"What do you mean you're not coming to the meeting tomorrow?!" Fugaku's grave voice resonated along the thin walls surrounding his parents' room. Itachi didn't flinch upon his father's reprimand, much less felt guilt upon his silent accusation. His main focus was his little brother. Could their father's yelling have woken Sasuke up?
"Just as I said, I have a mission tomorrow, I can't come." Sasuke had school the next morning, waking up in the middle of the night would affect the quality of his sleep and he would lag in class.
"Hm, and what is this mission about?" Fugaku asked in a rough voice.
A faint chakra appeared behind the door. Itachi sighed internally. Sasuke was indeed awake. "I can't tell, it's top secret." His eyes only revealed pure and utter disgust. Could you have at least a bit of consideration towards your son?
Itachi's mother was able to read through her son's expression, and she shared a worried glance towards her husband. Itachi knew she was not the kind of woman that would go against her man, but it disappointed him to see her take his father's side in a quarrel like this.
"Itachi, you know your position in the clan, yes?" His father's menacing Sharingan didn't have any effect on Itachi. He had grown accustomed to those eyes expecting only perfection from him. Ever since he had been enrolled into the Anbu, Itachi suspected his father only saw him as a weapon for the Uchiha Clan.
Itachi pressed his lips into a thin line. I'm the leader's son. The heir of the Uchiha. "Mm-hm..."
"And I expect you know how important your participation in this meeting will be for the future of the clan. You're a pipeline connecting us to the center of the village..."
Itachi let his eyes wander to the back of the room. He was baffled by the fact that none of his parents was aware of Sasuke's presence. Although, it didn't surprise him, either. His father was so consumed in this so-called "Uchiha Uprising" that he seemed to forget he still had two sons and a family to take care of as well.
Of course, as Shisui had said, the clan was serious about the coup. It was a serious deal for his father that he were to attend the weekly assembly. But Shisui had asked him not to attend, and since he was inclined to stop the coup instead of participating in it, he would do as his friend asked.
"Do you understand what I just said?"
Itachi returned his glance toward his parents. What was he talking about again? Oh... right. Something about being the pipeline connecting the clan to the village. His eyes narrowed slightly. As one would say in simpler words... A spy.
"I can't. I won't dismiss my duty as a Shinobi for a clan meeting."
His father's rage could be felt even from outside the room. From his position, Itachi could feel his father's chakra pressing on him. Someone who was not a ninja could be easily crushed by the pressure. Again his eyes turned to the door. Is Sasuke okay?
"Oh? Yet you would easily dismiss your duty for a girl?" Itachi's heart froze for a second. "You spent last night in that girl—Hanako's—house. Thought you said you were on a mission as well?" His father had quirked his brow. "Do I need to remind you of your priorities, Itachi?"
Itachi saw his mother carefully stare at her husband.
"Should I have a word with her as well? Is she the reason you're dismissing your responsibility as heir of the Uchiha?"
Stop. Don't drag Hanako into this conversation, Father.
"Honey." Mikoto interrupted Fugaku, but a single of his father's glances her way forced her to shut up. Mikoto took a deep breath and crunched in her position, giving Itachi an apologizing look.
"Maybe you should find some new friends."
Itachi closed his eyes. No. You have no right to try to control me. You have no right to choose what I should or shouldn't do. And you have absolutely no right to choose who my friends are. He forced himself to swallow the lump in his throat and glare at his father.
"You're coming to the meeting tomorrow."
No.
"I have a mission."
He needed to end the conversation soon.
"Itachi. You don't seem to understand what's at stake here."
I'm sorry, Sasuke. His eyes moved again to the door, his brother had an ear against the door, trying to listen to as much as he could.
"Sasuke, if you're done in the bathroom, hurry up and go back to bed."
For the first time, his parents seemed to notice Sasuke's chakra. The boy slowly opened the door, knowing he was about to get yelled at for being awake and eavesdropping into an important conversation.
Fugaku poised himself into his feet quickly enough and glared at his younger son. "What are you doing awake? Hurry up and back to bed!"
Sasuke's eyes were glued to the image of his older brother. Even though his father's anger was noticeable in his words directed to him, he seemed to understand that he was not angry at him, but at Itachi. The boy's eyes slightly narrowed, silently blaming Itachi for his father's attitude.
"All right."
Itachi noticed. He wondered, from the depths of his heart, what was going on in Sasuke's mind. Without anything else to say, Sasuke closed back the door and hurried down the hall.
At the disappearing sound of Sasuke's short and quick steps, he felt himself distancing from him more and more.
* * *
A constant poking in her arm forced Hanako awake from her slumber. Slowly, she opened her eyes and let the image focus slowly. Her mother came into view with a worried face, she was carrying the twins in her chest with the aid of a baby carrier. "Sweetie, are you okay?"
Hanako felt a warmth spread in her chest at the sound of her mother's voice. It had truly been a while since she last heard from her. As her lips curved up in a smile, she let her senses come back to her and sat up.
The room was darker than it had been when she first arrived at the house. Her eyes then widened as she stared at her mother. "What time is it?"
Akira looked at her strangely. "Almost six in the evening. It will get dark soon."
A sudden sense of dread fell upon her. She had totally forgotten the favor Shisui had asked her.
Hanako shot up and hurried out the door.
"What? Wait! Hanako!"
I'm sorry, Mother.
The assembly was scheduled to begin at seven o'clock, but it would be late for her to intercept Fugaku before the meeting began.
As she approached the Naka Shrine, she quickly searched for Fugaku's chakra signature. She pinpointed him at the private training ground close to the Compound lake. "What is he doing there?" She muttered to herself before heading in his direction.
There, Lord Fugaku was patiently staring at a log with several shuriken embedded in its bark. When she made her presence known, Fugaku quickly glanced at her before returning his eyes to the log.
"I was hoping to see you, Hanako."
"I'm sorry to interrupt your privacy, Lord Fugaku," she muttered quietly.
The man remained silent for a moment before turning towards her. "Is there anything you wanted to speak to me about?" he asked in a stiff voice.
Hanako flinched only a little. For someone who wasn't adept in nonverbal communication, it would just appear as if she had simply fixed her position. But Fugaku noticed she was nervous about something. Was he making her feel uncomfortable?
"I..."
Before Hanako could even speak, Fugaku retorted. "Are you in a relationship with my son?"
Her mouth dried. She met his eyes and expected from him disappointment, but his factions utterly surprised her. He appeared rather curious. As if asking himself, how do you understand my son better than I can? How do you get him to open up to you?
Hanako could see the distress behind his stern façade. He felt distanced from Itachi, and built up a wall around him to not appear weak before his clansmen, but he was secretly sad about it.
"Are you okay, Lord Fugaku?"
Fugaku did not say anything at first. He was resolving an internal battle in his mind. In the meantime, Hanako looked around. She couldn't release her chakra to comb the surroundings without arising suspicion in the Leader. Shisui was nowhere around.
"Do you happen to know what's going on in Itachi's head?"
Hanako glanced back at him. "What do you mean?"
Fugaku's face did not convey his true emotions. He had trained himself so well to keep a poker face in every situation to avoid showing weakness. "I am his father, and yet, I have no idea what he's always thinking about." For the first time, he looked at her. "You had a good relationship with your father, Yusuke. You always followed him around, asked him to train you, you looked up to him, right?"
Hanako looked away. "Yeah... I admired him very much."
"Why doesn't my son look up to me?"
She heard the silent plea, although it was such a quiet mutter that she had to fill in some of the words. Fugaku wanted Itachi to behave like his son and not simply the leader's son. Hanako pressed her lips into a thin line. It must be hard to care for a family when you also have the whole clan to look after. It seemed almost impossible to pay attention to everything around him, was Fugaku truly aware of what was going on?
"Do you know why I came looking for you?" she asked.
Fugaku closed his eyes and pursed his lips. He knew. "There has to be a reason why my son willingly refused to attend a meeting for the first time. Are you three plotting something?"
Hanako decided to be bold, assuming she would regret it in the future if Shisui didn't show up. "Are you truly in favor of the coup, Fugaku-sama?"
Fugaku opened his eyes and stared at her. "I am."
There was no hesitance in his voice. Hanako felt disappointed in him. That's the reason Itachi is distancing himself from you, Lord Fugaku.
"I'm assuming there is no other way to negotiate with the village elders?"
Fugaku rummaged among his clothes and handled her a letter. With a crease forming between her eyebrows, Hanako opened it and skimmed through it. Her eyes widened when she read the second line.
As per the councils' agreement, it has been decided that the budget of the Military Police Force will be reduced in a thirty percent (30%), effective from the moment of delivery of this notice. Please, take the necessary precautions and make the effective cuts to keep the organization afloat.
"What? That's a lot of money... But I thought the Military Force was important for the village..."
There was again no emotion in Fugaku's face. "If this isn't a way to keep a leash on us, I don't know what is..."
It was the first time, apart from the regular meetings, that Hanako had a chance to lift the coin and glance at the other side. Coming from Fugaku himself, it felt different. For the first time, she felt the clan's dissatisfaction as her own. The leader took notice of this.
"Lord Fugaku, may I take a look onto this? I'm aware that you expected Itachi to be the one to report to you about the village's affairs. But, if that were the case, shouldn't Itachi know about this?" Hanako looked at the leader. "What if the village is purposefully keeping information from him as well?"
Fugaku frowned. It was common knowledge that Itachi was his son, but what about Hanako? Would she be a better spy than his son? "Meet me in the secret room, at midnight, after the Assembly."
Hanako returned the notice to him. This was probably a topic to be discussed in the meeting.
"Captain!"
It was Inabi. He was immediately on guard as soon as he caught sight of her next to the leader. Hanako frowned. She and Inabi didn't have the best relationship.
"Isn't it the half-blood scum..." Inabi huffed. "Haven't seen you since the incident in the last meeting."
Hanako groaned. "Same here. I was hoping I wouldn't get to see you again..."
That statement only made Inabi chuckle. "We can easily arrange that. Do you know what I proposed we voted for in this Assembly?"
Hanako narrowed her eyes.
"We are going to let everyone decide if you get to keep calling yourself an Uchiha or not." Her eyes widened. "That's right half-blood, the clan will decide on your banishment."
* * *
Shisui never showed up. That was the feeling mostly downing her at the moment, little could she care about Inabi threatening her with the banishment. Shisui didn't fulfill his promise, and that was strange. Had something happened to him? He seemed so serious about his plan in the morning, it was unlike him to change it without further notice.
Hanako had sat at the front of the room within the Naka Shrine. Everyone looked at her when she arrived with the seniors. After it had been revealed that she was a half-blood, everyone was avoiding her like the pest. The entire front row was empty, except for her sitting right in the middle.
She casually glanced at the back. Her eyes glided around the people all glaring at her, or simply ignoring her, until her eyes fell on a familiar brown haired girl. Izumi gave her a worried look from the back row. Like she knew what was going to happen. Everyone probably knew about what was going to happen and avoided being dragged into it.
Hanako glanced back at the front. Inabi, Yashiro and Tekka had just walked in, all of them giving her a side glance before sitting at the other side of the row. Fugaku entered the room and everyone stood up in unison. Hanako allowed her limbs to move on their own, following the procedure absently.
"Let's begin tonight's assembly." Fugaku's voice summoned silence into the room.
"Shisui and Itachi are still missing," Yashiro informed. "Shouldn't we wait for them?"
"Itachi is not coming. He informed me he had to leave to attend an urgent mission," Fugaku frowned. "As for Shisui's absence, it's truly unsettling."
A familiar spark of chakra called Hanako's attention. She looked around, aware of everyone staring at her. Once her eyes met the person she was looking for, they widened. It was Kagen Uchiha, a man whom she had met for the first time in the last meeting. He grinned at her.
Hanako was frozen in place. It wasn't because of Kagen, but because of his chakra. It was the same chakra signature as Gozu from the Foundation. The same man who had been following her around the Anbu HQ, the same man who tried to gather information about her missions by listening to her reports to Ibiki.
Fugaku's voice was muffled. She had been so deep in thought, that she hadn't noticed the assembly had already begun. Her mind had been clouded by a bad feeling. "I understand you are all here present because of the current dissatisfaction with village's elders decisions—"
"Stop!" Hanako didn't know what had gotten into her. It was a sudden sense of despair that bled into her and controlled her. "Halt this meeting right now!" She stared at Fugaku with bright red Sharingan eyes.
Everyone had placed their eyes on her. Harsh glares, distasteful mockery, she had brought the attention right onto her. Inabi slowly stood and raised his hand. Fugaku glanced at him and allowed his word.
"Can we begin with the same voting we agreed on last week? I think, none of us present agree on such nonsustained interruptions." He turned to glare at Hanako. "So, everyone in favor of allowing Hanako Uchiha to stay and and contribute to this and future assemblies, please raise your hand."
There was a void in Hanako's stomach. She was afraid of turning around and see who would stand by her. Her eyes were on Fugaku, both of his arms were down. That alone demotivated her.
"Two votes." Hanako already knew it had to be Izumi and her mother. Her own mother had stopped attending meetings long ago, and her sister was still in the hospital. No one else would vote for her. She smiled slightly. "Everyone in favor of Hanako Uchiha's banishment and detraction of her Uchiha rights."
Hands were quick to raise around her. Again, Fugaku did not raise his hand, and simply stared at her. Hanako met his gaze. He noticed emptiness in her sockets, like she had suddenly lost all hope. Before he could say something, Hanako looked away.
She looked at a certain Uchiha at the back, who had raised his hand. Fugaku noticed he was grinning at her, but erased the look from his face once he caught Fugaku's attentive stare. He recognized him to be Kagen, a member from the Strategy and Logistics Department of the police.
"That settles it. Hanako Uchiha, as of today you can no longer claim yourself to be a member of the Uchiha. You may keep your name as your birth right, but are in no way allowed to demand protection or shelter from the Uchiha Clan." Each of Inabi's words felt like a stake right into her heart.
"We'd rather she never claimed herself an Uchiha ever again!" A voice echoed in the room. Everyone cheered in agreement.
"Go back to the Senju, you trash!"
"Traitor!"
Their words hurt, indeed. But right now her mind was somewhere else, worrying about Shisui's well-being. Her gut was telling her to leave and look for him. Something had happened. For a last time, she glanced up at the leader. He knew first hand about the banishment, and was giving her a stern look. And yet, his eyes said, 'Meet me tonight.'
She could use this to her favor. This was a chance to find the truth.
That's right. This is only temporary. Right now, I need to find Shisui. There has been a change of plans.
Keeping her head up. Hanako walked to the back. Everyone walked out of her way, still calling her names and yelling at her to get out. A hand grabbed her wrist, forcing her to stop.
It was Izumi. Tears ran down her cheeks. "Why?" she asked. Hanako didn't know how to respond. It had been the clan's wish. She had no other choice but let it flow.
"You don't have to worry about me," Hanako muttered. "Let go, or they will call you a traitor as well."
"I don't care—!"
"Izumi." Hanako smiled. "Don't get involved. You need to be there for your mother, remember?"
Izumi's eyes were wide. She let go and Hanako continued her way up the stairs. All the members of the clan were foolish, completely blinded. How couldn't they tell there was an infiltrator among them?
She stopped in her tracks. Should I tell them? Should I blow Kagen's cover? This is my only chance.
No, at this point, it didn't matter if she said anything. They wouldn't believe her. Her eyes glowed red as she stared over her shoulder. They were muttering about what had just happened. Some felt guilty, saying maybe they had been too harsh, some being overly dramatic about her being an infiltrator from the village. Not aware the infiltrator was someone else.
From the intel she had gathered with Tanaka about the change of plans in their attack, they knew they were planning to use Shisui's abilities to control the Hokage. Of course, Shisui would never agree with such unsubstantial plans, but what if the Foundation knew about it?
What if they knew of Shisui's abilities, what would they do?
Hanako's eyes widened as if a light bulb suddenly lit up. Of course, they would eliminate him.
She hurried up the stairs and out of the shrine. Outside, she stopped again when a familiar face came into view. He was panting after running up the stairs to the entrance of the Naka Shrine.
When he saw her, his eyes widened.
"Tanaka?!"