Within the bright green flames, whose uncomfortable heat I can feel from so far away, my sharingan just manages to make out Ken Ishimura.
I guess I know what the signal was now.
Or maybe not, I reconsider, as I note the expression on Kei's face; she doesn't look excited or relieved that her sensei's here to save the day, she looks upset.
The bright green flames around Ken Ishimura vanish like they'd never been, and if it isn't for the literally scorched earth around him, it may have been easy to believe that they really never were, seeing as not even the man's clothes have so much as a singe on them.
'So much for the Fuji clan having terrible control,' I grouse mentally.
"What are you doing here?" Kei screams at Ken. "You were supposed to run."
I guess my reconsideration was right, the signal wasn't a call for help or support, it was a warning that they've been made.
Kei tries to evade my kunai pressed to her neck, presumably so she can make her way to Ken, but with the sharingan, I see it coming before she even begins to move.
I press the blade harder into her throat, cutting that much deeper and drawing even more blood, she stills; any harder and I may just nick her carotid.
"If you think I'm gonna run off on you, kid, then you're as senile as you like claiming I am," Ken says, a small, sad smile on his lips.
"Cow Guy, you're a ninja too?" Naruto asks, sounding like nothing makes sense anymore.
Which makes sense, I suppose, since nothing has really been explained to him. Or Sakura.
Ken looks at the blonde. Before he can say anything to Naruto though, I interject: "Surrender or I kill her."
The words are simple, clear and fully meant, and they cause Ken's focus to slam back onto me.
The old ninja's eyes peer into me, but there is no anger in them. No determination. No wiliness or consideration. There is nothing but resignation in his gaze. Resignation and heartbreak.
"Is there anything I can say that will make you leave her out of this?" he asks… no, he pleads.
I frown. "If you wanted her left out for this then you shouldn't have shared state secrets with her," I say.
"She is one child."
"No. She's one ninja. One ninja who can train others. And I don't have to explain to you why having a rogue ninja group sitting in the heart of The Land of Fire is unacceptable."
After all, there was a reason why, after The Hidden Leaf was founded here in Fire, the other nations quickly adopted the practice too.
It wasn't just about there being strength in unity, it was also (and, in some cases, mostly) because unifying the clans put an end to ninja conflicts within the nations. Or, at the very least, made them significantly less bloody.
The Warring Clans Era didn't only happen here in Fire, it happened everywhere. The Hidden Village system put an end to that, and no one (sane) really wants to go back to what it was like before.
"Ken, don't listen to him," Kei says. "Run. I'll be—"
I jab Kei hard in the stomach, running some lightning chakra through my hand as I do.
The girl screams and falls to her knees.
"Leave my sister alone," Gin screams and rushes at me.
Before the boy reaches me, Kakashi grabs him, but that doesn't stop him. If anything it only makes him angrier.
"Go away," the boy screams, tears of sadness and helpless rage pouring down his face. "I don't want you here anymore. I don't want you for my birthday anymore. Just leave us alone."
Something in my chest aches as I watch the boy scream and cry. I try to ignore it, but it's there, unyielding, like a stone lodged in my throat.
Finally, Kakashi places a hand on the boy's head, it glows green and the kid slumps, the jōnin catching him before he falls to the ground.
"What did you do to him!?" Kei screams, face twisting into an expression of horror.
"He's only asleep," Kakashi quickly assures her. "See?" He holds up the boy, showing the steady rise and fall of his chest clearly, then he puts him into a bridal carry and cradles him gently.
That ache in my chest is growing, and suddenly, I don't want to be here anymore. I don't want to do this mission anymore.
I turn to Ken. "Surrender," I say.
"Hey, Cow Guy, this is getting really dangerous," Naruto says. "Someone might get really hurt if we fight. And, well, there's more of us and our sensei's really strong… I don't wanna fight you."
Ken stares at Naruto, then down at Kei.
"I'm sorry," he says, the words heavy with so much emotion.
Kei sobs, repeatedly muttering "no" like the single word could alter her reality.
"I surrender," Ken says.
Kakashi hands Gin over to Sakura, then passes me a pair of chakra suppression cuffs before walking over to Ken and using another pair to bind the man's hands.
I bind Kei's.
Kakashi places a hand on Ken's head, it glows green, and the man collapses.
The jōnin pulls out a scroll. He opens it, presses it to Ken's chest, and with a puff of smoke, the older ninja is gone.
That's an Incarceration Scroll; a specially designed storage scroll for holding live prisoners. It's very delicate so its occupant/s generally have their chakra bound first to be safe.
Kakashi must have also rendered Ken unconscious so as to mitigate the side effects of the unavoidable sensory deprivation that is experienced when placed within the scroll.
"What did you do with him?" Kei screams, seeing her sensei vanish.
"I sealed him," Kakashi answers, walking back to her. "Easier to transport."
The girl sneers. "Don't want to have to explain why you're kidnapping an old man and a young girl?" she asks acerbically.
Kakashi says nothing.
"You know," Kei continues after a beat, "Ken always said that he left The Leaf because he got tired of watching his friends die, but I think the reason he really left was because he got tired of fighting for the bad guys."
"Hey," Naruto shouts angrily, "we're not bad guys, we're just…" he peters out, not knowing what to say.
To be honest, I don't either.
Kei scoffs.
"Do you want to say goodbye to your grandfather?" Kakashi asks calmly.
Kei's eyes widen, then she looks in the direction of her grandfather. The look on the old man's face causes the growing ache in my chest to worsen.
Kei looks away.
"Just get it over with," she says.
Kakashi touches her, his hand glows green. She passes out, then he seals her.
The jōnin rolls up the scroll, then hands it to me.
I stare at it, then at him.
'You're team leader,' his masked face seems to say.
I take the scroll and stash it in one of the empty pockets in my flak jacket.
"So, um… what now?" Sakura asks.
That's obvious.
"Now, we leave," I say. "I doubt anyone will still want us here when they find out what happened."
Chief Okinawa walks up to us.
I tense, alert, even though this old man couldn't possibly harm me even if he had a gun.
The expression on his face is heart wrenching, and I find myself subconsciously turning off my sharingan so I don't have to see it as vividly.
It's too late though, it's already permanently etched into my brain.
"Give me my grandson," the man says politely.
Sakura starts at the request, then rushes to obey, placing the small boy in the man's outstretched arms gently.
Though little, the boy's weight is obviously much for the frail, old man, but he perseveres.
Looking down at his grandson's peaceful, tear tracked face, Ichi Okinawa speaks; "This was supposed to be a birthday present for him.
"We share a birthday, and he's always loved ninja, so I thought I would surprise him. I didn't tell Kei because I thought she might tell him and ruin the surprise."
The chief sniffs. "Will I ever see my granddaughter again?" he asks.
"I don't know," Kakashi says honestly. "That's for The Hokage to decide."
Chief Okinawa nods in acceptance, then he turns and, struggling under the weight of his grandson, walks into his home.
Naruto sniffles, and Sakura fails to hold in a sob. My eyes sting.
I sigh. Maybe fighting Zabuza might have been better than this.