Ā ā Ā Ā Sasuke wasnāt entirely sure heād call what happened to Konoha a tragedy, but many people still speculated over the Uchihaās questionable loyalty even after his time spent imprisoned, his cooperation, and duties to the village. The man wasnāt there at the time of itās happening but heād heard about it numerous times from various people. Heād been questioned over it several times by Ibiki just to be sure he was telling the truth when he said he knew nothing about it and quite frankly didnāt care about Akatsukiās motives. They were a stepping stone, not an end game for him.
The truth was, his loyalty was to Naruto and - to a lesser degree - a few otherās. As he continued to slowly climb out of that darkness and relearn what it was like to be human his general care for the wellbeing of others once again surfaced. Heād never have the wealthy heart that some people had but he no longer wished the whole of a village to suffer. Even if the blissful ignorance crawled under his skin.
Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā āNot his jurisdiction,ā was the reply. Although Sasuke was certain that if Naruto was allowed to overlook the entirety of the country, he would. What would that be like? A Daimyo that wasnāt completely useless. āBut weāve been contracted to deal with it anyway, so youāll be seeing him either way.ā
Yahikoās stare didnāt go unnoticed, but the Uchiha said nothing. Rather, he pulled out a kunai and walked up to the other man, crouched down, and cut the rope. In the distance he could already hear shouting over his actions before the other shinobi tried to assure them all was well. Accusations that they were working together; that theyād betray the village and in turn the country all over again. None which seemed to disturb the man.
Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Sasuke brushed off the apology stating it wasnāt necessary and offered a hand for him to get to his feet. āThey donāt,ā a notable statement. Not we, not I, but they.
The ropes fell away and Yahiko rubbed the reddened bands they had left around his wrists.
āIt sounds like these people donāt trust you much either,ā he observed, taking Sasukeās hand and rising to his feet. He didnāt know much about the Uchiha, but he had heard the rumors, and Konan had filled him in on what she had learned through Akatsuki. The boyās brother had been employed by them, Yahiko had heard, but that was the extent of his information. Itachi, from Konanās report, had been notably reticent, too, even among a group of asocial rogue ninja.
āI guess it will always be hard for civilians to trust shinobi,ā Yahiko added, dusting the dried leaves and dirt from his robes - simple and grey, with its characteristic high collar, but lacking the blood-stained clouds that had terrorized the world over the last decade. āThe rural parts of my country are no different. Death follows us everywhere we go.ā
He glanced toward the crowd, now restrained - but not entirely placated - by the Konoha shinobi.
āSpeaking of which, will your team be investigating that girlās death, too?ā He gestured with his thumb toward the house, with the cloud of flies buzzing around its door. āIāll do what I can to help, even if I havenāt earned your trust yet. I donāt want the Land of Fire thinking that those of the Rain just go around stirring up trouble.ā