The Zero Tails Jinchuriki #11

Disclaimer - I don’t own anything. As the corporations say these days, you will own nothing & be happy. I don't, and have never claimed to, own Naruto or any of its characters. With that out of the way, let’s goooo!

Teuchi’s Ramen Stall, Konoha, Land of Fire

–Kenta ‘Akimichi’ Senju–

His gaze slid over the man who had just planted his head on the counter, while he waited for his ramen order to come. Teuchi was alone today so it might take a while with the people already seated, and waiting.

“So,” He heard the muffled voice of the man and turned to him, “Kenta Senju, huh?”

He smirked, “At your service.”

The Nara Clan head finally lifted his head from the counter and took a proper look at him, eyes flashing with intelligence hidden behind weariness. “You expect us to believe that?”

“No,” he conceded, “I expect you to believe what the Hokage tells you. In his  words, I am a Senju and that is what it is.”

“Not a full Senju. Close descendant?”

“Close. I am a three-quarter Senju and a little Uzumaki.”

“I see. Not many shinobi who could fit that bill, even at your age.”

“Well, yeah. I am rare.”

He looked up to see Tauchi come out of the kitchen with a blinding smile on his face with a hot bowl of ramen, “There you go, one Miso ramen. Ah! Nara-san, what can I get you?”

The Nara Clan Head, Shikaku Nara, if he remembered correctly, replied without even looking up, “The same, teuchi-san. I know the shop is low on supplies. Don't worry, the first emergency shipments of all food should arrive tomorrow. I have already marked your shop as priority 2, right after the shelters and the hospitals.”

Teuchi beamed at the man even more after that, “Thank you so much, Nara-san. One Miso Ramen, coming right up!”

“Where were you before this?”

He slurped  on the noodles before replying, “On a long term mission.”

“I see. Must be really important for there to be no record of you ever existing in Konoha, except for the ones that are being created right now.”

“What can I say, the mission required me being dead, officially.”

“Uh-huh.”

He happily munched on his ramen, knowing that this was more akin to an interrogation from the Chief Strategist of Koonoha, the brains behind the entire operation, so to speak. Shikaku Nara was pretty high up on the list of people with authority in Konoha, representing not one, not two but three different clans, with very close relationships.

The man probably had more power than the Uchiha Clan head,  which represented the pinnacle of the clans in terms of combat prowess, simply because the combined might of their three clans trumped any single clan within Konoha, not to mention the fact that all three clan heads were in high up positions in the village.

Their services were invaluable to the village and they were actually interdependent on each other to provide those services, creating a closely knit bond between the three clans. Marriage between the clans was common and they even had a shared boundary between all three clans, creating a small village in and of itself.

It was the same when he was in the village and it is the same now.

The Nara provided the intelligence, and herd the deer and the animals. The Akimichi use the herbs grown by the Yamanaka and the Nara to create potions, pills, food and more, and the Yamanaka then use some of those relaxing pills to keep a check on the continuously deteriorating mental health of all the shinobi in Konoha’s employ.

Obviously, the Yamanaka also worked on the other side of that equation, by using drugs of higher dosage or by their jutsu, to take information out of the minds of their enemies, leaving behind shattered husks.

That was why he knew that he was speaking to someone who was not very far off from the Hokage himself when it came to the amount of power that could be exerted by a single entity. 

“Are you going to take on missions anytime soon? The Hokage has conferred the Elite Jounin classification to you so I believe you must be strong enough to handle some A-class missions?”

He smiled at the insinuation, Ramen finished as he spoke, “I have not been in the village for over 15 years. I think I should get to enjoy at least 15 days of silence within the village.” 

He stood up, slapping a wad of cash on the counter, far more than the cost of the ramen, “As for missions, well, I am a shinobi of Konoha. This,” He pointed at the band put around his arm, “Says so. So, you can call me for missions anytime you want, as is your prerogative. As for me, I will be roaming around and getting reacquainted with the village.”

With his piece said, he jumped onto the rooftops and headed to the Hokage Rock, the one place with the most peace in the village. The beautiful view along with the lack of people on that rock made the perfect hiding spot for him.

After being in that meeting room for only an hour, he realised something. Something that might give him trouble later on. He did not like crowds, no, he absolutely detested them now. Probably a direct consequence of his hermit lifestyle. So, the Hokage Rock felt like a welcome reprieve to him, from all that noise.

Even when not in Sage Mode, years of exposure to Nature Energy had enhanced his senses beyond the pale, allowing him to sense far more than an average shinobi. Even if he stayed in a locked room, he would still be able to hear noise from down the street.

The Hokage Rock, it was perfect for him. It was high up in the air, with a breeze, a complete view of the village, a place where the noise could not reach him. If he wanted to know what was happening within the village, he could just still and enter Sage Mode.

Like he did just now, turning around to look at an inconspicuous piece of rock in the distance, “I know you’re there.”

The rock poofed and in its place, stood Hiruzen Sarutobi, with his signature Hokage  Hat and Haori. “I never get Jiraiya with that, either. But he could sense me even without being in Sage Mode.”

He looked back to see the beautiful view of the village, “I guess I am out of practice then.

“Yeah, it does look like that,” Sarutobi said before sitting down right next to him.

After a minute or so of peaceful silence, Sarutobi spoke, “The State Funeral is in three days.”

“Uh-huh.”

“So is the Daimyo meeting.”

“...You want me to meet him.”

“Yes, and also show him what you can do.”

He slowly turned his neck to the side and asked, in the most polite  way possible, “What?”

“I am not going to put on a show just for the Daimyo.”

“I am not asking you to do that. There will be plenty of times to showcase your power, preferably in a way that cements your position in a way that the rest of the Villages think twice before making any moves. For now, I just want you to show him that you are a Sage.”

“Oh,” He breathed out, “Yeah, that I can do.”

“I also have a mission lined up for you. S-class importance.”

“Oh? I’m  interested.” He said as Sarutobi took out a folder and handed it to him.

“Near the Northeastern borders, there has been aggressive movements from Kumo, most probably as  a reaction to the abrupt call back of most troops.”

“So, you want me to go and reinforce it?”

“On paper, yes.”

“And unofficially?”

“....sigh Orochimaru has been seen near the borders,, with a group of shinobi no less, composed of individuals with kekkei genkais.”

He read through the files, seeing that the northeastern part of the border was practically undefended right now, with the shinobi present only working as an early warning system instead of being able to mount any offense.

After he was done going through the files, he closed the folder and turned to Sarutobi, “So, Dead or Alive?”

“What?”

“You want him dead or alive?”

Sarutobi laughed a bit, clearly not believing him. Then the laughter died down when he saw the look in Kenta’s eyes. “You’re serious.”

Hiruzen’s eyes gained a faraway look as he took out his pipe and began smoking. “I have seen that boy grow from a genin to someone who can put entire shinobi villages on the back foot. I can’t say I am proud of what he has become and yet, it is a weakness of mine, to see the good in people.”

After that, Sarutobi just went silent, until he ran out of his stuff. Then, as if returning to reality, he turned to him and replied, “Ah, yeah. Do what you have to. He is a dangerous man, and equally if not more slippery and cunning. Do not push yourself, we can’t afford to lose you at this critical time. Just driving him off our borders will be good enough.”

He nodded, “Alright. When do I leave?”

“The day after the State Funeral. Until then, enjoy the view.”

Sarutobi then practically fled the scene, as he took in the view, with the sun setting, casting an orange hue on everything.

Sarutobi was clearly biased when it came to Orochimaru, actually when it came to all three of his students. It was probably also why Orochimaru managed to escape from the village without dying, or at least being severely injured or crippled outright.

He didn't believe Kenta could take down Orochimaru.

Well, time to work for a living once more.

He couldn’t even remember the last mission he took before going on the raid on the Land of Sky.