Age Sixteen (continued)
I told Fugaku what I had seen.
He sat in the tea house, his face pale, his hands wrapped around his cup.
"Orochimaru," he said. "One of the Sannin. A Konoha shinobi."
"Was. He's been acting independently for years. The Hokage suspects he's involved in forbidden experiments."
"This is worse than I thought. If Orochimaru is working with Yashiro, then the Uchiha are connected to something much bigger than a sealing bomb."
"What do we do?"
"We tell the Hokage. And we hope he believes us."
---
The Hokage's office was quiet at night.
Hiruzen sat behind his desk, his pipe in his hand, his face shadowed by the lamplight. I stood before him, Fugaku beside me.
"Orochimaru," Hiruzen said, his voice heavy. "I had hoped it wouldn't come to this."
"You knew?" I asked.
"I suspected. He's been dabbling in forbidden arts for years. Human experimentation. Immortality research. I've looked the other way, hoping he would stop. But this..." He shook his head. "This is treason."
"What do we do about Yashiro Uchiha?" Fugaku asked.
"Arrest him. Quietly. We can't risk a confrontation with the Uchiha clan."
"And Orochimaru?"
Hiruzen was silent for a long time. Then: "I'll handle Orochimaru."
---
The arrest happened that night.
I went with Fugaku to Yashiro's house. We knocked on the door. His wife answered, her face confused.
"Is Yashiro here?" Fugaku asked.
"He's in his study. Why?"
"Official business. Nothing to worry about."
We walked past her. Yashiro was sitting at his desk, writing a letter. When he saw us, his face went pale.
"Fugaku. What is this?"
"You're under arrest for treason."
"Treason? I've done nothing—"
"Conspiring with Orochimaru. Selling Uchiha sealing techniques to Kiri. Aiding the enemy."
Yashiro's hand moved toward a drawer. I was faster. My chain wrapped around his wrist, pulling him away from the desk.
"Don't," I said.
He looked at me with cold eyes. "You're the half-breed. The missing-nin's bastard."
"I'm the one who caught you."
"You caught nothing. You have no proof."
"We have Orochimaru's testimony."
"Orochimaru is a liar. He'll say anything to save himself."
Fugaku stepped forward. "We also have the scroll you gave him. The one with the sealing techniques. We found it in his laboratory."
Yashiro's face crumbled.
"You're a disgrace to the Uchiha name," Fugaku said. "You've betrayed your clan, your village, your comrades. For what? Money? Power?"
"For survival," Yashiro whispered. "The Uchiha are dying. The village hates us. The council wants us gone. I was trying to protect my family."
"By selling weapons to our enemies?"
"I was trying to create leverage. If Kiri had the bomb, Konoha would need the Uchiha to counter it. We would have power. Respect."
"Instead, you've brought shame."
Fugaku bound Yashiro's hands and led him out of the house. His wife was crying in the doorway. His children were watching from the stairs, their faces blank with shock.
I followed, my chains retracted, my heart heavy.
This was what the ninja world did. It broke families. It turned brothers against brothers. It made traitors out of desperate men.
---
Orochimaru was gone.
By the time Hiruzen's agents reached his laboratory, he had fled. The jars were empty. The documents were burned. The only thing left was a note, pinned to the door with a kunai.
"Sensei,
I'm sorry it had to end this way. But you forced my hand. You refused to see the truth. Konoha is dying. And I intend to survive.
—Orochimaru"
Hiruzen read the note in silence. Then he crumpled it and threw it into the fireplace.
"I trained him," he said. "I taught him everything he knows. And now he's a traitor."
"You couldn't have known," I said.
"I should have. The signs were there. I chose to ignore them."
"Then learn from it. Don't ignore the signs again."
He looked at me. His old eyes were tired.
"You're wise for your age."
"I've had to be."