Hakumei'' by Pryotra.A NarutoFor Want of a Nail that takes the What If? of Danzo'sbastardrytaken to its logical extreme. Danzo kills the Sandaime and in the following Reign of Terror takes over the village. Unfortunately, he didn't count on six neglected children seeing him. As the kids escape with secrets given by the dying Hokage, aided and abetted by one of the ANBU, they pick up other lost children... and a force that will be the twilight of its enemies is born.There are a lot of Danzo-as-Hokage fics out there. There are a lot of Naruto-forced-out-of-Konoha fics out there. This one takes both ideas and runs. The divergence happens before the main Naruto story begins.What really gets you into it is the character development. Pryotra starts off the kids realistically, and they are still the same people— but with a few twists, they are given very different lives. Their life on the run is harsh, a fact some fics forget to mention in such a situation. Drawing a few favourites from outside Konoha into the group and avoiding a straight Stations of the Canon approach keeps things fresh. In fact, as one troper reccomending the fic said, things are much crazier, heartwarming, yet more intriguing and harshat different scenes.
All the Other Reindeer: Naruto and Sakura when they were in Konoha, Gaara when he was still in Suna, Rock Lee for being unable to mold chakra and Tenten later on for being a foreign-born Konoha nin. As a result, Ten-Ten is trying desperately to fit in.
Badass Longcoat: In Part Two, the Hakumei uniform includes a white sleeveless coat with blue flames on the bottom, modeled on (but not identical to) the one worn by the Yondaime Hokage.
Battle Strip: Kimimaro. Apparently removing bones through a shirt is awkward...
Big Brother Instinct: Kimimaro is the oldest member of Hakumei, and he would do anything for them. Itachi feels this way about Sasuke... it's just that he couldn't find him for a few years. Neji lampshades his by calling Hinata "Imouto" (Little Sister).
Hinata and Temari subtly develop this towards their own siblings.
Cain and Abel: Expected for Uchiha brothers, averted for Itachi and Sasuke. Their father is somewhat disturbed that Itachi didn't try to kill his younger brother at birth. Dysfunction Junction, much?
Also averted for the Hyuuga sisters and their cousin.
Cast Speciation: Hinata's Tenshi Byakugan serves to give her a different powerset than Neji's, rather than the canonical situation where their abilities are basically the same but he's better at using them. Also, the three medics- aside from all having completely different fighting styles- end up with different medical specialties; for example, Haku focuses on medical herbs rather than using chakra to heal.
Cloud Cuckoolander/Cute and Psycho: Gaara comes across as vaguely psychotic (in the medical sense) to the others but this is only because they didn't know immediately that the monster in his head is real.
Darkest Hour: None of the kids are even sure they'll survive their first winter. But that's when they meet Tsunade...
Deadly Doctor: Haku is turning into this. His medical abilties rely on herbs and chemicals; he also uses drugs and poisons in battle. Hinata may be another example, since her fighting style seems to involve poison; curiously, Sakura isn't. She's deadly, and she's a healer, but so far there doesn't seem to be an overlap.
Designated Girl Fight: Sakura vs Yumi. Yumi wins but only because Sakura's undercover and can't use her more powerful, flashy techniques. Hinata vs Matsuri could count, except it wasn't a fight.
Discard and Draw: After Hinata awakens the Tenshi Byakugan, she is no longer able to use normal Byakugan.
Downer Ending: To the Invasion arc. The Kinen/Hakumei rebellion might have been able to defeat Danzou and his allies had things gone according to plan... but the addition of the Sand/Sound Invasion on the same day turned the whole thing into a Mêlée à Trois, and the extra enemies combined with some mistaken assumptions about Danzou's own plans mean that the best the heroes can do is retreat before they're wiped out.
Drowning My Sorrows: After the 3rd Hokage's death, Gekkou Hayate tells Iruka that Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Hinata and Neji are all missing, presumed "kidnapped by the Rock nin that assassinated the Sandaime." He then silently changes his plans for the evening to "get black-out drunk."
Harmful to Minors: Putting aside the murder of the Third Hokage, its effect on the protagonists and their various familial troubles, Itachi once took his mother's place in assisting medic-nin in battle since she was pregnant with Sasuke at the time. Itachi was five. He still has nightmares from the experience.
He Knows Too Much: The reason why the kids had to leave Konoha in the first place. Later on, Hakumei considers killing Shino when they realize he has put two and two together.
I Know You Know I Know: Since Hakumei is undercover during the Chuunin exams, there's a lot of this going on.
Ill Boy: Kimimaro has mostly recovered from his illness, thanks to Tsunade, but it still saps his endurance.
Improbable Age: Naruto and co. successfully escape a very large village with very important information, collect three other strangers, two of which are three years older than they are and live on their own for at least a year, all at the tender ages of six or seven. Then again, Tsunade herself notes that the kids have various amounts of ailments when she finds them and well, ninja.
In Spite of a Nail: Not too many things, but Gaara gets the same nickname as in canon, and Itachi still becomes a missing ninja despite the changes that have occurred by then.
Tsunade: My, what pretty little...(recognizes Naruto's whiskers, Gaara's eye rings, Hinata & Neji's eyes, Sakura's pink hair)...chil...dren...(flops into her seat) I NEED A DRINK. NOW. Shizune: I knew that you wouldn't want to drink in front of the children, so I've made some lemonade!
It's Personal: Sasuke always disliked Yumi, but when she nearly kills Sakura in the Chuunin Exams he declares a blood feud against her clan. Which is also his clan.
Jerkass: Yumi, Gato and Sora. Surprisingly, the Sound nin actually behave themselves outside of battle.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Zabuza would rather be fighting... but given the chance to honestly help, he can be talked/ guilted into it. Also, Kiba.
Kick the Dog: Sora during his match against Dosu. Yumi, whenever she talks.
Lady Macbeth: The author notes that it is rare for a Naruto fanfic to have an evil Mikoto Uchiha in it.
Let's Fight Like Gentlemen: It was highly probable that members of Hakumei would fight one another in the Chuunin Exams, but for their fight, Naruto and Haku set their own victory conditions—Taijutsu only, with a five minute time limit; whoever does the worst forfeits.
Living Emotional Crutch: Naruto, Sasuke and Hinata are this to Iruka, Itachi and Hiashi respectively, since the former's absence brings about drastic changes in the latter's lives i.e. Iruka becomes bitter and jaded, Itachi falls out of favor with his family and Hiashi pretty much gives up on the world.
Mama Bear: Tsunami standing up to the goons that Gato sent after her and Inari.
The Medic: Sakura, Hinata, and Haku fill this role for Hakumei.
Mêlée à Trois: The Kinen/Hakumei rebellion? It's on the same day as the Sound/Sand Invasion. Cue a three-way battle between the rebels, the invaders, and Danzo's forces. Things get messy fast. And because no one was planning for this, no one wins. All three sides take losses, but Hakumei and the exposed members of La Résistance have to cut and run, leaving Danzou still in power.
My Master, Right or Wrong: The Inuzuka clan is loyal to Danzo simply because he's the Hokage. They're pretty decent people- they just don't question orders that seem to come from a legitimate authority.
Names to Run Away From Really Fast: Tsunade gives the kids some very badass nicknames, partly in the hopes they'll grow into them, partly to give them a treat, and largely to keep from using their surnames, some of which are... conspicuous. Here are the characters' new full names as translated by the author:
Oh Crap: The kids when, after escaping Danzo, Itachi finds them escaping Konoha in a merchant's cart. He gives a scroll to Sasuke and sends them on their way.
Official Couple: Naruto and Hinata, Sasuke and Sakura. It's announced in the intro to the first chapter. In-story, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura remain oblivious.
Older than They Look: Uchiha Yumi manages to fool everyone about her actual age, although most people think something is off about her.
One-Man Army: Naruto and Gaara, for obvious reason. When Gaara sends a distress signal at the Hokage monument, it's a major Oh Crap moment.
Parents as People: As it turns out, the reason why Hiashi disowned both Hinata and Neji is that Hinata is too gentle for the village elders to ever allow her to be clan leader and she would need protection, something that Neji could provide. Why he decided this when they were 6 and 7 years old is anyone's guess but for once, he wasn't motivated by spite.
Primal Scene: One night, Gaara goes looking for something do with his insomnia-induced boredom and finds Jiraiya's library. Hilarity and mentally scarring imagery ensues.
Run or Die: At the beginning of the story, the children are faced with these options after seeing the Hokage's death.
Sadistic Choice: Yumi imposes one on Sasuke when she brings his mother into the street to convince him to stay in Konoha. It stalls him, right up until Hiashi shows up.
Secret Identity: In Part Two, although with the twist that the kids use part of their real names when masked, and use false names and backgrounds while unmasked.
The Stations of the Canon: Granted, the events of the stations happen much differently, but the Wave and Chunin exam arcs take up almost the entirety of part 2. Of course, because those events were much different, it would have to be pretty damn hard to follow the stations coming next, so ultimately averted.
True Companions: The group that gives the fic its name. Tsunade calls them the "Mudpuppies" when she's not calling them "Hakumei."
The Legendary Sannin used to be this. One of the first things Tsunade does once she takes the kids in is tell them the history of her "family" and warn them not to make the same mistakes.
Zabuza muses the hakumei's bond with each other is similar to the bond the seven swordsman once had.
Tyrant Takes The Helm: Danzo. After six years of his rule, Konoha is practically unrecognizable.
Well Done Son Guy: Sasuke's case of this leads eventually to enough frustration he runs away. Returning as a member of Hakumei gives him an outsider's perspective that makes him wonder why he wanted the parental approval in the first place.
'' by Pryotra
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