A/N: Omg I am so, so sorry for the long delay, life just got incredibly busy and stressful. There were so many issues with my university paperwork and when that got fixed then there were issues when trying to add my classes for my next term, and then I got a heat stroke so...yay? I swear I'm back tho, there should be no more random drama and I'm making sure to drink a lot of water and avoiding the sun.
Chapter 70: Lingering trails
"I see..." Calculating golden eyes stared back at her. Their return had been considered important enough to the matriarch to abandon a previous engagement. "It is good to see you all in good health, even if not all goals could be achieved."
Keeping the smile on her face needed far less effort now. Over the last few weeks of travel, unease managed to burrow its way inside her bones, making her second guess almost everything they'd done so far. The realization that there had been something else that succeded in passing undetected by her was unsettling. It didn't help that even after paying more attention to it, Kagome couldn't tell if there had been a change in this unknown observer or not. Sure, back when they'd first stepped into the Higurashi ruins, the girl had felt far more relaxed than she'd ever done after the massacre, but she'd chalked that up to the overwhelming feeling of reiki blanketing the place. Not once did she think it could be because the inner barriers had interrupted whatever had been monitoring for the entirety of her life.
And yet, she couldn't understand why she failed to feel danger until she tried to speak out to Itachi.
The danger had passed so suddenly Kagome almost doubted her senses and blamed the stress and anxiousness of the unplanned encounter. After all, despite taking so many detours that feeling of danger never returned, she could feel no difference now that she was back inside the wards of the Taisho compound. It wasn't just her imagination; it couldn't be. Trusting her instincts had kept them alive so far, and she would not start doubting them now. Not that this was the moment or place to be thinking about this newest unanswered question.
"While some of our goals are still pending, this did give us the chance to make some progress," Kagome said, polite mask back in place. "We are extremely grateful for the information provided.
"It was the least we could do when we were given so much trust on your part." The silver-haired woman waved her fan around in a seemingly careless gesture. "Having a first-hand account of something so monumental is also greatly appreciated. Suna has made quite the effort to fog as much as possible; a sensible decision, if somewhat irritating."
Sensible and unsurprising, considering that out of the Big Five, Sand was the only village that had suffered such a huge loss in the last decade or so. To have everyone know that not only were they attacked by a terrorist group like Akatsuki, but that the Kazekage himself had been killed during the attack and lost the power of the Bijuu was not the kind of rumors they wanted to be spread. Vulnerability should not be shown in the shinobi world, not by individual nins, not by the nations nor their leaders.
The girl didn't quite think about her report as a betrayal; after all, as far as history was concerned, the Taishos would definitely jump into a war, but they were never the ones who ignited the match for those conflicts. Honestly, if she had to guess, the people more likely to weaponize such knowledge were the members of the more respected Hidden villages. Outcasts or not, the ancient clan could be trusted on that. And really, if Kagome wanted this plan of hers to work, then she needed to make it look like she was willing to work with them. Oh, the girl wouldn't fool herself into thinking that she could completely fool someone as experienced as the Kunoichi in front of her, but she could still obfuscate reality. At times, simply downplaying the severity of the situation was more than enough.
"Well, we'll keep our eyes open." Kimi-sama's smile was as practiced as her own. "As soon as more news reaches us, we'll make sure you are informed."
Golden eyes watched her, amused.
She supposed it was to be expected. For the first time since their encounters within Konoha, the two women were alone. It was part a fortuitous opportunity and part fabrication. As luck would have it, tradition chained down the patriarch to help build a new house for a soon-to-be-married couple, but the older had made her move, and Kagome chose to respond by sending Sasuke and the others away after giving their official report. The Uchiha would definitely sulk for a while, but it couldn't be helped. They needed to look willing to play the woman's game.
"There was something else I wished to ask about..." she trailed off, her gaze lowering in a deliberate motion.
"Go on, darling." Kimi's posture didn't change a bit, still lazily sitting on the other side of the mahogany desk. "No need to be so wary when it's just us, kunoichi."
Keeping her scoff restrained to the back of her throat was nothing short of a miracle.
Not much was publicly known about the Taisho clan, but even then, its matriarch's shrewd reputation had reached her while still living inside Konoha. If there was one person one should never let their guard down within the shinobi world, it would be Taisho Kimi.
"I was wondering if perhaps you'd have some information on a certain group of people." And this was the reason she'd chosen to stay behind.
"Not members of Akatsuki, I presume."
"Not at all...these people, we encountered them shortly after our encounter with Akatsuki." Just the right amount of information for her to be able to use the clan's resources, nothing more could escape her. "Or rather, they came after us."
"Hmm, bounty hunters capable of escaping your group."
"Shameful as it is to admit it, we were taken by surprise, although, in hindsight, it wasn't a coordinated attack." Unexpected and unplanned, and with terrible timing too. "One of the group's members attacked us. At the time, we thought him a lone pursuer..."
"Until his companions showed up," Kimi finished for her.
"I wouldn't place them at the same level as Akatsuki, of course, but the intervention forced us back enough to allow their escape." This time, Kagome didn't look down.
This was nothing but a needless power play, but judging by the glint on the Taisho matriarch's eyes, it was a game she was getting some enjoyment from. Between the two clan leaders the woman was clearly the more flexible one. Whatever the Taishos expected to get from this, the older kunoichi was the one more interested in allowing them to move as they wished. If what she had to do to remain in the older woman's good graces was to waste some time retaining information she planned to reveal anyway, that was just what she would do.
"I'm presuming this happened after the whole Akatsuki debacle?"
"Indeed, we probably shouldn't have let our guard down on the way back, however..."
"After such a tiresome encounter, it's only human to be tired, darling." The woman's amusement was dripping from every word. "But do tell something more, dear, I'd love to offer some help, but a little detail would certainly be appreciated."
"Jakotsu and Renkotsu, those were the two names I heard. But there was a third person, at the very least. A poison user."
"Hmmm, the fighting styles of the other two?"
"Renkotsu used a single fire-based jutsu, and Jakotsu seemed to use a unique sword; it folded in on itself..." The Higurashi trailed off, trying to think back on the part of the battle she managed to see. "It was likely controlled by chakra."
With a graceful movement, the woman was up and walked past her. Close enough for the fabric of the white kimono to brush against her in what could only be a deliberate decision though what was the reason behind it, Kagome wasn't sure. Following a step behind, the girl watched as the Taisho matriarch went through one of the many shelves that adorned the elegant office.
"If I'm correct, then those three names come from a 7-man group; they call themselves the Shichinintai...not particularly creative." Kimi's words were flippant as she read the file she'd retrieved. "They've only recently begun to make a wave within our information networks. All of them are former Grass nins that left their village about a year and a half ago. High priced, so not many have been willing to pay up when they are mostly unknown. They are pure mercenaries with no clear agenda of their own. If they are the ones after you, then someone was willing to pay quite a fair amount of money."
"Kusagakure..." They had been in the country once or twice while she and Sasuke remained under Orochimaru's apprenticeship, but there wasn't anything particular about it. "If they are rogues, then any country can be involved."
"You can keep that until you're done with them. We will make sure to send someone to gather more information on them. Of course, after all, it would seem that the group is worth its price. Did you manage to get something on their current employer?" With no hesitation, the silver-haired woman handed her the files.
"Not at all; as I mentioned, this was an unplanned attack made by one of their more impulsive members."
Not a lie.
Not technically, anyway, even though she was confident the person behind the Shichinintai was the same person that kept sending useless spy after useless spy.
The man with the baboon pelt.
But this was the exact kind of information she wanted to keep to herself. Acquiring data on this was a delicate task, in a way, and for as much help as the Taishos were apparently willing to give them, they had no guarantee they wouldn't turn on them later on. No, this was the sort of thing she needed to get someone who felt some obligation to them. And she already had someone in mind.
"Having someone else look into it will not be a stretch." Red painted lips curved in yet another amused grin. "By the way, darling, do you think you can make some time two days from now?"
"I...believe so; odds of us to leave in a rush so soon are quite low, after all." Surprise almost made her falter.
"Perfect then, Izayoi has been trying to get some shopping time, and I do believe one can never have enough clothes, don't you agree?"
Huh?
Forcing a smile to her lips, Kagome did her best to regain some of the balance that had been swiftly pulled away from her. With just one comment, whatever control over the conversation she'd had was stolen from her.
"Clothes can often get ruined in this line of work." Her comment was vague and open-ended, far from her best work. "It's such a pity when I have t throw away a perfectly lovely kimono just because the color doesn't quite go back to what it should."
"Oh, I knew you'd seen my point. I'm sure Izayoi will be delighted to hear you accepted her invitation. All the costs are on us, naturally."
"Ah, there is no need..."
Money was not something they'd considered all that much. Orochimaru had covered any and all need they may have, and during their travels, they'd either make use of the handful of people Kagome picked as the base of her information network or made do with the money they'd taken from the snake Sannin's facilities.
"Nonsense. What kind of hosts would we be if we couldn't provide for our guests with a couple of outfits?"
Wait...guests...
It couldn't be...did she really want all four members of her improvised group to go...shopping?
"It shouldn't take longer than a single afternoon. Hopefully. Having so many people helping to carry whatever can be bought could tempt Toga's darling into a spree, but we can always cross our fingers." There was no room for any kind of polite objection.
"Oh dear...it's going to be an eventful afternoon."
With a smile and a laugh, the girl made sure to make her exit.
Thank the gods she'd send everyone else away for this because there was no way in hell either Sasuke or Suigetsu would've quietly agreed to what was basically wasting a whole afternoon looking at fabrics. There was a reason why she'd requested for new sets of clothes shortly before they left the snake Sannin; that way, it would be a while before she had to annoy Sasuke into accompanying her inside a clothes shop.
Really, she had no clue how to go about convincing those two that they had to go through with the outing. The only one that wouldn't need to be dragged was Juugo.
It was fine...Izayoi was one of the key pieces on the Taisho's side of the board. And while politically savvy, she still lacked the kind of paranoia that came with the shinobi lifestyle of infiltrations and assassinations. Besides, she could use more clothes; she wasn't that big of a fan of Kabutp's annoying little details that referenced the now-defunct Oto. If those two wanted to put up a fight, she'd just have to find out what buttons to push to get them to move.
Well, find out what could move Suigetsu, since Sasuke would give in eventually.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Maybe...
Maybe, if Tsunade just pretended she couldn't see the two kunoichis in front of her waiting for her to continue, they would disappear together with all the complications Sakura's and Shizune's reports implied.
On the one hand, the young Kazekage was still alive, with only Konoha and the outliers that were the Uchiha and Higurashi brats in the know, the delicate balance between the elemental nations had somehow managed to remain intact. If the other countries were to know that the one jinchuuriki in Suna's possession was gone, the Senju had no doubts that one of the others would've tried to take it upon themselves to create problems once more. The addition of the two clan heirs had certainly been unexpected. Especially the girl's continued support after facing the copies of the maybe-not-insane Uchiha and his partner were dealt with. But from what she'd been able to gather from the report, it was unlikely the Higurashi would let the news slip to someone who could start yet another war.
On the other hand, there was no more doubt now, the Akatsuki were on the move. And had also added the two brats that crashed their operations...plus, she still hadn't decided on a course of action that didn't have a potential disaster waiting at the end of the road. Outing the corruption within the government would place the village in danger, but allowing it to continue was not something that could be allowed. Not only because of her morals. At the end of the day, she was a shinobi first, just like everyone involved in this annoyingly contrived shitstorm. She could swallow her pride and do what was best for her people...except it wasn't that simple. The council needed to be dealt with, or she'd risk them going after the two rogue clan heirs behind her back. Not to forget about their own jinchuuriki's frayed but enduring bond with them. Naruto's motivation to train with Jiraiya had been to get those two out of Orochimaru's hand without losing control of himself. Willing to forgive them or not, he wouldn't stand by and let them be killed.
He'd already requested to be allowed to hunt Akatsuki on his own.
But she still needed to figure out where Uchiha Itachi stood in all of this. Telling the boy how her investigation was a bad idea all over. Hell, Shizune had questioned the decision of sending the prankster on this last mission, even knowing keeping the boy here was not an option. They'd be driven mad by the boisterous blond before he agreed to sit quiet and wait it out.
Tsunade needed a drink.
Badly.
"About Sasuke-kun's location..." Sakura started.
"We have nothing." As always, the pinkette was focused on one thing only. "There's a report that might fit their description in one of the towns that border Suna, but they might as well have disappeared after that."
Chances of them hiding in a place like Sand where outsiders stood out like a waterfall in the middle of their desert were null anyway. If they were always on the move as they hunted down the rogue nins pinpointing their location was almost impossible.
"In that case, Akatsuki might be our best shot to find them," Sakura added, finally remembering they were chasing more than just the Uchiha. "If there's any new info, we can be sent..."
"There are no new reports. None that can be considered reliable." Shizune shook her head.
"There is, however, something else we found out..." And this precise lead had been sitting on her desk for a while now, waiting for the Godaime Hokage to make a decision. "It might prove useful, or not at all."
"Wait, Tsunade-sama, you don't mean..."
"One of the people in charge of looking after the ruins of the underground passage found in the Higurashi compound found something." The blonde woman leaned on the handrails of the Hokage's tower's roof. This was it; she couldn't keep running away to make the first move. "A map, it was severely damaged either by the explosion or Kagome's own attempt to destroy it. In fact, it was bad enough that we only managed to recover a very small portion of it...but we may know the location of a couple of older compounds."
When Hyuuga Neji's report about encountering the girl after she raided her own abandoned district, Tsunade sent a team of hand-picked ANBU, with Yamato in charge. The resulting investigation gave her little to work with. Ashes tainted what little was left. Any indications that there had once been a massive number of scrolls were either burned to the ground or taken in the bag the heiress had been carrying. How in the world the girl who'd never had access to anyone with personal knowledge about her family traditions found out about the underground passages found out about them, the Godaime had no idea. Really, it only raised more questions.
"Huh?" Naruto's voice reached them before the prankster landed on the railing. "We already know where her family's compound was, right?"
Cheeky brat had been listening in secret. Of course he was. The boy just couldn't patiently wait at home even when their team leader was stuck in the hospital.
"Sakura."
"Right," Her student was quick to go into lecture mode. "Before Konoha was first established, it wasn't uncommon for clans to be nomadic in nature; they just followed whatever wars they found jobs in and moved around as they pleased. Some others remained in the same place, giving rise to conflicts for territory and clients. But even then, it wasn't strange for the defeated clan to retreat and run to another place." That had been a bloody and cruel time Tsunade was fortunate enough to have missed. "After Hidden villages became standard most clans settled down. The only known family that remains nomadic is the Taisho clan, and rumor has it they count with several settlements scattered all over the elemental countries."
"Not that anyone has managed to get a trustworthy confirmation or even an approximation of where they may be," the Hokage huffed.
"The Higurashis were thought to be the same," Sakura continued after nodding. "Their knowledge about medical jutsus meant they had to have a place to conduct their research on, but stories place them in every nation at some point or another."
"Wait, so you think they could be using one of those old places as some sort of base?"
"Well, we can't really guarantee anything..." Shizune attempted to intervene, a vain try to keep the prankster's expectations low.
"Shizune is right. To begin with, we were only able to recover two potential locations; there may have been another dozen for all we know." Kakashi trained the girl well. Barely anything was left of the underground ruins. "And even if that wasn't the case, we don't know if there's anything of value in those places; they may be completely empty."
Considering no report hinted at the girl being overly proud of her heritage there was a good chance this was a useless endeavor, but this gave her the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. It would keep Naruto occupied and out of the village, and it would also let her send someone to investigate the other letter that had been burning her desk's drawer. Jiraiya only ever contacted her to bring her headaches, it seemed. But Tsunade wasn't about to complain about it now. If things went well, then the one odd lead her perverted teammate got from that one bar could be useful.
"We'll go anyway." Naruto's determined voice broke her train of thought. "Kagome-chan mentioned her family used to have a barrier around the compound, if the others do too, they would be a good place to set base."
"Kakashi is still in the hospital; we can't send only the two of you." Cautious as always, Shizune tried to object.
"I will find members to fill in the gaps, Naruto..."
"Right!" The prankster cut her off. "I'll go looking for members right away!"
"Bah, always rushing." With a huff Tsunade could only watch as the orange figure grew smaller as the impulsive genin went into town.
"Tsunade." Annoyance coursed through her at the familiar voice belonging to the old council kunoichi's. "I would like to speak with you...come."
Great.
Just what she needed to start off the day, a council-induced migraine.
o-o-o-o-o-o-
Recovering from death was a faster process than he thought it would be, considering that was the one condition people usually didn't recover from. And yet, he could say there was little to do in the manner of physical therapy. In fact, he felt almost entirely rested. No muscle pain, no issues with his chakra control, no signs of sickness or health-related issues. The only thing that lingered had been the odd warmth from the Higurashi girl's kekkei genkai. Kakashi-san asked him to keep the unexpected intervention quiet. Information blockades were working as they should. There were some leaks but nothing that couldn't be controlled. In the shinobi world, there would always be some information that could not be stopped, but by flooding the channels with enough rumors and misinformation, the additions of the missing clan heirs could be mistaken as yet another unreal tale. It wasn't like it took that much more work to dilute the news of his temporary death either.
Hopefully, if anyone were to see the short burst of light coming from the Kazekage's office window, it would blend in with the rest of the rumors.
"Only a little over two weeks and already back to work." Her voice was playful in a way he'd never gotten to hear before, but it was undeniably the voice of Higurashi Kagome. "I do hope a medic already approved of this. It would be a shame to have spent so much energy for you to fall sick so soon after I helped heal you, Gaara-san."
"I was given a full health check," the redhead replied.
"Huh, not surprised to see me in the slightest."
"Reiki feels...different...even now, though it takes longer to notice it." Back in Konoha, and even during the attack in Suna, the odd energy flared to his senses and captured his attention the second the girl released it. But he only noticed the handful of azure butterflies shortly before he saw them flutter to his window. "And offering such help to a leader of a Hidden village, I doubt you came to ask after my health."
Gaara had wondered when he first saw the girl when they were both falling down how he was supposed to deal with her intervention. It wouldn't do to just attack her or forcibly return her to Konoha after trying to save his life, let alone restore it and keeping his people safe. She'd also brought back his location to Suna despite having no need to do so. But Konoha wanted her and the Uchiha back.
Really, he was working in the loophole that technically, none of the members of her group had a price on their heads, and he could tell this was the same so-called paper doll that had treated him. He still had no real information on her whereabouts, and there was no use in capturing what was little more than a puppet. The redhead still had some wiggle room to keep silent about this encounter. Something that would only be appliable as long as she didn't ask for the sort of compensation she would've usually been entitled to.
"Now that's rude. Do I look that cold to you?" There was an amused expression on her face as she got comfortable on his window sill. "Sure, I salvaged this shikigami, but the three years of steadily pouring energy onto it won't come back. As is, this won't hold up against a single attack."
He...believed that part, at least.
The words she gave to Chiyo-sama and the other as she helped the old lady heal him were most certainly true. Even if there were still secrets hidden. Idly, Gaara wondered if there was something there that only Naruto could figure out.
"I appreciate it..." The words felt somewhat odd. Social interaction was still something he struggled with. "There was no need for you to go that far."
"Perhaps, but it felt like something I had to do."
"To make Naruto's pain lighter?"
"Well, Suna is definitely in good hands if their Kazekage is this sharp." Her practiced smile fell and morphed into something softer. "He didn't deserve that burden; neither of you did."
"All shinobis are just tools, was it?"
"Fair enough," the Higurashi laughed at the memories of her partner's words towards him. "That said, you were right. I did not come just to do a check-up."
He couldn't help the tension that filled his frame. This was precisely what he'd wanted to avoid. After all, his loyalty towards Konoha started because of the gratitude he felt towards the blond jinchuuriki. A gratitude that could easily clash with what she asked for.
Either he must've done a worse job at keeping his cold facade, or she was better at reading other than he'd thought because she was quick to add. "Oh, it's nothing that will harm Konoha or Suna, for that matter. In fact, it's more of a...personal...petition."
Withholding a sigh, the redhead nodded at her to continue.
"There is someone I need to find some information on."
"Akatsuki?"
"Not exactly. I already have ways of looking into them." Yes, that sounded about right for the girl. "No, this is something far more delicate, something I can't trust just anyone with."
The memory of the first time he saw her flashed through his mind.
An unexperienced genin, a younger and physically weaker girl, tying his siblings in knots and using nothing but words and polite expressions. Back then, Shuukaku's immediate obsession with her had been enough to blind him to the very real weapon that political savviness could and had become with the added experience of tricking a Sannin. Now, the perfect imitation of her gentle expression and soft praises coming from the shikigami only made him wonder how much of her words were calculated?
"The aid you and your group provided cannot go forgotten."
Not the fact that she tried to save him nor the fact that it had been her who'd allowed him and his siblings to escape the failed Konoha invasion.
"I wasn't planning on asking anything for it, but..." the Higurashi sighed before she shook her head. "There is someone after us, not surprising. We've been expecting that since before we left the village. But this one... this one is different. I haven't been able to shake off whatever it is he is using to keep tabs on us, and he has upped his game b contracting an actual mercenary group."
"And you couldn't get the name from them?" His words were more of a statement than a question.
"See, that's the thing. There is no name." There was a slight hint of frustration in her words now. "Granted, the only ones I've asked about were all weaker bounty hunters, but I doubt this guy gave the other any substantial information about himself."
"What do you have then?"
"He's a man wearing a baboon pelt." Her tone remained mostly neutral as she spoke, but he wasn't sure how much of the irritation he could hear was purposeful. "Rich enough to contract the Shichinintai and with the kind of resources that can keep tracking us without me being able to detect anything. The people after us are coming from all over the Elemental nations. I've yet to pinpoint a favored country."
From what he'd heard so far, the girl was usually regarded as kind and even benevolent, but there was no way the people she got this information from had willingly talked. Seeped in hatred for so long, Gaara had gained an affinity to feel the emotion in others, and while the Uchiha all but shouted how much darkness he held inside him, he'd felt it coming from her as well. It was quieter, subtler, and hidden under layers of politeness and gentle smiles, but there was hatred in her soul too. If he had to hazard a guess, she'd been the one in charge of the interrogations. How many people had she caught to feel that confident about her estimations? How many had she condemned?
Shaking his head, Gaara tried to focus. It was true that he'd been doing his best to separate himself from the unhinged bloodlust of his once-imprisoned guest, but taking lives from others was part of the job, even now.
"If I were to find anything..." His words were all but a confirmation.
"This little dear will pass by every once in a while," the girl said, extending an arm. A small butterfly came in through the window, landing on her hand. "Just leave a note where it can be seen."
"...what is it you plan to do about Naruto?"
Imitation azure opened wide, taken by surprise before the paper doll smiled ruefully.
"Sasuke isn't the type to forgive easily." Her hand moved, sending away the shikigami as she gripped her shoulder. "At times, he can't reconcile what he knows with what he feels...as for me...honestly? I'm not even sure myself, but...at the very least, I won't just let him die."
A flurry of butterflies filled his window as soon as the last word was out of the Higurashi's lips. The copy of the girl he'd been talking to was now nothing more than a slip of paper carried by the fake insects.
His sister's distinctive knock echoed just a second later.
"Gaara, we got..." Temari trailed off, confused to see him standing in the middle of the room and staring at nothing, more than likely. "Wait...did someone..."
Technically, Gaara reminded himself, doing this favor could not be called a betrayal. Nothing about their location could be gained from this meeting, and Naruto would only feel useless for being stuck on his search.
"Temari, I want our intelligence teams to be on the lookout for one more thing, a man wearing a baboon pelt, willing to hire rogues and with a contract to the Shichinintai." He'd ponder what to do if they managed to get some information once he had it in his hands. For now, however, this wouldn't hurt either of the villages the Kazekage considered important.
o-o-o-o-o-
"Did you see, sister?"
Sango grinned as a laugh escaped the weapon's expert at the sight of her little brother's enthusiasm. The boy had no desire to become a full-fledged shinobi, too kind to ever be happy about entering the battlefield or hurting someone else in the heat of battle. But he still wanted to learn enough to be able to protect himself in case he ever needed to be sent out. And so, the young girl tried to help him out whenever she had some free time.
"You did great, Kohaku." There was still room for improvement, but if she had her way, the boy wouldn't need to use the skills he was honing. "If you place just a little more twist to your wrist, it will hit with more strength."
"Like this?"
"A bit less," she cautioned as the blade now barely hit the target.
"This way?"
The soft thud of the kunai hitting the center of the target, the older teen clapped, sheering her brother on. They both knew he wasn't keen on leaving the Taisho compounds, but as an outlier, he could use the extra praise. It wasn't that people here didn't appreciate the work the few who didn't like to fight did; medics would always be needed, the few traders and artisans were all valued. And yet, there was no denying that most everyone else, including Sango herself, ended up placing strength first.
Then again, in the shinobi world, no one could survive without power.
After all, wasn't that what motivated Konoha to do something as outrageous as killing off two of their founder clans. It took a lot of effort to keep a frown from marring her face when the thought crossed her mind.
When she'd seen the younger kunoichi asking Sesshoumaru-sama to carry a message, a potential coup along with an even bigger conspiracy coming from the Hidden village itself had not been what she'd been expecting to find out. But the story was too out there for anyone to make up and think it believable. Besides, someone like Kimi-sama would've been capable of seeing through it in a heartbeat. Instead, the two heirs plus their heir had spent a week pouring through the documents the Higurashi girl provided, and the verdict was that it was all legitimate. So the Taisho compound became a haven for Kagome-chan's group. The same day, an information blackout was ordered as well.
As far as the world knew the mismatched group of young shinobis had vanished on the road.
Of course, the reasoning behind why they were bothering to harbor people as potentially problematic for their treaty had only been shared with the families' heads. Sango reassured herself by thinking that every other member of the main branch had to know Inuyasha would end up caving and giving her and Miroku his recollection of what had gone on inside the room before the youngest Taisho was basically kicked out. Until a decision was made as to how to handle the news about Konoha's corruption, regular clan members were not told a thing other than that it was confidential.
That was just how things were handled in the clan. The main family guided them to victory and made sure to act in their best interest; in return, the other families placed their trust in their decisions. The other heads being told was more a courtesy than a rule. Whether someone disapproved or not made no difference, the role of the other clans was to provide council, not make decisions themselves. Sango held no delusions about it; one day, she'd take her father's place as an advisor to Sesshoumaru-sama, and that would be it. Her opinions would be heard, and she could try to argue her part, but only the head could decide what to do. Not like she would've asked for the young Higurashi and her group to be sent away. Despite Miroku's warnings, the weapon specialist couldn't erase two moments from her head.
Kagome-chan's calm facade breaking down, when she was trying to make surer the Uchiha was safe after fighting Orochimaru, leaving behind only a scared and worried child, panicking for the sake of her loved ones.
That and the lost expression on the younger girl's face as she stood under the rain while wondering if her actions would've caused her family to criticize her.
Finding out about such a betrayal... It had to be devastating for the younger girl. Trying to even imagine how she'd react had Sango been in her place only served to give her a headache, and yet, the one thing she knew for sure was that she wouldn't have been able to keep so calm and quietly orchestrate such a grand escape plan. Guilt made her stomach churn; she'd wanted to take some time to talk to her, actually chat instead of veiled interrogation attempts, but the older teen hadn't wanted to overwhelm Kagome-chan. After getting a bit more settled, Sango had decided then she'd make sure they could have a good talk, maybe a bit of a spar...but not three days into their stay, the girl and her group were gon, hot on the trails of Akatsuki.
"You know, if you're that worried about her, why not just go and visit her once they're back, nee-san?"
"Huh?" The weapon's expert looked up to see her brother taking a seat on the grass next to her.
"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?" Kohaku asked; he didn't look upset. "Rin-chan told me Kagome-san and the others returned late last night. They were there for breakfast, so why don't you just go?"
"I'm not..." The words died in her mouth, she tried again. "It's not...!"
"You know, I think that before anything else, nee-san, you're definitely the kindest person I know."
"Hmph, and you're certainly perspective." He would make a great medic. "But...you may have a point."
"Even if you can't find her, you can always say you're looking for Inuyasha-san," Kohaku laughed at her annoyed glare.
"Fine, fine, I get it. I should've done this the very first day, shouldn't I?"
With the contents of their mission being confidential, there weren't many people Sango could turn to for advice, and the ones in the know had already expressed their opinion quite clearly. Still, it was an opinion the girl couldn't really agree with. Kohaku had easily accepted to hear her concerns without asking for any extra information, basically becoming her confidante when it came to her mixed feelings about the whole Higurashi business.
"Honestly, though, I think you're better than me in giving good advice."
"I'm just happy I can help." Red crept into her brother's cheeks at the praise.
"You're always great help."
Nodding to herself, the weapon specialist stood up.
Chances of yet another incoming news about Akatsuki so soon after the small group just came back were unlikely, but Sango didn't want to risk it. Because she couldn't help thinking there was something odd with this whole story.
Power was the main motivation for people who formed part of their world. If it was to obtain more, the older teen could see people going as far as selling their own souls. And yet, the more she thought about the whole thing, something didn't quite fit. Konoha already had their hands on the power of those two clans, so why would they pick the one choice that assured that strength would be lost?
Was it really just because they couldn't control them anymore?
It could be...or maybe not.
Somehow, she felt that Miroku and all the others looking into this were focusing too much on the details and missing something crucial in the big picture.