Minato's emotional state was everywhere. Weeks, literal weeks he had spent looking for Kakashi in enemy territory, well formerly enemy territory. He pretty much cleared out every enemy with the exception of the very front lines where thousands of enemy Shinobi bunkered down, holding the defense line.
He was good. The strongest Jounin in the village, but not even that would make him fight thousands of ninjas at once. Hundreds were a stretch, even for him. Besides, Kakashi didn't disappear over in that direction, and he doubted any of those Shinobi would've brought him back to their base and slipped past defenses.
That only brought him to the question of where the hell his student went. In one mission, he was down two students, only one death confirmed, and the other was mentally broken. Not that he blamed Rin. In seconds, she'd gone from having both of her teammates to none at all. Both of his old teammates had survived, so he couldn't relate.
He flashed upon a tree branch, thoughts of his students plaguing him. He made mistakes. Mistakes that costed two of his students lives. He wasn't fast enough. Why was it he was never fast enough when he needed to be? He wished someone would answer the question, but only the silence of the wilderness greeted him.
Then he felt a pull on him. Not physically though, from his chakra. He frowned, wondering what was going on, and reached into his pouch to draw one of his special three-pronged kunai. That pull could only mean one thing, though the reason for this was confusing him. Was someone messing with his Kunai? No, that wasn't it. If someone were close enough to it, and touched it, he'd be able to feel their chakra signature. But now, for some reason, he hadn't been picking up a thing. He couldn't even locate where the pull was coming from, now that he thought about it.
Was it perhaps from the Kunai he'd given Kakashi?
That was certainly a possibility that brightened how he felt. Though he couldn't be completely happy, it seemed that things were finally turning around. His trail was no longer cold, and though he didn't have a solid lead, it was better than nothing—to him at least.
Something else landed on the branch beside him—he didn't react because he felt their chakra—and he tucked away the Kunai.
"Wait," Rin calls out, and when he turns to her he sees a look of shock on her face as she reaches out towards him. "Sensei, I feel Kakashi."
His brows squint and he stares as her. It takes him a second to realize what she may be referring to. He goes back into his pouch and takes out his kunai once more.
"There," she says breathlessly, coming closer and reaching out for the kunai. She's a sensor type like he is, but he doesn't feel a thing. It's the reason why he's so confused. She grabs it, inspects it, before her own chakra flares.
She's searching for the signal by spreading her own chakra signature out. It tells him that she doesn't know exactly where the signal is coming from.
"His chakra is coming from there?"
"Yea," she nods. "I'm sure of it. I remember you marking him, Sensei. Could that be the reason?"
He doesn't know. "Perhaps, but I feel no connection to the seal placed upon him. That means that he's nowhere near the Land of Fire. He's out of my range, the Flying Thunder God has a range limit."
"But it doesn't make sense," she stressed, her chakra flared a bit more at her heightening emotions. "There's no way the enemy would capture him. They should know a newly promoted Jounin would have only surface level knowledge of intel. They wouldn't learn anything they don't already know or speculate about! I don't—"
Before he can calm his student down, quite loudly, another presence quickly rushed through the dense trees and settled on the same branch, right beside Rin.
It was Gai. Gai had been someone who was on the constant search for Kakashi, searching nearly as far as him through running around alone. It was a immediate response after it became village wide knowledge of his disappearance, but even with his help, nothing had been found out. It never slowed Gai down, and it honestly boosted his own morale. He was really glad Kakashi had such a friend, even though the Jounin didn't appreciate it.
"What's going on?" He asked, hyped up, seemingly ready for battle. "I felt your chakra spike and moved with the power of youth to make sure I would make it in time! If I didn't make it in time I will do 1,000 push-ups and- wait," he stopped mid tirade, seemingly mesmerized, but confused. "Is that Kakashi's chakra?"
"Ah, yes, Gai-San. But," she took another glance at it, releasing her chakra. She wasn't able to finish her sentence as the formula written on the Kunai glowed blue, distracting the group of three. Fierce wind pushed outward, nearly blowing leaves from their spot on the large branches.
"What the hell?" Minato felt himself being repelled. The wind was strong but the fact that the others weren't being moved greatly concerned him. In fact, it seemed as if they were being pulled toward the Kunai.
"A-ah!" Rin gasped in surprise while Gai eyes widened into saucers. They could feel that they were being pulled in, somehow. By Kakashi's chakra.
Rin dropped the Kunai and it clanged on the branch, but the pull was getting stronger and stronger. Gai felt chakra well into him like a pool being filled up and grabbed ahold of Rin by her shoulders.
"First Gate—Gate of Opening: Open!"
Underneath them, the bark cracked under the pressure of opposite forces pulling against one another. Gai gritted his teeth hard, trying his best to pull back against the force but was loosing by the second.
Minato wouldn't let them get pulled in, and went into action despite not knowing what he was doing. He couldn't feel the connection to the Kunai, so he wouldn't be able to transport himself to it or transport it away, so he did the next best thing.
In half a second, swirling chakra filled his palm. "Giant Rasengan!" He pushed the giant ball of chakra toward the Kunai, but he felt no contact. His chakra was being repelled.
The bark underneath them cracked once more, this time they were a little bit closer to the ground. The tree was going to give away.
"Nghh.... Dammit!" Gai muttered as he and Rin began to skid toward the glowing Kunai. He riled his chakra up once more, going to push himself to the next gate. But, suddenly, the pull had gotten so strong that he lost his footing on the bark and slammed into Rin, knocking them both into the Kunai.
At their screams, he released his Jutsu and had to cover his eyes from the bright bluish light that was so bright that it could be seen for miles. But it was gone just as quickly as it appeared and when Minato looked back, he was all alone, his Kunai the only thing left, but his signature seal disappeared along with the kids.
"No," he uttered in shock and ran toward the Kunai, picking it up. He felt nothing from it. No chakra at all, from anyone. "What the hell?"
XxX
"Wish I could go with you guys."
Todoroki fixed the shades on his face as he turned to Midoriya, still lying in his bed with heavy wrapping covering his arms and one of his legs. Despite being in pain, he still seemed happy in a way, only when they informed him of their situation as well as Kakashi's had he gotten down. He did recover after that though and was currently waiting for his interview that would be conducted by the Hero Commission.
"Yea, well you still have to heal."
Tenya nodded, his usual glasses too, replaced with black shades. "Do not worry. We will be sure to give your thanks for you."
Midoriya nodded with a smile. "Yea, thanks."
They were going to the mass funeral that would be held for the heroes that fought against Stain and Blade as well as the countless other victims killed by Nomu or events related. It was Hosu City's and the Hero Commission's way of commemorating the heroes who died and giving money to families of the victims. Todoroki also knew it was a show of power. He guessed that it would show the public that Heroes would not go into hiding.
That meant strict security would be in place there. He doubted a villain attack. While the Villains had flexed their power by forcing a UA child to kill, they were down two of their members. He doubted that they would just attack a heavily guarded funeral and hope to come out unscathed. Even with their track record of gathering other Villains.
"Here you go, Todoroki. You gotta hide your hair." He turned to see Tenya handing him a fedora.
He nodded, took it, and slipped it on. He pushed it down on his head. This was necessary. His hair was very noticeable, even in a crowd. News crew from all over japan would be attending and broadcasting the event. He didn't want those cameras directed at him. One, he was uncomfortable with them and two, he didn't want to be taking the attention away from those whose lives needed to be celebrated. He knew those fiends had no qualms with putting the spotlight on him, despite whoever they would be taking it off of.
He shuffled in his all black suit, feeling a bit uncomfortable. He looked at Tenya's matching suit, seeing the other teen looking much more comfortable than him. Lucky him.
Walking to the door, following Tenya, he gave a last nod toward Midoriya as Tenya excused himself.
Midoriya smiled, feeling a bit better, and shuffled to gain comfort in his bed. Everything would be fine. He didn't need to worry.
So why was it that he couldn't stop thinking something truly awful was going to come?
XxX
"Hey, Bakugo! I didn't know you were coming!"
Unfortunately, the young blonde hero recognized that voice and didn't even turn around as he heard approaching footsteps. Footsteps that didn't sound like one pair. He glanced behind him to see Kirishima, who he knew had just spoken, and Mina.
He rolled his eyes and turned his face forward. She was here, dammit.
When they both caught up, she gave a goofy smile. "Hey, Bakugo! How was your internship?"
Normally, he wouldn't have answered the question and simply ignored her, but the question brought very unpleasant and angry thoughts with it.
"Annoying," he muttered, feeling a vein in his head pulse.
"Couldn't have been that bad," Kirishima said, grinning, and putting an arm around the blonde. "I mean you were interning with a Top 10 Hero."
Shrugging the red-haired teen off, he yelled, "hands off, Hardhead!" It was at that time, the two of them had his full attention and he noticed their choice of clothing. Like him, the both had on full black, which was appropriate, but Kirishima had nothing to hide his red hair and Mina, while having pink skin, did nothing to try and at least hide her legs. She was wearing a damn skirt.
"What the hell! Are you two idiots or what!" He yelled, infuriated.
They both looked equal amounts of confused. "What are you talking about?" Kirishima muttered.
"You idiots aren't trying to cover up. Why the hell do you not have a hat on?! Are you brain dead?! If they recognize you, they'll swarm you like a flock of crows on a corpse! And you, pinky, the fuck you have on a skirt for! Why not a long dress?!"
"It's been raining a lot and I haven't been able to show off my legs," she whined, to his utter disbelief.
"Are you damn serious?" He deadpanned. "Just stick with me for the whole damned thing. I was gonna be in the back anyways. And you better not stand out or I'll fry you like chicken!"
"That's totally scary!" Mina stated, and looked happy despite it.
"Yea, yea, we'll stick with you. But I didn't know we had to hide and stuff." Kirishima said.
"We don't have to hide. It would just be better to stay out of the public light until this whole situation blows over." His eyes scanned the upcoming crowd of people, catching suits of heroes beneath some of the dark clothes of some of them in the crowd. To him, it seemed like something they shouldn't be doing. It was reckless to have a whole bunch of people in one spot near the place where the villains attack and killed dozens of people. Sure, he knew the purpose of this whole thing was. That's to say the Hero Society see this as no threat. But he knew the truth. He knew that not only did they find this a threat, they find it a threat that they may not be able to contain.
He remembered Mirko's reaction to it. It was the exact same reaction he had to it. Her assistant had made a joke that they could actually be related in some way.
"Think about it. UA is going to be scrutinized, but we are even more so. Don't do anything stupid." He growled with angry eyes. He couldn't believe the idiots didn't realize this.
"Ok, sheesh. You don't have to be so angry, ya' know." Mina is as nonchalant as ever and definitely not taking this as serious as she should be, resting her head on her arms as she lifts them behind her head.
He just growls. He isn't going to repeat himself. He'll just try to keep them away from too many people and out of trouble.
XxX
Hawks, well, isn't what a typical hero is all about. He's done a lot of morally questionable things, all for the sake of helping Hero Society as a whole. But this particular mission isn't too bad, in fact, he likes it. He just has to gather information and look for Edgeshot in his last known location. Easy enough.
It didn't take him a long time to reach Edgeshot's playground. His territory wasn't big and in actuality wasn't even his territory. The Ninja Hero moved around along with the gangs and the drug dealers so he was never in one spot. But the man did make sure to update where he was in the Hero Network, so finding him was a piece of cake.
"Hawks, is there something troubling? You haven't moved." The operator said through the earpiece he so badly wanted to take out. She was with him on patrol, missions, and anything else having to do with the Hero Commission and it was so damn annoying. Constantly in his ear giving orders to him as if he hadn't been doing this for literal years.
He was glad this had been a daily occurrence for years where he was able to control himself. "I'm simply going over information. Edgeshot—is right there?" His head swivels as two figures leaped up onto the roof and ran off.
His spread his wings and took off and caught up with them in only a matter of seconds. He didn't startle either one of them, and that's when he realized that one of them was a dog in which he could tell right away from the way it was staring at him that it had high intelligence. A quirk like Nezu maybe?
He gives a wave and a relieved smile. Part of him is actually relieved. The man isn't dead. "Edgeshot, good to see you."
The Ninja Hero stopped, allowing him to land in front of him and he immediately noticed how dirty the Hero was. He had dirt in nearly ever surface area of his costume, like he'd been buried or something. The man only nodded, looking as if he was hesitating and then spoke. He was glad for his observant nature, curtesy of relentless training. Most couldn't see faces through masks.
"It is good to see you too, but not to be rude, what are you doing here, Hawks?"
X
Currently, Edgeshot was weighing his options. He could tell everything he knew about what exactly had happened with Kakashi. But it wasn't even a second later back on the roof with Pakkun following him that his phone started buzzing quite a number of times. Looking at it, he couldn't believe his eyes, and he finally realized why Kakashi was in such a hurry to escape him. He didn't recognize that man the news had showed all too well but when the tv had showed it, but he should've recognized it after seeing Kakashi's reaction to it.
UA's warning of him was incorrect. He wasn't a possible threat, the boy was a threat. His speed was one of his best features and yet he hadn't even been able to react to Kakashi before he could grab ahold of that man and choke him out while avoiding him. He never felt so powerless than that time, trapped under earth and unable to do anything as the sound of battle raged not far away.
It didn't take a long time to kill so many. He had good ears. He could tell at the very least, he killed 10 people. But he couldn't show how he felt, at least not right now. Knowing that Kakashi killed that man on video, put him mind into overdrive on how exactly he was going to fix this when it was his job to watch over him. He wasn't too much worried about his reputation, just the repercussions this could have on Hero Society as a whole.
Hawks was as nonchalant as always, giving an easy smile and an easy vibe. Fortunately, Edgeshot could see that he was watching him. Did he suspect that he could be an accomplice? He doubts that somehow. It's a ludicrous thought.
He shrugs, "I was given charge to search for you. It's been a couple of days since you've appeared and well, a situation has occurred with the boy interning under you. Many want to question you."
The hesitance did no go unnoticed. "Is the Hero Commission included in that?" From what he could tell, they were the ones who would've sent Hawks of all heroes. He could think of a few with tracking quirks that would've been more well suited.
The question doesn't faze Hawks. He just seems pouty. "No one likes them, do they? They aren't that bad, ya' know." Bad is still bad no matter how much. "But yea, I got sent over. If you don't mind coming with me. Things have to be smoothed out. Reputation hangs in the balance and all that."
He's going to agree with Hawks. While he cares little for reputation, he doesn't truly have a part in Kakashi killing people with the only exception being that he wasn't able to stop him. He feels a nudge at his leg, and remembers that someone else is here as well. He looks down to see the dog staring at him with such a telling look.
"Is the dog intelligent? He seems like he is." Hawks is staring at him too, eyes squinted and chin in his hand.
"You're a pretty observant guy."
He almost gasped, almost. He still probably wasn't hiding his surprise well at all. He didn't expect Pakkun to just flat out talk and thought he would go to great links to hide it. But seeing as Hawks caught on to his intelligence quite quickly he guessed he saw no point in hiding the fact that he could talk. Animals talking was, uncommon, but not impossible.
Hawks blinked, looking as if he actually was surprised and confused. It was really the most genuine emotion he'd seen from the No.3 Hero.
"Uh, well, thank you." He says awkwardly and rubbing the back of his neck. "And you have a very deep voice."
Pakkun snorts. "Comes with age."
"And how old are you?"
"Old enough. Don't you have someone to bring with you?"
"Yea, well," he probably didn't know what to do seeing as he kept stopping himself. "See ya. Try not to mention any of this to anyone, yea."
Pakkun raised a paw with a deadpanned face. "I solemnly swear."
Hawks hummed, seemingly gathering himself enough to put on his easy smile. "What about a pinky swear? I'd feel much more comfortable with that sort of promise."
Pakkun wasn't impressed and rolled his eyes. He turned his back on them and began walking away, but not before sending him a glance. He was still going to search for Kakashi. He had a bad feeling. He could guess where Kakashi was probably at and none of the answers that came to mind filled him with ease. Instead, he was feeling nothing but dread. The dog leaps away and he looks back at Hawks, who, for a second, was staring at the dog with intent searching and seriousness. It was only a second, and when he turned back to Edgeshot his easy smile was the only thing he could see. Even his eyes were relaxed.
"Well, let's get a move on. Time's a wastin'."
Somehow, the top 10 Hero felt something coming up that would make his stomach lurch, he just didn't know what.
XxX
The day of the mass funeral was a day Ryukyu would spend inside. While she too wanted to celebrate and mourn the lives loss in the disaster, she just didn't have the time. And with her massive popularity drop and public perception, just going out to mourn and celebrate those lives just like everyone else would only lead to looks of distain and hate. It was hard to like her, she was sure, especially since she trained her Kakashi to be a killer.
She rolled her eyes at the article posting that claim about her and nearly broke her phone. The theories and speculation were getting out of hand. No one but a select view knew that she hadn't had Kakashi for more than two weeks as her son. The Hero Commission was part of that bunch, but someone had to take the blame for a student killing. UA took some of it, she took almost all of it.
And still, she believed that Kakashi wasn't a deranged criminal that many were making him out to be. He was simply scarred and flawed, like every other human. Sure, he may have more scars than others, ok he definitely does have more scars than most but part of her could tell that he does have a heart. A heart that is kind. A heart she latched onto pretty quickly. Because, in this world, most didn't have a heart. Not a heart that actually cared about human lives. About being a hero.
She was perceptive to a fault. She could see the lies. She could see where someone true intentions were and where their true interest lied. So seeing Kakashi's heart sort of brought back a memory long buried in the back of her mind.
Her past.
A past she learned to shed. A past that Kakashi brought to the forefront of her mind. She could remember it as if the wound was fresh. The smell of blood. The way it dripped onto the wooden floor and oozed everywhere, staining everything. The blood of her father; killed by her mother. A relatively normal family of four forever changed by the actions of just one of them. She was left alone with her younger brother when her mother was taken away. She was 18 at the time, just graduating UA to a very positive debut. She raised her brother for 5 years and she never once saw him smile. He had a heart of gold, wrapped in despair and trauma. She had no idea how he was feeling internally until he died. Until he killed himself. Until he left her all alone to deal with all the trauma.
He reminded her of him. They didn't act alike. They definitely didn't look at all the same, it was only their despair that she could draw similarities.
But they practically drew themselves. Unconsciously; without her input. She knows that it's the reason she's so drawn to Kakashi. She might be his mother on paper, but she thought of him as a little brother. The brother she could save. The one she still had a chance of saving.
It instilled hope in her. She knew a tough road was awaiting her going down this path. She already lost her status but that didn't matter to her. As long as she was able to protect people, she didn't mind what position she was in. She didn't care.
A knock at her door brings her back to earth, she blinks once, then gets up from her bed and walks over to her door. Opening it, she's immediately greeted a warm, familiar smile she can't help but return. Though she is surprised at the visit.
"Nejire, what a surprise.
XxX
Nejire has to keep the smile on her face. Not only is it for her mentor, it is for her as well. She's trying to keep it together for someone so precious to her but with all that's been happening the last couple of days, she can't help but be curious as to what the hell is going on. She's already seen what Kakashi did but she had no idea the new student of Class 1-A had any relation to her mentor. Maybe she should've been more curious. It had been killing her that she probably could've figured it out had she spent a bit more time with Ryuko.
It was a drain honestly.
She was able to hold the smile on her face and gave a big wave.
"I'm so glad to see you're doing well, Nejire-Chan. What brings you here? I see you're dressed up quite nicely."
The blue haired girl grows sheepish, never having dressed in all black on any occasion really. Her best friend told her it looked good on her but she was still unsure. She never wore this much black ever and it was the first funeral she was ever going to attend. Hopefully, the last.
"Yes, and you are not dressed up at all?" It came out as more of a question than a statement she hadn't meant to say. It drove her out of her good mood as she blinks a couple of times. "Are you not coming?"
Her teachers smile is easy. "I'm sorry, no. I'm a bit busy at the moment."
"But-" she tries to protest.
"It's ok. You're a smart girl so I'm sure you already know about what the public thinks, but I want to assure you that my absence is not because of them."
How can she keep that smile on her face?
Despite herself, she nods.
"There's no need to frown so hard. It's going to blow over eventually. The villains won't win."
Another nod, she feels worse than before.
"I'll be honest and say that things aren't the best they can be but it isn't like I'm still not a hero."
She isn't able to stop her outburst. "But you lost your place in the top 10! How doesn't that bother you?"
Ryuko chuckles. She chuckles and for the life of her she can't understand why. What was so funny to her? She was losing everything and getting slander from everywhere.
"Because I became a hero to protect people. No matter my rank, I can still do that." She feels her teachers warm hands rub her hair and it feels nice.
"Ms. Ryukyu, that was beautiful!" Came an enthusiastic voice from behind her.
She turns and sees her closest friends approaching, under the safety of their umbrellas. Mirio seemed more happy than normal, those unusual eyes strong with pride and adoration.
"Those words were exceptional!"
"Ah, Mirio-san and Tamaki-san. You both are looking good as well."
Mirio had a bright look while Tamaki looked away, barely muttering a thanks.
"Thank you, Ms. Ryukyu. I don't mean to rush but we have to go I'm afraid." He looked regretful.
"Oh, it's no problem. I have plans for today as well."
She perks up at that and looks to her teacher, quirking her brow. "You do?"
She smiled. "I do. I've got things to discuss with the Commission about Kakashi. It's going to take quite a while."
"Oh, well," she didn't know what to say. "Can I ask you something, Sensei?"
"Yes, of course."
"What's your definition of a hero?"
...
XxX
Things could be worse. Things have been worse. Of that, Kakashi Hatake was sure. He'd been awake for only a couple of hours and only briefly opened his eye to check the clock he had been hearing clicking away ever since he'd woken up. That allowed him to see that he was completely isolated and connected to devices he'd seen before. Some of it, he recognized, others he didn't but he was sure he was in a hospital.
His eye scanned for an exit and it took him a couple of slow seconds to realize that he could barely see. Then he finally noticed how dark it was in the room and as time ticked on, no light came in the room at all. His eyes adjusted to the dark and he realized that there was no entrance to the room nor windows. Only the dim light emanating from the heart monitor filled the dark void. To him, it wasn't enough. So he kept his composure and pretended to be asleep.
He was a Jounin. A young one, but still an Elite Shinobi nonetheless. He was trained in situations like this and he could tell who had taken him. He was probably in deep shit. He'd killed Kakkō and they most likely knew about that. Going by the lack of a seeable entrance only gave the thought more fuel.
His next thought was seeing where he was and how he was going to escape once he healed enough. His chakra was coming back to him in pieces but he knew it would be a while before it was circulating through his body properly. He wasn't a professional on the subject of chakra circulation but he could feel the strain deep within his body that pain killers wouldn't be able to get rid of.
Still, he was sure that with enough focus he could at the very least scan his surroundings without straining his system. He build up his chakra very slowly, letting it take its time growing and expanding until it reached the corners of his entire body. Then he let it out of his pours at once, his chakra pulses as it moves about.
10 stories, 150 rooms, 336 people, and lots of exits. His room had one exit that felt complicated. Even at half power, it wouldn't hold him, but now it probably would. No, definitely. It was at that time he felt something foreign on his wrist and glances down to find a metal wristband. He probably didn't feel it initially from the painkillers he suspected they put him on and his own body heat.
His eye narrow lightly. Something to restrict him? Possibly, but they were only on one wrist and weren't connected to anything.
At that moment, his heart rate shot up, and he jerked quite painfully.
Memories. Memories that were not his own poured into his mind like a flood smashing through a wall. The memories were quick flashes for him, but he could tell what they all entailed. His unbandaged eye shut close, his fist clenched even tighter. Midoriya's memories. His Genjutsu was successful.
The storm of memories ended, and while he had a bad headache, he knew it was worth the small pain. He had information that he never would've been able to learn. He felt he was now able to wield technology as if he were born to this world. He had effective and through knowledge of every top hero and all the heroes that Midoriya had come to know about. He also had information about the most important hero of them all.
All Might, the Symbol of Peace.
He didn't linger on that particular information long but he knew it was a plus for him. He had a weakness he could exploit should they come to blows. It wasn't likely, but one may never know and as a Jounin he was better safe than sorry.
Suddenly, light pours into the room, momentarily blinding him before he's able to regain himself and completely still his body, pretending to be asleep. His hand unconsciously twitches at the sound of footsteps approach him slowly. It takes effort to not lash out. He doubts his body can handle sudden movement and he didn't have much strength anyways.
A voice spoke out, commanding and stern, "I know you are awake. I've been watching you."
Kakashi pauses at this but then decides that if he's found out, pretending holds no advantage. She probably saw what the memories did to him. His eye fluttered open, he forced his himself not to wince.
"I am the Hero Commission's President. It's nice to finally meet you, Hatake Kakashi."
...