Sealkeeper: He Who Binds
Chapter 152-A "Book of the Mountain"
Patron Release 2022.01.21
Hana rapped on the doorway to Orochimaru's office- one of them, if rumor was to be believed- and let herself in without waiting for a response. The man she was looking for- who happened to currently possess the body of a Genin- was hunched over a desk filling sheets of loose paper with matters she really didn't even want to consider.
The desk was pointed towards the back of the room and was extended by the large table that reached almost to the far wall. There was just enough of a gap to allow the bookcases that covered every inch of the wall to be reasonably accessed, though Hana noted that quite a few of those books had instead found a home scattered about in perilous stacks on said table.
On his desk flickered a ghostly blue flame that almost seemed to turn towards her as she approached, dancing ever so slightly more energetically at the introduction of something new to the environment.
"Yes?" Orochimaru asked, not bothering to look up from his work. "What do you want?" Naruto was out of the country so he knew he didn't have to worry that he might be being rude to his crimson prince and he really didn't care much for most of the other people who called this palace home.
"Orochimaru," Hana addressed him. It took a second but he managed to place the voice and afforded the governess of Nami no Kuni a glance as she continued. "I had a question about a potential project-"
Whether she was going to continue or wait for a response Orochimaru didn't know or care, he raised a hand and gave a dismissive wave as soon as he had heard enough.
"No, I'm far too busy with my current work and only Naruto-Kun gets projects for free. I doubt you have anything I want anyway."
Folding her arms she rested the majority of her weight on a single hip. "Well it's a good thing the intended beneficiary for this project was Naruto, isn't it?"
That caught the man's attention. "For Naruto?" His pen dropped to the desk carelessly and he spun to face her properly. He was always on the hunt for ways to improve his beloved prince's life and any ideas were welcome. "Alright, let's hear the basics first. We'll see if it's worth going into specifics."
"Naruto needs an assistant. Someone he can trust unconditionally and is competent enough to keep on top of things for him." She started. Orochimau nodded along, that was common knowledge among those who knew Naruto's work habits.
"Yes, and?" He prompted. "Where do I come in?"
"If we can't find one…."
He caught onto her idea immediately, eyes widening slightly at the possibilities. "...We make one." Orochimaru mumbled, finishing her sentence.
He took a minute to think over it, occasionally glancing over to the flickering flame on his desk.
"The body…" Orochimaru started, stopped, and started again. "The body I can do, it's no trouble at all. The spirit, though, that will be more difficult."
"But doable?" Her only concern was whether it could be done and Orochimaru both recognized and appreciated that sentiment.
"There's potential." He didn't commit to anything in that answer but he did in his next sentence. "Potential that I'll need to look into. I'm already looking into the summoning or…creation…of Kami. This might prove another use for them."
"And the loyalty?"
"We'll have to see how the work goes. We can utilize seals, if we must, though that may involve Naruto himself."
"I'd rather it be a surprise, honestly."
Orochimaru nodded in full agreement. "So would I." He gave a shrug. "But when it comes down to it, if nothing else is working I care much more about the fact that he had one than anything else." Tilting his head, he considered another aspect. "And, I suppose, if we're making the body he may want input on that as well. He will be the one spending the most time with his assistant, we don't want him to dislike any part of it."
Hana gave a shrug. "We could," She agreed. "Or you could come up with a few and the one he likes the best becomes his leaving the others to be used elsewhere." Her suggestion was followed by another one. "You could also mix the features of two or more of his lovers together and call it good. Temari's slightly tan skin in Anko's body with Tayuya's hair, perhaps?"
"Mmm, not bad. We can play around with the bodies later, I'll start coming up with ways to modify my current Kami project to provide results for use in this one."
"Sounds good. I'd appreciate it if you could keep me informed on your progress."
"Yeah, yeah." Orochimaru waved her off, already having turned back to his desk and fished out a fresh piece of paper. How much he actually heard at that point was up for debate as his head was filled with fresh ideas for more than one of the projects he had in the works.
Oh, yes, there was a lot of potential in her ideas - just not for what she had intended.
Orochimaru might have to find some way to show appreciation for the ideas at some point. Maybe by modeling one of the bodies after her?
Or perhaps just inviting her to join in on some quality Naruto-time.
Hell, if things went well why not both? He already had a twin for Tsunade, what was to stop him from making other sets of twins?
….Was…was there a way Orochimaru could inhabit more than one body at the same time? He was really going to have to look into that. Kage-Bunshin entering into different bodies for a more permanent existence sounded terrifyingly feasible.
"You're right, Gaara-Chan," Jundo-Hime laid back against the Nami prince's plate and patted a full stomach. "That Tsunami really does make the best snacks."
He beamed proudly back at her and she didn't even try to fight the smile it brought to her own face. He was just too cute.
He was also quite useful for understanding what went on here in the palace. Well, it was more that he knew the people and that only seemed to be because a majority of them were women who slept with his father the Daimyo. Even so, as long as she skirted around the concept of what everyone's relationship with each other was- she'd already made that mistake once on the way down and she still had a headache from trying to process it all. Something visual probably would have helped some- he could tell her about anyone she wanted to know about here in the palace which, quite honestly, was where she intended to spend all of her time that was away from Kabuto.
Anko, for instance, Jundo learned was no longer in the palace as she'd joined the Daimyo on a trip. Rather disappointing but at least now she wouldn't be wasting her time looking for someone who wasn't there. That was nice, Jundo had better things to be doing if meeting this Anko wasn't feasible.
Like getting introduced to that blonde with the massive rack.
According to Gaara her name was Tsunade and the young woman often around her was somehow both her apprentice and her boss. That seemed to extend to the bedroom, too, but Gaara wasn't well versed enough to know what he was actually saying.
Jundo-Hime was familiar enough that she had been able to piece things together without much trouble. How accurate she was could be debated but it was a conclusion she quite liked so she was running with it. She was also planning to vehemently deny the existence of any evidence pointing to the contrary- such as learning that her assumption had been completely incorrect from one of the individuals involved- as it came up to maintain her personal fantasy of the two.
What Gaara hadn't been able to understand was why Jundo was so focused on Tsunade out of everyone within the palace- once they had established that Anko was gone, anyway- but that was something she was about to correct.
Really, it wasn't all that hard to understand but she supposed everyone needed to learn at some point before they could really know.
"Alright, Gaara-Chan, Jundo-Nee promised to teach you a lot so we're going to start with why Tsunade was worth my attention." She declared, picking herself up and moving to the end of the table. "Ready?"
Gaara didn't know what he needed to be ready for but he gave a confident nod anyway.
"Okay, well, the quickest and most simple answer is this - boobs."
The little racoon tilted his head to the side, not quite understanding. "Boobs?" He asked.
"Uhn, boobs." Jundo gave a reassuring nod, confirming that he had it right.
"But….don't the other women here have boobs too?"
In response to his question jundo shaped her arms before her chest as if she was trying to hold onto two watermelons. To Gaara it just looked like she had pushed her arms into her own breasts which, essentially, is all that she had really done.
"Big boobs!" Jundo declared.
"So the bigger they are the better they are?" Tsunade did have the largest in the palace, he was pretty sure about that.
"Of course!" She grinned up at him. "They're better because there's more boob to enjoy."
He still seemed lost and Jundo deflated just a little bit. What young man wasn't interested in boobs? "Have you ever seen boobs? Touched them?"
"Sometimes I feel them press into me when someone gives me a hug." He admitted. "They seem soft."
"Seem?" She shook her head. "Well, you don't have to worry about not knowing for sure anymore. Here, give mine a feel." Shrugging off the top of her Yukata she let it hang around her waist exposing the glorious flesh beneath that she so enjoyed teasing Kabuto with.
"Come on, what are you waiting for? You can touch them."
Gaara looked up from the pale flesh to her face and then to his hand looking extremely puzzled. Jundo-Hime rolled her eyes. "Yes, I'm small, just use a finger or two and be gentle please."
The feather-light touch that ghosted over one of her breasts was by no means unpleasant- Jundo enjoyed it quite a bit, actually- but it really didn't serve its intended purpose either. Before Gaara could fully draw back his finger she captured it in her tiny arms and brought it back.
"Not that gentle, Gaara-Chan, you need to be able to properly feel them to gain real appreciation for how wonderful they are. Think of it like petting a cat. You have to be gentle not to hurt it but firm enough that it starts purring." Normally this would be the part where she made a comment about getting her to purr but she was sure that would be lost on the little raccoon so she held her tongue.
….For now.
"Ah, yes, there we go." His finger- guided by Jundo- made its way back to her chest where it proceeded to provide enlightenment. "How does that feel, Gaara-Chan?"
"It's really soft." It was warm, too, and despite not being able to grab more of it due to her size he was finding it very difficult to stop touching what he was being offered. Suddenly the benefit to there being more made all the sense in the world.
Jundo seemed to know exactly when he came to that realization, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "I see you understand, good. You know what's next?"
Gaara shook his head no, his attention still mostly focused on her breasts as a finger from his other hand joined in. If he used his thumbs, he could probably just pick her up and hold her with his other fingers.
"Now we have to find you some a bit bigger. Mine are wonderful for the size of my body but if you want to really experience a pair we need to find someone else- someone like Tsunade, maybe?" She offered it almost as a suggestion but she really meant that next they were going to go find Tsunade.
Gaara…wasn't really listening. Changing out his pointer fingers for his thumbs gave an immediate increase to the control he had over the pressure he exerted and the eight fingers that spread around her kept him from pushing her away with his actions.
"Oh!" The water sprite hadn't been expecting that but after a brief moment of surprise looked up at the enraptured young man with a fond, indulgent smile. "Look at you, already improving your technique. What a thoughtful young man you are, Gaara-Chan."
It was hard to tell if the red on his cheeks was from the compliment or because of what he was doing but he seemed happy either way.
Perhaps Tsunade could wait just a bit, Jundo thought, there were some more things she could teach him before they found her and at the moment she was enjoying herself a bit too much to want to stop him anyway.
After all, she still hadn't been able to get Kabuto to touch her and it had been a very long time since she had last enjoyed proper human contact.
She had to wonder if that Tsukuyomi fellow would be too terribly upset if she were to take her teachings all the way but in the end she figured she probably shouldn't risk it. He probably wouldn't like what she was currently doing- or anything else she already had planned- there was no need to increase the ire directed at her.
It was a nice thought, though, maybe she could ask him when he was back in town if Kabuto was still being stubborn.
The air was dry and warm which by itself was absolutely bearable- hell, it was nearly pleasant- but the glaring of the desert sun was unbelievably harsh and seemed entirely intent on burning everything it touched to ash.
It was for that reason alone that Kurotsuchi had taken shelter in the canvas sanctuary of the covered wagons. Much to her irritation the heat became stifling without the breeze and so she had moved to the front of the wagon where she could pull away enough of the fabric to enjoy the wind without exposing herself fully to the sun.
Fortunately the sun was north enough in the sky that she could pull this off, otherwise she would have to pick between the two. Her skin was rather grateful she didn't as Kurotsuchi had already learned that a hot breeze was better than no breeze. The value of airflow should not be underestimated.
Of course, staring out into the seemingly endless expanse of hard tan earth and golden sands beneath an entirely too cheerful sky of unbroken blue also grew old pretty quickly. With a sigh Kurotsuchi let the canvas drop back into place and retreated towards the back of the wagon where she did something similar.
Like the gaze to the south it was mostly an expanse of lifelessness with the exception of a few buildings so far off in the distance they looked to be little more than specks. That had been the last town they passed through and the lead wagon hadn't even needed to stop to maintain the ruse before a few of the village men mentioned they'd just had another caravan pass through the other day and waved them on towards the capital.
That was probably for the best because for as small as it was it did serve as a central hub of sorts for some even smaller communities further away from the main trade routes. If they had to stop there they would have been stuck for at least the rest of the day and there were only a few among them who knew their stock enough to play merchant.
Kurotsuchi would have been spending quite a lot of time sitting around in the back of a wagon only in that case they wouldn't be moving towards their targets. Well, she could have tried to find a room for rent but in such a small town that was unlikely. Caravans such as the one they were posing as tended to just make camp nearby so they could keep an eye on their wagons and goods.
It also saved a bit of money and when you were a merchant who traveled constantly the savings of not renting rooms really added up.
And so, with little need, there really wasn't anything worth using some of her own money to stay in during that time. Nevertheless, the town served as an important point along the trade-route and the heart of several communities spread farther away where there were more resources for anyone willing to brave the untamable desert.
Which is why she had a team break off to ensure it was secured. Any supplyline chokeholds they could create gave them immediate control over parts of the territory and would prove vital in their attempts to root out Konoha and her allies from the sands like the weeds they were.
It shouldn't come to a siege of Sunagakure- and that would not be an experience she was keen to have- but on the off chance it did she could ensure no regular supply caravans reached it. There was no telling how much food storage there was within the walls but considering the harsh conditions of the land and the downright vicious way the people of Kaze no Kuni clung to life it was reasonable to expect six months of rations and likely another few weeks after that of them eating any Konoha or Kiri Shinobi still within the walls.
Then would come any pets followed by neighbors, so Iwa's goals should be complete long before the Suna natives started eating their families. All they really needed to do was drive Konoha out, as long as that was done Suna could be widely ignored while Iwa marched towards Hi no Kuni.
It would take enough time for them to recover that positions around the immediate territory would be well secured and should, if they had any sense, deter any attempts to venture beyond their walls. So long as Kurotsuchi remembered to start allowing trade caravans through again, that is. As long as they had what they needed they would be content to regain their strength and allow the desert to sap what it would from the outlanders before making any attacks.
Considering the Kaze no Kuni territory was going to the smaller countries as a reward for their aid, well, it wouldn't really be Iwa's problem. Hell, knowing that those minor countries were allies with Iwa who was- or should be, by that time- occupying Hi no Kuni the people of Sunagakure may join eagerly for a chance to put it to the Konoha Shinobi who had taken control of their home.
The best they should probably be hoping for was simply that Suna kept to itself as a new minor village and was simply glad to no longer be under Hi no Kuni control. They were a hardy people, those of Sunagakure were already used to scraping by a living and taking absolutely everything they could wrestle from the desert. Starting back up as a minor village probably wouldn't have them blinking twice, they would just get to work.
That work would probably include regular raids on nearby countries but that was to be expected when Shinobi were out of work and desperate to make livings. They weren't all that different from bandits at the best of times as it was, removing the pressure of being a major village would probably remove a lot of the reasons they had made any attempt to be as civilized as they were.
The original clans of Kaze no Kuni weren't hireable, history said, they could only be paid off to leave your lands alone and even then there were more than a few accounts of them helping themselves anyway. "Bandit" and "Shinobi" shared a very close definition in Suna culture.
A culture she'd been forced to take lessons on for the last two weeks, much to her chagrin. She knew they wouldn't be necessary and had a pretty good idea that her grandfather knew as well so it had really been just to irritate her.
Well, that or to occupy her until the caravan was ready to go. Sometimes it was hard to tell which one the old man was aiming for.
The contemplation of her grandfather's motives was interrupted by a sudden glare in the distance. She blinked, refocusing on the specs that were the town, and was rewarded by another quick flash.
Was that…?
Stepping out onto the back of the wagon she spun around and stood up, just barely tall enough for her eyes to peer over the canvas frame. An Iwa Shinobi sat there, his head wrapped up much like the locals to spare his skin from the sun, and his focus was entirely on that town in the distance. In his hands a polished mirror reflected the northern sun, though he did his best to avoid hitting Kurotsuchi as she made herself known.
"Is that the team?"
"Yes, Kurotsuchi-Sama."
"What's their status?"
"I'm sorry, Kurotsuchi-Sama, we're still establishing our relative positions. Communication should begin in the next minute or so and I should have a basic report in five."
With a huff she nodded, accepting the limitations of their current means. They could have sent a messenger hawk, she supposed, but they hadn't brought any with them. The hawks native to Tsuchi no Kuni were vastly different from the species adapted to the desserts of Kaze no Kuni and would have stuck out like a sore thumb. This would have to do for now.
"Very well. Once you have it, head back inside to get a break from the sun. I'll be up at the front, you can give me the report then."
"Of course, Kurotsuchi-Sama." The man nodded but his eyes refused to leave the point on the horizon that they had found. Kurotsuchi opted to retreat before she ended up distracting him and delaying her much anticipated report further.
Much as she had instructed him to do she climbed back down and slipped into the carriage, carefully moving through the crates of 'goods' that took up a good portion of the wagon's space. She passed through a clearing in the center where thick rugs and a few scattered pillows had been prepared to serve as her room for the trip and up to the front where she rejoined both the driver and the breeze in the shade of the wagon's cover.
Assuming the upcoming report was positive, that was one down and roughly nine more to go on their trip. They still had a lot of ground to cover and at a speed that would keep the horses from wearing out this was going to take forever. Pulling out a Kunai Kurotsuchi began spinning it around her finger, occasionally tossing it into the air so she could catch it and start spinning all over again.
This was going to get boring pretty fast but at least it would keep her hands busy.
There was nothing she hated doing more than doing nothing.
It was going to be one long-ass mission.
At least the pay was going to be good.
"Huh?" Tsunade paused in the hallway as she found her way blocked by a blanket-wrapped Tanuki. Teal eyes peered up at her pleadingly while his cloak of fluff only served to make him seem smaller than he really was. "Is there something wrong?"
Instead of answering he raised his hands as best he could without losing hold of the blanket he wore. Honey-brown eyes blinked at the request. Was he…was he asking to be picked up? She'd never seen anybody else- including both Naruto and Temari- do anything like that and it seemed an especially odd request from what she knew to be a Suna Genin but at the same time he did look superbly squeezable in that blanket of his and in the end it really was just an elevated hug, wasn't it?
She looked across the hallway and back the way she came to make sure no one else was around before bending down to offer her neck.
"Alright, fine." Two small- compared to an adult, anyway- arms slipped around her neck as she reached down to pick him up by the waist. His legs were immediately around her hips to secure himself and his head fell onto her chest. "Eh?"
He was a little big for that position to be anything more than deliberate, his back curving to the side to let him rest his head in the chosen spot, but it was the arm that dropped from her neck down to her left breast that caught her attention more.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?!" His answer was to draw back just enough that his face could peer up at her, sleepy eyes once again pleading against her honey-brown.
"Soft." Was his first answer. "Warm." Was his second.
Goddamnit, those eyes were too powerful. Using her left arm she removed Gaara's right from her breast and placed it back around her neck before gently rotating him so he was more in front of her than resting on her right hip. That should at least be more comfortable for the little guy's back.
"Keep your hands up there." She instructed. There was no response but he wasn't making any movement except for burrowing his face into her most prominent assets. It was a position Jiraiya would have done just about anything for.
Anything- including potentially accepting Orochimaru's offer of a female body of his own. The offer was dumb, the fact that Jiraiya would go for it was more dumb, and the fact that Tsunade had technically helped facilitate it was dumbest still.
But speaking of Orochimaru, she knew for a fact that Naruto and Anko weren't around at the moment and she highly doubted Temari- the only person with as much influence over the little Tanuki as Naruto- would have given him the idea to do this which meant that snake bastard was the only one around she would expect to be putting such ideas in the head of the innocent little raccoon.
The next time she saw him she was going to have to give him a piece of her mind. Not only was it entirely inappropriate she was sure Naruto wouldn't be thrilled to hear of it, that should keep him from trying something like this again.
And if he did, well, she'd just have to reintroduce him to her fist.
"Hold." The normally jovial tone Akatsuchi preferred was instead deadly serious as he brought the movement of his eastern force to a halt. It took another minute and a half for the command to spread down to the tail of the formation with how spread out they had been but that gave him time to start consulting his maps and checking the surroundings.
Beto, his second in command for this campaign- or until he was crushed in the line of duty and returned to the earth from which all men were carved- gave him a nod to signal that everyone was accounted for.
Good.
"We're coming up on the Hi no Kuni border." Akatsuchi announced. "We're likely to hit it by nightfall." He gestured to either side of the road they were on. "Taki is there to the north, they aren't likely to have any regular patrols until you grow closer to the village itself but be aware for any returning Shinobi.
"To the south is Kusa, they aren't likely to have any patrols at all but they are known to roam between the towns more frequently and we don't know the exact paths they all like to take so keep alert. Midori squad will be going north. Kiiro, south.
"I want both secured quickly and quietly, either one causing a ruckus this close to Hi no Kuni is going to catch their attention, especially in Taki." He shot a pointed look towards the Midori squad who gave serious nods back, accepting the severity of their charged task.
"Remember, the goal is not to maintain perfect control of the minor villages so much as it is to isolate them and keep them quiet. If you can cut the fight out from under them without facing a single one of their Shinobi that's what I want. Each one of them is a potential ally once we make our last push towards Konoha and I'd like all the Kunai on my side that I can get, understood?"
A hushed "Hai, Akatsuchi-Sama!" Came not only from the two squads with immediate orders but from the entirety of the eastern force, letting him know they all understood what to do when faced with any non-Konoha Shinobi.
"Good." He nodded once to the force and again to Beto who gave the actual command.
"Midori, Kiiro, you have your orders. Every piece of the mountain does its part in reaching for the heavens, do not give in to the weight of your duty. Dismissed."
Salutes were shot towards the space exactly between Akatsuchi and Beto. "For Iwagakure, we will bear the weight." The two teams vanished into the thin forests on either side of the path and Akatsuchi didn't expect to see them until near the end of the campaign if things went well.
If things didn't, well, a lot of those options involved not seeing them ever gain for a myriad of reasons. Normally jovial, Akatsuchi preferred not to dwell on those possibilities any more than absolutely necessary.
They all had to return to the earth at some point and whether that time was sped along by the Shinobi of other villages was irrelevant. The earth would still be waiting and they would be ready to welcome her embrace.
So declared the Book of the Mountain.
Amen.
Sealkeeper: He Who Binds
Chapter 152-B "Dire Need"
Patron Release 2022.01.29
Akunaki had been wrong in the end, Sakura's favorite little subject had ultimately been turned back over to the Wolves after the Genin had eventually grown bored and decided her craving for blood had been sufficiently satisfied.
To be perfectly honest, she was a bit dubious as to whether that bloodlust actually could be sated but she'd taken the girls word for it when a Kunai across the throat had put an end to the woman's hell.
The Wolves had been excited for another taste before they packed up camp and Akunaki wasn't about to drag a corpse along with them so she'd delayed their departure just long enough to make use of it. It would have been a pity to waste it after Sakura had put in so much work and the Wolves seemed to savor it even more now that they had managed to get it away from Sakura's tender attentions.
Of course, she also hadn't allowed the Wolves to be idle while the last body was prepared. They were short by a few more than she would have liked for their trip to Kirigakure and she wasn't going to be able to snatch up anyone in Hi no Kuni unless they lucked by a new party of bandits on their trip. She wasn't willing to leave the matter to luck, though, and so Wolves had been dispatched to see if they could find anyone else nearby.
They had- and then some.
With three more captures- extra was always good- other Wolves had returned with far less savory spoils;
They weren't the only ones here in the forest.
With Tsuchi no Kuni not far to the north-west and two minor villages nearby it was not wholly unexpected that they might run into other Shinobi but word of a group of Iwa Shinobi nonetheless had the Wolves scrambling to pack up their camp.
The likelihood that they were already here to investigate any disappearances were beyond slim but not entirely impossible but it was the fact that these forces seemed to be made up of Chūnin that gave Akunaki greatest pause.
They would be no match for her Wolves, there was no question there, but their activities here were supposed to remain a quiet affair and Tsukuyomi would be disappointed in any action that brought more attention to them such as wiping out a small force of Iwa Shinobi. Why they were here, entering into Taki no Kuni territory, she had no explanation for.
What she did know was that Takigakure had always been staunch allies of Konohagakure and, as nearly the exact opposite, Iwagakure had always been opposed to their existence. Was Iwagakure moving against them or had Takigakure loyalties shifted to a village much closer to their own? From a geographical standpoint it made some sense, but it still bordered on Hi no Kuni territory and leaving now when Hi no Kuni's influence was rapidly expanding just didn't seem wise.
Unless they doubted the stability of Hi no Kuni's newest territories and alliances and were aiming to put themselves in a position to take advantage of the eventual chaos.
Either way, something was wrong.
"Masks off," She ordered. "Let them guess." the Wolves were quick to follow her orders. "Grab the packages and get going, the rest of us will catch up."
Her aim was to erase any sign of their presence so that any Iwa shinobi passing through wouldn't suspect that anyone else had been here recently. There was no reason to make them suspicious, that would just lead to them searching for the Wolves.
And, in the case that they did catch up to any of the Wolves or cross paths with them somehow, the lack of the distinctive mask would hopefully allow at least some doubt to be cast as to their identities. It wasn't infallible but it was better than loudly declaring who they were.
The makeshift table was broken down, two Wolves were working on making the ground of the clearing look undisturbed, and the Wolves with the captives were out of sight. Perfect.
Six Iwa Shinobi stepped out of the foliage and into the clearing, hesitating for only half a second as they realized they weren't alone.
Shit.
So much for perfect.
Akunaki rolled her wrist in two tight circles, finger to the sky, and the Wolves scattered.
"Hey, wait, who the hell are you?!"
Akunaki and her Wolves weren't about to stay around and answer any question, vanishing into the forest environment they were most comfortable in. The chances that the Iwa Shinobi would find them if they chose to give chase was slim only to account for the possibilities of luck and the universe's sick sense of humor.
Even so, something about their retreat felt wrong.
Why did something nag at the back of her mind telling her she had forgotten something important?
It could hardly be said that the work of a Daimyo was a difficult one. That is, the work that required the attention of an established Daimyo in a country that had existed for centuries had very little that was not already seen to by a host of individuals in the Imperial Court's employ.
Thus it could be said that any work a Daimyo faced was of their own devising.
So too, it often was, the problems they encountered.
Iroh, son of Okai, grandson of Kuzo- the first Daimyo to place support behind a great village of Shinobi Clans- and current Daimyo of Hi no Kuni knew this first hand. His ambition had been great, his movements hasty, but he had ensured a majority of it was covered well enough that he hadn't worried too much about the minor issues that were immediately present.
Had being an operative word there. He had missed something and now knotted cords were reduced to paltry threads so fragile they might snap at the simple mention of the burdens they were to bind.
Two allies pledged to his throne, two allies who shared in the desire for Konoha's wellbeing and Konoha itself sworn to aid Hi no Kuni.
Two allies who he had been pleased to leave focused on each other so they couldn't decide to turn on him.
And now one of them had vanished.
Rumors reached his ears weeks ago that the Wolves had departed from Konoha, a place where he knew eyes would be kept on them and they would be brought into constant, minor tension with the distrusting Asuma. He immediately sent word to the scribe of the Imperial Courts in residence for confirmation and the news he received back was not comforting.
The Wolves had indeed left Konoha and, as far as the scribe had been able to unearth, it had been at the behest- perhaps at face value or maybe due to some exerted pressure- of Sarutobi Asuma, Godaime Hokage.
When the question had come up during a regular council meeting, the scribe also noted that only some of the major Konoha clans seemed to be learning this for the first time. Hyuuga, Yamanaka, Uzumaki, Inuzuka, and the Nara all seemed to have been previously informed.
Iroh was pretty sure a majority of those would have learned directly from Naruto himself which meant they were closely tied to the Daimyo of Nami no Kuni but what really concerned him about it was that if they knew then it hadn't been a hasty occurrence. This had been determined and planned out, expected by those clans, so why was he only hearing it because of rumor?
Not only had he given orders that the Wolves were to be allowed freely into Konoha- mostly so something like this wouldn't happen- but Asuma hadn't even had the decency to inform him that was changing.
And that pointed towards Asuma being up to something.
The only reason for it to be hidden was if Asuma didn't want it to reach him. Because he'd gone against orders to push the Wolves out? Perhaps, but Iroh wasn't going to assume that had been the only reason. It provided too much cover for other intentions to be completely ignored.
Occam's razor dictated that the most simple solution was often correct but he was dealing with Shinobi and, worse, a position with political duties. Just because the simple solution was a correct explanation didn't mean the intentions weren't two or three-fold.
Of course he had also wasted no time in sending for one of the few agents he had in Nami no Kuni. Technically he could stop by when he pleased- he had an open invitation and there was a standing mansion for him to inhabit as he wished- but with matters of the courts to be overseen here- mostly things dealing with Hi no Kuni's recent expansion and what that would mean for those who oversaw its welfare- he was needed close at hand to the capital.
He could have some servants inhabiting the mansion in hsi absence, it was an idea he had toyed with a few times. It was a perfectly normal thing to do, ensuring the mansion was kept ready for his arrival at any minute, but the drawback to that was he had no plans on going anytime soon and the money invested in those living there would be wasted because anyone the Wolves knew were under his employ would be carefully watched.
Not necessarily because the two Daimyo distrusted each other, but because anything that happened to or because of those they employed would reflect back on their respective Daimyo and could end up causing an incident. Having one of his servants mugged as they went about their shopping, for instance, would reflect poorly on Nami no Kuni and her people. The Wolves would want to make sure that didn't happen.
But, because they would be watched, that meant any information they managed to learn would also be known by the Wolves and the only thing more dangerous than no information or bad information was information that someone else knew you were using. It was far too easy to twist things in your favor if you knew what was coloring the perception of others.
That was a vulnerability in his small network that he simply couldn't afford to have. Unlike the Shinobi or individuals such as Jiraiya, the information networks that belonged solely to the Daimyo tended to be rather small. That was, in no small part, because a majority of their information was gathered by the Shinobi and shared with them.
That's how it was supposed to work, anyway, the Suna invasion had gone to prove otherwise.
Which is why he had invested in a few agents scattered around Hi no Kuni's larger towns and started utilizing his Samurai for patrols throughout his territory. If the Shinoi were going to be keeping important details from him he needed another way to obtain forewarning.
Just for good measure, he had sent a few to Nami no Kuni as well but apparently he had erred in neglecting to set up anything in Konoha. It wasn't so much an oversight as it had been caution. Sending any sort of spy into a village- even a greater village where they were more likely to go unnoticed amongst the larger populace- was a risky endeavor.
Sending one into Konoha, where they could read a spy's mind to confirm they were, in fact, a spy, well, that was a bad idea. Shinobi, it so happened, took offense to that sort of thing and the best Iroh could hope for in that case was for his spy to be fed faulty information. That was, again, pretty much the worst sort of information he could receive. Not only was it wrong but Konoha would know he had it and be watching to see if he acted on it.
So he hadn't bothered sending anyone to Konoha.
Evidently that had been a mistake and he should have just risked it anyway.
Fortunately he was able to get some information from an agent in Hanahime, as they called it now. Unfortunately it wasn't much- the agent probably wasn't going to rise into a position with real access to anything for quite some time- and what it was happened to be bad.
Or, rather, it happened to be nothing. There had been no sightings of Nami no Kunis' Daimyo in the capital. His agent heard nothing of an arrival, nothing of a departure, no news that would indicate the Daimyo was in residence. Even talking to individuals who were permitted to work within the palace- something Iroh still couldn't really wrap his head around but maybe it was easier than guarding both a palace and the courts?- there was no sign of any Daimyo.
The only thing of note that had been seen was a few dozen identical little girls with green hair running around the city one afternoon and there had never been any sort of explanation for that particular occurrence either.
In the end, that left him with absolutely nothing.
He didn't know where Naruto was, which meant he could be anywhere doing anything. That was not a comforting prospect from a man who went about conquering minor countries and burning down greater villages.
Not that Iroh had much room to talk with his recent expansions, but he didn't need the young Daimyo following his example and deciding to stretch the influence of the Wolves a bit farther. With Hi no Kuni stretched thin as it was, any hostilities the House of Wolves provoked might spark a global war, something that was rather detrimental to Iroh's plans of solidifying this new Hi no Kuni within three generations of Daimyo.
It also meant that Naruto wasn't keeping the focus of Asuma off him which mean that if the Godaime Hokage had any aspirations of possibly deciding Konoha was the new seat of power in Hi no Kuni and that he would be the one ruling the newly expanded country then there was nothing to distract him from making plans and setting them in motion.
Having Naruto and Asuma constantly watching each other, poking and prodding, that had been Iroh's insurance that neither of them might turn their attention to his crown. Now either- or both- could be doing so.
Both. Both.
Iroh frowned. With Naruto out of view, there was no telling when he might reappear or for what reasons but with Asuma not informing him of that fact-
Could they be working together?
He couldn't really see either one aiming for his kingdom but it also wasn't a risk he particularly wanted to take in such a tremulous time. Things were changing- his rule would not be one of them.
Naruto needed to be found, Asuma's reasons needed to be determined, and new manners of assuring Hi no Kuni avoided any sort of inner conflict had to be discovered and implemented.
He would have to see to many parts of this personally and to do that, he was going to have to start where things began going wrong.
Lord Iroh, Daimyo of Hi no Kuni, was going to be paying Konoha a visit.
There was a quiet click as the carriage door was opened, allowing the light of the sun to spill in unhindered. Naruto squinted from his position on the floor, barely able to wiggle his arm free from the tangle of slumbering flesh that pinned him to cover his eyes from the glare.
"Mwa?" His brain had yet to fully boot as it was dragged back to the waking world from the sleep it was so greatly deprived of. He was barely able to comprehend the fact that he was looking at a Wolf right outside the carriage.
Without a word the Wolf placed a plate of cut fruit and two bottles of water next to Naruto's head and closed the door, sparing his lord from the harsh realities of sunlight. It took a second more for Nami's Daimyo to realize that he was being fed which reminded him of two other things he was currently in urgent need of.
His quiet "Thanks" was further muffled by the carriage but the Wolf nodded despite being completely out of sight. Giving the wood side two solid hits he pulled himself back up to the front seat as one of his companions began urging the horses forward again.
The sooner they reached the Yu no Kuni base the sooner they could drag Tsukuyomi-Sama into a real bed to rest-
He seemed to be in dire need of it.
Akunaki did a quick headcount, nodding when all the Wolves seemed to be present. Captives were good, too, none had managed to wiggle free in the chaos.
Excellent.
The feeling she was forgetting something reemerged, nagging much more strongly at the back of her head as she observed the gathering of Wolves.
….There was an awful lack of pink among them.
Shit.
"Baso, Warane, where's Haruno?" The two shared a look.
"We thought you had her, Akunaki-Sama."
Akunaki pinched the bridge of her nose to fend off the oncoming headache- she would need it clear when she went back for the girl.
"Nobiwa's in charge while I'm gone, keep going south-east until you hit the river. I'll meet you all there." Nobiwa snapped off a smart salute and was followed by the remaining Wolves. As Akunaki turned to start her search for the missing Genin Baso gave a solid punch to Warane's arm.
"I told you we should have done a last sweep of the area."
"Don't blame this on me, you're the one who said Akunaki-Sama sent her ahead with the captives."
"I said I was pretty sure she did."
"Same thing." Warane shrugged.
A glare from Nobiwa silenced them both.
What had ended as a fairly good day was apparently not over quite yet and had decided to go in a completely new direction when a tired Haruno Sakura had been surrounded by a team of Iwa Chūnin while cleaning her favorite Kunai in a nearby brook.
Her luck had held enough that Akunaki currently had her headband, though the fact that she was still in possession of a Kunai certainly wasn't. Most civilians knew better than to carry the weapon, even if they needed something sharp and a Kunai was the only thing they were able to acquire.
It may have once been a farming implement but these days it was far too easily identified as a mark of the Shinobi and you didn't want to be suspected of being one when you most certainly weren't.
Shinobi expected the possibilities of capture and interrogation- and as such were often trained for it- but civilians? Not so much. Carrying a Kunai was a quick way to ruin your day and, often, what little remained of your life.
The Iwa Shinobi hadn't quite reached the point of interrogation- they were still sticking to some pretty basic questioning- but finding herself tied up at the base of a tree was not how she had expected her morning to be going.
"Come on, not going to ask again girl, which village are you from? You ain't one of ours."
"And this isn't Tsuchi no Kuni." Was her only answer. She wasn't wrong but that hardly mattered in a situation like this. She almost wished she'd had enough forewarning that she could have tried to Henge a Taki headband and changed the color of her hair to something a little less distinctive but she also didn't know why Iwa Shinobi were this east of the border so maybe it was for the best she didn't.
"Give it a rest, Kokkiri, she's obviously not going to tell us if we just ask- she needs some persuasion to convince her that being helpful is in her best interest."
Kokkiri looked back over his shoulder with a frown, his eyes seeking out more like-minded individuals in Midori squad. Akatsuchi had been very clear that he wanted to avoid causing any ill-will between Taki and Iwa and without knowing where this little Kunoichi- a Genin, by the looks of it- was from they risked that very situation.
Of course even if she was from Taki she also knew they weren't supposed to be here which would be reason enough for her to keep from confirming her village. She didn't know why they were here telling them she was from Taki might put her in more danger.
Or she'd be killed either way, but at the moment this was her best bet to stay alive and unharmed. He couldn't exactly blame her for being cautious in this situation.
Unfortunately none of his fellows seemed to be of the same opinion. "She's either Taki or Kusa," Fuburo shrugged. "Either way we need to keep her quiet about our presence."
"Quiet, yes," Kokkiri agreed. "But remember what Akatsuchi said."
"It's just one Genin and she seems lost anyway, worst comes to worst we can just hope they attribute it to that and not us."
"Or," Another voice suggested. "You realize just how much you've fucked up and run hoping I'm too busy cutting down your friends to get to you."
That wasn't anyone in Midori and it absolutely wasn't the Genin. With a swirl of leaves Akunaki was in the center of the squad, her kunai lashing out from either hand to draw blood before the first leaf could touch the ground.
"Gah!" Fuburo cried out as a gash split his thigh and moments later a foot connected with his head, dropping him instantly. None of the others escaped unharmed either, lines of red splitting their skin and blooming open like the flowers Sakura loved so much.
Notably, as she pressed her attack, none of the wounds were fatal. They had, however, been slightly debilitating and as the Chūnin tried to recover from the speed and strength of a Jounin-level opponent with ANBU training she made straight for her prize.
Sakura and their assailant were gone before they could face the tree again.
"Akunaki-Sama!" The leader of the Ravenous touched down in a clearing next to the river, her pink-haired prize on her back. The Wolves who had been lounging about scrambled to their feet at the call, ready to follow her instructions.
Akunaki took the chance to do another headcount, ensuring they hadn't lost anyone else since she had last seen the group. "Good, you're all here." Kneeling down she let Sakura slide from her back and then stood back up to locate her target.
"Warane!" She pointed to the man. "New assignment. Head for Taki and make contact with one of their Shinobi, let them know of Iwa's presence here. They might be expecting them for all we know but at the moment Hi no Kuni is allied with Taki no Kuni and that means Nami no Kuni is as well. As long as we make sure they're informed our duty has been upheld."
He snapped off a salute, only grimacing slightly as Baso gave a victorious grin at having escaped punishment.
It didn't last long.
"Baso!" Her barking call had the man in question freezing in place. "New! Assignment!"
Aw, shit. His shoulders were already slumped and head hanging when he responded to her.
"Hai, Akunaki-Sama."
"You'll be assigned to Haruno, keep track of her. Your biggest priority is her safety, understood?"
"Yes, Akunaki-Sama."
Akunaki nodded. "Good." Turning to Sakura she asked; "You going to be okay dealing with him for the rest of the trip?"
Sakura smiled, the movement of her lips pulling at the fresh tattoo. "Don't worry, Akunaki-Sama, I'll keep him in line."
She'd been spending more time in this place then she ever would have expected, Tsunade mused as she made her way into Orochimaru's current lab. Or, at least, one of them. There was no telling how many of these he might have scattered throughout Nami no Kuni already filled with experiments at various stages of progress.
As a general rule Tsunade tried not to think about it, it made for a much more positive day.
Expectedly, Orochimaru could be found leaning over his the latest rendition of his future flesh, squinting down on it from ever possible angle to make sure there were no imperfections. She sort of understood, after who knows how many years of jumping body to body this one he intended to keep as his own for the foreseeable future.
He didn't want to commit until he was completely sure it was what he wanted to be.
What that was, however, Tsunade was still not completely sure of. Sometimes she wondered if Orochimaru really knew what he was aiming for either, he seemed far too indecisive even considering the perceived permanence of the consequences. He'd already had a body he enjoyed before, she didn't see why he didn't just go back to something like that.
Peering down at his latest changes she was glad to know that he had at least taken some steps to preserve her modesty, though that may have simply been left over from whatever unholy process he'd utilized to change her in the first place. Still, the white sheet had only been pulled down to her waist where it bunched up to cover her legs and hips.
"She's still shorter than me," The Slug Sannin noted. "But the proportions are about right and she doesn't look immediately identical so I guess congratulations are in order."
"Thank you." Despite having accomplished his goal he didn't seem all too thrilled by it.
Her original intention here was to question what he was thinking when he convinced the young prince to act as he had but now she found herself questioning what could be bothering the madman. There was some likelihood the two were linked, perhaps, but having a disturbed- more than usual, anyway- Orochimaru seemed a far more dangerous and pressing matter to address compared to a young man trying to touch her boobs.
She was no stranger to that last one, it didn't really need much of an explanation.
"Something wrong?" Tsunade inquired, realizing in that same moment she probably shouldn't have asked something quite so open. That was risking cans of worms she didn't even want to know existed.
"No, no." Orochimaru shook Sasuke's head but after a few seconds started to speak of a problem anyway. Tsunade found herself rolling honey-brown eyes but holding her tongue for the moment. "It's just I never actually asked Naruto what he found most attractive and now I can't present the body and ask his opinion."
"He seems to like them older, a bit pale, with dark hair." Tsunade listed off easily. That's what she had gathered in her time around the Wolves. Orochimaru's original body, Mai, and recently Mikoto. She was also pretty sure Tsunami was in that list, too, but the Wolves seemed scared enough of upsetting the palace's mistress that they wouldn't confirm it for her and Tsunade hadn't bothered to actually ask the woman.
"That's what I thought too," He admitted with a frown. "But it recently occurred to me that everyone currently with him approached him, not the other way around. Just because he was receptive to their advances doesn't mean that's what he prefers, that's just what he attracts."
Tsunade blinked in surprise. She hated to admit it but there was a point lurking there in Orochimaru's words.
"...Huh. You know what? I think you may have something there." She paused for a second and then, with a shrug, asked; "So what are you going to do about it?"
"Well they're going to be my bodies, so they shouldn't reject me, and that means I can go from one to another as I wish…" He trailed off, leaving his thought process for Tsunade to make her own conclusions from.
She did and she couldn't say she was thrilled or impressed. "You want to make a bunch of alternate bodies to wear like outfits." Tsunade concluded dryly.
"Exactly."
"Couldn't you just edit your body while you're in it?"
"I don't know," Orochimaru shrugged. "Probably, but it could be risky."
"So two bodies?" She proposed as an alternative. "One to hold you while you edit the other?"
"That did cross my mind but then I might not be able to get the body back to where it was. Besides, then I don't get to go shopping for each of the bodies."
That would take quite a few weekends, Tsunade instantly knew, especially because she was pretty sure Orochimaru wouldn't settle for anything less than an army of alternate bodies. It would be a good way to kill some time, she supposed,
It would also be terribly difficult to store both the bodies and keep track of the associated closets.
When she mentioned that to Orochimaru he just waved her off. "I'll just have to come up with a sealing contract for both, allowing me to summon whatever I want whenever I need it." He shrugged as he spoke, almost as if it should be a trivial matter when it was nothing of the sort. "Besides, the only clothing most of them will ever touch will be Naruto's as they remove it."
The fact that Orochimaru's sentence actually made sense was probably the worst part about it.
"You know what? Do what you want, just make sure there isn't another me running around."
"Yeah, yeah." He waved her off. "I'm reserving your clone for a threesome with Naruto anyway, If I ran around with her she'd hardly make a suitable birthday surprise."
"I swear to the fucking gods, Orochimaru, that whole clone thing had better be some sort of sick joke."
The twisted grin he answered with was hardly reassuring.
Midori - Green
Kiiro - Yellow
And Just a quick reminder; I've been responding to reviews in posts on my patron page where anyone can take a look. Admittedly, I'm probably a chapter or two behind.
While I have recently renewed my subscription for the website I'm really thinking about doing away with it. It doesn't really serve much of a purpose these days so my Patron page is where you should expect the sort of things I used to put there.
My gratitude to the Patrons who continue to support my work on Sealkeeper.
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Until I next have your attention, I remain,
-Eyazahrid