The hiatus stretched from days into weeks.
Autumn deepened its hold on Konoha, painting the leaves in fiery hues of red and gold, it's peaceful ambiance enchanting. Yet Ryuu saw none of that.
He fell into a harsh, solitary routine. Physical conditioning pushed to the point of collapse, chakra control drills practiced with obsessive focus until his reserves screamed in protest, rudimentary Kenjutsu katas repeated endlessly with a wooden practice sword in the cramped confines of their apartment.
Kasumi watched him, her own haunted eyes reflecting a mixture of concern and resigned understanding.
He saw Izumi Uchiha sporadically, usually at the training grounds, practicing alone with fierce, almost desperate intensity. The easy camaraderie they had briefly shared after the Dango celebration was gone, replaced by a shared, unspoken acknowledgment of trauma, though it was clear she was coping better than he had.
Ryuu knew of her past, the fact she saw her father dying to protect her.
They exchanged curt nods, sometimes stood near each other in silence watching other teams spar, but the gap left by Kenta, filled now with the ghosts of the ambush, felt too wide to bridge easily.
Finally, nearly a month after their return, the summons came. "Team Twelve, report to Training Ground Seven, 0900. Shiranui."
The air was crisp, leaves crunching underfoot as Ryuu arrived. Izumi was already there, her posture erect, her expression composed but her eyes holding a familiar wariness. They exchanged silent nods.
Genma appeared precisely at 0900, leaning against his usual tree, senbon in place. His gaze swept over them, sharp and assessing. He didn't offer pleasantries.
"Hiatus is over," he stated flatly. "Time to get back to work. Hokage-sama has reviewed the mission report, the T&I findings on the attackers and the current operational status of this team."
He pushed off the tree. "Standard procedure dictates assigning a replacement Genin to bring the squad back to full strength. Given your... unique circumstances," another pointed look at Ryuu, "and the level of threat you apparently attract, finding a suitable replacement required careful consideration."
Ryuu tensed slightly. A new teammate. Integrating someone new after Kenta, especially with the secrets Ryuu now carried and the scrutiny he was under, felt like another dangerous complication.
"He lost his team last month," Genma continued, his voice neutral. "Border patrol near Kusagakure. Ambush. Sound familiar?" He let the grim comparison hang in the air.
"Experienced heavy combat, significant trauma, but demonstrated resilience and competence under fire. He's older than Yuki, same age as Uchiha. Hokage-sama believes his experience might complement your own developing skills."
Genma nodded towards the edge of the clearing. "Team Twelve, meet your new member: Kazama Renji."
From the shadows beneath the trees, a figure stepped forward. Renji was tall for his age, lean, with short, perpetually ruffled light brown hair and energetic brown eyes that currently held a surprising amount of guarded weariness. He wore standard Konoha gear, slightly travel-stained, and carried himself with a coiled tension, like a wire stretched too tight.
Renji stopped before them, offering Genma a curt, respectful bow. "Kazama Renji, reporting for duty, Genma-sensei."
Genma simply nodded and gestured towards Ryuu and Izumi. "Kazama, this is Yuki Ryuu, Uchiha Izumi. Your new teammates."
Renji looked at them, his gaze lingering for a moment on Ryuu's pale features and goggles, then shifting to Izumi's Uchiha crest. He nodded stiffly. "Uchiha-san. Yuki-san." His voice was quiet, subdued, lacking the boisterous energy Ryuu recalled.
"Welcome to Team Twelve, Kazama-san," Izumi replied politely, her voice equally reserved.
Ryuu simply nodded, assessing the newcomer. Renji's chakra signature felt... jagged. Strong, definitely Genin-level, perhaps even higher due to recent combat experience, but erratic, fluctuating with suppressed emotion – grief, anger, fear.
It was the signature of someone who had recently walked through hell and hadn't fully processed it yet. Not unlike himself.
"Alright," Genma broke the slightly awkward silence. "No time for tea and sympathy. We are integrating Kazama starting now. We need to function as a unit again, quickly. Dan–" he caught himself, "–Certain elements hostile to Konoha are becoming more active. We need to be ready."
"First," Genma continued, "assessment. Kazama, your file says Wind Release affinity, focus on speed and close-range cutting techniques. Show me."
Renji nodded, taking a deep breath, seeming to center himself. He flashed through a few hand seals, then dashed forward, drawing a kunai. His movements were fast, aggressive, wind chakra visibly swirling around his limbs, enhancing his speed, making the air ripple around his kunai strikes as he performed a rapid sequence of attacks against a training dummy.
He was faster than Kenta had been, more offensively focused than Izumi's precise Uchiha style. But Ryuu also noted flaws – his defense was sloppy, he overcommitted on attacks leaving himself open, and his chakra control wavered slightly, the wind enhancement sputtering occasionally. Grief and trauma were clearly affecting his focus.
"Okay," Genma called a halt after a minute. "Speed is good. Aggression is there. Control is sloppy. Defense is an afterthought. Typical wind-user impulsiveness, amplified by… recent events." His tone was blunt but not unkind. "We'll work on channeling that aggression, refining control, and teaching you not to leave your back wide open every time you attack."
Genma then turned to Ryuu and Izumi. "Alright, let's see how you three move together. Simple exercise. Triangle formation. Kazama, you're point – aggressive probe. Uchiha, right flank – visual support, counter-strike. Yuki, left flank – sensory scan, coordinate movement, anticipate threats from the blind spots. Objective: retrieve the flag from that tree," he pointed towards a small flag tied high on a distant tree trunk, "while I provide… discouragement."
Before they could fully protest, Genma blurred. Senbon suddenly rained down around them, forcing them to scatter. A small Fireball Jutsu erupted where Kenta would have been standing, forcing Renji to dive sideways.
"Move!" Genma barked from an unseen position.
The three Genin scrambled, instincts taking over. Izumi activated her Sharingan, immediately scanning for Genma, calling out his position. "Sensei, treetop, ten o'clock!"
Renji, recovering quickly, dashed towards the target tree, using his wind-enhanced speed. "Cover me!" he yelled.
Ryuu extended his senses, trying to track Genma's movements, predict his next attack, while also scanning for traps Genma might have laid. "Sensei shifting... five o'clock, ground level! Watch for wires!"
Izumi intercepted Genma as he dropped down, engaging him in a furious flurry of Taijutsu and kunai strikes, her Sharingan tracking his every movement. Renji continued his dash but was forced to halt as several explosive tags, presumably placed earlier by Genma, detonated near the base of the target tree.
"Trap!" Ryuu warned belatedly, focusing on Genma's primary signature.
"A little slow on the uptake, Yuki!" Genma taunted, effortlessly disengaging from Izumi with a Body Flicker, appearing behind Renji and delivering a swift kick that sent the boy stumbling.
The exercise continued in this chaotic fashion for nearly an hour. Genma harried them relentlessly, using substitutions, traps, clones (basic Bunshin, not Shadow Clones), and low-powered elemental jutsu (Fire and Earth, mostly) to disrupt their attempts, test their reactions, and force them to communicate and cooperate under pressure.
It was a mess.
Renji's impulsiveness often led him into traps or left his flanks exposed.
Izumi's focus on Genma sometimes made her miss secondary threats.
Ryuu, trying to coordinate, sense, and anticipate, felt overwhelmed, his own movements hampered by his still-developing Taijutsu and limited offensive options beyond basic tools. They failed to retrieve the flag multiple times, often ending up tangled in Genma's wires or disoriented by smoke bombs.
Kenta's absence was keenly felt. His reliable defense, his willingness to charge in and draw fire, his simple presence as a third body – it left a significant gap in their formation and tactics. Renji, while faster and more offensive, lacked Kenta's defensive stability and straightforward reliability.
Finally, Genma called a halt, appearing before them, looking utterly unfazed while they panted, covered in dirt, sweat, and minor scrapes.
"Pathetic," he stated flatly, though his eyes held a hint of something other than pure disappointment. "Communication is sloppy. Coordination is non-existent. Kazama, you charge in like a headless boar. Uchiha, you tunnel-vision on the primary threat. Yuki, your analysis is good, but your commands lack conviction, and you hesitate to commit physically."
He surveyed their downcast faces. "But," he conceded, "you didn't completely fall apart. You adapted, somewhat. You started anticipating each other's movements, slightly. You lasted longer than I expected, given Miyamoto's absence and Kazama's recent… experience."
He looked directly at Renji. "Losing teammates is hard. Hardest thing there is. Letting it cripple you is a disservice to their memory, and it will get you killed next time. You channel that grief, that anger, into focus. Into protecting the ones still beside you. Understand?"
Renji met Genma's gaze, his jaw tight, but he nodded stiffly. "Hai, Sensei."
Genma turned to Izumi and Ryuu. "Same goes for you two. Miyamoto's death was a harsh lesson. Don't let it be a wasted one. You function as three now, or you don't function at all."
He looked them over again. "Alright. That's enough for today. Go home. Rest. Reflect on your spectacular failures." He started to turn away, then paused. "Tomorrow, 0600. We're not doing D-ranks. We're doing intensive team coordination drills until you can move without thinking, until you anticipate each other's farts. Then," a dangerous glint entered his eyes, "maybe, just maybe, we'll be ready for another C-Rank that doesn't end in disaster."
He vanished.
Ryuu, Izumi, and Renji stood in awkward silence amidst the debris of the training ground staring speechlessly to where their teacher was just a few moments ago.
————————————————————
The air within the Uchiha district felt different these days. Thicker. Charged with unspoken resentments and feverish whispers that spread like wildfire through the clan compound after dark.
The professional pride of the Konoha Military Police Force, their primary role within the village structure, was increasingly overshadowed by a growing sense of isolation and suspicion from the wider village – suspicion exacerbated by the lingering mystery of the Kyuubi attack six years prior, despite the Fourth Hokage's attempts at diplomacy and integration.
Minato's efforts – assigning Uchiha to more diverse roles, maintaining open communication lines with Fugaku – had slowed the descent, perhaps, but hadn't stopped the deep-seated distrust on both sides.
Shisui Uchiha felt the pressure acutely. At fourteen, he was already a Jonin, renowned throughout Konoha as "Shisui of the Body Flicker," his speed legendary, his Genjutsu capabilities whispered about with awe.
More importantly, he possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan, awakened after the trauma of a mission gone wrong during the Third War, granting him the ultimate, subtle Genjutsu: Kotoamatsukami. The ability to subtly alter a person's thoughts without them ever realizing it. A power he believed could be the key to averting the disaster brewing within his own clan.
He stood with Itachi Uchiha, his closest friend, his confidant, near the quiet Nakano River shrine late one night, the moon hidden behind thick clouds. Itachi, now eleven and recently inducted into the ANBU Black Ops under Kakashi Hatake, looked impossibly weary for his age, the weight of his dual loyalties – to his clan and to the village – etched onto his young face.
"The elders are pushing, Itachi," Shisui murmured, his usual warm demeanor replaced by grim urgency. "The sentiment in the clan meetings... it's grown darker. More radical voices are gaining influence. They speak openly of Fugaku-sama's perceived weakness, of Konoha's 'ingratitude', of taking what they believe is rightfully theirs by force. The vote on the coup... it's imminent. And I fear the outcome."
Itachi remained silent for a moment, staring into the dark water. "Father... tries to maintain control. But the resentment runs deep. Decades of perceived slights, Tobirama-sama's initial policies... the Kyuubi attack fueled the paranoia." He looked at Shisui. "And now... Danzo."
Shisui nodded grimly. Danzo Shimura. The village elder, leader of the clandestine Root organization, had been officially marginalized by the Fourth Hokage after the disastrous attack on Team Twelve a few months prior.
Evidence strongly suggested Root operatives, bearing the Tongue Eradication Seal, were responsible for the ambush targeting the Yuki refugee and Itachi's own clanmate, Izumi.
While direct proof linking Danzo personally was elusive, Minato had used the incident to strip Danzo of nearly all official authority, confining him under heavy surveillance. Yet, both Shisui and Itachi knew Danzo's influence, his network of loyalists trained in darkness, likely still operated beneath the surface.
"Danzo approached me again," Shisui admitted quietly, confirming Itachi's unspoken fear. "Subtly, through intermediaries. Expressing 'concern' for the Uchiha's plight, suggesting... alternative solutions. Implying that Konoha's current leadership lacks the 'resolve' to truly secure the village's future." His hands clenched. "He covets power, Itachi. And he covets these eyes." He tapped his own eye sockets lightly.
"We cannot let him interfere," Itachi stated flatly. "His methods are poison."
"Agreed," Shisui said. "Which is why I spoke with Hokage-sama again."
He had already, with Hiruzen's prior blessing before the Third's retirement, gained tentative approval to use Kotoamatsukami as a last resort. Now, he had presented the escalating situation to Minato directly.
"Lord Fourth... he understands the gravity. He despises the idea of manipulating someone's mind, even Fugaku-sama's, but he recognizes it might be the only way to prevent open civil war, especially with external threats like 'Madara' and Akatsuki still out there."
Minato, unlike Hiruzen perhaps, wouldn't simply allow the situation to fester until the last possible second. He was more proactive, more decisive.
"Hokage-sama has authorized the attempt," Shisui continued. "Under extreme secrecy. I am to use Kotoamatsukami on Fugaku-sama just before the clan meeting scheduled three nights from now, subtly shift his perspective, make him argue against the coup, using his authority to sway the majority."
"It's dangerous, Shisui," Itachi warned. "Using your Mangekyō... the strain... and if anyone suspects..."
"It's less dangerous than civil war tearing Konoha apart from the inside," Shisui countered firmly. "It's our best chance. But," his gaze became intense, "Danzo worries me. He knows about my eyes, Itachi. He covets them. With his official power curtailed, he might become even more desperate, more willing to act outside any remaining boundaries."
"Minato-sama has him under surveillance," Itachi reassured, though doubt flickered in his own eyes. Root was notoriously difficult to pin down.
"Surveillance can be evaded," Shisui said grimly. "Listen, Itachi. If something... goes wrong. If Danzo makes a move before I can act... you understand what needs to happen."
Itachi met his friend's gaze, the unspoken understanding passing between them, heavy and cold. If Shisui failed, if Danzo acquired Kotoamatsukami... the potential for misuse was catastrophic.