17

Chapter 17: sixteen: the shadow of a manSummary:

Thinking too loudly is apparently a striking characteristic of hers.

Notes:

This chapter basically wrote itself and I regret nothing. (Canon who? I don't know her.)

Also, the dates might not be entirely accurate but I did my best after some careful digging. I hope you'll bear with me.

I do not own Naruto.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Becoming Hokage 101

.

Section Four: Chakra is both your best friend and your worst enemy

.

Chapter Sixteen

.

There is chakra in everything, and it's not only part of living beings, but of inanimate nature bodies as well - rocks, the earth, the clouds, and the air we breathe, to mention a few.

We are born from chakra and to chakra we will return, once our time here is over. You do not attempt to tame it, for it's been here for far longer than you have. When we first learn about chakra, they teach you about control and mastery, but those terms aren't quite accurate. Although I've been told it's quite cheesy, I've found a metaphor that exemplifies the relationship between chakra and humans well: while you sing, your chakra dances.

It might seem daunting at first, and it might not listen to you properly on the first few tries, but your chakra is a part of you, and so it inherently hears you all the time. It's time to apply the theory you've learned, and although a number of scrolls on basic elemental jutsu are available, I strongly recommend you don't attempt anything risky on your own. Always have someone to watch your back should things go south - chakra is a part of you, but it doesn't mean it dances to your tune all the time.

Let it speak to you. When it refuses to obey, sit and listen. Can you sing if there's no one to sing to? Sometimes you must, but sometimes it's best to stay quiet. When your own chakra turns against you, something is wrong. When nature chakra turns against you, something is very wrong.

Finally, be more stubborn than the chakra you're trying to manipulate; it can be your greatest ally, but until it becomes so, it'll be your greatest challenge yet. It's a part of you, and like all your other pieces, at the end of the day it should obey your will.

.

.

"What d'you think this is about? Gai?"

"I am not sure. However, I know for certain our sensei is alight with the Burning Flames of Summer and we shall follow into his footsteps!"

"Chiyuki?"

"Knowing Choza-sensei, it could be anything."

Spring has given way to summer. It's a beautiful, cloudless day outside, and although the temperature is pleasant now, it's bound to get hotter throughout the day.

Two years have passed since the Third Shinobi War began. It's been roughly a year since I woke up from a month-long coma, and I've had plenty of time to plot, get angry at the system, and do what missions we could around the village - not necessarily in that order.

Although the genin teams have been kept inside village walls since the beginning of the war, the time's up for everyone and the council has decided enough is enough. We're getting our first mission to another country since we graduated in about a week's time, and Choza-sensei had said he'd be meeting with us a bit later.

'Well, I actually think it took them long enough. Tooru has been on the frontlines since the beginning, but he's sixteen now. He's also the clan heir, which means they wouldn't put him on too many life threatening missions.'

I've been trying to organize my thoughts and try to come up with possible solutions for the future problems, but not even a year of preparation nor the knowledge of what might happen have done much. In the middle of all the things I need to take into account, there are six topics that are more pressing than the others and need to have at least an emergency plan.

'Unsurprisingly, the first one on that list is Danzo.'

Framing Danzo means I need to have real, official evidence to back me up, and it hasn't been easy to gather it up. It's not an overnight thing, and I've been doing what I can, but he's either been laying low or my investigative skills are poorer than I thought. I know he controls Root and has been kidnapping children for a while, but I need irrefutable proof of his wrongdoings before he can orchestrate the whole Uchiha fiasco.

'Which actually brings up the second topic: the Uchihas and their standing in the village.'

Their reputation in the village isn't necessarily bad, but it's not good either. A turning point for them in canon was the Kyuubi's attack, because not only it was leaked that someone with a sharingan made it go out of control, but they weren't there to try to stop it.

'Well, of course they weren't'. I think bitterly. 'It's the Police Force's job and priority to safely evacuate the villagers in times like these. They were just doing their job.'

With Naruto's birth and the attack a few years away, it means I have enough time to plan and do things. Let's slowly but surely raise the public's opinion of the Uchiha clan, firstly by involving Fugaku himself into investigating Danzo. It's basically two birds down with one stone.

Kind of.

More or less.

The Kyuubi's attack remains a bit of a mystery. I'm certain it will happen, but it will not be Obito who sabotages it. It does, however, need to be someone with the mangekyo sharingan, and I'll need to keep an eye out for potential Uchiha candidates. Fugaku is the one with the highest chance of having it, but it's not like I can straight up ask these things.

'Hell, I'm not even supposed to know what the mangekyo is.'

Either way, with Obito on Konoha's side and the knowledge that they're going to try and sabotage Naruto's birth anyway, things will (hopefully) not go like in canon.

'Next up is… Orochimaru.'

Someone I'd really rather not deal with, and one of the most troublesome, if only for his unpredictable way of thinking. He's fighting for Konoha now, but his experiments will be found out sometime during this war and he'll flee the village. I'll probably bump into him sooner or later, given the shortage of shinobi, but he's on the frontlines ever since the war began and I'm not sure he's had time to work on his experiments, or even if they're being done right now. I know he's kidnapped people and that he might even have gone after Hashirama's DNA already, but there's no way for me to know for certain. People in the village don't talk about him and asking my parents is useless.

'The only thing I can do right now is keep an eye open for anything that might lead to him, I guess… as well as to Tsunade.'

The fourth source of my headaches and anxiety, the very own Slug Princess. I've got absolutely no idea where she is, and not even father knows where Tsunade or Jiraya are. She's probably not actively participating in the fighting, and Jiraya is likely gathering information as well as doing a bit of fighting on his own. The only concrete plan I have is about convincing her to come back to Konoha, but I don't know how I'm gonna find her.

'Then, there's Zetsu and Madara.'

Surprisingly low on my 'To Worry About' list, but there nonetheless. I do know they're already plotting and that the time for them to brainwash Obito is getting closer, but more dangerous than Madara is Zetsu - rather, Black Zetsu, Kaguya's will personified.

'Which smells like bullshit, but okay.'

Black Zetsu has been around since basically forever and has managed to manipulate even Uchiha Madara into misunderstanding things and thinking he's the one who created White Zetsu. Zetsu isn't a person, therefore he doesn't have blood, which means I can't locate him the way I usually do. He's made entirely of chakra, and if he hides it well enough, then being able to sense chakra also equals shit.

'I'll need something else for him. Perhaps a seal? Is there even a seal that can do that?'

At some point, Zetsu is supposed to go with Obito to Amegakure to locate Nagato, who was given Madara's rinnegan at some point before the Second Shinobi War - most likely Zetsu's own doing. My half-formed plan to track Madara's and Zetsu's movements is my final major concern.

'The Akatsuki, huh.'

Honestly, I feel a bit bad doing this but I've decided I won't interfere in the original members' convocation because a) it's either already happening or has already happened and b) it's a dick move, but if the members remain the same as canon, I'll at least know their abilities and be able to somewhat predict their movements. They don't actually start to hunt the bijuu until Naruto is fifteen though, after they've posed as a mercenary group and have gathered enough money to finally begin the Eye of the Moon plan.

Pein's rinnegan is a huge problem, but if I have Tsunade, it'll be easier to get a hold of Jiraya, and he'll know where to start looking for the Ame orphans at the very least.

'Hopefully by then I'll be older with more influence over the village - perhaps even nominated as the next hokage already - and will be able to negotiate an alliance with them.'

I know the Ame orphans are already working to end the war and achieve piece, but I also know that Danzo will fill up Hanzo's head with worms (if he hasn't already) and convince him they're a threat to his rule over Ame. In a few years' time, Hanzo and Danzo will confront the Ame orphans and Yahiko will end up killing himself to save his friends, and that ends up being a catalyst for Nagato to go insane and be persuaded to turn Akatsuki into a half-assed cult to revive Kaguya.

'I don't really have the how's yet, but I can use the information I have on Danzo to gain their trust. The rinnegan is so overpowered it must be able to tell when someone's lying or not, right? I just have to get to them before Zetsu does.'

I frown for a second, then relax my face almost immediately. It pisses me off that it's a rough draft of a plan at best, with a lot of variables and 'hopefully's', but I'm only nine and my movements are limited.

'I need to go about this calmly and take one step at a time or else I might jeopardize everything.'

"Y'know, I'm finally starting to understand what Kakashi means when he says you think too loud." Genma drawls from my left, a teasing look in his eyes.

"I think enough for myself and my poor teammate."

"That's harsh. Apologize to Gai."

"Oh, no. Gai is actually the smartest out of us three. I'm talking about you."

Choza-sensei finds us two minutes later in a situation that basically demands an explanation: Genma with his arms around my neck in a headlock, grip strong enough to keep me in place for him to mess up my hair but not actually hurt me. Gai torn between joining in the fight because it looks fun and separating the two of us because sensei will be here soon. Yours truly half laughing half whining at Genma to let go damnit I actually spent time to do my hair today-

"Well, things surely look fun, huh?"

In a position that's very common by now, Choza-sensei holds each of us by the scruff of our neck, Gai hovering nearby. He laughs, a hearty and warm sound that lays a safe blanket over us, and Genma and I snicker.

"Tell Genma the truth can hurt, sensei."

"Tell Chiyuki she's a brat, sensei."

"Now, now, children. Let's make up and hurry to our next assignment, hm?"

Over the past year, team Choza has shifted into a very interesting dynamic. Genma is clearly the oldest sibling of this makeshift family, being the moody twelve year old that he is. Sometimes he's a drama queen, sometimes he teases people like he's being paid to do it, but he also carries enough ration bars for a team full of Akimichi and is the first one to grab the first aid kit when Gai gets hurt.

'Perhaps this is a bit of his canon personality shining through? One has to love puberty.'

Gai is the middle child that can't take sides but who also doesn't understand what's going on half the time. I meant what I said when I mentioned he was the smartest out of us, but he can also be incredibly dense at times, especially when he's already ten years old.

'Well, that's just one of his many charms, I suppose.'

I'm obviously the bratty youngest sibling. It's actually nice and refreshing to act like a spoiled kid and sass Genma, and I always get a kick out of his reactions. Sometimes Gai and I do the stupidest things like seeing who can roll down the cliff the fastest and it's so much fun. It's freeing and safe at the same time, knowing I can act and be like a kid around them and not be judged by it.

Choza-sensei is the kind of parent that likes to watch his children scuffle around in the dirt but who'll step in should things get out of hand. He likes hands-on learning, likes it when we go home with a few scratches but a better understanding of ourselves and the world.

It's a dynamic I like very much.

"Yes, sensei." The three of us say in unison, Gai considerably louder. Sensei nods and smiles wider, gesturing for us to come closer.

"Before we leave, I have something for each of you, now that you're going to be on the frontlines more and more often. It's actually the reason why I was a bit late today."

There's a curious and eager silence between us three, and I can tell my teammates are excited when we share a glance.

'Someone needs to create a 'Sensei of the Year' award. I'm gonna do that when I'm hokage. And then I'm gonna give the very first one to this beautiful man.'

He takes a purple scroll out of his pouch and gives it to Gai, who receives it with trembling hands and stars in his eyes.

'Oh, yes, my incredible child. I'm sure whatever's in there is awesome and you definitely deserve it.'

"Sensei, is this…?"

"A summoning scroll, yes. I'm sure you'll make good use of it."

Genma and I grin widely, and I squeeze Gai's shoulder before he can cry.

"Now, this one's for you." Sensei then takes out an unassuming green book from his backpack and gives it to Genma, and I glimpse at the cover.

'Fire Country Flora, huh... '

Genma looks disappointed for a brief second but grabs the book and thanks sensei anyway, until-

"That's a book every Akimichi has read at least once. Remember: the difference between medicine and poison is the dose."

Our oldest teammate's eyes sparkle and a huge smile blooms on his face, and I smile at the sight.

'That suits Genma really well. He'll be able to use poison in his senbon as well as dabble in medicinal herbs, and his mind is certainly bright enough to make the most of this.'

There's also the fact that sensei indirectly told him he's a part of the clan, since every Akimichi has read it. I smile wider at the thought.

"Lastly, but not leastly…" Choza-sensei turns to me and hands me a small bag. Peering inside, I see soldier pills, albeit in a smaller size. They look like normal pills, although they don't smell as strongly and probably don't taste nearly as bad.

"Thank you, sensei." I smile and accept it gratefully, because Akimichi soldier pills are nothing like the standard ones. For one, they taste much better than the commonly found alternative, and their effects are known to last longer.

"You're welcome. Just make sure no one else eats it, alright?" I shoot a confused look at him. Why would I not share it with Gai and Genma? Just because they have much better stamina than I do doesn't mean they'll never need it.

"Why, sensei?"

"Because they were especially made for you." Oh. "They take into account how well you can control your chakra, your chakra reserves, the jutsu you normally use, your usual calorie intake and how much time it takes for your stamina to run out." Oh. "You can only take one every twenty-four hours. Anymore than that and they'll start to do more harm than good."

I throw my arms around him, gratitude burning bright in my chest. I feel two presences joining me on each side, one slightly more reluctant than the other, and then sensei's big arms enveloping the three of us.

"You three are more than welcome any time at the Akimichi compound to figure out how you want to use this knowledge. I'm afraid I can't give you much more than that, as I'd be violating clan rules, but-"

"This is more than enough, sensei. Thank you." It's Genma who interrupts him, his bright mind no doubt having caught up with the sheer amount of possibilities a single book could offer. The fact that it's almost a family heirloom probably isn't lost on him, either.

"That's right, sensei! I shall take this present wholeheartedly on our Eternal Summertime of Youth! You shall not be disappointed!"

"This really means a lot to us, sensei." I say truthfully, my cheeks sore from smiling so much. "Thank you so much."

"Well, when you put it like that, it kinda makes me feel embarrassed." He confesses, a small blush on his cheeks, and my heart melts.

'Sensei, I love you.'

"Ah, Chiyuki. The pills will need adjustments as you grow and train, but this recipe should come in handy." Choza mentions, apparently trying to change the subject. I nod and place the bag on the pouch by my hip regardless, somewhere easily accessible if needed.

"Genma, you're a sensible one, so don't go around testing poison unsupervised, hm?"

"Yes, sensei."

"Gai, just be yourself when you summon them. You're unique and they'll like you for it."

"Yes, sensei!"

"Alright, kids." The man in front of us claps his hands and rubs them together, a jovial grin on his friendly face. "I've got one more surprise for you: specialized training!"

He's met with two blank stares and an excited shout. Genma and I silently look at one another, then at Gai. We both shake our heads.

'Really, he should know by now that Choza's surprises aren't always nice, especially when it involves training.'

"We've got a week left until you're thrown in the big missions roster, and we're gonna make that count. Genma, starting tomorrow you'll be reporting to Inoichi bright and early at 0600."

The teenage boy looks stuck between feeling scared and excited, and I don't envy him. He's definitely the best suited to learn infiltration and interrogation out of the three of us, but Inoichi didn't get where he is now by being a pushover.

"Chiyuki, from tomorrow onwards you're assigned to Shikaku. Don't bother showing up too early, he'll most likely be asleep." A jolt of excitement goes down my spine and I grin, anxious but curious. That meant I was going to learn strategies from the best, even if his eyes still intimidated me a little bit.

"Gai, you're with me. You're gonna learn some special taijutsu, as well as polish up on your ninjutsu and genjutsu."

The three of us, receiving specialized training from the very own Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Even if we don't have their clans' abilities, they aren't well-known just because of that. It's just a week, but we're definitely gonna make it count.

"We meet here at the end of a week's time to regroup and review strategies. Now, who's up for some delivery missions?"

.

.

The Jounin Barracks is one of the few buildings genins did not go to on their rotation, but for better or for worse, I've been here with Sasakibe-oji and navigating inside isn't a problem. It's a medium sized building with a lobby and a first aid room on the first floor. On the upper floors, single rooms for jounin (and ANBU) who need to lay low between missions and still stay in a safe place. No one usually spends longer than a week there, and to be honest that's not really the point of the barracks.

Jounins and chunins have to hand in reports after every mission both to the jounin commander and the hokage, although a face to face report isn't always necessary. The only one who assigns missions is the hokage, although you usually grab those with the Missions Desk.

"Good morning. I was assigned to Shikaku-taicho for the duration of this week." I say politely to the single guard stationed at the entrance. There's no way they actually assigned a jounin to basically stand there and do nothing all day, so the young man is most likely a chunin or even an older genin. Honestly, it's not in me to judge.

The brunette who can't be older than 20 looks at me and nods respectfully. A genin, then.

"Chiyuki-hime. Do you know where his office is?"

"Yes. I'm surprised he's in already."

The young man rolls his eyes and passes me a scroll for me to sign.

"Oh, he's in, but whether he's awake or not is anyone's guess."

I smile at the tone of his voice. It sounds like he's been in this post for a while and knows Shikaku is clearly not the epitome of productivity.

"Thank you, shinobi-san. Have a good day."

"You as well, Hime."

People have always been respectful to me because of my parents, but I'll never get used to people who are older than me - worse yet, people who are my superiors - seeing me in such a high regard. Fugaku has called me 'princess' since day one, but he wouldn't do that for political purposes only.

'Perhaps he is loyal to Konoha, much more so than anyone could have thought.' I muse quietly as I get closer to the commander's office.

On the way there, people nod at me left and right, and this recognizement alone is somewhat disconcerting. I might as well get used to it already, though. I'm nine, but everyone in the village knows who I am. Hell, people recognize Asuma nearly instantly, and that's saying something because he does his best to stay under the radar.

There's that, and there's also the fact that by this point, everyone knows I want to be hokage. Most definitely not the Yondaime, but certainly a candidate for the Godaime.

Soon enough I arrive at the double wooden doors, made of Hashirama wood like every other piece of furniture in Konoha. I hear nothing even after knocking twice, although I do feel two hums of iron inside the room.

I quietly open the door and surely enough, Shikaku is dozing off in his chair as if he didn't have a bunch of paperwork to go through. The other hum of iron belongs to an ANBU, then, seeing as there's no one else in his office.

"Shikaku-sama." I call out, amused when he wakes up immediately and looks around with a confused face.

'It's seven in the morning. It's not even that early.'

"I thought we were over the '-sama' already." He drawls after a huge yawn, sitting properly on the chair and resting his cheek on his hand.

"We are. But I figured you'd wake up faster this way." I shrug, not the least bit sorry. Every single one of his subordinates call him '-sama', so he's probably used to waking up immediately whenever someone calls him that. If someone calls him that, it means he needs to be alert and ready to do his job.

Shikaku narrows his eyes at me then closes them with a sigh, running a hand through his face and muttering about 'children these days'.

"Alright. You got your own chair." He pats a miniature version of his own chair next to him, and it smells suspiciously like Inoichi got a kick out of this. "Do you know what I do here?"

Gone is the sleeping man. The one sitting next to me is the jounin commander, a formidable shinobi who's able to lead thousands to victory with the most optimal of the outcomes. His intense gaze intimidates me a bit, but it also reassures me that he's taking this seriously.

"As the jounin commander and Konoha's strategist, you're basically the second in command. Jounin reports, promotions, high-ranked missions, jounin senseis, outposts, safe houses, diplomatic missions, chunin exams, trials and law enforcement, and sometimes clan dealings all fall into your jurisdiction." I say without missing a beat.

Absolutely everything needs to be approved by the hokage, though. This sort of system might have worked with the Shodaime and even the Nidaime, when the village was still relatively small, but it's just not very efficient. The hokage always has a mountain of paperwork that needs to be done, which often means working overtime.

'Why would you have a jounin commander if everyone has to report to the hokage anyway? Wouldn't it be better to just separate the workload better and have the hokage deal with the most important stuff?'

Shikaku as a jounin commander has a lot to do as well, especially because he's good at it. I'm not sure about the others, but the Sandaime has relied a lot on the Nara clan, and it's definitely not good or healthy. Of course it'd have to be someone you fully trust, but things would work a lot more smoothly if you delegated things and kept high ranking officers with only what absolutely needs to be approved by them and them only.

'Not to mention that this gives way to a lot of overlooking. (See: father and Danzo.) The excuses come easier the bigger your workload is.'

I've done a lot of reading and thinking in these last few years. I'd have to be a fool to not take advantage of living with the current hokage. The theory isn't actually that hard, there's just a fair bit of studying and memorizing involved. What's difficult is applying that knowledge.

Shikaku nods, most likely expecting me to know at least this much.

"Your first assignment is to memorize the location of the safe houses we have in Fire Country and determine which ones are going to be kept and which ones are going to be destroyed." He puts a scroll in front of me and pushes a cup in my direction without another word, diving into his own work. There's a cup of his own in front of him, steam still coming out of it.

As silently as I can, I grab the teapot and pour some of it for me and open the scroll determinedly.

'I get the feeling this week is going to pass much like this, but I don't hate it.'

Konoha doesn't have a lot of safe houses, but we have some near our border with other countries in case our shinobi need that little bit of extra rest and food to rush home. They're small wooden constructions sealed in the ground, and unless you know its exact location, activating the seal is impossible. Only tokubetsu jounin ranked shinobi and above know of these locations, because they're the most likely to need it. It's a tiny place without any sort of furniture, but it's dry and has ration bars. Coupled with a Notice Me Not genjutsu, it's a good enough place to spend the night after a gruesome mission.

Of course, most shinobi don't actually spend more than a couple of hours there. A lot of people take the place to rest for a bit and regain some energy before stepping into the road again, always writing down in their report which safe house they used and filling a resources checklist.

It might not seem much, but sometimes all you need is to catch a break for five minutes, and that can make a big difference between your survival and death by the hands of an enemy. Besides, the genjutsu might be a low level one, but it works wonderfully - unless you're either being chased by someone with an eye doujutsu or a genjutsu specialist.

'Let's see, so we have a total of 23 safe houses spread throughout Fire Country, and 14 of those are on our west and north borders. Six are on the south and east borders and three are scattered close to Konoha.'

A safe house doesn't need to be checked regularly, but every once in a while people are sent in to make sure the seals are working properly, as well as check the food. 23 is a big number and we can't afford to 'waste' high ranking shinobi into maintaining them, not right now.

'Skirmishes along the borders are getting more frequent, so we can probably shutdown the ones that are closest to the border, if only temporarily. It'd be wise to keep those on our east borders in shape, if only because Kiri has been suspiciously quiet this whole time.'

I take a sip of the tea and muse on the situation of the other villages.

Otogakure will only become an issue when Orochimaru flees the village, so that's one less to think about. Shimogakure and Yugakure are famous for not getting themselves involved in wars, so those two are out as well. No one knows much about Takigakure, but at this point in time they're a minor ninja village that might ally with Iwa towards the end of the war. Then there's Kusagakure, the catalyst to this war and the one between Iwa and Konoha.

'Not a place I envy.'

Uzushiogakure was destroyed during the Second Shinobi War by the combined forces of Kumo and Kiri, but the only known survivors are Kushina, Nagato, and Karin.

'Well, Karin's not even born yet, so her parents are still around somewhere.'

Kusa is also home to Kannabi Bridge, a crucial spot for Iwa. They get most of their supplies from there, and it baffles me how no one thought of destroying it until Kakashi and co. were 12.

'Iwa, huh. Quite the troublesome village, though not as much as Kumo.'

Onoki is the third and current tsuchikage who's probably around father's age, if not older. That means he's fought in the Second Shinobi War and not only managed to come out of it alive but also to bring Iwa back to its former glory. Not only that, at some point he faced Madara and survived, which in of itself tells of his prowess with the Dust Technique.

Iwa and Konoha have had a long history of skirmishes and bad blood, but when the peace treaty was offered, Onoki accepted it despite the disapproval of Iwa's council. As a man who will survive three shinobi wars, he must know better than anyone how heavy bloodshed weighs on one's mind.

'He might just be the first kage to listen to me, surprisingly enough.'

The current mizukage is probably Yagura, who isn't being controlled by Obito but is wreaking havoc in Kirigakure either way. Kisame and Zabuza are both around the same age, which means they're a few years older than me. If that's the case, then Kiri's ridiculous academy graduation test disguised as bloodshed has already been over and done with.

'It also means they're both fighting for Kiri in this war, even if that village has been oddly quiet since the war began.'

The current raikage is the third one, also known as being the strongest one.

'If I'm not mistaken, he's so freakishly strong he faced thousands of shinobi by himself for days so his comrades could escape. In canon, he died during the third war and the position of raikage was given to his son.'

Finally, there's the kazekage, which remains a mystery. Suna has always been very hush-hush about its matters, and the kazekages have always been feared by their power and ability to rule a village that's smaller than the others but just as strong. The third kazekage is the strongest in their history, combining his Magnetic Release and iron powder, he created the Iron Sand Technique. At some point during the war, he gets killed by Sasori and Suna appoints Rasa as the next kage.

"Shikaku-taicho, who's the current kazekage?" I suddenly break the silence, drinking the rest of my tea.

"The Iron Sand." He answers, not looking up from his paperwork.

'The Sandaime, then. Great.'

It was never known when or how Sasori killed him and turned him into a puppet, but if he's still the kazekage, it means he won't be killed until the end of the war.

'In canon, the war lasted for roughly eight years, between Kakashi's graduation at six and Rin's death at fourteen. That means Sasori killed the Sandaime Kazekage when he was what, twenty?'

He's older than Kisame, but I don't know the exact difference in age. It probably shouldn't matter much, though.

'Hopefully.'

There's also the fact that a lot of people will become well-known because of this war. Ao from Kiri will kill a Hyuuga and steal their byakugan, which will bring tension between Kiri and Konoha to ridiculous levels. Minato and A will fight and become known for their incredible strength. It's likely Minato will gain the nickname Yellow Flash from this encounter. Kakashi became a centerpiece of the war as well, with the sharingan Obito gave him. He'll gain the nickname Copy Nin Kakashi and stand at the frontlines next to Minato. Sasori himself will be known as Sasori of the Red Sand, whether he's actually fighting for Suna or not. Itachi also becomes well-known, but at the cost of his mental health. Because he was thrown into war at such a young age, he comes to despise violence and aim for peace at all costs.

'I'm not sure I heard anything about Fugaku from around this time. He probably wasn't sent to the frontlines very often because he's the freaking chief of the KPF and his work prioritises in-village security, but I also remember the Uchiha council wasn't happy with Fugaku not even being nominated as a possible hokage candidate.'

If I'm completely honest, Fugaku has neither the will nor the charisma to be Yondaime hokage. He seems to have his hands full with his clan and the Police Force, not to mention the public's opinion of his clan isn't that great. It's not a surprise he wasn't even considered for the position.

Orochimaru has the will but definitely not the charisma. He isn't exactly loved by the villagers, but if it weren't for Minato my father would surely at least nominate him for the position.

'Following the tradition, either Jiraya or Tsunade would have to be the Yondaime hokage, but there's no way either of them will accept the position after the war. That only leaves Minato and perhaps Kushina, since she's an Uzumaki.'

The biggest problem all around seems to be the council - the village's, the Uchiha's, just. Old conservative people who can't give up their close-minded prejudices and look at the bigger picture.

"You think too loud."

"Not you too, taicho."

The man shrugs and stretches, letting out a big yawn. He's apparently done with his paperwork (for now) and silently laments his tea gone cold.

"It's true. Nothing you can do about it."

"You don't think loudly, taicho."

"I do. I just hide it better."

Shikaku looks at me with half-lidded eyes, looking barely awake. He looks ready to fall asleep at any second, work be damned.

'Wait a minute.'

I slouch my shoulders forward and try to look at him with half-lidded eyes, but I can't see shit.

'How the hell does he do that.'

The jounin commander lets out a sound between a snicker and a huff, and he seems surprised at himself for even making a sound at all.

"Ok, don't do that."

"Isn't that how you do it?"

"Not consciously."

I straighten up my back and blink at him when a thought comes to me.

"Taicho, you think all the time, right? That's why you need so many naps."

Shikaku says nothing and merely stares at me for a while. I hold his stare and refuse to fidget, because there's no reason to be nervous, until-

"I wish Yoshino were here to listen to that." He sighs, big and deep, as if I've discovered his biggest secret and now he has to think of a way to keep me silent. "Yeah, that's pretty much it."

"Maybe I should start taking naps too." I say and immediately frown, shooting my own idea down.

'There's no time for naps. Shikaku's thoughts go at the speed of a racing car, that's why he needs to nap.'

A finger taps my forehead and I relax my face muscles.

"That's probably a huge part of it."

"What is?"

"You frown a lot, in odd intervals. It makes people think you're working hard on something, even if you're not."

Well, that. Actually makes a lot of sense.

"I don't even realize I'm doing it, though."

"Work on that, then."

Shikaku is blunt, but not unkind. He looks at me with the same relaxed expression but I have no doubt he's figured out everything about me already. He walks around like he might just lie down and fall asleep in the middle of the road, but it's also a tactic of his.

"You can figure that out during the inspection of the barracks." He yawns and heads for the door, clearly expecting me to follow him. I put the scroll I'd been reading in my pouch and go after him, closing the door quietly behind me.

'Ah, I'm kinda hungry.'

.

.