Letter
"They're on the move again, this time towards the Sand Village." Tsunade leaned forward in her chair, observing the room of shinobi. Since the Third Hokage's death they'd had to relocate these hasty meetings. Hiruzen had provided them with a well defended room in his home, protected by wards and far from surveillance. Now they met underground in the Hyuga complex. The byakugan proved an invaluable defense against potential surveillance.
"At this point can we confidently say it's the jinchuuriki they're after?" Kakashi folded his hands in front of him. Rin met his glance, the concern evident in her brown eyes. He smiled weakly at her from beneath his mask.
"They've sent teams to shadow every one of them aside from Naruto now. I think it's safe to say they are."
"How is Naruto doing? He's only a child..to be taken from the village.."
"He'll be safe for now under Jiraiya." The slug queen rubbed at her temples, eyes closed.
"That ties Jiraiya up though. We can't rely on him as a spy any longer." Hiashi Hyuga crossed his arms over his chest, glowering at Itachi.
"Removing him from the village should have been discussed-."
"I will fill Jiraiya's role." Itachi broke in, ignoring the accusation. "Now that I can no longer return to the village, it's the obvious solution."
Kakashi leaned in to the Hyuga patriarch.
"Hiruzen had just been killed...Itachi acted as he saw best. There wasn't enough time for discussion.."
The man nodded.
"I understand the logic behind it. Still. Fugaku will have realized that Itachi was acting with others now. He will be searching for the nine tails."
"If Jiraiya can shadow the Akatsuki, he can handle whatever the Uchiha throw at him." Rin responded. She nodded at Itachi. "Excluding present company of course."
The former Uchiha heir nodded.
Tsunade stood.
"That's all I have to report. Is there any change in plan?"
"No, go on ahead Tsunade." He felt odd telling her what to do. The sannin outranked him by far. Hiruzen's absence of was deeply felt in the small group of conspirators, the man had been their leader. In his absence left a void of power.
"Take care Kakashi." She nodded. "And all of you. This is a dangerous foe we face."
The group was silent, solemn.
Later, as the remaining shinobi rose to depart, Itachi caught him by the arm.
"I need you to deliver this."
He slipped a crumpled envelope into his hand.
Kakashi looked down, his eyes widening.
"You didn't mention this to the others..."
"They wouldn't have approved. I took care to ensure there's nothing important in it."
"Why are you doing this?"
Itachi looked away, towards the door where Rin and Gai stood waiting.
"The friendship between those two might prove to be our most powerful weapon. And.." He met Kakashi's eye. "He makes Sasuke happy, and in times like these, he needs a little more of that."
"Who is Orochimaru?"
Fugaku's heavy brows creased.
"What brings you to ask?"
Sasuke looked away. He shrugged in what he hoped was a passable imitation of nonchalance.
"I heard the name from one of my classmates." The lie slipped out with ease.
'I read the name while looking for someone who could fix the mirror. So I can speak to my closest friend...The one who thinks you're planning to kill him...'
His Father said nothing, frowning into his egg breakfast.
"He's a...researcher..in some ways. He is employed here in the village."
"Is he a shinobi?" He ventured another question. Truly curious a this point. There was an unmistakable tension in his Father's shoulders. A barely concealed discomfort with the topic at hand.
"Yes...though his work lies in the lab."
"What does he do?"
"He provides the village with tools and technology so we can remain the center of power in the shinobi world."
Sasuke sipped at his tea.
"How come I've never heard of him?"
"It wasn't relevant to you. Though now that your brother is departed, there are many things that you will need to learn. You are my heir, after all."
He looked down to his plate. Hearing Itachi's name tore at the barely healed grief inside him. His Father rose to leave.
"You should head out. Don't make your sensei wait for you, it isn't becoming of an Uchiha."
His team was waiting near the training yard. Kakashi nowhere in sight. Kiba sat on a wooden stump, legs dangling on either side as he tossed a stick for his dog to catch. Hinata off to the side, eyes blank as she stared off into the distance.
"Good morning, Sasuke." She greeted him formally. He nodded at her. Kiba said nothing, ignoring his presence.
"No sign of Kakashi?"
"Of course not." Kiba heaved in frustration. "We have the worst Jounin of the lot. I thought having an Uchiha on the team would get us better than this."
"Kakashi sensei is impressive though. He's famous even in other villages." Hinata said quietly. "He's just...not very timely."
"I would have rather had Kurenai." Kiba grinned. He cupped at his chest lewdly, raising an eyebrow at Sasuke as if to make a joke. "Right, Uchiha. Even you must agree there?"
Sasuke ignored him, turning away so he faced the village.
"Stuck up bastard." Kiba muttered. For moment, he sounded so much like Naruto that it stung.
"Good Morning all."
Kakashi appeared in a cloud of smoke between them. Hinata squeaked and Kiba jumped down from the stump, cursing.
"I hope you are ready for our exciting mission today."
Sasuke could practically hear the sarcastic smile beneath the man's mask.
"What's so exciting, aren't we just helping paint some old house?"
"Correct! Let's get going then shall we."
The jounin led the small group forward, out until they reached the edge of the village. The wooden panels on the small house were bare and splintered, the roofing patchy. Three paint cans were lined up before the front door. A handful of brushes laid out in the grass.
"This place looks like it's older than Konoha." Kiba said in disdain. Kakashi raised an eyebrow at him.
"You're lucky the owners aren't home to hear you, they're rather proud of it."
Sasuke moved forward to begin, ignoring the twinge of impatience at being relegated to these tasks. Hinata chose one of the smaller brushes, hefting a can of paint up the stairs to the door. Kakashi opened the door for her.
"It looks like you all know what to do here, so I'm going to go get some reading done in the meantime."
Sasuke stared at him in disbelief, and the jounin swept out without another word.
"That lazy..."
"Kiba!"
"Let's just get this over with." He dipped an old brush into the paint. The wooden handle was rough and splintered in his palm.
"Any other Jounin. I would have rather had any other Jounin than this one." Kiba continued to mutter.
"It could have been worse." He pictured Might Gai's infamous green outfit and repressed a shudder.
"M-maybe it could be a little better too.." Hinata said, pensively stirring her paint.
"What team were you hoping for,?" Kiba directed the question at the shy girl. Sasuke didn't miss the glint of hope in the boy's eyes.
"Well..um.."
She said nothing for a moment. Kiba shifted awkwardly.
"What about you, Uchiha?"
A wide whiskered smile flickered in his minds eye.
"Naruto.." Hinata said quietly, a blush spilling over her cheeks.
Sasuke's hand jerked in shock, splashing a line of pain on the wall.
"Naruto!?" Kiba said, oblivious to Sasuke's mishap. "Why him?"
The girl shook her head, too embarrassed to continue. Sasuke felt his heart pounding for some reason. Some odd emotion tugged at his chest.
The little white dog began barking at the door. He stood quickly, paintbrush gripped in his hand like a weapon.
"Who's there!" He said loudly. An elderly face peered into the dank room.
"Hello there!" The old man opened the door cautiously, entering the house with some hesitation.
"You must be Kakashi's team." He said. Sasuke realized they must be quite a sight. Paint covered with weapons drawn standing in the man's living room. He relaxed.
"Yes."
"Nice to meet you! I'm Takashi Koshi, I own this property."
"Hn." Sasuke grunted.
"And you are?"
"Uchiha Sasuke."
The man's eyebrows raised in surprise.
"You don't say!" He exclaimed. "What a coincidence. I have something for you."
The old man reached into his pocket, pulling out a crumpled letter. He handed it over with enthusiasm.
"I was just going to toss it, held onto it as a whim. I found this out on the road this morning when I went for my walk."
The front of the letter had 'Uchiha Sasuke' addressed in sloppy handwriting. Sasuke felt his stomach turn. He knew one person that wrote like that.
"Thank you." He said, and the gratitude poured out in the two syllables. He saw Kiba stiffen in surprise out of the corner of his eye.
The room was quiet as the others watched him, waiting for him to open it. He shifted awkwardly. If this was from Naruto, he couldn't open it here. The others would want to read it.
"I..uh..where's your restroom?" He asked lamely. The old man smiled and gestured to the upstairs.
With shaking hands he unfolded the letter. Felt his heart sink as he flattened the page. There were scorch marks throughout. Half the text had been burned away.
Sasuke
I hope you get this. -!
I'm with him right now. I'm training under -
so that I can come back to the village someday. You have
to be careful around your Dad! Don't do anything risky. I'm
coming back as soon as I can so just wait until I get there.
-. So we're not alone in this. I'll try to get another
letter to you soon as -
Naruto
PS. The new jutsu I'm learning is so cool. You're
gonna be so jealous.
"You have to concentrate."
"I am concentrating old man!"
The rubber ball barely moved in his hand. He dropped to the ground, exhausted.
Jiraiya shook his head in exasperation.
"This will require discipline and hard work."
Naruto groaned. Shielding his eyes from the sun as he glared up at the large figure.
Jiraiya chuckled.
"You'll never get anywhere with that attitude."
"My attitude is fine. I'm just resting."
They'd been at it already for two days. Yesterday he'd popped balloons, and today it was rubber balls. Even controlling his chakra enough to even move the material was exhausting.
"It's not easy, it took your Father two years to master this technique."
"My Father..."
He trailed off. Blurred memories of the Fourth Hokage drifted through his mind.
Jiraiya sat down next to him, sensing a shift in attitude.
"What was he like?"
"Nothing like you." Jiraiya chuckled, though he stopped when he caught sight of the disappointment the flickered cross his young student's face.
"He was a quiet student. Earnest and hard working. He loved the leaf more than anything, and he was a great Hokage."
"Then why did Fugaku want to kill him?"
Jiraiya frowned.
"Fugaku wanted to run the village his own way. He wanted to bring power to the Uchiha clan."
"Weren't they powerful before?"
"Yes, but not like they are now. He always thought that Minato's way, and the Third Hokage's before him, was too soft. Too friendly to the other nations. Since assuming control he's made many changes."
"Is that why we're the strongest village?"
"Partially... but it comes at a price. There are shinobi working for Fugaku who would never have been allowed in the village before. Evil men. Sacrifices made in the hidden leaf that we can only hope the rest of the world never finds out about."
The mirror was heavy in his pocket. Naruto's note folded next to it. He knocked on the heavy door before him with some trepidation. It was night and he hadn't told anyone where he was going so late.
"Come in." A voice rasped from the other side. He pushed the door open and a dimly lit room greeted him. A long haired man turned to greet him.
"...are you Orochimaru?"
A wide grin split the pale face.
"Uchiha Sasuke." He purred out the name, sweeping over to hold the door wide for him.
The hair stood on the back of his neck as he passed the man. He had a sickly smell to him. Musty, like the room around him.
"What brings the young Uchiha here this evening?" The man gestured at a chair for Sasuke to sit, wide smile still in place.
He took a seat, ignoring the urge to run back out into the fresh air. The room was deep under the Hokage's tower. A place he'd never ventured near. Orochimaru lit a candle on the table.
"Before I say anything, can I ask if you will report my visit here to my Father?"
The thin man sat in the chair across him his and observed him quietly. His amber eyes glinted with the flickering light of the candle.
"So the Hokage is not aware you are here." He mused. "How interesting. I wonder what it is you're up to. Not wise to keep secrets from Daddy Uchiha." He grinned again. A feral look. Sasuke shifted uncomfortably.
"If you cannot promise me your silence, I will leave now."
The man laughed.
"Bold and arrogant. Truly an Uchiha through and through. But I wonder, do you have your sharingan yet?"
Sasuke looked away, heat flushing his face.
"Ahhh..it's as I had heard. That is a pity."
Though he'd spent countless hours attempting to force the sharingan to appear, Sasuke's eyes stubbornly remained the same dark hue.
"If you can't help me I'll just go." He moved to stand.
"Wait wait." Orochimaru gestured for him to sit. "I promise I will not say a word to your Father. This is far too interesting for me to pass up on. Tell me, what is it you need?"
Sasuke hesitated. It was just a broken mirror. Even if he did tell his Father why he was here, he still wouldn't be able to track that back to Naruto.
He pulled the mirror from his pocket.
"Ahhh.." The man reached for it, taking it delicately and observing with a keen interest. "This is quite the item."
"Can you repair it?" He asked. If anyone in the village could, this was the man to do it.
"Of course, after all, I created it."
His heart rose to his throat. Finally, something was going well.
"Thank yo-"
"But first." The man looked up at him, cheshire smile firmly back in place. "I'll need you to do a few things for me."