Archive of Our Own

[world building and plotting]

ok so once I eliminate the clan heirs from the pool of potential canon anbu recruits I'm left with Kiba— who is a clan head's child but has older siblings, tenten—who isn't from a big clan, Lee— who is apparently from a clan but no other members are mentioned, and Neji— who is hyuga branch born.

Kiba doesn't have the temperament for Anbu so he's out. Gai was always against Kakashi being in Anbu and tried to get him out so he probably wouldn't really want his students going Anbu. Therefor Lee would never agree to join up and would probably have it marked in his file that he does not want to go Anbu so he wouldn't get asked. I'm going to have Neji give a soft no, more of a maybe later, since he currently wants to get his head on straight after Naruto knocked it sideways. Tenten is going to accept but keep this secret from her team.

Anbu rules

• You are allowed to reveal your Anbu status to people in your close inner circle only.

• If an Anbu has revealed their identity to you, you may not tell anyone else or speak of it to anyone except the anbu themself and those the anbu has told you knows.

• No Anbu member is allowed to reveal the identity of another Anbu member or those in the know.

• You are required to deal with any identity leaks yourself. (so yes you can tell your close friends and family but if they tell anyone on purpose or otherwise you have to kill them and or the ppl they told)

• Anbu agents are not required to reveal their identities to anyone but their Hokage and the anbu head.

• You are to keep your mask/code name even more secret than your Anbu identity. (like you can tell a close friend you’re anbu but only shinobi can know your mask/name. And then they have to be someone like a teammate, SO, immediate family member, etc)

• The Hokage, the council members, anyone who is a high ranking member of a village organization like the jounin commander or head of T&I are ineligible for Anbu exempting the Anbu Head.

While not an official rule it isn’t a typical practice for clan heirs to be Anbu. It’s a “too many eggs in one basket” situation with clan heads and too dangerous a position for a valuable clan heir.

Anbu are generally encouraged to tell at least one person if they have someone they trust enough.

(A note regarding Kakashi’s obvious Anbuness: Somewhere in every anbu base is a poster. On this poster is a picture of Kakashi in his Anbu dress, mask in place and everything, next to a picture of a generic background Anbu. Below Kakashi is a giant red DON’T with a big green DO below generic Anbu.)

By these rules there are exactly two people in the world who know the identities of all of the Anbu agents— the Hokage and the head of Anbu.

Also by these rules… it’s possible for Gai to know that Tenten has been recruited but can’t mention it since she hasn’t said anything.

subsequentially , Neji definitely knows that Tenten is Anbu. They both took a while to come to a decision when asked. Tenten came to a decision first and already had her mask when Neji came to deliver his soft no and happened to be there. She happened to be there when Neji gave his soft no.

Neji is an Anbu confidant for two people. Tenten and Hinata.

Despite technically being a clan heir pretty much everyone expects Hanibi to be named heir over her. Therefor, Anbu Head considered her fair game. She developed an incredible chakra string technique (detailed somewhere in the Naruto Fics doc) and Anbu Head deemed it worth the risks to try and recruit her. He knew her saying yes was a long shot. No one was more surprised than her when she did.

Sakura: Leopard

Hinata: Spider

Tenten: Lemur

Sakura has a seal on her uniform that, when activated, disguises her appearance much like Tsunade’s near perma transformation. But instead of looking young she has dark brown hair instead of pink and no symbol on her forehead. Clan heirs like Ino are not Anbu b/c they can’t afford to be. Tenten, however, is fair game. She’s Anbu Lemur. She hasn’t told Gai.

Sakura and Ino go to the bathhouse post Sakura becoming anbu. Ino spots the anbu tattoo. Due to her parentage she knows exactly what it is and how to tell that it’s real. To her credit she barely breaks stride, just a slight break in her voice. And after when they’re about to separate and go home, if she hugs Sakura extra tight that day… neither will mention it.

Sakura has been an Anbu for almost two years when Naruto comes back. In this he’s gone for 3 years. she is technically Anbu all through out the war even though Anbu missions are few and far between considering the circumstances.

After the war she starts to burn herself out and Tsunade (who remains Hokage in this AU) confronts her. Sakura pushes back hard and storms off. Kakashi goes to talk to her.

After hearing about how he regrets not being able to make the choice to leave Anbu after the massacre despite realizing he likely wouldn’t have given it up until it killed him Sakura asks for some time to think. Tsunade gives her a vacation. After a month or two of reflection Sakura asks to be relieved of her Anbu duties. This pretty much means that she is now ex—Anbu with the potential for emergency reinstatement. Like an honorable discharge except if shit gets real the gov can call her up and be like “hey.”

Outside of other Anbu, Sakura only tells Kakashi that she’s Anbu. Her own parents don’t know. She doesn’t want to tell the boys for lots of complicated personal reasons. Part of it is that this part of her life is pretty much the only part of her that is completely separate from them. Becoming Anbu wasn’t to support Naruto, find Sasuke, or catch up to her teammates. It was for her . Being asked to be Anbu was an acknowledgment of her skill and worth to the village. The actual act of being Anbu felt like something clicking into place.

Gai totally knows about Tenten and Tenten totally knows Gai knows. Eventually she decides to officially clue him in via a conversation where she reassures him that she has no intention of making a career out of Anbu and in fact has plans to retire from it in a year or two, baring any unforeseen circumstances. Tenten officially quits Anbu after the war. (Neji lives because fuck that. He retires and becomes a happy house husband)

[actual writing]

The Anbu head— whose name you are not allowed to know thank you very much— has a problem. This is not new. He often has problems. It’s just a matter of working through them. Or taking the hit.

He doesn’t want to take the hit on this one. Taking the hit on this one means he either loses out on some very nice talent or he doesn’t lose out on the very nice talent but does lose the very nice talent and becomes a dead man walking as several powerful ninja in high places come for his head.

The Anbu head’s current problem is that he has a recruitment file in front of him for a very talented young ninja. She has everything she needs to become an Anbu legend. (which is an oxymoron but exists none the less)

But there are two very nasty complications.

Her teachers.

Anbu is, without a doubt, a very dangerous position. Normally this isn’t much of a problem when screening new recruits— danger is a part of a ninja’s life and many are willing to take that risk either out of loyalty to their village or for the pride and “glory” of being one of the elite— even if technically no one is supposed to know you are.

Recruits know what they’re getting into when they get into it. They sign several waiver forms indicating this.

But if Haruno Sakura dies because he recruited her Hatake Kakashi and Senju Tsunade are going to take turns killing him. He’s 90% sure Tsunade is capable of that.

And then there’s her teammates. Uzumaki will undoubtedly come screaming back home to put a fist through his chest. And the Uchiha? He’s seen his kind before. The Uchiha is trying to distance himself to prevent the kind of pain that comes with a broken bond— too young to realize it’s too late. As much as the boy has tried to distance himself if he hears of her death and finds someone responsible he’s going to be right behind Uzumaki— desertion or no desertion.

Those aren’t safe odds to test.

Anbu have never been about safe. And he’s the Head of Anbu.

So now the problem is how does he go about it in the first place. Normally he would go to his Hokage and start the lengthy and quiet process of recruitment. But if he starts there he’ll likely be thrown out the tower window at speeds fast enough that he’ll be dead before he hits the ground.

No, better to approach Haruno first. And if the Hokage questions him for “going behind her back” well, what would be the point of going thorough all of this if Haruno isn’t interested?

He contemplates how, exactly, to bring this up to Haruno for the best results but decides, in the end, that playing it straight is his best bet. She’s a medic and the student of Hatake Kakashi and Senju Tsunade besides. She can probably smell bullshit from a greater distance than a blood hound.

He waits until Hatake is out on a mission that will take at least two months and the Hokage is preoccupied with political affairs before he wiggles his way into her schedule. Normally he’d send a senior member to brief her but there’s no reason to involve more people than necessary and invite the inevitable gossip (ninjas are some of the most gossipy people on the planet and Anbu are twice as bad). He follows her into an empty room while she’s taking a breather at the hospital, gratified for the way she immediately looks to him when she closes the door behind her.

“Can I help you, Anbu—san?” she says sweetly, leaning against the only exit to the room.

“What is your opinion on Anbu?” Sakura raises an eyebrow.

“They’re an important function of the village and should be respected even if their members require secrecy to operate,” she says but her eyes sharpen. “What is your opinion on becoming an Anbu?”

She says yes. He recognizes the look in her eyes. She has something to prove.

Tsunade looks up. She sees Sakura and the Head of Anbu beside her and goes ridged. “No. Absolutely not.”

“We need her.”

“You don’t.”

“Shinsou—”

“Don’t you Shinsou me I am not okaying this—” They let her rant for a while, politely ignoring the way she has to fist her hands on her desk to keep them from shaking.

“Lady fifth—” Mr. Anbu Head says after a while. Immediately burning brown eyes fix on him “And you,” Tsunade hisses. He counts himself lucky that for all her talents Lady Senju can’t bring the poison in her words into reality. He would be very dead by now. “—Don’t think I missed your little protocol break. Bringing a candidate before the Hokage does not mean bringing the actual candidate.”

“Wouldn’t be much point in going through the trouble if she’s not interested.”

“And if he came to you first you’d kill him and I’d never have found out I was up for recruitment.” Sakura adds. Tsunade points at her and growls “Because you are not up for recruitment.”

Three hours, two bookshelves, the desk, a table, and four broken windows later they manage to talk Tsunade around.

“Fine!” she snaps, “on one condition.” Sakura raises her chin spine straightening further. “You will take the test. But if you lose so much as a single point you fail and if either of you bring this up again I’ll throw you so far you’ll be sending postcards from Iron country.”

With that she kicks them out of her office. Sakura deflates the moment the door closes behind them.

“Well that could have gone worse.” An understatement, if there ever was one.

Tsunade proctors the test herself, gritting her teeth so hard it’s a wonder she isn’t left with a mouth full of dust and gums. He has never heard a person sound so furious to be handing out a perfect score.

Anbu Leopard accepts her mask with a solem grace one month and two weeks before Hatake is due back.

Two weeks before Hatake is due back she goes out on her first mission.

Kakashi comes back one week ahead of schedule to learn that his final student— hardly ever his in the first place— is out of the village. He thinks nothing of it until he asks Tenzu what the mission is and he tells him he can’t tell him. Kakashi is former anbu and a Hokage favored shinobi besides. There is very little he isn’t allowed to know.

He goes to the Anbu Head who is, predictably, waiting for him. He does not bring his sword. If he brings his sword he’s going to use it. And that would be bad. (he keeps reminding himself that it would be bad to murder the anbu head for recruiting his student)

“Wondered how long it’d take you to show up,” the anbu head says. Kakashi says nothing, staring him down. “If you’re waiting for me to be sorry we’re going to be here for a while. She’s good, Hatake, you know that.”

“Good doesn’t have to mean Anbu,” Kakashi says. The anbu head tips his head slightly, an agreement. “Doesn’t mean it’s not either. She can handle it.”

“I know,” Kakashi says. That’s not what he’s worried about.

“You can’t hide her away from the world Hatake.” Kakashi glares at him. The anbu head shrugs and goes back to his tea. “…You know, if you asked to be reinstated it would be granted in a second.” So you can protect her goes unsaid. Kakashi grits his teeth, holding back the reflexive yes on the tip of his tongue.

“She would hate that,” he says instead. He leaves before the anbu head can do anything more to tempt him.

She thinks that it is quite possible that Kakashi will never forgive her for saying yes. She tells herself, very firmly, that she does not care.

Sakura is Anbu. She reminds herself of that over and over. She’s anbu. She knows how to stop feeling.

Kakashi breathes, rhythmic. Steadying. Puts his hand on her head. Ruffles her hair like she’s still twelve not nearly fourteen. “Congratulations,” He says. And the next time she’s sent on a mission he gives her the best gift he can think to give her.

There is no hound masked operative tailing her.

I trust you. It says. I believe in you, it says. You can do this.

And she does.

Leopard likes Lemur. And it’s not that she thinks Lemur can’t last in Anbu or that her skills are inferior— far from it— it’s just that Lemur is too… bright. There’s too much daylight in her. Too much light in her life. So she isn’t the least bit surprised when Lemur tells her she isn’t making a permanent assignment of this. “Maybe another year or two,” Lemur tells her as they suit up for a routine patrol. “I just want to— they’re so bright, you know?” Leopard does. She knows exactly what Lemur is talking about.

Behind Leopard’s mask Sakura stares. She knows exactly who is behind that many eyed spider mask. It’s not an official thing, the rule against recruiting clan heirs. It’s just an obvious bad idea. For her to be wearing an anbu mask… it’s all but declaring her intent to forfeit her birthright to her younger sister.

Spider isn’t like Lemur. Leopard never thought she’d think that but it’s true. She’s bright but it’s not a brightness ill-suited to Anbu. If Leopard were to think back to her genin days, those hazy bright days before everything fell apart, she knows her genin self would laugh her head off if anyone even suggested Hyuga Hinata stood any chance of being recruited into Anbu. Although, she’d have laughed off the idea that she’d be recruited herself so…

They’re a deadly team. Spider lays the web and Leopard kills the prey. Spider’s hair grows longer. She starts wearing it bundled up on missions. Three missions together and Leopard makes a very important decision. Apparently, so has Spider. They get back to base. Leopard deactivates her disguise seal and takes her mask off. and turns to her teammate only to find Spider has her own mask in hand as well. Sakura looks into Hinata’s shocked face, knowing hers must be equally as shocked.

“I never even expected…” Hinata says in her ever soft voice. Sakura grins and laughs, tugging her bubblegum pink hair and winking. “I’m a little better than Sensei at hiding myself, aren’t I?” the ever present Do’s and Don’t’s of Anbu poster hangs conspicuously on the wall. Hinata glances at it and giggles. “Yes I suppose so.”

“...wanna clean up and go get post mission dinner?” Sakura asks. Hinata smiles a little warmer.

“Sure,” she says.