The sky looked strange today. To me it appeared as though it was a direct mirror of my turbulent mind. The clouds on the left hand side of the sky were dark and slowly drifting to the right, threatening a heavy storm that had the potential to become devastating. Conversely, the right hand side was perfectly clear and the sky was a beautiful shade light blue. Anyone would think that such a beautiful thing could never be ruined by something as simple as a thunderstorm, but it was possible. Weather was such an unpredictable thing, and that was why it was so like the human mind. On one hand, your mind was dark and filled with thoughts that could destroy you one day. It was nearly impossible to get rid of these thoughts because they were insecurities and fears that had long since taken root. They threatened, along with the heavy clouds, to bring along an unstoppable storm. But on the other hand, your mind was pure. and if there was a desire to keep it that way, it too had the strength to pull you in along with it. This side of the mind resembled the right hand side of the sky because it was a beautiful thing; a pure mind held no darkness and even had the power to bring light to the darkest of places.
It would prove fatal, however, if there was no will to fight the darkness that threatened to take you over. If there was no desire to keep the mind pure, then there was no defense against this so called darkness. I felt like the sky resembled my mind because of the fact that these two sides of me had been warring so much more than usual lately. The dark side of my mind wanted to tell me that all of the choices I had made up to this point in my life had all been bad. To some degree, I couldn't agree more. I had made some pretty pitiful choices over the course of the past two years, one of them being leaving the Village Hidden in the Leaves. I had left on the account of trying to find myself in this world, but I could only seem to justify that to myself. There really wasn't a way to describe this to someone else. They probably wouldn't understand, and would even be so inclined as to tell me that I was an idiot for leaving my home. I sometimes felt like an idiot for leaving my home. But was that place truly my home? In my defense, my entire life had been painted out for me; something that had been carefully created and made specifically for me. Everything that I had ever known had been something that was designed to keep me from figuring out the truth. I had been lied to for fourteen years, and I certainly no longer felt like being lied to.
However, the pure side of my mind enjoyed telling me that everything I had done up to this point had been the right thing for me. I had acted on my own desire to find the truth, and that was something that no one could take from me. The pure side of my mind argued that not many people would search for the truth because they were content with the lies. It was because the lies were something they had grown up with and they lacked the desire to find the truth, simply because they were afraid of it. No one wanted to find out the truth, merely because of their fear of it being worse than the lie. I had grown up in a world full of wonderfully constructed lies; immaculate lies that had kept me in the dark until two years ago. Those lies had kept me in the dark for as long as I could remember, but this was different now. I was fighting against this darkness that threatened to swallow me whole and bring me back behind its wall of destruction. I refused to be taken in again by the lies.
"Now I'm getting lazy," I sighed and smiled to myself, suddenly forgetting about the clouds in the sky. I rolled over onto my stomach and reached for my bag. Despite mulling over my problems, it had suddenly dawned on me that I had a much more pressing issue than my life choices. I opened my bag and dumped its contents onto the ground. I pushed my food and water supply off to a separate side to look at it. It looked like it was getting pretty low. I didn't have very much of it left, and I figured what little bit I had now would only get me through for a few days. I sighed and grabbed the much smaller bag I had reserved for money. As I opened the bag, I couldn't help but notice how light it was. Usually it was heavy enough to knock someone out if I had hit them upside the head with it.
"I'm also getting poor." I pouted and tied the bag shut. I reached for a small scroll that I had reserved for this specific purpose. I untied the small string that kept the scroll from unraveling and opened it up, scanning the list of names and locations that were in front of me. Beside each name was the amount of money the person who captured that person would receive. Each name held a considerable bounty, mainly because I had no business going after the little guys. If I went after the ones with a bigger price over their heads, I wouldn't have to constantly be bounty hunting for money. It was something I had taken up not only for a means for income to keep me going, but also as a way to make sure my fighting wasn't getting rusty. So far I hadn't lost any bounties I went after, so I assumed either my opponent's were extremely weak, or that I was strong enough to take them on.
"It's decided then," I smiled and began putting my things back into my bag. I didn't know much about the person I had chosen, but what I did know was that he was an ex-ninja from the Village Hidden in the Mist. This man would probably give me a run for my money, but regardless of what he might be able to do, I was only concerned with the price over his head: thirty-five million Ryo. I would be set for a while if I was successful in capturing him. If I caught this man, Yami Mori, I wouldn't have to go bounty hunting again for probably another couple of months. However, I needed to come up with a strategy and I also needed to gather some information on this man. It wouldn't do to just run blindly into a fight. The only things I could say for certain was that he was probably a proficient user in Water Style Jutsus and in order to have such a high bounty on his head, he had to be considerably dangerous. I wouldn't even know where to look; therefore, this meant I needed to go to his home village to find out something about him.
First, I probably needed to know why he left. There would probably be multiple stories for this, so once I heard them, I needed to be able to sift through the ones that sounded logical and the ones that sounded like rumors. Next, I needed to know how strong he was before he left his home village. Obviously at this point he would have gotten much stronger, but knowing his past strength was better than not knowing his strength at all. Lastly, I would need to know if he went alone. Not every Rogue Ninja left their villages by themselves. More often than not, they had someone tag along with them to use as a decoy, or simply because that person sympathized with the other. It was plausible that Yami Mori was not travelling alone; therefore, it was imperative that I knew everything about him up to the last moment he was in the Hidden Mist village.
The sun was beginning to disappear behind the horizon by the time I had reached the Hidden Mist Village. As a traveler, a Hidden Village was not usually on the top of my list of places I wanted to go. Honestly, it was usually towards the bottom considering the fact that the shinobi of each respective Hidden Village would have ready a barrage of bothersome questions ready when they caught you snooping around their village. But I had legitimate business in this village, so regardless of what questions they decided to ask me, I had a good answer for each and every one of them.
I smiled and raised both of my hands in the air, feeling the presence of a handful of ninjas. Almost instantly, my arms were yanked brutally behind my back. I grimaced and looked around at the shinobi surrounding me. This was typical of the Hidden Mist; or rather, this could be typical of any major shinobi village. I knew that the Hidden Villages of the Five Great Nations were prone to constant invasions, therefore their security measures would vary based on the severity of each respective invasion and how often these invasions occurred. For the Village Hidden in the Mist, I hadn't thought their security measures would be so severe, due to their geographical location and how beautifully hidden their village was, but it was understandable.
"Why are you here?" A shinobi standing in front of me snapped. "Your answer will determine how long I let you live."
I smiled and tried to gesture to my bag. "My reason is in here, good man, and if you would be so inclined as to allow me to retrieve my reason, I will gladly tell you."
He nodded and I was freed. I stretched my arms for a minute and then pulled my bag from my shoulders and began rummaging through the contents. I had already assumed that it would have been significantly difficult to gain entry to this village, so I had prepared this beforehand. Basically it was a scroll, and its contents was my mission. It stated exactly who I was looking for and what I needed to know about this person before I would leave the village and go to search for this person. I finally found and grabbed the scroll, dropping my bag to the ground and taking a step forward towards the shinobi that had threatened me. Everyone around him tensed as though they thought I was going to attack, but I merely handed him the scroll.
"I'm here on a self-assigned mission." I stated. "Yami Mori is my target, and my only purpose here is to gather information. I have no malicious desires and do not plan to do anything that will harm the current or future states of your village. If you feel like anything I have just said or that I have shown you is false or is in any way suspicious, feel free to kill me."
The man looked up at me after looking over the scroll. His comrades were waiting for his decision, as was I. Personally, I didn't want to die, but it just seemed like something good to say at the time. If they believed that I was telling the truth because I had told them to kill me, well then it all worked out in my favor. But if for some reason they thought that I just didn't care about my life and that my mission seemed suspicious, they would definitely kill me. Either way, it was out of my hands now. The man watched me with narrowed eyes. He obviously didn't trust me, but I also figured that he didn't trust any outsider and took the safety of his village very seriously, which was completely understandable. I would probably be the same if I were in his position. Finally he reached his decision and turned on his heel, gesturing to his comrades for them to go on ahead, probably to inform their superiors about their guest.
"So I guess this means I get to live?" I asked with a smirk.
He didn't even look at me. "If you try anything, you will die before you can bat an eye. While you are inside of this village, you will be kept under constant surveillance, and if you try to hide from or escape our surveillance team, we will find you and we will kill you. In any scenario in which you have made yourself appear as an enemy to our village, the end result will be fatal. Have I made myself perfectly clear?"
"Crystal..." I muttered. "Well, let's get right to it so my stay won't be prolonged. Do you know anything about Yami Mori? I need to know his weaknesses, motives, strengths, and if anyone left with him when he turned against the village."
"Not many people will remember Yami." The man said. "We suffered a great loss when he left the village. Yami protested the current leadership of the village of that time, but no one was willing to follow his cause. He was feared, even by the strongest ninja in our village. I was only a child at that time, but I was old enough to realize what was going on. From what I can remember, he's one of the reasons why the Hidden Mist is reputed for their assassination techniques."
I shuddered. "Sounds like a pretty evil guy. Do you know what kind of techniques he used? Since you're old enough now to know them, you could probably tell me. I need to know or else he'll probably be the one to kill me, and not the other way around."
"From what I understood over the years, and from the classified documents I've read, Yami Mori was significantly skilled with the Water Release jutsus. Most of us in this village are, but he had a natural talent for it. When he attempted to slaughter the entire village, he used a number of jutsu that required large amounts of chakra in quick succession. Very few shinobi had survived when he finally decided to leave the village."
"Did he take anyone with him?" I asked.
He shook his head. "Not that I'm aware of. Keep in mind that this took place fifteen years ago. I'm sure you weren't even thought of back then; you look like just a kid. Also, why would a kid like you think she could take on an S-rank Rogue Ninja from the Mist?"
"I've come to realize that every generation surpasses their predecessors. If this happened fifteen years ago, well then, he's fifteen years behind me. I can't even imagine how outdated this guy is. He probably coughs up cobwebs and burps dust. Come on, don't underestimate me. If I was an average kid, I'd be dead by now, because I would have long since went out to find him. Instead, I came here to gather information. Show a little faith in your outsider, here." I grinned and crossed my arms over my chest.
"What village do you belong to?" He asked. We'd already reached the center of the village, and we were now heading towards where I believed the Mizukage resided. It was a little unnerving to be speaking to a Kage from a different Shinobi Nation, but I guessed this just meant I needed to be a little more respectful than usual. And with this thought, I determined that I was absolutely doomed.
"Why does it matter?" I asked absentmindedly, still worrying over what I would say to the Mizukage. How in the world could I be respectful? I was generally sarcastic to new people, and that would just not do. They could easily kill me for disrespecting their leader, and that was why I considered myself doomed. My only hope now was to believe that this person, whoever he or she turned out to be, had an amazing sense of humor. I could remember our new Hokage having a less than admirable sense of humor, and even bordering on intolerant of sarcastic remarks and little jokes. If the Mizukage was anything like Lady Tsunade, I think it would just be best if I kept my mouth shut and let the others do the talking for me.
"I want to know where to return your body when you betray this village." I glanced at him and he was smiling, appearing as though he loved the thought of being able to kill me. This wasn't good. What if the Mizukage was like this guy? Ah hell.
"Lord Mizukage, we have kid from a neighboring Hidden Village that wants to ask you a few questions about Yami Mori." The shinobi escorting me called from outside the Mizukage's office. I hurriedly uncrossed my arms and folded my hands neatly in front of me. What was a good way to greet a Kage from a different nation? Should I bow? No, I didn't think I needed to do, but that would definitely show my respect. What if I didn't bow and they expected me to? I'd never had to bow before the Hokage, but every place's customs were different. This was going to be a lot more difficult than I had earlier thought.
"Bring them in," said a woman's voice from the other side of the door. The man opened the door and I walked inside. Immediately my eyes fell on a relatively pretty woman with extremely long auburn hair and bright green eyes. She looked kind. "What's your name, kid?"
"Um, Mizuki Hyuga, ma'am." I said and began nervously wringing my hands together. It didn't matter how kind this woman looked, she could be contemplating my death right now. She smiled and nodded.
"I've heard of the Hyuga clan. I guess you're from the Hidden Leaf." She said. "So are you here on a mission to capture Yami? If that's the case, I'm afraid I can't let you do that. It just wouldn't do to allow a neighboring shinobi village to capture the secrets of this village. But if that's not the case, please tell me."
I swallowed hard. "Well, I'm on a self-assigned mission. I intend to capture and kill Yami Mori and collect the thirty-five million Ryo that hangs over his head. I'm not necessarily a bounty hunter, but it's what I do in order to be able to continue my travelling. I am, as you say, with the Hidden Leaf, but I am no longer living in the village. I suppose you could call me a Rogue Ninja as well, but that was not my intention when I left the village. I have no malicious intent, and am merely seeking the means to carry out a different mission. If you will allow me to collect information on Yami Mori, I would be highly grateful to you."
"I like you." She said with a grin, crossing her hands under her chin. "You're captivating me with this. What exactly is your separate mission? May I ask?"
I shrugged. "I guess it's not a secret. How do I put this... I can't remember a lot of my life, and I believe it's because of an evil man that I've seen in my memories only once. However, I'm not searching for this man just yet. I want to know all of these manufactured memories and I want to know the meaning of my existence. Due to these false memories of mine, I have no way to know whether or not I'm here for a reason or if I myself am a fabricated entity. My true mission is to find the truth."
"That's so tragic..." She sighed. "Alright then! I'll tell you what you need to know. Yami was an old friend of mine, of course, so I should be able to tell you a lot. What exactly do you need to know? I'll admit I don't know everything, and it may not even be of any use at this point. He's been gone a long time, and he could have changed in that time. He's probably a completely different person now."
"I know." I said. "But I need to know his strengths and weaknesses, and I need to know his motives and where he might have gone. I can't find someone when I'm searching blindly. I have a photo of him because I've gotten into the habit of collecting bounty posters everywhere I go, so all I need to know is his personality to determine where he might have gone or where he could be. Everything else will just allow me to have a higher chance of defeating him."
She tapped her chin. "Well, he wasn't a very cheerful person, so he kept to himself. No one really liked him, and I was his only friend back then. He liked to complain about the current state of affairs, and I got bored a lot. He got angry easily. I remember the night he attacked the village we had gotten into an argument earlier in the day. He told me I didn't care about the village, but I told him that he was a complainer and had nothing better to do than bitch and moan about the things he wasn't old enough to change yet. He didn't like that very much, and later that night, he tried to take the village. When no one would follow him, he changed his plan to slaughtering everyone. We were just Genin at the time, but he was far beyond Jonin level. I was among the people he came after, but I was also pretty strong for my rank. I was the last one he tried to kill before a handful of shinobi finally came and he ran away. Yami was very fond of long-range attack types because he wasn't very proficient in close combat. I had always beaten him out in that respect. He was also jealous of my kekkei genkai and had always asked me to teach it to him, even though he knew it would be impossible."
"Kekkei genkai?" I asked.
"Yes. I can use Lava Release and Boil Release, and it's only possible because of the chakra properties I combine. Anyway, because he had no friends, he didn't leave with anyone. And I don't think he would have any comrades now, because personalities like his just don't change; not even after fifteen years. I think they get worse. His weak points should be, from what I can remember, close range combat and high speed attacks. He's not very fast, but he's terrifyingly strong. I don't believe I could beat him, even to this day. I will tell you to use extreme caution. He can pinpoint an opponent's weakness in seconds if you show them to him. Do not underestimate him, and do not show your weaknesses. He is extremely skilled in using his opponent's strengths and weaknesses against them. I hope you have a large arsenal of jutsu that can't backfire."
"What would work against him?"
She pursed her lips in consideration and then nodded. "Well, fire style will not be very useful unless it's backed by something to give it force, like wind or lightning. Lightning style will work beautifully against him, due to the fact that he's got the water style chakra property. However, he also uses earth and fire. He's very skilled in each of his properties. If you don't mind telling me, do you know your chakra property?"
"That would 'properties'." I smiled. "I'm pretty skilled in fire type and lightning type. Over the years, I've been developing some new techniques that I believe might be useful against him."
"Oh?"
"Is that all?" I asked. "I'm burning away time here."
She cocked her eyebrow. "Don't rush into this fight, Mizuki. Now, last thing, he always used to tell me how he was going to create a peaceful world, regardless of if he had to use force or not. I suggest you search the most war-torn lands; you'll probably find him there rallying followers. Along your way, you might also hear about him."
"Right." I nodded and turned to leave.
"Oh, and Mizuki?"
"Yes?"
She smiled. "Don't die."
