Mari Makinami
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Chapter 10. Trust
The mist before her eyes slowly dissipated, revealing the Team Seven, along with the one who she could easily call the strangest man she ever seen.
He looked a bit similar to the young man Hinata saw a few weeks ago, when she was dying in Orochimaru's hideout. The hair looked pretty much the same, although the color was different; he looked much older, and his purple eyes were quite familiar, too – the Rinnegan. He was gazing at Naruto and Sasuke askance, which made his wrinkled face look even more sinister. On top of that, the ancient man was floating, sitting in the air in the lotus pose.
"...yes, they came back. I used the summoning with the previous five Kage... I also called back the historical Kage from the pure land so they could help me, too." He smiled, and his grin made her shiver. "Naruto, Sasuke and everyone. Thank you for saving the world."
She then gazed at the two teens – both of them looked absolutely opposite, Naruto being extremely happy at the moment, and Sasuke looking as if he was mourning someone or something. He didn't seem happy due to this fact at all.
Was this a vision from the past...? The creepy man said they saved the world... that would mean that they've already defeated Madara at this point. But Sasuke's arm was still intact... was there something they didn't tell anybody about the events during the Infinite Tsukuyomi?
"Yeah, Rikudō-jīchan!" Naruto exclaimed cheerfully, throwing his fist in the air.
"Could this be... are you the legendary..." Kakashi gasped, glaring at the old man with apparent shock in his eyes.
"I am Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo... also known as the Rikudō sennin by many."
Now that makes some sense...
Sakura sighed, looking down to the ground.
"I thought so... you are floating in midair. After all that has happened, nothing seems to surprise me anymore. I'm pretty tired of it, honestly."
"Oh, would you look at that... looks like everything went well, didn't it...?" One of the mysterious ghosts of the previous kage smirked.
"The ninja world has changed so much since our times... good grief..." The other one exclaimed, closing his eyes.
"It's the first time I've seen all the tailed beasts gathered together!" The third ghost added, and Hinata gasped, finally looking around, only to see all the bijū sitting around them, looking absolutely calm and relieved.
"Rikudō sennin, huh... I always believed it was a fairy tail."
So did she.
"So it turned out like this in the end, huh... summoning the previous gokage... and summoning us in the form of the tailed beasts from the other dimension..." The two tailed beast murmured with an apparently female voice.
"Well, you're the only one that could do something as godly as this." The gray haired jōnin muttered, still looking at Hagoromo incredulously.
The sage turned to him, peering at the man for a second.
"So you're Hatake Kakashi."
"Huh...? Uh... yes."
"You've done a great job leading the rest of them and sealing mother... I guess this is what god's miracles look like."
Sealing mother...? What on earth he's talking about...?
"No... in fact, I couldn't really do much. It was all thanks to these guys... and a lot of my other comrades. Plus... an old friend of mine lent me his power once again." The Sixth Hokage now looked sad, lowering his eyes.
The sage smiled.
"Even so... that's some great leadership skills. You've carried out your role well as Naruto's mentor and as Obito's friend, despite being lost yourself. And if it weren't for that, you would've never been able to stop mother.
Mother... so she heard it correctly the first time.
"He-e-ey! Kurama! I've missed you, buddy! Did you miss me, too?!" Naruto suddenly yelled, waving his hand to the Kyūbi.
"Shut up! I didn't miss you at all! You've got half of me in you, don't you, brat?!"
"Ga-ha-ha-ha!" The other beast laughed hysterically - the one that sat next to the fox and had four tails.
The sage smiled, turning his head to them.
"Heh... look at that Kurama getting all embarrassed and fluttered... but this is what I waited to see this whole time. For the birth of a ninja that could make the tailed beasts offer their help on their own accord."
Sakura smiled, and Sasuke glanced at Naruto thoughtfully, frowning a bit.
What was her master thinking...? He didn't look displeased or dissatisfied, just... sad and distant. As if he knew something they all didn't, and was thinking how to tell it to them.
"But... Obito as well... if it weren't for Naruto, it was him that brought Obito back." Hatake said, eying the sage.
"I see. Well, I'll just have to ask Obito to tell me about it when I get back... is he still here...?
Kakashi lowered his eyes again, not saying anything for a few seconds before falling down, with Sakura barely managing to catch him in time.
"Kakashi-sensei...!"
"Sorry, Sakura..." He sighed tiredly.
The pink haired girl gasped, looking her former teacher in the eyes.
"Kakashi-sensei! Your eye..."
"Yeah... guess Kakashi of the Sharingan ends today."
There was a sudden coughing noise to the left, and Sasuke flinched, turning his head in the direction of the sound and looking at someone's body lying nearby with calm determination.
Was it.. Madara?! And near him was the first Hokage, kneeling down...
"Madara was once a jinchūriki... so now that he no longer has a tailed beast sealed in him, there's no saving him..."
"He had it coming when he chose to use it." The youngest Uchiha suddenly snapped, still looking at his ancestor, yet not moving an inch.
The sage didn't reply anything, turning his head away from the dying legendary man.
"Sasuke... Naruto... these are the last of your predecessors. Take a good look while you can."
Predecessors... in what?
The two of Konoha's founders talked for what seemed like a minute, but she couldn't hear a word... and not that Hinata was really interested. She had more important things right now to pay attention to, the prime Sasuke's unusual mysteriousness.
"It's time... I'll send them all back!" The sage finally broke the silence, and Naruto turned his head towards somewhere before jumping away in that direction, landing a hundred yards away near the Fourth Hokage, his father.
She could see them talking about something for a short time, before the Fourth's, as well as the other Kages' artificial bodies began shining, slowly disappearing in the air.
Hinata could see Naruto lowering his head, and Sakura hugging Kakashi, nearly crying.
But Sasuke looked as calm and indifferent as before. What was going on in his head...? Even now that she knew him relatively well after their long travel and time together, this Sasuke from the past... she couldn't read him at all.
The Sage smiled at the picture of Naruto's farewell with his dad.
"Ah, we're free now. I'll be going back to the suiren caves, Ukiki!" The Yonbi said cheerfully.
"I'm staying in my forest." The five tailed beast added quietly, looking at his fellow.
"Oh, finally, the time for us to return to our homes has come... feels like a dream, heh!" The Nanabi laughed.
"Hachibi. What'll you be doing?" Kurama asked, turning his head to the octupus.
"Me... I'm... uhh... y'know... I think I'm just gonna go back to Bee. I've gotten used to his awful rap and it's odd not hearing it. But... you?"
Kurama didn't say anything.
"Naruto has a bit of all your chakras in him now. So to be put simply, he's something like a meeting place for you guys. If you need to talk among yourselves for whatever reason, you could just use these chakras in him to do it. Kurama, you'll stay in Naruto and manage the meetings. Do you object?"
"Well... if you say so, then I guess there's no helping it." The Kyūbi sighed, closing his eyes in defeat.
"Actually, Rikudō-jīchan... I object." Naruto said, suddenly becoming unusually serious. "I already have the half of Kurama inside of me... I think it will be 'nough to do the job. Kurama always craved freedom so much, being imprisoned by so many different people... I don't want him to lose this possibility. I want to let this half of him stay free."
The fox looked at it's host in disbelief, and for a second Hinata thought that the monstrous being is going to cry.
"Thank you... Naruto..."
The sage smiled again, closing his eyes.
"I guess I could expect nothing less from Ashura... so be it. Naruto and Sasuke... have your answers changed after the fight with mother Kaguya?"
Ashura...? And they actually did fight someone aside from Madara... this mother the Sage keep referring to... And Sasuke never mentioned her, not even once. If they decided to keep it secret... was she so strong and terrific...?
The Uchiha didn't say anything.
"Nope, mine is the same... but I've got something to tell you, gramps... and it might hurt, but... I thought of something after fighting Kaguya. I gotta say, I'm pretty damn glad that Uzumaki Kushina's my mom. Kaguya's different from the others I've fought before this... it's like she didn't have a heart..."
The sage hemmed, looking at the blond boy thoughtfully.
"Mother was once a rather widely worshipped goddess... and I don't know what changed her so much to the point she was referred to as a demon. Something must've happened when she ate the chakra fruit. Whatever the case, you're not like mother. You might have the chakras of all the tailed beasts, but I don't think you'd ever become what she did." He sighed, closing his eyes. "Now, all that's left is to undo the Infinite Tsukuyomi..."
"How do you do it? Do you need our powers, too?" Kurama growled.
"No, it's fine... all we need to do is get Naruto, who has the chakra of all the beasts, and Saskue's Rinnegan to tie the spell's roots together and undo it completely."
"Wha-a-at? That sounds easy!" The beast chuckled, and it sounded almost humanly.
"I did some research on the same Infinite Tsukuyomi jutsu that mother once used... there's no mistaking it."
So, this Kaguya person was the Sage's mother... a goddess of such power that the old man was talking about her in such manner... and Team Seven defeated her, deciding to keep her existence secret. But how...? Even Madara seemed to be overboard, and Naruto and Sasuke... sure, they were incredibly strong... but this...? On top of that, this woman once had used the Inifinite Tsukuyomi... such catastrophe already happened before...
"Now... what about you, Sasuke?" The sage asked, finally turning to the Uchiha who closed his eyes and bowed his head, stepping forward.
"Let me see... but first..." His eyes snapped open, gazing at Kurama. "I will put the Gokage out of their misery."
Kakashi gasped; Sakura looked at her teammate in disbelief, and Naruto's eyes narrowed, but he didn't look surprised.
"What... did Sasuke say?" Hatake muttered, looking at his former student with anger.
"Also... tailed beasts! You will be put under my control... I will destroy you as well when the time comes." The incredibly huge wave of chakra came from Sasuke's left eye, almost making Hinata tremble. Was this his true power...? She never imagined that her companion was this strong...
"What did you say, brat?!" Kurama growled, raising his palm to crush the Uchiha, but he didn't make it in time: his eyes took the form of Sasuke's Rinengan, as well as the eyes of the other tailed beasts.
Just like that Uzumaki woman from Uzhiogakure, Sasuke put them all under such a strong genjutsu... with a single glance...?
Now it began making sense that they've defeated someone like that Kaguya woman...
"Naruto... so it has come to this. You're the only one I could leave things to now... I've reached my limit and can't stay here any longer... I'll disappear soon..." The sage uttered with apparent sadness in his voice.
"Yeah... I'm really sorry, old man, but... I won't be anything like your children... we're different from the Indra and Ashura that you knew!" The Uzumaki boy yelled with much confidence.
Indra... and Ashura?
"Sasuke! Are you saying that's what you want?! Are you still hung up on getting your revenge?!"
"Sasuke-kun...!"
The Uchiha turned his head to Kakashi and Sakura, looking absolutely calm.
"Sure, back then, the only thing I wanted was pure destruction. My only wish was revenge. But it's different now. I will destroy and rebuild. Rebuild a new world for us! One that cannot be tainted by darkness. What I'm pushing for... is a revolution."
A revolution...? Was this what really was deep inside Sasuke's soul...? She could never imagine it... and if this was a vision from the past, which was more than likely... could she now say that she really knew him at all?
The raven haired boy clapped his hands, another huge burst of chakra coming out of his body.
The land around them shattered, the huge pieces of it raising up in the air and covering the bodies of the tailed beats, lifting them up.
"Naruto... help.." Kurama quietly growled, using the last pieces of his willpower before his face was covered by another rock.
"I'll save you! Just wait for me a little!"
The nine spheres created by Sasuke which imprisoned the bijū now formed a perfect round high in the sky, above the clouds.
"I've learned how to control the Rinnegan a lot better after this battle... and now, most of the obstacles are gone...except for you, Naruto."
The sage sighed deeply.
"Things never go just the way you want, huh... leaving power to only one caused Indra and Ashura... but even with division of power, the result remains the same."
Naruto jumped to get closer to Sasuke, landing just a few yards away from his friend.
"No... the brothers' feud will end now!"
She gasped, falling down from her bed and looking at the ceiling, her face covered with sweat. The girl's breath was hard and short – she was doubting what she's just seen. Or why she saw it, to be precise.
The reply came almost immediately: Hinata felt the searing burning on her neck, where the seal of Sasuke and Orochimaru was placed.
It was probably his chakra... it made her see his memories, revealing so many things the girl could never imagine before...
And everything became so confusing now...
First, this Kaguya person. She didn't care much about the woman: apparently they've got rid of her, and considering everything Hinata heard on the matter, she had no desire to know anything more about the goddess.
Next, Indra and Ashura... the sage was talking about Naruto and Sasuke as of these two, who were his own children. But that made no sense – they were her peers, weren't they? And the sage was an ancient relic of the past... a legend. And Madara, as well as the First Hokage... he called them Naruto and Sasuke's predecessors. What could it possibly mean...? But he certainly called Naruto and Sasuke Ashura and Indra. Was this a kind of metaphor? Or a referring to the power he gave them?
This could be the case. That's how they got all this power in such a short time. The sage gave it to them. And Madara, as well as Hashirama... the predecessors. It's likely that they were the previous ones to receive the sage's power, considering their power and the legends about the two men.
But why them, exactly? If Sasuke most certainly was connected with Madara somehow, of that she had no doubt by now, Naruto looked nothing like the Shodai Hokage, and had none of his powers. So why the two of them? Why did the sage chose them?
There had to be a missing link here, something that would explain everything, that would solve the puzzle...
And then there was Sasuke's revolution... he never mentioned his past plans to her. Not even once. All he cared for now was protecting Konoha and reviving his clan... what happened after what she saw?
Did he and Naruto fight? Was this how they've lost their arms? And in this fight, both of them changed quite a bit... even though it was very notable only with Sasuke, Naruto changed, too.
She remembered how they looked like back when she nearly overheard the talk of the two friends, when the girl decided to follow Sasuke away from the village. Naruto looked much different from his usual self there...
And now the Uchiha trusted in Naruto's intentions and plans. Whatever happened after the events in her vision, apparently the Uzumaki managed to convince Sasuke that he could take care of the world in his own way.
But was this even right? Sasuke's desire for a revolution... if she heard and saw it back then, it would most likely scare her to death. But now, it only made her realize once again how much alike she and Sasuke were.
And... was this really wrong? Their world, the system they were all parts of... it was rotten, corrupted beyond saving. What Naruto possibly hoped to achieve? Why did Sasuke agree with his friend in the end?!
If he wanted to start a revolution now... after everything what happened, after everything she saw... Hinata was more than sure that she'd become his most loyal supporter.
The world needed to change. And right now, it was merely getting back to what it was before the war. Which meant that another war, another hundred wars were inevitable.
Nothing would change at this rate.
But... what If they managed to change it?
She wasn't Sasuke. She had no power, neither literally nor figuratively, to pull something like this. She wasn't a leader, she was a follower.
But apparently the Uchiha didn't want it anymore. Or didn't he?
Perhaps he was plotting something all along?
Hinata could only hope that he did, because...
Because if he did, she would have another purpose in her life.
She hugged her knees, looking in the darkness of the winter night behind the window, only the swirl of snow visible to the girl since her Byakugan wasn't activated.
Before anything else, she needed to wait for him to return. At least she had plenty of time to think about everything in his absence...
"I'm repeating, Hokage-sama. If you continue with this policy, we'll stumble upon a huge trouble with the council of my clan. This has to stop right now! Tsunade-sama, please, at least you must understand this!" Hyūga Hiashi slammed his fist onto the Hokage's table, making the lonely cup of coffee jump up and almost spill the now cold drink onto Hatake's pants.
"Behave, brat... I mustn't do anything at all. If anything, Kakashi's position seems pretty reasonable to me. Your clan is the strongest in Konoha, isn't it right? As far as I remember, you always liked to shout about it here and there. And considering all the mess, you're the only once who can handle the hardest tasks right now. What are you trying to prove here? I'd rather not waste the Hokage's time." The blond woman crossed her arms under her huge chest, gazing at the Hyūga with uncovered displease.
The man growled in anger, raising his tone:
"Why can't you understand?! We've lost twelve ninja during the last month, ten of them being from the Main House. We can't afford it! This is too much!"
"How cute of you to talk about your family as if of some expensive arrows in your quiver..." Tsunade smirked, leaning onto the desk of Kakashi who crossed his fingers before his masked face, silently gazing at the raging man.
"Such disrespect...!"
"I never said that I respected you, brat. Or did I? Maybe I did, but mind you, this was due to my job. Now I'm not a Kage anymore, so it's a relief to finally be able to tell the truth. You, along with your family, are the ninjas of the leaf. And, like you said yourself, you're the strongest. Do you even realize that you behave like a coward right now?"
His face became red – Hiashi looked as if he was ready to explode.
"You know damn well that the strongest clan right now is the Uchiha! And I don't see him solving any of these problems at all. Last thing I heard, he abducted my daughter and did gods know what to her...!
Kakashi glanced at him dangerously, finally opening his mouth and exclaiming calmly:
"These are only rumors, and you know it better than anyone. Sasuke is assigned for the mission that nobody else in the village is capable of executing."
Hiashi turned away, silently cursing.
"Then you have the Uzumaki kid... why not him?"
Kakashi's eyes narrowed, and it wasn't clear if he was smiling or getting irritated under his mask right now.
"Then again, you of all people know better than me that Naruto is doing more than anyone else."
"Then you're an incompetent leader! You're wasting our people's lives only to defend, yet you do nothing to solve the problem permanently!"
Kakashi cocked his head sideways, looking at the man with obvious joy in the eyes now.
"Careful, Hiashi-sama. This sounds dangerously like the words of a treason. Am I to consider your clan not loyal to Konoha anymore? Or it's just you who I should focus my attention on?"
Hiashi suddenly stopped, apparently realizing that he's crossed some lines. The man bowed down, mumbling:
"I'm terribly sorry, Hokage-sama. This is nothing like that. I just... please, understand me. I am responsible for my family, and I understand everything, but... I can't stand seeing so many of them dying without any real purpose..."
Kakashi's and Tsunade's eyes met for a second, both of them looking at each other with a sort of silent understanding of something, and then Hatake cleared his throat before uttering:
"I understand you, Hiashi-sama. And I assure you that I understand your feelings, too. But we can't help it. Right now, we're on the verge of another war, even though a much more local then the previous one, but it can be even more destructive considering how weakened we still are. It's the sacred debt of everyone in Konoha to be ready to give their lives for the sake of the others. And I would do it before anyone else, of that you can be sure."
The doors to the office opened, making Tsunade and Kakashi smirk and Hiashi, who turned his head slightly to check who came to disturb their conversation in such a moment, flinched in surprise.
"I apologize, Hokage-sama, Tsunade-sama. I will follow your orders, and so will my clan. This conversation won't happen again. Now, if you don't mind, I have some issues to solve..."
He turned away, meeting the sole visible eye of the newcomer who looked at him without any visible interest. Just like always.
"Yeah... you're dismissed, Hiashi-san. Sasuke, please, enter. Sit down. We have a lot of stuff to discuss."
The Uchiha passed the Hyūga patriarch without showing any sign of emotion, and sat down to the chair near the window.
They waited for a few seconds before the doors closed, and then Kakashi finally uttered:
"It's nice to see you're alright, Sasuke. You look better than before."
"Thanks." He simply replied.
Hatake looked as if he didn't know where to start, which made the Uchiha think that it was probably much easier for his former teacher to write the letters than to talk to him directly.
"My student is alright, too. She's waiting for me in Tanzaku-gai; as you already know, we were on the way to Amegakure when I received your invitation for this talk. I decided that it's not a great idea for her to come back yet. Would be no good if she met her father a minute ago." He added, trying to clear the air between the three of them.
Kakashi slowly nodded, and Tsunade's features visibly relaxed.
"That's good to know. But the reason why I called you back for this speech is actually because of your destination. You see, we're in a rather troublesome situation right now... unlike the other villages, we're not only suffering the outcome of the war, but we also have to deal with the damage caused by Pain. Without you and Naruto, we're the weakest hidden village there is right now. Which makes us a very vulnerable target to everyone else."
Sasuke nodded in agreement. That was pretty obvious, but it still was unclear where the Sixths was leading this conversation to.
"But that's not the only problem here... we have quite a few inner struggles, too. The biggest of them being the Hyūga clan."
"And how exactly are you going to handle them? You didn't explain it in your messages." Sasuke asked curiously, which still looked weird to Kakashi. Did Hinata's company make him so civilized? It was almost a pleasure to have conversation with his former student now...
"Well, right now I'm assigning the worst of them to the suicide missions, to be honest. It's sort of justified, since they are ones of the strongest in the village right now... but, of course, them not returning back from the missions is settled."
The Uchiha smirked.
"How inappropriate, Hokage-sama... what if somebody finds out?"
"The two of us already found out, brat. See? Nothing happened." Tsunade suddenly snapped, picking her own cup of coffee and taking a sip.
"Well, clearly I was talking about the less sharp minds in the village. Don't you think somebody can eventually figure it out?"
So he was even able to understand jokes and to joke himself now? Hatake wasn't prepared for such changes...
"They can. It also works as a taunt – I'm trying to force the leaders of the clan to make a mistake which would allow us to take the right to legitimately intervene in their inner dealings. But this is a huge risk. I don't want another clan massacre in my village."
That was perfectly understandable. Even though this specific clan deserved to be destroyed, the Uchiha didn't want hystory to repeat itself.
"And what are you planning to do?"
The Sixth smirked behind his mask.
"This brings us to the main part of my plan. But before explaining it to you, I have to ask: what's the current level of Hinata? What have you taught her?"
So his plans were going to concern her as well... no wonder, though. It was her clan to begin with. But what if Kakashi lied to him? What if he was going to make her another Itachi? To force her to destroy her own clan, which, unlike his deceased brother, she would probably do gladly?
He had to be careful on agreeing with whatever the gray haired man was to offer.
"She's high level jōnin in taijutsu, low level jōnin in ninjutsu, chūnin level in genjutsu as she can break out of the simple Sharingan genjutsu. Her spying and stealth skills are splendid; she also has signed a summoning contract, mastered fire and lightning elements to the point of being capable of executing two S-rank techniques, and, on top of everything else, she received a cursed seal. It was inevitable, since this was the only way to cure her from that Hyūga drug. The chakra in the seal in mine, not Orochimaru's." Kakashi and Tsunade looked a bit shocked by what he listed, yet still didn't say anything on the matter, preferring to trust the Uchiha.
"Fine, then she's more than capable of this mission I'm going to give to the two of you. Now, listen. The situation in the world right now is pretty complicated. During the last Gokage Summit, we all have signed the certain agreement. None of the countries are to attack another, be it one of the Great Five or the smaller ones. Unless we want the truce to break, we can only defend ourselves, which is getting harder and harder considering our current situation. It would be rather easy to send you and Naruto to vanquish our enemies, but... this would lead us to another great war, and it would most certainly be the and for Konoha, not to mention that we don't want any war what so ever."
Of course you don't. This fragile peace was everything that held him from going back to his previous plan of uniting the world.
Is that what you think, Kakashi?
"And who is causing so much trouble for us?" Kakashi flinched as he noticed that Sasuke said us, not you. He actually considered himself a part of Konoha for real...
"Amegakure. It turns like the last Akatsuki member, that girl named Konan, got herself killed at some point, we don't know when and how exactly. And we also have zero information of what's going on in the village right now. But they cause surprise attacks at our objects though the whole Fire Country nearly every night, not to mention the constant robbery of the trading ways." Tsunade replied, looking at the Uchiha as if she was estimating his words, but not appearing as surprised as the Sixth did.
So it's Amegakure... that's why Kakashi wanted to give him a mission there, since he was going to the village of the rain anyway.
"Fine. What to I have to do?" He asked as calm as before, yet frowning a little.
Kakashi finally smiled, raising up from his desk.
"You're going to be the keystone to our plan. We're going to kill all our targets with a single blow, but this isn't going to be easy. If anything, truth to be told, I believe you're the only one who's capable to pull it." He took the cup and went to the small coffee machine in the corner of the room. It was already late night, so no wonder that he needed some energy, especially considering how serious their conversation was.
"Pull what, exactly?" Perhaps now he sounded a little irritated, but that was understandable – Sasuke didn't like to waste time on empty words.
"Just a second..." The Sixth turned his head to the closed window as he was filling his cup with the hot drink. "You may enter now, we're ready to discuss our plans."
The window slid open, and a figure dressed in a wide, formless hooded coat slipped inside the room, landing onto the knee.
"I'm at your service, Hokage-sama." The young, tingeing female voice echoed in the room.
"Please, close the window and take your cover off. We may talk freely here."
The person did as Kakashi ordered, taking off her hood.
Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise.
"You're..." He remembered her clearly from Hinata's memories. What on earth was this girl doing here right now...?
"Hanabi Hyūga, Uchiha-sama. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." She smiled with the corners of her mouth, and it didn't seem fake to him. Was this some kind of a game?
He turned his head to the current and the previous Hokage, waiting for the explanation.
"What's going on here?" He snapped, finally showing a sign of emotion.
"Relax, Sasuke. She's on our side. You should listen to Hanabi, I'm pretty sure you'll be interested in what she's going to say."
He peered at the young brown haired girl, who looked at him with apparent respect, for a few seconds before finally grunting:
"Fine. Go ahead."
Hanabi bowed her head before she started talking:
"First of all, please, let me thank you for what you did for my older sister. After everything that happened, I'm owe you too much for saving her from the horrible destiny that my father wanted for her."
The Uchiha glanced at Kakashi with anger in his eyes. Didn't they agree that nobody aside from the few of them was supposed to know about all this...?
"I don't know how can I repay you for that, but know that you have my respect and unquestionable loyalty. Should I live up to become the leader of the Hyūga, I swear on my life that my clan will be a loyal ally for the Uchiha Clan as well. But here is where starts the problem that we must solve if we want to get rid of the current Hyūga leaders and change the clan."
Change the clan...? What made this little fool think that someone like he wanted to nurse their pathetic asses...? If anything, it would be logical to expect him to purge all of them before anything else.
"Cut the crap. I don't want to waste my time any longer, Kakashi was enough."
Tsunade smirked – apparently she liked Sasuke's manner of dealing with things, and she seemingly didn't trust Hanabi that much, either.
The girl sighed, lowering her white eyes which looked so much like Hinata's.
"I understand that you won't trust me that easily... but I have nobody else to come to ask for help. As the only proof I have to my allegiance, I'm aware that Hinata is traveling with you... being taught by you, Uchiha-sama. Yet none of my clansmen knows this. And they won't know it unless you or her want it."
That sounded rather reasonable, and Sasuke calmed down a little, but he still certainly didn't like to deal with any Hyūga. Until now, they only brought him trouble, and the Uchiha doubted that it's ever going to change.
"I told you to go on."
She nodded, clenching her fists and paling a little – the girl clearly felt nervous.
"When I found out what father did to Hinata, it made me realize a lot of things. I now understand how corrupted my clan is, and I hate them. I hate it's leaders, I hate my father. I want them gone. So I, along with Hokage-sama here, developed the plan to overthrow the council of my clan, and, at the same time, get rid of all those who support the current system that exists within our family. Once we've accomplished it, I will become the clan's head, and the Hyūga won't have to be eradicated completely, since I'm going to negate the distinction between the Branch House and the Main House members. I intend to create a healthy, strong clan like the Uchiha once was, the clan that will support Konoha without the cowardice that my father supports so much, covering the Main House's asses behind the Branch House members who are being forced to die for them." Her eyes were filled with determination, and Sasuke couldn't help but smirk. Now he believed that she was telling the truth.
But it didn't make this girl any less naive. A clan like the Uchiha? She certainly didn't know what she's talking about.
"That sounds good and well, but how exactly are you going to make it? What does it have to do with Amegakure?" He turned to Kakashi, slowly beginning to realize where they were leading to.
"My plan is to use you and Hinata to infiltrate the village of the rain and overthrow it's government, whatever it currently is. You must take the complete control over this small country; this way, we'll be able to stop the majority of the attacks that are draining our resources nowadays, and, at the same time, we'll be controlling a very important territory without breaking the agreement with the other Great Countries. To do so, you will reform the group that ruled the Rain country for decades... The Akatsuki."
The Uchiha clenched his teeth, nearly roaring in the sudden burst of rage.
"So this is where it's going, Kakashi? You want me to become another pawn in your arsenal, like Itachi was in the hands of the Third? Do you even realize what's going to happen once Gokage find out that I've joined Akatsuki again, let alone lead it?!" He shouted, getting up from his chair.
Kakashi raised his hands in a conciliatory.
"Please, Sasuke, let me finish. It's nothing like this, I swear."
For a few seconds, the raven haired boy was glaring at the Hokage, but then he finally sat back to the chair.
"Fine. Go ahead. But remember that if I dislike what you're about to say, I'll wipe all of you from the surface of the earth."
"And that would actually be understandable, Kakashi..." Tsunade obviously didn't fear him at all; if anything, she was clearly having fun in this situation.
The Sixth sighed.
"I will notify all the other Kage that you're going for a top-secret mission to destroy the remains of Akatsuki and secure peace in Amegakure. We won't betray you, Sasuke. Not now when you've finally returned."
And this was when Sasuke realized that he still didn't trust Konoha one bit. Even though he could say that he relatively trusted Kakashi as a person, the man was still a part of this corrupted system that he and Naruto wanted to change, each in his own way.
But then again... did they really have an option to betray him? They weren't aware of the fact that he, as well as Naruto, had lost a significant part of the power that the Sage of the Six Paths gave them. Even though he probably still could deal with the majority of shinobi in the world, even simultaneously, Sasuke realized that there was no chance for him to defeat all of them if they united against him like they did against Madara.
But they didn't know that. To them, he still was someone completely out of their league. And giving him his own Hidden Village to lead, even though temporary, made their chances against him little to nonexistent.
No, they weren't going to betray him. Kakashi was telling the truth.
"Alright. I believe you. We're going to recreate the Akatsuki and capture Amegakure. What's next?"
Hatake smiled under his mask, still feeling insecure with his former student, desperately wanting him to believe in their good intentions.
"Once you make it, we will use the highest ranks of my clan to launch an attack against the criminal organisation, the members of which are being wanted by the whole world. And my clansmen, along with my father, of course, are going to be killed in the process, leaving me the only one who can take the leadership of the clan. You and Hinata will be declared heroes who helped us get rid of this threat, Konoha will be safe again, and I will have no obstacles on my way of changing the clan." Hanabi finally finished, still looking a bit scared by Sasuke's sudden outburst.
Now the Uchiha had to admit that Kakashi was indeed a great strategist. That was a brilliant plan... considering how powerful Sasuke was, the task to take control over Ame was nothing. And after that point, everything was going to be rather easy...
"What about Naruto?" He suddenly asked, looking at the three of them.
Tsunade sighed.
"I say he shouldn't know anything for now... especially since we're already trying to keep him as busy as possible on the border of our countries. But it's up for you to decide, Kakashi."
The masked shinobi nodded.
"I agree. At this point, he can ruin the whole plan, knowing how passionate and stubborn he usually is... I entrust this job to you, Sasuke. Believe me, I understand your feelings, and even though I realize that I'm putting Konoha's fate into your grasp... you're the only one capable of making it, especially considering that you once were a member of Akatsuki, and now that you have the Rinnegan, it will be fairly easy to convince their shinobi that you're destined to lead them. So please... save us all."
The Uchiha got up from his chair.
"I understand we're done talking?"
Hatake was silent for a few seconds before quietly replying:
"Yes. It's settled."
"Fine then."
He didn't say anything else, and, without looking at anyone in the room, the Uchiha passed through the doorway before suddenly stopping, slightly turning his head.
"I'm a man of a mission, Kakashi. Since I accepted it, it will be accomplished. What you really should care about is keeping your part of this deal."
He walked out, coming close to one of the windows in the corridor that led to the exit from the building, and then he suddenly heard Hanabi's voice behind his back.
"Uchiha-sama, please, wait a second!" He turned his head, facing the blushing Hyūga that quickly followed him.
"What is it?" He snapped, eying her with his dark eye impatiently.
"I... you see, do you know what day is it tomorrow?"
He shrugged indifferently.
"Twenty-something of December... why?"
She took a deep breath before uttering:
"I'm not sure if you're aware of it, but it will be my sister's birthday... I'm sorry, I don't know what your relationship with her is, but what I wanted to ask you is... well..." She lowered her eyes to the floor, embarrassed. "I can't send her any present, since it can ruin everything you worked on... but... if it's not too much to ask... can you give her something? A gift? Not from me, of course, bur from yourself..."
He could now see that Hanabi truly cared about her older sibling, as well as that she was pretty intelligent. And he didn't know that it's going to be Hinata's birthday... this girl turned to be really useful.
The Uchiha gave her a barely notable smile.
"Alright. I can do it."
She flinched in surprise, meeting his now warm eyes.
"Really?! Thank you so much!" But he already jumped out of the window.
The silence of the night in the forest between Konoha and Tanzaku-gai was being ruined by a few people jumping from branch to branch, staying silent for the most part of their way, ignoring the rising snowstorm around.
There were only five of them, each wearing Konoha's standard shinobi uniform, yet still they looked very similar, especially when it came to their eyes.
"Hiashi-sama, are you certain that we'll be able to make it in time? He might have already left..."
The leader of the Hyūga clan shortly shook his head.
"No. My informator is there. His message states that it's a matter of the utmost importance, so hurry up. We're already close."
The man nodded, doing as he was told by his superior, yet still frowning a little.
Whatever was awaiting them there, something told the young Hyūga that it's not going to be a walk in a park.
