Chapter 11
Chapter 11: The Strange Group Part 1
Itachi was on guard duty for the Hokage today, a routine mission with Shisui and four other Anbu operatives. It was nothing special—just another day watching the comings and goings of various ninjas entering and leaving the Hokage's office. There was nothing unusual about the situation, and as expected, it was a boring life.
But then, something caught his attention.
He found himself stuck upside down on the ceiling, chakra sticking him there, as he watched his younger brother Sasuke walk into the Hokage’s office. Itachi’s lips curled into a smile beneath his porcelain mask. Sasuke had been busy with his new team, and seeing him now—calm and collected, as usual—made Itachi feel a strange sense of pride. His brother had grown.
Naruto, ever the energetic one, was yelling at his father about wanting a real mission. Sakura sighed in the background, trying to keep the peace. Kakashi chuckled, clearly amused by the antics. Minato, ever the patient Hokage, smirked and casually tossed a D-rank mission for painting a fence at Naruto’s head, prompting an angry shout from the boy.
Sasuke, however, was unusually quiet. He didn't join in the chaos. Itachi noticed it immediately—something was different. Sasuke had always been more reserved, but today, his silence felt heavier.
Then, Team 7 left for their mission, and everything returned to its usual pace.
But the calm was short-lived. About 20 minutes later, a group of strange individuals walked in.
Itachi’s senses immediately went on alert.
There were four of them, dressed in black uniforms. One woman with short brown hair, and three men. One of the men had pink hair, another had spiky black hair, and the last one was blindfolded. The blindfolded man, in particular, had silver spiky hair that reminded Itachi of Kakashi. The group exuded an odd aura, and their uniforms were strange—nothing like the typical ninja attire, more like something you'd see from a civilian high school. But there was no chakra emanating from them, and that in itself was suspicious.
They introduced themselves as “humble civilian high school students” working on a presentation about the great five villages, but Itachi’s instincts told him this was all an act. There was something off about them. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but his internal bullshit meter was ringing alarm bells.
The blindfolded man—who Itachi quickly deduced to be the leader—spoke first.
"Yahoo! You’re the Hokage, right?" His voice was overly cheerful, almost too cheerful. The man raised his hand as if greeting an old friend, his smile wide and unbothered.
Minato blinked, slightly taken aback. "Uh, yes..."
The man grinned even wider. "My name is Gojo Satoru! I’m a humble science teacher, and, uh, we’re requesting an escort mission for a medical ninja named Sasuke Uchiha. We need him for a week. We want a guide showing us the Land of Fire."
Itachi’s heart skipped a beat. His protective instincts flared as he processed the request. Sasuke? Why would these strangers need Sasuke? Itachi’s chakra spiked, but he kept his mask and posture steady, even as he felt a knot form in his stomach. Something didn’t feel right.
Minato turned his head toward Itachi, and Itachi immediately knew the others had noticed him as well. A subtle warning passed between them. Anbu were trained to stay hidden, not reveal their presence to outsiders. But Itachi had made a mistake.
The blindfolded man seemed to sense him immediately. His head turned sharply toward the ceiling, his smile never faltering. "Oh, hello! Cool ninjas can stick to ceilings? I didn’t know that!" The words were casual, but there was something unnerving about his tone.
Itachi cursed internally. He had been careless.
Before anyone could react, the door to the Hokage’s office swung open. The familiar chatter of Team 7 filled the room, and Sasuke was the first to walk in. The moment he saw the strange group, he froze. He stared at them for a long moment, his eyes wide with recognition. Then, he immediately stepped back, closing the door behind him and pushing his teammates away.
"UUUUUUUUURGH!" Sasuke’s frustrated scream echoed through the room. His reaction was dramatic, and Itachi couldn’t help but wonder what exactly Sasuke had seen to cause such a response.
Naruto shouted from behind the door, "What’s wrong, Sasuke?"
It was as if Sasuke had seen something—or someone—that terrified him.
The door creaked open again, and Sasuke peeked out, his expression a mixture of disbelief and dread. "Megumi, please tell me that... that creature over there is a hallucination!!" he exclaimed, pointing directly at Gojo, as if the man was a demonic apparition.
Itachi’s eyebrows furrowed as Sasuke seemed to react to Gojo like he was a bug or a dangerous animal. Had Sasuke encountered these people before? Where had he met them? Was it during the five years he had been missing?
Megumi, the black-haired man, sighed and gave Sasuke an understanding look. "I’m sorry, that creature is real..." he said, a tone of sympathy in his voice, as if he knew exactly what Sasuke was going through.
Gojo, for his part, seemed completely unfazed. He flashed a mock, exaggerated pout toward Sasuke. "MUH, Sas-chan, you wound me! Remember when I bought you teriyaki!?"
Sasuke groaned, opening the door fully now. He stepped into the office, his team following closely behind him. Sasuke walked up to Minato’s desk, trying to regain his composure. "Hokage-sama, Team 7 reporting! We have successfully completed our D-rank mission. I assume they asked for a tour guide from me?"
When he mentioned "they," he shot a frustrated look at the strange group.
Minato nodded, clearly perplexed. "Yes, they were requesting an escort. They seem... rather insistent."
The woman with brown hair walked over and casually slung her arm around Sasuke’s shoulders. "Yep, your village is pretty, but we want to see some spots in the Land of Fire, please, Sasuke!"
Sasuke, visibly uncomfortable, turned to Minato. "I accept the C-rank mission. There are a few things I need to pick up, so we’ll leave in an hour. Come with me."
Before anyone could respond, Gojo stepped forward and dropped a large stack of money onto the counter with a smile. "We only take him for a week, then he’s back. Trust me, Hokage!"
Minato rubbed his temple, clearly overwhelmed by the situation, but he didn’t object. "Alright, Sasuke. You’re in charge of this one. Make sure you stay safe."
Sasuke nodded and motioned for the strange group to follow him. As they walked out, Itachi couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong. These strangers were unnerving, and Sasuke’s strange reaction to them only added to the mystery.
Itachi’s instincts screamed that he needed to keep a close eye on his brother, but he couldn’t ignore the strange pull these individuals had on Sasuke.
What had happened between them? What did Sasuke know that he wasn’t saying?
Itachi sighed beneath his mask. This was far from over. The answers were out there—somewhere—but they were just out of reach.