Questionable Loyalty

CHAPTER 48





Kakashi began to spend more and more time in Nagato’s lair, even when the other man had his alternate body working down in the office. The Jounin was amazed at his ability to multitask – especially when after small hesitation, his lover had brought him to see the other five bodies left in suspended animation in an adjacent hall. He had walked around each bed and had observed and examined all of them, and while he had been a little creeped out initially, he had gotten used to the idea pretty quickly. How could he not, when he talked to a single individual but his responses came from two people and two different directions. In Kakashi’s humble opinion, the effect was a little schizophrenic, but in the end he stopped paying attention to such unimportant details, just as the additional bodies stopped bothering him. He asked, of course, why all had different types of piercings and Nagato had responded, through his friend’s mouth:



“Because they all have different abilities.” He approached one of the bodies – that of a young man with a long, luxurious pony-tail and a massive and painful looking piercing through his nose. “To be more precise, I exercise different abilities of my own through them.” He reached and gently petted the young man’s hair. “This one here is a summoner.”



Kakashi watched the display with curiosity, then asked:



“So their original abilities are not preserved after you take over?”



Nagato shook his head, the delicate piercings through his own nose flashing in the pale light in the room.



“No. Whatever abilities these people had while they were alive are lost when I take control of the body. It is because while their original chakra canals are preserved, their chakra is gone.”

Kakashi frowned.



“I had assumed that you did something similar to Orochimaru.”



The red-head glared thunderously at him:



“I have nothing to do with that creep, Kakashi. I am not a thief, I don’t force people out of their bodies to steal their abilities. These people, including my friend Yahiko, were already dead when I took over their husks.” He seemed genuinely offended to be compared to Orochimaru and Kakashi looked down guiltily at his feet.



“I am sorry, love. I didn’t mean to offend you.”



Nagato reached and caressed his cheek:



“It’s okay. I am sorry I snapped at you. It’s not your fault.” He sighed “What Orochimaru does to people is akin to rape, to me at least, only it’s permanent. I could never make myself do that to another human being, not for my own benefit.”



Kakashi nodded.



“I understand.” He looked around again. “It just occurred to me – can you permanently move to one of the dead bodies? Or you need to stay in your original body so you can animate them?”



Nagato looked at the slumbering shells thoughtfully.



“I can leave my original body completely, yes, and move to another one, but that would mean losing all of my abilities. Because these bodies died once, unlike Orochimaru, I cannot manipulate them on a genetic level to preserve my own original abilities when I begin to inhabit them. If I do move to one of them, I’d lose all of my powers and would have to do with whatever they had when they were alive. These all were very powerful individuals, but…”



“No where near as powerful as you?” Kakashi added and Nagato nodded.



“Yes. No where near as powerful as me. I do want to have a normal body, Kakashi. I want to walk and feel the sun on my face and the wind in my hair… and I want to eat tempura and ramen and all the things my stomach cannot handle now.” He flushed at that admission but Kakashi felt a twinge of sympathy at the thought of his lover’s emaciated body. “I want to make love to you.” Nagato finished in the end. He approached another of the bodies – that of a heavy-set man - and continued “But I cannot indulge my own needs when I have the responsibility to lead this world into a better age. What I want, what I need, these things aren’t important.”



Kakashi approached him and hugged him from behind, laying his head on his shoulder and feeling the soft ginger hair tickle his cheek.



“Promise me something?”



“What?”



“If one day that crazy plan of yours does work and things change… and you finally decide to move permanently to another body, please don’t to it to potato head over there.”



Nagato turned to look at the man in question. His lips twitched in a smile.



“Why?”



“Because, while I am a very open-minded man and I don’t care much about the way you look, I still wouldn’t have sex with potato head.”



Nagato burst into giggles then, the first time Kakashi had ever heard him laugh out loud. He continued and soon his laughter got a slightly hysterical edge and finally morphed in a soft sob. Kakashi’s arms tightened around him.



“I promise you, Kakashi.” Nagato said solemnly.



Kakashi nodded and kissed the back of his neck.



“There was one other thing I wanted to talk to you about.”



“Oh?”



Kakashi gently turned him around to look at him in the eye.



“About your plan.”



The red-head looked at him suspiciously.



“What about it?”



The Jounin took him by the hand and led him to the end of the room and made him sit down on a narrow bench by the wall, then sat down next to him.



“I wanted to ask you if you have considered what would happen if you attack a civilian location with the weapon you talked about.” He began carefully.



“Kakashi, I believe we talked about that. I told you…”



“Yes, yes, it’d frighten everyone into submission. But have you thought about another scenario?”



“What other scenario can there be in the face of such an overwhelming threat?” Nagato asked with annoyance.



“Union. The Villages would see you as a common enemy and unite against you. Do you think that Amegakure could stand the combined attack of all Five Great Villages, along with a coalition of the satellite nations? Can even your power, combined with that of the weapon, withstand such a force?”



Nagato frowned and bit his lip.



“No.” He crossed his hands on his chest. “But what makes you think they’d unite and attack?”



Kakashi reached and took one of Nagato’s hands in his, rubbing small circles on his palm.



“Love, you told me you never had formal training.”



Nagato nodded impatiently.



“Your teacher, whoever he was…”



“Jiraiya.” Nagato blurted out.



“Uh… what?”



“My teacher was Jiraiya. You should know who that is.”



Kakashi blinked like an owl in broad daylight for a few seconds, then shrugged – this was yet another surprise in a long string of such connected to his lover, he had learned to take them in a stride. Still, he couldn’t help but ask:



“How on earth did you end up with him as a teacher?”



Nagato looked down.



“We begged him and his team for food. He took us under his wing for a few years.”



Kakashi nodded. That sounded like the sappy old coot.



“I understand. Either way, if he was your teacher, did he ever talk to you about the values instilled in every person born in a Hidden Village?”



“What does that have to do…”



“Tell me.”



“Not extensively. He didn’t have much time, he focused on training us to fight… training me to use my Rin’negan.”



“Nagato, every child born in a Hidden Village is taught one most important thing – protect your loved ones, and consequently your village. That is why Missing Nins are so rare and usually so viciously persecuted – if people were allowed freely to leave and possibly join other Villages, those who remain would have their loyalties split. But when the whole family, the whole clan stays in the Village, the loyalty to the Clan equals loyalty to the village. That sense of belonging is branded into each and every person ever trained formally as a Ninja. If you use the weapon to attack civilian population, and consequently, the families and clans of the people who fight for their village, they’d do everything in their power to find the threat and eliminate it.”



There was a long, suffocating silence while Nagato thought about what Kakashi had said.



“Even if we assume that you are right, what makes you think that the Villages would all unite against Ame and Akatsuki? In their entire history they have squabbled among themselves over greed and petty disputes.”



“Because in their entire history they haven’t been faced with a threat as big as this. And big threats make petty disputes seem... well, petty. And inconsequential.”



That made sense. It made a lot of sense and Nagato didn’t like that.



“I hadn’t thought about that.” He admitted quietly. Suddenly he got up and began to pace furiously. “Why haven’t I thought about this? I am such a fool!” he rubbed his face with his hands.



Kakashi got up as well and reached to grab his hands, holding them in his own and squeezing to make his lover listen to him.



“You haven’t thought about it because you don’t know the inner workings of a Ninja Village and that is not your fault. It doesn’t mean the plan can’t work.”



“What do you mean?” Nagato’s expression was anxious. Kakashi reached and took his face in his hands gently.



“You can still attack a large military base. All Great Villages have such, and I am sure you know the locations of most of them. Cripple their military power and send a clear message – frighten them, but don’t back them against the wall, because that would only make them desperate and unpredictable – the cornered beast is the most dangerous one.”



Nagato nodded slowly.



“I need to think about this.”



Kakashi kissed him.



“It’s all I ask – consider the possibilities and chose the most optimal way. I trust you to make the right choice, but whatever your choice is, I will support it.”