The Prospect (Patreon)

Naruto shifted uncomfortably in his seat as Tsunade outlined her plan.

He frowned. "So, you want me to proctor the Chunin Exams? Why me?"

Tsunade looked down at him. "It will give you some experience, and you're on good terms with the Kazekage."

"But the final exams will be held here in Konoha. Only the first two phases will be in the Sand Village," Naruto reasoned. "It wouldn't make much of a difference."

"It would. You're seen as a trusted ally of the Sand Village. Having you proctor the last phase would prevent any feelings of being wronged if none of their shinobi make it to the final rounds," Tsunade explained.

"What about Shikamaru? He's the official host or something to the Sand," Naruto asked.

"He's an emissary to Suna. And yes, he would have been a better choice, but he isn't close with Gaara. Honestly, it's hard enough to make him perform his duties as it is," Tsunade sighed.

"You're the Hokage, Baa-chan. Nothing should be hard for you," Naruto quipped.

"That Nara friend of yours gives solid arguments for his laziness, and it's quite tiring to deal with him and his father," Tsunade said, placing her cup of sake on the table as she resumed her pacing.

"So you want to present me as a showpiece then," Naruto said, the thought suddenly dawning on him. "Wasn't the whole reason for my trip to keep my identity protected?"

Tsunade smirked. "You were a brat back then; now you're a jonin of the village. You defeated Deidara. I don't think you need saving from much. And with shinobi from two villages present, it's highly unlikely that the Akatsuki would dare to intervene."

"Two villages? The exam is open for all, isn't it?" Naruto asked.

"Kumo and Iwa rarely send their genin to Suna and Konoha. The situation in Kiri is unknown, with a civil war still in motion," Tsunade said. "So, normally it's just Suna and Konoha, with a few small villages joining in."

Naruto nodded, his mind drifting to the last message Jiraiya had sent. The lair of Orochimaru he'd been investigating had shown recent activity. There were tales that Kabuto Yakushi had been injured and the lair had been burned down.

The latter was a rumor, however, as Jiraiya had personally seen the bunker still intact. There had also been reports of a red-haired female seen roaming the Land of Hot Springs. An Uzumaki, if Jiraiya's guess was correct.

"So, you'll proctor the last stage. That's final. I'm adding your name to the staff list," she said, cutting through his thoughts.

Naruto simply nodded, already lost in his musings once more.

Sasuke raged, unable to destroy any furniture because of their already precarious position.

The scrolls liberated by Karin held truly shocking knowledge. The experiments were detailed, and Sasuke now understood how the Sannin had effortlessly cloned Ototane.

"Relax, Sasuke. We're out of there, and we'll never return if it's up to us. Not even the fear of death will force me back into his service," Karin said, rubbing his cheek with her thumb.

Sasuke inhaled. They had reached the Land of Waves by ship. He had been strategic enough to take over a warehouse as a temporary residence, far from Tazuna's house.

He didn't know if the old bridge builder was in contact with Naruto or Konoha, and risking their location would only bring the Black Ops to them. While he could handle the fight, it would surely attract attention, and he wanted to avoid Orochimaru at any cost.

Furthermore, he was sure he could get some jobs here.

The Land of Waves was once part of Uzushio territory, under the protection of the Uzukage. The destruction of the village had harmed the country, forcing them to reach out to different hidden villages for missions. With his group here, he could carry out missions. Disguises were not his specialty, but Ototane knew enough to manage.

Speaking of his three companions, Suigetsu was asleep somewhere, and while Jugo had woken up yesterday, he was still under the influence of a potent drug Orochimaru had given him.

Jugo respected him; he was one of the few who could control his senjutsu form, and his Sharingan gave him an upper hand.

And Ototane, the large man, was out fishing. It was as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders as soon as he was free of Orochimaru's influence. The man had never been kind to any of them; they had all suffered differently under him.

The gates opened, and Sasuke tensed, but upon seeing the white-blond hair, he relaxed. Ototane dropped a basket full of fish, hanging his haori on a broken ledge.

"The crowd out there is chaotic. I fished and sold some of it. I saved enough for the five of us, but we need money," he sighed, kicking Suigetsu, who groaned before falling back to sleep. He then stomped on his hand, and Suigetsu shot up, groggily throwing a punch that hit Ototane's knees.

"Hey, what the hell, big man? What's the big idea kicking me like that?" Suigetsu slurred.

"Cook the fish," Ototane said, dropping into a cross-legged position.

"Do I look like a chef to you?" Suigetsu snarked, standing up.

"Far from it," Ototane scoffed. "But you cook the best fish out of all of us."

Suigetsu grumbled, picking up the fish basket.

"We need missions, Sasuke. And we won't get them until we stop hiding like this. Our only other option was Kiri, which as of right now is out of the civil war," Ototane said.

"Truly? Who's the new Kage then?" Karin asked curiously.

"Terumi Mei, the leader of the rebel forces," Ototane said.

"Our way out of the Land of Waves is compromised then," Sasuke said.

"We can still sneak in; the village is still in a precarious position," Suigetsu said, lighting a fire in the corner.

"And on high alert. We'll be found easily and captured, if not killed outright. I don't trust those fishy people," Karin bit back.

Suigetsu wanted to protest, but he couldn't. The Village Hidden in the Mist was known for its ruthless and bloodthirsty shinobi.

After all, it was on a whim that the Fourth Mizukage had started the Bloody Mist era, and thousands had suffered. Even before that, the village had a tarnished reputation

Hinata watched her sister, who had just disabled another member of the branch house. Hanabi was ruthless and more focused than her, at least in taijutsu.

Hinata's fuinjutsu progress was unprecedented; Naruto was truly a master of the art. He knew three styles by heart, could use two of them, and was incredibly good at it. Hinata knew her sister was skilled enough to give every member of her clan a run for their money, even their father, who was boasted as one of the most skilled in the clan's history.

Hinata shook those thoughts from her mind, refocusing on the spars. Neji was on the other side of the hall, practicing his katas on a dummy. Except for her father, only a few members would approach him for spars.

A prodigy of the clan's taijutsu style, he was hailed as a master of the Gentle Fist. She looked at him for a second before shaking her head. She had loved him like a brother, but his actions at the Chunin Exams had stripped him of that affection.

Hinata shifted, her gaze on the deep cream linen kimono that Hiashi wore. She glanced at him as he signaled for her to move closer to the sparring rings. Hinata used an unconventional style, and the Hyuga were wary of her for it.

Nobody wanted to see her mix the Gentle Fist with fuinjutsu, believing the style was already perfect as it was. Hinata disagreed; she could numb someone without causing much pain. Pain was not a factor when she mixed fuinjutsu with the Gentle Fist, as small, miniscule chakra papers with paralysis seals on them were enough. She sighed, knowing the next fight would be hers.

"Heiress Hinata, please come forward," one of the elders said as respectfully as she could.

Hinata walked to the center, shedding her half-jacket to reveal a black, form-fitting, half-sleeved tee shirt and light lavender trousers.

"Himari of the branch family, please come forward." A girl who looked only thirteen came to the center.

"Demonstrate how you would disable her," an elder said, a sharp glint in her eyes.

Hinata nodded, taking her stance. She didn't wait for the girl to move. She moved inside Himari's guard effortlessly and started with the Sixty-Four Palms. There was no need to go all out on her; the girl was just a kid.

She quickly shifted to her utility belt, and her fingers now had sticky white seals on them, three on each finger. Any more than that would be overkill.

She ducked under a palm strike to the shoulder and delivered a strike to the girl's collarbone, right in the middle, then just beneath her breasts, followed by strikes to each side of the waist, and finally to her knees. Hinata moved back, forming a hand sign, and the girl crumbled like a sack of potatoes.

The fight was over in a few moments. The elder's jaw was slacked, and she was gritting her teeth. Such a bastardization of their clan's legacy was an insult to their traditions, but Hinata was the heiress and a firm one at that.

Still, some held back their reservations, especially for the heiress. Yuka Hyuga wasn't one of them, though. She was an outspoken lady and a staunch supporter of the old ways.

"You could have used the Gentle Fist by itself to disable her," the woman said.

Hinata looked at her, clearly displeased. "And hurt her? I would not. She is a clansmate, not an enemy."

"You can't show mercy on a battlefield," the elder said, looking thunderous.

"We're lucky it's not a battlefield, then, aren't we?" Hinata asked, nonplussed.

She had been fearful of the elders when she was a kid. As she grew up and they forced her to be more "Hyuga," she had buckled. Fuinjutsu had been a nice way out, a personal art that nobody would pressure her into or out of.

Then, she had learned a few combat and barrier jutsu. Bravely, she had integrated them into her fighting style. She had been frowned upon, but with no savior, no golden hero to protect her, she had adapted and persevered.

"You'll look weak as an heiress. Other clans would laugh," the elder gritted her teeth.

Hinata raised a brow. Her recent training under Naruto had given her much confidence and a boost to her skills. "Weak? You think I am weak?" she asked, a smirk on her face. "I have been chosen to be trained by one of Konoha's rising fuinjutsu masters, and you consider me weak?" Hinata said in a low voice, never raising it.

"He did it out of pity. The Uzumaki brat is as weak as you are," she said, and Hiashi looked sharply at her.

Hiashi knew what the whispers were out there: the boy was favored by the Hokage and Toad Sage. Two of the Legendary Three. The boy had killed Deidara of the Explosion Release and was said to be on par with the Copy Ninja, truth or not most didn't care.

"Hold your tongue, Hyuga Yuka," Hiashi said sternly.

"No, let her. If she thinks I am weak, then she's allowed to pit an able Hyuga against me," Hinata said confidently.

Yuka looked at her as if she were a child daring to rise against her. "I don't need a patron. I will test you myself," the woman said, walking up to the center.

Despite some gray hairs, Yuka wasn't that old; she was almost the same age as Hiashi, who was nowhere past his prime.

Hinata stood against her as another elder came to act as a referee for their spar. Yuka took her stance, pulling her right leg back, her torso tight, her palms open and facing Hinata, one behind the other.

Hinata moved first, knowing Yuka would use the Thirty-Two Palms. With her Byakugan active, she dodged the first palm, ducked under the second, dodged the third, side-stepped the fourth, redirected the next, dodged again, and continued on.

Her movements weren't too fast but were erratic and unorthodox. She had seen these moves since childhood and had learned them before she could even write. Yuka grew frustrated as the spar progressed, her movements becoming more rapid and desperate to hit Hinata.

Hinata caught the thirty-second palm strike, her right hand going numb, but with her left hand, she struck a seal on Yuka's kimono. "Fuinjutsu: Second Gravity!" Yuka buckled under her own weight, a look of shock adorning her face.

Hinata didn't give her a chance to recover, delivering a palm strike of her own to the elder's forehead, knocking her down.

The dojo was silent as a graveyard; you could have heard a hairpin drop on the mat. Hinata had rarely shown such ruthlessness and flexibility. Everybody knew she was a capable shinobi; her rank as a chunin proved it. But her efficiency with seals and her ability to dodge the Gentle Fist was eye-opening to many.

"Winner, Hyuga Hinata," the elder functioning as the referee said hesitantly, looking down at an unconscious Yuka Hyuga.

Kabuto's legs trembled as he hung from the wall. The grip on his neck was firm, and Orochimaru's mismatched eyes were wide with rage.

"You mean to say that they escaped? I left this facility in your care, and under your surveillance, they escaped!" Orochimaru hissed, his Sharingan swirling.

Kabuto choked. "They... they overwhelmed me, Orochimaru-sama."

Orochimaru scowled. "Do you understand the blunder you've caused? Do you know their value?"

"I apologize, Orochimaru-sama, but Ototane and Sasuke cornered me. They surprised me," Kabuto said, choking on his words.

Orochimaru screamed, throwing him onto his bed. "You fool! Uchiha Sasuke was the key to subduing Itachi—a buffer against the Akatsuki! Now I'll have to deal with Pain."

"You've already caused one blunder; your contact in the Akatsuki, that puppet boy, is dead. And now you've lost them—not only Sasuke but Karin and Ototane, too," Orochimaru said, pacing the room.

"They overpowered me. I wasn't ready for a rebellion," Kabuto said, his voice quiet enough that only Orochimaru could hear.

Orochimaru looked sharply at him, his hand twitching. "Overpowered you? What are you, a green genin? I made sure you were trained, equipped, and skilled enough to guard this facility."

Kabuto looked down. "Not only did they escape, they destroyed the experiment facility and the papers."

Kabuto correctly assessed that Orochimaru was livid enough.

"Send the Sound Four after them! I want them tracked, Kabuto. Tap your contacts; I'll do the same with mine," Orochimaru commanded, walking out of his chamber with a scowl etched on his face.

He understood the cost of this escape. Sasuke was collateral against Itachi. By not killing the boy and taking over his body, Orochimaru had ensured he didn't give Itachi a reason to hunt him down.

Karin was one of the last Uzumaki with pure blood. Her chakra density matched that of a jinchuriki, and her life force was exceptionally strong. Her potential—both her chakra and blood—was nearly limitless for his experiments. His own body was proof of that.

And Ototane was a perfect weapon, a shinobi with great potential who could even dwarf Jiraiya with proper tutelage. Orochimaru reckoned his teammate would be happy to know about the boy, after all, he was something of a son to Tsunade. The already dwindled Senju clan did have an heir now—an heir Orochimaru was keeping as a bargaining chip.

Losing them would be detrimental to his reputation and experiments.

"You want me to teach you about proctoring an exam?" Kakashi eyed Naruto, a single eyebrow raised in disbelief above his visible eye.

Naruto nodded, his face uncharacteristically solemn.

Kakashi looked up at the sky, as if for guidance, then back at his former student. He rubbed the back of his head. "I have never proctored," he admitted.

"Never?!" Naruto squawked, his solemn expression dissolving into utter astonishment. "Not even once?!"

Kakashi nodded slowly. "Never. Hokage-sama always said it wasn't necessary for me."

"Hokage-sama?" Naruto's eyes narrowed mischievously. "You mean Lady Tsunade? What did she say, exactly?" he pushed, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"None of your business, Naruto," Kakashi said with a smirk of his own. "Proctoring is for green jonin, the ones who need to feel important. I'm a veteran. I get the real missions."

"Oh yeah?" Naruto scoffed, "That's not what Shizune told me! She said Lady Tsunade thought your judging criteria would be... 'unconventional'."

Kakashi's visible eye twitched. "Unconventional?" he repeated, a threatening smile on his face that Naruto missed.

"Yeah! Something about how you'd give the person who showed up last an automatic A for 'strategic timing' and the ones who were on time a fail for 'lacking proper preparation for traffic'," Naruto said, mimicking Shizune's prim tone. "And that you'd probably just sit on top of the arena reading Icha Icha and not even pay attention."

"That's a gross exaggeration!" Kakashi protested, though a faint blush crept onto his cheeks. "I would've used an advanced clone to read. The original would have been observing."

"See! You just proved her point!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger. "And she said that if she let you near the Forest of Death, the entire exam would devolve into a competition of who could pull the most outrageous pranks on you!"

Kakashi crossed his arms, huffing. "That's ridiculous. I'm a sensible, responsible shinobi."

Just then, a messenger bird landed on Kakashi's shoulder with a scroll. He took it, scanned it, and then his gaze flickered towards Naruto with a knowing smirk. "Well, well, well," Kakashi drawled, a distinct amusement in his voice. "It seems Hokage-sama has assigned your first task in preparing for your proctoring duties."

Naruto puffed out his chest. "Alright! What is it? A secret strategy meeting? A high-level intel gathering mission?"

Kakashi unfolded the scroll further, his smirk widening. "Not exactly. It seems, Uzumaki Naruto," he read aloud, barely containing his laughter, "'as a demonstration of humility and respect for the tradition of the exams, you are hereby tasked with personally sweeping the entirety of the arena floor. Report to Ibiki Morino for your assigned cleaning implements. Consider it… foundational preparation.'"

Kakashi watched with thinly veiled amusement as Naruto's jaw dropped, his face transitioning through a spectrum of disbelief, outrage, and utter humiliation. "Sweep?! Me?! Uaumaki Naruto? Sweep a floor?!" Naruto sputtered, his voice cracking.

Kakashi simply shrugged, leaning against a nearby tree. "Hey, someone's gotta do it. And apparently, Hokage-sama believes it's a crucial step on your path to becoming a responsible exam proctor. Maybe she thinks you need to learn the importance of a clean workspace. You know, for… strategic dust removal during intense genjutsu battles?"

Naruto groaned, collapsing to his knees. "This is worse than being chased by Tsunade-baa-chan after I painted the Hokage Rock!"

Kakashi chuckled, his single visible eye crinkling in amusement. "Don't worry, Naruto. I'll supervise… from a safe, dust-free distance. Perhaps I'll even bring my Icha Icha to provide… intellectual support during this arduous task."

Naruto cried silent tears of despair.

Itachi stood back as Hidan and Kakuzu dragged in Nii Yugito, the host of the Two-Tails. They had been given the task after Deidara and Sasori had failed in their mission and died in the process. The immortal duo had done their job excellently.

While Pain had initially planned to use the Gedo Statue in the same cave where she was captured, after the death of their two comrades, he didn't want to take any more risks.

So, here he was with Kisame and other members of the Akatsuki, while Pain stood on a raised platform, eyeing the subdued Jinchuriki. Killing the host was strictly forbidden, as it would kill the beast too. The Tailed Beast's reformation would take a few years, a luxury they didn't have.

"Here, the bitch is caught. Hidan almost killed her, but I stopped him. She didn't even have a big bounty to risk that," Kakuzu said, eyeing Pain.

Hidan was bloodthirsty and zealous. His religion and his god required sacrifices, which the man was too eager to provide. Pain had warned Hidan a few times, but the man was immortal and rarely feared anyone.

Pain's fingers twitched, a sign of his displeasure. Itachi couldn't fault the man; controlling these S-rank shinobi was like herding children. They squabbled, argued, and were as arbitrary as their leader.

"You'll be rewarded handsomely, Kakuzu," Pain's deep voice announced as he walked toward the subdued Jinchuriki.

"What about me, huh? I subdued that bitch! I'm the one with the claw marks, not this heretic glutton," Hidan shouted, placing his scythe on the ground.

Pain looked up, his Rinnegan eyes sharp. "Shut up."

"Summoning Jutsu: Gedo Mazo!" he yelled, placing his hand on the ground.

The entity that rose wasn't an animal. It was a massive statue, made of what looked like clay but was as hard as rock. There were several spike-like protrusions from its back, and its eyes were covered by a white cloth. It roared as it emerged.

"Take your places," Pain ordered, taking a spot on one of its fingers.

The extraction process was slow and took multiple days. The seals on the jinchuriki were a complex art to unravel. None of them were masters of fuinjutsu, but the Rinnegan made it easy for Pain to do just that.

Itachi took his place. Konan had retrieved the Akatsuki rings from Deidara and Sasori's bodies, though how, God only knew. He reckoned she must have used a paper clone, as those explosive clones were quite useful.

The process went on with few grumblings, mainly from Hidan and Kisame, the two brave enough to mutter curses.

Three days later, Itachi slid into his bed, exhausted from the amount of chakra and energy the process had consumed. His eyes closed, and sleep instantly claimed him.

The next morning, he had just ended his shurikenjutsu training session when Kisame joined him.

"Leader-sama has given us a new mission. It seems a few birds have escaped the grasp of Orochimaru. Talented birds; he wants to recruit them," Kisame said with a smirk.

Itachi looked up at him, his gaze sharp. Did he now? He was surprised. Sasuke had spent three years in that village, under the thumb of the snake. He had thought the boy would remain with Orochimaru for a few more years.

But no. And what interest could Pain have in them? He doubted Sasuke was skilled enough to replace Deidara and Sasori yet.

Itachi wasn't blind to his potential, but he knew that having potential and reaching it were two very different things. After all, he was one of the few Uchiha who had reached his potential and exceeded it, if only the curse hadn't followed his progress.

Could Pain be suspicious of his motives? No, that couldn't be right. He was sure his charade was still in place. Pain was not known to be merciful.

Perhaps he wanted both of the surviving Uchiha under his thumb. Unfortunately for him, Itachi didn't want that. Sasuke was his redemption; the boy was supposed to avenge the Uchiha, not get stuck here.

And what was the boy doing? With him free, Itachi had expected him to follow and track him down to kill him. But the boy had vanished like a ghost. Who could he be fearful of? Itachi? No. Orochimaru? Perhaps.

There were whispers in the air if one was willing to listen: Orochimaru's quest for immortality was quenched by an experiment, and his physical appearance was different. What had the Snake Sannin done to make Sasuke fear him? Itachi needed to know.

Orochimaru's leverage against him had escaped, and the hawk was back on the hunt, with a snake as its primary target. The old Sannin was stupid to let his younger brother escape.

"We'll track them and their former mentor," Itachi said.

Kisame looked confused. "But Leader-sama only wants them, not Orochimaru."

Itachi shook his head. "Orochimaru has done something grave enough to make them escape, for him to run off."

Kisame frowned. "And how is that any concern of ours, Itachi?"

Itachi looked at him for a second. "Because he's a deserter. If he's gained such power that made my brother run with his tail tucked between his legs, then it must be something monumental."

"And?" Kisame prompted.

"It could potentially hamper Leader-sama's campaign. I'm not telling you to kill him, just to track him down and observe him for us," Itachi reasoned.

Kisame thought for a moment before nodding. "Sounds fine. We'll move out tomorrow, to the Land of Rice Fields."

Itachi nodded and entered his room to take a shower. Kisame, meanwhile, settled down to sharpen his Samehada, a shark-like grin stretching across his face. This wasn't just a mission; it was a chance to test his blade against a legend.

Sasuke eyed the man thoughtfully, while Karin curled beside him with her eyes closed. "We are to guard a cargo to your country? How many of us do you require?"

The man looked at Ototane, the large man who had asked the question. "Two will be enough. I'll pay for a B-rank mission, standard fee."

Karin glanced at Sasuke with a questioning look in her eyes. "We'll do it," Sasuke replied.

Suigetsu nodded as Sasuke accepted the mission. "Suigetsu and I will take the mission. Ototane, you'll stay here on the guarding mission."

The week-long guarding mission was a blessing in disguise; Ototane's tall stature had appealed to the employer, who had paid them handsomely.

"What about me? I'll be left here alone," Karin asked.

"Rent a house on the outskirts. It'll be our base. This hellhole is quite uncomfortable," Sasuke grunted.

Ototane nodded, handing her enough money to rent a modest house in town. They had chosen him as their treasurer because he was the most frugal and knew how to manage their finances.

"Tomorrow morning, at the port," the man said, exiting the warehouse.

"It'll take you a week to reach the Land of Tea and then a week to return," Karin said, looking at him sadly. He smiled at her, and a quick peck on her lips erased the pout she was showing.

"We will be paid handsomely, Karin. We can manage a few weeks of distance, but a few weeks of hunger would drive us mad," Ototane said, standing up. It was time to get back to his guarding mission.

"He's an idiot, but he's right about this," Suigetsu said, pointing over his shoulder at Ototane, who was now out of the warehouse.

Jugo, as always, was sleeping, knocked out by a drug prepared by Karin at his own request. Sasuke didn't feel right doing it, but Jugo didn't trust that Karin could control him. She could, Sasuke knew.

She would wake him up when they needed to move houses. Then, if he wanted, she would knock him out again. Jugo was a silent companion, more interactive with birds and other creatures.

"Well, I'd better cook the soup and rice. It's my turn to cook today," Karin said, standing and stretching her limbs before lazily walking to a corner where they had placed a stove and water containers.

Sasuke stood up too, signaling for Suigetsu to follow him. It wouldn't do any good to neglect their training and let their skills grow rusty. That would make it far too easy for Orochimaru to track and subdue them.

They started with taijutsu, which soon transformed into a kenjutsu bout. The clashing of their blades echoed through the clearing for the next two hours. A few Katon and Suiton jutsu were thrown around as supplements. Sasuke had always been good at Katon, though not as good as Itachi.

Sasuke stopped in his tracks. It had been months since he had last thought of his brother. It seemed the struggle for survival had made his anger fade. The fire of revenge was now buried beneath his worry for his own survival, for Karin, and for his friends.

Living under Orochimaru's thumb had made him far more docile. He hadn't thought of revenge for quite some time. He still thought about his mother, loving and caring as she was, and his father, the strict man who had cared for him in his own way.

Itachi had once been his role model. He had loved his brother with all his heart.

Maybe he still did, but it was overshadowed by the anger he felt. An anger that was of no use to him now. His survival, and that of his friends, was far more important.

Sasuke looked down at his prosthetic fingers, severed by Orochimaru as a twisted consequence of ensuring Karin wasn't raped. Orochimaru had always been cruel, or so Kakashi had claimed.

He hadn't trusted Kakashi's word, choosing to believe the man simply wanted him to be weak and easily controllable. What an idiot he had been. The scrolls confirmed his suspicions, but his own bitter experience had cleared that fog long ago.

Had Itachi ever truly loved him? Sasuke doubted it. He had been goaded into leaving the village, and though staying might have weakened him, at least he wouldn't have suffered for so many years under Orochimaru's thumb.

He placed the twin katanas on the ground, his haori soon followed, and then his trousers. The warm water of the spring released the tension in his muscles. Maybe I should bring Karin here; she would love it.

He loved her; that had become clear a while back. It started when he saved her, and continued as he taught her taijutsu. Her kenjutsu was her own, as was her limited fuinjutsu. He had heard that Naruto excelled at it now.

It had been years since he had seen the blonde idiot. He had felt a sort of kinship with him: both were orphans, the last of their clans, with nobody to turn to. Maybe he should have opened up to him, but he didn't.

The boy wasn't chasing him, just as he had promised. Just as Sasuke was not chasing Itachi, for he had made a promise to him as well.

But he couldn't abandon Karin. She had endured so much during their time together, too much for a sole man to handle. He had suffered, too, but as a man, he was expected to swallow it and pretend everything was fine. Just as Kakashi had, all those years ago.

Sasuke smirked sadly. He had been punished. Punished enough for his sins, but life was never fair. So here he was, hiding and struggling for survival.

Closing his eyes, he thought about his Curse Mark, a conundrum that Karin was too scared to touch, fearing backlash and more. Perhaps Naruto could solve it, or perhaps not; who could say for sure?

He couldn't reach him, though. The boy he had left behind to die was a far cry from the man he had become. The genin Naruto Uzumaki was boisterous, but kind and good of heart.

The whispers he heard about Naruto the jonin, however, sent a shiver down his spine. With missions involving assassination and sabotage under his belt, the man was said to be a fuinjutsu master and was even rumored to be responsible for Deidara's death.

No, he couldn't face him. He had no doubt he could take on the boy. Orochimaru had been cruel, but not useless.

Sasuke now had a strong summoning contract, mastery in taijutsu and kenjutsu, and a number of potent jutsu under his belt. He didn't even count the new forms his Sharingan could take.

Despite this he didn't want yo face naruto, he could hold him down but not defeat him conclusively.

"He's escaped?" Danzo asked the agent he had sent to keep track of Orochimaru.

"Hai, Danzo-sama," the agent replied. "Him and three others: the Uzumaki, the Senju clone, and a water specialist."

Danzo gritted his teeth. Could he ever truly trust Orochimaru to do his job efficiently? Years ago, his incompetence had put Danzo and his Foundation under scrutiny, nearly shutting it down. And now this—these valuable hostages had escaped.

But Danzo paused for a moment to think. They had escaped Orochimaru, not him. He could still reach out to them, perhaps offering them asylum. Danzo drummed his fingers against his leg, his mind concocting a plan.

"Bring me Torune," he ordered.

The agent nodded, vanishing with a seamless Shunshin.

A few moments later, the Aburame appeared. "You called me, Danzo-sama?"

"You have a mission. Uchiha Sasuke and a few of his companions have escaped Orochimaru. I want them tracked. Get Crab and start searching," Danzo commanded. "When you find them, you are not to harm them but to offer them asylum."

Torune nodded. "By your leave, Danzo-sama."

"And remember, Torune, I don't tolerate failure," he said.

The boy nodded and vanished.

Satisfied with his agents, Danzo walked to his room, his mind elsewhere. If he could capture Sasuke Uchiha, he would have leverage against Itachi. The traitor had the gall to threaten him with the village's secrets, but his younger brother was his weakness, and getting to him would be easy.

The Uzumaki was also a valuable asset. While Danzo had not been directly involved in their extermination, he had always wanted a shinobi skilled in fuinjutsu and chakra chains. The chains of the previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki were incredibly sturdy and robust, able to hold down the Nine-Tails even when she was weakened beyond her limits.

Although Hiruzen had denied him a jinchuriki, with an Uzumaki under his control, he could create his own. Additionally, the current jinchuriki was an emotional fool, and Danzo was sure he could use the girl to control the boy.

The Senju clone could be used as leverage against Tsunade. While it was risky to bring him into the village while he still lived, it could only benefit Danzo's plans. Tsunade was growing bolder every day, and he didn't want to suffer another Minato.

Danzo knew he would also have to contend with Orochimaru. While they no longer had a partnership, he believed he could manage the situation. Orochimaru was gullible enough, if a bit too rabid for his liking.

The Sharingan beneath his bandages swirled in delight as Danzo considered his prospects, which seemed to improve with each passing day.

Disclaimer: All rights are reserved for Masashi Kishimoto.