Chapter 41: 2-11: Inquiry

Disclaimer: Being neither British nor Japanese, it should therefore come as no surprise that I own neither Harry Potter nor Naruto, nor anything from their respective franchises.

The next morning saw Iruka waking well-rested and with a significantly clearer head. He got to enjoy this for approximately two seconds before the ache born of deep bruises and recent exertion caught up to him.

Madam Pomfrey must have had some sort of monitoring charm on him, as she arrived less than a minute later. A few quick diagnostic spells had her nodding in satisfaction and pronouncing him mostly mended before pointing him to the infirmary's shower. While it might have been different for those raised with magic, Iruka at least found that he felt far cleaner after scrubbing with soap and hot water than he had after the cleaning charms the night before. Emerging in a provided robe, he proceeded to separate his weapons and other ninja tools from his filth-caked uniform and seal them all away in a storage scroll. The house-elf that brought his breakfast looked at the fouled uniform with a mix of disgust and eagerness before popping away with it.

After another application of Bruise Balm and bandages, Iruka dressed in a set of his clothes delivered by Flippy and made his way back to his quarters. Just inside his door a note was hovering in the air, telling him (in the Headmaster's voice, once he walked up to it) that there was a meeting planned with Harry, Filius, and Madam Bones to go over recent events. A quick Tempus showed him that he had just enough time to get there on time without rushing, assuming the staircases cooperated.

As luck had it, he ran into Harry three turns from the gargoyle, which led to a brief period of awkward silence as both wanted to converse but neither could come up with any topic that could fit into their short walk together. Both arrived in the Headmaster's office to find the other three already present and the Pensieve already on the desk.

"Ah, Iruka, Harry, welcome!" Albus greeted. "Now that we are all present, I believe that Madam Bones has a number of questions regarding yesterday's events and what led up to them.

The DMLE Director nodded. "First of all, how did you figure out that Slytherin's monster was a Basilisk, and where and how to access the Chamber of Secrets?"

Iruka, with the occasional addition by Harry or Dumbledore, walked all present through the series of clues leading up to the discoveries in question, along with what steps were taken. Once they finished, the Headmaster spoke up. "Perhaps further questions would be best answered, at least in part, by viewing Professor Flitwick's memory of the Chamber expedition?" At Iruka's worried look, he addressed the chuunin. "I have already spoken with both Filius and Madam Bones, and both have agreed that any peculiar talents or abilities possessed by members of the rescue party are not relevant to any Ministry reports and are not to be shared outside the circle of trust without permission or compelling cause. Now, Filius, perhaps you could take the lead?"

Nodding in response, Filius hopped up on a conjured stool and bent down over the Pensieve. As soon as his nose touched the wispy not-liquid inside, the device seemed to suddenly suck him bodily into itself, his body stretching and streaming in as if fluid. It was startling to watch, but based on the unsurprised expressions worn by Professor Dumbledore and Madam Bones, Iruka could only conclude that this was how a Pensieve normally worked. Madam Bones followed, without needing the stool's assistance to reach the desktop. Harry went next, clear hesitation showing through his attempt at Gryffindor bravado, and Albus gestured to Iruka to follow, clearly intending to bring up the rear himself.

Not knowing what to expect, the chuunin took and held a deep breath as he bent over the silvery surface. Instantly finding himself falling through something immensely cold and dark nearly caused him to cry out, then just as suddenly he was standing next to Filius, Madam Bones, Harry, Filius, Snape, Albus, himself, and S.E.N. - he recognized the hallway outside the girl's loo haunted by 'Moaning Myrtle'. A second Albus appeared moments later.

Together, the five watched the end of Iruka's tale play out. Madam Bones gave the Headmaster a look of sympathy when he was denied a place on the rescue mission, likely having experience herself with sending friends and colleagues into danger and being unable to give aid herself. Her look turned intensely curious at his logic for sending Filius in his place, and her monocle fell out of her eye when Harry was revealed to be a Parselmouth. "What did you say, by the way?" Filius asked as Memory-Harry opened the sink.

"I just said 'open'," Harry replied with a half-shrug, "here and later."

"So much for the cunning of Slytherin," the sole witch present commented, "it's pure arrogance thinking Parseltongue is the only security you need."

"Most lax," the Headmaster agreed. "I shudder to consider Alastor's response."

Due to the nature of the memory, the five viewers had to quickly follow Memory-Filius down the pipe, Current-Harry whooping in delight at the ride now that he could enjoy it without the threat of imminent danger. The adults present all gave fond chuckles at the bottom of the slide as Harry blushed.

The brief bout of levity was soon forgotten, however, at the first sight of the Basilisk's shed skin. "Merlin," Madam Bones breathed, "Basilisk or not, any snake that size would be seriously dangerous. How in the world did you all make it out of there alive?"

"You'll see soon enough," Filius commented as the memory continued on towards the Chamber proper. Iruka received an approving nod from the DMLE Head at his memory-self's reminder that they were on a rescue mission, not a snake hunt.

Both Albus and Madam Bones were wide-eyed at the Chamber itself. When the young Riddle made his appearance, the stern witch's eyes immediately narrowed in suspicion, while the Headmaster's expression was more one of sadness, regret, and almost pity. When the phantom called out to the statue, Harry translated the hissing as "Speak to me Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four."

"Lax security, giant statue of himself, that password," Iruka snarked, "Salazar Slytherin was truly a humble man."

"Eyes closed until the explosion, everyone!" Filius's shout startled the other four, who looked at him in confusion. "We don't know if the memory of the Basilisk will contain any of its gaze, and I'd rather not find out in the affirmative." Seeing the logic in the statement, all present closed their eyes until the sound of Iruka's explosive tags.

The two who hadn't been present in the Chamber watched the battle in amazement, particularly the witch who hadn't previously seen what Iruka was capable of. Both were also clearly thinking furiously, whether trying to predict the outcome or trying to figure out what their own strategy would be in that situation. Everyone winced when Iruka was hit, though he calmly reassured them, "I've had as bad before, and it's better than it looks." Judging by the brief glares, it didn't seem to help.

With an outside perspective and a clear head, Iruka could see Memory-Harry dashing across the Chamber floor, faster than he'd ever seen the boy move before, as the Basilisk gathered itself to strike, oblivious to all else in its fixation on its prey. Watching Harry bring down the King of Serpents with a single kunai was amazing even to those who had been there at the time (including Harry himself), and the adults all favored the second-year Gryffindor with wistful but proud smiles as he stood resolutely before his fallen teacher and shouted down the most feared wizard in decades.

After such a spectacle, seeing the diary's destruction was almost anticlimactic. Soon enough the memories had arrived in the Hospital Wing, and Iruka found himself flying upward before landing softly back in the Headmaster's office.

"I felt bloody useless," Filius remarked sourly as the Albus shot him a look of reprimand for his language. "Nothing I tried did anything against Riddle, that diary, the Basilisk..."

"You got us all out, Filius," Iruka replied immediately. "Even if I could normally have cast that messenger spell - something I'd like to learn, by the way - I was in no state to pull off anything more complex than a Lumos. I suppose if there'd been no other choice, that I could have probably climbed back up that pipe carrying or dragging the children, but it would not have done good things for those broken ribs. Somehow, I doubt I'd be this fully recovered today if I'd punctured a lung yesterday." Filius nodded, somewhat mollified but still clearly unsatisfied at his own contribution.

Madam Bones apparently wanted to ask her questions in chronological order. "Since we didn't see it happen, how did you create that explosion?"

"Might I take a guess?" Filius interjected. At Iruka's nod, he continued. "I noticed several times during that fight that you threw knives trailing small slips of paper. Those knives, or more likely the papers behind them, seemed to produce explosions. Recalling your safety demonstration last year and this year, you showed that misdrawn seals can explode when energized, and that the charging cluster can have a time-delay introduced. It stands to reason, then, that it would be possible to create a seal designed to explode, likely with much greater power than most accidents, and to do so in a controlled, predictable fashion."

Iruka smiled at his colleague. "That's right. Those paper tags carried explosive seals. Back home, I sparred on a couple occasions with a woman whose fighting style included summoned snakes of various sizes, so I have some idea how such a creature moves. Even blind, I could hear the Basilisk moving and could tell where it was, so I threw a set of four exploding kunai, those knives, to bracket its head and make sure I ruined its eyes. It was moving too quickly and unpredictably to target the eyes directly, even once I could see."

"That all brings up my next question," the witch said. "How were you able to move like that, and how did you generate those fire spells without a wand?"

The chuunin replied with a brief synopsis of shinobi, chakra, and jutsu, as Filius listened with rapt attention. Albus occasionally commented to clarify points from a wizarding perspective. When he finished, Madam Bones nodded. "I can certainly understand wanting to keep all that secret; the Department of Mysteries would be all over you if they heard about your abilities, and I'd call it a coin toss between the conservative elements decrying you as a creature or demanding access to your powers. Either way, the Prophet would have a field day and their coverage would not be favorable to you. As long as you don't use your abilities for nefarious purposes, I'll keep quiet about them. Won't stop me wishing I had a few Aurors that could do such things, though."

Iruka chuckled. "I'd look at training a few trusted people, were it not for the fact that adults would get very little benefit from it. Of the children I've been training here in Britain, the youngest began at age nine and will still likely never reach my level of ability because of her late start, though she'll outstrip me in magic before she finishes Hogwarts. If you want shinobi-trained Aurors, I'd first suggest finding out if Harry or any of his friends are interested." Harry blushed at the considering look this last statement drew from the chief law-enforcement officer of Wizarding Britain.

"I take it that your training is how Harry knew how to properly handle a blade?" Filius asked.

"Yeah, it was," Harry replied for his sensei. "I just used one of the stances Iruka-sensei showed us; he said it was for enemies attacking from above, which the Basilisk kind of was. I also made sure to turn sideways like he tells us, to be a smaller target and be more stable, which ended up letting me go between the fangs."

"It was very well done," Iruka told his student. "Incredibly reckless, but still, well done."

Albus had the next question. "I noticed that young Harry moved remarkably quickly for a boy his size, even more so than I'd seen in the training sessions I've observed. Was this a new technique you'd taught recently?"

Iruka shook his head. "I've never seen Harry move that fast before either, though I do have a theory about how he managed it. How were you feeling after the Chamber, Harry?"

Harry seemed a bit surprised at the question. "Other than crashing off the adrenaline, I was sore all over. Madam Pomfrey made me take a Muscle-Mending Tonic before she'd let me leave the Hospital Wing."

The chuunin smiled. "That confirms my theory. I'm pretty sure that you somehow managed to pull off at least an approximation of a technique called the Omote Renge, the Initial Lotus. You basically pushed past the limits your body normally imposes on your strength and speed to avoid damaging itself. I don't know whether you did it the same way it's normally performed, whether your magic contributed in some way, or some other possibility. What I can say is why you were able to do it."

"In Konoha," he continued, "we consider our friends, family, village, and comrades to be of paramount importance, and that fighting for each other is always better than fighting for ourselves. That focus on others, on bonds and protection, is what we call 'The Will of Fire', and it's been our village's guiding philosophy since its founding. To put it another way," he said as he put a hand on his student's shoulder, "as the Seventh Hokage will often tell people, 'When a person is protecting someone precious to them, that is when that person can become truly strong.'"

Albus beamed proudly at the two of them. "A wise and enlightened philosophy," he commented. "There will come times when we must take up arms and fight, and it is terribly easy for people to lose themselves in power and violence when that happens. We must always remember to fight with love in our hearts, rather than hatred. Love, I firmly believe, is the most wondrous and powerful magic of all."

A cough from Madam Bones brought them all back to the present. "My next question is for you, Albus." She pointed towards the Headmaster's desk, where Iruka saw the stained remains of Tom Riddle's diary. "What in Merlin's name was that thing?"

"Alas," he replied, "I cannot be certain. Whatever magic it previously held, its enchantments have been utterly shattered by the potent destructiveness of Basilisk venom. I have scanned it using every method I know, and several I had to look up in some of my more esoteric volumes of magical lore, but mostly all I can detect now is a faint residue of the foulest Dark magic I have ever seen. I have a working hypothesis, but I do not believe it appropriate material for younger, more innocent ears." He finished while giving Harry a meaningful look. "Also, the wards inform me that we are about to have company of a sort most ill-suited to such a discussion..."

Almost as soon as the Headmaster finished speaking, the door was thrown open without knocking, and a man swept smoothly (if pompously) into the room. He was tall and lean, clad in immaculate jet black robes of expensive fabric and cut and carrying a black cane with a silver snake-head handle, and appeared to be in his early to mid-30s. His long hair was a near-white blonde, and his complexion was similarly pale; these, plus his sharp facial features and cold, sneering expression marked him as most likely Lucius Malfoy, father of Harry's classmate and erstwhile rival Draco, head of the Hogwarts Board of Governors, and supposedly-conscripted 'former' Death Eater.

"Dreadful thing, Dumbledore," Malfoy drawled while withdrawing a rolled document from his robes, "but the governors feel it's time for you to step aside. This is an Order of Suspension - you'll find all twelve signatures on it. I'm afraid we feel you're losing your touch. How many attacks have there been now? Another one just yesterday, this time the youngest child of one of your most ardent supporters. Clearly, you are simply no longer able to keep your students safe."

"I'm afraid, Lucius," the Grand Sorcerer replied with a calm smile, "that your information is somewhat out of date. Not only was Slytherin's mysterious Chamber found and Miss Weasley retrieved unharmed, but the beast inflicting the petrifications was slain and the individual controlling it dealt with."

"How delightfully convenient for you," Malfoy sneered. "While some people might simply accept your assurances as absolute, the Board shall require more proof than a wild story."

"It is fortuitous then," the Supreme Mugwump said, "that I was shortly about to suggest a return expedition to the Chamber in order to ensure that no other unpleasant surprises remain within, and to examine the Chamber itself. It is, after all, a historical site, and as such should be studied and documented. This time, of course, we shall be able to go in far greater numbers and safety. I had planned on calling in some specialists to check for any lingering curses or hidden areas, but you are welcome to call upon experts of your own choosing as well. Also, I hope to bring Professor Snape with us to examine the carcass, in case any portion of it might be useful in his work or his research."

"I see," the blond aristocrat said coldly. "And when do you intend your little undertaking to begin?"

"With luck," the Chief Warlock smiled back, "I hope to have all the necessary parties gathered tomorrow. Shall I owl you with the time?"

"Please do. You may remain in your post, for now, but if you are unable to provide adequate proof of your claims tomorrow you shall not be returning to this office afterward. If you will excuse me..." He gave a formal, if minimal, nod of his head to those present before striding back out.

"Take a lesson from the Headmaster, Harry," Iruka commented once the interloper had left. "You should always try to stay polite and friendly towards people no matter how unpleasant they are. If nothing else, it's amusing how annoyed they get."

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," Albus stated with a seemingly-serious expression belied by the twinkling in his eyes. "I was simply showing good manners to a guest, nothing more. Now, it would seem that I shall have to be somewhat more urgent in gathering participants for tomorrow's little adventure; may I count on all of your attendance?" A round of nods answered him. "Excellent. Now, before you go, I have an idea which I expect young Harry might appreciate..."

A/N: I've seen fics that have people entering memories by sticking a finger into the Pensieve, fics that have people just standing there spaced out while viewing memories, and fics that have memory-viewing take very little time. All of these I questioned whether they were canonical or not. Turns out, not. I based the method of Pensieve usage on a scene from Chapter 10 of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Harry and Dumbledore enter the Pensieve sequentially, and when they leave, it mentions their feet landing on the floor of Dumbledore's office, so I concluded that the user is pulled bodily into the memory. The description in the book also indicates that a non-trivial amount of time passed during the memory viewing.

Also, why is it that bot FFnet and AO3 strip underlines (but not bold/italic)?

Fic Recommendation: "The Sealed Kunai" by Kenchi618 - Naruto was, unbeknownst to Hiruzen, recruited by Root at a young age. When he discovers this, he has Naruto's memories and advanced capabilities sealed away, but that seal starts to break down during his fight with Gaara.

Posted 23 September 2018

Current WIP Chapter: 65