Following the Snake
Opening Note:
Hello! Sorry for the late update. I do not have a legitimate excuse. Seriously. Except perhaps that I am slow and lazy. But I promise to be faster and consistent. Anyway, enjoy the chapter.
. . .
Chapter 4: Profiting
As the raven haired ninja began to make his way down the hallway, he considered his plan of action. He had just taken out one of the perpetrators in the case, and at that moment he needed to meet up with the medical ninja. His breath was still a bit irregular from the fight and Sasuke knew that the case was starting to unravel; that the pieces were falling into place.
The red eyed shinobi's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of movement from within the room that the fight had taken place. He was taken aback as he did not expect that Hayate would wake up so quickly. 'That's impossible' the ninja thought to himself. He knew very little about the medical field. However, he did know that he dealt that blow in just the right spot that it would take the other man a while to regain consciousness. As improbable as the possibility seemed, Sasuke could not deny that he had awoken, or that there was someone or something else in the room. He walked back to the room, feeling impatient, and then opened the door.
Upon stepping into the room, Sasuke saw Hayate still lying unconscious on the floor, his body dusted with soot from the last attack. The Uchiha quickly realized that since the red haired man did not make the noise, that meant that there was someone else was in the room. 'Hiding, huh? Do they really think that I am stupid enough to think that no one else is here' he thought to himself.
He eyed the room carefully and took a step forward. The exact moment that he moved, he heard the sound of a footstep that was not his own. The other person was trying to cover the sound of their movements behind Sasuke's footsteps. However, the raven haired teen had clever enough senses to be able to pick out the different sounds. He abruptly changed his movements from slow and discreet to a fast pace. He wanted to surprise the enemy and let the enemy know that he had been found out.
Sasuke's plan worked and he could hear the footsteps louden as their owner panicked. He was then able to pick out the direction of the sound and learned that it was coming from behind one of the buffet tables. He rushed over to it and in one swift movement, he pushed the table back and tackled the person behind it.
He pinned the enemy down and realized that it was a petite girl. She had long silver hair and piercing blue eyes that were even more piercing due to the venomous glare that she gave Sasuke as she struggled underneath his grip.
"So, there are more of you." The red eyed shinobi remarked as he blocked a kick that the girl tried to give to his side. The girl seemed to become even angrier as she continued to thrash about, but without avail. "Let go of me!" she seethed. "No, I need some more information. Where is your boss and the stolen data?" the Uchiha demanded as he leaned in closer to the girl. "Why!?" the blue eyed girl shouted, ignoring the ninja's question. Sasuke was taken aback and was about to ask what she meant when she continued "Why did you have to kill him!?" Sasuke turned his head several degrees to look at the man lying on the floor, who he assumed to be the person the girl was referring to.
The red eyed teen furrowed his eyebrows. "He's not dead" he retorted and then paused "but he will be if you don't answer my questions" he said, finishing with a threat. The raven haired shinobi wasn't sure whether he was just really bad at interrogation or if those people were just really skilled at avoiding his questions.
Haru was a bit surprised at her outburst. Usually she was calm and collected; her characteristics of a spy hidden by icy blue eyes. However, she could feel her frustration boil as her sense of duty and her mission clashed with the emotions inside herself. After a few more attempts at trying to free herself from the ninja pinning her down, she lay in hopeless realization that there was really nothing she could do.
Sasuke could feel the silver haired girl cease stirring and saw the fight drain from her face. The sharingan teen raised an eyebrow slightly. "Are you ready to talk now?" he inquired. Haru ignored him and her eyes drifted to the young man lying on the ground. She let out a sigh and then turned again to the teen in front of her.
"We were doing this because he promised to help us escape back to our home land as payment" the petite girl said calmly. "Your boss?" The red eyed boy asked. She was not giving him the information he wanted, but Sasuke figured that he would be able to pry more out of her eventually. Even though the Uchiha was feeling impatient, he knew that interrogations were not quick procedures.
The blue eyed teen nodded her head affirmatively and continued. "He said that we only had a few assignments left. We are so close to our freedom" she said with a glimmer of light in her eyes from the thought of going home. "Hayate-san, Seiji-san and I lived in a small village on the outskirts of the country" she explained and then motioned her head towards the orange haired man. "As I'm sure you know, Hayate-san has special powers. In our village, it was mine and Seiji-san's job to protect him as he was our village's asset" Haru said as she turned back to face Sasuke.
"Our home is a small fishing village that is practically defenseless. With his special powers, the village relied on him as their only defense and then on Seiji-san and I to keep him safe. Even though we weren't related, we spent so much time together that now we are like a family." the petite girl explained, and then she paused for a moment. "But we were no match for the sound village. After we were captured by Orochimaru, he treated Hayate-san like some lab rat. And in the end when he was finished, we just ended up as puppet lab assistants so he could do to more people what he did to us."
The Uchiha's face was hard and stoic, but underneath that mask he felt a bit flustered. The girl was spilling out a bunch of information, but none of it was useful. Her story was nothing new. It was the story that many ninja with special jutsus had once they encountered the snake lord.
However, the raven haired shinobi decided not to speak yet and instead sat silently and continued to give the girl an inquisitive stare.
The blue eyed teen on the other hand began to feel a bit of worry and intimidation under Sasuke's cold and scrutinizing eyes. "Even though you are a higher up, I'm sure you understand" the girl offered. "I'm sure you have a family too that Orochimaru took away from you. Even if you are content with you current status, you must understand what we feel. So please, just let us complete our mission." Haru requested, her head slightly bowed to indicate her sincerity.
Sasuke's eyes widened at the request and his expression became even graver. The circles and teardrop shapes began to rotate in his red eyes as his sharingan activated once again.
'You must have a family'. 'You must understand how we feel'. The words echoed in the young ninja's brain and only seemed to fuel the hatred burning inside of him.
The red eyed shinobi gave the teen below him an ice cold glare. "I am nothing like you. So don't you dare try to compare yourself to me" he snapped. Memories of his past rushed within his mind. 'She could never understand my pain. She thinks that just because we are both affiliated with Orochimaru, that we are the same? My story goes far beyond that. I have a duty of revenge that she could never understand' the young shinobi thought.
Haru seemed shocked by Sasuke's taciturn response. For a moment she wondered what secrets he held that made him that way; that made him so much different than her. However, that was nothing that she could worry about. Her main reasoning for telling her story and pleading to Orochimaru's pawn was not to get him to change his mind and betray Orochimaru. Although it would have been nice, it was not something that she expected to happen. Her purpose was to stall.
Throughout the entire conversation, the petite teen had been carefully and discreetly reaching for her kunai that she had hidden in her lab coat. She was not very confident in her odds of beating the ninja, especially after what had happened to Hayate, but it was her best option and at least she would have the element of surprise on her side.
The blue eyed girl had the kunai in her hands at that point however; she needed to stall for a little more in order to get them into the proper position and without Sasuke catching onto her movements. "What are you talking about? That is what happens to everyone with special jutsus once they encounter Orochimaru. How are you any different?" she scoffed. The sharingan warrior took a deep breath. His anger was threatening to take control of him, but arguing about his situation to some girl was not his objective. "You could never understand my duty, but enough of this. Just tell me where your boss is and where Kabuto is" he demanded.
"Yes, since we cannot see eye to eye, let's end this" Haru exclaimed as she stabbed the other teen's arm with a kunai. "Che" the Uchiha let out as he released the girl and jumped backwards. He dodged a set of incoming kunai as he pulled the single kunai from his arm. 'Damn, how could I let things get out of hand like that' Sasuke cursed mentally.
As blood started to drip down the ninja's arm, he collected chakra in his hand. The silver haired girl seemed confused by the strange jutsu, but quickly pulled out more kunai and prepared to strike. At that time, Sasuke had finished and a knot of blue chakra sat in his palm. "I . . . don't . . . have time for you!" he shouted as he rushed at Haru and struck her straight in the stomach. "Hmph" the shinobi scoffed as the girl hit the ground. He looked from the petite girl on the ground to the red haired teen on the other side of the room, realizing the hopelessness of his interrogations.
Sasuke turned away towards the door and still felt the warm blood on his arm. He grabbed his katana and used it to slice off a piece of his robe. He wrapped it around the wound and then tied it with one end in his right hand and the other end in his teeth. "Now I just have to find them" the Uchiha thought as he began to head down the hall. The only problem was that he was left with no leads.
Suddenly, the shinobi remembered something. He reached his good arm around to feel his back. "Yamato, are you still there?" he asked softly. The snake's small smooth head popped out from the ninja's robe upon hearing his name. "Yes?" the small serpent responded.
Sasuke snatched the snake out of his robe and held it in his hand in front of him. "Yamato, you've worked with Kabuto a lot, right?" he questioned and then continued once he received a nod from the snake. "So, I need you to sense him out for me, alright?"
A slight frown appeared on the face of the smooth headed serpent. "What do you think I am a dog?" Yamato asked. The shinobi thought out his response carefully. "Well, I just thought you wanted to be given a real mission, but that is alright. If you cannot handle it, I will just find Kabuto by myself" he said while peering down at the diminutive snake with a high and mighty look.
Yamato shook his head furiously. "I said that I am not a dog. I never said that I couldn't do it" he stated defensively. The Uchiha let a small smirk past his lips. Prideful children (and prideful snakes for that matter) cannot be manipulated if they are told what to do, but only if their ability is challenged. When Sasuke was a young student, he never cared to interact too much with the other children, but he was able to pick that technique as well as a few other manipulative tools from the medical ninja.
"Well, if you can do it, then lead the way" the young ninja commanded. In response, the serpent nodded happily, eager to show his usefulness.
. . . Line Break . . .
The silver haired ninja jumped swiftly from tree to tree. He no longer used a transformation jutsu to look like the researcher Seiji, but instead held his normal appearance.
As he landed softly on a branch, he slid underneath the canopy of leaves, so that he would not be spotted by the enemy he was tracking. The medical ninja focused his dark eyes through his rounded glasses. The sun had set and darkness began to shroud the forest, but he could still see the figure of the robed man in the distance.
It was almost time for Kabuto to make his surprise attack on the enemy. He wondered how the Uchiha was faring since the medical ninja did send Haru after him in addition to Hayate who was already tracking him. However, the silver haired ninja was certain that Sasuke would be able to handle them, so he kept the thought tucked in the back of his mind.
Kakuzu reached a clearing, and the mednin figured that it would be the perfect spot for him to start his attack. He reached into the pouch on his thigh and pulled out a small round pill. He popped the pill into his mouth and chewed it slowly, making sure to be quiet and unnoticeable.
The silver haired ninja jumped down from the tree that he was perched in and stood unseen behind its trunk. Using the shadows as cover, he maneuvered from tree to tree till he was near the edge of the clearing, but still concealed from the shining light of the rising moon. He began to form hand signs and then disappeared completely.
Suddenly, Kabuto's chakra covered hand appeared out of the ground underneath the large Akatsuki member. Kakuzu had fast reflexes and automatically jumped to the side, however the medical ninja was still able to paralyze his left leg. The emerald eyed man landed several meters away from his enemy and stood on his right leg, his left rendered useless. He eyed the medic carefully. "And who are you?" he demanded. "I don't waste my time on worthless people".
A devious smirk spread across the silver haired shinobi's face. "Ah? I am disappointed that you don't remember me Kakuzu-san. My master used to be in Akatsuki after all." He said while tilting his head questioningly at the hooded figure and also allowing the light of the moon flood his face.
The tan man stared at the other ninja for a moment and then a gleam of recognition reached his eyes. "Yes, you are Orochimaru's right hand man" he said as he shifted his standing position as his left leg slowly started to recover. "I guess I can make a profit off of you" Kakuzu finished as he took a small step towards the silver haired shinobi.
The medic shrugged. "Well, fighting isn't really my thing. But I guess I have no choice" he stated as he gathered more chakra into his hands, forming blazing blue blades. As soon as he finished speaking, Kabuto felt a rush of air ruffle his hair as Kakuzu was already behind him.
'Damn, he's fast' the mednin though as he turned around quickly and blocked his punch with his blades of chakra. "Don't worry. I'll make this quick" the tall man replied.
The medical shinobi went for a strike at the Akatsuki member's chest but Kakuzu's kick was even faster. Kabuto quickly used his medical ninjutsu on his chest less than a second before the kick reached him. The medical technique he used minimized the damage done, but the sheer force of the kick sent him flying across the clearing.
The silver haired ninja landed on his side, but quickly recovered on his feet. He fixed his eyes in a contemplative expression realizing the difficulty of the situation. When it came to fighting ability, he was outmatched. Kabuto knew that besides raw strength, Kakuzu also held a wide array of various techniques.
However, the medic still had a plan. He was hoping to at least hold off the Akatsuki member while also preparing his genjutsu. It would be vital that he timed it perfectly before Kakuzu would have an opportunity to dispel it. If he had the opportunity to get in a blow straight in the chest, it would be the best chance for a victory based solely on taijutsu, but Kabuto was not giving his hopes up on that. That is why he planned on using genjutsu in the first place.
The medic kept his distance as he pulled out another pill from his pouch and swallowed it. It was one that would bring up his endurance. He reactivated his chakra scalpels which glowed even brighter from the pill.
On the other side of the field, Kakuzu formed his hand into a fist and was able to extend it away from his arm due to his earth grudge fear. The fist which was connected by long black strings rushed across the clearing straight towards the ninja with glasses.
Kabuto rolled to the ground to avoid the first strike, but then regained balance and dodged each blow that followed. As he evaded a strike and jumped to the right, he saw the Akatsuki member's other fist coming towards him. The medic was barely able to avoid the surprise attack by ducking his head at the last second.
'There is my chance' the silver haired shinobi thought to himself. Kakuzu had both of his hands outstretched, so if he was able to get to the Akatsuki member quickly enough, he would not have the chance to retract his arms and protect himself.
Using his earth style technique, Kabuto disappeared from sight. Kakuzu was taken aback and tried to prepare himself for the oncoming attack from the other ninja, but he didn't have much time. The mednin's body emerged from the ground beside the tall man and he shot his hand out for a final blow to the chest.
At the last second, more black threads emerged from Kakuzu's body and pushed the medical ninja back. The threads also pushed the tall man's black cloak onto the ground revealing his tan torso that was covered in stitches.
The medic prepared for his strike once again since the block from the thin strings was not very effective. However, since he no longer had his cloak, the man allowed even more of the threads to appear and they formed together into black tentacle-like appendages. The groups of thread thrashed through the air like whips. Kabuto was back on the defensive since combined, the threads were much stronger and there were so many of them.
The silver haired ninja backed away from the Akatsuki member, but not so that he could get out of the range of the tentacles because with them Kakuzu could make long range attacks. Instead he did it because closer up the whips were more condensed and more difficult to avoid.
Kabuto was able to successfully avoid blow after blow and during that time he had thrown his kunai as a counter since he was fighting at long range. He did not expect to be successful with the kunai, but did so to keep the Akatsuki member busy as he prepared his genjutsu.
The mednin was constantly moving and at a quick pace. However, he showed no signs of fatigue considering that his opponent quickened his own attacks to try to hit the swift ninja. After a few minutes though, Kabuto was able to study the movements of the black threads of Kakuzu's long range attacks and was able to figure out the exact moments when he left openings. The shinobi with the rounded glasses decided to take his chance on timing and quickly rushed again to the tall man's side. In less than a second he was able to make his strike with chakra scalpels straight into the man's chest.
Kakuzu grunted and pushed the medic away again with the black tentacles. The tan figure seemed annoyed that the sound ninja was able to get an attack in and succeeded in destroying one of his five hearts. He looked to his chest for a moment but then quickly turned his attention back to Kabuto. "I guess you are the one who has forgotten. You cannot kill me with a strike like that" the Akatsuki member scoffed.
Kabuto only smirked. He had not forgotten, but the strike made for a good distraction. It gave him the time to start up his genjutsu and soft feathers began to slowly drift through the air. The potency of the jutsu was about to increase so that Kakuzu would fall asleep when the medical ninja heard something cut through the air right behind his head. He wasted no time backing off and preparing for whatever had snuck up behind him. His initial reaction was that it was an enemy but then he hoped that it was Sasuke. However, that was not the case.
Standing behind him was a man with the same cloud covered robe that Kakuzu owned and indicated him as a member of Akatsuki as well. He had grey hair that was brushed back against his head. His robe revealed his chest which sported a slashed Yugakure headband and a necklace. He wielded a three bladed scythe which had come close to striking the medic. In the moment that Kabuto had to analyze the man, he did not recognize him from when Orochimaru was a part of Akatsuki. However, the shinobi assumed that he was Kakuzu's partner. And if that were true, it was not surprising at all that he did not recognize the man since Kakuzu went through partners quickly.
"Kakuzu, there is an urgent meeting so forget about your hobby for now and lets go" the robed man said. Even though the Akatsuki were not yet ready to go after the tailed beasts, their organization still had matters to take care of. The taller man lashed out at his partner with his long range form. "Stay out of my way, Hidan. I'm busy making a profit" he responded. His partner, Hidan blocked the attack with his scythe, cutting through some of the threads. The two Akatsuki members began fighting each other which was not surprising considering Kakuzu's personality. Kabuto wanted to use their fighting to his advantage, but they kept him busy with a fair amount of attacks aimed towards him as well.
"I need to deliver these files tonight, and I also have to deal with him" Kakuzu explained referring to the medical ninja. "I would love to help, but we do not have time for that" Hidan responded while slicing another attack with his blade. Kabuto was beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed from being in the middle of the Akatsuki members' fight. But then as he continued to fight, he felt something in the distance that he recognized as Sasuke's chakra signature. Knowing that Sasuke would be arriving soon, the silver haired shinobi kept a wary eye towards the forest and was prepared to give the Uchiha instructions.
Suddenly the sharingan warrior burst through the clearing, a collection of electric like chakra in his palm as he headed straight for Hidan. However, the scythe wielding man blocked the attack and knocked the teen back with his weapon. As Sasuke prepared to deal another attack, the tiny snake on his shoulder rejoiced. "See, I told you I could do it" Yamato boasted. The Uchiha ignored his comment and instead ducked his head to avoid the swinging scythe while striking out with his chidori. Seeing the powerful enemy, the diminutive snake retreated meekly within the folds of Sasuke's robe where he knew it was safe.
Meanwhile, Kabuto thought out his plan fast. He knew that even he and Sasuke together would not be able to take on both of the Akatsuki members, but he still had another strategy that would end things quickly. All they really needed was the file.
"Sasuke-kun!" the mednin shouted and then the raven haired teen looked towards him. "Grab the files. They're in the briefcase underneath his cloak" Kabuto commanded, nodding his head towards Kakuzu. The Akatsuki robe still sat at the tall man's feet. 'Fools' Kakuzu thought. He was slightly amused that the medic thought that the teen would be able to snag the files from his, especially considering that he said his plan out loud.
Upon hearing his instruction, the red eyed ninja rushed towards the Akatsuki member who in turn thrashed at him with his tentacles of threads. At the same time the silver haired teen disappeared and reappeared behind Kakuzu, ready to grab the case as well. And the final touch was Hidan, who was still attacking and merely slashed at all three men since they were grouped together.
Separately, Kakuzu would have been able to push them away, but when each of them came on different sides with different attacks, that was not an option. Kakuzu brought up a wall of threads to block the severing slices of Hidan's scythe. At the same time, he was able to intercept Sasuke's chidori attack with his bare hand. Left with only his leg open, he resorted to kicking at Kabuto who reached for the files under the Akatsuki cloak.
The medic was able to avoid the occupied man's haphazard attack and dove for the briefcase. He was successful in grabbing it, however it did not take Kakuzu long to push the other two men off of him and he was able to focus his attention back on Kabuto. He rushed to the silver haired man with the black threads to grab this case and prepared his fist to attack him as well.
The ninja with the rounded glasses thought quickly. He tossed the briefcase over to his subordinate who was still shocked that his most powerful jutsu was blocked. "Ugh" Kabuto grunted when Kakuzu still kicked him and his back hit one of the trees near the edge of the clearing. It hurt, but any injury that it had caused was quickly healed by his body's automatic regenerative abilities.
The medic, still leaning against the tree, looked over and saw that the raven haired teen had indeed caught the airborne case, but he was frantically fighting off the Akatsuki member who was trying to regain it. Over to the side, Hidan had stopped fighting and instead looked annoyed in his partner's endeavor which he deemed unnecessary. He did not even acknowledge Kakuzu's command for him to help retrieve the briefcase.
Glowing flames rose as the Uchiha held off his attacker with various fire jutsu. His expression was twisted with frustration as he faced the powerful enemy and he was nearing his limit after so many different battles in a row. He was aggravated that Kabuto passed the case off to him and wondered what kind of plan he had up his sleeve. It was obvious that they would not be able to take the Akatsuki members down. He glanced at the medic as he stood back up after being thrown against the tree. As he pelted Kakuzu's barricade of black threads with some more fire, he heard Kabuto yell as he ran back over to the fight. "Burn them!" the medic shouted.
Although his instruction was a bit ambiguous, Sasuke knew exactly what he meant. Initially he was not certain that he heard Kabuto correctly, but then he understood perfectly. He was supposed to burn the files. They were not able to fight Kakuzu off, but if they destroyed what he was after, then he would not have that to gain. Although it would take time for the research labs to redo the experiments to regain the information lost, it was better that letting the information fall into the hands of the enemy.
Sasuke whipped the case open and wasted no time burning its contents with his fire jutsu. Kabuto smirked internally with victory, but he could see that his subordinate still looked uneasy. However, that was understandable. The medic was not even sure himself that things would turn out as he predicted. His thought was that after the files were burned, Kakuzu's partner would be able to convince him to go to their necessary meeting since retrieving the files was hopeless. However, there was still the chance that Kakuzu would still be persistent on wanting to capture the two sound ninja. So, it was between those two scenarios that Kabuto was betting on.
After the deed was done, Sasuke quickly appeared by Kabuto's side, putting distance between him and the two Akatsuki members. Kakuzu looked enraged since his opportunity to make a huge profit was gone. As he eyed the two shinobi down with a piercing stare, he heard his partner try to talk some reasoning to him.
"Alright, Kakuzu, there is no reason to continue anymore. You can't go meet your guy to turn in those files now, so let's go to the meeting now. I am sure they are waiting for us" Hidan said. As the two otonin stood prepared for whatever Kakuzu would decide to do, the tan man turned to glance back at his partner and then returned his gaze forward.
"It seems as though I have other business to attend to, but don't worry. Along with the other villages, Orochimaru's pathetic village will not last for too long" Kakuzu said. As he walked towards his partner, he turned to Sasuke. "And I suppose your brother will want to deal with you himself" he finished.
The Uchiha became flushed with anger after Kakuzu's last statement, but there was not anything he could do about it because immediately after the two Akatsuki members disappeared out of sight. The raven haired teen let out a 'tsk' as he turned towards the medic. "Let's get out of here" he said as he walked past the older teen. Yamato poked his head out just a bit upon hearing that the scuffle was over, but then lowered it once again when he saw the medical ninja grab Sasuke's shoulder.
"Wait Sasuke-kun" Kabuto said as he faced his subordinate. "I'll just take care of this first" the mednin explained as he began to unravel the cloth wrapped around the wound on Sasuke's arm. The Uchiha sighed. There were still matters to settle regarding the case and healing his arm was the first thing the silver haired shinobi decided to do.
The younger teen jutted his chin away from Kabuto. "You don't have to baby me" he remarked detestably. Kabuto rolled his eyes. "You seem to forget that I am your doctor" he quipped as he set the cloth aside. A 'hmph' was the only response that Sasuke gave.
Glowing chakra surrounded the medic's hand and he brought it to the wound which immediately healed. The tiny snake brought his head out once again after hearing the tranquil humming of Kabuto's healing chakra. "I see you have a leech there" Kabuto noted as he finished up healing the other teen's arm. "It's not surprising though. He never gets summoned, so it makes sense that he would take a liking to you".
"I am not a leech!" the diminutive snake countered with a huff. A small shiver went down the Uchiha's spine upon feeling Yamato's cold breath on neck. The medic ignored the snake's protest. "Are you ready to go back to the base now?" he asked as the chakra on his hand faded out. "I've been ready. You were the one who wasn't" Sasuke pointed out.
They began to walk back towards the experiment base and they could hear the mysterious noises of the various creatures that inhabited the trees during the night. The ninja themselves took to the trees as jumping from branch to branch provided a quicker means of travel through the forest rather than walking.
"So I assume you were able to contain Haru and Hayate?" the medic asked as he jumped off of a branch causing leaves to flutter down to the ground. "Yeah" the Uchiha responded as he matched the other's pace in the darkness. However, Sasuke was annoyed and figured that Kabuto planned it out so that he had to deal with the underlings while the mednin would be able to go straight to the head. As aggravated as he was with Kabuto though, he didn't really feel like bothering to pick a fight with him.
It did not take them long to arrive back at the base. Once they did, Sasuke told the guards where the room was where he had kept the culprits, and then met back up with Kabuto who was talking to the head of the base.
"Ah, there you are Sasuk-kun. We are just about finished here" the medic said as the Uchiha approached him and the blonde woman. "Akatsuki knows the location of this base now, so we cannot take any chances. This one will be abandoned and combined with the base to the north" Kabuto explained. Even though Kakuzu had infiltrated the base for a side job that he was doing for money, it was definitely possible that the information would get to Akatsuki especially since Hidan knew about it as well.
"Thank you very much for all of your help" the head of the base said with a slight bow. "We will begin the evacuation immediately".
"Of course" Kabuto responded with a nod. He turned back to Sasuke and although unspoken, the Uchiha knew that it was time to go back home; or at least one of the bases that he, Kabuto, and Orochimaru had been residing in for almost a year. He couldn't really call it home.
As the two shinobi made their way to the exit, they passed Haru and Hayate being led away by guards. Although they held their heads low, the sign of defeat was clear on their faces. They were faces of despair brought upon by the destruction of their hopes for a life of peace and freedom.
Kabuto walked past them without even giving them a thought. He was too used to this kind of situation after being a subordinate of Orochimaru for so long. What really worried him was the thought of Akatsuki and the ability that their group had to hinder his master's plans.
Sasuke gave the pair a glance as he walked by. He could have almost laughed at their pitiful lost cause. 'Fools' he thought to himself. However, deep inside, he knew that Haru's words had reminded him of his ever important goal as well as how far apart he had come from connecting to other people.
Perched upon the teen's shoulder, Yamato felt uneasy from the dark aurora that emanated from the two prisoners and buried his head into Sasuke's robe.
The sharingan warrior then broke his gaze and set it back to the path in front of him, following the older teen who was walking with his back to him. Even though they entered back into the dark of the night, he could still see the glow of the moon reflecting on the silver hair ahead of him.
. . .
Closing Note:
Well, that concludes the first arc. Next chapter will start the next one but it will be more of a transitional chapter. Thank you for all of your support so far. It is very much appreciated!