Ch 143

My pulse had climbed into my throat, thudding hard against the back of my jaw. I could feel my hands curling into fists at my sides, not from fear. No, this was something sharper. 

Defensive. 

Coiled like a cornered animal. 

"You said you wanted the truth," I snapped, my voice tight. "So why the hell would you bring a mind-reader into the room unless you don't believe a word I'm saying?" 

Tsunade didn't flinch. She didn't raise her voice, didn't bristle like others might've. Her calm made me feel more exposed than yelling ever could. 

"Inoichi isn't coming to interrogate you." Her tone was steady, even, as if she'd expected this reaction. "He's coming because he's the only one who can confirm if certain memories were tampered with." 

My stomach twisted. "You think I've been manipulated?" 

"I think it's possible." She didn't say it cruelly. It wasn't an accusation, it was a possibility laid bare. 

"We've seen it happen before," she continued. "False memories. Buried triggers. It's not about proving you're lying. It's about making sure no one made you lie. You deserve to know, too." 

I wanted to shove that reasoning aside, to call it a tactic. But a small part of me, the part that still woke screaming from dreams I didn't remember entering, knew she had a point. 

Still, I didn't back down. 

"I don't care how calm he is. No one goes in my head." Tsunade gave a single nod, unshaken. 

"Then we find another way. But let me explain first." Tsunade's gaze didn't waver as she stepped around her desk slowly. 

She didn't approach like a leader asserting control, she moved like someone trying to make something clear without shoving it down my throat. 

She knew she messed up. 

"I've spoken to a lot of people," she began, voice quiet but firm. 

"People who knew you when you were a child. Before everything fell apart. Before Itachi. Before Orochimaru. Everyone had something to say about you. You were kind. You helped when you didn't have to. You'd sit with injured kids in the hospital. Bring food to people without being asked. You were... warm." 

I let out a bitter chuckle, short and dry. "Is that what they remember?" I murmured. 

"Because I remember being afraid all the time. I remember hiding just to feel like I existed less. I remember learning how to lie with a smile because it made adults more comfortable." 

Tsunade didn't argue. Her silence was weighty, but not empty. 

"And now," she continued, "you're associated with people who nearly brought this village to its knees. Orochimaru. Itachi. Akatsuki. Even that masked man you mentioned. You might not have been one of them, but to the outside world, you were close enough. That's dangerous. It makes you vulnerable." 

I understood her point, and that was the worst part. She wasn't wrong. People like me made convenient targets. Easy to use. Easier to blame. 

"I get it," I muttered, arms crossing tightly. 

"But if that was your concern, why not tell me from the beginning? Why make it a surprise?" Tsunade didn't answer immediately, and I didn't give her the chance. 

"Was that the point?" I pressed, voice rising slightly. 

"To corner me? Because if you told me up front, I might not have walked in so easily, is that it?" Her mouth opened slightly, maybe to defend herself, maybe not. I cut in again before she could. 

"But I would've come," I snapped. "I gave my word that I'd return, and I did. I didn't come armed, I didn't bring backup, I didn't hide behind seals or conditions. I showed up in civilian clothes while every single one of you sat in uniform, armed, ready." 

My breath hitched, sharp and hot in my chest. 

"I came to talk. To explain. To try. And you meet me with Ibiki, and now Inoichi? You think that feels like trust?" 

My voice trembled, but not from fear. From sheer, raw frustration. 

"I'm not happy," I forced out. "Hell, I could even say I'm pissed. Because everything I've said, every piece of truth I gave you, what was it worth? Nothing, apparently. Not if you still needed to sneak a Yamanaka in after I opened myself up." 

I turned my head sharply, refusing to let the emotion spill out in full. 

"You want my truth? Then treat it like something real. Not something you can dig apart just because you don't like how it sounds." 

The door creaked open. Inoichi Yamanaka stepped in, calm, composed, face unreadable. But I knew that kind of serious expression. 

He'd heard everything. Every word I'd spat like a defense. Every raw edge I'd exposed. Before he could even speak, I raised a hand sharply. 

"Don't." My voice cut through the air, sharper than I meant, but I didn't pull it back. 

"Stay outside." He paused in the doorway. 

"You can listen," I continued, jaw tight. "Clearly, I don't have much say in that anyway. But I don't want to see you. I don't want to have to look at someone who came here to pry through the pieces of me I've already laid bare." 

For a moment, he didn't move. Then, slowly, Inoichi stepped back, out of view, but the door stayed cracked open. 

Tsunade exhaled, and there was something soft in her eyes. Regret, maybe. She opened her mouth, "Ishi, I-" 

"Don't apologize," I cut in again, eyes narrowing, sharper this time. 

"Words don't fix this. Not now. Actions matter more, and yours just told me everything I needed to know." 

My gaze snapped to Shikaku next. 

"And you," I said, cold and flat. "You're the smartest man in this room. That's what they all say, right? So smart it's scary." 

He didn't flinch, but I saw the change in his posture. A subtle straightening. 

"You knew exactly what you were doing. You made me open up too fast. You pushed the right buttons, said the right things, sat quiet until it was too late to pull back. It was a dirty move." 

My hands were clenched now, heat rising in my throat. 

"I should've known better." 

Then I felt it, too late. The sting in my eyes, the aching pressure behind my temples. The air warped slightly, and my vision turned red. 

Damn it. 

Someone gasped. Chairs scraped. People stood up. 

My eyes had changed. The Sharingan had been activated. 

I looked around quickly, chest rising and falling too fast. No one had drawn weapons, but no one looked at me the same now either. 

"I'm not—" my voice cracked. "I'm not trying to be a threat." 

I turned to Kakashi, desperation bleeding through despite the fury. "You know how it works. You know. It happens when we feel too much. When we're pushed. You've had it longer than I have." 

Kakashi didn't speak. His visible eye flickered, sympathy, guilt, recognition. 

It didn't matter. The damage was done. 

Tears welled. Not many. Just enough to blur the edges of my vision. Just enough to humiliate me. 

This is over. I know it is. I messed it all up. 

Still, I tried to smile. A thin, trembling thing that had no joy in it. 

"Is this what you wanted?" I asked the room. "For me to come in here and tear myself open? For me to cry in front of you? To get so emotional you start watching my hands like I might kill you?" 

I blinked rapidly, forcing the tears back with more will than chakra. 

"You want to know if the little girl you used to know is still in there?" My voice dropped. 

"She's not." I didn't look away. I wanted them to see me this time. 

"She's gone. I've been away from this village almost as long as I ever lived in it. You think I came back whole?" I swallowed hard, the pain rising again, sharper now. 

"I came back because I wanted to believe I could still belong." 

And now? I wasn't so sure.

A/n You thought everything was going well? You guys forget that this village made many mistakes that should've been obvious for the answers. Remember Naruto's upbringing? Anyways, short but quicker chapters win! You'll get a lot more soon. Enjoy~