The ship glided gently across the sea’s surface. It hadn’t rained in a long ti, and the water was so still it could’ve easily been mistaken for a lake. The vessel, used primarily by rchants and common folk traveling for various reasons, moved steadily with its sails raised. But with little wind to carry it, the sailors had resorted to rowing.
Near the ship’s bow stood a young child, gazing out at the sea with wide, gleaming eyes - as if he could see sothing magical hidden in the waves. Unlike him, the other passengers looked far less spirited. Most sat hunched under scraps of wet, white cloth, seeking shade from the sun. The boy’s parents were nearby, resting beside their worn and old horse, which had a faded and tattered gray tarp bundled with all their belongings beside it. They didn’t have much - just food, a few tools, and seed grain for the coming season.
The family had made the decision to leave their ho after rumors began to spread. Rumors that a conflict was brewing between Konoha and Takimura, and worse, that the Land of Lakes would beco the battlefield. At first, like most civilians, they dismissed the talk as nothing but baseless rumors. But when the number of traveling rchants dropped sharply and supplies beca scarce within days, they understood the danger was real. It was ti to leave. To find safety elsewhere.
“Moel, get back here or you’ll overheat!” the mother called out, shielding her eyes as she squinted toward her son, who was still fixated on the water with wide, unblinking eyes.
The boy didn’t respond. Instead, he leaned forward, dangerously close to the edge.
The mother gasped, a sharp cry escaping her lips as she nudged her husband in the ribs. The man stirred with a groggy grunt, wiping the sweat from his eyelids with the back of his hand. As his vision cleared and the heat-induced haze faded, his thoughts began to settle. He shot up, well, more like forced himself to stand as quickly as his weakened body allowed, and staggered toward his son, his face paling and turning green with each step.
“Moel,” he growled. He grabbed the boy by the arm and yanked him back, dragging him away from the railing. But as soon as the child was safe, the man slumped forward, leaning over the edge.
He vomited. Violently. Until there was nothing left in his stomach.
A flicker of guilt crossed his face as he looked down at the sea, regret tightening his features. He had just lost food, sothing they couldn’t afford to waste. But that thought vanished as his eyes widened and his brow twisted in disbelief.
“Oh God… what is that…” he whispered, his voice trembling.
A rmaid swam beside the ship - beautiful and otherworldly, her entire body made of water. Every movent was fluid and srizing, far too graceful to belong to anything natural. Her dark blue hair surfaced with each rise and fall of her form, scattering delicate droplets into the air. Those droplets shimred unnaturally, glinting like crystal, not like normal water.
Then, suddenly, she dove beneath the surface.
She vanished for a mont, then reerged in a powerful leap, a fish clenched in her hand. With an effortless flick, she tossed it through one of the narrow windows between the ship’s deck and lower hull.
And then, she was gone - diving once more, this ti disappearing into the ocean’s depths.
“Would you like so?” Kaoru asked, placing the fish into the wooden bowl as he prepared to gut it.
“No, I have enough food to last until we reach Takimura,” Misa replied weakly.
She lay on a hammock made of tightly woven straw. The ceiling, walls, and even the floor were lined with a thin layer of frost. A cold shimred through the air, maintained by Kaoru’s chakra. He added a fresh coat every half an hour or so, ensuring the room remained cool and comfortable. Despite the lack of ventilation or a breeze, heat never bothered them here.
Misa, who had been drifting in a comfortable haze until Kaoru spoke, pushed herself upright. She looked at him with gentle, concerned eyes.
“Will you stop? I’m fine. I’ve been fine for days,” Kaoru chuckled as he tossed the fish guts outside and rinsed his hands in a bucket of seawater. The Suijingan made such tasks almost effortless - shaping water, cleaning, even maintaining the temperature of the room. It had beco second nature by now.
“You almost passed out after the fight,” Misa reminded him, scolding gently. “I had to carry you. You slept for almost half a day, and you couldn’t move properly for nearly another. I’m allowed to be worried.”
Her tone carried more than frustration. There was sothing deeper in it - attachnt, maybe even affection. She had always respected Kaoru and would have laid down her life for him without hesitation. But after seeing his strength firsthand, watching him dismantle elite ANBU at just fourteen… that loyalty had only deepened. She was convinced he would beco Takimura’s strongest shinobi in a year or two.
She watched him heat the water, his Suijingan glowing faintly. It never failed to impress her how easily he manipulated the water. She knew he could freeze water, but seeing him boil it was new.
The novelty faded quickly though, as Misa’s mind shifted to other things.
“Lord, what happens now?” she asked quietly. “Is war inevitable?”
“I think so,” Kaoru replied without looking up. “If I had known our conflict wasn’t an isolated case, if I’d known other Takimura shinobi were being ambushed across the continent, I’d have killed all the ANBU. We could’ve dealt a heavy blow to Konoha.”
Even though he respected Kakashi as a shinobi and even liked him, once, as a character from the series, that sentint didn’t an much here. This was his reality now. And in this world, the Hidden Leaf was not an ally. If anything, they were turning into the greatest threat.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
At least, until Naruto matured.
And even that would only matter if Naruto grew to be the sa peace-driven person Kaoru rembered.
“I always imagined Jiraiya would be a different kind of Hokage. That he’d avoid war at all costs - prioritize peace in and outside the village. But now… I’m not so sure. I started doubting their intentions when they tried to steal the Noda clan’s secret technique. Then again, when Kakashi and those ANBU showed up out of nowhere in that remote land. Now it feels like they’re trying to bait us into looking like the aggressors.” I an, Konoha has always cared about appearances. They sell themselves as honorable. As benevolent. But that’s just branding. They will gladly initiate the war if that benefits their village.”
“But… they won’t be able to win. Not after their war with Kumogakure.” Misa said, though she didn’t sound too sure. “Besides, even if they sohow manage to defeat Takimura, the Uchiha, Kumo, Iwa, even Suna, none of them will stay silent and let Konoha get strong.”
Misa might not have been part of the village council, but she was still a jonin. She kept herself inford.
Kaoru gave a small nod. “Exactly. Which is why I keep asking myself - what would I do if I were in Konoha’s place and wanted to start a war?”
He picked up the fish from the bowl, already boiled and steaming, and placed it on the dark blue plate he had created from the water..
“I’d never go in alone. I’d seek allies and coordinate a multi-front attack against Takimura. My clearest choice would be Kiri. They are slowly losing the Land of Water to us and more of their shinobi leave their village to join ours. The Hidden Mist would be very likely to be interested in such an alliance… But right now it seems that Konoha is moving alone….”
Kaoru’s words cut off as his mind drifted away, ‘I cant shake the feeling that while Konoha might not be innocent in this, there is soone else manipulating everything from behind the scenes…’
“Perhaps we’ll learn the truth soon,” Misa whispered reflexively, as her mind was also racing.
“Everything makes even less sense than it did before,” Jiraiya muttered, placing the scroll on the table, containing Kakashi’s report. “Did you read it?”
“I did,” Hiruzen replied, offering no further comnt.
Jiraiya glanced sideways at him, searching for so hint of reaction. But the Third Hokage’s expression remained unreadable.
“What do you think, Shikaku?” he asked, turning instead to the man seated behind the desk.
Unlike their usual etings in the Hokage’s office, this ti it was Shikaku who received them. Ever since tensions with Takimura began to escalate, the Nara clan head had been working around the clock. The entire village was now leaning on him, appointed Chief of Intelligence, to make sense of what was happening.
Shikaku raised his head slowly. Not out of laziness, as was often the case, but from sheer exhaustion.
“I’ve got three pieces of news,” he said, voice low and hoarse. “Each worse than the last. Which one do you want first?”
Jiraiya let out a tired sigh. “Start with the least awful.”
Shikaku nodded.
“Takimura doesn’t seem to want war,” he began. “I don’t know why they’re attacking us, or even if they truly are attacking us, but the leadership over there, especially the Taki clan head, clearly isn’t interested in escalating. If they wanted a war, or even to provoke one, killing Kakashi and the rest of the ANBU would’ve made perfect sense.”
He paused, glancing toward Hiruzen, who seed about to speak.
“In fact,” Shikaku continued, “I think Kaoru Taki went out of his way to avoid killing them. It reads more like a calculated restraint than anything else…. It might be a ssage. They’re showing us they can win if we were to fight, but also making a statent that they want to avoid war.”
“That boy has beco too strong, too quickly.” Hiruzen finally spoke. “Defeating Kakashi and an entire ANBU squad, even with the help of a subordinate who clearly wasn’t very powerful, is impressive. But what’s more impressive is that he managed to win without killing a single one of them.”
Both Shikaku and Jirayia nodded in agreent.
Defeating soone was one thing. But overpowering them without causing lethal harm… that ant dominance.
“That kid will definitely reach S-rank,” Hiruzen continued. “Maybe sooner than we think. And when he does, Takimura will beco a much bigger problem...”
“Alright,” Jiraiya interjected, snapping the room back to focus. “Let’s deal with what’s in front of us before talking about the future. What’s the second piece of news?”
Shikaku gave a slow nod, then pulled a scroll from the desk. The seal was broken, but the Takimura insignia was still visible.
“They sent a warning,” he said, placing the scroll on the table. “Takimura claims our shinobi are attacking theirs… and they demand an explanation.”
Both Hiruzen and Jiraiya stiffened. For a brief mont, disbelief colored their faces.
To soone inexperienced, it might’ve sounded like posturing, a bluff to save face. But these weren’t green recruits. They both understood how Takimura operated. The village didn’t waste ti with empty gas or political smoke. At least not yet.
The odds of deception were slim.
“How’s that even possible…” Jiraiya muttered, voice low. “We’re sitting here debating how to respond to their attacks, and at the sa ti, they claim we’re the aggressors?”
His fists clenched at his sides.
The irony wasn’t lost on him. Nor was the suspicion that crawled up the back of his neck.
He hated himself for it… but his eyes drifted toward Hiruzen.
The Third Hokage had been voicing concerns about Takimura for months - how fast they were growing, how dangerous they could beco. He’d used Danzo and ROOT for questionable missions before. And if war was what he wanted...
‘I know Danzo still has at least a hundred ROOT operatives. We’ve been tracking most of them… but what if…’
His train of thought shattered as Hiruzen spoke.
“The risk of war is rising too fast,” the old Hokage said quietly. “We need to ensure the Uchiha will stand with us...”
But Shikaku cut in before he continued.
“That’s the third piece of news,” he said flatly.
He reached for another scroll, though he didn’t need to open it.
“The Uchiha were the first to act. They already sent a ssage. Fugaku says that while they supported us during the Noda Clan incident, this ti… they won’t help us against their allies.”
Jiraiya’s face fell.
“So if war starts…”
Shikaku nodded, weariness bleeding into his voice.
“Yes. The Uchiha will join Takimura.”
A long silence settled over the room.
And for the first ti in years, the Village Hidden in the Leaves felt… vulnerable.
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