Something New
Chapter 21: a sea of traitors
Koomahana
Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine; you want the real stuff get off this site
Thoughts
Paragraphs are memories
…
…
The night was cool and crisp, the stars sparkled like diamonds, the leafs dancing on the wind like children playing games, even the moon seemed bright and cheerful as it smiled down on the village he loved so much. He sat on his porch staring up at the moon, Sake bottle in hand and another empty tree to his left, explaining the bright red tint to his cheeks.
His home was empty, empty of his wife, empty of his daughter… empty of his son…
His son… the child with onyx hair and perfectly shined jade eyes, he had wolfish features despite belonging to the clan of 'dragons' or so they were so named centuries ago; all because their clan techniques revolved around the use of dragons. Fire dragons, water dragons, earth dragons, mud dragons, if it had a 'dragon' in its name, they had mastered it; there were even rumors of their clan having contracts with dragons summonings but those were practices long since forgotten. His family was called the 'dragon tamers' in the time before the Shodaime assertion and now they were called no more, his clan having dwindled down into the single digits as time passed and wars raged. Now he knew of no relatives outside of his own parents, who had died in the last war. His children were his only chance at rebuilding his clan but his son died and his daughter hated his guts, not that he blamed her. Being a girl there was little he could teach her of their family arts, the 'female dragons' fought in a different manner then the 'male dragons'. Not even his mother was willing to teach neither him nor his wife the secret arts of her special style, she promised to teach his daughter should he ever have one but then she died three years before his son did. In fact, because he was male he was forced to learn everything from a scroll, a scroll created by one of his elder male ancestors who made the law of their men fighting in a different manner then the woman. The men fought like oceans and tornadoes while the women fought like hurricanes and rivers, it was his hope that their women would never be sullied by being stolen and sold so the learned to protect themselves and their children, that was their soul and only purpose.
'Never let it said that a female dragon was easy to tame,' that was what his ancestor wished for their family to be known for, their women who fought tooth and nail for freedom, for their clan who never gave up and never quite, stubborn to the very core of their soul.
He wanted more than anything to teach his daughter but her hatred of him and his loyalty to his mother prevented him from breaking the law and teaching her the male dragon secret arts. He wished he could but it was forbidden in the Kyuushigi clan, even if he was the last of the male line he could not dishonor his mother and father by teaching the male arts to his female child. It would be the same as wishing that his son was still alive or telling her that he wished she was a boy, she would feel shame for being born a woman and that wasn't something he wanted her to feel. She should be proud to be a woman, proud to be a kunochi, proud to be a dr—
"Tetsuo?" he flinched at the whisper soft voice, as if his wife was afraid to disturb him
"…What?" he asked, lowering his saki cup to listen
"There's a commotion outside, shouldn't you go see what it is?" she asked, he sighed and slumped against the back porch beam, hazy eyes still locked onto the beautiful starry sky high over head
"Is it tonight?" he asked
"What?" she questioned, tilting her head to the side curiously, a trickle of fear wavering her signature
"Is it tonight that you're going to tell me who you really are?" he asked, he could sense the surprise in her chakra, the flicker of doubt and insecurity. "I married you for more than the mask you wore for me and our children; I married you because you were the strongest kunochi I ever came across. You could try to hide your face behind that deceptively sweet cat mask but I memorize chakra signatures, I knew who you were the moment we met."
"…You knew?" she asked, betrayal in her voice and regret in her chakra, "all these years… you knew?"
"You were the same kunochi who took out my brother during the war," he replied, "the cat masked kunochi of Kumo. We came dangerously close to crossing blades a few times during the war... And then one day I got to see your face, during that festival twenty years ago... Do you remember that day?"
"You had a broken arm," she smiled in remembrance, fondness and affection flowing through her and into him, "one dango stick in your mouth and another two in hand."
"I dropped them all just to catch up to you," Tetsu chuckled, "I told you my name immanently... You hesitated though..."
"You weren't yet my mission," she mumbled, regret, sorrow and acceptance echoing in her chakra, "I didn't stand a chance did I?" A mixture of fear and joy; she was scared because he knew, because he sought her out, because he chose her; and joy because he accepted her and loved her for who she was.
"Nope," Tetsuo smiled at the night sky, "I fell for you the second I saw you."
"On the battle field?" She asked in surprise
"In the village festal," he corrected, "I never actually saw you before that but I did sense your chakra signature a few times." An indescribable sense of joy and happiness washed over him, relief from a heavy burden lifted off her shoulders, a swelling of emotion to great to name and it made his chocolate eyes fill with water because he knew what would have to happen next and it broke his heart to force her hand.
"Your friends are waiting," he whispered, realization, fear, regrettable acceptance, all washed over her like a wave breaking on the coast, reminding her of her sworn duty and the twenty-some-odd year mission she was still participating in. "You better hurry," He set his hands wide apart on the floor of the porch, head bowed in acceptance, "your the only one left who can protect her...our child..."
"Of course," the small thin blade slid between his ribs and into his heart, "I would never hurt her..."
"I know," he whispered as he leaned back into her embrace, his head sliding down onto her lap, giving him the perfect view of her water jade eyes and over flowing waves of perfectly plum hair. He raised a hand and let it stroke her pale cheek, she lifted one hand and held it in place, he smiled at her trying to reassure her that she did nothing wrong. He did what he did to protect her, Kumo was not a safe village for families, it took children from their homes and forced them to become shinobi, there was no option for them. If Kumo was going to take his daughter regardless of what he did, then he would allow his wife to strike him down so that she may live and protect their only living child.
"I love you," he whispered as his vision bled black and his wife was stained with his blood
"Natsuki Kawayama," she whispered to him, stroking his still smiling face, "my name is Natsuki..." I love you too
Thu-thump, cla-clack
It was her only warning before one of her old subordinates spoke behind her
"Nekage-sama it is time," the man called out to her in the dark of her home, "your child is already heading towards her designated location."
"Do you have my mask?" She asked, trying to memorize her husband's face before death drew out the last of his color
"I brought everything Nekage-sama..." Something was off with his voice, taking in a deep breath, she pulled away from Tetsuo and stood to her full height
"What is it?" She demanded more then questioned, snatching her mask out of his hands and pulling it on quickly
"You loved him," her second in command murmured, her green eyes glinted like daggers behind her mask, then without warning her foot was smashing into his face, cracking his mask.
"I killed my parents as traitors for the Raijage," she snarled the reminder at him, "I killed my own son for disobeying the Raikage, and I have killed my husband to prove my loyalty to Raikage-sama, who else do I have to kill to prove my loyalty?!"
"No one my lady," he said pushing himself up and dusting his front off, "you spent nearly thirty years with him, its understandable that eventually even you, the queen of our storms, fell in love with their king of dragons." She watched as he patted his hands together and turned his back to her, "panther and jaguar are trailing your girl, you better hurry up and change."
"Who are they?" She demanded, "I've never given such names to anyone!"
"Alot of things change in thirty years," he replied, "they joined the ranks ten years ago...I doubt you'll like them very much."
"If they hurt Ami, they'll be the first I kill," Natsuki snarled like the cat her mad portrayed her as
I don't know if even you can handle them, he thought, listening her remove her housewife attire and begin to done the clothing she once wore as their queen of storms. Despite his thoughts, he knew that if she did kill them, he would be the next one she killed, because he was the one who sent them after her daughter. Even if nearly thirty years passed since they last spared, and just as long since she last dared to use her chakra, he doubted in his own ability to take her on.
The queen of storms was not known for mercy because one dose not tame the seas with a spoon, if she chose to attack there would be nothing he could do to stop her
…
She ran through the dark streets of her village, frustration, fear and terror, all fueling her speed through the darkness.
Please, she thought, using her momentum to sling shot herself around a corner by slapping her hands around a light pole and swinging around the corner without losing speed
Please, She jumped, spun, twisted, and latched herself onto the edge of a building, pulling herself over it before the patrol could see her
Please, she raced past the roofs, her black cloak hiding her from any wondering eyes, heading towards the familiar giant building painted blinding crimson
Please Hokage-sama, she skidded across the top of a roof, hiding behind the top edge perfectly, send a fake! So far nothing, only the dark carpet of the room was seeable, not even the lights were on.
"Hokage-sama," she whispered fearfully
"Now remember this cute little face brat," the man laughed, shoving the little picture into her face, "her life is in your hands, as well as few others." The picture depicted a short haired little violet eyed girl in dirty, torn clothes, clearly beaten and abused, thick metal shackles wrapped around her ankles and wrists. She took the stack of pictures from him and flipped through them, her face paling as she found pictures of her classmates, her weak aunt, mother, father, severs other young children she knew from her visit years ago to her mothers family home, as well as a few pictures of a few younger children from her Academy.
The last image she stopped at was of the night she was teaching Naruto his illusion clone technique, she was standing between the blonde and his friend, smirk in place and eyes closed as if amused
"Oh yeah that one, he's your second and less important target," the man said, glancing at the image she was staring at, "honestly it would be nice if you killed him too but it really doesn't matter."
"'Too'?" She questioned, her voice cracking with the word, "who else do you want me to kill?"
"The Hokage,"
Please send a clone! Ami begged inside her mind, watching fear and terror as the light flipped on
Please! Time seemed to slow down
Please! The edge of a dark skirt entered her vision
Please send a clone! White robes crossed the edge of the window, followed by the familiar old figure of her Hokage, the man who visited her during her very first attempts to water walk, and then taught her the water clone, teaching her how to increase her chakra control through safer means that didn't involve her feinting from exhaustion every day.
No! She screamed inside, dropped down below the edge, master no! She warned him, using the very special Chanel he taught her, a communication line directly to him, no one could intercept it or distract the currier.
He had to have gotten her warning by now, it was the only way for him to know the ideal room for her to attack him from outside. Did he trust her that much with his life? No, it had to be a clone, a substitute, a special technique unique to him, it had too be. He wouldn't blindly trust her with his life, he didn't even know what attack she was going to use
It had to be a clone! There was no other option!
She grabbed a kunai and jumped to her feet, she rose it high, spun it on her finger and readied to throw it throw the window at her kage
"Now that's an interesting technique," she gasped looked up in surprise at her some times teacher standing just behind her, "what are you going to name it?"
"I-I don't know," she answered, blushing as she looked back down at the small little wobbly looking arrow floating between her hands, "I'm trying to think of what I can use it for... It's so small I doubt it'll be even a distraction."
"Maybe you should focus on your chakra control more before you try practicing with water shapes and their many, many uses," he chuckled, "I know a little trick you can practice when you have the time."
"Really?" She gasped, "can you teach me?!"
"Of course child," he smiled, patting her head affectionately
His voice echoed in her mind as she slammed her back into the small wall of the roof, curling into a ball as kunai clattered noisily against the cement roof, her hands wrapped around her arms, her head braced against her knees as she shook violently in her fear.
I can't do it, she thought, sobbing as she trembled in her place, What if I'm wrong? What if he didn't take me seriously? What if I hurt him?!
The image of her mother and father laughing together, one of the few moments they were sober and not fighting about something
I'm a monster! She sobbed, curling up into a little ball, there was no other word to describe someone who would willing give up their own family (their entire family tree) to spare one old man. Even now as she rocked herself against the cold stone of the roof, she could hear her sometimes teacher's voice echoing in her mind, fondness and affection filling every word. He taught her how to get a better handle on her chakra, how to control it almost perfectly, showing her and teaching her how to perfect her control and then giving her books made by his female student Tsunade, books dedicated to perfecting one's chakra control. He taught her how to walk on water and up trees and how to hold water between her hands as if it belonged there, every water technique she knew, she knew because he taught it to her. He was patient and kind and gave her the books and scrolls she didn't have access to and even prepared training schedules for her to go through so she wouldn't sleep through her academy classes. He made sure she didn't die from chakra exhaustion, made sure she was practicing correctly, moving her chakra the correct way, using it adequately without hurting her coils.
He was there when no one else was
When she feinted four years ago in the middle of class, he was there when she woke up, looking as disappointed as any grandfather could. Just looking at his face made her feel an inch tall, like she did some great crime she should've known better in doing; that was the same day he gave her the pendent she still wore, refusing to take it off no matter what happened. The small bright pink cherry blossom pendent with the little blood red petal on the top right side, dangling from a silver chain, it looked so silly and strange she could only stare at with blank eyes. He told her it belonged to Sakura's father, that he wore it every day and never took it off because it reminded him of his child, Sakura. He set it in her hand and stood up, intending to leave without saying anything else but when he reached that door he stopped, sighing heavily he whispered his last words to her and left her hospital room.
"If you're scared speak up, if you're struggling ask for help, if you're lost call out, no matter what you say or do, someone will always be there for you."
"I... I'm scared," she whimpered, "I don't know what to do. If I hurt him I betray my home, I'd have trained all these years for nothing. If I don't… my mother and father are going to die and after them the rest of mom's family are going to be massacred." she sniffed, whipping her hands against her cheeks, feeling like she was five years old and scrapped her knee for the first time, "I don't know what to do… someone, anyone, please help me."
A brush of warm air wrapped around her like a hug, whispering in her ear before disappearing
An arrow strikes true? Ami thought, blinking through her tears and looking around herself curiously, sniffing she pulled herself away from the wall she was huddled up on and examined it closely. Right where her back had been pressed were several little pictures scratched into the surface of the little wall, depicting an arrow, a figure and what appeared to be a road. Looking over the edge of the wall, Ami saw a little cross in the road that matched the one on the road picture, the picture next to the little road was of an arrow, which was aimed at a stick figure.
Is this a clue from Hokage-sama? Ami thought, comparing the pictures to the road and building in front of her, she remembered suddenly what the arrow could be. The year before last she was working on making shapes with water, one of them was an Arrow, if small it was pretty useless but if she made it big enough it could sail through the air and strike a grown man dead. But it required being of massive size, as thick as her arm and just as long, its arrow head had to be at least two feet wide as well; the arrow was more of a massive bolt the an arrow but it was the only one she came across that went long distances and threw targets.
Her Hokage had to have known that she was almost done with the technique, it was the only way to explain the images on the wall
Please be a fake, Ami thought as she flipped over the edge and ran for the x on the ground, she slid into archer stance, her left hand rising from her hip and drawing water up with it as her left hand stopped perfectly level with her shoulder, her right hand stationed itself at the back of her left hand's knuckles before drawing back like she was pulling on the string of a bow.
Please! She aimed
Be a fake! She released the weapon, a shout sounding at the same time
Hokage-sama! She watched the arrow desperately, suddenly the fear that it just might be her master instead of a clone settled over
Glass shattered
Screams echoed
Blood arced out of the building like a gazer
Her world stopped as realization dawned on her
The arrow hit its true mark
"HOKAGE-SAMA!"
…
…
The night was long and dark, Iruka was racing through the village as best as he could, trying not to slip on the cool ceramic tiles. He just received the emergency call, the loud echoing siren was defining to everyone in the village, waking many children from their sleep. He jumped from a low building, aiming for the higher landing were many other Chunin were standing together, wondering what was going on. He was half way up when he saw the Hokage and his councilors standing unusually close to one of the lower windows, hearing a sound below he habitually looked down at the ground. His heat nearly stopped at the sight of a small shadow standing in the middle of the road, a ghostly gleaming arrow held at the ready.
"No!" Iruka cried, his voice should've been enough warning to the councilors, enough warning to his Kage but it was as if the old man couldn't hear him.
The arrow hit its mark
"Hokage-sama!" Dozens of voices cried together, some echoing off the buildings around them. Iruka landed on the roof and skidded across the slick tiles to reach the broken window of the room containing the three highest ranked shinobi of the village. Hiruzen laid on the floor in a steadily growing pool of red, Homura had rolled him onto his back so his head would sit in her lap, Kohaku and Danzo were both kneeling beside him, trembling with blank looks signature to shock.
"The arrow was made from water," Homura murmured distractedly, ranking her trembling fingers through what little was left of her teammate's hair, "that's Jonin level chakra control..."
"Heh, should-a... took the warning s-seriously," Hiruzen gasped, smiling in amusement, "Iruka... Can you see who?" The Chunin snapped around his teeth grinding together as he watched helplessly as the archer danced around the dozen of Chunin attacking him, sweeping low and twisting behind his opponents like a Taijutsu master. Then two familiar Jonin jumped in, their Chunin flank jackets looking black in the low light of the street lamps, but it seemed they could do nothing as the black cloaked person evaded their strikes easily, sacrificing their cloak in favor of jumping away to land on a nearby light pole, safe from any potential harm.
"No," Iruka whispered, disbelief and betrayal sounding in his voice. "Ami..." Iruka murmured as Danzo stood and walked to the window, stopping beside the academy teacher to stare blankly at the figure drenched porcelain white moonlight, alighting her pastel violet and pink clothes to shine as if they were made from silk and light.
"Damn traitor!" A Chunin shouted, dropping down on Ami from behind
"No! Don't!" Iruka shouted but it was too late, a water serpent surrounded Ami, knocking the Chunin away easily, like a cat swapping a mouse into a wall. The Chunin coughed, pushing the bricks of the caved in fireplace chimney he landed in away to see Ami, still standing atop the light pole as if nothing happened.
"Damn," Iruka hissed in sympathy for the other chunin, "Ami's defensive strategy hasn't changed, still unnecessary powerful."
"Do you know her battle tactics?" Danzo questioned
"For the most part yeah, but..." Iruka frowned, "she's not acting like she usually dose...she should be moving right now but she's just standing there."
"How am I a traitor?" Ami questioned, glancing at the Chunin, "I am doing what you refuse to do."
"What are you talking about?!" The man asked loudly, "I would never harm Hokage-sama!"
"'We should kill him now while he's still weak,'" Ami repeated dully, eyes over shadowed by her bangs and headband, "'we never should've let him into the academy,' 'that little monster should die,' 'can you imagine what would happen if he became a ninja?'" Then like hitting the final nail into a coffin she smirked back at him, placing one fing to her lips, "'shhh, we're not supposed to talk about it'." Realization hit the shinobi gathering around her like a ton of bricks, their fears were confirmed when the wind blew and her bangs were lifted, revealing the insignia of the hidden cloud village replacing her hidden leaf emblem.
"Thanks for the lose tongues you guys," Ami placed her hand onto a cocked hip, "it made finding your Jinchuriki so much easier."
"What are you going to do to Naruto?!" Iruka shouted, fear making his voice crack
"Didn't I already tell you? I'm going to kill him," Ami answered him calmly, her serpent wrapped itself around her shoulders hissing agitatedly at Iruka, "without your perfect little shield the next war will be a breeze for Hidden Cloud village and this time... We're going to win."
"I won't let you!" Azuma screamed at her from the ground, "None of us are going to let you near him!"
"Why not?" Ami questioned, "None if you want him, you all keep murmuring about how senile Hokage-sama is for not finishing what the Youndaime started. All you've ever done is mumble and complain, whining like children, none of you believe in Naruto, none you want him." Scorn, hatred and what almost looked like betrayal were in her eyes as she glared down at the shinobi gathering in the street, "None of you even stopped to teach him how to read or write! You just left him to learn on his own, abandoning him for something he couldn't stop if he tried! You blame him for the death of the Youndaine and of those who died trying to protect this village but if you got those sticks out if your ass's you'd realize that without Naruto the kiyobi would still be rampaging about today killing everyone insight for the hell of it!" Her voice grew and grew until she was shouting, anger and disappointment twisting her normally calm features, her dull brown eyes were blazing in anger, looking as if she was so angry she could cry.
"The Konoha I know isn't like that!" Ami screamed, "you want a monster?! Go look in the mirror!" Her serpent struck the Chunin out of the air from behind her with its tail and slammed head first into a Jonin kunochi who tried to hide behind a genjutsu to sneak up on the young Genin. The Chunin fell to the ground in boneless heaps and the kunochi was forced to fly through the air towards the ground with neck breaking speed, stopping only when another Jonin-Azuma-caught her.
"You okay Kurenai?" Azuma asked as Kakashi skid to a stop beside them
"I'll live," she answered, rubbing at her sore and bruised arms, where she caught most of the attack. "If that thing bared fangs I'd be dead," she mumbled, frowning at her wet arms
"If you landed you'd have died," Azuma corrected, turning to glare up at the young genin
"No the water was starting to wrap around me," Kurenai whispered, "She was trying not to hurt me. Knock me out maybe, no that wasn't a strike to kill... I bet she even crushed the Chunins falls too."
"You think there's more at stake here then what we're seeing?" Kakashi asked
"Uh-huh," Kurenai nodded
"What kind of assassin doesn't kill to get free?" Azuma asked
"I don't smell blood," Kakashi murmured just soft enough for them to hear him, "I think there's a story here... Maybe we should follow her lead..." The other two relaxed minutely at the information, glade their Kage was still possibly living, (especially Azuma).
"Ami," Iruka whispered, sitting back on his hunches and staring wide eyed at the young girl still standing on the light pole. Even after every cruel word you've said, every merciless strike you gave him... You were the only one who truly saw him... That's why you're so angry with us, isn't it?
"...Iruka," the Chunin turned at the voice, Hiruzen was growing paler by the second from the blood loss from the massive home in his chest, "find N-Naruto... she's not alone... protect him..."
"Yes sir," Iruka bobbed his head and disappeared quickly
"Ami!" Kakashi shouted drawing the young kunochi's attention, "what are you doing?! Why did you betray the leaf? After everything you did for Naruto, why—"
"Naruto is a threat to my village, I needed to earn his trust to get close to him," Ami answered coldly, stilling the Jonin. However, to Kakashi there was something off with her tone of voice, to him it sounded like an excuse or well rehearsed line; a speech she was forced to memorize.
"What are you talking about?! The hidden leaf is your village!" Kurenai shouted, only those close enough to Ami could see the heart broken smile on her face and the gathering of tears in her eyes. Those few who were close enough to Ami were then clued into something else, an old lesson resurfacing in their minds, a lesson they thought they mastered long ago.
Nothing is as it first appears
The expression confirmed the old classmates theory, something else was at work and Ami was the perfect little puppet for it to play out
"I will protect her," Ami murmured lifting a kunai up to a defensive position over her heart, "she doesn't deserve that life." She dropped down from the pole, her serpent arcing down and slamming into the ground like a tree, scattering her opponents like leafs in the wind. Kakashi jumped forward, his Sharingan eye revealed as he readied his own kunai to counter her own blade but just seconds before the two were to clash, a strange white-gold light shinned on them. He watched Ami's eyes widen in a look of fear and realization, she whispered something only his borrowed eye caught and then he was hit from behind, pushed further past her with added speed by the aid of her water serpent. He skidded on the ground, twisted in the dirt and crouched on all fours, he watched in disbelief as Ami stood braced in the middle of a blinding lightning attach, looking as if she was trying to stop it. Kakashi watched as she tilted her face towards him and smiled gently, mouthing the words only he could read. Then she was screaming as the attack bested her, forcing her to slam into the stone wall of the shop, denting it upon impact before slumping against the broken wall like a corpse. Her hair was freed from its now broken hair tie, letting elegant plum waves cascade around her burnt and bruised face. She was covered in bruises; her clothes burnt and frayed revealing charred skin beneath. His fell leaf Nin stopped and murmured, wondering what just happened and who attacked Ami, was it Kakashi or someone else?
"That was close," a deep voice chuckled in the night, a far cloaked mountain built man stepped out of the alleyway directly across from Ami's slumped body. "I can't let you take on Hatake you could die, stupid brat."
"What's going on?" a Chunin questioned, "who is that?"
"Hay~ you were supposed to be gentile with her," suddenly there was another dark cloaked form beside the mountain, significantly smaller then the giant, "how are we supposed to get her report if you kill her?"
"I think the report is a little unnecessary, look at the leaf scum, they're angry enough, she must have succeeded with her mission," the giant replied, "she did however fail to keep our village out of this, she revealed our identities a little too easily don't you think?"
"Naw~," the smaller one replied, "she's just proactive... Like those two." The two Chunin who planned to attack the cloaked figures from above screamed as lightning incased them, throwing them away from the two cloaked individuals.
"Damn them," Azuma hissed
"Azuma! Calm down!" Kakashi ordered, "They're just playing with us!" Like a spell had been broken the two cloaked people were suddenly in front of Ami, the smaller one examining the girl's wounds before giggling to themselves.
"Hay cap'in you over did it! If we don't get her to cap'in soon, she's gonna die! And then we're going to be in big trouble! The queen of storms isn't known for playing very nice, even with her allies!"
"Fine, whatever, get the girl and we'll leave this rotten cesspool," the man ordered, the shorter person chuckled and pulled Ami onto their shoulder
"Oof! She's heavier then she looks!" The smaller one whined, "Hay cap'in you carry her! I won't be nearly as fast with her on me~!" The giant snorted and grabbed them both, setting his companion on his shoulder and holding Ami carelessly under his other arm, "yea~h! A ride!" The shorter one giggled from their seat on the giant's shoulder. "Let's get to the queen!" The two were suddenly gone in a burst of light and speed, Ami's long plum hair tailing after them like a comment
"No damn it!" Kakashi hollered, trying to take off after them, he was joined by the Chunin who attacked Ami first; together they attacked the giant but were blocked by the shorter person easily.
"Aw~ look what you did you big bullies!" The person whined like a child, "You ruined my favorite cloak!" Kakashi's eyes widened staring at the porcelain white mad of a Kumo Anbu agent, his mask shaped like a grinning cat, fitting for all the winning he was doing. Beside him the Chunin reached forward, his teeth ground together as he reached for the long violet locks of the young girl. Suddenly a pale white hand covered in bloody burns reached out of the endless waves and slapped his hand away, as if to save him from the bolt of electricity that was suddenly between them, slicing the skin on the girl's forearm. Before the group disappeared into the dark of the night, laughter echoing after them, the Chunin got a look at Ami's face, his eyes widening as something cold and wet slashed against his bruised face. Kakashi grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back as they watched the Anbu agents disappear into the forest, the heartbroken and frightened face of the young girl etched into their minds.
"What are you two doing?!" Azuma asked loudly, skidding a stop beside them with several others, "they're getting away!"
"She was crying," the Chunin whispered, one hand whipping off the tears on his face to look down at them on his finger tips, "she didn't want to go..."
"What are you talking about? She killed Hokage-sama!" Another chunin snarled at him
"Maybe, maybe not," Kakashi counted calmly, "remember her words? She told us of her plans but never acted on them, she even revealed her village affiliation to us... and she defended herself but didn't actually attack us."
"She sent that water serpent to attack us," Shikaku frowned at him, "and drew a kunai to attack you."
"No, not quite," Kakashi drawled thoughtfully, "she drew a kunai to protect herself from any thrown weapons; she wasn't expecting me to charge her. Plus when those agents started to attack us, she used that serpent to push me to safety, using herself as a shield to prevent the attack from going through the building she crashed into."
"What do you mean?" Shukaku questioned, "That lightning pushed her into the building, the owner will have to replace the entire wall."
"That jutsu is called Raiton: heaven's spear," Kakashi explained, "it's designed to take out mountains and reshape valleys. In other words she protected the entire Eastern section of the village by using her water serpent to redirect the majority of the attach into the ground where it could be dispersed safely without harming anyone."
"Well that explains our current black out," Azuma sighed, "so how long is it gonna be before we get power back here?"
"Raiton: heaven's Spear?" Shukaku repeated slowly, trying to recall where he heard of that before, "that's an S-class lighting technique designed to take out whole armies with one hit, how'd she survive it point blank like that?"
"Uncle," the conversation ended with the soft whispery voice, they all turned to see one young blonde girl approaching them, dressed in a white Yukata, making herself appear to be a ghost in the midnight moonlight. The girl's father, Inoichi Yamanaka, was walking silently behind her, a frown on his face as he followed her lead.
"Isn't that the mute Yamanaka heiress?" Kakashi asked curiously
"You're half right," Shukaku answered, "but she's not mute."
"You have to save her uncle," Ino said calmly, the group of men sighed together as they realized that she was using her family's technique of telepathy, she wasn't actually speaking to them, "if you don't they're going to kill her."
"She killed Hokage-sa—"
"Hokage-sama is alive and well, what you saw was a corpse doll," Ino interrupted the chunin, "Ami Yanagi does not wish to leave the village. The words she spoke earlier were in grief and betrayal not hatred, when she spoke of Naruto it was with confusion and affection, not mockery and triumph."
"...What makes you think those men who took her will kill her?" Shukaku asked, looking more at his old teammate then the heiress
"What happened to Hatake Sakumo, who was a professional assassin that failed his mission and started the third great ninja war?" Ino asked in return, unknowingly hitting an old wound in Kakashi. "Ami warned Hokage-sama, that is why they will kill her. It is only a matter of time before they figure it out and when they do, they won't stop with just her, they'll destroy her mother's entire clan, the Kawayamas."
"Are you sure of this?" Kakashi asked seriously, "how do you know?"
"Ino accidentally possessed Ami during a training session with me," Inoichi answered, looking like he was a little kid preparing for a scolding from his parent
"What other option is there for a clan heiress?" Ino asked, distracting the adults with the question, "The Kawayama clan is hated and spat on, their only option to regain their acceptance into Kumo was to send in their heiress as a sleeper agent in their current enemy's encampment."
"And when enough time passes, they marry and have a child," Shukaku hissed in understanding, "that child then continues on the mission their parent was assigned! Once the child succeeds they're greeted like a hero in their home village and their family honor is restored!"
"But Ami adores the hidden leaf," Ino reminded them, "She is a traitor."
"Just not to the hidden leaf!" Kakashi shouted, moving into a sprint as he weaved his hands into several hand signs, "Inu summoning: Eight canines!" His hand drew across the path in a straight line, the summons appearing on that line for only a moment before they were off running after their master. "There's a girl covered in lightning burns, find her!" Kakashi ordered and his summons disappeared with echoing howls sounding like wolves eagerly on the hunt.
"Ino-chan," Shikaku called before the blonde and her father could walk away, "When did you find all of that out?"
"Two years ago," Ino answered simply
"You knew about her plans for two years?!" Shikaku questioned, "Do you want to be tried for treason?! Why didn't you say anything?!"
"Ami was not aware of any details pertaining to her mother's mission until the day she graduated," Ino corrected dully, "Her only mission at the given point in time was to become as strong as she could by learning all of the hidden leaf's secret arts."
"So she only learned of her mission today," Inoichi sighed, "I wonder if she had enough time to warn Hokage-sama like you said…"
"Ami would not harm her own teacher," Ino said bluntly, turning on her heal and walking away, ignoring the shouts from her father and his old teammate. It's up to you, Hatake Kakashi, Ino thought as she walked, her specialty telling her where the tracker and her classmate were easily, you're the only one who save her now.
Iruka panted as he ran through the dark forest, unaware of another following unseen in the darkness
Naruto scratched his head as he tried to focus on the instructions and not fall asleep
Natsuki stopped at the top of the hill overlooking the hidden leaf, a feeling of foreboding settling over her like am woolen blanket being wrapped around her shoulders
Kakashi ran through the trees, surrounded by his ninken and two of his classmate's close behind, panting heavily and gasping for breath
Ami slapped her bloody hand against a branch as they ran, praying that the men carrying her away from her home never noticed her sorry excuse of a trail
None of them could be prepared for what the night would befall them nor for what the morning brought
…
…
Kawa = River
Yama = Mountain
Kawa + Yama = Kawayama (it should read 'River Mountain)
I thought it would be a little dumb for an undercover agent to use their actual name while going undercover, so I thought this could work. Looking at my list of most common surnames in Japan, I only came up with five names that had mountain in it and two that had river in it, so I used Kawa (meaning river) and Yama (meaning mountain) and combined them the hopeful translation of 'River Mountain'.
Thoughts are helpful
Opinions are wonderful
Helpful criticism is lovely! Just don't cripple me okay?
Please no cursing!
And don't forget to rate and review!
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