Kitsune no Ken GAIDEN Chronicles

Written by Neon Majestic

(DISCLAIMER: The Naruto franchise and the characters therein belong to and were originally created by Masashi Kishimoto.)

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GAIDEN 03 – Silence in Seclusion

(N.B. This Gaiden chapter takes place one week before the beginning of the 365 days in the main story.)

The moon shone high in the night sky, casting a silver glare across the verdure-covered scenery in which the two-storey structure stood. During the day, the eye would have beheld this location in all its colorful glory: rich green plains spreading out for miles, orange trees with delectable yellow-skinned fruit, a lightly-flowing sapphire-colored waterfall and river a few hundred feet away from the house's back porch, and a backdrop of huge red-dusted mountains off in the distance, with the dwelling standing tall in peach-coloring with red slate-tiles on the roof. Now, at night, everything was bathed in shades of gray, dulling their normal colors, but they were no less majestic or breathtaking, with the lack of colors made up for by the twinkling of the stars above to accompany the moon's glow.

It was only now that Shimada Yachi could appreciate the beauty of the place, now that she'd been living here for a number of years. But when she'd first come out here to live, the natural beauty of this secluded spot was not what had driven her to make her home here.

She'd chosen it specifically because of its seclusion.

Oh, sure, she'd been a city girl when she was much younger, enjoying the noise and bustle of urban life, and at times scoffing at the notion that she'd ever spend her retirement years on anything resembling a farm. But now, at 55 years of age, she wished she could somehow reach back in time and slap her younger self and tell her to not dismiss any potential futures out of hand just because they might initially appear ridiculous to contemplate.

How many years had in fact passed since the fateful night she'd had to learn that lesson the hard way? Six? Seven? She only barely registered that any significant time had in fact passed, these days; these days, all she really wished to do was to manage the orange trees she'd taken to caring for since coming here, spend her days perusing the wonders of nature or taking a dip in the river if the sun was ever especially hot, and use her nights to read, study, and contemplate life, the universe and everything in it.

Anything to forget the disgrace she'd witnessed with her own eyes in the too-recent past…

The quiet of this lonely rural area was broken by the sound of a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck's engine growling like the mechanical beast it was, as its gray-haired owner steered it toward the front of the yard where the house sat like a patient friend who'd been kept waiting. Moments later, the engine was silenced, and the driver, Yachi, pushed the door open and stepped out. She reached back inside the vehicle to grab two bags of groceries; then she tramped up the front steps to the porch, and from there she balanced one grocery bag under her arm while she worked the door open with her key and then slipped inside.

Stepping into the dark house, she used her memory of the layout to go toward the kitchen, where she set the groceries down on the counter. Her hands now free, she moved to turn on the light, her fingers hovering just above the switch…

…and she paused. For some reason, she couldn't tell what, she just felt…uneasy.

"I know you're there. I know you likely prefer the darkness." She said it in a low, even voice, though her heart began to thump hard in her chest. "I don't know who you are, or how you got it…"

"Turn the light on, Shimada Yachi."

The voice responding to her sounded young, but there was a certain level of foreboding in it. Eyes narrowing, Yachi complied with the instruction and then turned to face the direction the stranger had spoken from—the side of the fridge, where she wouldn't have seen anyone hiding due to the appliance's placement relative to the kitchen's entrance. And…there he was, leaning against the wall right next to the fridge and the ledge where the blender, toaster and other smaller appliances were kept. "Who are you?" Yachi asked, her heart still beating hard.

The intruder sported messy dark hair and an apathetic expression on his face. "My name is Kankuro," he introduced himself.

Yachi cocked an eyebrow. "Seeing as you know my name despite me never seeing you before tonight, I guess your name is supposed to have some meaning to me."

"It likely wouldn't—and that wouldn't surprise me. But after tonight, you will remember it. And here's the reason why…" Kankuro eased off the wall and stood up straight, his piercing gaze never leaving the older woman's face. "A good while back, you served as this country's ambassador to a foreign power."

"I did. But that was years ago," Yachi said.

"Yes. You quit the position some seven years ago, and you've been living in general isolation ever since." Kankuro looked around. "So isolated, in fact, that you've effectively removed yourself from the national energy grid. Solar panelling on the roof of your house to store energy and provide you with power…a pump connected to the river outside to feed water into your pipes…and your only worldly luxuries are groceries, a TV, a cell-phone, and books. You live off your savings from your time with the government, the money bequeathed to you in your late husband's will, the sales you make from the orange trees outside, and money your daughter Villette earns from her dabbling in the stock market."

Yachi watched him carefully. "…you've been keeping close tabs on me and my daughter. And you've done it for a while, it appears. Why?"

"Why?" Kankuro's eyes narrowed. "Because of the very reason you gave up your post as ambassador. Tell me, Shimada Yachi…do you remember the phrase 'Futona Seigi'?"

There was a very heavy silence. Yachi eventually broke it. "Unjust justice."

"It was a phrase you used in your resignation e-mail to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs…a phrase you used to refer to the government's intention to cover up a blunder you were involved in so as to save its own reputation with other nations," said Kankuro. "Need I tell you what the blunder in question was?"

"I can only assume that since you already know this much, you know about that as well," said Yachi.

Kankuro nodded. "Yes, I do." He slowly stepped toward Yachi, stopping when he was two feet away from her. "While having a drunken flirtation with fellow political representative Gama Jiraiya, you and he accidentally triggered a missile launch that blew up a group of soldiers out on a training exercise. The government wanted to cover up the incident by saying those soldiers were on a run to supply weapons to terrorists, but instead got blown up by their own weaponry. Your refusal to agree with that plan led to your resignation."

"…yes." Yachi took a deep breath. "Though I wonder how you were able to pull up that information…"

"Let's just say it wasn't easy and it took quite a while to do, but it was done." Kankuro crossed his arms over his chest. "Tell me, Shimada Yachi. You're a smart woman. Would you like to guess why I'm so interested in the details of something that happened seven years ago on foreign soil?"

Yachi took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. "I can hazard two guesses…either you're here for revenge because somebody you know was among the soldiers who died that night…or you're someone from the government's payroll who's come to silence me for knowing too much about what happened. Either way…I know I'm a dead woman walking. I always suspected something like this would happen one day…all because of one stupid mistake I helped to commit."

Kankuro didn't say anything for a minute. Then he let out a breath of his own. "My parents were among the soldiers who died in that incident. They and their comrades were branded as traitors by the government because it wanted to preserve its trade agreements with other nations, and if anyone else knew the truth, our country would never live down the shame. And all of this took place…because you and Jiraiya, in a moment of aroused fun, went somewhere you shouldn't have gone, touched a button you shouldn't have touched, and killed people you shouldn't have killed."

Yachi lowered her gaze. "Yes. As you say." She nodded once. "I have done your family a grave injustice—not on purpose, perhaps, but it still happened. No amount of apologizing I could ever do will bring your parents or their comrades back. And because I recognize that fact…"

Very carefully, she knelt down and placed her palms on the floor, hanging her head. "If it will satisfy your desire for revenge…then do what you want with me. I cannot deny any blame in what happened to your parents, after all."

Kankuro looked down at Yachi prostrating herself on the floor. He stooped down, reached for her head, took a fistful of her hair in his grip…

"You were the only one in that whole mess who refused to go along with the government's lie, and you threw away your position of power and prestige in protest over their actions. My brother, my sister and I, we realize that, for all your contribution to our parents' deaths, you made no contribution to their names being slandered. For that reason, we have decided that we will spare you your life."

Yachi's eyes widened—she hadn't expected to hear that. "What? But…"

"However." Kankuro's voice was sharp. "You will only be able to keep your life under one condition."

"…and that would be…?" Yachi asked softly.

Kankuro's response was blunt. "You are never to let anyone know that this meeting ever took place. Not even your daughter is to hear a word of it. And if you breach that condition…then you will wish I had killed you tonight." His tone was low, dark and menacing. "Keep living your simple life with its simple set-up, keep your tongue silent about what has happened here tonight, and all will be well for you. If your tongue gets too loose…it will be known. And it will be promptly and strongly addressed."

Yachi slowly closed her eyes, keeping her face toward the floor. "I understand."

She kept her eyes closed and remained in the same prostrate position even as the grip on her hair loosened…as heavy footsteps departed from the kitchen…as silence reigned in the house. A few minutes passed before she dared to open her eyes and lift her head…and when she did so, there was no sign of Kankuro anywhere.

The ex-ambassador was alone.

She shifted to her feet and slowly stood up. The light was still on, but somehow, the kitchen, the whole house, everything felt and looked foreign to her.

She made a point of double-checking all the locks and bolts on all the doors and windows before going to bed later that night.

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END OF GAIDEN 03

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NEON MAJESTIC: Okay, so…yeah. As I had promised in the main Kitsune no Ken story, this provides a bit of back-story into certain events that have recently been revealed in the mainstory.

Although I will say, originally I was going to make it be Gaara that was confronting Yachi here, though I realized that, at the time of this incident, one month before the 365 days began, Gaara would have been about 12 or 13, and even if he was going to be one of the highly-trained individuals who would later be the Kyuushingai, it wouldn't make any sense for someone who's basically a child to come here for the purpose of confronting Yachi in this way. By contrast, Kankuro, being Gaara's older brother, has—IMHO—the least development in this entire story compared to Gaara and Temari, and so I decided to let him be the one involved in this situation, for a bit more emotional depth on his part.

Now…next time in the Gaiden Chronicles, we'll be looking at another individual who's the main character of their own story, several shades removed from the main story's main characters. Look out for it!