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yellowocaballero · 4 months ago

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Naruto Roleswap AU: Kakashi's a wifeguy, Rin's a Girlboss, and Itachi gets adopted

“Do you think we’re the baddies?”

The Mizukage’s pen froze on her paperwork. She looked up and squinted at Kakashi, as if attempting valiantly to discern his twisted mind and failing utterly. “‘Baddies’?”

“You know,” Kakashi elaborated, “the bad guys. The bullies. People who enjoy indiscriminately murdering, maiming, genocide, the works.”

The Mizukage looked appalled. “Of course we aren’t. Where did you get that idea?” Kakashi shrugged limply. “We’re working for world peace, Kakashi. Of course we’re the good guys. What else would we be?”

Kakashi scratched at his neck. “Do traditional definitions of world peace include putting the world under a mass genjutsu? Or destabilizing foreign governments?”

“We did those governments a favor,” the Mizukage said frankly. “Kiri’s prospering. And mass genjutsu is the only way to keep people from killing each other. Honestly, Kakashi, if there’s one good guy in the world then it’s us.”

“I thought that was Yahiko.”

“Us and Yahiko,” the Mizukage amended. She thought for a second. “And Tobi, of course.” She thought harder. “No, it’s unfair to put us on the same level as Yahiko and Tobi.”

“So we are the baddies.”

Kakashi and his girlfriend are in the market to adopt, and the Akatsuki is a great place to raise two rambunctious children. The consent of the children isn't neccesary for this. Oneesama knows best, and if you trust in the process then a beautiful utopia can become possible. Or, alternatively, if you don't care about the process or how many atrocities you commit, then you can put off killing yourself from sheer boredom for a few more years.

Tragedy plus time equals a comedy, and you can believe anything if you have no other choice.

This one's very different tonally from the rest of the AU, but that's what I like about it. I ended up really loving writing Kakashi, and I'll have to find the exuse to write more of this funny narration in the future. Parts of this crossover with the previous installment of this AU, and they're very much intended to be read side by side. The good guys sitting around sobbing from despair as the bad guys have yakety sax hijinks was very funny to me. 7k of Kakashi's Crippling Depression Adventures In The Akatsuki under the cut.

“Do you think we’re the baddies?”

The Mizukage’s pen froze on her paperwork. She looked up and squinted at Kakashi, as if attempting valiantly to discern his twisted mind and failing utterly. “‘Baddies’?”

“You know,” Kakashi elaborated, “the bad guys. The bullies. People who enjoy indiscriminately murdering, maiming, genocide, the works.”

Kakashi scratched at his neck. “Do traditional definitions of world peace include putting the world under a mass genjutsu? Or destabilizing foreign governments?”

“I thought that was Yahiko.”

“Us and Yahiko,” the Mizukage amended. She thought for a second. “And Tobi, of course.” She thought harder. “No, it’s unfair to put us on the same level as Yahiko and Tobi.”

“So we are the baddies.”

“We’ve made some compromises,” the leader of the violent coup that overthrew Hanzo and made her a dictator of a hidden village allowed. “But anything’s worth it if it keeps the world safe, right?”

“Hm,” Kakashi said, contemplating the Kyuubi’s attack on the village and the Minato/Kushina dual murders. “Well, can’t argue with that.”

“What a silly conversation.” The Mizukage went back to her paperwork, signing away at form after form. How she found the time to lead a village and shadow-lead the Akatsuki, Kakashi had no idea. Maybe she just didn’t need to sleep as often as the mere mortals. Jinchuuriki were so unfair. “Now, can you do me a favor and go pick up the baby ninja we manipulated into mass-murdering his family? He’s probably very stressed out right now, he could use some comfort.”

“I’ll drop him off with Konan.” Kakashi paused, then amended, “Yahiko.”

“Sounds great. Love you, Kakashi.”

Kakashi halted at the window, pulling his ceramic mask over his face. “Love you too, Rin.”

And, as Rin would proclaim: could you really be the baddie if you loved someone?

Truthfully, Itachi had barely left Konoha.

The kid had been locked in a permanent dissociative daze since he started his little genocidal adventure and it hadn’t quite lifted. He had clearly found an inn in the closest city on autopilot, paid for it via the multiple stab wounds and bloody cloak, and passed out. He had the presence of mind to perform basic first aid on himself, which was probably the only reason his wounds weren’t grievously infected. He was also pretty strung out, and clearly hadn’t slept in five days. In short, the kid had an altogether pathetic vibe to him. Kakashi would sympathize if he was the type.

Kakashi knocked on the door to Itachi’s room. He waited a polite thirty seconds before knocking again. Then he teleported the door into Kamui - he always made a little ‘yoink!’ sound effect in his head - and walked into the room.

Itachi’s attempt at stabbing him was, frankly, tragic. The Uchiha must have been half grannies. Kakashi blocked the blow with his sheathed tanto, exquisitely bored, before pushing the boy backwards. Itachi turned his stumble into a flip and landed on the bed, already charging another fire jutsu in his hands. Some people really were overachievers.

Kakashi sheathed his tanto and lazily raised both hands. “Is this how you welcome your friends, Itachi-kun?”

Itachi’s face was bone white, and his entire body was shaking. His first aid attempts were lacking. He needed a doctor badly. It was a testament to the sheer dissociative power of his insane little mind that he was conscious at all. “I have no friends.”

Objectively true statement. Kid caught on fast. “You have me, if that counts for anything.” Judging by Itachi’s murder eyes, it did not. “I’m a representative of an organization that’s interested in recruiting you. Why don’t you hear us out?”

“You know what I just did,” Itachi said dully. “No organization I should join would have me as a member. I’m uninterested. Leave.”

“Maa, that’s too bad.” Kakashi scratched at his neck, jostling his ceramic mask. “You don’t want to see your friend again? What was his name - Shisui Uchiha?”

Itachi froze. The fire jutsu flared upwards, and his Sharingan began to spin.

“Relax, we didn’t kidnap him. We rescued him. Like we’re interested in rescuing you.” Kakashi held out his hand, tilting his head. “Nobody in this world will help you now, Itachi-kun. Nobody but us. We will help you.”

Itachi pulled backwards, mouth thinning, but Kakashi could see it. He knew how Itachi wanted to lean in. He was thirteen years old and his parents were dead. Never mind the details. “Will you take me to Shisui?”

“Sure. We got the best doctor in the continent too.”

The conclusion was foregone. Itachi had no other choice. He was alone, and he was dying, and he didn’t care if he died. People like that always took the first hand that came along. It was the best time to nab people: when they were at their most vulnerable, their most susceptible, their most trusting. Ask Kakashi how he knew. Better yet - don’t.

Itachi took Kakashi’s hand, and he teleported them both away.

Akatsuki HQ was nice digs.

For Ame. By the standards of anywhere that wasn’t Ame, it was the dreariest yet most nondescript building anybody had ever seen. The sky was always dark grey and the clouds were always pouring rain. The buildings had a pre-fab brutalist flair and you could always count on some ominous lightning to provide atmosphere. Ame permanently felt like the setting of a horror movie. Seeing as Kakashi’s life was a horror movie, it had to feel a little appropriate.

But Yahiko brought the sunshine. Wherever he went was all good weather. Shaking his hand made you feel as if the sun was shining, and when he entered a room he brought blue skies. It was like the rain didn’t even pour on it. He reminded Kakashi of Tobi’s best friend, which was the most back-handed compliment you could give a person.

The major difference between the two was that everybody liked Yahiko. Ame had one political party and it was the cult of Yahiko. Konan would blow up a small village for him. Even Rin waved her M/F/M/F polycule books in his face and gave him significant eyebrows. If Rin died overnight, he was their best hope for world peace. No genjutsu necessary - just sheer force of personality and beautiful vibes.

Personally, Kakashi just liked how easy he was to manipulate.

“Konoha made him do what?” Yahiko gasped. “Those bastards! They call themselves the nice village?”

Kakashi shrugged. “What can I say. We defected for a reason.”

“That’s disgusting. They’d make a thirteen year old do that to his own family? He’s a child!” Yahiko chewed at his thumbnail, thinking furiously. “Even Kiri at its worst never forced its children to cleanse their own bloodline! After what they did to your teammate, too…maybe it’s just something about those Uchihas.”

“Guess we don’t have to worry about them anymore,” Kakashi said diplomatically.

They were waiting in the hallway outside of Itachi’s operating room. Yahiko had done the absolute predictable and called Rin the second he saw Kakashi lugging a half-dead teenager into his HQ. She flew in like an angel and descended on the poor child in her infinite grace, earning Yahiko’s eternal gratefulness for her beneficence upon the infant he had met five seconds ago and loved as if he was his own. What could Kakashi say? Some people were heavenly spirits walking the earth.

“We can bring him into Ame for sure,” Yahiko said, truly fired up. Kakashi hadn’t even asked? “I’ve invented this new thing, I’ve tentatively named it therapy no jutsu, and I think Itachi-kun would be a perfect early adopter. I have this dream, right, that we can take insane people and make them less insane -”

“Sounds like a great idea,” Kakashi lied. Spirits above, what a freak. “Why don’t you go get Itachi’s new citizenship settled out? My partner and I will catch him up to speed.”

“Good idea. I’m not doing much just loitering around like this.” Yahiko nodded professionally at him, and Kakashi bowed back. As always, Yahiko ruined any sense of propriety with a bright smile. “Then we’ll finally go on that double date, right? Rin-sama and I have been trying to find a time that works with our schedules for ages. We’re thinking that seafood place near the harbor.”

No. The double date was not happening. The double date would never happen. Because Kakashi knew full well what Rin and Konan were angling for and he was not going along with it. Even if Yahiko and Konan were admittedly kinda -

The door opened, saving Kakashi from a train of thought even worse than the denial. Rin poked her head out, sweaty but fresh and smiling. Yahiko immediately smiled at her, and she smiled happily back at him. Like Kakashi, she was dressed down in her Akatsuki gear. She didn’t wear a mask in her Mizukage or her Akatsuki get-up, but at Akatsuki HQ she tended to pass herself off as an unassuming household medic. After all this time, Rin was still excellent at playing innocent.

“Itachi-kun’s well enough to receive visitors,” Rin said cheerfully. “Do you want to meet him, Yahiko-sama?”

Yahiko pumped his fist, grinning. “Yeah! We’ll give him a real Akatsuki welcome!”

As it turned out, a ‘real Akatsuki welcome’ involved mochi. Itachi stared at it, flabbergasted. He still looked pale, but Kakashi could tell that Rin had done her usual excellent job - his body seemed to be free of injuries, and he probably felt like a spring chicken. She had moved him from the ominous operating room (never there for a good reason; bad vibes) into the infirmary (worse than the operating room because you were generally awake to experience it; atrocious vibes)

“I’m so sorry to hear about your family, Itachi-kun,” Yahiko said firmly, shoving the mochi at Itachi. Itachi blinked at it, somehow violently. Rin sympathetically took the box and placed it at his bedside. “We know how hard losing your family can be.”

Itachi stared at Yahiko for a long second. Finally, he rasped, “I killed my family.”

“Konoha forced you to kill your family,” Yahiko corrected. “It’s hardly your fault, Itachi-kun. You were manipulated. You can’t ever forget who your real enemies are.”

“Or your real friends,” Rin said gently. She sat down next to Itachi, blasting her best ‘soft and motherly’ smile at him full throttle. “You can call me Rin-san, Itachi-kun. The man in the mask is my partner Hound, and the ray of sunshine over there is the leader of Ame, Yahiko-sama. If I know him correctly, I can guess he already has a proposition for you.”

Itachi immediately shook his head, pushing himself fully upright. “I’m not interested in any -”

Rin put a hand on his chest and gently pushed him back down. Itachi fell back onto the bed, shocked by the force. “Just hear us out.”

Itachi’s eyes flickered to Kakashi. He undoubtedly recognized him, Hound mask or clean faced. Kakashi winked at him. Itachi’s eyebrows tilted. Long experience with Uchihas helped him interpret the gesture. Kakashi held up one finger. Patience.

“You’re welcome to live in Ame if you want, Itachi-kun. We’ll protect you. But I have another proposal for you.” Wow. Wonder what that would be. It couldn’t possibly be the same proposal Rin had been hinting at ever since Kakashi lugged Itachi’s sorry ass back to the village. “Are you a pacifist, Itachi-kun?”

Itachi was silent. His eyebrows screamed - ‘I killed my family!’.

Amazingly, Yahiko was able to interpret that. Must be Konan’s influence. She was a stoic one. And somewhat surly. “Only those who’ve experienced the worst violence know the value of true peace. Those of us who truly seek peace and prosperity have all experienced the worst of humanity. Your experiences are why I think you can become a pacifist who can protect your precious people. That can become the purpose of your life.”

It was abundantly clear that Itachi did not give a single fuck about any sort of philosophy right now. The second Rin removed her hand he forced himself upright again, and he ignored her danger eyebrows. One was only foolish enough to ignore those once, Itachi. “Where’s Shisui.”

Yahiko glanced at Rin, frowning lightly. “Do you know who that is?”

“Remember the half-dead kid Hound fished from the river?” Rin said cheerfully. Yahiko made a noise of comprehension. “Apparently he’s a Uchiha too. He faked his death before the massacre. He’s the reason why Hound investigated the massacre at all. He’s been in a coma since we rescued him. He didn’t have to work very hard to fake his death - he was very badly hurt.” She looked down at Itachi, who was pale with shock. “Would you like to see him? He’s in the long-term infirmary in the other room.”

Dumbly, Itachi nodded. Kakashi silently tallied up the lies and omissions of truth in those sentences. Nowhere near her best, but not nothing.

“Then I’ll get somebody on Itachi-kun’s citizenship paperwork.” Yahiko jokingly half-saluted, which was a terrible look on a leader of a city state. “I’ll put Itachi-kun’s future in your capable hands, Rin-sama.”

Rin smiled gently at Yahiko. “There’s nothing I value more.”

They waited until Yahiko had left the room and his chakra signature had long since retreated before Rin spoke again. Itachi was looking increasingly wild, and when he forced himself to stand up Rin didn’t stop him. She just rose with him, carefully straightening the infirmary bed behind him.

“Yahiko-sama truly is one of the kindest people I know,” Rin said to Itachi. He still looked a little flabbergasted by the welcome. It was all in the eyebrows. “You’ll see things our way. Everybody does eventually.”

“Darling, let’s save talk like that for after the recruitment.”

“What did I say?” Rin asked, for all appearances genuinely surprised. “Isn’t it a good thing that people agree with us?”

Yes, after the - let’s count it, the military coups, manipulations, genjutsus, etc, etc…

“Can’t argue with that,” Kakashi said blandly.

Itachi brushed past them both and walked towards the long-term infirmary door, opening it immediately and walking inside. Guess they had been too busy teaching this kid how to kill people instead of any manners.

Atrociously, Rin crossed her arms and sighed fondly. “He really reminds you of him, huh?”

“If I remember correctly, that seems to be the whole problem.” Kakashi shot Rin a canny look, who looked innocently up at the ceiling. “No adoption.”

“You’re always saying some needy orphan will come our way! He’s the definition of a needy orphan, isn’t he?”

“Darling, he killed his parents.”

Frankly, Rin said, “He’s not special.”

True but very unwelcome sentence. As usual.

Rin was good on her promises, as always. Shisui was the sole inhabitant of the long-term infirmary, hooked up to a few monitors but otherwise sleeping peacefully. He seemed completely cured of his extensive injuries. His face was flush with color and both of his eyes were intact. A testament to Rin’s skill - he had been found gripping one eye in a chakra-infused bubble. But she had some practice with fucked up Sharingan transplants. It had taken years before she figured out how to undo Madara’s patchwork job and re-implanted Kakashi’s eye with a functional chakra network.

Itachi was already at Shisui’s bedside. The kid had his Sharingan activated, scanning his body for injuries and finding none. Kakashi idly wondered whose Mangeyko was stronger. Itachi probably beat him out by virtue of having two and his ability to summon Susanoo, but kamui was a far more useful skill than Amaterasu or some lame torture dimension. As always, Obito was the best. Or he would be, if he was intact.

“He’s healthy.” Again, only long experience with Obito gave Kakashi the ability to interpret his frustration. “Why is he still asleep.”

“Oh, that’s all me,” Rin said cheerfully. “The coma is artificially induced.”

In the course of a millisecond, Itachi’s kunai were flying. Kakashi was faster. He opened up kamui and swallowed up the kunai. Itachi paused half a second, stunned and confused. It was more than enough time for Kakashi to press his own kunai to Itachi’s neck, standing behind Itachi with his other arm looped over his neck.

“You aren’t irreplaceable, Itachi,” Kakashi panned. “There’s a spare. Right?”

Itachi froze. Rin titled her eyebrows at Kakashi, relentlessly good cop’ing. “Let’s not threaten our new recruit, Hound. Let’s all put the kunai away and talk like civilized ninjas, huh?”

Seeing as Itachi’s kunai had been warped to the Box Dimension (Feat. Box, Guest Starring Box), the comment had been directed at him. Kakashi stepped away from Itachi, making a show of putting away his kunai and returning to Rin’s side. More than one person had remarked how accurate his codename was. Got funnier each time. Not.

“Here’s the shakedown, Itachi-kun. Listen closely.” Rin sat down at Shisui’s bedside, graceful and refined. “You’re alone in the world. Yes or no?”

Itachi, standing at the opposite side of Shisui’s bed, stared at her in hostility.

“You’re a missing nin. You’re probably already in the Bingo Book with an SSS class bounty on your head. Yes or yes?”

Itachi was silent.

“It must be scary. But Konoha’s still backing you, isn’t it?” Rin hid a smile behind a hand. “You’ve been instructed to act as a spy when necessary. I wouldn’t be surprised if you were even asked to infiltrate our organization in a few years. Yes?”

Itachi was silent. He was thirteen, and he was scared.

“They’re still relying on your naivete, Itachi. After everything they’ve asked of you they still want more. They will ask for more, and more, and more. Until they ask for your death. And you intend on giving it to them, don’t you?” Rin shook her head, tsk’ing. “What a waste. The good you can do…the peace you can bring, the people you can help…the reason why you’re a genius in the first place. You’ll never realize it. You could have truly helped people, and you let the evil people use you for evil instead. It’s unfair.”

Itachi looked away, jaw clenching. He was thirteen, and he was insecure.

Rin leaned forward, eyes arresting Itachi in place. He could not know why they felt so powerful, why Rin’s sheer presence carried such incredible weight. Maybe the weight would feel like the weight of her words - powerful, affecting, true.

“You don’t have to make a decision now,” Rin said gently. “Spend some time here. Recover from your ordeal. Get some rest. You can make your decision when you’re ready, alright?”

And Yahiko said that he had invented therapy-no-jutsu. Rin was the undisputed master.

Itachi looked down at Shisui. He could have been sleeping. But Kakashi knew what Itachi was seeing: his best friend killing himself, falling into the river. His pleading not to listen to Danzo. Ineffectual, in the end. Perhaps this was destiny.

Maybe the Uchiha were always in a state of dying, died, dead. Maybe they would continuously live out this immortal cycle of fatality. Chained by their hatred. Imprisoned by their love. It was the sickest combination of all. Kakashi would know.

“Why are you keeping him in a coma?” Itachi rasped. “What do you want?”

Wow, two question marks from him. New record. Rin’s eyes flickered to Kakashi, and he took his cue. Blandly, he said, “No offense, but you have a history of double crossing. We wanted some insurance. You don’t sell us out to Konoha and we take good care of your bestie. Fair trade.”

Itachi’s expression darkened. “You’re blackmailing me.”

“If we were blackmailing you, we’d be making you join us now.” Kakashi shrugged one shoulder. “We want you to make a choice. We’re just taking care of Shisui-kun until you do.”

And, in the end, Itachi didn’t hesitate. Maybe that was his problem. Maybe it always would be. Five days of no sleep and a Uchiha’s love and a ninja’s tendency to choose violence first - shaken and stirred, you ended up with a dangerously impulsive thirteen year old. The importance of the thirteen year old aspect here really couldn’t be understated.

“I’ll join,” Itachi said immediately. “I’ll do whatever you want. Just wake up Shisui.”

Hilariously, Rin looked crestfallen. “We aren’t trying to blackmail you, Itachi-kun. A mission of peace and goodness can’t start on a bedrock of pain. How about you take some time and -”

“I don’t care.” Wow. Nobody interrupted Rin anymore. “I don’t care about anything anymore. I will kill whoever you want. I will be whatever you want. Wake him up.”

Rin pressed her hands to her cheeks, sighing. “Oh, you are just too cute! You’re like a little copy of Hound! Hound, don’t you see why -”

“This is a bad start to that sort of relationship.”

“Oh, what does that matter!”

A lot, Rin. It mattered a lot.

Meanwhile, Itachi was looking increasingly frustrated (eyebrows at 20 degree angle instead of 15). “Wake him up.”

Wow. That was dangerously close to an inflection. Rin just tilted her head, affecting a somewhat thoughtful look. “I don’t think I will, actually.” Itachi’s face did a dangerous thing. “Calm down. Let’s say…in a month? That seems fair.”

Itachi clenched his jaw. What could he say? It was either Shisui waking up in a month or not at all. If Rin wanted to stretch this out for half a year, she could. Goodness knows she could keep Itachi on the hook for that long. Under other circumstances she would probably do it. But keeping Shunshin no Shisui off the board for that long was a stupid move. Privately, Kakashi thought he might be a bit of a wild card. Shisui was even more idiotically loyal to his village than Itachi. He definitely loved his family more, and he might have beef about the clan genocide thing. They couldn’t exactly genjutsu him into submission. But Rin was confident in her ability to control him - sorry, ‘recruit him’ - and Kakashi would always follow her lead.

“Why.”

Rin affected a look of surprise. “Didn’t your parents ever punish you? Maybe you were an obedient boy, but I hear the Uchiha have a ‘spare the rod, spoil the child’ philosophy.”

Yeah, Obito had been beaten by his Uchiha mentors regularly. Team Minato all knew and none of them talked about it. Much later, Rin told him that Minato had tried speaking to Obito’s family about it and had gotten royally shut down. Rin always healed him in silence, and Kakashi already read out passages from his mystery novels that were guaranteed to drive Obito insane with their stupidity.

Tobi cried when people yelled at him. Surprise, surprise.

“You are not my parents,” Itachi said harshly. Not if Rin had anything to say about it. “You look twenty three. Do not play pretend.”

“Wow,” Kakashi said. “That was so accurate. The white hair always throws people off.”

Rin just looked a little crushed. “I guess onee-sama’s alright for now.”

“What did I do.”

For the first time, Rin sobered. She leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees, and brought the full force of her deceptive brown eyes down upon Itachi. He probably wasn’t used to such power anymore. He couldn’t possibly identify it. Kakashi wondered idly if Rin was scarier than Danzo. Damn, he hoped so. If she wasn’t…well, he’d learn.

Crisply, Rin said, “You were given explicit instructions not to hurt Obito Uchiha.”

It was clearly not what Itachi expected to hear. His eyebrows furrowed minutely. “How did you know that.”

“How did we know about the true nature of the massacre at all?” Rin asked rhetorically, dodging the question. “You were told to use Tsukuyomi to place him under a non-tortuous genjutsu. You ended up fighting him. I saw his injuries.” Left unsaid: yeah, and they had seen Itachi’s injuries too. Only half of them were from killing 200 plus people. The other half was from one extremely angry guy. “It was against instructions.”

“Your instructions?” Itachi asked sharply. “What -”

“Of course not,” Rin blatantly lied. “Many people are interested in keeping Obito Uchiha intact. You shouldn’t have touched him.”

“He broke out of the Tsukuyomi. It should have been impossible.” Itachi frowned lightly. “Sparing Sasuke is explainable. It would have been suspicious if I had left Tobi untouched.”

“A lack of injuries could have been explained as a complete avoidance of a fight. Injuries implied that he fought you and won. It’s more suspicious.” Left unsaid: Rin had been harvesting a shitton of eyes and swooped in at the last minute to heal his injuries before anybody noticed. Entirely possible that Obito thought the entire fight was one awful dream. Sure as hell had repressed way more minor shit.

“It should have been impossible to break free of the Tsukuyomi,” Itachi repeated. “He possessed the Mangekyo and an arm that could imitate the Mokuton. That should have also been impossible. I came far closer to losing that fight than I should have. That should have been impossible too. At his prime - perhaps. But not now. He clearly does not know he can protect himself. That is why Shisui and I -” Itachi stopped short, and did not resume speaking.

Kakashi stuck his hands in his pockets, slouching magnificently. “You tried to negotiate to spare Obito Uchiha too, didn’t you?” Itachi’s lips thinned. Rin’s expression softened, which was the real reason for saying it. “Of course they didn’t let you. The village has wanted him out of the way for years. He’s an embarrassment. And Danzo’s always suspected that he had an undisclosed gift. But he’s one of three people left who you love, isn’t he?” Rough not to count his parents - he probably thought he did love his parents - but the truth was the truth. “It’s not too late to make up for what you’ve done. How you almost killed him. We can help you protect him.”

“And what do you have to gain from that.”

“You have people you love who can’t give anything in return,” Rin said softly. “Is it so strange that we feel the same?”

Itachi hesitated. Conflict warred in his countenance. Goes to show - when he’s actually in the process of being convinced, he’s far less compliant. Maybe they should have just told him to shut up and get with the program. But Rin did have ‘Rin-oneesama’ dreams. Couldn’t crush those.

Kakashi scratched the back of his head. “Of course, you tortured Sasuke Uchiha into becoming a tool for your suicide for…power or something? Who knows. So maybe you don’t know.” Ah, there was the good old Itachi Uchiha self-hatred. Kakashi could read this kid like a book already. “Don’t blame us for wanting a little insurance. With the program?”

Quietly, Itachi said, “Yes.”

“That’s a yes, sir.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Address Rin-sama first, usually.”

Itachi turned to Rin and bowed at the waist. “Yes, Rin-sama.”

“You are so cute,” Rin gushed. “Why don’t you run off and get the grand tour of the place from Yahiko? He’s always wanted a kid around to big brother. It’ll be a lot of fun for you, promise!” Lie. Yahiko was overwhelming when he decided to big brother you. Nagato had probably killed himself in self-defense.

“Yes, Rin-sama.”

“He’s so polite, Hound!”

Rin in a nutshell.

As Itachi’s hand lingered on the doorknob, he turned back to look at Shisui one last time. It was clear he wanted to stay in the room with him. It was clear that he didn’t want to leave. But Itachi understood that he had jumped from the frying pan into the cleansing fire, and the bright boy already knew the score. When he returned to the long-term infirmary the door would be locked. He would know better than to try and unlock it. Rin really was a little pissy about the Obito thing.

They waited a little while for Itachi to leave earshot before speaking again. Rin smiled, clapping her hands. “What did I tell you, Kakashi? He’s just too cute! Doesn’t he need a helping hand?”

“Slow your roll,” Kakashi drawled. “He needs a master more than love right now. He won’t believe he deserves the love. He only understands a master. I know a dog when I see one.”

“That’s why we’re a tag team.” Rin winked at him. It was adorable. “A master holds a leash to contain their hound. But the hound that truly loves the master stays at his side voluntarily.”

They really had to do something about his codename. But, of course, that had been the point. Although he knew it would be completely pointless, Kakashi said, “So the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan…which one do you think that might be? The leash or the love?”

“It’s both. A leash is the kindest thing you can do for humanity. Stops them from running off cliffs, getting run over by carriages, running afoul of cruel humans…you have to train with a leash before a hound is ready to run on its own.” Rin sighed, leaning on the nightstand and looking at Shisui. “But the regular person won’t understand that. We have to save them one person at a time until we can save the world. We saved Itachi from those monstrous, uncaring Uchiha. He’ll understand that one day. Everybody deserves a utopia except the system that would ruin it, right?”

Kakashi shrugged. “Sure.”

Rin shot him a flat look. “One of these days I’ll convince you to have an opinion about something.”

“I have an opinion about you and Obito,” Kakashi said cheekily, and he was rewarded with a soft smile. Granted, it was indistinguishable from her fake ones, but he had the benefit of trust. “Speaking of which, I think I’ll go visit him. Want to come with?”

But Rin just looked away, ghosting a hand over Shisui’s prone face. “No. If you say he’s safe, he’s safe.”

Kakashi lowered his voice. This, of all things, was her one true point of vulnerability. But Obito had always been their weakness. “You deserve to see him.” Rin’s hand halted over Shisui’s nose and mouth. “You aren’t dirty, Rin.”

“I’m weak,” Rin said softly. She placed her hand over Shisui’s nose and mouth. “If I saw him…I’d ruin it all.”

She pressed down.

“You’re the strongest person I know. Seeing his face might make this easier to bear.” Shisui’s chest began to rise and fall faster and faster, struggling for breath. “You should at least try.”

“When the world is good,” Rin whispered. “When we have a world good enough for him. Obito or Tobi…I’ll create a world where either can be happy. One where he can be whoever he wants to be. He’ll feel safe. That’s when I will be able to face him again.”

And, left unsaid: only an Infinite Tsukuyomi could create that world. Nothing less than a completely controlled utopia could create a world where Obito Uchiha could be himself. In that way, it was all for him.

Of course, that would leave them with a secondary problem - i.e. he would probably be terrified of them. Because they were the baddies.

Eh. Obito was nuts too. Maybe he’d roll with it. All else fails, they could just have Shisui genjutsu him. It didn’t matter. What did?

“Call me selfish,” Kakashi drawled, sticking his hands in his pockets, “but I hope he chooses Obito. Things could be…a little closer to our hopes and dreams that way.”

If Obito was terrified of them, Tobi was all they would ever get. Sacrifices and compromises must be made. And hopes and dreams would forever remain far away.

Rin smiled, sticking out her tongue at him. “We love him no matter what,” Rin said loyally. She paused a beat. “But…call me selfish too.”

Shisui’s chest grew still. Boredly, Rin’s hand glowed with green chakra, and his heart beat again. He gasped for breath, unconscious yet fighting for his life, and his breaths evened out again. He would never even know.

Kakashi saluted her, and she blew him a kiss, and he disappeared into the world that he and Obito shared. Even if he didn’t know it yet.

Who was the worse person: the woman who thought her actions were helping the world, or the man who knew their actions were evil and simply didn’t care?

Of course, this was not a question Kakashi cared about either. He always ended up asking himself these questions, because despite everything he was a chronic thinker, but he alway dismissed them just as easily. They never captured his attention. Almost nothing did, save Rin and Obito.

And maybe Yahiko and Konan, just a bit. A little bit more every day. Some distant part of Kakashi was horrified by that. Again, most of him didn’t care. He and that sulky Konan had an understanding.

The one man Kakashi cared about (Yahiko did not count) was sitting in a hard plastic chair in a hospital room. A child was lying in a hospital bed. Probably Sasuke, recovering from his brother’s torture genjutsu. Kakashi’s eyes glossed over him. As always, there was a helpful branch outside the window, and Kakshi settled in to watch.

Obito - might as well call him Tobi, for clarity’s sake - seemed very out of it. He should probably be in his own hospital bed, but there was no way he would stay in another room when a baby cousin needed him by his side. So tsundere but so caring. Kakashi missed Obito’s unique brand of care. The world had tried to beat it out of him, but it just couldn’t be suffocated. How often had he scorned Rin and Kakashi for their weakness, yet took every hit for them he could in battle? How many lunches had he packed, civilians had he rescued, lectures he had inflicted upon Kakashi about how his laziness was going to kill him?

Kakashi hesitated. He…he really wanted…

Obito had lost everything, and today he had lost the rest. His family was extinct and featured only two incompetent children. Kakashi…wanted to…

Would Rin scold him for going against orders? Undoubtedly. Who was the worse person: the woman who thought her actions were helping the world, or the man who knew their actions were evil and simply didn’t care? The woman who thought she was helping Obito, or the man who knew that they were only hurting him and simply hurt him more?

Because it was Obito, it was a question that Kakashi bothered to answer. The man who tortured him with full understanding that they were torturing him was far worse. He could stop at any time - he knew how to stop, he knew that he only needed to break away from his mindless obedience to Rin - but he never would. That would involve making his own decisions. Can’t have that.

It was a useless question anyway. Obito would never forgive either of them. And yet, Kakashi wanted…

Kakashi balanced delicately on the windowsill. He tapped on the window three times, and when Tobi didn’t respond he disarmed the security seals and let himself in.

Only then did Tobi respond. Barely. He roused himself, blinking sleepily at the intruder in a dark cloak with red clouds and a white mask. He probably should have dressed up as an ANBU, but - well, too late now.

Immediately, Kakashi let his Sharingan spin. He cast a minor genjutsu over Tobi - there was no minor genjutsu with the Mangekyo, but it was the best he could do. Their eyes were equally matched…obviously…but between the shock and the tiredness and barely healed injuries Kakashi’s eye came out on top.

Tobi’s eyes immediately unfocused, and he slumped a little in his seat. The genjutsu didn’t do much - it would make this event feel unreal, closer to a dream. Prevent him from panicking or remembering this encounter too well. Alright. That worked, somehow. Bizarre to get one up on Obito. Should have felt more satisfying. Really didn’t. Kakashi just felt kind of awkward now.

Unlike Rin, he had never…really interacted with Tobi. He saw other people interacting with him all the time, but Kakashi never had the pleasure. How did other people talk to him? Smaller words, simple sentences, clear directions? Kakashi could tell that it took practice for most people. He had no idea how to do it.

Since Obito was obviou - maybe - anyway, since Obito was more mentally present than he seemed, Kakashi would just talk normally and not care. But a) Obito was committed to this bit - uh, better at understanding things than he appeared to be, and would act as if he didn’t understand anyway, and b) there was no possible way that Obito was home right now. If Obito was ever home, obviously. But Obito had been home less and less as the years went by, and Kakashi could already tell that he would withdraw deep inside of himself for a while.

Uh. What did he do. What did he do. Act as if he was talking to a dog, maybe? Kakashi knew dogs. He knew Rin and he knew dogs. Was that condescending?! Without a doubt, but - ah, fuck it. Kakashi couldn’t believe he was feeling some sort of anxiety about this. When was the last time he had felt anxiety? When he and Rin spent way too long trying to exterminate Zetsu from this green earth?

“Hey, Tobi,” Kakashi said softly. “How…are you?”

Tobi just frowned. Kakashi wanted to spin his Sharingan, remember the sight of him so close and speaking to him forever, but that would be more than suspicious. “Who are you?”

“A friend.” Would even Tobi buy that?! “Are you okay? You seem like you’ve been through a lot.” Did that work? Damn, at least he could normally depend on Obito to filter this shit. “Um. I know you’re hurt.”

“Tobi’s not okay,” Tobi said frankly. He looked over at Sasuke, sleeping so peacefully. So he either bought it or didn’t give a shit. Relatable. “Tobi’s not gonna be okay again.”

“That’s not true. One day everything will be okay.” A lump formed in Kakashi’s throat, and he forced himself to swallow it down. “I know it hurts now. But it has to hurt now.”

“Why?” Tobi asked. So plaintively. He didn’t understand.

And Kakashi could only hesitate. How could he explain this? How could he possibly explain the true nature of the world in a way that Tobi - right here, right now - could understand? Sacrifices and compromises had to be made. Kakashi and Rin were the only ones who knew that.

Maybe Rin was good at explaining it. But she was a zealot - a fanatic who truly believed what she was saying. She was persuasive, earnest, manipulative. Kakashi was absolutely none of these things. And everybody said she had been good with Tobi. She would have been able to explain the world in her simple, beautiful way. Kakashi thought too much. He always had. There was nothing else to do, staring at clouds.

Slowly, Kakashi said, “You know how…when you break a bone, and it heals badly. You have to break it again so it sets right?” Tobi frowned, but he nodded. So he still remembered the many, many, many broken bones he had suffered. “It’s like that. The world has to heal. So it must be broken. When it heals, we’ll all be happy. Got it?”

But Tobi just frowned. Damn, and Kakashi had been pretty proud of that one. “Itachi-kun broke. Is he gonna heal?”

Kakashi hesitated. Rin would have said yes. Rin would genuinely believe that this suffering was necessary to heal Itachi, and that through her loving oneesama guidance he would become happy and fulfilled. Kakashi couldn’t say the same. What the kid needed was retirement and flower garden and a normal-ass foster parent, not a war under another flag.

Well, time to pull an old Rin special. Also, like, a frequent tactic anybody used when dealing with Tobi.

“Sure,” Kakashi lied. “Wait a little bit. He’ll become your friend again. You’ll like that, right?” Tobi nodded eagerly. Wow, he was stupid. “Do you…want to see your friends again?” Tobi nodded even more empathetically. “I can show you your friends again.”

Kakashi hadn’t thought about the words before he said them. Maybe Tobi was contagious like that. But Tobi’s unfocused eyes were already widening, his posture straightening a little. “Gai’s here too?”

And before he could think about it, before he could realize what a bad idea it was, Kakashi stretched out his hand. He found his voice lowering, falling into a gentle lilt. “I can take you to Itachi-kun. But I can take you to Shisui too. And Rin. And…Kakashi. Would you like that?”

Tobi looked a little skeptical. Well, even he understood the concept of mortality. “Shisui-kun and Rin-chan and Kakashi-kun are dead. Um, that’s why I have their stuff. And why Kakashi-kun’s house is lonely.”

“Minato-sen - your sensei and your nee-chan are dead.” Rin would say good riddance. Kakashi - eh. “But Shisui and Rin and Kakashi just went somewhere else. I can take you to them. Is that what you want?”

“Someplace else?” Tobi asked, eyes widening. “No…I saw them…”

“Just a bad dream,” Kakashi said. “That’s all.” He stretched his hand out further, leaving it in early reach of Tobi. “You can at least see them. Just to be sure. Then you can see for yourself that they’re okay. We’ll be quick.”

Tobi's face was so innocent. It was impressive - the clearest contrast to Rin’s own innocent face. There was no similarity. It shouldn’t be true. Weren’t they equally…?

Tobi reached out to Kakashi. Kakashi held his breath. He hadn’t realized how much he wanted this. This, this one thing, this desire - so overpowering, like a raging flame, like a bolt of lightning. It was addictive. If Obito just came home, then -

Tobi froze. “What about Sasuke?”

“What about him?” Kakashi asked blankly.

And Tobi’s hand retreated. He looked to the bed, at the sleeping child. “If Tobi goes, Sasuke’s alone. I can’t let him be hurt alone. He needs me.” Tobi looked back at Kakashi, shaking his head firmly. “Tobi’s friends don’t need Tobi. Sasuke needs me. Tobi’s sorry, Dog-man, but Tobi can’t leave.”

Of course he couldn’t. He wouldn’t be the Obito they knew if he could. He wouldn’t be the man he and Rin loved if he made that choice.

If there were baddies, there were good guys. That was inherent. Obito was, and always would be, a good guy. That - and only that - would always keep them apart.

“Your friend will be watching over you,” Kakashi rasped. “Always. So…don’t be sad. And don’t be scared. Your friends are doing it all for you.”

Tobi…squinted at him. For just a second, his eyes seemed clear. “Doing what?”

Uh oh. Kakashi cast a hasty genjutsu, and Tobi - Obito? Just for a second? - slumped in his seat. Kakashi stepped through kamui into…Kamui, just as quickly. This had been his worst idea of the last two years, which said a gratuitous amount.

Why was Rin breaking the bone? Well, for world peace. Love, friendship, harmony, death to the real baddies, etc. For Obito. For a world that deserved him, and where he could feel safe. Where Tobi could put Tobi down and become Obito again, if that was what he wanted. If he could. If that wasn’t possible - if Kakashi and Rin were too late to save him - then all Rin wanted was to create a world where Tobi could live happily and safely.

Why was Kakashi doing this? So he could be with Rin and Obito.

And the worse person of the two was obvious.

#my writing #kakashi hatake #rin nohara #naruto fanfic #kakashi ended up FASCINATING me big time and i need to find the excuse to write more of him #there's something about the snarky 4th wall breaking narrator who thinks that makes him smarter than everyone else #when in reality it just makes him more insane #nobody tell kakashi that his narration is very similar to utopia!obito's. don't. he doesn't want to know that.#the contrast of tobito's incredible misery and kakashi's utter blaseness was funny to me #damn i want to put them all in a room so bad and i have no idea how to make that happen #ill figure out a way. next up: more rinnnn

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teatitty · 4 months ago

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Never not thinking about the fact that Kirigakure is known for its swordsmanship [kenjutsu, which can be combined with all other styles of jutsu - even fuuinjutsu - to achieve more devastation]. Not only do we have the Seven Swordsmen and their mystical blades - which is a group whose origins go all the way back to the first Mizukage - but the Shikamaru novel also confirms that every Kiri villager strives to master kenjutsu from their childhood onwards in an attempt to earn a place among the Seven Swordsmen, who are the best of the best in the village and seen as second only to the Mizukage themself

Basically what I'm saying is that Terumi Mei should've had swords. Give her a jian or dao or something and let her go nuts

#naruto #lore post #kirigakure #terumi mei #personally I'm giving her two dao swords she keeps sealed in her clothes to hide them

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unolvrs · 1 year ago

Note

UPCOMING WORKS? PLEASE? IF THERE AREN'T ANY, IT'S OKAY TOO!

uhh, there are both upcoming works and upcoming updates! i have sneak peeks for each one! but here they are:

少年A　（jjk ft. male!reader; possibly megumi/reader）

In a remote village in Sapporo, a thirteen-year-old first year student in an unnamed junior high school allegedly killed three classmates known to bully his best friend who they had driven to suicide. (Or, none of that is true.)

少年A (or: Boy A) was initially made as an OC out of nowhere. i shared him to a few friends before i realized that the set-up of him being nameless and just being called 'Boy A' was perfect for a reader-insert. and before i knew it, i was already writing everything down and it was really, really fun. the term 「少年A」 is something akin to 'John Doe' and it's mostly a name used to minors involved in a crime. there are lots of criminal 「少年A」 in japan so if you want to read about them, i'd give you a big trigger warning because the most well-known 「少年A」 was involved a horrific case.

2. among dawn flowers (the face of god), an extra chapter

i always get notifications about comments concerning dawn flowers and i've read all of them. thank you for your very kind words! they make me feel very happy every time i read them :D i'll be replying to them soon. but the most common comment is about gojō's... well, reaction to everything and what he truly felt for the main character, and there were a couple of misunderstandings in the comments too. i would normally just leave the misunderstandings be to let people have their own interpretation but i've been getting lots of comments and DMs about dawn flowers all the time, so this extra chapter happened. it has the following AUs too:

zen'in naoya marries tengai-san instead

tengai-san survives

tōji snatches up tengai-san (not at all romantic but a found family of sorts because their dynamics are really interesting! because they're the people who neither needs the least!)

and idk, maybe some more? i'll be reading through the comments again!

3. kirigakure-centric naruto fic

“Kirigakure didn’t need help. They needed salvation.” No one knows anything about the Mizukage. Only that she’s kind. She likes to smile. She likes seafood like every other Mizu-born. And that there’s something inexplicably wrong with her. There’s something wrong with the Mizukage whom the Kiri-nin call a ‘god’. —or, Wataru Wataru was never really a powerhouse, in this life or the last, but she’s resourceful. She knows cults, pyramid schemes, and corrupt politicians like the back of her hand, so of course, she becomes the Mizukage and becomes a god along the way.

it's highlighted because it's undergoing editing... but yes, the mizukage cultist fic that i was talking about a month ago. it currently has four chapters in my drafts. i'm testing the waters on whether or not i can maintain it. so far, i have everything planned... like the timeline... it's too detailed.

4. shintō pjo fic

Beyond the eastern seas, Sen'no Hyōran wages a one-man war. (Or, if all she needs is the Golden Fleece, if all she needs is to steal that damned thing, then she will. Those Greeks standing in her way or not.)

YES IT'S HAPPENING OK!

of course, there's also the writing of kill the goose (3 chapters in my drafts now!), rain on my parade (a very slow rewriting), sunday without god (i wrote the next chapter and it was too long like 8k words and i'm not even halfway done so i'm stuck)! and posting some comm'd works that have been rotting in my drive for months!

some possible fics but no promises:

floating blue (nanami/reader)

Aoi's josei romance manga life starts when she's saved by Nanami Kento after almost falling down the train tracks! (Or, it turns out that Aoi is the main character of a supernatural josei manga! She's so excited!)

starts off as a cliché josei manga set-up bc aoi is a josei manga protagonist! then turns deep :D might become a reader-insert instead but without the [name] insert things. just second pov. this was really meant to be a rom-com than a sudden "omg! i'm in a supernatural josei manga!" might write bc it's a cute concept.

the prostitution of learning (jjk & male!oc)

There is no other main character but Kikuchi Eita. (Or, defeating enemies, exorcizing Curses, facing conservative higher-ups, there’s no adversity that Kikuchi Eita cannot push through because Kikuchi Eita is the main character. That is until Itadori Yūji.)

i made this guy before 少年A and while eita is my favorite oc i've ever created in jjk, 少年A's story is easier to write. but the prostitution of learning is a bit more complicated even just with eita's planned CT and while i'd love nothing more than to write this one, idk if i'd have the time but i really want to!

willow diaries / 柳日記 (kakashi/oc)

Kakashi gets a nobleman's concubine pregnant. Whoops. (Or, I no Yanagihaya's honorable brother-in-law said to surprise him. She did.)

first of all, it's not cheating or infidelity. said nobleman is dead. anyway, i think this is the most likely to be written bc i've written the first chapter a hundred times but couldn't get satisfied. anyway, this one's fun. and i love civilian ocs! especially writing nobility. the research was a pain but i loooove this one.

pls... don't ask me about frog in a well :"") i'm working on it! idk, froggie's become that weird cousin idk if i wanna talk to or not. it's awkward between the two of us right now bc ik i could start writing the chapter anytime and get it done and over it quickly but i've been lazy and focusing on other stuff hehe <3

#問 ━━ answers #aka the monthly “what are you writing rn uno”

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depressedhatakekakashi · 5 months ago

Note

Was thinking of your MistGai au, and how one of Gai's kids didn't have an opponent, and then got an idea. Remember Dosu?

Two of his team get their asses handed to him, but he was always the major threat of the team and makes it into the Chuunin exam. But one of his feats was he and his team defeating Lee in the second exam, and then taking out Choji. Showcasing that taijutsu is weak to his sound techniques.

What if instead of committing suicide by talking to Gaara, because he wanted to fight Sasuke, instead SOMEONE stopped him/ he didn't do that, and ended up fighting Gai's best student instead.

This let's Dosu live a little longer (he seemed like a vool character if he managed to survive.), show cases the power of Taijutsu in Gai's student (especially when he wins, maybe with the primary lotus since Dosu has no one to cover his back like he did in the forest), gives one of Gai's kids a person to fight, and gives Kakashi and Sasuke time to arrive at the stadium. Though it would be cool if Kakashi showed up to see the fight too.

Just thinking of Gai teaching his kids to be absolute bad asses! And Hiruzen sweating because he now knows who Gai is, and what the leaf lost as a result...and now what the Mist gained.

(Also I'm picturing his best student being a girl, because Naruto as a show, needs more girls! And she could be adorble/ chaotic AF!)

Naruto as a show DOES need more girls, and i’m always here for Hiruzen sweeting a lil. It’s a suffering he deserves :)

Meanwhile Kakashi’s out here like ‘i know i shouldn’t be cheering for Gai’s kids, but that’s his rival and his kids are ruthless and badass

He’s very proud

That being said, i’m on the fence about her killing Dosu in their fight cuz it is allowed and she is from the ‘bloody mist’ but also… gai supports Mei as Mizukage which means he’s less inclined to murder as easily (he will. It’s where him and Kisame really clash, but he needs a good reason to do it)

But i could see Dosu taunting his student and really trying to downplay her threat to him, and her just going completely uhinged on him and murdering him

She realizes what she did and looks at her sensei who has his proud smile on cuz his student just kicked ASS

#Mist Gai au

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renaerys · 1 year ago

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Lubricating the Channels of Diplomacy (SuiIno)

Written for the June 2023 Flash Fic event happening over in the Ino Supremacy Discord server.

Prompt: “I’m gonna be your first and your last.” SuiIno

Summary: “What makes you think I’m interested in cocks?” she says.

“Well, you’re not running, for one.” He categorizes her body in the same manner she did him. “And you can’t stop glancing at my sword.”

Okay, you damp fucker.

Or, Ino attends the Hokage's delegation to Kirigakure to negotiate a peace treaty. It's boring, until it's not.

Rating: T (for now)

Read it on AO3 here

Full fic under the cut

Itachi is an excellent Hokage, but his social skills leave much to be desired. Terumi Mei, on the other hand, is not only a politically savvy Mizukage, but charming after a lion fish-fashion: slow-moving, exquisite, and highly venomous to the touch. She is an invasive presence, distracting in every way, and Itachi does not trust her despite her official offer for an alliance with Konoha.

It is thus that Ino finds herself accompanying the Hokage’s entourage on this visit. Shisui is a pestiferous jackass even on his best days, which days are when Ino doesn’t see him, but there is no denying his natural charisma. Unfortunately, they pair well as they work a room full of Kiri Elders and advisors and military commanders so that Itachi doesn’t have to. Shisui likes to talk, and Ino likes to be the center of conversation.

Shisui approaches the Elders because something about him has always endeared the old and infirm to him. Ino immediately notices the Hunters’ commander, Ao, circling Shisui like a remora circles a shark, gauging how best to latch on without getting torn apart. She pings Shisui in between laughing at something some dusty advisor has said to her.

“The Byakugan Killer has had your name all over his hard-on for the past twenty minutes.”

Shisui doesn’t react, not even at the shuddering echo of her voice in his head from across the room. But he does step away from his current conversation with the speed and grace of his namesake and is suddenly greeting Ao very loudly, as if they are old pals who never tried to kill each other on the battlefield.

Shithead, Ino thinks. But his act draws out the Kiri ANBU hiding among the guests. Ino picks them out and plots a path among them to listen in for anything that could smell like a set up.

“I’m gonna be your first and your last.”

An average-sized man with a supernaturally above-average sword has cornered her. The first thing Ino notices are his eyes—an exquisite shade of violet that is not common on the mainland. The second thing she notices are his teeth. Their filed sharpness mark him as one of the Seven Legendary Swordsmen.

“Excuse me?” she says, not trusting that shark’s grin on him for a second.

He leans against the bar they are propped against, casually into her personal space. “Kiri cock,” he clarifies.

Surely, Ino thinks, this is not what Itachi had in mind when he ordered Shisui and her to facilitate collaborative dialogue with their Kiri counterparts.

It is so crass that she doesn’t even laugh. His boldness, and his timing, suggest he has rehearsed this. Which suggests that he’s been watching her float amongst his coworkers for a while, lying in wait. A rockfish blending into the coral, jaws agape.

“What makes you think I’m interested in cocks?” she says.

It throws him, as she suspected it might. Such a big sword wants to be seen and admired, and it knows little else. But he recovers quickly enough. He even flags down the bartender for a different varietal of sake than what Ino was drinking before and offers her the fresh cup.

“Well, you’re not running, for one.” He categorizes her body in the same manner she did him. “And you can’t stop glancing at my sword.”

Okay, you damp fucker.

Ino takes the cup he’s offering and drinks. Unfortunately, the kasumizake he’s ordered is incredible, far better than the familiar wine she’d selected for herself. She suspects it’s a local varietal. His smug grin as he drinks from his own cup confirms his victory here, but the drink is too good to hold it against him. She’s magnanimous when warranted.

“It’s a very big sword,” Ino says. “Compensatory, even.”

“Eye of the beholder. And yeah, that’s an open invitation.”

“To what? Lubricate the channels of diplomacy?”

He chokes on his sake. Ino is mollified.

She also senses her Hokage moving. He will be wanting her report, and Ino is eager to give it so that Shisui doesn’t get to him first. They will be fucking against a wall for the next hour and she will be forced to wait until they are done if he does, and she doesn’t have that kind of time when there are world-famous hot springs to sample while she’s here. Perk of the job.

“Excuse me,” she says, fully intending to leave her suitor behind.

His hand on her wrist stops her, but he doesn’t pull. “Wait. I’m Hozuki Suigetsu.” There are blue veins in his eyes, faint and royal. She can smell the floral kasumizake on his breath. “If I’m gonna be your local tour guide, I figure you should know my name.”

“Yamanaka Ino,” Ino says, because he will learn her name regardless, and she isn’t one for playing games just for the sake of it. She likes to win, but only when the stakes are real. “And you’re fired.”

She leaves him then to his blue balls and his delicious sake, and she feels him watch her walk away. This is always her favorite part.

The hunt.

#SuiIno #ino yamanaka #yamanaka ino #suigetsu hozuki #hozuki suigetsu #ino supremacy #ino supremacy flash fic #look i really like this one #suiino is an old guard ship #please read it and encourage me to do the part 2

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electrasev5nwrites · 1 year ago

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Ninja Daily: AIC 20

By the second day that she dropped by to see Naruto during training, Jiraiya had pretty well given up on coaxing her into a bathing suit. He was sulking on the other edge of the pool, occasionally giggling over whatever he was trying to write. Also at Naruto's failures, he liked laughing at the little irritated screech Naruto made when he fell in the pool. The onsen had been cleaner, but it had only taken Jiraiya a day to get thrown out.

Aiko kept one eye on Naruto and one turned to the surroundings. She'd felt watched all day, in a way that couldn't be attributed to Jiraiya's wandering eyes.

'I'd say Konoha, but I can sense that team. So they're not the ones giving me the creeps. Unless it's a different Konoha interest- Danzo? But why would he care about me?'

"I heard some interesting news this morning."

Aiko glanced over. "Oh?"

Jiraiya looked uncharacteristically serious. "Kirigakure announced they have a new Mizukage." He met her eyes. "I don't suppose you know anything about that?"

Oh. She gave an enormous stretch, feeling the skin on the back of her neck prickle. After a moment she decided, "That's very surprising."

He looked unconvinced, surprisingly enough. "Is it?"

For other people, probably.

"Very." Aiko couldn't contain a yawn. "Politics are so interesting. I wonder if this change will affect my life?"

"Ha!" Naruto splashed over, apparently unconcerned with the fact that he was sopping wet. "Maybe you should be the Mizukage! That way, when I'm Hokage, we can be friends." He cheerfully climbed back onto the edge, gave a whoop, and flung himself back into the water. She wasn't entirely certain he'd even tried to water-walk that time.

Aiko let the water hit her, because what the hell. It was a hot day and she liked water just fine.

Naruto was half-wincing, watching for her reaction to being drenched.

She peeled her hair away from her face and gave him just enough of a smile that he would know she wasn't angry. "Actually, I am the new Mizukage. Are we already friends?"

Jiraiya made an irritated sound and lowered the arm he'd used to keep the wave of water off of his face. "Stop messing around."

"Yeah, yeah." Naruto gave the Sannin an unimpressed look. "It could happen. I'm definitely going to be Hokage, you know!"

"I know," Aiko agreed. She leaned back against the side of the pool. "You should master water-walking first, though. I'm pretty sure that Mizukage's friends should know water-walking."

He blew a raspberry at her, but he didn't disagree.

"If I can do water-walking for hours, how much chakra do you think it takes?" Aiko prompted

Naruto hesitated. "Do you have a lot of chakra?" he asked.

She shrugged. "So-so." That wasn't true, but her chakra reserves weren't that relevant. And compared to Naruto, everyone was so-so at best, really. Comparing himself to other people was functionally useless in most cases.

It took him a minute to come up with a better question, face scrunched in thought. "Could many people do that?"

Aiko nodded. "Pretty much any shinobi in Kirigakure, including many genin."

"Oh." Naruto sat on the edge and kicked at the water. "I guess that water-walking doesn't need to use a lot of chakra."

She nodded again. "Good, that's one possibility. It's not quite right, though."

There was silence while he mulled that over. Aiko waited patiently, closing her eyes and leaning her head back. The wind was pulling at the short hairs on her neck. It tickled.

"I don't know what you mean." Naruto sounded sullen.

"The key phrase is 'doesn'tneed to use a lot,'" Aiko explained. "It's more like, 'walking on water has to use…" she trailed off.

He jumped in quickly this time. "It has to use a little?"

"Right." She peeled her eyes open to give him an approving look. "That's exactly right. What counts as a 'little' chakra varies from person to person, so you'll have to figure out the rate that works for you. But until you manage to hit the right amount, it's a good bet that you're using too much. Start from there."

"Oh." Naruto sounded dejected. "That's…" He inhaled. "That's great! I can do that! Just watch, Hikari-san!"

"Of course."

He went back to his more timid approach, face screwed up in concentration and repeatedly jabbing a foot into the water from the rim. Aiko watched for a minute, and then turned her head to Jiraiya. "It's still rude to stare. In case you were wondering."

"I'll keep that in mind for future reference." Jiraiya scratched at his chin. "You… you like kids, then?"

She thought she might know where this was going, so Aiko raised an eyebrow and let her gaze go back to Naruto. True to his word, he seemed very industrious and conscious of being observed. "Not enough to have one of my own."

'Conventional wisdom says that I should, to be jinchuuriki after me, if nothing else. But I could have a dozen kids and no guarantee that any of them would want that. I need to find another solution. If Sanbi doesn't totally freak out and start killing people when I die, I'd say he should just be left alone to do whatever the hell he wants. But even if Mist respected my wishes in that, no one else would.'

"I can hear you thinking about what to do with me," Sanbi said dryly.

"What?" Jiraiya's eyes widened. "I mean- because of your work, right? Now isn't a good time?"

'Oh, sorry,' Aiko thought back snidely. 'I'll just do my villainous plotting in that other headspace I have.'

Aiko snorted belatedly when she caught up with what Jiraiya had said aloud. He was right on that- the Mizukage did not have a lot of time to spare. "That too," she said. "I'm working on my career right now. But also in the general sense."

"There is no call for such attitude," the Sanbi said primly.

He gave her an odd look. "Doesn't everybody want kids?"

"Clearly not." She raised an eyebrow. "I thought you didn't have any," she prodded.

'Having an attitude is always appropriate.'

The wink that Jiraiya gave her was so lascivious that he had to be hiding something unpleasant. "Whose to say I don't? I've loved many women, after all."

"No need to brag," Aiko said mildly. "I have too."

Sanbi snorted. "I have only seen you cavort with that foolish Konoha warrior."

'I've cavorted before, Sanbi dear. And would you let that go? Yes, I get it, he's kind of a douche. I'm done with him.'

"What?" The sannin blinked. "Oh…." Jiraiya's shoulders slumped. "That explains why you're immune to my charms, then." His tone was sorrowful. "It's just not to be, is it?"

She choked down a laugh. "We're star-crossed," Aiko agreed as solemnly as she could manage. "Another time, another place, if you weren't quite so hairy…" She trailed off. 'If you weren't my godfather in another universe, if you weren't so much older than me, if I was attracted to you.'

He gave her a wounded look, and then brightened. "I'm incredibly manly, you mean?"

"Exactly what I meant." She slapped her left foot against the surface of the water to make a splash. He sputtered in indignation, but she was already getting up. "I should get back to my students. Good luck, Naruto. I'll look forward to seeing your progress tomorrow."

Said students were going back to regular training, although they hadn't realized it yet. Thinking that they might have to fight for their lives in the tournament and subsequent invasion was enough to really light a fire under their asses in terms of work ethic.

Aiko almost felt a little bad about it.

'But what's the alternative?' she asked herself. 'If I could teach it to him in time, and if he could perform it quickly enough, Sen Tsurara might be enough for Yuusaku to survive Gaara. But he's not going to get it in time.'

Besides.

Why the fuck would she let her genin participate in the invasion of Konoha? It wasn't their city to defend. Aiko would be perfectly fine, but the invaders would not count many genin among their numbers, so her team would be facing a disadvantage. She wasn't going to risk her people against Orochimaru's forces.

'Of course, Konoha would probably prefer every able body helping them out, but I've noted before that it sucks to suck. They're just going to have to deal.'

"Sensei is being weird again. See the faces she's making? I wonder wha-"

Aiko threw her pen at Ryuusei without looking up. She was rewarded with a yelp. "What's that?" she asked.

"I said-"

"You'd like more practice running in the trees?" Aiko held up a hand for her pen. The return toss was mediocre, but she caught it anyway. "How industrious, Ryuusei-kun. Please, go ahead."

He groaned, but he began cleaning up his equipment.

Placidly, she looked at his teammates. Yuusaku was frowning slightly, Keisuke smirking.

After a moment, Yuusaku sighed. "Oh, damn," he said quietly. He raised his voice. "Wait a minute, we're going to try that race again."

"We're what." Keisuke crossed his arms.

"We're going to race in the trees," Yuusaku repeated. He dropped the water he was manipulating and walked over to his reluctant teammate. "We wouldn't leave Ryuusei to have that much fun by himself, would you?"

"Yes," Keisuke hissed. He gave both of his teammates a beady, resentful stare. But he began yanking his senbon out of the target and putting them away.

Aww. Aiko gave Yuusaku a nod of approval. The little bastards were learning. "How long did that take you last time?"

Keisuke gave his taller teammate an aggrieved look. "One hundred and Forty minutes."

"Oh." Aiko blinked. That… actually, that wasn't completely terrible for a village circuit by genin. Maybe she'd make runners out of them yet. "Good. And what will you do afterward?"

They blinked at her.

She waited.

Ryuusei sucked a breath in through his teeth. "I think I should do those strength exercises again," he suggested slowly. "It's been two days." He looked to Yuusaku.

"Ah." Yuusaku ran a hand through his hair, leaving it to stick up like a bird's plumage. "Taijutsu forms? Or- actually, I could use some strength training too."

"I'm already far too powerful," Keisuke said loftily. "I should see if I can replicate that trap you showed us last time."

Aiko pursed her lips. "You're doing strength training tomorrow, I think. Don't worry, your sheer power isn't intimidating the rest of us quite yet. But all that sounds good- Yuusaku, your first instinct was good. Go with the forms." She stood, giving a stretch. "We're going to do a team training exercise the first thing tomorrow morning- you three against me. So I'm leaving tonight up to your discretion: do what you think will prepare you for that. Understood?"

They nodded, so she felt free to head out.

She hadn't had a chance to check out movie showing times yet, after all. It was better to go a bit early and be sure she wouldn't miss the start time. Aiko took a minute to look around when she'd found the right street- it wasn't quite busy yet, but it would be soon.

'If I were the one staking this location out…' She worried at her lower lip. 'That coffeeshop is a good vantage point and reason to hang around for quite some time. Or that window up there- it looks like a vacant apartment.'

Well. Maybe she'd see where he came from. She had to take the bait first. Aiko firmed up her shoulders and walked over to the ticket booth to check the times. The woman behind the counter was a knock-out, but she had the kind of severely unimpressed look that didn't usually help a person in customer service.

That sort of bad attitude was actually more attractive, so Aiko had to consciously keep interest off her face. "Good afternoon," she greeted. "I was wondering about showings for the Princess Fuu movie tonight?"

"I was wondering when you would deign to show up," the ticket woman said back. "A moment, please." She began to pull something up on the machine.

"Alright," Aiko agreed. She blinked. "Wait. What?"

She got an unimpressed look back, one perfectly shaped eyebrow lifted. Good lord, those eyelashes were to die for-

Wait a minute.

Inside the lobby, a graying manager noticed Aiko with a start.

"Sorry about being a little slow. I'm a new hire," Obito said blandly. "Temp work. The usual girl is sick." He leaned back, apparently absorbed in whatever he was doing. "The first showing is at 5:45, the second at 7:20, but if you'd like the final one it's at 9:40 for a special price, just today."

Aiko gave him an incredulous look. "Oh my god." She paused, realizing something. "What did you do to that poor woman?"

The manager was walking closer. What a good dude. What exactly did he think he would do if a foreign shinobi was harassing one of his employees, though?

The black-haired beauty that Obito appeared to be gave the sort of fluttery "oh, it's nothing," gesture that Aiko would expect from Ino. "She'll feel better tomorrow," he said lightly.

'I'm not dealing with this. Any of this.'

She folded her arms and leaned back, trying to look more bored than aggressive or dangerous. "Thank you," she said, loudly enough for Obito's manager to hear. "The last showing sounds fine. I think I'm going to go rest for a bit, first."

"That will be 1300 yen." Obito said, disinterested. He did something to his machine and it began to make some awful noise. "And I see. All the way home?"

"A friend's house." Aiko took the ticket he offered. "It's a nice place, with an herb garden in the back."

He had a lot of safehouses, but only one had a terrible tangle of overgrown lavender where the porch had been, once upon a time. Honestly. That man needed to hire some caretakers.

"That sounds lovely." Obito gave her a vaguely queasy smile, tone polite and distant. "Thank you for your patronage."

"Of course." She glanced at the ticket before she put it in her purse- it was actually for the 7:20 showing. Well, of course, there was no 9:40 showing. He was probably saying he'd be there at 9:40 at the latest.

As soon as she was far enough away, Aiko ducked into an alley and hiraishin'd to the safehouse she'd chosen. She eyed the front door cautiously- he had so many that he probably wouldn't have been able to guess which one she would choose as a private rendezvous point, but he did know how she thought.

Rather than risking an entry, she took a minute to wish she was a sensor. Obito wouldn't have many allies to ambush her with, but there was always Zetsu. Maybe Kisame-

'I think I would know if Kisame was lurking around.' She nibbled at her fingernails. 'His chakra is unreal.'

Obito didn't show up within half an hour, which was bordering on rude. Was he really going to stick to that time?

'I don't have all night. And I don't have to play by his rules,' Aiko decided. She was considering leaving a note when the front door swung open.

Obito walked out, bare of any henge. "I apologize." He looked directly at her, and Aiko had to work not to wince at seeing the one sharingan in his face. Ah. Just one… Well, there wasn't the Danzo surplus kicking around just yet. He must have taken it from his counterpart.

He was still talking. "I took the liberty of a shower. I thought that the popcorn aroma would be distracting."

Fair enough, actually. "It clings," Aiko agreed. She blinked quickly, as if that would get rid of the hairline cracks in her vision or the fact that he was the reason she was going blind. She didn't take a step closer, but she didn't move backwards either. He stopped about ten feet away.

It didn't mean anything except as a gesture. The distance was nothing to either of them.

"What do you want?" Aiko asked. It was blunt, but…

He gave her a reproachful look, but didn't scold. "We have an aligned interest. I would like some measure of coordination so that we aren't working against each other."

She raised an eyebrow. She thought she knew what he meant, but…

"Akatsuki is a beast that I unleashed on this world as much as ours," Obito said. The skin around his eye was swollen, red, and shiny. Still? When had he taken the eye? "I… I've lost the taste for revenge. And you have a very personal interest in stopping a threat that the rest of the world doesn't know to look for yet."

What, Naru-

Oh.

'I keep forgetting I'm a jinchuuriki now. That's… so weird.'

"Akatsuki is formidable." Obito showed his palms slightly. "I wouldn't trust my strength against any two of them, but they will surely react to outside attacks. Dismantling the entire organization will take more than one person, more than one set of resources. And there are at least two in their number who I think that you do not want to face alone."

Two? Which two would he mean? Konan had been a difficult opponent in past, but Aiko would probably do better in that match-up now than she had before. She thought for a moment. "Pein and Itachi?"

Obito gave her a pitying look. "Itachi-kun's legend is exaggerated. I was thinking of Hidan."

Aiko scrunched up her face. She didn't know much about him… He had a foul mouth, he'd somehow mortally offended Sasuke through persistent survival, he was a close-quarters specialist….

He was clearly watching her thought process. "If Hidan manages to touch you, no amount of distance fled would save you."

Well. That was a pretty big clue. And ominous as hell.

'My survival strategy is pretty dependent on fleeing if things go badly. I don't like how that sounds.'

"My plan so far was just to kill people as they became annoying," Aiko said. That was the general life plan, really, she hadn't bothered to come up with a plan for Akatsuki at all yet.

Obito hummed. "So, Kisame and Itachi, then?"

What? Oh. "They come and put Kakashi in the hospital soon, don't they," Aiko remembered. "And then Jiraiya rebuffs them from taking Naruto." She frowned. Well. Kakashi's hospitalization was fucking terrible and he didn't deserve that. But it was important as a reason to coax Tsunade to return to Konoha. And Jiraiya would keep Naruto safe….

"Are you willing to trust that?" Obito sounded disbelieving. "This isn't our world, Aiko. Is everything here the same as it was before?"

Sakura.

Her expression might have been enough information, because he nodded. "Right. You'd better do something, then. I'll help if you want. I don't think you would do well against Itachi and Kisame together."

Aiko winced. She didn't think that would end well, either. And now that she was a jinchuuriki, she was risking worse than a sticky end.

But…

'I don't trust Obito at my back. I'd rather face hard odds than backup I can't trust.'

"It's hard to imagine how you could help, if Jiraiya really is nearby," Aiko deflected. "Unless you want to make yourself known to Konoha?" She didn't let her bitterness color her tone. Much. "They'll welcome you back with open arms. They'll be confused, but you were never a criminal until years from now. And I don't imagine you have a living counterpart here who could ever contradict your right to the welcome."

Obito made an ugly snort. "Aside from how that would limit my options and end with Bakashi plastered insufferably to my heels apologizing to me for the rest of my life, it sounds like an excellent idea. I'll consider it if becoming useless and miserable ever looks like a valid tactic."

Ah, yes. Kakashi's devotion to Obito was depressing and horrific, but when viewed from the lens of the irritation it provided Obito, it was actually pretty funny.

'I hope that he's telling the truth about his intentions there. Konoha doesn't need to take in that kind of danger. Would they find out about everything he's done, or just treat him as a victim? Either way, he's the kind of ally you don't want too close. He murdered his teacher- that wasn't mind control, it was just anger and manipulation. Anyone who is capable of that can't be trusted not to change their mind again.'

"Your loss." Aiko shrugged. "Maybe you can go off Orochimaru and take over his village, then. Get some resources for your fight against the Akatsuki."

"Because my previous attempts at village administration went very well," Obito said dryly.

She didn't bother to respond to that, because she didn't buy it. He'd been the shadow ruler of Ame for a very long time. Yes, he'd brutalized Kirigakure, but it hadn't been out of incompetence. It had been because he wanted to, or more likely, because it served one of his agendas somehow.

"What do you want?" Aiko repeated. She took a step back.

"I'll keep an eye out," Obito said instead of answering. He closed his eye, shiny and painful-looking. "I won't butt in, since you clearly don't want me to." Was the eye infected? "A tip, since you seem concerned about Itachi- the Sharingan can't catch the Rinnegan in an illusion. Itachi relies far too heavily on those. He won't make the mistake twice, however, so use it well."

She pressed her lips together to keep from asking a stupid question.

'If it's true that the Rinnegan is stronger than the Sharingan, he just handed me a weapon against himself. He's bright enough to know that. Why would he do that? Is it a goodwill gesture, a lie- or is he somehow an exception?'

Obito seemed to take the silence as a hint that the conversation was over, because he sighed. "I don't want to be your enemy, Aiko. I think we've both got better shit to do."

'And I've kicked your ass before,' Aiko thought pettily. She had the brains not to say it out loud, at least. Obito might take that as a challenge. And she wouldn't be able to trick him in the same way again, regardless.

She honestly didn't know who would win in a death-match between the two of them, and she didn't like her odds well enough to press the matter. So she opted for the minimum levels of diplomacy.

"We both do," she agreed. "I'm not holding many grudges anymore. What's the point- I hurt you just as much, and our whole damn world is gone." Aiko had to swallow. "What happened there isn't relevant here."

Tentatively, he smiled, and it hurt something in her chest.

"But the person who hurt Kirigakure in this world was another version of you," Aiko continued. Her mouth was dry. "I would feel more comfortable if you stayed out of my country. When you need to contact me, you can send me a letter. I'll get a post box and give you the information. If it's urgent-" she slipped a hand into her holster and froze.

Because Obito had moved for his own weapon.

She met his single eye and pulled out the blade with pointed slowness. She moved her grip to the sharp edge and used her left hand to put a seal on the handle. Aiko managed a bitter smile as she extended it to him like that. She raised her eyebrows.

"Of course." Obito said stiffly. He looked a little ashamed. "That seems fair enough. I won't interfere with Kirigakure, under your protection as it is." Her weapon looked like a toy in his grip, sized as it was for a woman's hand. He was a bulky monster of a man, besides. The contrast was ungainly.

Aiko looked away.

Obito cleared his throat. "In the interest of full disclosure, I was watching in Kirigakure," he said. "Using that Konoha nin… it's helpful, but risky for anything important."

"I'm well aware," Aiko said, voice tight.

"Right." He sighed. "It's just that…. shouldn't you be able to use Mokuton too? Along with stone, so really, the reconstruction should be going faster."

She blinked and turned to look at him for clarification, but he was gone. Which…

"That's a good point," Aiko said, personally offended. "Fuck."

Sanbi cackled. "I was waiting for you to figure that out."

Aiko hissed, straight-up hissed. Because what other response to that could there be?

"So grumpy," Sanbi chided mockingly. "Why must you always look for a fight?"

"You're no prince of peace yourself," Aiko said grudgingly. She uncurled the hand that had made a fist at some point. She moved to her office in Kirigakure.

"On the contrary, I am extending an olive branch." Sanbi's tone was confident, but there was something about it that made her ears prick up. Something that made her think he wasn't as unaffected as he wanted to convey. "For the good work of restoring housing and structure to those who I was used to harm, I would share my chakra with you."

The door to her office swung open and the chuunin secretary was saying something, but Aiko couldn't hear it over the pounding in her head.

"The mokuton child is acceptably skilled, but has no stamina at all," Sanbi critiqued. "He must stop every hour or so for a rest, amounting to perhaps 6 hours of actual mokuton production over the course of a day. With your ability and my reserves, we can accomplish much more."

"sorry, I'll just-"

"Bring me the bridge-builder," Aiko said. Then she realized how rude she was being. She blinked and turned to actually look at her nominal assistant. "I'm sorry, I was distracted. I would like to speak with Tazuna. I can go to him, actually. Where is he?"

The man's expression was carefully diplomatic. "I believe he can be found discussing details of his plan with a representative in the third meeting room."

Aiko gave him a sideways look. "From your expression, it's not going well," she stated.

He opened his mouth. He closed it again. He sighed.

"Alright, then," Aiko muttered. "Excuse me." She pushed out of the room and left her assistant standing awkwardly a moment, before he hurried behind her.

She would have found Tazuna by following the drunken bellowing, even if she hadn't remembered how to find the room. She had to smile.

"shoved so far up your ass-"

The chuunin sighed again.

"Ask for an expert, asked by a family friend, on the Mizukage's orders, but he can't come tell me himself that-"

Something shattered.

"What's the point? Why ask for the best if what you want is so shoddy and-"

"He's lively, isn't he?" Aiko said cheerily.

Her secretary gave her an incredulous look.

'What was his name again?' Aiko wondered. 'Damn. I need to find these things out. I need to develop personal relations with my staff, as well.'

She managed a smile. "Come on, then. Let's calm him down." She knocked on the door, but no one seemed to hear over the argument inside. So Aiko just pushed it open and stepped inside.

It took a moment for her to be noticed. Tazuna's face was bright red with indignation and drink, but the dark-skinned young man who had been trying to placate him was calm-faced.

"Tazuna-san," Aiko greeted warmly.

Tazuna blinked. He gave her an up and down. Then his expression brightened. "Hikari-chan! Come tell these people that they need to let the architect make the decisions about what to build."

"Mizukage-sama, the purpose of hiring civilian contractors to repair the dock was to enable our people to get back to work with haste," the shinobi said calmly. He bowed to her. "I do not believe that constructing-" his eyes darted to Tazuna "-the finest harbor in the world, at a completely different location from our current harbor, is the most expedient course of action. One might even say it could be somewhat time-consuming."

'I want to promote him, just for saying that with a straight face.'

"The money and prestige that it will bring in the long run are worth more than any of that," Tazuna rebutted fiercely. "If you want someone to put plywood patches over your current mess so that you can tie up a damn canoe, well, you're going to have to find another architect-"

Aiko rubbed at her temples, because, ah. Perhaps she should have predicted that Tazuna's ambitions would not be satisfied with smaller projects after his great success in Wave. "Tazuna-san," she interrupted. "Let me see your plans. Perhaps we can come to an arrangement."

He frowned slightly. "Do you have the authority?" Tazuna asked. "Because I've been trying to go to the top to argue my case. Everyone is either disagreeing or saying they don't have the authority to approve the plans." He was already unrolling his drafts on the table.

Aiko stepped in close and tried to remember enough local geography to understand what she was looking at. She had to use the Rinnegan to read it in the poor lighting.

There was the old harbor location on the west of the island, sheltered between Kirigakure proper and the island that sat between it and the mainland. The proposed harbor had been moved north, to a natural insweep of the islands curvature that was less drastic but much larger than the original location.

"I think I can make it happen," Aiko answered belatedly. "Tazuna-san, what is this?"

He beamed. "We want what's called a floating dock," Tazuna explained. "That's a way of protecting boats at harbor from storms and changing tides. You control the water-tight entry point, here, so that the water level is always equal to that of high tide. It allows more and bigger ships to take to the harbor." He traced the line with a finger, callous rasping against the page. "It'd be good policy to leave the gates open at high tide so ships can come and go quickly, but at other times this place here, the entry point-" he stabbed the paper with a finger. "It's called a lock. The ship leaving enters it and the water proof gates are closed behind it. Then the water level inside the lock is drained to equal that outside. You open the outer gate, and the ship can leave safely at a lower elevation than that of the harbor. The process is reversed to enter."

Aiko frowned, because the problem there was obvious. "Wouldn't that drain the water in the harbor?" She tapped the paper. "With one ship, it wouldn't be drastic, but it would add up, I'd think."

Tazuna beamed down at her and ruffled her hair.

Aiko stood stock-still in shock.

"Not bad," he said cheerily. "And that brings us back to this here." He indicated the construction she'd originally asked about. "It's a reservoir that you open to the outside at high tide to fill it as well. When water is lost from the lock, you open this mechanism here-"

She leaned in closer to see, as if the notations would suddenly make sense to her.

"And then you replace an equivalent amount of water from the reservoir into the harbor, which keeps the levels at the same height." Tazuna sounded exceedingly pleased with himself. "It's a neat little system, don't you think?"

Aiko thought it over for a while, until the silence stretched out to be uncomfortable. "I do like it," she decided. "But it creates logistical problems- I assume you've made sure that these waters are safe for ships, especially ones with deeper bellies that you would want to come here, but I'd still like to be certain. And the fishing industry will have support buildings and things located by the old location. New ones would have to be constructed, or else the industry would be crippled by a new need for transport and the increased time delay in getting the fish processed would reduce quality and safety."

Tazuna made a 'well, that's fair but I don't like it' sort of face.

She pursed her lips. "This area here- what is it being used for?" She glanced at the sassy man of indeterminate rank and qualifications. "Is it housing, farmland…" She trailed off.

"I'm not certain," he admitted. "But I can find out."

"I like your attitude." Aiko nodded. "Please do." As the man bowed his way out of the room, she looked back at Tazuna. He was frowning slightly, but more out of confusion than displeasure. "There's also this area," she said thoughtfully, indicating the outer arm of the harbor that would shelter from the sea. "You've made it fairly narrow here in the plan, just enough to tie up the boats and form the harbor. But if we're going to do this, we might as well significantly broaden it. It could be used as a center for warehouses for trade, and for processing some of the food on location. This arm of the harbor could be a walkaround- it's not safe to try to use the lock that way, right?"

"Definitely not," Tazuna agreed, surprised. "The rest is good, though. But aren't these people concerned about the time and materials?"

Aiko pursed her lips at the way he said 'these people'. But the fight wasn't worth it at the moment- it wasn't an intentional slight. "I can approve it," she said. "And I think that we'll all be pleasantly surprised with the time frame. Is there anything that could be built today, if you could just wish it into being?" she asked. "Or do you need to go back to the plans and make major adjustments to change the size of this?"

Tazuna scoffed. "You mean well, lass, but there's always something to do." He was beginning to grin. "If I could just wish and have it be done, I'd say that we could begin installing the outer line of the harbor. It should be done first to protect the latter work from tides and weather. The skilled work, like the gates and reservoir and drainage- that'll come at the end. Well, actually, the end will be outfitting with places to tie up ships," he corrected.

"Alright." Aiko leaned back, feeling interested and excited about having a project. "Let's go make the magic happen, then."

"My crew is repairing some footbridge that collapsed," Tazuna rejected good-naturedly. "Today isn't good, girlie."

She patted his shoulder. "It's fine," Aiko said, with confidence that felt like it was coming more from the Sanbi than her own lack of experience with large-scale stone work. "Just tell me where to start- solid stone is fine for material, right?"

Tazuna gave her a long look. He reached for the flask at his hip. "I suppose so," he said, more wary than pleased. "If you can manage that. Is this some of that ninja nonsense?"

"It's ninja nonsense," Aiko confirmed pleasantly. "I have some small skill with stonework. I believe I can provide the majority of the materials and do the vast majority of the construction, leaving the skilled work to you and yours."

As they were walking out, the secretary still on their heels, the man assigned to Tazuna caught up with them. "Yes?" Aiko asked.

"Mizukage-sama," he greeted.

Tazuna startled and hid it very poorly.

"I've pulled the most recent map from archives. There are two residences within the immediate area, but it's not very high quality land for farming, so it's mostly left to nature."

Aiko frowned. "What's wrong with it?"

"Ano…" He flipped a paper, reading as he walked. "I believe it's a mixture of a sandy, rocky soil and an uneven terrain." He cast a sideways glance at her, under blonde eyelashes. "An earth ninjutsu user of your caliber could adjust the terrain to allow for roads and building development easily enough, if I might offer a suggestion."

She sighed. "That sounds reasonable. Who would be qualified to come up with a design for that plan?"

He swallowed. "I don't know," he said in the same tone as earlier. "But I would be pleased to find out."

Aiko gave him an odd look, because he was a suspiciously good employee. "What's your name?"

"Sakurai, Mizukage-sama."

"Alright." She sighed. "It's your job now, Sakurai-san. We'll want to get on it quickly- schedule yourself a meeting with someone who will know what the fishing industry will need, make projections, then talk to a contractor for ideas. Make a preliminary sketch, and take that expert out to get it approved. Once it's approved, put it on my desk."

Sakurai gave her a deeply offended look, but he nodded. "Yes, Mizukage-sama." He drifted back to walk behind her, along with the chuunin whose name she had known at one point. Yama-something?

Tazuna watched her new city development official go with a bemused expression. He leaned into Aiko and said in what he must have thought was a whisper, "Why does that ninny think you're the Mizukage?"

Aiko leaned back, covering her mouth with a hand conspiratorially. "Because I am. Weird, right?"

The old man nodded. "Strange." His wrinkles deepened. "Very strange. How is…" He trailed off. "How do you like your new job?"

"Um. It's good," Aiko said cautiously. "I'm settling in, you know, and just keeping busy."

"Right, right." He nodded. "That's… good."

They managed to exchange mutually uncomfortable smiles. They were probably both relieved to arrive at the site, which took an excruciating half an hour at Tazuna's pace.

Sanbi was stirring in her chest, picking up the pace and force of her heart. She tapped her fingers against her thigh and carefully listened to Tazuna's instructions about how to begin, but she was itching to start.

He seemed to realize that. "Just… Start here, aim for a wall from the seafloor to about 2 meters above the water level right now," Tazuna said. "You can always make it broader, right?" When Aiko nodded, he scratched at his head. "Alright, then. Try for about 2 meters in width, then, and we'll see how it looks."

She stepped out into the water and looked down. She couldn't actually see the seafloor- the water wasn't clear enough. But when she reached out, she could feel the water moving, ready for her to grasp, and below it- sand, useless land, she couldn't do anything with that- and below the sand was good, hard rock. Once she had the feeling of it, she closed her eyes.

Aiko began to pull on that feeling, putting her fingers into a seal she didn't even know, what was it, sanbi?

"Not me," he replied. "Rinnegan. Someone has done this with those eyes before."

"Odd."

"What's that?" Tazuna asked.

She breathed in. Out. When she breathed in next she flexed against the rock she was holding and began matching it, building, replicating the material and shaping it up like clay, pulling and molding and when it was nearly to the top she began walking, making the shape of the wall without letting it breach the water yet. She should ask Tazuna, she should get better directions but she thought of the curve she'd seen on paper and there, that jutting rock was parallel with the widest point she needed and beyond that, the dead tree leaning into the water would match where the gate would be.

All she thought was her work. She breathed it. If she'd looked at the wall forming behind her she would have seen confused fish and octopi fleeing one way or the other over the few inches of water left over stone, but she didn't look.

When she reached the end point, she turned back.

And blinked in surprise.

"Whoa." Aiko put a hand to her head, wavering. "When did…." She frowned. "It's later than I realized."

"You may have gone into something of a trance," Sanbi commented. He didn't seem terribly interested. "You were relying on someone else's experience, after all. You will probably have more control if you ever independently bring your stone-jutsu to this level."

Aiko looked back at what she'd done and gaped. Tazuna's plans had not been modest, and she'd just…. she'd just done a big chunk of it. "I don't think I can," she said slowly. "I don't have the right chakra type. Or the time, really."

"The chakra type doesn't matter," Sanbi rejected. His tails flicked- how did she know that? She couldn't see him. "The Rinnegan allowed you to use any type of nature manipulation. The Rinnegan is also like the Sharingan in that it recalls and can replicate usages it has recorded. The two functions are separate. Relying on the first doesn't not condemn you to relying on the second."

"Oh." She wrapped her arms around her body. "I see.

She could see back to where Tazuna was waiting- he'd sat down and was watching her. He was probably tired. How many hours had it been?

"I should get back to Konoha," Aiko said regretfully.

The bizarre thing was that she wasn't tired. She was- maybe she was a bit disoriented from the long trance state, and from having inhuman levels of chakra pumped through her body to keep her producing stone- good lord, she'd been making it out of nothing, not manipulating existing material. That chakra drain- that was ridiculous!

She gave Tazuna her apologies as she took him back to his suite, but he was actually in a good mood, if drowsy.

"I get to say that the Mizukage personally came to my door and asked for my help," Tazuna mused. "And with your crazy ninja magic- just think of what I can do! I won't be so modest in my next projects, I'll tell you that much. Hey, that Terumi-san, she was talking about other projects after this one. I can't wait to get started. We'll finish this in a week, if you keep that up. We'll need more time for the lock and the drainage system- you can't do that kind of detail work, can you?" He continued on without waiting for an answer. "I've been thinking about that- there's a special kind of lock that's more watertight, it gets a seal if there's even the smallest amount of difference in water pressure. We could-"

"Good night, Tazuna-san." Aiko squeezed the old man's hand for a moment, getting his attention. She smiled, woozily if not wearily. "I'll see you tomorrow, ne? I need to get to bed."

"Oh, of course." He nodded, and then drew her into a hug goodbye. What was going on in that genjutsu? First head-patting, now hugging?

Aiko bore it until it was over, bowed her goodbyes, and pulled herself back into Konoha.

The full ANBU team waiting in her room turned to look at her. "Uzumaki Aiko," one of them greeted. "We have some questions. Please come with us."

#vapors #uzumaki aiko #electrasev5n #fanfiction #naruto fanfiction #clarity #AIC #Aiko in Canon #ninja daily

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bluehairlaunch · 2 years ago

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Goddamn Kishimoto is sexist, like I didn't realize how bad until rewatching with friends

Reviewing the girls of Naruto

Sakura and Ino are both useless and boy crazy. After her dramatic haircut, Sakura immediately reverts back to exactly how she was, like legit same or following chapter, and basically stays that way or displays growth then reverts for the rest of the series. Sasuke attacks and hates her and she still marries him. Ino marries the guy who looks just like Sasuke even tho I dont think she and Sasuke ever canonically spoke. Props to Sakura for at least being a rare female close range fighter. Her fight against Sasori alongside Chiyo was a high point for Naruto women

Anko was cool but underused. How is Orochimaru's apprentice so irrelevant to the plot??? Even her filler sucked

Kin Tsuchi loses and then dies. The anime extends her fight so she's less pathetic.

Temari is aight but another long range fighter. Same with TenTen.

My gf called Sakura and Ino tying in the preliminary, because if one of them won it would mean they were the strong one, and Kishi can't have strong women.

Kurenai is useless. She's a stealth assassin relying on genjutsu, so basically picked the worst class in the entire anime. Honestly fuck Hinata too, yea she's a close range fighter for a change, which I like in my naruto women, but simping for Naruro all show isn't a good look. Her little sister seems cool tho, hopefully she isn't trying to marry anyone or w/e in Boruto

Tsunade is punch-y but scared of blood (lotta cisgirl doctors scared of blood mhmm). She's probably the best the show gets tho. Shizune is a long range doc.

Tayuya legit gets men to fight for her and fights at long-range w/genjutsu.

Karin is obsessed with Sasuke, is weak, and is a healing juice box. She sucks

The Mizukage is obsessed with marriage, because god forbid she's 30 and not married

I remember Pakura being cool. Don't ruin her for me if she's not or she's filler, because girls can actually do things in filler

Konan doesn't do anything but support the men in her life and Obito hax his way through their fight. Still probably the second or third best girl behind Tsunade

Kaguya doesn't have a character and doesn't count, let's be honest

I don't remember much about Samui, except that she wasn't as bad as all the other girls. Maybe close range? I do recall her losing and needing to be saved by Darui tho

Actually I have no problems with Chiyo at all. Rare Kishi W for making a badass woman, and a grandma at that, with basically no downsides. Legit, she's the best naruto girl and an overall underrated character. I stan a Chiyo bae

#naruto shippuden #naruto #sakura haruno #tsunade #i wish naruto was just about fu #she was the best #tayuya #ino yamanaka #there are other women but theyre all either backstory and dead or #or filler #or as importsnt to the plot as otomatsu #otomatsu #yea hes a real character

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italeteller · 4 months ago

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Who do you think was the most wasted characters in Naruto? And just for fun, who's someone you think was actually used the perfect amount?

Woof, where to begin. Well, if you're talking about wasted female characters you gotta start with every single female character, I think

No, wait, granny Chiyo got it pretty good. She had her own personal arc, fought a main villain and went out on her own terms in a pretty emotional moment. Even when she got revived in the war she didn't get screwed over, which is pretty rare

Tayuya from the Sound 4 too. Yeah, she was only a disposable mook, but she had a badass design, some sick summonings, kicked Shikamaru's ass, and got killed by Temari. Short, sweet and to the point. The rest of the sound 4 as well were pretty good for being disposable mooks

All the jinchuriki except Naruto, Killer Bee and Gaara got screwed over too, literally offscreened and they got fuck all backstory or development. Same with the biju

The raikage and the tsuchikage got done decently well, though unfortunately I can't say the same about Mei Terumi, the mizukage and the only person in the series with two bloodline limits. You'd think someone like that would be front and center on every fight, showing her vast arsenal of elemental jutsu, but alas, she was a female character in Naruto, so she was fucked from the beginning

Danzo also got wasted. He was hyped as the dark face of the ninja world, and when he finally got some action it was with a hax Uchiha jutsu. And then he died with some half-assed bromance with Hiruzen

Karin, Jugo and Suigetsu got done dirty too. Karin specially, but the boys as well. It's a crying shame Jugo never got to meet the reincarnated Kimimaro, that would've been great to see

Kimimaro was actually used the perfect amount. He came, beat Naruto, served to show Lee's drunken fist, showed off the best level 2 cursed seal design, nearly killed Gaara and died like a beast. Respect

I feel like if we're talking about Naruto character we gotta add a third category besides "wasted" and "perfect" which would be "death by overexposure". Here would be characters like Orochimaru, who went from one of the best villains in the series to... uh... whatever the fuck he became when he got revived

Kabuto too. I don't like that he transformed himself into a dragon sage but it would've been a decent end for his story I think, trying to one-up Orochimaru and failing. Him getting a rushed redemption and ending up running an orphanage was. What the fuck were you thinking Kishi. Seriously

Minato would fall in the same category. Flashback!Minato is a spectacular ninja, truly deserving of the title of hokage. 4th ninja war Minato is lame, makes stupid names for his attacks, and got two power-ups he didn't need and shouldn't have gotten at all

Hot take maybe but I think Kakashi should've stayed dead after the Pain saga. He got one good moment after the war, which was his second fight with Zabuza, and that was it. The whole Obito storyline wasn't good for anybody (although it made one spectacular fight in the anime), and him choosing to become Hokage because Obito asked, when TSUNADE WAS RIGHT THERE was a very bitter pill

Oh yeah speaking of Zabuza and Haku, they both were great. Getting resurrected actually helped show how much Zabuza loved Haku and how much of a travesty the edo tensei jutsu was

Jiraiya was also done perfectly. Whether he was a good character and whether him being a pervert killed his likeability are debatable topics, but he was a good mentor, a great fighter and went down like the best, paving the path for Naruto. I only wish Pain had recovered his corpse and used it to invade Konoha, can you imagine the emotional damage?

Speaking of Naruto's mentors, I think Iruka was done pretty decently. He didn't get much, true, but what he got was generally good

Most of the Cloud guys were there for show, didn't really get to do much. Same with the Rock guys. Same with Kankuro and Temari (Temari should've gone with Chiyo and Sakura to fight Sasori). Oh yeah Team 8, the poster children for wasted potential, alongside their sensei Kurenai "benched for being pregnant" Yuhi

Kisame was done great, I think. Mysterious, massively powerful, kicked his cheating sword aside when it got too horny for Killer Bee's chakra, killed himself to avoid an info leak and even after death he got one up over the good guys

Itachi, not so much. He certainly got too much overexposure after his death. Sadistic criminal Itachi was great. Kind-hearted, super genius, had-the-qualifications-to-be-Hokage-at-12-years-of-age Itachi felt like too much

Oh yeah, here's a niche one: Hanzo of the Salamander. The guy who fought the young sannin to a standstill, who gave them the title of sannin, got revived, had an unnecessary flashback bromance to a samurai and incapacitated himself, and didn't get to do anything cool at all

And well, let's close on a controversial (maybe?) note. Both Naruto and Sasuke got death by overexposure. Sasuke's storyline was way more of a mess than Naruto's but neither of them were good

#Das Answer #hey turns out I have thought on Naruto

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magmaprincess · 3 months ago

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And his true strength appeared before her: the will of life, of love, of the joy that came from others. There was nothing more powerful than the marking of a hero who would stop at nothing to ensure all those around him were safe. Putting his life at odds before the rest. A selfless hero. Her own emeralds sparkled with an admiration words could not truly explain. Her own face recognizing a purpose she was once robbed in, and life has brought back the boy she was meant to have in the form of Naruto. Her eyes glimmer, dewdrops not of regret but of her own second chance of being the mother she had meant to be.

A son’s will comes fiercest from protecting his mother as she once had done to him, and to return the favor is but a life’s bliss.

Naruto would reach that day when he’d protect the Mizukage as she would in his youth. She would know she had done her motherly duty well to nurture his heart if that were still the case in his aging years. Her heart swells with no doubt here: Naruto intends to gain strength through her nurture. His voice calls her anew. Who was she to stop the will of her precious boy’s wishes?

Her dainty fingers press on her own lips, nodding at his assurance that came from each word, spilling more emotion from her eyes. “Oh!” An exasperated gasp, the Mizukage had the world on her shoulders to carry, but in Naruto, she finally had someone carry her as their world. She melts at his smile. “I believe....I believe it Naruto...!”

They say the sun is the best healing anyone could get; the Mizukage was going to get the sun tenfold in its walking form—beautiful, loving, her son.

“I am all the luckier to have been brought you, darling. Akawarai and I will make sure you see your dreams come to life. You best believe that too!” A dainty finger magically taps at his nose, before she can’t restrain the strong hold, she’s allowed himself to watch him, glow brighter than any star.

And in her next seize, she’s all the warmer, bundling her precious boy even closer to her heart. ♡

"It's not...like I had any real control or knowledge." He states. "The power. It just came to me in moments of emotional turmoil or need." He wasn't really in control, but he's tapped into it a few times. The Valley of the End was where he went the furthest and it seemed to have its effect on him now. His senses felt stronger, his nails were akin to claws, and more was yet to come. He seems to enjoy her touch more than he'd ever admit right now, but then she speaks of protecting him. She touches her forehead to his and his brows furrow. He might consider this heaven if he didn't feel his own heart beat faster with her being this close. The joys of a boy's crush. "That's not going to stop me. You should know that I...am very very strong in what I say. My word is my ninja way. I never go back on it." A smile finally crept onto his face. A face now weathered by battle more than any thirteen year old should ever be. "So you best believe I'm going to get strong enough to protect you. There's nothing that'll change my mind on that." His blue eyes sparkled with a growing new life and determination. She could try her best to tell him he need not try, but anyone with half a brain could tell this young soul was as hard headed as they came - hard headed and unbreakable like steel. She had given him purpose, home, and perhaps even saved him from himself. Those things now put Naruto into positions to become a rising star among Kirigakure. All that had to be done was to be there for him at his most crucial moments going forward. Naruto did eventually free himself from Mei's hands and her forehead touch. It was only so he could look at her properly. "I won't let you and whoever rescued me down either. I'll master the Kyuubi's power, grow strong, and put my all into becoming the strongest shinobi Kirigakure has ever seen! Believe it!" He smiled wider now. His smile was like the sun - radiant, warm, and restorative.

#kyuubinosennin #ic #verse: home at sea #hello hello! super excited for what more stories foretells through the next chapter of naruto’s life #slipping in one more hc because your naruto is so precious #mei always dreamed of motherhood #through his existence she has her own second chance #their interwoven lives will be fulfilling you could tell they both really needed each other. ♡

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infinitesuckuyome · 3 years ago

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What kind of Genjutsu would the Uchiha men put their S/O into?

Requested Prompt from @passionateuchiha

This is the first request I’ve ever done so bear with me. Also, today’s focus will be on Obito Uchiha bc he’s best boy & I play favorites

18+ content, Minors do NOT interact:

◉ As a genjutsu user, Obito is extremely proficient. He was personally trained by Madara Uchiha, so even though Obito was a bit of a late bloomer, he’s a quick study and becomes incredibly powerful over the course of his life.

◉ A few instances of his proficiency:

At 16 Obito summons and controls the 9 tails, making it wreak havoc in Konoha.

At 22 Obito places Yagura Karatachi, 4th Mizukage & perfect Jinchuriki under his control, making Obito the de facto Mizukage at the time. It was previously thought that Jinchuriki were immune to genjutsu so the fact that Obito was able to brainwash Yagura for years is basically unheard of.

At 31 Obito uses Izanagi to literally reshape reality to survive Konan’s 600 billion paper bomb attack then compels her to reveal the location of Nagato’s Rinnegan. It’s safe to say that Konan would never have willingly revealed that information so, Obito’s ability to extract the truth is pretty much S tier.

◉ The Sharingan’s base abilities grant the user powers of hypnosis which include putting people to sleep, replaying memories, and creating illusions. Obito’s mastery of the Sharingan far exceed these base capabilities, meaning he’s a force to be reckoned with. Not even his precious darling would be able to escape his hypnotic gaze~

There were very few things left in this life that Obito looked forward to, being able to see you was one of those last remaining things. Playing the idiot was annoying and inconvenient but for some reason, you never seemed deterred by his obnoxious antics or childish façade. You were a brilliant ray of sunshine, warming his frozen guarded heart with only your smiles and kind words, which did more for him than you’d ever know. He tried to make the most of the sparse moments he had with you; every touch, charged glance and bit of conversation embedded itself into his mind. He lived for these rare occasions, letting everything fall away as he hung on your every word, reveling in any affection you offered. There was a longing deep within Obito that wanted you to know the truth, to see him, not the person he had to pretend to be.

At first he thought it would be enough to merely take on the role of your protector, silently watching over you from the shadows as you made your way to and from work, fixing any locks or windows that happened to be damaged in your home & on occasion he’d even leave extra money around for you to find. The more he watched you, the more he came to realize that what he truly wanted was to be the reason for your happiness, a person you relied on for all your needs... all of your desires. As his missions became longer and increasingly demanding, Obito’s anxiety about your well-being also grew. He couldn't stand to be away from you, unsure if you were safe and healthy. What if something happened to you while he was away- what if you needed his help and he was a minute or even a second too late? These were the thoughts that kept him up at night, fidgeting and pacing as he went back & forth in his mind about what to do.

You were simply too good for this callous world; he knew that if he did nothing, eventually it would snuff out even your brilliant light, so he decided to safeguard it himself. With him you’d be safe, if anything, he was the only one who could truly protect you and when he succeeded in creating the perfect world, you’d be the first to bear witness to it.

◒ Obito is a total Yandere~ He’s lovestruck, overprotective, obsessive, possessive, self-sacrificing and definitely not afraid to get his hands dirty if anything happens to his darling - ya know, like when he went on a rampage after Rin died and singlehandedly massacred dozens of mist village ninja.

◒ Without a doubt, the type of Yandere to kidnap you- this is the first instance he’d use genjutsu on you. He’d put you into a deep tranquil sleep then whisk you away to the Akatsuki base or into his own Kamui dimension.

◒ He’d make sure to fill your mind with calming thoughts to help you “adjust to your new surroundings”.

◒ During combat, Genjutsu is mostly used to create false images that trick the mind into thinking the body is experiencing pain- though Obito has no reservations about doing this to others, he has better things he’d want projected into your mind. He’d much rather use this tactic to enhance your pleasure during intimate moments.

◒ He’d use his visual prowess to convince you of his love. Literally taking your face into his hands, telling you that he loves you, will protect you and that you’re safe with him. Obito would never tire of telling you these things, until he was sure they registered in your mind, reaching the center of your being.

◒ As an expert in extracting information, Obito can get the truth from even the most adverse foe. Compelling his darling to tell him the truth would be a simple feat- he doesn’t want you to sugar coat anything or be afraid to speak your mind so he’d do this with the intent of knowing what was really in your heart of hearts.

Warnings: Language, NSFW, Oral Sex, Yandere Behavior

“You lied to me! And brought me here...” You gestured vaguely around yourself, unsure of where “here” actually was- not holding onto much hope that you’d be getting that answer anytime soon. You grabbed at a fluffy looking pillow, hugging it to your chest for comfort as you grudgingly sat down on the large tidy bed in the center of the room.

“Please hear me out, Y/N- I can explain.” He could easily take all this anger from you, transforming it into soothing thoughts that left you with a light heart, but deep down, he knew that he deserved your fury. Obito felt that your anger was yours to wield as you pleased, even when directed towards him.

“You couldn’t even be bothered to tell me your real name!” You shouted, throwing your hands up in frustration. “I t-thought you cared about me...is there anything you haven't lied about?!”

“I never lied about how I feel about you” He replied quickly. “I know I haven’t been honest, but I swear I’ll never lie or keep anything from you again, I...I love you, Y/N!”

“How am I supposed to believe that- why should I believe anything you say?” Tears welled up in your eyes, a few weeks ago you would’ve believed him... you would’ve welcomed his confession but now- you weren’t sure what to think.

Obito clenched his fists at his side, heart aching from how desperately he wanted you too see the love he carried for you. “My feelings for you are real! I’ll prove it to you, I’ll do whatever it takes just...please give me a chance.”

A whirlwind of conflicting emotions ran through you, it was hard to tell which was the most prevalent. Anger and frustration were at the forefront, but there was also a part of you that wanted to reach out to him- this was the first time the two of you had been alone... it was such a shame that it had to happen like this. “Gods! I’m so mad, I could hit you.” you spat bitterly.

“I know & I won’t stop you. Give me all of your anger, use me as you see fit, Y/N- you can do what you’d like.” Obito’s visible eye gave off a subtle red glow as he spoke. Though it pained him to keep his distance, he didn’t want to upset you any further, and most of all he didn’t want you to be scared of him.

You shook your head, momentarily losing your train of thought, his words slowly making their way into your mind. “It’s just a figure of speech- I’m not actually going to hit you.. but if I'm being honest, you do deserve a good slap to the face.” You huffed, wiping away a few stray tears. “Besides, you said I could do what I wanted right? Well then I want to go home, right now.”

“Anything besides that- please understand Y/N, I brought you here to tell you the truth but once I do, you won’t be safe on your own. I can keep you safe here, I’ll protect you no matter what.” Obito’s head dipped in defeat- he could handle your anger, but he couldn't bear the thought of being away from you, not for one second more so, he stood firm in his decision.

You scoffed at his response, feeling mildly insulted that he thought you were so helpless. “You know what, maybe I will slap you... a-and take off that damn mask so I can do it properly.” You cast a sideways glance at him, awaiting his response. As frustrated with him as you were, you couldn’t help but wonder what he was hiding beneath that thing. After all the secrecy and lies, you wondered if he’d finally share this part of himself.

“My mask?” Obito repeated, bringing a gloved hand to touch it, almost as if he’d forgotten it was on.

“Let me guess, anything besides that?” You quipped, irritation flaring.

“Not at all, if you want me to take it off, then I will.” He replied, walking towards you. “There shouldn’t be any other secrets between us, My Darling. I’ll do whatever you ask to ensure you stay by my side.”

Before you could say another word, he swiftly removed the mask. You were speechless- heat rising to your face upon seeing his.

“Go ahead” Obito said calmly, kneeling in front of you. “I’d welcome any touch, as long as it came from you.”

You raised a shaky hand, bringing it down on his cheek with a feather light smack. “I guess I don’t really want to slap you- but that doesn’t mean I’m not still mad at you... Obito.” You left your hand on his cheek, stroking the skin beneath it with the pad of your thumb.

Obito sucked in a quick breath, that was the first time you’d said his name & he loved the way it sounded on your tongue. He placed his hand over yours, leaning into your touch. “I-is there anything else you want me to take off?”

You looked away, unsure if you should say what was going through your mind.

“You can be honest, tell me what you want, and I’ll do it, Y/N.” Obito’s eyes bore into yours, the tomoe in his iris spun, causing your vision to become unfocused for a split second. You nodded as your inhibitions fell away, “Your cloak- isn’t it too hot to be wearing something like that anyway?”

“I guess you’re right” Obito agreed, flashing you a nervous smile.

You unconsciously twirled a lock of hair around your finger, eyes roaming over his frame as he removed the bulky cloud covered cloak. “This too” you pulled at the end of the tight black shirt he wore.

Obito’s eyes widened slightly, cheeks warming as he realized you wanted him to keep undressing. He quickly pulled the shirt over his head, casting it aside to await your next command.

You bit the inside of your cheek to prevent your lips from twitching up at the corners- reminding yourself that you were supposed to be mad right now. Though your expression remained mostly neutral, your eyes kept finding their way back to ogle him. You made a small noise of frustration- trying to get angry, upset, frightened even, but desire crowded every other emotion out of your mind.

“I can put it back on if you’re uncomfortable” Obito tried, not knowing what to make of your sudden silence.

You didn’t respond, instead patting the spot next to you. Obito perked up instantly, taking the hint to sit beside you. “I’m still upset... but you should kiss me now b-before I change my mind.”

The second those words left your mouth, Obito pulled you into his lap, kissing you with such need it nearly took your breath away. Your lips were so soft, softer than he’d ever imagined- he licked and sucked at them, heart thumping wildly in his chest.

You parted your lips, deepening the kiss as your hands came up to tug at his hair, earning you a needy moan from Obito. “Touch me more” you whispered as you rolled your hips against his hardening length.

He groaned at your words, hands coming down to knead at the plush flesh of your ass- thrusting his hips up to meet yours. His eyes rolled back at having you pressed up against him, head spinning at the sensation. “Fuck, Y/N you feel so good like this; I want to make you feel good too please, please tell me what to do” Obito babbled, pupils blown wide with need.

You bit your lip, eyebrows drawing together as heat rushed down to your core. There was something so arousing about the pleading edge to his tone, like there was nothing more important to him than pleasing you. “Ya know... it’s really cute when you beg me like that, do it again.” you purred, raking your nails though his hair.

Obito’s head dipped back in delight, cock twitching in his pants. “Please Y/N, tell me what you want- anything you want.” his crimson eyes held your gaze, never wavering.

Your back arched reflexively, that alluring glow lulling you deeper into a euphoric haze. “Use your mouth to make me cum”

“Lay back Y/N” Obito rasped, mouth watering at the thought of getting to taste you. He watched as you shimmied out of your panties, swiftly flinging the dress you’d been wearing up & over your head. This was without a doubt, Obito’s new favorite memory, he paused for a moment to properly appreciate the sight of your bare body before him.

“Are you just going to stand there staring at me or are you going to put that lying mouth of yours to use?” You teased, giggling at the pout he made.

“Sorry... I won’t make you wait any longer” he husked, using his teeth to remove the glove from his hand before kneeling between your legs. Your warmth and scent drew him in like a moth to a flame- unable to hold himself back any longer Obito eagerly dove in, fervently licking at your glistening entrance. He moaned at your taste; flattening his tongue, he nudged it between your lips to open you up, dragging it from your entrance up to your clit. Sealing his lips over your little nub, he sucked at it harshly- rhythmically pulling it in & out of his mouth.

“Ah aah- Obito!” you whined wantonly.

“Say it again, fuck- please say it again!” Obito murmured against you. You cried out his name, hand finding its way into his hair- pulling at the ebony strands as your hips ground against him.

He hooked your legs over his shoulders, holding you in place to lave over your clit, swirling his tongue around the shape of it. Obito was nearly frantic in the hungry way he lapped at your pussy, hips rutting aimlessly against the mattress.

You twisted & turned your head, heat rapidly pooling in your core as your brain receded into a scarlet fog, hardly able to think straight. Behind the darkness of your eyelids, spinning commas and flashes of red propelled you forward, into an abyss of blinding pleasure. You came with a scream-like moan, writhing as Obito held you firmly in place, greedily drinking you in, like a man dying of thirst.

You twitched with over sensitivity, keening out breathlessly while he continued to roll his tongue over your little bundle of nerves. “Too much... it’s too mu- aah!” You mewled, cunt fluttering as he plunged his tongue into your scorching heat.

“Are you sure? I’d be happy to keep going...” he groaned, looking up at you with pure adoration.

“Uh-huh, ‘m wanna play with your cock now, so take those off” you said, gesturing at his pants.

Obito nodded happily, making quick work of ridding himself of any remaining clothing.

“Now you lay back” you cooed, eyeing the heavy way his length slapped against his stomach as you knelt in front of him. You ran your thumb over the slick surface of his cockhead, tracing every dip & curve until it shone prettily with his arousal.

“So cute” you praised, smearing that arousal across your bottom lip. Obito whined, hips twitching forward while his dick throbbed against you. “Promise you’ll be a good boy for me?”

Obito propped himself up on his elbows, eyes gleaming vibrantly. “I promise Y/N, I’ll be good- I’ll be so so good!” The sweet heat of your mouth made him want to unravel at the seams; the teasing way your tongue worked his length drove him absolutely wild, the etheric sight of your rosy cheeks & bobbing head, even more so. His head subtly swayed back and forth, in time with the slurps and sucks of your pillowy lips.

An animalistic growl rumbled in Obito’s chest, everything you did filled him with such carnal lust that it was almost overwhelming... he wanted to share it with you, to show you how deeply you affected him. Placing a hand on your head, he tugged gently at your hair, not wanting to harm a single precious strand, “Look at me Y/N.”

Your eyes fluttered open, dreamily drifting up to his waiting gaze; vision blurring around the edges, peripherals darkening until only he was in focus. A stifling wave of arousal crashed over you, making you waver slightly, hands coming up to clutch at his muscular thighs for support.

“Do you feel what you do to me?” he grunted, languidly bucking his hips, admiring the sinful way your reddened lips stretched around his girth. “See yourself through my eyes, Y/N.” he husked, projecting the image and mirrored sensations of your actions directly into your mind.

Obito’s voice echoed all around you, bouncing around the inside of your head, everything falling away into oblivion. You were looking up at him, yet you could also see yourself- “Mmph!” you cried as another dizzying wave of passion hit you. Hallowing your cheeks, you instinctively took him deeper into your mouth; something between a gasp & moan falling past your lips, sending shocks of bliss throughout Obito, which you felt in tandem. A furious blush painted your face at the phantom pleasure being sent to your core, making you so delirious that you tongue lolled out as your quickened your pace.

Placing a hand over the one Obito had on your head, you pushed down a few times, hoping he’d understand your silent plea. “Does My Darling want more?” he asked in a low whisper. You whined, nodding your head as he gathered your hair into a makeshift pony tail, guiding you up and down his length causing drool to run down the corners of your mouth.

“Aww f-fuck, mhmm” Obito’s head dipped back, drowning in the pleasure you’d so graciously offered him, dragging you down with him as he fell further & further into a bottomless euphoria. Your head swam with a flurry of images and sounds that swirled all around you. Do you feel what you do to me? When he’d first spoken those words, you weren’t sure what he’d meant- too distracted by the fog of lust that hung over you... now though, you felt him. You could sense the intensity that resided within Obito; it was palpable & scalding, like a raging wildfire that consumed everything in its path- you could feel how deeply he craved you, adored you, needed you.

“Y/N! You’re go-gonna make me cum, p-please can I cum?” he stuttered between moans. You nodded enthusiastically, feeling that same tight coil building in your lower abdomen which had you very nearly seeing stars. Your moans mingled together, essence running down your trembling thighs as his release shot down your waiting throat.

Obito hauled you onto the bed, cradling you against him while you both caught your breath- showering you in praises and thank yous. You sighed in content, slowly coming down from your high, absentmindedly tracing the scars covering the left side of his body, “Is this why you always cover yourself up so much?”

“Not exactly, that’s a long story... one that I will share with you & only you.” He said, kissing your hand.

You smiled to yourself, knowing that he meant it. “Obito..”

“Yes, My Darling? he lifted his head, giving you his full attention.

“I think someone owes me an apology.” you shot him a pointed look.

“I’m so sorry Y/N, I truly am.” he said immediately.

You tutted, putting a finger up to his lips, silencing him. “No, no. I want an apology from Tobi- and no hiding behind the mask this time.”

“Y/N please...” Obito’s cheeks flamed with embarrassment.

“Fine, I guess you really were lying when you said you’d do whatever I asked” you remarked slyly.

Obito sighed, burying his face in your neck, giving himself a moment. “Please forgive Tobi, Y/N-Chan! Tobi will be a good boy from now on, promise!”

You erupted into a fit of giggles. Obito whined, hiding his face as he hugged you tighter against him. “Are you satisfied?” he grumbled.

“For now...” you hummed, petting his dark locks.

#naruto #obito #uchiha #obito uchiha #tobi #sharingan #akastuki #obito uchiha smut #naruto smut #uchiha headcannons #obito x reader #obito x y/n #genjutsu

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askthemist · 5 years ago

Photo

"The King of Pune Slaying"

-kushimaru

Let’s not forget, amongst other cool things this guy could do, he also can kill you with finger guns. What a way to go.

#gengetsu hozuki #best mizukage #second mizukage is best mizukage #second mizukage #mizukage

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electrasev5nwrites · 2 years ago

Text

Ninja Daily: Vapors 34

"Why won't you tell me what we're doing," Naruto whined. He dragged his feet on the dirt road theatrically, kicking up dust that tickled his sensei's nose and made him itch to sneeze.

Jiraiya snickered loudly, not bothering to hide his delight in withholding information from his protégé. He had thought it would be amusing to tell the boy that they were going to go somewhere Naruto would like to build anticipation, but he hadn't expected that the kid would never drop the topic. It was just plain obnoxious. At least it was worth a couple of laughs.

They were close anyways. He'd send the boy ahead to leave their things in a hotel room and get to the rendezvous point.

Four days prior.

"This is ridiculous," Kakashi said flatly, with closed off body language implying he was shutting the topic down. Aiko was familiar with it—that tone signaled that he was fed up and anyone who continued to annoy him would be running laps until their legs fell off or they begged for death to come. Whichever came second.

Shizune didn't take the hint, instead giving an uncharacteristic scowl. "You're not Hokage, Hatake. You have already established that you think this is a terrible idea. Your objections have been noted, and I'm going over your head."

Of course Shizune's own teacher had been the one Konoha nin who could rival Kakashi in scariness, so she was inured.

In the other room, Aiko and Yamato fidgeted uncomfortably. She was perched on the edge of a fluffy chair resting her head on her knees with shut eyes. She wished they would just stop already. After they had been unceremoniously tossed out of the room, things had been very quiet and discussion seemed to wind down… until the acidic tang of a summoning filled the air and a new argument started up.

"She's thirteen, and sealing is dangerous. Genius or not, you can't honestly think this is a viable solution."

Sasuke had left before things had gotten to that point, tired of what he saw as a pointless temper tantrum. She didn't blame him for being irritated—without knowing that the past Mizukage had been a jinchuuriki, he had no way to put together the rest of the puzzle. He was probably livid that Yamato had ordered Sai to follow him, but it was for the best not to wander around a foreign village alone. And despite how much she liked Sai (in theory, at least) he was almost certainly spying for Danzo at this point. The less he knew, the better.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I completely forgot that you were put in charge of this mission. I'll just go tell the Mizukage that we don't want that alliance after all, because you have a bad feeling about your student learning a new skill. Grow up already!"

Yamato gave a heavy sigh that covered Kakashi's angry rebuttal, staring up at the ceiling. The book he had started off with –a godawful boring looking tome with a picture of a wooden bridge on the cover—was resting on his chest sloppily with a couple lonely bent pages he hadn't noticed curled up against his chest.

"I hate it when mom and dad argue," Aiko joked sardonically, prompting a surprised huff of amusement from her companion.

The door opened and the oldest members of the team stepped out with a palpable sense of irritation. Shizune furrowed her brow, glancing around the room. "Where's Sasuke?"

"He went out for a walk," Yamato informed professionally, sitting up and closing his book gently. "I sent Sai with him."

"I'm sure he's delighted," Shizune sighed. Her hands twitched as if she wanted to reach for something. Instead she just smoothed her hands over the front of her kimono. "In any case. Aiko, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that if I can negotiate it, you have a month to learn something that takes masters years, or at least memorize enough to complete a job and fake having mastered it so that Mist doesn't know we agreed to sell skills you don't have. The good news is that you're going to be meeting with your brother when we leave here. I've sent Jiraiya a message, and as soon as I get a response we'll coordinate a destination."

Aiko felt all her air escape in surprise. She turned to her shishou for reassurance. He was all but brooding, a veritable dark cloud in the room.

"And Hatake thinks this is a moronic idea," Shizune added somewhat sardonically. She'd clearly noted the automatic deferral to a man who was definitely not in charge of this mission.

Aiko shrugged noncommittally. "If Shishou says it is, this is probably an appalling idea. But if it's the only option available, we should get going."

This was actually an interesting outcome, she mused while the argument started up again. It'd be nice to see Naruto again. She was delighted to have Kakashi as her teacher, but the sheer prestige of having a chance to learn from a Sannin was a little seductive as well.

Then she wondered why Mist didn't just have Jiraiya do this job. He already knew how. It wasn't like they didn't know who he was—he was internationally famous for much more than his books. He acted like a bit of an idiot, but he was a nearly unrivaled Fuinjutsu genius, Kage class combatant, and intelligence expert.

Then again, maybe that was the problem? Perhaps they were wary of having such a powerful shinobi within their village and within arm's reach of one of their best weapons.

If that was the case, they were walking a rather delicate tightrope between having someone dangerous who could do the sealing and having an unthreatening incompetent who could do even more damage than Jiraiya by inadvertently releasing the Tailed Beast when they fucked up the sealing.

Aiko… well. Before this topic had come up, she would have said that her fuinjutsu skills were respectable. After her crash course under Anko's guidance, she had continued making them as a late-night hobby when she couldn't sleep. Explosive notes and sealing scrolls were expensive as all hell, so it wasn't a bad idea to make her own.

Not that she used either of them often, to be truthful. Aiko kept a small supply of both on her person most of the time for times when nothing else would do the trick, but they weren't a large part of her combat style. In the past, she had gotten plenty of practice supplying Naruto, who liked to pack everything but the kitchen sink and explode whatever he could whenever he could. Bit of a mad bomber, that one.

But being asked to seal a tailed beast… well, that was fuinjutsu on a completely different level. Aiko wasn't likely to ever put down her own skills. Her character flaw would lean more closely to valuing them too highly and underestimating others'. She knew that she had some really cool abilities, rockin' genetics, and intelligence significantly beyond what she allowed others to see. She was arrogant enough to believe that if she wanted to, she could become a sealing master capable of doing such a thing. But she wasn't quite arrogant enough to think that she could do that in a month.

Then again, she knew very little about the theoretical differentiation between expert fuinjutsu and layman practitioners' fuinjutsu. From what she understood, the parts of the discipline she was unfamiliar with had a lot more to do with ways of thinking. Creativity, sensing or making connections, and using cold hard logic were entirely different skill sets than the memorization and repetition of basic principals in standardized formats.

Then again, she'd been honing her creative abilities for years, so she might adapt well to fuinjutsu.

It didn't matter either way. She had her orders, so she had to do her best.

At least it turned out that Mei was perfectly willing to allow a little over a month's time for sealing preparations. She needed to find a suitable container anyway. Aiko winced at that when it was mentioned. It was hard to remember that she would be subjecting a real person to that kind of life. Was it evil? She would never go so far as to say that life as a jinchuuriki wasn't worth living, but it did make things much harder. Would that child hate her?

They almost certainly would, if she didn't do a good job.

So all she had to do was perform perfectly on a tight deadline. No big.

Jiraiya started snickering at the dumbstruck expression on his apprentice's face. He really did look pretty thick when he let his jaw hang open like that. Even grumpy little Kakashi-kun seemed to let his expression lift momentarily at the sight before returning to his normal glower.

"Aiko! Bastard! Sensei!" Naruto shrieked, running forward to pull the impassive little redhead into a hug that turned into a spin with her feet in the air. She patiently endured his attentions with a hint of an amused expression around her eyes, patting awkwardly at his back.

It was like a reversal of their parents—little Kushina had always been so exuberant. Minato had appreciated the attention, but never quite known what to do with it all.

The thought was a little painful, so he turned away. He thought he saw a hint of ruefulness in Kakashi-kun's gaze that indicated similar thoughts, so he turned his attention to Tsunade's adorable little apprentice. She was still cute, of course, but she looked like she'd been through a wringer. He politely chose not to mention that.

Jiraiya slid on the charm like a silk coat, practically slithering up into her personal space and dropping his voice a few pitches. "Fancy seeing you here, Shizune-chan. Have I ever told you that you've really grown up into a beautiful young lady?"

"You could try to sound a little less like a pedophile," the grumpy looking brat lurking by Shizune's side (as if to use her as a shield from Naruto's enthusiasm) grumbled. Jiraiya spared him a scowl. Why had Tsunade taken on that brat again?

"Jiraiya-sama, thank you for meeting us here," Shizune politely bypassed the insult and the disgusted 'tch' sound that the boy made at being ignored.

He leered. "Of course, anything for a pretty lady." Then he eyed the rest of the group. "The rest of you can leave, though."

None of them laughed, probably warned by his reputation. Hatake gave him a smile through his eyes, though, so he counted it as a win. It was always nice to be able to cheer up that gloomy brat. Even Minato had had a hard time with that. Finally, he took pity on the girl and pried her brother off by the scruff of his collar. Naruto dangled, scratching and hissing like an angry kitten, but Jiraiya just held his arm out a little further. When the boy tried to bite him, Jiraiya irritably shook the boy. "Stop that, you're embarrassing me. You'll have plenty of time to catch up." Then he leered theatrically at the girl. "You can call me shishou." He turned back to Shizune, already done with dutifully acknowledging his goddaughter. "Anyway, we shoul-"

"No."

Jiraiya startled, turning back to the girl. She'd seemed so quiet in the few times he'd seen her. It was hard to believe she was as disrespectful as her brother. Not for the first time, he noted that there was something creepy about the kid, something just a little off. He couldn't quite explain it, but she seemed to be evaluative and removed even when she put an expression on her face. All the muscles moved correctly, even the creases around her eyes, but it seemed like a dead mask over her real thoughts instead of a reflection of her emotions.

He was probably just seeing things where nothing existed.

"I'm very sorry, but I cannot call you shishou." She ignored the scandalized "Aiko!" from Shizune and gave a short bow, letting her hair slide down to expose her vulnerable neck in a show of submissiveness. "Sensei. I can only have one shishou."

Jiraiya let a little smile tug at his lips. He wasn't altogether opposed to insolence, especially when it was paired with loyalty. Hatake looked mildly floored. Perhaps he hadn't realized he was held in such high regard.

If Jiraiya was a different type of man, he might have minded the snub. As it was, he let it wash right off his back with a nod. "So be it." To lighten the mood and lift the irritated expression from poor Shizune's exhausted features, he gave a dramatic scowl and pointed at his wayward apprentice. The boy had wiggled out of his grip when Jiraiya had lost interest, and was standing with his arms crossed aggressively. "You may call me sensei, as long as you do not allow his disrespectful habits to taint your own ladylike disposition!"

There was a far-too-loud snort from the dweeb in the face-framing leaf headband. He turned red as a cherry when most of the group turned to look at him with varying expressions. The kid looked like he wanted to body flicker a mile away, but he didn't apologize.

"What is going on here?" Naruto demanded. "I don't want you anywhere near my sister, you big pervert!"

Something twitched in Jiraiya's eye. The kid made it sound like he was completely unable to control himself, liable to victimize a goddamn child. He really didn't appreciate the connotations of his apprentice's constant accusations. Jiraiya was many things, some of which he even acknowledged as faults. He was a super-pervert, not a pedophile or rapist. He liked to admire and flirt with all women because it was enjoyable. It made him feel gallant, it made them feel pretty, and sometimes even served a useful purpose like distraction or information gathering. It could be amusing to flirt with someone who was uninterested or unsuited, like Shizune-chan. But he would never touch a woman without her permission. He was gallant, a real gentleman!

"I'm not worried," Aiko offered blandly. "And what's so bad about being a pervert anyways? Everyone is. If we weren't, we wouldn't reproduce. Are you trying to claim you stare at pretty girls because your mind is as pure as fresh snow? Do we need to have a talk about where babies come from?"

Naruto turned a red that nicely commented the purple tint of the Uchiha brat. Jiraiya wasn't entirely certain why that one was coloring. Guilty conscience, perhaps? Lack of oxygen from a sudden inability to breathe?

'By all the kami, this Uzumaki is going to be an excellent student. She has the one thing her father lacked- a proper appreciation for the place erotica has in high culture.'

"But Aiko, he's sooo old!" Naruto blustered desperately, waving his hands. Annnd there went the last of his patience.

"Stop being such a disrespectful brat!" Jiraiya roared. He bopped Naruto on the head—not very hard, but enough to express his displeasure.

After Naruto was done smothering his sister and whimpering about a little love-tap, he'd turned to some sort of intricate awkward little boy 'I missed you but am too insecure to say so' dance with the grumpy little Uchiha that ended in a tussle in the dirt with Naruto pinned face-down in the dust. The scarily pale teen merely watched silently, thoughts completely hidden behind dark eyes. Jiraiya took the distraction as opportunity to quietly question Shizune-chan as to the details of what he had to do. What he learned wasn't really anymore encouraging than the little she'd communicated to him via slug. (Though convenient as a method of communication, slugs' poor short term memory made sharing complicated messages a Bad Idea).

Before things got any less intelligent, the group made their way into town proper to invade a noodle restaurant. The proprietor was visibly terrified by the large group of heavily armed ninja, so they seated Naruto at the end between his sister and Kakashi in the hopes that they could curb his enthusiasm.

It quickly became clear to Jiraiya that Hatake was Not Happy about something. He made the mistake of mentioning this to the woman on his right.

Shizune winced visibly, as if reliving several days of lecturing and Hatake's unique …well, let's call it charm. (He was the kung-fu master of passive aggressive bitchiness. Even Jiraiya knew that.)

He knew the feeling. Tsunade was not best pleased about this arrangement, even less so that (apparently) Hatake had possessed the gall to try to tell her he would be staying. He'd lost that battle, but had perhaps won the war. Apparently, Hatake had managed to teach some of that insolence (presumably so as to give Tsunade aneurisms far into the future).

Aiko had made the phenomenally inappropriate decision to calmly inform the Mizukage that she would not be party to sealing a tailed beast into an infant (and didn't that make Jiraiya feel like shit?) and so to expect a missive detailing the specifications she expected the new jinchuuriki to fit. She had dodged giving those specifications on the spot by saying that she would need to confer with Jiraiya first as he was more experienced. Jiraiya had been told to convince her to use an infant—their developing chakra systems made the jinchuuriki much more powerful and made the transition easier—but he wasn't sure if he had the heart to do it. It was possible to put a tailed beast into an adult, after all, and even Minato hadn't been certain he believed the benefits outweighed the fact that an infant could not possibly consent to a life-changing procedure. He'd been a big believer in self-determination.

Obviously, Minato had made his choice and done it anyway when he had needed to. But then again, Aiko had seen what it was like for a jinchuuriki to grow up around people who had been victimized by the beast they carried. He wasn't sure he wanted to start that conversation and hear what she had to say about how Naruto had grown up.

The hints he had were bad enough.

"Ah." He cleared his throat uncomfortably, figuring it would probably not be reassuring to tell Shizune that he agreed with Hatake about the wisdom of this endeavor. He had no expectations that Aiko would be able to manage this, largely because it was unwise to have any expectations at all before he had gauged the girl's aptitude and current abilities. "I'll take care of it, Shizune-chan. You can count on me."

Oh, hell. Jiraiya silently damned his chivalry, but he'd had to do something to wipe the sadness and stress lines off the girl's face.

Thus committed, the toad Sannin was anxious to find out what he was working with. He rushed through his meal as politely as possible, and then cleared his throat to catch attention. "Alright. Naruto, Aiko, say your goodbyes. We need to get to work."

Naruto pouted, but his sister was more businesslike. At least, he would have thought so until she went around the table passing out hugs, starting with her shishou and moving to Shizune before inflicting one on a suddenly very tense Sai. The Uchiha balked when she got to him, but she blinked down at him innocently as if he made no sense. Eventually, with a sigh he compromised with a handshake. The dweeb in the face plate snickered, until he got his own hug.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "Alright, that's enough." Effortlessly, he picked up a teenager in each hand and hoisted them up. Aiko was mildly surprised, but Naruto was resigned and hung limply.

"Bye everyone!" Naruto waved, getting half-hearted replies from the table before Jiraiya set off to the hotel where he'd reserved two rooms.

"Alright girl. Tell me what you know about seals."

The abrupt subject change seemed to take her off-guard, but she amicably and competently enough talked about core concepts and demonstrated proficiency in the standard language and sigils when he quizzed her. She had little to no theoretical knowledge about the higher level work that he and her parents had both practiced. That was what he'd expected, to be honest, but it would have been nice to be starting with more.

Naruto looked on blankly while Jiraiya heaved a sigh and slumped against the wall, hands in his pockets.

"Are there any useful similarities between sealing physical material and volumes of chakra?" The girl looked curious, but also mildly concussed. Maybe it was just her large, dreamy eyes and default expression. Jiraiya re-evaluated his earlier hypothesis that there was something creepy about her. The more he looked, the more she looked like her mind was a million miles away contemplating unicorns. That could explain the detachment, he supposed.

Still, the question wasn't a bad one.

"Very few," he admitted honestly. "It's going to be even more difficult because this seal is going to have to be adapted for non-human chakra. Luckily, your study materials here," he jerked his head towards a now-napping-Naruto, "will at least provide you with an example of demonic chakra so you can get a feel for what you'll be working with."

"I see." Aiko twisted a lock of hair around her fingers, and he had to blink away from the light it reflected into his face. "Will… Can this work?"

Jiraiya considered telling her a nice lie, like he had Shizune. But he shook his head. "I can't teach you the kind of mastery over seals it takes to understand and design a process like this in a month. I couldn't if you were the Sage of Six Paths, for crying out loud. But," he held up a finger to stop the slump of her shoulders, "I can teach you to fake it like the best of the Red Lantern District professionals. I will probably end up designing the seal you'll use and help you memorize it, as well as the most likely problems that could occur and how to recognize and deal with them. Mist isn't going to have anyone who will be able to tell the difference. So as long as nothing horrible and unforeseen happens, we're going to cheat like a Nara."

"Nara cheat so often?" she asked, sounding mildly amused.

He shook his head gravely. "The important thing isn't how often they cheat. It's that they cheat intelligently."

At least she had a good memory. Naruto was decidedly displeased about being left out of what was going on, so Jiraiya started him on learning the sigil set just to shut him up. Aiko proved to be a convenient study aide—all the whining he'd given Jiraiya died in his mouth when his sister raised an eyebrow at him.

Which was really unfair, he noted. Why would he listen to his sister and not his teacher? It defied logic.

#vapors #uzumaki aiko #electrasev5n #ninja daily #fanfiction #naruto fanfiction

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senju-sekhmet · 3 years ago

Text

Changes of the Heart (1/2)

Summary: You've been in love with him for a long time, yet things with Kakashi Hatake were complicated, to say the least. Finally left with with a remainder of pain and your best friend Genma, who keeps nagging you on, you are presented with a dangerous mission: to track down a serial killer. Your team? Genma and Kakashi, of course. Sometimes, the heart needs time. And the right incentives.

Length: 5,200 (part 1) Part 2!

Warnings! My second Kakashi fic sO. Also Genma, wow!! Character interpretations, beware. But more importantly: Gore, murder, depiction of dead bodies, graphic violence (I mean it), torture, BUT ALSO: a very fluffy, happy ending, so: angsty/dark with a super happy ending. Trust me guys

My long overdue christmas present for @kuramakakashi !! I started this back in November because I knew my schedule would be too damn busy. And what do you know, I still royally missed the timeline.

Once more words fail me to tell you how much your constant support in all things writing but also in general means to me. I’ll always look forward to your messages, Lee, ilysm bestie 💖💖💖💖

Read on AO3!

“Use lethal force if necessary.”

You frowned.

Tsunade’s mien was dark, her hands clamped down tightly in front of her on the ancient desk behind which all the Hokage before had sat. It was a heavy order, but your leader’s fierceness was unmistakable.

The foe had been described as vicious, cunning and - having a partiality for slaughtering civilians on the border of the Fire country.

What’s more - Tsunade considered a squad of no less than three jonin necessary to take them down.

Genma shifted his toothpick to the left side of his mouth. His forehead was wrinkled by a slight frown. “With all due respect, is it not the Mizukage’s duty to take care of their missing nin?”

You had wondered about that, too.

Next to you, you thought to hear Kakashi hum lowly in agreement.

Tsunade’s gaze narrowed slightly. “Do you see her shinobi chasing him down?”

Genma gave a caustic snort, but you beat him to the answer - anger prickled under your skin. “No, I get it. He’s not murdering water country folk, so the Mizukage doesn’t care.”

Kakashi finished your sentence with a dry, resignated huff. “And we can't sit idly by, of course.”

Tsunade sighed and leaned back in her chair. “There are no words I can offer to make this better.”

You propped your hands up on your hips and sneered slightly - you wouldn’t dare to do more, no matter how much Tsunade might agree with you - but your voice was dripping with sarcasm. “To sum it up: We are to hunt down, restrain or kill if necessary, a missing class S nin from Kirigakure, former ANBU, specialised in poisons and espionage. Easy.”

You thought you heard Kakashi cough next to you.

“Oh, all because he was fortunate enough to escape his own county, of course,” you added, prompting the tall, white-haired man next to you to give you a riddled look.

Tsunade shoved the mission details in three envelopes for each of you your way. “Y/n, you have such a brilliant, sharp mind. It never ceases to amaze. Dismissed.”

Tsunade always had an endearing way of saying piss off.

Snorting, you snatched the envelopes from the desk, shoved them towards Kakashi and Genma and turned towards the door of the office. Your teammates followed you silently, albeit bowing politely to the venerable Hokage, which you conveniently had forgotten to.

You also had an endearing way of telling someone, you, too.

Truth be told, you were buzzing with excitement at the prospect of the mission. Not many would - it was dangerous, it was work cut out for someone of your level.

The only thing you weren’t so sure about were your assigned team mates.

Genma? Sure enough, a loyal companion through and through, a man you’ve shared many a campfire with and had gone through hell back on missions you chose to be buried deep within your memories. If you ever had to name a confidant within Konoha, it’d be him. And you were sure, he’d do the same.

Kakashi, however…

Silently, the three of you were leaving the Hokage building. In front of it, Kakashi regarded you with the same riddled look had given you at your cranky remark. He crossed his arms. “I suggest we prepare ourselves and head out as soon as possible.”

Your gaze narrowed. You wanted to spit back a caustic remark, but something held you back. “Yeah,” was all you muttered.

Kakashi shunshined away with a little wave.

Genma rolled his eyes. He followed you as you turned towards the path to your home - the Nara compound. Or well. The collection of houses it was, nowadays. “Well, you’re not prickly at all today,” he drawled.

You turned to give him a little smirk over your shoulder. “No more than usual, I assure you.”

Genma’s eyebrow drew up lazily. “You sure?”

“You aren’t?”

“I’m wondering if it’s got anything to do with our third man, but,” he raised both palms up defensively as soon as he recognised your mien clouding over. “that’d be wild, no?”

You clenched your teeth. A little. “It is what it is, Genma,” you hissed. Alright. Your teeth clamped down so hard your jaws hurt.

He scrutinised you a moment longer before he let out a long, exasperated sigh. “Watching the two of you interact is giving me headaches.”

Instantly, you halted in your tracks and whirled around; your pointer finger pressing into his flak vest. Your nostrils flared - Genma, of course, was unimpressed by your show of fury. “Not my fault, Genma,” you spat.

You had made your feelings obvious. Kakashi’s presence gave you these stupid flutters in your heart, he made your chest warm in ways you first considered unhealthy - you found yourself thinking so often about the way the skin around his eye wrinkled whenever he smiled under that dumb mask-

You had sought his company, he had readily provided it - the two of you had laughed, shared stories, you two had felt good -

________________

The fuzzy warmth of the sake had spread inside and warned not just your stomach but your heart and tongue alike.

Kakashi’s cheeks were glowing, what little you could see under the mask.

You giggled a little. Most customers had cleared out of the restaurant and it had become quiet. You shuffled closer to him, to his warm side.

Kakashi’s gaze was alight. The corner of his eye wrinkled in a telltale way. "You're cuddly," he murmured, no, cooed.

You giggled accordingly. "I am."

For a moment, you just lingered. It had been another of these long days - you'd been training and tearing the field apart, rested blissfully and shared a meal after. You were surprised Kakashi had agreed to sake, as well, though.

It had made this loose - more than pleasant.

You breathed deeply. Kakashi’s fresh scent seemed more intense than ever. The side of your face nuzzled into his shoulder.

He hummed a little. You thought his body had gone stiffer - his breath a bit faster.

"Kakashi," you whispered.

"Y/n," he breathed, lightly.

You spoke before thinking.

"You make me feel lighter. It's as though anything could happen, it'll be easy. My heart flutters, I feel… hopeful," you smiled.

Your gaze drifted up to his face.

His mien had become rigid. Just like himself. Kakashi swallowed heavily.

Your hand grasped the fabric of his shirt instinctively. If he were to speak now, you were sure you did not want to hear it. The moment was too vulnerable. You were woozy from sake, lighthearted.

He didn't speak.

But that, it seemed, was more damning.

As though struck, you shrunk away from him. Curled into yourself a little, your gaze did not dare to gaze back at him.

Kakashi’s breath hitched. It sounded strained.

________________

Anytime you dared to do so much as move a little closer, compliment the way Kakashi made you feel or simply how happy you were, this man had frozen up completely, looked away, shivered.

Only to come around again.

Pretend as though he hadn't just rejected your advances. And be just like he had been before again.

You were confused, at first.

He was - apologetic? You became hopeful - and the pattern… repeated.

You first had stopped to act that comfortable around him - but he had not, he had sought your company, your proximity - all of it.

And then when you did again, too-

He froze up again.

It hurt.

By now, you were sure he was just toying with your feelings.

Genma closed his eyes slowly. “Yeah. Sure,” he muttered, showing your hand away slowly before indicating for you to get along further on your way. He walked next to you now, hands shoved deep into his pockets.

Your arms were clasped around yourself, you breathed evenly.

You heard Genma take a deep breath. Instantly, you wanted to tell him off - the topic was closed as far as you were concerned; discussing Kakashi amounted to nothing but painful longing.

But you didn’t.

“I don’t think Kakashi wants you to feel this way, though,” he murmured finally, so quiet you shot him a side glance again to find him gauging your reaction.

The corners of your mouth turned downwards - a painful ache had settled into your chest, turning the fuzzy warmth Kakashi once caused there, long since a foul shadow, into an agonising sensation. You breathed deeply. “Yup, he makes it obvious,” you replied curtly.

Genma sighed again, deeply - suddenly, the weight of his hand was on your shoulder, squeezing the flak vest and it slightly. “Y/n, I really hope you’re gonna understand.”

You blinked at him.

He wiggled his toothpick around. “Sometimes you’re just dense as hell, is all,” he continued, patting your shoulder again.

Why was he doing this?

“I think I understand just fine, thank you very much,” you whispered back - low, haunted. Pained.

Was he purposefully twisting the knife?

Your lower lip quivered.

To your utter shock and horror, your dear friend merely shook his head. “I don’t think you do.” His arm wrapped around your shoulder quickly and squeezed you close to him, pulling you along as you walked towards the street where both of you lived slowly. “We have a mission now,” he added quietly.

Despite his cruel words you found yourself relaxing into Genma’s embrace slowly, nodding. You didn’t want to think about Kakashi, about Kakashi’s easy company, about how you laugh together, how comfortable you feel-

How he bolted-

How he kept coming around-

You shook your head. “I think I should have all the supplies at home.” You hoped, anyway. Otherwise, you’d be in for another trip before your departure.

Genma hugged you a little closer. “Yeah. Can’t wait to get this party started,” he added, resigned.

No need to be so thrilled, you figured.

________________

True enough, you found everything you needed at home. Thankfully, you had stocked up just a few days ago after returning from your last mission. Kunai, paper bombs, other tools - everything you needed you shoved into the compartments of your flak west and the belt bag you had donned. The focus helped chase away the lingering ache of your conversation with Genma, which still rang so oddly harmful. You hoped you wouldn’t jump right at Kakashi’s face for it, but your professionalism would save you from that.

Hopefully.

Besides, this wasn’t new - this terrible game of back and forth between you and Kakashi had been going on for quite a while now, each stretch having been more of a torment than the one before.

You sighed as you smoothed over your bed sheets. You didn’t like returning to a messy room.

Locking the door and leaving your venerable ancestral home, you weren’t surprised to find Genma waiting outside - engaged in lazy conversation with Shikaku. Conversely, he always was faster preparing than you were.

The men waved both as you approached them. Your distant relative’s scarred face stretched with a smirk. “Sounds like you have a lot of work cut out for you, Y/n.”

You gave Shikaku the same smirk. “Naturally. Special assignment, and all.”

His mien became softer. “So I heard.” He knitted his eyebrows in a slight frown. “Take care of yourself out there.”

You breathed deeply. Shikaku’s unspoken concern would always remain one of the few things to seep through your caustic armor of straightforwardness. After your father’s death he had become a surrogate parent - initially you had rejected him and claimed he simply did so out of clan leader duties. Yet the man’s everlasting patience reigned you in, got you back on track and made your shinobi skills blossom.

You owed him more than you could - or wanted to - comprehend in words.

Genma wiggled his toothpick again. “Ready for a fun time, then?” His tone was so flat you assumed ‘fun time’ meant ‘sleep’. Which probably was what Genma would’ve enjoyed most at this point.

You smirked a little again. “Let’s hunt a crazy Kiri nin.”

Stepping forward, you hugged Shikaku tightly - his was even tighter. You breathed in his familiar scent - a warm hearth, the woods, petrichor.

Home.

Just a moment later, you parted.

As you agreed, you met Kakashi at the gates of Konoha. The man’s hands were shoved into his pocket and he was looking into the far distance, his back turned to you. Slowly, an arm rose up in greeting even before either of you were able to do so much as utter a word.

“How does he even do that, seriously,” you rolled your eyes. Neither of you had made a sound in your approach, true to form, of course.

“Can probably smell your recent contempt a mile away,” Genma replied drily.

You gave him a dark look that sufficiently shut the man’s mouth before another sarcastic remark would come up.

Kakashi turned around finally. Briefly, he gazed at Genma before his black eye settled on you. You wondered if he smiled under his mask - he had those wrinkles around his eye. You also hated that you did wonder about that.

“The dossier said our target has last been spotted in the far east near a small village,” he explained softly in his low, easy voice. His gaze did not wander from you. Genma huffed. “Nearly wiped it out. I suggest we go there to hunt for clues and ideally, our man.”

You nodded. “Let’s not waste time.” As exciting as this manhunt was, people’s lives were at stake.

In an instant, the three of you were up and about towards the east - it would take a few days to travel there, you dismally realised. Jumping from tree to tree, the exercise of travel itself helped alleviate the festering ache that still wanted to gnaw at you. Occasionally Kakashi looked over his shoulder at you - a gaze you’d want to describe as soft but refused to - whilst Genma’s eyes were straight ahead.

Silently, you recounted the information from the dossier which you had, of course, diligently studied before your departure, as well. The mark was one Kuriso, former ANBU, as identified by eyewitnesses when compared to the data available. A tall man with black, shoulder length hair and a gaze you’d just describe as mean. Such was easy when the next few paragraphs were lengthy descriptions of the bloodbaths he had committed near the border to the Water country and finally, in the east of the Fire county. What little Kirigakure had offered about him did not fit the profile - apparently he used to be a quiet man with the most lethal poisons available. Which made you wonder just why now he had decided to become a mass murderer - but then again, in Kirigakure, stranger things had happened.

When you brought the discrepancy up to your companions, both men offered low grunts of acknowledgement. “Perhaps someone’s using him,” Kakashi had postulated in his usual quiet, thoughtful manner.

“Jeez,” Genma huffed. “Then we need to hunt that person, too.”

“Maybe so,” you muttered quietly. It was a possibility. Right now, none of you had any information to further judge. “Or maybe he just had a change of mind and finally started to show his true heart,” you grunted drily.

Between his jumps, Kakashi’s black gaze wandered back to you. There was a question in his glance you could tell, but he did not speak - a certain vulnerability you could not put your finger on.

“What,” you snapped when the man couldn’t open his mouth.

“Wondering about such a change of heart,” Kakashi replied quickly, staring ahead again.

You opened your mouth to deliver a scalding reply to what you considered a taunt, but Genma’s firm voice cut in. “Both of your glorious theories aside,” he gave you a pointed glance when you seemed like you wanted to speak again, “we need to consider our camp for the night.”

“There’s a village we can reach before night falls,” you supplied quietly, staring at Kakashi’s silent back.

With ease you managed to reach the small village just as the sun set. A day worth of traveling like this had you exhausted and your companions did not seem less drained. The only inn unfortunately had just a single room available, so it would be a rather cozy night.

"I'll take the far right side," you announced, pointedly stalking towards the wall and rolling out the futon the inn had provided. It had seen better days, it seemed.

Genma and Kakashi shared a look.

"I can sleep in the middle," Kakashi offered quietly, cautiously glancing your way.

Genma wiggled his toothpick.

Your gaze narrowed instantly to shoot a glare at the masked shinobi. There he was again, being nice, being friendly being - there-

Genma hummed. "Yeah, right. I'll take the left side."

Your eyes widened. What was he thinking?! After all he said?

Genma did not even spare you a second look as he rolled out his futon on the far left side of the little room.

Wordlessly, Kakashi took his place in the middle.

You pointedly turned towards the wall.

Kakashi huffed behind you, such an easy, lithe sound that nearly was lost on you - were you not entirely tuned to his lingering presence.

Why did he have to be in the middle?

"Are you alright, Y/n?" The inquiry came just as soft. As though he really did care.

"Fine," you spat against the wall.

He became silent. You did not like that. You wanted him to keep talking - but he was always so understanding, he'd respect your reply-

"That did not sound fine," he breathed, you thought you heard the hint of a chuckle. Was he amused by your plight?

Ire washed away any of the silly, contradictory feelings that might’ve been zigzagging in your mind. "And why do you find that funny?"

No sound came from behind you. Not even so much as a hitched breath.

Frustrated, you turned - but just enough to glance at him from the side.

Kakashi’s black eye was trained on you. If there had been mirth in his mien before, it was gone now. "I don't," he whispered, for your ears only.

Your teeth clenched. "Then why, Kakashi," you hissed, barely.

His eyebrow furrowed knowingly, slowly. Silence stretched for a few agonising moments. Each passing second you wondered whether you wanted to know his answer.

"Perhaps I'm covering something up with a chuckle."

He had finally breathed, so quiet you thought you'd imagined it.

You hated beating around the bush.

That was what you always did - Kakashi became elusive but yet never stepping away.

You propped yourself up on one elbow. Your frown deepened.

Kakashi drew in a deep breath.

"Listen, Kakashi, you don't get to-"

"Can you two fucking talk outside?!"

Both of you winced.

Genma seldom had sounded so… pissed off.

You swallowed. "Good… night, Kakashi," you spat, turning back to the wall.

"Good night, Y/n," he answered, as soft as ever.

________________

The scene was grisly.

The three of you had agreed unanimously to search the last attack site of your target for clues - if you were lucky, Kakashi’s ninken would even pick up a trail.

You had expected havoc - the killer's brutality was unparalleled, at least as far as your experience went, anyway. Kakashi seemed less fazed, Genma… was Genma.

"Jeez."

He had almost spat his toothpick out.

The small farmhouse near the unfortunate, now abandoned village had been burned down to the ground. But the bodies had not been charred alongside it - no, they were outside.

Spread, in fact.

In pieces.

You didn't gag. A cold shiver ran down your spine. You counted three individuals by the number of unique body parts.

"Judging by the bloodshed, they were still alive," Kakashi evaluated, walking over to a mangled torso.

You frowned. He was right - this kind of slaughter had drenched the soil red. The miserable stench told you it had been well over twenty-four, if not thirty-six hours. Revulsion formed a lump in your throat you forced down. Silently, you joined the silver-haired man.

Kakashi sniffed the torso. Now, you almost did gag. "I cannot smell poison. But we can't rule it out."

"It must be," you judged swiftly. "No animals touched the corpses.”

Kakashi clicked his tongue.

You continued. "This was the scene of murder either way. You'd think this method however causes too much … noise," you tilted your head to inspect the cuts on the grey, dead flesh. Clean. You frowned. "He carries a weapon. And enough force to… chop someone apart. But the victims were not … resisting?" The work was frighteningly clean. Carefully, your kunai cut where once an arm had been attached - a sample you placed in a vial you procured. If it was poison, it had to be analysed. The odds were high - according to the profile and circumstance.

Genma had been walking over the small field, taking it in in its entirety. "It doesn't seem to get less messy anywhere, either. Hm," he hummed, wiggling his toothpick. "I'm kinda wondering about the brutality. What's the point? He's ex-ANBU. This is barbaric."

Your gaze swept over the gory field. "I don't think we can answer that question yet. But it matters not."

Kakashi’s gaze swept over the carnage. "The more we know about him, the better," he mused, his hand rubbing over the line of his jaw.

You turned towards Kakashi again. "You think this method of butchering has a meaning?"

The black eye fixated on you, but he didn't move more. "You said it yourself. We don't know yet if it does. Genma is also right, however. He is ex-ANBU. I don't expect any sort of unnecessary… work."

You crossed your arms. Which meant the mark had done all this for a reason. The implication sent a cold shiver down your spine. "He would not be the first to fall to bloodlust or madness," you suggested.

"No," Kakashi countered, "and it would fit such a depraved profile to main his victims. But these people carry no signs of a struggle. There's more to this."

You wanted to make a caustic remark about dismemberment making a struggle difficult, but you refused. It seemed indecent.

He was right, anyhow. Your eyes closed briefly, your jaws worked tightly as you pondered. "In that case, it seems the act could be born out of more than sick pleasure indeed. Something we need to be aware of."

Genma huffed again.

"Jeez."

________________

Pakkun had managed to pick up a faint trail of scent that led into the vast forest bordering the farmhouse.

"Been days though, boss, he's far away," the pug had warned.

"It's our best lead for now," Kakashi urged.

Again, the four of you were flying, jumping, sprinting through lush Konoha forests. You were racking your brain for answers to the questions the grisly scene had posed. A pattern in how the body parts had been placed? Not really. Anything of the bodies missing? Not that you could have seen. But without autopsy, it was impossible to tell.

A jutsu?

That possibility made you most uneasy.

"Are we getting any closer?" Genma yelled after a while of silent travel.

"Yep, think so," came the pug's swift verdict.

"Can we catch up today?" It wouldn't do you well to force an encounter after hours of travel. But if you rested, you might lose the trail.

“Nuh-uh,” the hound replied, “that is, not if you wanna meet him in daylight.”

You frowned. Battling an unknown foe in the dark was risky. But your strength were the shadows. In fact, dusk - or even night - would make you nigh unstoppable. On cue, you exchanged a look with Kakashi and Genma. The former’s eyebrow was drawn into a deep frown. “It still is risky. We gleaned almost zero information on him, Y/n,” he warned, reading your mind.

Normally, you’d have smiled a little at how Kakashi did that. He always would. Yet the moment you wanted to, your expression soured - he kept on doing this, he kept on twisting the knife-

“I agree with Kakashi,” Genma huffed, just in time before you’d spit unkinder words once more. “We need more intel.”

“Then we’ll camp in the forest tonight,” you concluded quickly. At least you’d have your space tonight. Though you instantly found yourself wondering if Kakashi still would speak to you, even if it was ever so briefly.

Just as dusk broke, you decided to camp on a small clearing. Pakkun decreed the target still was far enough away to not stumble over the three of you accidentally come night and he had a comfortable lead in his nose still. Really, it was a solution you could work with. That was, if you ignored sleeping on the ground without bare necessities. None of you had packed for a night in the woods. It was manageable - but not pleasant.

If anyone made a suggestion about huddling for warmth, you’d meet them with the sharp end of a kunai. The summer temperatures were good enough for that, at least.

The men were sensible enough not to. Partly because again, you pointedly turned your back to them after the matter of the first night shift had been discussed.

"I'm going to take the second one," you curtly announced, volunteering for the most unfavourable one as it meant a disruption of your night's rest.

Kakashi’s jaw shifted. "I could-" He began softly.

A dark glare from you silenced him.

"I don't need to, of course," he resigned. You detested that the defeat in his voice still managed to tug a rotten heartstring.

Genma on the other hand? "Awesome, I worried I'd have to take the crap shift. Thanks a lot, Y/n!" His glee was unmistakable.

You just had rolled your eyes at him and not even listened to who'd take the first and last shift.

You found out, of course, when Genma rattled you awake.

"Rise and shine," he grinned.

You rubbed your eyes. "Mhm. Sleep well."

"Oh, I will. And, Y/n?"

You blinked sleepily at him.

"If I hear any fucking word of you and Kakashi when you wake him, I'm going to make you both pay." The toothpick wiggled dangerously.

Defiantly, you jutted your chin forward. "Why would I talk to him more, huh?"

Genma leaned down. "Because you should. But not tonight."

Anger had you bristle in the fraction of a second. If there was so much of a shred of sleepiness left in you, Genma had blown it away. "You-"

"Nighty night," he chimed, turning away before you had a chance to start your tirade.

Well, unless you wanted to wake Kakashi. But that seemed too cruel. Your friend already had laid down, his back, too, pointedly turned towards you.

You huffed.

Sometimes, Genma was an ass.

You perched yourself on the rock in the clearing and tuned entirely into the sounds of the forests. The rustle of the underwood, creaks, snuffings. The neverending hum of a biome that was second home to you. Every Nara knew a forest like their own heartbeat. These woods were calm right now. Unless Kuriso of Kirigakure was as versed a ranger as you were, he was not near right now.

Why had the killer retreated here? A forest offered shelter, fair enough. He could hide here well. But Kuriso could not fathom yet you were hunting him. He could guess the Hokage would not idly watch - but to run here now, coincidentally just as you began chasing him? Strange.

Which could mean he had acquired something that had prompted him to return here.

From killing all those people?

But what could that be?

A cursory examination of the body parts had revealed nothing cut away and missing. They had begun to decay, sure enough, but not so much you couldn't tell. If he needed blood, he could've found an easier way to … extract it.

You rubbed your temples. There hardly was any kind of deranged jutsu you could think of that required human sacrifice, blood, or whatever else he might have gleaned from these unfortunate souls. At least, a jutsu that made sense in this context and would lead to such … results. But then again, the world was an enormous place. And Kirigakure a faraway hidden village.

Anything was possible.

You couldn't help but to feel more alert now. Your target had gone here to not be disturbed.

Maybe you should strike first?

The rest of your shift passed uncomfortably fast. Silently, you snuck over to where Kakashi had laid down.

The man was awake already, staring at the starry sky.

Your eyebrow rose slowly. "Insomnia?" Again? You knew it was common with him. You also had fairly good ideas as to why but enough decency not to ask about it. Along with the same kind of decency, your venom would hold back.

A little.

Kakashi’s gaze shifted to you slowly. "Mhm," he hummed near silent.

For all your chagrin towards this man, this circumstance - what you knew about him, to have been subjected to a fate that robbed him of rest still - the festering wound in your chest throbbed a little less.

You crouched down next to him. "Kakashi," you began softly.

He blinked once. Perhaps there was caution in his glance.

"I've been thinking a lot."

"I'd imagine so, during a lonely night shift," he replied easily, in his soft tune.

Irony. How quaint. "I figured it is strange the target chose to retreat here now, after sticking to villages and streets beforehand. He could not know the Hokage sent us now," you explained.

As you talked, the tall man shifted to a cross legged sitting position, rubbing the side of his jaw with a hand. "You're thinking he got something that requires being unperturbed for a bit," he finished your thoughts quickly.

You nodded. He did it again.

"It would most likely serve us well to interrupt him," he added, further complimenting your line of thought.

Before you knew it, a smile tugged on the corners of your lips. Another reason Kakashi’s company was so easy, so delightful: a bright mind yours seemed to link with, no matter what subject.

Why did he have to react so averse to your advances?

"Y/n?"

You blinked. "Sorry?"

"You seemed … upset, a little," he uttered, cautiously.

Slowly, you closed your eyes. "I'm thinking about changes of heart, is all," you sighed, submitting to the ache that pulsed where your heart would be. Throbbing, rotting.

Kakashi hummed a low tune. Just when you thought he wouldn't reply anymore, you heard him inhale slowly. Your eyes opened to find the black stare on you - with unmatched intensity. "They need time and patience," the sincerity in his voice was shattering.

Time and patience.

Maybe you'd just get over this man.

And stop coming around yourself.

"I'm glad you're here," he added.

On cue.

Your heart throbbed again, sluggishly, festering. You blinked, heavily. "Sure," was all you could offer suddenly, a certain defeat deafening you. Who were you kidding? You weren't going to stop anything, you probably loved to torture yourself.

Kakashi’s gaze was soft, his voice a supposed soothing balm you desperately wanted but still felt like ripping at your heart just for hearing it. "Rest, please. I'll watch, now."

You'd curl up not far away from his watchful eye. No matter what you'd trust this man blindly.

You just wished he cared for more than your physical well-being.

#kakashi #kakashi hatake #kakashi x reader #kakashi hatake x reader #genma #genma shiranui #sekhmet writes

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