"The truth." Dumbledore sighed. "It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution."
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The meeting with Hiruzen could have gone smoother, I think to myself as I headed out of the Hokage tower. After signing some paperwork in the lobby- mainly about personal information like birth date, weight, special skills, etc.- Kakashi had told me to wait outside for him while he goes "do something really quick", as so eloquently said by the man. Mushu was still cradled in my arms, eyes focused on me as I tried to block out the questions he shared to my head.
"Want to explain everything to me now, Hicchan?" The red scaled dragon asked through my mindspace. I was glad that me and my summons could interact telepathically but there were times where I wished I could block them out of my head. In fact, Inoichi had once wanted to test if he could try something on me that would do something like that, but I declined in fear of losing the advantage of telepathic communication.
Continuing on ignoring the dragon, I waited on the side of the hospital for Kakashi to return. It was reminiscent of the times where I waited for him to turn in his mission reports to the Hokage tower. If I didn't force him to and wait for him outside until he did it, he would never get them done, I thought. I was stuck remembering all the times I had chewed him out for giving Iruka a hard time every time he filled out those forms that I didn't notice a certain green-clad man walking by. Said man paused when he caught sight of me and peered down to look at the dragon I was holding.
"What a youthful sight indeed! A lovely spring flower with a crimson dragon hanging off her arm! Such vibrant youth! Miss, if I could know your name it would delight me and bring me to do one hundred laps around Konoha on my hands!" I was shaken out of my reverie when The Green Beast of Konoha started speaking to me. As he finished his speech, he posed his signature thumbs up and glimmering smile. It must have been a genjutsu the way that there were sparkles and rainbows radiating from behind him. Gai always did have a flair for theatrics.
"I'm Tatsuya Hinowa, but please, just use my first name. This is Mushu by the way." I gestured my summon toward him but Mushu visibly tried to lean his body back as far as possible from the shining man. Hicchan!, the dragon whined in my head, y'know the guy gives me the creeps!
Appeasing the dragon, I pulled him back to me and gave Gai a small smile. Before me and Kakashi had even started dating- if ninjas could even say they date, more like missions teamed together and the occasional gathering for drinks- Gai and I had been very close friends. I think that through him, I managed to see Kakashi more and in a way, The Green Beast had become a bit of my wingman since I knew that I had feelings for Kakashi long before he began to reciprocate him. Gai had been a friend I met later on in life, after becoming a jounin, but I felt he was definitely one of my precious people. It was relieving and incredible to see him again after thinking that I had died. However, he will also be another person that I will have to be lying to... Pushing that regret as far down the depths of my mind that it can go, I refocused back on the feelings of gratitude to see a dear friend alive and well again.
"Hinowa! A bright and youthful name and as beautiful as the sun that shines down on Konoha! Oh! It seems I have not introduced myself before asking for your name, I will have to do three hundred push ups to atone my mistake! If you can excuse my rudeness to properly introduce myself?" He asked with dotted tears glistening in the corners of his eyes. His face suddenly looked chiseled out and serious despite looking comical all the same.
(A/N: something like this!)
I nodded at his request. "I am Maito Gai! Otherwise known as The Green Beast of Konoha!" He immediately recovered as he told me his name, his spandex suit flexing along with him. I giggled behind my hand at the eccentric man. After the fourth war, Gai had still been cheerful compared to others but even he suffered those moments of disassociation. It was nice to see him as he once was, though even I was not a fool to believe the man wasn't without his own demons even now in this past-present. We had been through more than one war after all.
I felt Kakashi's presence near us just as Gai was about to speak again.
"It seems you've met Gai, Hinowa-san," The lack of intimacy at the way he said my name sent a jab to my heart, "Please don't think all of Konoha is like him. Gai is just this kind of...individual." He finished his sentence with a sigh and casted a glance at the spandex wearing man.
"My eternal rival! Of course you would know of this magnificent flower! It is just like you to surround yourself with other hip and youthful people!" Gai powerfully - his voice was one you just had to describe as being buff like him- said to the silver haired man. Kakashi just closed his eyes in resignation but I knew the two were close friends, this kind of conversation was easy and familiar to the both of them.
Then Gai remembered he had other business to attend to in the tower and rushed off in a flurry after saluting to Kakashi and giving me one of those million-watt smiles.
With a sigh, Kakashi turned to me and exasperatedly said, "So, since you got along with Gai I'm guessing you can get along with everyone else here in Konoha. I can help you find your apartment since I was somehow appointed to being your personal escort."
"You don't have to trouble yourself," And remembering that I now "know" his name after Hiruzen called him earlier I added shyly, "...Kakashi-san. I don't want to take up more of your time." I had wanted to be genuine with this statement but I knew I wanted to be a bit selfish and have his attention for a bit longer. Anything that I can grab at, honestly, because I have the dreadful feeling that I will not be able to truly fall in love with Kakashi. Not this one, I mean. The Hatake Kakashi that I love and married was left behind in my previous world. Still yet, the two men were basically identical but were separated by the experiences they've faced. This Kakashi might turn out different if I truly did change anything influential in this world.
"Nonsense, Hinowa-san," He lightheartedly waved his hand at me to prove that he wasn't having none of it. Still stubborn no matter what world I'm in, I thought. "I'll just walk you to your house then. If you feel up to it, I'll be willing to give you a free tour of Konoha, courtesy of one Hatake Kakashi" He added with a leer. Also still so self-righteous, Mushu shook his head in my arms.
With a sigh, I approved his offer of walking me home as well as giving me a tour around a village I had grown up in. It would look suspicious if I just knew where everything was.
We walked together in the same fashion as earlier, him in front as I trailed behind him. I silently hoped that one day I would be able to stand by his side and be acknowledged by him, perhaps not as a lover but as a comrade. In my original world we worked alongside each other and I can't say that we didn't work well. Our natural ability to work with each other had paired us on missions more often than not, and it helped to further our romance then. In this world, perhaps I should find someone else who's just as compatible with my fighting style...
Before heading off, we had agreed that he would drop me off and let me settle into my new apartment before coming by once more in an hour to give me the tour. On our way there, we walked in a comfortable silence, though I admit I could see a few stares out from the corner of my eyes. Most were directed at me, the stranger, and some were directed to Kakashi. I wasn't socially inept, even in my original world, Kakashi gathered a few looks when we were out together because he was the Sharingan Kakashi. The Copy nin. The Man of a Thousand Jutsus. It was a bit of a struggle to have married a man with such a reputation, though usually people stuck to just staring and cleared the way when we walked.
Despite the looks, most if not all were just filled with curiosity, we reached my designated sleeping arrangement. Originally, I had stayed in my clan's compound- which had just been about three houses on a medium sized plot of land- before moving in with Kakashi in his clan's compound- which was definitely much more grander than my own. It was different to have my own apartment now, even though these apartment buildings were issued to Konoha nin only. I didn't know what to feel about Hiruzen letting me stay in the shinobi apartment complexes so readily instead of putting me somewhere in the civilian sectors. Too much trust in a resident of the Land of Fire? Genuine kindness towards a woman who admitted to knowing the ninja arts? Or perhaps he did it for some other reason altogether.
Kakashi had left with a salute after telling me that he lived in the building next door to mine's. Why he felt it was needed to tell me this extra information, I had no clue. Maybe he felt responsible over me and wanted to let me know he'd be nearby anyways.
After stepping into the apartment I released a sigh as I slid down the back of the closed door. I'd have to set up some wards sooner or later to ensure the security of my apartment. For now, I would like to just gather my bearings and plan out my course of action.
Mushu wriggled in my arms so I let him go. I sat there on the floor with legs outstretched, my eyes closed and my features turned downwards.
"Alright, alright, we're in the safety of some enclosed area so cough it up. What happened?" Mushu stood in front of me with his hand on his hip, his posture looked all to similar to Iruka's teacher look that said Explain everything, and I mean everything, right now, mister.
My eyebrows pinched together as I drew out another sigh, "I think we're in a different world. At first I thought I was sent back in time; I'm sure you've noticed how young I look and that the Sandaime is still alive. But...no one knows who I am. I was found outside the gates by Team 7, injured and without any identification on me. Nobody knew my name, so who would back me up if I had said that I was a Konoha nin? And please, for the love of Kami, lower your voice!" I explained all this in a harsh whisper, there were still ANBU around and I couldn't risk them overhearing anything that would incriminate me. Hopefully, they stayed outside the apartment weren't close enough to hear me whispering.
"So what you're saying is: we've been sent to some other world where your entire identity is erased and you have no clue how or why this is happening to you?" I nodded. "And now you've found yourself back in Konoha, past-Konoha I mean, because the fourth war apparently hasn't happened yet?" Another nod.
"I think I-I think I know what I have to do, Mushu." I stuttered at what I am about to say. It was one thing to think about it, another to say it aloud. As if I was confirming everything that has and will happen. "This could be a second chance for me, for us. We still have our memories, right? So maybe we can somehow change a few things before everything spirals downhill. I don't know if we can prevent a war, but we can help some people."
Mushu gave me a long, searching look before speaking up again, "You mean help your precious people?"
"No...more than that. There are others who were innocent but killed anyways, those who deserve justice. We know the truth. We know things that will get us killed. It all comes down to how we use this knowledge." We both shared a grim look as we thought about the complications of our situation. On one hand, we can make things right by letting the truth be known. The Uchiha massacre, Obito and Madara, Naruto's parents. These secrets were volatile too, however, they could backfire on us and make things worse by setting them free. The war might happen quicker if these things were known.
A voice deep in the back of my head told me that the people these secrets were hurting deserved the right to know the truth. It wasn't fair for me or for them to withhold anything that I know about them. I was resolute with the decision that these secrets will let themselves be known, at the right time. I've always believed that the truth will set you free, so here's to hoping that revealing these secrets will be for the greater good.
When I had finally picked myself up from the floor, I asked Mushu to tell the other summons about what we discussed before sending him back. Then I spent the rest of the hour checking out the apartment- all standard furniture, nothing out of the ordinary, and all very beige- and laying on my bed, planning on what I would do next. And after that. And even after that. A good ninja always knew to plan way ahead and to always assume that the enemy is two steps ahead of you.
By the time I felt Kakashi's familiar chakra come near my apartment building, I had gotten up from the bed and headed toward the door. I opened it before Kakashi's fist could land on the wood to knock.
"Were you able to sense me?" He asked, fist still raised.
"You weren't trying very hard to conceal your chakra in the first place, Kakashi-san." I walked out of the door as he stood aside, arm slowly lowered down.