Ch 10 The Betrayer

Danzo, the wind that hears every whisper and the current that carries conspiracy, sat in his room drinking tea. His shadow cast from a small oil lamp engulfed the room, hiding his other shadows in its cape. He drank his tea in silence, and not even his own body dared disturb the eerie song of quietude.

"Withdraw our people watching the Hidden Sand delegation, station them near Hidden Rain's. We must not scare the rats with our presence."

"Yes, sir."

"Has the boy taken the bait?"

"Yes sir, last morning. He had a chance encounter with Masaru Chiba in his favourite shop. The genins hit it off. Now they're ready to take the exam together."

"What of the other one?"

"The boy asked for help from an old acquaintance before Masaru could suggest someone else for their team."

"Hmmm, who was it? Did you not make sure no genin was interested in forming a team with him?"

"No active genin was, sir."

"Active? Ah, so the boy can be unpredictable. Good. Make sure Hiruzen is not aware of our little dance. That boy is an important asset."

"As you command, sir."

Silence engulfed the room again, disturbed only by the movement of Danzo's finger on the rough pages of a report from his shadow.

So we failed to locate Higuchi Megumi, again. We must set a new trap for her, time for action is nigh, and room for mistake none. With this gamble, Konoha will have a secured future, under my command.

Aki Tsuchisaru, one of the key pieces of Danzo's plan for Konoha, was eating breakfast in the Hotaru eatery. His teammates Masaru Chiba and Yasuo Onida sat opposite to him, getting to know each-other, three days before a team-based exam. Totally ideal conditions.

"Grandpa Onida, what do you think of the buns here? They're good, right?"

"Not as good as my wife used to make them."

"Didn't she run away with your neighbour?"

"Used to, Aki, I said used to, focus on the past tense here."

"You remember things from a century ago? But your daughter said you have Alzheimers."

"She is my new wife!"

"So you have Alzheimers?" Masaru asked.

It was perhaps the first sentence Masaru had spoken since they'd come here. The thin raven haired teen was a silent and mindful person, making it easy for others to ignore him. It was hardly a surprise for Aki when Onida gave the teen a confused look.

"Who are you, young lady? There is no reason for you to butt in our conversation."

The heat of shame on Masaru's face was so strong that the blush of it was visible on his tanned skin.

"Tsuchisaru-san, perhaps we should reconsider our third teammate again? We might not even pass the first stage if this bag of fossils is with us."

"This bag of fossil is a twenty time participant of chunin exams–"

"–From the war era." Yasuo Onida added.

"Yes, from the war era. That makes him an asset, plus he owes me money–"

"–Your grandfather, I owe him tuition fees for my apprenticeship."

"That's a lot of money. Think of inflation Grandpa Onida. You're older than the village, right?"

"I'm fifty!" Yasuo Onida barked, splitting his dentures in a coughing fit.

Masaru raised an eyebrow at the scene, tilting his head towards Aki, as if asking him 'see that?'. Aki pointed his fingers at old Yasuo's arms, forcing the older teen to see and recognise the strength lying dormant in the old blacksmith's hands. So what if Yasuo was getting a little addled? He was still a veteran of two wars.

"It is time for my post nap rest. You kids carry on." Yasuo said. "Aki, don't sit on the toilet for longer than ten minutes. It causes haemorrhoids. Masako eat some fat, young men like girls with some girth."

"–I know Grandpa Onida. Goodbye!"

"-I'm a boy, old man!"

"Leave him be, he'll be alright. He is tougher than he looks." Aki said, consoling Masaru.

"That's not saying much." Masaru said, remembering the saggy wrinkled skin, liver spots and weak backed old man. "Watever, I should leave too. We will meet in the evening for a joint training session. Same place?"

"Absolutely."

"Good, see you–ah, you're going to eat all that food?"

Aki gave a nod, proceeding to shove down the food covering the table in his mouth. His black left earring turned back into Dan. The Black marten in white haori and yellow shades melted into the shadows of the restaurant, then swam through the network of them chasing after Masaru.

"You really don't trust anyone, do you?" Gin asked, poking his head from Aki's haori jacket.

"He is just too damn accommodating."

"People can be nice. Unlike you. I have not had a good smoke or alcohol for two days. A kind person would take pity and send some change my way."

"We are broke."

"You're broke."

"Yes, genius, that makes us both."

Aki performed Ninja-Art Ukemochi's Blessing on himself, finishing every little thing on the table, and left for his house. In the last three days, he had used his morning training time with Dan to meditate and learn words with his chakra. He still could not read the visual letters, but his physical senses could pick over a hundred Kanji letters. That was an improvement.

Today, however, his training partner was Gin, who had set up his apparatus in the forge of their home. The projector shot light through the black lens of Gin's glass, which was later filtered by an indigo film before hitting the screen made of a white futon.

"Today we will cover the cost of our contract."

"Gin, I told you I was broke."

"Don't you remember, idiot? The cost of the contract is not chakra, nor blood, neither is it your soul. It is the promise of recompense, repent and redemption."

"What does that even mean?"

"That is what we are going to learn today." Gin said, pointing with a stick on the futon screen. "For that, we must first know about Al-I-Ra."

"I'm all ears."

A hand drawn picture of a white planet and its thirteen colourful moon appeared on the white futon. Each of the thirteen moons revolved in a different orbit around the white giant, the path of their orbit being shown with dotted lines of different colours.

Long ago, when there was nothing but natural calamities on the white titan Al-I-Ra, life took its first breath on its thirteen jewels simultaneously. Aeons passed, and the white titan remained a home to raging calamities, but its thirteen jewels had bred life-forms capable of forming society. Simultaneously.

"Who is doing the voiceovers, Gin?"

"Shh, kid. Just listen."

Life on the thirteen jewels gave birth to thirteen empires, ruled by thirteen families of great renown, guided under the thirteen wise-ones. None of them had anything in common except Al-I-Ra. From the moment any life drew its breath, it knew where its home was, Al-I-Ra, the land of the lost.

"How is that even possible? I mean, if Al-I-Ra was all but a ball of disaster, how could it be home?"

"That is how things were, and still are."

Ages passed, life continued, then… then… something happened… something we can't name yet… was it reckoning?...or was it salvation? Whatever it was, it was a change like nothing the jewels had ever seen. There was life on Al-I-Ra, living in the heart of destruction. It was life like none of the Jewellers had seen, bi-pedals with no furs and claws, soft skins and with abhorrent lack of VIRYA.

"Hey, they're kind of like us… they're humans!" Aki said. "And what is virya?"

"The local term of energy. These people could not manipulate their physical or mental energies to do things. They were…"

"Normal?"

"Does that sound normal to you?"

The first of Al-I-Ra we called them. Their arrival meant that the Jewellers could set foot on their motherland. So it was, the thirteen wise-ones went on a pilgrimage, or sacrilege. We are not sure till this day.

The wise-ones taught the PUTRAPAVARA the art of Virya. In return, Al-I-Ra, the sleeping giant, granted them knowledge of HERALDRY, giving them the forms of power.

With power came wisdom, the warning of never mixing Bhujang-Virya with Atman-Virya to form Chakram, the ultimate energy. For the giant had spoken, and the wise-ones were told, Chakram is the bond that connects all. Father to son. Mother to daughter. Ruler to people. Prey to predators.

The thirteen wise-ones, the thirteen rulers and the Putrapavaras gave heed to the warning, forming a Convent that forbade the formation of Chakram in any form of life. Be it intelligent or not.

Ages passed, empires fell, kingdoms rose and conflict was upon Al-I-Ra. Putrapavaras were divided. So were the Jewellers, who gave Putrapavaras their power, who were the symbol of their houses.

When all the children of Al-I-Ra could see nothing but blood, tragedy befell us. One named____ reignited the kindle of Chakram, rediscovering the old power.

So it was, the bonds were forged again, from father to son, mother to daughter, with rulers and people. With prey and predators.

They came, the great hungry ones, white like the titan of the lost, their power vast as Al-I-Ra itself. Nothing alive remained in our system. Nothing but the Convents of old, the WORDS.

Our broken OATHS.

From those came the Watcher, the one who would see the Oaths mended, the one who would give a chance to Al-I-Ra's lost children. The one who will save others from our fate. The one who would guide the Exalted. The one who–

"I think that is enough monologue for now." Gin said, switching the contraption off.

"Hey! I was enjoying it."

"You were supposed to learn."

"From what?"

"From our story!" Gin said. "Listen, kid, my people are gone. Dead. Not like the death you know of. They're gone even from memory. It is on my shoulder to revive their memory, for that I need you."

"What can I even do, Gin. I'm just-"

"You are what you make of yourself. Nothing more. Nothing less. That is what I want from you: make something of yourself. Let your name be known far and wide."

"That is counterproductive for a shinobi."

"Names and monikers have power, something essential for our plan. We need that power to open a wide channel so that the Convents can send an imprint of the lost through it."

"Essentially, you want me to summon your people here."

"A memory of them."

"From Al-I-Ra."

"Yes."

"So, has the wise watcher thought of the chakra required?"

"You worry about the Name part. Al-I-Ra will supply the chakra." Gin said, with such a pious look on his face that Aki thought he was dreaming. "The titan breathes even still."