A strange new life

Chapter 6: Ginger, Honey and a Dash of Purple.

Two days after the Sunagakure and Otogakure attack.

Scattered piles of reports, slips of encrypted communication piled on a ceramic bowl, rolls of opened archived scrolls for reference, drawings, analysis, speculations, facts. Nara Shikaku’s mind churned with cause and effect, choices and possibilities. He considered what he knew and the Third Hokage’s last request.

A knock at the door disturbed his concentration. The person outside didn’t wait to be invited in. Inoichi’s face looked even more drawn in and hard. His long-time friend pulled a chair and sat in front of Shikaku’s desk, back pressing against the chair’s rest, face turned to the ceiling, eyes closed.

“You owe me a big one.” Inoichi said without opening his eyes.

Shikaku pulled back on his chair, hands resting on the desk. He waited. He knew his friend. There would be more said.

Inoichi looked down. His face was even more haggard. “Ino will never forgive me if she learns of this. She’s taken with Hinata.”

Shikaku shook his head, eyes finding the picture of his wife and son on the desk. He knew all too well how women could make life a living hell. He tore his gaze away from the images. It wasn’t time to reminisce. “What did you find?”

Inoichi shrugged. “Nothing we didn’t already know.” The jounin looked around.

Shikaku noticed those details. His fingers moved, one of their signals from their time on the same team. ‘Safe, private, speak freely.’

“She’s hiding something. I can’t enter her mind. I don’t believe she has any harmful intentions toward Konoha. I don’t believe she’s a willing spy, if she’s a spy at all.” The man shrugged. “I’ve read the reports, same as you did. They didn’t let us make any attempts to earn her trust, why is the council now mad that she's keeping her secrets?”

“Your opinion then?” It was just a formality. Shikaku already knew his friend’s answer.

“I’m endorsing her promotion to Chunin. It’s the least I can do after interrogating her like that.”

Shikaku took a piece of paper, handed it over.

“You’re sending her away then?”

The jounin commander looked at the pile of papers and reports again. “That’s the best option we have.”

One day after Hinata left for her mission.

“Those were not your orders.” Mitokado Homura's calm voice wasn’t enough to hide the man’s dissatisfaction. “You were told to apprehend the girl, not promote her.”

Shikaku glanced from Homura to his counterpart, Koharu. As he often did these days, he wondered if they indeed held Konoha’s best interests in mind, or about their fixation with Hinata. Those two, along with Danzo, have pushed for more drastic measures since day one.

Shikaku shrugged. “I followed my orders.”

Koharu shifted on her seat, permanent squinting eyes and frowny face not making it easy to read the woman’s mood. “Those were not—”

It seemed it was now time for Koharu to push her rhetoric. Shikaku was tired of this. There was so much to do. He had to appease the Hyuga, send delegations to Sunagakure and Kirigakure to sound for an alliance, send a formal diplomatic mission to Iwagakure and Kumogakure. There might still be a chance to avoid war altogether. Some of the new information provided by Lord Jiraiya was a concern not only to Konoha. And yet, those two kept taking his time with pointless questions.

“The Third Hokage’s orders.” He interrupted. The councilmen looked at each other, a thousand words with a glance.

He considered saying more. Maybe appeal to their sense and explain the looming crisis. Or maybe remind them they couldn’t order him around like they seem to think they could. In the end, he didn’t have the time or patience. Shikaku’s goal was to hold the fort until a new Hokage was appointed. After that, he could dump this pile into their lap and return to his real work.

He got up and left the meeting room without being dismissed, his mind already preoccupied with the more pressing issues. However, a nagging thought kept returning to his mind: both councilmen were acting, in many ways, the same way when Danzo was still a council member. Had the man left at all?

Around two weeks after the start of Hinata’s mission.

Not for the first time, Shikaku tried to decipher the mystery that Hinata was. How had she known about Danzo’s actions and plans? Even Danzo had been taken by surprise by that knowledge. The old traitor reacted fast when an ANBU squad was assembled to interrogate him, but not fast enough to get rid of all the evidence.

The details of ROOT activity, human experimentation, forbidden seals to ensure compliance, plans to deal with the Uchiha clan. Worse yet, the confirmation that he had a stolen Sharingan beneath that bandaged face. One that no one could trace the source of. None of the clan’s records had information about a missing eye. By all accounts, every dead Uchiha was accounted for.

In the end, how had Hinata known? He read the transcription of her reports. Seven years ago, Hinata already knew about Akatsuki, even pointed them out by name and described some of their members, as well Orochimaru’s involvement with that group. She also implied they were behind the Kyuubi attack eleven years ago.

Shikaku could understand the many frustrated egos regarding this situation. Hinata’s secrets could be invaluable. And instead of fostering her trust, the council made sure she was alienated. Shikaku put the paper down, looked back at the picture of his loving, fierce wife. Was this their plan all along? Drive Hinata away from the village?

A knock interrupted his thoughts. Shikaku shelved that analysis to pick it up again later. He hid the secret reports, all the confidential information, disabled the privacy seal. Once he was ready, he called out. “Come in.”

The visitor was one of the Intelligence department chunin in charge of external communication. The boy had a rolled up parchment in his hand. “A report from Yamato, sir.”

Shikaku waved the boy closer, took the still sealed parchment. “Thank you.” He dismissed, mind already full with the implications. Once the chunin left, he broke the seal and read the report.

It was surprisingly light on details. They found a hideout, cleared the place, found a lead to a second place in Kirigakure where Orochimaru kept prisoners. Something about the report bothered Shikaku. He got up from his desk, moved to the door. Poked his head out. The intelligence room was still the same, frantic organized chaos it ever was.

“I need to speak with Hatake Kakashi, send a bird, please?”

He didn’t wait for a response. Shikaku got back to his table and started to consider options. Who could he send? If he wanted to change things and start fostering Hinata’s loyalty, a familiar face would be preferable. Kakashi, perhaps? He discarded that idea. Kakashi’s expertise was needed elsewhere. Naruto was away with Lord Jiraiya, searching for Tsunade. Sasuke wasn’t in any condition to travel, the young Uchiha’s heir suffering from some unknown malediction.

That left only one option. Inoichi would have his head for this.

Before he got up, he felt the presence in his room. He looked up. Kakashi was inside his office, leaning by the door. Never one to abide by protocol, that one. He met with the detached eyes of the white haired jounin. “Thank you for coming. I need your expertise.” He got up, walked closer and handed Kakashi the report from Yamato.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Kakashi read the report, then reread it. “ANBU code. There isn’t much aside from that he couldn’t put that information on the report. Too dangerous for long distance communication.”

Shikaku sighed. That didn’t make things easy. More plans started to form. Could he still send Ino’s team?

“I heard of your disagreement with the council,” Kakashi’s voice interrupted Shikaku’s thoughts.

The jounin commander looked back at Team Seven’s leader, all too aware of Kakashi’s opinion regarding Hinata. “I fear that’s a mistake we’ll all pay for.” He didn’t say more. There was no need.

Kakashi nodded. Turned and left without saying anything else. Shikaku made up his mind. Poked his head out of the door again. “Please send a bird for Sarutobi Azuma. There’s a new urgent mission for his team.”

Maybe he could still salvage this situation.