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edenfallingThis is part 13 of An Ounce of Prevention, a Naruto/Harry Potter crossover that I started as a giftfic for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
askerian.
Technically, it's an insertion of one HP character/plot device into the Naruto world, but that does count as a crossover of sorts. "An Ounce of Prevention" will not affect canon in either series; that is, it takes place during the Naruto timeskip, and significantly before CoS in HP. (Which gives away at least part of the ending, but whatever. *grin*)
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Chapter 13: Don't Judge a Book
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"Killing me?" Sakura repeated blankly.
"It's subtle, and I can't work out the mechanism, but the seal is draining your chakra," Tsunade said. "That's probably why you've seemed tired recently... and I suspect the rate may increase each time you write in the diary."
"That would explain why the genjutsu is so strong," Kakashi added, lowering his forehead protector over his left eye. "The chakra flow splits once it hits the book, and one strand doubles back to your head. The imprint is using your own energy to hypnotize you. I say we destroy the book and triple-classify the mission records."
"But we haven't proved anything about Tomu!" Sakura protested. "We've only proved that the diary is evil, and we already knew that."
Tsunade crossed her arms and frowned. "At this point, I don't care if this Tomu person is innocent or not; he's more trouble than he's worth. On the other hand, I'd really like to know exactly how that book ended up in non-space, and whether we're likely to run into other nasty surprises from this other world. The more we can learn, the better prepared we'll be in the future."
Kakashi coughed. "There's one slight problem. We can't learn anything from the imprint without writing in the book, which is potentially deadly to us... and also stupid, since we don't know what other jutsu the imprint might be able to perform once it gathers enough chakra. Imagine mind-control genjutsu on a grand scale, for example. This is an unnecessary risk."
Sakura stared down at the diary, wondering if Kakashi might be right. Tomu's world did use genjutsu on a grand scale -- illusions strong enough to erase the memories of millions of people. Could he use those jutsu here? Would he?
Anko's harsh laugh broke the tension. "Dumbass!"
"How so?" Kakashi asked, tilting his head.
"Genjutsu!" Anko said, straightening from her slouch against the window frame. "He's already opened a connection to Sakura. Why don't we reverse it and read his mind?" She slapped the table for emphasis.
"Because genjutsu doesn't work like that. You can influence, but you can't see beneath the surface layers of---" Kakashi began.
"Shut up," Tsunade said firmly. "I know regular genjutsu isn't as flexible as people often think, but this Tomu seems to have other talents, and he picked up our language suspiciously fast and fluently. His connection with Sakura might be closer to Yamanaka mind-walking than ordinary genjutsu. The question is how we get Sakura in without tipping him off. Kakashi?"
He ignored her. "Are you sure you want to risk this?" he asked Sakura. "You don't owe the imprint any loyalty."
"That doesn't matter. It's still wrong to kill him without proof," Sakura said, pressing one hand protectively over the diary. "If he's evil, that's one thing, but I'm learning to be a medic-nin. I'm supposed to help people, not murder them."
Tsunade twitched, and then smiled, wry and rueful with just a hint of pride. "You heard my apprentice. Get on with it, Hatake."
"If we do this, I'll take you into an illusion," Kakashi said, pulling out a chair and sitting next to Sakura. "I'll point out the connection the imprint is using to influence you; your conscious mind isn't aware of it, but your subconscious should be able to grasp the thread. From then on, it's up to you."
He raised his forehead-protector. "You threw off Yamanaka Ino's mind trap in your first chuunin exam, which means you have a certain amount of mental strength. Hoard that; it's harder to escape an enemy's mind than to enter. Also, it will help if you're touching the book. Ready?"
Sakura bit her lip. She really didn't remember much of that fight against Ino, and she knew her willpower would never be as strong as, say, Naruto or Sasuke. She was always the weakest link. But she wasn't going to stop trying to improve. She wouldn't ever slow them down again.
This was her mission. Tomu was her responsibility. She had to know the truth, one way or the other.
"You can back out any time, Sakura," Kakashi said, almost gently.
Sakura's head snapped up and she gripped the diary in white-knuckled hands. "No! I'm not going to give up, never again. Do it now!"
She met the whirling red-and-black of Kakashi's left eye, and fell into darkness.
---------------------------------------------
End of Chapter
Back to Even a Stopped Clock
Continue to Put Your Money
Read the final version on ff.net
---------------------------------------------
In real life news, I purchased a new mattress. It will be delivered on Saturday. Hurrah for the (hopefully) successful avoidance of back pain!
askerian.Technically, it's an insertion of one HP character/plot device into the Naruto world, but that does count as a crossover of sorts. "An Ounce of Prevention" will not affect canon in either series; that is, it takes place during the Naruto timeskip, and significantly before CoS in HP. (Which gives away at least part of the ending, but whatever. *grin*)
---------------------------------------------
Chapter 13: Don't Judge a Book
---------------------------------------------
"Killing me?" Sakura repeated blankly.
"It's subtle, and I can't work out the mechanism, but the seal is draining your chakra," Tsunade said. "That's probably why you've seemed tired recently... and I suspect the rate may increase each time you write in the diary."
"That would explain why the genjutsu is so strong," Kakashi added, lowering his forehead protector over his left eye. "The chakra flow splits once it hits the book, and one strand doubles back to your head. The imprint is using your own energy to hypnotize you. I say we destroy the book and triple-classify the mission records."
"But we haven't proved anything about Tomu!" Sakura protested. "We've only proved that the diary is evil, and we already knew that."
Tsunade crossed her arms and frowned. "At this point, I don't care if this Tomu person is innocent or not; he's more trouble than he's worth. On the other hand, I'd really like to know exactly how that book ended up in non-space, and whether we're likely to run into other nasty surprises from this other world. The more we can learn, the better prepared we'll be in the future."
Kakashi coughed. "There's one slight problem. We can't learn anything from the imprint without writing in the book, which is potentially deadly to us... and also stupid, since we don't know what other jutsu the imprint might be able to perform once it gathers enough chakra. Imagine mind-control genjutsu on a grand scale, for example. This is an unnecessary risk."
Sakura stared down at the diary, wondering if Kakashi might be right. Tomu's world did use genjutsu on a grand scale -- illusions strong enough to erase the memories of millions of people. Could he use those jutsu here? Would he?
Anko's harsh laugh broke the tension. "Dumbass!"
"How so?" Kakashi asked, tilting his head.
"Genjutsu!" Anko said, straightening from her slouch against the window frame. "He's already opened a connection to Sakura. Why don't we reverse it and read his mind?" She slapped the table for emphasis.
"Because genjutsu doesn't work like that. You can influence, but you can't see beneath the surface layers of---" Kakashi began.
"Shut up," Tsunade said firmly. "I know regular genjutsu isn't as flexible as people often think, but this Tomu seems to have other talents, and he picked up our language suspiciously fast and fluently. His connection with Sakura might be closer to Yamanaka mind-walking than ordinary genjutsu. The question is how we get Sakura in without tipping him off. Kakashi?"
He ignored her. "Are you sure you want to risk this?" he asked Sakura. "You don't owe the imprint any loyalty."
"That doesn't matter. It's still wrong to kill him without proof," Sakura said, pressing one hand protectively over the diary. "If he's evil, that's one thing, but I'm learning to be a medic-nin. I'm supposed to help people, not murder them."
Tsunade twitched, and then smiled, wry and rueful with just a hint of pride. "You heard my apprentice. Get on with it, Hatake."
"If we do this, I'll take you into an illusion," Kakashi said, pulling out a chair and sitting next to Sakura. "I'll point out the connection the imprint is using to influence you; your conscious mind isn't aware of it, but your subconscious should be able to grasp the thread. From then on, it's up to you."
He raised his forehead-protector. "You threw off Yamanaka Ino's mind trap in your first chuunin exam, which means you have a certain amount of mental strength. Hoard that; it's harder to escape an enemy's mind than to enter. Also, it will help if you're touching the book. Ready?"
Sakura bit her lip. She really didn't remember much of that fight against Ino, and she knew her willpower would never be as strong as, say, Naruto or Sasuke. She was always the weakest link. But she wasn't going to stop trying to improve. She wouldn't ever slow them down again.
This was her mission. Tomu was her responsibility. She had to know the truth, one way or the other.
"You can back out any time, Sakura," Kakashi said, almost gently.
Sakura's head snapped up and she gripped the diary in white-knuckled hands. "No! I'm not going to give up, never again. Do it now!"
She met the whirling red-and-black of Kakashi's left eye, and fell into darkness.
---------------------------------------------
End of Chapter
Back to Even a Stopped Clock
Continue to Put Your Money
Read the final version on ff.net
---------------------------------------------
In real life news, I purchased a new mattress. It will be delivered on Saturday. Hurrah for the (hopefully) successful avoidance of back pain!
