The Stranger In Black

Chapter 01

Many considered Noguchi Susumu as a calm, level-headed, and dedicated shinobi. He also had the preternatural ability of sensing people from far away, not unlike some very powerful ninja that came before him. In recognition for his abilities, both as a shinobi and as a sensor, he had been placed in Konohagakure's Kekkai-Han as its leader.

The barrier team was responsible for maintaining the massive construct of chakra that served as the village of Konoha's barrier, which detected entry points from all sides, even from above and underneath. This barrier extended from the center of the village, the Hokage Tower, seven kilometers from the walls. The barrier itself was a perfect sphere that enveloped Konoha and its surroundings completely.

The Kekkai-Han was the first line of defense in case of invasion or infiltration and it was their responsibility to monitor the giant ball of water, infused with chakra and representing the barrier, located at the center of their headquarters for any ripples, an indication that someone had passed through the barrier.

Of course, the barrier itself was not perfect. The Kekkai-Han had to possess the latest intelligence reports from the intelligence division and worked with them to assess what certain ripples meant. In the past, they reacted to each and every ripple as an infiltration or the beginnings of an invasion, but the teams they dispatched would always return grumbling about chasing ghosts. So they set up an elaborate method of determining threat levels for each ripple. Small, faint ripples were considered harmless, such as passing merchants or traders; while large, obvious ripples were treated with suspicion and an interception team was always sent out as escorts, be they friends or foes.

But then there were the extremes, the barely-there ripples that almost would not have been detected if the team didn't know where to look, and the giant ripples that told them someone of kage-level was approaching. Of course, the first of the two were most likely ANBU and most Jounin, returning from their missions, and the second was their Hokage or someone close enough in terms of strength.

So that's what the Kekkai-Han did, assessed the ripples that disrupted the chakra sphere of water of any threats, based on the latest intelligence reports, and dispatched teams to either investigate or provide escort. Most of the time, or all of the time, there wasn't much excitement, which suited Susumu just fine. If his boredom was the price for Konoha's safety, then he'd do his duty as dutifully as he could.

But then again, his duty was always a challenge tenfold whenever he needed to train a new member of the Kekkai-Han as he was doing now. They tended to be skittish, because they were new, and had yet to pick up the subtle nuances of reading the meanings of each ripple in the sphere and double-checking on the reports, opting instead to regard each distortion as some imminent invasion threat to the village.

As was the case with Hirano Fumio, a newly-promoted chuunin, who was staring at the chakra sphere with wide eyes.

It was always, always a test of supreme patience dealing with this boy. He was eighteen years old and quite excitable and very, very prone to jumping at shadows. More than once since the boy had joined the team, Susumu had to apologize to irate ANBU captains who've been sent to investigate the reports of a barely-there ripple that caught Fumio's attention only to find a member of ANBU itself in off-duty uniform trying to get intimately acquainted with a date after a romantic picnic in the woods; or a jounin trying to train a team of genin in tracking or some other survival lesson.

It was embarrassing and inconvenient for all parties involved, but it was far more humiliating for the Kekkai-Han, for Susumu especially. Perhaps the boy's talents lay elsewhere? It was taking him too long to learn all that he needed to learn to effectively serve in the Kekkai-Han and Susumu wasn't sure if even his famed patience would keep him from wringing the boy's neck.

"Taichou!"

The current bane of his existence whipped his head around looking for him, eyes filled with an almost-manic glint of determination and horror in his eyes. Susumu closed his eyes, as if willing himself invisible from the boy's searching gaze, before breathing deeply.

"What is it, Hirano-san?" he said, taking a place just behind the boy. At least the boy learned to approach his superior before going off to send another ANBU unit on a wild goose chase.

Fumio gestured to his side of the sphere wildy, "It's nothing I've seen before, sir! The sphere's acting up, all weird and stuff, like there's something big out there and then disappearing and then reappearing and -"

Susumu held up a hand, Fumio's tirade was getting them looks from other members of the barrier team and most weren't very friendly at all.

"Breathe, Hirano-san, you're not making much sense."

Fumio nodded and took several lungfuls of air, trying to calm himself. "It's just, take a look at it, sir, I don't really know what to make of it. I mean, one moment there's the smallest, like really, really small, ripple just over here," he said, pointing to a part of the sphere. "And then it just disappears! But if you wait for it, just a few seconds really, it'll reappear and then it's not just a little ripple anymore! I'm not sure you can even call it that, it's like, like - a wave or something!"

Hmm, it did sound strange. Susumu decided to humor the boy one last time and see for himself what the fuss was about, but if the boy was being stupid again, then he'd fill-in the transfer request himself along with a few medical-care requests too for the boy after he was done wringing Fumio's neck.

His experienced gaze locked onto the part that Fumio pointed at, searching for the tell-tale signs of a ripple. To his eyes, this part of the sphere seemed calm, peaceful, without the slightest trace of-

There! The slightest of ripples, Fumio's description was right. He was about to turn away to look at the reports to see if he could verify the presence of an ANBU or jounin in that area when suddenly the ripple disappeared. He blinked at the sphere for several moments, but then decided to take a closer look. He leaned in and then- there it was again, but this time the ripple was getting stronger, it almost travelled the whole expanse of the sphere now, catching the attention of the other ninja on monitoring duty.

This happened for a few more moments. The ripples would be slight, very small, and then they would disappear before a stronger ripple took over. And each time this stronger ripple emerged, the sphere would seem to deform at a point.

"Hirano-san, get me the latest reports from the last twelve hours, verify if anyone's put up a request for a training skirmish outside the village."

Before Fumio could move to comply with the request, however, the sphere seemed to explode with restless activity. The barely-there ripples were gone and were totally replaced by literal waves that spanned the whole sphere now. And slowly, ever so slowly, the sphere was being drawn into itself at a point, slowly forming a vortex that approached the general direction of the center.

Gasps filled the room as ripples violently disrupted the sphere and for one terrifying moment Susumu wondered if it was possible for the sphere to actually lose its form entirely and revert back into a puddle. But then a more pressing thought entered his mind, what kind of chakra could cause this much disruption? It was almost monstrous.

A stray memory entered his consciousness, from when he was just newly promoted to his position as leader of the Kekkai-Han. That was roughly twelve years ago. And then his eyes widened in realization. There were only very few sources of chakra that could cause this much distortion on the sphere, but even the one from back then didn't cause as much as this new one was doing!

"Everyone!" he barked, the voice of authority snapping all in the room from their shocked stupors, they all turned their gazes away from the sphere and towards their leader. "This isn't the time to be shocked! We need to move, you, you, and you! Inform all ANBU you can find that there's an unknown chakra signature moving towards the eastern gate! Judging from the distortions it's about 4 kilometers away! Move!"

The three jounin that he pointed at nodded and rushed to comply immediately, when one of them suddenly spoke up "What threat level do we tell them?! It's nothing I've ever seen before, sir!"

The other two stopped to look at him, the question in their eyes as well.

It was a good question. Cases like this were extremely rare, and to his knowledge had only ever happened once though it was smaller in scale. The kind of power causing this many distortions on the sensing sphere was astronomical. Of course, each type of ripple or distortion was given a corresponding threat level based on the strength and the reports of activities around the village, regardless of rarity or consistency.

Green was considered friendly, people whose identities and purpose were checked beforehand, a team of chuunin would be sent to escort if they weren't already Konoha ninja; Yellow was suspicious, these were people who they were aware of but not their identities or their purpose, a team of chuunin would be sent to investigate and report back immediately; Red was dangerous, unknown people with unknown strengths and purpose, a team of jounin or ANBU would then be sent depending on the strength of the ripples. There were other color designations, but none that seemed to fit the situation, and in any case he barely had enough time to review them all. He decided to go with the highest threat-level there was on the scale.

"Tell them it's black! Darker than the night they were born!"

"Hai, taichou!" then the three jounin were gone.

Black was the color code for imminent invasion.

"You and you!" He pointed to a set of chuunin by the door. "I don't care who goes where, but I want you to find the Hokage and the Jounin Commander and bring them both here!" He then turned to the remaining occupants in the room.

"The rest of you will continue to monitor the sensing sphere! This might be a single individual or the beginnings of a major invasion! Go over the intelligence we have from the last 24 hours! Find other possible points of infiltration, but whatever you do, do not miss a single thing, people!"

"Hai!"

For the first time in a long time, he breathed a lungful of sweet, fresh air, even though he was in the middle of a roiling, raging, blazing explosion of chakra and natural energy. The forces of the different energies that surrounded him would have torn any normal human apart by now, but he wasn't concerned. He wasn't like most people. He barely considered himself normal. And besides, most of these energies were centered around and from him. He just needed to rein them in to some semblance of control and let the remaining energy dissipate into the air.

But the temptation of breathing, freely this time, some fresh air was too great an opportunity for him to pass up. He breathed deeply, savoring the smell, the taste, and the feel of the clean air, before he let it out slowly. And again, and again, and again, he repeated the action of breathing.

He was filled with a kind of joyful exuberance. Finally! All the preparations, the sacrifices, everything he'd done up to before this point, had finally come together and gave him his first real breath of relief in decades. He twirled on the spot, eyes taking in greedily. The trees were tall, healthy, and green. The sky was blue and clear. The clouds were white and lazily crossing the sky blue expanse. The earth was brown, not too dry, not too moist.

He was in a place that was unmarred by war and destruction and death, unlike from where he'd just come from: where the trees were dried out husks, the sky was black, the clouds a bloody red, and the earth was cracked and hard. But at last, this place he currently was in knew peace.

And that startled him out of his celebration as remembered why he'd come here in the first place, subjecting his human flesh to the violent energies of the world to cross time and space, enduring the mind shattering experience of seeing stars rushing past him, through him, in speeds he could never comprehend. He remembered his mission.

And the price that he'd had to pay.

Summoning what little strength he could call his own, he sent out tendrils of control over to the energies that surrounded him in a sphere of barely-contained violence. He exerted upon these energies his will, unshakable and strong, and slowly pulled them towards him, returning them to his body like a mother would pull her child towards her.

These energies, chakra and natural energy, relented under his control, willingly submitted to his dominance and returned, filling him with renewed vigor and life. He felt the connection to nature, to his surroundings, and knew that he was in a place definitely from before the war that ravaged in his memories. Now, he only needed to know exactly the when he was in.

Time travel.

He could hardly believe it, but he was here. He'd done it. He'd actually done it! He had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to change everything and make things right. Because if he was anything, he was stubborn and determined and would never give his enemies the satisfaction of killing him and claiming utter victory.

He laughed, then, exhilarated at the prospect of just knowing how to put a wrench into his enemies' schemes. He was excited. He was filled with purpose. He would become the hunter and his enemies the hunted. His satisfaction would be slightly marred by the fact that they wouldn't know why he was hunting them, but it did nothing to dim the prospect. He would have his fun and accomplish his goal, before succumbing at last to his injuries. But first, he needed to find a settlement, a place to establish the timeline he was in, and to assess what damage his body has acquired from such a long-distance trip through time.

And then he felt the air stir around him in an instant. He whirled around and faced several people in animal masks several meters away. They were on guard, weary, with hands on several weapons, most notably the swords strapped to their backs.

ANBU.

He could barely suppress another laugh, surely they wouldn't appreciate the action and put them over the edge and attack. He flexed his fingers, wondering if he was in any condition to fend them off. But his mind never stopped processing what he was seeing. ANBU meant a hidden village and the animal masks meant Konoha, and that meant that Konoha was still...

Still standing.

He ignored his audience in favor of giving his surroundings a quick review. He noted that the trees around were of the same kind that surrounded the hidden village. But aside from that, he couldn't remember where he was exactly or how far he was from the entrance, whichever way it was from here. It'd been a long time since he'd been in this area, he'd already forgotten the many paths that led back to home.

Home. He'd never thought about that for the longest time, but why would he? His home was destroyed, its people scattered, its will of fire all but extinguished in the storms conjured by enemies. And he refused to trade his home for this one, peaceful and intact as it may have been, because that would be like slapping the faces of all the people who had helped him get here. No, he couldn't think of Konoha as home anymore, but he would protect it, nonetheless, but preferably from far, far away.

Banishing his dark thoughts, to dwell on later in the darkness of the night where he was comfortable , he turned his attention once again to the ANBU. He needed to know where he was at in terms of strength, could he set off on his mission so soon after his journey? Or would he need to be patient and wait a little? He decided a little information gathering was in order.

"You there," he said, pointing to the closest ANBU, idly thankful for the heavy hooded black cloak that swathed his body from head to toe and hiding his features from prying eyes. He'd yet come to a decision whether he should go to Konoha, thinking that he could decide after his little experiment.

The ANBU he'd pointed to stiffened, hand still on the hilt of his weapon.

"I have questions that need to be answered."

"So do we," the ANBU replied, his mask depicting the face of a tiger.

He shrugged, not knowing that the ANBU gathered before him couldn't see it from underneath his cloak, but slowly took a seat on the ground. "Then let's consider it an exchange of information." He then sat on the ground.

He pointed again at Tiger. "You must be the leader, right?"

"Correct. What are you doing here?"

It was a valid question. One he had a little trouble trying to find a suitable answer for. Perhaps they were alerted to his presence by that surge of power earlier? Did Konoha have a powerful enough sensor to detect all of that energy? Or were these guys just some random patrol that was close enough to detect his presence? Well, he'd just have to make it up as he went.

"I was just passing by when I sensed a pulse of chakra, so I came to find out what was causing it." An outright lie, he knew that his arrival was the source, he was just testing the waters to see if these ANBU could detect the lie for what it was. They didn't seem to react, that was good. It meant he had a little leeway to work with.

"Is that why you guys are here?" he asked.

Tiger nodded. "Yes."

He shook his head, his hood billowing softly. "Whatever it was, it sure didn't feel nice."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"Like I said, I was just passing by. I'm a traveler, see, but it's been a while since I've been here. I think I got lost." A half-truth. He was indeed a traveler and a little lost, but he still hadn't come to a decision yet regarding staying in Konoha, but for the time being he hoped it would be enough to get him his answers.

"Where were you going?"

"To Konoha. I visited it once, when I was a boy, but it's been awhile." Another half-truth. He hadn't just visited the village once, he'd lived there. "Would you be willing to show me the way?"

Tiger was silent, but then gestured for the other two ANBU to join him in a slight huddle. They were discussing plans of action, but made sure that he didn't hear them. They were positioned in such a way that all three of them could keep an eye on him. He didn't mind. He actually approved of the paranoia and he understood the need for extreme caution. He too, once upon a time, had been ANBU. But as he sat there waiting for them to finish their inaudible deliberation, a pressing issue popped into his mind.

He needed a name.

He sat there contemplating his options. He'd never really thought of a name for himself before, even when he'd been sent on infiltration missions, always relying on the cover name he'd been provided. But deciding on a name for himself was tricky. He was essentially the same person, although he wasn't sure if that person was even born yet, but he didn't want to use that name in this timeline. It would raise suspicions that would draw unnecessary attention towards him and perhaps his counterpart.

At least, more than his counterpart could effectively deal with at this time.

If his counterpart even existed in this time at all, actually.

So he needed a name. But what would be a good name? What makes a name, anyway? Should he go with the more common names? Or something a little more obscure? Perhaps a name that was similar to his own real name?

And then he remembered, with fondness, a story about his teacher. A smile came unbidden on his face as an idea came to him. It was simple, a little suspicious, but that couldn't be avoided. Especially with the circumstances the ANBU found him in. Yes, it'd have to do.

Tiger stood and motioned for him to follow, the other two ANBU flanking him on each side. It seemed like they were going to be leading him to Konoha after all. Well, it'd have to do. He needed more information anyway and he still hadn't come to a decision whether to stay or go into the wilderness so soon. He'd have to think on it more later, when opportunities became more apparent. For now, he'd just have to follow like the little lost stranger that he was.

"It just disappeared?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen leveled the Kekkai-Han's commander a steel-eyed look as he clenched his pipe in one hand. He had been in the middle of assigning missions to his ninja when a pale-faced chuunin had come barging in to inform him that the barrier team had detected some kind of anomaly.

"I'm not sure, Hokage-sama, but the fluctuations in the sensing sphere were quite violent awhile ago. I thought it was an attack." replied Susumu.

Hiruzen turned to the stoic ANBU commander in the white cloak, prompting the man for answers.

"I've dispatched a three-man team, Hokage-sama, with orders to investigate and engage if necessary. Should I send reinforcements?" was the quiet reply. Hiruzen shook his head. If Susumu was correct and the distortion was caused by something similar to a bijuu, then there would be no point in sending reinforcements to that team. Rather, he should be preparing to defend his village from an attack. But it didn't make much sense.

There weren't any bijuu, to his knowledge, that could be wandering about aimlessly, let alone in the land of fire. So what could possibly cause that kind of distortion in the sensing sphere?

"Hokage-sama," said Nara Shikaku, the Jounin Commander, "The ANBU team's just returned. They're at the east gate."

"Good, we'll be with them shortly."

"Report."

At Hiruzen's command, the ANBU team quickly bent down on one knee with one hand on the floor. "Team Tiger was dispatched by the Kekkai-Han to investigate a code black threat level. We were sent to a location approximately three kilometers within the barrier, but when we arrived there were only traces of lingering chakra in the air. The chakra was widely dispersed and we found no obvious sources, not even a trail, Hokage-sama."

"Is there anything else?"

"We found someone in the location, but he claims to have only just arrived to investigate the source of chakra. He didn't see anything else. He said he sensed the chakra from far away"

Hiruzen raised an eyebrow at that. A sensor? "Did he tell you how far away he was when sensed the chakra?"

"No, Hokage-sama, but he said that he was trying to find the way to Konoha, but that he'd gotten lost."

He turned to his two commanders as Tiger finished the report. "Have all teams stand down, but I want three additional teams to assist team Tiger. Tiger, you are to lead the other teams to the site and conduct further investigations there and its immediate surroundings. Shikaku, avail our guest some of Konoha's hospitality, I'll be meeting with him soon."

He followed the Jounin Commander to the Hokage Tower's visitor's lounge, a place where the Hokage entertained guests coming to Konoha. He was immensely grateful for the hood now, because when he saw the scarred face of the man who was supposed to escort him, he almost beamed in recognition. It didn't really confirm what timeline he was in, but he had a rough idea at least.

When they entered the room, Shikaku immediately had someone prepare tea and some snacks, meanwhile eyeing him from his spot in the couch across him.

It was a little unnerving to be seated in front of a man known to be Nara Shikamaru's father. He was reputed to be one of Konoha's most intelligent strategist and tactician, with his son, Nara Shikamaru, becoming a prodigy in that regard, too. If it hadn't been for the two Naras strategies, the war would've been lost a lot sooner than he was prepared for.

And he wouldn't have been able to make it here.

Although he was immensely please and grateful to the man and his son, he couldn't allow Shikaku to figure out who he was. At least, not so early in the game. He needed to keep a healthy distance from everyone, unless he wanted to be discovered. And that would raise questions he'd be too uncomfortable to deal with.

This man before him was a veritable genius and could easily connect the dots, even though the circumstances of his arrival would be mysterious, he'd find out quickly the holes in the inevitable story he was about to weave for the Hokage.

He couldn't allow that. So he needed to put up a mask of careful indifference, not to alienate the people around him, but to allow them to know that he was there, but uninteresting. And that was if he decided to stay in Konoha.

Then he remembered his appearance. Well, he'd come to that when he got there.

And with great timing, the door to the lounge area opened to reveal a man that stopped his heart at the very sight of him and his Hokage robes and hat.

Sandaime Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen.

His heart thudded in his chest in pure happiness at seeing that old, wrinkly face again after so long. His memories of the man were always fond, filled with warm and guiding hand on his shoulder or on top of his head. Always ready with a smile, this man had been.

This man will be.

Because at that moment, he swore to himself and to all his sacrifices that he would never allow any harm to come to this man, his first ever hero.

Of course, none of these feelings of fondness and joy translated to his body language. He was well-trained after all. And he had a poker face like the best of them, features-hiding cloak not withstanding.

The old man Sandaime greeted him with a smile as he and Shikaku both stood and offered bows.

"Please, sit, sit," Sandaime said, motioning for them both while he took a seat beside Shikaku. He realized then, that the smile the Sandaime was sending him was not a smile he remembered seeing being directed at him at all. It was polite, but with so very little warmth it might as well be cold and calculating.

With a pang in his heart, he realized that he was just a stranger here, in this time, and that he had no real place among the living. He belonged with the dead and soon, once he'd accomplished his mission, he'd return to them. But that didn't mean he couldn't give his counterpart the chance to enjoy this old man's warmth a little longer.

His heart hardened with his resolve, he pushed onward.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Hokage-sama," he said, bowing once more to the old man.

"It was nothing," the Hokage trailed off, eyeing him expectantly.

"Ah, my name is Hayashi Menma, Hokage-sama. Pleased to meet you." he bowed again.

"You too, Hayashi-san. I am Sarutobi Hiruzen and this is Nara Shikaku."

"Pleased to meet you, Nara-san." He bowed towards Shikaku. He wondered if he'd ever bowed so many times in one day before, because if hadn't then surely this would be some kind of new record for him.

"Likewise, Hayashi-san."

"Now," at this the Hokage got to the business at hand. "My shinobi said that you wanted to come to Konoha. Have you come to sample what we have to offer? Or are you here to sightsee?"

"No, Hokage-sama."

"Then why visit a hidden village, Hayashi-san?"

"My master took me here once, for the chuunin exams, a long time ago. I wanted to see what it was like before I continued my journey."

"Hmm. It's a beautiful village, isn't it? I can understand why you'd want to come here."

"Very, Hokage-sama."

"You mentioned a master, are you trained? In the ninja arts, I mean."

"Yes, Hokage-sama. My master used to be a shinobi, but learned to love travelling. He trained me as best he could before we parted ways."

"Where is your master now?"

"He's dead."

There was a contemplative silence in the air as he said this. His heart clenched once again at having reminded himself how his sensei had died. There wasn't even a body to bury, just a legacy of literature and techniques that he'd tried hard to learn, if only to keep some part of his sensei alive in him.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Hayashi-san," said the Hokage.

"He died to protect me," he replied. It took some effort not blurt 'Konoha', but he managed. "It was years ago."

"I see. So what do you intend to do, now that you're here in Konoha?"

And here it was. The golden opportunity. Should he stay or should he go?

Would it interfere with his mission too much? He doubted it. But was he ready to see the faces of people he'd known for years? Probably not. But it was worth the painful reminder to see them happy again, right? Yes.

"Hokage-sama," he started, not really sure how the Hokage would react to his request. It was spur of the moment after all. And he was, of course, a stranger with unknown abilities, unaffiliated with any hidden village, and had no background whatsoever. Would the Hokage trust him? He'd just have to wing it, he supposed. "I request permission to join your hidden village."

Shikaku and the Hokage shared a glance. What silent conversation passed between them, he didn't know. He was just hoping that he'd be given the chance.

"Hayashi-san, you do realize what it is you're asking of the Hokage, right?" this time it was Shikaku who spoke. "We'd have to test you psychologically and physically. It's not a very pleasant experience."

He nodded. He'd been a loyal Konoha shinobi before, after all, so he knew what it was his request would entail.

"And what about this journey you mentioned? Being a shinobi of Konoha means you might have to abandon it."

And then his heart almost stopped. His journey? Should he tell them his mission, then?

"I assure you, Nara-san, Hokage-sama, that my journey can wait." And maybe here is where my journey will end.

The Hokage sat there, silent, eyes boring into him as if seeing through him and into his very soul.

He'd always hated that about the old man.

But he'd loved him for it, too.

"I see. Well, Hayashi-san, I'll have Shikaku help you prepare the forms necessary for your integration into Konoha's shinobi forces."

He stood and bowed, then turned to follow Shikaku outside.

"Good morning, my name is Yamanaka Izumi and I'll be asking you a few questions, nothing too hard. Just the basics." She smiled at him at her little joke as she sat down.

He kept his face carefully blank as he looked at the jounin before him. He knew why this kunoichi was chosen to conduct the psychological evaluation, he approved of it, but it didn't make the prospect of having someone go through his memories very pleasant or welcome. He knew what members of the Yamanaka clan were capable of, he'd worked with them back in his time, and he knew that whatever subtle techniques this woman dared on him would fail.

He'd been trained by the best of them and had never broken before.

"Alright, so," said Izumi as she scanned the piece of paper on her desk. "Hayashi-san. I was informed that you want to join Konoha as a shinobi? Could you tell me why?"

He nodded. If his suspicions were correct, he'd have to paint himself in the most harmless manner possible to allow him to integrate with the rest of Konoha seamlessly. He needed to be careful, though, because he knew that this question was simply one of many opening moves to allow the Yamanaka a glance at his mind. He decided that a combination of half-truths were better than an outright lie, but if the Yamanaka actually decided to use her clan's jutsu on him... well.

"It was spur of the moment. When my master took me in we never really stayed in one place too long, just moving from village to village and doing the odd ninja work or two for some food and a place to sleep. Ever since he died, I've been thinking of settling down and I've heard good things about Konoha. So here I am."

"I've heard of training trips like that, but you sound like you've done it for a long time."

"Since I was twelve, actually. He taught me as much as he could about how to be a ninja."

"I see. It was just the two of you? No one else?"

"For as long as I can remember. Although we did make a few friends in some of the places we visited, but no one ever came with us or visit us. We traveled everywhere, actually."

"And the places that you've been to, were they nice?"

"Not always. Some places were out of the way and we kept to ourselves even when we were doing a job."

"Hmm, tell me more about the jobs you did."

And so the interview continued. It was nothing too personal or specific, mostly general questions about his life on the road and the places he'd been to. It was certainly odd, because at no point during the conversation did the Yamanaka ever even seem to think of using her clan jutsu on him. It was like she was just interviewing someone without a hint of suspicion. He'd been asked a few names of the places he visited and he always answered honestly, because those were indeed places that he and his master had gone to, but it was a little unnerving that he was being treated so cordially.

Why was his appearance and sudden want to become a Konoha shinobi not attract a more thorough investigation into his identity? He could have been implanted as a long-term sleeper agent, but they didn't seem to mind or even think of the possibility.

"Thank you, Hayashi-san. Please follow me, I'll be leading you to your physical evaluation."

At a loss, he bowed to Yamanaka Izumi and followed her. Things were surprisingly easy so far, but he couldn't let down his guard because he could feel his gut churning. Something wasn't right and he didn't know what. Where was the suspicion and the paranoia? Where was the security?

And what was worse was the question: why didn't she use her clan jutsu?

"For the sake of thoroughness, I'm going to have to ask you to change into this," the man said, handing him a simple white robe. "Once you're done we can begin the evaluation."

He stared at the man, silently asking if he should change right then and there, but received no reponse. Holding any further comment inside, he took off his cloak and slowly worked on removing all article of clothing on his person. All under the other man's careful scrutiny.

With practised ease, he ignored the look and finally managed to get into the robe he'd been offered. He'd gotten over his own shyness a long time ago, but he didn't really know what to expect with his appearance. Before his trip back in time, he'd been told on numerous occasions how much alike his father he looked like: the same blond hair and the same blue eyes, save for the possession marks on each cheek.

When he looked into the mirror, he was both shocked and relieved at what he saw.

Now, that blond hair had turned black and his eyes had become mismatched. His right eye was a deep, blood red, while his left eye remained blue. The possession marks were entirely absent. He surmised that it might have been due to the payment he'd made to get to this time, but at least he didn't actually have to apply a henge all of the time.

He felt a pang of something he couldn't quite identify as he inspected his visage, but he supposed that he could breathe a little more easily. He didn't think he could maintain a henge at all times throughout the day, especially since he didn't know where he was in terms of chakra. This outward change in him was regrettable, a constant reminder of what he'd become and what he'd done to deserve it, but he couldn't really help but use it to his advantage.

"Let's begin, shall we?" said the man, finally letting himself known once again from his silent vigil.

After all the tests had been finished, he found himself facing Shikaku in his office, robed in his cloak once more.

"Allow me to explain a few things before we continue," said the Jounin Commander. "The preliminary tests were all done in order to provide us the basic information required to establish your identity in the village. Since you're new, the results from the tests will serve as your background and history. Is that clear?"

He nodded. He'd assumed as much halfway into his physical exam, but the nagging feeling that something was wrong was as strong as ever. He still couldn't identify what it was that was bothering him, but it certainly put him on edge.

"So far, all of the tests have returned positive results."

The declaration was somewhat surprising, in that he didn't even know there was supposed to be positive or negative about the result for each test. The implications were a bit lost on him, but he decided to remain quiet, hoping that Shikaku would either elaborate or further the conversation. Given enough time, he might be able to guess at what those implications were and how they were made, but he didn't want to do that in the presence of someone who literally thought faster than he did.

"We can definitely proceed," said Shikaku, glancing at the pages on his table from time to time while making his own notes. "I'll need to ask you a few more questions and then we can go ahead to the final test for the day. It will help us gauge your ability and skill and decide on your placement. Now, of the three main ninja disciplines, what is your proficiency?"

He stared at the man before him, thinking of what to reply. In truth, he was a well rounded shinobi when it came to the three ninja arts: ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu. Though he'd had a terrible time learning the last one, the circumstances from before had forced him to learn and learn quickly. He was actually very powerful, but he didn't want them to know, not yet at least.

"I would say my greatest strength is ninjutsu. And fuuinjutsu." He added the last bit hastily as he realized that just saying his specialty was ninjutsu was too vague and a little too common for Shikaku to make a recommendation to place him as jounin. He needed to attain a rank higher than chuunin so that he could be privy to some information around the village. Not that he was expecting to be invited to all of the important meetings, but the rank would allow him some freedom of movement, too.

And then he could use his most treasured technique.

Shikaku regarded him with faint disbelief. "Fuuinjutsu? Are you a master?"

"Hardly, I still have a long way to go before I can call myself one, if ever."

"I see."

"Is there anything else?"

"Do you know what your elemental affinity is?"

"It's wind."

"Alright. Genma, Raidou, please come in."

At Shikaku's command, the door to his office opened and entered two shinobi he'd last seen dying on the battlefield, their bodies torn to bloody pieces.

"Allow me to introduce Shiranui Genma and Namiashi Raidou. They will be the ones to assess your combat abilities today."

He bowed, stiffly, to the two. "Pleased to meet you, Shiranui-san, Namiashi-san. My name is Hayashi Menma."

"A new guy, huh? Well, follow us, we'll be heading to training ground 13 for your combat skills assessment. Will the Hokage be joining us, Shikaku-sama?" Genma said, senbon hanging off his mouth.

Shikaku nodded. "I'll go and inform the Hokage. Please show Hayashi-san the way."

With another stiff bow to the Jounin Commander, he followed the two jounin towards the training ground.

As they walked, he couldn't help but feel the looks of several ninja and villagers at the back of his head. He easily ignored them, long used to it, but he noted that the looks were more curious than anything. So maybe the black, hooded cloak did a lot to conceal his features and add to his mystery? He didn't care. They'd be seeing his face soon enough.

What intrigued him though was the prospect of the combat evaluation. He needed to know just how he was faring in terms of strength and stamina. He didn't know just how much his trip cost him in terms of chakra, so this was a good opportunity to find out.

"How do you find Konoha so far, Hayashi-san?" asked Raidou, a few paces in front of him.

"It's as beautiful as I remember it, Namiashi-san."

"So you've been here before?" asked Genma.

"Yes, my master brought me here once, a long time ago."

"Well, I hope you're no slouch, Hayashi-san, I've been meaning to get a decent work out all week." said Genma, hands in his pockets. "You know what they say, a ninja has to be on top of his game, always."

Raidou scoffed. "You're just saying that because you've got no one to spar with."

"Well it's not my fault you can't keep up, maybe you should put in some more training."

"Please, coming from the teammate of Konoha's greatest training nut? No, thanks."

He was pleasantly surprised at the ease these two shinobi in front of him had in their banter. He'd always know that they were some of the most relaxed ninja in Konoha, but to do this in front of a total unknown? It spoke volumes of their confidence in their skills.

"What do you think, Hayashi-san? Don't you agree?" asked Genma, turning his head slightly to regard him with an inquistive look. "You'll be a Konoha shinobi in a matter of hours, might as well have an opinion on training, right?"

"Please, call me Menma, and I do agree that training is always good for a shinobi."

Genma grinned at him. "Then you can call me Genma, Menma-kun. I'm not that big on formalities either."

"You can call me Raidou, too."

"Thank you, Genma-san, Raidou-san."

They arrived at training ground 13, with Shikaku and the Hokage already there. There were others attending, too, such as Morino Ibiki and Yamanaka Inoichi. The two new additions were wearing the black trench coats of their positions as members of the T&I division, Torture and Interrogation.

Interesting. The feeling that something was wrong finally seemed to have reached a breaking point. Were they actually regarding him with the suspicion and paranoia that had been entirely absent throughout the day? Did they finally come to the conclusion that he was a spy? Were they finally going to try to invade his mind?

Unseen by all, he smiled. He'd like to see them try.

"Good to see you again, Hayashi-san. How has your day been so far?" asked the Hokage.

"Very good. Thank you for asking, Hokage-sama."

"This is Morino Ibiki and Yamanaka Inoichi," the Hokage gestured to the two men, "they will be assisting us in your evaluation."

He turned to the two T&I ninja and bowed. "Pleased to meet you both."

Ibiki nodded, narrow eyes trying to pierce through the shadows of his hood, while Inoichi gave him a bland smile, no doubt already trying to pick apart his mental defenses from a distance. Already he could feel the faint stirrings in the air, the tiny pinpoint fluctuations in the chakra around him, and the slight thrum of power from within his core that signaled the beginnings of a jutsu, but it felt off somehow and the niggling feeling in his head continued.

"Alright, Genma and Raidou will be your opponents. The point of this evaluation is for us to assess what your skill level is so that we can determine what rank to give you. Please remember, all of you, that this is an evaluation. So no holds barred, but no grievous injuries either. Understood?" said Shikaku.

"Until we call the match," Shikaku gave him a scroll, "you are to keep this safe from them. Keep it visible at all times and make sure that nothing happens to the scroll. Genma, Raidou, assume starting positions."

When the two shinobi had positioned themselves on either side of him, he threw off his cloak, revealing his form for the first time to this particular audience.

He wore a black v-necked shirt tucked in standard black pants, which were wrapped with black elastic bandage from his shins towards his ankles. He had on a pair of black sandals and black armbands that looped around his palm and snaked towards his biceps. On top of the armbands were belts of leather that started from his knuckles and looped around his arms. On each belt were a series of spikes pointed outwards, with spikes on each knuckle.

He had a weapon holster situated near his right hip and a shuriken holster tied around his left thigh with a similar red belt found on his arms.

Genma whistled at him, eyes wide. "You look mean."

He smiled, fixing the scroll to his back. "Thank you."

"Shinobi kumite," said Shikaku, positioned far enough away just to be heard and safe from any line of fire.

"Hajime!"

The attack was simultaneous. Genma spat out his senbon as soon as Shikaku had jumped and was already charging in low, aiming for his legs.

Raidou, on the other hand, had circled to flank him from behind and had already unleashed a barrage of kunai.

His arm lashed out and caught the senbon in midair, before throwing it back at Genma and clapping his hands together.

"Fuuton: Repuushou."

He raised both hands to release a gale of wind to divert the incoming kunai away from before he stepped back and threw his own kunai into the gust. Seeing Raidou deflect all of his kunai, he turned to Genma and raised his hand to catch the coming kick to his head. Gripping the sandaled foot firmly he lashed out with a kick of his own while his other hand want to grab onto Genma's upraised thigh.

Genma blocked his kick, but was unprepared to be lifted off the ground only to be slammed back down again. Before he could deliver a fatal blow, Raidou pounced on him, unleashing a flurry of furious attacks to his arms and face. He tried to block as much as he could, but the barrage was unrelenting. He curled slightly, protecting his front and head with his arms, and waited for Raidou's barrage to slow down.

When it did, he unleashed his own barrage, hitting Raidou in the gut before sweeping him off his feet with a leg swoop. He then took a kunai in each hand and then renewed his previous exchange with Genma. With the kunai in each of his hands, he took care not cause too much undue injury, but Genma's arms were slowly being filled with minor cuts before he jumped away to gain some distance.

At this point, Raidou had recovered and was palming shuriken on both hands. A sudden feeling of lightheadedness then seemed to take over his mind. He barely held in a snarl, but whirled around searching for the source.

With a look from Genma, Raidou threw the shuriken at a wide angle, hoping to cut off any effective means of escape. He pumped as much chakra into his legs as possible and jumped away. He threw a smoke bomb into the ground as he landed and ducked low. When the area was filled with smoke, he took the time to analyze the situation.

One, he couldn't use many of his signature techniques because he wasn't supposed to know them. Two, Raidou and Genma had flawless teamwork, it was challenging trying to get into their guard without one trying to snatch the scroll. Three, something was trying to interfere with his evaluation. He needed to think, but with the two shinobi clearly giving it their best, he wasn't going to be able to do so any time soon.

The other two were done waiting for him, apparently, as they bombarded his position with several shuriken. He leaped out of the way and threw even more smoke bombs around him. He carefully let his chakra flare from his body and felt a resonance coming from just in front of him and to the side. He pinpointed their position despite the smoke and withdrew a scroll from his weapons pouch. This test, he realized, was like an important courier mission where the enemies would try to either retrieve or destroy the scroll and the information contained within.

Usually when outnumbered the best tactic would be to run away as quickly as possible, however it wasn't an option when caught in an ambush, as this test was simulating. So what to do? He needed to stop the pursuit and the only to do that would be to incapacitate or kill his pursuers, in this case: Raidou and Genma.

Nodding to himself, he began to perform the hand signs for his next technique. He gathered his chakra, inhaled, and exhaled a mighty gale of wind towards one of the two shinobi he'd pinpointed. The gale was so strong it dissipated the smoke around him but also caught Raidou, incidentally, by surprise. It lifted the man off his feet and sent him past the tree line.

As the scarred jounin was whisked away by his jutsu, he barreled into Genma and entered into a vicious bout of taijutsu. Genman delivered an axe kick to his chest, which he easily redirected to his side before he lashed out with a kunai. His blade sliced a shallow cut on the man's neck as Genma tried to move away as quickly as he could. Giving him no recourse, he flipped the kunai in the air, which he grabbed with his other hand and then proceeded to riddle the jounin's vest with shallow cuts.

He shoved the supposed-to-be dead shinobi and jumped away, flipping the kunai once again to his other hand, eyes locked on the area he'd sent Raidou to. Suddenly, the feeling returned, stronger than ever and he chanced a glance towards Genma who seemed to have sat down on the ground in defeat and was cradling his chin on his hand. Then his gaze slowly traveled towards the Hokage and the other judges, remaining particularly on Inoichi. At this distance he wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but the Yamanaka clan head seemed to be breathing hard.

Could it be?

The surroundings seemed to distort for some reason and he instinctively held up his kunai-wielding hand close to his neck, somehow blocking an obsidian-black blade that seemingly materialized out of thin air. He could feel a pressure on the scroll strapped to his back and immediately slammed his head backwards and into Raidou's face.

The jounin staggered in shock and pain before he was once again swept off his feet by a wind jutsu.

He looked at Raidou land gracelessly into a heap a few meters away from him, staring at the black blade that had almost cut a line onto his neck. He knew of the special properties of Raidou's sword: poison of an extreme nature was infused into the blade, making it a perfect weapon for assassination or for making sure an enemy stayed dead.

Had he been a second too late he might have died. He concentrated once again on his chakra and slowly began forming hand seals quickly. As he performed the requisite seals, he mentally assessed his own skills and chakra so far. He wasn't panting, which was good, but already he could feel a kind of strain developing on his body, which was not so good.

It seemed to him that he needed a bit more rest before he could resume active physical activity like this one.

"Fuuton: Zekkyoukaminari no jutsu."

Slowly the air around him began to swirl violently, whipping his hair wildly. As he finished the last set of hand seals he brought a hand up and made a chopping motion, just a few meters shy of Raidou's actual position. The ground cracked and exploded from the force of his technique, spraying rock and dust and other debris into the surrounding area, some even getting into Raidou's hair and eyes. The explosion of wind left a deep crater into the ground and carried an unearthly howl.

Just in time for Shikaku to call the match.

Genma and Raidou stood up, dusting themselves off in the process before bowing in recognition of his skills.

"You throw a mean punch, Menma," said Genma.

"It's not the first time I've been told that, actually," he replied. You said that to me too, during the chuunin exams. But that was a long time ago, in a future that wasn't and will never be, ever again.

"That was certainly an impressive jutsu," Raidou said, eyeing the crater and imagining the damage had the jutsu actually struck.

He bowed to his opponents. "Thank you for the match."

"Thank you for the match," they both said, bowing in return.

They straightened when the Hokage and the others approached them, the old man's eyes darting briefly toward the damaged area and then returning towards him.

"It was a very good display of skill I'll admit."

He bowed, and presented the scroll in its pristine condition. "Your scroll, Hokage-sama."

"Thank you for keeping it safe, Hayashi-san, consider it a mission accomplished. Now, with regards to your placement, you claimed to specialize in fuuinjutsu, could you please demonstrate?"

He nodded and pulled out a scroll. "Hokage-sama, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to demonstrate to you my specialty, but I believe that this will be enough for now. In my hands is a storage scroll that I created for certain situations." He stepped back, holding the scroll in front of him as he did so. "Please attack me with your most powerful Katon jutsu, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage widened his eyes. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, sir, I'm very proud of what I've created and I'm willing to bet my life on it."

With grim determination, he stood fast on the spot, eyes gazing the the Hokage as the old man began a series of hand seals.

"Katon: Gouryuuka no jutsu!"

As the Hokage breathed a stream of fire, a larger-than-life dragon head formed an charged straight towards him. The heat and power of the jutsu were overwhelming, to be expected from the man once called the God of Shinobi, but he was confident that his scroll would be more than a match for the jutsu. He'd tested it in battle on numerous occasions. It had never failed before.

With precious few seconds to spare, he unrolled the scroll with a flick of his hand and braced himself for the coming impace. "Fuuin!"

Just as the first licks of flame touched the parchment, the jutsu stopped in its advance. Suddenly, tendrils of black shot out from within the scroll and swirled around the dragon head and greedily pulled it in. Within moments, the dragon head was swallowed and he remained standing, his scroll rolling itself and a single symbol for 'fire' appearing on it.

"This allows my scroll to not only absorb the jutsu, but augment it and redirect it with my own chakra," he said, forming the tiger hand seal with his hands, the scroll tucked carefully by his thumbs to the sides of his hands. He pushed chakra into the scroll and flung his hands upward, a fiery dragon head ten times larger than before burst out of the scroll roaring into the sky. It traveled a fair distance upward, making for a grand spectacle, before exploding and ultimately dissipating into the air.

He gazed at the Hokage, his grandfather once upon a time, and waited for a reaction. Sarutobi Hiruzen was transfixed watching the sky where moments before a dragon head had been sailing like some out-of-proportion firework of great destructive capability. The old man returned his gaze after a few moments of contemplative silence and gave him a smile.

"Well, that is without question a very good demonstration. I think you very well deserve the rank of jounin, you certainly displayed enough skill to impress us"

He bowed, not knowing what to say. One part of him was glad to hear these words from the first Hokage he'd ever served under, and another part of him felt relieved that he'd reattained his previous rank so easily, but a bigger part of him felt uneasy with such an easy promotion. He didn't work as hard as before, but it felt like cheating.

"Please come to the Hokage tower to take your oath and receive your standard-issue hitai-ate."

At that, they all bowed to the Hokage as he left training ground 13, Shikaku, Inoichi, and Ibiki following him closely.

"Congratulations, Menma, and welcome to Konoha, for real this time." said Genma, smiling. "And I mean it though, you really do pack a mean punch."

"... and so may the Will of Fire guide me."

The Hokage stared down at him from behind the desk as he finished swearing his oath. It was something he luckily remembered from his time, so he didn't need as much help in memorizing the whole piece. With a slight gesture from the Hokage, he rose to his full height but stared straight ahead and out the window that overlooked the majority of the village.

The old man Hokage regarded him for a few moments before sliding a wooden box towards him. With a nod, he gently took the box into his hands and opened it, revealing the Konoha hitai-ate in black cloth. He traced the leaf symbol engraved on the metal plate, holding back the tears. It had been years since he'd held something like this, his original lost to the ravages of war.

An overwhelming sense of peace and belonging then filled him to his core. This was where he belonged. With his people, his Hokage, his -

He stopped that thought, horrified. Had he already forgotten his vow? He could never replace those people he'd lost, even if in this timeline they were all alive and healthy. He pushed back the feelings of betrayal, acceptance, acknowledgement, and horror deep down his mind and buried them with all the strength of his willpower.

He would not forget his mission, he would not forget his sacrifice, he would not forget.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," he murmured. The Hokage caught the edge of loneliness in his tone, but mistook it for gratefulness, which in part it was but was mostly anger at himself for already falling into the temptation of the prospect of getting close to his friends.

The old man nodded. "Of course, even though I've accepted your oath and you are now considered a jounin of Konoha, there are certain conditions that you have to meet before we can allow you any sort of freedom. I hope you can understand."

"Of course, Hokage-sama. It's to be expected. I'm a complete stranger. It would be extremely foolish to allow me to handle anything of a sensitive nature."

"Good. Well, as you may well already know, due to the circumstances of your arrival we can't allow you free access to the village proper without an escort. So for the time being, I am assigning you someone to be your caretaker for the next few months."

He didn't like the sound of that. It had taken every bit of self control he had not to have broken down when he sighted the old man Hokage yesterday and all the other ghosts from his past. What if the person the Hokage had assigned to him was someone especially close? In preparation he began the mental exercises he was taught for resisting torture. He knew that whoever it was would have to be extremely skilled and his chances of sneaking around had just gotten dim.

"He's an accomplished shinobi, one of our best, and he's just recently returned from his latest mission. I think you'll like him, although he's not without his eccentricities."

Okay, that sounded bad, he definitely didn't like what he was hearing.

"He's also very recognizable, so I'm sure you won't find it difficult remembering him."

He closed his eyes in terrified anticipation. There was really only one Konoha shinobi who could be called recognizable. And it's because of all the green.

"He'll be the one to show you around today and help get you settled in to your new apartment. I think you'll enjoy the accommodations, even if the building is a little old."

The door turned and he glanced back with trepidation. When he saw the all-too familiar slouch, the skewed hitai-ate, the face mask, he knew that his earlier assumption was wrong. Very, very, very wrong.

This person was the worst that could have walked through the door.

"Please, allow me to introduce to you..."

Hatake Kakashi.

A/N:
Thank you for taking the time to read the first chapter of my story, The Stranger In Black. If you have any questions, suggestions, or constructive criticism please leave a review. I'm using Wordpad, so if there are any issues when it comes to grammar or spelling, please point it out.

Jutsu:
Fuuton: Repuushou - Wind Release: Gale Palm
Fuuton: Zekkyokaminari no jutsu - Wind Release: Screaming Thunder
Katon: Gouryuuka no Jutsu- Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique

Terms:
Hitai-ate - forehead protector
Kekkai-Han - Barrier team
Iryounin - medic ninja
Taichou - leader/captain

Edited: 9/27/2015
Redid the testing phase, expanded the fighting scenes, removed/changed some dialogue, added more to his skills, did more character and plot development, minor grammar spelling/edits.