Chapter 10 - Team 13

When we got back from the Land of Rice, the Third worked out a plan for Itachi and Yuna. As soon as he learned about the unexpected pregnancy, the Third gave easy missions not worthy of a chūnin to Yuna and mainly situated within the village to keep her under his watch. The pregnancy draws in too much attention especially when they are both underage. After all, Itachi is the heir of the Uchiha clan and Yuna is the late Fourth Hokage's daughter, a respectable kunoichi of the village.

Yuna got her jōnin title not long ago. Originally, she was going to officially retire when her stomach would start showing. However, she activated her copy of Itachi's sharingan in combat and she was spotted. To stay out of the limelight, Yuna had no choice but to go into retirement early.

No matter how stubborn they were and how their egos were the only things that got in the way, we all see could signs of them being together from years ago, but none of us expect it to happen like that. Itachi and Yuna had the most absurd timing. It was then or never. She was dying. He proposed, she said "yes", and they mated.

As though everything was calculated, the timing was too precise to be coincidental. I don't know who it is, but someone is behind this. Yuna's age to be able to carry a child, Orochimaru's learning of Totsuka Blade sealed within her, the assault on her in attempt to force withdraw that led Itachi to impregnate Yuna in order to save her life, the Coup d'État… That is why Kirigakure let Yuna go during Chūnin Exam. They needed her alive to produce a child of Uchiha descent. Like Yuna's deceased cousin Jun - my nephew I have never met - her child will be born of Uchiha, Senju, and Asuka bloodlines.

From an outsider's point of view, Itachi and Yuna are two teenagers who had a taste of the forbidden fruit and didn't think about the consequence. What they don't know is the other side of the story: the truth. If Yuna didn't want the baby, she could have easily done emergency contraception; Itachi is way too careful to make a mistake like that unless it is intentional. Neither of them want to kill the child... their child. The proof of their love.

Even their decision to keep their child was calculated.

The outcome of the assault turned out to be the most paradoxical.

I feel sorry for how things have turned out. One after another, it never stops coming at her. Yuna is now on the run again. This time, for the life of their child and her own. If the Uchiha massacre was to go ahead, I'm sure Itachi would bargain for Sasuke's safety to remain in Konoha. He would much rather to take all the blame on himself; the Uchiha name will stay clean and continue to ring in glory; Sasuke would not have to face the true horror of the world and remember the best of his ancestry. All Itachi wants is to protect everyone he loves.

Itachi saw that as worst-case scenario, and there, he made sure Yuna could make her escape out of the country a month prior to the start of the movement. Because Danzō would not spare their unborn child, or worse, turn the poor thing into Toshiro the second. Yes, and then we would have a Number 2 of Number 2. Itachi knew what Root is like from me. He would never let his own child suffer.

Just as Minato hinted, we are all part of it - this scheme where the hidden force has been shaping shinobi world history. I may be able to say I hate Danzō, but I don't know how I should feel about something that is beyond my reach. Danzō's twisted sense of justice rekindled the segregation between the Uchiha clan and the village, which the Third spent decades to stabilise and the Fourth nearly extinguished all difference between the clan and the village during his 3-years short reign.

Fugaku actually suggested an arranged marriage between Itachi and Yuna to strengthen the tie between the village and the clan. Both Itachi and Yuna didn't know this happened years ago when Minato was alive. The Third only took out the document in the Fourth's saving vault when he learned about Yuna's pregnancy. Yes, the document was written when they were only seven years old! Fugaku might be a big head, but he is only trying hard for everything he believes.

Itachi and Yuna recently signed the register so they would be officially married on paper as soon as she turned eighteen. Shinobi have adult entitlements, but marriage was not one of them. Funny how that works…. sex is legal. I suppose that has something to do with young kunoichi going for undercover missions. The legal age of consent used to be sixteen. The minimum age has been raised during time of peace. That did not solve the issue of Yuna's labour timing. She is still going to be underage when she gives birth. It's just that it sounds better if she is only giving birth to a child between her and her fiancé.

Minato told me back then he didn't give Fugaku an immediate answer.

"They're still young. Let's save this talk for ten years later," Minato said. He took the document from Fugaku. The two fathers shared a smile that showed the understanding of their positions as parents and leaders.

From what Minato told me, he wasn't against it. I knew he would show how deadly against it he was if his daughter had showed the slightest dislike of Itachi as a person. Minato was one protective father! Because he knew his little girl was too hurt and too fragile underneath the cold-hearted mask she wore on her face. Minato pampered Yuna to the max when she was young. He literally raised her like the princess she was born to be.

I remember the first time I met Yuna as Uchiha Shisui, not an ANBU guard on duty. That was the day the original Team 13 assembled.

I arrived early. When I sensed Itachi approaching, I went out of the classroom. He went into the classroom and looked around. No one else had arrived yet. I had before him, but I chose to go out, because I wanted to observe them. They would be my students one day because Minato and Kushina were planning to have a child, and then she would take maternity leave. Only then, I didn't know Kushina would not even have the chance.

The test I conducted for Minato and that nonsense he told me kept me thinking.

What is it exactly between Itachi and Yuna?

They were two children, extremely intelligent, but straight-out eccentric in their own way. With their personalities, it was weird they got to become such good friends in such short time. I still don't know what it is exactly. No doubt the unusual chakra pull between them is a huge factor.

I learned from the Third that Itachi managed to snap out of his anger out of his own will. Yuna was doing well fighting against Itachi, but Itachi won eventually as he had better stamina. He got as far as to have a kunai at her throat. It was all of a sudden when he let go of her. Itachi's eyes changed. His sharingan deactivated and he looked at Yuna as though he wanted to cry, not that he did. Yuna had her eyes closed, admitting her defeat. In the Academy, Itachi and Yuna fought to nearly their death once because of a misunderstanding. Strangely enough, that accident brought them closer.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but who exactly are you?" Yuna said. She found it difficult to remember my face due to the memory seal Minato had put on her.

"Hello, there! Nice to meet you. You must be Yuna. My name's Uchiha Shisui. I've been ordered to be the third member on this team. Douzo yoroshiku!"

I offered a handshake. It was my soundless thank to her saving my life without knowing. Minato only told me Yuna did and nothing more at the time; I figured out how Yuna saved my life from Orochimaru when I learned she is a seer and often the memories of her dreams are sealed away.

"Nice to meet you, too. Are you and Itachi by any chance…?" Yuna asked. Blinking twice, she fixed her emerald eyes on me and leaned forward to take a closer look. She was probably thinking I look familiar, but she couldn't quite figure out where she had seen my face before.

"Yeah, we're cousins. Well, second cousins. Meh… same thing. Same clan, Uchiha, obviously." I had to smirk. It felt good to jinx Itachi. It's not often I get the chance. I added, "Oh – and I've been watching Itachi grow up since he was a baby till this very second, pretty much."

"You're only seven years older than me," Itachi stated flatly.

"So? Who played with you when you were a toddler? Me! Because I was the second-youngest Uchiha at the time," I said with both my hands pointing to myself. I think I raised my eyebrows, had my mouth opened but stayed silent and gave him my look of disapproval. This ungrateful kid…

Yuna giggled. "So, you're his babysitter?"

"You could say that," I said.

I gave a wink. Oh, I had to, especially seeing Itachi getting all worked up. By then, I was sure he had a crush on her. Maybe he subconsciously wanted to look calm and collective in front of her, all debonair and "oh, look at me, I'm the genius, happens to be an heir as well, Uchiha Itachi, hey there!" Hahaha... No chance, buddy! Squirt might have been pretending to be as cool as a cucumber, but he was looking around uncomfortably.

"You just have to embarrass me," Itachi concluded with a heavy sigh, looking away from me.

Aww.~ But yes. I had to.

I swear chaffing my minions is my favourite pastime.

We headed to the Seventh Training Ground after the formation announcement of Team 13. This unusual genin team consisted of two rookie academy graduates and me, a former ANBU preparing for Jōnin Examination with a jōnin instructor who didn't participate most missions with us while I led.

"I don't see any point in testing you two to see if you're ready to become shinobi, because you very well are. On the other hand, you two can't be let off that easily. So, you two are going to fight Shisui together," Kushina said.

What the hell?

Minato thought it was the quickest way to test out all of our abilities. In their graduation exams, Itachi and Yuna only needed to demonstrate genin-standard requirements, and they did not want to make the situation more awkward for teachers than it already was – it was definite that those two were holding back when they were fighting their teachers in the Exam for obvious reasons. In other words, they had not taken accurate assessments of their full potentials yet. Minato came up with this formation when he was observing their fight on Class Observation Day, but he had to make sure he had made the right decision. So there, he rested his arm on his wife's shoulder lovingly and watched like a hawk.

If you ask me, it's terrifying to have that much attention coming from the Hokage.

"That's not fair on my part," I said. My jaw dropped. My eyes were wide open, staring at Itachi and Yuna. My shoulders tensed. That's not funny.

"Good training for you then," Kushina said.

Wow.

I didn't say that out loud. Kushina was already full on I'm-gonna-beat-the-crap-outta-you-if-you-don't-get-on-with-it mode. She raised her fist, and there was intense killing intent in her darkened gaze.

… There is a very reason why Uzumaki Kushina was nicknamed the Red Hot-blooded Habanero.

Grasping the purpose of this test, Itachi decided to make his stance. He faced me and said straight to my face, "I'm not going to hold back, and I don't think Yuna will, either." It was clear that the couple wanted to see them fighting to their best. Itachi didn't think it would do them any good to hold back at this stage, and he thought it was necessary to let his teacher know what he was capable of if he wanted to further improve.

When I recalled the accident at the Academy's training ground about two months ago, I had cold sweat dropping from the sides of my face. "I've heard about you burning two thirds of the training ground, while she managed to scratch you quite a bit, with poison too." Cocking a brow, I clenched my teeth together and begged Itachi and Yuna, "So please hold back, the both of you. It's a win-win situation for us all."

I pulled up a nervous smile and hopefully my thumbs-up gesture would help them understand I really don't want to get hurt.

"Give yourself some credit, Shisui. I know what you're capable of," Kushina said, partly reassuring me, partly annoyed at me stalling.

"Yeah, Sensei. I don't know what Yuna can do, but I know about Itachi. I spar with him very often. Can I just say? He can keep up with me easily. With two people roughly at his level, I'm not so sure I can do so well anymore." I tried to talk myself out of it. Not that it worked, I gave it my best go.

"How are you going to become a jōnin if you can't even do this?" Kushina asked. That was her last warning. Her fiery long hair elevated and waved dangerously in mid-air.

Kushina thought I was being a pussy. Seriously, I wasn't! She didn't know why I was that reluctant until the fight began.

"I'll give it a go," I said.

"I'm sure you're really good, Shisui-niisan. You're just saying that to catch us off-guard," Yuna said while getting herself into a battle position. With an encouraging smile, she took out a kunai from her tool bag. Wow. She was trying to cheer me up. Thanks… I supposed. Next to Yuna, Itachi had already activated his sharingan with a kunai in his hand.

Taking a good look at their prepared and trained postures, I was pretty sure it was me who wouldn't be going down so pretty.

"Like I said, I'm not so sure myself."

At that, I activated my sharingan and teleported.

It was the first time Itachi and Yuna fought together side by side, yet their teamwork was flawless. They had an unspoken understanding since the early days, effortlessly taking coverage for each other. When I casted a genjutsu on Yuna, Itachi dispelled it instantly and charged at me as a distraction for her to make her escape. When I teleported from Itachi's front to his back for a surprise attack, Yuna shielded him with the pond water she took control of nearby and disarmed my explosive tags. When I sent a giant fireball down their way and burned the grass on the training ground to charcoal, Itachi used the same Great Fireball Technique to counter mine, only then, Yuna enhanced his blow with a tornado wind-release technique. Their combined attack overpowered mine, and it was three times as strong. For an instant, I activated my mangekyo sharingan and called forth my susanoo. I knew my eyes wouldn't receive too much damage, as long as I didn't take the full humanoid form. The Senju blood in me from my mother's heritage kept my eyesight healthy. I only formed the ribcage to guard against the attack. I opened my susanoo's chest and launched a barrage of large green-coloured chakra needles. I made sure none would land on them. They might die. Instead, the scattered needles formed a distortion field. I put a genjutsu on top, causing them to lose balance. They were then struggling to get up from the ground, feeling physically drained from the mental attack.

As I walked closer with my susanoo dispelled, Itachi took a kunai in hand again. He was shaking, but he was in better shape than Yuna, and he knew that. He moved forward and held Yuna behind him, who was holding her hands against the ground, trying not to collapse.

"Is this enough, Hokage-sama?" I said with my eyes rolling when I stood in front of a shaking Itachi and a panting Yuna.

They looked so beaten, and I felt bad. They were kids. That was too harsh on them. I didn't even use susanoo on Orochimaru, but I used it on them. Although I say that, I really had to use it to withstand their combined technique. The training ground area was sealed off from the outside. I couldn't teleport out of there unless Kushina had lifted up the barrier.

"More than enough," Minato said after flashing inside in the training ground. When we were fighting, Minato and Kushina were watching the show outside of the barrier.

Kushina then shared her chakra with the two children to get them back in better shapes. She held their hands and they felt refreshed. Itachi looked around to take a look at the damage we did to the training ground, and he stretched out a little as he got up. He was astonished about their rapid recovery by the look of it.

"That's amazing! How did you do that, mama?" Yuna awed. She stood up and patted the dust off her clothes. She took the hair band out to redo her plait. Her hair got messy in the fight.

Kushina held out her palm, and Yuna gave her mother the hair band in her hand. "It's a dangerous technique if you aren't careful. Not everyone can do it and it's not really a technique that suits everyone, but I'll teach you if you're interested. It might be useful someday," Kushina said as she helped Yuna to braid her hair neatly.

I was whining in my head. I was feeling dizzy. I was pissed.

My teacher definitely showed favouritism! I mean I couldn't really blame her since one of the two younger students is her daughter. She helped those two, and even got to braiding her daughter's hair, while she could have share some of her chakra with me…

I felt refreshed as Minato patted my back. He did! Thank you!

"Well done, everyone!" Minato praised. "It's getting late. How about my treat to dinner as a celebration of Team 13's formation? Any objection?"

None from me. Food is always welcomed! On the other hand, Itachi might be in trouble if he didn't give a notice to his parents that he wasn't coming home for dinner.

"Hokage-sama, I would love to come, but my father might be angry with me because I didn't know I wouldn't be going home for dinner tonight, so I haven't had a chance to give notice," Itachi explained. He was once too much of a good son. He might question his father's actions in his mind, but his actions tried to heed his father's every guidance.

"I get it, Fugaku is strict, but you are now a shinobi, Itachi. You're not an academy boy anymore. Your father's words aren't the only thing you should follow. I don't mean to put it like this, but you have me to answer to. Most important of all, you are your own person. Just think of this like an unexpected event and you have to deal with it. This is your new team's first gathering. I'm sure he will understand. So, tell me, what should you do to avoid confrontation with your father when you get home, and you will come out to dinner with us?" Minato said in a motivating voice.

Minato was trying to get Itachi to think more independently from Fugaku's influences. Because Minato saw many possibilities in Itachi. He didn't want an ingenious mind to go wasted to evil deeds like Orochimaru's, nor did he wish to see a talent seen once in a generation to become stubborn and isolated from the rest of the society like his own father. If only Itachi wanted to be, he could well be the first Hokage hailed from the Uchiha clan and everyone in the village would gladly accept him. That's what Minato strongly believed.

"I can send a message home now and apologise for the short notice once I get home," Itachi answered.

Minato didn't say anything, but his bright smile showed Itachi his approval. Itachi took out a pen, tore out a page in his mini notepad, and quickly wrote a few words. He summoned a crow and had the message sent home.

"Where are we going?" I asked. Oh, I was hungry. Food was all I could think of after all that hard work.

"How about ramen? Anyone feel like ramen?" Minato asked. He sounded unusually hyper. Way too excited! Very out-of-character for a Hokage. Itachi nodded in agreement. He probably did that because it was so damn obvious how much Minato wanted to have ramen.

"Sure," I said.

I will never say "no" to food.

"You are hopeless, sweetie," Kushina said, crossing her arms. The funny look on her face told me she wasn't actually angry. The opposite, in fact.

"Only you, papa," Yuna said, looking at her father with dimmed gaze. "Only you."

"I need my weekly dose. I might be the Hokage, but I am still a normal person. I have friends, and I should be supportive of Teuchi..." Minato went on and on.

"Excuses, excuses, excuses. We get it, papa." Yuna giggled. She took Minato's hand and Kushina put her hand on her husband's shoulder.

"Weekly dose? This is your third time this week," Kushina pointed out in a teasing voice when she turned her head toward Minato slowly and grinning.

"Anyway, I am not obsessed. I have self-control. Let me repeat. I am not obsessed. Come on, guys! Hold hands. I'll get us there in a second. I'm starving!" Minato said, trying to hold onto his laugh. He was blushing a little with his wife and daughter teasing him.

It was the first time I saw Minato flustered and embarrassed, and it was because of ramen. Haha. Good old ramen!

I just realised something.

Minato had gone as far as to mark the ramen with his Hiraishin Technique.

"Wait… What, Minato? You marked Ichiraku? You are so obsessed," I said.

"Shhhh. Hold hands!" Minato shouted.

He was so embarrassed that we found out his little secret.

"It's okay. Just laugh if you want to," Yuna said quietly to Itachi, who giggled with her. "Papa can be pathetic sometimes."

"Princess, how am I pathetic now?" Minato asked. He always sounded irritated when his daughter practically stabbed him in his guts like that.

"You know what I'm talking about, papa," Yuna said with her tongue out. She whispered something into Itachi's ear, and he stole a look at Minato, failing to hide his chuckle once again.

Minato gave up talking back. He took a deep breath and Kushana rested her head on his shoulder. Before I knew it, we were standing in front of Ichiraku Ramen.

The center of Konoha was a lively location full of people. Many walking past took notice of the Hokage's family presence and bowed toward them to show respect. Yuna burst out all of a sudden. It seemed a revelation hit her upon our arrival at the ramen shop.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhh! I remember now!" Yuna yelled with her finger pointing at me smugly. Her high-pitched voice kinda hurted my ears when she spoke loud and clear. "That's why you look familiar. Shisui-niisan, you are Fu-!"

Before she could finish calling out my ANBU codename, Itachi covered her mouth swiftly. Squirt looked a bit pale. Just when she thought she was being clever to have it figured out, she was a child after all. I'm sure she didn't mean to, but she nearly exposed my hidden identity!

Minato stood at the side with an uneasy smile and Kushina was giggling quietly. The parents definitely knew their daughter had this "bad timing outburst habit". Heck! I don't even know what to call it, but she does. They funny part is Yuna didn't know what she did until it had happened; she still does it occasionally although she has gotten better as she grew up.

Itachi took his hand off Yuna's mouth when she appeared to have understood why she shouldn't have said anything, especially when we were on a busy street. Her eyes blinked, then she looked on the ground and she covered her own mouth with her own hands. She looked as though she was embarrassed by herself. She was blushing and tried to avoid eye contact with us.

Minato gave me a light shake of his head and smiled. I hope that meant I wouldn't have to put on that mask again, which is why I was allowed to expose my own identity, albeit I did it in a metaphor.

I tucked my hands into my armpits and flapped my elbows about. My mouth shaped like a bird's bill, and I spoke in a duck-like voice. "I'm an owl." That was my best attempt to act somewhat like a bird of some kind.

Yuna looked up and started giggling. Itachi let out a relieved sigh. He probably didn't expect me to round it up like that.

"Is your cousin always like that?" Yuna asked. Itachi shuddered as if he didn't know, but he smirked discreetly. She caught it, and he made sure she saw it.

Screw you, Itachi! Yuna understood what you meant. And screw you, again! You took this chance to act all cool in front her. You snitch!

Damn. My image - gone.

"You're funny like someone I know and you even look alike," Yuna added.

"Who's that?" I asked.

"I don't know," Yuna said with saddened eyes, but she tried to keep her smiley face.

What do you mean, missy? How do you know someone while you don't know someone? You aren't making sense!

I didn't force an answer out of her. Maybe she didn't want to talk about it and just said "I don't know" to put an end to something she shouldn't have mentioned.

At the side, Minato and Kushina only looked at me with nostalgic gaze. Maybe I did remind them a lot of Toshi.

But now, I understand what Yuna meant. It's quite likely Jun was like me, like Toshi. The Swans told me that Jun was a very positive individual when he was alive. He always tried to keep everyone smiling through the hardest times. That's probably why Yuna found it easy to talk to me when we first met. In comparison, it took Kakashi two years to get Yuna opened up to him. Then again, Kakashi had his own set of problems as well as Yuna was being a complete emo when she first came over to Konoha.