Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters in any way, shape, or form.
Chapter 3: Strangers
In the hospital room with Uchiha
"So what happens now?" Itachi asked seriously. The shock of the update on his life in the past decade had decidedly not been a shock, but rather had awakened the gnawing, gut-wrenching feeling in his stomach that he couldn't quite push down. But now that Shisui and Sasuke had, for the most part, given him a rundown of everything that had happened thus far, he understood that he was perhaps being kept here without the knowing of the village -scratch that, not perhaps, most certainly. That was why he had been smuggled into the village alongside Marika and Shisui, and why the fact that he was alive was being kept secret.
"Tsunade and Sakura are currently sorting out your integration into Konoha." A way to blackmail Danzo, although he would not specify this, "Mine as well, although that won't be as hard to coordinate, seeing as I'm not a wanted S-Class shinobi." Shisui explained, trying to make light of the situation.
"After that's all sorted out, we can start to integrate you back into the village and move you in with us." Mikoto explained, glancing at Shisui with a small frown.
"To the Uchiha Compound?" Itachi asked in trepidation -truth be told, he wasn't sure if he was ready. To face the demons of a past he could not remember, but knew of with certainty.
"Iie. We live in the Haruno Compound; it's helped, being around the Haruno. They've been supporting us ever since you left." Mikoto stated with a slight smile on her features -vague even though everyone knew what she meant. But she would not blame her son for the misguided actions of her clan that had forced his back against a wall.
"Ahh..." And then more silence. To be quite frank, none of them knew what to do at this point; leave him to his thoughts? Keep him company? Console him? Change the subject? This was all just too different. Too difficult.
Itachi had sensed her before she had entered his room; the chakra pattern that had been in and out of his hospital room since he had been admitted was becoming familiar to him now. She came in after she had knocked and had been given the okay to enter. "Good morning, Itachi. How are you feeling today?" Perhaps her question had more to do with the fact that he now knew about the massacre -he had sensed and heard the worry in her tone when Sasuke had brought it up.
"All things considered, fine." It wasn't entirely a lie -he would simply have to take this one step at a time. Perhaps it helped that he couldn't remember for the time being.
Sakura frowned slightly, not that he could see it. "Well, I'll be removing your bandages today. If everything has gone as I estimate, you should be good to walk by tomorrow. Marika-nee will probably be in later, in order to help with some of your healing sessions." She opted to explain to him, seeing as Tsunade had now officially mandated she do no more than examine people -forced upon her by basically everyone.
"Ah." he responded curtly, and then with a hesitant pause, "I forgot to thank you for operating on me yesterday. My apologies."
Sakura was nearly taken aback -didn't know how to respond. "Ah... it's fine. Thank you, in any case." she said rigidly. She went up to his bed, elevated it and forced him to sit up. "Aside from your eyes, how is your body feeling?" She tried to change the subject.
"Weak." he admitted. "Although I take it this could be residual from the war, or perhaps having been dead." he spoke so formally -trying to bring this up casually to perhaps feel some sort of normalcy.
"Perhaps both; I can't exactly say I've known anybody die and live to tell the tale." she tried to bring in some casual humor to lighten to mood -it worked, as evident to the way Itachi's shoulders eased up. "I suspect you'll need some physical therapy, unfortunately." In the short five hours that he had been dead, although she would not disclose this information, his muscle mass had deteriorated; truth be told his muscle mass hadn't even been that abundant to begin with. A fact that now made sense, given this supposed serious illness he had been harboring the entire time. Her fists clenched at the thought, but she swallowed it down. "In any case, let's start with these eyes." And as she spoke, her hand reached out to untie the bandages from behind his head. She unwrapped it gingerly, and held onto the bandages in one hand while the other hand hovered above his eyes with glowing chakra.
Everything seems fully repaired, now.
"Alright Itachi, you may open them."
And so he did, and his vision was once more bombarded with light -truth be told, he had become accustomed to the darkness, and even the small moments he had been able to see the day prior had been relieving.
Her stark pink hair and bright emerald eyes nearly caught him off guard again; they seemed brighter than before. "How is everything looking?"
"Is your hair supposed to be pink?" he redirected the question.
Sakura let out a small chuckle. "Hai."
"Then fine." he stated. "I am glad to finally be able to put a face to your voice." he admitted. He did not like feeling like he was being taken care of by a stranger. At least in this way he could begin to normalize their interactions.
"Good." Sakura smiled, clearly pleased. "I'm just going to check the reaction time of your eyes, alright?" As she spoke, she brought out a small flashlight from her coat.
"Hn."
And so she ran her tests, quietly focusing on the contraction of his retina as the light flashed over them whilst he sat there in silence.
"Sasuke and Okaa-san have informed me of my defection of Konoha. How was I able to be admitted into the hospital without anyone finding out?"
"I run this hospital, of course under Tsunade's guidance. Whatever I say goes here, so it wasn't too difficult." Sakura stated calmly. "Plus the fact that Tsunade is also on our side is a great help."
"And what am I to do once I am well enough?"
"If we have not completed our plans to clear your name when that time comes, you will be smuggled into my house." Sakura stated calmly. "That is, Mikoto, Sasuke-kun, and Saki also live there, in case they have no mentioned that to you yet." she blushed quickly, realizing what she had just said might have sounded odd if he didn't know the context.
"They informed me of this last night." Itachi merely nodded with a serious face. "Sakura-san. I know of my crimes in this village. Were anyone to find out you were harboring me, you'd be as much a traitor as I." he warned.
"That's not anything we're not willing to risk." Sakura dismissed his concern.
"Speaking as a wanted criminal, you should reconsider that. I don't know what stakes you hold on this, but I do not understand why you are protecting me." His family? Sure -he could understand that. But why was this Haruno so keen on healing him? Helping him? In fact, it seemed the Haruno were doing much not just for him, but his family as well.
"Iie. I-... Sasuke-kun, Kakashi-sensei, Mikoto... we have all worked so hard to get you back Itachi. If we gave up now all of our efforts would have been fruitless." They had been through too much to give up at the slightest sign of adversity from within. "And I understand that you're concerned, but trust me. This isn't as much of a risk as you'd think it to be."
Itachi raised an eyebrow, Whether her first statement confused him or not, he didn't press the topic. "How so?" he instead asked.
"Tsunade-shishou, Kakashi-sensei and I have discussed this extensively and have come up with a plan. We will incriminate Madara as the enactor of the massacre and state that you willingly took the blame and joined Akatsuki to gather intel. Because only Madara knew the truth, it did not look suspicious for you to join their ranks, seen as the real perpetrator. By blaming the massacre on Madara, which is not entirely a lie either, we clear your innocence and for now leave Danzo innocent. It's a win-win situation, one which will reinstate you as a Konoha Shinobi without judgement and for the time being appease Danzo." Sakura explained -of course, this had yet to be put into motion, but she knew that the reality would vary minimally.
"If you think that true you must be foolish." he was by no means condescending, but more so realistic. Without judgement? Please -it didn't matter what truly happened; even if his name was cleared he would forever be known as the monster of the Uchiha.
"I by no means do, Itachi-san. As you said, it would be foolish of me to believe that. But given the time and opportunity, I do believe that this will give the villagers the chance to see who you truly are. A person that has given the better part of his life to protect a nation he loves so dearly. Someone compassionate and loyal -they have yet to see this side of you, Itachi-san. And once they do, they'll come to respect you as much as I have, and everyone else who knows what you've done has." Sakura spoke whole-heartedly and completely honest.
For the longest time, Itachi was at a loss for words.
"Anyway," Sakura changed the subject quickly, standing up from her chair. "I'm not trying to convince you of anything; but do not feel like you are burdening me or my clansmen with your stay in our home." Sakura dismissed his original proclamation. "In any case, your vitals are good, and it seems you're adjusting to your new eyes nicely. I'd say you'd be good to be relieved in a couple days, after you've regained some strength."
"Ahh..." Itachi nodded. "Arigatou." because of course, he knew these eyes to be her doing. "And of my amnesia?" Perhaps a more pertinent, and not to mention troubling, diagnosis. Even so, he took it in stride. Worst case scenario, he still had his family for support, and that was all he needed. He had Sasuke and Shisui and his dear Okaa-san, and not to mention the pleasant surprise of re-discovering that he had a sister.
"Ahh yes..." Sakura hoped to not have to be the one to break the news to him -at least not by herself, although she didn't know if this was for her sake or his own. "Would you like me to call in Mikoto or Sasuke-kun or Shisui here first?"
"Iie. I do not want to burden them with bad news -there is much I'm sure they are dealing with presently." Itachi refused.
"Who said it was bad news?" Sakura raised a delicate eyebrow.
"Isn't it?" he dead-panned, his eyes staring right at Sakura. "Am I wrong to assume so, given that you felt like you needed to bring them here?"
Sakura smiled hesitantly. "I guess nothing gets past you." Already standing, Sakura made her way to a file containing the head scans they had taken of Itachi, and then brought them to a lit up screen. She then went to turn off the lights of the room, leaving the x-ray lightly lit. "The CT scans failed to pick up any trauma or hemorrhaging in your brain." Sakura explained.
"So is it safe to assume my amnesia is an effect of having been dead?"
"...Hai." Sakura admitted hesitantly. "It's the likeliest reason, as of now."
"And as far as recuperating my memories?"
"Well, we're limited in options, truthfully." Sakura stated, once more turning on the lights and returning to Itachi's bedside. "We can wait, and hope that with time your memories will come back naturally. There is a possibility that being in Konoha and subsequently familiar territory will trigger these memories naturally. Or we can enlist the aid of the Yamanaka Clan to forcefully unlock them for you... given that this is what you actually want." she explained hesitantly.
"And why would I want anything less?" Itachi asked genuinely.
Sakura hesitated, her hand tightly gripped into a fist that Itachi could not see from his location. "It's just... something to consider, I guess... In case there were things about your life you don't care to remember..." Sakura trailed off hesitantly.
"The massacre?" Itachi deduced calmly.
"Well, yes... among other things, I guess." Sakura reasoned out unsurely. "I won't pretend to know the extent of your memories, Itachi. But given your past affiliation with Akatsuki, I doubt that the massacre is the only trying thing you've had to put up with in life."
There was a long pause before Itachi responded. "I see where you are coming from, Sakura-san." he acknowledged. "Perhaps this is something I should give more thought to."
Sakura nodded. "Of course, there is no rush; if you do not feel compelled to gain your memories, or if you're not ready to, we are nobody to force you. I am simply giving you your options, as your medic. It's not often somebody gets to start anew, after all." Sakura plastered a fake smile on her face. "Anyway, I have to go check in on Kakashi-sensei and Shisui now, so if you will excuse me... I will be back in an hour to bring you your lunch."
"Hai. Arigatou," he thanked the kunoichi once more, watching as she bowed towards him and walked away.
He did not, however, pay attention to the fact that her presence lingered behind the door for several seconds after she had closed it behind her.
"I mean, I get it." It was all Marika could say, simply shrugging solemnly after Shisui's small outburst, if it could even be called that.
The moment that Marika and Shisui had found themselves both available to spend some time together, he had sought her out, particularly the day after having talked with Itachi -she had been inside the Haruno Compound, so it was not too difficult to find her. Sakura's words had bothered him -immensely, although he would not admit it. Perhaps it was because of how close he was to Itachi, perhaps it was because he knew he loved Marika just as much as Itachi loved Sakura -and to think that he would not be notified of his past with Marika? It bothered him to no end, and so he saw it perfectly fitting to go to Marika and seek out comfort. She, who had been his only confidante for the past decade, his best friend, and now recently turned lover. Not to mention she was also in a very important position as Sakura's elder sister, perhaps the only one aside from Tsunade and perhaps Mikoto who could have some concrete sway in Sakura's opinions.
Shisui, as animated as he was, was not one to genuinely have an outburst. Sure, he would feign the petulance of a child, but when it came down to it he was calm and showed off his frustration in different ways. But his demeanor was serious -troubled, which spoke volumes because Shisui was hardly seen with anything but a grin on his features for as long as Marika could remember him. Perhaps the fact that she had not responded in the manner he had expected had only helped to develop the furl in his brow and the scowl in his lips. "She doesn't think herself special enough to send his world careening down around him for the sake of simply remembering her. How many bad memories will come with the few good ones of Sakura? Hundreds? Thousands?" she questioned with a demeanor that matched his.
"Well why not at least tell him?" Shisui reasoned out. "Maybe he need not regain these memories; but I would surely like to know that I love you if nothing else, Marika."
"Loved."
Shisui raised an eyebrow, not understanding.
"You would like to know that you loved me, Shisui. If you have no memories of me you can no longer claim to love me." Marika reasoned out logically.
Shisui's nostrils flared in agitation -perhaps refusal? "I would still like to know."
"Of course you'd like to know -I get that. But what good would it do?" Marika couldn't help but shrug nonetheless. She understood Shisui's frustration with Sakura's decision -she surely did. But she also completely understood Sakura's sentiments; she had had a conversation with Sakura just prior to the War that had alluded to her feelings of sadness and frustrations with the Uchiha, and she felt them too, for the elder cousin of said Uchiha. "What good would it be knowing you loved me if you don't hold any attachment to me as things stand? Knowing you once loved me means nothing if you have no memories of substance to help you feel those things again."
Did she think Sakura was right for requesting to not be mentioned? No. But did she get it? Absolutely. She would never want Shisui to look at her as if she were a complete stranger; more importantly, she would never want him to look at her as a complete stranger whilst knowing she loves him. There would be some sort of shameful, apologetic regret of knowing you lost something, but not particularly knowing what. And if you didn't know what you lost, could you really care about it?
"Just because I don't remember doesn't mean I wont feel those feelings again." Shisui retorted, gripping onto Marika's hand tightly. If he had fallen for Marika once before, he could do it again and again, a million times over -as many times, and for as long as it took.
"Shisui, you're forgetting a lot of their feelings are built on the fact that Sakura traveled to the past. Their feelings stem from his upbringing with her. Without that, she's just... Sasuke's teammate." she frowned. "I cannot out of good conscious believe that Itachi will fall for her again as things are now. He's a shamed convict of the Uchiha, and she will be nothing more than his otouto's teammate. She will be looked at in that light, don't you think?"
Shisui felt conflicted. He didn't like Marika's reasoning -probably because it made a lot of sense.
"If you had lost your memories of me, and you knew me as nothing more than the kunoichi that Itachi was nearly suited to, would you consider even looking at me?"
"..."
Boundaries
That was all it was. Without their past together, and only looking at each other through the present lens, there were simply too many boundaries and barriers to allow things to move forward between them, and he was beginning to understand this. "Chemistry isn't the only thing that will create a relationship. It needs to be the right time, and perhaps that has passed for them. That's why Sakura doesn't want her name brought up. Because their time might have already come and gone, and holding on to the hope that Itachi will come around will be undeniably more painful than anything Sakura has already suffered through for him." She concluded, grabbing Shisui's hand and drawing him closer to her. "I don't like it either -but we must respect her decision. This is their relationship, not ours. I know he is your cousin and you care for him deeply, but she is my sister too. Regardless of how much I want this to fix itself, it is out of our hands."
Granted, the only thing that gave her hope was the fact that Matsuro-sama had said it would.
Perhaps without that, she'd be filling as frustrated and upset as Shisui.
"I will abide by Sakura's request." he finally said. "I won't be happy with it, but I'll do it."
Sakura had returned as promised with his lunch -although she had brought her own as well. "I figured you might want some company as you ate." she reasoned. "Sasuke-kun and Mikoto will not be able to come back until later, as they are organizing the house to fit another body. Shisui is also currently away with my older sister, but he should be coming by to visit you real soon."
"Hai, I appreciate it." And so in a relatively calm silence, they ate their lunches, up until they were nearly done eating respectively. "I did have something on my mind, if you do not mind answering."
"Oh?" Sakura questioned with a raised eyebrow. "What is it?"
"It seems to me that you went to great lengths to save me, Sakura-san."
It hurt to hear that endearment after so long, she decided bitterly, but she shook these thoughts away with a feigned smile. "Hai. I know you would have done the same, Itachi."
Itachi seems disturbed. Would he have, now? "When I had awoken after my... death... You lacked an endearment then as well. I take it we were close?"
She turned, pretending to be throwing away the wrappers to her lunch, trying to blink the tears away. "We were good teammates. I'm sorry if the formality seems obtrusive to you, Itachi-san. I'll stop."
He could hear it in her voice, identify with the fact that she was upset, but could not reason out why. "Iie. It is not your fault, Sakura-san. Do not apologize. I should apologize for not being able to remember."
Sakura smiled ironically. "If I have no reason to apologize, then neither do you, Itachi-san." She could recall a time long, long ago, a nearly identical interaction between the two of them. "Anyway, you must be thirsty, Itachi-san. I shall go get you something to drink." She tried to rush out quickly, walking out without actually seeing where she was going. She nearly smacked right into Shisui, able to side-step right by him with a distant "Sorry" muttered from her mouth, although she didn't dare look him in the eye.
His eyes were wide, able to see Sakura's tear-stained eyes, even for just the slightest of seconds before she turned and rushed off. His eyes followed her figure, until he finally heard Itachi's greeting, and with that he snapped his head the other way, and pulled himself forward, one hand on the IV stand he was connected to. "Itachi." he greeted, noticing that his cousin was staring straight at him with unrecognizable eyes. "I see your surgery was successful."
"Hai." he acknowledged with a nod.
"How are you fairing, Itachi?" he greeted, approaching his cousin and seating himself down on his bed.
"All things considered, I'd say well." Itachi gave a stern nod. "It is good to finally see you."
"Hai. I'm sure this is a big step to gaining some normalcy in your life right now." Shisui stated hesitantly. "Gomen -I'm sure this must be hard for you."
"It is not too bad. Everyone is working hard to accommodate my situation -I am only grateful." Itachi spoke honestly.
"Are you remembering anything at all?" Shisui shifted gears.
"Iee..." he seemed hesitant to say the next few words. "But I have the strongest desire to follow after Sakura-san. Why?" he stared at his cousin expectantly.
Shisui tensed, careful to not flinch at Itachi's words. "Sakura-san?"
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "The Haruno you just brushed by." he affirmed. Was his cousin not familiar with who she was yet?
'So that's why she seemed upset...' but at the thought Shisui merely shrugged. "You guys... share a bond particularly close." At this statement, Itachi couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in confusion. A bond particularly close... with his younger brother's teammate? Even so, Shisui did not leave him any time to inquire any further. "But I haven't been in the picture for years, Itachi. I wouldn't be the right person to ask." He tried to dismiss the subject, if only because he knew if they carried on with this that he wouldn't be able to stop himself from telling Itachi everything that Sakura had refused to let him know about them.
Things would be better this way. Why did Sakura think so? She was only hurting herself and in the long run Itachi. "Would you prefer to remain this way, Itachi?" he asked seriously. "Unable to remember anything... the massacre... the Akatsuki... my murder..." he sounded conflicted, and Itachi could see it in his eyes and feel it in his own heart. But after having given it some thought, and not to mention having talked it over with Marika, he realized that this is what Sakura meant.
"I've been wondering the same thing..." Itachi stated honestly. "Had my life really been worth remembering up until now?" Itachi asked earnestly. It wasn't that he would genuinely be devastated remembering the blood that lay in his hands (if he had coped with it once before, he could do it again, after all), but what was the point in going out of his way to do it?
"That's up to you to decide, Itachi." Shisui sighed. "What do you believe is important to remember?"
Itachi pondered this. "I annihilated our clan, Shisui." He stated seriously, quite bluntly too. "I had no contact with my family. Sasuke believed me a monster, and my identity was kept secret from my own sister, for her own sake. My own village loathed and betrayed me. I presumed you dead; and what of the crimes I committed in Akatsuki? What positive aspect in life have I to gain from any of this?" His thoughts had unraveled into a dizzying mess; rightfully so, because due to his peculiar situation, he had been gifted with an even more peculiar chance: to forget the atrocities that was his past and live as a new man, or try and regain that which he had lost? The few good moments encompassed and devoured by the bad?
"I understand Itachi; trust me, I do." Shisui relented. "But take into consideration what you won't remember. Your friendships with Sakura, and Kisame, and Konan. The memories of Saki and Sasuke growing up. The events of the past six months; Kami knows so much has happened. Knowledge of the past; despite how awful it is I know you are not blind to the fact that there are secrets locked away inside your brain right now."
Itachi remained silent. "Were my relations with them that impacting?" And why was Sakura even mentioned, he couldn't help but wonder absent-mindedly.
"They have all risked their lives on numerous occasions to save your life -and you them. You tell me." Shisui sighed.
"..." Itachi contemplated this, and Shisui took this time to stand and stretch slowly. "Anyway, I'm not telling you what to do. I just think you should consider everything before making your choice. Memories are just about the single most valuable thing a person can carry with them, after all. You want to find out why you feel like chasing after Sakura? There's only one way to find that out Itachi." Truly, he could have been a little more unbiased about the entire situation; even though Sakura had told Shisui to allow Itachi the chance of making up his own mind, in his heart he knew that the Itachi of two days ago would not want to give up on his memories of Sakura, even if it meant remembering all the bad that followed along with it. And he knew this with much certainty.
"...Ahh..." But truth be told, this wasn't a decision he could make immediately. It would take careful deliberation, and perhaps council from his family would not be bad. This affected them as much as it did him, after all.
Danzo had his suspicions that Itachi was being held somewhere within the village, and as such had his entire Root organization on edge, scouring the town for any signs of where he might be. Tracking the Uchiha would have been ideal; but they were all far too competent to be followed and not feel it. Sasuke, along with the remaining members of the former Team 7 and the Haruno Clan were being hailed as heroes; and for him to be following them would put a shadow over him. After all, what business would he have stalking the new Sannin of their generation?
He had spoken with Tsunade -demanded to have the body of Itachi extracted, for the sake of recovering and burning his eyes, lest they get on the hands of foreign nations. But whatever foreign nation would be able to make use of his eyes were now allies to their nation; and the whereabouts of his body she did not know, for she was not there where he was slaughtered. His eyes had been taken by Sasuke, so there was no such thing to fear there, and anyone who might possibly want a sample of his DNA was all but gone -save for Orochimaru, but who knew what had become of him.
For every question and accusation, Tsunade had had an answer. As if she had thoroughly planned for it. But when confronted with a meeting Tsunade had continued to dismiss him, stating that she was far too busy to converse with him over the state of the Uchiha -why of all things was that his biggest concern? With a scoff Tsunade had turned him away, and with a glare and a grimace Danzo had stalked away and continued his spying from a distance -which had done little for him, truth be told.
But to suddenly be called into an urgent meeting by Tsunade was peculiar, and as such he tucked away his thoughts about Itachi to stand before Tsunade, someone as equally frustrating to deal with. If only she had died in the war, the title of Hokage would already be his.
It was odd, in all actuality, to see that Tsunade had called a meeting with just him instead of all the Elders, and even more peculiar to see the audience before him; not just Tsunade, but one Haruno and Hatake Kakashi as well. "Why have I been called here?" he questioned -had it not been for their present company, he knew exactly what this meeting would be about.
"I think you know why." Tsunade stated, disdain evident in her tone.
"Whatever do you mean, Godaime Hokage?" His eyes narrowed -was she truly trying to have this conversation in front of her apprentice and her sensei?
"Cut the crap, Danzo." Sakura sneered, hardly able to control her anger, even as his eyes darted to her. Despite how out of line her statement was, neither Kakashi nor Tsunade stepped in to stop her -she had every right to feel as she felt, and not to mention speak as she did. This meeting was primarily between them, in any case.
"Bite your tongue, kunoichi. You will not speak to me in that manner." his eyes narrowed. Who did she think she was addressing him so crudely, when he had never had so much as a problem with the kunoichi?
"This is not my first time, nor will it be my last." Sakura's eyes narrowed.
Sakura's statement seemed to strike a tender cord within Danzo, as he contemplated Sakura's response. As far as he knew, not once had he ever interacted with this kunoichi other than right before the war (and she had been nothing but respectful then, so what had changed now?), although he had come across someone so identical to her it was uncanny. Yet, before he could even ask Sakura to elaborate, Tsunade cut in.
"I have detected and seen first hand all the movement in Root. You're searching for Itachi, yes?" Tsunade clipped in.
"Uchiha Itachi? He died in battle, had he not?" Danzo acted none the wiser.
"Danzo, my patience is wearing thin." Tsunade warned.
Danzo waited patiently to asses Tsunade. "So what if I had my suspicions that this was a cover up?" he seemed to brush this matter aside. "By the looks of it, I was right to think so."
"A cover up?" Tsunade reiterated, her expression not betraying the ironic amusement. "Oh, like the Uchiha Massacre, you mean."
The temperature in the room seemed to spike, Danzo's figure visibly tensing. "I can assure you I don-"
"I'm done with your manipulation, Danzo." Tsunade cut him off. "I know about the Massacre. I know about the coupe d'etat and I know how you assigned Itachi to spy on his own kinsmen. I know how you went behind Sarutobi's back and gave Itachi an ultimatum on destroying his clan. And I know you were behind everything. If you thought the truth died with Sarutobi and Itachi, you are wrong."
Danzo's eyes narrowed. How she got this information, he couldn't tell. Itachi was sworn to secrecy, and Danzo knew he would never tell a word. "You have no proof, Tsunade."
"I'm not here to accuse you and turn you in." Tsunade stated. "As much as you deserve it, I know a battle I can't win when I see one. As much as you deserve to die for everything you've caused, I can't touch you." she admitted regretfully.
"Then why are you here?" Danzo shifted in his seat.
"I am beside myself knowing everything that Itachi has done to protect our way of life; I believe that with your cooperation, we can clear his name and not reveal the truth behind the massacre."
Danzo's eyes narrowed. "And how do you suppose we do that?"
"Madara orchestrated a war for a century before putting it into play. Organizing a massacre to the clan that abandoned him hardly seems out of his reach." Tsunade stated thusly.
"The village would never buy it. We have witness accounts. The Haruno under their care at the time-"
"Witnessed an Uchiha. It's hard to differentiate in the night." Tsunade cut him off. "Itachi witnessed the slaughter and attempted to stop him, and failed. He notified you of who he believed to have seen slaughter his family. Knowing widespread panic and hysteria would befall our nation at the mention of Madara, we burdened Itachi to take the fall for the murder of his family and planted him in Akatsuki in order to keep tabs on their agenda from the inside. The kunoichi left the village shortly after to protect the truth."
"And why should I even indulge your demand, Tsunade? As you stated, you can't touch me." Danzo's eyes narrowed. Sure, it was a convincing back story, he would give her that, but he had no need to want to cooperate with her, so why should he?
He seemed arrogant -immortal, even, and it infuriated Sakura to no end. "Last time, you were threatened to keep Mikoto safe or risk the truth of the massacre being spilled." The way she spoke made Danzo feel uneasy, although he didn't show it.
'Why does this kunoichi know this?'
"This time, I will threaten you with your life, Danzo. I had no influence over Konoha back then. Now, I am taking my rightful position as heir to my Clan. Who do you think the Daimyo will prioritize? An old geezer of Konoha's muddy past or the future of one of the Four Great Dojutsu wielding clans?"
"Impossible." Danzo's eyes narrowed. He always thought it suspicious that the Haruno he had faced against in the past was identical to this one, and moreover that she had disappeared altogether, but there had been no way they could possibly be the same person -for Kami's sake they lived under the same roof for months before she had disappeared altogether! "What jutsu could possibly-"
"Don't even think it, Danzo. The power I hold is exclusive to the heir of the clan; nothing you can ever get your hands on." she spat venom, already seeing the gears in Danzo's head turning. "Know if you slip up, I will not hesitate to kill you; I don't care how many people I need to go through. Itachi will be accepted back into Konoha, and he will be revered as a hero. If you step even one inch out of line I will see to it myself that I personally speak to the Daimyo. I can't help but wonder how interested he would be in knowing how you attempted to assassinate the Third, among many other misdoings of yours."
Tsunade stood alongside Sakura, a sign of supporting her, with Kakashi looming in the background, looking as casual as ever but Danzo knew otherwise; the Hatake was always ready to pounce at any given moment, and he knew he'd do it in a heartbeat for his student. He was a rabid bull dog if nothing else, meant to intimidate Danzo, he knew.
"You have been warned, Danzo. Meddle with our affairs and you will see hell." Tsunade gave him one last warning. "You are either with us, or against us. This information will be revealed to the public in a week's time, when Itachi has recuperated fully. Know that I expect you there alongside me to corroborate our claim." And so she turned to walk away, Sakura already half way out the door.
Danzo remained un-moving, long after all three shinobi had left the isolated meeting room.
His hands, for the first time in ages, trembled in fear.
How dare that kunoichi threaten him.
Ayame sighed -for the nth time that day.
Backlash had been immense -but she had had no choice on the matter, truth be told.
Even if she wanted to stay, she had no choice on the matter -a thought she kept playing over and over in her head, to justify her brash actions. But truth be told, part of her was anxious -curious to know of the origins of her clan, as it had been taught to her by her Okaa-sama before her untimely passing, but scared that uprooting the entirety of her clan and relocating them into Konoha would leave her clan unhappy. They had established a happy home in Kiri, after all. And regardless of the friendships and reputation that her clan had set up, none had even spoken in muted defiance, none had even questioned or showed a hint of displeasure when Ayame, not even the eldest among Kikyou's kids, declared herself the new heir to the throne, and decided that they would all be moving.
-But of course, why would any of them feel anything but respect, when a child as young as she took such brazen charge, showed such resilience and strength and -Kami she was definitely Kikyou's daughter.
And now she was here -they were here.
Every single one of them, plucked right out of Kiri and once more within Konoha walls -mass relocation which could have almost been seen as common, due to how frequently they had done it (all things considered, she was sure they were the only clan that had switched affiliations -twice). Be that as it may, it had still been the talk of the town -and the reason for quite a bit of resentment, from Kiri's side, anyway.
She was new to the village -and yet most of everyone seemed to know of her already.
That's the Haruno Clan Head
She looks awful young to be leading a clan, neh?
She's not even the eldest among her siblings -why was she picked?
Such a waste -she doesn't even have a man by her side.
Ayame could have sneered. And why exactly did she need a man to lead her clan successfully? Pfft -old women and their gossiping ways. 'Can't be bothered by it, Ayame -can't be bothered.' she told herself in irritation.
"Watch out!"
Ayame was brought away from her thoughts by a sudden alarming yelp -identifying the sound as coming from above, she looked up just in time to see the figure of a man, quite literally falling from the sky and coming right towards her.
She blinked, and within the next instant strong vines emerged by her feet, reaching out towards the man and wrapping themselves around his torso, successfully stopping him from pummeling right into her.
There was a sigh of relief from the man -a lean fellow with black hair and beautiful blue eyes that reminded her of the blue oceans of Kiri. "Arigatou -you saved me."
Ayame did not respond, instead blinking a few more times at the man. Then, as if he were quite unimportant, she thought, 'Release him.'
'Certainly, Mistress.' with a deep rumble that could only be accredited to an older and seasoned male contract, the iris vines released the man and allowed him to take the remaining descent to the floor with a yelp and an unceremonious thud on his head.
-He whimpered
-She rolled her eyes
Several seconds ticked by, and still he did not move -only whimper as he rubbed his head sorely.
"You're in my way."
The man blinked, staring up at the woman who had first saved him from what could have been a broken scalp and then promptly released him to bruise said cranium. "You could say excuse me, you know." he growled, meeting the eyes of the woman.
"You could also take the precautions to not fall on unsuspecting people but here we are." Ayame responded snidely -where did this man get off being rude and inconvenient? He could be one but not the other.
The man blushed. "Hey I didn't do that on purpose, alright?" he glared. "Leave it to Lady Kushina to pummel a mere messenger halfway across the city." he grumbled in protest.
'Kushina?' that there was a name she recognized; the Hokage's fiance, or the like. "That sounds unfortunate, but that is neither my concern, nor relevant to my life. I will repeat myself again; you are in my way, shinobi-san." Truth be told, she could do with just side-stepping him and moving on with her day -but the Konoha streets were busy, and now the villagers were talking amongst each other. Now would be a divine time to show them the pride and haughtiness of the heir, lest anyone think they could step out of place simply because she was the new person in town.
He didn't seem at all concerned with her haughty attitude, standing up ungracefully and brushing himself off. "Hai, hai, you're busy, I got it." he spoke casually. "Anyway, I haven't seen you around here -you visiting?"
There was a pause, in which Ayame contemplated responding or simply side-stepping the man and going towards her destination -the Hokage tower, to speak to said Hokage. "Just moved here." Ayame responded casually although with a tone that told him that this conversation was beneath her -did this man really not know? Especially with the proud Haruno insignia glaringly obvious across her attire?
"Oh that's neat! From where?"
"Kirigakure -now if you're done interrogating me, I have places to be." And for added emphasis, since he had not removed himself from her path, her iris once more emerged, wrapped itself around his waist, and moved him for her -not through her own request though, but it seemed her contract was beginning to tire of the talk -he was rather temperamental, after all. As such, she began her trek once more -but the pesky shinobi did not take the hint and simply appeared alongside her and began to walk into pace with her.
"Where you heading to?"
"The Hokage tower."
"Oh what a coincidence! I have to head over there too -to deliver Lady Kushina's message to the Hokage!"
'Would you like me to get rid of him, Mistress?' The voice of her contract rumbled once more, and she could feel the irritation from her contract -he was just itching to toss the nin as the previously mentioned kunoichi had done. In fact, she could already see him once more appearing from between the cobblestone path -his vines slowly coiling outwards and inching ever so slightly towards the nin.
'Iie. I do not need to garner such an unlikable reputation so early after my moving here.' Even so, something about his personality seemed almost... contagious.
They had walked the rest of the way to the Hokage's tower together -he talking incessantly, she responding when needed, and her contract growing more and more aggravated by the second.
She had learned from the five minute walk that his name was Jiro Matsube -a surname she did not recognize, which told her that he was not of any regal clan. Which, in all honesty, she had been notified by immediately after meeting him. If the lack of prestige and delicacy in his strides and movements, or the lack of formalities and intellectually phrased statements was not an indication of anything, then the fact that he had allowed himself to get pummeled half way across the village and for the common civilian to see him land ungracefully on his head definitely was.
Despite the ever-growing agitation from her contract, she couldn't help but let out a small chuckle at the sight of Jiro, tenderly rubbing his head.
"Ahh, Ayame-sama. It's good to see you -how were your travels?" The Hokage of Konoha, Minato Namikaze, was young - just a year or so older than her, in fact. If she was seen as young for leading her village, she could only imagine the complaints some must of had when Minato took office.
"Fine enough, I suppose." She responded casually, although respectfully. The reputation of the Yellow Flash spoke for itself, and absent-mindedly she couldn't help but wonder how she would have fared against the man before her in battle. Not that it would ever happen; the Haruno had taken a strict hands off policy in the war -perhaps it was the only reason that they had now been welcomed back into Konoha by the very same man before her. "I do not expect the villagers to take too kindly to our appearance here, though." she reasoned out calmly. 'We do arrive at a tumultuous time, after all."
"The war is over, and our village is doing just fine with its reconstruction efforts. There should be no issues with the villagers; they have been told of the underlying circumstances to your relocation. It does not hurt that you did not take part in the war, as well." Minato dismissed her qualms. Perhaps he also simply see the Haruno as a vast asset to have, in and out of the field, villagers' opinions be damned.
"Of course. We never have, and we never will." It was a warning to him too; that if he tried to ask too much of her people that they would simply refuse too, and she was sure that he knew as such.
"Well, as promised by my predecessors, Konoha will always welcome you with open arms."
"Arigatou; we appreciate it. I understand our declaration of returning may have been sudden. I do apologize for any inconveniences this may have caused, to you or your villagers, in any case."
"You need not worry about that, Ayame-sama. The Haruno Compound has remained untouched since you all left -as promised, we have waited for your return."
"The formality is unnecessary, Minato. In fact, once we are fully integrated, it shall be me using that endearment." Ayame spoke respectfully with a small bow his way -first she had to decide that he was a Kage worth following, but afterwards, as was the case before, she would devote her Haruno name and strength to Konoha. "My elders have told me that your sensei was Hiruzen Sarutobi."
"You know of him?"
"Not personally, of course. Apparently he was a student of Tobirama's -one of my predecessors, Kikyou, was close to the Senju. If tradition has been passed on successfully, I suspect that you too will be a great man, just like Hashirama and Tobirama." she spoke with hope. Within these two men, she knew she could trust to pick just and righteous leaders.
"Wait... did you say Haruno?" suddenly their conversation had been cut short -by the pestilence (as her contract would vehemently state) that had followed them like the plague. He was slow in his realization, almost as if he had been warmly listening in to their fond memories before the full weight of their words truly had any impact on the met.
"Hai. Jiro, let me introduce you. This is the Haruno Clan leader; Haruno Ayame."
He sputtered out incompetent apologies and fell to his knees instantly -and at this finally Ayame's tightly kept composure faltered and she couldn't help herself from laughing out.
Well, so much for making herself out to look collected, intimidating and respectable.
'I don't think I've ever met such an incompetent man before.' Her contract spoke, and although she couldn't help but agree, a small smile spread across her features. Despite this he was rather... charming. 'Mistress, you can't possibly be serious?' For the life of her, she would never understand why her contract was so overly-protective. Her lack of love life she would accredit to him, not her older brothers, she swore.
Upon seeing her laughing, neither Jiro nor Minato could help from smiling -she'd fit right in here in Konoha.
"Since you're already acquainted, how about I have Jiro show you around town? A lot has changed since the Haruno last stepped in Konoha."
"As promising as that sounds, I don't quite think my contract can handle any more contact with Matsube-san. He is quite temperamental and particularly impatient for what he perceives to be incompetent men."
"Contract?" Minato seemed confused.
"Incompetent men?" Jiro seemed even more so. "Who are you calling incompetent?"
Ayame couldn't help the scoff that was released from her lips. "All in due time." she merely smiled softly. "I will keep in touch, Minato, once I have successfully settled my clan in."
"Of course -if there's anything you need, please do not hesitate."
End of Chapter
I decided to incorporate the flashback at the end primarily because a reviewer (Katara Tojiro) who commented on Sakura's New Present was curious about the origins of Ayame and her unknown husband. just to add more depth to the character of Ayame, who although wasn't focused on much, truly did play a big role, and her husband, who was never really mentioned up until now, I may litter a few more along the way.
I definitely do want to incorporate more flashbacks about Kikyou/Madara/Hashirama, though. It seemed to be a topic of particular focus for a lot of you. I can't say that writing the back story wasn't also one of my favorite things to write, though.
Also, I know it's been forever, i've run out of excuses. Please forgive me!
Any and all feedback is much appreciated!