I DO NOT OWN DREAMING OF SUNSHINE OR NARUTO
I am merely making use of their characters, settings, and themes to tell a different story.
If anyone would like to use my own work as a base/inspiration for a fic, you are more than welcome to do so, just credit me in the beginning and maybe send me the link so that I can read it too, I'm always looking for more DOS recursive.
Well, I think that covers all of my bases, so with that out of the way, on to the fic!
Chapter 20: Reunions pt.1
Last night had been stressful for Shikako. Having her ANBU return in such a state, having to discuss how they planned to free Gelel without accidentally sparking a war, working with Minato to design a seal to contain Obito, realize none of them had actually told Minato that the man who attacked him and Kushina was in fact Obito, panic over how to tell Minato that the man who attacked his wife and newborn child was Obito, ultimately decide that the best option was to just not address it and how that it all worked out in the end…
So yeah, stressful. That's ok though, Shikako was used to stress - in fact, anxiety had been a constant companion throughout both of her lives. She wasn't worried. Nope. Why would she worry, it was just an S-class Shinobi discovering he'd been betrayed by one of his students whom he'd thought dead for upwards of a year now. Everything would be fine.
…probably.
—
Shikako wasn't avoiding her meeting. She was still going to be perfectly on time thank you very much. Minato had said to meet him at T&I at 0830 so that was when she would meet him. With 30 minutes to spare before she had to be there, Shikako decided to take the scenic route and make her way through the markets rather than use the rooftops as she normally did.
It was nice, actually. With how notorious she was back home (and the fact that her face was literally carved into the mountain), Shikako rarely ever got to see the village in its natural state. Without her noticing, a small smile had bloomed on her face as she marveled at the resilience of the civilian populations of hidden villages. Only a month out from the worst disaster Konoha had ever suffered and yet here they were simply going about their business as best they could. And their best was remarkably good all things considered. Given what she recalled of the recovery process the village underwent in her own dimension, this Konoha was already in a state that had taken her own almost nine months to achieve. Of course, there were a number of factors that probably helped this, such as the fact that they had stopped the Kyuubi much earlier here, this village didn't have to deal with a transfer of power on top of rebuilding efforts, and that Minato had both herself and her team who had a great deal of experience in situations similar (and usually worse) than this.
It was incredibly rewarding, being able to see tangible evidence of the positive impact she and her team had had here.
Turning the corner, Shikako froze in shock at who she saw.
' Uchiha Mikoto '
There was no mistaking it. Personally, Shikako had always thought that between the two of them it was Itachi who most closely resembled their mother, but seeing her now, Shikako found herself reevaluating that opinion. The eyes, the nose, the face shape… Sasuke just looked like a sharper, more masculine version of his mother.
Unfortunately, it would seem that Mikoto had felt someone's gaze upon her as she soon turned around and waved, clearly beckoning Shikako over. Ideally Shikako would have liked to play it off and continue about her business as if she hadn't seen Mikoto, but much to her dismay that option was no longer available.
' Shit, we made eye-contact. '
Deprived of her escape route, for a moment Shikako seriously contemplated pulling a Kakashi-sensei and just shunshining away like none of this had ever happened, but alas, cooler heads prevailed in the end, and she made her way forward with a halfhearted smile.
It wasn't that Shikako had anything against Mikoto - or the other Uchiha - it was just that enduring Itachi's Tsukiyomi wasn't something people could just 'get over'. Shikako was confident in her ability to maintain a normal conversation with an Uchiha, but that didn't mean she enjoyed the flashes of their deaths that always accompanied such interactions - even if she knew that about half of them hadn't even been the actual progression of events.
"My, what a pleasant surprise! It's not often that I see one of you out and about in the village unless you're working or with the Hokage. I've never seen anyone make as many clones as that Naruto fellow, quite impressive. Shikako-san, right? My husband mentioned you." She said, smiling pleasantly.
While on the surface her words may seem innocent and banal, Shikako could hear what was left unsaid.
' My husband mentioned you. So she knows, then. '
Shikako smiles and bows her head in greeting.
"Mah, a pleasure, Uchiha-sama." Shikako says.
Mikoto raises a hand to her mouth and giggles daintily.
"Come now, Shikako-san! If what I hear from Fugaku is correct, we're practically family! Please, call me Mikoto."
The pleasant smile remains unchanged on her face, yet Shikako would swear it had taken on a sort of evil gleam.
"Or maybe ' Okaasan ', if you insist on being formal."
Shikako swears her heart skips a beat.
' Oh. So she KNOWS knows. Ok. That's ok. Everythings fine. Nothing to worry about. I'm not panicking. '
"Actually Shikako- chan , I've been meaning to speak with you or Sasuke for a while now, so it's really quite fortunate that I've caught you today. Why don't you and Sasuke join us for dinner this evening, hm? How does 17:00 sound?"
' I'M PANICKING!'
It should go without saying that Shikako has zero experience when it comes to in-laws, and somehow she doesn't think pointing out to Mikoto that Shikako isn't technically married to Sasuke will dissuade her. So, she does what she does best and rolls with the punches. If that means that she accepted a dinner invite on her and Sasuke's behalf for tomorrow with his dead family who he all saw brutally murdered is hardly relevant. Sasuke's been avoiding them the entire time they've been here anyway, maybe this will help him get some closure.
—
Shikako arrives at T&I with roughly five minutes to spare and is immediately greeted with the annoyed face of one baby-Kakashi.
Shikako takes a moment to internally cringe at the emotional turmoil she's about to unleash on her Chibi-sensei. This may not be her Kakashi, but that doesn't mean she's any more comfortable with him suffering. And he will suffer from this, of that she's sure. Even if he can get past the initial blow that Obito is alive in the first place, with how smart Kakashi is Shikako doubts it will take him all that long to figure out just how Obito learnt both the date and location where Kushina would give birth. Shikako would like to spare him from this, truly, she would, but even if she asked Minato to dismiss him all she would be doing is delaying the inevitable.
With a heavy heart, Shikako plasters a brittle smile onto her face, claps her hands, and looks at the two men expectantly.
"Alright then. Now that everyone is here, let's begin, shall we?"
She'd soften the blow if she knew how, but as much as Minato has shown himself to be willing to suspend his disbelief, this is something they'll need to uncover themselves.
—
It goes about exactly as Shikako expects it to. Given the complexity of the seal, it takes her and Minato working together about 2 hours to ink it out across the floor. The entire time they're working Kakashi stands guard in the corner, a silent sentry to guard their vulnerable backs as they immerse themselves in the ebb and flow of the seals lines.
By the time they're finished, ink stains the cuff of Minato's sleeve and has somehow been smudged on his forehead. Shikako would laugh at the absurdity of such a powerful and composed shinobi with ink smudged across his face and staining his sleeves as if he were a child learning calligraphy, if she wasn't fairly sure she was just as bad at the moment.
Nonetheless, the silly sight granted a small but welcome reprieve from the heaviness that had been weighing on her since they had decided to do this yesterday.
Once the seals were dry, it was finally time for her to release the prisoner from her hammerspace. She could tell that had this been any other situation Minato would have been asking question after question about the mechanics behind her stasis storage, but right now his desire for answers was stronger than his interest in seals. That curious, almost hungry gleam she had come to associate with all seal practitioners flashed in his eyes as she unsealed the prisoner, but it was snuffed out just as quickly as Minato turned the full weight of his attention onto the man now lying unconscious on the floor.
Having spent so long in seal space, Shikako knew it would take Obito roughly a minute to orient himself. She took that time to place a few more physical and chakra restraints on him before placing him in the metal chair oriented in the center of the array. Using some rope, she further secured Obito's torso to the chair, forcing his body to sit up. Muscle weakness was also a side effect of prolonged exposure to seal space. While his upper body was now secured to the chair, his head still hung downwards, hiding his face. With Obito clearly stirring, Shikako knew she only had a few more seconds until he regained full consciousness. Making a quick decision, she decided to remove the mask he wore as well, before finally stepping out of the array, thus allowing it to activate fully.
Seconds go by, Obito having gone entirely ridgid as he took stock of the new circumstances he found himself in. It was Minato who broke the silence.
"You'll be glad to know that your attack has failed. Both Konoha and myself still stand despite your efforts to make it otherwise. You're powerful - extremely so. Clearly not just some rouge or wanderer either, that kind of power requires training and resources to nurture, and yet I've never heard of a nin - missing or otherwise - who matches your skill set. Who hid you only to send you off to your death? Was it Iwa? Maybe Kumo? Who are you?"
Shikako recognizes the interrogation tactic Minato is using, trying to plant the seeds of doubt in what he believes to be an enemy shinobi, trying to foster resentment to loosen lips. It's ironic, really, that he would choose the same method that had been used to such great effect already on Obito.
Obito lets out a bitter and scratchy laugh, mayhaps also drawing similarities between what Madara had done and what Minato was trying to do. Slowly, Obito raises his head, revealing his face, so different from when Minato would have last seen him yet still undeniably Obito .
"I'm hurt, you don't recognize me… Sensei ?" Obito says meanly.
A sharp inhale comes from the corner of the room followed by a low whine, both so quite that they'd normally go unnoticed, but in the thick and tense silence that has descended they seem so loud that it's almost unbearable.
Minato's face had fallen into a mask of perfect blankness as soon as Obito had finished speaking, but as her eyes flickered over to Kakashi it took a considerable amount of self control not to react. Kakashi's face - Shikako doesn't know how to describe the tsunami of emotions visible in his expression. Seeing someone with her sensei's face look so… broken was like getting kicked in the chest.
"Shikako-san."
Shikako turns to Minato, that perfect blankness still in place.
"Thank you for your assistance today."
It's a clear dismissal, and one she's incredibly thankful for. Shikako bows to Minato before she turns to the door and takes her leave.
—
Her exit from the T&I building is silent, as her thoughts keep circling back to the noise Kakashi had made when Obito had spoken.
She had hated it - it felt so wrong , and more than that she felt like it was her who had caused it. She's…not sure how Minato will choose to handle Obito now that he knows his identity. She'd never asked before, both because there was little point in knowing when it was not her place to interfere and because she couldn't be sure if his answer would remain the same once all the details were revealed to him. The Sandiame had been a sentimental man, but Minato hadn't been Hokage long enough before he died for people in her dimension to get a good idea of how he would rule. They knew how he commanded troops, but one must take into consideration that he did so under the Sandaime. The question now was what kind of Kage he would be when it came down to it.
Would he be the Sandaime, sentimental to the end?
Would he be the Nidaime, who prized logic above all?
Or maybe, would he be something completely new and unto himself?
Only time would tell, and in her world, he had not had enough of it to do so, which meant his actions and decisions here would be a defining moment in his reign - even if no one knew it.
Checking the time, Shikako saw it read 10:45 which mean she had roughly 6 hours until she and Sasuke had to be at Mikoto's for dinner…
' Shit, dinner. I haven't told Sasuke yet. '
Contemplating her options, Shikako decided to send him a message through their connected seals. Technically these were one of the failed prototypes for the seal she used on her ANBU - they'd been forced to scrap it due to the strain it placed on the chakra system when linked to more than one other seal - that didn't mean they were useless though, just that they wouldn't be used for the purpose they were initially intended for - i.e quick communication with Sasuke.
Pulling out a brush, Shikako began writing what she wanted to say on her arm.
'I saw your mother at the market this morning. She thinks we're married. We've been invited to dinner at 1700 this evening. Be ready.'
Satisfied she had communicated all the pertinent information, Shikako infused the ink with her chakra and connected it to the seal. Infused with her chakra the ink sank into her skin before being sucked into the seal which would transfer it to the other seal. Perhaps the best thing about these seals is that they required the use of ink to activate, which mean that Sasuke was forced to wait before he could respond since - unlike her - he didn't carry calligraphy equipment with him.
As she thought over what to do with the remaining time until dinner, Shikako was reminded of something else she had been avoiding. While Sasuke may have been the one to do it most actively, Shikako can admit to herself that he's not the only one who's been avoiding his family. Sighing, Shikako looks off in the direction of the hospital.
' It's a bit far, but at least then by the time Sasuke stops to read my message I'll be on the other side of the village. '
If Sasuke was going to be facing his family, then she would too - a gesture of solidarity, if you will.
Maybe if she was lucky, she could even get in and out of there without running into her parents.
With the way her day was going though, she wouldn't bet on it.
—
Kakashi stood frozen outside of the seal array as he stared at the man who was apparently responsible for the attack that had released the Kyuubi upon the village, the attack which had almost cost him everyone he had left in one fell swoop. Sure, Naruto may have been able to survive, but Kakashi knows himself - had Sensei and Kushina perished during the attack he wouldn't have stuck around. Kakashi would never kill himself, not after what his father did, but if he had died on a mission…
Kakashi would rather not pursue the thought any further.
Turning his attention back outwards, Kakashi takes in the man before him. Bound with both physical and chakra restraints, he sits on a cold metal chair in the center of the seal array Sensei and Shikako had developed and drawn for the express purpose of rendering his powers inert. Kakashi would think that simply sealing the man's chakra would be enough, but with how reluctant the Uchiha were to share any details - much less weaknesses - on the Mangekyo they had apparently decided it was better not to take any chances lest the man's eye somehow allowed him to bypass such measures.
He can't recall the exact words Shikako had muttered while she was helping Sensei lay the seal, but it was something along the lines of 'Magic-eye bullshit'. He'd heard many complaints regarding the advantages the sharingan afforded their wielders over the years, but he'd never heard it phrased quite like that.
A hoarse and raspy voice breaks him from his thoughts.
"Why don't you take a picture Bakashi, it'll last longer." He says acerbically.
Kakashi swallows, realizing he'd been caught staring - though, that implies he'd really been trying to hide it in the first place. Of course he was staring, before him sat the boy he'd thought dead for going on two years now. Kakashi had had many a daydream (never at night, that was a time reserved solely for nightmares) over the past two years of how different things might have been had Obito survived that fateful mission. So many different scenarios, of where Kakashi hadn't waited as long to retrieve Rin, where he was able to get them all out before the cave collapsed (where he took Obito's place beneath the rubble). None of them had been like this. This was the type of scenario that haunted his nightmares.
Never in Kakashi's wildest dreams would he have ever imagined himself anything less than ecstatic to see Obito, and yet…
Obito had tried to kill Sensei and Kushina, had almost orphaned Naruto, was directly responsible for releasing the Kyuubi and sending it on a rampage.
Within Kakashi his ideals, emotions, trauma, and conditioning waged war on one another, with no clear end in sight. How does one reconcile with what he has learned here today? He's not sure, and the longer that uncertainty drags on the more it threatens to tear him apart.
Leave a review and let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!
