The Testament of True Warriors – Nobility and Selfishness

Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato – Annual Festival – 2000 Hours

Kenshin was enjoying the twilight that coated the sky in orange and violet purple, stars beginning to reveal themselves through the haze of multicolor. He could hear the chatter and conversations of almost the whole village around him, who had all gathered at the family park that was located in front of the Uzukage Tower. Kids were running around, playing tag and capture the flag while their parents kept one eye on them. The incense of grilling and skewered foods filled his nose, which was comforting after the mission he had just returned from, where all you ate was cardboard ration bars.

Though there were picnic tables and even knitted blankets spread around, seventeen year-old Kenshin had positioned himself on the ground, on his bag, arms behind his head as he peered up at the florid dusk sky. He had changed out of his ANBU Captain uniform, now wearing casual black knee-length shorts and a red tee-shirt. He wanted a day of relaxing, no killing, hell, maybe he could even drift off to sleep right here . . .

"KEN-KUUUUUUUNNNN!" "NII-CCHHAAAAANNNNN!"

Or maybe not.

Two presences plopped down on either side of him, and his peaceful vision was now obscured by the curtain drapes of one redhead and one brunette that grinned cheekily at his slightly annoyed face. "Kenshin-kun! We've been looking everywhere for you? Where have you been, huh?" Kumiko got inches from his face, dark blue eyes glittering with mischievousness, and was that nervousness? Why was she anxious?

"Avoiding you," he muttered.

"Oh, so cruel," Masaru gasped dramatically. Kenshin widened his eyes when his little brother grabbed his wrist from behind his head and jerked him into a sitting position. "Come on, you gotta come with us, quick!" He was now tugged into a standing position, forceful steps driving him forward.

Kenshin halted in all movements, causing Kumiko and Masaru to nearly fall back from the momentum. "Why?"

"It's important!"

"Tell me why first."

"We have no time!"

"We have plenty of time."

Kumiko hissed, "Just trust us. It's important!"

"I'm not idiotic enough to trust you." Kenshin was no fool. He remained standing still as Kumiko and Masaru shared a long, desperate stare.

"Okay, fine," Kumiko threw her hands up in the air. "We dared Emiko to crawl down the side of Michishio, and well . . . She was going to use chakra with her chakra, cause, y'know, we had heard all the Jounin do it as a challenge. But the tides are really high this season, and ugh, she's stuck."

Masuro continued, "And so she's sticking with chakra on one spot, because if she tried to move, and a wave hits her, she'll probably hit the cliff . . . umm, or the rocks underneath. Look, it was a silly, silly dare. I didn't know –"

"You're an idiot," Kenshin rolled his eyes and began marching steadily to the left. "And you ask me to trust the both of you. What a joke."

Masuro pouted. "Ken, I –"

"Be responsible for your actions, Uzumaki Masuro!" Kenshin did not want to use this authoritative voice against his own sibling, but the hardness in his tone was clear. He was upset, though. "You are now a Chunin, both of you," his eyes pierced into their guilty ones, "act like it – or I will write both of you an extension for insubordination."

Kumiko's face twisted into a frustrated one, her hand reaching out and touching Kenshin's tense shoulder. "Oh, come on, Kenshin. She's a Genin, I hardly call that insubordination."

"Exactly." Kenshin jerked his shoulder away and continued walking headlong into the crowds of gathered villagers. "She's a Genin. You both should give some obligation into everything you do. You dared a Genin something that only Jounin do. What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"I'm sorry," Masuro mumbled sulkily.

"I wanted to relax for one day," Kenshin's eyes darkened into storm clouds. "Can you not give me one day?"

"Relax! We were all in on it. Even Emiko. Now shut up and go help her." Kumiko finally lost her temper, red in the face, hands clenched into fist. "Stop making this all about you, you selfish bastard!"

"Kumiko! Don't call my brother that!"

"You were just arguing with him!"

"Yeah, but he's not selfish!"

Kenshin closed his eyes. You are wrong, Masuro.

Hi no Kuni – Konohagakure no Sato – Gate – 1830 Hours

Maybe Kenshin had been naïve enough to convince himself that his relative would have welcomed him back with a huge hug and a kiss on the cheek like she had done as a child, but when a fist hammered into his nose, he really shouldn't have been shocked like his expression made him to be.

Kushina sure was grown. She was a full five foot four, only rising to his chest, with red hair so long that it reached the back of her knees in length. Even though he knew she was a Kunoichi – judging by the strength of her hand – she was wearing civilian clothing. She was wearing a sleeveless blue blouse with a tan-colored loose dress that fell just below her knees. His eyes softened when he saw the dark blue wristband that the family had presented her when she had graduated Uzushio Academy. With a pair of black Shinobi sandals, his little niece looked like a beautiful woman.

Kenshin felt himself fall backwards on his back, a hand instinctively coming up to cover his bloody nose as he spat crimson liquid at the ground. "That was totally unnecessary . . ." He slowly trailed off when he saw the tears brimming Kushina's eyes, which he noticed had faded to a dark violet instead of blue like his. He almost smiled; those were her mother's eyes.

"Who are you?!" She screamed in outrage, about to attack him until Hatake Sakumo intervened, catching Kushina by the waist as she began wailing with enragement. Kenshin could tell she was angry, furious, and the killing intent she was unleashing almost made him proud. "You're not Kenshin! Imposter! Minato – Minato do s-something!"

Kenshin stumbled back up into a stand. "Kushina, screaming like a banshee isn't very Kunoichi-like. I thought I taught you better than that," he spoke casually, though anyone close could hear the slight emotional quiver in his voice. He took a step forward, perhaps to embrace her into a whole hug – but someone positioned themselves between the Shinobi and Kunoichi.

Though Kenshin had a few inches on the male in front of him, the man was intimidating by his own rights. With spiky blond hair and icy blue eyes, he carefully held out a hand in a polite yet calm manner. Kenshin noted that his stance was relaxed, and a Shinobi in a relaxed stance was never a good thing for the opposing person it was directed to. "She's obviously lost and confuse, I ask that you give her room to breathe."

Kenshin blinked. "We are outside, boy. I am positive that anyone can breathe out here, there's no space out here for 'room'." He tilted his head to the side and grinned. "Unless you're her boyfriend. Are you her boyfriend? Oh my, I wish Masaru was present, by the time when he would be done with you, there would be no room left in your lungs to breathe."

A hue of pink flushed in the man's cheeks, which caused Kenshin joy. "Ahh, you are, this is so –"He was suddenly cut off when a chain of chakra entered his vision and he shot out a hand, grabbing the chain and jerking his hand forward. "Sweetheart, I know I taught you strategy, so here you go – you got this ability from me, which technically signifies that, well," he eye-smiled, "I'm better than you."

A flash of brilliant light startlingly blinded his eyes and strong fingers coiled around his wrist, and Kenshin felt his body once again lying back-first into the ground. "You Konoha ninja seem to have a thing for getting people on their asses," he muttered. "Geez, and all I want to do is sleep."

"You're not Kenshin!" Kushina was freely crying now, astounding the three little kids that had silently been observing. It was obvious that Kushina had gained Tousen's tough demeanor, her crying must have been very, very rare for them to have surprised expressions. "Masami told me he died!"

"He's not a threat, Minato." Sakumo said, ignoring Kushina's desperate banter as he held onto her, his sleeved arm wrapped underneath the woman's shoulders to stop her from doing anything reckless.

Suddenly, a huge, intense weight fell into the area as if gravity was pushing down on them. Kenshin violently choked and began coughing, his eyes widening at the man that was walking toward them, the white and red robes blowing lightly in the wind from a short breeze. Sarutobi Hiruzen looked slightly aged, with grey hair and brown eyes. This man was nothing short of a legend. There were ANBU and Jounin behind him, and Kenshin thought maybe that this confrontation was meant for him, but he noticed swiftly that the Sandaime Hokage's eyes were locked with Sakumo's onyx, expecting.

After a thick moment of silence, the Hatake leader lowered his head. "I failed, Hokage-Sama."

Everyone besides Kenshin seemed to freeze with dread, but the spell was soon broken by Hiruzen. "You . . . failed?" His eyes were closed. "How?"

"The information we had received inaccurate, Hokage-Sama. I was forced to choose between the mission, and my comrades," Sakumo did not look sorry as his steel black eyes roamed the sea of faces, "I chose my comrades, Hokage-Sama, and I do not regret it."

Ryo, who had been slowly, very quietly seething, spoke bluntly, "and he started the Third Shinobi World War!"

Kenshin opened his mouth, but then slowly closed it with a snap. Oh.

Hi no Kuni – Konohagakure no Sato – Konoha Torture and Interrogation Force Division – 1900 Hours

Konoha's Torture and Interrogation Force is a special division within Konohagakure headed by Yamanaka Inoichi, who had kind of attacked Kenshin with a black blindfold. People are often taken here and left in his hands in order to extract information from them through various means. Kenshin was pretty positive it was located in Konohagakure's Intelligence Division, but considering when the Sandaime had token notice of his Uzumaki poster boy's presence, he had immediately gotten a blindfold around his eyes and a silencer seal slapped onto his mouth. They had also stripped him to his boxers, which left him a little uncomfortable, he will admit.

So when he found himself locked onto a metal chair with Chakra Nullifying Cuffs and a horrible smell of metallic tint filling his nose, Kenshin could not be even more laidback by the outcome. He kind of expected something like this.

"Who are you?" A voice asked sternly.

Kenshin could vaguely feel other presences around him, and he smiled widely in return at them. "Why Uzumaki Kenshin, of course. Did the red hair throw you off or something?"

"Almost all Uzumakis' have been killed off by Iwa, Kenshin. How exactly are you alive, when the others are not?"

"That's a long, long story, Yamanaka-san. But how about you ask Kushina in the corner over there, she surely recognizes the seals of her father's creation." Kenshin tested the movement of his fingers from the binds of the cuffs, flexing their muscles before sending a blinded stare toward to where his niece was standing. "Well, Kushina? Y'know what, let us make this easier . . . Sweetheart, just ask me something that only I would know?"

He heard a huff, and a gruff voice flow through the room. "As an imposter, you could be receiving memories –"

"I thought that only Yamanaka were capable of such mind abilities," Kenshin raised an eyebrow. "You think very highly of my strengths, if you truly believe that."

"What was the first thing he told me when he first took me on my first dive at Michishio Cliff?" Kushina mumbled out, her voice low and throaty, as if rasped with tears and sadness. Kenshin closed his eyes from behind the blindfold and felt a sorrowful, strained smile replace his sarcastic one.

"Out of all things," he mumbled. "I said, 'It's traditional for Uzumaki to graduate and then come down to take their first dive, so just remember that most of everyone is forced into it so don't blame anyone for broken bones.'" Kenshin finished with a large grin. "And then you went to the hospital with a broken arm for your poorly Genin coordination skills, which earned me a punch from Tousen, by the way – that I did blame you for."

Silence. "What are the seals on his torso for, Kushina-Chan?" The voice belonged to that of Namikaze Minato, who Kenshin had accused of being Kushina's girlfriend. Judging by his tone of voice, he was interested in Seals, which interest usually meant he was efficient in theory.

"As you know, Seals that are imprinted on the skin are usually A-Level or above, the Confinement Seal is right there at S-Level. Hypothetically, the Seal is created for real, living humans. My father believed that someone would eventually come to attack us, which is exactly why he formulated it. The Confinement Seal is supplementary, which means that there are two categories it falls under. Protection and accession. So the Confinement Seal provides security as well as enhances the completion and process of existing seals and arrays." Kushina took in a deep breath. "And . . . And, well, you haft to know that the Seal, any Seal, has a conductor, or a conduit, that is kind of like a bridge between seals that actually manufactures a Seal into working. I don't know what Conduit he used, though . . ."

" . . ." Kenshin began chuckling before allowing his snickers to shift into full-blown laughter. "You, sweetheart, are definitely an Uzumaki at heart. That was a wonderful description, by the way. As you know, there are two sources of conduits. The past and the future, to put it mildly. Masaru only used the future, with purpose, and the Confinement Seal was activated and – boom! Here I am."

A snort echoed in the room. "This is why I never bothered with damn Fūinjutsu, its complicated shit," a snide female voice sneered.

"Complicated but very useful," Minato replied calmly.

"Whatever."

"Silence, Tsunade." The Sandaime spoke sternly. "So, say I believe you . . . this Confinement Seal, I am guessing that it confined you after eleven years? Right at the start of the Third Shinobi World War, is that coincidence?"

'But when you wake up, I want you to go kill those Iwa bastards, show them the true Uzumaki power and reveal to them the Testaments of True Warriors.'

"I suppose so, unless my brother could read the future, which would have been really convenient considering my family would still be alive." Kenshin blinked and squinted when the blindfold was ripped off, causing light to dilate his pupils before he could adjust. "Ow," he mumbled in complaint. When he could finally analyze his location, Kenshin took notice of the dozen people around the room, eerily watching him.

"Are you really Kenshin?" Kushina was leaning on Minato for support, her face splotched with red from both heartache and salty tears.

He eyed her and finally shrugged his shoulders. "It doesn't really matter what I say, does it, sweetheart? You believe what you believe." Even though his tone remained indifferent, his eyes held a desperate plea. Though luckily for him, Kushina was avoiding his gaze. Without a second thought, he watched as Kushina fled the room, closing the door behind her with an audible slam.

"I have no reason not to believe him, Hokage-Sama." Yamanaka Inoichi, now Kenshin noticed, was a young man around Kushina's age. He was perhaps five-foot-ten in height with blond spiky hair, though in a slightly short ponytail, and pupiless blue eyes. He was wearing standard Konoha Jounin gear. "His facial expressions indicated no lies."

"Why didn't you just use your little mind trick on me, Yamanaka-san?" Kenshin inclined his head to the side, wondering.

"Because out of all of the Uzumakis' I have been inside, they seem to be able to resist me enough to disperse the jutsu." Inoichi looked miffed as he spoke, as if he didn't like the fact that anyone could resist the Shintenshin no Jutsu (Mind Body Switch Technique). "But I do run the Intelligence Division for a reason; I do not need to unleash a family jutsu just for the sake of a meager interrogation."

Kenshin quickly decided that he liked this man. Inoichi seemed to have a calm and perceptive nature, which was held in favor of his Shinobi career. A ninja who is always level-headed is one of asset, after all. "You sound as if you do not like interrogating, Inoichi-san . . ."

"It's not the most favorable element of my division," he muttered. Inoichi turned to the Sandaime, then, and Kenshin watched with interest as it looked as if a telepathic conversation went through their minds. Finally, the Yamanaka turned back toward the cuffed prisoner. "What are your intentions in Konoha? Do you have any accomplices? Who and what do your loyalties lie to?"

"My intentions are nothing of threatening level; I merely came to see how Kushina is. No, as you know, my clan was wiped off the grid. My loyalties do, and will always lay to the Uzukage and my home, Uzushiogakure no Sato. No disrespect, Sandaime." When Kenshin felt the cuffs suddenly unsnap from his wrist, a sign of relief escaped through his lips.

"I will grant you free passage around my Village, Kenshin-san. But do not think you can do as you please, you will be supervised." The Sandaime Hokage, though he did sound threatening to a degree, lifted his mouth in a crooked smile. Hiruzen reached forward and placed a warm hand on Kenshin's shoulder from where he still sat in the chair. "But it is nice to see another Uzumaki. And going by your name, Mito talked very highly of you."

Kenshin stood up and stretched his legs. "Well I guess some proper introductions could be placed. I'm Uzumaki Kenshin," he shifted his attention to Minato, the man coming closer to where he stood in front of the redhead.

"Namikaze Minato," their hand shake was carefree yet very tense, causing Kenshin to grin widely at his caution.

"The name's The Great Jiraiya, kid, and dontcha forget it!" A hand, unlike the warm pat like Sarutobi had given him, jabbed into the middle of his back, which turned into a one-arm hug by a man that was surprisingly his height. "The Toad Sage Jiraiya of the Sannin!" Jiraiya was a tall man with waist-length, spiky white hair that was tied back into a pony tail, with two shoulder-length bangs that framed both sides of his face. He had crimson red lines that ran down from his eyes and wore a horned forehead protector with the kanji for 'Oil'. He wore a green short shirt kimono and matching pants; under which he wore mesh armor that showed out of the sleeves and legs of his outfit. His outfit was completed with hand guards, a simple black belt, geta sandals, and a red haori with two simple yellow circles on each side.

"A Sannin?" Kenshin felt a smile light up his face. "So you're Jiraiya? And your teammates must be Senju Tsunade and Orochimaru?" His eyes flickered over to the tan woman with sand-color blond hair, her golden eyes glaring at him with a feisty distaste. There was also the man with long ebony black hair, a pale white face, and a pair of yellow-slitted snake-like eyes. "Interesting," he commented.

"Say, say, Kenshin, you're an Fūinjutsu Master, yes?"

"That I am – well, I like to believe that I am."

"Well, me and you – AH! Hime~!" Jiraiya shouted in pain as the woman, who was wearing a white robe of what looked to be Medic-nin attire, grabbed his ear and began dragging the Sannin away, towards the doorway. "Waahhh ~ I wanted to show Kenshin around!"

"No!" Tsunade barked. "You haft to go fix that wall at the Hospital, it's your responsibility."

"What?! You punched me through a wall! How in the hell is that my responsibility?!"

"Maybe if you stop staring at my ass every time I turn around we wouldn't have this problem, you baka!"

". . . But you have such a nice ass, Tsunade-Hime . . ."

Orochimaru shook his head in his own pitiful sorrows at having idiotic teammates, trailing after them silently as pained yowls from Jiraiya echoed through the building. Kenshin quirked and eyebrow as the Sandaime as the elder chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly at his prior students. "They're not always like that."

"Been here, done that," Kenshin grinned. "I would, actually, like someone to show me around your Village, Sandaime-Sama, if that is alright with you. I have never personally been here before."

"Yes, yes, I understand. Inoichi-Kun, would you please show Kenshin-San around Konoha, just around the main area will do. And please, clothe yourself before leaving, I don't need anymore bothering paperwork than I already have." The Sandaime Hokage flourished his hat on his head without a 'yes, sir' or 'hell no' response from the Yamanaka, giving them a brief smile before exiting the room. Kenshin had to admit, for the man's age, he walked with prowess and grace, which was a very admiring aspect of a Kage.

Minato and the others that had been present, Kenshin noticed as he redressed, had left long before he had noticed which put Kenshin on edge. Tazuna had said that Konoha had been distinguished with special ninja with unique abilities and quick wits – but to have gone undetected without him noticing, well, it either meant Kenshin downright sucked, or he was still weak from the eleven-year time absent. He chose the latter for the sake of his ego.

Inoichi breathed out a disappointed sigh. He began sliding off his Jounin jacket, allowing it to poof away into a Storage Seal on his right wrist. He now stood in a dark blue jumpsuit, hands shoved in his pants pockets as he slumped back in a careless transgression. "Well, no offense to you, but this was not how I wanted to spend my late evening. Luckily for you," his aqua pupilless slightly lit up, "Konoha is beautiful at night."

Uzushio was beautiful too. The clouds held no meaning in the land of Uzu no Kuni, the stars were always visible no matter of how rough the weather. The grass never lost its vibrant hue. The air always smelled of aromatic flowers and sea water.

"Well I just hope they have vendors selling food," Kenshin frowned and finally sighed with defeat. "Free food, anyway." Inoichi sent him a look, but gave no audible response. Kenshin followed the blond man through unknown corridors, judging by the metal sealed doors on either side, he had to guess that this was the interrogation parts of the Intelligence Division. "Say, Inoichi-San, I see that all people among your Division wear uniform, why do you not?"

"I wasn't on duty when you were brought in, so I rushed here. So I guess you can explain my absence to my fiancé." Yamanaka Inoichi sent Kenshin a 'prepare yourself' look. "Maria-Chan is mild-tempered, but man, disturb a woman when she plans dinner out and it's going to feel like you're the roast in the oven."

Kenshin felt a shiver run through his spine but he clamped his mouth shut from a retorting comment. They finally exited the Division and he was met with the populous Konoha Street. "Behind us is the Hospital," Inoichi angled his body and sent an indication of his head toward the large building. "Convenient, I suppose, to have it so close, considering our profession."

"I'm sure that's why the Nidaime stationed it there." Kenshin examined around him, taking in the lamp post and lights that shined uncomfortably in his eyes. It almost made him sigh. Uzushio never had lights, the stars and moon had shone their path, even if that sounded horribly clichéd.

When Inoichi began marching lazily, Kenshin immediately followed. People going on with their daily, routine lives would turn and give him inquisitive expressions. Maybe it was his saddened expression, or his powerful stance – he liked to believe that one, or maybe his uncommon red hair that enticed attention in a crowd. Kenshin paid them no mind, staying in walking sync with Yamanaka Inoichi. He truly did like the Shinobi, even if there was a haze of suspicious haze between them, Kenshin admired the look in his eyes as certain civilians waved at him. Inoichi respected the civilians, it seemed, and he was infinite in protecting them, which was an absolute of true Ninja.

He listened to every word as Inoichi pointed Akimichi restaurants, which was a clan of Ninja that were known for their gift in composing the best meals in Konoha. Inoichi halted in his movements and gestured toward a building. It was large, squished between a shop of some sorts and another restaurant. "This is The Shushuya, me and my two teammates generally come here after missions for a few drinks."

Kenshin laughed lightly underneath his breath, watching as a few Shinobi themselves exited the dimly lit bar/grill. "Inoichi!" A man had sought out the pair and walked over; his posture screamed with such aloofness that Kenshin raised an eyebrow. "Troublesome," he commented after seeing the tall redhead. "You know I went to your place to get you to come get some sake, but to be called off on the job, what a drag. Well at least you got to meet another Uzumaki; I haft to say that's worth it."

Kenshin shifted when a few eyes were then drawn to him from passing wanderers that happened to hear those words. He studied the man before him, who was Inoichi's height. He had dark brown hair that was tied up into a spiky ponytail, small brown eyes small and calculating, and Kenshin saw knowledge hidden there – definitely a strategist, that look reminded him too much of Minoru. He was wearing standard Shinobi pants and sandals, along with a mesh shirt that looked to be just thrown on out of random. Kenshin noticed that there was a ghost of a goatee on his face, as well as his ears were pierced on either side.

The cigarette between his teeth moved as he grinned leisurely, holding out a hand that was slack in grip. "Nara Shikaku, Jounin, registration 005491."

Kenshin took the man's hand, shaking once. "Uzumaki Kenshin. And I must say, I'm almost honored to meet two prestigious Clan Head's in just under an hour."

"Well I'm honored you said 'almost' because if you hadn't, I wouldn't like you," Shikaku blew smoke through his nose and smiled. "I would say, 'Nice to meet you', but by your presence, I assume that a Council meeting will be called in under an hour at best."

"More than likely," Inoichi spoke before clapping his friend on the back. "Give Yoshino a greeting for me. I'll catch you later."

"Troublesome," Shikaku muttered. "Later." He shunshined toward to where Kenshin had to guess was the direction of the Nara Clan Compound.

Inoichi and Kenshin turned down a crowded street and he was guided toward a long building. There was a sign placed on the orange roof, Yamanaka Flower's. He didn't see anyone like this man owning a flower shop, but looks could be deceiving he supposed. The building was yellow in color, with huge puts of plants lining out in front. The arch of the entryway had no door, he noticed, and it longingly reminded him of Mina's Florist.

"This is my fiancé's Shop," he gave Kenshin a peering glance as they stepped inside; "we had it built when I asked her to marry me. Our apartment is actually on top. And she's probably on her way out right –"

"Inoichi!" A woman barged out from behind the counter of the store. She was exceptionally attractive, with brown eyes that looked auburn, and brown hair that was wrapped formally into a bun on her head with a red ribbon, strands framed both sides of her face, hanging over her ears from behind them. She was wearing a quarter-sleeved red dress with a yellow apron tied around her neck and waist.

And she also looked very unhappy, with her fist on her hips. "I made supper! And you left as if the Shinigami was on your heels! Is my cooking that bad?"

"No, no, no," Inoichi stepped forward and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I love your cooking! And don't exaggerate, I just shunshined out. I was called to work for a moment." He gave her a kiss and her eyes roamed to the awkward looking Uzumaki that just stood there, who was finding the cloudy sky interesting.

"Who's your friend, Inoichi?" She pulled back and offered Kenshin a genuine smile. "He's awfully handsome." He was pretty sure she said that just to see the flat expression that Inoichi sent her.

Kenshin almost flushed at her bluntness, but simply smiled back and offered his hand. "Thank you, mam. Uzumaki Kenshin."

"Uzumaki huh? My name is Yamanaka Maria." She slipped her smaller hand into his and jerked him down to her height so suddenly that Kenshin gulped. "Are you the reason, Kenshin-kun, that my Inoichi is late for dinner?"

"Uhh . . . No?"

Inoichi slapped himself in the face.

"Boy, don't you lie to me!"

Kenshin almost closed his eyes at her fierce tone, her eyes unwavering. Oh Kami, she looks too much like Kaa-san. Instead of Maria there in front of him, her looks changed: wild curly red hair, kind dark blue eyes, a gentle smile that held mischievous intentions. He used to make himself believe that her ghost would touch the left side of his face, like she would do when he was upset or crying. "I'm sorry," he finally whispered out, eyes roaming away from hers.

Maria unclenched the color of his grey shirt and gave him an unidentified look, her lips pinched tight as she studied him. Inoichi finally coughed in his hand, sending Kenshin a knowing sympathetic look as he grabbed his fiancé's forearm in a soothing grasp. "Honey, I'll be in for dinner very soon. I have something I need to show Kenshin-san first, okay?"

"You'll come straight home?"

"Yes."

"Well, alright." Maria placed a kiss on his cheek, giving Kenshin a kind smile and a wave. "Bye now, Kenshin-kun. Don't be a stranger, okay? You come by anytime."

"Thank you, Maria-san. I will." He brandished his hand in the air as a farewell gesture.

As she exited back inside the Flower Shop, Inoichi nodded his head toward the roof. "Follow me, Kenshin. I wanna show you something." As the Konoha Jounin jumped toward the roof of the apartment, Kenshin did as well, arms comfortably at his side. This had always been one thing Kenshin enjoyed doing anywhere. Roofs were Shinobi and Kunoichi restricted, meaning that they were the only ones granted to be on them. Civilians were never allowed, in fear of being hurt by a passing Ninja who wasn't paying attention, which was rare.

It was scarce that Ninja would ever feel important to people. They, like him, did missions, accomplished them with causalities, and came back with heavy weights on their shoulders – that was it, the end. And, humorously, out of all things, the roof tops made him feel significant.

Soon enough, Kenshin and Inoichi entered a perimeter of trees, which were damn nearly the size of buildings from back in Konoha. Unlike other Elemental countries, Kenshin had always heard rumors of Konoha's trees. They weren't called Village Hidden in the Leaves for no reason. Konohagakure no Sato, even Hi no Kuni, was bathed in rich, strong trees that dated back to the Warring States Period. It was truly astonishing.

"Inoichi-san! Where are we going?" Kenshin was almost growing worried. For all he knew, Konoha wanted no more Uzumaki survivors, and was sending Inoichi on a mission to take him in the middle of the forest for assassination. Though the sad part was, Kenshin couldn't stop him; he was still far too weak.

"You'll see," he called back. "We're almost there."

Using the last branch of a sturdy tree as a springing board, Kenshin did a frontwards flip before landing on his feet against the grass of the ground. He looked ahead of him, where the sun was setting gradually between the valley of two large hills, creating a vibrant red and orange hue in the sky. There was a river ahead of him, though there had been multiple ones running through Uzushio; this was the first one he'd seen in Konoha. He also noticed three posts in the clearing, but made no questioning comment about them – they were more than likely for training.

"This is it?" He frowned at the Yamanaka Clansman.

"No." Inoichi turned on his heel, head to the far left of the Training Ground they had ran upon. Kenshin's frown deepened when he saw where Inoichi was directing him to. The stone had been placed on red bricks, where it was surrounded by multiple flowers that people had left. The shape of the stone was strange, in the least. The base being large and the top being on the back of it, where it pointed traversal. "This, Kenshin, is the Memorial Stone."

"Memorial Stone?" Kenshin followed Inoichi's heels, eyes straying on the flowers and small tokens that were placed around it. "What is it?"

"It's a list of all Ninja that are KIA." Killed in Action.

Kenshin was now at the back, or rather front, of the Memorial Stone, gazing at the names that been marked down with a kunai or knife of some sorts. He looked at the Shodaime's, Senju Hashirama, and to the Second Hokage, the Nidaime, Senju Tobirama. "Wow, monumental, huh? I'm guessing it's been around since that Hokage Mountain of yours."

"I suppose. I couldn't really tell you." Inoichi jammed his hands back into his dark navy blue pockets and gave Kenshin an unfathomable expression. "There are some Shinobi or Kunoichi that come here during the time of day, standing here for hours staring at a name that they had lost in combat, or the previous war. You should know that Konoha Ninja are very loyal to their Village, to their comrades; we do not take forbearance from outsiders who could possibly be a threat to our village, to my village."

A fog of killing intent draped over Kenshin, and he only blinked and looked into Yamanaka Inoichi's alert eyes. They held a deep warning over the safety of Konoha, of his family, his friends – Inoichi wouldn't hesitate to kill him if he was a risk to his home. "Well, I do not think you will haft to fret over that," Kenshin said lowly.

The fog lifted. "Good," was Inoichi's curt response. "I'm glad we cleared that. I have to depart from here. There will be another Council meeting tomorrow, they will more than likely want to hear you statement from your . . . hm, predicament."

"Wait!" Kenshin crossed his arms. "The Third Shinobi World War . . . who's involved?"

There was demur in Inoichi's eyes, as if he was battling internally the right and precise words he should choose to voice. "Iwagakure no Sato so far, though knowing the stubborn persona of the other Kages, there will be more participants in this war."

"That mission, that Sakumo-san was on, why was it so vital?"

"Tread close, Kenshin. Keep this information indoors, please." The blond-haired Jounin shifted lightly to each foot as he stared at the Memorial Stone. "Hatake Sakumo was assigned an S-Rank mission with renowned importance. This mission was to be accomplished, he knew that failure would be of no tolerance, and he also knew that failure would be starting a war with Iwa."

"What was the mission?"

"There was a Fort located off the border of Iwa and Kusa. Understand that we were already unbalancing the tip of the scale with Iwa, but Hokage-Sama did not want to start a war, a truce was to be declared. The Sandaime wanted to be sure that Ōnoki wasn't going to deceive, or hoax, the truce into manipulative material. And by Intel from Jiraiya-Sama's spy network, there was a file of plans in the base of the Fort at the border. Sakumo-san's team was to infiltrate quietly, no signs of them ever being there – but they were caught, simple as that. And Sakumo was in reach of the file, he knew that his comrades would die if he continued to grab them and jump out the nearest window. So he chose the life of his teammates over a war."

Kenshin's eyes were deplored. "Do you justify his actions, Inoichi-san?"

Inoichi looked down. "If I had been with Shikaku or Chōza, I would have downright denied the mission. The Intel of the mission was shaky at best, the toll results in ninja had been wrong, there had been more than counted – Sakumo's team had been unprepared. And now Sakumo will be slandered for doing what was right."

The Uzumaki smiled briefly. "Yes, the costs of noble priorities are at lost nowadays."

"Is that what you did, Kenshin-san? A noble priority?" There was no accusation in his voice, but Kenshin felt his shoulders tense at the words.

He laughed into the night air, watching as twilight dusted the air with purple. "More like narrow-minded claims. I am a selfish person, Inoichi." Kenshin was met with silence as the Jounin stared at him with contemplating eyes. He finally shrugged. "It doesn't matter. The deed is done. I suppose I will see you tomorrow, Inoichi-san. Farewell." He held up a hand as he turned away, walking toward the outline of the forest, where the foliage would shadow his form in darkness.

There was a spike of chakra and then nothing, Inoichi had shunshined away from the scene.

"You do realize that once this is done, Uzushio will fall. By our hands." There were unshed tears in her blue eyes.

"It can be rebuilt," was his heavy response.

Kumiko casted her gaze downwards and laughed, though it was slightly coated with grief and bitterness. She carefully dropped her hand back to her side. "That it may, but never the same – never."

"Perhaps. It isn't as if we are going to cover up its scars, Kumiko. We'll feel them, hide them away, but never forgotten." His words hardly made sense in his mind, but they seemed to brighten her aura just a little bit.

"And I will follow you," Kumiko smiled grimly. "Uzukage-Sama," she added.

Kenshin made a sound in his throat. "That, my lovely cousin, is considered treason by Shinobi's law."

"Perhaps," she shrugged indifferently. "But either way, after all of this done and over with, we all know where the loyalty goes," her eyes met his, "to the leader who saved the Village. A hero. You, the Sandaime Uzukage."

"A hero," Kenshin trailed off and continued roaming down the dark, cavern-like tunnels. "Ridiculous. Have you seen our home? Is that what a Hero does?"

"No. But as you said, it will be rebuilt."

I was wrong, Kumiko.