Ch. 8
Falling Leaves
Hiruzen was going through reports when one seemed to drop from the ceiling onto his desk. The Anbu moved to intercept it but he waved them away before taking the missive. His expression became thunderous as Fugaku burst into his office .
"Hokage-sama! My sons are missing!" he hissed in the old leader's ear when he reached his side. It would not do for the head of a clan to publicly announce his weakness. The old man gestured with his chin to the missive in his hands. As the Uchiha patriarch read it his eyes flashed red in rage before he got them under control.
A false Anbu used genjutsu to lure two children to the Sarutobi compound. The little tree intercepted the assassin before could kill them. The body has been sealed to its location and the little tree was injured but has healed. She was run through with a sword. She is recovering with the children in the compound. All seals are up and there is no breach. She said to look for the children's parents, Fugaku and Makoto Uchiha.
Hiruzen stood as he relit his pipe, taking a puff as the Uchiha patriarch worked to contain himself.
"Walk with me Fugaku," Hiruzen said as he moved out of the office and down the hall. The Uchiha seemed to get himself together before following woodenly. Finding themselves in a small meeting area, Hiruzen sealed the door and placed his best privacy seals. Sitting the old man seemed to sink into his thoughts. With barely restrained emotion the Uchiha sat as well.
"There is something rotten in Konoha, so rotten that I would not be informing you if it did not directly affect you," he finally said, looking up from the darkness of his hat. Fugaku also swallowed as the Hokage's eyes glittered dangerously under his hat.
"It is so rotten that it would shake the very foundation of the village and threaten to destroy it, were it to become public knowledge. As you Hokage, I deem this information an SSS-Class secret punishable by death if shared. For this you have my sincerest apologies," Hiruzen said before giving a full bow as he rose to his feet. Fugaku felt sweat begin to bead on his forehead at the Hokage's words. Fugaku's eyes went wide at the gesture of the highest respect and sincerest apology. When Hiruzen returned to his seat Fugaku nodded to show that the gesture had been accepted, eyes now slightly wide as the gravity of the situation hit him. This had to be bad if his leader was apologizing to him before even telling him what happened.
"Are my children safe Hokage-sama? Does this have to do with someone trying to kill them?" Fugaku couldn't help but burst out.
"They are safely ensconced in the seals on my home Fugaku and I have Anbu guarding the place. But yes, this has everything to do with what has been going on.
"Two weeks ago, it was discovered that there was a traitor in the highest order of our office that had been operating for years outside their purview and jurisdiction. They have been stealing clan children, brainwashing them, and sealing them to their owner, hidden inside a secret force that Konoha has been utilizing to do the grimmest work imaginable. Even I was not aware of the full scope of the operation nor the length of their training that was taken. The leader of this force of hidden operatives made a mistake that led me to believe that he was working with the traitor Orochimaru. I sent my best spy to investigate.
"Yesterday I received confirmation and far more than I ever imagined. This seems to have been going on for years. Not only has he been collaborating with Orochimaru but he has been helping him coordinate attacks and ambushes on our ninja. The Yamanaka, the Hyuga-"
"And the Uchiha," Fugaku whispered eyes wide. Hiruzen nodded grimly. The old man sighed before removing his hat and rubbing his eyes tiredly. The Uchiha was struck at that moment by how old his leader was and how very tired.
"I believed your Clan has been especially targeted and had my spy do some digging. What was unearthed was the systematic undermining of the Clan over the past forty years in the village by the traitor. When they began working with Orochimaru, it seems the traitor thought Izanagi would be an excellent failsafe." he finally said as the Uchiha jerked back in his seat, eyes wide.
"Izanagi? He-what stole eyes? You know what this does?" he hissed, somewhere between rage and fear at such a well-kept clan secret. Hiruzen regarded him for a moment before looking down.
"The traitor holds nothing sacred. Not even the first Hokage. He has been pillaging the village and its corpses, but your clan most especially. We estimate he has implanted ten Sharingan into an arm made of the First Hokage's cells," he finally said as Fugaku tried to process the information being told to him, starting to pant with pent-up emotion.
"So the Uchiha that have been going missing?" he hissed. Hiruzen nodded.
"The work of the traitor and Orochimaru for their research." Fugaku was almost vibrating in rage, pulling at his hair before he finally lost it.
"ALL THIS VILLAGE HAS EVER DONE HAS BEEN TO RESENT US AND SPIT UPON US! AFTER ALL OUR SACRIFICES! AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! BEING OPPRESSED AT EVERY TURN! WE KNEW IT! WE TOLD PEOPLE AND NO ONE EVER LISTENS!" Fugaku raged as he stood, chair clattering to the ground. He grabbed it before destroying it with his bare hands in a fit of rage, smashing the cabinet by the door as he kicked it over, hands shaking. Hiruzen puffed peaceably on his pipe.
"Why do you think I declared martial law Fugaku?" he asked mildly causing the other man to pause, still shaking as he stood by the bookshelf trying to get his breath back under control. He frowned in confusion as he took in his leader's calm disposition after Fugaku had taken to destroying the meeting room.
"So the Creature and the disappearances are a farce," he challenged angrily his shakes slowing. His Hokage merely grinned around the pipe eyes twinkling with deadly mirth.
"Who do you think is disappearing Fugaku?" he asked as the younger man's eyes went wide face going a shade paler. Hiruzen let out a puff of smoke before tapping his pipe on the table to get the tobacco where he wanted it.
"With Martial Law, I'm able to reverse the laws that hold you and your fellow Uchiha captive without all the bureaucracy stopping me at every turn, just as they have for years. With the disappearances, justice can be seen too without drawing too many eyes. The Uchiha were forced to the fringes of the village. Now you are at its very heart and are now my neighbor situated in the clan compound next to mine.
"If questioned we can say the seals on the houses malfunctioned and we cannot get inside. If those two compounds are not big enough there is another across from mine that has been abandoned for years. Work of the first Hokage I believe and in perfect condition. With the traitor's spies no longer spreading rumors through the village the civil unrest should die down given time. With the Uchiha no longer the only ones in the military police your people will not be seen as oppressors of the people. With Uchiha being able to leave the village on missions, you will no longer be birds in a gilded cage. Jiraya is willing to apprentice one student for your clan so that the apprentice can eventually create a seal to protect your people from doujutsu thieves since people seem particularly fond of it. With another seal, no offspring can be forced." He said as Fugaku's eyes went wide in realization.
"And you really found this out yesterday? How did you manage this in one day?" the Uchiha demanded flabbergasted. The old leader began to laugh mind puff and devolved into a coughing fit that he continued to laugh through as the smoke messed with his lungs. Finally, the old man seemed to ease up and sat back in his chair with a wily grin. Hiruzen's grin widened when the younger man's face went white with fear, eyes wide in his alarm as a shadowy being seemed to fade into view beside the Hokage.
"Shikaku has always been a steadfast and highly trusted shinobi," at these words Fugaku relaxed, seeming to think that this was a trick of the Nara clan.
"He will be one of the few you can speak of the situation with if you feel the need to vent. I'm also sure that he would make a steadfast ally and worthy advisor should your clan be facing further persecution from the village. I myself ask to be kept abreast of the situation so that we may move forward together," Hiruzen said as the Shadowy being behind him continued to subtly grow taller as it began to creep up behind the Hokage with outstretching arms. With growing alarm, the Uchiha's eyes went red to view the Shadow better. He yelped in terror at realizing the being was no trick.
The Shadow lunged and Fugaku moved.
To Hiruzen's happiness and gratification, the younger man lunged to his side and pulled him away from Shadow with speed, terrified but still trying to save his Hokage from the perceived threat.
"Get behind me!" Fugaku hissed, shaking in terror as he took a protective stance in front of his village leader, and Hiruzen was touched by the show of loyalty after all that he had just told Fugaku.
"You have chosen well, old Hokage," the being seemed to whisper into their souls as the Uchiha trembled. Hiruzen placed a hand on the trembling man's shoulder.
"I told you that the Uchiha were loyal to this village. How could someone not want to fight when oppressed and backed into a corner?" he said quietly as Fugaku stiffened breathing starting to speed up at the realization that his Clan's loyalty had been in question.
If it had then the muttering of a coup must have reached his leader's ears. How many other ears had it reached? He began to tremble once more, knowing that this could have just sentenced his clan to death or excommunication. Hiruzen patted the younger man's shoulder before going to stand by the Creature's side.
"Shadow deemed Konoha worthy of an alliance, providing we sort a few things out first," he said with a nod as the being inclined its head.
"Only the best for my little tree. Poisoned soil will not suffice. I will not suffer traitors," it seemed to whisper into their souls.
Catching the double meaning in its words, the Uchiha wobbled before collapsing into one of the surviving chairs, face ashen the fear in his eyes speaking his fear. They knew. They definitely knew.
Hiruzen nodded at the unspoken question on the younger man's face and the Uchiha patriarch's eyes seemed to flutter as he fought to remain conscious. With such a creature on the Hokage's side, his clan could be massacred. And he had just been tested.
"What has been done against your Clan is a crime, Uchiha-dono, make no mistake, but there are certain things even I can't allow. I will do whatever I can to mend this gap between our people, and I hope my actions this day have shown you that I'm serious about this. All I ask is that you help me bring your people back into the village," Hiruzen murmured softly as Fugaku nodded woodenly. This day had been full of shocks and the man was struggling to keep up.
After a few minutes, he seemed to recover enough to sit up though he had a hard time meeting the Hokage's eyes, his shame visible on his face. Hiruzen cleared his throat gaining the younger man's attention once more.
"Now, for the crime committed against the people of Konoha and your family, I sentence retired ninja and Council member Danzo Shimura to death. Since killing him would trigger a deadly trap for most involved, I have tasked our ally Shadow here to its task. If it would not cost you your life, I would give you the satisfaction of venting your grief on him yourself. Do you object?" He asked as a flurry of emotions flew over the Uchiha patriarch's face.
"I could think of no more horrifying way to go," he whispered as he nodded his agreement as he bowed his thanks. When he rose his eyes were red, his face pale but his grin was fierce.