won't you let me talk?

"It's alright Sasuke." Itachi said. "Let me help you while I still can." The boy nodded, his eyes invisible underneath his dark hair.

"Shisui has agreed to teach you in the afternoons, as I am unable to do so. I know this is a selfish request, but I ask that you utilize this offer."

There was a long pause, before Sasuke nodded again.

"Perhaps I can still be of some use to you. Tell me about your team."

"...and I trust this will not be an issue in the future? I dislike ending careers so early."

Kiba nodded with as much respect as he could, towards the oaken desk of the Hokage. Danzo Shimura nodded in response on the other side.

"Good. Then we have nothing more to discuss."

The boy took this as his cue to leave, and made sure to bow before leaving the room. Outside, an Inuzuka woman was waiting.

"Can I see him now." Kiba muttered quietly. The woman nodded, and gestured towards an older man down the hall. He held a small pup in his arms, which quickly hopped down to rejoin the boy.

"Thanks."

Kiba left without another word.

Shino Aburame watched quietly as his short tempered teammate walked out of the Hokage Building. Through the dark lenses of his glasses, he tracked the boy with his gaze. Finally, he disconnected from where he had been leaning against a wall, to follow the pair.

Kiba lead them in a seemingly chaotic pattern, finally ending at a grassy plain of a training ground.

"Why are you following me." he said quietly, once the Aburame had come within a few paces.

There was no response.

"Well?"

"Shino is here to help you Kiba."

The boy whirled around, only to be met with the smiling face of Iruka. The tanned Chunin was no longer in his green and black vest, but instead dressed like a civilian, with a white shirt emblazoned with the Konoha symbol, and brown shorts being his only uniform.

"He explained the troubles you've been having. I'm happy to assist with your practice if I can."

"What happened to being an impartial teacher." The boy muttered.

Iruka shrugged slightly. "If anyone else asks for my help, I'll give it to them as well. So far Shino's been the only one. It was very forthright of him."

From behind the man, Shino nodded his head slightly.

Kiba merely sighed.

"What did you have in mind Sensei?"

Kiba blocked another one of the earthen clones with a swipe, sending it flying backwards from the impact. At his side, Akamaru used Fang Passing Fang to hold off two others. Behind the pair, Shino sat meditating, with both his hands brought together in a simple seal.

From the ground, six more clones arose to battle the pair, this time with significantly more power. They circled around, each trying to reach the stationary Aburame.

Nevertheless, the feral twins held their ground, batting the figures away again and again, returning to the sides of their companion after every swipe.

Within a few moments, all the clones were crumbled earth, and clapping could be heard from Iruka's approaching figure.

"You did well. Those were no pushovers I was sending at you." The teacher said encouragingly.

Kiba threw his hands in the air, as Akamaru reverted back to his smaller form.

"Fantastic. We're good bodyguards. How is this supposed to help?"

Iruka sighed.

"Protecting your comrades may not seem important to you, but rest assured giving Shino adequate protection will help in the long run."

"And I suppose Sasuke will still be out there fighting?"

"Sasuke can fulfill a number of different roles. I expect there will be times when you will be the one holding off the front, while he protects Kabuto and Shino from attack."

"Tch."

"There is no shame in protecting your team. Sasuke's role will always be one of risk, regardless of where he is. You however, have a choice of what you want Akamaru to be doing."

The boy shot a look at his furry companion.

"I suggest you think about it Kiba. When he is fully developed, I have no doubt both of you will be very formidable, but perhaps for now it would be best to hold back."

He nodded absentmindedly.

"Good. Now I'm afraid I must be off, but perhaps I can help some other time."

"Again."

Sasuke flew forward, appeared a few feet above his intended target, before touching down on it solidly.

A few paces away, the one-eyed captain of the Police Force nodded.

"Good. I see you have a certain degree of control over it. Shunshin can be incredibly powerful when properly utilized, but the control necessary to use this technique is not something many have."

To demonstrate, the man summoned a clone of himself without a sound. The man became little more than a blur, sending fists forward at impossible speeds, wrapping around the figure in an instant to send a powerful kick. His blurring form could only be compared to that of the Silents.

When he finished, the clone faded away.

"The Shunshin need not apply to your entire body. The risks of sending a limb forward with unnatural momentum are large, but done correctly, it leaves little match in terms of power."

"Why doesn't everybody learn how to then?"

The man smiled.

"First off, it requires a Sharingan to use safely, and second; before I did it, such a thing was considered impossible. I would not recommend you experiment with it until you have a more complete grasp of the technique."

Whatever his other failings, Sasuke was quickly learning that Shisui was a great teacher. He regularly tracked the boy with the Sharingan to find exact problems in his posture, form, and chakra molding. Improvement was exponential under such a watchful eye, and Sasuke learned more about the Shunshin than he thought existed.

By the end of the day, the boy had practiced the technique enough to feel confident he would never catch the ground again.

It was still frustratingly far behind Shisui, but progress nonetheless.

They ended when a Uchiha messenger arrived to alert the Captain of something. He had looked guilty about leaving, despite the lateness of the hour, and asked Sasuke to return the next day.

Sasuke agreed, and the man parted.

That night, the boy thought for a long time about the mysterious Uchiha.

Kabuto's path home was slow and winding.

He traveled through grimy alleyway after alleyway, passing a number of people on his way.

They all shared the same gaunt look. The unfocused eyes, and dark sallow features.

He barely recognized them as he walked past. They were of no importance, and likely never would be.

These were people who had given up. The glimmers of intelligence were gone from their eyes. Once when he was younger, he had seen these people as human.

Now they were little more than furniture to him. Not worth notice.

As he walked, Kabuto hummed a little tune to himself. He didn't remember where he had first heard it, but it had haunted him for years. It was simple and a bit melancholy, but he liked it all the same.

As the teen took a turn down an empty passage, he felt a gloved hand clamp down on his leg.

He tensed in an instant, and whirled around to see his assailant.

The man was old. His teeth were visibly missing along the bottom ridge of his mouth. His eyes were sunken and bloodshot, and a woolen cap covered a mess of scraggy grey hair.

"You, I've seen you." The man whispered urgently.

"You know the master, don't you? Please, you must take me to him. Master will forgive-"

The man was silenced with a single flick of a knife. The teen quickly pulled out a scroll, and sealed the now lifeless body.

He tucked it in his pocket and continued his walk.

Now how had that hum gone?