Search in the Village Hidden in the Leaves
Crystal Harrell
Yokoshima walked slowly forward, dragging his katana at his side as he walked through the foreign grounds around him. He'd worn himself out from fighting, disappointed that there were few people around for him to kill. Even more disappointing to him is that there was only a small cut on his cheek which didn't produce enough blood to sustain his current state. Returning the weapon to its holster, he sat down underneath a shaded tree to rest and allow his host to regain control over the body. What chaos he could cause in the body of such a young boy, especially inside such a populated village. The demonic personality was nearly ashamed of himself for tiring out before he had a chance to attack it.
Kurisutaru walked through the outskirts of the village, just thinking to herself as her mother and she picked herbs nearby for have on hand at home. Her silk lilac leisure kimono blew in the breeze as she looked up through the trees with a smile. It was a beautiful day and she saw a figure under a tree. Was someone else enjoying the day outdoors, as well? Stepping closer, she found that the figure was a young boy and appeared to be asleep. She knelt down and nudged his left shoulder. "Hey, are you all right? You probably don't want to sleep here."
The boy's eyes slowly opened, revealing the emerald green sparkling brilliantly inside them. The eyes flew open and turned crimson red as he leapt up, drawing a kunai and landing several feet away from Kurisutaru. He was crouched down like a jungle cat as he watched her with large eyes. One of his legs was stretched nearly straight behind him while the other leg's knee waited near his chest for him to spring to his feet and flee. His equipped hand was held up in front of his face defensively while the other rested near his legs to maintain balance. He lowered the kunai slightly when he looked up at the face. The girl in front of him resembled his younger sister who had been dead for nearly two years. "… A-Ai?" His eyes narrowed as the kunai returned to its previous position, concluding it was impossible for the girl to be his sister. "Who are you?"
She smiled warmly at him from her distance, prepared to guard herself if need be, but seeming at ease. "I'm Kurisutaru Tetsu. Who are you?"
"I'm Iroppoi Kagenma of Otogakure. Where am I?" His eyes wandered around him carefully, trying to place his surroundings.
Mentally, her eyes widened as she felt like taking a step back. 'The Village Hidden in the Sound? So he's a Sound ninja… Just like the people who killed Teinei's parents…' "This is Konohagakure: the Village Hidden in the Leaves."
Iroppoi lowered his kunai and slowly stood up straight. "This is Konoha?"
She nodded with a smile. "It sure is!"
He returned his kunai to his waist pack as his eyes returned green, bowing respectfully to the younger girl. "Please excuse my rudeness." When he straightened, he looked at the girl in her eyes. "Can you tell me where to find Lady Tsunade of the Legendary Sannin? It's very important that I speak to her."
"Lady Tsunade of the Sannin? I don't know where she is… Let's ask my mom and see if she knows!" Kurisutaru grinned as she took the older boy by the hand and began to lead him to her mother's location.
When they approached, Rikka looked up at the two children with a smile. "Who's your friend, Kurisutaru?"
"This is Iroppoi Kagenma from the Sound Village. He's looking for Lady Tsunade of the Legendary Sannin." The girl looked between her mother and her newfound friend as the woman thought. Rikka wore a white silk kimono with pink and purple flower patterns within it, smoothly matching the rest of the material.
"Lady Tsunade went missing years ago, I'm afraid. What do you need her for, dear?" She turned to look at the young boy who looked away.
"I just need to discuss something with her, that's all." He decided to keep his answer vague so he would not be feared. The reason he had traveled all that way in search of Lady Tsunade was in hopes she could cure his reaction to blood and his inherited disease that had infected his sister. It had not yet begun to influence him, but he knew it would come sooner or later and it was unlikely he would be able to make the journey to Konoha when it did. Iroppoi bowed politely again to the two Konoha natives. "Thanks, anyway."
As he walked past the two, Rikka only saw a polite smile, but her daughter saw something beneath that. Kurisutaru saw an unrivaled sadness in the boy's eyes as they watched the ground in front of him as he walked. Never had she seen such sadness in her lifetime, not even at the funeral for all of the deaths from the Kyuubi attack. She set down the herbs she had picked inside her mother's basket and ran after the older boy. "Hey, wait!"
He turned around and looked at her, his face curious but his eyes remained solemn. "What is it?"
When she caught up to him, she huffed, slightly out of breath before looking up at him with a hopeful smile. "I think… Lord Hokage should know… where to find Lady Tsunade."
Iroppoi's eyes lighted up at the girl. "Do you really think so?"
Kurisutaru nodded and reached out, grabbing his hand as she started to pull him along the woods. "I'll take you there, c'mon!" As she was dragging him along, she noticed that he was constantly staring at his feet and the ground. He didn't look around at their surroundings the entire journey to the Hokage's office, just the ground. "Are you all right?"
"Mm-hmm," he mumbled in return.
She merely shrugged and didn't stop again until they reached the Hokage's office. They were about to step inside when he walked out. "Lord Hokage, good afternoon!"
The elderly man looked up at the two children and smiled from underneath his broad white-and-red hat with the symbol for 'fire' written on its front. "Good morning, child. What can I do for you?" One arm was behind his back by force of habit while the other shifted the ceremonial hat from out of his face so he could see the two.
"This is Iroppoi Kagenma, Lord Hokage. He's looking for Lady Tsunade. Do you know where she might be?"
As to not seem rude or disrespectful, Iroppoi's eyes traveled up from the ground to look at Sarutobi. "It's important that I find her, sir. Anything at all would help."
The man stroked his small beard in thought as he looked between the two young faces. "I'm not sure what to tell you, young man. No one has seen Lady Tsunade for several years. All three of the Sannin are the kind of people you can't be found unless they actually want to be. All I can tell you is it's highly unlikely you'll find her here in the Land of Fire."
His spirits dropped once again, the younger girl next to him could feel it immediately. Iroppoi bowed respectfully once again at the leader. "Thank you for your time, Lord Hokage. Good-bye." When he turned to leave, Kurisutaru quickly gave her own bow at the Hokage and turned to chase after him.
"Iroppoi, wait a second!" she called. He stopped and turned to look at her, but he didn't speak. The sadness that had been in his eyes earlier was still present and it felt like icy rain that could never stop. Stopping in front of him, she couldn't help but to look in those eyes as she smiled in hopes of raising his spirits. "Why don't you stay for a little while?"
Looking at the ground side-to-side, he thought about what consequences could arise from doing so. "I don't know…" he said uncertainly.
Rikka appeared behind them and announced, "At least stay the night with us. That is, if your parents don't mind."
Iroppoi slowly looked up at the kind woman. "They have no problem with it, trust me."
"Shouldn't you at least ask them?" she asked as she moved around a few of the harvested herbs in her woven basket.
He looked away as if something caught his eye and responded casually, "I can't; they're dead."
"I see," she responded as she felt her daughter's eyes watching her. "In that case, you definitely have to stay." Rikka knelt down and smiled warmly into the boy's face. "I won't take 'no' for an answer."
When Iroppoi sighed and nodded in defeat, Kurisutaru smiled and took him by the hand. "Come on, my house is this way!"
Iroppoi remained silent as he was tugged along by the chattering younger girl with her mother close behind. "I think you'll like Konoha; it's really pretty, especially in the summer. It doesn't have a lot of humidity like some places and the winters aren't really cold, either. Like the Land of Snow, for example; it makes me cold just thinking about it!" They finally reached a sign in the village that read the name 'Tetsu' across it. It seemed to be a small section of town with several people in the street coming and going. When he looked around, he noticed all of the people there had silver, white, or grey hair, making him feel out of place. Then he realized that Kurisutaru's hair was raven, unlike the others in the Tetsu District of the Village. As an elderly man approached, Rikka and Kurisutaru stopped in their tracks, forcing Iroppoi to stop, as well, and bow his head when he was gently nudged.
"Good-day, Uncle," Rikka and Kurisutaru said in unison with their heads bowed as the man passed. The man didn't even look at the two women as he passed, simply ignoring them and continuing on his way. If anything, he seemed disgusted at the two. After he had passed and was out of earshot, the three raised their heads.
"Is that really your uncle?" Iroppoi asked curiously.
"No, he's my dad's uncle, actually, but we're supposed to call him that," Kurisutaru answered. "Come on, my house isn't far from here!" She continued pulling him along by the hand until they reached a rather large house and stepped inside. Kicking off their shoes, she invited him inside as she looked around. "Marugo, are you home?" she called.
An older boy stepped out of the kitchen to see who was calling for him. "I just got home but Uncle wants me to join him for something so I can't stay long." He spotted their guest and raised an eyebrow. "Hello, who's this?"
"This is Iroppoi from Otogakure," Kurisutaru smiled.
Marugo looked at his sister in disbelief before sighing. "At least Teinei's away on a mission," he breathed exasperatedly as he headed for the door. "I'm going out with Uncle for a little while, mom. Afterwards, I might go training with Itachi, if he's not too busy."
Rikka nodded. "Just be home before dinner. We're going to Ichiraku Ramen."
Kurisutaru's ears perked up. 'Ichiraku Ramen? Yes!' She mentally jumped around in excitement as she began showing her new friend around the house. When showing her own room, he noticed stacks of books everywhere and some of them, he couldn't even read the titles. They seemed to be in other languages and even the ones who weren't seemed far too advanced for him to read. There was also scattered training equipment and weapons around the room. "Sorry my room is such a mess. I was in a bit of a hurry this morning," she apologized.
"It's cleaner than mine ever was," he smiled, almost expecting himself to laugh. Looking into the hallway, he saw old photographs of the three occupants of the household with several other people, as well. When he saw pictures of Kurisutaru, it scared him how much she looked like Ai.
When the girl looked out the window, she gasped. "And the garden's in bloom right now! Come on, you have to come see!" She was so happy to meet someone new for once who didn't treat her differently for her hair. He could feel her excitement radiating around her every time he said something kind or smiled. Kurisutaru pulled him outside and released his hand to see the flowers for herself. "They've turned out better than I thought they would." Her hair fell gracefully over her shoulders as she bent over to smell a large carnation, and as she did so, a small yellow bird landed on her shoulder and made a small tweet.
"Well, 'hello' to you, too," she smiled as she lifted a finger to gently stroke the top of the bird's head. "Are you enjoying the day, too? I don't blame you." Kurisutaru stopped stroking the bird and held her finger at its feet and it climbed on happily. With her free hand, she began to stroke the bird again as a blue one flew over and landed on her shoulder as the two sang happily, causing the girl to giggle. "That's not fair; you've outnumbered me, you cheaters!"
Iroppoi sat down in the green grass of the yard and watched the younger girl giggle as the birds begged for attention. He couldn't help but smile and think back to his sister. Before she fell ill, Ai had loved to be outdoors and birds would flock to her in just the same way. He knew he couldn't stay in the large Village for very long. The sooner he left, the better, so his chances of seeing blood and reacting to it would be less. If this girl was truly like his sister, there would be no reason on Earth that would make him want to let her fall to injury.
Kurisutaru noticed his daydreaming and walked over to him, sitting across from him in the grass. "If you don't mind my asking; who's Ai?"
Snapping back to the present, he looked up at the girl, quietly mumbling about how she surprised him. "Ai was my younger sister."
"Oh, really? Where is she?" The yellow bird that had been resting on her finger, she gently placed into his hand. Moments later, it flew away and the two watched it go.
"She… was killed a few years ago by a few men in my Village." Distractedly staring at the grass, he ran his hand across the blades of grass.
She gasped. "I'm so sorry! Did the guys who did it get punished?"
Iroppoi's eyes darkened as his hand stopped moving over the grass. There was a long silence as a light gust of wind blew past. "… You could say that they did." He knew better than to tell anyone about it. If it was known that he killed three men, even unconsciously, the punishment would still be the same: banishment or death. "You look almost exactly like her, you know." He said it as if he was far away, not there in the conversation.
"Really, I do?" Kurisutaru's eyes brightened that she reminded him of someone so familiar.
He nodded. "Except for your eyes… Hers were green, like mine, not blue." Looking at the blue bird still resting on her shoulder, he smiled and said, "I could never get a bird to land on me like that…"
She smiled happily and held her finger for the bird to step on. Once it did, she held her hand out to Iroppoi and lifted his hand with her free one. "Here, just keep your arm relaxed and don't make sudden movements." Turning his hand over, she assisted the small creature into his hand and it readily climbed in with merely a moments' hesitation. It tweeted loudly and flew away when Iroppoi turned to see who had opened the door behind him.
Rikka stood in the doorway, smiling. "Marugo's home; are you two ready to go eat?"
Kurisutaru smiled. "Yeah, I'm ready!" She pulled her friend to his feet. "Let's go, already!"
Marugo eyed Iroppoi cautiously. Like his sister, before that day he had never met a Sound Ninja in person before. During the walk, the boy kept his eyes on the ground in front of him as if deep in thought which held the older boy's interest. When he was asked how his day went, he looked up at his mother. "It went pretty well. I couldn't train with Itachi because he had something important to do with the Anbu. He said it was top-secret so he couldn't tell me."
"I think you should stop spending so much time with him, Marugo. I feel like something is amiss with Itachi Uchiha that you shouldn't get involved in. If you continue training with him: be careful," Rikka warned.
He nodded in understanding. "I know what you mean. He hasn't been acting like himself for a while. Apparently, even his little brother Sasuke has noticed he's changed." Seeing as he had never actually met the boy, Marugo earned a glance. "It's a rumor I've heard around the squads."
"You should know better than to believe rumors, Marugo," his mother pointed out.
"You know what they say: more often times than not, rumors have a little piece of truth in them," he argued.
Rikka nodded at the realization. "Very true; you make a good point." Seeing they had arrived at Ichiraku Ramen, the four took their seats.
Iroppoi finally looked up from the ground and began looking at his surroundings. His eyes froze when he saw a sign on a cart reading 'Fresh Meat' across its side. He drew a gasp and quickly looked away.
"Iroppoi, what's wrong?" Rikka looked around him to see the cart of meat. "It's just a meat cart."
He shook his head nervously. "Excuse me, I have to leave now." When he stood to leave, he turned and ran into a man holding fresh meat from the cart which was covered in cold blood. His eyes widened before he quickly shut his eyes to prevent himself from seeing the blood but it was too late. A piercing pain began to course through his head as he held it with both hands. "No… Not here!"
Onlookers saw as the boy began to change, namely Kurisutaru. He was no longer the caring but sad boy she had been with all day, but a heartless monster. "Mom, something's wrong with Iroppoi."
Marugo stood from his seat and drew a kunai as the figure of Iroppoi's head raised and he stopped holding his head in pain. "Iroppoi, what's going on?"
"'Iroppoi'? I believe you are mistaken," the dark voice chuckled. "Iroppoi isn't here… for I am Yokoshima." He looked up at the older boy with eyes full of bloodlust and a wicked smile. His green eyes turned crimson as his Kasukagan activated. "Come at me: all of you, if you dare!" he challenged. Without waiting for a response, he drew a kunai and charged at the closest person near him, which happened to be Marugo.
His weapon was quickly drawn pulled in front of him for defense as he threw the younger boy off of him several feet away. When he tried to attack another onlooker, Marugo ran in the way and diverted Yokoshima's attention. "Your fight is with me," he growled.
Kurisutaru watched the fight in fear. She didn't want Iroppoi to be injured but she didn't want anyone else to be hurt, either. She leaped from her seat and over to the fight. "Please, stop it! Stop fighting!"
Looking up at the girl, Yokoshima froze as her arms wrapped around him as tight as they could. The sight of someone so similar to Ai was still new to Iroppoi as such a strong emotion held the body still. The eyes slowly returned green as he began to seem less ominous. "… Kurisutaru, what are you doing?"
Marugo lowered his kunai when he realized this was not the same boy he was fighting moments earlier. "Can somebody tell me what just happened here?"
Iroppoi looked over at the older boy before finally saying, "There's blood on my shirt, isn't there?"
It puzzled him that the boy didn't simply look for himself but he answered, "Yes, don't you remember?"
He sighed and closed his eyes; prying Kurisutaru's arms from around his waist and tugging off of his shirt, letting it fall to the ground. "Twice in one day…" he muttered to himself, "I'm becoming more careless by the day, I suppose."
"What do you mean?" Rikka picked up Iroppoi's blood-covered shirt in her arms carefully.
Looking around, he saw the onlookers had scattered. No doubt on their way to report to the Hokage about what just occurred. He sighed in defeat before looking at the woman. "My family has a kekkei genkai called the Kasukagan that resides in the eyes. If you saw my eyes turn red, then you saw my jutsu. Unfortunately, that is not the only thing that runs in my family. One of the conditions we get inevitably effect everyone at one point or another that eventually leads to death. My sister had it for several years before she was killed. The other condition many of us get is far crueler… Both of my parents had it as well as I, while my older brother Reis and my younger sister Ai did not. This condition only occurs when I see large amounts of blood. Anything more than a minor cut or scrape can do it. When that happens, I have another personality surface against my will and I don't remember anything that happens because I am technically unconscious. My other personality calls himself 'Yokoshima' which many split personalities in my family choose similar names. Normally, that wouldn't be too bad of a family trait, except…"
All four sets of eyes looked to the place where the fight had just taken place before Iroppoi continued, mentally wishing someone would stop him from explaining. "You saw it for yourselves. At young ages, the reactions aren't too severe. Sometimes just silly things such as being mean to a sibling or a random person. Whether brought on by a traumatic event or just getting older, the other personality becomes more violent. So, when that happens, Yokoshima goes on an uncontrollable blood-thirsty rampage. In most cases, I can only change back if Yokoshima has been knocked out, I've been killed, or Yokoshima is too tired to kill anymore, like this morning…" He looked up at Kurisutaru with an apologetic smile before continuing once again. "People with this condition have all either committed suicide, were killed by others simply for being diagnosed that they have it, or died in battle, all before they've reached eleven years old. Like my parents and I, it's a wonder how we lived so long. The reason I've been looking for Lady Tsunade is because I heard that she is a skilled medical ninja and I was hoping she would be able to help me. I guess that I'll just have to keep looking. If you don't mind, I think it would be better if I left now. Thank you for your hospitality." Iroppoi made a respectful bow of farewell before turning to leave as he pulled a spare shirt out of his backpack and slid it on.
Kurisutaru chased after him. "Wait a second, Iroppoi! Please, wait!"
He stopped to look at her. "What, you want to chase me out, personally?" he asked sadly.
She shook her head. "No. Please, I want you to tell me more." Her eyes looked desperate. Why she wanted to know, she didn't know why, but she felt she simply had to.
Iroppoi went turned to face her and told the summarized version of the story of how his parents died, as well as his sister Ai as well as the Kasukagan's abilities. She said nothing, only listened attentively until he finished. "So, what happened to the men who killed Ai? If there was blood, then that means…"
He nodded slowly. "Yes… I killed them. Like I said earlier: I can't remember what happens when Yokoshima is in control, no less control it." Nodding politely at Kurisutaru and her family, he looked back into the blue eyes that watched him. "Thanks for letting me stay here for the day and for trying to help me find Lady Tsunade. The rest, I'll have to take from here."
Iroppoi walked through the darkness outside of the Leaf Village when he heard a rustle in the leaves near him as he pulled out a kunai. "Who's there?"
A man walked out calmly from behind a tree. "Easy, I'm not here to make enemies. Besides…" The eyes that dug into his were sharp and threatening. "You should be more careful who you try to pick your fights with."
"Who are you?" He lowered his kunai only a little, but only a fraction for defensive purposes.
"I am Lord Orochimaru of the Legendary Sannin. How would you like to come work for me?" the snake-like man answered.
"Why should I work for you?" Iroppoi's eyes furrowed in distrust at the man. He had heard that Orochimaru was the most wicked of the Sannin.
"It's simple, really. I can provide proper food for you that I'm sure you haven't had for several years. If that alone isn't enough to satisfy you, I can help you find Lady Tsunade." Orochimaru smirked at the boy's reaction to his offer.
"You can help me find Lady Tsunade?" he repeated. The Hokage's words repeated in his mind. 'All three of the Sannin are the kind of people you can't be found unless they actually want to be.' "What do you want for it?"
"Nothing much, really. You just have to swear your loyalty to me and fight alongside me. It's people like you that I look for. Your abilities are of great interest to me, my dear boy."
Iroppoi knew he had to put serious thought into his choice. He would be fed and even perhaps receive medical help from the great Lady Tsunade of the Legendary Sannin. On the other hand, Orochimaru was a snake of a man, he could tell that much just from speaking to him. Yet, if he refused, would the man allow him to live after the encounter? An audible growl came from the boy's stomach. In reaction, Orochimaru dug into his waist pack and threw a sandwich at the boy. Looking from the sandwich to the giver of the food, Iroppoi was trying hard to decide.
"If you don't wish to join me, return that sandwich to me despite your hunger. If you decide to pledge your loyalty to me and follow me back to Otogakure, eat it to your pleasure." Orochimaru turned as if to leave but he watched over his shoulder for the boy's decision.
With one last uneasy glance, another low growl emerged from his stomach and he took a large bite into the sandwich. Iroppoi quickly devoured the food in his hands as he tucked his kunai away as Orochimaru smiled in satisfaction. "Good choice, Iroppoi Kagenma."
