AN: This is a bonus chapter for the late update. But the real fun will begin at Chapter 3, sorry. :)
"Subaku Family" – Chapter 2
Knowledge is power.
She choked.
She squirmed helplessly, choking in her own saliva just for the quest of getting her chopsticks.
After much struggling on her part, she gave up for now and leaned back on her seat, gasping for much needed air. The silk cloth tied around her neck to the back of the chair she's leaning on loosened considerably.
"What the hell?" She murmured angrily, feeling so much like an idiot.
Exasperatedly, she glared at the table in front of her. The things she wished to destroy right now.
Turning to the person who had started this torture, she glared with all the hate and frustration she could muster.
"Oi, Chiyo-baa, I know I practically raised myself to be a street urchin. But do I have to this?" She gritted out of clench teeth, her glare intensifying.
A resounding smack echoed in the dining room, with the elderly woman calmly bringing down the fan she had used to slap the girl before her on the back of the head, shaking her head in disappointment and slight annoyance.
The elder lightly scoffed, "As the fiancée to the son of the Yondaime Kazekage and is now an aspiring Godaime, you must learn some manners and proper etiquette, child. You can't bring your horrible eating manners," Her nose visibly wrinkled in disgust. "In front of other people. The children of our Yondaime are very important figures in Sunagakure and Kaze no Kuni, so you, representing the youngest, should be adequate enough when you're audience is requested." Chiyo lectured patiently, but slightly tiredly, maybe due to having to repeat the same thing throughout the lesson within the day.
She snorted irritably. They just invaded her village two weeks ago, conspiring with Orochimaru of all people. Then they practically demand her, yes her, to marry the guy who – last time she checked – tried to kill her during said skirmish to reconstruct the alliance treaty. Joy.
Freedom is something she takes pleasure in. Thank you very much.
Then they have to gal to force her into taking lessons how to be a 'proper lady' – according to Chiyo and the elders – so that she won't be a disgrace when the time is right. She's already a lady, goddamnit! Does she have to strip down to prove it? And there's also the fact that the doll guy, the brother of her fiancé, note the sarcasm, kept grating on her nerves about said lessons. But she remembered the hundred percent satisfaction of seeing him being whacked with a big ass iron fan by his sister.
Oh. She didn't really know she's born a sadist. Not that she enjoyed it or anything. Maybe just a tad bit.
"I know that already, damnit." She replied petulantly and angrily, and flinched when the fan smack into her skull again. She wished glares could kill, so that Chiyo-baa would turn into a pile of goo already.
"No swearing." The elder woman chided with a reprimanding stare.
Her golden eyebrow twitched. That's also another reason she hate taking these lessons, the bunch of no's and don'ts is clawing at her thinning patience.
She clenched her hands on her lap, "Look, am I marrying a," It took a whole lot of effort to keep a swear word out. "Noble, aristocrat, an old man, or preferably an uptight brat? Just tell me, I feel so inadequate just right." She's surprised that her teeth are still intact from so much gritting.
Remembering her friends, she could recall the time that they had told her that she has a motor mouth. At first, she thought it was because of the high consummate of ramen then Shikamaru bluntly told her that she has a colorful way with words. The things she says to stay love.
"Gaara-sama is the equivalent of a prince here in Sunagakure." Chiyo told her with a disproving glance. "I don't even want to know why he chose you as his bride." The elder muttered lowly under her breath, as if she wasn't meant to hear. Too bad, really.
She found herself gaping.
Who wouldn't? The psycho that had just tried to murder her and her team with a freaking sand chose her to be his wife! What the hell? Sure, she may have said some melodrama about having felt the same loneliness because they're both – cringe – Jinchuurikis, but she couldn't remember for the life of her what warranted such interest for her to go through this so much pain.
She would give that panda-head a piece of her mind about at least consulting his blonde soon-to-be wife for future reference too.
That would make her feel loads better. Not.
But still, she found herself lost for words. "Shit, really? That psycho chose me?" She blubbered, panicking. "This marriage doesn't involve him wrapping me in that freaking sand coffin of his, does it?" She nervously scanned the room as if said psycho would choose this time to appear.
She wasn't scared that he'll try to kill her. No, far from it, he made that clear three days ago during dinner that he 'likes' her and wouldn't bring her harm. And if he did the opposite, well, she could always stab him with her shiny kunai and run like hell.
That sounds like a plan.
Doll guy and his sister were pretty bugged out and shocked about that declaration.
But you can't just easily forget the guy that tried to crush you in a hug of sand, even Sakura still had nightmares about this marriage considering she wasn't the one going to marry Gaara.
Another smack and a disapproving glare. Though this one mixed with amusement and slight pity.
"I'm sure Gaara-sama means good will." Chiyo commented lightly, now the amusement is very apparent as a smirk made its way to her lips.
She twitched, forgetting that she had been practicing 'table manners' in the first place.
"Oh sure, good will, does this marriage validate his existence or whatever? Geez, the things I do for my village." She sighed dramatically, although she can't keep the grin from showing through. And from Chiyo's chuckling, she had seen it.
Smiling slightly, "You're not scared of him." She observed with something close to satisfaction.
Raising an eyebrow, she openly grinned. "Are you kidding me? Sure, I may have been freaked out because he tried to kill me weeks ago, but I think," She tapped her chin almost demurely and Chiyo found herself impressed. "He needs a friend. Well, fiancée I didn't really see coming, but yeah, that sort." She waved off with a delicate flap of her hand.
Nodding, the elder let a soft grin take over, but even she could see that it had a hint of evil within. "Now that was established, let's continue our real purpose here. Those chopsticks aren't going to pick themselves up, Senna-san."
Finally addressing her with her name instead of 'child', and she found that she had earned something that she wasn't sure she knew. But she liked it. That, she was sure.
Surrendering to her faith, she exhaled. No use in crying over spilt milk.
"I'm going to choke myself again, aren't I?"
"You're an Uzumaki, right?" Minato questioned from his perch, leaning his back against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest.
Senna didn't even look at him but she acknowledged his presence with a nod. Busy combing a hand through her sleeping son's blood locks, cerulean eyes hardened with something dark that gave the blonde man a pause.
"Yes." She answered faintly, she figured that going with the Uzumaki route is the safest. With her hair now permanently a crimson copy of her husband's, it'll be much easier to explain anyway.
Before even the war, since she discovered the previous existence of Uzushiogakure, she had researched for any web connected to her family. After gaining the rank of jounin among the ranks in Sunagakure during the third year anniversary of her marriage, Tsunade had deemed her worthy to know her heritage. And what shock that was, but lesser than the fact that said parent is standing a few feet away from her.
She had learned from the Yondaime Raikage, A, that a relative named Uzumaki Akane had a misunderstanding with the clan and chose to leave a long time ago before the annihilation of her village. She had been captured by Kumogakure shinobis and had been thoroughly interrogated about Uzushio's secrets.
She had been mad but it's no use since it already happened even in this timeline.
That's how they knew the existence of the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki in the hands of Konoha and had ordered an infiltration assignment to garner its identity.
Although frustrating, she could use that excuse. Akane had been freed to roam the lands of Kaminari no Kuni after that but had died of depression after the obliteration of her family and village. She had been in her late twenties when she left and that was a long time ago and Uzumaki Mito had still been around during that time, six months just before Uzumaki Kushina was born.
That was at least twenty-two years ago, and the perfect excuse.
Jiraiya had taught her all the things she could know on how to pass up a story, needing all the relevant information, and a proof. Sure, Konoha doesn't have a blood sample of Uzumaki Akane to test her, but they could use Kushina. And that was all she needed.
Her plan hadn't been to join Konoha in the first place.
Things had gotten out of hand. When the Konoha shinobis arrived, she had tried intimidation on them. Though the words she had said were true as she would never forget the horrors that the Fourth Great Shinobi War had brought her and her comrades.
She had arrived on the same spot where Kirome had done the sealing.
Her son had been in random fevers after they arrived here though.
She just didn't expect to find people suddenly falling dead on their faces, faces slowly turning purple due to poison. Of course, the medic within her wouldn't let her just watch and go. She had healed everyone easily, since the poison was a familiar one she had dealt with during her time in Sunagakure, mostly from Kankuro – the doll guy.
And the encounter with the future Yondaime Hokage was highly unexpected.
She expected ANBUs, heck, even Jiraiya, not Namikaze Minato. Not this soon, her nightmares just came haunting her.
So when cornered with no idea how to deal with such situations, she had closed herself off with the protection mask of a hospitable host. Her lessons from Chiyo-baa and Nagare-san – a very skilled courtesan and spy for Jiraiya – coming back to the surface before she even had the slightest idea how to go around the topic.
But as the moments drag on, she found herself unable to resist and soon warmed up to the idea of joining Konoha's ranks once again.
She had made her old man squirm, that's just a bonus.
Her initial intentions were to go to Sunagakure, stop them from fully participating full-scale in the war, and maybe join their ranks just like before. She knew enough of Suna's politics from her husband to prevent becoming a weapon or be manipulated in a labyrinth of mind games.
She cursed her slight hero-complex and just the need to help.
That was what led her to this situation in the first place.
But she can't just let people die if she can do something about it, she had made too many promises that she intends to keep.
Now, instead of having Suna as an ally just like before or after, she gets confused after a while, she made herself an enemy out to them. Just fucking great.
And she can't get over the fact of how much of an asshole prick Hatake Kakashi was or is, whatever. It's so much worse than Sasuke's, she swear because the bastard at least is forcibly polite even if all he wanted to do was strangle the person. Something about how he was raised or something, stupid Uchiha.
That's why it also came as a surprise when she saw Uchiha Obito.
After the encounter though, she knew that she had slightly shocked Team Seven into a dazed stupor when she had acted like herself. Her husband said that that's what attracts people to be her friends in the first place.
But she would count the silver haired ice cube as an exception. Tough nut to crack, that.
"Why? Is there a problem?" She chanced a look over her shoulder, seeing the unreadable expression on the blonde's face.
She kind of missed the hair color, it was one of the things that proved – not only to the village but to herself as well – that she is his daughter.
Minato shook his head and smiled at her. "It's nothing but…my girlfriend is an Uzumaki, and we thought, uhm, that she's the only survivor." He chose his words carefully, not sure if he had touched a sore topic, Kushina had always been sensitive about it.
Senna paused, unsure how to answer. Shrugging, she decided to give an honest answer for once about herself.
"Even though I'm an Uzumaki, I stopped thinking about it."
Since being the only Uzumaki in the village just singled her out more than she already is, but for seven years, she had been happy as Subaku no Senna, wife of the Godaime Kazekage, Subaku no Gaara and the mother to their son, Subaku no Yuichi. For once, she belonged. Even though she should already be used to it during those seven years, whenever people comes to her and bows, saying "Subaku-sama", she feels pretty awkward and tries to wave them off with a smile.
Chiyo commented that she's too modest for someone boasting to become the best kunoichi out there.
At Minato's confused look, she chuckled slightly. "You should understand, Namikaze-san," She's not out of her mind to get too familiar with him, because he's already suspicious about her knowing his name. "I grew up not knowing anything about the clan or the village, my mom doesn't like talking about it, so how am I supposed to really feel anything about the death of people I never really knew in the first place aside from the common sympathy and condolences?"
"When you put it that way," Minato relented, still unsure. "He's your son, right? Aren't you a little young?" He changed the topic and eyed the sleeping boy with keen interest.
Senna smiled at that. She's nearing twenty and Yuichi just turned two three months ago. A sad birthday that was, the same day a crying Shikamaru went to her and told them that Temari just died. She couldn't remember how much she cried, but the older blonde woman had been the sister she never had. Good Kankuro-repellent too.
"Forgot about the age difference and all that after some time. We're just travellers, taking a job here and there." She told him casually yet not really answering anything.
Father or not, in this timeline, they're strangers to each other.
Her son is her main weakness right now. And the only glue holding her together.
Exhaling sharply, she said. "I think you should go to your team, Namikaze-san. We'll leave tomorrow morning." It came out a request, but there's a subtle hint of authority in it.
She couldn't handle this right now. Just not now, when she's sure that she has a good grasp of her emotions, then she'll face it. Just not now.
The blonde eyed them for a while, before smiling and shrugging. Feeling oddly warm to them.
"Alright, have a good night."
"…it's not funny, dobe."
He laughed, just laughed and laughed.
Even Rin is laughing – ok, giggling. But the principle counts.
"Oh, that's just rich teme! You blushed, I thought you're already deprived of emotions and all that crap. That's just cute!" He crowed once again, unable to stop laughing.
"Don't make me hurt you, Obito. I assure you, I will."
But he was too busy laughing his heart out to even take the threat seriously, who knew Kakashi was still a teenage boy? From the way he acted, he sure as hell seemed like a thirty year old veteran or something.
The laugh, just too good to pass up.
Not to mention, the soundly beating the silver haired idiot – and he calls me a dobe, he thought ironically – got himself into. Who knew that Senna-san could be so damn scary and has a mean right hook? It eerily reminded him of his sensei's girlfriend though.
"No need for that, Kakashi-kun. I'm sure Obito is just having a good time." Rin inserts nervously, but still giggling happily.
Kakashi glared balefully at both of them. "Oh, I'm very sure he's having the time of his life, alright. Though, it would be much appreciated if it wasn't in my expense." He growled angrily, the healthy rosy hue on his cheeks is still present – though he doesn't have any idea if it's from of anger or still in embarrassment. "And you're one to talk, Rin." He whirled on his female team mate, narrowing his eyes.
Managing to calm his laughter while wiping his tears of joy, Obito grinned slyly. "Didn't take you much for a pervert, Kakashi." Judging from the black eye and the slight limp in his step, the beating had been pretty painful.
Obito was sympathetic enough to wince.
Kushina-san hadn't been really different, and he shuddered.
His silver haired team mate grabbed a fistful of his blue shirt and gave him his most frightening and deadliest glare up to date, only powered by a notch of killing intent. "Anyone hears this, especially that accursed Gai," He spat the name with disgust. "You will never see daylight again."
"You better take the threat for yourself, Hatake. If you ever walk in on me again while bathing, I won't hesitate to kill you." Senna mumbled irritably as she walked behind the group of chuunins bemusedly, her arms wrapped around the sleeping form of her son.
For some reason, Kakashi stiffened and mechanically let go of Obito. He glared at Senna over his shoulder, but the wavering anger gave way to slight fear and extreme wariness. And Obito laughed once again.
"Oh, not only Gai, teme, don't forget Asuma. Asuma, teme~" He sing-songed with a skip on his step, practically oozing with glee.
Now which was worse, Kakashi can't decide. Asuma is a cocky jerk, Gai is a hyperactive moron. So he settled a balance on both.
As the gates of Konoha came into view, Obito cheered and ran ahead. "Later, teme!" The gleeful, sadistic streak was there as the implications slowly struck Kakashi.
He didn't take the bait though. As much angry and humiliated he feels with Obito, he has a strict code to follow and shinobis do not succumb to such childish taunts. He shook his head with a scowl, not noticing the sad frown his sensei gave him.
It had been too close. Minato thought sadly, the hope of Kakashi interacting with his team mates a little openly crushed once again.
"They're an odd bunch, aren't day?" Senna remarked with a smirk.
Smiling, he said. "Yeah, but they're my students. An exceptional bunch of students." As the gates came closer, he breathed in a nostalgic breath. It's always good to come and see his village after a tired week of missions.
"Welcome to Konoha." He muttered under his breath with a relieved smile as he watched his team.
Senna had no idea if the statement was directed at her or at himself.
War.