Obito-Sensei Chapter 57
The Revolutionary Vanguard
Sakura was in a coma until the eighth of April, and during that strange time there was little she could do but dream.
She dreamt and she wondered and she thought, though it was not a guided conscious process. Her intelligence wasn't involved; it took a passive part in her dreams, recording all she saw and felt. In her dreams, Sakura was vaguely aware that she was hurt, that something had gone terribly wrong. She was also equally aware that at this point all of that was completely out of her control, so while the concern was present it did not dominate her not-thoughts.
She was far more concerned with her friends. Were Naruto and Sasuke and Haku and Karin and Suigetsu and Ino and Hinata and Shikamaru okay? Zabuza had died, and Gaara had run, but that didn't guarantee they were safe. She didn't want Gaara's rage to be responsible for any more harm coming to them, especially not when it had been directed at her in the first place. Everything had been her fault. If she hadn't provoked him, the Land of Waves wouldn't have been devastated; even if she'd let her kill him, things would probably have ended with less destruction.
Since Sakura had fought Gaara at the Chunin Exam, she had tried to keep her head high and her heart proud. She had built up the courage to throw herself at Itachi Uchiha without hesitation, to defect and let an entire village's hate pour down on her, to make a new version of herself in the mold that Rain required so that she could find out the truth about herself and the shinobi system and what really had happened to Fuu, a sweet girl who she'd only known for one day but who still had left an impression on her. She had done her best to never let herself feel small or worthless.
But in that coma, so hurt that her body wouldn't wake up and so consumed with guilt that her mind went in endless circles debating the same questions again and again, Sakura felt small and worthless again in a visceral manner that had become unfamiliar to her.
She pondered Gaara countless times, the hatred and malice that consumed him and how those horrible things had been curated by the Hidden Sand in pursuit of a strategic objective. Sakura had felt pity for him when she and Fuu had been talking the night before the attack on Waterfall, but now she was sure that pity had been misaimed. Gaara had been transformed into a weapon, a broken knife as she'd envisioned, and had torn the heart out of Fukami City.
Because Gaara was a weapon, he'd probably been told to do it. That meant that the Hidden Sand had ordered the destruction of at least the Great Channel Bridge, given what he'd prepared there, and potentially more of the village by his initiative. But he'd run out of control and killed his sensei; even Gaara's father probably hadn't foreseen his son's mindless violence.
That was the danger of the Tailed Beasts, Sakura thought. Even the people who knew their power best underestimated the destruction they could unleash; if they didn't, the Kazekage never would have released his son into Waves. The country had been helpless, the same kind of helplessness she'd felt when Gaara had ripped her sword out of her grasp.
Sakura hated that feeling. A ninja should never feel like they'd run out of options when their weapon was taken away. She'd grown too reliant on her sword and now it was gone, an instant universal karma. Tenten would rightfully berate her for that; there was a reason her best friend didn't rely on a single weapon to fight but tried to master all of them.
The best way she could prevent that feeling from striking her again would be if her sword couldn't be taken away. The only sword that couldn't be taken away was herself. A ninja wasn't meant to be a tool, but when their only purpose was violence, what choice could they have? It was naive to think otherwise.
It was the same principle as a Jinchuriki. The power of human sacrifice. But the Tailed Beasts went even farther. You didn't need a sword to fight a sword, but because Waves hadn't had a Bijuu of their own, Sand had not hesitated to destroy them with one. Rain must have felt the same fear if they really had stolen Fuu, though that was seeming less and less likely.
Sakura was positive after seeing what Gaara was fully capable of that the only way to deter a Tailed Beast was a Tailed Beast of your own: an assurance of a challenge or, in the worst case, mutual destruction. Sakura had been ignorant to that kind of terror. When Itachi had told her he'd been sent by Rain, she had refused to believe it, but it now made perfect sense to her. How could anyone with the weight of thousands of lives on their back bear to hold it without some manner of deterrent? It would be far too painful.
Rain was hated and distrusted by everyone. It might need more than one Tailed Beast to keep it safe, she thought in a muddled, hateful way.
Rain needed a Tailed Beast if it didn't already have one, and Sakura needed to make a sword out of herself, and both those facts were because anyone could lose anything and everything at any time. The next time her hands were left empty, they needed to be ready to cut someone down with all the violence of a sword.
If dreams were meant to impart messages or teach lessons, Sakura took all the wrong ones.
###
When Sakura woke up, she didn't understand where she was or what was happening. She shifted, her mouth dry, and blinked as she looked around. There had been no transition from being asleep to being awake, and nothing made sense to her. She was in a small hospital room with a narrow view of the outside world: it was raining, thick droplets sliding down the frosted windowpane.
'Ah, I'm home,' she thought, too tired to wonder why that was her first instinct upon seeing rain. There were fresh yellow flowers next to her bed; someone had been here recently. Sakura tried to lift her head, failed, and slipped back into a natural sleep.
When Sakura woke up again a couple hours later, the room was not empty. As she stirred and opened her eyes, she found Naruto, Haku, Sasuke, Karin and Suigetsu all scattered around the room, most in guest chairs and Suigetsu leaning against the wall. They were talking quietly to one another, but when Sakura shifted and groaned, they all stopped and looked over at her.
"Sakura?" Naruto was the first who was brave enough to break the silence. He jumped out of his chair and rushed over, and Sakura noticed that Haku wasn't far behind. They came to either side of her bed as Sasuke, Karin, and Suigetsu watched with mute amusement and concern. "You awake?"
"Yeah," she rasped. "I think so." She blinked, trying to focus and truly wake up without much success. "You're all here?"
"One of the doctors told me that you'd woken up earlier today," Haku said gently. Sakura looked over at him blearily and the look in his eyes made her blink again, sharpening the world up a little. Haku looked exhausted: there were huge dark circles under his eyes, and his hair was far from the perfectly combed art-piece it usually was. "So we gathered in case it happened again."
"Kabuto's still on his shift, else he'd be here too," Naruto said, looking down at her with an uncertain smile. He looked a bit like Haku, Sakura thought. It didn't look like he'd been sleeping much. Had they been keeping watch after her? "It's been a couple days since we got back. Are you feeling okay? The doctor said that you were pretty much good to go, but you went through so much crap your body needed time to basically get everything working again."
"Uhh…" Sakura grunted, trying to move. Her arms and legs responded to her, though they were sluggish, and that bit of movement made her heart speed up and the world become clearer. Her entire body ached inside and out, like her existence was a bruise, but she was definitely alive and in one piece. Hadn't there been a hole in her shoulder?
"My arm," she said with a sigh, the words a whisper. "Doesn't hurt… I thought it would." She took in a sharp breath. "Sasuke? Yours…?"
Sasuke lifted up his right arm, and to Sakura's shock it was in perfect shape like the rest of him. "Just fine," he said. "Naruto took care of us before we got back. He put you back together."
"Ah…" Sakura shifted back to Naruto. "Thanks, Naruto," she said, feeling she was incapable of putting her gratitude into words. "I thought I… thank you."
"It wasn't a problem," he lied with a smile that Sakura could easily see through. "I couldn't have done it without everyone else anyway. Especially Karin. Plus, Haku was the one who saved you in the first place."
"Sorry," Sakura said. She closed her eyes, shame boiling her chest. "I'm really sorry."
"There's nothing to be sorry for," Haku said, his gentle voice becoming firm. "You did your best, and delayed Gaara until Master Zabuza could drive him off. You should never apologize for that, Sakura."
In her dreams, Sakura had been sure Haku would blame her. The lack of it threw her so off balance that she could only lie there, her eyes closed and her chest tight. She had no idea how to respond, so she could only nod her head.
"So everyone else is okay?" she eventually managed.
"Of course," Haku said, as if they hadn't all almost died. "We returned to the Nation three days ago; it's the evening of the eighth."
She'd been asleep for that long? Sakura tried to sit up, realized she just wasn't up to the task, and sank back down into the bed. She'd never been unconscious for that long before; Naruto hadn't been exaggerating about how messed up she'd been. He must have pulled off a miracle for her to still be alive.
"You should know, you were inducted into the Akatsuki yesterday," Haku continued. "Maybe it was bad luck to spend your first day as a member unconscious, but the Amekage did not want to delay until you were awake."
Sakura opened her eyes. She stared at Haku, then at Naruto, who gave her an enthusiastic thumbs up, and then at Haku again. Sasuke, Suigetsu, and Karin had been talking to each other, a mumbled background noise, but they stopped at her reaction, and Suigetsu chuckled.
"What?" she asked eloquently.
"Well, it's not official until you accept, of course," Haku said. "You have a choice in the matter." He grinned, perhaps a little coyly at her. "But it's a tremendous honor, so many would wonder why you refused it."
Sakura's mind was racing. She was an Akatsuki member? The transition was too shocking for her to fully comprehend. To go from the nightmare of the Land of Waves to that in the blink of an eye weren't pieces her mind could put together. What had she done? How had this happened? There had been no interrogation, no grand ceremony: apparently, she was just in.
'If you want to accomplish your mission and go home, Sakura Haruno, your goal should be joining the Akatsuki.'
It was an unfamiliar voice from a conversation that Sakura couldn't remember happening, but she was sure it was real nonetheless. Why was she just confused instead of happy? Didn't she want to go home?
"I'm confused," she said frankly. Naruto laughed.
"Yeah, it's been a confusing couple days," he said with a grin. "I woke up the day after we got back, and Haku talked to me and Sasuke about it then."
"Because we came here together?" Sakura asked. Naruto nodded.
"Yeah," he said, looking back to Sasuke and seeing if he wanted to add anything. Sasuke just shrugged, and Naruto stuck out his tongue at him. "He wanted to see if you'd accept, but you were still asleep, so…"
"You recommended me?" Sakura asked, looking up at Haku. "Why?"
"For your courage and dedication," Haku said, like it was self-evident. "You've always understood the Akatsuki and its goals, Sakura. Sometimes even better than me, even though I'm already a member." His fist clenched at his side, but his face remained kind. "Do you remember what happened after the bridge collapsed?"
Sakura did. She remembered her blinding agony, the sensation of half of her body falling apart and blood rushing out of her and leaving behind ice. The feeling of clutching Haku's hand, saying anything that came to her mind to keep him from going, overwhelmed by the terror of dying alone and in pain.
We've already lost too much. Please, don't go.' Had that been genuine, or desperation? Sakura honestly couldn't remember.
"Barely," she said with a wince. "I told you not to go."
"You kept a clearer head than me, despite your injuries," Haku said. The conviction in his voice almost made Sakura believe it. "And because of that, you kept me from acting against the interests of the Nation: it would have been even more of a disaster if I'd killed Gaara's siblings, or been killed by them. I didn't have any doubts after that that the Akatsuki needs you, Sakura."
She was a fraud. Sakura Haruno was definitely a fraud. She licked her lips and accepted it. "How do I accept?" she asked, trying to seem honored but mostly just sounding exhausted, and Haku smiled.
"There will be a meeting of the Akatsuki on the twelfth," he said. "If you're interested, we can go together. That'll be enough."
"I'd like that," Sakura said, wondering why Naruto's face was twisting up. She gave him a curious look, and he grinned down at her, maybe a little sourly. What did he have to be bitter about?
"Do you want us to stick around?" Karin cut in, and Sakura looked over at the quiet girl. She looked different; she'd cut her hair a little shorter, and there was a sharpness to her eyes that Sakura hadn't seen before. "You probably need more rest."
"Do I look that tired?" Sakura said, a bit of a laugh leaking out, and Karin laughed with her.
"Mostly your chakra," she said. Sakura took a deep breath, feeling her eyes fluttering. Hadn't she been sleeping enough? Just how close had she come to death?
She'd almost died without seeing her family, her friends, or her sensei again. Instead of depressing her, the thought turned her heart to steel. She wasn't sure if she wanted to leave Rain anymore, but she was sure she couldn't bear to have given them a final goodbye. Definitely not yet.
"I guess a couple days wasn't enough for me," she said, her own voice distant and faint. "Sorry everyone."
"It's okay," Sasuke's voice came from beyond the dark gulf. "We'll catch up when you're more awake, okay?"
Sakura nodded, and was asleep again by the time her chin dipped to her chest.
###
Sakura left the hospital early the next day, finally sure enough to walk on her own. Kabuto was the one to check her out, and Naruto was there to meet her at the front door. It was a nice day, the sky unusually blue and clear, though there was a chilly wind making its way through the city streets. Sakura breathed in freedom and health with a spiritual gratitude.
"Hey, not even a limp!" Naruto said as she made it through the front door. He was practically bouncing in place, drawing amused looks from people passing by. "I'm pretty good, huh Kabuto?"
"You were always good, Naruto," Kabuto said coyly. "It was just a matter of applying yourself. That said, we were all impressed by her condition when she arrived. I'm sorry mother hasn't had a chance to see you and give her own review."
"Ah, that's fine," Naruto said with a blush. "I'm just glad it worked out. There was a minute there…" He paused, shuffling. "Well, it's all good."
"Are you here to walk me home?" Sakura asked with a raised eyebrow, and Naruto's face only got more red.
"Kinda," he said. "If that's alright. Everyone was pretty worried about you, ya know."
"It's alright," Sakura said. She couldn't suppress her smile. "I won't mind the company."
"Cool." Naruto grinned. They set off, waving goodbye to Kabuto, and plunged into the twisting streets of Amegakure. There was food and people and noise everywhere, the village more lively than ever; Amegakure had only grown in the year Sakura and her team had spent there. It was so large as to escape easy categorization between a hidden village and a full city; Sakura had heard that nearly a million people called it home now.
"You look great," Naruto said. "I mean like, healthy." Sakura looked over at him with a dubious look; she'd seen just how pale she was in a mirror before she'd left.
"How messed up was I, really?" she said as Naruto skipped ahead around a gaggle of gossiping women wearing long red headdresses. "All the doctors told me I was mostly fixed up by the time I got to the hospital."
"Really bad," Naruto said, his face falling for a second. "You were all torn up from Gaara and the bridge… everyone thought you were going to die, I think."
"But not you?" Sakura said, trying to make it sound a bit like a joke. Naruto went with it, cracking a grin.
"I knew you'd be too stubborn to die," he said, and Sakura laughed. "I wasn't worried for a second."
"Liar," she said with a mean grin.
"Maybe a little," Naruto shot back. "But I'm serious. Even if you get…" his smile cracked, but he didn't stop himself. "Even if you get stabbed in the heart or something, I'll get you back up. That's why I became a medic, you know."
Sakura stared at him, the rogue thought that had dominated her mind when Naruto had saved her from Gaara reemerging with an echo.
'He's so damn cool.'
He really was. Naruto had always been incredibly cool from day one. Sakura had always known and at first been intimidated by that, but he'd come into his own in Rain. His confidence had come at least in part from his parents before, but now it was all him; he was someone who could throw back a Jinchuriki and perform life-saving procedures in the same minute and with the same relentless determination. How many lives had he saved in Waves besides just her own and Hinata's? Sakura was sure she couldn't count them.
Weird, complicated feelings that she wasn't really comfortable with welled up inside her as she looked over at the guy who'd literally given up everything but his best friend to follow her to another country. Naruto stared back at her without comprehension.
"Too weird?" he asked. She giggled.
"No, sorry," she said, brushing her hair back. "I'll do my best not to get stabbed."
"You better," he huffed. "It's too bad that Gaara got away."
"Yeah," Sakura said. "I hope we never see him again."
"It wasn't your fault," Naruto said suddenly, and Sakura jumped. "What he did, I mean. You kept apologizing in the hospital, but you better not have been talking about that."
"I…" Sakura paused at a busy intersection and Naruto stopped with her. A shinobi behind them almost bumped into them before he jumped up and jogged across the wall to get around them. "I antagonized him."
"You told him to fuck off," Naruto said flatly. "Anything he did after that was his own fault."
Sakura didn't respond because she didn't have anything intelligent to say. Even if she knew Naruto was right, she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something different she could have done that would have led Gaara away from his rampage. Maybe if she had given herself up, she would have died in the place of thousands.
They went through the intersection, climbed a concrete hill, and passed through an indoor shopping mall before Sakura spoke again.
"I thought a lot about Bijuu," she said, and Naruto perked up a little.
"Yeah?" he said, spinning on his feet and walking backwards for a moment as they passed a soft-serve ice cream stand. "While you were in the hospital?"
"Yeah," Sakura confirmed. "About Gaara, and Fuu too. And your mom, I guess."
"About how messed up it is?" Naruto asked. Sakura nodded, her lips twisting.
"That, but also that it sort of made sense to me now too," she said. Naruto gave her a surprised look. "After seeing what happened in Waves, I guess I understand why people would do something as terrible as putting a Tailed Beast inside someone. They're all terrified of that happening to them."
She turned down a familiar street; they were close to her apartment now. Pipes writhed above their head; normally they'd be dripping with water, but today they were dry. "It's not right, but I get it a little more. That's all."
"I get what you mean, I think," Naruto said, before dropping his voice a little. "But do you think Rain was scared too?"
"Absolutely," Sakura said, and she meant it. "I'm looking forward to that meeting. I'm wondering what I'll find out. Even what isn't said could mean a lot."
"It's pretty cool," Naruto said. "That you're in the Akatsuki now and all. I mean, they're super respected. Are you gonna get a cloak, or something else?"
Sakura blinked; she truly hadn't given a single thought as to how she'd show her membership. "Um, I don't know!" she said with a laugh. "What do you think? Could I pull off a full cloak?"
"I think so!" Naruto said enthusiastically. "Plus, when you get another sword, you could hide it really easily beneath it. You should talk to Sasuke and Haku about it though, they're both a lot better at, uh, dressing than me."
"That's a good idea." They reached the entrance to her apartment building, and Sakura paused. "Though I'm not sure if I'm gonna replace my sword."
"What?!" Naruto asked. "But it's your thing!"
"I've still got my knife from Ino. And I'll probably get a sword," Sakura said. "But I think I was relying too much on my sword. I'm gonna try some other stuff." She shifted. "And I was thinking about something else in the hospital. The mission, you know."
"Yeah," Naruto said. "I figured you would be." He hesitated. "Sakura, if it, like…"
"I got an idea," Sakura said, cutting him off before he could say something he might regret. "I've got no idea if it'll work, but I'm gonna talk to the Amekage about it. I guess it's been kinda…" She rapped her forehead twice. "Bouncing around in there for a while. But I want to run it past you and Sasuke first, alright?"
"Okay?" Naruto said. He opened the door for her, and Sakura stepped through with mock gratitude. "But what kinda idea?"
"I'd rather tell you guys at the same time," she said. "Can you bring him by here later today? I'm going to try and take it easy."
"Sure!" Naruto said, his doubt either masterfully concealed or instantly evaporating. "We'll see you then, I guess!"
They said their goodbyes, and Sakura made her way upstairs with hardly any pain but a whole lot of exhaustion. She made it to her door, pushed it open, wandered over to her bed, and collapsed with a muffled 'Oof.'
Familiar bed in a familiar room. Sakura took a deep breath and rolled over, finally feeling safe and comfortable for the first time in what must have been a week. She'd made it back. She'd made it into the Akatsuki.
But that just meant she had more work to do. She fetched a once-used journal and a never-used pencil from her desk, lay back, and started to write.
She needed to put her whirling thoughts down perfectly on paper, both because they were a mess and because it was very possible she'd only have one opportunity to speak them.
###
The next several days of Sakura's life passed as they normally did in between missions. She spoke with Naruto and Sasuke together the first night she was out of the hospital and told them her half-formed idea. Naruto had agreed with it wholeheartedly: Sasuke had offered constructive criticism, but he'd also brought something of his own to discuss.
Yahiko and Nagato had given him something bizarre: a dossier of his brother Itachi Uchiha, and his recorded and expected actions. That record had some redactions that Sasuke wasn't allowed to learn even as a Jonin, but what was in there painted a strange picture.
First off, Itachi Uchiha had dropped off the face of the earth after his actions in Waterfall. He hadn't been seen or heard from by anyone in a full year, or at least that was what the Nation of Rain claimed. His death would certainly have been noticed, which meant the action was purposeful, and the dossier noted that this wasn't the first time.
Itachi had been sighted multiple times over the years since he'd committed his atrocities and abandoned the Hidden Leaf, almost always in different countries, before he vanished for months or, once before, a year at a time. There wasn't much rhyme or reason to his actions, but the packet did note something that Sakura and Sasuke both found interesting: Itachi apparently had no interest in the minor countries besides Waterfall, including Rain. When he was spotted, it was always in the major five countries.
Because they had the biggest villages, Sakura wondered? What did the major five villages and Waterfall have in common? Strong ninja?
"No," Sasuke had said as they stood on the balcony and speculated about his strange, murderous brother. "There are strong ninja everywhere. But the one thing Itachi said he did care about was a Tailed Beast."
"I don't have any interest in Fuu. Just in the Bijuu. If I could have one and not the other, I would."
Itachi had claimed the Beast was for Rain, but what if he'd told the truth and a lie? The timing of the docket and Sakura becoming an Akatsuki member was obvious to them; Team Seven as a whole thought that the Amekage were trying to signal as best they could that they'd been framed. But that's exactly what the guilty would say, and the redacted parts of the docket taunted them with thick black ink. They'd been so thoroughly blocked out that even Sasuke's Sharingan couldn't make out the truth.
They didn't have all the pieces, but they were close, Sakura decided. The Akatsuki meeting might give her the last bit of context she needed, if they discussed things of import at them. Which, given the Akatsuki's position and power, they obviously did.
She spent the days after that regaining her strength, training, and trying out new techniques. Sakura didn't do it alone; she grabbed a different training partner each day, cycling through Naruto and Kabuto, Sasuke and Suigetsu, and then Haku and Karin. Naruto and Kabuto gave her back her confidence, Sasuke and Suigetsu showed her that after her training to master the Flowing Water Blade most water jutsu were trivial for her, and Haku and Karin sent her in a different direction entirely.
"Are you trying to reinvent yourself again?" Haku asked, and Sakura stopped hurling shards of hail-sharpened water at the concrete wall of the training court. It was an idea she'd struck on after considering the shotgun blasts of sand Gaara had nearly blown her apart with: the principles of ice jutsu that Haku had taught her over the year was a combination of water and wind, both supremely effective at generating piercing chakra, though still behind lightning. The ice also helped keep the water chakra in one piece, and so Sakura had begun trying to use it as a projectile, sheathing kunai in water and hail and throwing them. They were slower than a normal knife because of the weight, but their destructive power went way up. The holes in the concrete was a testament to that.
But…
"Yeah," she admitted, staring down and glaring at the wall. "But it's too slow for a real fight."
"Your speed would increase," Haku said, sitting down next to her. He had returned to his beautiful, perfectly composed self after Sakura had left the hospital, though Sakura was sure that he always seemed just a little melancholy now; whether she was projecting or not, Zabuza's death would hang around him forever now. "But you shouldn't be so quick to create a new you after a single lost battle, Sakura."
"I don't want to lose again," Sakura said, trying to sound determined instead of petulant. "And I lost my sword anyway. My knife is a good backup weapon, but my Hyouryusuiken wasn't enough in a real-"
"Sakura." Karin sat down on her other side. She was sweating, the golden glow at her back receding. She had been training too, but as far as Sakura could see that training had consisted of the girl sitting down and channeling ridiculous amounts of chakra, so much that her hair had been blown back and the air had smelled of ozone around her. It was like she was pushing towards something, climbing an imaginary mountain with nothing but her aura to push her up, but all that Sakura had seen for Karin's effort was her back beginning to glow. It had vaguely reminded her of something, but the memory had refused to solidify when she was so focused on herself. "If you had been fighting anyone in the world but Gaara, you would have killed him in a single hit."
"That's not true," Sakura pointed out somewhat wryly. "I could never take down Obito-sensei with this sort of thing."
"Are you planning to take down your former sensei?" Haku asked with a faint smile, and Sakura laughed and shook her head. "Not that you should judge your jutsu by their ability to take down someone who's world famous for being invincible."
"I've seen him get hit," Sakura said, before she made an expression that couldn't decide if it was a grin or a grimace. "Technically, I stabbed him myself once, though I wasn't in my body at the time." She waved off Haku's curiosity and Karin's alarmed look. "Long time ago. Mind control jutsu. But I guess that is the competition I'm putting myself against." She closed her hand into a fist. "If I run into Gaara again, he'll definitely try to kill me. I have to be able to kill him first."
"You probably can't," Haku said frankly, and Sakura flinched. "At least not like he was, not with any jutsu you could come up with. Master Zabuza harmed him by sneaking up on him; you'd be best served doing the same."
"I've thought about that," Sakura said truthfully. "If it did come to it, it would have to be a sneak attack." She curled her hand into a claw and focused, and a vibrant green Rasengan swirled into existence above her clenched fingers, gently bobbing up and down.
"You can do that too?" Karin asked with obvious surprise, and Sakura nodded.
"All of us can," she said, and Karin looked impressed. Sakura was surprised it hadn't come up in a whole year, but that was the case for plenty of trivia. Karin probably didn't know what her favorite food was either. "When Gaara took my sword, I thought about it for a second, but I didn't want to get close to him, so I used my knife instead. I've been wondering how I could combine them for a long time: I've used some of the principles of the Rasengan's rotation to increase the blade's cutting power, but I feel like I'm missing something obvious."
"You are," Haku said, staring down at the Rasengan. "But it's equally obvious why; you're not arrogant enough. You need to copy Sasuke."
"Sorry?" Sakura asked, and Haku held his hand out.
"May I?" he asked, and when Sakura uncertainly nodded, he held his hand right over the Rasengan, cupping it. Sakura started sweating.
"Uh, Haku, it could blow your hand off if I lose control…" she muttered, but Haku didn't flinch.
"But you won't lose control," he said. "Your chakra control is your most powerful weapon, Sakura." He moved his hand closer, and Sakura focused on keeping the Rasengan stable, gripping her arm with her other hand as she regulated the flow of chakra. "Look. Barely a centimeter away, and I can't feel it at all. I could keep my hand here all day and not suffer at all."
He looked into Sakura's eyes as he said it, and she felt her face flush. Haku's face was just too damn sincere.
"What are you getting at?" she said, and Haku grinned, moving his other hand under Sakura's, encompassing the Rasengan from both sides.
"This jutsu is pure shape manipulation, which is very similar to your Flowing Water Blade already," he said, his tone more instructive and less intimate. "Especially back when you first started and could not transmute your own chakra into water. But now that you can transmute your chakra into both water and hail, seeing the Flowing Water Blade as just something you put on a sword is immature." He closed his hand, actually touching the bottom of Sakura's, and she jerked. The Rasengan whipped away, leaving behind a torrent of chakra but not slamming into Haku's hand.
He continued, unperturbed. "So what exactly is stopping you from generating a Water Rasengan?"
"I couldn't," Sakura said instantly, before she even had a reason. "It's already such a complicated jutsu. When Sasuke tried, he almost blew off his arm."
"Lightning and fire are volatile elements," Haku said patiently. "But water can be gentle as well as violent. It would be easier to work with."
"It could work," Karin said with a blink, and Sakura turned to her. "That jutsu and your sword feel very similar, Sakura. You could easily combine them."
"Into what?" she asked, feeling that her imagination was completely insufficient for what her two friends were proposing. "A bomb, like Sasuke's?"
"You're a master at making your water cut," Karin said. "And the Rasengan doesn't necessarily need to be a sphere…" As she pondered, her eyes grew distant. "If you're worried about shape manipulation, you could make it a disk. It would keep the centrifugal force that you use to help bind it, but the compressed chakra would be incredibly dangerous…"
Talking to a sensor or someone who could see chakra about this sort of thing was weird, Sakura found. They always made it sound so simple, but the idea of containing the explosive force of the Rasengan inside a small circle instead of a broad sphere seemed completely impossible for her: it would probably just burst out of control and cut her in half if she were unlucky.
"It would spin out of control," she said, and Karin nodded quietly, her face screwed up in concentration.
"You could let it," she said eventually, and Sakura and Haku both stirred.
"Let it?"
"Let part of it spin out of control," Karin continued, trying to carefully articulate her idea. "Your chakra control might be advanced enough for that. If you opened a gap in the disk's control, the water blade could spew out. The smaller the area, the higher the pressure the water that emerges could exert. That could be a Water Rasengan."
Sakura and Haku stared at her, and Karin blushed. "I think about this stuff a lot," she said, flustered. "I feel people's jutsu all the time, you know. I'm just not very good at, well, doing it myself. My chakra control isn't very good."
"That's…" Sakura started to say, looking down at her hand. "That might be genius, Karin. I could try something like that."
"Right now?" Karin asked. Sakura shook her head.
"No, I want to try something else first." She focused, and water welled up around her hand like a wet glove. "I think you're both right. I need to make something new, but it's also silly of me to think I need my sword to use the Flowing Water blade. It's just a crutch, in the end." She stood up. "I'm a ninja and a swordswoman. I need to show that I'm both."
"Excellent," Haku said, standing up as well. "Would you like to spar? I'd love to see your first attempt."
"If you go easy on me," Sakura said jokingly.
Karin returned to his exercises, and Sakura and Haku sparred. He didn't go easy on her; as usual, the older boy won.
The next day, at noon on the twelfth, Sakura was wondering what sort of outfit a new Akatsuki member who hadn't yet received their uniform was supposed to wear. She paced nervously, and eventually settled for something official looking; dark blue clothes and her flak jacket, the same kind of thing she would wear on a mission where she wasn't expecting to fight. It made her stand out as a Chunin, but your rank as a ninja wasn't supposed to matter in the Akatsuki, from what she understood. Plus, she'd have Haku to look to as an example; that thought helped calm her nerves.
She made her way through the city and torrential rain: the clear days from earlier in the week were a distant memory, but the rain was comforting to Sakura. Amegakure relied on it in so many ways, and being surrounded by water made her feel, both literally and metaphorically, in her element. A lot had changed in the course of a year.
Haku lived in an apartment on the eastern edge of the city, though Sakura had only visited it twice in all her time in Rain. It was a simple and spartan home that he didn't spend much time in: when he wasn't with the cadre, Haku was busy with Akatsuki business, which Sakura was hazy on but might soon know more about, training, or spending time on a variety of hobbies. He had an incredible talent for sewing; Sakura often wondered if that or his proficiency with senbon had come first, but she'd never asked.
When she climbed the concrete stairs to the door and knocked, Haku opened it within seconds.
"Sakura!" he mumbled around a pin in his mouth. "Excellent timing." He was in the process of pinning up his long black hair, leaving two long braids to fall on either side of his face. He did a little spin as he finished, showing off the intricate bun he'd formed out of his hair behind his head as he took the pin from his mouth and placed it, finishing the ensemble. "All set?"
Sakura was relieved that Haku was dressed similarly to her. Plain black and brown clothes, with his Akatsuki haori worn over it and hanging loosely. He looked similar to how he had when they'd first met at the Chunin Exam.
"Yeah," she said with a smile. "All set."
"Ah, good," Haku said, stepping out. "It's always tricky to do it in the mirror." With Haku's coordination, Sakura somewhat doubted that, but she played along. "Are you excited?" He closed the door behind him, hiding a room that barely even had furniture.
"I'm more nervous," Sakura admitted. "I don't really know what to expect." They made their way down the stairs and into the city and Haku set off, Sakura following after him.
"Of course," Haku said, looking back with a smile. "Well, I promise it is not too intimidating. Most of the meetings of the Akatsuki are rather informal. Usually, we spend time together socially, and then meet in a shorter and more official capacity."
"Socially?" Sakura asked with some surprise. The Akatsuki had never really seemed like a social group to her, but it also intentionally cultivated mystique in the Hidden Rain. People in the Akatsuki got bowed heads and whispers if they showed their colors in public: they were more than elite ninja, a symbol of the Nation and its ideals itself.
"A time and place to exchange ideas without it having a bearing on the nation's future," Haku elaborated. "Arguments, sometimes, but I'll do my best to keep you away from those. It'll be your first time, after all; most members wouldn't want to give you a bad impression." He smiled. "There will be food too. It seems to help drive the conversation."
Sakura hadn't known what to expect, but this still surprised her. "Like an old fashion salon," she said, and Haku gave her a politely perplexed look. She realized that given his background, it was very possible he hadn't had the same kind of lessons she had as a child. "A place for intellectuals to meet," she continued, and Haku nodded, his face shifting back towards a smile.
"Yes, like that," he said as they made their way across a rain-soaked bridge, water dripping off and plummeting to the bustling streets below. "Though it's interesting you say that."
"Why's that?"
"There are members of the Akatsuki who would trend more towards what you've identified, intellectual. But there are others who would identify as, well, I will call it practical for lack of a better word." Sakura raised an eyebrow and Haku shrugged. "I wouldn't call it factions or anything that dramatic; I will leave it to you to form your own opinions."
"Interesting," Sakura muttered. "Where's the meeting being held?"
"We're almost there," Haku said, and Sakura looked around and confirmed they were near the center of the city and the towering black building the Amekage called their home.
"At the Amekage's tower?" she asked, and Haku nodded. "I guess that makes sense. They lead the Akatsuki like everything else?"
"They do," Haku confirmed. "And you'll see for yourself soon enough." They traveled for another few minutes and came to the base of the tower. There was a wide set of double doors there made of steel, similar to the ones Sakura had entered through when she'd first come to Rain more than a year before.
Haku pushed them open, and Sakura followed him inside.
She really couldn't believe she was a member now. The thought pursued Sakura as she and Haku descended into the depths of the tower, greeting other people going about their business along the way. It had been a whole year, sure, but she hadn't thought it would be this simple. All she'd had to do was be unflinchingly loyal that whole time, duel Waterfall's leader, fight shinobi from the Hidden Cloud, Stone, and Sand, battle Gaara again, maim him, keep Haku from killing his siblings while she was on the edge of death…
…
Maybe it hadn't been that simple. Sakura thought she was pretty smart, but as she stepped back and regarded her actions, she realized she was absolutely terrible at comprehending herself. There were probably ninja in the Akatsuki right now who had done less than her, and given up less for the Nation of Rain than her. She'd sacrificed her home, her friends, her health, a year of her life, sacrificing just like the Hokage had told her to. Was it really that unbelievable Haku had recommended her?
It made her stand up taller as she and Haku made it to the bottom of the tower, dozens of feet below the earth. The corridor opened up, becoming wider and coming to another set of double doors made of wood. Sakura could hear murmured conversation behind them.
"Here we are," Haku said, and slipped through. Once again, Sakura followed behind him. The sound of quiet conversation and pleasant music greeted her.
Sakura looked around as she stepped past the threshold. It was a lounge, a large one filled with people of every kind, though almost all of them wore the mark of the Akatsuki in some way. The room could easily hold several hundred people but currently hosted about a fraction of that, with plush purple carpeting and wood paneled walls that were completely at odds with the rest of Amegakure. The construction easily absorbed most sound, making even the sound of about a hundred people talking muffled and distant-seeming.
Everyone present seemed to be a shinobi; the music came from a record player placed in the center of the room, and people gathered around it in rings, finding places to stand or sit among scattered chairs, couches, and tables. Plates of food were laid out on long tables on two sides of the room. There was an obvious formality and deliberateness to the way the room had been laid out, with paths between different lounging areas meant to facilitate people moving from group to group with ease, as many were doing now. Everywhere Sakura looked ninja in the garb of the Akatsuki were talking, eating, and as Haku had said, occasionally obviously arguing. Some were armed and armored, while others were in street clothes. She and Haku were slightly above average in terms of their dress, but not enough to stand out, only to look composed.
At that, Sakura felt an absurd sense of relief. She didn't want to stand out at her very first meeting.
"Here," Haku said with a deferential gesture, and Sakura giggled and stepped out before him. "We'll find a table. I imagine you'll want to mostly observe?"
"This first time, yes," she said, forging ahead with Haku at her side. A couple people gave them looks, but Sakura didn't recognize them at a glance: Haku greeted them, and they moved past searching for a quiet place to sit and take in the room.
There were, as Sakura had first thought, about a hundred people here. She leaned over to Haku as they walked, and he turned expectantly. "Are these all the members?" she asked, and he shook his head.
"Most meetings are not compulsory," he said, and Sakura made an understanding noise. "I believe there are about three hundred members of the Akatsuki, so this would be about a third."
"Only three hundred?" Sakura asked with a blink. She'd known the Akatsuki was small, but the idea of being part of a fraction of a fraction of the village still sent a shiver down her spine. To her surprise and joy, it was of anticipation and not fear. "When did you become a member, Haku?"
"Only several months before I visited for the Chunin Exam," Haku admitted. "I suppose… I would have been almost exactly a year older than you are now, Sakura." Right, he was seventeen. It was easy for Sakura to forget sometimes since they got along so well. Sometimes with other people a gap of two years could feel insurmountable.
"Huh," Sakura said, pondering. They found a table and slid into two comfortable chairs as she continued looking around the room. "Am I the youngest member, then?"
Haku got a curious look. "I believe so," he said, like he hadn't even considered it. "And I was the youngest before you." He grinned guilessly. "You've defeated my record. Congratulations."
They settled back and observed the room, Sakura asking occasional questions and Haku answering them with grace. She learned a little bit more about the organization of the Akatsuki, how its members were held separate from the village's ordinary chain of command, and where the food came from before they were interrupted. Haku glanced behind her, and Sakura turned to follow his gaze as a hand came down on the armrest of her chair.
"So, you finally made it, Sakura," Nonō Yakushi said as Sakura's brain short-circuited. She stared up at Nonō, taking in the traditional looking Akatsuki robes she was wearing. "And in record time."
"Nonō?" Sakura asked. She had no idea what to say or what expression to wear, so she let her confusion shine through. "You're a member too?"
"Yup," Nonō said, sitting down on a couch across from both of them. "Why're you two skulking over here?"
"I thought Sakura would want to observe things at first," Haku said pleasantly, and Nonō nodded.
"It can be a little overwhelming," she said as Sakura tried to compose her thoughts.
"Yes," she agreed. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"You never asked," Nonō said plainly, and Sakura had to laugh at the truth of it. "Though to be honest, I wasn't sure if you knowing would change the way you acted around me. I was curious if you being so friendly with Haku was just because he was a member or not." Sakura couldn't help but admit the cynicism could have been well founded as Nonō leaned back and crossed her legs. "But it didn't: you're a fantastic ninja through and through, Sakura, and you understand Rain's mission better than most on top of that. I saw that in our very first mission, so when Haku made his recommendation to the Amekage and I heard about what you'd done in Waves, I backed him without hesitation."
Sakura smiled at the compliment as she mulled over the fact that an Akatsuki member had been watching her from the very start. Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato had known from the beginning, of course, so this had been another hidden test. A year ago it would have made her sour, but today she just felt proud for passing it. She'd done everything perfectly as she'd played the game Rain and Leaf had both laid out for her. Her parents', her sensei's, and the Hokage's faith in her had all been justified.
"Anyway," Nonō continued, "I figured I'd come give you a heads up, as your superior and all." She grinned as Sakura gave her a doubtful look. "You turned quite a few heads when you showed up."
"Because I'm the youngest member?" Sakura asked. Nonō laughed.
"Maybe that's part of it," she said. "But I imagine it's more because of who you are. You're a recent arrival, Sakura. People will be curious how and why you're here."
"Ah," Sakura said. "That makes sense. Do you think I should move around?"
"No, I think this is perfect," Nonō said. She looked at Haku and he nodded. "You were in a cadre with two other members. We'll stay here with you; it'll give you some legitimacy." She uncrossed her legs. "But I hope you like entertaining guests. Most people here love interrogating one another."
"Do you?" Sakura asked. Nonō laughed.
"See? You're getting it already."
They made small talk about the weather and the Land of Waves as Sakura wondered just how much attention she was going to draw as part of her initiation. They came gradually, but as Nonō had said they Sakura entertained several guests over the course of an hour as more members trickled into the room and the atmosphere of the room grew more intense.
The first was a man named Kie. If he had a family name, Sakura didn't catch it. He was a tall and fierce looking man with a strong face and long brown hair. He was missing his left arm completely but still moved with grace as he bowed with a hand raised in front of him, as if in prayer. To Sakura's surprise both Haku and Nonō rose and fully bowed to him, and she hastily followed.
"Good evening." He had a sonorous voice, but it wasn't gentle in the slightest. Sakura could immediately feel a mild pressure across her entire body as the man turned his attention to her. "I'm told we have a new member."
"Yes sir," Sakura said, coming out of her bow. "Sakura Haruno. I'm honored."
"Kie," the man said, carefully looking her over. "Not sir. The Akatsuki has no ranks."
"Yes, Kie," Sakura said with equal care. "I am still honored, though."
"As you should be," Kie said, completing his inspection with a placid expression. "I came to ask you a blunt question."
"I'll give a blunt answer then," Sakura responded, and the corner of the man's mouth twitched. Hopefully into a smile, she thought.
"Why are you here?" he said. Sakura frowned. "You were given an invitation while unconscious, if I am to understand correctly. Did that not seem presumptuous to you?"
"I left Konoha with the goal of joining the Akatsuki," Sakura said. "I saw that invitation as proof that I was being taken seriously."
"That, I have heard as well." Sakura noted how quiet Nonō and Haku were: even if the Akatsuki didn't have ranks, they obviously regarded Kie with serious respect. "And you wished to join, why? For the prestige?"
"No," Sakura said. "Haku told me of the Akatsuki's ideals, and they seemed well found to me." She leaned forward. "And just as importantly, I agreed with them. Because of that, I wanted to help the Akatsuki bring about its vision."
"Hmm." Kie tilted his head. "Another idealist. Well, the more the better, I suppose."
"You make it seem like you're not," Sakura noted, and she saw Nonō smile. It gave her the courage to press ahead. "But I can't imagine many ninja could join the Akatsuki and not be an idealist. We're striving for peace, right?"
"I was," Kie said. "Almost all are. But time changes ninja like it does everything else." He turned to leave. "I'm glad you've joined us, Sakura Haruno. I hope to hear more from you in the future."
As he departed, the weight of his chakra did too, and Sakura sagged back into her chair with relief once he was back in the crowd. "He seems intense," she said, and Haku laughed as he sat down as well.
"Kie was a member of the original Akatsuki," he said, and Sakura started at the implications of that. "He's been there since the beginning."
"Wow," Sakura said, and Nonō picked up where Haku left off.
"I'm sure your answer amused him," she said with a grin, and Sakura turned to her.
"Why? Did they seem naive?" she asked. Nonō shook her head.
"No, anything but. But Kie has seen the Akatsuki evolve, and he's sacrificed a lot for its future." She tapped her left arm. "He was one of the people who confronted Hanzo the Salamander in the end; only he, Nagato, and Konan walked away from that battle."
'You didn't fight Hanzo, you started suffocating and then suddenly exploded.'
Sakura shook away the past with more questions. "Not Yahiko?" she asked, and Nonō shrugged.
"He wasn't present," she said, and Sakura wondered how that had come to be. Well, if Hanzo had been half the ninja people who talked about him made him seem it wasn't a surprise he could have managed to separate the Rain Triumvirate. "But from what I've heard and been told, whatever Kie saw and suffered during that battle changed him. He joined the Akatsuki to overthrow Hanzo and then the Daimyo, but after that was done he kept going out of pure devotion to Nagato."
"He worships him," Haku elaborated at Sakura's quizzical look. "There are some members, with Kie at their head, who believe that Nagato is destined to change the world, or even preside over it as a god. I suppose he is the first person to manifest the Rinnegan in history or something like that, but…" He waved his hand with a soft smile. "As someone from a clan made extinct by their Bloodline, that rings somewhat hollow to me."
A god? Sakura almost scoffed, but then she remembered what Nagato had done for Sasuke's arm. That was a miracle by any definition of the term: was it really so unbelievable that some people, even ninja, or especially ninja, would perceive him that way?
That did give rise to another question though. "Why is he still missing his arm?" she asked, and Nonō cocked her head. "After what happened with Sasuke, I'd think…"
"He's refused every offer," Nonō said. "Nagato's restorative abilities harm him." Sakura nodded, recalling what Sasuke had said about Nagato's casual dismissiveness towards a couple months of his life. "Kie doesn't believe his arm is worth that. He thinks Nagato will need every bit of time he can get."
"I can understand that," Sakura admitted, contemplating an entirely new dimension to the Akatsuki that she'd never considered before. Some people here were fanatics; it changed the ideological makeup of the group considerably.
It was another fifteen minutes before Sakura received another guest, and this time they came in a group of three.
One of them she recognized immediately as Kimimaro Kaguya, one of the Akatsuki's commanders. Hey, wait, Sakura wondered as she scanned the new arrivals. If the Akatsuki didn't have ranks, how did they have commanders? The other two were unfamiliar to her: a tall woman with pale skin and long dark hair, maybe eighteen years old, and a shorter boy with wildly orange hair and eyes. The woman sat down next to Nonō as the boy stood by Kimimaro's side.
"Commander," Haku said, and Kimimaro nodded at him.
"I came to meet Sakura as an equal," he said, and Sakura stood up at her name. He stuck his hand out, and she took it in a firm shake. "It's always exciting to have a new member."
Sakura recalled that the last time she'd been in front of Kimimaro she'd jumped up and down like an idiot at finally making Chunin, but the man didn't have any sense of judgment in his pale eyes. He spoke with the same level of calm that he always seemed to possess. "I'm glad the Amekage's interest in you was justified."
"So am I," Sakura admitted. "I know you, Commander Kimimaro, but I'm not familiar with your companions."
"Then I'll make introductions," Kimimaro said smoothly. "My cousin, Kagami Kaguya." He gestured to the woman at Nonō's side, who gave Sakura a smile as a wave. She seemed eager, and the name was familiar. Hadn't Kagami been the woman Naruto had been sent to get on that mission where he'd fought some shinobi from Stone? Naruto had said she had a lot of scars, but Kagami's skin was flawless, enough to make Sakura a little jealous. She'd joined the Akatsuki in just a couple months? The Kaguya must have really taken to Rain's message.
Kimimaro continued. "And my companion, Jūgo." The boy with orange hair and eyes was about Sakura's age, which confused her for a moment. He wasn't wearing any of the marks of the Akatsuki; was he a member?
He must have noticed her double take, because Jūgo smiled after a moment. "I'm not a member," he said, and Sakura cocked her head. "Merely a guest."
"Well, it's still nice to meet you," Sakura said, offering her hand. Jūgo took it as Kimimaro had, and his hand was abnormally warm, his skin rough. Sakura withdrew and bowed to Kagami. "And you as well, Kagami."
"The pleasure is mutual," Kagami said with a grin. "I heard you're one of Naruto's teammates. From back in the Leaf, I mean."
"I am," Sakura said, wondering where this was going. Kagami nodded with a thoughtful look.
"He saved my life," she said, and Sakura blinked. She hadn't heard that from him, only that he'd finally figured out how to use medical jutsu. What else hadn't he told her? "And gave me the opportunity to have a new life here." She laughed. "I haven't really been brave enough to thank him myself: I think I probably gave him a bad impression when we first met. Would you be able to pass on my thanks?"
"I could, but he'd probably appreciate it more coming from you," Sakura said, and Kagami blushed.
'No way.' To her shock, Sakura felt smoldering jealousy bloom in her chest.
"I'm sure," Kagami said. "So, this is your first meeting?"
"Yeah," Sakura confirmed, shaking off the feeling. "Though to tell the truth, I've mostly just been watching. I wasn't sure where or how to step in."
"Oh, wherever you can," Kagami said. "There's been a question going around today, so I imagine that's what most people are discussing." She smiled. "Not about you," she continued, and Sakura wondered if she was that obvious.
"What's the question?" Sakura asked. This time, Haku spoke up.
"It's related to both the Land of Waves and Lightning," he said. Sakura sat up, her vision overcome with devastation.
"Oh?"
"Both are in periods of transition," Kagami said. "I haven't had much to offer there; I spent most of my time before I came here in minor countries and then in the Land of Stone, which is pretty stable."
"Indeed," Haku said. "We heard of both while we were in Waves, Sakura. The Fukami family, and Lightning's new Daimyo."
"Right," Sakura said, concentrating. "There were rumors about Lightning having a new Daimyo, and Waves being replaced for his poor job. So the question is about replacing Daimyo?" No shock there. The Akatsuki was more than familiar with that.
"Precisely," Kagami said. "That and the transition of power." She scooted forward. "I've heard from a couple people that some members of the Akatsuki helped put Lightning's new Daimyo in place."
"What?" Sakura asked, recalling the rumors. "But I heard he was a militarist. And a paranoid one too: someone told us that he was asking people to renounce their citizenship in other nations." She wondered, not for the first time, who had taken care of that for her here in Rain. Was she even an official citizen, or did she still legally reside in Fire? Weird. "And besides, does the Akatsuki operate that independently?"
"We do," Kimimaro said, his voice sudden and clear. "The Akatsuki and its members are valued for their independence: it is well within any member's right to pursue its goals as they see fit."
"But you're a commander," Sakura said, and Kimimaro tilted his head. "So there's some level of organization. Ninja just running around doing whatever they want in the name of the Akatsuki would end in a total mess. "
"True," he said with a faint smile. "There are three commanders; myself, Kie, and Yahiko. Any initiatives must meet with our approval to receive official backing."
"All of you?" Sakura asked. Kimimaro glanced at Nonō and Kagami so quickly that Sakura barely noticed it.
"No," he said. "Only one's."
"So Kagami heard about the Daimyo of Lightning from you," Sakura said. It wasn't a question, and Kimimaro acknowledged that with a nod.
"She did," he said, and Kagami looked a little embarrassed.
"What would be the reason for helping promote someone into a position of power like that if they probably would perceive Rain as an enemy?" Sakura asked. Kimimaro regarded her with his pale eyes, but she could see the spark of interest behind them. At his side, Jūgo shuffled his feet, looking between the two of them. He looked somewhat nervous, though Sakura couldn't imagine why.
"What would your assumption be?" Kimimaro asked. Sakura looked around for a lifeline, but Haku just gave her a smile and a shrug.
"Well, I'm sure most of the Daimyo already see the Akatsuki as a threat to them, considering what happened to Rain's," she said, trying to move slowly and build her thoughts as she went. "So if Rain were to make a move like this… actually, how, exactly, did the Akatsuki support the new Daimyo? Not openly, I assume."
"We assisted him in court politics," Kimimaro said smoothly, "by secretly abetting in the burial of incriminating material and placing it at the previous Daimyo's feet."
"Ah, so there's two things then," Sakura said, glad she'd asked. "Rain both can rely on the new Daimyo to act aggressively, and they can potentially blackmail him if it comes to it."
"Well done," Kimimaro said. "The Hidden Cloud is too far away to move aggressively without Rain becoming aware of it, since even ninja will be noticed when they make large scale movements, and they don't have much taste for civilian politics regardless. So the Daimyo's aggressiveness will more likely be directed to their immediate neighbors."
Like Konoha? Sakura almost asked, but she kept her face placid. Kimimaro observed her lack of reaction, and then continued. "Considering the Land of Fire's and the Hidden Leaf's obvious strength, Cloud would be suicidal to openly challenge them. That would direct the Daimyo's attention to the Land of Frost, which lacks a meaningful shinobi military of its own, and the Land of Water and the Hidden Mist beyond that."
"That, I understand. I don't understand how that is to the Akatsuki's advantage," Sakura said, torn between fascination and distaste. This was how things worked between countries, she thought, but she didn't necessarily like it. The Akatsuki she'd envisioned in her head had been above this sort of thing, but maybe that'd been naive. What kind of peace was Kimimaro talking about?
Haku finally spoke up. "The Hidden Mist was a terrible place, and many in Rain came from it." He hesitated. "Like Master Zabuza. Because of that, there is a substantial group within the Akatsuki and the village itself who wish to bring the revolution there before anywhere else."
"It's doable too," Nonō said. "Mist is weak and looking for powerful friends. If they end up in a stupid war because of a foriegn Daimyo's ambitions, Rain is the first they would look to."
"Not the Leaf?" Sakura asked, and Nonō shook her head. "Because they're perceived to be traditional, or…"
"The Hidden Leaf has done terrible things to Mist," Nonō said. Her eyes became somewhat distant. "I was there for some of them. Those sorts of grudges won't vanish in just a generation."
Sakura narrowed her eyes and looked up at Kimimaro, and she noticed Jūgo focus on her in response; he was obviously extremely protective of the Kaguya. She let her disappointment out, just a little. "Increasing the chance of war in the name of peace seems backwards," she said, and Kimimaro nodded.
"Shinobi make war as naturally as they breathe," he said. "Many here believe that war cannot be avoided, Sakura Haruno, but that does not mean that war and those who wage it can't be directed."
Sakura wanted to disagree, to tell the man that he was an idiot, but two things held her back. The first was that she didn't want to offend one of the Akatsuki's commanders at her very first meeting. The second was that the concept made a disturbing sort of sense to her, like fighting a wildfire by destroying part of the forest to deny it more fuel. She didn't know enough about the situation in the Land of Lightning to say with confidence that the new Daimyo was more likely to start a regional conflict than a global one, but the leaders of the Akatsuki hopefully did; if they had acted the way they had with that information, couldn't she give them some benefit of doubt?
"I guess I'm more interested in preventing war outright," she settled for. Kimimaro chuckled.
"If you find a way, let us all know," he said, and Kagami stood up as he turned to leave. Jūgo gave Sakura a smile and then turned away as well. "That's a question everyone's trying to find the answer to."
Sakura sighed when they were all gone and it was just her, Haku, and Nonō again. "I hope I didn't make a fool of myself," she said, and Nonō laughed.
"For your first time, you're doing fantastic. It's unfair for all these senior members to approach you, but not uncommon. It's their way of showing the Amekage that they take their decisions seriously, I suppose."
"They were talking about the transition of power, but we didn't get to that," Sakura mused. "I wonder what the general mood is."
"I imagine it's that power follows power," Haku said, and Sakura glanced at him, waiting for some elaboration. "Like we talked about long ago, Sakura: shinobi provide violence, and Daimyo provide stability. In Waves, the Fukami family provided the most stability, so now they are being looked to instead of the Daimyo. In Lightning…" He bit his lip, which was unbearably cute. "Well, I guess time will tell there. If the Daimyo makes things less stable, his power will wane, and that may provide an opportunity for others."
"You didn't know about that?" Sakura asked, and he shook his head.
"No," Haku confirmed. "I didn't suspect, either. Like I said, there are pragmatists, and there are idealists. Sometimes the left hand does not know what the right is doing. I'm sure only the Amekage have a full picture of the Akatsuki's activities."
Hmm. Sakura frowned. Like the Leaf, she thought. Like ROOT. She didn't like that one bit.
"You say the Amekage," she said instead, "but only Yahiko is a commander?"
"That's true," Haku said, Nonō nodding along. "Nagato and Konan occupy different roles. While Yahiko is the First Vanguard, Konan is the Chief of Staff, and Nagato is the Minister of the Interior."
"Are those their actual titles?" Sakura asked, a little amused, and Haku nodded.
"The Chief of Staff and Minister of the Interior were positions in the Daimyo's government that were passed to the Akatsuki," he said, "but Yahiko's title is unique. He was the Akatsuki's first founder, even if his friends were at his side from the beginning."
"It's a little redundant though," Sakura laughed, and Haku laughed with her.
"Well," he said. "Someone has to be at the front of the front."
She couldn't disagree with that, so Sakura chatted with Haku and Nonō as they all kept an eye out for other visitors. However, none came, and after fifteen minutes or so the doors opened for the final time. Sakura watched as Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan entered as one, all in the full garb of the Akatsuki. The room quieted with their arrival, conversation dying down as everyone took notice.
Two ninja followed after them, a man and a woman, each carrying a large scroll. They took up positions in either corner of the room and laid the scrolls out as they pulled out a variety of writing implements, obviously getting ready to record something.
"Now what?" Sakura asked. Nonō and Haku stood up and she followed their example. The room was gravitating toward the Amekage, people taking seats in concentric rings around them. With rapid speed an ad-hoc parliament was forming with the leaders of Rain at the center. It was obvious to Sakura a more directed discussion was about to begin, but the structure was a mystery to her.
"Now, we get to the actual meeting," Haku said. He gave her a coy look.
"Feel free to speak: anyone is allowed. But if you do, pick your words carefully. Usually, most will stay silent."
Sakura, Haku, and Nonō took a seat on the periphery in the fourth ring of shinobi that had formed around the Amekage. She felt out of place, surrounded by intense people with some idea of why they were there. It was the first time that had happened since she'd made the new version of herself.
With that disquieting realization, the meeting began.