A/N: This one is a bit long, with almost 3k words. We're getting into the meat of it. Or at least the pasta.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Narutoverse. Hinote is an original, however.
Chapter 6
Hatake Kakashi had been a bit skeptical, to say the least, when Minato-taichō had asked him to babysit the new brat. He hadn't dealt well with them when he was their age, and he didn't believe he'd become any better at it with time. He just didn't get them. But orders were orders, so even though he'd prefer to sulk in his apartment and read, here he was.
He arrived late, something that seemed to be happening more and more frequently as he took time to visit the Memorial Stone every morning. He didn't feel ready to be up and about yet, not really. Everywhere he went, he felt watched, like the people around were looking at the responsible for the disaster of Kannabi Bridge. For Obito's death. More and more he found respite in books–shallow, easy-to-read books which numbed his mind.
Kakashi entered through the window, knowing what to expect. A four year old brat, full of inquisitiveness about him, if not about his father. He found her studying in Minato-taichō's study, bent over a thick tome. She raised her head and he braced himself, grimacing under his face mask.
"Good morning." And with that, she went back to her studies.
The jonin just stood there for a couple of minutes, waiting for questions to come. She gave no indication she even expected an answer to her greeting.
Eventually she paused for lunch. Kushina had left them some onigiri and some eggplant miso soup with diced tofu in it. The soup almost made up for the fact that, to Kakashi's powerful nose, the kitchen reeked of nattō. How anyone could eat anything with such a strong smell, he wasn't sure. Even though Kushina's food was great, as always, he was glad when they left that smelly hell behind.
The rest of the day flowed much like before, with not a word exchanged between the two. It felt… comfortable. Maybe this kid isn't so bad.
Two days later, Kakashi found himself co-opted into babysitter work once again. Once again, his entrance was met with a short greeting, followed by ignorance. He got curious. What is she studying in that book that is so interesting? It was quite curious for such a small child to be in any way involved with a book so poor in pictures, let alone one of that size. He moved a bit, just so he could read its spine
He was surprised to find the hefty doorstopper was actually Uzumaki Mito's Introduction to Fūinjutsu Theory, a highly technical (if elementary) tome intended as reference material. Kushina had told him to try it once, and he remembered spending a mind numbingly boring afternoon slogging through page after page of theory, before finally giving up.
Kakashi wondered a bit at the girl. He'd been a child prodigy, himself, so he knew kids could sometimes be surprisingly clever. Still, that a four year old would be quiet and disciplined enough to focus on that book, and leave the stranger in the room alone, was almost mind boggling. He appreciated it.
"Ahem", came a soft voice, "Hatake-san, could you please move a bit? You're blocking my light". He'd gotten a bit closer than he'd intended. He almost panicked, but he was a jonin, and jonin need to think fast. He pointed at her notes.
"You missed a Fire symbol here." She examined the diagram, brows furrowed.
"...You're right. Thank you!" Her eyes twinkled, and he was glad at least some of Kushina's teaching had gotten through to him.
After that, they once again descended into that library-like silence from the first day. And when he left for home that night, Kakashi found himself feeling… not well, not yet, but better. He didn't even get mad at Minato-taichō's sly smile when he asked when he'd next be needed as a babysitter–"strictly for scheduling reasons, of course".
As the post-war movements increased–they were ninja, after all, and a simple ceasefire didn't mean the end of black ops from all sides–Kakashi had become the go-to for Hinote-sitting. Not that he minded, really. It made for a good opportunity to catch up on his reading.
Before he noticed, he and the pint-sized bookworm had already fallen into a pace of sorts. She'd study, or go through her bukijutsu drills, and he'd read. Sometimes he even gave her pointers, for which she was always politely thankful. It made him feel helpful, in a way he hadn't felt since the bridge. He'd even begun to crave it, though he wasn't about to admit that out loud. He thought he might understand, now, why some jonin chose to become sensei. Not that he wanted to do it, one brat was enough. But he understood the appeal.
They'd actually begun to talk a bit (on his initiative, not hers. He was sure by now that the tiny dork would never have stopped concentrating of her own volition), about the weather, food, her clan's puzzling fixation on cats, his perfectly normal love of dogs, among other things.
So he felt it was pretty natural when Minato-taichō brought her to the team training meeting. He was also looking forward to this, since he'd finally figured out how to perfect the Chidori with Obito's Sharingan. He wanted to show it off to his sensei–and, he discovered, to the bite-sized nerd.
"Minato-taichō! Can I show you something?" Rin wasn't here yet, so he wouldn't be eating into their training time by demonstrating it now.
"I've told you Minato is enough. But sure, go ahead." He had that strange grin in his face he always wore when he was proud of his students.
Kakashi raised his hitai-ate, revealing the Sharingan. There was the familiar, constant drain on his chakra from the eye. He quickly looked around, finding the wooden targets in their usual position at the back of the training ground, and confirming Minato's and Hinote's position away from the path.
"Kakashi-san, you have a Sharingan!?" He resisted the urge to sigh. The question was expected, though he'd somehow managed to avoid thinking about it. Sure, she hadn't probed him before, but a non-Uchiha with a Sharingan was the sort of thing the clan tended to frown upon. What could he say, however? That he'd let his teammate die on a mission and gained his eye as a present?
"Well, I..." He trailed off, suddenly very conscious of her eyes on him.
"Oh, good! Rin, you're here! I haven't introduced you two, right? Hino-chan, this is Nohara Rin, my other student. Rin, this is Uchiha Hinote, my... adopted niece?" Hinote's attention seemingly averted, Kakashi shot Minato a grateful glance. He knew he couldn't avoid the question forever, but he was glad he didn't have to deal with it now.
He turned back to his target, dispelling all unnecessary thoughts with practiced ease. Chakra coursed through him, focusing on his right arm, where he transmuted it into lighting. There was the characteristic chirping sound, the smell of ozone, and he was rushing towards the target, blindingly fast.
Midway, he noticed a glint at the edge of his vision. As expected of Minato-taichō. He dodged the kunai sent by the blond jonin, without losing momentum, and struck the target dead center. He heard claps.
"That was awesome, Kakashi-san! How does it work?" She had a look in her eyes he recognized from his time in the Academy. From Obito, talking about his clan jutsu. No, bad thought. He composed himself.
"It's an S-rank raiton jutsu. I move at great speed and pierce a vital point on the target, hopefully eliminating them before they can react."
"No; I mean, how does it work?" He was rapidly learning that Hinote wasn't actually quiet like he'd imagined; she'd just been very curious about other things when he'd been around.
"I channel a large amount of lightining chakra to my arm. The rush of chakra helps enhance my speed, much like in a shunshin. The penetrating power comes from raiton's piercing characteristics."
"...and you use the Sharingan to stay aware of your surroundings, even at that speed..." Hinote was pulling on her lower lip with her right hand, seemingly deep in thought. "But is the cost worth it? I don't mean any offense, but it sounds kind of costly."
"There is an argument to be made there, Hino-chan. But while it does take quite a bit of chakra, it can quickly eliminate enemies too strong to be defeated in any other way. That's why we have big jutsu–because spending half your chakra to kill one guy is better than dying to him." Minato-taichō lectured.
"...I see." She paused for a moment, tugging on her lip again. "Can you stop it?" Why is she suddenly interrogating me? He shot Minato-taichō a glance, and received a mouthed "Later. Bear with it" in return. He decided to answer her question with one of his own.
"Why would I? I only use this jutsu if I need someone dead. It's not the sort of commitment I'd make lightly."
That didn't seem to satisfy her, but it left her deep in thought, which was the next best thing.
"Well, that was quite the demonstration. Why don't you show her what you can do next, Rin?" Minato called his niece out of her reverie.
And with a final "I guess so... Thank you for explaining, Kakashi-san!", Hinote went away with Rin.
"Now, Kakashi, I am sorry for putting you in this situation. You understand she meant no harm, right?", said Minato-taichō, earnestly.
"I just don't get why all the sudden interest." He'd wanted to impress the minute nerd, but he hadn't expected that kind of scrutiny.
"You know her. That's how she treats things she finds interesting." Great. Now I know how that poor book felt. "She is also a bit overawed with big jutsu. Remember, she is four, and it is normal to be excited about things one can't have." He gave a small smile.
"What do you mean 'can't have'? She's an Uchiha. She'll probably learn more jutsu by the time she reaches chunin than I will in my lifetime!"
Minato-taichō frowned.
"Actually, she probably won't. I'm not going to divulge her personal problems to you, just as I don't tell her about yours, but remember there is a reason she's living with Kushina and me instead of in the compound."
Rin was a bit confused when she arrivedat the training ground. Minato-sensei had apparently brought his adopted niece to the session, and Hinote-chan had somehow cornered Kakashi with her boundless curiosity. Sensei had decided to foist the little bundle of energy upon Rin immediately upon her arrival, clearly needing some space to talk to the beleaguered jonin.
And now she found herself at a loss. She didn't have any impressive jutsu or techniques to show the little girl. Sure, she could somewhat keep up with Kakashi, but she'd never been the big guns on the team. Her fighting style, as it was, relied on her chakra control and clever use of a blend of taijutsu with katon and suiton techniques.
Still, she had to do something. Being an Uchiha, Hinote-chan had certainly seen a lot of katon already, so she decided to show off a Water Jet technique. She made the signs and focused her chakra into her mouth, where it produced a stream of water that shot out. Not that impactful in direct use, but it could blind charging enemies, and it gave her water to work with on other jutsu.
"That's awesome! You can actually produce water with this... does it disappear afterwards?" Hinote-chan was poking at the puddle.
"It's not really... it's just a C-Rank. The main benefit is wetting the battlefield, so I can use the water for more advanced jutsu."
"Makes sense..."
"My main job is to keep Kakashi in line, though. You'd never know what he and-" Nope! Not going there. "What he would get into if I weren't here!" She lowered her voice, conspiratorily. "You can't trust sensei to do it, he's too soft!"
"Hahaha..."
"Also, I can do this!" Rin then went through the seals for a Water Spout technique, which sprayed upward from the puddle and wet Hinote-chan slightly.
"Hey! That's mean!" The girl ran at her, laughing... and slipped. Apparently her shinobi training hadn't progressed so far yet that she was able to keep her balance running on wet grass while distracted. She got up, and Rin saw she'd scraped her left knee.
"Hinote-chan! You shouldn't run like- let me take a look at that." Rin immediately knelt next to her, using the Mystical Palm. The girl sure wore a lot of cloth–despite the warm weather, she wore long sleeves, and her black socks, left one now sporting a hole, disappeared under her red squort. When Rin adjusted it to get better access to the wound, Hinote-chan panicked.
"It's nothing, you don't need to-" But Rin was already healing her, and in a second the wound was gone. Sheesh. Kakashi's stoicness must be rubbing off on her. Rin tried to picture Kakashi babysitting, but it just looked too incongruent. She looked at Hinote-chan, who seemed to be in a daze.
"Hinote-chan, are you okay?"
"It quieted down... It's just a bit, but..." She seemed to notice Rin was there, and grabbed her shoulders. "It quieted down! It quieted down, Rin-chan! Do you understand what this means?" Rin was sure she didn't.
...Did a four year old just call me chan?
"Uncle! Uncle uncle uncle! Rin-chan can fix my chakra!"
Minato-sensei turned to them immediately.
"Are you sure? How?" He fixed wide eyes on Hinote and Rin.
"I just used a Mystical Palm on her, sensei..." She felt a bit overwhelmed. What is happening?
"Minato-taichō, what in the Sage's name is happening?"
Minato-sensei looked at Hinote, then back to them. He sighed.
"Okay, sit down. This is a long story..."
They didn't actually get any training done that morning.
I was feeling pretty happy that afternoon. We weren't completely certain as to how the Mystical Palm interacted with my chakra, but this was progress. It also made me glad I had worked so hard on auntie's chakra control trainings–had I not had such awareness of my own chakra, I wouldn't have noticed its decreased agitation. If we could harness the effect, amplify it somehow, we might develop a cure.
Don't set yourself up for disappointment, came the thought, unbidden. Maybe if I was an actual four year old, I could have just let myself enjoy this, but I had tried one too many experimental treatments to be able to trust this completely. This actually made it harder to live with, in a way. While earlier I had accepted my volatile chakra as a fact of life, to which I would have to adapt, I could now dream of fixing it–which was all well and good, provided it's even possible.
Rin-chan had agreed to meet me in one of the training rooms at the hospital to investigate the phenomenon. In the meantime, I was free for the rest of the day, and I intended to spend I all in the library, investigating something that had been bothering me: what was up with the schizo tech in this world?
Shinobi had an advanced knowledge of biology–I heard talk of cells and proteins here and there–but explosives, or at least chemical ones, were unheard of. The transportation technology seemed to be stuck somewhere in the seventeenth century, but the houses looked modern, at least away from the Hyūga Compound. We had somehow figured out modern steel and even complex composites and plastics, but not a good steam engine.
The library was, as always, emptier than it should have been. The clerk, a stern looking bespectacled man, gave me a strange look when he saw me gathering books on subjects ranging from civil engineering to molecular biology. Not many little girls interested in those sections, I guess.
What I found was surprising: apparently the technology was pretty well rooted in the Modern Era, but advanced production techniques had been developed by specific clans, most probably using chakra in place of electricity and such. This explained why different villages had wildly different technology levels, and why technical knowledge sometimes disappeared, when the clans which held its secrets died out.
Apparently, there were many "production clans" in the village, whose economic power was kept in check by the military might of the Four Noble Clans (Note to self: possible source of civil strife). One such group was the Hagane clan, which held the secrets of ironwork in Konoha. Their ancestor, Hagane Muramasa, had sealed an alliance with the Uchiha by providing them with what became Uchiha Madara's legendary gunbai, said to be indestructible.
Even the Four Noble Clans had some secret technology. The Akimichi were responsible for a lot of the stimulants shinobi consumed, while the Aburame made ration bars (Those things are made of insects!?) and the Hyūga ran a very lucrative clothing business. Most surprisingly, the Uchiha were apparently responsible for much of the production of refined sugar.
Mind. Blown.
A/N: I made some alterations to the tech level of the setting. It just made no sense to me that, with all their advanced knowledge, they hadn't figured out how to make high explosives. The thing about such weapons is they don't depend on shinobi, which would make them attractive to villages without their own S-class, or even a small number of them. They also don't seem to use modern transportation in general, which is a bit weird. Even if shinobi are fast, we see civilians riding in palanquins, which are probably much less comfortable than, say, a train. I will expand on this in future chapters.
We finally get some notion of what Hinote wears. She doesn't tend to pay that much attention to what she (or other people) are wearing, so we don't get that much info on outfits. If anyone wants to know more, just ask! I might either do a segment in the A/N or just include a scene in one of the next chapters. Fanart is welcome! Also, anyone who wants to draw a Patissier! Fugaku (an image which wouldn't leave my head while writing about the Noble Clans' business endeavors), please send me notice!
Please tell me what felt good, what felt bad, and what just smelled foul. Reviews are welcome!