Disclaimer: I haven't put one of these in here since a long while ago. Lyrinian, Kira, the fifth Mizukage(in this story) Jonaza, Syrnon, Theris, the Village Hidden in Thorns, and the overall plot are mine. Everything else belongs to the respectable Masashi Kishimoto.
Chapter Seven: I Guess That Ends Negotiations
'We have a situation.'
'Your assassin failed.' The first man cringed and flapped his hand.
'Theris was assured of his abilities. Besides, even if they did capture him, he will never reveal anything. The zealots of his kind are too prideful for that. Besides, we have our insurance policy.'
'You do not know my brother as I do. He will stop at nothing to find out who did this. Your clients will not be pleased when they wake up and find a sword embedded in their chests.'
'They are too well protected, and besides, they live in what was once the most powerful village, and is still the largest. Besides, they will not retaliate against allies.'
'I have stated before: you do not know my brother. I do not doubt he'd raze the village if it meant he could have his revenge. Do not disbelieve me: he may act like a civilized and refined person, but beneath, he's just like me: a rabid animal who holds his own chain.'
-----------------------------------------
The old man peered into the bottle, frowned, and emptied the few remainders into his mouth. He tossed the bottle into the bag on the ground next to him, and eyed the cap lying dismally in front of him, noting the lack of increase of coins. He leaned forward, groaning as his back cracked, and emptied the contents of the cap into his bag as well. He shouldered the filthy thing, placed the cap on his head, and started shuffling down the street, muttering to himself. Had anyone been listening to this monologue, it could have revealed much that many people would have to killed to know and stop others from knowing.
'Goddamned costumes. Fucking thing smells and slumping over hurts like hell. Limits mobility too. Where the hell is he? He's been coming out of that door every day for a week. Where's that bottle…'
Lyrinian groped in the bag before pulling out a different bottle. He uncorked it and peered inside, his eyes lighting up at the sight of the alcohol within. He sat down, put the cap out in front of him as before, and began to consume his poison. Despite his harsh words earlier, he was inordinately happy. Fools, never thinking of a manual disguise anymore. Shinobi nowadays were all concentrating on henge techniques, rather than just trying to put on a costume, and as such, defenses had evolved to detect them, rather then penetrate a potential imposter's Halloween suit. As long as Lyrinian remembered to hide his chakra, no one could detect him without removing the fatsuit doubling his body mass, taking off the latex that changed the shape of his chin and face, and pulling off the fake beard and eyebrows. It was all too easy. He took another swig. After draining the second bottle, he glanced at the setting sun. With another groan, he lifted the empty cap and started to move towards the area where he'd been stashing his stuff.
-----------------------------------------
Kira finished the last figure in the scroll before yawning and stretching. She had to admit, though she was still angry as a woman scorned, Jonaza had really managed to open the floodgates with this guy. She'd spent the past week draining him of information, and then a few days summarizing and copying in triplicate all the information gained. One was for the archives, one for the Mizukage, and one for Jonaza, as per normal. She'd found who had given him the contract from the Konoha council, she'd found out that they were keeping his family, and that the rest of his tribe would be obliterated if he told anything. She'd also found how he managed to seal explosives inside of himself without killing himself. His abilities reminded her of someone, she just couldn't remember who. Walking to the aviary, she bumped into Naruto.
'Hiya,' Kira waved. Seeing the non-responding recipient of her greeting engrossed in a book, she shook her head.
'Idiot, it's polite to respond when someone greets you.' This time, Kira's sentence was accompanied by a whack to the shoulder, knocking Naruto over. He stood up, confused, and rubbed his arm sheepishly.
'What, did you say something?' Kira glared, then got a mischievous smile on her face.
'What're you reading that's so engaging?' She reached down and picked up the book.'
'The Ways of Carpentry. Sounds like your forte.' She made a seal, and with a puff of smoke, the book changed from the dull brown with a chair on the cover to a plain black, obviously well-used.
'A diary? Really?' She evaded Naruto's grabs for the book and began to read the first page out loud.
'Entry One. They have decided to make me Mizukage. I don't really know why. I was happier when I was able to fight. Now I sit behind a desk and watch these weaker fools try to win our battles.
'Entry Two. These so called 'graduates' are far too empathetically feeble. I have an idea…
Entry Three. I have implemented the plan. Many were horrified, but I do not doubt they would be more horrified if they were killed because we had a weak military.
Signed, Yagura, Yondaime Mizukage.'
Kira looked up at Naruto, who was blushing. 'I'd never have pegged you for the type who'd read a bloodthirsty monster's journal. Planning on slaughtering a clan?' Though she meant it in jest, she saw Naruto flinch. 'What? I didn't mean it.'
'The Mizukage said that he was one of the only jinchuriki to ever fully master the power of his beast. I thought that his journal may give me some clues on how to do it.' He rubbed the back of his head. 'It's kind of a long shot, but hey, you never know.' Kira shook her head.
'Another power-crazed alpha male. Jeez, I can't help but think one day all the testosterone is going to kill everyone but the women in this world.'
'It's not for the additional power… I've been having trouble concentrating, and when using any chakra save the fox's, I tend to have problems doing jutsus… particularly the Rasengan. My control, never very good to start out with, has degraded to the point of being non-existent. If anything, I'd say it's becoming obsessive over what I do, almost requiring me to use its chakra, interfering with me if I try to use my own. I want to find out if there's a way to stop it, and, if possible, turn the tide.' His blush, at first prominent and glowing, had turned to a dull discoloration in his cheeks, much like the shy people who never stop.
Kira looked up at him. 'Have you asked Jonaza? He is the foremost expert on demons and their ways, as far as we know.' Naruto nodded.
'I have, and that's kind of what worries me. He told me that all demons have unique personalities, and that a spirit as old as the fox would undoubtedly want some taste of freedom after twenty years of being locked up, but all in all, he couldn't explain how to stop it, or how to at least reduce it. He did point me to the Mizukage, who produced the journal. Still, as far in as I am, there's no mention of how he did it.'
'Well, if you want any help developing manual chakra control, then pay me a visit, okay? Oh, and if you see Jonaza, give him this, will you?' She tossed the scroll to Naruto, who nodded. 'Now I just have to get these into two very separate and par away parts of the village… why can't the archives just be in the residence? Or the library?'
------------------------------------------------
Lyrinian leapt across the minute gap between the buildings, almost as a side thought. It was his third night out on the rooftops, and after six hours of shuffling around in a fatsuit and a latex mask, it felt good to stretch his legs. He had problems with the mask, but if anyone saw him, he couldn't afford to be recognized. He also had a Konoha forehead protector, just for that added bit of help. His guise wouldn't stand up to more than a minute's scrutiny, so he was planning on not being seen in the first place, though with all the guards, he had some difficulty doing that. Concealing his chakra took a lot of his concentration, meaning he couldn't focus as hard on the physical aspect of espionage, which meant there has a higher chance of being seen than he'd like.
'This is a job for a snake, not me. Hell, not even a Snake could slither in here undetected. But it does give me an idea…' 'Fuuton: Kuchiyose no Jutsu!' The whispered command came out, unheard and unseen. Once the smoke had settled, a small hawk sat on the rooftop in front of Lyrinian.
'Amura, can you let me scout out the area with you?? I have your brothers watching the other two, the weaker ones, but this one would be smarter than that, so I have to watch him myself. Can you help me find where the sentries are and what they're doing?' The bird dipped its head once and lifted off into the sky. Lyrinian leaned against a wall and made a hand seal.
'Greater Chameleon Technique.'(1*) Anything someone may have seen of a lean man dressed in full black was now nothing but a shimmer in the air, undetectable unless you bumped into it.
'Summoning Technique: Two Minds as One.'(2*) With a quick, nauseating spin through the air, Lyrinian's mind invaded that of the bird's, allowing him control. Keeping one eye on his unconscious body, he soared over the town, pinpointing and mentally marking the locations of all the sentries he could see. He had no eyes for the scenery, which, in his opinion, while not as beautiful as the sea, was still amazing, only concentrating on what really mattered at this point: potential traps and dangers. After circling the five square miles surrounding his position, Lyrinian broke both spells, dismissing the bird and sending his mind rocketing back to his body. He slowly removed his back from the wall and crept forward, small gaps of cloth appearing through the cloud of camouflaged human. He kept his sword in its sheath on his hip, instead drawing a kunai and holding it in a defensive position in front of him, its blade making a small indent on the side of his forearm. Crouching, he snuck forward, evading the positions of every stationary guard, ceasing movement whenever the moving patrols wandered around. Minute by minute, hour by hour, he slowly made his way to the Hokage Tower. Once arrived, he dismissed the chameleon technique. He couldn't divide his concentration as he had to when he both hid his chakra and pulled off three draining and difficult techniques at once. Lyrinian leapt forward, his palms glowing with chakra as he latched himself onto the wall, cursing himself for not realizing he'd stand out like a leper in his black costume on the whitewashed building. All he could do was stay in the shadow cast by the moon and hope no one was looking. When he reached the summit of the tall building, he vaulted over the roof and caught the overhanging shingles on the opposite side, swinging around so as to face the window, where a meeting was taking place. He let go of the shingles and caught his toes on the window ledge. He pulled out a pair of earphones and a small nodule, and applied it to the window, putting in the earphones. All that was being said within became hazy, but still hearable.
'… unacceptable… letting the … -ound freel… ought to complain. We… never should have allowed… roam free. …try to recapture it.' Lyrinian heard a static-y sigh from the microphone.
'We… try to regain him… Kirigakure. They… powerful, and he will go not quietly. To take… require a force larger and stronger… afford to amass. I would like… back… hard, nigh impossible. The alliance… shattered, and Suna… become wary, distrustful. …afford trying to gain him. The Nine-tails… sealed safe. No… wasting shinobi to… keep us secure.'
'Well, now, having fun?' Lyrinian whirled, his kunai out in front of him as he did so, quickly finding a spot in front of his face, and between himself and the ANBU hanging from the roof. Lyrinian cursed himself mentally for letting his guard down, allowing the ANBU to sneak up on him and startle him. No matter what he heard, he shouldn't have allowed himself to be distracted. The guard's eyes slid up to Lyrinian's hitae-ate.
'Now, then, we wouldn't be wanting someone to be fooled by that, would we? Why don't you take it off and tell me where you're really from?' Lyrinian reaction was to rip the phony piece off and toss it to the ground, a good hundred yards below. He was still safe behind the mask, but the guard would have his eyes and hair. He'd have to cut it or kill the guard. Killing the guard was infinitely more likely. He let go of the window ledge and fell to a balcony a hundred feet below. He was immediately followed by the original ANBU and several of his compatriots, all with drawn katanas. Seeing this, Lyrinian straightened from his knife-fighting pose, becoming straight and tall, showing off all six foot three of his height, and drew the blade strapped to his back. He held it horizontally , one hand under on blade, the other under the hilt, and bowed low.
And then he struck.
The first ANBU had no chance. The twin blades slashed quickly, cutting his throat as if it were no more than air. They whirled around, finding another target, this time hitting the ANBU in the forehead, instantly lobotomizing him. The man fell off the blade and onto the ground with a sickening sound, and then the other ANBU got over their surprise and attacked themselves. The captain, the one who had found Lyrinian, got close, managing to get his blade within a foot of Lyrinian's arm, before the Swordsmen leapt to avoid a different strike, and kicked the blade away, and, landing, swept a foot underneath the soldier beneath, sending him tumbling to the ground. Lyrinian quickly hefted the man and threw him over the balcony's railing.
All of this had happened in less than a minute. Lyrinian quickly turned, finding the captain and his two other soldiers scrabbling for to regain their footing. Lyrinian made a hand seal around the hilt of his sword.
'Lightning Style: Diverging Paths of Heaven.'(3*) Three blue bolts of electricity shot from the air between the tip of the three blades, striking the three men, sending each one back onto the ground and twitching. Lyrinian brought both of his hands to the blades of his sword, and, hands glowing with chakra, split them into two separate blades, with half a handguard for each. He quickly went to each of the spasming men, quickly slicing the throat of each one. Once the last one had been sent silently to his maker, Lyrinian wiped the blades on his clothes, and put the swords back into one, flowing as if a liquid into a mold. He sheathed the blades into the scabbard on his back, bowed once more to the dead men, and, taking a leaping position on the balcony, when suddenly the lights from the boor leading to the balcony flew on, and the door burst open. Three angry women exited the door, accompanied by Danzo, the Council, and several ANBU guards.
One of the women spoke.
'Scum, you have five seconds to tell me who you are and what you're doing here before I punch you out of the village.' She noticed the five dead ANBU units and added, in a snarling growl, 'And maybe I'll let you live as a cripple for the rest of your days.'
Lyrinian was torn and angry. A simple reconnaissance mission had turned from that to a bloodbath to a fiasco. And yet, here was his target. Based on the conversation he held in his pouch, he had no doubt that Jonaza would begrudge him eliminating the council, but he knew that, even if he did succeed, the odds of survival were dismal. His mind raced through many scenarios before arriving on one he believed would suit his purposes. He felt in his breast pouch for a special knife.
'I am sorry, milady, but that is the one thing I may not do.' He was careful to keep his apparent chakra signature much lower than normal, and his voice much softer and higher than his regular. 'However, my masters have a gift for you.' He tossed the knife, now glowing white, onto the ground, sticking its point into the soft stone, and leapt from the balcony, gracefully landing on the broken body of the ANBU he'd tossed off the balcony. He pumped as much chakra as he dared into his feet, and sprinted away from the tower, and the flames spreading from the balcony where he'd killed six men.
-------------------------------------
AN: These last few chapters have mainly been to help to flesh out the OCs, since, looking back, character development has really been non-existent for everyone save Jonaza. This chapter's focus, obviously, was Lyrinian, and the next one will probably be Kira. I also threw in a little allusion for you metals with solid gears out there. Also: please, give me some constructive criticism on the fight scene. Tell me how to improve it, because I KNOW it wasn't perfect. As always, hug a tree, stay away from an angry badgers, and review!
Techniques:
1*- Greater Chameleon Technique: One of Lyrinian's original techniques, it shrouds the user in chakra, which takes on the appearance of the environment. It's the fifth of six levels, going from Weak, Common, Average, Strong, Great, and Grand. Its largest flaw is that, when moving, the shroud doesn't move quite as quickly as the user, allowing little holes to pop through, allowing the observant person to notice floating patches of cloth or skin, which would certainly alert them, and it requires an inordinate amount of chakra control. Due to this, it's either best as an evasion technique, or in a low-light environment with dark clothing. Gamers, basically imagine the Sniper class from Killzone 2. Rated low A-class.
2*-Summoning Technique: Two Minds as One: It is similar to the Yamanaka clan's technique, allowing someone to posses something else and use its body to their own ends. However, it can only be used upon a willing summon, as the caster can be thrown out by someone with a strong enough will. It is also superior to the Yamanaka clan's, however, in that, when cast under the above conditions, it has a 100% success rate. However, it leaves the body of the user completely unprotected, and, due to this, is classified as a kinjutsu. Rated high B-class.
3*- Lighting Style: Diverging Paths of Heaven: It's basically a normal bolt of lightning, though colored differently depending on the user, and is most often sent through a conductor of some sort- in this use, Lyrinian's sword, which, already imbued with quite a bit of an electrical punch, can greatly increase the power of the technique. If charged enough, it can kill, though it's normally used more to incapacitate an enemy than kill them. Another of Lyrinian's original techniques. Rated A class.
