Chapter 4
An enchanting forest of buildings shone under the radiant sun, the mists of the morning clearing. This was the residential area of Konoha, free from all clan influence, an ideal place for commoners and civilian ninjas.
Entrenched with modest houses and crowned by beautiful curved roofs. Its streets wound like snakes.
Today its streets were mostly empty, news of the battle at the gates had spread, turning it eerie.
Doors were shut tight, police patrols became more extensive, and funny business meant asking for trouble. All of these skirmishes made civilians too nervous, deterring them from sending children out.
On a certain street, a well built chunin was seen escorting a six year old. The chunin looked confident, unfazed even, but the child looked....odd.
He stared at the ground, with a look of dread, his hands trembled, his knees were heavy, buckling under the weight of worry.
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(Ren POV)
'Oba-san is going to be so mad! What can I do? Will she kill me and take that scroll?' thought Ren as he imagined the repercussions of the hostage incident.
'No, I have to do something.'
'Wait, if Uncle Rumo doesn't tell Oba-san, then she wouldn't know, right? Perfect!'
Ren was delighted, this was a perfect plan. A product of his brilliance.
'Uncle Rumo, can you not—'
"Not a chance, you snot-nosed brat!" interrupted Rumo, not even allowing Ren to finish.
"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking, kid! If she ever finds out, your father and I—both—will be in trouble!" Rumo barked, fear evident on his face.
Ren's smile faltered, his hopes and dreams squashed by a single brutal statement.
"And just because she isn't a ninja, you think she won't find out? She knows how to hit where it hurts!" the chunin ranted on, with years of experience under his belt—all of them dealing with Mai.
"There's a reason why she's still single and called the infamous Nutcracker," continued Rumo, as he gulped, thinking of all her 'victims'.
'Huh?! I don't get it. Why is Uncle Rumo so scared? Isn't he a strong ninja?' Ren thought, doubt lingering in his mind.
'What does Nutcracker mean anyway? It's just nuts. Isn't it good Oba-san is helping others by breaking them?'
Ren decided not to trust shameless chunin anymore.
But when they entered the street in front of Ren's home, a figure of a woman holding an infant appeared.
Dumbstruck, Ren stood still, subconciously shrinking.
The woman unfazed, rushed towards Ren, hugging him and began sobbing.
"Oba-san why are you crying? I thought you would be mad." muttered Ren.
"You idiot! How could I face your father if I lost you!How could I... even face myself?" cried Mai.
In that moment, Ren teared up and let go of his restraint. His image changed from a resilient boy to that of a weak child.
Little Kei seeing them both cry, sensing distress, joined in crying.
Rumo just stood watching the family, smiling with relief. He thanked the sages, not for the warm reunion but because he had something over Mai if she threatened to destroy his stash of questionable books.
After a moment, they calmed down. Ren noticed that little Kei had stopped sobbing, clearly confused. Ren smiled, taking Kei in his arms to comfort him.
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In a large, well-lit room, reeking of tobacco, sat an old man with a white beard. He sat behind a table with stacked documents on both its sides, arranged in an orderly manner.
Without paying any heed, he focused on the crystal at the centre of the table, staring intently at the scenes displayed on it.
Unlike all those times when he grinned like a pervert...uhm..uhm..like a real man of culture, this time his focus was on the violent ordeal displayed.
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(POV Hiruzen Sarutobi)
'I've got to hand it to Fugaku—efficient work as usual, with everyone unharmed, though there were some minor damages...well, that was unavoidable.'
'Well, I am footing that bill with some of Danzo's Root budget.' Hiruzen, the smile on his face growing, thinking of his friends potential discomfort.
'But Earth Style: Muddy Ink, huh? An auxiliary jutsu that replaces hand signs with foot signs instead.'
'How presumptuous! Thinking this method could be hidden from a Kage. Using it to pass intelligence underground, by shaping the earth underneath into letters. A Sharingan can't see through that.'
'Clever! I will give him that—only a careful Byakugan user could have detected it, or someone familiar with foot signs. But only Jiraiya and I know of them. Fugaku is still too young to notice.'
"Hawk!" Hiruzen muttered softly.
Swish…
"Yes, Lord Third!" replied an Anbu, dressed in all black, as he gracefully landed on his knees in front of the Third Hokage.
"Go get a Byakugan user from the Torture and Intelligence Department. Then retrace this path on the map. As you do so, ask the Byakugan user to scan the ground and collect the encoded intel," said Hiruzen.
"Yes, sir!" replied Hawk, and without any questions, vanished immediately.
'After cracking the intel, maybe we could plant fake intel of our own,' thought Hiruzen.
'But now that the first problem is solved, I need to decide whether I should send children to war as well. We are outnumbered on many warfronts.'
'There are signs that the war might end soon, but I can't be sure. Isn't there any other alternative?'
'No, I can't send them. I saw how the kid who was made hostage reacted to jutsu—that look of wonder. The kids going to war are only a few years older.'
The Third Hokage sighed, pained to see his village in such a dire state.
'Hmm… I could send retired ninjas and let them occupy positions that require more experience, and have them teach the younger ninjas.'
'The war might end anytime soon. If the village could hold on for some more time, then the kids wouldn't even need to be deployed.'
'Then I will set an example as well. I will return to the battlefield myself.'
The plan brightened Hiruzen's mood dramatically. He began thinking of ways to make it possible.
'I will delegate responsibilities to Koharu and Homura, since Danzo is still fighting in the Land of Rain. I will use this chance to modify the intel to make it seem like I will never step into the battlefield.' Hiruzen schemed, planning to win the war.
The children are the future. Isn't this the Will of Fire you adhered to, Master Tobirama, for the village?
'For the first time, I saw the same look you gave when experimenting with jutsu, on that childs face; that same look of wonder and curiosity.'
Just like that, unknowingly, little Ren changed the course of village history with just a glance.