Ch. 9

Secrets in the Dark

Fugaku followed the Hokage out of the Hokage Tower and into the village heading for the old clans district where three clans had been moved tonight. The sirens still blared distantly in the night and ninjas moved in packs to and fro as they carried out their duty to the village. The younger man was still feeling his emotions fluctuating wildly as he struggled not to feel overwhelmed by the enormity of what had happened tonight. His Clan elders had been right about the oppression of their people.

He hadn't wanted to believe it but even he couldn't have denied being faced with years of oppressive truths. Being told that they were greedy for more power and more prestige had forced him to second guess himself and what his other Clan members had seen. After all, they were all human and it was in human nature to be greedy and stuck up or privileged. He had seen the conceited and supercilious way in which some of his younger Clan members had carried themselves when dealing with non-clan members. But for the Hokage to confirm and validate their fears was nothing short of rage-inducing.

For a brief moment, the Uchiha patriarch had thought, with rage clouded eyes that maybe a coup wasn't such a bad idea. Then the being appeared behind his leader scaring him out of his dark thoughts. When he confirmed it to be the real Creature he had acted without thinking, the fear of losing his leader the only thing that could break through the anger, confusion, and hurt of betrayal.

Fugaku sighed still deep in thought as they neared the old clan's district. Underneath the anger, this was his home, and these were his people.

The fear and that split-second decision had shown him where his heart had truly lain, and in doing so he had saved his clan from further dangers. The Hokage had called the being an ally, not a subordinate or one of his. The being that had been terrorizing the villages since the dawn of the hidden villages had chosen their village for his 'little tree,' whatever that meant.

He assumed it was a person since this female had saved his children though not perished from a fatal wound. Perhaps a female of his species, he thought with a shudder. Fugaku didn't know if he could handle it if this became a breeding ground for such creatures. For whatever reason though the creatures wanted the village strong and for that had done away with threats to the village's stability.

Fugaku knew that the thing would be keeping an eye on his clan however and resolved to do the best he could to ensure his people never fell into the disgrace of being traitors to its people. His sons had been targeted tonight, and had been led to the Hokage's own home in an attempt had been made to kill them. He suspected that it was to drive a wedge between the fledgling trust that the Hokage had been moving to make with him, but he had to be sure.

"Were my heirs the only ones to be attacked?" he asked as Hiruzen puffed on his pipe as they neared the old Sarutobi Compound. The old leader motioned him inside the house and the Uchiha felt the hum of privacy seals settling around them.

"Several attempts to steal your clan's members and several other clan's children tonight have been stopped. The being called Shadow has been monitoring and stopping all attempts or retrieving the ones he was not able to prevent. Your sons were the only ones targeted by an assassin, however. We are fortuitous that Moriko-san has been staying here unknown to all," he said as they moved through the house to the guest rooms.

"Who is this Moriko-san? I do not think that I know the name," Fugaku asked hesitantly as the older man paused outside the doorway where three children slept, two heads of black hair by a head of red. Sitting against the wall with her arm resting on her raised knee was a young woman, face relaxed in sleep but ninjato propped against her shoulder. It reminded him of the samurai of old sleeping against the wall prepared for attack.

"She is from the forbidden lake, but unlike the others, she will lead a very long life," Hiruzen whispered as Fugaku's eyes went wide. He took in the large bloodstain on her shirt and the bandages underneath that could be seen through the hole in the shirt. That should have killed her. A civilian had taken a lethal sword strike for his children. Itachi might be a chunin, but the civilian must have seen something the boy had not.

His eyes raised and he stiffened in surprise to find teal eyes watching them silently as they glinted in the dark. She gave a respectful nod to the Hokage before rising fluidly, never betraying a sound as she gestured for quiet. She knelt by his eldest side as the boy had already begun to stir.

"I will be right outside, and this room is protected, go back to sleep," she murmured stroking the boy's hair as Itachi blinked blearily up at her. He reached up his hand touching the bright red strands of her hair.

"No, I will go with," he said hazily, still half asleep. She nodded before gently extracting him from the covers and helping him to his feet. His hand found its way into hers. Fugaku's eyebrows rose at such an affectionate gesture from his normally self-contained eldest.

When she moved into the hallway where the Hokage and Fugaku stood the boy's eyes went wide before his face smoothed into a smooth mask. He pulled his hand from hers before she frowned taking it back. Itachi looked blankly at his father and the young woman turned her teal eyes on him in a quiet challenge to say something. Fugaku wisely bit his tongue.

He knew she was from a very different world and culture, one that did not subject children to the sorts of things his eldest son had already seen and she had risked death to save his sons.

She turned to face the other end of the dark hallway and he stiffened as the being exited the darkness, his heart racing. His boy stiffened as well before taking a defensive stance in front of the woman, kunai already drawn though his movements were sluggish. Fugaku frowned at seeing this wondering with concern if his son had been drugged at some point.

"Shadow, will you look after the children?" she asked quietly and the boy paused clearly uncertain. He almost lunged for the being as it began to reach out a hand but she rested a comforting hand on Itachi's shoulder, patting it reassuringly. Fugaku's heart picked up speed as the being gently pat her head before entering the room with his other child.

"You're the little tree?" he couldn't help but ask. A fond smile transformed her face from blank to lovely in an instant. The Hokage gestured for them to follow and began heading down the hall into the sitting room where a few dim lights were lit. The light seemed to light her short red strand into a red halo that his son seemed to gaze at with fascination as she settled the boy beside her and nestled him into her side. While Itachi was far too old in Fugaku's opinion for such coddling, it was also clear the boy was under the influence of something and decided to let it slide this once.

Fugaku watched in surprise as the boy's eyes immediately grew heavy, the young chunin already drifting off to sleep. Itachi was infamous for being a light and restless sleeper. His lips pinched as he took in the lines already forming on the twelve-year-old's face. Itachi had been having difficulty sleeping since the incident when he was four, Fugaku shouldn't have been surprised by it. The guilt that hit Fugaku could not be tempered by justifications this time.

The ever-growing mountain to regain prestige and standing in the village for the Clan had just become a molehill with the Hokage's help. His eyes drifted to the young woman that was now watching Itachi with understanding and sad eyes. He knew the catalyst for the salvation of his clan was sitting in the seat across from him, holding his son securely having taken a fatal blade to protect the boys. The being hadn't been able to prevent all incidents tonight including his children's, so Fugaku did not suspect the Hokage and the Creature of duplicity. Leaving the protection of his sons in the hands of a civilian was not the Hokage's style though he could not say in the Creature's case. Perhaps it had known, perhaps not, but the young woman's actions and bloody shirt and pants had spoken for themselves.

"What happened tonight Moriko-san?" the Hokage asked quietly. The young woman quietly explained as Fugaku listened in rapt attention, being able to hear her voice clearly for the first time. It was high and soft as she recounted the events that took place. If he had not seen the glint in her eye when his son had not reached for his father for protection and comfort, it would have been hard for him to believe the recounting of events. It almost seemed too hard to believe. He had to see that fire in her eyes again to be sure. Deciding to provoke her, Fugaku spoke softly.

"He fell for a genjutsu?" he asked with apparent disapproval, wanting to see her reaction to the perceived slight to his son. Her eyes flashed.

"If he's expected to defend himself from fully trained elites, I can see why he doesn't feel safe enough at home to get enough sleep." She murmured quietly her teal eyes like slivers of glass as they seemed to cut into him. There was no malice in the tone as if she was merely making an observation.

It felt like Fugaku had been sucker punched as the truth of the matter cut too deep. So that's how she got him to sleep so quickly. The boy felt safe with her, unlike his own family. Fugaku's guilt nearly overwhelmed him in that instant and her stony expression eased at the flash of remorse that crossed the other man's face. He didn't try to justify it to her, to tell her that the boy had already gained enough age and rank to be expected to fend for himself. He suspected that such news would only horrify and anger her.

Hiruzen cleared his throat uncomfortably, hoping the two did not start arguing. It would derail some of his plans if they could not work together.

In hushed tones, it was explained to Fugaku that Moriko was a member of the 'long-lost' Uzumaki clan and that Jiraiya had 'found' her and her younger brother after getting a distress call from one of his contacts on the southeast coast near the lost Uzushio. Their father had been 'killed' by rouge ninjas and his 'children' had managed to escape. Being responsible for the man's 'death', Jiraiya was responsible for their livelihood and had brought them to Hiruzen for Hiruzen's advice and blessing since he wanted to take on the young woman as an apprentice and enroll the boy in the ninja academy when he was old enough. When Moriko was trained to 'Jiraiya's' satisfaction, she would become a more permanent part of the village.

The Hokage explained that this was going to be the story that he told his clan members when he returned home with his missing heirs. He also made it clear to Fugaku that while he the Hokage couldn't tell Fugaku or Moriko who they should ally with, such an alliance for them would most likely be beneficial to the Uchiha Clan head and the future head of the Uzumaki clan. Fugaku had nodded slowly, eyes on the boy nestled into her side. She had made a strong impression on his normally stoic and highly reserved ten-year-old. She had gotten more of a reaction from the detached boy than his own family had managed in years besides Sasuke whom he had started pushing away recently.

She would be a fierce and powerful defender for his heirs from what he was seeing. He also suspected, considering her prestigious pedigrees, that having her as an ally would be highly beneficial down the road if he and the Clan hadn't already messed that up.

What would she do when she found out the boy nestled in her side had been having to kill people for years? Fugaku didn't want to be there when she found out.