Surreptitious Ninja Cat
Chapter 11. Tackling bigger challenges
Zetsu trotted back towards headquarters. His little spy mission was officially over. What threw a man of his caliber under the bus, is that he wasn't even told to dig up a case such as this. Instead of leaving Sakura's fate alone, the plant like being assigned took matters into his own hands to play tracker nin for Madara's beloved lost cat; whose been pronounced missing in action for some time. The fact that its not even a human or missing artifact in need of being pawned for cash is what ruffles his feathers the most.
Had he not agreed to completing an unofficial mission, such a depressing curse brought upon the base would never cease to exist. Yet of course out of all the turmoil rocking everyone straight to the core, only one person could decide to do something about it.
According to witnessing new data on a light travel, the lost feline turned out stable. Instead she's living a separate life else where. But if the animated Aloe Vera were to ever disclose any details about the cat's whereabouts to anyone, changes based on the results may vary. So by snitching to the right person, then the curse shall be lifted and he'll be treated better!
'Pfft, like that will ever happen...' it mused, not so sure if knots of oppression will unfasten. exited out the village and then tunneled his way through the underground soil only to surface in front of the base. The giant plant marched towards the narrow entrance, summoning roots from out of the soil, swiping at the boulder with no effort. Tossing the mass offender further distance from himself, he then proceeds to wander into a ballad of pure chaos.
Brown inflated patches slowly slithered down the walls like slugs. Some had already hid the ground, leaving a trail of dastardly scent marks. Zetsu hopped over the substance, walking straight into the main room. Seemed like lots of stuff in here were fucked up as well. Kisame was the first person he could recognize, hovering over a desk. Expression twisted into disgust, the man twists over a scroll like a towel.
yellow liquid seeped out of the material.
"Ugh, this is so humiliating. Damn cat pissed all over the map."
"How's it even possible for one ginger to mess up the joint so fast?" darker-half grumbled. "Madara should have went on ahead with befriending a damn gold fish instead."
"Oh, hell no. Do not dare to speak about purchasing any of my ancestors." scowled the fish stick. "Anyways, this place really needs some strict guideline book on how to take care of a troublesome cat."
"Speaking of those flea traps... I tracked down the original's chakra."
As if the devil wired his messages over seas, feet came shuffling across the floor.
Once the mob reaches the room, they stare up at Zetsu wide-eyed, "REALLY?"
"Yes, she's um... staying over at waterfall." the darker presence informed them, trying to avoid a sudden attention spike.
Within a few minutes of silence, the members slowly started backing away.
They haven't spoken a word since hearing about the cat's whereabouts. What's keeping them?
"Um.. I don't think any of us can cross the border." Konan mentioned sheepishly, shrugging her shoulder blades. "I mean, yeah.. we're ex-nins and all. But it's just that we're not suppose to be active at the moment."
"And why's that?" Zetsu questioned curiously. "Unless those water nins are waiting by the gates with rifles, then don't bitch about it."
"That's the whole point."
"Aqua nins? Aaha! We can do way more damage than them." chuckled the light side of Zetsu.
"If you're gonna act like that, might as well do it on your own time."
All eyes landed on the person who spoke out of nowhere.
Pein stood a few feet behind them, practically far off from all of the other members.
Engaging into a fit of short laughter, "Ahahaaha. Are you serious? I'm gonna make Madara do it." Zetsu reveals on the spot, joyful emotions fading rather quickly. "Besides, I don't want to get any where near this type of drama."
Siding with such a random choice, Zetsu buried underground before they could reach him. Most of the henchmen did themselves a favor by moving out the way as a trail of dirt speeds past them. Over in the halls, said plant/human removes him self from the hole and resumes standing on land. He tries his best to locate Madara, only to frown as he runs down the hall way clenching his throat.
"Aah, aah! I got.. I got—" wheezed the elder Uchiha. "... s-something stuck in my throat!"
Head tilting curiously. "You have what lodged in there?" plantzilla repeated quizzically.
Suddenly the random attack ran wild, spreading quickly through his throat. Upper energy suddenly drained, Madara collapses down onto his knees. Rare symptoms began taking over. (like when he ate a raw mushroom by mistake) a blurry moment. Stage two followed suit, mouth mysteriously clogging up with invisible air. He felt like a tied off balloon trying to expel raw sewage from tampering with the air supply.
As time passed, it proved incredibly difficult to breeze. Unfortunately, close to a minute truly passed. But it felt like forever! Up above a demonized plant is laughing its head off. As if slow motion, razor-sharp teeth clamped and glistening by the brightness of the light fastened at the cave wall.
What in the world granted such a horrible demise? Trembling in complete horror, Madara gazes from right to left. Neither criminal units from their respectable living quarters came down the halls to help him. Such a disaster! As the symptoms shift into over drive, a wispy torrent burrowed in stuffy sewage slides upwards through the windpipe. However, there wasn't an optional passage beside the mouth..which is guarded heavily by said man's mask.
"Well, well, well..this is such a catastrophe. Maybe we should consider helping him out.."
Taking it slow, he carefully embraced Madara's torso with two thick vines.
Eyes widened in surprise, "What the hell..are you d-doing?"
Zetsu doesn't say a damn thing. Suspended up wards in the air, said choker was shook and shaken violently. The hidden perpetrator from within slid and slipped down the esophagus. Many failed attempts played out as Madara played the role of a rag doll. Till suddenly, kami decided to raise his holy mallet!
Sparing them the trouble, alas the hair expels out of Madara's lips. But it did not sail like a bouncy ball, instead slithering down the Akatsuki cloak, and ono the floor. Resting in content, the wet coating of saliva starts to sizzle like a pan cake heating up on a grill. Once the swirling vortex filled with scorching temperatures vanished into the air, both males paid close attention downwards.
Fading slowly, a furry sticky orange blob stuck firmly to the ground.
Zetsu peers down at the wet glob, then back up in confusion. "Um.. what the fuck was that?"
Wobbling overboard like a bowling pin, "N-nothing.. might have been a..a.." trembles the paranoid victim.`
"Hair ball? How funny, yet gross at the same time. Did Garfield park his butt on your face this morning?"
"Can't fully remember if that ever happened or not..." he replies steadily, composer returning. Madara slowly gets back up, slowly dragging both middle and ring fingers across the coat, dusting off random clumps of fur. "I never thought so much regular behaviors would piss me off so much."
"Return it then. Rips that stupid little thing's tail off as a going away present. Do something about it!"
"Since when an eater such as your self gotten so peppy lately? Did another rotten carcass swim around in your stomach's intestinal system today?"
"Ooh! Ooh! Speaking of dead bodies, a certain special someone isn't living at the pet cemetery."
"Oh really? If you're playing a trick on me then forget it. Whether Sakura is alive or not, I just don't have the decency to care."
Zetsu's skin molds into a deep frown, "Are you sure? Cause we found her ages ago!" voiced the white side.
"What was that? Bring her to me."
"Um.. we can't. She has a new family at the moment and I don't want to drift them apart."
"Fuck that family. In fact, ours doesn't even qualify as one." growled the elder Uchiha. "At least there isn't a rabid mammal running around the house trying to tear her apart like a tiny stuffed animal."
"Speaking of dogs, there's an ugly one terrorizing her well-being."
Quickly without saying another word, Madara vanished.
Zetsu smirked. "Jackpot."
Xx-xXXx-Xx
-Near the entrance towards the base-
I never thought.. that a simple orphaned cat would make me feel so violently angry, or deeply depressed at random periods of time. Such vast emotions similar to a dog's characteristics after losing it's bone. Well, she couldn't really represent the naked texture grinding against a pointy pair of fangs. Yet, my heart tells me other wise. I haven't really felt this way since after murdering my beloved twin.
Is fate tampering with my dreams? No matter. Finding the lacking essence to my ego before it's too late is the only option. At once I make an exit at the front of the cave, surprisingly pulled back by mutant green tentacles. Judging by the tugging and exclusive split chakra, Zetsu made no effort to throw me back. Said kunai slips out of my sleeve only to get slammed through his skin.
He jumps back, distortion clogging his two-tone face. "What's your problem? I was only trying to tell you something."
"Could have said hi instead of sneaking up on me." I advised dryly, waiting for a reaction. On cue it frowns, truly regretting such a shortcoming.
"You've got to be kidding me..."
"Nope."
"Plants don't greet people. We eat 'em!" grinned the light side, butting into the conversation. "Anyways, might as well spill the beans and tell you where that fur ball is."
"Spill it out! I don't have time for your silly messed up games. Make sure to point out an accurate decent location."
"Yar, yar. The runt is located in waterfall."
"That's quite an odd follow-up... Dumping a mongrel near water at which they hate is such a contradiction."
"I have a hunch over who did it."
"Likewise plant man, like wise. I"ll be back soon."
Madara quietly vanishes out of the room, leaving behind a fresh trail of green leaves on the hard dirt covered floor. His body easily transferred from one scene to the next. Rather then on usual routines to complete side quests, his mindset strictly on Takigakure as the next destination. Unfortunately, his view-point on the neighboring village weren't anything positive.
During the younger years as a legal shinobi in Konoha, he rather despised any other village that displayed it's inability to side with the other five great nations. Yet under special circumstances, it didn't matter of whatever reason that came to mind. Even if Sakura didn't wind up living there, there's still a planned mission for this territory. Supposedly the village tucked away one of the bijuus needed for the moon eye's plan.
But before he could go ahead with kidnapping any of the containers, an important scan over their credentials are needed. It was quite simple attempt to figure out how much power was present among the natives.
Who exactly would actually bother to approach a jinchuuriki with such strength like that? Of course the higher ranking Shinobi have no choice but to check them. Which means the Akatsuki could pick up the task as well.
After all, it is their job as criminals.
xX-xXx-Xx
One, two, three, four, five, six...seven.
At least two dozen and counting.
If this wave of chakra were a dud, he would be packing up else where. Reports of fraud amongst the hidden resident census would spike. Aside from that ever happening, the village leader might keep it under wraps till the last minute. Which was good enough for Madara. If he were to get caught red-handed attempting to flee the village, perhaps a negotiation could be arranged. That's only if the mission backfired.
didn't move a muscle as he stared at the base of the tree. The village remained hidden within , completely sealed off by thick tree roots scaling high into the sky. Since there's a fair amount of watch dogs nearby, they might recognize him. He knew better though, placing a genjutsu will only make him seem like a better target. So he decided to wait it out by the check point.
only to be hounded by the security bouncers.
"Hey stranger!" shouts a guard towards the right. "Yeah you, with the mask."
Madara knew exactly who lardo was referring to. Instead of sitting tight so the initiator could raid his breathing space, he might as well just end their lives right now. But what's the use for a petty joke like that? Neither moving a muscle, the stranger slowly approached closer than usual.
"Hmm, you look veryyyyyy familiar." Said man spoke nimbly, rubbing the bottom of his chin. "Heh. You were that clever fellow who sucked Kurama out of its container's stomach."
"Affirmative, solider. Is there any reason about why you're preventing me from advancing through?"
"Hell yeah! Listen carefully, will ya?" the soldier suggests coyly. Silencing any further efforts, his teal pupils move from right to left within both spaces, mimicking the movements of two players utilizing paddle balls. Afterwards, the man spoke with a lower tone. "We, as in the people, got ourselves a huge problem on our hands. The bitch's name is Fuu and she is um...uhh.."
He all ready knew which direction this conversation's heading, "A bijuu sacrifice? Hmm.. That's quite nice. But to be honest, unless there's something else in mind, then don't bother carrying on any further."
"Pfft, of course there is. Do you mind sending over one of your goons to take her out? She's already getting on the village's nerves."
"I'll be certain to act upon it." Madara replied back, preparing to move along. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to track someone down."
The guard wanders off near the side, "Yeah, sure. But in the mean time I'll just let you in since I know you're gonna follow-up and take her out in secrecy. So go on ahead."
Staring down the guard with one visible Sharingan eye seeping out of the hole, he stalks straight through the check point without any further distractions coming between himself and what lies ahead. Leaving the Taki guard behind, Madara expects not to be followed.
Operation rescue is a-go.
A/N: While reading over biographies for this chapter, I started wondering about some story when Sakura's life as another Jinchuuriki, specifically mirroring Fuu's viewpoints and happy-go-lucky personality. It might work because Naruto is already one and... sounds boring already. Meh, I'll think of something. So maybe towards the end of 2013 it might come to light in a fic.
Should probably start with the rough drafts first.. ANYWAYS!
Corrections: Zetsu's main part in the story.
07/02/13
