"I have a hypothetical situation for the two of you."
Sasuke and Naruto exchanged speculative glances. Getting formally called in to the Hokage's office was odd enough—it wasn't for a mission, and both of them were on good enough terms with Tsunade that when they were there, it was generally because they had wandered in themselves. Seeing Kakashi lurking in the corner silently without his book out was even stranger.
"I'll bite," Sasuke sighed. May as well get this over with and find out what was going on. "What is it?"
The shark-like smile on his mentor's face indicated that answer may not have been in his best interests. "Lovely. Pretend that after undergoing a rescue mission, you sustain wounds which may have cost you a limb- let's say a leg- if one of the best medical nin in the world was not there to provide emergency assistance. But triage is going on, so the worst is stitched up and you are put under enough drugs that you would be lucky to have the mental wherewithal to remember your name. Are you with me so far?"
He was starting to feel like he might know where this was going, but didn't understand why it was relevant. "You're talking about Aiko," Sasuke confirmed flatly, tapping his fingers against the side of his legs.
That much was obvious, though he hadn't quite realized that she could have lost a leg. Aiko hadn't been particularly up-front about the details, and the subject had seemed irrelevant after it was clear that she was getting medical attention.
'That might explain why she was using Yamato's leg like a handlebar instead of standing on her own.'
Naruto looked more confused than anything, but Tsunade bluntly pushed forwards. "Yes. Now imagine that an S class missing nin wanders in, takes you out of the hospital, and tells you that he plans to turn you into a human puppet and have you fight against your allies when they show up. Mind, you're flattered by the interest in your abilities," Tsunade added with a bizarre undertone that made Kakashi roll his visible eye, "But you still think that situation is untenable. You can't use your chakra. You can't even stand." Here she paused deliberately and Kakashi cut in.
"Off-hand, can you think of any ways to get out of that situation? Physically fighting is completely out, even if you were entirely certain which of the three blurry outlines you were seeing was your opponent. Running is impossible. Anything brilliant occurring?" At the slightly sick-looking expression on Naruto's face, he blithely continued, "Then your best bet is probably back-up, then."
This didn't bode well.
"Your allies are at the gates of Suna. Remind me, Sasuke. How long did it take us to reach the point where Aiko split from her captor?"
Feeling distinctly unsettled by where this was going, he ventured, "Approximately one hour."
Kakashi nodded indulgently. "And Naruto. How long after that did it take to find the cave where Sasori had set up to ambush us?"
"Half an hour?" Naruto guessed, giving a tentative shrug and an unsettled glance at the two adults in the room, who were looking less and less sympathetic as the conversation dragged on.
Tsunade nodded amiably and folded her fingers together. "How dead would you say Aiko would have been, if she had been literally anyone else in the world?" Naruto had gone stock-still, but she pursed her lips and added, "Even me, for example. In the wrong circumstances, anyone can find themselves in enemy hands and disabled."
"Oh, I would say somewhere between 'moderately' and 'severely' dead," Kakashi inputted, with an expression that Sasuke now interpreted as a hard one directed at the two boys. "That might be a little upsetting, wouldn't you think? The only thing that I think could rub that in more would be the knowledge that her teammates, who should be unilaterally supportive, thought it was funny to tease her about the experience."
Sasuke swallowed hard. He hadn't thought about it in those terms. They'd been relieved that the situation had worked out without any trouble that they could see at all. Aiko had never seemed particularly troubled by the incident. She never seemed all that affected by anything. He intellectually knew that she was a few months younger than he was but… Well, nothing seemed to really bother her on more than a surface level. She verbally sparred with Naruto and teased people sometimes, but Aiko seemed to have an exceptionally thick skin. He'd never seen her so much as flinch at the prospect of an unsavory mission, which was why it had been so damn funny to see her so flustered by the mission with Mukade. She'd been all but hysterical, by her standards.
"She knows that we don't really mean anything by it," Naruto weakly argued, chin sinking down towards his chest.
"You should have known better," Tsunade said flatly. The disappointment in her eyes was enough to make Sasuke shrink back. "Even the strongest of individuals can experience residual trauma. I'm a medic who couldn't stand the sight of blood for half my adult life. Your sensei over there, (and here Kakashi gave her a disgruntled look that implied he hadn't volunteered to be an example) has the emotional capability of a turnip after his many brushes with death, and I'm willing to wager that if you were to try to tease Morino Ibiki in a friendly manner about his own experiences in captivity that I would be blinking and wondering what happened to those cute boys I used to know and where those smears on the wall came from."
Naruto and Sasuke cringed in unison.
Kakashi heaved a sigh, stepping forward to thread his hands through both boys' hair to reassure them that no one was permanently mad at them. Both boys bowed their heads into the gesture. "I know you didn't mean any harm. On one hand, the fact that it wouldn't even have occurred to you that something like that isn't a joke could be considered a good thing. It means you two have retained some innocence that you wouldn't have had at your age if you'd been born in another time. But Sasuke, you're a Chuunin now, and Naruto wants to be as well. You just can't be entrusted with others' lives if you can't put yourself into their sandals and have the foresight to realize how your actions affect their lives."
"I know that both of you can do better," Tsunade cut in firmly. Sasuke pulled his head back slightly from the warmth and comfort of Kakashi's hand and didn't wince at the way the rough fingers caught in his hair. Physical comfort was for children, and he was being reprimanded for acting like a child.
"We well," Sasuke promised solemnly, glancing up at his first mentor before locking eyes with his shishou. Approval rang out in her expression. "Thank you for the learning opportunity, Kakashi-sensei, Tsunade-shishou." They both seemed mildly surprised by his momentary fall-back into the respect their positions actually merited, but Kakashi just backed up enough to look between the two of them.
Naruto raised his right hand to fiddle with his headband, body language serious. "What he said, grandma. I was acting like a kid and didn't even consider that being kidnapped would totally suck, even after it was over. I'll apologize and I know better now."
"Good boys." Tsunade gave them a rare smile with no ulterior motive behind it, and it lifted something heavy off of Sasuke's chest. She usually obfuscated, whether for business reasons or force of habit. Genuine approval that wasn't hidden was rare, and it was worth far more than even Shizune's good-natured encouragements.
"We're not dogs," he snipped back, because he'd already been emotionally honest enough for one day, and gave the two old people one of the smirks that had always pissed Naruto off. "Is that all?"
He was gone before the flowerpot hit the wall behind him. Naruto gave an indignant squawk and reflexively leapt out the window, covering his vital points.
Kakashi blinked, even though it was pointless since his covered eye wasn't seeing anything. "Was that really necessary?"
"No, but it was easier than figuring out another way to end that conversation," Tsunade admitted easily, kicking her feet up. "Thank you for taking this problem to me, Kakashi. I would hate for my adorable little apprentice not to get his head screwed on straight."
Self-consciously, the Jounin shrugged. "This way, I didn't have to do most of the talking," he deflected lightly, feeling his right hand slip into the pouch where he kept Icha Icha as a safety blanket, though he didn't dare take it out right now.
The Hokage made a most unladylike snort. "Yes, just keep telling yourself that."
~~~
"Has anyone told you lately that you're an idiot?"
'No one is usually stupid enough to say that to my face, no.'
A little surprised and hurt, Aiko frowned up at Yamato. "Hello, it's nice to see you too," she bit out, stepping back and pointedly tightening her grip on the door as if she was about to slam it shut on his face. He merely pushed her arm aside and stepped into her apartment, looking serious.
"I apologize for my bluntness, but I didn't know if Kakashi-senpai would have had this conversation with you, and I think you need to hear it."
She furrowed her brow at him, but didn't stop him from coming in. "What are you talking about?"
His brown eyes were as gentle as ever, but his tone didn't leave much room for argument. "Your recent actions. I don't mean to imply that what you've done was less than impressive. I don't know that I could have dealt with eight jounin. I don't think there are many people who could have." He didn't take his shoes off, but he slumped against her wall. It was the first indication that he wasn't totally comfortable with this conversation.
"It wasn't a big deal," she ventured cautiously, feeling awkward herself. "I didn't really beat them. I only had to get in one real fight and scared the others off. Once they knew they had been compromised, there wasn't any point in their remaining. Their mission was stealth. Yugito was emotionally compromised, or else I wouldn't have had to fight her at all."
"That's not the point," he interrupted sharply.
Aiko jumped a little in her own skin, taken aback by his vehemence.
"That's not the point," he repeated more softly, looking up at the ceiling as if praying for strength. "Look... Look at it this way. I know that you resent your dad for dying, don't you?"
She stared.
'How the fuck does he know- why is he bringing that up?'
As though he'd predicted her confusion, Yamato smoothly segued, "How do you think Naruto would feel if you got yourself killed because you were reckless?"
Aiko froze, feeling something unpleasant climb up her spine and hook claws under her bones. It knocked the wind right out of her and left no room for thought or protestation.
Her senpai continued mercilessly. "Or even Kakashi or myself? What about Sasuke? I know that you didn't even think of what you were doing as more than a mission, but you would never have been alone on a mission like that." Yamato let out a sigh and ran a hand through his hair, thumb brushing protectively against his oddly shaped hitai-ite. "Look, you have comrades and teammates for a reason."
Her lower lip trembled a little bit. That was seriously unfair. Low blow, man.
When he glanced down, Yamato seemed to be more distressed by her expression than she would have expected. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you cry or anything," he deflected worriedly, waving his hands. Oddly, the incongruity with his serious attitude a moment before was soothing. There was the silly dork she knew.
But the implication that she looked like she was about to cry made her step forward and bury her face into a chest in a hug. A hug was less of a blow to her pride than letting him see her leak water like an idiot. Still, she gave him a thump in the chest with her closed fist to prevent the moment from getting too sappy. "I'm not about to cry, asshat."
"Whatever you say," he replied bemusedly, awkwardly patting her back in a half-assed reciprocation of the gesture of affection.
Aiko sniffed. He was wrong, she definitely wasn't going to start sobbing like a baby would. "I was starting to think that even Naruto had more bitch-fu than you," she mumbled into his flak jacket. "I was wrong. You made me feel like an idiot."
"That's good," he rejoined, a little amusement in his tone. "You acted like an idiot. But you won't anymore, right?"
"Right," she agreed, at least partially meaning it. Maybe she could work a little harder to avoid getting into dangerous situations alone when it was possible to get back-up. There were going to be circumstances where she really couldn't let others in on what she was doing. She was secretive by nature.
'But I guess I don't have to make others worry about if I'm going to charge blindly into Akatsuki headquarters alone or something similarly ill-advised.'
~~~
"Well, this is awkward," Tsunade said in an undertone, stifling a highly inappropriate grin. Aiko tried to choke down the hysterical laughter that wanted to bubble up and nodded gravely instead, not letting her stride falter. The Mist Chuunin who was escorting them to their temporary quarters in an upscale hotel that had been renovated specifically for this gathering was supremely uncomfortable. It wasn't hard to tell—her spine was so stiff that Aiko probably could have knocked her over and used her back as a table with no problem. Not that Aiko could blame her. The recent dust-up between Konoha and Cloud was now public knowledge.
Nii Yugito and the blonde woman beside her gave the two Konoha representatives looks that definitely did not indicate that they were considering asking if they could come over later and make friendship bracelets together.
'What did I expect? Cloud doesn't have a female Kage, and there are only so many S class kunoichi in any given country. If everyone only gets two representatives, of course they're going to send the strongest kunoichi they have just in case of conflict or chance for espionage.'
According to the hilarious new statistics in her bingo book entry, Aiko was an S-class kunoichi as well, which probably made Konoha's delegation the best-rated represented at this gathering. She was here more because she'd been organizing it than for any other reason, but at least she apparently had the reputation to back up her attendance. In the last few days in Konoha, she'd started to notice that people she had never talked to knew her name and greeted her—probably fallout from her little tiff with Cloud. Publically claiming that it was NBD was more likely to piss people off than get them to stop talking to her, so she just gave queasy smiles and hurried away whenever someone tried to talk to her. There was only so much socializing she could handle.
'At least here, I have an objective and I have a solid reason to act civilly with people who want to talk to me.'
Better to be among allies and enemies who could at least be trusted to adhere to professionalism like lying, spying, and occasionally attempting to assault her than –god forbid—fans and strangers who wanted to chat or thank her for her service. Ugh, yuck. She was considering never leaving her apartment again, or doing something really insane and frightening so that people stopped thinking she was approachable. She'd never seen Kakashi mobbed by matronly civilian women who wanted to offer him discounts at market or itty bitty pre-genin kunoichi who made odd squealing sounds when they saw him. It just wasn't fair. Couldn't she be intimidating too?
Aiko suppressed a shiver, hefting her travel bag onto the dresser by her bed and ducking into the doorway of the attached room where Tsunade was settling in. "Do you need any help?"
"I think I can handle it," Tsunade said dryly, upending her entire bag onto her bed and pawing through it for what appeared to be a sock full of cash.
She had a sinking feeling that she knew where this was going.
"Come on, brat. We have four hours until we have to be at that stuffy dinner, and I know there's a casino around here. We may as well have some fun, since Shizune isn't here to nag."
Poor Shizune and Sasuke were manning the fort back in Konoha. Well. Keiko was probably taking care of an obscene amount of it too. That woman needed a raise and vacation time after this.
But even stupid orders were orders, so she changed into the yukata she would need to be wearing later and pinned her hair up. The Hokage snorted when she saw the pink and yellow dress, but Aiko just shrugged. She'd thought it was cute. Tsunade hardly had room to talk about wardrobes—she wasn't even going to dress up, apparently, even for the opening ceremony. It was a bit rude, but who was going to tell the Hokage to get out? They trailed out of the hotel and she obediently followed Tsunade (who was apparently the human equivalent of a bloodhound for gambling houses).
"What's your game?"
Aiko blinked twice before she realized the question was directed at her. "I don't gamble."
"You do now," Tsunade said grimly, taking her arm and forcibly leading her to a table. "And you'll win, too. I won't be shown up by Iwa."
'Oh god, she's going to start an international incident over poker,' Aiko realized numbly while her sworn liege-lord lead her over to a kunoichi that she recognized from her briefings as Kurotsuchi—the Tsuchikage's granddaughter.
The girl gave Tsunade a simpering smile with no sincerity. "Oh look, if it isn't Tsunade-hime of Konoha. I'm surprised that you were willing to leave your village at a time like this. Aren't you ever so worried?"
Tsunade gave a smile that was just as fake and responded to the pointed barb with one of her own. "Oh, no need for concern. I can be there in an instant if anything goes wrong."
(Here was the pointed pause while everyone looked at Aiko and Aiko stared resolutely forward).
"Aren't you the Tsuchikage's granddaughter? My, you're getting so big," Tsunade mused.
Kurotsuchi turned mildly purple and a hand jerked towards her midsection before she stilled it.
Aiko tried to be very, very still to avoid drawing attention. Besides, the bulk of her attention was already occupied…
'Can she really order me to be good at a game I have never played and subject me to disciplinary action if I fail?'
She probably could, but she also probably wouldn't do it, no matter how seriously Tsunade took her poker. Still, when Aiko sat next to Kurotsuchi's companion, a stern-faced brunette, she was all business even while the older women exchanged pointed barbs.
It didn't help matters. She lost miserably and was completely baffled. Aiko was actually grateful for the chance to flee when she realized that they only had ten minutes until they were late for their meeting. Walking there with the Iwa representatives was spectacularly awkward, however. She couldn't help but feel that she was being sized up. Tsunade seemed to be engaged in some sort of game of sneering one-upmanship, but Aiko was content to remain absolutely silent and expressionless. Maybe no one would talk to her if she didn't seem engaged. Most people took signals like that into account, didn't they?
"Aiko-chan! You look adorable today."
Except the Mizukage.
"Hello, Mei-nee-san." She flashed a genuine smile at the older woman and ignored the speculative looks being garnered. By referring to her so familiarly in public, Mei had set a precedent and it would have been rude to snub her by not reciprocating. It was also a pointed reminder to rub in just how close relations supposedly were between Kiri and Konoha, and not entirely unexpected.
Of course, the Mizukage had also given Tsunade a minor snub by greeting Aiko first. The amused smile on both older women's faces hinted that they were mutually cognizant of that. "Tsunade-san, you're certainly looking well," Mei greeted silkily, having lost all the playful fondness from her last statement.
"You as well," Tsunade easily rejoined, flipping a ponytail over her shoulder and gliding towards her assigned seat. Mei watched her like a hawk, amusement in her eyes. Aiko hid the anticipation in her own expression, knowing what was coming. "A nametag?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow and picked up the offending item. Her expression froze for a moment, before she turned to Aiko. "What is this?"
"We thought it might be helpful to provide descriptions of the participants so that everyone could connect names and reputations," Aiko replied, poker-faced. It had been her idea. If this worked, it should serve as a bit of an ice-breaker and allow them all a chance to laugh at themselves a bit to thaw some of the hostility and seriousness.
"And why is my description, 'The Lady with the Hat' instead of the more conventional 'Hokage' title?" Tsunade asked dryly.
'Because of your big ridiculous Hokage hat which I tried so hard to get you to pack,' Aiko thought a little resentfully. The joke still worked when she wasn't wearing it, but… yeah.
"Mine is the same," Mei confided gravely, pushing her chest out to show that yes, she was identified as 'Terumi Mei: The Lady with the Hat.' Tsunade stifled a grin rather badly and stuck her identification on her considerably more impressive chest. "What's your description, Aiko-chan?"
She repressed a grimace of uncertainty and picked up her own. Aiko hadn't picked hers, so she wasn't sure what category she had been slotted into… "Kickassery Specialist," she read, with a bare quirk of her lip. That was one of her suggestions, actually, to indicate a front line, offensive type. Some of the titles were personalized for the more eccentric characters expected, but she'd gotten one of the general ones. She couldn't say that she minded.
"The wind beneath my wings?" Sabaku no Temari read off numbly in the sudden silence, holding a little rectangle in her hands. Aiko valiantly stifled a grin.
"That's a good one," Mei spoke up, calling Temari's attention. Aiko didn't recognize the mousy little girl next to Temari. It seemed strange that Sand would have sent a complete nobody. Her nametag identified her as 'Matsuri: Powderpuff Extraordinaire'.
Aiko tried not to recoil away from the thought that Sand had sent a genin to this event. That either indicated they really couldn't spare anyone useful or that they were very trusting.
They probably weren't being trusting. She tried not to pity poor, understaffed Suna.
The spread was unremarkable. The fact that she ended up across the table from Nii Yugito was less so. Aiko valiantly avoided staring down into her fish, trying her best to pretend that she had yet to notice the two cloud kunoichi staring a hole in the side of her head.
"Uzumaki Aiko, right?"
Until they spoke to her. A quick glance revealed that 'Samui' was also an Ass-kickery Specialist, as was Nii.
"That's right," she acknowledged mildly, letting her eyes slide over the two of them half-lidded as though she was disinterested. It was a trick shamelessly stolen from Kakashi's arsenal. Hopefully, they wouldn't further engage her.
It garnered a small irritated reaction from Yugito- a tensing of her jaw. She didn't bother to disguise her dig with a honeyed tone. "I wouldn't have expected to see you here. Is Konoha trying to average out the ages of their participants, or are there really just two kunoichi in the Land of Fire?"
'You don't know how lucky you are that Tsunade didn't hear you make an age joke. She would kick your ass.'
"I didn't know you were so funny, Yugito-chan. It's wonderful to see you again. You're looking better than the last time I saw you," Aiko observed blandly, letting just a little too much teeth show when she smiled. 'I can play that game too, kitty-cat.'
Samui blinked languidly at her, placing a hand on Yugito's arm to prevent her from replying. "We were actually hoping to get a chance to speak to you and Tsunade-sama tonight," she inserted cooly, bringing the atmosphere back down from the previous simmering aggression to a more civil level.
'I'm sure that could be arranged, if you just wait around at the casino.'
Aiko swallowed those words. They weren't particularly professional. Besides, they had anticipated this situation. The Raikage had to make some sort of effort if he wanted C back. So far, they had only sent the official notice that he had been taken captive and an invitation to open up dialogue. He had probably the received it only the day before Samui and Yugito had left to travel to Mist.
"I'm afraid that Tsunade-sama likes to go to bed early. Would you like to meet at the teahouse on Gold street tomorrow at nine?"
That was an obvious lie, of course. Tsunade would be staying up late and drinking, since Shizune wasn't here to nag. But she wanted to see if they would protest.
The easy way the two agreed implied that they either didn't care or that their orders were important enough that they didn't have a choice but to work around the offered rendezvous. Thankfully, that was the end of their conversation because Tsunade, Mei, and Shizuka, (the teenaged leader of Nadeshiko) took turns giving very dull speeches about cooperation and friendship and mutual respect and other things that all but put Aiko to sleep. She wasn't here to do any real politicking, thankfully. Konoha's position was more analogous to Rock and Cloud's than anyone else's : they were present to make sure that no one signed anything sneaky while they weren't looking like preferred trade agreements or treaties. Temari and Mei were in a rather vicious competition to impress Shizuka with what they could do for Nadeshiko in exchange for agricultural contracts, but they would probably be reaching out to other places as well.
Aiko swiveled before her shoulder could be tapped. "Hello, Konoha," a woman she did not recognize greeted. Blue hair, a very revealing blue robe over white boots, and… a nametag that declared she was the representative from Ame, named Konan.
'It couldn't be. I mean, I know that they're officially Ame ninja and the Akatsuki thing is a secret identity, but would she really come to this meeting?'
Apparently. Konan had a lot of nerve, apparently. Goddamn. One of the highest members of Akatsuki had come to a meeting where other countries would be discussing how to deal with the threat of Akatsuki.
'Not that it matters. I can't tell anyone I suspect she's a member of a terrorist organization out of the blue,' Aiko thought crabbily.
"Hello, Konan, is it?" Tsunade greeted airily, visibly going through the motions of courtesy.
"Yes," Konan agreed quietly, before turning eerie amber-orange eyes and a flat expression on Aiko. A caricature of a smile ghosted across her features. "I see you brought two S class representatives. Is this the girl with the flying thunder god?"
Conversation stopped around the room before Tsunade even nodded in the affirmative. "Yes, she's almost as good with it as her daddy was," Tsunade mused faux-casually, putting a palm to her chin.
'Well, that was a hell of a sudden name-drop. She could have fucking told me she planned to let that information out here'
Temari (who was probably enjoying watching feathers fly), Mei, and Tsunade were the only ones who looked pleased and not remotely wrong-footed by the not-so-subtle hint. Other expressions ranged from outright hostile to guiltily fascinated.
Konan's eyes were hard, but her tone was soft. "You don't look like much of a flying god to me. Would that make you the thunder princess, then?"
Aiko had to take a moment to analyze that before she could respond. It was either a poor joke, a way of subtly putting her abilities down in comparison to Minato and the second Hokage (a princess was a hell of a step down from a god), or possibly even a hint that she wasn't flustered about her relation to Minato. Daughters of Kage were about as close to royalty as shinobi got, but the way Konan said the word 'princess' robbed it of any respect.
"I don't think so," Aiko demurred quietly, holding eye contact but squeezing her hands together under the table. "I am just Aiko, I'm afraid."
"So modest," Konan hummed. "Is it not true that we have you to thank for defeating the Akatsuki member who attacked Suna?"
'What the hell is she on about? She isn't really threatened by me.' Still, Aiko had to resist the urge to shift uncomfortably in her seat. She was almost amazed that no one else seemed to sense how dangerous the soft-spoken woman in blue really was.
'Is Konan looking for information? To see how confident Konoha really is? Or just checking out the competition?'
"That was the Kazekage," she replied stiffly, noting that Temari was scowling a bit at the dismissal of her brother. "I merely provided assistance."
"Assistance." Konan smiled coldly and turned to Tsunade. "For all her reticence, your village has undergone a significant increase in power in later years. I don't suppose that Konoha is sponsoring an arts and crafts time where the rest of us may practice making white flags?"
'The 'rest of us'? You tricky bitch, creating an 'us' versus 'them' that is completely counter to reality. Konan's stirring up malcontent against Konoha.' Aiko swallowed carefully and gauged the atmosphere around the room. Surely enough, many people from smaller villages looked uncomfortable… Particularly the teal-haired girl with the baby face from Waterfall. Fuu. Was she their jinchuuriki?
Akatsuki was attempting to use the Raikage's conclusions to ham-string Konoha's chances at gathering allies to act against them. Aiko was grudgingly impressed. She had thought that the Raikage had blamed Konoha with little justification, but if Konan's involvement indicated anything, it was that international opinion of Konoha was intentionally being sabotaged.
"Perhaps next year," Tsunade countered with a sharp little smile and a glitter in her eye that implied that she, at least, had noticed an odd undertone to the conversation. "I'm not particularly talented in those sorts of artistic ventures, so it would take some planning. I am confident that the Mizukage has provided adequate entertainment instead."
~~~
"That woman from Ame is creepy," was the first thing out of Aiko's mouth once she and Tsunade were safely ensconced in their hotel suite. Tsunade cast an amused look in her direction.
"Is that so?
"Yes," Aiko stressed with just a little too much vehemence to be casual. "I get a very bad feeling from her."
"Well, don't go picking a fight with her, then," Tsunade called distractedly over her shoulder, already shrugging her jacket off and heading towards her bathroom.
Aiko's face burnt red and she hurriedly shut the door that connected their rooms before she saw any more skin.
The morning found Aiko in a green kimono that meshed rather professionally with Tsunade's color scheme when they met the two representatives from Cloud outside an upscale teahouse. They were quiet throughout the ceremony until the hostess left. Yugito was the one who broached the more serious topics first.
"I am grateful that you took the time to meet us, Tsunade-sama."
'She's more clinical and professional than I'd realized,' Aiko observed. Granted, they hadn't exactly had an optimal first meeting.
"It's my pleasure." Tsunade didn't try to coat her words with the usual false cheer in diplomatic circumstances. "But we should be up-front about what's going on. I assume that the Raikage would like you to negotiate for the release of the man named C?"
"Concisely summed," Samui agreed neutrally.
Tsunade eyed the two Cloud kunoichi up and took a slow sip of her tea, as if to see if they would rush her answer. They waited politely. "I am sure you realize that such an agreement is complicated by the likelihood that the Raikage would just mount another offensive against Fire Country," she observed blandly. "How would it serve Konoha's interests to give back one of the Raikage's elite warriors? My own people clamor to interrogate him instead so that we may be prepared for inevitable war."
Frankly, Aiko didn't know if she believed Tsunade's intimation that C had not been tortured for information already. Anyone who believed that war with Cloud was a foregone conclusion would have to be a complete idiot to let an opportunity to extract information from such a highly placed official slip between their fingers. On the other hand, it would create ill-will to have harmed him while they were not officially at a state of war if it was possible to avoid martial conflict.
Samui was the one who tensed at the implied threat of bodily harm to C. Yugito raised a calming hand. "For what it is worth, I have come to doubt our initial conclusion that Konoha is responsible for the murder of B and for the theft of the Eight-Tailed bijuu."
The slight narrowing of Samui's eyes implied that this was not an approved area of discussion, but she could hardly say anything now.
"Do you now? Is this a view that the Raikage shares?" Tsunade's gaze was piercing.
Yugito let her eyes drift over to Aiko. "I am afraid that this is but my own conclusion, after your agent let the chance to capture me slip between her fingers. I have no doubt that if Konoha desired my bijuu, you would have it."
'Oh, hell. You tattle-tailing bastard.' Aiko resisted the urge to fidget, but Tsunade was too skilled to let on that the implication that Aiko had intentionally let Yugito go was news to her.
"The Raikage finds my analysis compelling, however," Yugito continued smoothly. "I am confident that he would be willing to engage in dialogue with you to come to his own conclusion. Unfortunately, such a thing is not possible while C is in Konoha's custody. The Raikage serves the people, and he would be remiss to parlay with those who hold his loyal soldiers captive."
Tsunade was still. Very still. And then she gave an obnoxiously loud laugh, tossing her hair back. "Well, you certainly have some nerve. The Raikage will do us the favor of giving us a chance to prove that the conclusion he came to was no evidence was wrong if we release a man he sent to kidnap one of my soldiers?"
'It is pretty bold,' Aiko acknowledged. 'The Raikage… actually sounds like kind of a hilarious person. He's either a simpleton or a total badass.'
The proposition was slightly insulting, and that was probably purposeful. But that didn't mean that they could turn it down. Tsunade would have to be petty to weigh a slight against the possibility of avoiding a costly war.
For the first time, Yugito bristled slightly.
Tsunade waved her down. "That's quite alright," she sighed, giving Yugito an amused once-over. "You make me laugh, but I have no argument with your proposed solution. If the Raikage will agree to treat with Konoha, C will be escorted to the border of Lightning Country by two of my soldiers and released into the custody of any two shinobi he sees fit to send. Aiko-chan will be there, of course," (and here Tsunade leered at Yugito with far too much humor) "to remove the seals that have been placed on the prisoner to prevent his escape. Is that acceptable?"
"I am authorized to accept such a proposal," Yugito murmured with an incline of her neck. "I am certain that the Raikage will contact you with the details for the exchange and the meeting soon after we return to Kumo. Thank you for your time."
That settled, the two Cloud shinobi made their excuses soon after and departed. Tsunade stared thoughtfully after them for a moment, cheek braced against her palm.
"Is she correct, Uzumaki?"
"Yes," Aiko admitted quietly. "I could have tried harder to eliminate or capture her."
The Hokage was contemplatively silent for a while. "I understand merciful impulses, Aiko. In absence of direct orders to the contrary, I don't resent it when you complete your missions without killing everyone who catches your eye. Your objective was to protect your country and prevent the intruders from doing harm, not their elimination. There is no shame in that."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
She had expected to get in more trouble, but wasn't about to protest.
The rest of the day was more relaxing for Aiko. She followed Tsunade from various meetings with representatives from smaller villages, (including Waterfall) and just learned about what was going on while everyone prodded each other to re-evaluate how they related to each other in a complicated game of power relations. Her only job was to be prepared in case of a fight and to look impassive and dangerous (but not threatening or hostile) while she lurked at Tsunade's side.
'Like an attack dog.'
Aiko washed her face in the hotel sink, tired of the feeling of Mist's muggy air on her skin. That was all she had time for before she had to accompany Tsunade to a much larger meeting, this time on an outside pavilion much like the one Mei preferred in Kiri proper.
Konan, that bitch, had gotten herself seated far too close to Tsunade, a fact that had Aiko on edge. But the trouble didn't come from her, when it came.
"Mizukage-sama, perhaps we could break up the monotony of the evening with a friendly tournament?" Fuu was looking directly at Aiko. It wasn't hard to decipher.
'She thinks Konoha is stealing bijuu, thinks I'm involved, and wants to know if she can kick my ass if I do come calling to Waterfall.' Aiko tried not to slump grumpily in her seat. 'Glorious.'
Unfortunately, when an outlet for violence was suggested in a group full of the most powerful kunoichi in the continent, public opinion was decidedly for the idea.
At first, it seemed curious that any really important figures like Mei, Tsunade, and Shizuka were not considering entering the game. Then she considered the political implications of putting Kage up against each other and wondered why she was such a twit sometimes. The tournament was a power play for villages to demonstrate their own strength, of course, but it was important that it was fought through intermediaries. A loss could be dismissed in a game between Kage's representatives, but if someone like Temari, for example, were to beat Shizuka or Mei in combat, the village that had lost would lose prestige. There was an enormous difference between a village's representative and a village's head being defeated, (especially if the defeat came at the hands of someone of lower status).
She pouted a little, but didn't protest when Tsunade told her put her name forward in an undertone. Mei imperiously gave them all a short break to decide if they wanted to enter a contestant. Bored, and knowing that she was already committed, Aiko wandered over to tell Mei and get it over with.
"That's nice, kitten." The Mizukage gave the wide open area a longing look and confided, "I don't know that I have a kunoichi I want to enter into this, fun as it would be."
Perhaps she shouldn't have said, "Put Chojuro in a dress and enter him."
At least Mei decided to laugh, rather than be insulted. "If he were here, that would be a good back-up plan. As is, I think I have a Chuunin who will have to get batted around like a cat toy for my amusement."
Aiko winced. That was not going to be pretty.
It wasn't. That poor girl was in the first round against Kurotsuchi. The Tsuchikage's granddaughter appeared to be an arrogant little brat, and she made a point of proving that the younger girl couldn't hit her before sneeringly covering her in a dome of some sort of white lava release that she hardened with a small spout of water. The thing shattered when enough force was applied from outside, but the victory had already been declared.
The next fight was less of a curb-stomp. Lightning's representative was Samui, and she exchanged a round of taijutsu with a woman named Ryuuka from Yumegakure that was actually enjoyable to watch. Aiko found herself half-out of her seat when Ryuuka called on her summons animals, filled with a childish delight at the sight of three gigantic wolves that made Tsunade snort alcohol out through her nose. Unfortunately, the grumpy blonde demonstrated a rather cruel streak by scorching the canines and Ryuuka frantically dismissed them to keep them from getting fried by lightning. She never quite regained her momentum, and her loss was a foregone conclusion by the time that Tsunade leaned over to quietly murmur in Aiko's ear.
"Don't throw your match. They'll resent you if you win, but they're all looking at you and it would be better to look strong than weak. And if they know that you let someone win, that's going to piss everyone here off."
She was right, damn it, although the thought of giving Konan a chance to assess her skills rankled. Samui was just finishing pounding on poor Ryuuka when Aiko tapped a seal onto her wineglass and then made a slow circuit of the pavilion on her way to the opening in the crowd of tables that had been pushed to circle the center as an impromptu ring of sorts. As she went, she took the opportunity to brush up against a few bodies in the crowd and leave seals on whatever kunoichi was in reach, taking a distinctively vindictive pleasure in pushing her way past Konan in the close quarters and tagging her hip with only a polite smile when the older woman jerked at her touch with a hard expression. Her lack of alarm told Aiko that the blue-haired Akatsuki wasn't a sensor.
She'd need seals arrayed around to enhance her speed in the upcoming fight, since she wasn't really armed, but that one could come in handy in the future. Maybe Konan would mysteriously explode in her hotel room tonight. That would solve some problems.
'And create some more complications,' Aiko acknowledged resentfully. She didn't want Konan here by any means, but killing her might send her stupid boyfriend on a rampage. She couldn't afford to do anything like that without thinking about it for something upward of ten minutes.
Most of her skills just weren't suited for play fights. That was fine, she would prefer to use as few varying moves as possible to avoid giving anyone an intimate look into her arsenal, even though she did have to make a good showing. Speed, taijutsu, and chakra chains would have to do, as the chains were both public knowledge and an excellent way of subduing someone so that the match could be declared in her favor. Samui seemed to have ruled in favor of pounding her opponent into unconsciousness, but Aiko didn't want to be here all damn day and there were still two more matches in the first tournament round.
'At least the next one is mine, and Temari won't hold any grudges.'
The older girl caught her eye and began making her way to the edge of the ring as well, clearly impatient for a fight. Aiko amended her thought to a hope that Temari wouldn't hold grudges instead of a certainty.
She didn't have any intention of humiliating Temari on purpose, but she also didn't want to artificially drag their match out when it was in her best interests and capabilities to make the match quick and decisive. If she gave Temari a chance to get on her fan, the match would just be an embarrassing sequence of her dodging wind without a chance to retaliate without taking out jutsu, and Temari being unable to land a blow. No. Whichever way the match went, it should be a short one.
'I can even tell Temari later that I didn't want that shady Ame woman to see either of our arsenals. I think she'll understand.'
~~~
This doesn't fit here at all, but it's been sitting around written forevvverrr, so... yeah. I just wanted to get rid of it, to be honest. I'm much more interested in what everybody thinks about the chapter.
Omake: Konohamaru follows his Boss to practice
"D-double knockout boy paradise jutsu?" Aiko repeated numbly.
Konohamaru gave a surprisingly foxy grin. "It's my best one yet!"
"No one wants to see that, you foul little pervert," Sasuke condescended with just a little too much hostility to pass as emotionally removed. His fingers twitched into a fist as if he was seriously tempted to send a genin sailing over the treetops.
Aiko didn't entirely agree with his tactical assessment.
'I kind of want to see that…'
Thankfully for all that was good in the world, Konohamaru paid very little attention to what Sasuke said. That was possibly because this was being done in large part because the boy wanted a reaction: he was trying to be rebellious.
If anyone was going to react to the sudden appearance of a naked Sasuke and Sai cuddling under a not-entirely-modest cloud of sparkly blue mist, Sasuke was near the top of the list.
'I changed my mind. Konohamaru is no longer on probation because I completely approve of the kid. He's a good people.'
Aiko barely heard the shrieks and thumps as Sasuke apparently decided Naruto was to blame for this and set off on him with a good deal more violence than usual, since he couldn't hit the rather delicate originator of the jutsu. To be fair, it probably was Naruto's fault.
The infinitely more interesting version of Sasuke was busily blushing as the sexy no jutsu Sai pushed him against a tree and kissed up his neck. He gave an audible gasp, placing his fingertips lightly against Sai's chest, but didn't actually protest. Instead, he closed his eyes and tossed his head back to give Sai more room to work with.
She vaguely recognized someone was saying her name, but it didn't seem important right now. The smoke was moving just enough that she could see Sai's hand sliding down Sasuke's hip-
"Not now, I'm in my happy place." She swatted at whatever hand was reaching for her shoulder distractedly, but it didn't give up, shaking at her.
"Aiko?"
She outright yelped at the low voice in her ear, spinning guiltily. "Um, hi. It's, uh… Not what it looks like?" she trailed off weakly. Sai seemed spectacularly unamused by her preoccupation, though the gaze he'd been giving the bunshin themselves was thoughtful. As if in apology, she reached out and picked at his shirt, pawing lightly and giving him a winsome smile, though it was probably a bit strained. "You're looking nice today."
"So we gathered," Naruto said flatly, giving- why was he giving her a dirty look? With a little puff of smoke, the two brunets disappeared and Konohamaru seemed to decide it was time to flee. Their real-life counterparts didn't look much more pleased than Naruto did.
'Huh. When did they stop fighting?'
Aiko blinked and surveyed the group. "Did I miss something?"