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Leader	By : mannahpierce Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 2163 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: This story has some of Masashi Kishimoto's characters from Naruto in a universe of my own devising. I do not own Naruto. I do not make any money from these writings.

Chapter List
- 28
- 29
- 30
Thank you to my beta and muse, Small Fox. This story grew from a plot idea he gave me.
Also thanks to melissen, telynaayuri, satterb, sadie237, eunmook and disembodiedvoiceofthedying for reviewing after chapter 28 was posted.
Readers’ feedback, support and comments mean a great deal to me. Feedback keeps me writing.

Leader
Part 4: Parry
29: Decision

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Madara hit and kicked until he was too exhausted to plan and execute even one more blow.
Taking his body to its limits helped, but no dummy could substitute for a flesh and blood victim.
Sumaru had offered to spar but Madara’s pride would not allow it. Even without his symbiote activated, the youngster would be holding back. Anyway, a spar was not what Madara wanted. He wanted to feel flesh bruising beneath his fingers; to see the look in their eyes when they realised that they were at his mercy.

He entered the decadent bathroom, showered away the sweat and then sank into the deep tub. He wondered what would happen if he asked for a steam room. Doubtless it would appear, as had the bathroom and every other luxury he had requested.
Initially he had relished their responsiveness. It had confirmed Uchiha’s wealth and his status. Now he wondered. Had they been merely placating him? Did they see it like giving sweetmeats to a greedy child?
It was possible. Sasuke’s household was ridiculously plain; even his bedroom.
Madara had sneaked a look when no one was about. He did not know what he expected; not a room barely larger than the bed it contained. If it had not been for the crest on the wall, he would have wondered if he was in the correct place.
Within the simplicity was a message for any observer to read. Wealth was irrelevant. Belongings were merely things. It was people who mattered.
Sasuke Uchiha had lived surrounded by people he loved and who loved him.
Like Izuna.

Madara sneered. Izuna and Sasuke were correct that people were more important than belongings or even wealth. They were wrong in thinking that those people should love the person who led them.
They should be in awe of their leader and if that awe strayed into worship, so be it.

He leaned back, running over the plan and its developments. On the positive side: there was no word from the Oak, Neji was gone; he was leading Uchiha; Shikamaru had given him a fortune. On the negative side: Hikaru had not been on the Oak. In the zone between were Orochimaru’s silence, the lack of response from the Hyuga and Shikamaru.

Shikamaru was acting as if Madara had never hit him. He said that he remembered nothing after transferring the credit from his account into Belmenth tokens. He had apologised for any ‘inappropriate behaviour’ while he was ‘unwell’.
Madara was not sure what to think. However, it was difficult to escape the fact that Shikamaru had vomited rather than endure his touch.

The business with the Hyuga was concerning. There had been five steps in the plan: one, Neji kidnapped by Orochimaru’s minions; two, Neji handed over to the Hyuga; three, Uchiha sent evidence of Neji’s death by the Hyuga; four, Uchiha threatening to retaliate; five, the Hyuga offering the long-term contract as compensation.
According to Karin, Neji’s damaged, unconscious but still breathing body had been handed over to the Hyuga. However, that was as far as the plan had progressed.
He required evidence, real or fabricated, that Neji was dead. Without it, he was struggling to push Shikamaru over the edge.
Eight days was too long; it was time to cut out the go-between and negotiate directly.

He left the bath, scrubbed away the excess water with a towel, dried himself using the blowers and dressed. Once at Izuna’s desk, he activated the intercom.
“This is Izuna. Shikamaru, Sumaru and refreshments to my office.”

Sumaru appeared almost immediately. Madara ran over the schedule for the day. Partway through Keitaro entered with a tray, made tea and then went about his duties cleaning the other rooms.
Finally Shikamaru arrived. He refused coffee, poured himself a cup of tea and sat in his usual place.
“I am convinced that the Hyuga are responsible for taking Neji-san,” Madara began.
“That is one possibility, Izuna-sama,” Shikamaru agreed.
“It is the one we will pursue. I intend to issue a statement to that effect. I shall then offer the local Hyuga representative the opportunity for a meeting.”
Shikamaru put down his cup. “Maybe we should contact the Hyuga representative first, Izuna-sama,” he suggested. “And only involve the media if the Hyuga are unresponsive.”
Madara considered Shikamaru’s proposal. There were advantages to avoiding a public confrontation. “Very well, Shikamaru-san. Sumaru-san, please go now and set up a meeting as soon as possible.”

Sumaru left and Madara waited. Sooner or later Shikamaru would stop staring into his tea and look up.
As soon as Shikamaru lifted his gaze, he pounced. “I am worried about you, Shikamaru-san.”
Shikamaru did not respond.
Madara suppressed his annoyance; he would not be ignored. “Your lover has been abducted and many members of your family are lost, yet you seem little affected,” he challenged.
It worked, Shikamaru’s behaviour changed. Madara could not put his finger on it. It was as if every part of him was telling a different story. His body language said one thing, his movements another, his words a third and his eyes...
His eyes reminded Madara that this was no ordinary man.
“They are not lost, they are overdue,” Shikamaru stated. “As for Neji, I shall think the best until I learn otherwise.”
His voice had started to shake when he spoke of Neji. Madara pushed again. Maybe, this time, Shikamaru would crack. “But no news, not even any demands. It is time to be realistic, Shikamaru-san.”
Shikamaru looked through him rather than at him. “I am not a realistic person, Izuna-sama. Realism is not a typed-seven genius trait. In fact the opposite. Retreating from reality is very much a characteristic of typed-seven geniuses.”
For one brief moment, Madara wondered if Shikamaru had it in him to be dangerous.
He dismissed the thought. Shikamaru was physically weak and emotionally fragile. He had just admitted that his grasp on sanity was tenuous.
All Madara required was evidence, real or fabricated, that Neji was dead and he intended to push the Hyuga into providing it.
“I did not mean to upset you, Shikamaru-san,” he lied.

.

Shikamaru was angry. He caught the unfamiliar emotion, twisted it up into a knot and thrust it away.
“Is there anything else you require, Izuna-sama?” he asked.
Izuna’s eyes hardened. “No, Shikamaru-san. I shall expect to see you on time at the briefing this afternoon.”
Shikamaru stood, bowed and was out the door before Izuna could change his mind.

He leaned on the wall of the corridor. He knew that Izuna was manipulating him. Usually that knowledge was enough to protect him but not today.
Izuna had paraded the prospect of his loved ones’ deaths before him. If he had not known Neji was safe, he might have lost control.
Which was doubtless what Izuna had wanted.

He checked his chronometer; there was only a short time left before the midday meal so he set off to find Sumiko.

She was with Konan, Hana and Nagato in hydroponics. Shikamaru sat down on a bench and watched her until she noticed him and rushed over to subject him to a detailed lecture about tomato genetics.
“Would you and Su-chan like to eat with us, Shikamaru-san?” Konan asked when Sumiko paused for breath.
“That would be nice but Choza-san is expecting us,” Shikamaru replied.
“Next time,” Konan suggested. “Su-chan, remember that we are expecting you for a sleepover this evening. Nagato-chan is looking forward to it and Hana-san has a special meal planned.”
“That sounds fun,” Shikamaru acknowledged, thankful for the reminder. “Is there anything else you need to do here before we go, Su-chan?”

Sumiko hurried about giving her plants a last check while Shikamaru admired Nagato’s flowers. Then Su-chan told him more about her plan to breed a new variety of tomato as they walked to the kitchen.
Shikamaru decided not to mention that it would be a great deal less effort if she used genetic engineering and a computer model that predicted taste and appearance.

Sumaru was finishing eating and Choza was adding the final dishes to Izuna’s tray.
Shikamaru noticed that Sumaru was taking it, even though Keitaro was available.
“How did you get on arranging a meeting between Izuna-sama and the Hyuga representative?” he asked.
“Kono-san dealt with it,” Sumaru answered. “The meeting is scheduled for this afternoon, after the briefing, at the headquarters.”
Shikamaru was intrigued; the Hyuga usually made a point of not coming when someone called.

Sumaru left with the tray and others arrived. They chatted, catching up with developments; the midday meal was a time they could get together without Izuna’s suffocating presence.
Konohamaru and Kamatari entered as Biwako left with Sumiko.
“Sumaru-san mentioned the meeting with the Hyuga representative,” Shikamaru mentioned, hoping for more detail.
Konohamaru frowned. “Yes, she asked about you. Seemed disappointed when I said you were not going to be there.”
Shikamaru had thought that the Hyuga representative was male. “She?”
“Yes, apparently they switched back to the previous one, didn’t you know?”
Shikamaru’s spirits lifted. The previous Hyuga representative had been Hinata; Neji’s cousin. New possibilities opened up, some of which made sense of the message he had found bobbing in the data streams. “No, I thought they weren’t allowed to stay in any one place for more than five standards.”
“Apparently they can come back after five standards away. I can’t imagine Izuna-sama walking Hyuga-san out,” Konohamaru hinted.
Shikamaru nodded and swiftly finished his meal; there were things he needed to do.

The briefing followed its usual, stultifying pattern. Moegi repeated her recommendation that Asuma be detanked and fitted with regens. Izuna ordered her to continue with the current treatment. Konohamaru brought up the rumours that the Oak had been lost. Izuna stated that he intended to make a statement to the media.
Shikamaru imagined him playing Uchiha-sama and suppressed a shudder. “It is only ten days, Izuna-sama. Perhaps we should wait until the Dart reaches their last known position and reports in? It’s only another three days.”
Izuna’s eyes bored into him. “There is some merit in that suggestion, Shikamaru-san. I shall consider it.”
Then, suddenly, the briefing was over. There had been no mention of Neji or the meeting with the Hyuga.

Shikamaru waited until Izuna had a ten minute start and then made his way to the headquarters. He did not want to take the risk of missing Hinata; if the meeting between her and Izuna went badly it could be extremely brief.
The USF personnel on duty were surprised to see him. Shikamaru just hoped that Izuna’s tendency to ignore minions included the guards. If not, one of them might mention his presence and he would have to come up with a believable excuse.
He found a quiet side corridor and lurked in a doorway.
Footsteps; he leaned forward and was rewarded by a glimpse of Kamatari’s fur. Hinata must have really annoyed Izuna; offering a hybrid as escort would have been meant as an insult.
Kamatari slowed as they approached and gestured towards the side corridor. “There is someone who would like to speak with you, Hyuga-san.”
Of course Kamatari had heard him.
“Shikamaru-san,” Hinata acknowledged with, if not a smile, a sparkle in her eyes.
Shikamaru bowed. “Hinata-san.”
“I’ll keep watch,” Kamatari offered.

They moved some way down the corridor before standing, less than two paces apart, looking at each other. Shikamaru decided to make the first move. He held out a Belmenth credit token.
“A petacredit,” he told her. “If you want more, just say.”
“What is this for, Shikamaru-san?” she asked but she took it from him.
“I thought you might need it,” Shikamaru admitted. “Do you know where he is?”
She gave the slightest nod.
“And he’s safe?”
Another nod.
“You didn’t tell Izuna?”
She shook her head. “He thinks the Hyuga have him and I allowed him to continue with that misapprehension,” she whispered. “Someone contacted me. I was offered Neji in return for the services of a Hyuga.”
Possibilities exploded in Shikamaru’s mind. “Who?”
“I do not know. I thought it might be Sasuke-sama.”
Shikamaru scowled. “Why would he? He turned down that option and better ones.”
“I know, but people change.” She studied him with Neji’s eyes. “I wondered if Sasuke-sama wanted to get rid of him without your knowledge.”
“Never,” Shikamaru insisted.
“That was what Neji said when he came out of the tank.”
Shikamaru’s composure faltered. Why had Neji been tanked? Was he hurt?
A gentle touch on his arm. “He is fine now, almost fully recovered. Neji also told me that the Oak is overdue and insisted on sending you a message.”
“I got it.” Some of the pieces began coming together. “If other Hyuga find out what you have done...”
“They will. Whoever is expecting to receive that contract will see to it.” She moved her hand, attracting his attention to the token. “Which is why I shall accept this.”
Shikamaru made a decision and brought the data chip from his pocket. “Here. Neji will know how to use the information.” He hesitated but pushed on; he had to know. “Were you contacted after the kidnapping or before?”
“Before, Shikamaru-san.”
He swallowed. He had believed that Izuna was the intended target and Neji’s kidnapping opportunistic.
The majority of the possibilities he had been considering fizzled away.
“You will not tell Izuna Uchiha,” Hinata stated.
Shikamaru did not hesitate. “I shall not.”
“Good. He is not trustworthy, Shikamaru-san. His words are completely at odds with his intent.”
He blinked; that was blunt.
“The question you should be asking yourself is whether he is taking advantage of circumstances or whether he had a role in creating them.”
His head was spinning. He took refuge in politeness and bowed. “Hinata-san.”
She bowed in return and turned to go.
“Tell him we miss him terribly,” Shikamaru added. He hesitated but committed. “Tell him I love him,” he said to her retreating back.

Shikamaru retreated into a doorway and stood there trembling. He had crossed the line. There was no interpretation of his oath that did not require him to report Neji’s whereabouts.
But Neji had warned him to tell no one.

He collected himself and began making his way back to the household. If challenged, he would say that he had wanted to catch sight of the Hyuga to determine if she was the same person who had negotiated with Sasuke-sama twelve standards ago.
Not that anyone other than Izuna would think to question his reason for being there.

Izuna; Hinata’s assessment had fuelled the doubts that Naruto had planted. What was it she had said? Her best scenario was that he was taking advantage of their misfortune to take over Uchiha. The worst...
Could he have had a role in instigating Neji’s kidnapping? Was that possible?
No; Izuna had been in a pod for a thousand standards. He had only contacted a few outsiders since he had woken and that had been via whoever had been in duty in communications.
Anyway, Hinata’s best scenario was bad enough. If Sasuke was lost, Izuna would claim the position of Uchiha-sama.
It was difficult to see how he would be unsuccessful. Hikaru was too young and had never been recognised as heir. Izuna was a full blood, adult Uchiha with leadership experience. He had never been declared dead, so qualified for consideration. Worse, if the spacer code was interpreted literally, he had never ceased to be Uchiha-sama and all the clan leaders who had followed him had been merely holding his place until he should return.
Which would not have been so bad if he had been the Izuna Uchiha of legend, but he was not. He was, as Hinata had pointed out, untrustworthy.

Shikamaru let himself into the household. He needed to find somewhere he could think undisturbed. He decided on Haru’s simulator; from there he could access all his systems, even the data streams.
Sai was there as soon as he activated the interface.
Shikamaru treated Sai like he would Haru or Kazuki. “It is good to see you, Sai-kun, but I was hoping to use the simulator as an interface to do some work.”
“It is good to see you too, Shikamaru-san. I am with Sumiko.”
“You concentrate on Su-chan. We can talk later.”
The Sai avatar vanished. Shikamaru smiled, imagining Sai trying to avoid the telling-off Sumiko would give him if she caught him multitasking.

He called up the simulation of his birch woods on the Oak because that would relax him. He had decided to start his thoughts in a new place. He would assume that Izuna had been planning on regaining his position as Uchiha-sama from the moment he recovered from his regression.
Or maybe even before that. By pretending to be harmless and needy, Izuna had managed to collect the information he had required to manipulate them, particularly Sasuke.
Izuna would have crafted every word and every action. Sasuke would have seen what Izuna had wanted him to see: the hero; the legend; the man Sasuke wanted his own father to have been.
It had worked; even Naruto had decided not to question Sasuke’s hero-worship.

Shikamaru took a deep breath. Enough of the past; he should be concentrating on the mess they were in rather than the mess that should have been avoided.
There were two main scenarios.
If Sasuke was lost, they were in deep trouble. Izuna would establish himself as Uchiha-sama. Once that happened, the only ways out required Izuna’s death.
Even thinking that was treachery. Truth was, Shikamaru realised, he did not care.
It was a liberating moment.
If Sasuke came home, the situation was still complex. Izuna had a legitimate claim to be Uchiha-sama and Sasuke, who was honourable to his very core, might feel obliged to acknowledge it.
That must not happen. Between them, they had to persuade Sasuke not to step aside.
If he was not lost.
If he was alive.
What if he and Naruto and Haru and the others were dead?
And there it was, below him, a yawning pit of grief and despair.

Shikamaru refused to fall into it. He was needed. If he faltered, who would look out for the others’ interests? Who would protect Su-chan?
He turned away from the chasm and started to plan.

.

Madara had made no progress with the Hyuga. He had found Neji difficult to read, but Neji had been an open book next to the female version.
She had neither confirmed nor denied that Neji was in Hyuga hands. She had sat there, impassive, while he accused the Hyuga of kidnapping and murdering a member of Uchiha. She had not reacted to his demands for evidence of Neji’s fate and, if he were dead, appropriate reparations.
He had not been able to talk directly of their arrangement; there had been too great a chance that Sumaru or the ferret hybrid would overhear.
She had not even reacted when he rudely dismissed her or when he had insulted her by giving her the ferret hybrid as her escort.

Now, back in his office in the household, he was wondering why she had agreed to the meeting. He presumed that she would act as a conduit, relaying his words to her superiors.
He would give the Hyuga two days to respond. After that, he would follow his initial plan and make a public statement.

Decision made, he checked the shuttle. Nothing from Karin, which meant nothing from Orochimaru. He sighed. He knew it was too soon for confirmation that Sasuke Uchiha was dead. The Akatsuki did not have Uchiha’s minigate network; Orochimaru’s ship would have to travel to a gated system with a Stellar Exchange.
He settled at his desk, intending on spending some time planning how to spend the fortune Shikamaru had given him, only to find himself distracted.
The female Hyuga had been irritating but she had also been beautiful; elegant and well-endowed. He stabbed the intercom.
“Izuna here. Keitaro-kun to my office.”
He then drew out a card and wrote an invitation for Konan to join them for the evening meal. It was tempting to invite her to his rooms, where they could eat surrounded by beautiful objects, but it was important to reinforce his position among the crew.

Konan was already in the kitchen when he arrived, talking to Shikamaru. He slowed his approach to study their interaction. Shikamaru was far more animated than he had been since the Oak’s departure; Konan was smiling at him in a manner that Madara had thought she reserved for her son.
Then, before his eyes, the pleasure they felt in each other’s company vanished. Madara realised he was the cause; they had seen him.
He stiffened and told himself it did not matter; it was not a leader’s place to be popular.

He took his place and invited Konan to sit beside him. Shikamaru moved to sit on her left and, with a pang he refused to acknowledge as jealousy, Madara banished him to the other end of the table to sit among the junior crew.
Only purebreds were present. The ferret hybrid was on watch. The dog hybrids were minding the children.
It would do for now; once he was recognised as Uchiha-sama, full blood Uchihas and senior crew would share a formal evemeal in more appropriate surroundings.

They had served themselves, another practice he would do away with, and had started to eat when the intercom clicked.
“This is Kamatari. There is a coded message. I have begun deciphering it and it is from Sasuke-sama.”
The food turned to dust in Madara’s mouth. He swallowed and forced his face into a smile.

Not that anyone looked to him for direction. Shikamaru was gone; Madara was surprised he could move that fast. Konohamaru muttered an apology for leaving the table and followed.
It was Konohamaru who returned with the bare bones of the message. The Oak had been ambushed and destroyed. Most of its crew were trapped in the last system in the string with the only hole blocked.
But Sasuke Uchiha, the fox hybrid and the six youngest children had jumped the hole with the Orochimaru print’s ship; a ship that carried at least Rin, Hoshi and four of the fox hybrid youngsters as prisoners.
By now the younger children were in pods and adrift this side of the blocked hole. Sasuke Uchiha intended to stay with the Akatsuki ship as it travelled back to Orochimaru’s base. He was determined to rescue his children.
Sasuke Uchiha had escaped the trap.

Madara was furious; so angry that he was struggling to maintain the Izuna persona.
“I shall be in my office, Konohamaru-san,” he announced. “Please keep me up to date.” He turned to Konan and bowed. “I apologise for the disrupted meal, Konan-san.”
She said something appropriate in return but he was not listening.

Once safely secluded in his apartment he could rant. The scheme had been so simple. No one jumped back until Sasuke Uchiha’s death had been confirmed.
Only Orochimaru had to go and trust the mission to one of his prints, despite considerable evidence that Orochimaru prints were self-seeking, hedonistic and disloyal.
Like the original, but Orochimaru himself was driven by a goal that was out of reach of any print; Orochimaru wanted to live forever.

The only ray of hope was Sasuke’s ill-advised heroism. If he had done as he should, and stayed with the pods, Madara would not have had the slightest chance of getting a message to Orochimaru before the Dart picked him up in three days’ time.
Now it was a race between Madara’s message and Sasuke Uchiha; which would reach Orochimaru first?

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Leader