Thursday, April 21, 2016

After Pain Chapter 2: For A Friend

After Pain 

Chapter 2: For a Friend 

"Thank you for coming," Shikamaru said, trying not to sound bored. It was imperative that they keep up these dinners - always at the usual time at the end of the week - and maintain the impression that they were simply dinners. Which meant that he was usually put to the task of seeing the guests out and saying the final polite goodbyes by the door. He had no doubt that someone, an Anbu or someone from Danzo's secret foundation was watching as he stood there by the door and said these goodbyes. It was such a drag having to preform this little farce.

Some people, like Hinata's father and head of the Hyuga clan, considered these little pleasantries super important in and of themselves. Until now, Shikamaru had wondered why his father even bothered with all this pointless, troublesome, ceremony, but it had definitely helped them keep in touch and keep up with Danzo's movements.

When all the guests finally left his father called him in for a game of Shogi before bed. Shikamaru was very tired, but he was aware, as he had been for the past few days, that his father was showing him a great respect in treating him like an adult now, in involving him in these affairs. Sleep could probably wait.

"Well," Shikaku said once they had both made their first moves. "What do you think?"

Shikamaru's thoughts were still a little confused and jumbled, but this was his chance to speak out, try some of his ideas, and ask his father some questions of his own. Things he had not been able to do as the youngest person at that dinner table.

"Well," he said. "Before all this started the team and I were talking and we had decided to go after Sasuke ourselves - to bring him to justice so that the Cloud would have no excuse to blame our village."

"That will not be possible, son," Shikaku said. "As soon as he was appointed Hokage Danzo's second order - after the one to name Sasuke a wanted Rogue Ninja - was that no Leaf Shinobi was to leave the village without his personal permission unless they are a member of the Anbu or unless they were given a mission before his appointment which they are completing."

"You're serious?" Shikamaru said stunned. "So Naruto is..."

"Naruto is in a precarious position. We can argue that Naruto left before he found out about this order, and I'm sure Kakashi will make up some excuse or reason for his Team's absence from the village, but as the nine tails host Danzo might decide to restrain him anyway - for his own safety of course."

Shikamaru sighed. "So no one can leave the village until he gets back... can he even do that?"

"Others might be able to test this, but as the member of the Jounin Council who was most vocal against Danzo I cannot. He's got us under more scrutiny than usual. Which is why I want you to report to your mundane building tasks every day and try not to have any important conversations out in the open. Don't cut off your friends, because that in itself will arouse suspicion, but don't say anything too meaningful where you can be heard - you understand."

Shikamaru nodded. He felt deflated, trapped. Things were happening so fast he didn't have time to think.

"But you are right, something must be done about Sasuke soon... keep thinking, It may be you that comes up with the solution for us."

As if to counter these confidence-building words Shikaku took Shikamaru's king and ended their game of Shogi. Or perhaps he had timed it that way to end the conversation there? Shikamaru felt rushed, as he always did, trying to keep up with his dad's brain, and he had one more question.

"Do we know if he's reached the Kage Summit yet?" he asked.

"He should be there sometime this evening, we'll have to wait and see how the Summit goes, and try to salvage the situation from there." He didn't say it, but there was something in his dad's tone that reminded Shikamaru how much he hated picking up pieces halfway through the game.

...

The masked man disappeared, leaving them all stunned. No one spoke, they hardly dared to move, but he really had left. There was no more trace of him and he didn't come back even as the seconds turned to minutes and the minutes turned long and cold. This time, however, Kakashi had had a much better look at his Jutsu as he disappeared and while the man did it without hand-signals there was something very familiar about its Chakra signal - the feel of it and the way he seemed to bend space as he disappeared.

It reminded Kakashi of his own Jutsu, the Kamui.

But Kakashi had never dared to use it on a living being whose continued existence he cared for before. Could it be possible that, once sent to the other dimension using Kamui, a person could come back? Was it possible to survive in that other dimension? And for how long?

He noticed the tiniest flutter of movement and turned his attention to Naruto. the poor boy had adjusted his headband and had his fists clenched. That glare was in his eye again, the one most people misinterpreted as rudeness or anger. It was neither. It was the glare of someone fighting against his pain, fighting against the injustices that he had faced, trying to stop them from breaking him. Kakashi suspected that it was this look that had succeeded in turning the hearts of his enemies time and time again, from Gaara to Pain - they could see themselves in him and so realized that it was possible to face such destructive inner turmoil and go on...

"Kakashi Sensei," Naruto said in that voice so close to eruption. "What they did to Itachi wasn't fair!"

"It was very cruel, yes."

"No, it wasn't just cruel. It wasn't - you make it sound like there's an excuse, like it was a necessary cruelty that someone had to do... it wasn't! They had no right to put him in a situation like that, to turn him into a monster and then just throw him away when they were done using him!"

"Sarutobi Sensei tried to keep a path open for him to return," Kakashi said.

"It wasn't fair!" Naruto yelled. "They destroyed his life and Sasuke's life too. He's my friend and I'm going to go get him back."

"But he doesn't want to come back, Naruto," Sakura said softly. "And who can blame him? If this is true... if that man told this to Sasuke right after he killed his brother... why would he want to come back to us... to the village? Especially now, when Danzo's the Hokage!"

"Well then, we need to go to the five Kage Summit and kill Danzo ourselves!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Naruto," TenTen spoke up for the first time. "You can't help Sasuke by becoming a Rogue Ninja just like him! You can't get to Danzo at the summit surrounded by all the other Kage and you'll only turn yourself into a fugitive!"

Sometimes Kakashi wondered why he didn't get normal, practical, level-headed underlings to train.

"The village will be in turmoil now," Yamato said. "We can't worry only about Sasuke. When Danzo became Hokage it was bad enough, but with this new information... the village will need us more than your friend Sasuke does right now."

Kakashi looked over at Yamato. He knew that he was speaking out of loyalty to the people of the village, the people he had sworn to protect, knew that his sense of duty - combined with that of others like him - was what kept the village strong and stable. He also knew that Yamato was trying to get Naruto to safety by telling him these things, trying to get him to see the bigger picture for everyone's sake so he could stop being so pigheaded about Sasuke. Five minutes ago he had the same goal, but now... something about Yamato's words hurt him.

Maybe that masked man had gotten to him by baiting him and reminding him of the past. Kakashi was remembering sorrows that time had dulled and smoothed over. He had taken on this crazy team of Genin precisely because of their own sorrows, because he wanted to guide them through their losses and make them into extraordinary Ninja. It was no fun teaching people like TenTen who knew who they were and where they wanted to go in life and had the talent to get there. It was Sakura's emotional vulnerability, Naruto's loneliness and the burdens he carried with the presence of the nine-tails that had drawn him to the challenge of teaching them. It was Sasuke's losses, his wounds, that had made Kakashi want to take on the boy and draw his strength out and grow. He had taken them on and willingly shouldered the added responsibility of helping them through their problems - so when had he forsaken that responsibility?

"It's not our job to fix the village's political problems," he said, deciding. "This team is not authorized to meddle in such matters anyway. doing so would be almost as crazy as trying to assasinate our Hokage at the Summit."

"Kakashi," Yamato said in warning. "You should know that as soon as he took office Danzo banned all Leaf Ninja from entering and exiting the village without his personal permission. You left before the news spread... if we go back now I can say I came to get you and tell you about the new orders and bring you back. You can say you had to leave because... beca-"

"No, Yamato," Kakashi said. "This is further proof that we shouldn't return to the village now. What Danzo did to Itachi, if it's true... " he said, but he really had no doubt that it was true. It fit with all the little bits of secrets he had heard over the years. "If it's true I can't put Naruto's life in Danzo's hands. It would be irresponsible of me as his sensei and as a Jounin of the Leaf Village to allow the nine tails to fall into the wrong hands."

"But, Kakashi, you're talking treason, you will be putting yourself into the category of the most dangerous Rogue Ninja and you can't get out of that unless - until... do you mean to take on Danzo openly?"

Kakashi did not take his eyes off Yamato, but he could almost feel Naruto's incredulous wonder.

"It's time for me to shoulder my responsibilities as Team 7's leader," he said.

"We don't even know that it's true, Kakashi-sensei," TenTen protested. "Surely we should go back to the village first and find out before you do anything rash! We heard this from an enemy, remember?"

"I was in the Anbu, TenTen, and I know a little of Danzo's secret operations... it's not as implausible as it might sound to you."

"So you're going to go on the run to protect Naruto - and protect the village from how Danzo might use the nine-tails?"

"Not exactly," Kakashi turned to Naruto now. "Naruto, you keep saying that you want to bring Sasuke back because he's your friend... are you really willing to do what a friend would do?"

"Of course I am Kakashi Sensei!"

"Are you willing to stand by Sasuke's side as a friend, by helping him get justice for his family?"

A long silence followed in which Naruto stared at Kakashi as if he was seeing him for the first time.

"You mean... Kakashi-sensei, you really mean it?"

"Yes, Naruto. As Sasuke's teacher I am determined to set out on this path. Whether you join me on my self-appointed mission is entirely up to you. I give no orders today."

"I'll do it, Kakashi Sensei, I'll do it as his friend!" Naruto burst out.

"Of course we'll do it, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura said at the same time.

"And I know what I'm going to do too," TenTen said. "As a Leaf Shinobi - for all my friends."

"What is it?" Naruto asked, the excitement still evident in his voice.

"I'm going to join the Anbu."

...

Shikamaru was sitting at his father's side again tonight, and while the other clan leaders had all been invited again the Hyuga delegation was much smaller than usual. Neji still stood behind Hiyashi's chair and a couple of the elders of the clan were there, but many of the others that held important ranks had not attended. The other clans seemed to have taken their cue from Shikaku as some of them had allowed younger Chunin to sit at the main table. Ino was sitting proudly next to her dad, and Choji had been invited but had asked his dad to excuse him from the responsibility because of an injury. An Inuzuka girl that didn't even look old enough to be a Genin was sitting next to her mother.

Poor Hinata stood hesitantly nearby, as if she expected an invitation, but her father at first ignored and then finally shook his head at her and sent her away. Shikamaru found himself thinking about how he would feel if he had been so openly humiliated and feeling sorry for her so he missed the first few sentences of their conversation.

When he focused on it again Inoichi was asking about Kakashi. "He would be a great asset to us, as a former member of the Anbu..."

"No," Hiyashi Hyuga said, "I think we're better off without Kakashi's involvement. I certainly will not attend if that man is present. If we suspect Danzo of possibly trying to bypass the rules there is no suspicion where Kakashi is involved. It is well known that he will bend the rules to his whim at every opportunity in the most irresponsible manner. He has so far gone unpunished due to indulgence by the previous hokage - an indulgence that would not be afforded to a less talented or less powerful shinobi."

An awkward silence followed. Shikaku broke it by surprising Shikamaru once again.

"Shikamaru tell us about your friends' return. You told me a small group went after Naruto some days ago?"

Shikamaru sat up as straight as he could. His father had just invited him to speak, which meant he had the right to partake in the conversation for the rest of the night. Was he that desperate to make them forget about Kakashi or was he actually trying to bait the stiff Hiyashi?

"Yes, father," Shikamaru said. "We heard that Naruto had left the village abruptly when he found out the cloud was after Sasuke. Sakura naturally went after him and TenTen and Shino accompanied her. We informed Yamato right away and he followed soon after to protect Naruto... I'm not sure if Naruto needs help controlling the Nine Tails anymore, but I thought someone more experienced should go with them."

"Well done, son," Choji's dad said genially. "And are they really back?"

Shikamaru nodded. "TenTen and Yamato are making the report right now, I think Shino also returned with them..."

"Yes," Shino's father put in. "He is resting, it seems they had some trouble on the journey and the others will follow later on."

"Do we know anything about what happened."

"No," Shino's father replied. "Yamato ordered my son to keep what happened to himself until further orders were given."

"To whom are they reporting?" Hiyashi Hyuga asked, "In Danzo's absence the Jounin Council should receive all reports."

"They're reporting to an elite Anbu that Danzo left in charge," Inoichi said in a disgusted tone. "The new Hokage building is crawling with Anbu, all keeping things running as if they've been doing this all their lives."

"That is an unacceptable slight to the Jounin Council and all the clans!"

Shikamaru's mother excused herself at that moment to see to a messenger and they all followed her with their eyes as she went over to speak to a girl who stood hesitantly by the door. Shikamaru had never seen this girl before. Did his mother have her own spy network or something? Was Shikamaru becoming paranoid?

"A friend," his mother apologized to her guests for the interruption. "She had a very important piece of news. It appears that the team of five Anbu who left the village so conspicuously earlier today were going as back-up for Danzo. News came that although he's arrived at the Summit he was attacked on the way there and injured."

"Did they say who attacked him?" Inoichi asked.

"That's not possible," Shikamaru interjected.

"What do you mean, son?" Inoichi said, seemingly a little angry at his jumping into the conversation.

"It's not possible that that team went out of the village because of a message from Danzo." Shikamaru explained. "I had a shadow trace set on the cloud ninja as soon as they entered the village, but when I realized they would be spending their time here reading records I transferred the trace to one of the Anbu who was in regular contact with them. My shadow trace allows me to spy on them without exerting too much chakra. I know for a fact that this Anbu has been preparing for a mission for days and he left as part of that big group, not because of any messages, but because the time of their mission arrived."

"A shadow trace?" his old Nara uncle asked.

"So they left according to a fixed schedule," Shikaku said, "but they left the village in a very obvious way, as if they didn't have time for their usual, natural stealth. And now word is being purposefully spread around the village that Danzo has been attacked on his way to the Summit..."

"Say it, Shikaku," Choji's dad said. "Danzo is purposefully deceiving the villagers. There's no other explanation, the question is - why?"

Hiyashi Hyuga sighed and looked on at the rest of the discussion without speaking. He did not seem to be against any of what was said, but he still hesitated, still had reservations for some reason. Those reservations became obvious after the dinner. He lingered when all the other families had left and asked Shikamaru to come back inside for a moment.

"Thank you for coming," Shikamaru finished saying to an old granny that had just left. He entered and closed the door behind him.

"Yes, lord Hiyashi?" he asked politely.

"I realize that clan jutsu are held dear and secret, but I would like you to explain to me briefly what this shadow trace jutsu of yours is."

"I attached a shadow trace to Lady Shizune, with her permission of course. I've been using it to keep an eye on Lady Tsunade without being detected. Her tent is under constant Anbu surveillance-"

"We all are," Hiyashi said frankly. "What does the jutsu do?"

"It's a small piece of my shadow that attaches itself to another person's shadow. I can sense their movements, so if they make any sudden movements, or if their shadow merges with someone else's I feel it. I can then either run off to join them and see what's happening for myself and help, or I can activate a secondary part of the Jutsu that, if I concentrate and infuse enough Chakra, will allow me to actually see what's happening to the person or to hear it. I can't do both at once... yet..."

Hiyashi regarded him for a few moments.

"And you came up with this justu on your own?"

"Yes, sir, with help from my teammates, of course."

"I have one more request."

"Of course, sir."

"Please attach one of your shadow traces to me and keep it there until you notice that I've received a visit from Yamato. When that happens I would like you to send word to me with Neji immediately, no matter the hour."

"Yes, sir." Shikamaru knew better than to ask questions. It was obvious that Hiyashi was still hesitant. He would use this test to verify that the information Shikamaru had relayed about that team of Anbu was true. But if it worked would this mean he would believe them or would he continue to scrupulously check up on each new piece of news?

"Ah," the man said as soon as Shikamaru's shadow merged with his. "Yes, I can sense your chakra even without activating the Byakugan. The tiniest amount of it. Thank you for entrusting me with details of your new justu. I will honor your clan's secrets."

"You have honored me by asking, Lord Hiyashi," Shikamaru said. He hoped that was the correct thing to say. His father gave him a minute nod.

"I must go."

"Thank you for coming, sir."

When he was gone and the door closed behind him Shikamru allowed himself to complain. "I mean I know it's a new Jutsu, but does he really think I would make that up?"

"He's a very careful man, especially when it comes to the good of his clan," his father replied, stacking a few bowls to take to the kitchen. "He won't come to the next dinner at all."

"Is he going to keep hesitating forever?"

"He's not hesitating, son, because we aren't exactly doing much. He will make his choice when the time comes for action. Meanwhile he will not put his clan in jeopardy by allowing these visits to become too noticeable or frequent."

"Just because you opposed Danzo's appointment to Hokage we get turned into a cause for suspicion - a clan to stay away from?"

"Danzo's regime is keeping everyone suffocated. But you did well tonight. Hiyashi is clearly interested enough to follow things up and with your trace on him we can communicate even if he doesn't come to the meetings. He's allowed you a view inside his home, his life, it is a mark of trust not to be taken lightly."

Shikamaru hadn't thought of it that way. It reminded him of something else. "Thank you for your trust in me, father. I wish that Hiyashi could give his own daughter a tenth of the trust you give me."

"Poor girl," his mother said. "Do you think it might help if you showed her some trust, Shikaku?"

"You know Hiyashi, he'll interpret it as meddling in his clan's internal affairs - his own daughter - it would probably make things worse for her in the long run and we might lose his support."

"I think it's something they have to sort out on their own, mom," Shikamaru said.

"But if others showed her respect, drew attention to her gifts, helped her get stronger..."

Shikamaru shook his head, but he went to sleep that night troubled, trying to think of something, anything, he could do to stand by a friend.
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