Naruto: The Unwoven Threads of Fate

"Impossible." He scoffs out, with more anger bleeding into his words. It's still very small, but it's growing. "You're evil. Plain and simple."

"Am I?" I question him. "Am I really? Let me ask you a question. How many people did Orochimaru abduct and experiment on before I went to him? No need to answer, just keep that number in your head. Now, how many has he after I went to him? Considerably less, right? Think about how many lives I've saved simply by existing."

"And how many you have damned simply by leaving Konoha!" He snaps and raises his voice at me. "You've kill hundreds of people and ruined countless more people's lives!"

"I liberated an entire country." I counter him, a smirk in plain sight. Who would have guessed that it would be this that got him to break? "I freed thousands of people from hell. See, I'm a good person."

"I refuse to believe that!" He snarls at me. "You openly admitted to murdering people and enjoying it! That's not actions of a good man!"

"Now that's a very good point." I concede to him with a small nod. "Shall we discuss? I could sight heat of the moment or mob psychology for a few of those, but if I'm being honest none of that ever really applied to me. But let's take a look at those I did murder. Damn near every single one of them were also murderers like me. Or did you forget what a shinobi is?"

"Shinobi are protectors!" He insists.

"We're paid to lie, cheat and steal. I've taken numerous sums of money in exchange for someone's head. We literally have a multiple country wide system that is dedicated to advertising a hit list. On top of all that, I bet you work for T&I. You aren't only paid to lie, cheat, steal and kill. You're paid to torture information out of people."

"I do no such thing." He scoffs out. "I'm not Ibiki."

"Even worse, you're a Yamanaka. Fucking mindwalkers." Oh, wait. Could it be? Nah, there's no way. But what if it is? Can I really pass up this opportunity? "Wait, I understand now! I get why you're so mad about me thinking I'm a good person!"

There's only silence once more. He must have spent the next few moments attempting to compose himself after I pointed out his emotions beginning to bleed through. Too bad I'm about to shatter the last shreds of control he has.

"You simply can't fathom how I think I'm a good person because of the present I gave your daughter!" The sound of a pen being snapped in two echos through my cell. "How is Ino? I'd go ask her myself but… you understand."

"You…" I hear a chair scrape across the ground as he stands up. "Are an evil person. You're enjoying this. You are trapped in Konoha's most secure prison, under seals designed by Jiraiya specifically meant to restrain you should we ever capture you, strapped to a cold wall with chains that sap your chakra, blindfolded to the world around you, and you've endured this for two weeks and not cracked once despite Ibiki working you over! You even critiqued his methods as he was flaying you! Despite all that, despite everything you've endured, you have the sheer gall to attempt to make light of the seal you branded my only child with! And you claim to be a good person!"

"I don't claim to be a good person." I smile broadly at him. I know it unnerves him more even though I can't see him. "I am a good person. There's a very distinct difference."

"Then prove it." He snarls at me, his cool calm demeanor completely abandoned. "Prove to me, hell, to everyone that you're a good person."

"And how do you propose I do that? One hundred hours of community service?" I chuckle softly as I rattle the chains wrapped around my limbs. "Can't really do community service if I'm stuck to a wall."

"Remove the seal from Ino." He demands as he takes an aggressive step forwards. I assume it's aggressive, I can't tell for sure but it was audible. That's basically stomping for shinobi. "Take it off her and you'll prove yourself. It's a start to redemption."

"Remove her seal? After all that work I went to make sure she got it? You do realize that I intended it to be a punishment for her, right?" I heave out a resigned and heavy sigh. "You can't possibly have expected that to work, right?"

"Oh no, I fully intended it to fail." All traces of anger in Inoichi's voice are gone. He's gone back to cool and frigid indifference. "But it's much easier to find thoughts if they're in the forefront of the mind and I don't feel like spending too much time in your head. I hear there's adverse effects."

A warm hand rests on top of my head, pressing down on my scalp firmly.

"Now, let's see the secrets you're keeping locked away in here. I even made a list of things to search for, isn't that nice?"

Alvarcus' Mind

"In hindsight, I really should have expected that. It's the natural progression should physical manipulation fail." In the black void of my mind I step next to Inoichi. How are we walking? How are we standing? Or conversing? I really don't know, we just are. "Welcome to my head. If I would have known I'd have company I would have cleaned up for you."

"So she was right." Inoichi look around and sees nothing at all besides me. "You have a frightful mental fortitude to be able to so easily manifest alongside me. Not only that, your mind is just an expanse. There's no… anything. Not a childhood home, not a training ground, not even a room. Just nothing. How very strange."

"Has anyone ever called you a dick before? Because you are." I sigh as I roll my eyes at him. I've hear this all before. Yadda, yadda, yadda. "You played me to bait your anger so I'd get caught up in the moment. Stupid mental manipulations. I didn't even consider you'd attempt a mindwalk with me. Surely Ino told you about Sureddo? We'll only be here for a few moments."

"Is that what you call the Jiongu?" Inoichi turns to me for the first time. His pale eyes rake over my mental avatar and catalogue it. "Fascinating. I've never walked in a shared mind before, just read about it."

"Huh. I always thought I was a unique case." Speaking of Sureddo, I thought for sure he'd make an appearance by now. I casually look around the expanse of black, almost expecting a garbled mess of threads to suddenly appear. Even though Sureddo has never made an appearance in my mind before.

"You're not special." He scoffs out. "In fact, my clan has specific jutsu used to segregate multiple personalities. I tweaked it a bit and isolated the Jiongu. Ino was very forthcoming with information about your mind before you branded her. I've shut it out, it's just you and me. Your defense is gone, now I'm free to walk as I please without fear."

Holy shit that's possible? The Yamanaka can isolate joined minds? What kind of madness is that? Why didn't Ino learn this? If she was asking about this exact kind of thing surely she would have come across this technique.

Unless it's a forbidden technique. If it was, then there's inherent danger to using this jutsu and Inoichi wouldn't have taught his daughter it. Oh man, is this going to liquify my brain? I hope not, I like my brain the way it is! Or, my Jiongu-brain? Will it liquify that? Gross, I don't want to clean that up! Wait, more pressing issues! I have an intruder in my head that needs to be shown the door.

"Do you really think that I'm just going to let you wander around my head?" I sharply ask him as I take an aggressive step forward. He raises an eyebrow at me. Oh right, our bodies aren't real.

"You have no choice. You can't stop me from calling upon a memory." Inoichi turns away from me and holds both hands out. "Let's start with my daughter. How do I remove it?"

He swings his hands and the inky black void of my mindscape bursts into colors and sounds.

"Oh, that's a terrible choice of words."

The Memory

"Alvarcus." Ino softly moans as I trail kisses down her neck. There's a sweet spot right where the shoulder meets the neck that I pay extra attention to. She can't help but shudder under my touch. As I run my hands up her back she arches into me, trying to deepen our embrace. I gladly comply and wrap one arm around her waist to pull her tighter to me. The heat of our skin, the soft mewls of pleasure she can't stop from escaping, the feeling of her nails lightly digging into my bare back. It's intoxicating.

But I want more.

My other hand rises higher until I feel her smooth skin change to a soft strip of fabric. I grope around blindly as I playfully nip at that sweet spot on her neck.

"Alvarcus!" She breathily exclaims right into my ear as her nails dig just a little more into my back. One of her legs wraps around mine to pull us even closer together. It's exhilarating, knowing I can get her like this with so little. Imagine what else I can do.

God, I love being in control.

But there's one pesky thing stopping me from my goal and I won't let it win. With a tender parting kiss, I pull back from her sweet spot and whisper into her ear as I playfully tug on her bra strap.

"How do I remove it?"

"The clasp is in the front."

Alvarcus' Mindscape

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!" Inoichi roars at me as he abruptly pulls out of the memory. He grabs a fistful of my shirt and glares at me with hatred. "EXPLAIN! WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY DAUGHTER!"

"Absolutely nothing." I smirk as his grip tightens on my shirt. I've got him caught off-guard, he's acting like this is the real world. Good. "It's really such a shame that the Jiongu ruins any chance of genjutsu. I would have made a terrifying genjutsu specialist."

"What does that have to do with you… you… with that!" He shouts into my face. I'm even sprayed with some spittle as he yells from less than an arm length away.

"I have such a creative mind and I'm a stickler for detail. Did you notice that the patterns of lace on her panties matched the ones on her bra? Spider web themed. I've really got to give credit to the Weavers, they do such good work that their talents invade my fantasies."

"Fantasies?" Inoichi stares gobsmacked at me and his fist loosens. He takes a hesitant step backwards and a deep breath. "That was just a fantasy? You have fantasies of my daughter?"

"Of course, have you seen her? I know you're her father, but even you can't deny she's hot." I snicker at my torturer. Oh, how the tables have turned. "You said how do I remove it. I couldn't help but draw up that memory of my fantasy of a hot and heavy make out session with your daughter that ended with us fu-"

"Stop!" Inoichi shouts out to get me to cease my train of thought. "Just… stop."

"Well alright." I shrug. "It's not my fault that you caused me to remember that instead of what you wanted. Any good psychiatrist would attempt to analyze why there were no masks on my back in the fantasy. Is it suppressed anger at the Jiongu for deforming me so much? Or maybe I'm subconsciously rejecting my Father so deeply that I push away everything he's given me? Perhaps I have lingering PTSD from when I got it, could that be it? Nah, I think it's because I like the scratches she leaves on my back as I make her scream in ecstacy."

"Will you stop!" Inoichi growls at me. "I'm here for a reason, and it's not to relive your fantasies of my daughter."

"I guarantee they're way more entertaining than what you're looking for." I cheekily promise him. "There's always a happy ending. Usually many. Limitless stamina really comes in handy."

"Did you know that I can make your brain leak out of your ears?" Inoichi asks with a glare.

"Alvarcus one, Inoichi zero." I laugh, deeply and heartily. "Go ahead, call up another memory. I can't wait to see how this plays out."

He pauses for five seconds before speaking out to the expanse of my mind.

"How do I free Ino?" He calls out.

"Pfft!" I double over laughing. "You're terrible at this!"

The Memory

"Oh no." I frantically toss a pair of pants across my room. I'm not even sure whose pants they were, but they didn't have what I'm looking for.

"What do you mean, oh no?" Ino asks from the bed. I can hear the sharpness to her words.

"It's nothing!" I hurriedly blurt out as I quickly stand up and make my way over to my dresser. I yank open a drawer and search its contents. "It's not here."

"What's not here?" The sharpness is even less veiled this time. Oh boy, I'm about to get it. And not in the fun way.

"Nothing to worry about!" I basically sprint over to my nightstand. "Oh come on they're not here either!"

"Alvarcus Mar what is going on!" Ino snarls at me. I bet she would be throttling my neck if she could but fortunately- and unfortunately - she's still handcuffed to the bed.

"How do I free Ino if I don't have the keys!"

"You're a shinobi!" She shouts at me. "They taught us how to pick locks in the Academy!"

"Oh, right." I sheepishly make my way back to her. "My bad."

Alvarcus' Mindscape

"AGAIN?" Inoichi shouts out to the void of my mind.

"Yes, yes, do it again!" I wheeze out between laughs. "Alvarcus two, Inoichi zero! Can he go three - wheeze - for three?"

"How do I remove the seal that's stopping Ino from talking!" Inoichi asks once more.

"BWAHAHAHA!"

The Memory

"Sorry!" I wince in sympathy for Ino. She's glaring at me with her arms crossed. "I'm sorry. You didn't mind when I was pulling your hair a few minutes ago-"

SLAP

"Right, I deserved that one." I don't bother rubbing my reddening cheek, I barely registered it. Besides, it wasn't meant to cause pain. She just doesn't have another way of communicating. "Wait, here we go!"

I fiddle with the strap on the back of her head and the entire contraption goes slack.

"That's how you remove a ball gag!"

Alvarcus' Mindscape

"Three for three! Oh you should see your face!" I don't remain standing, I crumble to the ground in laughter.

"You are insufferable." Inoichi growls out as he crosses his arms.

"But I'm good at it! Look, I even got the arm crossing right! Like father like daughter!" I point at Inoichi who is crossing his arms exactly how Ino did in my fantasy. "Can't say I don't pay attention to your daughter now!"

"Let's see you worm your way out of this one!" Inoichi turns to the void once more. "Show me a memory of Alvarcus figuring out how to undo the seal he placed on Ino!"

"Being specific won't help you! It'll only make it worse!"

The Memory

"Should you really be splitting your attention like this?" Ino asks from her reclined position. She's laying down on a bed and her head is resting in my lap. Her sparkling blue eyes stare up into mine as I slowly play with her long hair. "I know you like playing with my hair, but aren't you supposed to be focused on the seal?"

"Sush, let him work." I softly say as I run my hands through the blonde strands. "He needs silence. I'm supposed to get you to relax. As much as you say you only let me play with your hair because I enjoy it, I also know you really like it too. I'd give you a full body massage but that would get in his way of working on the seal. So relax, let me play with your hair, and let him get this seal off of you."

"I really do need that silence though." I chime in, interrupting the conversation between myself and Ino. I'm straddling Ino's thighs so I can stare down at the seal that spans across her stomach. I delicately trace the intricate lines with a finger, leaving goosebumps behind. "I'm trying to undo a very difficult seal here and I really don't need to be reminded that I'm missing out on playing with your hair."

"Sucks to be you!" While playing with Ino's hair I stick my tongue out at me. Ino giggles at my childish actions and then gasps as I place a cold brush loaded with ink on her stomach.

"You are me, idiot." I scoff out as I begin designing a counter seal to safely remove the one on Ino's stomach.