[THIRD PERSON POV:]

Guy's worried demeanour shifted into one of a soldier, his body straightened up as an unprecedented glare took over his face.

Hiruzen, still focused on the Jonin, ordered him to visit the Fuma Clan alongside Ichiban. This was done with the thought in mind of showcasing the Leaf's support to the Uchiha at such a trying time. Guy nodded and looked at his two students, both with sporting an expression of shock.

"I'm sorry you two, but we'll have to reconvene later. Head home for now, and I'll send you both a message soon," Guy said with a reliable smile, grabbing Kuroda's shoulder with his left hand and Aoki's with his right. After they both nodded, he left the room, wasting no time before getting to his mission.

"Kuroda, it's best you go home as well. Your mom would be worried." Hiruzen said, turning to the boy who was growing increasingly nervous as his team filtered out the room. Kuroda replied with a short, "Yes Lord Third!" Before bursting through the doors and heading home.

Everyone was worried.

The name, "Shisui the teleporter" was one that would send ripples of recognition throughout anyone from the Leaf who heard it, it was a name synonymous with speed, strength and competence.

The death of such a person could not be overlooked, not by the public, and certainly not by the clans of the village. An attack on one clan might extend to the others, it's poison more than likely to infect other parts of the village.

Aoki was left alone with the Hokage, the latter having no clue as to the rampant and chaotic thoughts rushing through the child's head. Plans, opportunities, worries and fears; all comprised the tumultuous sea of Aoki's thoughts.

The boy knew that waiting around much longer would result in him being ordered to head back home, having to wait for Guy to be free before starting on their missions. Aoki could not afford to waste this time, he had to put his plans in place as soon as he could.

"Gramps..." Aoki said, calling the Third Hokage to his attention. The boy continued, "Can I go to the Uchiha compound? I know that my friends knew Shisui well, they might be sad..." Aoki said, his face formed into one of concerned worry.

Aoki's ability to fool others had rocketed through the roof due to him training and gaining experience on the matter, however, that skill wasn't needed today. The concern and worry displayed on Aoki's face were a reflection of his thoughts, and nothing more. The only thing Aoki hid from Hiruzen was the true extent of his growing emotions.

Hiruzen's gaze softened at hearing Aoki's concern. Above all else, he had placed Aoki within Tomo's home alongside the children to shape his mind into one that would value kindness and bonds with others, him asking to console his friends after a tragedy was a reminder to the Hokage that he had handled Aoki's upbringing wisely.

With a small smile creeping on his face for the first time in a while, he explained to the boy that the clan would be focused on making sure that its members were safe before making any other moves, and that for the foreseeable future, they would be too occupied with repercussions of Shisui's death to handle guests.

"Even though I am the Hokage, I've only been asked to visit tomorrow. The Uchiha will need some time to themselves" said Hiruzen, ending the explanation of why Aoki couldn't go.

Aoki nodded, taking a beat before responding, "So then... can I go tomorrow... with you?" he asked.

The Hokage tried not to show the surprise on his face, but it was difficult to do so with the boy's request. Aoki was being quite stubborn, asking once more after being rejected.

The Hokage thought back to the two Uchiha that Jinbei reported Aoki having encounters with, Byakko, whom he occasionally played with, and Yakumi, whose relationship with Aoki was a lot more complex.

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Byakko had been outshined by Aoki enough times to view him as someone to aspire towards, Yakumi on the other hand saw his defeat as a challenge, Aoki became a reminder of his inability as opposed to a goal to work towards in the future.

By any measure of Aoki's friendship towards them, Hiruzen couldn't understand why the boy would go so far. Until he came across a theory that threatened to widen his smile a little more, one he would keep to himself lest Aoki be embarrassed.

'Has he got a small crush perhaps? He doesn't seem like the romantic type, but who knows?' Thought Hiruzen, thinking of the possibility that Aoki might be acting based on his feelings.

Aoki on the other hand, viewed his request as a hail mary, he believed that even if it were rejected again, he'd find some other way to infiltrate the clan to further his plans.

If he were to know of the Hokage's thoughts, he'd tear a page off from Naruto's book and label the Kage as a "creep". Not once had any thoughts such as those occupied his mind, especially when in reference to the kids. In his mind, they were children he got along with, friends at best, and nothing more.

The Hokage considered the consequences of bringing Aoki along. Although the elders of the Uchiha might consider it disrespectful to bring along an unexpected guest, he felt that Fugaku would view it differently. The clan leaders were aware of Aoki's existence to an extent, the true scope of his abilities were hidden, but the name was one they knew.

Hiruzen had placed many regulations on how the clans were to interact with Aoki, any schemes to manipulate or sway the boy would not be tolerated. With the rules he had enforced, they all knew that the Hokage was invested in the child.

'Brining Aoki could serve to give Fugaku confidence in my allegiance towards helping the clan, now more than ever, the Uchiha need assurance that the village stands by them. Furthermore, Aoki forming bonds with the Uchiha could assist in repairing our relationship with the clan...' thought the Hokage, meticulously predicting how him bringing Aoki along would be perceived.

Hiruzen interlocked his fingers and leaned forward, mulling it over once again before replying, "Alright. Come to my office tomorrow, same time as today. We'll visit the Uchiha together."

Aoki held in his surprise and smiled at Hiruzen.

"Thank you, Gramps!" He said with a small bow.

Hiruzen nodded and excused Aoki, telling him to leave for now. The boy waved goodbye to the Hokage who had stopped hiding the teasing smile he'd developed and left the room soon after.

-----

[AOKI POV:]

'Can't believe that shit worked...' I thought as I walked onto the street.

There was too much to think about now, as one thought began to form, it was interrupted by another one that felt more important. This vicious cycle of my thoughts fracturing and repairing themselves continued until I reached my apartment.

I wriggled the keys into the lock and walked in, ensuring the door was shut before grabbing a pen and paper and sitting down at my dining table.

When my thoughts were this messy, I always found it best to write. Putting my thoughts to paper allowed me to detangle my thinking into a coherent string of sentences that I could then act on. My feelings could be categorised and inspected to a degree not possible within my mind.

I spent the next hour or so drafting plans, concepts, ideas and predictions. Some of them were a certainty, and others were only guesses that I had no way of knowing would occur, yet I wrote them down anyway.

Once that was done, I filtered them down, expunging the useless ones from my records and highlighting the important factors I'd need to consider. By the time I had finished, my mind felt tired. The happenings of the future worried me to no end.

Hungry, I left home and headed to Ichiraku's for the night. I half hoped to meet with Naruto for another talk, last time we didn't manage to communicate much at all. After he finished his ramen, he licked his bowl clean and ran home, without as much as introducing himself to me.

Unfortunately, I dined alone. The delicious food helped soothe my anxious soul however, this shop was quickly becoming one of my favourites in the village.

Heading home under the village's creeping nightlife, I allowed myself to relax. The village at night was more peaceful than I had given it credit for, only when contrasted with my chaotic mind, could the stark difference of the village's calm be observed.

As I reached home and entered my quiet abode, I grabbed the piece of paper I wrote my plans on and revised its contents until the words were etched into my mind.

Once satisfied, I gripped the paper with both hands and willed Chakra to flood my palms. I called on the feeling of burning flames and kindling, transforming the bland template of my Chakra into an ember.

The paper caught fire, I dropped it on the tiled floor of the kitchen and watched it crumble to ashes, the only remaining evidence of its existence stored in the vault of my mind. With a tired sigh, I rolled into bed, silencing the oncoming worries that threatened to wreak havoc on my inner peace.

One final thought passed through my head as I slipped into a restless sleep. A thought that both excited and worried me.

'Tomorrow... everything changes.'