Honesty
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. Sorry, this one is so late. I got caught up on some of my other stories. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.
Chapter Notation: I went with a rather light "battle chapter," in this one. Mostly because I don't believe that Onoki is stupid and he has some sense of self-preservation.
Chapter 16
A few hours later, the rest of Taka returns back to the District. Suigetsu frowns when he goes to check on Karin and he doesn't hear her whining. Something was up.
"Itachi?" He calls out anxiously.
When he didn't get a response from the puppy, his blood suddenly ran cold. He calls out for Jugo and Sasuke who come running. The three of them warily search the house.
Jugo gasps when he sees Itachi laying on the floor. He wasn't moving. He rushes over and quickly checks to see if he was breathing.
"Is he dead?" Suigetsu asks in a whisper.
He had grown rather attached to the furball. If Itachi was dead, he wasn't going to lie. He'd be upset. He'd never had a pet before and the canine was the closest thing that he'd ever had to one.
"He's still breathing. Someone just knocked him out." Jugo says.
"There's some faint traces of chakra in the air. The floor is damp. Someone probably used a water jutsu." Sasuke says as he calls out desperately for Karin.
Sasuke frowns when he received no response. Karin always responded to him. She might have outgrown her crush on him, but she never ignored him.
"Someone took her!" Sasuke says in horror.
"Yeah. I hate to say it, but I think someone probably realized she was pregnant by you and wasn't too happy about the Uchiha Clan being revived. We have to hurry. Maybe there is a chance that they wanted to grab the super baby, instead of…something much worse." The white haired man says, earning a glower from both Sasuke and Jugo.
They both knew exactly what they meant by that. Sasuke especially knew what he meant. Back in the Warring States Era in particularly, it hadn't been uncommon for pregnant women from bloodline Clans to be targeted.
It was at that moment, that Itachi began to stir. Jugo cradles the poor canine in his arms and Itachi's eyes slowly flutter open. Once he becomes aware that he was conscious again, he looks around in a panic.
"We have to help her! They took Mistress Karin!" He yells.
"Do you know where they took her?!" Sasuke demands and the puppy shakes his head.
"No. I don't know where they took her, but I know their scent and I know hers. I think that we might still be able to track them!" Itachi says as he stumbles to his feet and darts off.
"Suigetsu, go tell Tsuande what happened. Have her send a team after us. They can track us by our scents." Sasuke says as he tugs his shirt off and throws it at the white haired man, before frantically following the ninja dog.
Suigetsu nods and takes off in the opposite direction. As much as he wanted to leave with Sasuke and Jugo he knew that he couldn't. It was better to give the Hokage a heads up about what was happening and send Naruto after them. So that's exactly what he did.
He races inside the Hokage's office. The white haired man didn't bother to knock. Time was of the essence. He didn't have time to waste on being polite.
"Lady Hokage! Someone has kidnapped Karin! Sasuke and Jugo are following their trail, along with Itachi. The dog, not Sasuke's brother…obviously. Anyway, I need some back up and to find Naruto right away!" The violet eyed man says.
Tsunade had just been innocently going through some paperwork when someone barreled into her office. Before she could even ask what they wanted, the person started rambling off. It was Suigetsu and he was panicked.
He had to repeat himself several times before he was even remotely coherent. Eventually, Tsunade realized what he was trying to say and her eyes widen in horror. This couldn't be happening!
"Go get Naruto!" She says to a ninja cat that she had adopted a few months back.
The cat sprinted off. Suigetsu was idly impressed by how fast the feline was. Then again, there were many reasons why ninja cats were popular in some villages. Their speed was definitely one of them.
It didn't take long for the feline to come back with the blonde. Naruto didn't know what was going on, but he knew that it was bad. Really, it was rare to see a cat actually panic, especially a ninja cat.
"What's going on?" He demands.
"Apparently, Karin has been kidnapped. Sasuke and Jugo are in hot pursuit. They sent Suigetsu back to the village to inform us about what was going on and to get reinforcements. According to Jugo, they don't know who took Karin or why. Though it is rather obvious that it likely wasn't for benevolent reasons." The busty Hokage explains.
Naruto blinks. Karin had been kidnapped. Uh oh. Karin was pregnant with Sasuke's twins. That wouldn't end well. He almost felt sorry for whoever was stupid enough to mess with her, but they were asking for it.
"Alright. Let's go. Suigetsu, you can show me the way. I'm sure that Granny Tsunade can send a team of ANBU or something after us. They'll be able to track us easily. We need to get moving!" The blue eyed ninja says.
For once, the sword lover completely agreed. Who knows what the Hell had already happened to Karin?! They might already be too late and God help them all if that was the case.
Sasuke would completely lose it. Those twins were his everything. He'd probably go on some murderous rampage and destroy the Five Nations while he was in a state of grief. The violet eyed ninja doubted that even Naruto would be able to stop him, if things were allowed to reach that point.
"Got it. Follow me!" Suigetsu says as they take off running.
Meanwhile in the Stone Village, Karin wakes up in an unfamiliar room. She was on a bed, but she was restrained by chakra cuffs. Damn it. Whoever had grabbed her, knew what they were doing.
"Ah you are awake. I deeply apologize for all of this unpleasantness. Believe me, I do not take any pleasure in upsetting a pregnant woman." Onoki says.
Karin blinks. She recognized this man has being the Stone Kage. He had clearly ordered her kidnapping. What she didn't know was why. What did he have to gain by kidnapping her?
"If that's true, then you'll let me go and we'll call it even." She says.
Onoki sighs. He really would like to do that. Unfortunately, he was fully aware that he wouldn't be able to grant such a request. It was far too risky. He was old, but he wasn't a fool. Letting her go back to the Leaf would be foolish.
"I'm afraid that I can't do that and deep down, I think you know why. You seem like an intelligent young woman. So I shall speak frankly with you. You are carrying an Uchiha in your womb. Your unique abilities combined with Sasuke's will make that child a formidable ninja." The elderly Kage begins.
Karin twitches. He had kidnapped her because she was pregnant with Sasuke's child. Oh man. This guy was a dead man walking. The minute the Uchiha found him, Onoki would be torn apart limb from limb. It was highly unlikely there would be anything left of him to bury.
"So you kidnapped a pregnant woman because you were afraid her baby might someday be stronger than you were comfortable with?! You have one foot in the coffin. By the time my baby is big enough to be a threat to anyone, you'll be dead and buried." She seethes.
Onoki sighs. He knew what this looked like. He certainly looked like quite the scoundrel here and he knew it. Still the Stone Kage knew that this was what would be best for everyone involved in the long run. He would just have to make her see that.
"I'm very much aware of my age. That is irrelevant to the situation. I am a Kage. I will see to it that my village is protected for as long as I live and do my best to ensure that after I'm gone, they have a fighting chance for survival. You have seen what Sasuke is capable of. Surely, you must understand why I have my concerns." He pleads with her.
She understood his concerns. That didn't mean that Karin was going to forgive him for kidnapping her. It also didn't mean that she understood why he wanted forgiveness in the first place.
"I'm not complaining, but why am I still alive? If you were really that worried about what my child might do in the future, why didn't you kill me while I was unconscious? That would seem to have been the easier route to take." The red head demands.
"I know you must think me quite the monster, but I am not that evil. I wouldn't kill a pregnant woman. No, I simply brought you here so that you could raise your child as a Stone Ninja. Their powers are likely to be exceptional. It would be such a waste to snuff out their light, but I can't trust Sasuke Uchiha to raise that child." He says simply.
So that was it. He wanted her child for the Sharingan and any abilities that her children might inherit from her. Luckily, Onoki didn't seem to know she was pregnant with twins.
Karin supposed that it didn't really matter. His plans would have been the same either way. Still she took comfort in that fact. She knew something he didn't. Knowledge was power.
"And how do I know that you aren't just planning on having me give birth, so you can steal their eyes afterwards?" She demands.
"You're clever. That's a natural assumption, of course. I've given you no reason to trust me and every reason to mistrust me. That is not my intention. Regrettably, I do understand why you aren't able to take me at my word." The Stone Kage says.
Karin glares at him. She could only hope that somehow the rest of her team would find her. Onoki would have a lot of explaining to do when Sasuke found her.
Sasuke, Jugo, and Itachi travel for hours before they arrive in the Stone Village. Sasuke frowns. Why would someone take Karin here? It didn't make any sense.
"I think someone in this village knows about the pregnancy and they aren't happy about it." Jugo whispers.
That made Sasuke's blood run cold. They obviously knew now. Karin was obviously pregnant, but before they found her? Well that was a bit more of a gray area. It was possible that whoever kidnapped Karin had been plotting this for awhile.
"Her scent is coming from the Kage Mansion." Itachi barks.
Damn it. The Kage Mansion? That meant that Onoki was involved. This wasn't just some random Stone Ninja trying to steal himself or herself a pair of Sharingan eyes or commit genocide. It was now likely that a Kage was involved. This was bad news.
"Sasuke, we will find a way to get them back, but for right now the subtle approach is required." Jugo whispers as he caresses his lover's cheek tenderly.
"I know." Sasuke whispers in such a quiet voice that the other man almost didn't hear him.
He knew in his head that Jugo was right. If they rushed in, that could get them all killed. His heart didn't want to listen though. His heart wanted to level that mansion to the ground, grab Karin, kill whoever kidnapped her, and head home.
The two of them quickly slink towards the building. Jugo could be surprisingly stealthy for a man of his size, Sasuke notes in the back of his mind. That might prove useful later.
"She's in there." The orange haired man murmurs.
He could feel Karin's chakra. She was inside that building somewhere. Unfortunately, that was the Kage Mansion. It wouldn't be easy to get by all the guards, without causing an international incident to say the least.
It was at that point that Naruto came rushing in. Thankfully, for once he was stealthy. Sasuke could vaguely sense some other unfamiliar chakra signatures. He assumed that they were the team of ANBU, lurking nearby. He smiles when he saw Suigetsu's white head of hair come into view.
"Hey, bastard. I heard that you had some crazy kidnapper grab Karin and you need some help getting her back. Is that about right?" The blonde asks.
"That's about right. She's inside the Mansion, somewhere. But if we try to fight our way inside, it'll cause an international incident." He mutters.
"I got this. He'll let me in. After all, I helped to win the war and I'm Granny Tsunade's favorite person, after Sakura." He reasons.
Sasuke gives Naruto a look. He didn't really think it was going to be that easy, did he? The blonde was out of his damn mind.
"Don't worry, I got this." Naruto says as he darts inside.
Jugo, Sasuke, and Suigetsu all sigsh. Yes, he was that stupid. Yes, they were going to have to follow him to make sure that Naruto didn't somehow get himself killed.
"Hey, Onoki! You in here?!" The blonde calls out cheerfully.
Onoki blinks when he hears Naruto call out to him. Damn it. Not now! Well at least Karin was asleep, he thinks to himself as he goes to speak with the boisterous blonde that had saved the ninja world.
"Yes, I'm here. What brings you here and at this late hour?" He inquires, trying to use his best grandfatherly voice.
"Look, I know that this is going to sound crazy. So just humor me. I want to know if Karin is here or not. Tell me the truth and this won't get ugly." He says as Team Taka and the ANABU make themselves known.
Onoki gulps. Damn it. He could probably get past the ANBU or maybe Jugo and Suigetsu, but he wasn't going to get past Naruto AND Sasuke. He was outnumbered and outmatched. Oh wonderful. They even brought a ninja dog, just to make the odds a little bit more impossible.
That's when Karin woke up and she started screaming her head off. She could sense her teammates' chakra and Naruto's. They could save her from this crazy nightmare!
"I'M IN HERE! HELP! SOMEONE HELP!" She cries out desperately.
"Jugo, please go help Karin." Sasuke says as he slams the elderly ninja against the wall and holds his sword against Onoki's throat.
Onoki's eyes widen in terror. He could saw that he was looking straight into the face of a demon. Sasuke's Sharingan and Rinnegan were both swirling dangerous. He had never been so frightened in all of his life, not even during the war when they went up against Madara Uchiha.
"You had better start talking now. Kidnapping a pregnant woman is NOT cool!" Naruto growls.
Normally, he would have stopped Sasuke from going all homicidal on someone. He especially wouldn't have condoned his best friend threatening a Kage, but this was different. The Stone Kage had apparently kidnapped the mother of Sasuke's children and his distant relative.
Yeah. The blonde liked to consider himself a pretty forgiving guy, but even he had his limits. He wasn't going to let this slide easily.
"I had to do it. Do you have any idea how powerful that child will be?! He or she carries both Uchiha and Uzumaki blood. They will likely be one of the strongest ninjas ever to walk this Earth!" He tries to defend himself.
"So you wanted to kill an innocent baby for the crime of having powerful genetics?!" Sasuke asks as he presses his sword further against his throat.
Onoki gulps. He knew that he was very close to death. Unfortunately, he didn't think that anything he said was going to save him. That's when his guards made their appearance.
"LET GO OF OUR KAGE!" They roar.
"Loser, will you please take out the trash? I am trying to have a conversation here and it's very rude of them to interrupt me, don't you agree?" Sasuke seethes at the Stone Ninjas.
Naruto nods. He makes some clones. The other ninjas stare in awe when they realize who they were fighting. Still Naruto had to give them credit. They didn't back down and they still tried to defend their Kage, even though they knew that failure was inevitable.
"Look, I don't want to have to hurt you guys. So if you just turn around, we'll call this a day." Naruto says as he dodges a punch from one of the Stone Ninja.
"Sorry, Lord Naruto. We can't do that and you know we can't. We can't allow for our Kage to be murdered by that demon!" The guard replies as he continues fighting with all his might.
"Damn. I was hoping that we could skip this part. Alright. SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!" The blonde calls out and dozens of clones suddenly form.
Sasuke glares at Onoki. This bastard had kidnapped Karin. The woman who was pregnant with his children. Probably to kill them before they were born or to turn them into some sort of child soldiers. That was unforgivable!
"I'm not cruel enough to kill a pregnant woman. I know that this must look bad, but trust me when I say that this is for the best. You know that you aren't fit to be a father. You've suffered so much. You're emotionally damaged. Leaving a child that will be this powerful with you is a recipe for disaster and I think that deep down, you know that." The Stone Kage tries to reason with him.
"That's not for you to decide! Who the fuck do you think you are?! You don't know me personally and you sure as Hell have no connection to my children! You aren't even a Leaf Villager! I should slit your throat where you stand right now. I should tear you limb from limb until there is nothing of you left! I've committed a lot of crimes, but I never kidnapped a pregnant woman. I was never going to keep a parent from their child!" Sasuke rages at him and his chakra flares around him menacingly.
Onoki was far from a sensory type of ninja, but he could feel it. It was even more menacing than the Nine Tails at the moment. He had never felt fury seeping through chakra before. It was overwhelming. He almost passed out from the sheer proximity to the ominous chakra.
"I was doing what I thought was best for that child and the ninja world as a whole. Look at how you are reacting now! You can't behave this way around an infant!" He protests, struggling to stay conscious.
"Sasuke, you can't kill him. He kinda deserves it. I'm not going to lie. But if you kill him, it's going to start another Great Ninja War. He's a Kage." Naruto says.
"Do you have a better idea, loser?! Because I'm not going to let this kidnapper get away with this! He has to be punished!" The raven haired man snaps at his best friend.
Naruto frowns. He couldn't exactly disagree with Sasuke. Onoki couldn't be allowed to get away with this, without some form of punishment.
"Old man, you are going to give Sasuke's kids citizenship in the Stone Village. They'll have dual citizenship. Both of the twins are going to live in the Leaf, but you are going to offer your Kageship to them when the time comes. You are going to listen them as both potential successors. Then if either of them want it, one of the twins will become Kage. If they both want it, they will be Co-Kages. Got it?" Naruto says.
Sasuke raises an eyebrow. That was surprisingly politically savvy. That wasn't like him. Sasuke privately had to admit on some level, he was impressed.
"What if I die or have to step down while they are small children?" He demands.
"Then when the next opportunity comes along, they will get the first offers. You don't have a choice. You can agree and live or you can disagree and be responsible for another Great Ninja War. Do you think that the Leaf is going to allow you to get away with kidnapping one of their citizens without any form of retaliation? And a pregnant woman at that?!" Sasuke demands.
Onoki gulps. As much as he was loathed to admit it, they had him and all of them knew it. He would never be able to justify kidnapping a pregnant woman. Damn it.
"Very well. I can agree to those terms." He sighs heavily.
"Oh cheer up. You have no idea how fucking lucky you are. Sasuke would have utterly destroyed you, if you didn't agree. I would have had fun playing with the pieces. The only one allowed to fuck with Karin is me. Got it, asshole?" Suigetsu says as he walks over and socks the Stone Kage hard enough to break his nose.
"AHHHH!" He cries out in pain.
"Does that mean that you are finally going to admit that you like Karin?" Sasuke asks dryly.
"What?! Hell no! I mean she's my teammate and this asshole kidnapped a pregnant woman! He had it coming! It's a matter of principle!" Suigetsu says and even Itachi shakes his head at Suigetsu's denial.
Meanwhile Jugo rushes into the room where Kairn was being held. He quickly frees her from the chakra cuffs and helps the pregnant woman stand up. Karin sighs in relief and clings to Jugo.
"Thank you. Thank you, so much for getting me out of here! I knew you guys would come!" She says.
"How could we ever leave you and the twins behind. Don't worry. It's all going to be okay." He tells her and returns her friendly hug.
After a few moments, he leads her outside to where Sasuke and Naruto were still giving the Stone Kage a good tongue lashing. It looked like Naruto's clones had knocked out all the Stone Ninja Guards rather quickly.
"Karin! Are you okay?!" Sasuke and Suigestu both ask at once.
"Yeah. I think so. This freak kidnapped me. He said that he wanted to raise the child as a Stone Villager because it was too dangerous to leave them in Sasuke's hands." She mutters.
"Oh yes, we've already had discussions with the freak. We are going home. The twins are going to receive dual citizenship in the Leaf and Stone Village, with the option of becoming a Stone Kage later on." Sasuke informs her.
Karin blinks. Only Naruto, Sasuke, Jugo, Suigetsu, and Itachi could pull something like that off. Somehow they had forced her kidnapper to give the twins dual citizenship and the chance to become a Kage someday?! Seriously, she had no idea how they could pull of miracles like that!
"Do I even want to know how you managed that?" She asks.
"Probably not. Let's just go home." Sasuke replies and Suigetsu nods as he allows Karin to lean on him.
Itachi was ecstatic. The puppy fluffs Karin's legs happily and his tail was wagging a thousand miles per hour. It was quite cute really.
"I'm so sorry, Mistress Karin. I should have protected you better. Can you ever forgive me?" He asks.
"Itachi, it isn't your fault. You did the best you could and you brought them here to save me. Without you, I'd probably still be strapped down." She says with a smile and she pets him.
With that, the strange procession heads back towards the Leaf Village. Sasuke and Jugo walk hand in hand while Suigetsu and Naruto help Karin find her balance. And naturally, Itachi led the way. (After all, he had been the one who really saved the day.)