Best Laid Plans
Arun
Chapter 7: Terror & Politics
Disclaimer:
What Kishimoto gaveth, he can always taketh away.f
"Sarutobi," Lord Watanbe, the Daimyo's closest confidant began after the pleasantries had been exchanged. "It would be best to have one of your advisors with us for this meeting."
The Third quietly rang the bell and asked his aide to call for Jounin Nara Shikaku. Officially, Lord Watanbe was in Konoha to show the flag, but the hasty nature of the unscheduled visit days after Ibiki's return from the capital meant that the stated reason to the contrary, he was in Hidden Leaf to discuss the threat posed by Suna and Oto. Furthermore, the hand-delivered missive from the Daimyo delivered by Watanbe in the morning addressed the issue, confirming the Hokage's suspicions. Consequently, the Third had wasted no time asking Konoha's resident expert on politics to clear his calendar for the day.
"The Daimyo is concerned about the raid," Watanbe said without prelude once Sarutobi introduced Shikaku.
"Damage would have been considerable had we remained unaware of the enemy's machinations for much longer. But we wised up to the conspiracy in time and we can prepare properly. Please inform the Daimyo that I have every confidence that Konoha will respond in an appropriate manner," the Hokage replied.
Lord Watanbe nodded.f
"That is good. The Daimyo will be pleased. He will, of course, leave the execution of the plan to you, but he requests that Konoha not exercise the first strike option."
"Certainly, it makes more sense to launch a pre-emptive strike if the Daimyo's concerned about damage to Konoha's infrastructure and wishes to minimize losses to his Ninja Corps," Shikaku asked.
Watanbe shot the jounin a glance that said he knew that the Nara was trying to fish for information and found such attempts unnecessary. He was in Konoha for that very reason, after all.
"It would," he replied. "But the Daimyo has in mind, shall we say, bigger fish to fry. He does not wish Konoha and Fire Country to be seen as the aggressors at this juncture."
"Ah!" Shikaku muttered. "The Great Game."
"Yes," Sarutobi nodded. To the Lord, "What does the Daimyo wish?"
"Only the impossible, of course," Watanbe replied with a wry smile. "The Daimyo would that Konoha make Orochimaru and his allies believe that we remain unaware of his plans. The actual raid must be crushed however, with minimal loss to the Ninja Corps."
"That is a tall task, indeed," Sarutobi acknowledged gravely. To lay a trap on the scale needed to crush a raiding force of over a thousand and conceal it would be all but impossible if the enemy were a fool. Against someone like Orochimaru, it required an act of God.
"But it must be done," the Daimyo's emissary and confidant insisted.
"Why?" Sarutobi asked. "I'm being asked to put the village, the civilians and my soldiers at risk. What purpose is served by this?"
Watanbe shot Shikaku a glance. They were now infringing on some very sensitive information and the less people knew, the better for all concerned.
"You may rest assured, Lord Watanbe, that Jounin Shikaku has my complete confidence."
"Yes, of course," the Lord replied, shooting an apologetic smile at the Nara. Still, he hesitated a moment as he weighed the risks involved. "What I say now is not to leave this room. There'll be war within the week if other countries were to learn of this."
"We understand," Sarutobi replied.
Watanbe nodded and cleared his throat.
"As you know, Tea country supplies Fire country with seventy per cent of our coal. The coal imports are of the highest quality and our steel industry is almost completely reliant on them. Tea country also has the strongest navy in the land. Their navy is much stronger than ours, in fact and they have forced many concessions from us in the past using their naval power as a bargaining chip. However, despite the trade, the common border we share, and the strategic synergies to be had, Tea country has been very recalcitrant towards forging closer relations with Fire country. They have, in fact, consistently refused any overture for an alliance in the military and political arena. Tea country continues to maintain close relationships with our enemies, moreover. Their intransigence, the lurking threat posed by their navy and their friendship with belligerent foreign powers has thwarted our political objectives and stayed our hand for the longest time."
"We're aware of this," Sarutobi replied, looking slightly mystified as to where Watanbe was going with his lecture. Everyone in Konoha of jounin rank and above knew about Fire's less than perfect relationship with their neighbor. One-sixth of all S-rank missions were infiltration or assassination missions within Tea country at the Daimyo's behest, after all.
Shikaku made the logical leap that the Hokage's shrewd mind refused to for some reason, however, and his eyes widened fractionally. It was a testament to the jounin's self-control that his reaction was so subdued to the thought that crossed his mind.
"Surely we aren't…"
Watanbe smiled.
"Surely, we are. The report on the Oto-Suna conspiracy said that a battalion of Oto nin – the majority of their forces for the attack – would be smuggled through Tea country…"
"It said maybe," Sarutobi corrected pedantically. The Hokage's demeanor screamed that he grasped what Watanbe had left unspoken so far and was not in the slightest amused by it. He seemed rather angry, in fact.
Watanbe did not reply to Sarutobi's rebuttal as well as his sudden change in manner, but Lord and Kage eyed each other, judging each other anew.
"Jounin Shikaku, would you please excuse us for a moment?" the Daimyo's representative requested without breaking eye contact with Sarutobi.
The Nara quietly stood up and walked outside, locking the door behind him as he did.
"Good, now we can speak frankly," Watanbe continued, after the door clicked shut, "Old friend, I know what you're thinking. You're under the mistaken believe this will not come to pass. But you are wrong. It will come to pass. In fact, it must come to pass. And at a time and place of our choosing. You've read the same intelligence reports as I and so you know that I speak the truth. This is without question the reason why I'm having a hard time reconciling your conduct now with the comrade who fought I fought beside so many years back. So, answer me this: Have you become so big a fool in your old age as to ignore truth when it stares at you in your face?"
The Hokage was silent for a moment as he framed a fitting reply of his own.
"Do you deny that this war you plan is a land grabbing operation driven by greed?" he retorted confidently. "Do you think me grown so senile that I would be swayed by your arguments without pausing to part the veil of illusion and see the truth hidden within? It is precisely because I have read the reports that I consider this warmongering."
"In answer to both your questions, I do not," Watanbe agreed in a solemn voice. "But you disappoint me. I expected you to be pragmatic and the visage I see before me is everything but. As to your final statement, I will reply to it with a question of my own. Do you deny that we face war a decade down the line?"
"No, I do not."
"Then would you rather we fight a war on two fronts with enemies at our front and on our rear? Does it not make sense to deal with one enemy at a time and defeat them in detail rather than fall prey to two enemies at once? We're simply precluding the latter possibility with this invasion."
"You aren't giving peace a chance," Sarutobi pointed out.
"Surely you jest. Or have you grown senile in your old age? No wonder the other villages gaily call Konoha a nation of tree huggers. Under your rule, I should expect the villagers to hug trees myself," Watanbe accused in a scathing voice. Then, in a reconciliatory tone, he asked, "Forgive my tone and poor choice of words, Sarutobi, but I'm having a hard time understanding the new you. What happened to the man who went by the motto 'prepare for the worst and hope for the best'? What happened to the master politician who could outdo the best of them? What happened to the brilliant and ruthless general who did his duty by his people no matter the cost to protect them from harm?"
"He grew old. He is tired. He has seen too much bloodshed and lived through too many wars," the Third replied softly.
Watanbe's eyes softened.
"Death is lighter than the feather. Duty is heavier than the mountain," he spoke kindly.
The Hokage sighed. He'd thought himself mentally prepared for war, but it looked like Orochimaru's re-emergence had affected him a whole lot more than he thought. But then, that was to be expected. He'd looked upon the boy as a son once as he had the other two sannin and had his love repaid with treachery. Betrayal by one's loved ones is never easy to deal with. Never more so than when you are old and with one foot more or less in the grave.
"In this, you have no choice, old friend," Watanbe continued in a softer tone. "This is a direct order from the Daimyo. In this, he won't be hindered. Refuse and he will make life unpleasant for you and for Konoha."
Sarutobi was silent in contemplation for the longest minute. Now that he knew the cause of his obstinacy, he could work with it to make decisions. The choice was obvious, but as Watanbe had said, the Hokage was a canny politician. That part of his mind sensed there were advantages to be had here and damned he would be if he missed a chance to milk the situation for all it was worth.
"Very well. Tell the Daimyo that it'll be as he wishes. He can have his war and I'll be his sword. In return, he has to promise me that he'll support my choice for successor."
"Sarutobi, be realistic. A person in the Daimyo's position cannot make such a commitment. Not on such a sensitive issue as this."
"I have to have his support, Seijuro. Covert will do, but I'm not averse to a little overt show of arms either."
Watanbe raised an eyebrow.
"It's that bad?"
It really wasn't, but you never could be sure when that last erg of influence can help turn the tide and win a battle. Especially since Danzo's star was on the rise and he'd been gaining prominence for some time. And while Sarutobi had nothing against the crippled ex-nin, he knew the man was a disaster in the making and could not be allowed to gain the Hokage seat.
"Danzo."
The Hokage's one word said it all to Watanbe.
"That old war hawk?" he asked, his eyebrows narrowing in concern. Danzo was loyal to the village and the country, but he was a direct man not given to subtlety, not to mention, a warmonger. He believed in peace, but with Konoha and Hi no Kuni dictating the terms. That wasn't necessarily bad given that the Daimyo wanted a war himself, but while Danzo was as brilliant as any tactician that ever walked the earth, his brilliance did not extend to politics and governance. He would win the battles on the field, run his nation into the ground simultaneously and ultimately lose the war. Not exactly what one wanted in a leader.
"Yes."
"He has wormed his way into the hearts of the council, has he? How?"
"Most of the honorable civilian councilors are attracted to him like a moth to flame. He promises them more power in the running of the village."
"They would, the poor fools. I assume he has no plans to share power?"
Sarutobi shrugged. Danzo was far more likely to execute the sycophants once they'd served his purpose than to share power with them. The man had a mindset that was best suited for the battlefield and was quite averse to the idea of power vested in incompetents. He had summarily executed samurai officers from noble clans close to the Daimyo in the wars of a previous era without regard for the political fallout for that same reason.
"Very well. I'll try to pull what strings I can with the Daimyo. But no promises."
"You get me his word that he'll support me. It needn't be a promise. But I want a guarantee that if things were to happen that would portray Danzo in a less than flattering manner, I would get unequivocal support from the Daimyo to replace the old coot."
Watanbe chuckled. Sarutobi must be very irked with his fellow nin to call him thus.
"That, I can do. But not if your opponents are as strongly entrenched as your words indicate. The Daimyo will only intervene in your favor if there's no clear winner in this political battle."
"This is acceptable."
"And Tea country?"
"Konoha will not launch a pre-emptive strike. It would help if you were present at the council of war and state clearly that the Daimyo does not want to risk war with Earth or Lightning."
"I can do that."
"That's settled then."
"Yes. By the way, the Daimyo wants you to lead the ninja detachment on the field during the invasion."
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Sarutobi replied, especially since he planned on doing it anyways. After all, what better method to catch someone like Danzo than to let him think the nest was empty and he could come home to roost. "I'll call in Shikaku," the Hokage added, almost as an afterthought.
xxxxx
One look at the inside of the house had the three genin puking their guts on the floor. Kakashi was made of sterner stuff, however. He had seen worse – though not by much and even then only because of the scales involved – during his childhood war. He walked into the room and grabbed the lone survivor – a boy who could not be older than seven years old – with the thousand-yard stare. The kid did not so much as move a muscle when the jounin lifted him. Perhaps the cruelest thing the killers had done was leave the boy alive to live a sick life that wasn't, Kakashi knew. Just like Itachi had, a thought came unbidden into his mind as his eyes roved the bloody mess inside.
"Naruto," he said, handing the child over to the blonde genin, "take the boy outside. Put Sasuke on guard and have Sakura do what she can for him."
Naruto took one last look at the room as he walked out, memorizing the horrifying vision inside. His eyes glittered with cold fury at the butchers who'd done this and he looked ready to kill, which was not far from how Kakashi felt himself.
"Tazuna-san," Kakashi said after exiting the poor family's house, making way to the bridge builder, "I want you to take charge here. Organize them as you will, but start forming neighborhood defense squads with able-bodied men."
"As you can see," Tazuna replied, waving his hands at the dozen or so men who stood seething nearby, "we're fresh out of brave men."
Tazuna had a point, even a good one, Kakashi had to admit. The erstwhile goons of the late Gato – they had finally discovered his fully cooked, decapitated head tucked into a badly deformed metal cabinet – had committed the atrocity in a densely populated neighborhood with hundreds of families. With such numbers on their side, one would have thought they'd sent the murderers packing, but everyone had stayed hidden behind closed doors while a whole family was murdered in cold blood and even now, only a few dared show their faces outside. The jounin understood their behavior was the natural outcome of Gato's rule of terror, even if he had never been so disgusted in his life.
"You're brave and so are these men," Kakashi replied. He pointed at one of the bystanders as an example. "Look at the fire in those eyes. Can't you see the thirst for vengeance and justice there?"
The men moved forward, hearing Kakashi's words.
"Find more like them, Tazuna-san," the jounin continued fervently, "there are always men like these. And if you find none, flee this blighted land. Wave country does not deserve to exist otherwise."
Tazuna nodded and left with the men. Kakashi looked them walk away with purpose in their steps and knew there was hope yet for the people of Wave. He turned to his students to find both Sasuke and Naruto looking expectantly at him.
"Sakura, take the boy to Tazuna-san's house. See if you can find out if the boy has any surviving relatives," he said. The jounin knew he did not want to leave the damaged kid with any surviving relatives, but it never hurt to find out what his connections were before he taking him back to Konoha.
Sakura nodded but made no move to obey. Kakashi knew that if the traumatized kid wasn't around, she'd be staring a hole into her teacher following the example set by her teammates.
"Naruto, Sasuke, I want you to scout the neighborhood. Find out if anyone saw anything."
"The spineless bastards witnessed it, all right," Sasuke replied, gritting his teeth. The scene inside the house had brought back memories of that fateful night when his brother massacred the Uchiha clan. Only where his inhumanly powerful and very insane brother had been an unstoppable juggernaut, the butchers who'd done this were nothing more than weak scum. If the people in the neighborhood had banded together, the killers would have fled, but no one had. As a direct consequence of their cowardice, a third family had paid the price in as many nights.
Kakashi did not say anything in reply. This was neither the place nor the time to lecture one's students and Sasuke wouldn't listen anyway. Not on this subject, at least. Not that the jounin faulted him for being the way he was. Itachi's hands had shaped the boy's personality and his foulness would forever taint it.
"Once you've interviewed any witness who willingly comes forward, you will advance on the camp the bandits have built on the outskirts of the town. You will report to me the layout of the camp, the number of men in it, the security and other relevant observations this evening at Tazuna-san's house at 6PM sharp."
"What are you going to do?" Naruto asked.
"We're going to teach the murderers a lesson in terror. Now, leave me. I have to take care of certain things."
xxxxx
"I received word yesterday that Konoha would be dispatching an ANBU squad to deal with the law and order situation here in a more permanent manner. It'll be at least two more days before they arrive here, however. They're responding to a message I sent nearly a week back on the day Gato died and the situation wasn't this bad then," Kakashi explained once Naruto completed his verbal report on the bandit camp.
"Does that mean we'll do nothing but scout and gather intelligence?" Sakura asked.
Sasuke stopped whetting his blade and glared at Kakashi, daring him to agree with Sakura. The jounin shot the raven-haired genin a cheeky smile in return.
"No. We won't wait that long," Kakashi replied. True, there were long-term gains to be had by securing Wave's goodwill towards Konoha, but the jounin felt the same way his students did about the murders. It was good then that both political goals and his personal feelings were aligned this once. They rarely were in the life of a shinobi.
That got the attention of all three genin.
"The plan is to terrorize these feckless vermin. We will remind them that what goes around comes around."
The three predatory smiles that blossomed on the faces of his genin was all that Kakashi needed to see. Clearing his throat, he gave them explicit instructions about what he wanted done, underscoring that he did not expect the boys to carry out the last part of the plan alone by themselves. He assured all three of his genin that they were not ready for the task that lay ahead yet – most shinobi never were – and left them alone to prepare for the hunt.
xxxxx
"You sure you want to do this, uke?" Naruto whispered. "We can take turns, you know?"
It was two hours past midnight, and Naruto and Sasuke were hidden behind a tree some yards from the bandit camp. The rogues hadn't ventured into town tonight, probably because most of them had gotten stinking drunk and could not stand on their feet. If they had known they were being hunted, they would have been less lackadaisical about security, but they did not and Team 7 were about to make them pay for it.
"It would bother you to kill these bastards in cold blood," Sasuke pointed out.
"Not that much," Naruto replied, remembering the dismembered corpses and naked rape victims strangled to death or killed in any number of equally gruesome ways.
"You can desecrate the corpses?"
Naruto did not answer. He did not have to. Sasuke knew perfectly well that the blonde would not. But Sasuke could, thanks to his brother's parting curse and lesson.
"I guess I'll stand watch while you get your jollies."
"More like a duty that I'll relish," Sasuke replied without any vehemence and turned his attention back to the camp. Soon, the hunt would begin and come sunrise, yesterday's predators would learn they are today's prey.
xxxxx
"Danzo," Sarutobi said, greeting the one-armed veteran with a single nod.
Danzo entered the Hokage's house without a word followed by Koharu and Homura.
"The village," Sarutobi began once everyone was seated, "is once again at dangerous crossroads."
"We wouldn't be in this predicament if you hadn't allowed his escape," Homura accused.
"But he didn't and we are," Danzo noted. "The past is behind us and the future ahead. The present confronts us now. Will you do what needs to be done this time, Sarutobi?"
The Hokage grimaced inwardly. Frankly, the night he let Orochimaru escape was not exactly his greatest moment and the room's other three occupants had never forgiven him for letting the traitor go because of fatherly love.
"I've learned my lesson," the Third said, honestly and truthfully. Two of his opponents today were as politically experienced as he was if not as savvy, and the third just knew him. Sarutobi understood it would not do to lie to this crowd because they would catch him even before the sentence was completely out of his mouth. But there are many ways to catch fish and he knew just the lure for this bunch.
"Pre-emptive strike?" Danzo asked, taking Sarutobi's word to mean the end of discussion on that topic.
The Hokage shook his head.
"The Daimyo doesn't wish it."
"Any ulterior motives?"
"War."
"Ah," exclaimed all three elders at once.
"Can't be Rice country. Too close to Earth and Lightning," Koharu mused.
"If not the latest thorn in our side, then an older one," Homura appended thoughtfully.
"And Tea country is the biggest small nuisance of them all. Poses the greatest threat to our economy with their navy in the long run and their Lightning allies, too," Danzo added.
The three looked at the Hokage questioningly and he nodded in agreement.
"But what pretext are we going to use?" Homura asked.
"Aiding and abetting the enemy. My prodigal student's plans to smuggle his men through Tea country will be our excuse."
"It'll have to be after the fact," Danzo commented, frowning in deep thought. "Lightning will not accept anything else."
"Yes, but that's all for the future. The most pressing question is how best do we turn the raid into a trap?" Homura asked.
"And what kind of trap would best serve our long-term interests?"
"It's something to think on, anyways. Nara Shikaku is already working on the task of activating and training the reserves for the chuunin exams and after. In the meanwhile, I wanted to work on tentative tasking plans for the invasion force. I know we are supposed to leave this to our subordinates after giving them due direction, but the plans must be made in utmost secrecy. This is why I called you three today," Sarutobi said, eyeing his three fellows.
Koharu sighed and stood up to fetch some tea. It was going to be a long night.
Early next morning, as Sarutobi was seeing the three of them out, Danzo paused at the threshold and turned to his sometimes ally and oft times opponent.
"You better see about bringing your other wayward student back to the village. If there's to be a war, who knows how many lives her medical knowledge will save."
"I would if I knew where she was," Sarutobi replied, regretfully.
"Give me a couple of weeks. I'll find her for you."
The Hokage nodded. As Danzo walked away, Sarutobi reflected back to his plans for the man and shook his head. For all that the crippled ex-nin managed to irk him and the two of them were more often at odds on the political arena than not, the Hokage personally liked the old cripple. Too bad circumstances had pitted them against them against each other because of their opposing philosophies. The Third consoled himself with the thought that sometimes, sacrifices had to be made of even the best stock for the greater good. Danzo with his head full of unrealistic nonsense would surely lead the village to damnation if he were not stopped and there was only one to stop someone as determined as him.
xxxxx
He called himself Katana Katsumoto. He was one of few expert swordsmen in Gato's coterie of mercenaries, but his real claim to fame was sadism, rape, torture and murder, any of which he could do at the drop of a hat. The men knew he was an old hand and respected him for his ruthlessness as well as experience. They acknowledged his fearlessness in the face of danger and accorded him the same treatment as any of the more dangerous men in the camp. Some of them even called him boss.
But while he was all the above, Katsumoto was also an early riser. So, when Katsumoto screamed himself hoarse after waking to the sight of an exsanguinated and very decapitated head whose eyes bereft of eyelids seemed to look right into his soul, he awoke the whole camp. In other tents as well, men woke to find nine more of their neighbors slaughtered pitilessly in their sleep, terror and panic spread through the ranks of the murderous thugs like wildfire.
Thus did Gato's survivors learn that the hunt was on and they were no longer the top predators in the neighborhood.
xxxxx
Author's notes:
This chapter is a filler that sets things in place for events that happen both in the short run and the long run. The Wave mission is now truly over – I may refer to it in chapters to come, but there'll be a little time skip between this chapter and the next one – and I think I've managed a reasonable portrayal of Sasuke, the killer. I hope so, anyways.
Link to map of Naruto's world can be found on my profile. Oh and Team 7's mission on this chapter is not a filler. It will have consequences for the plot.
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