Chapter Text
“You’re not helping.” Naruto said, pacing back and forth.
“All I’m saying, is that you need to decide how to go into this meeting.” Sakura said. She pointed on the document, her fingernail banging loudly on the wood beneath. “None of your predecessors went in without a plan.”
“My plan is to introduce myself and try not to make a fool of myself.”
“Good goal.” Sasuke said. “Bad plan.”
“I’ve never met a Daimyo before.” Naruto complained. “He’s going to take one look at me and decide I’m not worth talking to. Can we still call off the meeting? I think we should call off the meeting.”
“Take a deep breath.” Sasuke said. “We’ll be right beside you.”
“And we practiced this.” Sakura held his hands. “Only thing left to do is choose your bargaining strategy. Are you going to show comradery with expected reciprocation like the Shodaime, intellectual superiority like the Nidaime, grandfatherly energy like the Sandaime, manipulation through seeming naïve like the Yondaime, or thinly-hidden threats of violence like the Godaime?”
“How am I supposed to do that!? I’m not nearly as good as any of them.”
“One of your specialities literally lets you turn into other people.”
Naruto stuck out his tongue at her. He turned to his other teammate for better advice. “What would you do, Sasuke?”
“I would work out all the different ways I could kill them.”
“To… look more intimidating?”
Sasuke opened his mouth and then closed it again. He diverted his gaze as he answered. “Sure, let’s go with that.”
“You don’t have the control on your killer intent to make that work.” Sakura said.
“Hey!” Naruto huffed. “I’ve been working on my killer intent recently.”
Sakura sighed. “Is that why I had a group of chunin show up for psychiatric counselling? Damn, Naruto. They had literally wet themselves.”
“In my defence, it’s hard to control the effect once Kuruma starts helping. And when he sees terrified humans, I can’t keep him from helping.”
“Which is exactly why you shouldn’t use it on diplomats.”
“Well, what then?!”
Sasuke shrugged. “I think you should just go in there and be yourself. I mean, if it worked on me, the Daimyo doesn’t stand a chance.”
~*~
Naruto was sulking on the swing set. He was the only one on the playground without a Konoha headband. He had managed a passing grade for the exam, like last time, and had aced the accuracy tests. It was ironic that he failed on the inability to produce a clone.
Sakura was just a little bit away from him, beaming as she told her parents about the exam. Her mother wore a formal dress. The older ninja was wearing one of the perfumes she had created based on orange lilies. Sasuke’s father stood in more casual wear, smelling of a combination of all the perfumes in their shop. They hugged her and told her they were proud of her, that they would always love her. The lies left a bitter taste in Sasuke’s mouth.
Sasuke watched from a corner of the playground. He leaned against a cold wall. The others all thought he had gone home already. Not a strange conclusion to reach. It is what he had done in the original timeline, going straight home to put away his academy things and resume his training. Back then training had been the only thing that did not make him feel miserable.
He had been completely unaware of what had happened to Naruto the night after graduation. All his classmates had been. The official story had been that Naruto had assisted with something and had gotten an honorary headband. Nobody had trouble believing it, because they all figured that was the only way such a ‘deadbeat’ could become a genin.
He had been surprised when Naruto had later told them the story. The night of graduation was when Naruto had learned he had a demon inside of him, the night when he mastered his most important technique and the night that he made someone acknowledge him for the very first time. It was at Iruka’s funeral that Naruto had told the story, with three bottles of sake in his belly. Even then it was too painful for him to talk about the details.
Sasuke was curious about what had happened. His Naruto had tried telling him, so he was okay with Sasuke knowing. Maybe that was a rationalisation. The problem was that Sasuke really could not let Naruto put himself in danger without his protection. He had already changed the timeline enough that there was no guarantee Naruto would be as safe as the last time.
So Sasuke lingered on the playground while slowly the other graduates left. At some point their chunin instructor took Naruto aside. They headed for the top of the academy to talk. Sasuke wanted to follow, but needed to make sure no ANBU would see it. They were out of range for him to sense, but his clones had been tracking them. Sasuke popped one of them for an update. Their attention was diverted, while his personal guards were far outside the walls waiting for him to leave.
Knowing where all the eyes were focussed on, it was not difficult to let his chakra signature disappear and then make his way to the Academy roof without being seen. He slipped under the roof with a weak earth technique. He did not have to wait long before Naruto and Mizuki had their conversation. He eavesdropped. And with every word, his desire to kill the man increased.
Mizuki waited until just the right moment to tell Naruto of the one chance he would have to still be a genin. All Naruto would have to do was steal a single scroll from the Hokage tower. One that only looked dangerous and forbidden. But if it came from an Academy teacher, of course it was just a test and not treason. Naruto sounded hopeful, encouraged by their teacher’s charade.
The words themselves started to blur. Sasuke’s body was shaking with anger and every ounce of his willpower had to go into not letting his eyes start a fire large enough to burn the whole city to the ground.
Breathe in. Breathe out. The anger was not useful.
He was still shaking a little when Mizuki left. Of all the emotions to keep under control, Sasuke always had the most trouble with anger.
It was dark before Naruto started moving over the roofs of the building towards the centre of Konoha. Sasuke’s clones had informed him when all the ANBU had left. Even the ones that were supposed to watch him. They must have assumed he had snuck off. Sasuke emerged from the roof and followed Naruto from a small distance.
Naruto was sneaky, but there was much left for him to learn. If half the town was not out celebrating their new batch of ninja, Naruto would have been spotted. It was still impressive to see. This was how Naruto performed when he was in his element and desperate enough to fully apply himself.
Sasuke followed Naruto to the Hokage tower and waited for him to come back out. The ANBU patrols that should have been a problem were interrupted. It was more than just the village’s distraction. Mizuki had prepared for tonight. He had done something with the ANBU’s shifts to create openings. After a few minutes of searching between all the signals in the village, he could sense the chunin. Mizuki was doing nothing overtly suspicious, but he was stalling the ANBU whenever he encountered one.
It took longer than Sasuke would have liked before Naruto came back out again with the scroll strapped to his back. Naruto was even more careful than before as he stayed out of sight and moved quickly outside of the village. Sasuke followed him. Apparently Mizuki had not noticed Naruto’s retreat. He was still creating diversions when Sasuke moved too far away to sense him.
Naruto opened the scroll and learned the kage bunshin. Time passed slowly as Sasuke looked for any approaching chakra signatures. Naruto had created a working clone just a few minutes before Iruka approached the boy. Naruto’s celebratory exclamation drew Iruka straight to him.
Naruto’s optimism looked heart-breaking. He was convinced he had just passed the test and was going to be a genin. When Iruka realised what was going on, it was already too late. Mizuki had arrived.
Give the scroll to me.
Everyone has kept it a secret from you.
Naruto, you are really the nine-tailed fox.
You are the one who killed Iruka’s parents.
Why do you think everybody hates you?
Why do you think everybody stays away?
Sasuke watched from the side-lines as the altercation progressed. He was clenching his fists so hard his palms were bleeding. He wanted to help. He hated seeing Naruto in danger like this. Only the absolute knowledge that the nine-tails would heal any stray wounds kept Sasuke from finishing the fight for him. He saw the massive shuriken heading towards Naruto and held his breath, ready to sunshin in its path… only to see it disappear into Iruka’s back. He instantly understood just how much Naruto meant to the man.
If only I had been a better teacher for you.
Naruto ran away. Iruka and Mizuki followed. And then came The Speech.
Naruto and I are the same.
You hate the demon fox!
I do. I hate the fox.
Naruto was starting to cry.
But I do not hate the boy.
The boy is my student. Loving, kind, always tries his best.
He is not the demon. He is a citizen of Konoha. He is Naruto Uzumaki.
No wonder Naruto had never told the story. Sasuke’s sharingan eyes were activated and taking in every detail, permanent photographic memory. He wanted to remember this scene for Naruto exactly as it had happened. So that whomever he wanted to share it with, Sasuke could help relay this night.
When Naruto kicked Mizuki’s ass, Sasuke smiled wide. If only his classmates could have seen this. Nobody would ever underestimate Naruto again.
Sasuke fled away as soon as it was over. He had been ready to help if needed, but it had all worked out fine without his assistance. He left a disguised clone behind to punish Mizuki for his actions. Naruto and Iruka would leave him behind for the ANBU to find. Konoha would only torture him. Sasuke wanted to do worse to him before he was jailed.
Slipping into Konoha was easy. Getting past the patrols looking for Naruto was only slightly challenging. He got to his home without incident where a single pair of ANBU were waiting in the ceiling. It was too late to reasonably run into Naruto today, as tempting as it was to take an evening scroll and intercept him, but he would go look for the blond soon. He was running several dialogues through his mind, when he heard knocking at the front door.
“Uchiha Sasuke, The Hokage demands your presence immediately!”
Sasuke opened the door. “What’s going on?”
“An important possession of Konoha was stolen tonight. The Hokage thinks you can assist in its retrieval.”
“I figured as an Uchiha genin I would be valued as a ninja, but isn’t this pushing it a bit?”
The ANBU did not laugh. Sasuke closed the door behind him and followed the guard.
What had he missed? The guards patrolling the academy would have assumed he had left when they could not sense him. The guards waiting for him would have assumed they had missed him. They would first check the house where they would not find him. Then a search would start. He should not have been a priority once the scroll was stolen and Naruto was the suspect.
He should not be under suspicion, yet he was. There was another unknown factor at play. It would be impossible to guess, so he instead focussed on the upcoming encounter.
Obviously, he wanted the suspicions to be lifted. But this was also a meeting with the most important man in Konoha. Possibly including other notable ninja, depending on who was in his presence. He had a chance to put the Uchiha back on the map.
Just in case, he did prepare the particulars of one cover story. Which location he had gone to after a nightmare had woken him up the night before. How cold it had been, which plants he had strolled by, which thoughts had passed his mind. How he had practiced replacement techniques from the Academy to his house that afternoon. His clones had enough information from the ANBU patrols that he could create a theoretical lucky stroll that passed them all by.
He was just deciding on which smell he had picked to disguise his path as he went home, when they reached the Sandaime’s office. The doors opened slowly. The Third was waiting behind his desk. Beside him stood his advisors, and around the room were various ninja guards of high rank. None of the major clans were present, though. Nobody who was in the same league as the village’s leader or his advisors.
“Good evening, Sandaime-sama.” Sasuke said.
“Congratulation on passing the exam. I trust it was not too difficult.”
“Difficulty is relative. Since I was prepared, it did not pose a challenge.”
The Hokage nodded, and took a sip from his tea. “Very prepared it seems. Doesn’t four weapon pouches seem like too much?”
“To me, it seems like just enough.” He touched each pouch in turn. “It reminds me who I’m fighting for.” He touched the one on his left arms, the had once belonged to Itachi. It had a large Uchiha symbol on the front, worn from age and neglect. It reminded him of the faded symbol Madara wore on his armour. “It also reminds me whom I’m fighting.”
“Yes.” Another sip of tea. “I cannot say it was a wise choice to go through your parents’ rooms without supervision. There is always the danger of hidden traps when dealing with a ninja’s personal space and fighting equipment.”
“I believed myself to be capable enough.”
“Apparently.” The old man looked over some papers. He was stalling.
“I heard something got stolen from the tower?”
“Yes. Did you see anything? I don’t believe you were home tonight.”
“I wasn’t, no. But I didn’t see anything.”
“It can still help to know where not to look. Where were you tonight, Sasuke?”
“Does it matter?”
The Sandaime gave him a look.
“I did not feel like going home. I used a replacement technique to get out of the Academy after the graduation ceremony was over. I didn’t want to deal with the other students. Then I just wandered around. I did not pay much attention where I was going, but I know I was mostly in the east side of town.”
One of the counsellors got impatient. “Did you see where Naruto went before you left?”
The Sandaime glared at her. “The real question is why you are lying to us. You left the walls of Konoha after your graduation.”
The technically-genin weighed his options carefully. The Sandaime had spoken that line with certainty. He also had a crystal ball that let him look at any person inside of Konoha. A crystal ball that he had probably directed at Sasuke. Hiding one’s chakra as fully as Sasuke did shielded from the ball, but it was not a technique commonly picked up by academy students. The Sandaime, depending on when he first used the technique, would conclude that Sasuke was not in the village since Mizuki’s conversation with Naruto where Sasuke has started shielding himself. From Sarutobi’s perspective, Sasuke had disappeared and suddenly reappeared, the same night the scroll was stolen. The strange thing was why the Sandaime had checked his location at all.
There were six guards in the room, the two advisors and then Sarutobi Hiruzen. He would need at least four clones to fight the ninja, if it got to that. The guards were spread out and his Sharingan worked on eyesight. Three clones were needed to capture the guards in illusions. The fourth clone would take on the two advisors. The two ninja would not be strong, not at their age, but they would be prepared to call for additional help.
That left the Sandaime for himself. The man was a specialist in big ninjutsu attacks, which he would not be able to use inside this office. Taijutsu was his secondary specialty and he had dealt with enough Uchiha in his life to be considered fairly adept resisting genjutsu. Sasuke’s best bet was to use all the weapons he had with him and go all out. However, Sarutobi would be incredibly tough and Sasuke did not know whether he could push his younger body enough to guarantee a victory. Being surprised by the limitations of his own body in a fight against a man of Sarutobi’s experience was risky.
There was a large window that would serve as an exit. Two guards blocked it. He had clones outside this office, but it was impossible to communicate with them. If he had to escape, he would have to create his own diversion, take out the guards quickly enough without the Sandaime and advisors stalling him, and then make his way out of the village.
Not the best resolution, but Sasuke always felt better when he had alternative options to fall back on. It grounded him to know there was a violent solution he could use if all non-violent solutions went awry.
And once grounded, he could look on.
He looked at the counsellor to the Sandaime’s right. The woman had asked about Naruto, even though she must have known about the lie as well. She did not think Sasuke was a suspect and it had to be because she was convinced Naruto was. Sasuke had forgotten how opposed they were to the nine-tails jinchuriki.
That had to be the missing piece to this puzzle.
They would have assumed Naruto was guilty. Sarutobi would have asked the ANBU for any suspicious activity in the hope of finding alternative suspects, and they would have reported the conversation with Sasuke. It would have prompted the Sandaime to check his location. The longer Sasuke remained under suspicion, the longer Sarutobi could think Naruto might be innocent.
By trying to ensure the proper events transpired that night, Sasuke had changed them.
He made a showing of looking around and making himself seem intimidated by the ninja in the room. “I did not think you would treat this so seriously. I did not really do anything wrong.”
The Sandaime’s teacup was replaced with a pipe. “Then what did you do?”
“He’ll get in trouble if I tell you…” Sasuke said.
“Who are you talking about?”
Sasuke looked exactly like a reluctant twelve-year-old. “I don’t want you to fail Naruto again.”
A confused expression crossed the old man’s face.
Sasuke slumped his shoulders, seemingly defeated. “I know about the extra examination. I overheard Mizuki-sensei and wanted to help Naruto. But I swear he did not need anything. I did not even have to distract the guards. He was able to do it all by himself.”
“Mizuki told him to steal the scroll?”
“Why else would he do it?”
The two advisors besides the hokage frowned. Sasuke started to remember now. They were the kind of people to expect a nine-tailed beast attack every time Naruto got sent to detention.
“Where was he to take the scroll?” The Hokage signalled an ANBU and whispered into his ear while waiting for the answer.
“Somewhere south-east of the village. I followed him to the gates and then hid in the trees for a few hours.”
The ANBU left as soon as Sasuke mentioned the direction. They would probably find the genin very soon. With only five guards remaining in the room, maybe he could incapacitate them with three clones now instead of four. That would leave his original body with more chakra and better chances against Sarutobi.
The Sandaime shook his head. “Surely the guards would have noticed you.”
“I didn’t want my presence to make Naruto’s success questionable. The Henge no jutsu is useful for that.”
“But not enough to fool the guards. They can sense your chakra signal.”
“Of course they can. That’s why I changed it.” Sasuke said.
The people in the room seemed sceptical.
“It’s not a very hard shaping technique.” Sasuke noted, reaching within himself to manipulate his chakra. Compared to hiding his chakra, this was child’s play. But its side-effects that it could theoretically also confuse the Sandaime’s crystal ball. “And a little goes a long way.”
“Your teachers never mentioned you learning a technique like that.”
Sasuke shrugged. “Why would I have told them?”
“But why did you help Naruto at all?” The female advisor said.
Sasuke looked away. “I talked to him this morning. I offered to help him train. Told him I was looking forward to being in a ninja team with him if he graduated.”
She grimaced. “Excuse me. Where did you hear you will be in the same team together?”
“It’s not like anybody told me. But nobody had to. It’s the most sensible choice. And since I would have to make friends with him eventually, I wanted to get a head start.”
The Sandaime looked Sasuke in the eye, holding his gaze for a few seconds. Sasuke showed youthful defiance by not budging, but diverted his gaze eventually because he would still have been a little intimidated at that age.
The Third was still not speaking. He was using his authority. Sasuke had often done the same to the ninja on his squad. People had a tendency to confess if you remained silent long enough. To keep up appearances, Sasuke had two choices. Either he would have to confess about something else, carefully making sure that it was the right level of incriminating, or he could go on the offensive.
“So Mizuki-sensei is a traitor.” Sasuke said with some shock, as if he had just figured it out.
“Why do you say that?”
“It is obvious you did not order the theft from your earlier response. I just don’t know what good the forbidden scroll would do him. Anything that forbidden must have layers upon layers of security and fall-back measures.”
The Third coughed.
“It would be ludicrous to put any meaningful secrets in a single scroll and then call it forbidden. Obviously, that was the protected encrypted file while the key has been separated in at least three pieces and spread out in seemingly medium security areas. The history vault might be a good place, somewhere between all the original mission reports. Those only get consulted if there’s been a mistake in copying them.”
“Still, it would not be good for it to be known that an encrypted file of our secrets could have been stolen. We do have a reputation to uphold.”
Sasuke could appreciate a good bluff when he saw one. The Third gave no inclination at all that the forbidden scroll was filled to the brim with simply written instruction for A-rank jutsu that should never leave the village. Sasuke ought to know exactly how destructive those jutsu could be. He had mastered them all and had been forced to drastically modify half of them before they had use in any battle where he did not want entire villages to be destroyed.
“Mizuki would need a way out of the country. Or some good hiding places. Good enough that no ninja in Konoha would know about them. Or he would need to already have connections with an outside faction. Possibly a party interested in forbidden jutsu. Orochimaru comes to mind.”
“The list of S-rank missing nin is also not taught at the academy. Another thing you learned in the Uchiha archives?”
“Of course.” Sasuke looked incredulous. “Did you honestly think the Uchiha with all its experienced ninja would not have left behind a Bingo book of missing nin?”
“Well, speaking of secrets, how did you know we had a team in mind with you and Naruto?”
“It’s basic statistics.” Sasuke said simply. He got confused stares in return. “There were nine ninja of note in my class. Three teams. Taking into account family connections, there is a most probable division.”
The male advisor was smiling. He was finding this amusing. “Anything more specific?”
There was a balance to strike between revealing too little and making it suspicious he had come to the conclusion Naruto would be on his team, and revealing too much and making them suspicious on other grounds. At least the decisions were already made and nothing he said would make them change anything. “Shikamaru, Ino and Choji have access to family abilities that can easily bind enemies in one fashion or another. That gives them three different ways to capture others. Most enemies will not have a counter for all three methods. Hinata, Kiba and Shino are already trained in tracking through sight, scent and touch respectively. Again, ninja will not easily be able to block all three of their detection methods.”
“You are very well informed.”
“I see them daily. I might not socialise with my classmates, but it’d be impossible to spend so much time with them without noticing these things.”
The Sandaime stared for a few seconds, on the verge of pressing Sasuke. The old ninja let it go instead. “Continue.”
“The Uchiha are renowned to be capable fighters and I am no exception. I am the strongest ninjutsu user of our class. During our education at the academy, Sakura was the only one with better chakra control than me. She would be able to learn medical jutsu and genjutsu beyond any level I would be able to achieve. Likewise, Naruto has greater chakra reserves than I do. He lacks the control to utilise it in big ninjutsu techniques, but he would be able to engage in taijutsu longer and more fiercely than I could. They are the two graduates who make most sense to team me up with.”
“You have some interesting theories. But you are making a lot of assumptions. For instance, Choji Akimichi, Hinata Hyuuga and Kiba Inuzuka got excellent combat grades and they have a fair share of potential.”
“They are also exclusively specialised in close-range taijutsu and rely on a gimmick for their effectiveness. No offence. Most ninja who can counter one of them, can counter all three. They will not be learning traditional taijutsu forms. So when I made my probability assessments, I found a combination with them among the less likely scenarios.”
“With 27 students, there are a lot of possibilities to consider.”
“There are seven clan heirs in this year’s class, four of which Noble clans. The Uchiha are a weak clan right now, with only one member. It makes sense I would be put in a team with non-clan ninja. I am the only one who is not in a position to complain about it.”
“We did not choose a weak team for you…”
“I did not say that my team was weak. I merely observed that one of the seven was not going to be placed in a team with other clan heirs and that it would cost you the least to choose me. Considering the Akimichi would revolt if you broke up the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, that leaves Hinata, Shino and Kiba as the other team. The Hyuuga and Aburama are long allies and would be happy with the combination. The Inuzuka are an old clan like those two. More impulsive, but there have been many positive examples of such collaborations.”
“Is that all?”
“Well, I have to admit there was another reason.”
“Which was?”
“I think it probable I’ll end up with Naruto, but there might also be some optimism bias creeping in. I don’t know. It’s embarrassing to say it out loud. Out of all my classmates, I just think Naruto would be the best as a teammate for me.”
“And why’s that?”
“Naruto is sunshine personified. And I could use some more light in my life.”
The Sandaime nodded slowly. “This all does not explain why you wanted to break the rules to help Naruto tonight.”
“I talked to him this morning, but I have been paying attention for a lot longer. He has potential, more than any of us.”
“But not enough potential to pass an additional test?”
“His basic skills are lacking greatly right now. He needs somebody to give him a chance.”
“I have to admit Naruto’s currently… unvarnished.” The Sandaime said. “Though I cannot comment on team allotment, I would like it if there was someone keeping an eye out for him. Are you saying you could be that someone?”
“I would like that. I think Naruto and I could teach each other a lot. But I think more than a peer, he needs a good rolemodel. A jonin instructor whom he can look up to.”
Sasuke did not quite believe that. Naruto needed people to believe in him, but Naruto hardly cared how old those people were or what position they held. But adults really liked to believe they were needed by children, ignoring evidence to the contrary. It was why as an adult he tended to take the form of a child if he needed to infiltrate an enemy village.
The female advisor stepped forward. “Any ideas on who that may be? Who will be teaching the teams you think will be formed?”
Asuma, Kurenai, Kakashi. “The records at the Uchiha compound are too outdated when it comes to jounin instructors. I do not know who are available.”
“That is easily fixed.” She got up and went to a bookcase in the corner. She looked pensively and then found a particular sheet of paper. She turned it over to Sasuke. “I’m curious what your thoughts are.”
It was an incomplete list of currently active jounin, though it seemed to be dated from a few months earlier and was very limited about providing extra information. Good precaution. Not even in a simple test did the female ninja give out information that could accidentally leak to enemies.
Sasuke weighed how much he knew about jounin written down with how much he ought to know. “Hatake Kakashi… as in Sharingan Kakashi?” Sasuke asked.
“Yes, the copycat ninja.”
“So he is the only one in the village who is able to train me to use my eyes properly.”
The Hokage shook his head. “You think I will place him on your team just for a shared bloodline limit?”
“He is the most skilled ninja on the list, specialized in ninjutsu, so it would make sense to place him on one of the three strongest teams. Ino-Shika-cho contains a lot of ninjutsu use, but either their secret techniques can be copied and the clans will have reason to keep Kakashi away, or the techniques cannot be copied and Kakashi will be limited in his ability to guide them.”
“Indeed, the techniques cannot be copied by use of the sharingan.”
“I think the main problem for that team will be motivation. Shikamaru is the laziest person I have ever met, and choji only cares about food. Ino seems marginally more motivated, but often gets caught up in their antics. They require someone with a lot of discipline, which is most commonly found in taijutsu specialists. Your son Asuma is a very prominent melee fighter and I hear he was disciplined enough to become a member of the Twelve Guardian Ninja.”
Sasuke frowned, pretending to be deep in thought. He had made countless genin teams himself, and it was easy to find the reasoning when you already knew the answers and could work backwards. “Hinata, Shino and Kiba each come from families who are well equipped to train them extensively in practical techniques. They would benefit most from someone with a highly technical knowledge base. In general, genjutsu masters have the best theoretical base. There is only one genjutsu specialist on the list. Even though she just promoted to jounin, those three are also an easy-to-handle group so you would have the freedom to choose an instructor with less experience. Kurenai would fit.”
Sasuke put the paper down on the desk in front of him. “As a ninjutsu specialist, I would greatly benefit from Kakashi’s training. Naruto is stubborn enough to become strong no matter what, but Kakashi’s famous sense of teamwork will help him. He needs friends more than anything. Sakura possesses the theoretical knowledge but has not found out how this will benefit her as a ninja. She needs a teacher that is smart enough to help her with the transition from theory to practice. And Kakashi is nothing if not infamous for using his intelligence for practical battle strategies.”
“You have given your classmates a great deal of thought, it appears.”
Sasuke shrugged. “Wouldn’t anyone?”
An ANBU appeared in the window. He walked over to the Sandaime and whispered into his ear.
“It seems Naruto is fine. I will have a talk with him as soon as he is back to the village. In the meantime, I think it has gotten long past your bedtime. You should rest and enjoy the next few days.”
“Thanks Ho…” Sasuke choked on the word. Just that afternoon he had said it plenty of times. But saying it to someone like this was different. There was only one man that deserved to be addressed with that title. He covered the hesitancy with a cough. “Thank you, Sandaime-sama.”
Sasuke stood to make his leave, but hesitated. There was one more thing he needed to address.
“Somebody was watching my house. That’s how you knew the moment I got home and dropped the henge. But I did not see anyone. Are guards stationed at the Uchiha clan house more often? That would not comply with the Konoha’s charter’s prohibition of unannounced surveillance of a noble clan.”
“All recent graduates are checked up on routinely, but we do not make structural surveillance a policy. Now please, I have a long night ahead of me. I will see you when you come collect your first mission.”
The Third spoke with a kind of finality that was unusual for him.
Sasuke nodded and turned. He stepped out of the office and waited as the doors closed behind him. He was about to leave when the doors opened again and the male advisor slipped through. “Sasuke-kun, you did very well on your final exams.”
“Thank you, Homura-sama.”
“I will let you know, I was opposed to the ANBU guarding you as if you were a normal genin. As you pointed out, an Uchiha ninja should be awarded certain privileges.” Homura handed Sasuke a small scroll. “There is a meeting of the noble families next week. Hyuuga-san raised the possibility of extending you with an invitation, which was drafted up formally today. I have to admit we assumed you were not yet ready. You proved us wrong tonight with your deductions. I apologise for thinking ill of such a prestigious member of the Uchiha family.”
Sasuke nodded. “Send Hyuuga-sama my gratitude.”
“I will. The logistics are all explained in the invitation. Now I must return to the Hokage. Goodnight, Sasuke-kun.”
“Goodnight.”
Last time he had been this young, the invitation had been delivered on the night of the meeting while Sasuke was out training. He came home, read it quickly, and then dismissed it. Homura had chosen this time to deliver it in person, after the Hokage had treated Sasuke with suspicion. They favoured Sasuke. Moreover, they knew Sasuke had talked to Naruto. They probably saw this invitation as a way to keep them apart.
He had a week to prepare for it. For now though, there was something else troubling him. It was something he would need to focus on as he headed home. In a blind spot between the tower’s guards and his own, he created six clones to relieve the others. They dispersed quickly and left Sasuke to go home alone.
He had made a mistake with the ANBU.
He was not supposed to make mistakes.
He took a few deep breaths. He needed to figure out how it had happened.
He had known his house was being watched. He had known this when he had followed Naruto out of town. He knew they would note his absence. But his mind had not registered their presence as a real problem. When he thought about them now, they felt more like an annoyance than anything serious. It felt like something he had to tolerate.
It was how he had felt about his surveillance for a very long time.
Being part of the leadership of a large village meant Sasuke’s safety was more important than privacy ever could be. Sasuke had never been completely alone. Naruto had complained about the ANBU presence often, but had learned to cope by pulling pranks on his guards, each more elaborate than the last. Sasuke had merely devoted himself to insulting them in increasingly complex ways using increasingly unbreakable code.
When he wanted to actually be alone, he would get rid of them. He was not an enemy and he was allowed to have moments when nobody saw what he was doing. It was a bit of a game. If they were offended that he was able to slip away from them, they had their own incompetence to thank for that.
But it was different now. It was unsettling to become aware of how unsure he was of the allegiance of the guards that watched him. He gladly gave up his privacy for added safety. He felt a good deal more reluctant when the safety was not guaranteed.
The ANBU were not Sasuke’s friends. They were a problem that needed to be solved. He needed to stop seeing them as guards altogether and start treating them as spies. Worse than spies. They were the ones with back-up while Sasuke was by himself. He should be thinking of Konoha as an enemy village that he was infiltrating. There were enemies all around him, but they would not let Sasuke know he was being watched.
He got a ladder from his shed and placed it against the back of the house. He opened the entry to the house’s hidden floor, two feet of space where ANBU would stay for longer periods of time. It required a bit of seal unlocking, but his father had taught him the codes when he was a toddler. The half dozen sentries had moved away when they had sensed Sasuke approaching. Luckily, talking to them was not his intent.
He placed a few traps in the place between the boards. Nothing damaging, but things that made sounds or would leave a visible impression. He was trying to come across as a paranoid kid, with no bad intentions.
It would cause the ANBU only a little discomfort to get around the traps, but it would still slow them down. Eventually one would slip up and make a sound. It was only natural when the surveillance was this systematic. The more that happened, the more justified he would be to increase the security. He would get them out completely eventually.
With his measures set up, he headed to his bedroom. A soft bed was a luxury he had not enjoyed in ages. He had a pillow to lay under his head. And there were blankets with clean sheets and delicate smells. He got the memories of his clones as they popped and were replaced. They had seen nothing dangerous, other than what Sasuke had already seen happen to Naruto. Sakura had spent the night celebrating with her family. Everyone was safe and his other preparations were underway. He fell asleep with a smile on his face.