The Call (4)
The trip back home was incredibly quiet.
I didn't mind the silence this time around as I felt this form of quiet was 'freer' and more natural compared to the one that I had experienced while approaching the setting of this mission. There was less of a soft and yet oppressive grip over my body and more of a calmer air that allowed me to finally be at ease while I made the walk back to Konoha. I was carrying Ina on my back, the girl asleep as she had been slightly drained by what had happened and being interrogated and checked by Calli. Something did linger in her body, the entity's mark was gone but the effects of its influence still within her appearance through her inhuman features. All in all, her mind was no longer tainted and she was in full control of her whole self. We were free to go, but I decided to let Kiara go home and rest rather than fly us back to Konoha. Kurama was miffed due to this decision, having expected to be brought back to his favorite napping spot ASAP, but not whining much as I mentioned I needed to think about this in relative peace.
And the walk was enough to give me enough room to think what I had to say once I reached the village. I knew that Ina's current condition was going to cause some unease among even Tobirama and Madara- and I knew Hashirama was going to take some convincing before allowing me to go through what request I had in mind to let Ina in the village to be adopted by the Shimura Clan. Hopefully Mito was going to help in that regard by confirming she was 'clean'. I sighed at that whole circumstance, knowing that I was going to have some issues regarding my odd luck when handling missions and… perhaps it was good for me to take a sabbatical year or something like that. I could see Hashirama take it as a compromise compared to his previous stance, and I would definitely have the chance to sort things out, focus more on training and get more things done in Konoha.
Plus, I needed to have some free time to finalize my quick trip to the Land of Iron to get a Kenjutsu master. That whole plan had been derailed and postponed way too many times now and I could tell that knowledge on how to handle blades could be beneficial as the 'next step' when it comes to Taijutsu.
"John?"
I almost tripped when I heard Ina talk, surprised that she used my old name. I was glad Kurama was asleep and… I turned my head to the side. "Yes, Ina?"
"Are… Are we there yet?"
I shook my head. "Not yet. I think we will be there in a bit less than an hour."
"Hmm," She quietly hummed, snuggling against me. "I'm sorry."
I frowned. "What for?"
"They are going to be upset with me, right?"
"...You mean the Hokage?"
"And the rest of the village."
"I think they will be uneasy, yes, but not upset," I reasoned calmly, knowing I couldn't fully sugarcoat it. "You did cause some issues, but you were not in control."
"I still hurt people. I still killed people."
"Once again, Ina-chan," I replied softly. "Not by your own choice."
She didn't answer to that, merely enjoying the feeling of resting onto my back. Still, since she was awake and now we were alone, I decided to use this chance to speak with her about a single question I had yet to find a response to.
"Ina-chan, can I ask you something important?"
The girl hummed quietly, seemingly distracted as she looked at the nature around us.
"What do you know about that monk… Jigen?"
Shifting her now tense body, Ina held back from answering just for a moment. Then, she spoke.
"He was kind to me. I think he meant what he told me about what could happen if I went through Grandfather's papers and used the forbidden rituals," The girl elaborated. "Then the entity told me that it was possible and I would have been given them back as a gift for my loyalty."
"...They both lied to you."
She huffed, clearly still distressed by this. "Y-Yes. I just… I just thought it would have worked."
"And how did Jigen help you about it?"
"He told me it would have worked," Ina explained. "And helped me find the right pages."
"Did he tell you why he did all of this? Or did he just helped you because you needed help?"
This was crucial as it would help me understand why he would go as far as involve some ancient 'forsaken deities' into the matter. And the answer I got left me in an even greater state of perplexity than the one I had before that response.
"He was… waiting for you," Ina remarked. "He said that he wanted to give you one last test and that, if the world would endure for another day, you would have been the one he was waiting for."
...What?
"Did he elaborate on who he was waiting or it was just left this vague?"
"He didn't tell me much. Only that he had a 'creeping suspicion' that you had the potential to be him- someone that he had been waiting for and… he was upset about."
That really didn't paint much of a positive situation for me in that regard. What the hell does this mean? I am the one he was 'waiting for'? What for? Why? And why do I feel this is just going to leave me insane by the time I am done with it?
I decided to ultimately push this aside for the time being and focus on something else. Something that could distract Ina and I from the dreadful return I was going to get once we were back in Konoha.
"So, what do you think of this forest?" I inquired, focusing on the girl.
The fellow child stared at the nearby trees and gave a nod. "It's the same as the one where I lived in."
"Well, they look the same yes. But that's not exactly what I meant with it. What do you feel through those?"
While she was technically free from the entity's influence, the girl had developed the capacity to perceive energy such as Chakra, so I knew the reason she was looking around so intensely was because she could feel something had changed during the trip and those she had studied before falling asleep.
Her lips twitched. "The trees feel healthier. Like if they received more nourishment than the ones back home."
"That's because most of the forest was made by the Hokage. A natural defense for the region where Konoha was founded," I explained. "Hashirama-sama has the ability of controlling nature, Mokuton."
Ina nodded, tilting her head to the side. "It's pleasant to the eye. I would like to draw some of these places."
"Well, once you have settled in, I don't see any issue with it. You can get a new drawing set and find a place you wish to draw and spend as long as you need to get it done."
A nod, then a hopeful smile appeared on her face and… I decided to 'pester' her some more about her drawing skills. She had a few elements drawn that weren't creepy or demonic in nature, and I focused on these topics to distract her for the time left before we reached Konoha.
After a long while of chatting about nature and drawing, we were finally vaulting the gates of Konoha. There was a bit of a frenzy when we arrived, with the Village having heard of the earthquake as a few villagers from smaller settlements had outright relocated within Konoha. That was going to be a pain in the butt to solve via paperwork and new housing, but I guess it could bring long-term prosperity for Konoha if well-handled.
Still, this was not what really concerned me in that moment. Not when we soon were escorted to the Hokage's office to handle an emergency meeting. I should have known that they had expected for me to be somewhat tied to this matter due to where I went with this last mission. I just didn't expect them to react so quickly since we arrived just recently.
The office was awfully quiet, and I was glad that the occupants had allowed my mother to tend Ina while I was dealing with them by the waiting room just outside. I could tell it was one of the few mercies I was going to get out of this tense interrogation and that I was going to still be grilled about it. And this turned to be correct as I was subjected to a rigorous list of questions which drained me of any remaining mental strength after that intense mission. At least it wasn't an all-allowed brawl because that could have ended up poorly for me. Definitely for me alone. I had to omit a few parts such as my past life and how Ina now knew my real name, but that didn't genuinely matter by the end of the day and I managed to easily lie my way through that part. Soon we found ourselves bringing up the current wrap-up which was… intense.
"Do you understand that she could become a dangerous threat if this happens again somehow? The earthquake was enough to cause some distress all over the southern region," Hashirama remarked while staring intensely at me. "Danzou, I understand you made a deal with her but-"
"I will not back away from that promise. And I can assure you that it will not happen again."
The response stunned the occupants of the room and Madara frowned, pressing on the matter.
"What do you mean?"
"I think I will take a full year of temporary retirement. I seek to train, solve some unsolved businesses, and handle Ina's integration within Konoha."
The news definitely shocked the people in there, even the Hokage looked perplexed by this decision and, while he wasn't completely sure on why I did that, he decided to press on the main subject of this conversation.
"Do you believe that she can truly be 'integrated'?"
"I firmly believe she will. The only way, and this is purely theoretical as I doubt this entity will try to come back here again, for her to reawaken that monster is if she so decides to let it come. Which means it has to be such a dramatic situation which pushes her to lose hope in others and everything, snapping her back to the previous reasons that motivated that summoning," I remarked strongly. "Still, there is also the notion that she doesn't trust the entity and wouldn't outright accept its help even in this unique circumstance. Which is why I know she will fit right in by living a civilian life."
…
"I sustain Shimura-san's request and approve of his thought on the matter," Mito commented and Madara nodded.
"Danzou's reasoning makes sense. The girl has shown an innocuous behavior which is genuine- she really has no mean bone in her body at the moment."
"And while I find myself in agreement with this, I wish to inquire on a specific matter Shimura-san mentioned which should be addressed," Tobirama argued. "Specifically the part where you told us you 'died' for a few minutes."
Oh yeah, I forgot I did bring that one one up.
And that sure got me a fair bit of staring because that meant a lot.
"That sort of death was more mental than outright physical, which is why I developed the Mangekyou Sharingan."
Madara tensed up at this and looked stunned when I activated it. I knew for a sure that it would have given it a heart attack if I added to this development the fact the eye's design was similar to his own version of the evolved Sharingan except the colors inverted.
"It doesn't change the part you were killed," Mito interjected half-angrily and I actually flinched at that. "You risked your life in that mission, Dan-kun. And I have to ask you this- are you sure that when she 'restored' your mind, Ina-chan didn't implant any compulsion on your head?"
… That I actually didn't consider until the redhead mentioned that. But while I could see Ina do something about it, it was easy to disprove this sort of theory. Starting with the notion this kind of compulsion would entail a general incapacity to kill or harm Ina in all circumstances. Yet I could plot with ease her demise the moment it became impossible to stop her or she allowed the darkness of the entity that took over her several hours ago to destroy her purity and turn her in a bad individual.
It wasn't without some hesitation, but it was through legitimate hesitation at that. I would still do it if necessary and, with one of the most genuine and serious look I could muster, I replied to Mito.
"I would kill her if necessary."
It was an implicit question regardless of the uncomfortable glances I got because of it, and Madara agreed to this response with a nod. Once the meeting was over, I received confirmation from the Hokage I was going to be 'retired' from the corps for a full year and yet available to request temporary reinstatement if necessary. In layman's terms: I was free to put on my forehead protector if the situation called for it, but on normal situations I was just a 'wandering veteran'.
Mom was a bit surprised the household was going to have a new occupants, but she instantly fell in love with Ina and was quick to dote on her like she would with a blood-related daughter. It was adorable how Ina reacted shyly to that kind of affection, but definitely looked delighted by the warmth. Hanzou wasn't fully sold on it, but was relieved when I told him he wasn't forced to outright consider her his sister just yet and to take his time to judge and see himself in the role of brother to her.
The last thing I needed was for this to become a reason for trouble. Beyond the fact I had to explain this to pretty much all girls which were looking forward to be in a relationship with me when they were older. That sparked more than a few conversations which saw me defuse any accusations of 'attracting' more people towards me. Which was true, but not in the way the verb was used in those talks.
Also, Ina seemed to have accepted the fact that in public she was to address me as Danzou, but outright refused to call me that in private. I was 'John', and that calling me any other name would have been a lie. And she wasn't 'going to lie to me ever again'. It sounded a bit ominous, admittedly, but I could tell it was more of a respectful promise than else. And with this lengthy effort to smooth out the issues coming through what happened with this mission and with the new element to mind and care for in the house, I knew there was one thing left for me to do.
And that was to enjoy a pleasant nap and-
Dangit, different dreamworld than the usual.
At least I know where I am.
Since I had fallen asleep, and this palace was no novelty to my sight, I wasn't much surprised when I woke up sitting in front of Kaguya. The woman giving me a strangely calm look. Which was, surprisingly enough, creepier than previous staring.
"Shimura Danzou."
"Ootsutsuki Kaguya," I replied at her greeting with the same cordially. "I didn't expect this… development."
"You did," She cut through my attempt to appear 'clueless'. "Yet you were hoping for it to not happen."
My lips twitched. "I just need a break. I had a few long days."
"Which is reasonable. However these 'long days' brought news regarding our common enemy. And I have questions."
I blinked at this, but before any conversation could start, I felt my body frozen and… suddenly floating out of my current sitting position. My eyes widened in shock as I was slowly lifted and then shoved in Kaguya's lap. I was nervous, panicking even, but the woman didn't mind. In fact, she looked even more delighted to hold me… the same way my mother would. A suave hum left her lips as she pushed away some looks from my forehead and allowed her to stare down at me.
"Your eye has changed."
As if by instinct, my Mangekyo Sharingan activated and she gave it a look. "It's peculiar, some would say unique to you due to its design but… that would be a lie."
Confusion emerged from this sort of comment. "What?"
"I believe you have yet to notice, but sometimes details make the difference. Smaller ones, all together, become a sign or proof that someone holds ties with individuals they have yet to met or know about," Kaguya remarked, smiling ominously at me. "You will learn in due time. But for now, what I will tell you is that I will watch you even more closely than before."
My eyes widened as she leaned down, her soft lips landing a peck on my forehead.
"Until next time, Danzou."
And I woke up in my bed, tears rolling down my cheeks as if I had been given the worst kind of surprise possible.