Chapter 3.
Pairing: Naruto x Uchiha Mikoto.
THIS WILL NOT BE A HAREM
Warning: The main character's age has been adjusted.
A/N: To the guest asking about ages and Kyuubi; Naruto is the only one that has had his age-adjusted, and everything else you've asked about will be revealed in due time. I can spoil this much, it will happen in a few chapters. Jaa ne.
Konohagakure no Sato - Graveyard.
As the wind flowed through the area swaying his hair along with the leaves, his eyes never left the three flat stones in front of him. He was crouched down in a daze; his eyes glazed as if he wasn't there at all.
People walked through the area, paying their respects before they left again. It almost seemed like he had been there the entire day to most people, which he had. He had been sitting in the same position since dawn, not moving a muscle.
The three stones in front of him were what he had been focusing on before he lost himself to his train of thoughts. The first two stones had two names engraved… Names that had once meant a lot to him. They still did, perhaps even more so now.
Uzumaki Kushina
Namikaze Minato
He still remembered it as if it happened yesterday. An impressive feat, considering he had only been five when it had happened. The emotions he felt, the terror he experienced, it was burned into his memory.
The last stone, had an entirely different name engraved. It was a smaller stone, placed in the middle of the two other ones.
Uzumaki Menma
That name. It saddened him the most. It was a person that died too early. A person. His life had been over before it began, he never managed to live or experience anything besides death.
Menma Uzumaki, it was his little brother. It was a boy that should have meant the world to him around now. He mourned his loss, but he mourned the loss of never getting the chance to know him better. Maybe it made him cold that he didn't miss him that much, but it was hard to miss someone you never knew. He could only miss and grieve over what he wanted them to be.
Siblings.
He had smiled the day that he had heard his mother proudly proclaim that she was pregnant again. He had wanted to grow up strong, to protect the unborn child inside her. He wanted to be strong, brave and loving for the kid that would, at some point after ten months, become his sibling.
He had wanted to be able to teach him so much. His training had started early, and he had worked hard so that he could be somebody that his little sibling would be proud of. But he never managed to figure out if he would be proud of him. Because he died. Just like his parents.
He wondered every day if they were watching him and if they were proud or ashamed of him. He mostly believed it was the latter, because, despite the love a parent always would have for their child, he had failed that night.
They had died right there in front of him, gasping their last words out in from him, while he was unharmed. He had done nothing as they died, he had tried, but he had been too scared to move… If anything, his only actions had caused their death.
He had only seen his little brother alive for a few minutes. He had failed to do the one thing that was required of him. If anything, he has caused the death of the very person that he was responsible for protecting… If only he hadn't screamed.
Naruto shook his head, trying to avoid thinking about his nightmares as he looked up at the skies. It was around noon now. He had been here since dawn. Getting down on his knees, he noticed his muscles crying in discomfort, he had been crouched in an uncomfortable position for over six hours after all.
He leaned forward and folded his hands on the ground while leaning his forehead down to rest it on top of his fingers. "I'm sorry for my failure. There isn't even one day that goes by, where I don't regret being the cause of your deaths. I'm sorry I wasn't the son or brother you needed in the end."
Sitting back up, his gaze fell upon the bundle of flowers that he brought with him… The same bundle of flowers that he brought every year. A White rose and carnation… A crimson rose, surrounded by a purple and blue hyacinth… And lastly, three daisies for each of them.
Wiping his tears away as he stared, once more, at the graves in front of him, "I understand if you'll never forgive me, I wouldn't forgive myself either. Just promise me that you are together up there, taking care of each other."
As he opened his mouth to say something else, he was interrupted by someone's voice beside him, "You know, I'd kick your ass if it was my grave that you were sulking in front of. You'd be scaring all the hot girls away."
Naruto absently looked up with a blank face, it was Shisui standing there. But the expression on his face was... unusual. Despite him smiling, the smile was sad and filled with sympathy. Taking a deep breath, Naruto decided to prod him, "What're you doing here Shisui, I recall myself saying that I'd do this on my own," he asked in a monotonous voice.
"And you should know that I'm a better friend than that. You're hurting man, what kind of friend would I be if I let you cry on your lonesome? I kept my distance for a while so you could have your personal time, but after a while, it was clearly obvious that you were just torturing yourself by staying. How many times must you be reminded that what happened was never, and never will be your fault?" Shisui asked, with a stern gaze.
Naruto's eyes glossed over as he returned to staring at the gravestones in front of him. Specifically his little brother's. "But it was my fault. If I had just stayed away, or better yet, kept myself quiet... I failed them… Him."
After a second Naruto's eyes widened as he was sent flying to the ground with his cheek stinging. Had the bastard just punched him? "What the hell?!" Naruto snarled as he looked at Shisui, but was shocked to find an enraged expression on the teen's face.
Before he could do anything he was picked up by the collar, "How can you say that you failed him?! True you might have made a mistake, but what could you have done? You were just five-years-old man, you were just a kid. But you have been here, every single year on the anniversary of both his birth and his death, since it happened. You come here and tell tales and stories. You tell him about the world around his resting place, and you tell him about how much you would have loved to know him, teach him and love him as his brother. Do you honestly believe he could ever wish more from you?" Shisui asked, his voice quiet now as he put the blond down.
Naruto gave a dry chuckle and looked at the graves, "I just miss them so much."
Shisui put a hand on top of his shoulder, and sighed, "I miss my parents too, but there is nothing we could or can do to change what had happened. Now the only thing we can do is hope that they are together wherever they are, and make sure to visit them to let them know that we're okay and that they shouldn't worry about us."
"I guess you're right. Thanks, I think I needed a wake-up call." Naruto admitted and tried to rub the tearstains from his face.
Shisui gave a sly smirk, "Oh no worries, I'll gladly punch you whenever I get the chance!"
"You just had to ruin it, didn't you?" Naruto asked in a deadpan, as his eyebrows began to twitch.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
A day later…
In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen dropped a folder on his desk with a heavy sigh. "So this is the reason you want him to go on this mission?" The old Hokage asked the man standing in front of him, who nodded.
"Yes, it would be beneficial to the village, but also to him." The man spoke calmly, without any emotion present in his voice.
"I'm not sure Danzo, with today taken into consideration, it might not be the best time," Hiruzen spoke, while Danzo merely gave a snort.
The old Warhawk sat down in the chair in front of the Hokage's desk, and said, "Trust me on this Hiruzen, it's the best time for it. Taking his current emotions and the probable thoughts running through his head, he'll be more than motivated."
"I can't argue with that. But I would have liked if you had gone to me in the first place, coming with this to me now is a bit late, and I would've been able to make some more preparations beforehand if I had known earlier." Hiruzen sighed and lit up his pipe.
Danzo nodded, "That is true, but I wouldn't have come to you with a mere rumor which would have left disappointment in both you and him if it had been proven false."
Feeling like sighing again, Hiruzen flipped the folder open again and stared momentarily at the contents within before closing it. "Alright, I'll put him on this mission. Hopefully, they'll be able to make him happier than he is now."
"The boy is a shell of his former self. This should prove beneficial in his recovery." Danzo said.
"Recovery?" Hiruzen then asked with a raised brow.
"Why yes, the boy has lived through a lot of trauma already. He needs this to heal, I fear that not much else will do." Danzo then replied calmly.
"Very well then, you are dismissed Danzo. I'll send for him immediately." Hiruzen finished, and Danzo left without saying anything else.
"Boar!" Hiruzen called out, and a large muscular man landed in front of him, wearing the ANBU uniform.
"Hokage-sama?" The man addressed, and Hiruzen pulled his pipe away from his mouth.
"Go fetch Uzumaki Naruto for me. I have a mission of the utmost importance for him." Hiruzen ordered, and the man left with a brief nod.
Naruto walked into the Hokage tower with a stretch of his arms and back, it was early in the morning, just around the peak of dawn. He wondered why he had been summoned so soon, it hadn't even been two days yet since his return to the village from his last mission.
Rubbing his eyes with a groan, he was kind of wishing that he had gone to bed earlier last night, but then again, he managed to make a ton of progress regarding all of the notes that his father had left behind. Despite feeling like a failure to his family, he wanted to at least make sure that the things that they were proud of weren't forgotten. Even if he didn't feel worthy to read them at times.
But negative thoughts aside, he had learned a lot. He was finally feeling like he was getting closer to the goal, and was getting quite ecstatic about being done. It did however also leave a sad feeling inside of him because he didn't know what to do when he was done. He would have finished the project, and would then need a new one to spend his free time on.
Well, there was also his novels and fishing he could turn to, but despite how much enjoyed doing those things, it was the life of a Shinobi that was his passion. He wanted to explore the world and learn the various jutsu and techniques found within it. He couldn't do that if he was buried in a book or sitting by a lake in the shade of a tree... Regardless of how much he enjoyed doing just that.
Shaking his head to clear him of all these thoughts, Naruto yawned loudly as he arrived in the waiting room, making the receptionist giggle at him with a hand in front of her mouth, something that caused the blond to blush in slight embarrassment. "Uhm, sorry…" He grinned sheepishly, realizing he had just done that without noticing that she was there. Where had his Shinobi skills run off to?
"Oh, no reason to apologize. He is waiting for you, please enter." She responded with a smile, making Naruto just cough into his hand before turning around to avoid any more embarrassing interactions.
Trying to rub the sleepiness out of his eyes again, Naruto opened the door in front of him and entered swiftly, before closing it behind him. "You wanted to see me?" Naruto stated more than asked, to which the Sandaime nodded.
"Why yes, there is something that has come to my attention, something that I want you to take care of. It is a mission, and the length may vary quite a bit. It can be anything from a month to three because it is mostly a spying mission." Hiruzen said, making Naruto's brow raise. Despite being ANBU, it wasn't often that he of all people was sent to spy on someone.
"What's the details? Let me know, and I'll go get in my uniform." Naruto said, making Hiruzen shake his head.
"This isn't an ANBU mission, it is a political mission in which you will act as an ambassador. This might be confusing, I know, but let me explain." Hiruzen said, making Naruto just nod his head in silence.
"There is a family of two in Kusagakure, which is currently being treated horribly from the people of Kusa. The family consists of a mother and daughter, where the mother is said to be on the verge of starving; constantly taken away from home against her will only to return exhausted and bleeding later in the night, which in return makes the child grow up alone in a house that barely functions." Hiruzen stated, reading just a few out of the many points from the folder that Danzo had presented him.
"I can understand that you want something done, and I will, but how is this of any concern to Konoha?" Naruto asked curiously.
Hiruzen sighed, "Because the two people might as well be from a clan that is almost dying out, one which two of our former kages were quite close to."
"I see, so to save this clan from extinction, I'll have to do what exactly?" Naruto asked.
"I want you to spy on them and gather evidence concerning their treatment. When you have enough evidence gathered, Kusa will be forced to hand these two over. Despite having evidence here, it was gathered by the people under Danzo, and I'm sure that you can remember our talk about them." Hiruzen said, and Naruto just nodded.
"Yeah, Ne." He responded.
"Exactly my boy. Now, because the foundation is a shadow organization, we can't use this information because of the chance that it might cause Danzo's organization to become public. Despite how much I'm against them, I can't disagree with how useful they can be. This, for example, would never have come to my attention without their help." Hiruzen admitted.
Naruto sighed, and asked, "Anything you can tell me about the people I'm supposed to watch?"
Hiruzen this time smirked, "Oh, you'll know enough from the moment you lay eyes on them. And I'm sure it will also grant you more than enough motivation to see this mission a success instead of a failure. I trust that you'll take care of this?" Hiruzen smiled and handed the mission scroll to Naruto.
Despite being confused, Naruto did a short nod of agreement, "Yeah I'll do it, no problem. Do I have permission to speak on your behalf on this mission?"
"Of course, you've never given me a reason to doubt your political skills before. Despite the many times that you've found yourself in one so far in your short life." Hiruzen stated, in a manner that seemed… proud?
Naruto smiled, "Alright, I'll leave in an hour." Naruto bowed and turned around to leave.
"Naruto," Hiruzen called, making the blond turn his body halfway to look at the old man.
"Let's do a training session when you get back, I want to see how good you've gotten."
"You got it, I'll blow that hat off your head, no worries," Naruto smirked, and left in a Shunshin.
Despite being told that it wasn't an ANBU mission, Naruto still clad himself in his ANBU uniform with the exception of the mask. Since the uniform was purchasable in almost every Shinobi store, it didn't matter, much if he wore it on this mission. The only thing making an ANBU official was his mask and tattoed emblem.
Pushing his sword into its sheath placed on the ANBU vest's back, Naruto reached for his mask, but then remembered that he didn't have to wear it for this mission. So he made a short, mental, victory dance, before grabbing a dark grey cloak with a hood and swinging it across his shoulders and buttoning its collar.
His reason for wearing this was simple... In the off-chance that he was found out during the spy session of his mission, he could somewhat escape without having to reveal his identity. Normally, some people could show their face and still make it away, but considering how recognizable his face was... It was very unlikely that nobody would put two and two together and figure out who he was.
Looking into his fridge, Naruto frowned heavily, 'I just bought all this food, and now I have to throw it out when I return… I should make a seal to make my food stay fresh for even longer…' Naruto grunted, and closed his fridge as he grabbed a notepad on the dining table.
The idea he had wasn't half bad, so he settled for writing it down for now, and decided to work on it sometime after he got home again… He already had a foundation to work with, thanks to the standard preservation seal. Hopefully, this wouldn't take three months, Mikoto would kill him for staying away from them for that long… There's only so much leeway that his love for sealing will give him, and being distracted with a project for multiple months is well past that point, according to Mikoto-basan.
Maybe he should visit the compound and tell her in person? That way it couldn't get too bad since she would know what he was up to, after all. Then again, that would probably lead to her finding a way to distract him, since this seal isn't as important… She'd probably tell him to just eat over at the compound and forget the, clearly, unnecessary seal.
Chuckling at the thought Naruto closed the fridge and went out the front door, followed by shutting and locking it behind him. Walking down the stairs, he sighed and took a sharp turn toward the Uchiha compound in the distance. He wanted to at least tell them about his missions in person so that they wouldn't have to think that he was avoiding them or something that outrageous.
Leaping over the market district, Naruto landed in front of the gates leading into the Uchiha compound. But he was raising a brow when an arm moved in front of him. Looking to his left, he stared at the gate guard that blocking his entrance to the compound.
"Is there a problem, Daiki?" Naruto asked calmly, as the large man going by the name of Daiki stared down at him with a colder glance than what he was used to.
Because of Naruto's frequent visits, he had gotten what most people would call a 'free pass' into the Uchiha clan's compound. He had never been stopped like this, so this was quite strange indeed.
"State your name and reasons for entering," Daiki responded in a monotone voice, making Naruto's brows raise further upon his forehead in great surprise.
"As, you know, my name is Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto in case that somehow also slipped your mind. You might want to get a doctor's appointment to check that head of yours if you somehow have forgotten it after all the years I've come here. And, I'm here to tell Mikoto-basan that I'm leaving for a long-term mission. So can I please enter now?" Naruto sighed, looking at the man as if he had lost his head.
Daiki snorted at the cocky comment, and said, "Show Mikoto-sama some respect and we might consider letting you in to talk with her."
Okay, now this was some bullshit, "Oh great Daiki-sama, please let me enter to speak with Mikoto-hime."
Before Naruto knew it or Daiki could burst out in anger, the blond was pushed through the gate from behind, "Stand down fellas, blondie is with me." Naruto immediately recognized the voice and stared at his daily pain in the ass. Shisui.
Shisui jogged up beside him with an amused gaze, "What was that about?"
"You tell me, I just wanted to enter so I could speak with you guys. But Daiki is being an even greater asshole than normal." Naruto said with a calculating look. Was every Uchiha acting odd these days?
Shisui snorted and intervened his fingers behind his head as he walked, "Well, he might have a stomach ache. He ate quite an exorbitant amount of food at the clan meeting, yesterday."
"Serves him right then, he's being an asshole."
"Touche."
The two walked in silence until they reached the main estate, when Shisui asked, "Yo, what did you want to tell us by the way?"
Naruto looked to his side and shrugged, "I have an extended political mission, that's all I can say for now. I might be gone for a month, maybe three months. It could be more or less, that depends on how long it takes for this matter to be solved."
"Considering it's a political matter, and you're a representative from Konoha, it shouldn't take too long. Konoha has a lot of pull in political matters, it should be a walk in the park." Shisui reassured and clapped the blond on the shoulder.
"Let's hope that true because I'm going to be bored out of my mind otherwise." Naruto groaned with an annoyed expression, with his lips pressed together to form a line.
Shaking his head Shisui reached for the doorknob, but stopped and smirked as he looked at Naruto, "Wanna bet on how far she is going to throw you?"
Naruto's eyebrow ticked at that, "Why would she throw me at all?"
Shisui shrugged with an innocent look, "Oh, maybe because you just got back and are already leaving for maybe three months?"
Naruto gulped, "Shit… Wait a minute then! I need to-"
But Shisui acted like a deaf person, and all but kicked the door open, "Mikoto-sama! I'm here, and I brought Naruto with me!"
"You did that on purpose…" Naruto grunted as the color slowly drained from his face, and Shisui just winked at him.
Stepping inside, Naruto and Shisui took their sandals off and spotted the raven-haired woman stepping around the corner in a cooking apron,
"Good, then I'll set a plate for one more for lunch." She smiled sweetly.
Shisui then turned and smirked at a sweating Naruto, who was adjusting the collar of his cloak uncomfortably, "Uhm, I can't stay. I'm just here to let you know that I'm going to leave on another mission today."
Mikoto frowned heavily at that, "But you just got back?"
"I'm afraid I have to, it's a political mission. I was selected for this mission." Naruto answered with a sigh.
"Shouldn't Itachi be with you then?" Mikoto asked confused, and Naruto just shook his head.
"Nah, it isn't ANBU." He replied, making her take a deep breath before sighing heavily.
"I guess it can't be helped then, when will you be back then?" She asked, hoping that it wouldn't be that long.
Naruto gulped and scratched the back of his head, "Uhm, Oji-san told me that the length can vary. It can take all the way from a month to three months."
"Three months?!" She yelled while getting all up in his face.
"Yeah, it's not that bad." Naruto nodded in response.
Stepping back, Mikoto crossed her arms and stared at the blond teen, "Hm, 'not that bad' Naruto, you just got home! You need to take a break."
"I will, I will. Just… When I get home." He chuckled dryly.
Mikoto gave an annoyed sigh, and dropped her arms back down as she walked into the kitchen, "Ugh… You men are hopeless creatures."
Shisui raised a brow at that, "Hold on, how is now on all of us men because blondie can't figure out how to take a break?"
"Because both him, Itachi and you, never, ever, take a break. You three are constantly either training, going on missions, or doing something else taxing. When was the last time you just sat down and read a book or took a simple walk?" She asked skeptically.
"But that's boring…" Shisui groaned out with a roll of his eyes.
"You just proved my point." The woman snorted and walked into the dining room with today's lunch.
Shisui gaped a little at that, trying to find a comeback when he was suddenly clapped on the back by Naruto, "Well done, moron."
"Who the hell are you calling a moron, you idiot?!" Shisui yelled, but his sudden retort had a completely different effect than what he had intended because Naruto had already disappeared from behind him, so Shisui had just yelled at himself through the mirror that was placed in the hallway.
Naruto in the meantime had entered the dining room and gave a short but respectful bow toward Fugaku who was seated at the end of the table. "Fugaku-san." He greeted, and the man nodded in return.
"Naruto-san." He responded back and waited for further words coming from the blond. The look on his face told him that there was something that he wanted to say, after all.
"Could I please speak with Itachi in private for a minute? I won't take too long, he should be seated with you within the next five minutes." Naruto requested, and the clan head just waved him off.
"Itachi is in the backyard with Sasuke; please hurry, as I intend to enjoy lunch with both my sons before it's cold," Fugaku said.
Naruto nodded and walked out through the glass sliding door leading toward the backyard which was already open, while still trying to figure out what he had done for Fugaku to act 'nicer' than he had been able to before.
Shaking his head free of those thoughts, Naruto gave a short wave as the raven-haired brother duo spotted him. "So, this is where you're hiding."
Itachi snorted, and rose a brow at him, "What's with the cloak?"
"I got a new mission, I'm leaving in just about ten minutes. I came by to say it in person, thought it was the least I could do." Naruto informed, and Itachi's brow remained on his forehead.
"Don't you mean we got a mission? And if that's the case, I'm honestly baffled since I haven't received a word about it." Itachi responded with confusion evidently dripping from his monotone words.
Naruto shook his head with a small smirk, "Afraid not, it is a political matter, and for some odd reason I've been picked for it."
"I must say I'm surprised as well. You're the last person I would pick for a delicate political matter." Itachi said with a small smirk.
Naruto sweatdropped at that, "Geez, thanks for the trust."
Itachi shook his head, "On a serious note, I'm sure you'll be fine. How long will you be away from the village?"
"Most likely between one and three months," Naruto said back.
"And my mother is okay with that?" Itachi asked in shock.
Naruto chuckled bitterly, "I wouldn't say that…"
"Oh, the silent treatment?" Itachi then questioned.
"It's more like she left after she heard all that she needed to hear," Naruto said and shrugged.
Itachi gave a bitter laugh at that, and placed a hand on his hip while patting Naruto's shoulder with his remaining hand, "I suggest you come back with a souvenir."
"Why?" Naruto asked, his brows flying upon his forehead.
"Let me just say it in a simple way. This is the first phase of my mother starting to give you the silent treatment. So unless you want to live through phase two and three of her being mad at you, I suggest getting her a gift, as that might be an option for getting her into a good mood again." Itachi finished, and Naruto mentally noted this down as the largest amount of words he had ever heard Itachi say in one go.
"Alright, I'll keep that in mind while I'm there." Naruto nodded and crouched down to look at Sasuke.
"And I trust you'll keep your family safe while I'm away?" Naruto winked, making Sasuke nod with a big smile.
"Sure! Somebody's got to do it!" Sasuke said, making the two older teens chuckle a bit.
"I'll leave it to you then. See you guys." Naruto called as he turned around and started to leave while waving his hand.
"Don't start the next great war!" He then heard Shisui yell from the porch.
"I'm not the one yelling at his own mirror reflection!" Naruto yelled back and vanished in a Shunshin the instant he saw the enormous tickmark on Shisui's forehead appear, one that would predate a large outburst.
With Itachi, several hours later…
The raven-haired teen kept a blank face as he kneeled down in the middle of the room. He kept his eyes locked on the floor as he heard the Hokage speak.
"Alright, I've informed the people here about the crucial information that you needed to share in greater detail," Hiruzen said, and Itachi raised his head to look at the people that Hiruzen had selected as his advisors. More specifically it was his old teammates.
"This claim is quite outrageous, are you absolutely sure that the Uchiha clan is committed to this course of action?" Koharu asked, looking down at Itachi from her seat.
Itachi nodded briefly, "Hai, the Uchiha clan is very devoted to this cause already. It required no more than the first and second meeting to confirm this." While they had had a meeting the night where Naruto was there, they had also had one in the morning.
"This can prove bad for us and the village, what course of action should we take, Hiruzen?" Homura asked as he adjusted his glasses.
Hiruzen sighed and tried to respond, but Koharu beat him to it, "Isn't it obvious? If they are going to start a revolution and usurp our power, we should have no choice but to judge the Uchiha as traitors of Konoha!"
Hiruzen intervened, and said, "Please wait, Koharu, don't rush to such a decision just yet."
"However, Hiruzen, from what I can understand already, the Uchiha clan will not be dissuaded and since that is, in fact, the case, we have to take measures to avoid mayhem. That includes innocent children too." Danzo said, looking at Hiruzen with a narrowed eye.
"Don't such say such things in front of Itachi. Besides, a battle against the Uchiha would be far from an easy task, we must plan our strategy very carefully. " Hiruzen reminded, but Itachi was as blank as it had been when he had entered the room.
"We're in a race against time here. We are to strike them preemptively before they can make their first move. If we both join forces and use our respective black ops to launch a surprise attack on the Uchiha from behind, we'll end this fast." Danzo stated casually, making Hiruzen grimace.
"The Uchiha are comrades in arms. We need to watch them for a while longer than just hearing about two meetings Danzo. They might withdraw, and we can avoid unnecessary bloodshed. And anyhow, I would like to use words first before violence. I'll come up with a strategy." Hiruzen finished with Danzo and turned toward Itachi.
"Itachi, it doesn't have to be for long, but please, buy me as much time as you can." He finished, and Itachi nodded.
'For the sake of the village, as well as the Uchiha, I will go beyond my limits.'
Naruto sighed quietly as he finally reached his destination. It had been around a day, he had traveled at the fastest speeds that he could without getting too exhausted. Landing on a branch, Naruto crouched down and looked over the grass fields of Kusagakure no Sato. After a moment, he reached into his cloak, grabbing a picture and holding it up to compare it with his surroundings.
And there were already bad signs that made him frown.
The house he was supposed to watch, he'd guess was located over five-hundred yards away from Kusa's main wooden wall surrounding their village. The house itself was practically in shambles. ´The only lighting in the house was candles, there were no signs of lamps or anything inside the house.
At least from what he could see from his position.
There was a well beside the house as well, suggesting that their water was coming from there and not the village's pipelines. The next thing he noticed was the shitty condition that the house was in. It was built with boulders and cement; definitely not the work of a professional. The roof was constructed from dried straws, with no hint of insulation underneath. The windows were cracked with some even being broken.
"How can they live like this? Are they really that poor?" Naruto wondered and moved down to a branch closer to the ground to be able to see everything with a better view.
From his new position, he could spot the five poorly hidden Shinobi that were watching the house. Judging from their masks and uniform, they were from Kusa's ANBU. He snorted at that. If this was their best attempt to hide, they weren't even worth calling ANBU.
Narrowing his eyes he started to wonder. Why would they watch this old house that was about to collapse? Did they know about the clan and status of the people within? If they did, it made no sense. How could they even allow themselves to let these poor souls live in this dangerous house? He didn't get it and needed answers.
Giving a silent groan, he defeated the urge to go down and poke the ANBU closest to him on the shoulder, and then throw a fist in his face when he got his attention. He was a spy on this mission, at least for now. But this situation, despite how horrible it was for the people he was supposed to watch, was good for him.
The house was located outside of Kusa's walls, so when he presented the evidence, he couldn't get held back by Kusa. If it had been inside their walls, they might've been able to accuse him of being a spy, but the house's position was perfect. It was simply located in the country. They couldn't even charge him for trespassing.
Shaking his head, he reached into his shuriken pouch and grabbed a camera that he had brought along. He momentarily wondered about how it wasn't scratched at all by his shuriken, but quickly shook his head again to clear his mind from these odd distractions.
He quietly started to take pictures of the house and its surroundings. The house's structure, lack of insulation, the cracked and broken windows, the lack of light and water coming from the village, and to connect it all to Kusa, he took pictures of all the hidden ANBU that he could, and even managed to get a picture of one facing toward his direction, next to the house. Thanks to that, it was possible to see the emblem of Kusa's shinobi scratched onto the top of his mask, as well as them being placed around the house of question.
He now basically had everything he needed except for a few things. He had detailed pictures of a bunch of the things wrong with the place that they lived at, and also an overall picture to link it to Kusa. Now all he needed was to wait for the more 'extreme' kind of abuse, which could take a while.
Naruto gave a yawn a few hours after. He had been sitting still on the branch for quite a while, and the ANBU from Kusa hadn't moved either. He was about to close his eyes for a nap when he heard the sound of a loud creaking door and looked down at the house.
Taking his camera up to his face again, he waited for the person to step outside the door so he could get a picture. But as his eyes spotted the person's features and face he almost dropped the camera.
His body was shaking, his lips quivering as his eyes found it hard to focus on anything else but her. As his breathing got heavier and faster, he placed a hand over his heart and thought to himself with a whimper.
'No… She's supposed to be dead…'
The chapter is done, let me know what you think.
Why do you think Naruto blames himself for his family's death? Why are the Uchiha acting so bipolar? From the guards being rude, to Fugaku being nice? And what can Danzo be up to? Who do you think Naruto is watching, and why is he reacting the way he is? Let me know your theories!
A quick note from me; I'm going to continue my education from Wednesday onward, so the updates might become less frequent, but I'll try to make them longer to compensate for it.
Thanks for your time.