Naruto: Akatsuki

"Gai!"

Mei exclaimed delightfully as she saw Gai safe and sound beyond the door.

Though silent, the demeanours of Zabuza and Ao suggested that they too were relieved to see him unharmed; it seems that a year of time was enough to have them warm up to the kid—no matter how ruthless of a ninja they were.

"Mei!"

Surprised as well, Gai's face brightened.

These reactions of theirs were to be expected. After all, it was a miracle to see each other alive, especially when Gai was a child who received zero training in the aspect of ninja skills.

Zabuza looked at Akashi cautiously,

"You..."

"Do you wonder why I saved him?"

Zabuza bit his lips as Akashi replied in a monotone. No matter how hard Zabuza tried to observe, he couldn't perceive through the poker face of the latter; he didn't know what was going on inside Akashi's mind.

"...What do you want from us?"

Zabuza growled, not daring to lower his guard down. Though not speaking anything, Ao seemed to be thinking the same, as ever since they entered the room, his eyes never left Akashi after they glanced over Gai once.

"..."

From the start, Zabuza felt unease. The moment at which Akashi found them, Zabuza assumed that a fight would take place.

Instead, Akashi brought them into the room and showed them Gai... safe but vulnerable at the same time.

Such action holstered a variety of information that Akashi was trying to convey to them.

One, Gai is technically a hostage, a card that Akashi can use in his favour against the trio. Two, Akashi isn't someone who takes joy in killing, and he is open for a conversation. Three, Akashi had more than enough combat capability to fight all of them at once—such that he didn't have to kill them immediately or keep his guard raised at all times.

With the trio being unaware of Akashi and Gai's tie through 'Maito Dai', Akashi was able to turn the situation to his advantage with minimal effort.

'Now, what to do?'

Not answering the question of "What do you want from us?" from Zabuza, Akashi stared Zabuza in silence.

'...Momochi Zabuza.'

Though Akashi didn't know Ao, the name of Zabuza was quite widespread. 'Demon of the Bloody Mist', that was a moniker given to Zabuza for slaughtering his entire graduating class, thus putting an end to Kiri's cruel tradition of killing one another to graduate.

To some extent, Akashi agreed that the title of 'demon' fit Zabuza. His eyes reeked of bloodlust, one that was possible only in those who killed many times in the past.

In addition to that, the fact that he uses a broadsword as his weapon of choice meant many things. In a fight between ninjas, agility and reflex are one of, if not, the most important qualities that dictate an outcome. With that in consideration, even Akashi's choice of using long swords isn't generally considered ideal. And utilizing a huge, heavy, and therefore, slow weapon in a fast-paced combat... it spoke of how much strength Zabuza possesses.

In a short span of time, Akashi concluded that Zabuza may become one of the Kiri's pillars in the future if he manages to survive until then.

'Then, there is that girl.'

Shifting his lone eye to the back, Akashi looked at Mei hugging Gai tightly, so much that the boy seemed to be suffocating.

Red-haired. The third man of the group seemed to be loyal to her. She was most likely the leader of the group.

Even if her physique may be strong and honed, her body is that of a teenage girl in the end. It was most likely that this girl was a ninjutsu or genjutsu expert, unless she could pull off the same sort of things that Senju Tsunade does.

Nonetheless, Akashi believed that he acquired the answer to a question that he had—whether this encounter between them through Gai was intended or not. The answer to that was no, this encounter was purely coincidental.

After the thought, Akashi finally pulled out a chair and sat down, earning attention from others. He then began speaking.

"Gai is from Konoha. How is it that he is acquainted with you, the folks from Kiri?"

Mei pursed her lips, unable to understand Akashi's intent.

'Is he trying to hold a civil conversation? He's an S-ranked missing ninja, and we tried to sneak attack him just before...'

Nothing could be read from Akashi's blank expression. Eventually, Mei replied,

"...We met him in Land of Waves."

"And you decided to take him along in your journey, because..."

Akashi deduced,

"...you share a mutual goal."

And that goal was to find Akashi.

Mei found herself quite surprised, but she nonetheless kept her outward expression as calm as possible.

She could now see a glimpse of how Akashi was able to hide and avoid the relentless pursuits of the entire world. Regardless of how strong he may be, his ability to gather and decipher information was astounding.

"You seem to have talked with Gai."

Mei muttered.

"...You're right. We too were looking for you."

"To hire me or to kill me?"

Mei paused as if collecting her thoughts. Eventually, she spoke,

"...Do you know how much you are worth in today's world?"

Akashi simply gazed at her without bothering to answer that, knowing that the question was rhetorical.

"The war is ongoing, and it seems to be getting bigger as days go by. No one wants to keep a war for long. They want peace—at the cost of others' misery. To do so, they need a victory, and to achieve a victory, they need a variable, one that can break the current stalemate."

Mei's fists clenched as she reminded herself of what is ongoing in Kiri.

"In this world, you exist as that variable, capable of topping even the current strongest—Hanzo of the 'Salamander'. Do you know what this means? It means that you may as well as be one of the strongest ninjas in the current era—enough to break the balance that keeps the war ongoing... like tailed beasts."

"..."

"Generically, people would want to have you on their side."

"Get to the point already."

Mei grimaced as Akashi seemed unfazed.

"...I came to discover you when I found traces of Shimura Danzo's involvement in the past affairs of Kiri and traced down his doings."

Akashi frowned. There it was, the name of Danzo once more. Just how many lives did he ruin?

"I started to investigate your background after. Perhaps it was out of curiosity, I don't know. But at the end of the day, I concluded that you are mostly innocent. Almost all the actions that you made were done out of self-defense—with the exception of your assault on Hanzo."

"...Innocent?"

Akashi mumbled with a hint of disbelief.

"Me?"

Looking down, Akashi saw the heavy stain of blood on his hands. He couldn't help but chuckle dryly.

"Innocent is the last thing that I am. I'm a murderer of thousands."

To that, Zabuza and Ao, those listening at the back, seemed confused. Gai looked like he simply couldn't follow the conversation, looking back and forth between Akashi and Mei.

Mei, exhibiting some degree of surprise to that, asked,

"You... seem to think that killing is a bad thing to do."

"Is it not?"

"Some view the ability to kill as a virtue."

Mei's eyes hovered over Zabuza for a brief second, who huffed and turned his head away in response.

Akashi slumped in his seat, revealing a hint of exhaustion to the trio for the first time. His face loosened as he dazed into the air—though Zabuza still found no opening.

"Destroyers. Participants of the Second Shinobi World War. They wreaked havoc. Ruined lives. Killed. I used to loathe them for ruining mine. Believing in the idea of peace, I built strength to protect myself and my loved ones. I killed and killed more... until one day, I found myself the same as them."

Akashi sighed.

"Do you understand? The only thing that my environment has taught me is how to kill. I became damn good at it... far too good in fact, that everyone now wants to use or eliminate me."

Akashi was tired. Must he run forever? Suffering from nightmares and ill conditions, he wanted a place to rest. A sense of belonging, perhaps. However, at the same time, he didn't want to work for maniacs who cry violence.

"...From your nuance of speaking, I assume that you wish to hire me."

"...Yes."

Mei slowly nodded.

"What for?"

"...Within Kiri, two factions are in a civil war. It's been going on for a long time, and Kiri was without a Kage for a while."

Mei spoke slowly,

"No matter the victor, either of the two factions will decide to enter the World War. I, not agreeing to either of them, wish to put an end to the civil war and utilize the time afterward to restore the damages down in Kiri rather than enter the World War. Unfortunately, the number of those on my side is low in comparison to the two factions, and this exists as nothing but a foolish dream thus far."

"...Foolish, you say."

Akashi whispered. For some reason, the word 'foolish' reminded Akashi of Yahiko, one who pursued peace just as his old self did. Maybe he was used to it, but Akashi didn't dislike the idea of foolishness.

"What can you give me in return?"

Akashi finally asked.

He wasn't interested in becoming wealthy. He wasn't some sadist who enjoyed killing or combat. His mind wasn't fragile enough to be swayed by the words of a beautiful woman. Therefore, his question was born out of a genuine curiosity.

Can they offer him what he wants?

To this, Mei stated,

"You didn't take money after killing Kakuzu. You mostly fought only those who attacked you first. Frankly speaking, my faction is weak. There is only one thing that I can give: a place to belong."

"A place to belong..."

To give Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato a place to belong, Akashi willingly lost his. Akashi, all this time as he wandered around, was trying to find a place to rest.

A place to belong. It was the only right answer. It also showed Akashi that Mei was a human being, unlike monsters who wished war above peace because they were the ones taking from others.

Akashi couldn't help. The corners of his lips curled up, and he laughed lightly, confusing Zabuza and Ao. Finally, he said to Mei,

"It better be a nice one."