The Lives Worth Saving

Chapter 6 - Interlude: Friends, Old and New

Chapter 6 – Interlude: Friends, Old and New

"Are you people going to make sure I return to my apartment every night from now on, or will this stop sometime soon?"

Lazily, Kakashi glanced up from his book and eye-smiled a greeting at the approaching redhead from his position against Haruki's doorframe. "Yo! You didn't come to practice today. We wanted to make sure you were alright."

Beside the Copy-nin, Sakura was seated on his doorstep while Naruto and Sasuke were lazing in front of Naruto's. Kakashi pretended not to notice the twitch that was developing in Haruki's right eye.

"You did fine without me while I was away on my mission," Haruki pointed out dryly as he drew to a stop in front of them. "And I'm not exactly on Team 7."

"But Haruki-san," Naruto jumped to his feet, blue eyes innocent and pleading at the same time. "You need to keep up with your training too and joining us would be perfect!"

Haruki arched an eyebrow at the blond. "Who said I wasn't training? I trained with Gai-san's team today."

Kakashi blanched. "Gai's team? For the love of god, why?"

Haruki's mouth tilted up into a slight smile. "I promised, remember? I told him I'd train with his team as soon as I got back from my mission."

Kakashi blinked. "I thought you just said that to get away."

Haruki frowned at him. "Of course not. Only you'd do that."

"What's wrong with that team?" Saskura piped up, her head cocked in a confused manner.

Ignoring Kakashi's muttered "everything", Haruki smiled a greeting down at the kunoichi before replying, "Nothing's wrong with Gai-san's team. It's just that Kakashi here can't seem to stand Gai-san's... enthusiasm for training. One of his students takes after him too. The other two are quieter; Tenten, a weapons specialist, and Hyuga Neji."

Sakura frowned a bit as she rose as well, dusting her red dress off. "I don't remember them in our graduating class."

"They're a year above you." Haruki explained. "Still Genin, but I believe Gai-san will be nominating them for the Chunin Exams this year."

"Chunin Exams?" Naruto scratched his head. "That's the thing we have to take to get to the next rank, right?"

Sasuke had straightened visibly at this, getting to his feet as well and now turned to look at Haruki. "Are they strong?"

Haruki gazed back at the Uchiha, carefully considering his answer. "In terms of physical strength," He answered slowly. "I'd say all three of them are already at Chunin-level or just about there. But it takes more than brute strength to pass the Exams. Other aspects are considered."

"Like what?" Naruto looked excited now and Sasuke seemed to have a hard time hiding the interest trying to surface on his face. Sakura looked less enthusiastic, but any new information was always welcome to her and she paid attention as well.

Haruki paused for a moment and glanced over at the Copy-nin, gauging his expression. Kakashi shrugged at him but nodded fractionally, giving Haruki free reign to tell them what he wished. Turning back, Haruki compromised, "It wouldn't be fair to the other teams if I told you anything specific, but from my own experience, I found that they usually test your willpower and strategic thinking," He stopped for a heartbeat, gaze deepening as he stared down at the three Genin. "And teamwork. Teamwork is huge. Don't let anything tear you apart."

A stilted silence followed this last bit and Haruki blinked when he found himself the recipient of three confused stares and an odd one from Kakashi. He plastered on a small smile again and rubbed the back of his head, "What I mean is that you're stronger together. And the examiners will take into account how well you can work as a team."

"Of course," He added, glancing at Kakashi and pretending not to see the faint frown still marring the Copy-nin's brow. "That would all depend on whether or not Kakashi nominates you for the Exams."

Instantly, all attention was fixed on the Copy-nin and Kakashi quickly eye-smiled at his students, absently noting that Haruki was very good at redirecting attention away from himself. "Maa," He said aloud. "At the moment, none of you are good enough. But the Chuunin Exams are still some time away. Maybe you'll be ready then."

Naruto grinned and gave them all a thumbs-up. "I'll definitely be ready! And Sasuke and Sakura-chan will be too! We'll show everyone that we're the best team ever! Believe it!"

Sasuke crossed his arms and rolled his eyes but a confident smirk had made its way onto his face. Sakura just shook her head but she couldn't quite hide the anxiety in her eyes and Haruki made a mental note to do something about his old teammate's confidence level.

"Now," Kakashi straightened from his slouch against Haruki's doorway. "Didn't you want to ask Haruki something, Naruto?"

The blond's face scrunched up in thought for a second before his expression cleared and he turned eagerly to Haruki. "Oh yeah! Remember how you treated me to ramen that first day? Well I've got several paychecks now from all the D-ranks we've been doing, so I can treat you to ramen now!"

Haruki stamped down the amusement welling up inside him and nodded instead. "Sure Naruto. Ichiraku's then?"

Naruto nodded enthusiastically but clutched at his head when Sakura whacked him with a scowl. "We're treating Haruki-san today! He treated all of us, remember? We just agreed that you'd be the one to ask him!"

She turned to smile hopefully at the redhead. "I mean, if that's okay, Haruki-san? Sasuke-kun and I would like to repay you too, especially since you cooked for us yesterday as well."

Haruki blinked at her before sliding his gaze over to Sasuke. The raven-haired Genin nodded an affirmative and Haruki smiled back at both of them. "Alright, I expect an extra-large bowl then."

Naruto grinned brightly up at him before bounding away, Sakura and Sasuke beside him and Kakashi and Haruki falling in behind them.

x.X.x

An hour and a half later, only the two Jonin remained in the ramen stand, the three kids having left after Kakashi had cheerfully informed them to meet at the bridge for training at six in the morning. Haruki had sent a Kage Bunshin with each of them, henged into a bee, as they had departed, and hadn't relaxed again until the Bunshin that had followed Naruto home dispersed without fuss.

Now, Haruki poked absently at the remains of the large ramen Team 7 had promised him. Beside him, Kakashi had flipped open his book again and had already finished, his mask firmly back in place.

Not that the man's face was anything Haruki hadn't seen before, but Kakashi didn't know that and the redhead had made an effort to keep his eyes on his food earlier.

"Will you train with us tomorrow?" The question was voiced nonchalantly but Haruki glanced up in time to catch the intent glint in the Copy-nin's visible eye.

Haruki shook his head. "I'm training with Asuma's team tomorrow."

Kakashi looked mildly taken aback. "Are you going around training with all the teams? Kurenai's the day after maybe?"

Haruki just sighed and took a sip of sake. "No, no, Asuma just caught me using one of my jutsus today when I was sparring Tenten and managed to con me into going."

"So you trained with Gai's team all day? That must've been..." The Copy-nin seemed to struggle for an adequate word.

"Youthful?" Haruki offered helpfully.

Kakashi's mouth twitched from behind his mask and he nodded. "Youthful. Times two. I hear that protégée of his is just as bad as Gai."

Haruki chuckled. "Lee-kun's not that bad. He's a good kid." The redhead tapped his chopsticks against the edge of his bowl for a moment, gaze becoming distant as his expression became more thoughtful. "He'll become a great taijutsu master. Better than Gai-san."

Kakashi watched the other Jounin curiously out of the corner of his eye. He never could understand the way Haruki said some things; those occasional thoughts that sounded more like facts with the solid amount of confidence and sincerity that Haruki curled around them.

They fell silent for a while, comfortable with the lack of conversation as one concentrated on his book and the other turned to look out at the darkened street outside, back against the counter with one elbow balanced on it.

"So did you really spend the entire day with Gai's team?" Kakashi turned as well after finishing a chapter, reclining against the counter as he started talking again.

Haruki tilted his head just enough to glance sidelong at him. "No, I spent the morning with them. Visited the Hokage in between. Then went to play a shogi match against Shikaku-san."

Kakashi stiffened in surprise. "Shikaku-sama? Really? Why?"

Haruki shrugged. "He invited me yesterday. I couldn't get out of it."

Kakashi frowned. He had heard ofHyuuga Hizashi's miraculous return, of course. The Hokage had announced it privately yesterday to all the ANBU and the Jonin. And Kakashi hadn't missed the coincidental timing of Hizashi's return and Haruki's mission either. He already suspected that the redhead had something to do with it all, but he had kept his suspicions to himself then, and he would keep them to himself now. If the Hokage hadn't said anything, then it had to be a secret. But the Council, at least, must've been told, and Shikaku must have found Haruki's role interesting enough to warrant a personal visit.

"So who won?" Kakashi asked absently. He had played the Jonin Commander once, and had been thoroughly thrashed in two hours.

"He did." "Haruki-san did."

Both Jonin blinked and turned to find the owner of the new voice. Kakashi's visible eye narrowed in concern when he saw Haruki's jaw clench at the sight of the Nara heir entering the ramen stand. Hoping to take the redhead's mind off of whatever was troubling him, Kakashi restated his question to the Genin (he couldn't quite remember the boy's name), making an effort to keep his voice light.

"So who exactly won? You seem to have a difference of opinion."

Shikamaru stepped into the ramen stand, hands stuffed into his pockets as he focused on the two Jounin. He frowned inwardly when he noticed that the redhead wasn't quite meeting his gaze and was busying himself with drinking his sake instead. With a mental shrug, he turned his attention on the Copy-nin sitting beside him.

"Haruki-san won," Shikamaru stated again, glancing at Haruki to gauge his expression. The man had a faint frown creasing his brow but didn't respond otherwise. "But he forfeited and left before anyone noticed."

Kakashi casted a curious look at Haruki and, catching his eye, the redhead sighed and elaborated, "Shikaku-san would've won in three moves."

"And you would've won in one," Shikamaru quickly cut in. He wanted to know why Haruki had forfeited on purpose.

Talking directly to the Jounin seemed to finally gain his attention because Shikamaru soon found himself on the receiving end of an endless blue gaze. He stiffened at the flash of grief that surfaced briefly in Haruki's eyes, but when he blinked, the redhead looked as impassive as ever and he would have dismissed it as something he had imagined if it wasn't for the fact that he had seen the exact same expression back at his house when he had first met Haruki.

The redhead only shrugged though and went back to his sake. Shikamaru didn't let it go. "Why did you forfeit the game?" He persisted.

Haruki stared into his drink as he contemplated the Nara's question. How the hell had he gotten into this mess? And how could he get out of it now? Of course, he knew exactly why he had forfeited the match. Because Shikaku's interest in him would've reached new heights if Haruki beat the Shogi Master at his own game. Because the Clan Head would've tried and probably succeeded in wrangling another shogi appointment out of him. Because he hadn't wanted to answer any more of Shikaku's questions. Because he hadn't wanted to spend any more time in the place that he had gotten to know like the back of his hand in his own timeline.

But most of all, it was because of the very person now standing in front of him. He hadn't wanted to continue looking at the younger version of his Chief Strategist and close friend any longer than he had to. Shikamaru's death had been ugly: bloodied chest, half his face gone, broken limbs, stomach sliced open and his organs spilling out and Haruki's vision had blurred and he had seen the adult instead of the boy, dying on the battlefield with a smile on his face as he was finally allowed to let go of life and follow his friends and family.

And it had taken everything Haruki had not to throw up right then and there. He had all but fled the Nara Compound, and the walk back home had cleared his head a little. He had wanted to lock himself in his apartment and just curl up in bed and shut everything out, but Team 7 had been waiting for him and he hadn't been able to say no when they had invited him out for dinner and god, when was the last time someone had waited for him?

Now he wished he had as he tried to find a suitable answer for the Genin he still had trouble looking at. The others he had interacted with so far had had cleaner deaths in his time. They were still horrible and agonizing and he had felt a little bit of himself die after each one of them had been killed, but at least their deaths had been less bloody. By the time Sasuke had gone as well, he had been half out of his mind with grief already and total recall of his General's body only came in his nightmares, so they had been easier to deal with. But Shika...

"I did not wish to continue playing," Haruki finally voiced, eyes focused somewhere over Shikamaru's left shoulder. "And your father would have asked for another match had I won."

Shikamaru's frown was now more pronounced as he tried to catch that cerulean gaze again. "Would that have been so troublesome? It's shogi."

Haruki downed the rest of his sake in one gulp before getting to his feet, placing some money on the counter to cover the cost of the alcohol. Next to him, Kakashi also slid off the stool, eye darting between Haruki and Shikamaru.

"I can handle a shogi match now and then," Haruki steeled himself and finally turned his gaze on Shikamaru, keeping it there for more than a few seconds this time. "But a game with your father takes time and concentration. He's no pushover and I can't afford to be distracted when I play him." He managed a slightly strained smile at the boy and forced down the bile that was rising at the back of his throat, because his face should be torn apart, his body shredded. "I have other things to concentrate on as well at the moment. Perhaps we can play again later."

Barely pausing to nod a goodnight at Teuchi, who seemed very concerned having witnessed the events since the arrival of the young Nara, Haruki stuffed his hands into his coat pockets and ducked out of the stand, offering a hurried "Good night, Shikamaru-kun" to the bewildered Genin still standing inside the shop before disappearing from view. Behind him, Kakashi hastily tossed his own money down, nodded at Teuchi and Shikamaru, and then quickly ducked out as well, falling into step beside the fast-paced redhead.

Kakashi didn't ask, though he sorely wanted to, but there were some things that one simply left alone until it was brought up on its own and the Copy-nin respected the other Jonin's privacy. So he simply kept pace with Haruki until he had to turn off towards his own apartment, parting with a simple nod that the redhead returned curtly before turning down a street and quickly melting into the evening shadows.

Kakashi watched him go for a moment, recalling the Nara heir's expression when he had been interacting with Haruki. The Genin had looked just as confused as he felt. What had set the redhead off like that?

With a sigh, the Copy-nin started making his own way home. This was just another piece of the puzzle that was Haruki that he was trying to put together.

x.X.x

Shikamaru shoved his front door aside with uncharacteristic irritability, making his way into the kitchen and dumping the take-out ramen in front of his dad at the dinner table.

"There you go," He announced distractedly, not noticing the odd look his father was sending his way. "Next time, get your own dinner. Just because Kaa-san is out doesn't make me your delivery boy. How troublesome."

He opened a cupboard for a glass and poured himself a cup of water before leaning back against the counter, still frowning in thought.

"Did something happen, Shikamaru?" His father's voice made him blink and Shikamaru glanced up to meet Shikaku's gaze.

He shrugged, taking a sip before speaking. "I bumped into Haruki-san at Ichiraku's." He paused and noted the immediate interest surfacing on his father's face. "We talked."

I talked, he mentally amended. He just wanted to get outta there.

"What about?" Shikaku prompted.

"His match with you," Shikamaru gulped down the rest of the water and placed the glass in the sink. "Kakashi-san was asking him about it. He said you won. I arrived in time to correct him."

"And what did he say?" At this point, Shikaku had lowered the newspaper he had been reading and turned his full attention on his son.

"Not a lot," Shikamaru scratched his head and made his way to the dinner table, taking a seat across from his father. "He said he didn't want to continue playing, and that you would've asked for another game if he had won. He said he wouldn't mind playing you again but he doesn't want to play too often. He said he would need to fully concentrate when playing against you and he had other things to think about at the moment."

"Those all sound like excuses," Shikaku observed after his son fell silent.

Shikamaru just shrugged again, slouching back in his seat and stuffing his hands into his pockets. "...Did you do something to him?"

Shikaku frowned, noting the troubled scowl on his usually laidback son. "No. We just played a game of shogi." And did 20-Questions in the process, he added fairly in his mind.

Shikamaru glanced at him, expression suspicious. "Are you sure you didn't insult him or something? Or did he move here from a different country and you killed one of his family members on a mission?"

Shikaku placed his newspaper aside, straightening in his seat. "What are you talking about, Shikamaru? We played shogi and we talked a little. I've never met him before yesterday. What did he do?"

Shikamaru ran a hand through his ponytail, tugging at the ends in frustration. "I don't know. I didn't understand. ...He could barely look at me."

Shikaku's frown deepened. "What do you mean? He didn't look at you when you were talking to him?"

Shikamaru heaved a sigh. "No. I mean yes. He did; a couple of times. Briefly. It's not that he didn't look at me. It's that he tried and it was like he couldn't bear to." He stopped talking for a moment and gauged his father's expression. The man was still frowning but there was confusion in his features now.

"Near the end, he managed to keep eye-contact for longer than a few seconds, but the look in his eyes," Shikamaru held back a shudder because even as young as he was, he knew he never wanted to look into a mirror and see that same tortured despair stare back at him. He wasn't quite sure, but he expected that that had been the look of someone who had lost everything. "I've never seen someone look like that before. And then he got out of there so fast you would've thought he was running away. Actually, I think he was running away."

Shikaku leaned back in his seat. He had noticed the air of depression shrouding the redhead during the shogi match and even yesterday after the Council meeting. But it hadn't been well-hidden, and the amount sorrow Shikaku had felt had been small. Every shinobi carried their own grief, buried away so others wouldn't see it. But what if that grief was well-hidden? It was obvious now that Haruki could hold a poker face with the best of them. So very good at keeping his thoughts and feelings from being noticed, and yet Shikaku had still sensed that sorrow.

"And this was when you entered the picture?" Shikaku prodded. "Maybe it was Kakashi who..."

Shikamaru was already shaking his head. "No, they were on friendly terms. He definitely started looking like that after I stepped inside that ramen stand."

Shikaku rubbed at his goatee before sighing and reaching for the ramen. "You mentioned a look. What did he look like when he looked at you then?"

Shikamaru shook his head, accepting one of the boxes his father handed to him. "I don't know. I can't describe it. And I don't think it was actually me he was seeing when he looked at me."

Shikaku nodded and started on his ramen. It probably wasn't. Haruki hadn't even met his son until today. Someone who looked like him then? Shikamaru was a Nara through and through. But Shikaku had seen none of what his son had obviously witnessed so it couldn't have just been physical similarities.

"Maybe I shouldn't go to practice tomorrow," Shikamaru grumbled from across the table.

Shikaku blinked in surprise. He wouldn't be startled if his son was skipping out on practice because it was too troublesome, but this was because of some stranger he had just met. "It's not like you to go out of your way for someone you don't know. Isn't it too troublesome?"

Shikamaru shrugged, chewing on his ramen. "You didn't see his face, Tou-san. He just can't stand looking at me."

Shikaku sighed but refrained from saying anything when a knock came at the door. Frowning, he rose to his feet and went to answer it. Outside, a member of his clan nodded respectfully at him before gesturing in the direction of the front gates. "Shikaku-sama, a Kazama Haruki wishes to speak to Shikamaru-sama."

Shikaku arched an eyebrow, taken aback for a moment before nodding. "I'll handle it, thanks."

The man sketched a quick bow before strolling off, the Nara's signature lazy slouch in his gait. Shikaku turned back into his house and called out, "Shikamaru! Haruki-san's at the front gates. He wants to talk to you."

His son appeared a few seconds later, looking confused. "Me? Why?"

Shikaku shrugged and motioned for him to get going. "I don't know. Go see what he wants."

Shikamaru sighed and slouched out of the house. "Troublesome. You could've just invited him up to the house." In truth, he just didn't know what to do when the redhead faced him again. Why would Haruki want to see him when it was obvious that he really, really didn't?

x.X.x

Haruki had been halfway home when his mind had finally caught up to him and shoved his memories back into the darkest corner of his head. Then he had stopped, right in the middle of the street and remembered the look of slightly troubled bewilderment on a younger one, a different Shikamaru's face. And knowing the Nara, the Genin would realize that Haruki didn't want to see him. That would, in turn, most likely throw a wrench in Team 10's dynamics tomorrow if Haruki couldn't even get his act together around the Nara heir.

Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair before turning decisively in the direction of the Nara Compound. Enough was enough. That was twice he had run out on Shikamaru, and if his time's Shika was here, the strategist would've laughed at him for being an idiot. They were not the same person and he had to stop seeing his Chief Strategist in this Shikamaru.

Damn. That was easier said than done. Well, if he kept his focus on the Genin and ignored the part of his mind that kept trying to replace the boy's face with a bloodied adult version, he would be fine.

He would have to be. There was no way he was going to just avoid Shikamaru from now on. That would be more than unfair to him.

So, mind made up, Haruki leapt to the rooftops and headed to the Nara Compound. He would apologize and make sure the boy didn't do anything stupid like skip out on tomorrow's practice.

x.X.x

"Haruki-san?"

Haruki glanced up from his position against the walls of the compound, focusing on the features of the young Genin. There. He could see this Shikamaru if he concentrated.

"Sorry to bother you so late at night, Shikamaru-kun," Haruki started, straightening from where his place against the wall. "I wanted to apologize for earlier, at Ichiraku's."

Shikamaru blinked before rubbing the back of his head. Of all the things he had expected, it wasn't this. He had been prepared to agree if Haruki came to ask him not to go to training tomorrow, or something of the sort. He hadn't been expecting an apology, and the sorrow he had seen before was gone from the redhead's eyes. Or carefully tucked away.

"So... I'm sorry," Haruki sounded awkward and Shikamaru realized, with a mildly embarrassed start, that he had simply been staring at the redhead without responding.

He quickly shook his head. "It's alright. No harm done."

They stood there for a moment in stilted silence, and Shikamaru frantically tried to think of something to say. Should he offer to skip out on tomorrow's practice? Maybe he should just wait for the Jounin to say something first. Or should he invite the man in? God, this whole situation was troublesome to begin with.

"You will come to practice tomorrow, then?" Haruki finally spoke, taking the decision out of Shikamaru's hands, and the Nara heir was startled when he heard the hopeful note in the Jounin's voice.

"Are you sure?" He stuffed his hands into his pockets for lack of anything better to do with them. "I mean, I don't have to. It's just for a day, and-"

"I'm sure," Haruki cut in firmly, blue eyes still holding his own. Shikamaru absently wondered how hard the redhead was trying right now. "What happened earlier didn't have anything to do with you. It was just my own mind being stupid. I have nothing against you, Shikamaru-kun."

"Well I definitely hope not. A Jonin having something against me is just really troublesome." He responded automatically, and then paused to study the redhead's expression. Maybe he shouldn't have said that.

But Haruki surprised him again with a slight smile, the first genuine one Shikamaru had seen on the Jounin. "Then you'll be there tomorrow?" The redhead continued lightly.

Shikamaru sighed but nodded. "I'm not sure if Asuma-sensei told you, but we usually meet up at Ino's, she's one of my teammates, at her family's flower shop before going to train."

Haruki nodded an affirmation. "He did. I'll be there at ten."

Shikamaru nodded again and the awkward silence descended around them once more. He could swear he heard his father snicker from somewhere out of sight and mentally scowled at the man. Eavesdropping. If only his mother was here at the moment. She'd have him cowering in a second for being so troublesome.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow, Shikamaru-kun." The redhead finally offered, and then raised his voice a little after Shikamaru muttered a goodnight. "Goodnight, Shikaku-san."

Shikamaru blinked and then spun around. He knew it. From the shadows of the compound walls, his father stepped into the dimly lit street, already nodding cordially at Haruki. "Goodnight, Haruki-san."

Shikamaru expected his father to mention the earlier shogi match but Shikaku stayed silent as the redhead disappeared into the night.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Shikamaru fell into step beside his father as they headed back indoors.

Shikaku shrugged. "He came all this way to apologize. I'll give him a break for now. There's always next time."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes and idly wondered if he would be pushing too far if he asked Haruki for a shogi match tomorrow. Then he sighed. Why did even asking for a shogi game have to be so troublesome?

x.X.x

At six in the morning, Haruki was up and dressed for the day, leaping over the rooftops towards the Hokage Tower. An ANBU had swung by earlier and informed him that the Hokage wanted to see him. Haruki suspected that Sarutobi had more questions about yesterday and he would need his first fuinjutsu lesson.

"You wanted to see me?"

Sarutobi glanced up as a familiar redhead leapt in through the window. His ANBU guards didn't even straighten at Haruki's appearance anymore, letting him pass without comment. He mentally shook his head. Was that a good thing or not?

"Yes," Sarutobi briskly activated the privacy seals again before turning his full attention on Haruki. "I've sent out a message to Jiraiya and his reply just came back earlier this morning. He's on his way to track down Tsunade. In the meantime, I wanted to know more about your abilities in fuuinjutsu. Jiraiya couldn't find a way to permanently counter Orochimaru's Cursed Seal. You mentioned that you could?"

Haruki nodded, already sensing where this was going. "If you can make Anko-san believe that I can, I could get rid of her seal,"

Sarutobi frowned faintly. Haruki had said he could, but only in passing. Now the redhead was confirming it, but surely there would be some complications?

"But what would you need?" Sarutobi had to be certain of all the aspects of this counter-seal. "How much time? And what would be the side effects?"

Haruki tilted his head, observing him with careful cerulean. "Old man, you don't have much confidence in my fuinjutsu skills, do you?" He asked mildly, ignoring the immediate protest that surfaced on the Sandaime's face. "There aren't any side effects. I need some of Anko-san's blood, her patience, her strength of will, her high pain tolerance, and a blank scroll. As for time," He paused to consider this, noting the Hokage's astonished face with some amusement. "Two hours."

"...You're serious?" Sarutobi asked with some disbelief. "You can really get that seal off with only those things?"

Haruki nodded, eyes grave. "Yes, especially since Anko-san doesn't even have the full Cursed Seal. And I've done it before. I got rid of Anko-san's seal in my timeline."

Sarutobi relaxed at this. If Haruki had already done it once, then that was a different matter. "Very well. I've actually already summoned her and she's on her way. Is it possible to do it now? You said two hours would suffice."

Haruki nodded and reached into his coat to pull out a scroll. It was a good thing he was always prepared. A quick knock at the door made them both refocus their attention and Sarutobi temporarily pulled down the privacy seals to call the person in.

Anko swept into the room, a good-natured grin on her lips and a stick of dango in one hand. "Morning, Hokage-sama!" She greeted, her gaze sweeping the room before landing on Haruki. "What's this about?"

Making sure the privacy seals were up again, Sarutobi motioned to a chair as he spoke. "Good morning, Anko. A bit early for sweets, isn't it?"

Anko waved a dismissive hand in the air as she took a bite of her makeshift breakfast and made her way over to the chair. "It's never too early for sweets. You should really get some too. Now seriously, what's the problem? You never get me this early in the morning."

Sarutobi nodded and waved a hand at Haruki. "Anko, this is Kazama Haruki," He paused when Haruki nodded briefly at the kunoichi in greeting. "He's a Fuinjutsu Master. He can get rid of that Cursed Seal."

A moment later, Anko was on her feet again, chair clattering back on the floor, glaring furiously at the redhead. "That's impossible! No one's been able to do anything but hold it back! Even Jiraiya-sama's tried and failed! How could some damn Jonin be able to?"

Haruki didn't so much as blink at Anko's tirade. "I'm better than Jiraiya-sama."

Anko froze, mouth opening but not finding any words to say. Better than Jiraiya? Impossible. Yet here was this pretty boy openly claiming it without any sort of arrogance. Stating it as if it was a simple fact.

She shouldn't believe this. Getting her long-dead hopes up now would be pointless when the redhead failed later on. And yet, he was still staring at her patiently, a scroll in one hand, the other still stuffed in his coat pocket, waiting for her to decide.

'Fuck you!' Her mind snapped.

"What would you have to do?" She said aloud, eyes narrowing. She noticed the dango stick clutched in her right hand and made an effort to relax her grip.

Haruki waved the scroll. "I'll need some of your blood to write out the counter seal. I'll be using my own chakra to make it. Then you'll activate it with your own chakra. You won't need to put a lot into it to start the process; the first bit of your chakra's just to let the counter seal identify you as the owner of the Cursed Seal we want to remove. Then my seal will do the rest, but while it's working, it will keep drawing on your chakra. Not enough to kill you but you will feel tired afterwards."

Anko stared in disbelief. "Just like that? No after-effects? You just make this seal, I activate it, and boom, my fucking Cursed Seal's gone?"

Haruki shrugged. "I'll need an hour and a half to get this seal ready and it'll take about half an hour for it to do its job." He paused, and then warned, "And it'll hurt. A lot. I have to untangle him from your chakra coils. Like I said you'll feel drained afterwards and you'll be suffering from chakra depletion, but that'll come back soon enough."

Anko dismissed this easily. Chakra depletion was the least of her concerns. "But nothing else?" She pressed insistently. "I'll still be able to continue as a kunoichi, and all my skill would be just as good as it is now?"

Haruki gave her an odd look. "Of course not."

She stiffened immediately and opened her mouth to curse the redhead out but the Jonin continued before she could. "Without the Cursed Seal, you'll be better. How much better is up to you, but the Cursed Seal won't be hindering you anymore."

If Anko hadn't been so stunned, she would've swore at him when she detected amusement floating just underneath the redhead's features. As it was, she scowled fiercely at him before turning to the Hokage who, now that she thought about it, she had honestly forgotten up until this point.

"Is this guy for real?" She demanded. "He's a Konoha Jonin but I've never seen him before. Where has he been?"

Sarutobi chuckled. "He's been away on a mission, and yes, I do believe he is telling the truth."

Anko frowned. How long was this mission that she had never seen him before? He looked around her age.

Turning back to Haruki, she debated the pros and cons of the situation. If she believed him, then there really weren't any cons. Yeah, from what he had told her, it would hurt like a bitch, but she was a ninja; she could take it. Besides, she would put up with any pain if it meant getting her former sensei's seal off of her.

But should she trust him? How often was it that some shinobi popped out of nowhere claiming to be able to break one of the strongest cursed seals known to mankind? And yet, Sarutobi obviously trusted him and Anko could sense no malice coming from the redhead.

Despite her reservations, she could feel a faint stirring of hope inside her. If this worked, Orochimaru's mark would no longer be on her. She wouldn't ever have to worry about the seal being activated again. She would be freeagain.

"How much blood do you need?" Her mind made up, Anko barrelled forward as usual, gaze steel-like as she pulled out a kunai.

Haruki nodded and withdrew another scroll, unsealing a small empty ink jar. "Half of this would be enough."

Anko nodded briskly before something dawned on her, "Wait you said untangle him from my coils? Does that mean that...?"

Haruki nodded grimly and began explaining, " Perhaps I should explain, at least in basic terms, what the curse seal actually is. The Curse Seal has two primary functions. One is to be a capsule for a portion of Orochimaru's soul which feeds off the chakra of the host like a leach" Anko looked like she was going to be sick while the Sandaime looked horrified.

"This allows anyone that knows how to unseal the cursed seal to summon Orochimaru as a new body of the original is sealed or long as it exist he is practically immortal. But that in and of itself isn't what makes the curse seal so dangerous to the host and that comes on the second purpose. The curse seal empowers the host and augments not just their chakra speed and strength but also their more violent emotions and instincts. This is derived from enzymes used in the ink of the seals creation to pull in nature chakra and warp it into the host. This process is dangerous and potentially very disstressing on the body which is why most who receive the mark die and even the early successes like Anko experience extreme pain. This is because the seal matrix used was not good enough to make the tainted nature chakra compatible with the host. This is also why other seals can only restrain and not remove the Curse seal because senjustu chakra is required to break and remove the matrix along with the correct style seal formula."

At this both Hurizen and Anko gaped though for different reasons. "You can use senjustu?" Said the Sandaime. At Haruki's nod Anko continued "But wait! I thought only the summons of the legendary Sannin could teach senjustu. How could you know senjustu? I know your not a summoner of any of those."

Haruki had the gaul to smirk at her as he explained, "While senjutsu is usually learned by a summoner it is not required just more difficult. As for me I actually did learn senjutsu from a summons that isn't one of those three." Which technically speak was true as by the end of the war he had signed for contracts. Granted Kurama was one of them and two of the others were the slugs and the toads but that still left his friends in the sky which he did learn senjutsu from after the experimentation incident. "Though that doesn't really matter." Haruki said already trying to head off any questions as to what his summons was. Anko who had been about to ask mouth closed with a click and finishing off her dango before dropping down onto the floor with the ink jar to start her part of the process.

Haruki glanced over at the Hokage before motioning at the privacy seals. "You should probably strengthen those if you don't want anyone hearing screaming or feeling bursts of chakra coming from your office."

Sarutobi blinked but nodded, rising to fully activate the privacy seals. He told the ANBU at his door that, short of the announcement of the apocalypse, no one was to enter. He locked the office door for extra measure and closed the windows as well.

"There," Anko held up the ink jar, now half-filled with her own blood, and Haruki accepted it with a nod, taking a seat on the ground as well with the blank scroll open in front of him. Anko eyed his empty hands curiously as she quickly bandaged her palm. "Don't you need a brush or something?"

Haruki smiled faintly at her before holding up one hand. Blue-white chakra immediately began glowing around it and Anko gasped as she felt the power extend from that hand. A hum of raw strength edged it, but the pure energy emitting from that hand, down to its very core, was soothingly warm, like sunlight.

And Anko was sure she had never felt any chakra like it in her entire life. But it was when she looked at his face that she had gotten her biggest surprise. Dark blue pigment had surrounded the eye and seemed to peak in the corners. It sharpened his features. She absently thought it appeared similar to a bird. As if his chakra couldn't get stronger it seemed to instantly thick with a wild vibrance that reminded them of a fresh breeze in a cool crisp morning.

Before anyone could say anything, Haruki moved his hand over the ink jar, letting his chakra draw out the blood. With deft control, he coated the blood with chakra and brought it over the scroll. Tuning everything else out, he started drawing out the seal, each crimson stroke he depicted on the paper glowing in his wake.

Anko was staring at the redhead's work with open interest. She had never seen anyone perform fuuinjutsu this way. Weren't seals written with blood or ink and then activated with chakra afterwards?

Sarutobi had drawn closer and, after a short undecided moment, sat down cross legged next to the other two shinobi as well. It wasn't as if anyone else was around to see him act un-Hokage-like. And he had never seen anyone, not even Jiraiya, draw seals with chakra like Haruki was doing.

I'm better than Jiraiya-sama.

Haruki had sounded certain, but it wasn't until now that Sarutobi fully believed the redhead. After all, Minato had been the only one to ever surpass Jiraiya in fuinjutsu. But each precise stroke of crimson against white proved Haruki's skill and Sarutobi could only watch with a sense of proud awe as an intricate seal slowly formed under the time traveller's steady hand. He begin making mental notes and used this as a practical lesson in fuinjutsu.

For the next hour and a half, the only sounds in the Hokage's office were the near-silent hum of chakra and the whisper of liquid on paper. Haruki worked out each part of the seal without hesitation. He had already done this seal three times; once for practice, once for his time's Anko, and once again for his time's Sasuke. Sasuke's Seal had been no picnic to remove, being the most powerful of Orochimaru's Cursed Seals, but the Snake Sannin had sided with them already and told them how to do it before he perished fighting Madara so that at least had made the process that much easier. It was ironic using it as the Snake Sannin had intended but eventually even Orochimaru's lives ran out. The last time restrained and absorbed by his old protégé Kabuto. Irony.

"Finished," Haruki glanced up, releasing the chakra he had gathered to his right hand as he used up the last of Anko's blood. He blinked, somewhat startled when he realized that both the room's other occupants were still staring avidly at his seal.

"That's it?" Anko's voice was subdued for once as her eyes traced the design Haruki had made. Only the centre, depicted with a sun-like pattern, looked simple. "That will remove Orochimaru's Cursed Seal?"

Haruki nodded, scanning the scroll for any mistakes. "We can start anytime."

Anko took a deep breath before nodding firmly. "What do I do?"

The Jonin placed the scroll back on the ground in front of Anko, spreading it open as he motioned for the Sandaime to move back. Sarutobi rose to his feet and retreated to his desk, still studying the seal. He had never seen anything like it. He could pick out pieces of designs, a few swirls for foreign chakra removal and some strokes twisted together for stability, but it was the intricate kanji on either side of the centre that interested him.

All the kanji were tied into the wind element. The kanji for wind served as the base before spreading out from there. Airstreams, breezes, and gales; all the way up to monsoons, squalls, even storms, and tied together again with zephyrs.

"Haruki-kun," Sarutobi interrupted. "Why is this seal based on so much wind element? How would this be able to remove the Cursed Seal? The only part of this that relates back to the actual seal is the centre, and it is only a basic design for curse removal."

Haruki offered a half-smile as he settled on the opposite side of the scroll. "My strongest elemental affinity is wind, old man. This seal will be the support for me. I'll be the one removing the Cursed Seal through this. The last outer ring is the seals senjutsu channel that will drain off the tainted chakra and allow mine to the tear it to shreds resulting in anything taken with it to be eviscerated including the soul fragment. The seal work itself is then all that's left which can be removed by a simple curse removal seal as the ink no longer has any power to fight. Basically the reason I can remove it is I destroy the power first then the mind, then the body of the seal, where as the previous approaches try to do the reverse and are just not strong enough because of senjutsu chakra's superiority."

Anko straightened, looking mildly alarmed. "Wait a minute; I thought the seal would be doing the work. You didn't mention anything about yourself."

Haruki frowned at her. "I won't hurt you."

Anko snorted derisively. "If I was worried about you hurting me, Red, I wouldn't have agreed to this in the first place. The seal could just as easily kill me. I'm asking what will happen to you."

The redhead's brow cleared, taking the sudden nickname in stride as he smiled again. "Ah, I see. I'll just be a little tired afterwards. Like I said, no after-effects. I have more senjutsu flow than the seal. It can't scale to my level or match the size of my pool. No need to worry."

The kunoichi eyed him suspiciously before shrugging grudgingly. Sarutobi quickly cut in again before they could start. "But I still do not understand how so many wind elements are needed in this process."

Haruki pointed at the hollow centre. "This is where the Cursed Seal will end up afterwards. I'll be drawing it away from Anko-san and into the scroll. Orochimaru's Seal is strong, yes, but in the end, when broken down, it is still built up from any other basic seal. The wind elements I've put into this seal will help me break the curse down for the curse remover in addition to the previous mentioned functions. By the time it leaves Anko-san, only the most basic and unique components will be left, which will be easy to lock away with a simple Curse Removal Seal." He paused and glanced up at the Hokage. "Trust me, old man. I know what I'm doing."

When put like that, and explained so thoroughly, Sarutobi could hardly find fault with it. He nodded and settled against his desk, watching as Haruki directed Anko to place her hand on the centre design.

"This'll hurt," The redhead warned once more, extending a kunai. "Bite down, though that'll probably shatter in the process anyway."

Anko rolled his eyes but complied, placing her uncut hand on the centre of the seal and biting down on the kunai.

"When you're ready," She heard the other Jounin say as both the redhead's hands moved to hover over the wind kanji. "Send a little of your chakra into the seal."

Anko sucked in a bracing breath and then shot a small flare of her chakra into the scroll. Almost immediately, pain spiked through her body as the seal lit up in front of her. As the symbols appeared on her arm as is lashing out the curse seal seemed to respond to the challenge and unfurled fully trying to fend of the imposing force of nature. Biting down on the kunai, she tried to hold back the scream threatening to tear from her throat as the two forces initially clashed but as her neck burned, her vocal cords reacted and the kunai shattered as chakra rushed through her and her voice rang out in the room.

Opposite her, Haruki clenched his jaw and concentrated on the Cursed Seal that he had connected to with his own chakra as soon as the process began. Closing his eyes, he used his chakra to close in around the seal.

Cage it, with the winds of a monsoon.

Lock it down, with a consistent barrage of the everyday winds that seemed so insignificant apart, yet held so much power together.

Then fight it, with the howling power of a tempestuous squall.

And finally, destroy it, with the untamed strength of a raging storm.

The half-finished Cursed Seal stood no chance and Haruki could almost hear its frustrated shriek as its power broke, snapping under his hands as it yielded to his control.

Drawing it away from Anko's body was much easier now that its power had been reduced. Opening his eyes, Haruki watched the fading patterns of the Cursed Seal of Heaven run down Anko's arm and spill onto the scroll. The kunoichi had stopped screaming at this point but the hand still pressed against the seal was near-white and shaking.

Haruki waited until the last of the Cursed Seal left Anko's skin and then reached out to wrap a gentle hand against the kunoichi's. "We're done, Anko-san. You can rest now."

Anko could barely keep her eyes open but she still managed to rasp out, "It's gone? The Cursed Seal?"

She managed to catch the smile Haruki offered her as he confirmed, "Yes, it's gone. Completely."

The relief and gratitude that crashed into her at this reassurance was enough to knock her out and she slumped sideways, not even feeling the strong arm that wrapped around her shoulders and carefully lowered her to the ground.

Haruki made sure Anko was no longer touching the scroll before focusing on his task again and performing a set of seals. Instantly, the centre sun pattern flared red as he pushed some of the Kyubi's chakra into the seal to begin breaking down the components with the intense and dense corrosive chakra. Orochimaru's Cursed Seal immediately disappeared within the crimson light and Haruki finally released his chakra, shoulders slumping with mild exhaustion as he snapped the scroll shut.

"Haruki-kun?"

Haruki glanced up, blinking when he realized that the Hokage had dropped down across from him beside Anko and was currently checking her pulse. He released a short sigh and mustered a small smile. "She'll be fine. Just let her sleep it off. And," He waved the scroll. "Orochimaru's Cursed Seal is locked away. We just need to burn the scroll and it'll be completely destroyed."

Sarutobi easily picked up the unconscious kunoichi but kept a concerned eye on the redhead as he moved her to the couch in his private office. "And you?"

"I'll be fine," Haruki assured, rising to his feet as well without showing any fatigue. "I just need some rest. Do you want me to get rid of this, or shall I?"

Sarutobi extended a hand. "I'll take it. If you don't mind, I'd like to show it to Jiraiya when he comes home."

Haruki frowned, glancing down at the scroll before handing it over with a shrug. He planned for both Jiraiya and Tsunade to know the truth about him anyway. Letting him see some of his seals wouldn't be that big a deal.

"I should get going, old man, let's consider this your fuinjutsu lesson for today. Here is a scroll with concept instructions for anti summoning seals." Haruki straightened completely, walking over to give Anko a once-over before turning back to the Hokage and handing him a scroll. "I have training later with Asuma's team."

Sarutobi smiled at this. "Ah, he asked you then."

Haruki immediately stiffened in suspicion. "You did something." It was not a question. "I knew he didn't ask me just because of my jutsu."

The Sandaime's smile widened a little. "I thought about what you said; about Asuma." He paused and a thoughtful frown drifted onto his brow. "I had a chat with him a few days ago. We went to the Hokage Monument and I tried to show him a little of what I saw in Konoha." He shook his head ruefully. "He really is quite detached from this village. But he didn't refuse when I invited him to dinner with me and Konohamaru afterwards."

"And let me guess," Haruki rubbed a hand over his eyes. "He wanted to know why you were acting out of character."

Sarutobi chuckled. "Well, we haven't eaten together since before he left Konoha, so of course, he wanted to know why. But I told him it was because of something you said. Nothing specific, but he seemed to take an interest in you."

Haruki heaved a sigh. Not only did he have to deal with Shikaku, now he had a curious Asuma on his hands as well. Team 10's sensei was usually laidback and easygoing, but once something caught his attention, nothing would deter the man until his interest was sated.

"Did the dinner go alright then?" The redhead finally asked.

Sarutobi nodded cheerfully. "It went better than I hoped. Konohamaru being there helped too."

Haruki grunted but said nothing more as he stifled a yawn. He barely got any sleep at night and removing Orochimaru's Cursed Seal didn't help keep him awake. Nodding an abrupt goodbye to the Hokage, he headed for the window.

He still had a few hours before he had to meet up with Team 10. The convenience store should be open. He could grab a few popsicles and kill some time on top of the Hokage Monument.

It was funny, he mused as he leapt out of the window. Once upon a time, ramen would've been the first food to come to mind. But he didn't eat anywhere near as much as he used to nowadays and frozen ice-creams had become something of a habit.

Because his stupid old sensei always loved sharing them with him.