บท 39: Chapter 39: Team Leader Arc: Four
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Nara Kasuga, whom I'm sure is still going to remain Nara Kasuga, disappears around the doorway. The tensions slipped a bit from his shoulders now, and it makes me glad as I watch him go.
I turn back to Sensei. "You're his uncle?" It is even more incomprehensible that Sensei would do something like this for me now. Kasuga's Sensei's blood.
Sensei shrugs. "More or less, but actually second cousin once removed." But suddenly, he's coughing again. There's no blood this time, just Sensei with a rueful smile up at my worried eyes. "I'll be fine, Hana-chan."
"You aren't fooling anyone, Sensei." I state flatly, and cross my arms over my chest. "Why haven't you told the Hokage about this?" Why doesn't Sensei trust the Hokage? Almost every time we're in his presence Sensei's some sort of antagonistic. It's not healthy, and in many ways, it isn't right.
Sensei frowns. "Well, anything that the Hokage knows, his council knows as well." His fingers tap idly against my arm. "Anything the Council knows the rest of the world will later learn." He smiles mildly at me, but there's a shadow in his eyes, a shadow that I've never seen before.
It is a slow burning anger. A raging fire of something that can't be quenched by requests or words or tears. It wouldn't die until he did, and I had a feeling if he didn't get whatever it was that he wanted before that he'd come back to haunt this world as a malicious spirit. I just have no idea what it is that he wants. "I've made plenty of enemies in my time, Hana-chan."
Oh. Of course he has. I do not find that Sensei who is stubborn and recalcitrant having enemies to be particularly strange, and they are probably enemies that he wants to keep hunting. "I just thought that maybe there'd be a medic in this world who could help you." I mumble. Tsunade's not in the village, but if she could help Sensei, I might be tempted to find her.
"No medic in the world is capable of altering the spiritual balance of a soul." Sensei's staring at the ceiling, his dark eyes normal once more. "Not even Senju Tsunade, Hana-chan. All alterations of the soul beyond what the gods decree have a price."
"It was only a thought, Sensei." I brush off my shorts and accept that Sensei's current weakness is not something that can be easily changed or thwarted. "I just wish that the truth wasn't so."
He chuckles, and his laughter turns into coughs. "So do I, Hana-chan."
Itachi appears from beyond the doorway when I rise to go. "Sensei, is it alright if I walk with Hana?" He glances at me. I have to talk to you. I nod back at him.
Sensei tilts his head towards him. "Yeah, I had some more stuff to teach you about decoding today, but you can go."
I slide my arm through Itachi's as we walk out into the street. "You had to talk to me?" I ask.
He sighs. "I don't think that Sensei's getting better."
I frown. "Let's go to Mufu-an." Let's talk somewhere private. Let's talk somewhere safe.
He smiles weakly at me. "Yeah. We should."
We enter the crowded tea house in silence, but it is a silence that speaks louder than words. We are of one mind today, Itachi and I.
"How may I help you two?" Fumiko-san smiles at the two of us. "No Ensui-sensei today?" We have the presence of mind not to wince. It would have been a dead giveaway that there are things wrong in the world.
"Nope!" I babble. "No Sensei today."
Fumiko-san sighs. "That Ensui, he's not been around ever since he got back from Iwa. It's so inconsiderate of him."
Itachi and I share a glance. Sensei hasn't come because you would sniff him out in a heartbeat. It is a kindness really that he refuses to visit. "Can we get a private room?" Itachi's still the same as he was before the disastrous trip to Iwa. He's still kind, and considerate, soft spoken and almost gentle.
I am glad that Sensei is able to preserve his good heart for at least two years longer. If he is Sensei's apprentice in Crypt, there is no discussion about whether or not he applies for ANBU. If he does not enter ANBU, Danzo doesn't sink his claws into him.
"I don't think that Sensei's gotten any better in the last month." Itachi states as soon as the server has come and gone with our tea. "I mean, he doesn't cough blood when I can see, and Kiho-baachan is very careful of his moods, more so than she's ever been before, but I don't know if his current state can be called better."
"He did say he would regain peak condition in another twenty three months." I blow on the surface of my rose tea. There are too many thoughts swarming about in my head. "I do not think that Sensei would lie."
"I do not either." Itachi sighs. "Sensei does not lie, but I do not know how much he truly knows about this kinjutsu."
"Well," I counter. "But he was the one to create it."
Itachi shakes his head. "That does not mean he does it often. Or that he knows how it affects him in every situation." He takes a sip of his tea. "I was..." He trails off staring at the painting of two cranes on the sliding door. "I wasn't myself. There was a lot of pain and fear."
I set my hand over his own. "It is not your fault that Sensei did what he did, Ita-kun." And it truly isn't. Sensei did what he did because he cared about Itachi. I doubt Sensei had even really paused to consider his decision.
"But if I hadn't been weak..." If I hadn't been weak we would never have been attacked by the masked ninja. If I hadn't been weak Sensei wouldn't be like this. I could hear every word that he couldn't speak aloud and I could never accept them. You were dealt an awful hand, but you got me, and Toku, and Muta, and Sensei.
"Don't be stupid." I slam my hand down on the table. "How could you even think something so stupid?" Uchiha Obito. Iwa. The Tsuchikage. You took from me. I will not forget. "None of those things were your fault."
He smiles ruefully. "That's what everyone keeps telling me."
"Well, maybe you should listen then. Everyone knows better than you, Tensai-sama." I stick my tongue out at him.
His eyes widen, and he bursts out into uncontrollable giggles. "Tensai yourself, Hana-chan." We graduated academy on the same day.
We made chunin the same day.
He thinks we're equals.
Kiba is throwing a tantrum when I get back, and Kaa-san is sitting on the floor with him. "I wanted more than one puppy!" He screams, tears running down his face. "Why don't I get three puppies?"
Kaa-san groans. "I already told you that this doesn't work that way, Kiba."
I pad over to set my hands on Kiba's shoulders. "What's the matter, Kiba-chan?"
He slaps my hands away. "You're the worst, Neechan! I hate you!" With that parting shot, he gets to his feet and races off down the hallway.
His words are painful. Kiba had always adored me. I am uncertain of how to deal with the aftermath of his declaration. Did I do something wrong? I sit down hard on the floor before Kaa-san.
"Are you alright, Little Nose?" She's looking at me with dark and worried eyes.
"He's never done that before." I laugh, but I don't feel great at all. "But he has to say that at least once right?" I look up at Kaa-san. "Why was he upset?"
"I offered to give him one of the new puppies." Kaa-san runs a hand through her hair, and for the first time I realize her mascara is blurred. "And he began to throw the tantrum that you heard the tail end of when you stepped back in." She rises to her feet. "I don't know why he's doing this, but I will have to talk to him. He's not allowed to scream and wail when things don't go his way." She smiles at me. "You never had such a difficult personality." She ruffles my hair. "Don't worry, he doesn't hate you. He's just upset right now."
I watch as Kaa-san strides down the hallway after Kiba.
I still feel as though I did something wrong. It should be the time when Kiba's introduced to Akamaru.
In the original timeline he was perfectly happy with Akamaru, and they never had any disputes. And now he doesn't even want Akamaru and I don't know why.
But if it is something that has to do with my darling otouto, the only person who could have moved the needle on his temper is myself, and that is what haunts me. Why doesn't Kiba want his best friend?
Kiba refuses to speak to me for the rest of the night, and there is nothing that Kaa-san or Cousin Ashi can do to turn him back into my normal otouto.
The puppies had not been triplets this time, and it is impossible to juggle a bond with three ninken that aren't triplets because they would have different chakra levels. They would not be like the Triplets who agreed with each other about practically everything. Kaa-san calls it the collective mind.
"Do you suppose that Kiba meant it?" I ask Ichi as we lie, all four of us sprawled out on the floor.
"I think the pup is being silly." Ichi huffs and rests his head on his front paws. "He does not know what he is missing. He does not know what he is hating. He just wants to be like you."
"Really?" I had not thought that it might be Kiba's admiration that caused this drastic deviation. Does he want three puppies because that makes him like me? Does he think that that is what makes me, me?
"It is obvious that he adores you." San snuggles closer to my right side. "As he is a very smart pup."
Ni wriggles closer to my other side. "He's being dumb right now, but he'll come around."
"But what if he actually hates me forever?" I can't get it out of my head. Even though it's normal for children to claim that they hate people who don't give them their way, Kiba has never done this before. He's four years old. He's not a teenager. He's never done this before.
Ni turns one dark brown eye at me with a grave amount of seriousness. "How could anyone hate you forever?" You. Oh you.
I pull him down for a hug and sob with relief in his neck. "I can't thank you enough." And I can't. Oh I could never thank you enough.
Ichi prods my back with a paw. "Nonsense. You're pack. That's how pack loves pack." Only the Triplets follow me everywhere, and the Triplets love me so unconditionally that any of them would die for me without a second thought. And they could not conceive of anyone who did not love me.
I simply couldn't thank them enough for their unwavering nature. We'll be together always. This I promise you. I run my hand down the scar on Ni's side. Thank you, Big Brother.
He huffs against my ear. "Is uncomfortable, Hana."
San pounces on me when I let go of Ni. "It's my turn to be hugged." He licks my face wildly. "Hug me, Hana! Hug me!"
We end up sleeping on the floor in a gigantic tangle of limbs fur and wild brown hair.
Muta's kikaichu have gotten much better at finding me even when I am beneath the ground. I burst out of the earth when I notice that there are three sucking chakra from me, and Toku surges forward to jyuken my arms.
I twist away from him and make three hand signs. "Raiton: Lightning Bolt." I under power the jutsu though. It only stings him roughly and he blinks, suddenly confused. I sweep a leg out in an attempt to trip him, and he seals three tenketsu in my wrist in retaliation.
Muta punches him in the shoulder, and while Toku ducks we trade blows as I pull more and more lightning chakra towards my arms.
It is easy to move, but hard to control properly, and I have to be careful that I don't hurt either of them more than a mildly shocking sting.
That, and as I learned to my dismay while at the border, Raiton jutsu, while not as draining as Doton jutsu, are exponentially more dangerous if the caster isn't focused. I'd lit a lock of my hair on fire while I'd been distracted, and only the Naka River had saved me from having a bald head.
I'm not sure if I would have ever been able to live down the shame of making myself bald because of faulty jutsu.
Toku seals about five tenketsu on my legs as he straightens up, and I find it hard to move properly. I open my mouth to concede.
The sound of the screen door opening and soft footsteps in our direction has us halt our fight though, and Toku unseals the tenketsu that he'd managed to seal on both Muta and I, and we all three of us turn to see Haya-senpai setting down a tray of desserts and snacks on the low table on the porch.
"We don't have such strong taijutsu users in my division of Tracking." Muta comments. "Thus I thank you for lending your time."
Toku slaps him on the back, careful not to disrupt any kikaichu. "Stop being formal Mu-kun!" He commands.
Muta rolls his eyes. "Fine, Toku-kun. I will endeavor not to speak to you with any respect whatsoever."
I dance around them. "Does that mean that Toku has no self respect anymore too, Mu-kun?" Toku glares at me, and Muta smiles.
"Indeed." He then hurries forward towards the porch because Toku has a look in his eye that promises painful and embarrassing secrets being revealed to the general public.
Haya-senpai giggles, a wide sleeve held over her mouth. "I am glad you three are such good friends."
We pass the afternoon rather idly after that, catching up with this and that around the village, and talking about Muta's unclassified tracking missions.
I am halfway back to the Inuzuka Compound and my house when I see Koma-senpai again. He's wearing his ANBU uniform, but he's removed the mask and left it wherever it is supposed to be right now. And his face is the blank slate that I recognize as his agonizing worrying face.
As he walks past me on the other side of the street he stumbles slightly and I notice that he's limping, if only just slightly.
"Koma-senpai!" I call, and hurry across the street to him. "Can I walk you home?"
He eyes my sweaty appearance with a small smile around his lips. "Hana-chan, if I am not much mistaken you just came from my home." I suppose that Koma-senpai can be truly termed as having all seeing eyes.
Toku, you better catch up on the detail sensing soon.
"Yes." I sigh. "I just came from your house, but I want to walk with you."
He inclines his head at me, a sign of acceptance, but his smile slips from his face. "Of course you may if you wish to, Hana-chan."
We walk in silence for another block or so, before Koma-senpai asks me a question. "If you had to choose between service to your village, and service to your clan, what would you choose?"
I glance up at him, and his tired, drawn face, and his slight limp, and his carefully concealed trembling hands. What's happening to him? I thought he was a part of the Hokage's ANBU, not Danzo's.
Kami. He isn't a part of Danzo's ROOT is he? A mere moment later, I toss the thought away. If Koma-senpai is still lucid enough to talk about Clan then he isn't part of ROOT.
But would I choose my village or my clan? Both of them had their share of people who'd shaped my early opinion, and my opinions regarding some old civilian women are simply terrible. "I would chose neither, Koma-senpai." I offer. "I would choose my family." And family is different than clan.
Family included my team, my blood family, my friends. It is infinitely better than both of the options he has named.
He nods. "It is a good idea." He sighs. "The Elder Shimura wants me to work on more dangerous missions for him." And by more dangerous, what you really mean is more stomach turning and more horrifying. You'd be answering to him instead of the Hokage.
"You do not want to." I observe. Koma-senpai is very kind despite his pride in his work in ANBU. He cares very much for his siblings and his parents. "If you do not want to, you should refuse."
He laughs gently. "I do not think that is an option, Hana-chan." He smiles at me, and it looks as though beneath the surface he is shattering to pieces. "I cannot say no to Elder Shimura, the Hokage has agreed." And I could really learn to hate the Hokage for his casual kindness towards Danzo that resulted in very real cruelty for everyone else. He turns to look at the long road ahead of us. "I assume the Clan would agree as well."
I should not trouble him further. I know I should not, but I have to ask. For Toku's sake, for Haya-senpai, his perfect mirror in every sense, I have to ask. "But what would your family think?"
"They would not agree to such an arrangement." He comments. "That is why I asked you." He inclines his head towards me again. "The Inuzuka are known for being true to themselves, and you are the Inuzuka that I know best."
We've arrived at side door of the compound now, and I do not step in. I hold his forearms, and look him in the eye. "You love both Haya-senpai, and Toku-kun very much, Koma-senpai. And you care very deeply for your parents. Don't let Elder Shimura take what is precious to you away." Please don't, Koma-senpai.
I'm sure that the Hyuga Clan will allow you your one act of rebellion.
A.N. Sensei is worried over by everyone. Itachi and Hana have a conversation. Kiba must come to terms that admiring his sister is not the same as being his sister. And Hyuga Koma is deeply conflicted. Misery for pretty much everyone all around.
Thank you to Missfroogy (He's not going to get punished since he didn't technically do anything. That and Hana's forgotten about him already.), Fuchslady (I endeavor not to kill any of my characters simply because the MC doesn't like them or doesn't know what to do with them. I also have great plans for Nara Kasuga, so he's going to stick around.), Estarc (Thank you so much for making me blush today. Yes, I do write my chapters the day before I post them. I've also always interpreted the combined elemental natures as they could be equal, but not exactly the same. Hana still has some problems to work through regarding Raiton.), Guest 1 (Gaku is Gaku. His memories are scattered so badly even he doesn't know entirely what's going on.), Guest 2 (I'm not certain that Kakashi is ever going to be Hana's mentor. He's never one to voluntarily seek out more relationships to burn to ashes.), Snidekick (I'm glad you liked it!), kira shadow wolf (Welcome to Bloodless. I hope you enjoy your stay!), rickrossed (Many things will occur with both Toku and Koma.), ninetytwocharsonetable (You've got a really cool name btw, and welcome to Bloodless!), WhiteFang001 (I wrote Kasuga thinking about how a normal genin would react. Not one of the Rookie Nine, who are all geniuses in their own rights, but someone who has an inferiority complex, but who's also deeply prideful. Nara-sensei does in fact, have his own problems. He's a bit obsessive about his loved ones to the detriment of his casual relationships if we haven't already realized.), libraryrockerr (I believe for Kakashi that's Tenzo...), and DuxTell (There won't be time skips longer than a few months or so, there's a lot Hana has to do.) for reviewing!
And for everyone who favorited and followed, we passed 200 followers tonight. Thank you all so much.
~Tavina.
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