[CM] Yahizui Gaiden: Obedience [Itygirl]

“Well?”

“Two intruders, Lord Danzō: Itachi Uchiha of the Leaf and Kisame Hoshigaki, former swordsman of the Village Hidden in the Mist. They arrived in Konoha sometime this morning. Once discovered, Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, and Kurenai Yuhi lured them away from the public and engaged them on their own and were soundly defeated. All survived, but Kakashi appears incapacitated.”

Danzō Shimura’s jaw tightened in displeasure. Itachi’s resurfacing so soon after Hiruzen’s death could be no coincidence. Alarmed by reports of his reappearance in the heart of the village, Danzō had immediately dispatched two Root spies to solve the mystery of Itachi’s return. “Have you learned anything about their objective?”

“Yes,” the masked Root shinobi nodded once in affirmation. “We believe they are after the jinchūriki, Naruto Uzumaki. Sen is trailing them now as I report to you. However, others report that the Uzumaki child is under the Sannin, Jiraiya’s protection, so we don’t anticipate our assistance will be necessary.”

Itachi’s objective could be the jinchūriki, but Danzō doubted it. If they wanted the nine tails, the better plan would have been to lure it out of the village, not rush inside where the boy was protected and Itachi would be instantly recognized. Itachi was no fool; he knew that the moment he entered the Leaf, he would be targeted. There was no doubt; Itachi wanted to be recognized. And more likely than not, Itachi’s message was intended for him. With Hiruzen now out of the picture, he alone knew of the rogue Uchiha’s sacrifice for the village . . . and of the promise he had made to Itachi to keep his brother safe. In truth, Danzō had wanted the youngest Uchiha to perish alongside his family, but allowing the boy to live had been his one concession in the agreement. Without Hiruzen around to enforce the promise, Itachi rightfully feared that Danzō would renege.

He regretted that deal more by the minute. Impatient with the Uchiha brat’s demands, concerned for his growing threat to the Leaf Village, and outraged over the danger he posed to himself, Danzō decided it was time to remove the last Uchiha stains from the earth. But how? Danzō flexed his concealed, bandaged arm. Still stiff, his jaw clenched tighter. It made little difference anyhow. His sharingan were likely still no match for Itachi’s mastery over his own. He was not yet ready for this fight.

But if he could not engage the Uchiha, who could? Kakashi Hatake, the village’s other golden prodigy, had proven the disappointment Danzō had always suspected him to be. Few remained in the village that now held a candle to Itachi’s genius. There was a chance that Jiraiya could face the pair of trespassers, but he suspected the oaf could easily be outwitted. No, if you wanted things done right, you had to do them yourself. And in lieu of himself, he would send the next best thing. “Tell Sen to return to headquarters, and bring me Hi.” She would clean up this mess in no time.




“What happened back there, Itachi?” Kisame inquired, his unusual, bulbous eyes swiveling towards his partner. “We lost the jinchūriki. It’s unlike you to make mistakes. It leads me to wonder . . . was that on purpose?” Though Kisame awaited a response from the stoic Uchiha, he didn’t expect one. Itachi rarely revealed his motivations. “Hmph,” the missing Mist shinobi jeered after a brief silence. “It’s rude to ignore a question, Itachi. Perhaps if you were friendlier, your village would have been happier to see you. With a personality like that, I’m not surprised you have so few friends. And speaking of friends . . . it appears you have one after all. Someone is trailing us.”

“I’m aware.”

“Is that so?” Kisame grinned. “Hm . . . Samehada seems excited. What a powerful life force this one must have! Should I take care of them? You’re looking pretty beat.”

“No,” Itachi slackened his pace and leapt to the ground, “this one is for me.”

“If you insist,” Kisame landed and plopped down beside the base of the nearest tree. “But I can guarantee you that’s no well-wisher sending you off. If you need my help, I’m right here,” he said, patting the earth below him.

Positioning himself in the center of a forest clearing, Itachi readied his sharingan and carefully watched the brush around him for any sign of movement.

From above, Root shinobi Hi, formerly known as Yahizui Shourai, studied the two figures on the ground. The chakra sample her master entrusted with her unmistakably belonged to the man standing in the clearing. His chakra felt strong, but the true monster sat nearby under the brush. The sitting one must be Kisame Hoshigaki. The infamous serial killer was renowned for having one of the largest natural chakra reserves of any shinobi. She would need to take care of him first. A member of the Uzumaki clan by blood, Hi had mastered the extinct family’s sealing techniques through years of training under Danzō. Of those techniques, a chakra seal would suit this one nicely. And now, to distract the Uchiha . . .

Under normal circumstances, Itachi would have eliminated such an obvious pursuer in less than a heartbeat. But these were not ordinary circumstances. And this was no ordinary pursuer. Careful not to gaze at her directly, Itachi studied the newcomer through his peripheral vision. If her unique chakra hadn’t given her away, her poorly veiled red hair still would. This pursuer was unmistakably his childhood acquaintance, Yahizui Shourai. Had she joined Root to bring him to justice? It would appear so, judging from the organization’s mask that concealed her face. What a shame. If she attempted to stop them, he may have to kill her. And judging from the explosive tagged kunai she was about to pelt at him, that was precisely what she intended to do.

As Itachi predicted, Yahizui hurled the kunai towards him. Leaping into the air to both avoid the explosion and directly face the kunoichi, he realized instantly after that the explosions had been a distraction. So, she was going for Kisame first.

With Itachi leaping further from his teammate, Hi saw her opening. Readying her seal, she raced towards the strange, blue man at a superhuman speed. One more step and she could touch him. Extending her arms to apply the seal, Hi was suddenly propelled backwards by a forceful kick to the stomach.

“My knight in shining armor,” Kisame grunted at Itachi as the young shinobi returned to his side. Unperturbed by the appearance of their attacker or her attempt to seal away his chakra, Kisama stretched and further relaxed against the tree.

“You don’t have to help me, Kisame, but you could at least help yourself,” Itachi muttered.

“Itachi Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigaki. Root has designated you S-rank threats to the Village Hidden in the Leaf. I will deal with you accordingly,” the kunoichi droned emotionlessly, unsheathing a katana from her side.

“Yahizui. You’ve changed.” Rather than entrap her within his genjutsu immediately, Itachi continued to study her with his peripheral vision. This was indeed Yahizui, but something seemed off about her.

“You are mistaken, Uchiha. I am known as Hi.”

“You were never ‘Hi’ to me.”

“I have never met you.”

Understanding dawned on him. She had forgotten her identity. Or rather, Danzō’s influence had made her forget. Beneath his cool mask, rage surged through Itachi’s veins. The sole purpose of his homecoming to the Leaf had been to remind Danzō of his existence and to protect his younger brother. Assured that his actions there had delivered the message, Itachi fled feeling relieved that Sasuke was safe. But he had been a fool. Even with Sasuke’s protection secure, of course Danzō would find new ways to wound him, this time through his childhood friend. It would be best to kill her, but he could not let this go. He would not allow Danzō to use Yahizui as he had used him. Already weakened from using his mangekyō sharingan one time that day, Itachi decided it was still worth the effort if it could help Yahizui remember who she was. Gathering his chakra in preparation for the technique, Itachi at last raised his eyes to her own.

Hi froze as Itachi’s red irises and black pupils filled her vision. Somewhere in the back of her mind, a heavy weight suddenly lifted, the sensation causing her to gasp as her lungs suddenly seemed starved for oxygen. Countless visions flashed before her eyes, and the echoes of vaguely familiar voices reverberated in her ears.

"Why would you do this, Itachi? How could you kill them?"

“Consider my offer, Yahizui . . . With just one little seal, Root could make all your pain disappear . . .”

“ . . . I would like to be friends.”

Suddenly, Yahizui remembered her name. And soon after, she remembered his too. “Itachi!” she gasped, before sinking to the ground into an overwhelmed oblivion.

“What a lady killer you are!” Kisame roared, lifting himself from his seat and joining Itachi beside the unconscious girl. “Did you even have a chance to use your genjutsu?”

“No,” Itachi replied. He hadn’t needed to. And yet, something he’d done had freed Yahizui from Danzō’s influence. Could it have been his sharingan? An ocular trigger could free her from the effects of a seal if Yahizui had had the wherewithal to place an additional seal upon herself at the time of Danzō’s technique. And as a talented member of the Uzumaki clan, Itachi had no doubts she had. Well done, Yahizui, he smiled inwardly and knelt beside her. You saved yourself with quick thinking. I’m proud of you.

“Well?” A wide grin of cruel anticipation stretched across Kisame’s face, revealing his rows of jagged shark teeth. “Are you going to finish her off? Or shall I?”

“No. Pick her up and take her with us,” Itachi ordered. “Her Root intelligence may prove useful.” Itachi took one last moment to caress the young woman’s face and tuck a strand of loose, crimson hair behind her ear before handing her to Kisame. While Sasuke was now safe from Danzō, Yahizui was not. He could not allow her to live with her free will intact. Taking the young woman with them was not ideal, but for now, she was safest by his side. And if he was honest with himself, he had to admit he wanted her there anyway.