Kazuhiro could pinpoint the exact moment everything went wrong. Sho-san, one of his temporary teammates, was watching Oburo's convoy arrive through their pair of binoculars when he let out a low hiss.
"Mother fucker!" He cursed.
"What?" Kazuhiro asked as the jonin and his other chunin teammate, Nendo-san, raised their heads.
"The jonin is a fucking Hyuga."
The curse was echoed by everyone on the squad. This really wasn't good; getting one over on any jonin was hard enough, but a jonin with a Byakugan? Who could see every goddamn thing in a mile's radius? If it granted simple vision, that wouldn't be as much of an obstacle, but the byakugan could detect a person's chakra signature, and through henges. All of their chakra signatures were conspicuously not civilian in shape, size and behavior, so infiltrating the Kusa work force was now completely out of the question.
"How the fuck are we going to do this now?" Sho-san exclaimed.
"We have to make sure he doesn't activate his byakugan while we're in view," Takeuchi-san said grimly. "The mission is still on."
It probably shouldn't have been. What followed was an entirely too-tense operation, which entailed Kazuhiro, Sho-san and Nendo-san changing into Kusagakure uniforms—luckily, the jonin came prepared. Then, they were sent to harass the Konoha shinobi while their superiors made the switch.
As he stared deep into the blank, white eyes of the Hyuga jonin, Kazuhiro's persona nearly crumbled. But he preserved, calling out with a sneer and a carefully forged, drunken swagger.
"Oi, oi, Konoha-san," he called, making no attempt to hide his approach. To one side, Nendo-san snickered. "What brings you—hic—to this side of the border?"
Hiring foreign nin for a job inside one country's border was basically a slap in the face. It implied that the contact did not trust domestic shinobi to get the job done properly, and it also represented a loss in their hidden village's revenue. It was a bit more nebulous for missions that spanned nations, but the general etiquette was for a client to hire the shinobi from the land the mission began in. A Kusa nin who witnessed this particular situation would be upset, but they probably wouldn't comment on it beyond the odd glare or snide remark.
Unless they were plastered, that is.
"Escort mission, Kusa-san," the Hyuga said neutrally, though it was clear his students weren't entirely as nonplussed by their presence as he was. One's hand dropped to their kunai pouch, and the others shuffled their feet apprehensively.
"An escort mission?" Kazuhiro repeated dumbly, ignoring the politely detached affirmation. "Oh, well aren't you lucky. Feel free to spend your paychecks from a job well done at one of Grass' many fine shops." He feigned another hiccup, half turning away before stopping.
"Oh, er, where's my professionalism?" He said as an afterthought. "I gotta check your paperwork, Konoha-san. You understand, right?"
"Of course," he said blandly. "I have everything in order. Border inspection," he produced a rolled up piece of paper from his sleeve. "Proof of origin." Another. "And a certified record of assignment."
"Hmmm, certified record of assignment," Kazuhiro drawled, paper swaying as he held it in front of his eyes. "Ess…escort to fire capital. To fire capital? From…Land of Grass?"
The Hyuga jonin was silent for a moment, before saying, "correct."
"You lied to me, Konoha-san?" Kazuhiro said darkly, allowing wisps of killing intent to float from him. One of the genin shuddered.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," the Hyuga replied, unflappable in the face of the meager display of power. "I have said very little, and each statement was true."
"But you-ah let me think you were droppin off, when you're picking up!"
"Unintentional, I assure you," he lied.
Kazuhiro grunted, rolling the forms together and flicking them back to the Hyuga.
"Those three are fine," he said, bitterness replaced in an instant with a condescending smirk. "Now I just need to see your proof of toll payment."
The frown was only visible on his pure white face in the tenseness of his brow. "Toll payment?"
"Yeah, toll payment," Kazuhiro said as his two compatriots chuckled lightly. "You were supposed to pay it at the border. You didn't…skip out on paying, did you?"
Needless to say, there was no toll to be paid.
"No one spoke to me of any toll," the jonin said neutrally. "And I know nothing of such a policy being put into effect."
"It's new," Kazuhiro claimed. "Maybe they forgot about it. But thas no worry—if you pay now, I'll make sure the money goes where it needs to."
One of the genin, wearing the mark of the Sarutobi clan, made a noise of outrage, but his Sensei shushed him.
"How much is this toll?" He asked neutrally.
"Twenty thousand ryo," Kazuhiro announced slyly, to his comrades' amusement. The sum was likely more than what each member of this team would receive as compensation for this particular mission.
"I see," the Hyuga said. "Of course, we would be willing to pay such a toll. However, I would be much more comfortable doing so through official channels. We will check in with the Kusa border team on our way out. You may feel free to accompany us to ensure we do as directed; we should be leaving in only a moment."
Kazuhiro wasn't exactly sure how to retort, but it didn't matter. In a flash of steel, shuriken shot at the Hyuga jonin from behind, narrowly missing the unsuspecting genin behind him. The jonin, being a jonin, sensed the disturbance without even activating his Byakugan, weaving through the deadly rainstorm with grace.
"Sensei!" His kunoichi student exclaimed, as they whirled around to see two of the Iwa jounin, disguised as missing-nin from Cloud.
One—either Nakamura-san or Takeuchi-san in disguise—clucked his tongue in disappointment.
"Hyuga Nobu. Twenty-one million Ryo," he announced. "Twenty-eight if alive, but I won't push my luck."
"Bounty hunters," the Hyuga noted, raising a perfectly manicured eyebrow. If he felt any alarm at their appearance, he didn't show it, though he glanced in the chunin's direction as well.
Kazuhiro and his team didn't have to pretend to be surprised by their superiors' appearance; this was not what they planned. He thought their objective was to keep the Hyuga's Byakugan off—engaging the man in battle was the last thing they should do to ensure that happened.
Sure enough, Kazuhiro saw grotesque veins swell on the sides of his head, like a network of cracks through a marble statue.
"The two in front of us have higher chakra signatures," he announced to his team. "There's a third with smaller reserves, he's too close to the client. You three, protect him, I'll hold these two off."
The genin nodded, sprinting away with nary a backwards glance, and the three jonin blitzed into a flurry of high level combat Kazuhiro could barely follow. He stood, mouth nearly agape as he tried to parse out what had happened. Maeda-san was discovered near the client. That was bad, right? But Nakamura-san and Takeuchi-san must have known that was going to happen. They were the ones to note that any engagements would be viewed with suspicion, and might invite more scrutiny towards the mission objectives. So why invite the Hyuga to use the Byakugan?
Then it hit him. Any ninja contact would cause the protection detail to look more closely at the mission objectives; the jonin had said as much during the initial brief. In other words, Kazuhiro's approach might have been viewed as the distraction it truly was, regardless of his acting prowess. Their plan was too transparent. By posing as missing nin and attacking the jonin sensei, they were providing a much more memorable distraction.
But it didn't fix the primary issue. Kazuhiro's initial appearance was still suspicious, perhaps even more so now. There was only one thing he could think to do to tie the plan back together.
Tatsu, U, Saru, Uma, Mi, Tatsu, Inu, Ne, Ushi, Mi, Tatsu, Ne, Uma, Mi.
Doton: Doro Nami O Tsukamu no Jutsu!
A wave of earth rippled underfoot, cresting amid the combatants. The Hyuga spun into a frankly ridiculous dome of chakra, though the almost liquid construct parted over it smoothly. One Iwa jonin dodged it entirely, and the other was caught only momentarily before freeing himself, but not with the hiding like a mole technique.
"At ease, Konoha-san," Kazuhiro said, all traces of inebriation gone from his voice. "You two," he directed to his teammates. "Back him up."
"Don't get in our way, Grass," one jonin said, and Kazuhiro desperately hoped that wasn't a real order.
Kazuhiro bared his teeth. "I might not like business stealers, but at least he's with a village. I'm honor bound as a ninja of Kusagakure to eliminate any missing nin in our borders."
Thank kami his teammates backed him up. Each circled around opposite flanks, pelting kunai with reckless abandon. They weren't holding back, which was good, because Hyuga were known for their observational skills.
Twin cyclones left one of the jonin's palms—Fuuton: Reppushou—effectively neutralizing the projectiles as Kazuhiro stepped forward. "Truce, Konoha-san?"
"Much appreciated, Kusa-san," the white-eyed jonin agreed, before streaking forward.
The next several minutes were intense. The undercover Iwa chunin couldn't contribute too much to the fight even if they wanted to—the difference between most chunin and most jonin was great, and the three of them weren't familiar enough with each others' fighting styles to bridge the gap. But the distraction they provided was enough, and the Hyuga was slowly overpowering his older opponents.
Finally, the disguised Iwa jonin disengaged for the last time, one holding a spasming shoulder.
"Fucking annoyances," he spat. "I'll give you a million each right now if you just back the fuck off."
"How about we just take it off your corpses instead?" Kazuhiro panted, holding his side, and his superior tossed his head in agitation.
"Watch your backs, all of you," he warned, and both of them immediately vanished into a shunshin.
Kazuhiro spat on the ground. "Your kids still alive?" He asked the Hyuga, despite already knowing the answer.
"Yes, it appears they held off their adversary," the Hyuga said, seemingly quite pleased with the fact. "Thank you for your assistance. It was certainly most appreciated."
"Don't mention it," Kazuhiro grunted. "Seriously, don't. Damn, my head. Did you recognize either of them?"
"One was known by the moniker Zed. A defector, B-rank. I did not recognize the other."
Interesting. So one of them, at least, had chosen to emulate a real person, huh? That was the convenient thing about missing nin—since they hid their tracks indiscriminately, they made for excellent scapegoats.
"Great," Kazuhiro sighed. "I'd better alert my comrades. Make sure they're keeping an eye out. Find your client and get out of my country. The longer you drag your feet, the more difficult you'll find it to leave."
"Thank you for the advice."
"Like I said. Don't mention it."
With that, Kazuhiro and his team left, each praying with all their hearts that the ruse had worked, and that they hadn't completely misinterpreted the situation.
- - - { ワナビー } - - -
Eight hours later saw Kazuhiro, Nendo-san and Sho-san standing before their three jonin superiors, and even worse, Kobayashi Ichiro, the jonin commander, inside of the Tsuchikage's palace. They had traveled in seperate groups—the three chunin hadn't seen the three jonin until now—and Kazuhiro was dying on the inside. Clearly, his teammates were as well.
"Tell me, why did you choose to attack your superiors in the midst of a sensitive assignment?" The jonin commander asked coldly, and the pit in Kazuhiro's stomach tore through its lining.
"I thought it would be suspicious not to," he said horsley. He had rehearsed this speech endlessly for the entire duration of their silent trip in his mind. "Protocol in every village is to eliminate any missing nin on sight. And I thought it would help disguise our true intentions, and ensure the long-term success of the mission."
The glare was turned on his compatriots. "And what do you two have to say for yourselves?"
For a long moment, Kazuhiro thought they were going to throw him under the wagon. He could see them consider it. But then…
"I could see the wisdom in Asano-san's actions," Sho-san stated, and Kazuhiro's heart lightened a fraction.
"I see," the Joni commander said neutrally. "And you, Nendo-san?"
"It was a nebulous situation," he said slowly. "There were many actions that we could have taken, and all of them bore risk. The choice was taken from me the moment Asano-san acted—not joining him would have only lessened the chance of success."
That was… kind of throwing him under the bus. But with a lifeline, at least.
"I see." The jonin commander sighed. "Good work."
Oh, thank kami.
"That was the course of action we were hoping you would take, when we decided to attack the Hyuga," Maeda-san revealed. "I am thankful that you did not let us down."
Kazuhiro was really fucking thankful too.
"This was no ordinary mission," Nakamura-san revealed. "It was also a test for each of you. Important for our village, but relatively easy. Would have been, at least, if Konoha didn't send a damned Hyuga."
"We had intended to allow you to devise the course of action yourselves," Takeuchi-san said wryly. "To test your analytical ability. But the introduction of the Byakugan threw a wrench in our plans. We didn't want to risk the success of the mission, and took control ourselves."
"But in the end, you proved your capability in such respects anyway," Maeda-san concluded.
"I'm not sure if you know this, but the three of you share many things in common," the jonin commander chimed in. "None of you passed the academy graduation exam. Yet all of you achieved field promotions to chunin. That is common enough, but the growth that each of you have displayed since then is not. Asano Kazuhiro," he directed at him. "In the last year, your jutsu repertoire has doubled, and you've received six declarations of merit from jonin you've been assigned to. Why? What drives you, now that the war is over?"
Kazuhiro swallowed dryly. "My godfather and his wife were murdered at the end of the war. In the Fugatoro incident. Leaving me as the guardian to their newborn daughter. At first, I sought strength to avenge them, and that does still drive me. But more so than that, I realized that I needed to become stronger to survive and pass down their legacy to her."
The jonin commander nodded in satisfaction. "Admirable. Now you, Nendo Kenta. You have also boasted similar recent accomplishments. What drives you?"
"My brother," he said slowly, looking at Kazuhiro in a new light. "My oldest. Adopted, at least; we grew close in the orphanage, along with some others. When he graduated from the academy and was officially recognized as an adult, he adopted us all, even though he was only three years older. He died on the front lines in River. I decided I needed to grow stronger to earn more and provide for my siblings in his place."
"You have done well to honor his sacrifice," the jonin commander said solemnly. "And lastly, Sho Kosuke. What has driven you to make such great strides this past year?"
"Both of my parents' passing," he revealed. "And…I have a little sister."
Kobayashi-sama nodded. "I have before me three members of the Iwa Shinobi Corp, who have persevered even after suffering devastating losses. More than that, you each have a living legacy to protect and provide for. You have the motivation, the dedication and the sharp mindset to become jonin. You just lack the physical ability. The power. I want to offer you the opportunity to change that. If you accept my offer, you will be pulled from active duty for a year—don't worry, your families will be provided for. In that time, you will undergo several experimental augmentations and receive dedicated training from specialists. And at the end, you will be an elite squadron of jonin."
He certainly had their attention.
"I must emphasize, these augmentations are experimental," the commander warned. "If they fail, and you lose either your life or your ability to continue as an Iwa shinobi, your families will live in comfort for the rest of their lives. However, you do have the right to refuse."
As if they would. The illusion of choice was just that, and everybody in the room knew it.
"Arigataku ukeiremasu," they said in chorus, and the jonin commander nodded solemnly.
"Welcome to my forces then, gentlemen," he said. "Specifically, the newly formed division S. Or as we've taken to calling it, the Sky Division. You are its first members, and hopefully not the last."
…Kazuhiro could have really gone without hearing that last bit.
- - - { ワナビー } - - -
In another world, Asano Kazuhiro wouldn't have been alive at this time. In his grief, and with no infant child in his care, he would have joined in Iwa's offensive against Konoha and died in a fight against much stronger opponents.
In another world, a different, nameless chunin would have been assigned to this mission, one who wouldn't think to intervene in the fight between the Konoha team and the supposed missing nin. Which would have led to Hyuga Nobu to see through the ruse, and suggest to Oburo Taidachi that he should give his wares one last examination. The sabotage would have been noticed.
In another world, Oburo Taidachi would gain wealth and power, more cautious in his knowledge that outside forces would seek his downfall. In a scant few years, he would succeed in his goal of uniting the Land of Grass with the Land of Fire once more, something that would have massive implications in the coming Third Shinobi War.
In another world, Imai Kasaiki didn't exist. In this one, she doesn't even need to be present to change the course of the Elemental Nations irrevocably.