After eight chapters I finally get to start doing what I do best. World-building! Prepare for OC galore, mixed in with canon characters, and some fresh, new plots. Mixed up with some canon plots that I want to let play out a little bit. This one is kind of… transitional. We're moving into the first arc.

Chapter Nine

'In Theory'

Obito was grinning behind his mask at Sasori's irritated glower. Even through Hiruko – the puppet's displeasure was clear.

"I have neither the time nor the inclination to be saddled with babysitting and training an inept, spoiled, naïve little girl," the puppet master growled after Pain's steady proclamation that that was exactly what Sasori would be doing for the foreseeable future. "Much less one with a target on her back because of her clan, and that's without mentioning her father!"

"You will teach her to use a henge to dull the red of her hair and no one will suspect her of being an Uzumaki. Much less the missing child of the late Fourth Hokage." Pain's response was dull, with no inflection as per his usual.

But they could all sense the undercurrent of his demand and the hostility, nonetheless.

"I still have four research sessions with her and require her presence within reach. Having her taking missions outside the city is not ideal. Uzumaki Fū ensures my presence within the organization." Orochimaru reminded them all needlessly, his eerily roiling voice a low rumble, eyes slitted as he observed the meeting from his high backed chair. "Perhaps her safety and training should be entrusted to me. Undoubtedly I could manage one child."

Obito watched Orochimaru with suspicion before his eye cut to Sasori, to see how he'd react to the obvious gibe.

He didn't take the bait.

"Agreed."

"No." Pain interjected, dropping a heavy hand on the table in front of him, a frown creasing his brow and everyone sat up a little straighter. "Orochimaru – Uzumaki will return to Amegakure often enough that your research will not be overly affected. In the meantime, I have a proposal for you. We shall speak on it later. Sasori, you will do as you have been instructed. This is not up for debate."

The puppet's eyes narrowed and Obito almost laughed at how theatrical Sasori was being.

"This is inconvenient. I have no room in my schedule to escort the girl around five smaller nations, then watch her as she fiddles about the Land of Whirlpools searching for long lost Uzumaki scrolls to instruct her on how to use fūinjutsu from a bygone era."

"You will make room." Pain spoke with finality, leaning back into a more relaxed position. "This is your priority. Everything else is secondary." Sasori was still grumbling as they moved onto the next subject. "Orochimaru."

The snake glanced at Pain. "Pain-sama?" He asked, in the same tone he might've responded 'who, innocent ole me?', looking as if he couldn't imagine a reason Pain would single him out, out of everyone in the room, for anything.

"What is the extent of your relationship with Shimura Danzō?"

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly, and Obito wondered if the man was taken off guard by the question. If he had, he quickly recovered.

"I see," Orochimaru crossed his legs and threaded his fingers together, laying his hands atop his knee. He looked unbothered as he continued. "Someone has traveled to that dreadful village to gather intel, hum? I have worked with Danzō in the past. I've found him disagreeable. Before my defection, there was a falling out. We are, as you can imagine, no longer in touch."

Obito wasn't sure he believed that the two were no longer in touch.

He thought that Orochimaru might've been sent to infiltrate and report on the Akatsuki's movements. If that was the case, surely some Konoha nin would intercept Fū and Sasori in their travels. Perhaps meet them in Uzushio.

That was the reason Pain had given Sasori the mission in front of everyone. Afterwards, Sasori was going to be given a reverse summoning scroll in the event of that outcome. So he and Fū could retreat in relative safety and make it back to Ame.

"Why, is there something I can help you with?" Orochimaru continued, eyeing Pain.

"He has recently sent his own branch on Leaf ANBU operatives to infiltrate Amegakure. They came, gathered intel, and I allowed them to leave thinking they went unnoticed. As someone who has worked with him in the past, what do you believe is Danzō's next move?"

"Infiltrate the Akatsuki," Orochimaru told them without preamble, "if he hasn't already he will manipulate a circumstance for a prolific leaf shinobi to defect and they will enter the Akatsuki under some guise of disillusionment with Konohagakure. Or something cut from the same cloth."

Everyone blinked at him.

(Obito got a sudden uneasy feeling that his last conversation with Danzō, the one involving the Uchiha heir, was not going to be the last he heard about the boy.)

Orochimaru's sick laugh echoed through the silent room.

"Yes, yes," he waved a dismissive hand. "I am aware of the irony. I was not dishonest about my reason for being here. I wish to study the longevity and the regenerative abilities of the Uzumaki line. Everything else is just to appease my boredom and insatiable curiosity. Were I a spy, I would come up with a better lie."

"I would say that too if I were a spy," Kakazu stated gruffly from where he sat, arms folded over his chest. He'd been silent through the whole meeting, irritated that he'd been required to remain in Ame an extra day to attend when he wanted to be out bounty hunting.

"Indeed," agreed Konan with suspicion in her narrowed eyes.

She and Nagato had more of a reason than most to distrust the snake sannin. From what he understood, he'd told Jiraiya to kill them as a mercy when they were young, scared, and helpless war orphans.

Orochimaru shrugged one shoulder, as if it didn't matter to him what they thought of his intentions.

Obito supposed it didn't.

"Wait and see," was the last Orochimaru spoke on the matter.

Naruto didn't understand what 'I'm leaving and I'll be back in a couple of months,' meant. So it was no surprise when he didn't react as Fū placed him in Obito's waiting arms.

But tears stung her eyes nonetheless.

"He's important, isn't he?" Obito asked, scarred face looking down at the boy in his arms. "In the story?"

Fu took a breath and nodded, letting Naruto squeeze her hand as he babbled about his newest favorite toy, waving it around in his free hand as if brandishing the greatest invention mankind had ever contrived.

"Between me, Konan, and Pain he will be well protected." Obito promised quietly, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and dragging her into an awkward but warm hug that had Naruto squeaking mild protests against being squished. "And even I wouldn't want to go up against Haruki-san."

Fū laughed a little. Haruki-san was the woman who'd been hired to look after Naruto whenever Fū was unavailable. The woman was stern, but kind hearted. Fū had picked her above the other applicants because she'd not taken any of Naruto's shit – but she was gentle about it.

"Move his crib into the living room for the time being. By the time I get back I should have learned enough to fully protect the entire suite, but for now the bedrooms and the bathroom are vulnerable." Fū requested, head buried in Obito's upper rib cage.

He was too tall. A reminder he was growing up. Sixteen, now.

"He'll be fine. I promise."

She hoped, for everyone's sake, that Obito's promises were the kind that could be kept.

"You saw Fū-chan? How close were you?" The Toad Sannin asked, eying Kakashi from across the room, seated at Kakashi's kitchen island.

Jiraiya had shown up in the leaf a month after Kakashi had returned from his recon mission to Ame with Root operatives. He'd taken the scolding of a lifetime for ignoring the Hokage's orders to cease searching for the Fourth's children and return to Konoha at once, but was ultimately granted his ill-behavior because it was for a just cause.

It didn't take him long to wander into Kakashi's district and force his way into the young ANBU's home, uninvited and unannounced.

Kakashi almost slit the man's throat when he noticed someone was in his apartment. Thankfully, Jiraiya was skilled enough to stop the attack. Anyone else and they'd have been bleeding to death on Kakashi's worn gray carpet.

"Within centimeters, but there was nothing I could do. Besides my being embedded with Root operatives, she was walking with the Leader of the Akatsuki and the new Kage of Amegakure; a man called Pain." Kakashi informed his elder, leaning against the window frame and staring down at the picture he kept there, one of him and Taifū.

It had been taken by Kushina-san on a whim at the end of the summer two years ago. Just before everything happened. Fū had somehow gotten into a merchant's sweets stock and managed to get sticky and wet and Kakashi wasn't sure how he'd been the one forced to deal with it but she'd been dumped unceremoniously on his shoulders nonetheless.

He'd carried her the whole way back to his sensei's house livid, but despite his anger he'd never once let his hand fall from her leg – the only thing keeping her balanced.

Not even when she wormed those sticky fingers into his hair.

He'd never tell anyone, but he'd almost stumbled and fell over when he felt baby Fū wrapped her arms around the top of his head and squeezed with all the might of a three year old. Which wasn't very strong. But she'd buried her face in his hair and garbled a soft 'love you Kashi-nii' and that had sent a warm, light hearted feeling through him.

If he'd responded, it was only for him and Fū to know.

Kakashi looked away from the photo, focusing back on the present.

He didn't trust Danzō, or his operatives.

Kakashi had gone to the Hokage following Danzō's attempt to recruit him and had been subsequently ordered to spy on them as well as ascertain the location of the children and their well being. As far as the Hokage's orders were concerned, Kakashi was meant to report only to Jiraiya or the Hokage himself.

Which meant his secret meetings with the Uchiha were becoming infrequent.

Now, he had actual support and an undercover mission to focus on. He couldn't waste time, and the Uchiha couldn't help him with this.

Every day Fū and Naruto were in Ame was another day he could lose them.

"Sensei mentioned a note? Do you have it or was it taken as evidence?" Jiraiya asked, leaning both of his elbows back against the countertop.

"I have it, no evidence will be processed for this mission. At least not at this time."

Jiraiya raised his head, and Kakashi pushed himself out of his lean against the wall and strode over to where he was keeping the crane, hidden underneath three seals and inside of a special container that Kushina-san had given him upon his promotion to Chunin.

He went through a series of releases and scooped the little slip of paper out of the container, passing it over into Jiraiya's outstretched and waiting hand.

Kakasi watched the Sannin examine the note, and the few strands of Uzumaki red hair that Kakashi had carefully placed back inside the paper when he refolded the crane.

"Trying to save the world, eh?" Jiraiya read softly, returning the strands to the paper with just as much care as Kakashi had the first time he'd opened the crane. "This must be why sensei reconsidered keeping the Namikaze case closed."

"He's already altered the Jonin records to show Fū and Naruto as MIA, instead of pronounced dead. It hasn't been announced and it won't be. But any Jonin that goes looking will discover it."

"And a few will. Those who still feel guilty about Minato's death." Jiraiya stated, refolding the crane, "They'll start keeping an eye out for anyone matching the descriptor of an Uzumaki child who would be around the right age. Who brought this to you?"

"Uchiha Itachi. When I questioned him, he told me it flew right to him. He thought it would serve best with me, rather than him, and waited for me to return."

"Instead of taking it to the Hokage?"

"I asked him about that, too. He told me that the Hokage might bury the note and I wouldn't get the reassurance that I needed that Fū was alive," Kakashi admitted, a little ruefully, annoyed that the boy had read him so easily. "I can't really fault him for it, so I told the Hokage it came to me directly."

"I suppose his insubordination is understandable. He's been a friend of Fū's since they were both in diapers, after all." Jiraiya dismissed, passing the crane back to Kakashi who cradled it delicately as he placed it back into its container. "I've received a disconcerting report that Orochimaru has joined the Akatsuki."

"To what end?"

"Undetermined, but the timing of his defection…"

"He was experimenting on children from the village. His time was up. Hokage-sama was going to have him executed." Kakashi stated, voice as harsh as the look in his eye.

'If the snake does anything to Fū or Naruto so help me… the baying of my hounds will be last thing he hears before he enters the realm of the dead for good.'

"Still, it can't be a coincidence…" If Jiraiya was bothered by the venom in Kakashi's tone while he spoke of one third of Jiraiya's genin team, the sannin didn't show it. "And Danzō has grown bolder."

At least Jiraiya seemed to see what the Hokage did not, in regards to Kakashi's concerns over the Foundation, Root, and their commander himself.

"Keep an eye on that, Kakashi. Meanwhile I'm going to go to Ame and see what I can find out for myself."

"Be careful, Jiraiya-sama. Pain… I didn't get to observe much about him, but there's something about the air around him that put me on edge. The people of Ame speak of him as if he's a god."

Kakashi watched his sensei's master leave with a quick wave behind him, dread curdling his stomach.

Somewhere in the middle of Kusagakure, a little girl's crimson head snapped up and swiveled southwest. Red eyes stared on, as if seeing through the throng of people, the mass of buildings, and out of the gates into the foliage beyond.

"Mama," the toddler tugged on the necklace of a woman with equally crimson hair and eyes to match, tone the special kind of awestruck that only a small child with no sense of the world could muster, "pretty chakra."

"Quiet, sweetheart." Uzumaki Yui hushed her two year old daughter, glancing around to see if anyone had noticed or overheard the toddler's proclamation. When she didn't notice anyone watching them specifically, Yui relaxed the tight grip she had around her daughter just a fraction.

Only for the little girl to jump out of her arms and point, toddling off on too short legs with determination that Yui was certain no adult could possibly muster. "Pretty chakra, mama!"

Yui swooped down and scooped the child back into her arms. Quietly, the frazzled mother scolded the girl; "Hush, Karin. I don't care how pretty the chakra is, you do not run off after it!"

Six miles away, deep within the tall grass of the fields surrounding Kuso, Uzumaki Fū was busy irritating her puppet-shishou by changing her hair color every twenty steps, just to prove she could do it now.

Three people in black and red stood atop the tallest tower in Amegakure, watching the city below and ignoring the rain that soaked them to the bone.

"We begin with the Daimyo's." Konan suggested, deep in thought beside Pain. "First Rivers, then Grass and Birds. Shore up strong trade alliances, first, and assess the political climate in each nation before going forward."

"Agreed." Pain stated, looking out at the late evening sky. "Madara, you'll have to make the Mizukage yield to the coup d'etat that has been plotted by Momochi Zabuza, instead of fighting against it. Kirigakure is in too much turmoil. If we are to change course, they must stabilize."

"I won't allow Yagura to yield to Zabuza," the Uchiha huffed, his arms folded over his chest as though the very idea was distasteful, "- but I will agree that Kiri must stabilize. I shall work toward that end."

"Very well," Pain nodded, appeased, "then we have our missions. Let us proceed and reconvene in a week's time to debrief."

Sasori wasn't so bad, once one got past all the gruff irritability and impatience.

He demanded that she keep up, which had been a difficult adjustment because she hadn't been made to run at breakneck speeds whilst maintaining her balance long-distance before now. He was also short with her, and had high expectations for her competence.

He gave no quarter, either. If she fell behind and he had to stop moving to wait on her he was merciless.

It wasn't until night seven of traveling together that Fū proved she was worthwhile at even one basic task – and that happened to be something she hadn't even learned in this world.

Sasori of the Red Sand… the fearsome missing puppet ninja of Sunagakure who'd secretly killed one of the Kage and turned him into a puppet… had been impressed by her ability to catch and skin a squirrel, of all things.

"I didn't think you would be capable – pampered brat that you are." He'd huffed as she skinned the little rodent with precision that came back to her far easier than she'd expected. "Did your father teach you?"

"Yes," she'd told him. And it technically wasn't a lie – daddy had taught her how to hunt, skin, and prepare fresh game before she was ten in her last life. It had been a survival necessity.

Minato… he'd only been preoccupied with letting her be a kid and teaching her the basics of fūinjutsu.

In some ways, her last life had prepared her more for the life of a shinobi than this one had, thus far.

She hadn't really sat down and thought about it until she was out with Sasori and surviving on the land again.

Having been a poor child from rural Appalachia, where they thrived off the land and lived the old ways everyone else had forgotten, had given her a significant leg up here.

It was a joke, in the other world, that a nuke – or an EMP – could go off and the modern world could stop spinnin' but the people up in the mountains wouldn't even know it. Where she was raised, that joke was absolute truth.

In this life, despite how rough the world was, she'd been sheltered.

Daughter of a Kage and a clan head. Clan heir herself, even. Living in one of the most prolific of the Great Shinobi Villages. It was no wonder she hadn't ventured outside of the gates the entire time she'd lived in Konoha.

There weren't many children in this world who had been as safe and well protected as Namikaze Taifū. She'd taken that for granted when it was her reality – she'd worried far too much about the potential outcomes her existence might've set off like a row of dominoes instead of enjoying the time she'd had.

(But doing all that had kept the creeping thoughts of her last life, her failures and her end, at bay. So she couldn't bring herself to regret it.)

So, once her skill was revealed, Sasori made her hunt and prepare all of their meals. Once he'd realized she wasn't going to inadvertently poison them. She knew what meat was good, what wasn't, and what parts of an animal could be kept for other uses. He was satisfied by that, at least.

Two weeks into their journey, once they'd gone a good way into the southern region of the Land of Waterfalls, Sasori had halted them in a small village several miles north of the Land of Fire's border. He got them a room in a dingy old inn on the outskirts of town and told her to get inside, don't come out, and don't make any noise.

"I'll just be in my bedroom, making no noise and pretending I don't exist." Fū mumbled the Harry Potter quote sarcastically to herself, pulling out her fūinjutsu kit as she did.

She knew Sasori wasn't going to trust her for a while. Despite her orders to get on his good side so he'll let her into his spy network. No matter what she did, it was going to take time to develop that kind of trust.

So instead of arguing and trying to force her way into his business, she sat at the lone table in the dusty, drafty old room, she started working on the seal Itachi had requested.

Well, more like continuing working on it. Progress was slow, but that was because she was really trying to make something special to keep them connected. The permanent audio connection was already established in her seal work, but she wanted to do more than that.

Fū worried about Itachi. She was almost eight now, and that meant he was nine. Fū was pretty sure he was supposed to make Chunin at ten and would be in ANBU by the time he was eleven. Then he'd be captain by thirteen – and around that time was when the massacre would happen.

In short, she was starting to run out of time to influence him against blindly trusting the government.

And she was beyond nervous, too. Because the longer she went without getting in touch, the more likely it became that their friendship would teeter off due to lack of communication. Itachi would get to a point where he didn't trust her at all.

Fū really didn't want Itachi to get manipulated by Danzō, kill his clan, and join the Akatsuki. No matter how nice it would be to have him around – it came at the cost of too many lives and his own mental health, as well as Sasuke's.

Something else needed to be done to stop, prevent, or circumvent the Uchiha coup, but Fū wasn't sure what it was.

If that was even happening anymore.

She had no idea what was going on in Konoha. For all she knew, the clan hadn't been distrusted following Kurama's attack and moved to the outskirts of the village.

There were too many unknown variables, so Fū opened the folder of documents she'd received from Orochimaru after her second appointment with him.

This folder was entitled, in Minato's perfect penmanship; Theory of Hiraishin.

"So tell me about your missing friend," Shisui blurted in the middle of target practice. The warm, early autumn breeze brushed against their sweat laden skin, cooling them enough that it was a reprieve from the sweltering heat of the summer they were leaving behind.

Soon, it will have been two years since Itachi had last seen his friend. His first friend.

His best friend.

He'd recently learned what a best friend was. Shisui had been faintly irritable since Itachi had proclaimed Tai was his, not his brilliant (if eccentric) training companion. Because of this, it seemed Shisui had developed a regrettable curiosity and Itachi lamented his mistake of bringing Tai up at all.

His friend's question threw Itachi momentarily off balance and he missed the center of the target by four centimeters.

Shisui raised his brow. Itachi understood why. Since they'd known each other, Itachi had never failed to hit the target dead-center.

"I see," Shisui smiled kindly at him, stepping past to collect the embedded kunai so they could run through their drills again.

No, Shisui didn't see. He couldn't possibly see. Sharingan or no.

"The Hokage has declared her dead." Itachi stated simply, a worried frown marring his face. He quickly concealed it. Shisui had told him he shouldn't show his emotions on his face.

If Tai's mission were as important as she claimed – quelling an existential threat – then perhaps she needed to remain dead in order to accomplish her goals.

He hoped the day would soon come that she could get word to him again. Sometimes, late at night, he'd get awful stomach aches worrying about where Tai was and if she was okay. If the threat had been eliminated or if it could be eliminated. He worried that she needed help and he wasn't there to help her. Worried that something would happen to her, or her brother, and he'd never know...

"I read the file," Shisui told him, playing with his gathered kunai, "-what wasn't blacked out anyway. The official stance of the village is that she's dead, but the file available to Jonin says that she and her brother are MIA."

"If the file is for Jonin then telling me about it breaks protocol," Itachi warned stubbornly, unable to control the pinched frown from forming on his face. "I'm still a genin."

He quickly schooled his face once he noticed he was showing everything he felt. Shisui had mentioned that he did it, and he'd been working on it. Masking his emotions was proving difficult, but he would remain diligent.

"You're exceptional, Itachi. You won't be a Genin much longer." Shisui told him, passing over the kunai. Itachi accepted warily, tired of how often everyone proclaimed him 'exceptional.' He didn't feel as though he were better than anyone else. "You know as well as I do that if there's a discrepancy between public narrative and private record…"

Then something else was going on.

And any of the Jonin who bothered to look would know that Tai was alive, but missing.

Which meant the Hogake wanted the Jonin to keep an eye out for her. Unofficially. So the Uchiha clan wouldn't be in trouble if it was to be discovered that Itachi's mother had requested they keep an eye out for Tai.

"I just wanted you to know that I'm going to search when I can during my out-of-village missions. Anything you could tell me would help," Shisui told him, smiling that bright smile that Itachi had come to realize was just his way. "To bring her and her brother home. Not everyone hates them for something they couldn't have done, you know. It's mostly the civilians."

This put Itachi in a position.

On one hand, he wanted Tai to come home. Like Sasuke, she belonged beside him, and he would see her returned.

On the other hand, Tai had said it wasn't safe for any Konoha shinobi to come after her.

She'd also said she needed to stay where she was due to the 'existential threat.'

Itachi trusted that Tai wasn't lying about that — the existence of such a threat was a severe claim to make and Tai, while a little idiosyncratic from time to time, was no liar.

"She has an extensive vocabulary," Itachi said slowly, deciding there were a few details he could give Shisui that might aid him if he ever encountered Tai, but likely wouldn't lead to him actually finding her, "and her philosophies are similar to yours. Tai is a very kind person — but she has the volatile temper of the Uzumaki clan. Along with their unyielding energy and excessive chakra. Sometimes she almost seems to vibrate with it."

Shisui eyed him for a few long seconds, and then nodded. Smile, once again, wide.

"So keep an eye out for a nice girl who talks in big words, quick tempered, lots of chakra and boundless energy," Shisui summed up, raising a finger to accentuate each point, he winked at Itachi, "got it!"

Worry twisted his gut again as they returned to target practice like the conversation never happened.