Chapter 5: Revelation
Disclaimer: This is my second story on , so... here you go! I'm going to mess a lot with the timeline, so don't be surprised if you see something that doesn't exist in the original timeline. I should have said this sooner since I already made young Naruto into a slightly different person in the last chapter, but I kind of... forgot. I do not own the characters of Kishimoto-sensei in any way and form, and I do not own the few Latin quotes that will pop out here and there. I however own the plot and the Ocs, as well as the description of some places and the characterization of some less-known characters in the original anime/manga.
EDITED MARCH 30 2016 (I did it again. Went from a meager 3K to a 10K+ chapter. I'm so, so sorry for everyone who'll be reading the next few chapters. Go ahead. Wince and the unedited-ness of it all. Until I find enough time to edit that chapter as well, that is.)
-Naruto-
It was stupidly comic, Naruto decided, when the silence stretched out for a full minute, with in-between three gasps, five choking sounds, two blinks, and an uncountable number of poor attempts at speaking.
It was odd, being the one usually on the flustered end of the stick and having Tsunade smirking at the other, but it was something Naruto could get used to. Watching the other blonde struggle to breathe was strangely satisfying, a hand at her chest and eyes wide open in incomprehension, respiration ragged while keeping down the flush at her cheeks, and Naruto let her suffer for another thirty seconds before stepping in.
"I might use the name, but really, I'm only a half at best and I've been only once to Uzushio, so I'm not as informed as I should be." The lie slips past Naruto's lips surprisingly easy with a moment's thought, because after all those years she can spew tales of flying pigs as if she was talking about dinner. But this was only a deviated truth, half of a lie but not quite, because while Naruto is half Uzumaki she'd been thrice to Whirlpool, and the letters sealed away safely in her wrist had been detailed enough so that she might as well be Uzushio-raised.
There hadn't been much left when Naruto had returned to her mother's lands, but that was the first time, when she'd been more dragged there than anything because it had been barely a year after Jiraiya's death and he'd promised to go with her.
The second time had been for a mission and perhaps also because of the guilt eating away at her heart, for Naruto wouldn't abandon the slightest chance at a family she has always dreamed about. The ruins hadn't changed at all, except the ever-growing vegetation covering up the last bits of a once glorious town, but Naruto had looked, and found she did - a few trinkets, a hair clip small enough to be that of a child, an Uzushio hitai-ate salvaged from a playground, lost jewelries made of seaside stones and patterns she had only seen in books before - but most of all she had found bodies, already decayed and buried under fallen buildings, some others in plain view in the middle of streets, and far too gone to give the city any resemblance of its former beauty or the haunting ghosts that must have lingered.
But the third time had been the charm, because Naruto's hair had been colored with strands of crimson a shade darker than Uzumaki, and the setting sun had seemed to turn the collapsed and dirtied white walls and the red tiled rooftops into a sea of glistening fires. The view had been simply mesmerizing, the streets clear where the light shone, for the bodies had been identified as best as she could have with the help of several documents stashed away in what had been the last Uzukage's office, the corpses buried in a massive graveyard dug a mile away, and those damaged beyond hope burnt in a single breathe of fire.
All because Naruto had grown in the two years between her second and third visit, because she'd been much closer to gaining the title of Seal Master, she had looked again, heart lighter and a call at the back of her mind to guide her, and had found the Uzumaki's entire existence under the tip of her fingers. It had ignited with a touch - the smallest of brushes and the lingering chakra of a clone dissipating - and the seal had echoed under her hands, in synchronization with her entire being, worming its way into her body and searching until it had found what it identified as Uzumaki.
It had called upon hundreds of others, seals similar to the one Naruto had found, flashing yellow in the unmistakable chakra only her clan possessed.
After the third time she hadn't gone back ever again, not because of lack of opportunities but because Naruto's mind had been at peace, scrolls thought lost decades ago tucked into her backpack and memories fresh with ancient wars and a bustling city of gold and crimson and shining white under the sunset.
Naruto will always be more of Kushina's daughter than a Namikaze, and maybe a bit of Iruka's and Kakashi's or even Jiraiya's, but after her visits and the weight of a swirling hitai-ate on her arm she's just as much a descendant of Whirlpool.
It was the same for Tsunade, Naruto realized.
The sennin had even less Uzumaki blood in her, a generation away to being a half like Naruto is, and the Senju blood of her grandfather had always seemed to be stronger. But Tsunade had known Uzumaki Mito during her youth, when the woman had but a streak of silver in the bloody sea of her hair, still young to pass on the essentials of an Uzushio princess; and even weathered by the years it was apparent to the knowing eye, how still today Tsunade's poise and calculated stubbornness, the slant of her eyes and the determination in her steps spoke of the city overlooking the endless sea.
So Naruto looked, turning her gaze back to the woman from where it had wandered to the windows, and surely there was a storm, still brewing but already raining thunders and blanketing the amber of Tsunade's eyes.
"A half, you say..." the older blonde muttered, and Naruto nodded, still amused.
"Yes, half Uzumaki from my mother's side. She was an Uzumaki through and through, red haired and incredibly quick to blow a fuse. She was...beautiful."
A tender smile crossed Tsunade's lips. "Beautiful, huh? Yes, she must have been."
The iryo-nin leaned in closer, inspecting her patient's features carefully as Naruto silently let her do so. The golden orbs scanned her thoroughly before pausing on Naruto's strangely dual colored hair, part sunshine and part warm fur, and a hint of suspicion fizzed before leaving Tsunade's expression clear.
"Well, that milky tanned skin and rounded jaw is certainly Uzumaki, alright. But your father must be one hell of a beast, I've never seen a half Uzumaki with any less than a head full of red," she proclaimed, and Naruto knew it to be Tsunade's own roundabout way to say yes.
She chuckled anyway, secretly relieved and taken by surprise at the jab at her own father - whose hair was more of summer crops and a savage when it came to protecting anything dear - and Naruto found herself leaning back until her shoulders were pressed against the soft pillows, her hands gripping at her stomach and a thunderous laughter exposing her throat as she threw her head back in mirth.
"Oh, you have no idea."
It took a few more seconds for her chuckles to die down, but it was mostly because her stomach had started to hurt and she didn't need reopened wounds right now. Already her bandages felt a bit soggier than they should be, and even Naruto, with the minimal crash course she'd gotten after she'd been deemed severely lacking in medical knowledge, could tell that it wasn't really a good sign.
"So you're not from Uzushio?"
"No, I was born in a village not far from here."
Tsunade nodded, accepting the simple answer. She figured her mother was probably one of the survivors after Uzushio's destruction. But thinking of the city she'd been to a handful of times when she was more than two decades younger put a smile on the sennin's face, and it's with a much lighter mood that she bid Naruto goodbye.
"It's been a pleasant conversation, Uzumaki-san. But now I have another patient to visit."
"Naruto."
Blinking in slight confusion, Tsunade stared at the other blonde's grin.
"Just call me Naruto, Tsunade-san."
It wasn't long before the she answered the joy in Naruto's gaze with a smile of her own, and turned to head to the door. She offered Naruto another glass of water, which the Uzumaki accepted gracefully, before picking up a stack of papers on the low table and placing her chair back by the windows.
"Then Naruto, please call me Tsunade."
She twisted the doorknob, pushing the door open with a fluid movement before pausing in the doorway, leaning back halfway and looking back at Naruto.
"Oh before I forget, the Hokage wishes to talk. Expect a visit."
And she walked out, the door clicking into place with the shudder of a lock.
Flabbergasted, Naruto froze, hands still in mid-air between her lap and her face, the cup in her grip shaking dangerously. A shiver ran through her bandaged form, clad in a loose hospital grown, and she ordered her quivering arms to deposit the goblet before an accident could happen.
She'd been locked in.
Her, Uzumaki Naruto - and she grimaced at the way her brain already referred to herself as a female - had been locked inside a hospital room.
It hadn't happened in a long time, she mused as she brought her knees to her chest and trapped her legs between her arms over the blanket. No one had ever cared enough to do it, and she'd figured they'd rather have her dead than anything - and Sakura, by the time she had the authority to do so, hadn't had a hospital to work with anymore, not after Pein and Obito, not after Madara. Especially not now, not ever, because Sakura isn't even alive yet.
And as Naruto trembled and huddled closer to the headboard, forehead resting on her knees and eyes desperately shut, she knew that it wasn't what bothered her truly. She knew how to lie, even to herself - had done so since she was conscious of her own actions, because otherwise she'd be no better than Gaara had been - and it hurt more than she'd like to admit, because she was Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto and she was strong, damnit, she should be, but somehow those words seemed empty even in her own mind.
The truth had sank in the second she'd woken up here, because after years of battle Naruto was anything but slow, and it hadn't troubled her then. But now, after seeing Tsunade whom she knew to be alive in this time but her brain keeps telling her that she should be dead, and the mountain with only three faces when there should be five, and Konoha was bustling even when barely a year ago it had been razed to the ground and even if it was different it still smelled like home like Konoha should and it was messed up and Naruto didn't know what to think.
She was messed up, Naruto supposed with a bitter smile, and it was the biggest lie of all, now that it was only Sasuke and her.
Only the two of them, not Sakura, not Sai nor Kakashi or even Yamato but only Sasuke and Naruto, and it felt like a betrayal she couldn't explain.
-Sasuke-
It hadn't taken long at all, really, to wake up and to detect the presence right beside his bed.
It had only been another second before Sasuke had been ready to jump up and kill whoever dared to sneak up on him during his sleep, because the small, almost untrained chakra tinted with the distinctive green of medic-nins couldn't possibly be Naruto. He had stretched out his senses, straining his already tired chakra pathways, but once it had expanded to a somewhat acceptable radius it had been easy to spot the blinding beacon of sunshine.
It was only the room right across the corridor, but somehow it was as if it would take longer to cross than the entire Elemental Nations in length.
Sasuke mused, his muscles tensing and twitching nervously. He was restless, knowing that his Hokage was less than twenty meters away, not counting the walls separating them. And judging by the few 'hidden' chakra signatures nearby and the not so hidden one in the room, he wasn't going to get anywhere, anytime soon. At least he could still try.
But that had been without counting his inconveniently unresponsive limbs, and so Sasuke had been stuck in this bed for the past hour, feigning sleep and trying to figure out what he was doing in a hospital of all places - because he was sure the last one standing had been all the way in Kiri and abandoned for a good two years - and the person who was in the same room really didn't help.
Out of necessity - and partly boredom - he had done a quick assessment of his body just as he'd been drilled to. It wasn't anything big considering his current near paralyzed state, but his mind itched to do something and it was the most convenient and easy thing that wouldn't blow his cover.
But nothing could have prepared him for the weight pulling him down where it shouldn't have, and even though Sasuke's brain had been fogged and quite dizzy it still registered very, very quickly what had actually happened to his body.
It had taken the last thirty minutes to swallow that huge ball of what the hell, but he eventually made it. Well, maybe he was still screaming internally and wincing at every of his brain's attempt to address himself as a member of the opposite - and wrong - gender, but it was hardly anything to fret upon now that he wasn't going to murder the closest living creature within his reach. Because unlike Naruto Sasuke had known time travel had to have some kind of consequences, and if it was a gender swap then she'd accept it gratefully if it meant the world wouldn't be imploding on itself anytime soon.
He cringed again at the slip, but figured that she would eventually get used to the change.
It was just weird to have his mind thinking as a male and his body - and brain - on the other side of the spectrum, so for now he'll ignore it and let it happen. She wasn't nearly energetic enough to debate such things.
Figuring out what to do next had been a tad bit trickier though, and it gave him a headache just to think about it - Sasuke suspected it had something to do with his current immobile state and the dull pounding at the back of his head - until she remembered exactly what happened the last time she'd been awake.
And then it's been incredulity and anger and worry all mixed into one, thickening into her throat until she had to swallow in down in fear of it spilling out. She was in Konoha, and somewhere deep in her she itched to scream and to tear apart the village that had ruined all of her, to yell and to demand redemption for all that Konoha had taken away from her, for Itachi and Naruto and Sakura, and maybe even Kakashi, because if it wasn't for this blasted village they'd all still be alive and smiling.
But the biggest part of her worried for her Hokage, for Naruto who hours before - or days, but she didn't dare think of such a time - was bleeding out and still dying even in the past, and she was irritated at herself who couldn't do anything but watch, to defend even as she was pathetically weak.
'Weak,' his mind added, 'Pathetically weak, and you dare call yourself his protector?'
Sasuke gritted her teeth at the reminder of how a single tap to the neck had taken her out, how she hadn't been able to even detect the movement, and she clawed at the sheets as discreetly as possible when she wanted - needed - to get up but her body just wouldn't listen.
"Ah! You're awake?"
The voice startled Sasuke and he almost raised his arm to choke whoever it was, but as she was she couldn't do anything but twitch, irritated.
By the feel of the chakra and the high pitch of her voice, the person was a young girl - perhaps around ten years old - with minimal medical training. There was the sound of clothes rustling right by his head, joined by a chair scraping the floor - Kami, hasn't anyone told the girl how dangerous it was to act like that around wounded shinobi?
Suddenly there was a warm hand on her forehead, and Sasuke wrestled down the urge to frown at the foolishly indiscreet act.
"You don't seem to have a fever. Want some water?"
Irritation chew at her tongue, almost lashing out if not for the iron grip Sasuke had over her own movements.
"Hey, can you hear me?"
Having enough of the chit-chat, Sasuke groaned before prying her eyes open. The first thing to meet her gaze was a thin arm, attached to slender frame and a rounded face, dark chocolate hair framing wide eyes and purple markings on each cheek.
"Aha! You are awake!"
But Sasuke stared, silently gaping, because the only girl she knew to have rectangle tattoos and a cheeky smile was dead for nearly twenty years, and this girl can't be - shouldn't be - Kami, Sasuke prayed, because if this really was the Academy student version of Nohara Rin then fate must really hate her.
Suddenly she was really thankful for the closed curtains, because otherwise she wouldn't know how to hide the bloody red tint her eyes must have right now, halfway between Sharingan and Mangekyo and only held back by sheer will.
Sasuke knew that she probably shouldn't be getting so angry over someone's face, but she'd always been prone to hatred, to blaming others and this was no different even if she knew it was horribly wrong. This wasn't Itachi, not the clan elders who attempted a coup d'état nor Danzo who had ruined and broken Itachi and herself in the most horrid ways. Rin hadn't committed any crimes, not now in the past and never in Sasuke's future, but she had been the reason of Obito's insanity and Kakashi's mourning, and in Sasuke's eyes it was enough.
It shouldn't be Rin's fault that Obito had loved her, it shouldn't be Rin's fault to have been sealed with the Sanbi, it shouldn't be Rin's fault to have decided to commit suicide by Kakashi's hand, it shouldn't be - but it is, because she had gone and died and messed up Kakashi and Obito and the entire world in that same decision, and Sasuke couldn't help but to abhor the little girl who was cowering before her burning gaze.
It was an injustice Sasuke knew all too well, to be blamed and to blame, and it was Itachi and Sasuke and that horrible night reeking of the Uchihas' blood all over again.
Thankfully the raven pulled her attention back to Naruto's chakra, her stare redirected at the offending door, and a little sigh of relief escaped Rin. Sasuke stubbornly kept her eyes away, refusing to look at the other occupant of the room, and that seemed to have given the younger girl enough courage to speak up again.
"Hmm, water...?"
Sasuke huffed, almost denying the urge to accept, but her parched throat was threatening to burn a hole through her neck and her body was sore enough as it is. She reluctantly nodded - at least the surge of emotions have given her back some mobility - and a full glass of water was unceremoniously shoved into her face, half of the liquid spilling over on her blanket. The raven blinked, then scowled.
"You know, I thought I was supposed to drink and not bathe."
She caught a furious blush out of the corner of her eyes before Rin scrambled to get her a pillow, lifting her awkwardly with her frail arms before dropping her back onto the bed. She had at least caught on Sasuke's predicament soon enough to slide an arm behind the Uchiha's neck and propping her head up, pressing the goblet to her lips and tilting the glass to make the movement easier.
It was as undignified as it could get for Sasuke, but she choked back the snappy comment in favor of gulping down the liquid to soothe her throat.
When she was done the younger girl didn't waste a second to pull back, all but slamming her down into the pillow and crushing the glass in her grip. For a moment Sasuke thought the ringing in her ears may just make her head explode, black spots dancing before her eyes for a minute until her vision refocused. She groaned, painfully rolling onto her side and gripping her hair, keeping her head between her arms and under the blanket, willing the headache away.
"Ah-! Sorry I didn't mean to do that! Are you alright?" The distressed call just made it worse, the tone too high-pitched for Sasuke's liking, and she buried herself further into the sheets with a frown.
"Umm... What should I do? Do you need pills? Ah, there should be some here-"
"Would you just shut up?" Sasuke hissed, not unlike a wounded feline, and the room fell silent.
"Oh, umm... sorry." This time the volume was noticeably turned down, and she heard Rin sit back dejectedly on her chair.
The silence stretched on for several minutes before Sasuke, feeling bad for being unreasonable - not that she'd ever admit it - peeked out from under the covers, black eyes inspecting the small girl sitting before her.
Rin was staring at the floor, hands clenched and brow furrowed, and Sasuke could see and smell the faint trail of tears on her marked cheeks. She didn't regret snapping at the girl, because Rin deserved it for being so reckless around a seasoned, weary shinobi, but somehow the reaction reminded Sasuke of another girl, barely three years older and hopelessly infatuated with her - when she'd still been male - and suddenly Sasuke thought of hot pink cropped short and cherry blossoms, of gentle hands and a dauntless temper, emerald eyes and a rare smile - and Sasuke's reaching out despite the ache in her entire body, bandaged fingers curled and softly pressing on warm skin.
Sasuke wiped away the small tear gathering at the corner of a brown eye widened in surprise, and pulled back just as quickly, an unknown emotion swimming in her chest and constricting her lungs.
She refused to offer an explanation and the confused inquiry in the brunette's gaze, instead turning away with a frown and trying to go back to sleep.
The room fell silent again, less uncomfortable and more relaxing than it was awkward, enough for Sasuke's mind to settle down and for her muscles to uncoil with the tiniest surge of lightning chakra.
It proved to be harder than usual with her chakra coils recently burnt out and only beginning to replenish, her chakra levels fluctuating like crazy and mostly preoccupied with keeping the steady rhythm of her heartbeat, but the result was well worth the exhausting effort.
Almost instantly relief coursed through Sasuke's body. The burning sensation on her skin was gone, replaced with the freshness left by small crackles that danced for all but a second, and the scorching pain of her wounds as well as the whizzing she could barely hide were now back to a somewhat manageable level. The ANBU outside the window flared his chakra, enough to tickle Sasuke's senses, but it dropped down again after seeing that there were no threat.
Sasuke blew into the pillow, pressing her cheek against the soft material, and was grateful for the almost luxurious comfort. Performing that thing out in the wild was much more uncomfortable - while handy, the small lightning output has a tendency to create electricity, nothing big but enough to make just about everything stick to her.
It was a trick passed down to her because her hands had burnt and her palms sizzled with the leftovers of Chidori, after all of her arms had felt numb and boneless on the rocky ground, for who else than Kakashi would wait until the worse of her suffering had passed to tell her the miracle solution?
And of course, since Sasuke had never been known for her luck - very much unlike Naruto - it would just happen that Rin had been the calm before the storm, because the almost silent footfall and the chakra probing and poking at her own was undeniably familiar.
A quick rap at the door and three more seconds was all the time Sasuke had to brace herself for the oncoming headache.
The chair made another abysmal sound as Rin jumped up from her seat, and the raven didn't need to turn around to know that the brunette's face was flushed crimson and her arms rigid beside her body.
The Academy student's surprised cry only confirmed Sasuke's budding suspicions, for all the names and titles that existed in the Elemental Nations it just had to be his.
"Hokage-sama!"
-Third Hokage
Sarutobi Hiruzen. God of Shinobi and current Hokage, born during the First Shinobi War and nominated during the Second.
He was known for many things, both good and bad, and for the same reason the amount of nicknames he had earned stretched well beyond a few decades. Hiruzen was feared and loved, a duality that wasn't uncommon in the shinobi world, but for all that he was Hokage Hiruzen isn't a patient man.
Collected and calm, perhaps, and insanely powerful even if he had outlived by many years the usual shinobi lifespan, but he'd always been missing a few levels in the short meter he called forbearance. It showed in his intolerance to paperwork, his hastily made schedule, and his habit of doing things a bit too promptly.
That was exactly why he was currently pacing in the hospital lobby, hands clasped behind his back and frustration etched on his features. It was an unusual sight, for one he was rarely seen anywhere outside his office, and second the slim yet potent killing intent he was radiating was as far from the usual grandfatherly figure as it could ever be. Oh, but he wasn't feeling murderous. Not at all: rather, it was a complicated mix of resignation, a sense of obligation, dread and strangely enough, excitation.
'There's no denying it now', the Hokage thought. His boredom has finally led him to relinquishing his duties - paperwork, to be exact - and here he was, terrorizing the entire hospital staff in attempts to calm down and vent his, well, whatever he was feeling.
The nurse at the reception looked positively terrified, Hiruzen noted. While it wasn't anything to be smug about, it was still satisfying to see that he hadn't lost his edge, chakra-wise, that is.
He walked around the hall twice before finally glancing at the clock, and barely held back a groan.
Four thirty-five in the afternoon.
Twenty minutes since he'd stormed into the hospital and another five before the time Tsunade had told him to come.
He paced some more - no, as Hokage he did not fidget - and was somewhat aware of someone nervously offering him a seat, somewhere between his internal set of curses and the rhythmic tapping of the pen in a nurse's hand.
Kami, but five minutes had never felt so strenuous before.
The sound of heels clacking on the tiled floor had never sounded as good as it did, and it was with barely hidden eagerness that Hiruzen turned to face his student.
They stared at each other for a few tense seconds, neither willing to speak first. Finally Hiruzen breached the silence. "Tsunade."
"Sensei. Early, I see. I felt your chakra all the way to the third wing," she answered humorlessly, a frown in place but something dancing in her eyes, and Hiruzen frowned at the strange display of conflicting emotions, similar to his own.
"Ahh, I supposed you would. I take it they...?" He trailed off, somewhat surprised at his own forwardness. What was he doing, already revealing his inner thoughts? This isn't like him, who usually beats around the bush a bit too much for anyone's liking. Really, he was only impatient in the safety of his own home, and so this unplanned slip was something he could frown upon.
However it seemed like Tsunade didn't notice, to his relief, as she was too engrossed in her own thoughts, a faraway look in her eyes.
"Tsunade," he called, and the woman jumped, as if surprised. The Hokage sighed indulgently, somewhat worried at what could trouble her so.
"Oh, yes, yes, the report." She stated, before turning around and leading her sensei down a hallway with a wave of her hand.
"This way."
Tsunade waited until they arrived into another hospital wing, reserved for high-surveillance patients, before speaking when it was only the both of them and the ANBU stationed outside the window.
"Both patients are recuperating wonderfully. It will take an approximate month for a full recovery, but I don't doubt they'll be fine by half that time."
Hiruzen arched an eyebrow, disbelieving but knowing better than to question her judgment. "Two weeks, then? That's rather quick."
He was met with silence, and it was unnerving. It couldn't be anything good, coming from Tsunade. The woman was much more focused even on a bad day than she was right now, and she had seen too much to be disturbed by anything, really. Being head medic of a hospital in a shinobi village and fighting on the frontlines during the Second Shinobi War had taken its toll on her, what with Dan and Nawaki, but Tsunade was too strong to let it get to her even if it came close, too close sometimes. Until now, it seems, for the kink in her pose and the slight shudder of her shoulders sent Hiruzen a message that he was too familiar with to break her out of it.
"Sensei..." Tsunade stopped again, before sucking in a big breath and pausing in the middle of the corridor.
"You know the blonde one?"
The Sandaime blinked before nodding, the image of a blood-soaked girl with Hachidori hovering over her popping up in his mind. She had been hardly blonde when he had seen her the first time, but perhaps it was more due to the mud and the blood caking her hair than natural colors.
"She..." her voice trembled, dry with emotions, and Hiruzen braced himself for the worse. His mind supplied him with the word 'dead', but he smacked the thought away, too confident in Tsunade's skills to begin doubting her.
"She's from the Uzumaki."
It was barely above a whisper but Hiruzen caught it, and was suddenly pulled back by an unknown force hitting him square in the chest.
It couldn't be.
Not now, not again, not so soon.
Not only ten years after Uzushio's fall, half a decade after Kushina and barely three years after Mito's passing.
An Uzumaki.
It was incredible, impossible, but something in Tsunade's eyes, in her determined stance, the hint of a dimple and the lift of an eyebrow convinced him more than words ever could.
And it clicked.
The chakra levels, the injuries, the whisker marks, the dark-haired kunoichi's protectiveness.
An unknown Uzumaki, with hair as bright as the sun and three possession marks on each cheek, a guardian of the same age and eyes that turn the darkest of reds - and Hiruzen clawed at his chest, almost as if he couldn't breathe, as if the world has turned upside down and everything changed, for the better or the worse.
He felt a cool, hard surface against his arm, and only then he realized he had staggered until his entire fame leaned wearily against the wall.
"Sensei?" A voice called him, and it took him a while to identify it as Tsunade's.
hospital. Tsunade.
Uzumaki. Uchiha.
"Sensei! Calm down. You need to breathe. In and out. Slowly," the medic-nin ordered, voice stern with an undertone of concern, and a small part of Hiruzen scoffed at the childish treatment.
Still, he gritted his teeth and forced air into his lungs as evenly as possible, careful not to gulp in too much to avoid overloading his system. It took him a few more seconds to compose himself before he dared to speak, not used to hyperventilation anymore after years of pernickety calculations and Hokage duties.
"Tsunade," he began, voice still trembling under the strain, "Is any of them awake yet?"
The blonde woman eyed him anxiously. "I don't know about the black haired one, but I've talked to the blonde, Uzumaki Naruto. For the other -"
A flare of chakra cut her off, the smallest of lightning with a hint of midnight leaves freshly burnt, and Tsunade sighed.
"Awake too, it seems."
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded grimly.
"Her first, then. I'll get to Uzumaki after that."
The head medic acknowledged his decision, before handing the older man a set of keys.
"I'll be off then, sensei."
She walked away, feet slightly unsteady to the Hokage's trained eyes.
He called out just before she rounded the corner, "Oh, Tsunade? Prepare a room. We're soon going to be welcoming back a cranky jinchurikki."
The key slid in easily, breaking the heavy silence that followed the three rapid knocks on the wooden frame.
A creak and the door opened, drawing out the scraping of the metal-covered corners on the tiled floor.
Sasuke met an inquisitive gaze with a determined stare.
The white robes of the man were strangely out of place in the hospital, which preferred light and tight uniforms for easier movements. The foliage of barely graying hair under the imposing hat was somewhat of a shock, if not for the wizened, sagacious look the brown eyes bore, sharp and commanding veiled by a screen of doubt.
Sasuke knew she was waist deep in trouble.
Sarutobi slid his gaze to the trembling girl beside Sasuke's bed, and suddenly his features stretched into a kind smile. "Ah, Nohara-san. How is training treating you?"
"Won-wonderful, Hokage-sama!"
Sasuke watched with unease as the man stepped inside, an easy expression in place. "Working hard, I see."
The brunette straightened even more, if that was possible, and gasped out, "Hai, Ho-Hokage-sama! I do my best!"
She was answered with an odd but fond gaze. "I'm glad to hear it. Though I hope it wouldn't be too much trouble for you to go help at the reception? They are quite busy when I arrived," the man asked, not even bothering to cover up more his command, and Rin quickly executed a clumsy bow before hurrying toward the entrance.
"As you wish, Hokage-sama. Have a good day!" She all but bolted outside. The sound of her footsteps in the corridor grew quieter by the second, until all was left was the chirping of a few late birds and the rustling of the sheets as Sasuke shifted. At least Rin had the presence of mind to shut the door behind her.
The Hokage seemed at first to let his attention catch on every surfaces, glancing at the walls, the few paintings and the jug of water on the desk, the dust forming intricate patterns on the windowsill under the gentle push of a summer wind. At last his eyes landed on her again, and by then Sasuke was ready.
"Sandaime-dono, I presume?" she asked, and the older man's eyebrow lifted at the unusual title for one of his rank.
"It isn't hard to guess, what with that girl's reactions. Please, have a seat." Sasuke gestured toward the empty chair that Rin had dragged a few feet from the bed, and the shuffling of clothes were the only sound in the room until the Hokage was comfortably settled.
"Then I will skip the formal introduction. However, while you are quite aware of my title, I still have no information on your identity, kunoichi-san. You also appear to have little consideration to your situation, if I so believe."
"I have my reasons." The plain answer and the emotionless expression on her face puzzled Hiruzen, but he kept his face neutral.
"I fear you'll have to be more precise than that, kunoichi-san. It is no small matter for an unknown shinobi of your caliber to suddenly appear in our territory, and until you can prove otherwise we have to assume you to be the enemy. I'm sure you can understand?"
It wasn't much of a question than a statement, so Sasuke didn't bother agreeing. She didn't have much choices anyway: as it is she had almost no chances of escape - not if she wanted to lay low - and her priority at the moment is to keep Naruto safe. If she can gain a powerful ally in the process, than she wasn't going to work against that.
Konoha can go to hell for all Sasuke cared. However, as much as Sasuke despised the Leaf it was Naruto's pride, Naruto's precious village, and in return Naruto was Sasuke's home; so keeping Konoha at the top of her priorities meant a happy Naruto, and that was all Sasuke will ask for.
A small voice whispered that even if it wasn't as important Konoha was also Itachi's, and for those two reasons she will throw her life away in a heartbeat for the village.
Sasuke was also far from stupid, less prone to impulsive decisions than Naruto no matter how the blonde has calmed down since their younger years, and so the raven understood very well how valuable having the current Hokage on their side was. Because knowing her Hokage - Naruto, since the blonde was Sasuke's Hokage - they were not just going to sit back and wait for the inevitable to unfold, and having the Sandaime means having Konoha behind their backs.
Beside, Sasuke reasoned, the Leaf will also serve well to keep Naruto sane and kicking.
The raven shifted, making herself comfortable for the upcoming and much dreaded monologue. "Very well, Hokage-dono."
"You will have to excuse me for withholding some information, but I'll give you what I can." Her smirk chilled Hiruzen to his bones.
The azure barrier of a silencing seal that rose with a wave of his hand startled her, but the serious glint in the man's eye silenced her.
"Then let's start, Uchiha-san."
Well, looks like she's neck deep in troubles now.
-Naruto-
"Naruto-nii!"
He spun around, a grin already in place. "Konohamaru!"
The younger boy - man, now, fifteen with the same smile of six years ago - ran toward the blond, his ever-present teammates following closely behind.
"Naruto-nii! Look at what I found!"
The title of 'boss' had been dropped when they had graduated from the Academy, but the meaning and the affection hadn't been lost at all. Naruto braced himself for the flying tackle-hug he received from three bundles of joy, and their growing frames almost sent him crashing to the ground.
"Woah! There, there, excited aren't we?" He asked, laughter bubbling inside his throat. But he frowned internally. Something was... wrong. Out of place.
"We found this super cool katana on a guy from Oto!" Moegi said, her arms wrapped protectively around the weapon.
Udon sneezed. "We got it after we defeated him!"
"It was super cool! Moegi got him with one of her senbon and Udon had those chakra string thingy! And then, I, the hero, jumped from the tree and kicked him right in the forehead! And the guy went down like this! Paf!" Konohamaru mimicked the movement of a body hitting the floor with his hands, arms flailing wildly.
Naruto chuckled and ruffled his hair. "A congratulation is in order then, Kono-kun, Moegi-chan, Udon-kun. But before let's put your report in Tsunade-baa-chan's office, ne? Then I'll treat you all to Ichiraku for a successful B-rank."
The entire team cheered, throwing their arms in the air, and Konohamaru ran forward whil Moegi and Udon grabbed each of his arms.
"Eh? Guys, what are you-?"
"Naruto-nii! You're coming with us!"
"Wha- hey! I have things to do!"
"Nuh-uh! You're coming, that's final!"
"Pretty please?"
Suddenly he was faced with three pairs of wide, glistening puppy eyes, and Moegi managed to even make her lower lip tremble with the slightest of emotions. And as he always did he caved in.
"Urgh, fine. But we're going to we real quick, got it?"
They answered with a chorus of 'hai', but Naruto knew that he was going to be dragged around until sunset. They marched forward, Konohamaru yelling at them to be faster.
Udon tugged on his sleeve.
"Yes, Udon-kun?"
"Naruto-nii, could you teach us to use the katana?"
Naruto pondered a few seconds, but could't see much harm in doing so. "Well, I'm pretty busy, but I'll see what I can do. I have to see what kind of blade it is though, I don't work very well with long katana or chokuto."
Moegi halted in her steps. Naruto looked down, only to have the carefully wrapped weapon thrust into his face.
"Here!"
He smiled at her and muttered a 'thank you' before picking up the sword and resuming their slow walk. He unraveled the cloth around the handle and pulled, and the blade slid out of its sheath easily without a sound.
Naruto whistled, impressed.
"A beautiful tanto you have there, Moegi-chan. The blade is sharp and well-cared for, and the metal is chakra conductive. The design is simple, but the balance is perfect. Comfortable grip too, but you'll have to see with your own balance. I'd say it's one of the best you can get for a starter sword, but for training I suggest using a wooden one. No use dulling the blade yet," he commented, and the duo clinging to his sides stared at the tanto, visibly fascinated. Even Konohamaru had slowed down to listen to their conversation.
Naruto slid the blade back into place and secured it with its bindings, before handing it back to Moegi. They walked a few more minutes in a comfortable silence.
"Naruto-nii, do you think it cuts well?"
The blond blinked in confusion before looking down - they didn't quite reach his eye-level yet, though it wouldn't be long. Naruto wasn't exactly the tallest of their age group, and the trio still had some growing to do.
"Uh, well, the blade is quite sharp so yeah. Why the sudden question?" He tried to look into Udon's eyes, but the brunet stubbornly kept his head down.
He felt a tug at his other sleeve, so he turned to Moegi. She didn't speak.
Suddenly he realized that they had stopped walking all together - Konohamaru too had halted, hands still clasped behind his head - and the streets were strangely vacant for a summer afternoon.
"Moegi-chan? Udon-kun? Kono-kun? What's wrong?"
"Naruto-nii, what did it feel like?" the orange haired girl finally spoke.
Udon added to her question, "Did it feel good?"
Naruto was feeling increasingly uncomfortable with the heavy mood. "Hm, guys? What is going on? This isn't funny."
Moegi held his arm in a vice-like grip, sending shivers of growing alarm down Naruto's spine. "What's going on?"
Udon finally craned his neck to gaze into Naruto's eyes, and the Uzumaki barely held back a scream at the empty sockets oozing thick, black liquid, dripping and sliding down a strangely pale neck.
"The sword, of course. The slashing and the killing - the blood drenching you like a fountain - how did it feel?"
"Wha-"
Moegi cut him off. "I bet it felt really good, right, Naruto-nii? You held it in your hands after all, when you killed us."
The blond was about to answer with a vehement denial, and he jerked back only to find his feet glued to the ground. He looked around, desperate for an explanation, but all he found was emptiness and a Konoha that shouldn't be this quiet, this red - oh Kami, was this - was this blood dripping from the rooftops?
"Naruto-nii," Moegi purred, "Look at me."
Strangely Naruto found himself unable to refuse, like detached from his own body, and it was with clenched teeth and widened eyes that he took in the deep gash running from the right corner of the girl's mouth to the beginning of her leg, almost bisecting her diagonally.
The wound was still bleeding, soaking the girl and his arm in her blood, and Naruto screamed for her to let go as he struggled in vain.
"Are you afraid? You shouldn't be. You did all this after all."
And a red haze fell as the air glowed an eerie crimson, the summer sun fading into a waxing moon. His senses were assaulted with the stench of blood and decay, and a wetness at his feet made him look down - to witness the puddle of blood he stood in.
"No, no, no, what is this it isn't real stop stop stop-"
But he couldn't deny the wakizashi in his left hand, the black and blue hilt and the Uzumaki swirl painted a dirty red, Hakuhio and the hum of power it radiated in his palm.
Couldn't deny the mangled arm hanging at his side and attached to Udon's crushed body, half bloody and skinned, revealing his bare muscles and his innards hanging from the sword gash crossing his stomach, couldn't deny Konohamaru's form at his feet and the fresh, warm liquid on his face, and the stretch of his lips as he howled and cried and yelled and gripped at his hair in despair.
Naruto let his eyes wander in crazed frenzy until his gaze landed on the glass window of a shop, and he trembled and cried because all he could see was redredred and so much blood and a single, dark form with hair of summer crops and warm fur dyed the color of death.
Naruto stared back, tears dripping down his chin.
"Naru-kun..."
Oh no. It couldn't be - oh no, no, no, nononono not her - and a pale and fragile hand tugged at his pants and he could see her in the window's reflection.
Lavender and so sweet so cold and empty sockets where there should be a gentle gaze, and he looked down and - Kami forgive me - because Hakuhio's glistening blade was right through her forehead.
A broken sob escaped Naruto's lips.
"Hi-Hinata?"
She smiled at him cruelly, and he felt something tear at him and scream in his ears.
"Naruto-kun..." She grinned. "Is it fun?"
And then it was only white noise and a kind of buzzing and it went empty because when he looked again, the streets were clean once more.
No Konohamaru, no Moegi, no Udon, no Hinata.
But there was Konoha with her bustling streets and Hakuhio and Yomi in his hands and himself staring from the glass of the window.
And Kami, he was red-eyed and whisker marks thick and carved into his skin, hair highlighted by strands of Kyubi red and eyes narrowed in satisfaction.
An insane glint in his eyes, a soft whisper at his ears - go ahead, it said, enjoy - and he felt his face stretch, canines digging into his lower lip and he was smiling.
"Yes, Moegi-chan. It cuts very well."
And there were hands around his arms in a vice-like grip, a question in his mind and voices - Kami so many voices-
"NARUTO!"
He stumbled. There was a wetness on his cheeks and dripping on his hands and a kind of numbing dampness and the smell of warm fur under the sun.
He choked back a sob.
'Ku-Kurama?'
"Yes, kit. It's me."
He buried his face into the warmth pressing against his skin, desperately, clinging to it with clenched teeth and eyes squeezed shut.
'Kurama, what...?'
"Shhh, kit, shhh. It's ok. It wasn't real. It was a dream."
It was like a bucket of cold water had been thrown over his head, and he sniffed as he trembled, nails catching on cold, sweaty palms.
'A dream?'
"Yes kit, a dream. Nothing more."
'But, but, Moegi? And Konohamaru? Udon? What happened? Konoha, so red, and, and, Hi-Hina - oh Kyuu -'
"Shhh, kit, it's ok. Konoha is still here. The kids are fine."
Something pressed against him, murmuring into his ear, and he leaned into the temptation. Carefully, he took away the blankness over his senses, letting the smells and the sounds come back to him once more.
"See? Everything's fine."
And he heard bells chiming - a soft laughter - and smelled fresh air and leaves, the sweetness of candies and the bitterness of medicinal herbs, the breeze passing by and the distant calls of children.
'Is this all...?'
"This, no. Not a dream. This is real." A familiar weight curled around Naruto's shivering frame, soft hairs brushing his skin. "This is very much real. But that, that... vision. That was a dream. Not real. Never real."
"It never happened?"
"Never. Promise." Something humid and wet pushed at his chest - Kyubi's muzzle - and whiskers tickled his sides. But Naruto was too cold to care, even as heat spread from the tails around him into his limbs.
'Ok. A dream. Only a dream.' A deep breath, and the smell of amusement and concern and fire drifted to his senses, a calming balm to his screaming mind.
They stayed like that for a while - how long, Naruto didn't know or care - until he blinked, then groaned and wished he never had to resurface ever again.
'Thanks, Kyuu,' he breathed, an embarrassed flush heating his face.
A deep rumble echoed against him, and the muscles under his head quivered, indicating Kyubi's laughter.
"No need, kit. Now get out, the monkey's calling you."
He barely had time to yelp before the floor under his feet gave way to emptiness, like a void sucking him in and it made his head turn and his stomach drop. A flash of colors and she was gripping her hair and muttering curses under her breath, her skull throbbing and heart pounding at the unexpected leave.
"Urgh, bastard just had to toss me out..."
"Maa, I don't think I've done any tossing for you to curse me to hell and back, Uzumaki-san." A voice devoid of any humor answered, and Naruto flinched at the proximity before locking up her muscles in an attempt to not turn around and jump the three meters between them and kick with her less bandaged leg and send the intruder out the window on her left, already open with an angle of thirty-six degrees to the West facing -
Something warm and slender poked at her, not quite touching but familiar as it tangled with her chakra, all green leaves and hazelnut mixed with a hint of fireflies, and the tension bled out until she was wary but awake enough to not be as hostile. She realized it was the other's chakra mingling with her own, coaxing her to relax.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."
The low tone was too familiar to be possible, and curiosity seized her mind, scratching and pulling until she gave up and lifted her head from her knees, prying her eyes open just for the slightest glance and -
Oh.
Oh.
She swallowed dryly, feeling like she had just messed up immensely. "...Sandaime-sama."
The man offered her an unimpressed look before coming closer to stand and the end of her bed.
"Well informed, I see. I won't however say nice to meet you, Uzumaki-san."
How true, Naruto thought. It wasn't nice at all, to have him there yet not the same, looking at her as if seeing a stranger - which she is in his eyes - and it tugged at her heart when she remembered how the Hokage - her Hokage-jiji - used to hug her indecisively but protective all the same. How his broad and tired shoulders would weight heavily on her smelling of his pipe, how all that would - had - broken her out of her daze and her childish, curled form when the villagers got especially bad.
But she still couldn't stop the remorseful grin from spreading, and it was with too much bite that she answered, "The pleasure's all mine, Hokage-sama."
She didn't know who was more surprised, the Sandaime at her tone or herself for the small pool of anger in her stomach - because the man had gone and died, damnit, died and hadn't even given a proper goodbye - so she cleared her throat, wishing the awkward atmosphere away.
The Hokage hat tipped under Sarutobi's fingers as he readjusted it in a fidgety manner, not that anyone would know seeing his collected behavior.
''Uzumaki-san, I won't be beating around the bush. Your presence is...disconcerting, and I believe you and I both know the consequences of going on too long without proper answers."
Naruto nodded hesitantly, vaguely concerned about the man's resigned tone. She hid a grimace when a shard of glass dug into her palm, having long identified the wetness on her lower half as the water contained in her previously half filled and very much unbroken cup.
"I'll be asking directly. Who are you and why are you here?"
The blonde blinked owlishly, not believing her ears.
'That's... rather sudden.'
She felt Kurama snort at the back of her mind.
'That's an understatement to the obvious, kit.'
'Well I don't see you giving me an answer without blowing this up spectacularly, so help me or just shut up and let me think already!'
The giant fox gave her a mental slap on the head, which she replied with a petulant pout.
'I don't see what's the problem. You just have to spill everything to the monkey.'
'Yeah right. I'll just go and tell him that I'm the Kyubi's jinchurikki who also happens to be the child of the not-yet-Yondaime and of the current jinchurikki? That I came from a past where the five Nations allied to face a not-so-dead Madara and a not-so-crushed Obito who wanted to dominate the world and make it a better place by projecting the Sharingan on the moon and enslaving the entire world to an illusion? That I somehow died but didn't and met Amaterasu - a goddess, may I add - and somehow traveled to the past disregarding every law of the universe since, like, ever?'
'The man had to put up with a hyperactive, malnourished, ill-mannered, street-rat and probably insane five years old version of you. I think that deserves some merit,' The vixen reasoned.
'And get thrown into a cell with ANBU around every corners for insanity and breaching the security system as well as infiltrating 'enemy' territory? I don't think so!' Naruto yelled, almost tearing her hair out in frustration. Now that her hair was longer - way longer - she found herself wincing just a bit more when she pulled on them. At least she doesn't have to deal with her own claws sinking into her skull anymore.
Kurama grumbled tiredly. 'He's smart. Beside, I think it's worth it. If he's on your side than our job just got a lot easier.'
'If he isn't?'
'Then I think you and the Uchiha brat had spent too much time running away to be caught now. He'll soon be too busy with the war anyway.'
Naruto... well, Naruto didn't have an argument to counter that. She sat silently for a few minutes, well aware of the gaze piercing right through her side, before she came to accept Kurama's suggestion with a frown.
She untangled herself from the wet blanket and straightened her legs, popping herself upright with the pillow nudged between her back and the headboard.
'Might as well give it a try.' She ignored the feeling of the nine tails grinning.
"Hokage-sama, what I am going to reveal is a secret that will be detrimental to the fate of the world should it come to light. Can you swear to not tell anyone on Inari-sama's name?"
Naruto was pleasantly surprised, if not a bit wary, at the way the Sandaime seemed to ponder for only a few seconds before motioning to his ANBU with signs she easily recognized.
Don't attack. Safe. Wait for orders.
The decision had been made too hastily, if she judged by the way she had known the man to act back in her youth. It was as if he already knew something he shouldn't, and it worried her.
Hiruzen inhaled deeply before stating, "I, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, pledge on O-Inari-sama's name."
Well, if he was so sure of his decisions, then she wouldn't hesitate any further.
She channeled chakra to her left hand, vaguely feeling the protest of her coils as she strained them while they were still recovering, but it was well worth the unbelieving expression on the Hokage's face.
The silver tattoo faded in and out as the colors began to distinguish themselves from her skin, saturating and darkening until it was all silver strokes and elegant swirls intertwined with the heavy chakra of the burden the seal carried.
Foregoing all caution, Hiruzen stepped forward and grabbed her forearm almost harshly as he leaned in closer to study the careful artwork. Naruto let him, managing to keep down her instincts to jerk away.
"You. How can you have this?" Sarutobi inquired, a bit breathless but taking it better than she had hoped for, and Naruto smiled wistfully, internally relieved.
She performed a few hand signs with her free hand, noting with hidden glee at the widened eyes staring at her shaky movements.
Leave. Confidential. For Hokage only.
"Wha-"
"Hokage-sama. It's for no one, not even your ANBU." The man seemed hesitant to comply, so Naruto sighed and decided that it couldn't do much harm to reveal a bit more of her knowledge.
"Si vis pacem, para bellum."
Suddenly the Hokage tensed, and the ANBU hidden on the ceiling shifted and was about to leap out of his cover when Sarutobi motioned for him to stay put. The Sandaime looked at Naruto with something akin to wonder in his eyes before turning back and making hand signs of his own.
Leave.
His guards were undecided at first, but caved in under Hiruzen's insisting gaze. All it took were three brief flashes of chakra, compressed and suppressed to unimaginable levels, and the chakra signatures were gone.
Naruto stiffened at the lifted eyebrow directed at her.
"Okay now?"
'It's now or never, kit.'
Not needing more prompts, she sucked in a gulp of air - that smelled sweet and sterile with the lingering scent of leaves - and tried unsuccessfully to calm down her pounding heart.
"Yes, thank you. Now, as you already know from Tsunade-hime, my name is Uzumaki Naruto. I'm sure you are already aware of my background story. However, I would like to rectify a few details. Before I came here, my name was Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, heir of the Uzumaki and Namikaze clan. And I have this seal because, well... I am, or was, the Rokudaime Hokage."
Si vis pacem, para bellum: a latin quote meaning 'If you want peace, prepare for war'.
It's meant as a hint to Sarutobi for what's about to come.