33 Houseguest

A chakra signature made my head tilted unconsciously to the left.

"Meister?"

"Later," I murmured, "someone's coming."

The plant stilled, accurately mimicking a nearby plant in the vicinity. I myself laid down on my back, pretending to take a nap. My glasses dimmed down into dark gray under the glare of the sun.

I saw the person approach me through my mind eye. His chakra indicated that he was an adolescent, but I could be wrong. I forced myself not to tense when I felt a hand patted my shoulder. Slowly, I opened my eyes and was greeted by a face framed by ash-grey hair. His black rimmed circular glasses were the next thing that caught my attention.

"Kabuto?"

What in God's name was the boy doing in Konoha? Not that it didn't please me to see fewer children being in the field and risking their lives for this very strange village, but wasn't he supposed to be away, spying on neighboring villages or something? I had always liked Kabuto for being a resourceful scientist and medic, thus I had followed his story quite a bit. I was quite certain that currently Kabuto was still Danzō's subordinate. Danzō had visited the orphanage one day and threatened to withhold Konoha's funding if Nonō-san didn't turn one of the orphans over to his Root organization. Thus, for Kabuto to suddenly return to Konoha…

Exactly how much money did Fugaku give the orphanage?

The boy knelt down, his brows furrowed. His posture tense. "I'm sorry, have we met?

I quickly made an excuse. "You're Kabuto-san, right? Nonō-san's son?"

Kabuto visibly relaxed and flashed me a sheepish smile. "Ah… I see… You must have recognized me from my pictures." His eyes flickered towards the orphanage, his eyes fond. "Anyway, I brought snacks for everyone." He lifted his grocery bag. "Come on, let's go get the others."

Kabuto helped me up and held my hand with his free hand. I left Shinju in the backyard, trusting it to behave.

"You must be new here," he remarked. "I don't think I have caught your name."

"I'm Hideyo-chan."

"Nice to meet you, Hideyo-chan."

"And you."

"Do you know where Mo– Nono-san is?

I craned my neck up.

"Oh… you haven't seen her?"

His smile momentarily slipped. "No… I haven't. You're actually the first Konohan that I have seen for a while… Is everything alright?"

I considered his question and racked my brain for an answer. I did not think any of the orphans or the caretakers would die anytime soon, thus that should constitute as 'alright'. But then again, what the hell did I know anyway?

I shook myself out of my stupor and I wrapped my hand around his thumb before leading him through the backdoor. "I think we should go see something first."

I dragged him past the kitchen, onto an open space whose walls were decorated by rows of colorful books and frames upon frames of picture. On the upper part of the cream-colored wall, few old pictures of Kabuto were hung; the latest one was probably from around five years ago. From then on the pictures slowly diverged, each time looking less and less like the boy that stood frozen behind me, until the person was completely replaced with someone else.

Brainwashed, I thought.

"What… what happened?" Kabuto stammered.

I gave his finger a comforting squeeze. "I think bandage-man made everyone's brain all fuzzy."

"But why…? I've done everything perfectly... What have I done that could have possibly displeased him?" I heard his breath hitched. "I don't… I don't understand…"

Because you've become too good, I wanted to say, you've become so good that you become a threat and liability.

Caught up inside my thoughts, I barely registered the tingle that went through my mind. Before I realized it, I had already been unceremoniously pushed aside and in turn crashed against the wall, much to my forehead's chagrin. Adrenaline quickly coursed through my blood, allowing my body to finally catch up with my mind.

Nonō-san and Kabuto-san were caught in a deadlock. Both of their hands glowed green. The former was missing her rectangular glasses, but her eyes were fierce and her bare forearms were steadily pushing against the latter's arm-guards. Kabuto-san himself looked quite shocked at being attacked by his adoptive mother, only dodging through ingrained instinct alone.

"Stop it, you two."

As usual, no one paid me any heed.

"I said, stop! Mother Nonō, he doesn't mean any harm!"

"That vest that he's wearing is an Iwagakure uniform, Hideyo. He does mean harm."

I quickly racked my brain to conjure a lie. "I don't know why he wears the stupid vest, but he's my bodyguard!" Kabuto's eyes caught my blazing sharingan. I sent him a sharp look. "Tell her!"

Kabuto did not need to be told twice. Years of being an accomplished spy and trained liar had served him well. "Hideyo-sama is correct, Yakushi-san. With the current political situation; his parents, who worry for his safety, have commissioned me to look after the young master. I understand that you are confused by my attire, but I promise that I have no intention of causing you or your wards any harm. I am simply guarding Hideyo-sama, nothing more, nothing less."

"Then why didn't Uchiha-sama tell me…?" Nonō san muttered, confusion bleeding into her tone.

"Because I was supposed to remain invincible," Kabuto rebutted. "However, the young master here asked me to deliver those foods," Kabuto gestured towards the fallen grocery bag, "to fill the orphanage's pantry, and now we are in this situation."

I quickly bowed remorsefully. "Gomen'nasai, Mother Nonō. I just want to help."

Nonō-san carefully stepped away from Kabuto and gave him a chilling look. She then tugged me closer and gave me a warm smile. "It's alright, Hideyo-chan, no harm done. But it is my duty to take care of you and every child here, not yours. The money that your father has given us is more than enough, so you really need not bother your guard. Regardless, thank you for your kind intention, I appreciate it."

"Nu-uh, don't thank me. I didn't do anything, Mother, it's all Kabuto-san doing."

Nonō-san inclined her head, though she did not show any sign that she recognized her ward. "Thank you, Kabuto-san."

Kabuto smiled blandly.