House arrest. Yep. After my solo show, playing the big hero in a private, Kage-level meeting, I was under fucking house arrest. Well... I called it that, but there were no official orders from anyone... I mean... That wasn't what happened, but it was close. After I was excused from the room, Jiraiya-sensei marched me back to our current residence, holding me by the scruff the whole way, and dropped me into bed like I was a sack of potatoes. Before I could argue about it, he pointed directly at my face and told me that if I left the building without his permission, he would personally nail my sandals to the floor.
"And if I hear you insult the Hokage again, I'll nail your feet into them, too!"
I believed him when he said that, so here I was, the supposed Savior of Uzushiogakure, locked in a room. Without a TV or something... I was going mad with boredom! Although I could rest and meditate, recovering my chakra in a pretty steady stream.
"This is tyranny." I moaned, opening my eyes, coming out of one such round of meditation.
"Yes, yes," Minato didn't even look up from the scroll he was reading, sitting in an armchair in the corner, "But you called the Hokage out before another village's leaders. That's not good for looks at all; it makes him look weak."
"I didn't say he was weak, but he may be going senile."
"That's even worse," Minato shrugged as he finally looked over the edge of the scroll. "You're lucky Sensei only confined you here."
"Tell me I'm wrong."
"You aren't..." Minato sighed, rolling up the parchment. "But I can't know it for sure either; still, I do believe you, so don't start! I am on your side, Renji."
Seeing that there was not much to say, I finally sat cross-legged near the open window, looking out towards the village. It was a weird scene, because Uzushiogakure was pretty much dismantling itself. Some of the etched rocks and buildings were also demolished and taken apart, so if anyone came to the island, they wouldn't be able to occupy it so easily.
I had a narrow view of the harbor from where I was sitting now, and from what I could tell, it remained full of Konoha vessels, constantly coming and going, filled with people and scrolls, I guess.
"You think they'll come back?" I asked, feeling a bit weird.
"The Uzumakis? Or Kiri?"
"Any of them."
"Hm..." He set the scroll down, thinking. "Yeah. Most likely all of them; it just depends on when. I don't think they'll come to Uzushiogakure again so soon. There wouldn't be much point, especially after everyone is gone, unless they want the ruins."
"They might." I muttered, "They may think there are seals to steal or reverse, even if everyone is gone."
"If Kiri occupies Uzushio after everyone leaves, they can use it for what... Propaganda?" Minato asked, giving me a look. "After being defeated first? It wouldn't do much."
"Fair." I smiled for a brief moment, but then it was gone. "So... It's time for war, huh?"
"You think this is really the start?"
"I don't know."
Aaaand... That was the annoying thing, because I should know. I knew there was supposed to be another Great Ninja War, but... Was it going to happen just like this? Right now? They did attack the Uzumakis, three versus one. There is no way Konoha will let this slide, so... I guess we are already in war. Even if the timing was wrong now. Or maybe my memory was wrong... Or maybe everything was already sliding away from what I remembered thanks to my constant interventions.
"Well," I muttered, shaking my head, "if this isn't the Third War yet, we're doing a damn good exercise preparing for it."
"If Konoha declares the attack an act of war against the Land of Fire's ally, then," Minato said, thinking about it, "Yeah, we're at war. However, Sensei thinks the Hokage will try diplomacy first."
"Of course he does." I snorted. "Hiruzen loves his diplomacy instead of acting."
"You say that like it's bad."
"No." I shook my head. "But in excess, it is. He'll try to stop things from escalating if there's even a chance, instead of putting his feet down hard enough once. It's like putting out the fire the big fire-breathing monster is creating, instead of slaying the beast. Is he supposed to have the title of God of Shinobi or something like that, no? Learned all that is to learn? Feels fake if you ask me."
"I start to think you dislike the Hokage." He said cautiously, looking at me.
"I think he has grown old, and the other villages are perfectly aware of it. That is why they dared to do this, and they have already escalated everything." I answered seriously, "We need someone else when things are like this."
"..." Minato's expression tightened as he listened to me. "That's... dangerous talk, Renjiro."
Fair enough. Now I sound like an Uchiha coup conspirator. Geez!
"I would vote for you," I said in the end, making him almost choke on nothing.
"Stop joking, I'm not even close to that position!"
"Well," I said, starting to smile, "if the war starts properly, you'll get enough opportunities to earn that Yellow Flash title and become a candidate."
"I'm fine if there is no war." Minato stared at me, but then just shrugged, because it was pretty evident that it was not going to happen. I mean, keeping the peace won't happen...
It was then that someone knocked with three slow taps. Weird... Nobody used to knock, and after answering it, I froze in place when I opened the door. I did not expect Ashina-sama to come and visit us, with four other Uzumaki shinobi in tow, two of them looking just as old as he.
"Ashina-sama?" We both asked as Minato hurried to his feet to bow.
"Sit, boys; this is an informal visit." He said with a smile and a wave of his hand.
"Yes, sir." We answered without thinking and watched as the old man closed the door himself, leaving the others to wait outside.
Soon, he walked toward the empty chair in the room and lowered himself onto the cushion opposite us, and for a few seconds, nobody spoke.
"Um... Is this..." I suddenly asked, making him shake his head.
"I came alone, except for my confidants outside, because I wanted to speak with you, and not with Konohagakure." That was... Uh. Not ominous at all? Even Minato's eyes shifted toward me, questioning, and I knew exactly what he was thinking, but I had no answers. "After our meeting, I issued several private orders, as you gave my clan a clear warning."
"Right," I muttered, blinking my eyes, trying to think, but I felt my brain turn sluggish.
"We had already begun cataloging casualties from the battle, counting our dead, the enemy's losses, and of course, the prisoners. We have a list of those who could be identified and of those who could not. So, I ordered a second count and, not surprisingly, the numbers did not match."
Fuck.
"How badly?" Minato asked, sitting up straight as an arrow, looking grave.
"Hm..." Ashina looked toward the window, rubbing his silvery beard. "The enemy bodies were initially gathered in several secured locations before burial and the preliminary examination." He spoke with detached calm as he explained it to us. "We were going to give them a collective crypt, honoring their origins, as they are warriors after all; we are just on opposing sides. Several had already been buried by now, so..." He looked at me, and although he was slightly smiling, his eyes were deadly serious. "We are missing thirteen bodies so far."
"Fuck."
"Renji," Minato muttered automatically.
"No," Ashina chuckled, nodding his head, "that's worth a fuck. And... That alone would have been... concerning." The way he said it... Oh, no. There was more? It is that one-eyed freak, so of course there was more. "Some of ours are missing too."
"..."
The room went completely silent, because even I did not believe that the old bastard was this brazen. He stole Uzumaki corpses?! What, is he playing Dr. Frankenstein or something?!
"How many?" I asked with a gulp.
"Seven were confirmed so far."
I looked at Minato after he said it, and he looked sick. He believed me before, but after this? He believed me also when I said the Hokage was too soft and senile. He believed me more than ever before, if that is even possible.
"The burial sites were sealed." Ashina continued, "Yet the seals were opened correctly, so whoever took them had access."
"Do you... suspect anybody?" Minato asked carefully.
"No," He shook his head. "Whoever opened it had the proper Uzumaki sealing knowledge but not the proper rites. Meaning, the one who came knew the hows but not the whys, so it wasn't one of us. You see, our bodies carry unique chakra signatures, mostly family patterns that only an Uzumaki can recognize and use. Some rituals also require that the dead be properly returned, and some seals remain tied to their blood even after death. We can tell whether it was one of ours who used our seals. So... We will get them back... One way or another."
I felt uncomfortable after hearing that. Oh boy... This may turn nasty very quickly.
"Does Hiruzen-sama know?" Minato asked again, but it was an obvious answer if they came to us privately.
"No, not yet."
"Why?" I asked, getting curious.
"Because I wanted to know what you would say first. I have lived too long to ignore people like you, Renjiro Uchiha. So now I tell you this." His voice suddenly grew very quiet, as if we were discussing some conspiracy. "If Danzō Shimura is responsible... then the Uzumaki will make sure he pays for it. We can't let a cancerous cell like his grow, or it will infect the village."
"Good." I nodded, being dead serious. "I agree. Many in the village agree, too. That man is a danger to us all; he... has to go."
"Do relax." Ashina's expression softened, seeing the look on my face and the way I was talking. "Renjiro, I am not here to ask you to betray your Hokage. I am telling you that if your clan or you, one day, seek justice against Danzō Shimura, the Uzumaki will help. If your people bring evidence that Danzō acted against Konoha, against the Uchiha, or against us, we will stand beside you."
I stared at him, my mouth agape, because suddenly I had a very bad feeling. Wait, wait! No, no, no, no, I'm not trying to accelerate any coup or something like that! I am here to prevent it! Oh shit... I hope it's not that serious... Oh, fuck me, I had wanted to stop the Uchiha rebellion. That was the entire goddamn point! Keep Fugaku moderate, expose Danzō, keep the clan integrated into the village, prevent Konoha from driving the Uchiha into a corner, simple as that! Now thousands of Uzumaki are moving into Konoha, a clan that had just discovered its dead were being stolen.
I bet Fugaku will be elated to hear that I just earned our clan a stalwart ally, essentially creating an alliance between two major clans... Which is really good but can turn really ugly if Hiruzen stays on the path of not dealing with issues properly.
Oh boy... I need to get back home and make sure that when shit hits the fan, I can turn it to blow all the nasty parts directly at Danzō and Orochimaru!
Haaah... Why can't things be easy?