Please review. I desperately need to learn more about the art of writing and i cannot do it by self-criticism alone.
"That was...terrifying," Kakashi lightly commented. Terrifying indeed. A cursed seal that even the 'Professor' Sandaime couldn't remove fallen apart into a card in the hands of a teenager.
"Unexpected," Ibiki agreed.
"That is what we want on our side," Tsunade commented. "And I have the feeling that that's not their only power. Morino, you said they summoned a giant green falcon? And they flew on it?"
"Yes, Hokage Sama." Ibiki reported. Even Kakashi looked faintly stunned.
"And apparently there were more...reports of more strange creatures from the Genin team they came back with." Ibiki chose his words carefully. "Naruto said that they were accompanied with two shinobi with no hitai-ate in sight and extremely dangerous skill, for one of them to have taken down Uchiha Sasuke quite easily even with the cursed seal fully active, if he is to be believed. The ninja then transformed to a 'great big green chicken' as described by Uzumaki Naruto, and blew the pair of them back with a single flap of its wings. My belief is that he was referring to the giant green falcon they flew here and later dismissed as a summons, along with a golem and an armed warrior.
"A human summons is most unusual," Tsunade noted, curious.
"My ninja dogs reported that they smelt like the bijuu, except older." Kakashi reported next. "They don't smell right, they don't feel right, they emit too much killing intent for any normal human being, and even my kuchiyose seemed afraid of them. Pakkun wouldn't even stay within earshot of them. Watch." A kuchiyose later, Pakkun was shivering and cowering in Kakashi's arms, scrabbling to get away from the two almost-lookalikes who were looking at the Hokage monument in awe, oblivious to the ninja contingent.
"Care to explain?" Kakashi stated as the pug tried to burrow further into his jacket.
"Can't, summoning contract, privacy clause, along with oh gods, oh gods let go!" Pakkun yelped quietly.
Tsunade scratched her brow. "Odd." She did her own kuchiyose and soon a slug appeared.
"Yes, Tsunade Sama?" the slug's melodious voice whispered.
Tsunade pointed to the two oblivious near-lookalikes. "Do you recognise them?"
The slug looked before turning back to the Hokage, its voice reverent. "They are masters of the summoning, lords of a realm of demons. Young ninja animals are taught to run and hide in the presence of these shadow lords. If the bijuu were monsters, then they would be the ones who control the monsters, the ones who the monsters ultimately answer to." The slug then turned nervous. "Even the gods' power are at their command."
"And they want their property, the Kyuubi, back," Tsunade finished, face-palming. "Damn you, Sarutobi Sensei..."
Several ANBU flashed into view. "Hokage Sama," they greeted, hands on weapons. There was an abrupt yelp, before the crackle of lightning and another ANBU flew out of the open door. Tsunade barged in to be greeted by the sight of a stunned kunoichi Jounin and the two lookalikes, the taller of them holding a slightly smoking card.
Evidently Yuugioh didn't like their reaction, for he soon drew another card. "Explain," he stated to Tsunade, brown-backed card threateningly held out.
It was funny how a playing card could suddenly seem so ominous, even to the Legendary Gambling Sucker...
"A Sound incursion team has been sighted heading towards Konohagakure," one of the ANBU reported. "They are heading from the west as we speak."
Tsunade nodded. "Intercept the forces, arrest them."
"I see. It looks like my property problem can wait until daylight," Yuugioh observed, still holding on to the card. "Hokage Sama, I will leave you to your duties, then."
"Uzumaki Naruto is a shinobi of the Leaf," Tsunade retorted as the two turned to leave. "If you want him, it will happen when hell freezes over."
Yuugioh stopped, raising an eyebrow. "Hell is frozen in some parts, so I do guess it counts. Furthermore, remember that Naruto and the Kyuubi," several ANBU froze at the open defiance of the law, "are separate entities. My property pertains to the Kyuubi alone; it does not extend to the vessel."
"The seal..." Tsunade faltered upon recalling how easily the curse seal had been picked apart.
"Tricky," Yuugioh admitted. "I do not often meet things that require the sacrifice of a life to seal. Nevertheless, it appears that right now you are busy with a possible infiltration attempt and hence we will resolve this after your crisis...assuming that it does succeed." He then turned to leave. "I am no shinobi; I cannot be expected to understand what you would do now, so I will wait, and I will hope, and perhaps, if my interests are threatened, I will help. Good day, Hokage Sama. I will arrange for an appointment on the morrow, we are weary. Aibou, let's go."
"Wait! What about the shinobi lady?" Yuugi insisted. "We can at least remove the seal first..."
"Whatever we do without permission must represent a threat to their sanity or life, aibou. We must wait..."
"No," Anko spoke loudly, storming up to him. "How fast can you remove it?"
He blinked. "It depends, really...but not now. We have only just arrived and must recuperate. My apologies."
"How long?" Anko insisted, face set. A kunai was twirling in her hand, as if she was itching to throw it.
"We'll have to make an appointment," Yuugioh politely replied, unafraid, leading his aibou by the hand. "Tomorrow at eight am. we'll be making an appointment for an audience with the Hokage. Perhaps we will see you at...eleven?"
"The Kyuubi is under surveillance," Yuugi told the Bakurae later in their private quarters, having convened at the punk-haired pair's rooms. "Yami's recovering from a headache now, though."
Ryou nodded in reply. "We can utilise the bijuu as bargaining chips," Bakura interrupted, "while we get away. If there's anything we learnt while travelling, it's that shinobi always look for more power. They don't know that we have more than what they themselves will ever comprehend."
"True," Yuugi nodded. "We must get the Ichibi and the Kyuubi before we leave Konoha anyway. From there, we can head towards the other countries and find more of them."
"Aibou..." Yami no Yuugi groaned as he stepped into the room. "There are shinobi watching us."
"Well, what's the plan, Per-Aa?" Bakura asked.
The look on his face was grim. "Nothing."
"Yami..." Yuugi began.
"We are exhausted from travelling. There is hardly anything we can do now. The hospital is likely under security and our property is not likely to abscond anywhere." he explained. "Therefore there is no need to do anything. Should the shinobi move against us, traps will be activated and reduce them."
"Is that really necessary?" A voice came from the shadows of their room. Tsunade and her retinue were not truly prepared for their shadows to erupt and hold them in place.
"Hokage Sama," the four greeted coldly as one.
"You are extremely lucky that I have set the traps to capture and not kill," Yami added coldly, eyes blazing.
"What are your intentions towards Konoha?" she asked. "You," she indicated at Yami, "have confessed yourself after the bijuu. Are you with Akatsuki? What are your intentions?"
"Whatever this Akatsuki is, we are not allied to it." Yuugioh replied, frowning. "We are here for our property, the Kyuubi. We will leave upon recovering our property."
Tsunade sighed, discarding the raging act. "I see. I suppose then that we should conduct negotiations to discuss the trade tomorrow."
"Agreed," Yuugioh said without hesitation. "Good night, Hokage Sama, and please take all your guards, your eyes and your ears with you. My friend here is extremely protective of his privacy and bloodthirsty in his methods of securing it. I fear that he might severely maim any stranger he finds rifling through his stuff right now."
Bakura smirked as an unholy yelp came from the rooms across the inn; the rooms of the Bakurae. It was the kind of smirk that sent shivers down the spines of some of the hardened warriors present. Tsunade's skin itself crawled. This is a demon, she realised. No, not right; these are the ones the demons answer to.
Uchiha Sasuke woke up, free, as the sun broke through to colour the sky.
Pale fingers brushed the part where the curse mark once resided. Having remembered everything after having just awoken, contemplated his actions once more in the quiet half-night the hospital afforded. He felt weaker, more tired, but finally...free. Free of the pain of the seal, free from the constant struggle.
And the one who had removed it...what power.
He was broken out of the constant reverie by the door opening. His head turned to see the loudest, most unpredictable ninja in Konoha with bandages, a foot cast, and using crutches.
"Yo, Sasuke," the loud-mouth greeted.
"Hm." Sasuke replied.
Silence reigned.
"We got blown back by a huge green chicken." Naruto commented.
That was interesting. "Beaten by poultry, the two of us," Sasuke replied. "We'll never live it down."
"Hell yeah."
More silence.
"It was still giant and badass." Naruto continued. "And the bandaged ninja who turned into the chicken, he was really fast."
"And strong," Sasuke added, wincing at the pain in his shoulder.
"Yeah," Naruto enthusiastically continued. "The weird guy with the crazy hair's scary. He's in Konoha, you know. With his twin and another pair of twins."
"Hm."
"Yeah, he was here. Before that, he visited me and Gaara. Kyuubi's scared of him."
Which put things into perspective. The guy with weird hair trumped Orochimaru on any day.
"Then he left, and I sneaked after Baa Chan and the two weird guys, they're like twins, you know, except one's nicer and the other's scarier, and they said that crazy Anko had a seal as well and they removed your seal. Scary twin also said that the seal controls your mind, Kakashi Sensei told me."
Black eyes widened.
"Yeah, and then he did this weird thing and the next thing Kakashi Sensei know, the seal's in a card and you're..." Naruto scratched his head. "Here."
Silence descended once more.
"I'm not going to say anything." Naruto continued. "The seal put something on you, and it's obviously not you, so there's nothing, really. And then you're here, and I beat you up, and well..."
"Dobe? Shut up."
"Hey!"
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Kakashi stood by the door to Sasuke's room, deliberating. He had gone to see Naruto, only to be informed by a half-asleep Gaara that Naruto had gone to see his team-mate. Judging from how Gaara held on to the pillow, Kakashi had privately thought the Sand shinobi about to abscond with it and left the room, leaving him with his love affair with the hospital bed.
It was endearing.
It was also creepy beyond all reason.
It was also disconcerting how Gaara had warned him: "Yuugioh will come for the bijuu soon. They might rebel and tear Naruto apart to escape. Protect him."
Sighing, Kakashi recalled last night, when he had visited the four as part of the Hokage's entourage...
Flashback:
The shinobi found themselves tangled, held by their own shadows as the four turned to them. Claws wormed their way out of the umbra and soon held themselves close to jugulars, veins and arteries.
Then came the extremely awkward conversation...and the thinly veiled threat.
A stunned silence descended upon the room.
"Be that as it may," Yuugioh continued. "We are clearly in need of information. If you may provide a map of the shinobi continent as well as information on the Kyuubi's seal, we would be extremely grateful."
The claw on his jugular seemed to tighten in emphasis.
"We can provide a map," Tsunade agreed. "But there are very real threats to anyone connected to the bijuu now and while we do not dispute your ability, it seems that you have people who require protecting."
Yuugioh seemed to frown, his eyes darting to Ryou and Yuugi, followed by Bakura. There seemed to be a mental conversation going on between them for a few moments before Yuugioh's eyes snapped back to Tsunade.
"If we must, we will take the Kyuubi vessel and the one he was fighting at the Valley of the End." Yuugioh decided. "The Kyuubi vessel is an obvious choice, the other because of the mental trauma associated with the curse seal."
"Mental trauma?" Tsunade's eyes widened.
"That...thing was specifically created to interfere with the body's natural systems, and corrupt the mind with power," Yuugioh elaborated. "It is essentially a mental drug used to place a mind under another's control, impair one's judgement, force one to desire the feeling of power, enhance negative thoughts. A form of mind control, if you will. I would require more information, but I can surmise that he is...under puberty? If so, then he would have been more susceptible to such influence. Minds at that stage are always easy to mold. So...flexible."
Kakashi felt vaguely sickened, Tsunade looked openly so.
"Hence he would require advanced help to recover," Yuugioh finished.
"Their team-mates would also have to follow," Tsunade warned.
"If they must," Yuugioh shrugged. "That is, if they can cope with the threats faced during our travels."
"They are shinobi, they are more than capable," Tsunade hotly replied.
Yuugioh's expression was blank and cold, crimson eyes piercing like the Sharingan, except that Kakashi had never before felt such fear associated with the red eyes. "I mean demons, Hokage Sama. Monsters much like the God Bird Simorgh in my employ, warriors of skill beyond compare, beasts of equal if not higher standing than the Kyuubi."
He then leaned closer and in a whisper, wistfully confessed. "I hope that you do manage to sleep well tonight, Hokage Sama. There are after all, several eyes watching in the darkness."
Flashback end
Recalling those eyes, Kakashi could not help but shudder. The last time he had looked into any such eyes was in his own eye, in Sasuke and in the eyes of Uchiha Itachi. Such intensity even put the Sharingan to shame. And this was one with command over that...monster.
"Sa-Su-Ke!" the loud-mouth ninja stated. Loudly.
"Stop yelling, Dobe. Thisis a hospital in the early morning."
"Oh. Sa-"
"Can you shut up?" Sasuke's voice was exasperated, but affectionate, Kakashi noted as he opened the door without knocking. It was as if whatever good nature he had lost with the curse seal was recovered upon its removal.
Orochimaru had a lot to answer for, he silently swore to himself.
"Yo," he greeted his students. "Naruto, you know the Hokage said mandatory bed rest."
"But, Kakashi Sensei-!"
"Sasuke, you're cleared of any charges since Yuugioh stated that you were under mind control," Kakashi continued, ignoring Naruto by dint of long practice.
Sasuke twitched. Visibly. "Yuugioh?"
"Oh, the guy who summoned the green chicken who blew us back!" Naruto's fist made contact with his palm, the metaphorical light bulb lighting up. "Oh yeah, I gotta go after the bastard, dunno what he did to Gaara, now Gaara's asleep and it's all creepy..."
"Green chicken?" Sasuke asked the sensei, ignoring Naruto's rant.
"More like a five-story tall green falcon." Kakashi replied. "The seal's removed, by the way."
"I know." Sasuke's fingers automatically flew to his neck. "I want...to thank them."
"You might not want to after I tell you our next mission," Kakashi light-heartedly commented. "but we'll have to wait..."
The door flew open again as Sakura barrelled in. "Naruto! Sasuke Kun!"
"Sakura Chan! I did it!" Naruto flashed his biggest grin.
"Liar," Sasuke commented. "We were blown back by the green chicken, remember?"
"It was five stories tall!" Naruto protested. "Come on, even I can't take on a huge green chicken!"
"Don't ever do it again!" Sakura cried, bopping the two on the head. "I was worried about both of you!"
"That hurt," both of them commented.
Despite himself, despite the threat now in their village, Kakashi smiled to himself as the sun rose in the sky outside. Their Team Seven was back.
All was well, for now.
Bet you didn't expect that! Well, I don't really believe it bashing characters, but let's see how it all works out first...;D