Kitsune no Ken GAIDEN Chronicles

by Neon Majestic

During the periods of time skipped over by official records, people did not sit in a vacuum. They lived their lives, being who they were, doing what they were able to do. These chronicles tell tales of people who lived at the same time as the Kyuushingai. SUPPLEMENT to "Kitsune no Ken: Fist of the Fox." GAIDEN 70, "Reckoning, Part 8," now up!

70. Reckoning, Part 8

Kitsune no Ken GAIDEN Chronicles

Written by Neon Majestic

(DISCLAIMER: The Naruto franchise and the characters therein belong to and were originally created by Masashi Kishimoto.)

OoOoO

GAIDEN 70 – Reckoning, Part 8

(N.B. This Gaiden takes place immediately after the events of Gaiden 69.)

Riiiiiiing! Riiiiiiiing! Riiiiiiiing!

Taiseki glanced at the caller-ID on his cell-phone. "Yua?" Quickly he answered it. "Hi, babe."

"Taiseki, there's a problem."

Hearing the worry in his wife's voice, Taiseki was immediately on high alert. "What's wrong? Did something happen? Are the kids all right?"

"The kids are fine; they're having dinner now. But, Taiseki…some men just arrived here, saying that you're involved in helping your friend Kaiza threaten somebody. What's going on?"

Taiseki's eyes widened. "Who are those men? Are they still there?"

"They're right here with me and Dad. Hold on, I'll put you on speaker." There was a moment's pause. "Okay, go ahead, dear."

"Hello? Who exactly am I speaking to?" Taiseki demanded.

A different voice came on the line a moment later. "My name is Uchiha Itachi—and before you ask, yes, I'm from THAT Uchiha family. I'm here as a representative of the Ministry of Justice."

"And I'm Okura Ittan, of the Whirl City Police Department's Internal Affairs division," another voice came over the phone.

Taiseki gritted his teeth. "You could be royalty for all I care. My lawyer told the last Justice Ministry guy who came here to me that you guys had better come with a warrant if you intend to pursue me further on this whole business with Kaiza. I ought to file a suit against the lot of you for harassment!"

"Not so fast, you blockhead," the very familiar—and unpleasant, to him—voice of his father-in-law Kosuke came on the line. "These people aren't trespassing on YOUR property—they're visitors to MY premises. And as long as I say that they can stay, they stay. And I must say, I'm curious to hear a little more about what exactly you seem to have gotten mixed up in."

"Old man, you…!" Taiseki started.

"Don't 'old man' me, Taiseki," Kosuke retorted. "I was earning my stripes as a cop while you were still in diapers. I know the law as well as you do, maybe better. And I know that unless that lawyer of yours is really skilled or really crooked, you'll be hit with a charge of obstruction if you keep being a smartass."

"Taiseki…please," Yua's voice came back on. "Just cooperate with them. What's so wrong with that?"

"Grr…" Taiseki gripped his phone hard. "Yua, I'll call you back in about ten minutes."

OoOoO

"…huh. He's off the line now," Yua remarked.

Kosuke made a rude sound with his teeth. "Probably going to call that lawyer of his, no doubt."

"Well, he's perfectly within his rights to do so. But in my experience as a cop, anyone who does so usually has something they want to hide," Ittan scowled.

"Cynical, aren't you?" Itachi asked him.

"Chalk it up to experience," Ittan replied.

"But…question, if I may." Yua's expression was troubled. "This person you say Taiseki helped Kaiza to threaten…"

"There was a witness to that incident, madam," Itachi informed her. "That person would be perfectly able to identify your husband if it came right down to it."

"…I see." Yua slowly ran a hand through her hair. "Kaiza…I've met him before. He and Taiseki were always close, from back during their academy days. We…we went to his wife's funeral. Taiseki was one of the pallbearers. I think their bond got stronger because of that…because the 365 days affected them deeply."

"I went to that funeral. A good number of our officers were there. Whirl City on a whole felt Kaiza's loss." Ittan crossed his arms over his chest. "You say your husband was similarly affected during the 365 days. How so?"

Slowly, right there in front of them, an unreadable expression came over Yua's face. "I'm a paramedic. We had to do a lot of overtime during the 365 days. And then…one day, we got this call…a woman had been brutally gang-raped in front of her little girl. When my team and I got to the scene…it was awful." She closed her eyes. "Taiseki and his partner were the first cops on the scene. They were in uniform. But…the men who abused that woman, they'd been disguised as cops. So when that little girl looked up and saw my husband…"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Abruptly she clenched her eyes tightly shut as the memory of that horrific scream tore through her mind. "We had to sedate the child before she could bolt. I've seen a lot of terrible things in my line of work, but that…I'll never forget that as much as I wish I could. And yet, Taiseki…he always took pride in putting on his cop outfit, putting on his badge…he used to say the outfit was a symbol of justice, a visible token that people could look to and feel safe…and then, to see the look on his face when that little girl reacted the way she did, with such terror…I don't think he's ever been the same since then."

Ittan's expression was stony. "I see."

"That period would have messed up anyone who lived through it and saw the violence up close and in person," said Itachi.

"Clearly so," Kosuke put in. "For us who've served in the security forces, it's actually mandatory that we get counselling to cope with the horrors of the job. Although I have to wonder if Taiseki ever got any…"

"Dad, don't start, please." Yua gave him a disapproving look.

"Mrs. Oishi, if I may," Ittan spoke up. "You said just now that you've met Kaiza before. You'd have seen your husband and Kaiza interacting. How much do they have in common, aside from being cops?"

Yua shrugged. "Hmm, quite a bit, actually. You'd almost have thought they were brothers—and for all intents and purposes, they probably might as well have been. Taiseki's the honorary uncle to Kaiza's daughter, Kaiza's an uncle-figure to our kids…but…" She looked away.

"Madam?" Itachi gave her an inquiring look.

Yua sighed heavily. "One mutual trait they had—still have—after the 365 days…they both hate the Kyuushingai. Taiseki's actually said that if he ever got the go-ahead to execute one of the Nine, he'd…take it up…"

Her face suddenly went pale. "Oh, Kami…is that it? Is that what he's setting up to do?"

"Sweetheart, you don't know that for a fact." Kosuke immediately put a hand on his daughter's arm.

"At least let's wait till your husband calls back before we rush to any conclusions," Itachi suggested.

"If he calls back," Ittan muttered.

OoOoO

While that conversation had been going on, at the same time…

"C'mon, c'mon, pick up the damn phone…!" Taiseki fretted as phone rang on the other end of the line.

"Hello?" Shirakumo answered a moment later.

"Shirakumo, I have a problem—there's a Justice Ministry rep and a cop from Whirl City's Internal Affairs at my father-in-law's place! They're questioning my wife right now!" Taiseki exploded.

"Calm down, Taiseki, calm down. Does your wife know anything about what's happened?"

"Of course not."

"Then you've got nothing to worry about. If she's got nothing to implicate you with, they can't quiz her about anything."

"But I don't like it—those bastards are trying to get to me through my family!" Taiseki snarled.

"Well, look—I already told that Namikaze person today that he should come with a warrant if he wants to take any further action against you for not speaking to him. If we can tie that other Justice Ministry rep to him somehow, perhaps there could be an argument to suggest that he's acting outside of due process."

"Just to let you know, that 'other Justice Ministry rep' happens to be a member of the Uchiha family."

"…the Uchihas? Are you serious?"

"My wife's phone was on speaker. I spoke to the man himself. Uchiha Itachi, the firstborn heir of the Uchiha Zaibatsu."

"Hmm." Shirakumo's frown could be felt over the phone. "In that case, it'll hinge on whether he is acting on his own orders or if he's working with Namikaze. Depending on which one is the case, I should be able to create a snag in their actions."

"What about the Whirl City cop? How do you intend to deal with that one?" Taiseki wondered.

"If they're working together, and the Uchiha happens to be taking instructions from Namikaze, then so much the better—grounds for a harassment suit to snag all of them in one go."

Taiseki considered what Shirakumo had just said. "Well, I'm supposed to call my wife back just now. Maybe I can make it a three-way call so all of us can converse here."

"All right, then. I'll hold while you do that."

OoOoO

Yua's phone buzzed. "It's him," she announced before answering it. "Yes, Taiseki?"

"Yes, hon. Are those men still there with you?"

"Yes, they're here."

"Put the phone on speaker, and I'll do likewise. I've got someone on the line who wants to talk to them."

Itachi and Ittan, standing nearby Yua all the while, drew in a little closer as she activated the speaker-phone feature. "Speaker's on now," Yua announced. "They can hear you."

"Thank you, Mrs. Oishi," a different voice came over the line. "To everyone present, my name is Hayama Shirakumo, Mr. Oishi's attorney. He tells me you are from the Ministry of Justice and the Whirl City Internal Affairs department, correct?"

"That's right," Itachi spoke up. "I'm Uchiha Itachi, from the Justice Ministry."

"And this is Okura Ittan, from Whirl City's Internal Affairs," Ittan supplied.

"I see. Well, gentlemen, here is the situation as I have it now." Shirakumo's voice was haughty. "Earlier today, a gentleman named Namikaze Minato, also from the Ministry of Justice, came to the Oishis' home to speak to Mr. Oishi. At that time, I told him that if he cannot come with evidence to support whatever unfounded accusations he was bringing against my client, I'd be forming a harassment suit against him on Mr. Oishi's behalf. Which brings me to wonder if, after that meeting between us and him, he suggested to either or both of you to go and interrogate my client's relatives instead…"

"I've never met Namikaze Minato, and I've never collaborated with him in any way, shape, or form. Also, today is the first time I am meeting Uchiha Itachi. We just happen to be pursuing the same mission with similar marching orders from different superiors. Therefore, your argument holds no water." Ittan's tone clearly showed he wasn't going to tolerate the attorney's arguments. "And let me tell you right now, Mr. Hayama, that I—independent of these Justice Ministry reps—have procured a witness statement putting your client and Whirl City's currently-suspended police chief Kaiza in the same location threatening a certain individual yesterday. And last I checked, commission of intimidation is a criminal offense…and if your client is involved in that in any way, at best that makes him an accessory, and at worst that makes him directly guilty of the offense itself."

"Then answer me this, if you will." Now Shirakumo sounded smug. "This individual who was supposedly threatened—who is it? Where is that person? Why hasn't that person made an official complaint against either Mr. Kaiza or my client, if such an alleged incident happened? Where is the police report that should have been filed detailing such an incident?"

"And where is your client's alibi?" Itachi countered. "If he's not guilty of this accusation, why doesn't he offer an alternate explanation to counter the claim that's been made against him? For that matter, why haven't you, as his lawyer?"

"I'll readily answer that by citing something Mr. Namikaze mentioned when he was here today," said Shirakumo. "He claimed that the person Mr. Oishi and Mr. Kaiza allegedly went to threaten was Uzumaki Naruto, from Konoha Town."

Yua visibly started. "Hold up—that Uzumaki Naruto? The boy who was one of the Nine Terrors?"

"Indeed, ma'am," Shirakumo confirmed. "The boy who went on Maito Guy's radio show and outright admitted to being one of the nine murderous individuals who caused the 365 days. That, you see, is the person whose word these investigators are clearly drawing on to try and get your husband into trouble. Which person, in their right mind, would want to take the word of any one of those nine thugs over that of a man like Mr. Oishi, who's distinguished himself as a decorated member of the Yu City police force?"

Ittan blinked at the question—and memory hit him.

OoOoO

Ino's gaze narrowed a little. "You're from Whirl City…I know a little about Naruto's history back there."

"Oh?" Ittan eyed her.

"Yeah. He told us about it." Ino nodded once. "About Uzushio High and the incident he was part of there."

"Hmm." Ittan's look was sharp. "One question, young lady. If you know that much, then why are you associated with someone like him?"

Her response was immediate. "Gratitude for saving my life."

OoOoO

"Mr. Hayama…" Ittan took a deep breath. "As hard as this may be for you to believe—as hard as it is for me to believe—there are actually people around who would in fact put their trust in Uzumaki Naruto."

"Oh? What's this? A cop from Whirl City, one of those most deeply devastated by the 365 days, taking up for a Kyuushingai?" Shirakumo sounded almost amused.

"Don't misunderstand me. As a resident of Whirl City, I'm not about to go on the nearest rooftop and sing Uzumaki's praises. However…I'm willing to acknowledge and accept that two or more different individuals can meet the exact same person, in this case Uzumaki, and come away with different viewpoints based on those interactions." Ittan's eyes narrowed. "Just like how different people can have very different reactions to seeing someone in a police uniform based on their experiences with someone who wore the uniform…isn't that right, Mr. Oishi?"

As one, Itachi, Yua, and Kosuke all looked at Ittan simultaneously. "What?" Yua exclaimed, her eyes wide.

"What?" Taiseki said at almost the same time.

"I think you know what I'm talking about," said Ittan. "Your wife was just telling us the story."

"Sir, don't…!" Yua cried out.

"How many different reactions do you get on any given day every time you put on your uniform, officer?" Ittan demanded. "People smiling when they see you, or others cussing you out…or maybe people being flat-out terrified of you?"

"I fail to see where you're going with—" Shirakumo started.

"What the hell do you think you're on about all of a sudden?" Taiseki blurted out, cutting off the lawyer.

"I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. That little girl who saw her mother being ravaged in front of her by a bunch of punks wearing cop uniforms. That spits on the pride you must've felt the first time you wore the outfit, right?" Ittan pressed on. "Goes against what you've always believed should be the sensible reaction to seeing a man or woman in uniform, right? That a cop is a protector of the people, not someone who's out to hurt anyone—right?"

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW, YOU INTERNAL AFFAIRS DOUCHEBAG?" Taiseki roared.

"Oi, oi, Taiseki—" Shirakumo spoke up, clearly having not expected that explosion.

"NO! I AM DONE WITH THIS!" Taiseki was going full throttle now. "Let me tell you something, Mr. Internal Affairs. You guys sit in your cushy offices and make all the decisions you want that affect everyone else on the force, and you NEVER ONCE have to deal with the crap we have to go through every single day we're out there on the streets risking our lives just to protect and serve! You didn't see that child that I saw that day—you didn't hear how she sounded—you have NO clue! So do not, DO NOT, try getting off as if you know what I and other cops on the ground have to experience every time we put on our badges and our guns and go out there on days when we might never come home again! YOU HEAR ME?"

Then silence.

"…honey?" Yua ventured uneasily.

Beep-beep-beep. Beep-beep-beep.

"…he hung up," Itachi dryly intoned.

OoOoO

On his end of the line, Shirakumo clutched his phone tightly in his hand. "Taiseki?"

"I'm here," Taiseki replied, somewhat calmer but still with heat in his voice. "They're not. I cut them off."

"Was that wise? Going off like that, I mean," said Shirakumo.

"Don't lecture me. I am not in the mood." Taiseki's tone warned the lawyer that he meant it. "But here's what I want you to do, and you better get right on it as soon as I end this call."

"Yes?" Shirakumo cocked an eyebrow.

"Draft up suits against those guys—Namikaze, that Uchiha, and the entire Whirl City Internal Affairs branch—I want them all sued for harassment. I don't care what hoops you have to jump through, what favors you have to call in—I want it done. They need to leave people's business alone."

"Taiseki, maybe you should calm down a little bit more first," Shirakumo ventured.

"NOW!"

"…I'll have the papers served by tomorrow morning."

"Get. It. Done."

The call was disconnected. Shirakumo slowly lowered the phone from his ear, his now-disturbed eyes never leaving the device.

OoOoO

Riiiiing! Riiiiing! Riiiing!

Kaiza, lounging on his couch, took up his phone and answered it. "Yeah?"

"It's Taiseki. I've got trouble."

Kaiza immediately sat up straight. "Talk to me."

"Some people have been snooping around, trying to find out about you going to Uzumaki's house. Two guys from the Justice Ministry and an Internal Affairs guy from Whirl City. They actually went to my father-in-law's place and had a chat with him and my wife."

"How much do they know?" Kaiza asked.

"I'm not sure. The missus still doesn't know anything. I definitely didn't tell them anything. But that story I told you, about that little girl who got traumatized…those bastards heard it from Yua and tried to use it against me. I ordered my lawyer to sue them for harassing us."

"All right. Good move, there, Taiseki. But something tells me that won't be enough to stop them." Kaiza's gaze narrowed. "Did you get their names?"

"Yeah. The Internal Affairs guy is Okura Ittan. You know him?"

At that Kaiza snorted in disgust. "Know him? That puke-face has been my own personal hemorrhoid for years. Thinks he knows everything about everything."

"I don't envy you. The guy's a prick."

"Who else was there?" Kaiza inquired.

"The Justice Ministry guys are Uchiha Itachi and Namikaze Minato. One is likely connected to the Uchiha family…the other one I don't know."

Kaiza frowned. "Namikaze Minato…that name sounds familiar to me."

"He came to see me personally. Tall guy, blond…looked a little like the Uzumaki kid, now that I think about it."

"…son of a bitch."

"I'm guessing you know him, then?"

"I met him once, after that time Uzumaki's fight with the Star-Boys gang wrecked Uzushio High School. He said he was Uzumaki's father."

"Huh. Okay, then. So what do we do?"

"You make sure your lawyer follows through with those lawsuits. Hopefully those ass-hats will get hamstrung by the threat of legal action. And stay cool and keep me posted, all right?"

"I'll do my best. You too, buddy."

"Yeah."

Kaiza ended the call and leaned back on the couch, frowning in contemplation. Then he held up the phone again and dialed a number, before holding the device to his ear and waiting while it rang.

"Hello?" Ibara's familiar voice came on the line a moment later.

"Ibara, it's me, Kaiza. I need a little extra help, if you can give it."

"I'm listening."

OoOoO

While all of that had been going on, simultaneously in Konoha Town…

Naruto looked the green-haired stranger up and down. "You say you're an old batch-mate of Yugito's? Where's your badge?"

"Not with me, unfortunately. I've taken some leave from the department. That's why I'm here now—I figured I'd take the opportunity to try looking up Yugito afresh, now that I have some spare time on my hands," said Kujaku. "If you're able to call her up, though, feel free to ask her about me. She'll verify whatever I have to say."

"Uh-huh. Well, just wait right here, would you? I'll be right back." And with that, Naruto closed the door, locked it, and headed back inside.

"I heard all of that," said Kushina, still busy in the kitchen. "A friend of Yugito's? But she's never mentioned knowing anybody named Kujaku."

"Hence me doing my due diligence." Naruto headed for the phone.

OoOoO

Yugito, now relaxing on her bed in her room at Hinata's house, felt her phone buzzing and quickly scanned the caller-ID. "Naruto," she muttered as she answered the call. "Hey, kid, what's up?"

"I've got a green-haired lady on my front porch just now. Takumi Kujaku. She says she knows you. What can you tell me about her?"

The blond woman slowly sat up. "She and I graduated together from the police academy. The last I saw of her, she'd made detective at the Kumo City precinct."

"Okay. And?"

"She wasn't my biggest fan. And that was before the Kyuushingai training project."

"I didn't think so. So, on a scale of one to shoot-on-sight, how likely is she to be a bad cop?"

Yugito scowled and glanced to one side. "She was always something of a rebel. Never did anything outright illegal, mind you, but she could be really stubborn when it came to doing things her way. But…right after I came back from the 365 days, she made it clear that she thought I should be locked up."

"Okay, so she hates the Kyuushingai. I guess that means I should be glad she didn't try to kill me on the spot. But then again, she WAS asking specifically for you."

"…did she show you her badge?" Yugito's eyes narrowed.

"Nope. Claims she's on time off from the force, so she's taking the opportunity to look you up."

"Where is she right now? Did you let her in?"

"Nuh-uh. She should still be on the porch. I locked the door just in case. After the last couple of times we've had unwanted visitors coming here, better to be safe than sorry."

"Smart. Are you alone there otherwise?"

"No, Mom's here."

"All right, good. Fill your mother in on what's going on. Then…" Yugito thought for a moment. "Tell Kujaku that I'll meet with her. Knowing her, she'll likely want to see me somewhere where we won't be disturbed. So…hmm…tell her to meet me at the warehouse district, and give her directions on how to get there."

"Are you expecting a fight?" Naruto asked her.

"At this point, I'm going to have to expect anything."

"Yugito, you're still injured from the time on Kira's island. If Kujaku tries to start anything physical with you, you won't be able to protect yourself."

"Don't worry about me, Naruto. I can take better care of myself than that. You just tell Kujaku where to meet me, and then leave it to me, okay."

"Okay." But Naruto didn't sound convinced.

"Thanks, kiddo. See you later."

Yugito then hung up the phone…and her calm expression slowly shifted into a totally emotionless mask.

OoOoO

END GAIDEN 70

00000

NEON MAJESTIC: Hmm…what exactly is Kaiza seeking from Ibara? Will Taiseki's threat of legal action take hold? And how will the meeting between Yugito and Kujaku turn out?

Just a bit of FYI concerning this sub-plot with Kujaku—I'm drawing inspiration for it from a particular section of the Kyoto arc from Rurouni Kenshin, which itself was one of the sources of inspiration for the overall Kitsune no Ken plot, as I would have previously indicated in the main story. But I am anticipating that, to differentiate this story's outline from that particular story plot in RK, I'll be taking Kujaku in a slightly different direction, which I anticipate will take hold during the next Gaiden coming up. What that will entail, I should hopefully have fleshed out soon.

The Reckoning arc continues!