Whirlpool's Very Own
•
Chapter 1.2: Chess not Checkers
. … × … .
~Masa
~Hidden Sound Village
In Hidden Sound, spy and Whirlpool descendant Masa, arrived in the middle of one of the Hidden Sound village's training grounds. Today's business had him undertaking a new self-given assignment. Standing at the center of the open training field surrounded by shrubbery, rocks, and a few trees, Masa faced three young Sound Genin.
They were collectively known as Team Dosu, but some others around the village took to calling them the 'C-Team' or 'Team C' as a running joke. This was due to the fact that the Otokage took almost as much interest in them as he did the Sound Five, but for entirely different reasons.
Dosu, Kin, and Zaku failed to realize they were only being kept as sacrificial pawns and possibly for experimental material, which Dosu and Zaku had already undergone to a lesser extent. It was for those reasons rather than anything that could have to do with their potential as ninja.
They hadn't been taught much. As proof of that fact, some of the simplest shinobi basics eluded them. Also, they were considered the third team in the village's most known team lineup after the B-Team. Another part of the running joke in Sound.
The C-Team ranked behind what amounted to a fake ninja squad in Konoha that were known Sound spies, led by Orochimaru's right hand, Kabuto. They weren't meant to be taken seriously, not as a team anyway, because sooner rather than later their covers would be purposely blown.
However, Masa knew all that and was personally annoyed by it. He knew Orochimaru was planning to throw them away like garbage soon; for a plan that he'd been working on for about six months. Masa just didn't know what that plan was, making it difficult for him to come up with a contingency plan to prevent those three from being sacrificed.
Also, he personally considered Orochimaru's tendency to throw away or sacrifice his own ninja a great disservice to the man's up and coming village and the Snake-Sannin himself.
Sound village could truly be something good, even great, but Orochimaru just couldn't help himself...his black, unfeeling heart and many bad blood relationships wouldn't allow him to do right. Not even for a village he launched himself. It was just a means to an end for him, the village and the people in it. People that would follow him to hell and back when he'd rather they follow him to hell and he sacrificed them to take over and destroy it while he stole techniques and jutsu.
Really, it was no wonder he hadn't been made the fourth Hokage of Konoha. What was the point of starting a viable hidden village for oneself to rule over, if you weren't going to run it right? Couldn't or wouldn't stop experimenting on your own ninja and residents, and didn't even seem to take it all that seriously?
Sound was still fairly new and small in comparison to the Great Five, but it was doing numbers. They had potential ninjas, promising ninja, skilled ninja, bloodline ninja, and even a few ninja clans! They even had a Daimyo backing them with full support in their home country, formerly known as the Land of Rice.
Orochimaru did a grand job of putting the place together...Only to potentially ruin it with heartless and psychotic machinations! Masa just didn't get the point. The mad snake treated it like an amusement park and giant lab, not a shinobi village.
Orochimaru did all these vile things even when most were loyal to him to a fanatical degree. It was no business to him how the Sound ruler ran his village, but Masa decided to just go ahead and proceed with his own job since Orochimaru hadn't given him any assignments recently.
No one else held any interest in Dosu, Kin, and Zaku - so why not earn the loyalty and following of three capable misfits.
After arriving to meet the three that stood before him, silently looking them over, he was glad and surprised they were before him exactly on time. Truthfully, they'd been early, something he hadn't expected.
With that, Masa began...
"For the past few weeks I've been secretly watching you lot during your training sessions and I have to say I'm not impressed, at all." As he addressed the group he stood with his arms crossed over his chest taking note of the fact that his new charges were glaring heatedly at him. That was fine by Masa, they could wish him dead so long as they paid attention and followed his instructions.
"Now, you're not entirely at fault for the limitations and lack of motivation. Truthfully, your previous sensei wasn't much of an instructor and only taught you all how to rely on the 'gifts' and basic skills that Orochimaru-sama's right hand, Kabuto showed you; which is definitely not nearly enough to keep you alive." Masa announced. "However, the world doesn't care for excuses and so, here we are."
When none of the three of them said anything, Masa continued. "I'll tell you this because I actually give a damn, but at this rate y'all won't be good for anything more than sacrifices or experiments for Orochimaru-sama like the rest of the fodder."
He wasn't finished, but found himself rudely interrupted.
"Oh, fuck you! You've been a Sound-nin for barely a year. No one, not even Kabuto, knows where you came from or who you are - so who died and made you boss of us? This is Team Dosu, we take damn good care of ourselves! We don't need some random nobody trying to tell us anything." Dosu arrogantly responded to Masa's evaluation. Zaku nodded and grinned as his friend told Masa off.
"...Dosu, maybe we should try listening to him. I-I don't think he's wrong and besides, we've been through two instructors in six months, no one seems to want to teach us, and he is a Jonin." Tsuchi Kin suggested timidly, if not shyly, looking at Dosu from the corner of her eyes.
She felt Masa had a point, they were only a few years younger than most of the members of Orochimaru-sama's personal Sound Team bodyguards and the differences between them were as day and night.
Kin often compared herself to one of the best kunoichi in the village and her best-friend, Tayuya. The red head was so much further ahead of her skill wise and getting better by the day. Meanwhile, she only knew a few techniques and was poor in the three main categories of jutsu due to the lack of dedicated training from a dedicated sensei.
She definitely wanted to improve and Dosu and Zaku never helped her with anything, likely because they weren't much better off than her. Truthfully, they were a team in name only.
"Kin, shut the hell up! You have no idea what you're talking about. Come the Chunin Exams, I bet we completely wipe out the competition. This bum might be a Jonin, but he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about!" Zaku scoffed, pounding his fist against Dosu's as the two grinned.
Masa just blinked, expression completely blank as he stared down Dosu and Zaku when they looked back at him.
For a while, Masa paced while nodding to himself as if in agreement with Dosu.
"Can I kill this little…"
"Don't kill him, don't kill him. Please, Masa… Please. Think about what…"
"Stop. Don't bring that up. Okay, I got it."
Masa turned to them again, eye lightly twitching.
Dosu, Zaku, and Kin all looked bewildered by the one person, two sided conversation.
"Uhh...the fuck!" Dosu exclaimed.
"Shut the fuck up!" Masa roared. "I don't know what you two have been smoking, but it's got you delusional. You can say what you want, all that bluster is just gonna get ya hurt. Bluster is a tool of the weak." He responded and before Dosu and Zaku could blink the man had them both by the throat before they could retort...pinned against a tree behind where they'd been standing.
As all that unfolded Tayuya found herself free of her wretched teammates for once, as well as bereft of any responsibilities for however long that lasted.
That being the case she'd gone about to see her friend Kin after overhearing those creepy one bodied twins going on about it. Apparently, Masa had been going around asking why the C-Team weren't being trained and when the Jonin heard that it was because no one cared but to see them as sacrifices, they heard Masa say he'd train them himself.
She didn't believe it, but then she arrived to see the mysterious Orochimaru acquisition with the C-Team. He was assessing Kin and her two dumbass teammates, so she decided to get close enough to hear what was being said and done after perching herself high up on a tree branch.
Usually she'd be practicing her flute playing and Genjutsu but her curiosity over Masa caught her interest. Only Orochimaru and that creepy bastard Kabuto seemed to know anything about him and she was curious about him like everyone else. The one thing that was known about him was that he wasn't from the Land of Rice Patties and few in Sound trusted him. An outcast like his own students.
The red haired flutist scoffed then laughed overhearing Dosu and Zaku boasting before witnessing Masa grabbing them by their necks and choking them against a tree. "Dumb fucks," She muttered as she continued watching with a cruel smirk on her face.
Tayuya fully agreed with everything she heard Masa say about them and she was certain that Orochimaru would turn them into experiments or sacrifices if they continued to prove weak and useless. Improving by oneself was damn near impossible, but Orochimaru couldn't care less about something like that. You did or you didn't...in which case you ended badly.
She'd seen it all before and she even warned Kin it could happen to her if she continued showing weakness and didn't improve. She truly didn't want to see her younger friend broken by experimentation or killed by one of the many deranged Sound cultists, or out in the field by some limp dick genin.
There weren't that many kunoichi around to begin with.
Clearing his throat, Masa next went about setting a few things straight. "You two reality altering morons listen closely… You as well, Kin!" He called over his shoulder making the girl jump, one moment he was in front of her and the next he wasn't. Masa coldly glared at the two Genin in his grasp, shaking nervously.
"I survived two Chunin Exams and this village's farce of a Jonin test which exists for none other than our master's entertainment. Now, that second Chunin Exam which I won outright; clean sweep and it wasn't even close. Afterwards, I wasn't promoted to Chunin. No, I showed so much potential and all around talent that I was made a Special Jonin. From Genin to Specialist Jonin, where a teammate was killed and I myself had four bodies to my name by the end of it." He growled as Kin watched with a mix of morbid awe.
"My resumè… That's who made me the boss of you." He whispered.
"Now, just because the next Chunin Exams will be sponsored by a village that a lot of folks like to believe has weak ninjas… for some stupid reason. Do not think for a second there won't be any deaths, Konoha-nin won't be the only participants anyway, and I guarantee at least one full team will die." He smiled menacingly, tightening his grip on their necks. "And I'm gonna make damn well sure that dead team isn't this one, you brats." Masa growled.
"Now let's get a few more things in order while I'm at it… Number one, there's no Team Dosu, this is the C-Team. No one expects anything from any of you, use that as motivation to prove them wrong...two, I don't have time for childish ignorance. I am responsible for this team and the lives on it, which I take seriously. You will listen to me and if you test my position, I won't hesitate, I'll just kill you."
Masa grinned. "I'm more partial to teaching an apprentice anyway and Kin seems more than willing; but if I got rid of you two, Orochimaru-sama would kill you for being useless. Now, what do you have to say?" Masa scowled, his eyes darkened, staring into their very souls as his killing intent choked the air around the two Sound Genin.
Zaku and Dosu shook their heads repeatedly as Masa loosened his hold on them just enough to speak. "We'll listen! Please!" They exclaimed in unison. Masa stared at them seconds longer, eyeing both closely. Seconds that felt like eternity to Dosu and Zaku.
Finally, Masa released them, and both boys fell to the ground on their asses, coughing and rubbing their necks as they got the wind back in their bodies.
Masa just grunted apathetically, "Now go stand with Kin. We have training to do and you're wasting my time!" Masa ordered and watched as the two ran over to join the kunoichi. They were muttering curses the entire time, especially when Kin began laughing at them, but he ignored them for now.
'I won't see these three become sacrifices of that snake's delusions, not if I can help it.' Masa thought with a heavy sigh before going over to the three.
"Now, I've looked over your files and have also seen what you're already capable of. Your teamwork is good, but still needs some tweaking, we'll get to that later." Having decided their teamwork was good enough to not be an immediate concern, Masa had other plans.
"Right now, since you three seem to have a decent level of chakra control, I'm going to introduce you to Nature Affinity and Nature Manipulation to get you learning techniques that'll help both in a team setting as well as one on one. We'll also work on some basics. In doing so it'll help further your chakra control...I hope." Masa next pulled out three slips of white paper.
"No questions!" He barked as he saw Zaku opening his mouth to speak. "Just listen for now." He told them while handing each kid one slip of paper and explained.
"Every ninja is born with a natural elemental affinity which they will naturally be able to perform easier than other elements. The basic elements are earth, water, fire, lightning, and wind. There are also some born with two natural affinities, or advanced nature's that are a combination of two elements to make a new element, like ice for example." Masa eyed the three to make sure they were keeping up with him before continuing.
"Now, you three channel some chakra into the paper you're holding and the response will tell you your natural elemental affinity." Masa went on to explain the elements weak/strong against other elements, as well as terrain advantages and their disadvantages.
He silently watched as his three self-assigned charges pushed chakra into their respective slips of paper.
Masa remained silent as he saw both Dosu and Zaku's papers respond. Dosu's paper crumpled into dirt while Zaku's split in half.
However, as he shifted his gaze over to Kin he saw her staring curiously at the results of her attempt. The paper she held sparked a bit before crumpling up.
Lightening, earth, and wind. Not bad at all, Masa felt their affinities could make them well balanced and also a good elemental team combination. It was actually quite good, although he'd have to acquire more lightning scrolls since he only had a few. He figured he could have the twins sneak him some. What he had now would be enough for Kin anyway.
He came out of his thoughts to see the three of them watching him expectantly.
"Alright then, since none of you have said anything... Zaku has wind elemental affinity, Dosu has a talent for earth, and Kin…"
"It's the lightning element, right?" Kin interrupted before he could finish. Kin, realizing she interrupted him, quickly bowed her head, looking at him sheepishly.
Masa just grinned. "Yes, that's right." He winked at the girl, causing her to smile meekly.
None of them had given a thought to nature manipulation, so had no preferences or hope for a specific elemental affinity, but now that Masa had introduced them to it they were feeling anxious to learn.
The members of C-Team watched as Masa slipped the canvas bag he'd brought with him off his back and set it down, beginning to go through it.
He lifted a couple scrolls from the worn out bag. "Dosu will need this. One earth scroll..." He pulled a second scroll out and kept it from Zaku's reach when he tried snatching it from him, and handed it to Kin without looking at the girl. Ignoring Zaku's impatient glare, he then handed the boy a wind scroll.
He told them the names of the jutsu and explained the purposes and uses for each.
•
"These scrolls also contain the basic practice for molding your chakra into your element as well as giving it shape. These exercises will help if you have trouble." Masa eyed the Genin to make sure he still had their attention. Well… Zaku and Dosu anyway, they had the attention span of a fish.
"Our training schedule will consist of practicing the basics, nature manipulation, and teamwork until I feel you're ready to take on more. Now, on that note, get to work!" Masa announced. He turned and went to sit down on the tree stump nearby while he watched the three begin their training.
He would be hands-off until asked for his help and make no mistake, they would need his help.
He knew they were a prideful group, even Kin. She didn't fool him for a second. The only question was who would ask first. The hope was that by taking this approach, they would figure out relying on someone else from time to time wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Hopefully improving their teamwork. Because in the future they would need to rely on each other.
The pride could go, what they needed was trust and chemistry. What it was, How it worked, why it was a good thing.
'Hmm,' Tayuya thought observantly. 'This guy seems to know his shit, but I'm more fucking interested in what he said about himself and the Chunin Exams. If he wasn't lying, and it seemed like he wasn't, I'd need to find out when and for what village he competed.' She thought as she made a mental note of it and decided to depart, she could catch up with Kin later.
Masa made his way to one of the few parks within Oto later that evening after dismissing his team. He grinned to himself remembering how shocked those three kids were when they found out training would last the majority of the day with only a one hour break for rest and a half hour for lunch.
Masa was sure they'd never worked so hard in all their short lives and near the end they began muttering curses at him for it, even Kin.
Kin was especially annoyed when she found the day would end with a three on one spar to test their teamwork. Masa took pleasure in it and he'd gone none too easy on them.
No one in the field was going to go easy on them and he told them as much. They showed some pretty good teamwork, but they were quick to bicker and easy to frustrate. He'd also been going easy on them the entire time.
After about six hours training, he dismissed the team, letting them know to show up at eight the next morning when they would open their training day with exercises and another group sparring session, then once more working on the basics and elemental manipulation, then teamwork.
Masa laughed, "Oh yeah, they're going to hate me. But is six hours of training time a big deal? I could make it less, but they're just too raw and behind where ninja of their age group should be. They couldn't afford to go slow, they had to get their skills up to snuff and quick... For their sake."
The three definitely had potential. Someone had taught them several types of team formations, as well as how to at least function as a team. They were just average in that aspect and still required a lot of work in the grand scheme of things.
However, he was severely disappointed that they seemed to essentially be one trick ponies in that they only knew one or two techniques with a variation of weak jutsu to go with it, and they possessed no specific team based attacks.
Once he got past learning their individual abilities, it was a simple matter to shut them down during the sparring session.
Zaku was reckless, Dosu was slow, and Kin telegraphed all her moves, and lacked power. She at least seemed to have a talent for Genjutsu while the other two didn't even know how to dispel them. He wouldn't even mention their Ninjutsu knowledge, it was essentially non-existent.
They needed a lot of work, especially as Orochimaru planned to enter them into the Chunin Exams -for some reason or another- Masa was certain they were just being used as pawns to advance whatever plans he was hatching come the time.
Masa sighed, knowing he had his work cut out for him and if he weren't careful Orochimaru could think he was trying to undermine his plans, if any, he had for those three, but he was resolute. The snake would not be sacrificing those three, not easily anyway.
This was for the cause, dammit!
Just as the new captain of C-Team was about to enter the park to get in some last minute meditation and practice of his own before returning home to work on plans for the team that evening, he was stopped by one of Orochimaru's more annoying Jonin, who seemed to be waiting for him while leaning against a tree near the entrance.
"Masa Ishikawa…good to see you." A greasy looking shinobi dressed in the purple regalia of the Oto Jonin greeted, stepping away from the tree he'd been leaning against to approach Masa.
Masa stopped and looked at the Kabuto wannabe warily. He held back a sigh at finding this man with slicked back hair waiting for him. He didn't trust this guy as far as he could throw him, plus he hated that fake superior smirk that was always on his face… One that he really wanted to punch off said face every time he saw him.
He carried himself with an unearned sense of entitlement. For some reason he thought possessing the Swift Release bloodline limit gave him that right, having power over people, but Masa was not impressed. Some of the other Oto-nin might've been intimidated by him, but Masa wasn't so easily swayed.
You couldn't hit what you couldn't see? Well, you couldn't hit what was already kicking your ass.
Plus he saw how the man bitched up in the presence of Kabuto and even the sickly Kimimaro. For Masa, his name wasn't even worth remembering.
"Ah, evening…?" Masa trailed off, pretending not to know his name and remaining expressionlessly aloof as the Jonin easily got pissed off by his antics.
"It's Soku, damn you! Soku of the Swift Release. Stop acting as if you don't know who I am!" The black haired man yelled, even going so far as to childishly stomp his foot on the ground.
Masa blinked blankly a few times, enjoying the man's smug expression warping into an ugly angry sneer.
This guy was too easy to anger. So much so, it was almost pathetic.
Masa decided he'd had enough fun for now and continued, just wanting this guy out of his face. "Ah, Yes, Soku. My apologies." He said flatly and not at all sounding apologetic, making Soku sneer that much more. "And what is it that I can do for you this evening?" He asked in an uninterested tone, using his pinky finger to scratch some wax out of his ear.
Soku just growled again and muttered some colorful sounding words before answering, "Orochimaru-sama has requested your presence at the tower…" Grumbling all the while.
"Then I'll be there in a…-"
" Now." Soku sneered again, this time smirking as if he was getting one over on Masa by telling him what to do, when really it was the snake sannin's order. "I'll be sure to tell him that you're on your way and will be before him… soon." he Jonin said snidely before leaving.
Masa remained silent as Soku disappeared from his sight. He had to take a moment to quell the worry he felt that his cover might be blown. Despite that concern he knew he had no other choice than to do as ordered, otherwise he might get caught up if he happened to abort the mission for nothing and decided to disappear without confirming.
That was the rub with being a spy, especially a double spy. If he got found out then he most likely wouldn't know until an attempt was made on his life. If he wasn't blown and cut out prematurely, then it would only bring further trouble later on. For not just him, but everyone and their plans.
Sighing heavily, Masa did the only thing he felt he could do and departed the park entrance, shooting off to see Orochimaru. He'd voluntarily taken on this assignment and so he would see it through.
He said the Whirlpool Family's mantra to himself. "From the womb to the tomb, from the cradle to the grave."
Despite this mantra, none of the 'fam', as Kayo so endearingly called them, were delusional or naive people. Everyone knew the odds stacked against them, that those that lived by the sword, always died by the sword.
"Ha, yeah." Masa said to himself while sweeping through trees. "And the pay sucks. The things we do for family.
•
"I am here to serve," Moments later Masa was kneeling, his right hand over his heart in salutation, reporting to Orochimaru. The snake sannin sat in a large, plush throne-like seat behind a large desk within his dimly lit personal office in the Otokage's tower.
The Uzu spy kept his eyes lowered but noticed that the Sound 5, or Sound 4 rather, were in attendance. Masa didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. In this situation they could jump him rather easily.
"Indeeed," Orochimaru's hiss filled the room with acknowledged response at Masa's arrival. A cold shiver ran along the length of his spine.
'This guy…' Masa thought as he held onto his composure. He made sure not to look away from the snake's inspecting, narrowed yellow eyes, not to shiver or flinch, trying to keep any tenseness out of his body, and appear fully relaxed. Just another loyal follower of the purple clothed, morally compromised Kage.
"You've been here for a good bit now, Masa and I have to say I've noticed you have a very high level of work ethic... I hope you do well to keep it that way. You're helping us more than you know." The snake sannin hissed with a chuckle. "I'm sure you know how I feel about failure after all…"
"Honored and humbled, sir. Naturally, I know failures won't be tolerated." Masa said, nodding his head. 'Then again, it depends on whose failure you mean.' He thought.
Orochimaru leaned forward to prop his elbows on the desk and clasp his hands together as he went on. The sannin looked pleased enough to wet himself at Masa's response, "Oh, if I had ten more of you with that thought process...the things I could accomplish." He grinned meaningfully.
'I could see you finding a reason to try,' Masa thought.
Orochimaru continued, unaware of his subordinate's thoughts. "I do, so hope life in my Otogakure continues to find you well." Orochimaru hissed again, his voice light with amusement.
Masa simply nodded. "Hai, Orochimaru-sama. I do appreciate it." Knowing that the snake summoner truly didn't care about his personal well being or everyday life experiences. The pale fleshed ninja couldn't care less.
"Hmm, yesss. Right then." Orochimaru slowly said while looking over Masa's kneeling form. "On to business then...An important matter that I've been cultivating in Sunagakure for some time now has met with a...small hitch. It's nothing I cannot handle myself and you need not concern yourself with what the matter is. However, Kimimaro won't be able to make the required trip and I will require you to fill in for him...temporarily."
Masa blinked, not letting his surprise show. "You'll have me temporarily fill in for Kimimaro on the Sound 5?" He glanced over at the four original members standing against the office wall looking none too pleased; whether it was about the situation, or personal differences, he didn't know. "A show of force, is it…" Masa trailed.
Orochimaru eyed Masa closely. "Yes, it seems you understand completely." The Kage of Sound answered, his tone seemingly carrying approval of his observation. "I have something in the works that may possibly require at least that much."
"I understand... And I shall serve to the limit of my abilities, Orochimaru-sama." Masa answered, knowing better than to ask anymore questions. He stood and saluted the leader of the Hidden Sound respectfully.
Orochimaru chuckled in a way that only he could. "Yes, I'm sure you will. You may go now and be sure to give my best regards to Dosu, Zaku, and Kin." The snake sannin said knowingly, smirking.
Masa paused as he turned to leave when the three Genin were mentioned. 'So he knows...of course he knows. But does his knowing affect me?' He glanced over at Tayuya briefly, noticing the red head looking directly at him somewhat warily.
Masa just smiled widely as he looked over his shoulder at the Sharingan obsessed ninja. "Sure thing. As you're their leader they'll be pleased to know you've taken an interest in their progress." The spy answered good naturedly and continued out, being quick to make his exit from the Otokage's tower once he was free to go.
"Kuku... Whatever am I to do with you, Ishikawa-kun? Careful you don't overstep your bounds…" Orochimaru said softly between laughter as he watched Masa leave through slitted eyes.
The present members of the Sound 5 all shivered as Orochimaru spoke to himself and laughed distantly. They might've all respected him, but they also did well to greatly fear him. One could never know what he was up to or what he would do next. Highly unpredictable as he was, the Sound bodyguards were sure to tread lightly and to not let him down.
. … × … .
Kei hummed in thought from his position on the rooftop. Having had to keep vigil over Naruko's apartment after providing her that scroll -he remained on watch throughout the night up until this morning- he let out a loud yawn, sleepily smacking his lips.
"Sorry I'm late, bro." Apologizing as he arrived on the roof next to his brother via Shunshin, Kayo held out a paper bag. "Breakfast? It's from your favorite restaurant. The one near the Fire Tower."
Kei turned, silently eyeing his younger brother up and down causing Kayo to flinch. He looked as usual, but Kei could tell that for some reason the boy wasn't as well rested as he probably should've been. "Long night, little brother?" He asked knowingly.
Kayo looked away. "None of your business..." He huffed irritably.
"Actually it is, but that's not important right now. Give me that." Kei took the food bag from his brother.
Kayo turned his head to look at Naruko's place, "she's not up yet, huh? Should we worry?"
Kei removed the miso soup from the bag, removing the lid from the disposable bowl. "Not as of yet." He answered before bringing the bowl up to his lips.
"Mm, if you say so." Kayo responded.
"I'm off, don't do anything foolish. Thanks for the grub." Kei disappeared in a puff of smoke food in hand.
"Don't mention it," Kayo muttered to himself. He took out a lemon cake flavored protein bar. Taking a bite and lazily chewing, he prepared himself for a wait.
•
Naruko blinked, eyes filled with curiosity. She remembered opening the scroll that Kei gifted to her and a flash of white. After opening her mismatch colored eyes she found herself in an open white landscape. There was nothing else; a pure white existence.
'I don't feel…' she thought as she felt a malevolent and threatening aura nearby that she could neither see or identify.
"This is not a test..."
Naruko whipped around hearing the sudden words from a familiar voice. "Kayo-san?" She looked at the young boy with the wavy, deep auburn-red hair. "What is this, where am I?"
"I ain't the real Kayo, but a chakra imprint of my true self. That scroll Kei gave you activated a part of your mind to project an illusionary world. That's the simplest way to explain it to you." Kayo explained. "Consider this a part of your training. I have three questions to ask you before we continue, so hold your curiosity and just focus for now."
Naruko indeed had questions, but she waited and simply nodded.
"Are you ready to learn? To seriously learn?" The Kayo imprint asked first.
"Yes!" Naruko's answer was enthusiastic.
"You wholeheartedly agree, but are there any doubts? Weak effort can't and won't be tolerated."
Naruko shook her head. "No…"
"Would you do everything in your power to become Kage level? You've claimed to want to be Hokage…" Kayo asked.
Naruko nodded. "Yes, I would."
There was a pause from Kayo after she answered the three questions. Naruko looked at the chakra imprint, blinking blankly. "Umm…"
"As we continue on." Kayo informed her.
Suddenly, their bright white surroundings began to fill with vibrant colors. As their white existence was calmly overwritten by color everything remained blurry at the start. Greens, blues, browns, and more burst to life bleeding along those white walls to help create an environment that hadn't existed moments ago.
While that unfolded the sounds of outside life began to fill the area as everything became clearer with every second that passed. The sound of rushing water and crashing waves added to the building atmosphere as sounds of wildlife joined in.
Naruko's mouth hung open as she looked around herself, an expression of mild awe on her face while turning her body at the same time.
After a couple of minutes everything filled in, looking pixelated and not quite clear. Kayo took a few steps forward, snapping his fingers as he did so.
The results were immediate and the overall image was made clear.
'I'm on a...beach?' Naruko curiously asked herself. The blonde looked around at the new environment, then glanced down at her bare feet as she could feel warm sand between her toes.
"Not a beach, but an island." Kayo corrected softly. His attire had changed to large black shorts and a loose white shirt under an over-large, buttonless, black long-sleeve coat. Just like Naruko he too was barefoot. "A very important island."
"To who, I mean this place isn't real right?" Naruko asked as she knelt down to scoop up some sand and watched as the granules fell between her fingers.
Kayo took a moment to himself. The utterly cool and relaxed expression of his facial features hid the fondness he felt for this place. "It's important to us...and it will be important to you." He answered, turning back to face her.
The young blonde girl blinked up at Kayo curiously, her head tilting and her eyes squinting with suspicion at the Kayo imprint. "What the hell...are you talking about? Make sense!" She yelled while standing to poke him in the chest as she looked up at him.
"Okay, take it easy, girl." Kayo gently removed Naruko's finger from his chest. "Long story short, our ancestral home is here. Here meaning the lost Hidden Village of Whirlpool on the Island of Whirlpool."
Kayo sighed when he received that blank stare from Naruko. The one that obviously didn't understand what he was talking about.
"The Island of Whirlpool was your mother's home. If a series of unfortunate, but purposefully planned events hadn't destroyed this place. You, myself, my brother, and others would be calling Whirlpool home today." Kayo explained while frowning.
Naruko was frozen. "M-my mom...what do you know about my mom?!" She asked anxiously.
Kayo's frown slowly altered into a sad smile. "Not much, but here and now I'll tell you what I do know." As he spoke he sat down in the sand as Naruko copied him and did the same. He figured this was the best start he could've gotten, especially as Naruko hadn't noticed the destroyed village or nearby homes yet.
"Aright then, it's like this..." The blonde jinchuriki listened closely as Kayo began to weave this important tale.
. … × … .
~ Katsu w/ Akatsuki
~ Location: Unknown
"Lightning Release: Scorched Earth Missile." Less than a half second's pause followed between concise hand-seals and the whispered technique. Chakra shot down the leg while kicking up from the ground toward the chakra thieving enemy.
Little happened initially, besides a chakra laden kick meeting air as dirt and dead leaves lifted up from the earth.
Then an explosive… ' CRACK!' exploded through air and empty space. A blinding white-blue light lit up that same empty space as a crooked line split and arched through the atmosphere until finally honing in on its target.
Just as fast as it arrived, it was gone; nearly instantly. A b-line of flames remained behind gently scorching the ground before dying out. With it, a narrow and shallow trench was left carved into the ground towards the enemy.
Where that enemy once stood was now a felled, smoldering corpse.
Behind that, a single tree stood having fatally absorbed the remaining impact of the technique. Miniscule flames danced along the cracked tree bark until it tilted and tipped over to the dead ground below.
'CRASH!' The ground shook momentarily and then it was over.
•
"I told you," with black hair and green eyes, a little known ninja adorning a black cloak covered in stylized red clouds spoke, licking his lips. The insignia laden cloak covered him from shoulders to calves, hiding his under clothes; all except the dirtied black sandals strapped to his feet. Long hair was styled into a tediously braided ponytail. A single strand hung freely at the left of his face.
"...I told you." He repeated those three words. Soft, light voice carried annoyance as a single bead of sweat slid down his face from the corner of his forehead. "I told you after explaining the need for your death, that said death was inevitable." He sighed, frowning deeply and taking a seat on that heavily scorched tree that'd just fallen minutes ago.
Resting, he readied himself to make contact and check-in.
"...Challenged me anyway though." Katsu sighed, speaking to a smoldering corpse.
"...Just don't be mad at me, be mad at your-own-damn-self." As is life, the corpse, of course, remained unresponsive at his feet.
Meanwhile, Katsu could sense that he wasn't alone in these woods off the beaten path. Knowing he was being closely watched, he felt someone was severely underestimating him.
"...I do not think he can hear you, Katsu-san." Said a soft voice, flat in affect and yet, angelic sounding. Almost otherworldly really.
This was not the person he suspected of watching him...
She'd been following him since the start of this assignment. Collect the bounty on the head of ten ninja, it didn't matter who, B rank or better. He'd been given many tests this far in and this one seemed to test his ability as an earner; which made sense considering the group was hurting for liquidity.
However, this particular ambushed ninja's death wouldn't serve just their purposes. 'Their', being the criminal underworld organization titled Akatsuki, but his own as well...to a small degree.
'I believe they call that killing two birds with one stone. Where's my mission trophy though?' He thought while giving himself a mental pat on the back.
Katsu of Whirlpool…'No, wait. That's not quite right.'
Katsu blinked. 'Ah, damn near forgot.'
Katsu of Akatsuki…'Better'...
Katsu looked up to the woman with the paper rose in her blue hair.
"That isn't important, angel." He responded to Konan as he raised his right arm to look at something. A second later he licked a small sliver of blood off his bicep. He wasn't sure whose it was… Because he hadn't taken any damage.
Konan's response was to sigh irritably. "You know to call me Konan, I won't keep warning you." She told him for what had to be the one-hundredth time since his joining Akatsuki.
That little nickname was good enough for the Rain village rabble. Truthfully, it was good enough for Katsu as well. Konan did not and was not expecting much from Katsu, however she really didn't need him calling her 'angel' in front of the others. That would only cause her constant headaches.
She shuddered, oh, she could just see it. Those morons would go on and on… She shuddered again.
Katsu frowned, "got a cold?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
Konan had to take...a couple breaths to keep herself from throttling this man. She decided it was best to remain aloof. No one paid her any mind when she was aloof.
Katsu shrugged off her silence.
… Continuing...
Akatsuki, especially in its founding stages blazed through members like cannon fodder. Even as the group and its operations solidified into stability, it still happened at times. She decided early never to get attached, not that she ever truly had, and especially not after Yahiko.
And this was especially true for how she felt towards Katsu. Konan sneakily sized him up, and not for the first time.
True, he wasn't particularly unhinged like some of the others, but he was… 'Loose tongued, eager, silly; sometimes to a foolish degree, and familiar. He was just very familiar with her. He did the same with the others, especially Itachi and Nagato because they were always blank and serious.
At least the shark man actually listened to Itachi, but the Uchiha had to genjutsu Katsu a few times to back him off. Konan reflected in thought, unknowingly beginning to smile.
Konan caught herself and turned away thinking about Katsu's odd habit of speaking to a corpse. She was no stranger to trash talk, but Katsu said little to nothing during a fight and became talkative once he'd killed them.
'Strange, truly.' Konan thought. Not that she, the origami maven, was new to the strange and odd.
'This was his final test and I can't argue with the results. He is efficient. That's all that truly matters to Nagato.' Konan thought as she looked down at the corpse. She turned to look at Katsu again as he stood and began lifting the body up onto his shoulders.
Next stop would be the nearest bounty station.
"Leader-sama will be expecting us to be back soon, right? Let me deliver this so I can get back. This is still a test after all." Katsu said more to himself than to her, but Konan nodded in acknowledgement anyway.
"It's good, for your sake, that you still understand that," the angel said before disappearing into numerous paper squares that scattered away in various directions on the wind.
Katsu chuckled. "Ah, I like her...a lot." He spoke to himself as he looked around for the third party following him. Thoughtfully, he hoped that his actions today worked out as the Uzumaki originally planned. The risk increased by the day.
Katsu made good time, as it turned out a bounty station was hidden a few miles out from where he'd previously been. The place was concealed inside the dilapidated ruins of a long forgotten shrine. Entering the dark stuffy shrine all he could smell was mold and dust, along with other scents he'd really rather not focus on.
He walked over to the third statue lining the wall on the left, it was crumbling and worn down leaving it unidentifiable. He reached out to grab the right arm of the statue and pushed it up.
The next moment quiet creaking was heard from beneath the floor. The center most tatami mat silently lifted open like a hatch. The entrance contained a narrow, spiral stairway down a dark, musty hallway lined on either side with wall sconces that only caught flame when Katsu stepped by them.
He sighed, trying not to breathe too heavily. The air within was even more foul here than above ground, laden with the smell of heavy chemicals and decomposing human flesh...and possibly bodily waste. 'Why must these places be so damned disgusting?' He thought in askance as the corridor ended and opened up into a less than sterile, and dimly lit medical lab.
"You... I've got a body and I'm in a rush. Let's do this thing, huh? Place is a bloody blight of existence." He called out to the large, wide bodied bald man that was hacking rather than cutting on a corpse spread out on a slab; the man's back faced Katsu upon arrival.
The man started grumbling something about 'always complaining' and 'no respect', until he turned around and saw the cloak his visitor was wearing. He shut right up.
Katsu took a short moment to eye the man. He had a gnarly scar that crossed over his left eye where a doujutsu of some sort had been transplanted in a...very novice fashion. He could see heavy scar tissue where stitches once resided, but had been removed.
Katsu thought it looked like the area around that eye had been infected at one point. The signs were certainly there.
The man wore an old, torn bloody apron with dirtied scrubs beneath, no surgical gloves, and boots.
"I'll respect you when you pay me and let me get out of here." Katsu replied irritably, dropping the body on a slab for the man to see while he checked the bingo book for its identity.
"A traitor and spy for two hidden villages… So, we fucked his cover." Katsu said, watching the man flip through a bingo book.
The man whistled. "No kiddin'." He grinned a black tooth grin. Must've had a hell of a reason for taking him out." The body parts supplier checked for rank and bounty rate. "Jonin, upper B rank, high bounty for what he is thanks to a bloodline and his affiliations... Alright, hang tight."
"Careful about concerning yourself with why he was knocked off…" Katsu warned, eyeing the man closely. The message was clear.
'Back off and do your job…'
"Y-you bet... None of my business anyway!" The man hurriedly explained, disappearing into a back room in a sudden rush.
Katsu sighed, raising a finger to scratch his cheek idly while he waited for his payout. 'Those Uzumaki better appreciate what I'm going through for them…'
. … × … .
The sun resided at its peak in the sky over mostly grey clouds. The heavy cloud cover obscured most of the natural light over the island of the Land of Water. That, combined with the thick forest canopies only allowed for sparse lighting at ground level.
Tsutsuji Kaguya found herself traversing through this sparsely lit environment as thick chakra-laden mists slightly hindered not only her sight, but depth perception as well.
Molding a small, measured amount of chakra and releasing it had a way of splitting the mist, but only momentarily. She was able to take advantage of the chakra heavy fog to keep presence obscured and make it harder for any would-be trackers to follow her. She also sent sparse chakra to the soles of her sandals to keep her feet from fully sinking into the water logged forest floor.
Despite the troubles, the environment and terrain of the island wasn't near enough to deter her from her task.
Tsutsuji had been stashed away in the war torn Land of Water-by the twin Uzumaki descendents-for the better part of three months now. The mission she'd been given was specific to their group and especially the civil war still unfolding here.
She was meant to play a 'special' role and currently her responsibility lay in helping her family/group gather resources for and networking with the rebel forces of the civil war that fought admirably, but at a severe disadvantage.
Thanks to her past time in Kori and the island of the Land of Water, she was able to quickly get reacquainted to maneuvering safely through the worst of the thick, misleading fogs and mists.
Also, with a bit of help along the way, she successfully avoided the cleverly placed traps that tended to take advantage of the lack of visibility and ever shifting terrain utilized by both the rebel forces and Mist-nin.
That, on top of staying away from the third parties that took advantage of the failing conditions and deadly compromises of a war torn country. Especially the many human and exotic collateral crimes and threats of war… Like human trafficking/slavery of all forms, counterfeiting, price gouging on items of necessity, and much more and much worse.
Given all that, Tsutsuji agreed; the Whirlpool family could and should lend a helping hand. At the least to put a small dent in the success of such crimes and misdeeds.
Stepping her way around another hidden trap and skipping over a wide, shallow pool of muddy rain water hiding a second tripwire bringing to the same trap in conjunction with a larger one.
She was then able to calmly maneuver between the pair of large trees meant to smash its target to death between their girth.
She then was able to step back onto the trail she'd been following.
The remaining traps, if passed, were set in a way as to mislead any opposition towards more complicated trappings if led off certain trails.
Knowing that she was now well within rebel territory; she just hoped this area was still under rebel control. That was her main reason for not disarming the traps. A bit of a catch-22.
There had been an early concern about her safely finding her way around when she first received the assignment.
Yes, she was of the Kaguya clan…and yes, she'd been born and for a time lived in Kirigakure...but she hadn't been entirely raised in Kiri.
She'd been fortunate enough to have been whisked away by her parents before her clan imploded from their obsession of spontaneously trying to prove their battle prowess.
Even then it would've been likely she'd have been ostracized for possessing a high level of skill with her Shikotsumyaku bloodline limit.
Before their untimely deaths her parents explained their clan tended to fear members and family that were specially skilled in their bloodline, even to the point of killing their own clansmen.
Thankfully, her prowess wasn't discovered until her family was making their way out of Kirigakure. All that and now she found herself returned to her old home. Worse off than ever before.
Even if all that hadn't been the case it wouldn't have mattered.
The high-scale battles, the massive exoduses which saw entire village's relocated or absorbed by others, and the wide swaths of destruction during the course of the civil war saw a lot of the island's geography altered. If she had fully grown up here, then left, and later returned; she still wouldn't have recognized it.
The civil war up until now saw the civilian population alone nearly culled by half due to collateral damage, cannibalism, false accusations of bloodline possession, general hate fueled persecution, and starvation or illness.
So, the hope was...that once the mad Mizukage and his military, their loyalists, and sympathizers were thoroughly dealt with, the new powers in command would take the reins to properly restore the island to balance, order, and the daily standards of modern civilization.
One of many hopes was to see the 'Bloody Mist' era dead and buried. Gone. Rebirthed as simply, 'THE Village Hidden in the Mist.' She wouldn't settle for anything less than that. Being here both hurt and made her happy, it was really an odd feeling.
Leadership vetting, nation building or rebuilding, political reform, and overall healing; putting the right people in the right places would help make Kirigakure a true 'Great Five' ninja village again. One more open to change, sustainable, and more promising than it's ever been at any point in their history.
At present, Tsutsuji counted herself fortunate not to have run into any remaining members of the Seven Shinobi Swordsmen directly. Generally, the Mizukage tended to keep the remaining members of the group close as to assassinate the more important, inspiring, and frustrating rebellion members, or to destroy newly discovered enemy encampments and their residents; be they ninja or protected civilians.
The Mizukage considered it a fine way to destroy the morale of and trust in the bloodline rebels. Other times he used them for a show of power, false flag operations, and propaganda purposes.
Still, she knew it was only a matter of time.
Tsutsuji let those worrisome thoughts be swept aside, bringing herself back to the present and the nearly completed first stage to her assignment given to her by the docile seeming Nao-kun via the Uzumaki siblings.
The first stage found her delivering large bundles of care packages that included weapons, medicines, armor/clothing, rations, and other miscellaneous items to several resistance camps spread throughout the land of mists. Of which her current delivery of the large scrolls with more scrolls sealed within this and attached to her person was, thankfully, her last. These items accounted for a large portion of the group's own storage cache, which Kei and Kayo assured would be easily replaced on their end by third parties.
To most it would seem like a lot, but given the needs and requirements of the rebel faction it was barely a drop in the bucket. Resources were always a needed requirement for a winning war effort.
After the final delivery was complete, she was meant to make contact with the leader of the squadron located at the encampment; who also happened to be acknowledged as the de facto rebel leader and place herself under this person's command until she was relieved by the Uzumaki siblings for debriefing and new orders. Or until the war ended. Or she died.
All in all it sounded as if she'd be kicking around with these bloodline rebels, directly, for quite some time.
Now, let it be known that Tsutsuji never showed displeasure or complained, but she wasn't exactly looking forward to being involved in a rebel war campaign.
Those two scheming red heads had proven themselves worthy though. More than competent and capable over the years since they recruited her into their fold. They would never ask her or any of the others to do something they couldn't or weren't willing to do for themselves. They were delegating, plain and simple.
Respect well earned.
She just didn't see much upside in getting involved in this civil war or how it could play into their greater plans. Other than 'maybe' gaining a few allies or favors later down the road...which could be done by other, less deathly means...like they've done before.
They were pretty much having her donate, i.e. giving away, their supplies and weapons cache which had all been painstakingly gathered for use in the later phases of their plans, though she admitted to herself she didn't know about the entirety of the siblings' big picture for their grand ambition; only bits and pieces like everyone else.
What they were having her do now could very well be a part of their plans without her knowing.
Tsutsuji had a few ideas of her own, but they were outright guesses at best. She did well not to let that bother her. What would be the point in that after dedicating her life to their, now her, cause? She trusted those Uzumaki implicitly and wouldn't start to question them now. She had no plans for doubting them on this or anything else.
They both earned her trust and she wholeheartedly gave it to them.
"Halt there!" Demanded a distant voice that pitched through the mists. "Take another step and we'll kill you where you stand! You have no business here. How did you bypass the traps and find this place to begin with?"
There was nothing around to match the voice to and thanks to the chakra filling the mists she was having a difficult time pinpointing the chakra signatures of the others she knew were surrounding her. She could feel several presences close around her.
The loner, Tsutsuji, sighed.
'As if ninjas never maneuvered past traps, or found places they weren't meant to find.' She thought while resisting the urge to shake her head full of twisted, soft, white hair.
Maybe there was one thing that bothered her. She knew those red-headed siblings knew who was in charge, who she was meant to report to. However, the name of said person had yet to be revealed to her and these ninja were all acting extremely tense…
Not that she blamed them.
They were in the midst of a bloody war effort. Still, it gave her the intense urge to reach out and stab someone right now. Because principles. 'I know I'd feel great after doing so,' the Kaguya kunoichi thought as she raised her hands up to show she was empty handed and meant no harm towards them.
Eventually she answered the idiot's stupid question since he didn't seem to know anything about what she was doing here.
"Your commander is expecting me. I'm a delegate here on behalf of the Hidden Stream Group. My name is Tsutsuji. The commander of the last rebel base I made my delivery to provided me with directions here along with how to navigate the traps, just like the commander I met with before him. I left the traps armed by the way." She answered, her tone flat with indifference.
It felt good not having to give up names, except her own. The Hidden Stream Group, or HSG, LLC. Incorporated. was what Kei simply called 'a front'. A nonexistent umbrella company for the things they did to house/transfer money...and other things.
Anyway, trust wasn't going to be earned with just that. It could be a lie after all. Tsutsuji would only be brought inside their encampment with torture or heavy handed interrogation a likely outcome.
"...Alright." A loud, exhausted sigh followed. "...Apprehend this woman. Bring her inside now...quickly!" The very next command was barked out by the same unseen existence. "And you, best not to move or struggle, lest you find yourself in a world of hurt."
Just as the words were spoken Tsutsuji felt herself taken hold by her wrists as her arms were forced behind her back and bound together.
"Gently, please… I'm just an innocent, young maiden after all." Tsutsuji said, affecting a gentle and ladylike presence now, along with a matching tone of voice.
"From where I'm standing, there's nothing innocent about you, lady." One of the unseen shinobi said from behind her.
"My, that's very sweet of you. You know just how to compliment a kunoichi, don't you?" She responded, but her smile was sadistic in comparison to her tone.
She tried to look behind her when there was no response, but a pair of hands grabbed her head from behind.
"Don't do that. Just comply and you'll be making this easy and simple for the both of us." Another said as she felt the weight of the scrolls she'd been carrying removed from her back.
They weren't freaking out. So, they have noticed she was a Kaguya yet.
The next thing she knew was unconsciousness. A silent, black existence overtaking her.
. … × … .
"So, because the second Hokage wasn't confident he could get a full alliance from the Uzumaki and other Whirlpool clans nor be able to control them… He instigated a bloody feud between Kirigakure and the Kaguya clan." Kayo explained while looking out to sea from the coast where he and Naruto sat.
"The second Hokage was great at controlling a narrative, as well as a great propagandist. Because of that and Whirlpool's late reaction to the lies that were spread, the village wasn't able to overcome it. Directly leading to the Kaguya's historic destruction and extinction." Kayo further explained.
Naruko hadn't stopped frowning since they started talking and Kayo began detailing the ancestry of her clan and 'would be' home.
He picked up where he'd just left off.
"Just that wasn't enough to truly move the needle, the Kaguya clan wouldn't fall for years yet; it was only beginning. Tobirama's real plan was to break the Uzumaki and their clans of their pride by dealing a heavy blow. Despite his brother's arranged marriage to Mito Uzumaki, who we discussed earlier, who wouldn't openly share her all her clan's secrets with him, they always had to get her to directly handle Konoha's serious issues dealing with sealing." Kayo sighed, running a hand through his hair as he took a breath.
"Mito did provide certain pieces of advice to him and Hashirama concerning fuinjutsu, however…they disliked having to ask her for anything. Reasons… Unknown. However, it was thanks to Mito that Hashirama became known for his legendary healing prowess; able to heal substantial injuries on multiple people at one time without experiencing chakra exhaustion. His Wood Release bloodline also provided him with an advantage to be able to do so. Exactly how, I'm not fully clear about, but it has something to do with natural chakra."
Kayo cleared his throat. Before they could get down to business there was more to be discussed first. It'd be great motivation for her later on.
Naruko's mismatched violet and blue eyes continued frowning at the tiding waters deep in thought, but her ears were keyed on to Kayo's voice.
"Despite obviously callous actions, we know that Tobirama didn't mean to see Uzushio destroyed. Whether he meant to or not is beside the point though. He still made the moves that caused a military coup between Mist and Cloud... And his bullshit wiped out our country, relatives, clans, and ancestors in one go.
"When he lost control over the situation he allowed the invaders to keep whatever they wanted…though he offered a bounty, stating he would buy any items or persons that were unwanted from them directly." Kayo paused. "My brother thinks he did that with plans to make amends and return these things to their rightful owners, but there was a hitch to that plan as well."
"The majority of the Whirlpool's clans secrets, artifacts, and the village's net worth largely remained. That's especially true for the Uzumaki. No one could use artifacts and weapons of the Uzumaki besides those with Uzumaki blood. In some cases, certain items would kill a foreigner that touched them, and others wouldn't even budge." Kayo further explained.
"Good, serves those bastards right." Naruko grumbled irritably, not liking any of what she'd been told so far. It was so dark...like a curse. She'd always wanted to know more about who she was and so far, she was finding much of it to be an ugly picture. Even worse, her 'home', Konoha, the village she was sure she'd willingly die and sacrifice for was behind the large majority of her ancestral people's misfortune.
In that light, certain parts of her own personal experiences with Konoha and it's people...made a lot more sense and gave her better clarity of her own life and situation there.
Earlier, Kayo had explained why the Whirlpool village's insignia could be found around Konoha and in their military issue dress. She'd scoffed when he told her; it seemed an insignificant penance. Easily overlooked and unacknowledged.
"Many of the things that were lost were personal belongings, unprotected family heirlooms, etc...anyway, your mother's grandparents were the then leaders of Uzushio. While your mother was shipped away to Konoha, most of her family stayed on Uzushio to help defend and seal off the village."
Naruko looked thoughtful, even a little more upset as she put a hand to her chin. "She was meant to bring everyone together under one banner, right?" She guessed, looking at Kayo for the first time in a while.
"Good, that's right, but it never happened. Mito later became I'll and passed away before she could properly prepare your mother for the responsibility and since she was never told everything, the idea fell apart. This also happened because she had her own life to fight for…"
"You told me her name is Kushina and how she got to Konoha, but that's all. Can you tell me more?" Naruko asked hopefully.
Kayo shook his head. "What I've told you is all I know. Just keep being patient, you'll find out eventually."
Naruko eyed Kayo closely. She found it interesting that he was telling the truth, not unlike the third Hokage. Every time she asked him the same thing, he looked guilty and she could tell he was lying.
"This is a lot...but I learned some new things. Just...can we stop for now?" The blonde sighed, what this faux Kayo told her was going to take some time to let sink in.
"Get up, girly." Kayo said as he stood up and waited for her to do the same. He placed a hand to her head then brushed some of her bangs aside to get a better look at her eyes. "There's just a few more things," he said. "I'll be quick about it."
Naruko looked up at him, but stayed silent and simply nodded.
"The third Hokage didn't intend for you to grow up under the scrutiny of an entire village." Said Kayo, shaking his head in thought.
"He really had the juice at one point, but he's a weak, tired leader now. Two different terms as Hokage, a war time Hokage twice over...that might make anyone complacent after a while." Seemingly considering something, Kayo muttered incoherently, and moved on.
"All credit where it's due, however, being Hokage is a bottom line job. You're only as good as your last win and holy shit, that man could use one. Soon as he knew he was compromised as a leader, he should've stepped down. That shit can only spiral outta control, no doubt." Naruko watched this iteration of Kayo and now thought he was the real one, because she couldn't tell where he was going with this. As usual.
"The old man mostly served as spectator for the Uchiha erasing, and he let the council maneuver him so they could gain in political power they didn't need nor deserve…" Kayo focused seriously on Naruko in a way that made the girl's heart jump. "You don't seem to get it...these things gave those bastards a say in your life. How you grew up, were treated, how you lived!" Naruko blinked in surprise and Kayo looked furious.
"A lot of them purposely, fucking leaked your secret and the third has never had anyone punished for it, despite his 'law'," the younger brother spat.
"Be fucking angry. Everyone, except you, gets to live in a relative, if not loosely controlled, freedom. Now, you tell me, after everything I've told you, who the fuck are they to judge you for anything?!"
Naruko blinked in the face of Kayo's demand.
"Well? Tell me!" He said again.
"N-no... nobody?" She hazarded a guess.
"Again. For real this time." A shady grin pulled at his lips.
Naruko frowned, head held up. "Nobody." Sternly came from the young girl's mouth.
"I can't. Fucking. Hear you!" Kayo returned.
"Fucking nobodies!" She screamed back.
"Got damn, I think I might got something to work with now." He teased, poking her on the cheek.
The blonde slapped his hand away. "No touching!" She frowned, challenging him with her eyes.
Kayo just laughed and nodded. "Threshold is more than enough now." He said as the elder brother Kei appeared just as his younger one had. "Let's get it in."
Naruko just watched as Kei responded as he usually would, by shaking his head. "What sorta talk is that for a teacher?"
•
Kayo felt a pulse of chakra and looked up, lifting the shades from his face that he'd put on when the sun decided it wanted to blind him.
"Pulling any business?" Kayo asked Kei as he returned, knowing he'd be working the shop rather than closing for the day to focus on this little project fully.
"Twenty or so orders, kinda slow honestly." Kei said with an easy shrug.
Kayo looked at him like he was crazy. "For what we charge? Shit, only you would call that slow. And it's barely past noon."
Kei sighed. "Try to see the larger picture at play. You know what Tsutsuji is doing and your cocky self promised the family that our cache would be 'easily replaced'. You said that crazy shit knowing we aren't near liquid enough to front up that kind of money. Hence, slow." Kei schooled his brother, or at least tried to, about the overarching reality of what they were doing.
"Whatever," Kayo scoffed, not concerned.
"Yeah, whatever." Kei shook his head.
"The threshold was just met. Met and thoroughly surpassed." Kayo informed his brother with an arrogant smirk.
"Surpassed…" Kei frowned, questioningly.
"Yeah. You can just call me your friendly neighborhood hype man." He laughed.
Kei sighed. "I really wish you hadn't."
"Whatever. I'm off to the shop, take care of our girl." Kayo walked to the edge of the roof and dropped down into an alley.
Kei sighed again. "Those redheads just had to make him Naruko's vassal."
. … × … .
Yeah… I know. Nah I ain't dead yet.
You wanna flame me, type up your own shit, do better than me, and then come talk shit.
The way you identify a hater on here. They talk big boy shit about your shit under guest accounts or accounts with nothing written.
Don't be confused, readers. I'm definitely open to CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM and I'm a very open person to communicate with. When we can agree to disagree, peacefully. We become a better person.
Until next time.