Chapter 10: October 10th (Mikoto, Minato, Kaito)
Mikoto knelt in front of Fugaku's grave, a year and three-month-old Sasuke squirmed in her hands. Ever since the boy turned one, he's been a terror to carry around. Always squirming and whining to get out of her grasp. It had been a heart-warming sight to see the boy walk between her and Itachi for the first time. The raven-haired boy giggled the entire time bouncing back and forth between them. But perhaps her favorite part was the smile on Itachi's face.
But now that the novelty of Sasuke gaining more independence was over, he was a complete terror. She didn't realize how easy Itachi was when he was young until she experienced endlessly chasing Sasuke around the house. The boy had a knack for pulling sharp objects off countertops and then putting them in his mouth. Itachi on more than one occasion had pulled the object from Sasuke before damage could be done.
Realizing that Sasuke's whimpers were beginning to escalate into tears, she gently lowered the boy to the ground and let him waddle over into Itachi's waiting arms. Her older son gently maneuvered Sasuke into his lap. Itachi sat on the ground a couple of feet to her side absentmindedly starting at Fugaku's tombstone.
Mikoto tiredly sighed and placed the bouquet on the base of the marble stone. She felt completely inadequate as a mother when it came to Itachi. The boy was so independent and smart that she felt like she had no role in the boy's growth. He rarely asked her questions, instead he researched and read to get the answers he desired. He never got into fights or arguments. He didn't even cry. There was never an opportunity for Mikoto to be a mother beyond providing food and clothes to the boy. Other parents in the clan always remarked how lucky she was to have such a prodigious child. She always put on a kind face and said her thanks, but on the inside, it was hell. A hell she could now only vent to her friend Kushina.
When Fugaku had been alive she was able to voice her worries and he would sometimes listen. Despite what outsiders perceived, he did love his children. Just not in the way Mikoto would have preferred. Fugaku loved Itachi and always provided the boy with what he believed he needed. But to Mikoto's dismay, it was always geared toward what the boy would need to become a successful ninja. At first, this angered her. Itachi never played, never made friends besides Shisui, never cried and Fugaku never saw an issue with this. But now that he was gone, she realized just how much he had protected Itachi from the clan.
It only took a couple of days after Fugaku's death for the vultures to come. With the clan head dead and no male heir old enough to lead the clan, the Uchiha clan elders assumed control. And without Fugaku using his position to hold them at bay, they came for Itachi. The boy's genius was undeniable. His potential and worth to the clan glowed brightly in their eyes.
Mikoto learned that Fugaku had made a deal with the elders promising he would train the boy and ensure he became an excellent shinobi. By doing this he kept their son out of the elder's clutches so that he and Mikoto could have some resemblance of control over Itachi's development. But that all evaporated once he died. And despite Mikoto's protests they began sinking their claws into her son. She never really loved Fugaku, it was a marriage of duty. But now that he was gone it was all on her to protect Itachi, and she was failing.
Mikoto glanced over to Itachi. The boy blankly stared ahead. She reached over and placed her hand on his back and rubbed comforting circles.
"You know he loved you, right Itachi?" She asked. A boy should be crying at the death of his father, and yet Itachi never shed a tear.
Itachi tore his gaze from the stone and looked into her eyes. His big onyx eyes showed no emotion. "Did he?"
Sadness and guilt rocked Mikoto's resolve. They had failed their firstborn. But it wasn't too late to make amends. She still had time before the elders snuffed out what humanity was left in her son.
"Yes, he did. In his own way." She said while standing up. "Come on. Let's get going. I've got to feed Sasuke and you need your lunch as well."
Itachi nodded silently and handed Sasuke to her. She gently grabbed the boy and held him close. The only person with the power to steer the clan elders was Minato. While he didn't exactly have power over the clan's inner workings, he had the status and political power to make them second guess or at least make them consider an alternative.
What to propose to the clan was a different matter. They wouldn't accept halting training, nor would they agree to postpone his graduation from the academy. But perhaps they would accept a personal teacher. Someone powerful. All the clan cared about was power, but Mikoto would be looking for something different in this teacher. Someone who could teach Itachi more than how to kill. Someone who could show Itachi how to live. Itachi was destined for the ninja life, his heritage and obvious genius all but guaranteed it. But there was still time to change his path, even if by just a little. A deviation from the path of darkens and power to a path with more light. A path with more options.
With her mind set, she turned and with a soft pat ushered Itachi out of the graveyard. She would ask Kushina for help and then propose the option to Minato. She only hoped there was someone who could fulfill both her and the clan's desires.
Minato sat on the floor of his living room. The room was bathed in a warm orange glow that emanated from the fireplace. A soft sneeze against his chest brought his gaze down to rest on his read-headed wife. She snuggled further against his chest and twitched her stuffy nose. A tiny Naruto slept soundly in her arms.
Minato sighed contently. This was what life was about. A nice lazy evening by the fire. His beautiful wife cradled in his arms. And thankfully, a quiet unfussy child enjoying the warmth and comforting hum of chakra from his parents.
The morning and mid-day had been filled with ceremonies. The unveiling of memorials commemorating that terrible day one year ago had taken up most of his time. A day that he should have been able to dedicate fully to his son. He would have preferred to spend it baking a cake or watching his son play with his new toys. But instead, it will forever be tinged with sadness.
Minato again looked down at his wife and lovingly caressed the top of her head. He occasionally had nightmares of that day. The day he almost lost them. One second slower or one wrong decision could have meant their death. He thanked the gods every day for their survival.
He was one of the lucky ones. He lost friends sure, but he managed to keep his family safe. Some lost everything. But no one lost as much as Kaito. Minato sighed sadly. He couldn't even begin to imagine what the man was going through.
Especially today.
After Minato watched the man's memories a year ago, the first thing he did when he got home was hugged his family. The pain he felt in those memories left him gasping for air. It took all his willpower to hide the worst of the tremors from Kushina that night. Seeing a different version of his wife take her last breaths shook him to his core. It added extra importance to every moment he spent with his wife. Every smile, every argument, every joke he now treasured.
How Kaito managed to continue on was beyond Minato's understanding. A man so obviously hurting had become the bedrock keeping the Leaf afloat. Minato wished with all his heart that he could let Kaito rest. But he needed him. The Leaf needed his strength. Without him the Mist would have already struck, their encroachments weakening the Leaf's eastern defenses. But Kaito delayed their plans and allowed Minato to increase the Leaf's active ninja count ever so slightly to help lessen the impact of the Nine-Tails. Minato had no doubt that without Kaito, the Leaf would be knee-deep in blood, stuck in a winless battle.
Another year or two of delay and Minato was confident they could repel and attack.
A familiar chakra presence on his second-floor balcony brought a smile to his face. He gently eased his way out from Kushina's vice-like hug and made his way to see his fashionably late sensei. Minato slid the glass balcony door open and stepped outside next to his sensei. The large white-haired man leaned awkwardly against the railing with a small gift bag in his hand.
"Sorry, I'm late. I tried to rush back as fast as I could." Jiraiya said.
"It's fine. As long as you made it, that's all that matters." Minato said as he leaned against the railing. "Is that for Naruto? I hope it's not one of your Icha Icha books"
"I wouldn't waste a work of art like that on a brat who can't even read yet." Jiraiya snorted.
"What is it?" Minato asked from behind a smile.
"A stuffed frog," Jiraiya said with a serious face. "Now he can have one just like his pops. It used to help you sleep during thunderstorms if I recall correctly."
Minato's face instantly turned crimson, and Jiraiya's booming laugh threatened to anger the neighbors. "What? Did you think just because you're Hokage now that I couldn't bust your balls!"
Minato gave his sensei and father figure a playful punch on the shoulder, a punch that may have had more force behind it than normal judging by the yelp that escaped Jiraiya.
"Alright alright," Jiraiya said with hands up signaling peace. "How's the brat and Kushina?"
"They're doing fine. Naruto's growing like a weed and Kushina is a natural mother."
"And how about you? The Hokage and father life proving too much to handle?"
Minato laughed, "I don't get much sleep if that's what you're asking, but things are fine. The first two months after Naruto's birth was hell, with the state of the village and Kushina's paranoia. But things have gotten a lot better. I still leave my desk every day with paperwork undone and rescheduled meetings though."
"That's good. I was worried for a bit." Jiraiya said. "With sensei dead and you dealing with Naruto and the hurting village, it looked like an impossible task to keep this place running."
"Your intelligence reports were vital Jiraiya. Even with reduced numbers, we were able to react quickly before things grew out of hand. Also, all the work Kaito's been doing on the eastern front has pretty much kept us out of an all-out open war with the Mist."
At the mention of Kaito, the mood seemed to darken.
"How's he doing?" the large man said with worry evident in his voice.
"It's hard to tell. Sometimes he appears fine. He will crack jokes in our meetings and go out with his anbu squad for drinks." Minato paused and rubbed his head tiredly. "Other times he's lost in his thoughts with a distant expression. Inoichi says he has nightmares of his family, of losing them. And then he wakes up only to find his nightmares have turned into reality."
Jiraiya hummed and rubbed his chin in thought. "From the missions reports you've shown me it doesn't seem to have impacted his performance. But I'm sure you've noticed it too, right?"
Minato nodded in agreement, "Yea. He's unbelievable on missions. Pretty much flawless and his teammates sing his praise. But his decision-making is siding less and less on the side of mercy, and he appears to be getting more irritable during debriefs."
"He's frustrated. Frustrated about not making progress towards his true goal. I've seen it in his eyes the past couple of recon missions I've joined him on. And I can see it in the mission reports." Jiraiya turned to Minato, "You need to address this."
"How? We have no intel. Believe me, I'd love to catch that bastard, but we've got no leads. Ever since the attack, it's just been silence."
"That's not what I'm talking about," Jiraiya said shaking his head. "You need to give him another purpose. Kaito's on a knife's edge with only two motivations. A delicate balance between hunting the masked man and protecting a village that's not quite his own. One of those is fueled by vengeance. The other is quickly becoming a dangerous and bloody way to keep his mind off an obsession."
Minato sighed and hung his head. "I know I know. Inoichi has voiced similar concerns as well, but I just don't know what to do. And quite frankly we need him out in the field."
"I'm not saying pull him out completely. He still obviously needs the work, or he will sink into his own head. But find another anchor. Something else to ground him here. If not, he could quickly spiral into something dangerous." Jiraiya warned.
"I can handle him if it gets that far," Minato grumbled.
A snort from Jiraiya caused Minato to raise an eyebrow, "What?"
"Maybe right when the war ended, and you were still sharp. But several years behind the desk and the stress of parenthood has dulled you Minato." Jiraiya said while eyeing Minato's stomach.
Just perfect, he gains a couple of pounds, and both Kushina and his sensei pounce on him. It's not like he lost his six-pack.
"You're still one of the strongest ninjas in the elemental nations and could kick my ass. But you haven't seen him in person out there like I have." Jiraiya paused and looked out over the village, "Training three days a week for a couple of hours doesn't compare to constant training, dangerous missions, and a revenge-filled obsession."
"Alright alright, I'll pull Kakashi into more training sessions."
Jiraiya laughed, "I got to give the other me props though. Looks like all Jiraiya's are badass sensei."
Minato shook his head in disbelief. Jiraiya had shrugged the off revelation that Kaito was from a different reality like a minor inconvenience. It had taken Minato months to get over the idea that there were different realities. His analytical mind clashed with the supernatural feel of the revelation. Seals he understood, the intricate math behind chakra limiters and enhancers. How chakra flowed through ink and how different symbols imbued with intent could change chakra and its effects. Even space-time ninjutsu he understood.
Different realities and traversing between them he did not. He had spent months going over the idea in his head, he had endlessly searched through the Hokage's private library for any mention or clue on how he could help send Kaito back. He even investigated Uzumaki texts on the reaper death seal, but there was no mention of traversing realities. In the end, he had to concede. He had no idea where to even start. Perhaps it was just the whim of the reaper to send Kaito here.
"You know what surprised me though?" Jiraiya asked.
"What?"
"You two are so alike in many ways and yet so different in others. On one side you both picked the same girl and named your kids the same name." Jiraiya snorted in amusement, "yet on the other side he rejected the frog summoning contract and can't stand seals."
"Huh, I guess you're right. How did you learn about him rejecting the frog summon? I thought maybe the other Jiraiya's summons was different."
"I asked him during the last mission we were on. He told me he rejected it because it just didn't feel right." Jiraiya said.
"I'll have to ask him about it sometime." Minato said, "I only reviewed the bare minimum of his memories to ensure his intentions were true. There's still so much I don't know about him."
"There is something else. Another difference." A worried Jiraiya said, "I don't think I would have noticed it if I didn't have you to compare him to, but there's a darkness in him. At first, I thought it may have spawned from his recent misfortunes and losses. But I'm not so sure now."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Minato," Jiraiya said in earnest and turned to face him. "Help him find a reason to call this place home. Because if you don't and he tips too far to one side, we could have another Orochimaru. A man who no longer sees the Leaf's prosperity and his personal goal as intertwined."
"I'll try sensei."
Kaito readjusted his backpack and continued up the last couple of stone steps that lead to the plateau above the Hokage monument. The four faces chiseled and weathered peered out over the village. Their protective gaze ever-watchful was always focused on the main gate. A warning to any visitor who may mean the Leaf harm.
Kaito came to a stop under a large maple tree in the middle of the clearing. The tree's leaves were a vibrant red. It was October after all, and the turning of the leaves was in full swing. He never understood why this tree stood alone in the clearing. All the others were clumped along the edge of the clearing, and yet this one stood resolute. Alone. Like him.
So many little things were different about this village compared to the one he served before. But of all the things to stay the same, he was most thankful for this one single tree. Not a single branch differed compared to the one back home. Its placement in the center of the clearing, all alone, was the exact same.
It was under this tree that he proposed to Kushina.
She loved it up here. It was a place she could go to gather her thoughts. A place to escape the bullies in the academy when she was young. A place to plan her next prank. When they became a pair, they use to sit up here and catch the sunset. She always sat between his legs, back pressed firmly into his chest. Her head tucked under his chin, stray strands of red hair tickling his nose.
Kaito knelt at the base of the tree and pulled his backpack off his back. He grabbed a smooth stone to his left and placed it against the base of the tree. He then pulled out the assortment of red fruits in his backpack. He smiled to himself, Kushina always did prefer red. Even when it came to her food. Kaito then reached into his bag again and pulled out two incense sticks and stuck them into the ground next to the offerings. Finally, Kaito untied his headband and unsealed the picture of Kushina he always kept there. In this reality, it was the only existing picture of his wife.
He set the picture against the smooth stone and with a snap of his finger he lit the two incense sticks with a quick burst of chakra.
One year. One year he's been in this new reality. One year since the birth of their baby boy. One year since Kushina's death and his appearance here.
"Our boy turned one today Kushina." Kaito said with a sad chuckle, "I'm sure he's already raising hell and keeping Lord Third on his toes. He has probably started smoking more to compensate."
He took a deep breath and stared sadly up into the red leaves of the maple tree. "By now he'd be learning how to walk. Stumbling around the living room with us catching him as he fell." He laughed as he imagined the scene. "You'd be fussing over every little bruise and tumble, no doubt patching him up and giving him kisses. I'd complain that you were spoiling him and making him soft. But as soon as you looked away, I'd give him toys and sweets."
Kaito sat back and pulled his knees close to his chest as his resolve started to break. He rested his weary head on his knees as the tears rolled down his face.
"I….I…don't know how much longer I can keep this up. The world has lost its sparkle without you." He managed to say between sobs. "I'm so alone here. Minato and a few others know my truth. But they don't know me beyond the few memories they have seen. They aren't my friends. They aren't the friends we went to class with, the people we bled next to on the battlefield."
Kaito wiped the snot and tears that had built up with his sleeve, but it did little to stem the tide. "I thought if I buried myself in work. If I put everything into finding the masked man, it would help. But there are no leads, no sign, not even a whisper of the man. He's out there, the man that took you from me. The man that orphaned our baby boy. The man who pushed this village and our village to the edge." Kaito whimpered between gasps of breath and tears. "He's out there but I can't find him. There's only silence. The endless danger and the constant stream of missions I can bear. But the silence and memories that follow I cannot. When the silence comes, I think of you, and it brings me to my knees."
Kaito took a deep breath and steadied himself. "And then there's her. She looks so much like you it's uncanny. Her red hair, the pitch of her voice, the way she smiles. It's so close to you that I often mistake her for you. A spark of happiness enters me but then it's snuffed out upon realizing that she isn't you."
"Minato has seen my reactions to her a couple of times. I do my best to avoid her and to hide my reactions from him, but he has noticed. The look of knowing and pity that crosses his face is unbearable." The sound of thunder off in the distance caused Kaito to tear his gaze from the picture of his wife. Ominous clouds were rolling in from the east and the first droplet of rain hit the top of his head.
Kaito took one last look at Kushina before sealing the picture back into his headband. "I'm sorry love, but a storm is coming, and I really ought to get some rest. Tomorrow I'm being sent to the east again to combat the Mist. Always to the east, instead of towards the true enemy." Kaito packed up the offerings and put out the incense sticks.
"I love you Kushina. Now and forever." He said while gazing sadly at the maple tree before turning away and heading back down to the village below.
He and Minato had been sending out constant scouts. Kaito always had hawks flying all over the elemental nations searching for any sign. Even Jiraiya with his spy network never turned up anything. Dead end after dead end. When it came to the masked man, the world offered nothing but silence. So, Minato pointed Kaito's sword elsewhere and Kaito jumped into the fray. Because it provided a temporary respite from his thoughts.
Kaito sighed and readjusted his backpack. Minato had him running another interference mission in the east. The blonde Hokage still clung to the hope of peace, but Kaito knew it was a fantasy. War with the mist was inevitable. The industry of war was turning, and the Mist's vast fleets of ships were covering the eastern seas.
It was only a matter of time and when it sprung, he knew he'd have no time to chase down the one responsible for his current hell. Once again war would sweep across the land and like last time, Kaito's hands would be covered in blood. Again, he'd wade knee-deep in violence to keep the others as dry as possible.
Authors note:
Sad chapter :(.
This chapter is heavily inspired by the Leaves Falling of the Vine episode in Avatar the Last Airbender. One year Kaito has been here, and we see the cracks that have formed despite his best efforts in drowning himself in work. Despite the bonds he has formed with his anbu team, he is still isolated. He can't tell them who he really is, and Minato is a constant reminder of what he has lost.
Mikoto enters the story for the second time. Again, in a graveyard yeesh. I plan on having some chapters from her perspective in the future. I liked the idea of Fugaku being the better of two evils. A tough father that pushes his children but still shields them from the worse reality of being left to the clan elders to turn them into killing machines. But it's on Mikoto now and she is determined to give Itachi at least a chance at a normal-ish ninja life. If that's even possible.
Some Minato and Jiraiya dialogue! Jiraiya is very curious about Kaito and his past reality, but for some reason, Minato is more hesitant. Jiraiya is interested in how Kaito developed such different abilities and interests despite having the same mentor as Minato.