Konohagakure no Sato
Totsu Kimaru POV:
I let out an easy breath of relief as I gazed upon the four scrolls which I had delicately placed on my prized chabudai, made from one of the chakra-infused woods from the Senju Garden… the thing cost a pretty penny. These scrolls, delivered by Okata-san after his trip from the capital, were the result and proof that the acquisition mission was a success. Instructed…or imprinted within my Kage Bunshin upon his creation was the full plan of how this little mission was supposed to play out.
My hand roamed over one of the scrolls accurately named: Genetics. In this was Uchiha Gozo's blood, extracted and preserved, now waiting for insertion into mine own body, and hopefully, mitigate the heaviest of the demands associated with transplanted dōjutsu.
Of course, I dared not unseal the scroll in fear of the remnants of chakra that still clung to the boy's physicality spreading. The death of the young team might not be known or suspected as of now, but sooner or later suspicion would rise when their team failed to appear.
'And as the boss of the person who requested them by name, I will not be spared from the Uchiha's queries.' I retracted my arm and contented myself with the knowledge and utmost trust that the Kage Bunshin was diligent in his execution.
Turning my head, I peered out of the window and into the cloudless sky that shimmered with countless stars and a faint glow of a crescent. The night was still young, and excited voices sounded in the distance. It was Saturday night, and many were unwinding from the hardships of work. This was doubly so this day as prices were lowered in celebration of the newly formed treaty between Konoha and Kumo.
However, I was still unsure of what kind of treaty was signed. All I knew was that there would be an attempt at Hinata's capture by the delegation.
An attempt that, I quite frankly, cared little for.
I turned my attention back to the scroll and closed my hand on the only scroll that was safe for me to unseal: Memories!
Like how I had sealed my chakra, overlaid with the formation of the Kage Bunshin, the same mechanics were applied to this seal work. Because of the distance, if the Kage Bunshin were to dispel, the chakra holding the memories would fade into the ambiance before they reached my location.
Despite its usefulness, the jutsu was in no way absolute in its functionality. There was a reason why it wasn't used for espionage purposes.
To counter that weakness, my Kage Bunshin sealed itself into another scroll and had an Iwa Bunshin make the deliverance at the rendezvous.
It took little hesitation for me to unravel the scroll and concentrate refined chakra into my fingers before tampering with the Fūin formula to trigger release. With an audible pop and a dense eruption of white smoke, an unknown figure materialized into existence for a flicker of a moment before adding to the smoke with another pop.
I braced myself in expectance…knowing what was coming and how to exploit it to its utmost.
Chakra slammed into me, bringing with it the memories and experiences of events that transpired.
The first true fight I had experienced, and the sudden rush and fading of hype after experiencing the gap between my power and those who by all accounts were my superiors. I had weaved and played while I adjusted my mind for the upcoming participation in the torture and slaughter of teens.
I digested the brutal death of Katari-san, allowing myself the vision of his child's upcoming hardship as they grew without a father to guide them.
And I heard the phantom echoes of Uchiha Gozo as he thrashed, gnashed, and screamed as stubborn wires cut through his skin, flesh, and veins, in watch of my mutilation of his teammates…his friends as they screamed and begged for help. The anger, desperation, and devastation, a cold realization that saw the warmth and emotion from his eyes fade into hollowness and serve as a perfect trigger for the evolution of his Mangekyou.
Rushed maturity as two tomoe became three before swirling and blooming into a beautiful four-point star with an inverted sequence in color similar to Sasuke's Mangekyou. The pattern was a perfect crimson with obsidian irises and pupils.
An aggressive transformation that elevated him from peak genin to a perfect B-rank took place in his body, darkchakra expanding and hardening his network and body alike. His chakra became denser, reserves larger, and tenketsu flexible.
There was a gathering in his eyes, but I was wiser, if not faster…at least with the signal.
Preparation allowed me to cancel his consciousness before he activated any of his unique abilities…more so the Susanoo which could have seen me powerless to counter.
What followed was the extraction of blood, plasma, and a sample of the Uchiha's chakra, before I granted the trio a permanent death. Gōenkyū left them all as ashes spread to the winds, a hindrance to the investigation to come if the site of the battle was ever discovered.
The capsule with chakra-infused water activated the eyes to their fully matured sharingan state the moment they touched the water, proving true the information we were taught. They had been secured, as it was proper, sealed and granted the name of Hax.
And now they rested on my chabudai.
Proper consciousness came to me once more after 2 hours had passed…I had unraveled, experienced and integrated the events of my Kage Bunshin as I wore them as my own.
I took no thrill in my actions…and had a better, less demanding alternative been available I would have opted for it. Unfortunately such an alternative was absent, or I had been less wise to conjure it. Even so, I didn't let my actions hinder me…they couldn't, for I had seen death and suffered its embrace for a time beyond determinable.
Now I stood disillusioned, and I saw sins as little more than regrettable discomforts.
"Now, who am I going to entrust with the implantation?" I contemplated out loud. I had already tried my hand at the iryō ninjutsu but the art was a far cry from the likes of genjutsu. Although it was a subtype of Ninjutsu, it felt more like its own category of nin arts, similar to Fūinjutsu.
You either had a talent for it, or you didn't. This was why it wasn't included in one of the requirements for Jōnin. It also explained why so many talented shinobi were unable to use it.
'Hell, fuckin' Hiruzen and Orochimaru aren't able to use it, not that the latter needs it with his numerous alternatives.'
I ran a hand through my hair in mild frustration, ruining it in the process. I still had time, and I could always secure Kabuto's assistance once he became a plant in the hospital. There was also the matter about prolonging Gozo's Mangekyou since he had no siblings to exchange with.
A sigh left my lips.
Honestly speaking, body parts were a delicate matter in the shinobi business. Although this world had medical knowledge that exceeded my previous world's in some fields, certainly enough to void the problem of missing parts on shinobi, the existence of disabled shinobi was far too common.
This was so because of a single factor: chakra network. When a person lost a significant part of their body, they also lost that part of their chakra network. This meant that even if they got a transplant, the transplant would not have the ability to channel or receive chakra, and it would behave regularly, unable to achieve feats within the realm of superhuman.
Of course this was only so for regular transplants, certain transplants like dōjutsu or parts created from Hashirama's cells voided this burden. What I was trying to say was that the moment I removed my eyes, I would be destroying that part of my tenketsu, never to be recovered unless I implanted a dōjutsu. But the dōjutsu I had was on a usage limit, and I only knew one person capable of eliminating that limit altogether.
'The Snake Sannin…' I scowled, not from the association but the price it would take to secure the bastard's cooperation. 'I need to expand my network and flush out where Jūgo's clan is and the location of Karin.'
Sooner or later I was going to need Orochimaru's aid, I just hoped it would be later, but just in case I should start accumulating bargains. Plus, I still had no way of defeating him head on… the Sannin would toy with me harder than I did the trio.
Standing from my seiza with a hum as I prepared for bed, I was slightly surprised by the large number of shinobi signatures that passed by heading towards the east section of the village in great speed.
Still, I was uncaring and tired. With a mould of my chakra and a single hand seal, a puff heralded the arrival of a Kage Bunshin that turned to me for instructions.
"Secure these scrolls within the vault for me." I commanded with a pass, the focus of chakra beneath the base of my feet giving light sounds to my steps.
"Of course, Kimaru-sama."
My brows knitted into a furrow, "cut the snark and be done with it."
Without any more coercion, the clone blurred into motion. I detested this part of the B-rank jutsu, its uncanny capability to be selective in its choice for personality. Unless I willed it so, I ended up getting dysfunctional Kage Bunshin such as this one.
I clicked my tongue before fading into the many passages of my minka.
———————
Hiruzen POV
Konoha at night was beautiful... especially when it was in the midst of celebration. Hiruzen felt it in his heart and aged visage, the mood so infectious that it reached him this far in the Hokage mansion. He took a puff of his pipe and exhaled just as quickly as he inhaled... the gentle night wind took his smoke and dispersed it outside his home office.
'Home office, huh...' he thought, taking in another drag, 'things must have really changed if I started calling this place home.'
Hiruzen shook his head softly, his gaze drifting ever so slightly toward his clan's compound, a place where he should be calling home rather than this gift of authority. Unfortunately, his actual home had grown cold ever since his Biwako passed. She was the strength that held them all together, bringing peace when there was infighting and discontent.
Her passing hit them like a sledgehammer. This was more so in regard to Asuma-kun; the boy had since grown mad at Hiruzen for failing to be there when his family needed him the most.
But the village needed him too, and its urgency took precedence. Rather than platitudes the village needed real action…it needed his guidance, to halt the threats that sought to undermine it at its weakest and reinvigorate the morale of its people…
There was a slight disturbance within the room's atmosphere, but the Sandaime showed it little attention, at least not immediate.
...but perhaps that was the problem. Hiruzen had run from his other problems by focusing on the single most. While the thread between family and work was delicate, this wasn't so for someone of his caliber. Numerous options were available, one of which he was using at the moment to dote over his grandson.
Konohamaru, named after the village he so loved and had served diligently ever since his ascension to genin back in the village's infancy.
And perhaps now, with the peace he had been able to secure with Kumogakure, he could re-establish the thread-held bond with his lastborn, lest the boy began resenting the village in his simmering anger. Wisdom proved illusory when teenagers were involved, after all.
Done with the hazardous indulgence, the Sandaime reach for the water inside the cup with his exemplary water transformation and gave a few drops to the burn in his pipe. The pipe gave a small sizzling shrill as the amber was put off.
Gracefully, he secured the vice instrument into his robes and gave the illumined streets of Konoha one last look…
Incredible!
…before turning to the person who had interrupted his quiet respite so rudely with a steely expression on his face.
"What do you want this time, Danzō…" Hiruzen demanded from the silhouette shrouded in shadows, "I grow tired of your ceaseless yammering."
The crippled shinobi stepped into the light, his face twisted into a faint expression of annoyance and irritation he didn't quite hide as well as he thought he did, or at least it was plain as day to someone like Hiruzen who had learned under the unflappable Nidaime and had known about Danzo's patterns since their youth.
"I'm not here to remind you of your idiocy, Hiruzen. You've already shown your stubbornness towards my suggestions. No, I'm here to talk about the Uchiha boy, more importantly, his induction into Anbu."
For a flicker, irritation coloured the Sandaime's visage. He wasn't ignorant of Danzō's interest in Itachi, he had long since planned this long before the boy even graduated from the Academy… mayhaps intrigued by the boy's firm loyalty towards the village at such a young age. If nurtured ruthlessly, young Itachi could be turned into a paranoid extremist like Danzō.
A perfect weapon to use against the Uchiha if they ever thought of rebellion… but it would be likened to slavery, leashed by Itachi. Hence the Sandaime's hesitance.
It wasn't like Hiruzen didn't know about the Shinobi no Yami's mistrust and machinations to further magnify the split between the Uchiha and the rest of the Village in an attempt to make the former show their true colours. And that missing infant case, he was sure it was Danzō's make so through the usage of his Root.
But Hiruzen still kept quiet and mitigated the issue…because a part of him was wary about the Madara faction that had formed within the Uchiha clan. A faction that was growing with each day unopposed, save for Fugaku's attempts.
"No…" he uttered with little cadence to his tone, "Itachi will remain in the corp for a bit longer, and when the time comes to promote him to Jōnin, an offer to join the ranks of Anbu will be given to him as well."
He wouldn't allow Danzō's paranoia to affect him. This village was made so that kids like Itachi would be able to live a carefree life as they grew into their maturity, and while there had been some hiccups along the way, Hiruzen still sought to achieve that dream, thus the reason he had reached out to Kumo to bring about the end to this conflict.
Danzō glared at him with his one good eye, "You are a fool, Hiruzen. Age has turned you into a spineless sentimental. These pacifistic views of yours will only invite exploitation from those who seek our village's ruin."
The insult glided off him as he maintained his unamused gaze against Danzō. These tantrums, he had long gotten used to, but even then…
"You forget your position, Danzō." The Sandaime warned, the full weight of his intent pressing down against the crippled shinobi, bypassing the calm façade he'd donned, "My word is law, and it will be carried out regardless of your personal views on the matter. Stay away from Uchiha Itachi."
Despite what Danzō might have deluded himself into believing, they were in no way rivals. In fact that had never been the case to begin with… The only reason Hiruzen kept him on his council was because of his loyalty to Konoha and his want for it to stand above all.
"Then have it your way, Hiruzen. Just don't say I didn't warn you when it all comes crashing dow—"
Before Danzō could finish his sentence, two chakra signatures invaded his office through the use of Shunshin. One chakra he was familiar with, but the other…
Before the pair could manifest, Hiruzen had already ran through hand seals and a smokeless Kage Bunshin was already midway to subduing the foreign invader.
A figure dressed in the same attire as an Anbu operative was pressed against the wall that swallowed him upon impact save for their face.
Hiruzen spared a glance at Danzō who looked mildly annoyed at the sudden development, "I will be having words with you later on about this."
He gave a signal to his clone to knock out Danzō's rat before turning his gaze to the Anbu who knelt before him unmoved by the commotion, "Kage, speak!"
"Sandaime-sama, there has been an incident at the Hyūga Compound," Kage lifted his masked visage to meet Hiruzen's gaze, "Hizashi-san's son has been killed by the Kumo head shinobi during a kidnapping attempt on the Hyūga heiress."
And just like that, his efforts to achieve momentary peace were brought to heel.