Disclaimer: I own the OCs in this fic, the rest is Masashi Kishomoto's. Sorry for any spelling mistakes.
Character age:
Akane, Itachi: 18
Naruto, Sasuke: 12
Shisui: 21
Kakashi: 26
"So we're cool huh?" I asked Suigetsu, who just kept staring at me. He snorted and a glint of pain I knew to be fake appeared in his eyes.
"I don't know, it was embarrassing. You really hurt my feelings."
"Oh come on! I had to look 'Bloody Mist' and all!"
"So it's more important than me. I'm even more hurt now." I groaned in frustration because I knew he was doing that on purpose. "I'm sure you won't even cry once the jinchuriki kills me."
"Don't say that!"
"How long has it been now?" I heard Chōjūrō ask Haku.
"Since yesterday, when we came back to the hotel."
I glared at them and they froze. The guts they had those two. Three months ago they wouldn't have talked about me like that. Where did the respect go? I was the sensei, they were supposed to respect me!
"Fine, let's talk about your matches then. Suigetsu, you're against Gaara on the first round."
"I give up and keep my strengths for the invasion." At that point, we all agreed Gaara, being the jinchuriki he was, would be like a signal. The longer he will take to give it, the better it is to prepare.
"Haku."
"My opponent is Sasuke-kun. I fight him normally but if I have to use too much to beat him, I give up and keep my energy as well. If possible, I try to let him know of the situation." I nodded and looked at Chōjūrō.
"I am fighting Akimichi Chouji. The plan is the same as Haku, except it's useless to tell him about the attack."
"Nice." Naruto and Neji would go at it first, then Chouji and Chōjūrō, followed by Haku and Sasuke, Gaara and Suigetsu, Shikamaru and Temari. Shino was left out on the first round and would fight Temari or Shikamaru depending on the winner of their match. "Here is what we're gonna do for the next three weeks. We have time, your fights are in a month. So training for three weeks, we'll see for the fourth one. The Hokage reserved training grounds for the foreign teams. I'll personally take care of one of you for a week, the other two will have a clone. We'll switch each weeks. If they intend to release a jinchuriki, I want you to be ready. Understood?"
"Yeah..." they trailed off in sync. I frowned at them.
"Hey, want me to go full Yagura on you?" I asked darkly and I smirked at their paling faces. "Yeah, that's what I thought too."
Truth be told, we had the training ground for three weeks and a half. It was not within the village's walls, and I was even surprised to see the Uchiha emblem on one of the stone surrounding the training ground. It was not far from the village, we could still see it in the distance. I also could feel Itachi's presence lurking around.
Looking around, I surprised myself wanting mist with us. I wasn't used to fight or train in a clear area like this one, where I could hardly hide with the natural environment. We were in a clearing in the forest, green trees all around us and a large lake was behind us. I stopped and turned to my students.
"I'll start with Haku, then Chōjūrō, and Suigetsu."
"Why am I last!?"
"Because. They will actually fight, they'll need more rest. With my clones, training will be calmer because they'd pop at any physical attack."
"I guess it makes sense..." Suigetsu muttered. I rolled my eyes and put my fingers in a cross seal, two clones popping into existence on each side of me. They took Suigetsu and Chōjūrō and went in opposite directions, leaving me with Haku, who seemed a lot more eager to learn than this morning. Suigetsu was a bad influence, I knew it.
"So, the jutsu Naruto used yesterday? I'm gonna teach it to you."
"I knew I knew it," he replied with a smile. I rolled my eyes and motioned to him to get closer.
I turned to face a tree and executed the hand seals. "Fuuton: High Winds Technique." Violent wind flew extremely fast next to me, cutting clean ten of the trees in front of me. I had gotten better at that, I was proud. "Horse, Snake, Tiger, Hare and Bird. Do you want me to explain or try on your own first?"
"I'll try." I nodded and moved aside. I sat against a tree and watched him go through the seals slowly with his two hands. I felt the way he expanded his chakra on each side of him and mixed it with the air, but it didn't last and he plunged on the ground when it was let loose. He got back up with a thoughtful frown on his face. "It's not C-rank," he stated with a pointed look at me. I shrugged with a playful smirk.
"I never said Temari was right. It's a B-rank and a half. You need to control your chakra perfectly to control the air around you and then accelerate it to make it powerful. Wind chakra is the hardest to control. This technique is essentially very small wind blades at very high speed. Grab a leaf and cut it with your chakra."
"Naruto-kun made it look easy." I swore he was pouting as he grabbed a bunch of leaves in the tree.
"I showed it to him when he was younger, he must have been training for the past two years. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't really know how he does it. Honestly, the chakra control fuinjutsu gave me really helped for this technique, but I'm sure you can do it. You're a genius after all." I jumped on a tree branch and took my Icha Icha to read it. I was pulling out a lot of Kakashis on them. Basically, tell them how to do something and read until they succeed or ask for help.
A shinobi had to know how and when to ask for help after all.
Okay, let's go for three weeks of training then.
It was relatively calm actually. Haku did manage to get his chakra under control. The technique was weak, but it was there. He truly was a genius. For Chōjūrō, I mainly focused on water jutsu and his speed.
"Come on, you just have to pour chakra in the scroll and the seal will do the rest. The dose of chakra will indicate the dose of water you'll seal." He nodded and opened the scroll in the grass. His chakra went to the lake and drained water from it, sealing it in the scroll. "See, you can make storage seals too. I knew it would be useful to teach that to you guys." I went to the water and Chōjūrō followed me silently. "I know it might not be useful for the Exam, but getting the control for this technique can only be good for you. It's complicated and required a lot of chakra though, I mastered it not long before I became your sensei." I jumped away from him and he did the same. I clapped my hand together, my chakra going in the water at high speed. "Suiton: Water Shockwave!"
A big wave of water rose in front of him and went straight for Chōjūrō. He jumped on his right and I smirked. It was a jutsu created by the Nidaime Hokage. An enemy moving would not be a problem for him. I moved my hand to where my student was and the water followed. He widened his eyes and kept trying dodging, with no success. As the wave was going to reach him, I canceled the jutsu. He was panting heavily.
"See?"
"Ye...Yes..." he stuttered.
"Once you catch your breath once again, we'll-"
"Impressive! Wonderful!" a deep masculine voice said. I twitched at the voice and slowly turned around. My eyes got wide as saucers at the long-haired man in front of me, the white of his hair flashing against the red of his clothes. On his forehead was a forehead protector, but not from Konoha. The kanji for 'Oil' was carved in it. "What an impressive mastery of Water Jutsu at such a young age!"
"Jiraya-san?" I mumbled and Chōjūrō gaped next to me. Before I knew it, Haku and Suigetsu were on the lake with us. "What..."
"Still the wrong honorific, but I'm willing to forgive a cute young woman like you Akane-chan. I can't resent a fellow Seal Master for too long, especially the one who beat the Fourth Hokage's record!
"Heh, is it really that impressive?" Naruto asked next to him, and I finally noticed him. When his eyes went back on me, I cringed at the absolute adoration in them. There were literal stars in them. Haku told me of his slip of tongue but still.
"Using seals to fight requires a completely different level than just making them." Now Naruto was beaming. Crap. I pinched the bridge of my nose.
"Jiraya-san, how can I help you? I'm busy training my team."
"Oh but so am I, so am I. Apparently Naruto knows one of them and they had quite the adventure with his girlfriend in the Forest of Death. Let them play together."
"Bu..how did you even find me? Don't tell me you toad-tracked me!" He burst into laughter and draped his arm on my shoulders, dragging me with him.
"Hey perverted hermit, what are you gonna do to her!?" Naruto asked as he went in front of us.
"Grown up talk kid, try to summon a frog with legs for now." Jiraya moved past him and Haku actually kept him from going after us. I peeked at them over my shoulder and made them understand to keep training. Itachi was around anyway, so it was okay. And Seal Masters were not linked to any village in general, they were free to help people they wanted to help. It was okay to have a talk with the pervert.
Perfectly okay.
He actually dragged me in Konoha and sat me down on top of the Kage mountain. I looked up at Jiraya-san, who was looking at the village.
"You know, I'll probably take you to Sarutobi-sensei before the Third Exam. I wasn't even planning on letting him know I was there but your presence changes everything."
"I'm...sorry?" I couldn't figure out what he wanted.
"Yeah yeah, whatever. Let's get down to business, I've already told the news to Akiko." Right...mom met the Sannin when they were not Sannin yet in Uzushio during or before the Second Shinobi War. "I have news on the Akatsuki, mostly about who filled Itachi's position."
"Is it someone strong? Logically, they should have recruited someone of Itachi's level."
"They did," he confirmed with a somber expression, his eyes looking as if they were seeing past events for a second time, "he is the one shinobi who ever gave Minato serious troubles and injured him badly."
"Who?" He glanced at me with grave eyes and I widened my eyes, my fists clenching instinctively on my pants. "He reappeared?"
"Uzumaki Ushio is Hoshigaki Kisame 's partner. I don't know why he would join them, but it seems he recovered from the fight. Minato didn't tell me the full extent of what he did to defeat him, only that Kushina and him sealed him away in the Eien Hansen in a Space-Time jutsu. Or he broke free on his own, which he could have done, or someone in the Akatsuki freed him. In any case, I went to Uzushio once I discovered he was a part of the Akatsuki, and the portal to Eien was opened. I sealed it close again, but nothing Ushio wouldn't be able to break," he explained to me gravely. My heart was beating too fast in my chest, so fast it was hurting me. I clenched my flak jacket when I started having difficulties breathing. Cold sweat was rolling down my back and I knew Jiraya-san was calling me, but I couldn't hear him. Two warm arms engulfed me in a hug from behind.
"Honey, honey I'm here, he's not here. You're in Konoha and he's not here," Mom's voice whispered in my ear. She affectionately rubbed my arms while whispering comforting words in my ear.
"He...He...Naruto, he'll take care of Naruto personally, he will...he will...Naruto won't stand a chance he...the Hokage...Inoichi-san knows, I told him in therapy what hap..."
"We know honey, we know, Jiraya-san has already told the Hokage. Take deep breaths Akane, you have to breath." I tried to do as she was saying, focusing only on her voice and not the absolute fear that was taking over my whole body.
I calmed down after fifteen minutes where I was totally freaking out. Dad...dad was a potential Fourth Mizukage, against Yagura only. He fought oji-chan and really hurt him, physically and mentally. He was a part of the reason why people in Kiri were so scared of me, with me being the Fourth's apprentice. He killed my brother! He killed his own son and he tried to kill me, his daughter! He was going to come and kill us all and we wouldn't...we wouldn't...
"Akane." I looked up at Jiraya-san. "When I was in Uzushio, I found things about the Shinigami Seal. Mainly, the seal works a lot like the one of a jinchuriki. You potentially can communicate with the souls sealed inside the Shinigami because you're its container, its representative in a way. I know you are a talented and capable kunoichi, but have you had a...personal tutor?"
"Jiraya-san you don't mean-" Mom started but I cut her off in a small voice.
"Oji-chan made me agree to the 'no sex' rule because he feels and sees everything I see and feel. We managed to understand how to cut off the connection though. He...he's been helping me."
There was a short silence where mom hugged me tighter as Jiraya-san closed his eyes with a small sad smile on his lips. "I see, of course Minato would do something if he could, even dead," he murmured softly. "Well, physically dead. His soul is living in you, literally."
"I...yes. He'll...he'll tell me the details of what happened in Eien later, when I'm mentally able to process what he's saying. Just, don't say he's here to anyone?
"I did tell you we were speaking as Seal Masters, didn't I? Akiko is the same, shinobi village can't make us spill what is said between Seal Masters!" Jiraya-san reassured me with confidence. "Now we should go back to the lake, hopefully Naruto finally managed to summon a frog!"
Mom went with us. Even if my face was saying I was perfectly fine, it seemed my students saw right through it. Naruto was just wondering why mom was there.
"That's my team," I told her as we reached them on the shore, "they're good."
"I see," she answered and quirked her brows at Suigetsu, "he looks like a baby you used to have play dates with. Mangetsu I think?" I almost choked on my saliva and Suigetsu gaped so much his jaw almost touched the ground. "There was also Mei-chan's brother, he was so cute," she continued, oblivious of me almost tripping in shock. Play dates with Mangetsu and Dai? Mei-sensei never thought about mentioning it like ever?
"Nee-chan, why do you look shocked?" Naruto asked me with confusion.
"They were my team when I was genin," I told them in a low voice. "Mei-sensei never mentioned anything. Did she?" I looked at Suigetsu for confirmation and he shook his head in negation. Good, we were on the same page.
It turned out my students were exploiting me. They would rather work with a clone and send the real me to buy them food. If Ao-san was here, he would tell them how different it was in his old days. I wonder how it was at the hideout. I did send a message about Orochimaru to the Mizukage after the preliminary fights, or more like the Hokage wrote a message and I signed with my chakra to prove it was indeed from me.
I think he will send reinforcement. It was not just suppositions now, Orochimaru showed himself and will attack. Yagura wouldn't miss his chance to destroy Orochimaru, or at least a good portion of his lovely village. I mean, the snake pissed off the Hidden Mist and the Akatsuki.
I shivered when I thought of the organization. I was used to Itachi in the red and black cloak. Now I was replacing him by my father and it just...it terrified me.
I was just done buying them food when Itachi appeared in front of me, civilian clothes on. I raised a brow at him, the pick of my last takoyaki still between my lips.
"Want something from me?"
"Shisui is back." I froze at that and my eyes scanned the area by reflex. However, he motioned me to follow him back to my students. "He doesn't know yet. The Hokage wants me to tell him and I thought I would tell you before," he informed me dully. He sounded like a guy in the middle of a depression.
"Thanks," I said. I totally, completely, had forgotten about Uchiha Shisui. I was busy thinking about other things and well, the fact he was not in the village slipped out of my mind. "Would you keep him away for me please?"
"I can keep him from talking to you," he replied as we left the village, "but I can't keep him from seeing you."
"Stalking. The right term is 'stalking'."
"Hn." An awkward silence took place between us. I squinted and stared at his back. There was something else, there had to be. "He is seeing someone too," he finally whispered.
"Good for him," I answered, not really caring about it. Well, he moved on so it was good for him, as I was living in Kiri anyway, and didn't want anything to do with boys, or romance really. Too annoying, it asked too much energy, energy I could put in more interesting tasks than dates and being careful of your other half. I was not good in love relationships in the past, and I still ain't today. Being in Kiri asked a certain bluntness out of you I had never shaken off. Never tried to either.
"You're...you're okay with it?" Itachi asked softly, peeking at me over his shoulder. "Didn't you and Shisui have like...a thing?" I stopped and deadpanned at him. He returned my stare.
"Is that what he told you?"
"No, it's just..."
"He confessed just before I left," I informed him and he furrowed his brows, "and kissed me, but that's all. I didn't return his feelings. I couldn't really return them, even if I had wanted to. Wait, you thought I had feelings for him all along?" I asked him and my pick fell from my mouth.
"It's just...you two were close..." he murmured, almost in a defense way as a light embarrassed blush spread on his cheeks. He tried to hide them with his high collar but failed miserably. A chuckle escaped me and Itachi just tried to hide his burning cheeks harder.
"You're fucking hilarious Uchiha, you know that?" I asked rhetorically and started walking again. "Man, that was the funniest thing I heard in a while."
"Akane..." he grumbled under his breath, exasperation lingering through his voice, "you're the worst."
"I take that as a compliment. I need to stand up for myself sometimes, Chief Dwarf's reputation is like glued to me."
"Chief...Dwarf?" he repeated slowly with a dumbfounded face. "You mean the Mizukage? You call him that?"
"Me and my friends yeah. What, you saw him, he's not exactly on the tall side. Just don't tell him though, he's very hung up about it and throws tantrum when someone mentions his short height." Oh, Itachi was absolutely livid.
"Tell me you didn't call him that to his face."
"Always behind his back!" I stated with a proud smile and he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"How...how are you still..."
"I've seen and endure the worst he can do, I'm immune by now." There was a pregnant pause between us. Oops, too much information? Yeah, yeah I had to shut up, we weren't on the same side for now. He was not my friend but Itachi of the Sharingan, the guy for whom, in my Bingo Book, was written in big bold bright red letters 'TO AVOID' next to his picture. I cleared my throat. "Anyway, I have work."
"Of course Uzumaki-san."
Thank to whoever up there who gave Itachi the ability to understand the situation and my hidden messages with no trouble. Wait, if he understood all of my hidden messages it would be troublesome.
What a fucking drag.
When I was with my students, I barely had a 'thank you', even from Haku. They were animals, all of them. Men were horrible, horrible creatures who though only with their stomach, when it wasn't their dick.
On the last day of taking care of Chōjūrō, I felt Itachi around, like usual because we were his mission, but also another one. It was closer and the person clearly didn't care about me sensing him or not. So I took one of my regular kunai and threw it after fighting seriously against Chōjūrō.
"Sensei?" he inquired and looked at where I threw the weapon. "Does the anbu bother you now?"
"No, it's an unexpected and annoying presence, not the anbu." Itachi went where I threw my kunai and I felt them move a little. Strictly speaking, I wasn't a sensor. I was an Uzumaki though, and we had a special relation with chakra, we learned how to sense other people, other chakra, more easily than regular people. And Naoto-senpai taught me a lot and he was one of the best sensor in Kiri. You bet the son of the Mizukage would be one of the best in something. Oh, I kinda missed him. Naoto-senpai was like my Kakashi in Kiri, minus the porn book, that was my thing. "Chōjūrō, I think it's enough for today and this week. Starting tomorrow, I want you to train your speed between releasing the water from the scroll and using said water. For us, making the field our playground is essential and requires a lot less chakra than producing water ourselves. Now, I'm gonna deal with the new presence." I body flickered on the shore and took a deep breath.
I could do that. I hadn't seen Shisui in two years but I managed with Itachi, right? Well, there was the hug and I was a mess, but it was because he said things. Shisui...I could manage Shisui. He had someone, so it wouldn't be awkward. Yeah, no awkwardness, I mean, it's Shisui, it's gonna be okay. I need to slip back into my Bloody Mist persona and everything will be perfect and he won't bother me until the end of the Exams.
"She doesn't want you to watch her train her team Shisui, you can understand!" Itachi sounded exasperated. So he could express anger? That was new. But it looked like they actually talked about that before already.
"I just want to see her! I didn't think she would sense me!" I froze in my steps at Shisui's voice. Fuck, his voice was...I don't know how to describe it but it was just full of emotions. "I need to make sure she's fine physically and mentally! Don't you want to know that too? You've been a mess for the past two years!" I...didn't know that.
"She's fine, and even if she wasn't we wouldn't be able to help. She's not Konoha." Itachi stressed the last sentence through gritted teeth. I had never heard him speak like that, so...free with his negative emotions. "I think you're the last person who should see her, Kiri hates you."
"That's definitely true," I said out loud as I picked up my kunai. They both shut up and I felt their heavy gaze on me. "Oh, did I say that aloud? Please continue bickering, I have trainings to supervise." I walked away to where Haku was. I didn't spare them a glance. It wasn't because I was a wonderful actress but more because I was too much of a coward to-
"Akane!" Shisui yelled behind me and his quick steps stopped in front of me. The top of my head was reaching his eyes now. I raised a bored and cold gaze on his face. He didn't change. Maybe slightly deeper lines on his face but nothing next to Itachi's actually.
"That would be my name indeed." He seemed taken back by my reply but moved on pretty fast. He opened his mouth to say something but his onyx eyes looked at the symbol on my hitai-ate. He clenched his fists. "May I help you with anything Uchiha-san?"
"Don't call me that," he whispered, his eyes meeting mine once again. "Please don't call me that."
"It would only be fair, we haven't been officially introduced. I'm Uzumaki Akane, the Yondaime Mizukage's apprentice. I heard a lot abo-"
"Did they brainwash you now!?" he snapped and grabbed my shoulders. Itachi tensed behind us. "What kind of things did Kiri put in your head!? What did they do to you!?" Shisui was losing his calm and it wasn't normal. He was talking about Kiri in a way that was ticking me off. I frowned deeply and slapped his hands away from me.
"Watch your mouth. You don't know my village nor its people, so don't run your mouth like that. Kiri and Konoha had bad blood between them, I'm here in peace but I won't hesitate to report to the Hokage if one of his shinobi starts speaking ill of another village." He frowned deeply too and cold anger washed over his face.
"Is that a threat?"
"Merely an observation. My team and I are already under ANBU's surveillance and we didn't cause troubles until now, I would like to keep it this way."
"Of course," Shisui replied coldly, but with a tint of irony in his voice. I decided to let it slide. I nodded and body flickered to where Haku was. Chōjūrō had joined him and they were both looking at me with concern. I sighed deeply and dropped on my knees.
"That's what Dai-san said about being careful with her head," Haku whispered and knelt next to me. I shot him a glance.
"Tell me I'm important, that people in Kiri need me more than the people here."
"You know you are Uzu-sensei," he said gently, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder.
"Senpai and Dai-san were heartbroken at your funerals, Mei-san too. We don't just see you as Yagura's apprentice," Chōjūrō added with a smile.
"Yeah it's...it's changing, right?"
Yeah, it was changing, I knew it. I just needed to hear it from someone else to convince me the broken look in Shisui's eyes was worth it, was worth the cause. I didn't want to hurt him, or Itachi, or anyone. If they could not care it would be better, I was used to losing people I cared about anyway. It wouldn't be new. I had too much things to care about to care about what people thought of me, and yet right now it was all I could think about.
Yagura, Obito, whatever, were assholes. It was psychological torture to test where my loyalty lay.
Too bad for them, it lay with Mei-sensei and the Resistance.
That was what I need to keep in mind. Get rid of Obito, get rid of the current system and have a fair one.
For our little Utopia.
Hey! Thanks for reading! Please review so that I know you liked it :)
Bella-swan11: Thanks for the review :) Itachi will know about Akane in the future, but Shisui won't betray her trust like that :). I mean, Itachi is Itachi, the guy is bound to know it sooner or later!
Bye !