The following Diary was entered into evidence on March 27th,
2005 following the reported disappearance of Iruka Umino.
July 16th, 2003
I must be insane. I could have sworn that someone was following
me all day but whenever I looked behind me, there was no one
there. It could have been another shinobi. I'm only a chunin, so
I guess it could have been a jounin, but why would one bother? I
don't know. It's almost time for bed, but I still feel like
someone's out there and I doubt I'll get any sleep tonight.
July 21st, 2003
I was positive that someone's been keeping tabs on me. I finally
found the proof today. There are certain things that I keep in my
desk drawer, like pencils and extra hairbands. Yesterday I was
trying to fix my headband because it just felt wrong all morning
and when I did that, I of course messed up my ponytail. I tried
to take it down and put it back up too quickly and anyway I ended
up ripping a good chunk of hair out of my head. I left the
hairband in my top drawer. I figured I would untangle all the
hairs out of it later so I could use it again. I must have about
6 or 7 in there already. Anyway when I looked this afternoon the
hairband was gone. I know I put it in there. It's like whoever
took it wanted to get some peice of me. Maybe for a long distance
jutsu. I don't know but I'm going to have to be on my guard from
now on.
August 12th, 2003
This morning was awful. The kids were just running me ragged. I
was so frustrated that during my lunch break I hid in the
bathroom and punched my fist into the tiled wall over and over
again just seething with anger and frustration. I'm loathe to
admit it but I let a few tears escape as well. After lunch
though, the kids were like angels. It was damn scary. I figured
they were just gearing up to play the mother of all pranks on me
when I noticed a faint pull of my consciousness adjusting to an
illusion jutsu. Someone was working one on my class. As soon as I
realized it, I began searching the surrounding trees and building
outside the classroom window, but never caught sight of the
culprit. My search did cause the jutsu to end though and soon I
was dealing with 25 freaked out students. I didn't want to scare
them further so I told them I was responsible for it and then
gave a mini-lecture on the jutsu. Even if they were children to
pull such a thing off and for me not to notice right away, was
definitely the work of a jounin. I'm thinking of taking this to
the hokage. When I was the only one targeted it was okay, but to
target the children is unacceptable.
August 14th, 2003
I don't believe it. The hokage just shrugged off the whole thing.
He told me not to worry about it, it wouldn't happen again and
that it was no big deal. No big deal! He did seem a bit peeved
and that nagging feeling of being watched disappeared after
visiting the hokage. I don't know what's going on and I'm upset
that the hokage wouldn't tell me, but I know my place and I will
just have to trust his judgement on this one.
December 29th, 2003
He or she or whoever is back. I've been getting that feeling of
being watched again lately. It's exactly the same as before. I've
been concentrating on it a lot and I can get a sort of chakra
glow that goes off in my peripheral vision whenever it's
happening. Or I guess whenever that person's around. I was hoping
to find the culprit using my new technique but whenever it goes
off I'm either totally surrounded by people like when I'm working
in the mission room, or I can't see anyone near me, like now.
I've searched the apartment several times and taken about 100
glances out the window, but even though I know I'm being watched
right now, I can't see anyone out there. This is driving me
crazy. Why would anyone do this to me?
January 13th, 2004
I've been going out with this chunin, whom I met at the New
year's party. Her name is Kana and she's really sweet, but to be
honest I'm not really that interested in her. I wasn't going to
see her again after our first date, but I noticed that the chakra
glow in my peripheral vision was getting very strong and somewhat
erratic the whole evening. Whoever's been following me seems to
have trouble maintaining his or her composure when seeing me on a
date. I know it's wrong to use Kana this way, but I feel like I
have no choice. I really want to find out who's been tormenting
me for so long now. I'm going to meet her in a couple of hours.
It's our sixth date and I can tell she wants to move things up to
the next level, but I really don't want to go that far with her.
If my stalker shows up again, I may have no choice.
February 27th, 2004
Everything's been so hectic since the attack by Sound. Naurto
left after the hokage's funeral, I didn't get to see much of him
before the exams because he was training away from the village
and now he's gone again. I've been working so hard, like all the
shinobi, that I haven't had time to really grieve or anything. I
suppose that's for the best. I really don't want to think about
all that's happened lately. On an up note my stalker has
apparently been busy as well. Lately I haven't sensed his
presence around me at all. It's good because I've been getting
plenty of sleep lately. It's horrible to say but I was sort of
hoping he died in the siege as well, but I did feel his presence
the day Naruto left. I'm sure it's a him too. I don't know why
but I believe that the chakra that I've been tuning into is
definitely male. I guess it just comes from years of experience.
March 8th, 2004
He was in my home, goddamnit! He was in my bed. I just laid down
to go to sleep and the sheets smell of another human being. He's
definitely a man. I'm doing laundry now, because obviously I
can't go to sleep knowing someone has been in my bed and I don't
know who. I'm shaking, I'll be surprised if I can read this
later. I just can't believe it's gone so far! I have to figure
out who is doing this and make him stop.
March 10th, 2004
I think he was here again. I don't know for sure, but things
don't feel right. I can't take this anymore. I'm starting to get
physically ill from the stress. My stomach is always bothering me
and I get headaches just about everyday. Even if he's a jounin I
want to fight him. I want to at least cause him some of the pain
and misery he's caused me. I hate that I've become someone who
can think such dark thoughts all the time, but I just can't help
it. This is hell!
March 23rd, 2004
Dear Iruka
I'm so sorry that I've caused you so much grief. I didn't know
that you were so upset. I could tell that you knew when I was
around. I tried to pull back, to give you some space, but I just
couldn't stay away for long. I will try to leave you alone. I
always thought I could love you from afar but when we're apart, I
can't stop thinking of you. I wonder if you're okay and then I
think that maybe you're not and so I just have to come and make
sure. I won't come again. I can see you're not well and I don't
want that. It kills me to think I'm the reason you're hurting. I
promise to leave you alone from now on. Goodbye my love.
June 30th, 2004
I didn't think I could bring myself to write in this diary again.
When I first read the entry he left and realized that he had read
all my personal thoughts, I wanted to kill somebody. I wanted to
kill him, but I didn't know who he was so I was just hoping that
I could get a mission where I could take out my frustrations on
somebody. Horrible thoughts and I'm ashamed of them. Since that
time, I haven't felt him around except for very briefly, usually
when I'm working in the mission room and there's a sizable crowd
around. It still bothers me to think that someone I interact with
professionally could do something like this. I try not to be
paranoid, but it's hard. I think it's over. I hope it's over.
July 24th, 2004
Well it's not over after all. I was eating lunch with Naruto,
ramen of course, and the whole time there was a chakra glow in my
peripheral vision. At first I thought he was just having lunch
too, I mean it is a public place, but I didn't see any other
shinobi around. It bothered me a lot and I couldn't concentrate
on what Naruto was saying. I keep going over it in my mind. I
think maybe he was having lunch and saw me and knew I'd figure it
out if he didn't disguise himself, but then if that was the case,
why wouldn't he just leave? He must know that I can sense him.
He's read my diary after all.
August 16th, 2004
Since the incident in the restaurant things have been really
quiet. It's a new school semester and I'm feeling pretty
optimistic. So far the students have been manageable and Naruto
has been really busy with Team Seven. I haven't sensed my
stalker's presence around the mission room lately either. Perhaps
he is out on an extended mission or maybe he didn't come back
from one. If things remain quiet, then I'll check to see which
shinobi we've lost in the field recently.
September 30th, 2004
I haven't felt my stalker's presence in so long, it's almost like
I've forgotten how awful that time really was. I decided to hunt
through the filed mission reports and catalog the dead and
missing shinobi. It was quite depressing. I recognized at least 3
names as former students. Anyway there are a lot of missions that
I don't get access to because of my standing so the list is
incomplete and missions that are still outstanding are not all
cataloged yet so basically I gave up after a few hours.
October 10th, 2004
He's back. I knew it immediately. I looked around the mission
room, but no one there rang any bells. I mean there wasn't anyone
there who I haven't seen recently. At least I don't think so.
Maybe my jutsu's off or maybe he figured out a way to counteract
it and has been spying on me all this time without me realizing
it. Oh god I don't think I can take this again. Still even before
I began to use the jutsu full-time, I could always tell when he
was watching me. At least I thought so. I don't know anymore. I
can't believe this is happening.
october 16th, 2004
It seems like I'm sensing him all the time now. Especially when
I'm at school teaching. I feel his eyes on me when I am
lecturing. Doesn't this person have a job? I don't want to go to
the hokage because I'll probably be looked down upon for not
being able to resolve this on my own, I am a chunin after all,
but I feel like I have to do something.
October 20th, 2004
One of my students screwed up and blew out the wall with the
blackboard on it. It knocked me unconcious and when I woke up I
was in the doctor's office. I could swear that someone was
petting my hair right as I was waking up, but as soon as I opened
my eyes, the office was empty. That freaked me out a hell of a
lot more than the exploding wall did. I have to talk to the
hokage.
October 24th, 2004
Naruto is my bodyguard. I swear I'm not joking. This is the
hokage's answer to my problem. She feels that if I'm not alone,
my stalker will either stay away or Naruto will sense something
as well and perhaps see the situation more clearly than I'm able
to, or something like that. Basically she thinks I'm no longer
capable of sensing things accurately and I guess she figured with
him here I'll be too distracted to give in to my 'paranoid
fantasies'. She's using him to see if I'm nuts or not. This is
degrading and humiliating, but he is good at keeping me
distracted.
October 30th, 2004
Naruto thinks I'm paranoid. He hasn't sensed anything, but I know
that I've felt my stalker at least 3 times today. I can't blame
Naruto, he's only a genin, but this pretty much means I won't be
getting any assistance from the hokage. I'm on my own. Well
that's not really true, I'm never really alone am I? That's the
problem.
November 2nd, 2004
I've been snapping at the students too much lately. I know that
they are just being their normal selves. It's me. This stress is
making me miserable. I jump at every noise, I can't sleep and I
have no patience. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I am
beginning to get stomach pains again. I don't want to live like
this. I sometimes don't want to live at all.
November 16th, 2004
I figured after my last entry that maybe I could lure him out. I
sat next to an open window and tried to slit my own throat. I
wasn't going to cut my artery, I don't really want to die, but I
figured that might draw him to me. It worked, sort of. Before I
got even an inch across, a shuriken came through the window and
lodged into my hand, causing me to drop the kunai. I estimated
the trajectory of the shuriken and I think he must've been on the
roof of the next building, but he wasn't there when I looked.
After wrapping up my hand and bandaging my neck, I searched the
top of the roof. He left me a message. He told me to never do
that again.
November 20th, 2004
I told the hokage what happened and showed her the note. She was
pretty pissed by my stunt but at least she seems to be taking me
a little more seriously now. She said she'd handle it and just to
do on with my normal routine.
December 16th, 2004
After my last entry I began to feel watched all the time, but it
was by someone different I could tell. I guess I was given a
guard. Yesterday the hokage said that nothing out of the ordinary
was found and that if anything happened again I should let her
know. I am hoping either my suicide attempt or the guard scared
my stalker away.
March 16th, 2005
I was finally back to living normally, not looking over my
shoulder and feeling paranoid all the time, when I found a note
on my desk at school. It was rather long, but the highlights
were: my suicide attempt really freaked my stalker out, he
decided that he was wrong and he would definitely stay away from
me from now on, he was sorry he drove me to do such a thing, I
could relax because he was out of my life forever. I gave the
note to the hokage. I don't know how to feel, but I can't relax,
not now.
March 18th, 2005
A member of the ANBU squad committed suicide yesterday. His name
was Hatori Wantanubi, I think. I had never heard of him before
and I wouldn't normally think anything of it, but after the note
I got a couple of days ago, I couldn't help but wonder. Is this
what my stalker meant when he said he was out of my life forever?
March 24th, 2005
I was wrong. My stalker isn't dead. I had this nagging feeling
that someone was watching me all day and then at the bar I could
feel someone run their fingers through my hair. Of course I
looked but the place was filled with shinobi and I couldn't pick
anyone out. To touch me like that and blend into the crowd so
quickly, he must be pretty skilled. It was in a public place too.
Shit, I'm too scared to sleep.
March 25th, 2005
I think he was in my home again. I didn’t sleep last night
at all and I don’t know if I’ll be able to get to sleep
tonight either. Maybe I am paranoid. I’ve been staring at
this book for 20 minutes trying to remember if I left it on the
nightstand before I left or put it back in the self like I
usually do. I don’t know, I’m not sure. I can’t
remember but I just have this really awful feeling. I hope I’m
just paranoid.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The following was entered into evidence on March 27th, 2005:
copy from the Hokage's log
Oct. 23rd, 2004
Recieved complaint from Iruka Umino concerning possible stalker.
Naruto Umuzaki was sent to Mr. Umino's residence as an extra pair
of eyes. A general announcement was made to all jounins to report
any suspicious activity surrounding the academy. A special
lookout for trespassers on Academy grounds has been posted, with
an emphasis placed on the southern side of the building where Mr.
Umino conducts his lectures.
November 21st, 2004
Following the note recieved by Mr. Umino, an additional guard
detail has been placed around him. A total of 3 guards working in
8 hour shifts will keep watch, reporting any suspicious activity.
December 10th, 2004
Guard detail on Mr. Umino has been reduced to a single guard who
makes periodic checks around the Unimo residence, especially
during the evening. On the few occasions when the guards have
noticed anything unusual, not enough evidence was retrieved to
provide useful information.
February 1st, 2005
Guard was removed from Mr. Umino completely, after no viable
threat detected.
March 15th, 2005
Despite new evidence, no guard will be placed on Mr. Unimo. Note
does not appear threatening.
Note recieved* from Iruka Umino on November 20th, 2004
Iruka,
Please don't ever do that again!
Note recieved* from Iruka Umino on March 15th, 2005
My dearest Iruka
I've been really torn up inside recently. After your suicide
attempt, I was quite disturbed. I don't think I could live if you
were gone from this earth. I know you probably think I'm a
horrible person, but I'm really not. I just don't have the
courage to tell you in person how much you mean to me. I know
that I've made you unhappy. Nothing hurts me more than to think
that my presence causes you misery.
After your suicide attempt, I thought I should kill myself,
because I just couldn't accept the fact that I had driven you to
such extremes. I know it's all my fault. I first became enamoured
with you because you had such an amazing smile. Your compassion
was visible in every facial feature. You, unlike so many shinobi,
never disguised your true feelings. The more I watched you and
the more you became aware of my presence, I saw that smile fade
and I saw you try to hide your true self.
I realized that I was destroying the very things I loved most
about you. I don't want you to change anymore. I don't want you
to lose that precious part of yourself and so I promise that I
will leave you in peace from now on. I won't watch you anymore or
be a burden to you. I will stay out of your life forever.
I'm sorry for the pain I've caused and I'm sorry that I've made
you unhappy. You can relax and rest easy now. I no longer be a
dark shadow in your world. I will love you forever and pray for
forgiveness with all my heart. Goodybye my love.
Investigating Ninja's note:
Although access was provided by the hokage's office for the third
quarter of 2003's hokage log, no mention was made by the then
third hokage of Iruka Unimo being followed by a stalker or an
unknown person performing an illusion jutsu on Mr. Umino's class.
*by the hokage
Recorded interviews:
"Just start from the beginning. When did you realize he was
missing?"
"Iruka-sensei is always on-time, always. Iruka-sensei has
never stood me up before. I knew if he wasn't there, then there
had to be a really good reason."
"And exactly what time had you agreed to meet?"
"5 pm before the dinner crowd got there. I don't like
crowds."
"Okay. So how long did you wait?"
"I waited almost an hour. I was so worried I could barely
finish my ramen."
"You ordered without him?"
"I was hungry."
"So after the hour was up, you left?"
"I went to Iruka-sensei's apartment. It was Saturday so I
knew he didn't have to work that day."
"He wasn't there?"
"When he didn't answer I looked in the window and I knew
something was wrong."
"How so?"
"It just didn't look like his place normally does."
"Be specific. We looked at the apartment, everything looked
fine."
"Things weren't where they were supposed to be. It was hard
to tell at first. I didn't notice, everything just felt off, but
then I remembered. One time when I was over, we moved the couch
because this scroll rolled under it and I couldn't reach it.
Anyway when we moved it back, Iruka-sensei was really particular
about the placing. He said if the couch was too close to the
bookshelf then the vacuum wouldn't fit between them. So I
realized the couch was out of place and so was the coffee table.
Things like that. Everything was close to where it should be but
off. You know what I mean?"
"Hmm. Do you remember anything other than the couch and
table being out of place?"
"The bed was kinda lumpy."
"Lumpy?"
"Yeah. When Iruka-sensei makes the bed, it's so flat you can
bounce a shirken off it, but the bed was sorta lumpy like it
hadn't been made properly. And one of the lamps was
missing."
"In the bedroom?"
"MmHmm."
"I see...Do you know when he normally takes out the
garbage?"
"Ahh. I think he does that on the weekend when he
cleans."
"Okay let's talk about the time the hokage ordered you to
stay with him."
Sniff hiccup sniff
"Hey, hey it's alright."
"It's my fault isn't it? 'Cause the hokage sent me to
protect him, but I didn't. I couldn't sense anything!"
"Hey now calm down. No one's blaming you."
"But I was there! I was there and Iruka-sensei said he
sensed someone and he asked me if I sensed someone, but I didn't
sense anyone and now Iruka-sensei's gone and it's all my
fault!"
"Okay now you need to calm down. This isn't helping your
friend... Could you please help me here?"
"Naruto calm down and answer the man's questions."
"Hai..."
"Okay look, just tell me this: do you know of anyone who had
a grudge against your former teacher? Someone whom he just didn't
get along with?"
"No way. Iruka-sensei was the best. Everyone loved
Iruka-sensei he was kind and honest and... and he even treated me
nicely. No one else did. You don't think that this happened to
him because of me do you? You don't think that he was taken
because, because..."
"That wasn't it Naruto. This has nothing to do with
you."
"But Kakashi-sensei what if someone wanted revenge because
of..."
"That's enough. Right inspector?"
"Yes that's right...Just one last question did you notice
anyone who may've just seemed to take an interest in Iruka?
Someone whom you saw hanging around a lot or looking at him
strangely."
"No I looked for that after baa-chan assigned me to Iruka
for that week, but I never saw anyone. I totally let Iruka-sensei
down!"
"Now now, it's not your fault Naruto."
"...Thanks for your help with the kid. He seems pretty
shaken up. So do you have a few minutes I'd like to ask you some
questions as well Kakashi-san...Okay well first off, other than
the incident during the chunin exam nominations, did you have any
other altercations with Iruka Umino?"
"No."
"Did he or you persue the arguement after the selection
announcements were made?"
"No."
"Did you associate with Mr. Umino outside of the mission
room, either professionally or socially?"
"No."
"Do you harbor any personal feelings for Mr. Umino?"
"No."
"Do you have anything you wish to volunteer that you feel
may be helpful to this case."
"No."
"Okay, thank you for your time."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"I understand you were at one time Iruka Umino's closest
friend."
"Yes but that was a long time ago."
"You wouldn't consider yourself his friend anymore?"
"Not really. It's not like we had a fight or anything, but
we ended up going our different ways and didn't keep up with each
other. Ya know what I mean?"
"So the friendship faded over time?"
"Yeah."
"But you still saw him regularly in a professional
capacity."
"Of course."
"Did he ever confide in you, for old times sake?"
"No, sorry. I can't say that we've talked at all for a long
time now."
"I see. I don't suppose you noticed anything strange, when
he was around."
"Strange? No nothing sticks out in my mind."
"I see. This may sound like a strange question, but you have
the same hair style as Iruka did. Is there something behind
that?"
"Not really, we both liked long hair when we were young, but
we were both shinobi. It's just practical you know? It's a pretty
popular style when you think about it."
"Yes I know. I have another unusual question."
"Go for it."
"You were the second examiner in the chunin exams and I
understand Iruka was upset about team 7's participation in the
exams, did he ever bring that up with you, or did you ever hear
anything about that?"
"I heard about it, but it wasn't my concern and no, he never
brought it up with me."
"Okay. Do you know of anyone who had any grudges or just an
unusual interest in Mr. Umino?"
"No, I don't."
"Okay. Thanks for your time."
"Sure. I hope you find him. I mean it's been a while since
we palled around together, but Iruka's a good guy, always has
been. I just really hope he's alright."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"You used to work with him at the Academy?"
"That's right."
"Did you ever socialize with him outside of work?"
"Well sure. A lot of us at the Academy would get together at
the end of the week and just hang out. You know drink, laugh,
unwind."
"How about after you left the Academy?"
"Well at first I would still hang out with everyone but
about two years ago, Iruka stopped coming along. I wasn't sure
why, he would always make up some excuse or another. Then I
started hanging out with the other jonin instructors more and
well, I became involved with Asuma-san and we tend to spend what
little time off we have together."
"So you haven't hung out with Iruka in about 2 years."
"Correct."
"But you still see him at work, when you hand in the mission
reports."
"Oh yes and he's always friendly, but that's just Iruka's
way. He's a total sweetheart."
"He seemed to have some conflict with Kakashi concerning the
jonin's nominations for the chunin exam."
"Oh yeah that was kinda unusual. Iruka usually doesn't speak
out like that, but when it comes to his students he's really
passionate."
"Would you consider yourself Iruka's friend."
"That's hard to say. I mean I would like to be there for
Iruka if he ever needed anything, but I don't think he'd ask
me."
"Who would he ask?"
"I don't know. If you had asked me two years ago, I would
have said we were friends and that if Iruka ever needed help,
he'd probably go to Mizuki, but since then, Iruka's sort of
become rather sheltered and of course Mizuki is dead now."
"Iruka killed him?"
"That's what I heard."
"Were you surprised?"
"Of course. I never thought Mizuki would betray Konoha like
that."
"What about the killing? Were you surprised Iruka killed
Mizuki?"
"No. Iruka knows his duty. He did what was required. I'm
sure it was hard for him and it's ashame that he's the one who
had to face off against Mizuki, but Iruka is a loyal to Konoha,
of that there is no doubt."
"Do you know of anyone who had any grudges or just an
unusual interest in Mr. Umino?"
"No, I just can't imagine anyone wanting to hurt Iruka. It
seems insane that this has happened to him."
"Okay. Thanks for your time."
"I hope I was able to help."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Is it alright if we keep working?"
"Yeah we're really busy. With Iruka missing, someone's gotta
take up the slack."
"That's fine. I did want to speak with you separately
though."
"Oh well we're sorta chained to the desk, if you know what I
mean."
"Yeah it's not just Iruka's disappearance. The fifth hokage
is still learning the ropes, so we spend a lot of time looking up
old scrolls and helping her out, you know?"
"I see. I guess this is fine. Let's start with you Izumo.
How well would you say you knew Iruka?"
"Hmm, that's a hard one. Iruka's a nice guy but he's really
private. I mean we all spend a lot of time in the mission room
and when things are slow, we'd chat and stuff, but with Iruka he
didn't have any family so most of his anecdotes were about the
kids in the Academy."
"Yeah Iruka was always talking about the kids. He wasn't one
to gossip, so if he ever talked about the faculty is was always
in a professional capacity. Oh hey, I'm sorry, was I supposed to
wait my turn?"
"No, it's fine. So you both are in agreement then? Iruka was
an acquaintence only?"
"Well I don't know about that, we would sometimes go out
with him after work, but it was rare."
"Yeah we usually eat out whenever we have to work past 6:30,
and we'd always invite him along, but most of the time he said
no."
"Not always."
"Well no not always, just most of the time."
"Right."
"When was the last time you all went out?"
"Actually it was pretty recent. Like what, two weeks
ago?"
"Something like that. It was a really long day we finally
got out of here, around what eight?"
"Maybe 7:30."
"Well whatever, when we got out of here, we all went to this
bar..."
"They serve soba and sushi too."
"Yeah, anyway we went to this bar and it was packed like
always, so we were sorta chatting with some of the other shinobi
and then you sorta got my attention, remember that?"
"What are talking about?"
"You were pointing out that one lady's cleavage."
"I don't think he cares about that, Kotetsu."
"Well I know that, but I turned to show Iruka and I noticed
Iruka was just frazzled."
"Frazzled? How so?"
"He looked a little out of it and he was looking around the
bar."
"Was he looking for someone?"
"I don't know maybe. He left right after that."
"Do you remember who was in the bar that night?"
"Oh wow, it was really packed."
"Tell me the names of the people you can remember."
"Well I never found out the lady's name, but Raido was there
and so was Genma."
"Let's see I remember seeing Gai and Kakashi, actually I
think Kakashi left and I remember Gai chased after him."
"Yeah I think Gai challenged him to a drinking contest or
something."
"Anyone else?"
"Let's see, umm there's that dude with the long blond
ponytail, you know who I mean?"
"Yamanaka."
"Right and there was some guy who looks like Hiashi, but
doesn't have the weird eyes. What's his name?"
"I don't remember."
"Me either."
"Ibiki was there."
"He was?"
"Yeah didn't you see him?"
"I don't think so."
"Well he was off in the corner. I don't think I recognized
anyone else."
"What about you?"
"That's about everyone I remember too. There were a lot of
people who I couldn't really see well, you know how ninjas like
to hide, even in social situations."
"Oh wait didn't Nara take his son after the kid made
chunin?"
"That was earlier. Iruka wasn't with us that time."
"Oh yeah, you're right."
"Do you know why Iruka left? Did you ask him?"
"No, I was sorta distracted."
"I didn't even know he left."
"Can you think of any other times Iruka's been frazzled?
Have you noticed him looking around the mission room in the past,
searching for something or someone?"
"You mean his stalker? No, I don't have a clue who it could
be."
"You knew?"
"Of course. I was the one who made copies from the hokage's
log."
"I see. Did he ever talk to you about it? Did he ever tell
you when he felt someone was watching him?"
"No, but you could tell when he was tenser than normal.
Which was a lot lately."
"Well not just lately for at least a year or two."
"Yeah I heard that they searched the last hokage's
log."
"Really? You didn't tell me that."
"You already said you didn't have a clue, but how about you
Izumo? Did you ever notice anyone who seemed to express an
interest in Iruka?
"No not since Kana."
"Oh I had forgotten about Kana."
"Did either one of you know about anyone who had a grudge
against Iruka?"
"No."
"No, sorry. Iruka wasn't the type to ruffle anyone's
feathers."
"What about his altercation with Kakashi at the chunin exam
nominations."
"We weren't there. We only heard about it second hand. I
thought it was unusual but I heard that it got settled pretty
quickly."
"Yeah, Iruka was just worried about Naruto, but when the
hokage gave his final word on it, Iruka just let it go."
"Well I thank you both for you time. Do either of you have
anything you want to add that you think may be useful?"
"No, I don't."
"I might. I don't know, this is probably nothing."
"Please tell me."
"Well we all have our own seals for when we receive mission
reports. It's like a personal signature, you know to verify it
was handled through proper channels. Anyway Iruka's is
missing."
"It is? I didn't notice that."
"I just noticed it myself. I was running low on ink and so I
went into Iruka's desk to grab his ink pad this morning and I
noticed it wasn't there."
"Are you sure it wasn't just misplaced?"
"Yeah cause no one's touched Iruka's desk since he's been
gone, and he's really organized. He always keeps it in the top
drawer."
"Can you describe it for me?"
"It's just this blue-grey stone block with a dolphin releif
on the one side."
"I think it's got some waves on it too."
"I see. I want to thank you both again. If you notice
anything else missing. Please let me know right away."
"Sure no problem."
"Yeah good luck. I hope you find him."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"So you work with Iruka at the Academy?"
"Yes that's right."
"Did you know him well?"
"Mmm, as well as anyone, I guess. He was rather private so I
wouldn't say that I knew much about his personal life. Though
considering how much he worked, I don't think he had time for a
personal life."
"He worked long hours then?"
"Between here and the mission room, yeah I think he worked a
lot."
"Was he often alone here at the Academy after hours?"
"I think so. I mean I've heard as much. To be honest, I'm
not here at the Academy much after hours so I don't really
know."
"Did you ever hear of any trouble here at the Academy. Did
you know why a special lookout was placed on the Academy
grounds?"
"No I was never told the reason for that. I know that one of
the students blew out a wall around that time, but that's not
particularly unusual around here."
"Did you ever see anyone on the Academy grounds who wasn't
supposed to be here?"
"No one in particular comes to mind. The Academy is not
closed off to the public. There's a lot of traffic around here. I
haven't seen anyone prowling around if that's what you
mean."
"You were the furth examiner during the chunin exams. I know
that Iruka was upset with Kakashi-san's entry of his team into
the exam. Since Iruka was a colleague of yours did he ever bring
up the subject with you."
"He never brought up Kakashi-san. I was at the meeting when
the nominations were made and I was surprised Iruka made such a
big deal about the whole thing. but after that day, I never heard
him say anything about it. He did talk to me after the exams. I
was given off by the Academy in order to officiate them, but most
of the faculty had to miss the exams in order to teach classes.
Iruka asked me about Naruto's performance. He was pretty shocked,
and pleased that Naruto beat Neji."
"I see. I understand that Iruka was good friends with Mizuki
before he stole the forbidden scroll from the hokage's office.
Did he ever talk to you about that?"
"No. I was away on a mission at the time and when I got back
and heard about what happened, I felt really bad for Iruka. I
can't imagine having to kill my best friend like that."
"Mizuki and Iruka were best friends?"
"Definitely. He and Mizuki hung out a lot together after
classes let out. They would talk about the student's progress and
just pal around. Iruka and Mizuki were like Raido and I, they
just had like minds."
"I understand that Mizuki resented Iruka for his close
relationship with Naruto. Is that true?"
"I don't know about that. Mizuki did hate Naruto. A lot of
the staff here did, a lot of people were glad that Iruka got
stuck with him instead of them. I think that Iruka wasn't too
happy with it at first either, but he would never show favoritism
or displeasure in any of his students, so you never heard him
complain. I don't think Iruka and Naruto were that close until
the scroll's theft though. After all Naruto was still in his
class at that time and like I said, Iruka never showed any
favoritism."
"What about now? Naruto and Iruka are obviously close. Have
you noticed any of the faculty or just anyone who had expressed
displeasure in Iruka for his friendship with Naruto?"
"I don't know if I've ever heard anyone say anything bad
about Iruka because of it. It's more along the lines of disbelief
on some people's parts."
"You were at a bar called Sashi's two weeks ago with Raido
when Kotetsu, Izumo and Iruka showed up. Do you remember
that?"
"Oh man. I remember being there, honestly I don't know if I
can remember seeing them there that night. I was pretty drunk, my
memories are a bit vague. I think I saw him... Yeah I think it
was Iruka. I remember Raido got pushed down or something on the
way out. I'm not sure, because I really don't remember but I
think some dude was pissed at him for touching Iruka."
"Raido touched Iruka?"
"Well he didn't touch him like that. Iruka was just sitting
at the bar alone, so Raido was going to invite him over, but well
if I recall Raido wasn't exactly sober and I think instead of
tapping Iruka on the shoulder he must've hit him in the head.
Iruka left after that, I think. I'm not sure. I just remember
Raido being on the floor and so that's when we decided it was
time to go, but someone shoved him on the way out."
"Who shoved Raido, what exactly did the person say?"
"Umm if I knew that, I would've kicked his ass. Seriously I
never saw his face. I was trying to help Raido up, I think, I was
a bit impaired myself and I remember a shove and Raido was back
on the floor and someone said something about Iruka."
"What exactly did this person say about Iruka?"
"I honestly don't know. I just can't recall it was something
like: 'Don't touch Iruka' or 'Hands off Iruka' or something like
that I think."
"Did this person leave the bar at that point?"
"I don't know. I honestly don't have a clue."
"What happened after that?"
"Well I helped Raido up and we left and went home."
"That's it?"
"Yes."
"Anything happen outside the bar or on the way home?"
"No not really."
"Did you see anyone after you left? Did you see Iruka?"
"No I didn't see Iruka, but I think I did see Gai and
Kakashi. I wasn't listening to what they were saying, but I think
that they were arguing outside the bar. Gai probably issued
another one of his stupid challenges."
"Do you know of anyone who has an interest in Iruka or a
grudge against him?"
"No, no way. Iruka's always been really personable. He gets
along with everybody."
"Do you have anything you want to add that you think may be
useful?"
"No, I don't."
"Well I thank you for you time."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"So you want to know about that night at the bar?"
"Yes."
"I gotta tell you, I was drunk as hell and honestly I don't
even remember getting home that night."
"Any small detail will be helpful."
"Yeah okay. I know you already talked to Genma, so basically
we hit the bar around dinnertime, 6:30 or 7:00, pretty early for
us and we started drinking pretty much as soon as we got there. I
don't know when Iruka showed up with Kotetsu and Izumo. I was
pretty trashed at that point."
"But you do remember seeing them?"
"Oh yeah, Izumo was totally scoping out this chick, it was
pretty funny, cause she was just not interested. Anyway Genma
noticed Iruka sitting at the bar and they both work at the
Academy, so I figured I'd be polite and invite him over. Besides
Iruka is usually good for a free beer or two if you get him right
after payday."
"So you went over to the bar? Why not just call him
over?"
"Oh he never would have heard me. The place was packed,
really loud. Anyway I went over there and I must've stumbled or
the floor was wet, yeah I think the floor was probably wet,
anyway I fell down and I guess I swiped Iruka in the head or
something."
"He didn't see you?"
"I don't know, I guess not, cause he's pretty polite. I
doubt he'd leave me face down on a wet floor, but anyway I didn't
talk to him. Genma came over to help me up again and while he was
doing that, someone hit me in the back and I fell down again and
pulled Genma with me, I think. I remember him being pretty
pissed."
"Were you shoved or hit?"
"I was definitely hit. It was a sharp kinda prick and I had
a small bruise on my shoulder the next morning."
"Did you see who hit you?"
"No I was too busy eating the floor, man."
"Did he say anything to you?"
"If he did, I didn't hear it."
"So you left the bar?"
"Yeah we left."
"And then what? Did you see or hear anything outside the
bar?"
"I think maybe Gai was there, but I can't be sure."
"Okay. How about in general? Do you ever talk with Iruka or
socialize with him?"
"No, not at all. He works with Genma at the Academy, so
sometimes if we see him around, like at the bar, we'll invite him
over. Genma gets along with him well enough, but personally I've
always thought he was a bit of a stuffed shirt, you know? A bit
too uptight for my tastes."
"I see. So he wouldn't confide in you or tell you if
something was troubling him."
"No."
"Do you know of anyone who has a special interest in Iruka
or a grudge against him?"
"No, sorry."
"Do you have any information that you would like to add,
that you think may be helpful to the investigation."
"Well, I've been debating whether to mention this or not,
but I knew one of the guards who was assigned by the hokage to
guard Iruka last year."
"Really?"
"Yeah, well, anyway apparently one of the ninjas originally
assigned to the job, declined. He was really bitter about the
nine-tailed demon attack. He was older and I think he lost a
daughter in the attack or something, anyway he called Iruka a
demon-lover and was given guard duty on the gate instead."
"Do you know his name?"
"No I don't, all of this is second hand talk from around the
campfire."
"I see."
"Anyway he died on guard duty. It was really unusual. He
broke his neck, falling off the gate."
"Are you serious?"
"I know, insane isn't it? I mean he was older, but a ninja
falling off the gate, it was definitely odd."
"I assume there was an investigation."
"There was and no conclusion was ever made. Basically
someone could have broken his neck and thrown him off the gate,
but that's just total speculation."
"That's interesting."
"Yeah well like I said, I don't know if there's any
connection, it's just this whole thing with Iruka missing is
really odd and I figured I should mention it just in case."
"I appreciate that. I also appreciate you taking the time to
talk with me today. If you remember anything else about that
night, please let me know."
"I will."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"It is a crime of heart-wrenching proportions. One so kind,
so full of nurturing strength, one who helps our children blossom
into the springtime of their youth must be returned."
"Yes, ahh, I agree, I think. I just want you to answer a few
questions."
"But of course, but of course. I can only hope that what
little knowledge I have can somehow assist in rushing you to our
fair Iruka's succor."
"Right. So first of all, did you socialize with Iruka in any
way?"
"Ahh it is my great sorrow that I did not. We were mere
acquaintances at work. I had, only on one occasion engaged with
him in less than idle chatter. It was when I was first assigned
my genin group. Oh what a day, I remember it well..."
"Yes well, on that day or at any other time did Iruka ever
discuss his personal life or problems with you."
"No, Iruka was the paradigm of instructional
professionalism. A truly worthy instructor."
"Okay. You're friends with Kakashi..."
"He is my eternal rival!"
"Right, I understand that he and Iruka argued over his
decision to enter his genin team into the chunin exam. Did
Kakashi ever talk about this with you? More importantly did he
ever say anything to indicate that he held a grudge against Iruka
or that Iruka held a grudge against him?"
"But of course not, for in the heat of competition one's
focus must be razor sharp. One does not discuss the weather or
life's little annoyances."
"Okay, So my last question is about the night a few weeks
ago in Sashi's bar. You and Kakashi were there along with several
other shinobi. Kotetsu, Izumo and Iruka all arrived together, do
you remember that?"
"Yes of course that was my 1,246th challenge to Kakashi. It
was to be a drinking contest. A match of speed for he drinks so
quickly, it would have been a great test to match my own speed
against his. He refused the competition."
"Umm about Iruka."
"I was aware of course that Iruka was there, for it's
important to have witnesses when one is about to engage in
competition."
"I see. Did you notice anyone approach or talk to
Iruka?"
"He was at the bar. Several patrons passed by him."
"Do you remember who specifically?"
"I recall Raido was at one point face down on the floor in
front of Iruka, a most unpleasant display of over-indulgence. I
think Genma was there as well, providing ever loyal assistance.
There was a waitress of excellent balance and posture who made
repeated trips to the bar. Ibiki exited that way. It was a busy
place at a busy time. A truly fine example of..."
"I'm sorry could you be more specific? Did Genma, Raido,
Ibiki or the waitress engage Iruka in conversation or make any
physical contact with him?"
"I think not. It seemed as though Ibiki, Genma and Raido
were engaged in their own altercation."
"Really? In what way?"
"I am afraid I don't know. I was trying to get Kakashi to
agree to the competition. I left the bar, following my rival and
was not paying attention to what they were doing."
"But you're sure you saw Ibiki, Genma and Raido
together."
"Yes."
"I see, thank you. I wonder, have you by any chance noticed
or heard of anyone holding a grundge against Iruka or just
displaying a lot of interest in him?"
"No of course not. If I did I would have sought you out much
sooner, for it is a true tragedy that misfortune has fallen upon
such a gentle man."
"Okay, I understand. I appreciate your assistance."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"How would you describe your relationship with Iruka
Umino?"
"I have no relationship with him. Basically I hand my
mission reports in to him if he's on duty and that's it."
"So basically you two were professional acquaintances."
"Not really. I've never been on a mission with him."
"But surely you've chatted with him while waiting for
missions in the mission room, just to pass the time."
"I don't make small talk. I have a reputation that most
people find intimidating."
"Even other ninjas?"
"Yes, even them."
"I see. I would like to ask you about a night a few weeks
ago in Sashi's bar. Several workers from the mission room came in
that night, do you remember that?"
"I do. I spend a fair amount of time at Sashi's, so I am
always mindful when new people come into the bar."
"New people?"
"You know, not regulars."
"I see."
"Did you recall what they were doing?"
"Drinking, chatting, the usual."
"Right. What about Genma and Raido? Did you interact with
them at all that night?"
"No, not really. They were both slovenly drunk. I had to
walk over them just to get out the door."
"Did you push them out of your way?"
"Possibly. I certainly made no effort to avoid them. I won't
allow people who lack the capacity to control themselves to
interfere with me or my duties."
"Oh were you on guard duty that night?"
"I was speaking in general."
"I see. So did you say anything to Genma or Raido when you
left the bar?"
"No."
"Were you in a rush to go somewhere?"
"No."
"You just decided to leave and figured you would push them
out of your way."
"Pretty much. I didn't pick a fight with them or hurt them.
They were simply blocking my path."
"Did you happen to see Iruka after leaving the bar?"
"I don't recall seeing him, but I wasn't looking for him
either. It's possible that he was still outside the bar when I
left."
"So he left the bar before you did?"
"Maybe, I recall he was at the bar earlier, but when I
walked past Genma and Raido, he was not there."
"You didn't notice him leaving."
"I'm sorry I didn't."
"Was there anyone else outside the bar when you left?"
"Kakashi and Gai were engaged in another one of their silly
contests. Gai was making quite a commotion."
"I don't suppose you recall who left first: Gai, Kakashi or
Iruka?"
"As I have said, I didn't notice that Iruka had left. He
could have moved elsewhere in the bar, perhaps to the bathroom.
It was impossible not to notice Kakashi fleeing out of the bar,
away from Gai."
"I see. I know that you didn't have much contact with Iruka,
but do you happen to know of anyone who had any grudges against
him or any special interest in him?"
"No I don't."
"Do you have any information you would like to volunteer at
this time that you feel may be beneficial to the case?"
"No, none that I can think of."
"Well thank you for your time Mr. Morino."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"I know we spoke before, but that interview was rather brief
and I have some questions I'd like to ask you if you don't
mind."
"Not yet, there's something I have to show you."
"Alright."
"..."
"..."
"Why did you lead me here, to the edge of the forest?"
"Look there."
"I don't see anything."
"Look more closely at the ground."
"It's a rock?"
"Pakkun says it has Iruka's scent on it and it's not a
natural rock. It's been polished, smoothed. I didn't want to
touch it. I didn't want to tamper with any evidence."
"Hhn. You're right."
Snap. (sound of rubber gloves) Snap.
"It's Iruka's seal! How did you...?"
"I've had a few of my nin-dogs sniffing around since Iruka
disappeared. It took a while but one of them finally lead me
here. He said the ground smelled wrong, like ash."
"My god, you mean...?"
"I don't know but Pakkun's nose is always accurate."
"I see. If you're right and his ashes are here than this
seal must be acting as a mini-tombstone."
"..."
"I must say I'm surprised you pursued this on your own. I
had thought that you and Iruka didn't get along."
"I don't hold grudges and neither did he. Naruto is mess,
unable to concentrate. He's even stopped eating."
"I see. I'm afraid this won't improve his spirits any."
"He'll survive. How long will it take for you to determine
if that ash is Iruka?"
"Honestly, I don't know if I can. It depends on a lot of
things. Now that you've lead me here, I would like to collect
evidence, but I still need to ask you a couple of
questions."
"It's about the night as Sashi's, right?"
"Yes."
"I saw Iruka and his friends from the mission room come in,
but I didn't talk with any of them. Gai was getting on my nerves
so when Iruka left, looking nervous, I wanted to follow him
hoping to use it as an excuse to get rid of Gai, but Genma and
Raido were on the floor in front of the bar. I was going to wait
until they got out of the way, but Ibiki just plowed through
them. He looked pissed about something. Anyway I left at that
point. Gai followed me out."
"Do you know why Iruka was nervous?"
"No."
"Do you know why Ibiki was pissed?"
"No."
"Did you see either of them after you left the bar?"
"I saw Ibiki head down Lao street. I didn't see Iruka."
"Did your nin-dogs pick up any other scents on this stone
other than Iruka's?"
"They weren't instructed to look for that, so if Pakkun did,
he didn't tell me. I'll ask, but he only knows scents that I've
given him."
"Okay, I appreciate your help in this matter. I would prefer
if you didn't tell anyone else about this discovery just
yet."
"I won't."
Scrape. (sound of digging)
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Guard duty For Gate November 21st:
Kurenai Yuuhi
Inoichi Yamanaka
Wanatabe Ichigo
Gai Maito
Guard duty For Gate November 22nd:
Yami Matusi
Kurenai Yuuhi
Ibiki Morino
Asuma Sarutobi
Guard duty For Gate November 23rd:
Ibiki Morino
Asuma Sarutobi
Kakashi Hatake
Yami Matusi
Guard duty For Gate November 24th:
Yami Matusi
Raido Namiashi
Kakashi Hatake
Genma Shiranui
Guard duty For Gate November 25th:
Genma Shiranui
Raido Namiashi
Takashi Takehara
Yami Matusi
Guard duty For Gate November 26th:
Takashi Takehara
Wanatabe Ichigo
Inoichi Yamanaka
Ibiki Morino
Guard duty For Gate November 27th:
Ibiki Morino
Wanatabe Ichigo
Gai Maito
Inoichi Yamanaka
Investigator's log for death of Yami Matusi on November 25th
2004:
Incident occurred on Northeast side of gate when on duty with
Takashi Takehara at approximately 3:30 am. Takashi and Yami
relieved Raido Namiashi & Genma Shiranui at midnight. Takashi
was on NorthWest side of gate and was not aware of the Yami's
death until alarm sounded at 4:20 am. ANBU team arrived at 4:22
am and did not find any indication of enemy attack. Medical
examiner determined that Yami died of a broken neck. No alcohol
or other drugs found in the bloodwork. Takashi heard no
indication of a struggle or cry. Two broken bones in the ribs and
a broken tibia were assumed to be a result of the fall. Yami was
forty-one and had recently lost the rank of jounin, due to
failure of compulsory endurance exam. No indications of poor
health and no reported spells of dizziness or headaches on Yami's
medical record. Although it can't be ruled out, no evidence of
foul play was found.
Death Certificate for Kana Sohma:
Time of death: between 12:40 pm to 5:30 pm on January 20, 2004
Cause of Death: Deep laceration that penetrated the tricuspid
valve and right atrium from sharp object, possibly a knife or
other bladed weapon.
Body cremated and ashes recieved by Yumimura Sohma.
Analysis of lab report: C656H1029O413N11S
Sample contained high levels of phosphorus, calcium, floride,
carbon, sulfur and nitrogen as well as trace amounts of zinc,
iron, manganese, magnesium, strontium and copper. Moderate levels
of oxygen, cellulose and hydrogen were present.
Sulfur is common to almost all ash. Cellulose indicates burned
wood or paper, possibly burned cloth. High levels of calcium and
carbon indicate bone and organic matter. Trace elements zinc,
iron, manganese, magnesium, strontium and copper are common to
humans. Floride is known to collect in the Pineal gland and if
found in teeth. There is a high probablity that sample contains
bone ash from human or other mammal.
Fingerprint analysis of Dolphin seal: negative.
Fingerprint analysis of Umino Iruka's apartment: positive match
on Umino Iruka, Naruto Uzimaki, Sakura Haruno and Kakashi Hatake.
Mission log
November 21, 2004
Yami Matusi, Yamanaka Inoichi and Akito Sarutobi assigned to
guard Iruka Umino in rotating shifts. Yami Matusi refused
assignment and was given extra guard duty instead. Yugi Mizawa
replaced Yami Matusi.
Mission report submitted by Akito Sarutobi on December 8, 2004:
No action taken against Umino Iruka so far. It's hard to tell if
someone else is out here or not, since this is a residential area
and Iruka is not the only ninja in the apartment building. I have
felt brief flashes of being observed on at least six separate
occasions, but that may be curiousity by other ninjas wondering
why I'm watching the apartment building. Obviously I've tried to
be discrete but I know at least one ANBU member who lives two
floors above Iruka, so I'm gonna be noticed. Iruka has also
picked up on the assigned guard. It's obvious in his body
language. Furthermore, I have not sensed any hosility.
Considering he works in the mission room and the Academy, both
teeming with other ninja, I suggest reducing the guard to
evenings only.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"I'm very grateful that you've taken the time to speak with
me. I know you're busy right now."
"It's fine. So what have you discovered so far?"
"Well I am fairly certain Iruka Umino is dead. Though the
lab results were inconclusive, the grave was not meant to be
found which indicates that someone wanted to hide the remains yet
still give him a proper burial. Also the unusual death of Yami
Matusi shows that Iruka's stalker is capable of murder."
"So you believe Yami's death was not an accident."
"No ma'am, though his skills had slipped in recent years, it
doesn't take a ninja's skill to walk the gate. However his skills
slipping would have made it easier for a jounin level ninja to
either sneak up on him and break his neck, or trick him into a
false sense of security and then break his neck."
"So you think Yami knew his killer."
"Most of the jounins who had recent contact with Iruka work
gate duty regularly. Almost all of them worked gate duty that
week, several of them shared duty shifts with Yami since he was
given extra shifts after turning down the bodyguard
mission."
"I see so if Yami didn't directly tell Iruka's stalker of
his distaste for Iruka due to his close relationship with Naruto,
then word probably got back to this man anyway."
"Yes ma'am."
"I also read that you did not find the gravesite, Kakashi
did?"
"Yes that's correct."
"And Kakashi's fingerprints were found in Iruka's
apartment?"
"Yes hokage-sama."
"He's the only person you've interviewed twice now, so is he
your main suspect?"
"No ma'am. He was one of the first persons interviewed. At
that time I didn't know about the incident at Sashi's bar."
"I see. So he is not a suspect?"
"He's not my main suspect, anymore, however he is still
under suspicion."
"Please explain."
"Originally I had thought that Iruka's outburst at the
chunin exam nominations made him a target for Kakashi, however
that lead proved false. Based on entries from Iruka's journal and
the incident at Sashi's, I'm convinced that Iruka's stalker
became reinterested in Iruka after seeing him in the bar. Though
this is purely speculation, I believe that the stalker entered
Iruka's home after the bar incident, read his diary and
discovered that Iruka's suicide attempt was faked. I think that
may have triggered something for the stalker and precipitated
Iruka's kidnapping."
"That's quite an interesting theory. How exactly did you
come to this conclusion?"
"It is mainly based on the letter the stalker left on
Iruka's desk on March 15 which clearly indicated that Iruka's
suicide attempt had a great impact. Furthermore, in Iruka's last
journal entry he says that he thought he left his journal in the
bookshelf but it was on his nightstand. If the stalker read it
then surely he must've become angry to discover the suicide
attempt was in actuality a partially successful attempt to lure
the man into the open."
"That's logical."
"Even though Iruka didn't socialize with anyone at Sashi's
there was quite a bit of commotion around him. He became frazzled
and left. I believe the stalker was present at the bar, was upset
by Iruka's nervous state and possibly followed him home that
night."
"But he didn't kidnap Iruka immediately?"
"No, I don't believe the stalker intended to kidnap Iruka,
not until he read the diary. I think that triggered a deadly
response in him. The fact that Naruto noticed things out of place
in Iruka's home indicates a carelessness that the stalker had up
until that point, not displayed before."
"But if he killed Iruka in the apartment wouldn't there be
some blood or some kind of evidence?"
"Yes that's why I believe Iruka was taken from the apartment
and killed elsewhere, probably after his kidnapper extracted some
sort of revenge."
"Obviously this is not the report I was hoping to hear. What
can I do to assist? We need to find out who did this."
"Have you had any success in discovering why the third
hokage did nothing when Iruka first complained to him about the
illusion jutsu performed on his class."
"No and I find that really disturbing. From all accounts
that I've heard so far, the third hokage was quite fond of Iruka.
I would never expect him to disregard a complaint or dismiss
Iruka's feelings like that."
"Can you issue me some search warrants?"
"Yes."
"I would like one for Kakashi Hatake, Gai Maito, Genma
Shiranui, Raido Namiashi and Ibiki Morino."
"You still have that many suspects?"
"Obviously I suspect some more than others, but at this
point I can't rule out any of them."
"Alright, consider it done."
"Thank you hokage-sama."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"I didn't do it."
"Then why was his hair found in your apartment?"
"I don't know."
"You're saying you had no idea it was there."
"That's correct. As you know I've been away on a
mission."
"So you're saying it was planted in your apartment while you
were gone?"
"I am not saying anything, other than, I did not kill Iruka
Umino."
"Are you saying he's alive then?"
"No, I don't know. I don't know what happened to him."
"Tell me again, what happened after you left Sashi's."
"I went home."
"How did you go home?"
"What do you mean how, I walked."
"Tell me where you walked, what streets did you take?"
"I don't know, I mean I do, but I wouldn't know without
looking at a map. It's just the way home, I'm been there so many
times and walked home, it's automatic. I don't think about
it."
"But you went directly home."
"Yes."
"Well I have looked at a map and your home is on Dango
street, which from Sashi's would be best accessed via Koilo but
you walked home via Lao Street which would take you North towards
the Yungbo Apartment complex. That's quite a bit out of the way
for you."
"Look I don't know what you're getting at, but I walked
home. I don't remember the exact streets, I just took the route I
know. I don't think it goes by the apartment complex you
mentioned, but there are some alleys I cut through, so who knows
maybe."
"Why did you knock Raido down when you left Sashi's."
"I already told you, he was drunk, making an idiot of
himself. He was in my way so I pushed him out of my way."
"You were upset that he was drunk and making an idiot out of
himself? But he was in a bar, isn't that what people do when they
go to bars."
"Yeah I guess. I never said I was a particularly nice guy. I
get a little short tempered when I've had to much to drink. I
really wasn't trying to hurt him or pick a fight."
"So you were short tempered? What did he do to make you lose
your temper?"
"He didn't do anything, he just got in my way."
"What about Iruka, did he ever get in your way? Did he ever
do something, that made it necessary for you to get rid of
him?"
"I didn't get rid of him. I don't know what happened to
Iruka. I don't know why you found his hair in my apartment. I
barely know the guy."
"What about Yami Matusi did you know him?"
"Not well. I worked with him once or twice, but that's about
it."
"Did you ever make small talk with him when you two worked
Gate duty together?"
"I doubt it. I told you before. I don't make small
talk."
"Did Yami ever get in your way?"
"Look I know what you're implying. I remember how he died
and yeah it was weird, skilled ninjas don't fall of stable
structures like the Gate, but I had nothing to do with his death.
I wasn't even working on the Gate that night. I sure as hell
would've remembered if I was."
"But you did work with him a couple of nights earlier. You
didn't talk with him when you two shared Gate duty?"
"I said things like, 'hi nice night' and 'you want another
cup of coffee' and that's about it. No idle chatter."
"I see. Does anyone other than you have access to your
apartment?"
"I don't leave my keys with anyone. I guess the landlord has
a copy though, but I'm assuming that you already know that."
"Yes."
"So..."
"So you don't know anyone who has access to your apartment
and you don't know how Iruka's hair got into your dresser?"
"That's right."
"That's a bit hard to believe don't you think."
"I guess. I can't explain it. I know I have enemies, but I
don't think any of them are living in Konoha and I doubt they
would want to frame me for murder. Most would just like to see me
dead, plain and simple."
"Well I appreciate you coming in and answering my
questions."
"Yeah well you really didn't leave me much choice. So I'm
not under arrest?"
"No, but I've talked to the hokage and you won't be
recieving any new missions for a while. Please don't try to leave
Konoha."
"I won't."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Have a seat Mr. Morino. I want to inform you that we're
formally charging you with murder. Tomorrow you'll be brought
before
the hokage and the elder council. Would you like to confess at
this point? It will make things easier for you if you do so
now."
"Confess?! You must be kidding. You can't charge me with
murder just because you found Iruka's hair in my dresser. Look I
told you that I don't know how it got there and you know that I
was away on a mission."
"Yes, it's true Iruka's hair would not be enough to indict
you, however we found other evidence in your apartment when we
executed our search. We simply had to wait for the analysis from
the lab to come in so we could verify that our assumptions
were correct."
"But your assumptions are not correct. I don't know what
evidence you found but I did not kill Iruka Umino."
"You've said that you're the only person, other than your
landlord, who has access to your apartment, correct?"
"Yes."
"So then explain to me why the ash found on the blade edges
of your bathroom's exhaust fan matched samples taken from a
makeshift grave that we believe belongs to Iruka."
"Ash samples? I admit that I've had a cigarette or two in my
day. I probably did turn on the exhaust fan to get rid of the
fumes. I really am not a smoker, but sometimes it's helpful for
relieving stress."
"This was not cigarette smoke Mr. Morino. We checked and it
did not contain tar or nicotine, it did however contain high
calcium and carbon. As a jonin, I know you have been trained to
dispose of dead ninjas' bodies by complete incineration. The
ash on your exhaust blades came from a mammal, probably a
human."
"If you're not even sure if it's human then how do you know
it's Iruka's?"
"We don't, but it does answer the question of what you did
with Iruka's body after you killed him."
"I didn't kill him."
"The blood we found on your ropes indicates otherwise."
"That's ridiculous. You do know what service I perform for
Konoha don't you? I admit that the ropes I carry in my pack are
pretty blood soaked, but it's all from doing my job. None of the
blood is Iruka's or any other ninja of Konoha's. I don't
torture my own people."
"I am aware of the gruesome, yet vital service you provide
and I, like all of Konoha's citizens, am grateful for you years
of
service. It is for this reason that I am offering you the
opportunity to confess. Normally a murderer like yourself would
be
put to death, but since you have been such an outstanding jonin,
I feel that the council will not seek the death penalty if
you just admit to your crime."
"And I am telling you that I did not commit a crime."
"Then why is it that DNA of the blood on your ropes matched
Iruka's DNA taken from both the hair that was found in your
dresser as well as dead hair and skin samples retrieved from Mr.
Umino's apartment?"
"I don't know. You must've made some mistake. I've used
those ropes on at least 100 different men."
"we know, we found at least 17 distinct DNA
signatures."
"Then isn't it possible that at least one of those men was a
close enough match to Iruka that your lab can't tell the
difference? I don't know what kind of tests you do, but I'm
telling you that you've made a mistake. I didn't kill him."
"Iruka Umino is an orphan. Without any family, it makes his
DNA pretty unique, which makes the case against you pretty
strong. Right now we have a new search warrant from the hokage.
It allows us to do a more thorough search. We're going to
pull up the tiles in your bathroom, strip the planks off your
floor and in general search ever square inch of your apartment.
Even a thorough person like yourself can't clean blood that's
dripped under the chalk and flooring. I also have an expert
analyzing your handwriting against the notes we found in Iruka's
journal and those that were turned over by the hokage. I
have no doubt that by this time tomorrow we will have more than
enough evidence to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that you
are in fact Iruka's killer. But I must say, I don't have a clue
why. Is it just the old saying that you have to be off your
rocker to be a good ninja? I would think you get enough of your
fill of killing with the job you do. So why did you do it?
What made Iruka so fascinating to you? What did he do to get
under your skin? And more importantly why did you kill him?"
"I refuse to listen to any more of this. You can rip my
place apart if you want. You won't find what you're looking for.
I
will have to put my faith in the elder council and hope that they
can see through this story you've concocted."
"I will be here all night if you change your mind Mr.
Morino. Remember you can still save yourself, all you have to do
is
confess."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Transcript from the proceedings of Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu
Hagane's hearings before the hokage and the elder council:
"Kotetsu, how do you plead?"
"Guilty, hokage-sama."
"Izumo, how do you plead?"
"Guilty, hokage-sama."
"What excuse do you give for your actions?"
"I believe I speak for us both when I say we have no excuse,
hokage-sama."
"I agree. We were completely out of line and I
apologize."
"I would like to apologize as well."
"Am I to assume that you will not abuse your positions in
the future and that you will dole out missions based solely on a
shinobi's skill and experience and not on your personal
feelings?"
"Yes that is correct, hokage-sama."
"We will not be baised in our duties again. We
promise."
"The elder council and I agree that even though your actions
in this matter were deplorable, you are both hard-working,
trustworthy ninjas. You will be given ten rounds of additional
gate duty each and both be docked a month's pay for your lapse of
judgement. Do you understand and accept this decision by the
elder council and myself?"
"I do, hokage-sama."
"I do as well, hokage-sama."
"Good. Before you both leave, however, I would like to
remind you that I and the elder council reviewed the case against
Ibiki Morino and despite what you may have overheard from the
investigator or any body else, we concluded that Ibiki could not
be held accountable for Iruka's disappearance. I understand that
you both miss him and are angered by his disappearance, but I
expect you to respect the decision of this council and if I ever
find out about you assigning Ibiki or any other ninja a mission
that is beyond that shinobi's skillset I will not only remove you
from your job, but I will personally assign you both the most
difficult, dangerous, agonizingly miserable mission that I can
get my hands on. Is that understood?"
"Yes hokage-sama."
"I understand, hokage-sama."
"Good. Furthermore, when Ibiki Morino returns from his
mission, and you had both better pray that he returns from the
hell you sent him to, I expect you to issue a sincere apology to
the man."
"I will, hokage-sama."
"Yes, hokage-sama."
"That's all then, you're both dismissed."
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Note to the hokage and Principal Investigator recoverd from Ibiki
Morino's body by ANBU squad:
Everybody fails in life. I am not so conceited as to think that I
am perfect. I have failed missions. I have hurt innocent people.
In my younger days when my face was not so scarred and my soul
not too tired, I even broke a heart or two.
One should be gracious in both success and defeat. I truly
beleive this. I try not to flaunt my achievements. I try not to
wallow in my failures. But there was one time, one failed
mission, one personal defeat that I could not forget. I have
persecuted myself for years.
It burned at first. It drove the bile in my stomach up into my
chest. I could feel the acid rip at my heart daily. I would tell
myself that I did the best I could. I would tell myself that it
was an impossible situation and that I made the most out of that
situation. I would lie in bed at night remembering every detail,
questioning every choice I made. I would made a different choice
and rerun the whole scenario through my head over and over again.
I never made it work. I could never figure out which choice was
the wrong choice. I could not make that night end in success and
so as time went by I accepted fate and moved on.
And then I heard about Iruka and Naruto. I heard about the stolen
scroll, the missing genin, the duel between two chunin Academy
teachers, best friends who came to blows. A duel to the death in
which Iruka killed Mizuki, brought the forbidden scroll back to
the hokage and upheld his duty to Konoha with honor. But that
wasn't all, he brought the child back as well. He brought the
nine-tailed vessel who had lived with unwarranted fear and hatred
his whole life, back to the village. He had gained the trust of
the one person who had absolutely no reason to ever trust
another.
He brought the child back, his student. His deliquent,
trouble-making student that probably gave him more headaches than
any one else, returned to Konoha because Iruka believed in him.
Iruka showed Naruto that he was important and that he was wanted.
And that is why I killed him, because he succeeded where I
failed.
At first I admired him. I watched him. I listened to him talk
with the other instructors. I soaked up every word about child
psyches and the bahavioral development of young minds. I listened
in curiousity and fascination. I wanted to know why he managed to
succeed where I had failed. I wanted to know what he said to
Naruto that night. I compared his words to those that I had
spoken to Idayate all those years ago. Why did his words get
through when mine never did? What did I say that was wrong? Why
could I not make my own brother trust me, when Iruka commanded so
much faith in his students?
I began to replay the events of the past in my head. I remembered
when I found out that Idayate had stolen the scroll. I heard the
first words I said to him, when I saw him that night, in my ears
and I replaced them with Iruka's words. What would Idayate say
now? How would he react? Would he trust me this time around?
Would he come back for me, when he didn't see me escape from the
burning cabin?
I saw my brother come back to me. I saw him stay here in Konoha,
growing, learning. I taught him jutsus and cheered for him at the
chunin exams. But of course none of it was real. I couldn't
change the past, no matter how badly I wanted to go back and
change the things I said and did that night, I couldn't.
I felt a tremendous amount of gratitude to Iruka. I felt indebted
to him, but at the same time I felt jealous of the relationship
he had with Naruto. I would follow him, hoping to see him smile
warmly in my direction and hear his voice. But his smiles were
not for me, his words were not for me. He impacted my life so
greatly and yet I was just another jounin handing in my mission
report to him. I was no one special. At times I recognized that
that was the way things had to be, but at other times, I didn't
want to always be in the shadows.
When I saw him slitting his own throat that day, I became
terrified. I knew that I would not be able to get up and do my
job if Iruka was not there to accept my mission report at the end
of the day. I stopped him. I recognized that I had disturbed his
life and that I was going too far. I knew that my obsession had
become unhealthy and I blamed myself for causing him grief and
misery. I became very depressed, but that faded and when I
thought about it again later, I became angry. How could he be so
selfish? How could he give up such a precious life? His students
looked up to him. Naruto adored him. Of course I was quite fond
of him as well.
You asked a lot about that night at Sashi's. It really wasn't
that big of a deal. Iruka got spooked by Raido. I did follow him
home, but after he got inside his apartment he went straight to
bed. So I left. I went home and I was getting ready for bed
myself and I noticed the hairband I had taken from his desk so
long ago.
I threw it in the trash. I wasn't going to harass him anymore,
but the next morning when I woke up, I felt guilty. I wanted to
return the headband. I know it sounds silly, but I retrieved it
from the trash, took it to Iruka's and snuck into his apartment
once I realized he was gone. His journal was lying on the
nightstand. I snuck a peak and when I read his entry, the one
about him faking his sucide attempt, I became enraged. I smashed
the lamp on his nightstand. I didn't mean to, but I was so angry
I had to hit something. Then of course, I realized he would
definitely recognize a missing lamp, so I went out and bought
what I thought was a fairly similar one. He usually runs in the
morning. By the time I got back to his apartment he was there.
Most of the time, after his run he comes in and heads straight
for the bathroom. I sat outside his window and when he stepped
into the shower, I decided to slip the lamp onto his table,
hoping he hadn't been into the bedroom to notice it yet.
I just wanted to get in and out unnoticed, but I guess he had
refined his charka detecting jutsu because he caught me. He
recognized me. I was hoping to knock him out and do a short term
memory loss jutsu on him, but he got me off my guard and we
struggled. As we fought my emotions got the better of me. I won't
go into all the details. In some ways it was like I was watching
myself from outside my body. In other ways it was like I had
lived only for that moment. He was beautiful to me, even his pain
was beautiful. I loved him and hated him all at once. He was a
kind, gentle man and I admired that about him, but as my
admiration escalated he consumed my life and I hated him for
that. I'm not proud of what I did, but I can't help but feel that
perhaps it was all fate.
A small series of identical events in our lives tied us together.
The outcome of those events was so different for each of us that
we were bound to clash.
They say that in order to do my job, you have to be 'not quite
right'. I guess maybe that's true. I did my job well, so if I am
to be given any lassitude for my crime than I ask that you do me
one favor. If Idayate should ever inquire about me, please don't
mention any of this to him. Just tell him I'm sorry that I wasn't
able to bring him back.