Kapitel 380: Watchful eyes.
As Yami along with Sasuke and Kakashi walked out of the Hokage building, Kakashi looked around and said "I don't think people are aware of the meeting or even of the kidnapping."
Sasuke nodded and said "That is a good thing. Causing unnecessary panic won't do any good to us. Isn't that right, Yami?" Sasuke turned to his brother who was now looking at the sky.
"What's the matter?" Sasuke asked in confusion to which Yami shook his head and said "I am expecting a messenger bat. It should have come before we reached the village."
"What information are you waiting on? Is it related to the Akatsuki?" Sasuke asked. Knowing that everyone's priority right now was the Akatsuki, the question was viable.
Yami glanced at his elder brother and shook his head as he said "Not directly...but yes the Akatsuki are a part of that information."
Just as Yami was speaking, he suddenly looked up and saw a bat flying towards him. Without even stopping on Yami's hand, the bat opened his mouth and dropped a scroll onto Yami. Seeing that the drop was from some height, Kakashi decided to take a sneak peek into the contents of the scroll and so he stepped forward so that he could jump before the scroll lands and take it.
He knew that Yami wouldn't openly oppose Kakashi from taking the scroll but before Kakashi could even jump, Yami raised his hand in the sky and twisted his hands a bit creating a long thing vortex of air and the scroll that was freefalling just a moment ago, suddenly gained pace and gunned down toward Yami. The very next second, the scroll was in Yami's hand. The people around them didn't even notice the vortex since the power of the vortex was concentrated on the scroll. Just as the scroll landed in Yami's hands, a gale of wind spread in all directions.
'What was that? To be able to use chakra so efficiently at such an age is totally unthinkable. I just thought Yami had surpassed me by a small margin but if he can perform such tricks so smoothly, I guess he didn't fight with his real strength when we were against the Akatsuki.' Kakashi thought.
Yami opened the scroll and started reading the contents on it. Sasuke and Kakashi were curious as to what the contents were but before they could even ask, Yami rolled back the scroll and burned it to ash in his hands right away.
Dusting away his hands he just looked at the eyes that were directed to the ash in his hand.
"Is there anything you wish to do or should we head home?" Yami asked which broke Sasuke from his stupor.
"Huh? Yes...Yes, let's go home. I am tired anyway. We both need some rest so we can leave for our next mission." Sasuke said.
Saying their goodbyes to Kakashi, Yami and Sasuke left. Kakashi also looked around a bit and murmured "Being watched like this in my own village really sucks. I am sure she has some idea of it." and left.
For a few seconds, there was nothing out of the ordinary but another gale of wind passed by the street and all the ash disappeared with it.
As Yami and Sasuke were walking towards their clan area, Sasuke pointed at the gate and said "I see someone standing at the gate. Were you expecting someone to meet you here?" Yami just shook his head and he himself had no idea who had come to the clan gates. The chakra signature although extremely pure was unknown to Yami.
As they reached closer the face of the person became clear and it was a person both persons recognized. "Hanabi Hyuga...what bring you here?"Yami said as he looked at the girl just a year younger than her standing in front of him.
She was totally different from the last time he had seen her. In fact, she was looking different from the Hanabi in the canon. She looked more mature and strong. Her face and body language extruded confidence and strength rather than nervousness and timidness like before.
"Yami Uchiha I want to talk to you about something," Hanabi said with a firm voice and a straight face. She tried her best but couldn't hide the softness in her voice.
"If you are asking what I think you are asking then No...I don't have time to play with you." Yami teased but didn't let it reflect on his face. On the other hand, Sasuke immediately looked down to control his laughter and not let anyone see it.
"Wa...What? I-I don't want to play with you? W-Why would I want to play with you when in such serious times?" Hanabi said with a red face. She didn't know whether to be embrassed or angry at Yami's statement.
Hearing the last part Sasuke immediately looked up at her. Yami also tilted his head a little and asked "What do you mean serious times?"
Hanabi crossed her hands and said "Hmph...everyone thinks they are so smart and sneaky with what is going on in the village and the clan but I know. Today when Big Brother Neji came from his mission, I heard everything he said to Father and Grandpa. About the Akatuski, the kidnapping of Big Sis and her squad, and also the meeting of the Kages with a terrorist organization named the Akatsuki."
"How could you..." Sasuke was about to reprimand her for sneakily listening to such talks but Yami stopped him with a wave of his hand. He looked at Hanabi and asked "And what does any of it have to do with you coming here?"
She looked at both brothers and said "I also heard Big Brother Neji talk about how you defeated the Akatsuki members and saved the Hidden Sand village. Even Grandpa acknowledged your strength and said that if anyone can take the initiative and take bring back the two squads that were kidnapped, then it would be you."
Her expression became soft as she spoke further "I don't know what you will do and how you will do it. But please bring big sister back. Even though I have the whole clan as my family, she is the only one who understands me. Who has ever understood me, I vowed to protect her and if I had the strength to I would have gone and faced the Akatsuki alone but right now I am too weak for it." She looked down to the ground and her voice also became meek as she finished her sentence. Yami and Sasuke could see her fiddling with her fingers and sob a little.
Yami stepped forward towards her and said "If I had thought that attacking the Akatsuki prematurely is the best course of action then I would have done it. Lady Tsunade and everyone else is working hard to get them back so trust in them."
Without even looking up Hanabi nodded as she wiped her tears with her wrist and ran away immediately. Sasuke just kept looking at what was happening. 'I didn't think Yami was capable of talking like this.'
Sasuke patted his brother's shoulder and said "I didn't know that you are capable of handling such emotions and even answering the little girl with such patience. I thought you were going to mock her or something."
Yami looked back at his naive elder brother and smirked as he said "I would have mocked her if the request was from her but the request and the answer were from and to the previous Head of the Hyuga clan."
"Huh? Her grandpa? You think she would tell her grandfather about this conversation?" Sasuke asked to which Yami smiled and said "You really think the head of a clan who is known to be extremely sensitive to chakra will just let a little girl wander near his residence and hear confidential talks?"
"What? You mean the old man knew about this and manipulated his own granddaughter to come here and make such a request?" Sasuke said with a little annoyance in his voice. The annoyance wasn't because of what the elder did but because Sasuke couldn't figure it out and thought that Hanabi really did sneak and listen to everything without anyone's knowledge.
"What should we do now? As the head of the Uchiha clan should I go and talk to the elder?" Sasuke asked with a serious face to which Yami laughed and said "Haha...no need to be so uptight about this brother. He is just an old man who is trying to get his granddaughter back but is too ashamed to ask a kid for help when he has a whole clan at his beck and call. The old man just wanted something done for free so I put up the excuse of Lady Tsunade so that he understands the situation."
"If you say so Yami but the elder sure is cunning to stoop down to such underhanded tricks."
"That's how clans operate brother....Stop worrying about such things now and let's go and rest. We will leave tonight." Yami said.
"You are coming with me? Don't we have to go in opposite directions?" Sasuke asked with a confused face.
"No..the two of us are going to the Land of hot water first. We have something to do there and after that, you can go to the Hidden Mist Village through the land of Whirlpools."Yami said.
"Land of hot water? Who are we going to meet there?" Sasuke asked filled with curiosity and excitement.
"Someone slippery."
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