Author's Note:

Took me a while to update, but here's chapter two!

They stared blankly at the slab of rock before them. The most recent bouquet of flowers placed before it was already beginning to wilt, despite having been left there only recently. A new name, "Shiranui Gennai," was freshly etched into the stone, the latest in a seemingly endless list of shinobi who had been honorably killed in action. The deceased man's students stood in complete silence as they paid their respects.

The funeral had not been extravagant, but that was befitting of a shinobi. It was standard that only his or her closest friends and relatives would attend, and often a short eulogy was given by the Hokage. After everyone gets their chance to pay their respects, the body is buried, and the ceremony ends as quickly as it began.

Gennai's tribute had been particularly moving, as he had been a member of the previous Hokage's elite personal guard, and was fairly well-known throughout the village. After heroically serving the Yondaime Hokage for years, he had given his position to his younger brother so that he could eventually take on a team of Genin as his apprentices. He had always said that this was his own way of passing on "The Will of Fire," and his students now felt this sentiment more than ever. Nevertheless, not a single tear was shed among any of the attendees. Not even the younger brother Genma wavered, despite their tremendous closeness. This was how shinobi operated. In traditional times, shedding tears would have even been considered offensive to the deceased. This fact didn't make letting go any easier.

It had been only four days since the funeral, but it felt as though an eternity had passed. They bowed before the Memorial Stone one last time, then left to make their way back toward the village. In such a short time, visiting the memorial had already become routine, and was to be that way for as long as the three of them could reach it together. They had now walked a considerable distance in silence, and Murasaki was the first to speak.

"I still don't understand," he said in a hushed tone. "Gennai-sensei was strong. I don't know anyone anywhere who would have an easy time taking him down, let alone in a barren place like Uzu." His unruly hair was let down for a change, and it moved wildly behind him in the crisp autumn breeze.

"Apparently the ANBU team that retrieved his body found no sign of other shinobi in the area," Hidama explained. He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts. "The Hokage still has yet to give out any concrete details regarding his death. But I assume that she's at least suspicious regarding the rumor of dead shinobi from other villages." He began to absentmindedly kick a stone along the path as they trudged forward.

Kosuke gritted his teeth at the mention of that rumor. "I don't care what happened to those other shinobi," he spoke agitatedly. "I don't know how powerful those others were, but Gennai-sensei was one of our best. Whoever is out there picking people off has got to be on an entirely different level. If I could just figure out who did this to him…" Gennai's death seemed to be affecting Kosuke the worst between the three. Apparently he hadn't slept more than a handful of hours since they had received the news, and it showed in his appearance as well as in his demeanor. Dark circles had appeared under his eyes, and he was beginning to grow a beard that could no longer pass as five o'clock shadow.

Hidama sighed and placed his hand on his distressed teammate's shoulder. "I know what you mean, Kosuke, but there's not much we can do at the moment. We have to continue living our lives as loyal shinobi of Konohagakure. That's all Sensei ever wanted from us, so it's the least we can do for him." Murasaki nodded in agreement, and Kosuke followed a few moments later.

After continuing in relative silence for the next few minutes, the trio finally reached the outskirts of the village's market district. It was mid-afternoon, and the streets were filled with the usual hustle and bustle of buyers and merchants doing business. To the rest of the world, things were carrying on the same as always, and the scene couldn't help but distract the three Chunin from their thoughts of mourning.

"Come on guys, let's go grab a bite to eat!" Murasaki finally bellowed, breaking their lingering silence. "We still have an hour before our next mission briefing, so we might as well get some food in our stomachs! I'm starving!" Kosuke couldn't help but smile. Murasaki was always the one to lighten a dark mood, and his infectious smile had made him a well-known "comedian" among their peers. Even Hidama, who came from a clan well-known for their ever stoic attitude, couldn't help but crack a grin.

Kosuke took one last look in the direction of the Memorial Stone. Things would be different without their sensei around, and that was for certain. But somehow he knew it would be alright, as long as Team Gennai stuck together like they always had, and as long as they kept alive his "Will of Fire."

"Yeah, let's go!"

"I told you that I have this case under control, Tsunade-hime. I insist, there is no reason for any of your forces to get involved."

"This wasn't even within your jurisdiction in the first place, Danzo. If it wasn't for the Council, I would have shut down your entire operation long ago."

"You are naïve, Tsunade. I am doing what is in the best interest of our village. While you may not be taking this incident seriously, I have reason to believe that this could pose a threat to all of Konohagakure."

To say that Shimura Danzo frustrated her would be an understatement. Tsunade was well aware that he was running his own organization that was solely loyal to him, even though it had been officially disbanded years ago, known as Root. The Konoha Council repeatedly advised her not to disrupt his workings, despite the fact that he repeatedly undermined her authority as Hokage. This situation was no different.

"It's in capable hands. Two of my best agents are already investigating Gennai's death," Danzo explained as he leaned heavily on his cane. He was an elderly man from the same era as the late Sandaime Hokage. His face was heavily scarred from years of service as a one of Konoha's elite, and bandages covered the entire right side of his face. Tsunade was one of the few who knew what those bandages hid, and the thought of it disgusted her to that day.

The Hokage let out an exasperated sigh. "You can do whatever you want, Danzo. Nevertheless, I'm sending a team out there to check things out too. The ones I've chosen are particularly invested in the case, so I have no doubt that they'll bring something back." Tsunade stared fiercely at the elder as she made this statement. She knew that Danzo wouldn't be happy with her decision, but this fact pleased her all the more.

"Very well," he finally agreed after a few moments of silence. "Send your own team. However, I must insist that they rendezvous with my agents and share resources. Naturally, this will ensure the best result for the mission."

As much as she hated the idea of Danzo getting his hands into her business yet again, she couldn't argue with his logic. Having the cooperation of Root, which specialized in information gathering, would be invaluable on this particular mission. "Fair enough. Give me their coordinates and I'll send a team their way."

Danzo nodded. "I'll have them sent shortly, Tsunade-hime. It's been a pleasure as always." Without another word, the bandaged shinobi turned towards the door. After a few clacks of his cane, he was gone. Tsunade couldn't help but sigh as the door to her office shut. Somehow, Danzo always seemed to get his way, and she knew it would only be a matter of time before he attempted to usurp her power. However, she managed pushed these thoughts aside for the time being. The team that was to be assigned to investigate Uzu would be arriving shortly, and she had to prepare the mission brief as soon as possible. Still, she couldn't help but let the sound of that man's cane linger in the back of her head.

They were now a decent distance from Amegakure, as the rain had finally ceased. Kakuzu and the masked man walked at a steady pace and exchanged idle conversation as the young girl trailed behind. It had been decided that it was best for the three of them to operate as covertly as possible, and thus Kakuzu and Suika had both removed their Akatsuki cloaks. The former now wore only a simple sleeveless grey shirt that exposed his heavily stitched arms, as well as a cloth mask that covered the lower half of his face. His lengthy black hair trailed behind him in the light breeze. Suika had changed into a backless top and black shorts, and had bandages covering most of her arms and legs. She remained silent as the two men ahead of her continued to chat.

"I didn't even know that the Nanabi had ended up in Taki," Kakuzu mused to Madara. "Goes to show you how out of touch I am with that place after all these years. Not that I regret it." He felt no sympathy for his former village, and was delighted by the idea that its biggest military asset had gone and abandoned it.

"Apparently the Jinchuriki was run out of the village," Madara explained. His right hand rested on the hilt of his katana out of habit. "Rumor has it that the biju inside of her had begun to erode her sanity, and she would often have violent uncontrollable outbreaks. Seems like she became too difficult to handle, and they got rid of her."

Kakuzu scoffed at this bit of information. "That's so disgustingly typical of them. The second something doesn't operate the way they need it to, they dispose of it like a piece of trash. Lucky for us, that just makes our job easier." He then heard a twig snap behind him and was promptly reminded of the presence of their third wheel. Looking back at her, he called out, "You're awfully quiet! You're not losing your nerve or anything, are you?" She seemed not to pay him any notice, and continued pacing along the trail without batting an eye. Kakuzu hated being ignored. His new partner was already getting on his nerves. The stitched man pressed on in a scathing tone, "Come on, you don't need to be shy! Talk to us, we're comrades after all." Again, she said nothing.

Kakuzu whirled around and clenched his fists in anger, but Madara placed his hand on the former's shoulder. "I'm sure she's just the quiet type, Kakuzu. No need to be hard on her." Kakuzu's eyes narrowed as he stared her down, but she seemed to look straight through him. He merely grunted, then turned and continued walking.

"How far are we from that port town, anyway?" Kakuzu mumbled as he placed his hands in his pockets. He had lost track of how long they had been travelling, but this much walking would be tiring for anyone, let alone a ninety-year-old man such as himself. It was true that the condition of his body belied his age, but his mind grew old regardless.

"You should not be so impatient." Kakuzu stopped in his tracks. He took a moment to process it, but without a doubt, those words had come from behind him. It was her.

"WHAT'D YOU JUST SAY, BRAT?" he bellowed. In one fluid motion, he spun and threw his arm out in her direction. His forearm separated from his body, but remained connected by countless black threads, and his open palm sped towards her throat. He was determined to kill her.

Suika responded by hopping gracefully into the air and landing on the nearest solid tree branch. As Kakuzu's arm followed her escape route, she pointed her index finger at the myriad of tendrils escaping from his body. She shouted, "Ranton: Isshi Komyo!" and a small sphere of light formed at the tip of her finger. A beam of pure white energy shot from the sphere at blinding speeds and severed Kakuzu's threads, causing his arm to crash to the ground in a heap. Even with his Sharingan, Madara had a hard time tracking the technique's movement.

Surprisingly, this action did not deter Kakuzu's attack. A white mask with the appearance of a tiger had emerged from the stump of his arm, and its demonic mouth opened slowly to reveal a lit flame. "KATON: ZUKOKKU!" he cried, as a ball of white-hot fire shot towards the girl.

Suika realized that there would be no time for her to dodge, and she was certain that she would die if the attack connected. All she could do was counter, so she brought her fingers to her mouth and yelled, "Suiton: Daihodan no Jutsu!" She spit a large mass of water from her mouth and leapt backwards simultaneously. The two elemental blasts connected, and a burst of searing hot steam was created upon the collision. However, Kakuzu's attack had been superior, and this caused the painful mist to continue its course in Suika's direction. She braced herself as the blast hit her, and it sent her body recoiling into a thick tree trunk.

She crashed to the ground with an angry thud, and she was still struggling to get back on her feet when the sound of his voice echoed through the forest. "RAITON: GIAN!" She was confident that this attack would kill her. She had only been able to last among Akatsuki's rank for a single day. The thought that she had failed Pain-sama so horribly aggrieved her, and she accepted that death was the only atonement for her now.

"Thank you again for your cooperation, Karin," came the eerily pleasant voice of Orochimaru's right-hand man. He placed the recently-taken blood sample on the desk behind him and returned his gaze to the crimson-haired girl before him. Karin, whether she knew it or not, was descended from the Uzumaki clan, who were well-known for their incredible life-force and longevity. Uzumaki blood was hard to come by in recent times, and Karin was a perfect specimen.

She snorted as she rolled her sleeve back down. "Orochimaru-sama asked me to cooperate with you. That's the only reason I'm here right now." Without another word she made her way towards the door, but she was stopped in her tracks when the snake himself entered.

Kabuto bowed as he greeted his serpentine master. "Greetings, Orochimaru-sama. To what do I owe the pleasure of your appearance?" He could tell that the Sannin was excited about something, and he suspected that it was related to the information from the day before.

"It's time for us to cripple that infernal organization once and for all," Orochimaru spoke with a sadistic grin. "You're going to lead a task force and capture that rogue Jinchuriki before Akatsuki gets their slimy hands on it. I trust that you're up to it?" He licked his lips out of habit as his last words slipped out.

Kabuto pushed aside the cart that housed most of his medical materials and stepped towards his master. "Of course, Orochimaru-sama. Have you assembled my team already?" He had a feeling that at least one of his would-be subordinates was already in the room.

Karin, who had been listening rather intently, jolted upwards when the snake master turned to her. "My dear Karin," he hissed, "you're sensory abilities will be a great asset towards finding our target. You'll accompany Kabuto, is that understood?" She merely nodded. She had no issue talking back to the four-eyes, but she would never dream of opposing Orochimaru's wishes.

"Excellent. Then please, both of you follow me." Orochimaru strode out of the room with Kabuto and Karin in tow, his grin not having subsided in the slightest. Compared to Kabuto's clean and well-lit laboratory, the corridors of Orochimaru's base were dim and putrid. The snake and his followers passed what seemed to be an endless number of identical doors and passages, all lined with torches that somehow burned indefinitely. They walked in silence, and finally they came to a steep staircase that led to the surface. The entire base was just one of many of Orochimaru's underground strongholds, and despite its immense size, it was largely abandoned at the moment save for a few Oto shinobi. As they stepped outside, they appeared in a heavily wooded clearing.

Kabuto felt that something was amiss. "I'm not sure I understand what we're doing out here, Orochimaru-sama. Shouldn't I rendezvous with the rest of my squad before you brief us on the mission details?" It appeared that Orochimaru fully expected Kabuto to leave for his assignment as soon as possible, but he and Karin alone would be vastly outmatched by a Jinchuriki regardless of how skilled they were.

"That won't be necessary," Orochimaru replied. He suddenly clapped his hands together and shouted, "Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei!" This took Kabuto by surprise as the ground around him began to shake, and several large objects began to rise out of the ground. Just as he had thought, the three of them were now surrounded by the ominous sight of six towering coffins.

She was stirred from her thoughts by three quick knocks on the door. "You may enter," she called out. Three young men stepped into her office, approached her desk, and bowed.

Kosuke spoke first. "We're here to receive our next mission, Hokage-sama." Tsunade nodded, and Team Gennai stood and faced forward.

"I'm going to preface this by saying that this has the possibility of being an S-Rank mission," began the Hokage. The three Chunin were expectedly shocked, but the stern look on the Tsunade's face told them to wait before asking questions. "You three are to travel to Uzu and investigate your sensei's death. Find any kind of information that could lead to the assassin."

"We thank you for allowing us to contribute in Gennai-sensei's investigation, Hokage-sama" Hidama was beginning to sweat. This mission sounded far too normal to be an S-Rank, and he knew that what they had heard was only the tip of the iceberg.

Murasaki was fidgeting as well. Chunin were very rarely allowed to participate in A-Rank missions, let alone S-Ranks. He finally asked, "Why are we the one's being assigned to this mission, though?"

Tsunade sighed and folded her hands in front of her face. "I'll be honest with you. The fact is, this assassin is strong. Whoever it is, they've killed dozens of high-ranking shinobi from around the continent. Therefore, if anyone, including you three was to encounter them there's no certainty that they would walk away from the fight alive." Kosuke gulped as he began to understand their place in this mission. "It's for this reason that only Gennai's students would be suited to gathering information about the enemy and returning alive with that information. I understand that he taught you that technique, correct?" They nodded immediately. "Very good. Then tomorrow morning, you are to set off for Uzu no Kuni. And once you are there…" She trailed off for a moment, and Kosuke swore he caught a slight grimace catch her face. "Once you are there, you are to rendezvous with two ANBU units at this location and combine forces." She handed a small scroll to Kosuke containing the coordinates, and he placed it in his rear equipment pouch. "Are there any further questions?"

"No, Hokage-sama," they replied in unison. Their mission was crystal clear, and despite the obvious dangers involved, they were all equally excited by the prospect of avenging their sensei.

"Very well, then. You are dismissed." Team Gennai bowed and exited the office, and they swore they heard the Hokage curse a certain elder's name under her breath.

Kabuto and Karin used their sleeves to wipe away some of the residual dust that had stuck to their glasses during the summoning. "You really have improved on this technique, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto remarked in delight. "Can you really control this many summons at once?" The last time he had had the pleasure of seeing this technique, only two coffins had appeared.

Orochimaru chuckled and folded his arms across his chest. "I've long since surpassed Senju Tobirama in mastering this technique." He leaned against the nearest coffin and rapped on the side of it with his knuckle. "Even though he created this ability, I'm sure he never could have dreamed that it could be used so efficiently." He then approached Kabuto and formed the tiger hand seal. "Hold out your arm, Kabuto." The latter complied, and Orochimaru immediately grabbed Kabuto's arm in both of his hands. He seemed to be concentrating heavily, as beads of sweat were beginning to appear on the Sannin's brow. Finally, after a few moments, he pulled away to reveal an extravagant black seal on Kabuto's arm.

Kabuto marveled at this modification to his body as a searing pain shot through his arm. To anyone else, this pain would have caused one to violently scream and flail about, but Kabuto had experimented on his own body enough that it did not particularly bother him. He finally asked, "What is the purpose of this seal, Orochimaru-sama?" He had never quite seen a marking like this one.

"It's a binding seal," Orochimaru explained. "These that I have summoned are now bound to your will and will follow any commands you give them." The lids of the coffins began to fall one by one as Orochimaru continued. "That is to say, these will be acting as your subordinates on this mission."

Kabuto looked around him as the contents of the coffins were revealed to him, and the identities of the individuals that surrounded him were nothing short of astounding. "How did you manage to bring these out?" he stammered in disbelief. Before him were six deceased famous shinobi, and all of them were now, as far as he could tell, completely under his command.

Orochimaru made one final seal, causing the blank expressions on the corpses to come to life. One by one, they opened their eyes and stepped out of their coffins. "It took a bit of effort, but I've been having my subordinates search for DNA samples belonging to powerful shinobi." Orochimaru smirked as he stared at the shinobi closest to him. "Of course, some were easier to acquire than others."

A tall man with spiky brown hair and an open-necked black jacket turned to Orochimaru with a look of bewilderment on his face. "Orochimaru, you traitor!" he shouted in rage as he grabbed the snake by the throat. Orochimaru hardly flinched as the man continued. "What kind of sick joke is this? You murder me in cold blood, only to unceremoniously rip me from the afterlife?"

"I'll need you to stop that now, Yondaime-san," Kabuto muttered. No sooner had Kabuto's words left his mouth than the man loosened his grip on Orochimaru. The Yondaime Kazekage had allied himself and Sunagakure with Orochimaru just a year and a half prior in order to overthrow Konoha. However, Orochimaru had played him for a fool. He murdered the Kazekage and stole his identity, and it was clear that even in death the latter held a grudge.

The Kazekage trembled angrily as he looked down at his hands. "My body isn't doing what I want it to. What on earth is this?"

"I recognize this technique, Kazekage-sama," came the voice of one of the other revived. He stepped toward Orochimaru, Kabuto, and the Fourth Kazekage as he explained. "This is the technique of the Nidaime Hokage, the Edo Tensei. It can bring back the deceased to the realm of the living, and then binds them to the will of the summoner." The man sighed and shook his head, causing his short black hair to rustle slightly. "I never expected someone else to use it, let alone you, Orochimaru." He stared fiercely at the Sannin, his eyes a shade of blazing red.

"No need to look so angry with me, Fugaku-san," Orochimaru chortled at the resurrected Uchiha. "You were eliminated by your own son for trying to stage a coup d'etat, and now I've given you another chance to live and cause chaos. Is that so bad?"

"Serving scum like you is just about the worst fate I could imagine," he retorted, the creases beneath his eyes only adding to his ferocity. His Sharingan were focused on Orochimaru, but Kabuto's control stopped him from making a move. Uchiha Fugaku had almost led the elite Uchiha Clan in a coup against Konohagakure some years prior, an event which well could have led the world into war. However, the actions of his son, Uchiha Itachi, had put a stop to this plan, as well as to the existence of the clan as a whole.

A distressed voice, that of a female, was heard next. "Fugaku-san? Orochimaru-sama? What's going on? What am I doing here? I thought I…" The woman stumbled out of the coffin, and for the first time since the summoning, Karin gasped. The woman before her had flowing red hair much like her own, and more so, their natural chakra signatures were nearly identical. She wore a Konoha hitai-ate and a green flak jacket, and it was clear that she had some innate power that even Karin's sensory abilities couldn't entirely comprehend.

Fugaku glanced at the woman, and then shot and even more disgusted look at Orochimaru, who was licking his wicked lips in delight. "You even took her, you slime?" Fugaku hissed. He gave a solemn look in her direction. "I'm sorry that you and I are sharing this fate… Kushina-san."

There's chapter two, tell me what you think!

Terms Translated:

Ranton: Isshi Komyo: Storm Release: String of Splendor

Katon: Zukokku: Fire Release: Searing Migraine

Suiton: Daihodan no Jutsu: Water Release: Huge Projectile Technique

Raiton: Gian: Lightning Release: False Darkness

Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei: Summoning: Impure World Resurrection

Nidaime: Second

Yondaime: Fourth