Section II: Reconstruction
"Change is the essential process of all existence." - Spock
Chapter 12: Never Late, Never Early
Rin walked into the hospital, oddly at ease for first time in a long while. For starters, she wasn't here to treat the wounded and dying. She would help if called, but that wasn't what she was here for, but that wasn't very likely, seeing that most of the patients were being released.
Mako Nohara smiled, seeing his daughter poke her head in. Sat up in bed, bandages still wrapping his face. He was hardly the most handsome man in the village, but the ruin brought to his face would make looking him in the eye difficult for most. Rin had treated plenty of war wounds to not be perturbed, and she had spent enough time in Obito's company not to stare or strongly avert her gaze.
"How are you feeling?" asked Rin.
"The doctors said I wouldn't be able to walk properly again," her father replied. "But I'll be happy to not be eating hospital food."
"I'll have to make something special, then." Out of the corner of her eye, Rin spied a set of flowers in a vase near the window.
Her father caught where her attention was, and filled in the blanks. "Your friend, Obito, was here earlier. He brought the flowers."
"He's a good friend," she murmured.
"Well, I hear there's something between you and that Hatake boy. Is he a 'good friend', too?"
Rin averted her eyes, shuffling in her chair. "No. He's…a bit more."
She had been holding off on saying anything about her romantic life to her parents. It was hard enough to keeping it just to themselves, something that she doubted they had succeeded in. The Hatake name was famed, but still carried negative connotations within many circles, after all, and Kakashi had been anything but low-profile. And even if he knew better, her father was always a worrier, and would have interfered if it meant protecting his daughter and her reputation.
Whoever had spilled the beans might have been in for a world of pain if it hadn't inexplicably buoyed her father's flagging health. She had her suspicions, but didn't want to throw around accusations without any proof.
So, Mako smiled, and said, "Well, try not to drag things out too much. I'd like to be able to actually see my grandkids grow up a little."
Rin managed to keep the blush from her face and rolled her eyes. "Yes, tou-san."
[NRE]
Obito sat up, running a hand through his hair as he blinked away the mental fatigue. Math was never his strong point, but he had made the effort to learn when he had started with fuuinjutsu.
One of the last things Jiraiya had done before he had left on his long-term mission was the handling of Minato and Kushina's wills. Most of the items were to be held in trust, as the intended recipient was not in a position to receive them. So, until Naruto was in a position to claim his heritage, anything specifically Uzumaki-related was to be held by Tsunade, or at least in the Senju clan compound, while anything pertaining to the Yondiame was kept with his effects in storage. Obito was left in charge of the house, along with some of the unclassified detritus Minato and Kushina had left behind.
So many secrets were starting to drive Obito up the wall, he almost face-faulted when Jiriaya handed him Minato's personal journal. A well-worn, leather-bound journal, packed thickly with pages, many of them dog-eared, wrinkled, as well as torn and re-taped, along with pages that had been added separately. Inside was line after line of thoughts, dated and catalogued, all in the neat, compressed scrawl of Minato Namikaze.
Every thought Minato had recorded since he started at the Academy, lesson take-aways, grocery lists, some bad poetry, charming anecdotes of his teammates as a genin, and then again as a jōnin-sensei.
More importantly, his progression fuuinjutsu and the developmental cycle of the Rasengan.
Unfortunately, those last parts were, for the lack of a better term, encrypted, aside from the odd note written in the margins that had nothing to do with the main body of the text. The Yondiame's normally neat and contained writing turned into something akin to some prophet-of-the-damned sprawl that had dropped off sentences, half-finished equations, and likely some pieces that were only known to the author himself.
Note to self: ask Kakashi for help next time he's off mission.
A knock on the door pulled him from his reading.
The knocking persisted, and Obito relented. Rubbing his eye, he secured the journal and went to check who was calling at…?
Obito glanced at the clock.
8:47? Jeez. "Yeah, yeah," he said, swinging the door open, "What's up?"
He was greeted by one of the genin runners for the missions' office, who was nervously holding out a scroll in her hand.
Looking at the scroll, he briefly pondered what it might contain before breaking the seal reading the first few lines.
A mission request? Obito wondered. He had been taking on missions enough lately, so it wasn't because he was slacking. And things had calmed down in the missions office, so the need for every able body was lessened.
Looking at the fidgeting genin, he asked, "What's your name?"
"S-sir?"
"What do your parents call you?"
"Fubuki Kurama, Namikaze-san."
Ah, three years ahead while I was at the Academy. "Right. Fubuki-san, tell them I'll be there."
The jittery genin bowed and leapt from the porch, and Obito closed the door, shaking his head. He still hadn't gotten over how some people addressed him. Fubuki had been a couple of years ahead of his class, and rank aside, was arguably of higher status.
Then again, rumors of his reputation were wild and varied, she might have been nervous talking to him in general. Between his departure from the Uchiha, his actions in Land of Earth and in the village during the Kyūbi disaster, and being highly visible afterwards, most people could recognize him on sight, meeting him with a mixture of awe and disdain. The latter was not accounting for the opinions of the Uchiha, which required a category of their own.
Going to the bathroom, he splashed some water on his face and caught his reflection.
His hair had been pulled back into a ponytail while he had been reading, and he hadn't bothered to put on the patch he wore when out and about, so the empty pit where his left eye went was entirely on display.
Obito sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
Probably why the woman was terrified of me, he thought, then saw to getting dressed, idly glancing at the bowl of his attempts at finding a replacement or substitute. Eyes were delicate and ludicrously precise organs, and all of his attempts to fill the gap had resulted in splinters or the bit of wood trying to sprout in the socket. The misshapen marbles were a testament of his failures.
Snagging the patch from his nightstand, Obito adjusted his vest and stepped outside.
Greeted by partly cloudy skies and a gentle breeze, he made his way down the street, passing a pair of Uchiha police officers who immediately turned away when they noticed him.
Not that Obito was all that bothered. They hadn't tried to sabotage him, nor had they tried to interfere with his life after he was effectively orphaned again. Aside from Mikoto and – occasionally – Itachi, the only time an Uchiha would deign to speak with him was for official business, and then, only if they absolutely had to.
Steering his thoughts to more pleasant directions, he noted the progress on the rebuilding in the wake of the Kyūbi disaster. Brought together in a single purpose, Konohagakure had tackled the job with a will. In the five months, the village was closer to its former self, even if the scars remained.
Seeing the Hokage Tower come into view, Obito stopped in the middle of the street, a mischievous grin spread across his face.
Old habits die hard, eh?
[NRE]
Obito had materialized in front of the secretary's desk. The woman gave him an annoyed look, but the tension in her hand indicated she had been spooked at the unusual entrance. Having worked with plenty of shinobi, namely ANBU, appearing here, there, and everywhere, and still reacting with anything other than passing glance was grounds for cheering in Obito's estimation.
"Good morning!" he said, slightly too loud for inside.
The secretary banished any outward emotion and pointed down the hall. "They're in room 16."
"Thanks!"
Most C and D ranked missions were handled in the side rooms of the missions' office, warranting only basic security for privacy. A to B ranks, or any meeting requiring a little more discretion, was held in one of the briefing rooms in the basement. S-Ranks were either issued in the Hokage's office or some other dark corner of the village.
"You're late," said Kakashi, aborting his pacing around the room.
Obito raised a finger and declared, "I arrived precisely when I meant to."
Rin rolled her eyes, but smirked.
Rocking on his heels, Obito let the door close behind him. "So. What's on the menu for today?"
"Recon," Kakashi answered.
Obito made a show of looking around the room. "Quite the crew for a recon mission, don't you think?"
Aside from themselves, Team Minato was joined by Kushina's and Mikoto's old teams, as well as Team Roku. Asuma was comfortably reclining in his chair, fiddling around with a pen, occasionally side-eyeing Kurenai, who was similarly avoiding direct eye contact with him. Everyone else was perusing maps and information packets that had been procured for the briefing.
Kakashi settled at the head of the table, the rest of the room convening around it.
"Here's what we're dealing with:" he began. "Land of Seas has had an endemic of drug runners and gangs in the region. While we had sent patrols to help suppress their movements, we had not been able to properly eliminate the threat because of the war. Unfortunately, our lapse has resulted in several gangs banding together, absorbing or subduing their competitors while they consolidated. Recently, there has been an uptick of activity, movements of arms, supplies and products, and signs of samurai and even some talks of nuke-nin being involved. Whoever the leader is, they've been recruiting heavily, and expanding operations as a result."
"Hence the A-Rank," Obito realized.
"Correct. Before, they had been limited by both the war and history of inter-gang hostilities. Evidently, this has changed, and the daimyo has sent this request to Konoha. According to the mission scroll, they have limited intelligence on this syndicate's bases of operation, but they still have some info on the members they had been able to track, so that's where we'll be starting our investigation. However, in the event things turn violent, it will be automatically upgraded to an A-Rank, Search and Destroy."
"Will we be getting any assistance from other forces in the area?" asked Asuma.
"Local law enforcement is to help us as practical, but their main role will be arresting any thugs we detain. Orochimaru-sama will be let us know if anything happens on his end, but most of the legwork will be on our end unless things turn sideways."
Hayate nodded, likely having his question answered, letting Kakashi continue.
"Land of Seas is tropical, with several smaller towns and villages scattered across the islands, with wetlands and rainforests on the mainland near their major cities. In short, warm, humid, and since it's the middle of spring, expect periods of heavy rainfall. Pack for an extended mission and be ready to be out there for at least a month, possibly three."
"Shit," Yukio muttered.
"How large is our area of operations?" asked Hitomi.
"Our first stop is going to be in the capitol, Miryoku," Kakashi answered. "After we talk to our contact, we'll decide from there. Right now, we're going to be operating on the mainland. Any other questions?"
No one said anything.
"Good. Prepare you gear and be ready to leave at dawn."
[NRE]
Miryoku was a collection of little towns that happened to dot the entirety of a mountainside looking out across the beaches. Linked together by roads zigzagging up the slopes and trailing along the spokes of the mountain leading out to sea, all paths led what had become the central hub of the community.
Nestled at the foot was the downtown district, bustling with activity, trade coming in from surrounding settlements further inland and from the sea. Assorted colors of painted buildings created a rainbow across the base and up the mountain.
The rocks made for a natural barrier, turning most of the beach into an idyllic vacationing spot. Squat, sturdy sandstone structures ran along the rise overlooking the beach, housing tourists, leaving the beach itself largely clear apart from some locals and vacationers catching waves.
Their arrival was simple enough. They had split up at the outskirts of town, entering in groups of two or three and making their way to a hotel near the wharfs district, a few blocks away from the police headquarters. Obito entered the city with Aoba.
The spiral of scars was conspicuous as hell, even with the makeup they had used to cover it up, and the wide-brimmed hat he was wearing probably drew even more. And since they had no clue whether or not their targets included a sensor, they were operating on minimum of chakra, which included no genjutsu.
With the rest of the team in place, they could watch if anyone went crying to their bosses about shinobi entering the city.
"Seems nice enough," said Obito.
"Makes you wonder what's hiding beneath the surface," Aoba replied, then twitched forward. "Don't stop, but look to the 10 o'clock."
Obtio made a show of stretching to get a better look, a rather difficult task with one eye missing. At the corner near a tea shop was a trio of men loitering. All of them carrying swords, the leader wearing some old armor. They didn't appear to be looking for anything in particular, but their expressions and posture were on guard all the same, eyeing anyone who got too close.
"What's a Land of Iron samurai doing over here?" Obito whispered once they were out of potential earshot.
"Might be he's a rōnin. Those other two probably some local street toughs."
Obito scratched his brow. "Well, it's something to ask the others about when we meet up."
Checking into separate rooms, they made their way to an open dining area near the edge of the rear patio. Between Hitomi and Rei, they were certain they had no eavesdroppers, though there were enough hiding spots at enough distance that they couldn't be certain no one was watching. To anyone else, they looked like a pack of youngsters enjoying the city life.
At long last, Kakashi and Rin rejoined them.
"They're nervous," the jōnin said without preamble. "Apparently one of the leaders, one Yoshiaki Noguchi, is in town. He also brought a small army of thugs with him."
"I don't like this," said Hitomi. "Criminal organizations don't band together like this. Not this quickly, and not without a lot more violence."
"Could be something in the works since before the war?" Hayate suggested.
"But they would have been able to slip things along more quietly. This thing just reeks of desperation." The Hyuga turned to the mission leader. "What's the official story?"
Kakashi ran a hand through his hair. "He's making the rounds with the gangs in the city. Apparently, someone's been picking off their shipments and picking off their people for some time."
"Any idea who?" asked Obito.
"No one has a clue, because no one's seen the culprit and none of those kidnapped have been found."
"Alive?" asked Kurenai.
"At all," Kakashi answered. "Local law enforcement has some suspicions that some missing persons recently have been abducted by the same group."
"Was this mentioned beforehand?"
"They only pieced this together in the last few days. Up until now, they were worried about a coup or some civil war breaking out in their backyard."
"So, what's the plan?" asked Asuma.
Kakashi smiled. "Since they've so readily offered up a prime source of intelligence, we're going to grab Noguchi."
"Uh…"
"I'll find us a warehouse we can use," said Hitomi.
Kakashi wasn't finished. "Rei, make sure you send some kikaichu with the contact team. Once we break off, follow Noguchi's men back to wherever they're based out of and search the grounds for any intelligence. Obito, Hayate, Aoba: you'll be going with her." Pausing, he eyed each of them. "They're already under the impression that someone is out to get them, but don't leave reason to point fingers at us."
"We're going to be leaving one hell of a footprint," asked Hayate. "And we're not really in a position to take prisoners."
"For the regular riff-raff, keep them alive if possible, but leave them for the police to round up. Dispose of any hostile shinobi you find. The employer wants use to be thorough."
"Understood," they answered.
[NRE]
Obito and Aoba sat on the rooftop overlooking the bar their target was said to be frequenting during his stay. As it was likely a front for some of their operations, or at least a place they owned, it was likely going to be packed with gangsters and their security.
Rei and Hayate were watching from a different vantage point, covering another set of angles leading into the bar.
Next to Obito, Aoba hissed. "Asuma and Yugao?" he murmured, not to anyone in particular. "Kurenai, are you trying to muck up the bet?"
"They're better at fighting in close quarters while not sticking out like sore thumbs," Obito answered. "And what bet?"
Dropping to a conspiratory whisper. "Hayate has a crush on Yugao, which she would reciprocate if she actually noticed. But she's too caught up on her crush on him, so neither of them have made a move."
"…Really?"
"Yeah, really. Don't tell either of them, though."
"Okay, but why?"
"Because Asuma and I have bets going against Kurenai and Ibiki's predictions."
Obito nodded slowly. "I see."
"And on top of that, Kurenai has a crush on Asuma, and she thinks he's ignoring her on purpose."
"Is he?"
"Yes," Aoba answered, bluntly. "Being the Hokage's son makes him a highly sought after bachelor, and Asuma is still too used to girls trying to throw themselves at him. Pair that with her trying not to appear aggressive, and you have a stalemate that won't break until they both pull their heads out of their butts." He rocked his head a little, then added, "If your past record is anything, feel free to contribute."
Obito groaned a little. "That was one time."
"Yeah, well, it should be funny, in any case."
"I'll think about it," Obito quietly laughed, looking down the monocular again. "Looks like our guy just showed up."
Seeing Noguchi and his entourage strolling down the street, Aoba relayed the message to Kakashi, who signaled Asuma and Yugao.
The general shape of the plan was to drug the leader, prompting them to back out of the establishment. Once outside, Kakashi, Rin, Yukio, and Yuuta would follow them into a more isolated area, and then grab their target.
At least, that was the intention.
Not long after entering the bar, a fight erupted, quickly spreading throughout the establishment and spilling out into the street. At any rate, Asuma and Yugao were fighting their way out, and the gang members were retreating through the back exit.
The grab team zeroed on them, Yuuta bolting through the crowd made things more complicated as Yukio gave chase. While everyone was outraged by the dog and owner, and looking the wrong way, Kakashi substituted himself with the target, letting Rin put him into a chokehold and inject him with a sedative before dragging him out of sight.
A flare of chakra, and the shinobi slipped out into the burgeoning night to the fallback point.
"Right. That's us."
Obito and Aoba vanished from the rooftop to reposition closer to the chaos left in the grab team's wake. Kakashi had taken care to not severely injure the thugs, so they were still mobile. They were also lucid enough to panic over the abduction, while not lucid enough to figure out where the culprits had gone.
"Let's get back to the villa."
"What about Noguchi?"
"Do you want to try filing a report to the police? No, we're going someplace safe and then we're sending a message to the boss."
"That was fast," said Obito.
"Emotive genjutsu are handy, right?" Aoba answered.
Obito turned to his partner. "I thought that was Mikoto-san's specialty?"
"Yeah. She taught it to me. Part of an exchange her and Kushina-sensei. I learned genjutsu and Hayate got to learn kenjutsu." Aoba paused, then said, "Look sharp."
Rei and Hayate arrived on the adjacent rooftop, beginning their tailing job.
[NRE]
For men who lived lives of crime and danger, they were far too obvious with their attempts to lose pursuers. Too much attention on the streets and alleys, not enough checks to the rooftops. Then again, if not for the fact that they were being pursued by shinobi, it wouldn't have been a problem.
Even without Rei keeping a bead on them the entire hike up the mountain, they moved at a turtle's pace that was all too easy to follow. Obito had taken to checking for their own tails, but found nothing.
It wasn't yet dawn, but the Sun would be rising soon after the stragglers arrived at their destination, a white villa looking out over the easterly slopes of the mountain. Situated within visual range of the palace district, the place was walled and gated, the owner clearly not wanting intruders wandering onto the grounds. A few guards patrolled the area around, further dissuading the casual and amateur trespasser. Vigilant, but also twitchy when their friends quick-stepped to the front gate.
"Looks like this is the place," said Aoba.
Obito activated his Sharingan, both to root out active chakra networks and for better night vision. "Right. I'm counting an even dozen inside, and…five on watch."
"Six," Rei corrected. "There's one tucked into the entryway corridor."
"Either way, piss-poor odds for these guys. How do you want to do this?"
"Obito, you enter the house and clear the interior. Aoba, give him cover. Hayate and I will handle the watch. Once we're done, regroup inside."
A wooden kunai formed in Obito's hand, kanji forming along the side, charging in the same motion. Giving the others a nod, Rei and Hayate shushin'd out, and Obito tossed his creation into the villa.
Moments later, a kunai embedded into the table in front of restless thugs. Before anyone could process what was happening, they were all struck blind, fumbling for their weapons as Obito materialized with a half-completed jutsu.
"Doton: Earth Wave."
Stomping his foot down, a shockwave rippled through the floor, flipping furniture over and throwing the disoriented men off their feet. Obito grabbed the closest duo before the hit the ground, bashing their heads together and turning to the rest.
On one hand, he felt bad for how easy it was, dispatching the disoriented thugs. On the other, they were actively working on peddling illegal substances and possibly terrorizing the local populace, and probably had higher aspirations-
A scream behind him convinced him to put his ponderings on hold. Hayate pulled his sword free and let the body drop.
"Let's move along, shall we?" said Hayate.
"Clear," said Aoba, poking his head through the front door. Noting the cracked, twisting floor and turned over furniture. "Whew. That's going to hit the property values."
The building cleared, Aoba took watch while they searched the place for evidence or clues to their next locations, heading to the top floor. Shoddy security seals on the office was easily circumvented, and the two of them began sifting through the meager folders strewn scattered across the executive desk, some correspondence littered atop the documents.
"This is Noguchi's residence, right?" asked Obito. "Whenever he's in town, I mean."
"I believe so," Hayate replied.
"You'd think they have better security than this. Or at least be more organized."
"They're meant to keep out civilians and low-level shinobi."
Rei sifted through the scattered files, checking them for hidden seals and fail-safes before scooping them all up and placing them into storage. Leaving things nice and tidy for a passing patrol, they circled back to the warehouse, alerting the police along the way.
[NRE]
Upon arriving, Hitomi ushered them inside, where the interrogation was already in progress.
Kurenai was supposed to be Mikoto's best student in genjutu, and Ibiki could be plenty intimidating before any interrogation techniques came into play. The subject, alone, surrounded by armed guards, and was by all accounts some elevated gangster who had never seen the inside of a ninja academy, Obito didn't see him lasting long.
"I don't know who he is! He never talked to us in person. Always had this creepy messenger. Some creepy hunchback fucker."
The information retrieval group found their way to back corner, where everyone was sorting through the man's effects, Asuma listing off the contents.
"Looks like the party started without us," said Hayate.
"Find anything interesting?" asked Obito.
"Not really. A pack of cigarettes, some matches, a pack of cards, a couple of knives."
"Not very good ones," Yugao said, twirling one of them around.
Looking down, Obito spied a small roll of paper that had bounced and rolled under the table. "What's this?"
The material was crinkled and smoke-stained,
Kakashi caught their attention, gesturing for Obito to hand it over, scanning through it in short order
"What does it say?"
"Basically confirming what we already heard. Someone kicked the hornet nest and their 'benefactor' had set them to working on flushing them out, beefing up security along the way." He paused and turned to the interrogators. "That's enough for now."
Kurenai put the man back under, following Ibiki to the table.
"The 'benefactor' seems to think nuke-nin. As for this benefactor, they're smoke and mirrors. Something to pass to Intelligence." Folding the letter back up, Kakashi turned to the interrogators. Did he say anything else?"
"Whoever he's working for is smart enough to keep information from slipping."
"Shame we couldn't grab a Yamanaka for this," Aoba murmured.
"I could press him harder, but he's pretty spooked. Figure we'd let him smolder a bit before digging in on him."
"Well, we might not have that kind of time. Ibiki, keep him here until evening, and then turn him over to the police. Aoba, join Hitomi and Yukio on watch. Rei, where are those files you picked up?"
The Aburame ordered the relevant pieces for the team leader to peruse. Once a map was laid out, Kakashi began making notes.
"Right. Listen up: we have two major areas to hit. A series of plantations out to the northwest." Jotting down a few marks, he focused on the coastline. "The other is something called Outpost Karachi, north of the mountain is a stretch of cliffs, pockmarked with caves. As I recall, there used to be a castle up there before it was abandoned. Perfect hiding spot for criminal enterprise."
"Which they'll have spent plenty of time trapping the hell out of," Asuma interjected. "And probably a small army of assorted riff-raff."
"Right now, our only leads are these places. With what we've already done, they're liable to relocate before reinforcements arrive." Tapping the pen to his face, Kakashi set it down and looked up at the team. "Here's what we're doing: we'll split into two groups. North Group will be Roku and Kushina teams. South will be Minato and Mikoto teams. I'll command South. Asuma, you'll be in charge of the North Group."
Asuma blinked once, then nodded. "Got it."
"Follow the trail. From the sounds of it, they are moving a considerable amount of materials, so be on the lookout for that. Assume any presence at these sites will be hostile, but keep an eye out for civilians. Study the maps, get some rest, and check your equipment. We'll move out at tomorrow at first light."
A/N: My general mental picture of Land of Seas is a mixture of Cuba and Puerto Rico, with Miryoku's aesthetic being inspired by Havana and San Juan. Miryoku can mean "charmed" or "enchanted".
Scale is something I don't think was ever listed by any official source, but I'm figuring the Elemental countries are comparable to Europe's land coverage (about 10 million sq. kilometers, or nearly 4 million sq. miles.), and population…ballparking it around 200 million, give or take a few depending on casualties during the war and any other losses due to famine, disease, or supply shortages during and after (note that this is less than Europe's estimated population leading up to WW1).
On another subject never touched by official sources: ANBU and their famous members. Kakashi was well-known in circles within and outside of Konoha as "Kakashi of the Sharingan" (why Sasuke didn't know that bit is a mystery that can be chalked up to "Kishimoto didn't think of it at the time"). He was also in ANBU soon after Rin's canon demise. ANBU is supposed to be a secretive black-ops organization, so discretion and anonymity would be integral to any agents and operations. My answer is that ANBU has rotations of their personnel to keep more public members of their ranks from being tied to a mask or questionable activities. This mission falls within Kakashi's "off" period.
Changes from canon:
- Apart from the obvious (i.e. Obito still in Konoha, Rin still alive, and her dad being alive and named), none for this chapter.
Coming Up:
- Investigations uncover some surprising finds.
- Rules of Nature!
Questions? Concerns? Comments? Are my figures unrealistic? Let me know with a PM or review. Constructive criticism is always appreciated.
Until next time.
Winterman, Out.