Toshida Gaiden Part Two - The Raikage's Plot
Several hours have passed since Akira Kunashiro, the hired assassin under the control of the leader of the cloud village, successfully took out the first of his three targets, given to him by the Raikage. Kunashiro has arrived at a messenger outpost just several miles from the farming community that Kunashiro just departed. The station is a small series of cabins and guard towers set up to intercept and send out messages from across the thunder country. There are almost one hundred such outposts set up in strategic area's throughout the country. This system allows the thunder country to maintain open communication with at most only two hours between communications. A message is received at an outpost and is then transferred by a horse riding messenger from outpost to outpost, transferring to another rider at every location until the message has reached its destination.
Kunashiro is sitting in one of the cabins at a desk that has been set up to allow provisions to be made by anyone sending a message, or for messages to be written on location. Kunashiro quickly writes his report to the Raikage, letting his master know of his current status. The message reads;
"First stage of the operation is complete and the target has been subdued. Proceeding to second target at 0400 hours. I will report again within the next 18 hours.
- Kunashiro"
Kunashiro then seals the message in an envelope and seals it with wax and a stamp that signifies it is for the eyes of the Raikage only.Kunashiro hands the document to one of the riders and the rider sets off into the morning darkness toward the next outpost. The document is exchanged three times on its way to the Cloud village, until finally the last rider reaches the palace of the Raikage. The Raikage is woken up by his personal guards brandishing the sealed document. The Raikage receives Kunashiros message at 6:30am, and reads it alone in the privacy of his own bedroom.
"Hmpf. Very good Kunashiro. One down, two to go. Make it quick and get your ass back here. I don't need another liability roaming freely."
Meanwhile, Kunashiro has arrived at the location of his next target which is a small secluded ranch in the southeast corner of the thunder country. The ranch contains only three stables two of which are dilapidated and on the verge of collapse. The third shows a similar state of disarray and aging, but with patches of new siding, and new roof tiles spread out over what appears to have been structural problems in the building. There are no animals present around the ranch, and the storage areas have no fresh animal feed, making Kunashiro believe that the ranch appears to have been abandoned until recently.
"It looks like someone has been trying to fix this place up. But why?" Kunashiro asks himself, just before he notices the unevenness of the repairs and patchwork. "Whoever is doing all these repairs does not seem to know what they are doing. The boards that have been put up, haven't been measured, they haven't been straightened. Hmpf, from the looks of it, they aren't even the same size, or even the same kind of wood! What the hell is going on here?"
Kunashiro's attention is suddenly drawn to a sound coming from behind one of the stables. Kunashiro can hear some clanging and rustling from behind the stables and then a figure emerges from behind the stable. Another elderly man roughly the same age as the previous target comes out from behind the stable holding several pieces of lumber in his arms. The old man seems to be more muscular and in better shape then the previous man. His hair is long and grey and is tied back in a ponytail with a separate top knot tied in it.
"That hair, this man was a shinobi too. He was another member of the former high council. Why is he here? And why is he my target? What is Raikage-sama up to?" Kunashiro shakes his head of any thoughts that his leader would send him astray. "It does not matter. Raikage-sama is my master, and I will follow my orders no matter what. For that . . . is the way of the shinobi."
Kunashiro begins to make his move, demonstrating the full extent of his stealth capabilities and using his signature shadow walking technique. Kunashiro moves throughout the shadows surrounding the ranch, stalking his prey like a wild animal, and making sure that there are no other predators or prey around to possibly jeopardize his kill.
When Kunashiro finds that the coast is clear and that there is no one else around, Kunashiro makes his move, leaping out of his shadow tunnel and pouncing on the elderly shinobi like a jungle cat. Kunashiro stabs the old man in the kidney with the kunai in his right hand and covers the old man's mouth with his left. The old man struggles only for a few seconds before the strength is quickly sapped from his fragile frame. The old man drops to his knees and all life fades from his eyes and his body falls limp. Kunashiro removes the kunai from the old mans back and pushes the man's body to the ground. Kunashiro wipes the blood from his blade and places it back into the holster on his right leg. Kunashiro stares at the old man's body for a few minutes before he is overwhelmed by the feeling of suspicion.
"I cannot shake this feeling that there is something greater in the works here today. It is not a coincidence that I have been sent to kill two former members of the ruling council. I would be willing to bet that the third target is the final member of the council. This does not make sense. The Raikage comes into power thanks to these three men, and soon after orders them killed. Why?"
Kunashiro cannot handle the feeling of suspicion any longer and he moves around the ranch and searching for any clues as to why the old man would have been sent to this place, miles away from civilization. He searches through the stables that the old man had been attempting to refurbish, but finds nothing to help his search. He wanders around the area for over an hour until he finds something in a back office on the south side of the northern most stable. The desk in the office appears to be the only thing that is not dilapidated in the stable compound. The desk appears to be where the old man did all of his paperwork. There is a series of cabinets behind the desk, and a number of shelves contain all sorts scrolls and books, most of them covered in dust and dirt. As Kunashiro searches through the books and scrolls he notices that most of them simply contain order forms and receipts for all the supplies that the stable required to maintain its operations.
"The last of the receipts is from almost ten years ago. This doesn't make any sense at all. This place has been condemned for almost ten years, and all of a sudden one of the ruling members of the village council is sent here to begin fixing it up for whatever reason. Why would a former shinobi and current diplomat be doing out here trying to fix up an out of date stable, when he has no construction experience? There must be some reason why this man was sent here."
Kunashiro continues his search through the documents and files throughout the office until he stumbles upon a sealed scroll that has the remnants of the Raikage's seal on it. Kunashiro opens the scroll and examines its contents. Upon further examination, Kunashiro reads that the scroll was a set of orders given to the old man by the Raikage himself.
"Takashino Nomae; Your service over the years has been both inspirational and appreciated. I personally appreciate your open mind in our previous encounters. However, you will now be receiving a new set of orders. The village high council as of this moment is dissolved, and a new council will be chosen as your successors. Many other changes will be occurring in our village, starting with your new assignment. You will henceforth be in charge of restoring the southeastern stables, in an effort to upgrade the efficiency of our messenger outposts. You are to leave immediately for your reassignment, and you are to start on repairs yourself, as soon as you arrive. You will be sent additional crews and specialists to aid in your repair efforts within 24 hours. You are to tell no one of your new assignment, and you must comply. You will receive further orders soon.
- Raikage Yamato Dake
Kunashiro tucks the scroll away in his back pouch and begins to search for any other orders from the Raikage. After a short time searching, things just don't seem to add up for the confused Kunashiro.
"This doesn't make any sense. What previous encounters did these two have? Why would this man be sent to start repairs when a specialist would be the logical choice?" Kunashiro removes the scroll from his back pocket and reexamines the date of the scroll. "This message was sent months ago. Why did this man not have any help sent to him? This does not make sense at all!"
Kunashiro angrily throws the scroll across the room in frustration and tries yet again to understand what is going on around him. Kunashiro tries to find solace through a breath of fresh air but only finds his mind tossing and turning worse then before. However, his attention is diverted quickly as he notices the position of the sun in the afternoon sky.
"I have been here too long. I must proceed to the next target. This one will not die so quickly this time. I cannot help the feeling that something rotten is a foot." Kunashiro removes his order information from his back pouch, to confirm the location of his next target. "I understand." Says Kunashiro, "I can only assume that this target is the third and final member of the former council."
Kunashiro then takes off like a bullet, his arms thrown behind him as he speeds away in the direction of his next target. Kunashiro moves through the forests, over the hills and through the streams of the thunder country as he makes his way to his next prey.
"Whoever you are third council member, I have questions that need to be answered. Answer my questions and you will die quickly. Resist, and you will beg for death before I am through with you."
On his way to the third target, Kunashiro arrives at another rider outpost just several miles from the cloud village and about half way to his target. He once again enters the outposts' cabin to write his report to the Raikage informing him of his latest movements. This time, Kunashiro finds himself uneasy and almost unable to write the latest message. Thoughts of doubt and visions of deceit fill his mind as he cannot shake the feeling that he is just a tool for the Raikage's greater purpose. However, his pen finally reaches the paper as he cannot deny himself one ever present fact. He is shinobi. It is his duty to follow orders without question, and follow those orders he will. But not without learning what he wishes to understand.
As Kunashiro finishes writing his report he quickly hands the report off to one of the messengers and sends him off to relay his message. Kunashiro wastes no more time and demonstrates the meaning of haste as he once again takes off quickly, moving like the mountain wind as he passes through all obstacles in his path. As night begins to fall, Kunashiro falls into his element and decides to waste no more time. He readies his hands in his trademark seal and opens the shadow walking tunnels and enters them without losing speed. His jutsu allows him to move quickly and effortlessly through the blackness that is being cast upon the land by the setting sun. When the sun has completely set, his speed more then triples as he moves through anything in his path.
Meanwhile, the Raikage sits upon his throne as he reads one of the thunder countries messengers has just left his presence after baring a message from Kunashiro. The Raikage smiles as he snaps his fingers, bringing several of his aids including the jounin Shin to his side. He looks over the message one more time and then throws it on his throne as he stands to his feet.
"Let's go Shin. I want to be the first to . . . congratulate our man on a job well done." The Raikage says, with an arrogant smile across his face.
"Or silence him . . . just to be sure of coarse. I have prepared our convoy Raikage-sama, and it will be ready for departure in less then ten minutes." Replies the equally arrogant Shin.
The Raikage leads the way out of his palace with several of his servants, and his assistant Shin walking behind him. As they walk away, the writing on the message left on the Raikage's throne can easily be seen.
"Second target dismissed. Proceeding to third site for immediate engagement. Will return from Raikou colony immediately after mission completion.
-Kunashiro"
The Raikage climbs into the back of a horse drawn carriage that bares the symbol of thunder across it, signifying that this is the private carriage of the Raikage's. The Raikage is soon joined by Shin and several of his bodyguards in the back of the carriage. The Raikage smiles as he nods to his guards who reach behind into their equipment and pull out unique individual masks resembling that of the leaf village's ANBU team. The carriage heads out, down from the mountain top palace and toward the exit of the cloud village. Numerous civilians find themselves slightly confused at the presence of the Raikage's carriage. As the carriage leaves the village, the Raikage finds himself unable to remove the grin from his face.
"I can't help but be grateful to you Kunashiro. This could have been a real mess without your help. Unfortunately I fear you have learned too much . . . and I have done a good job of covering my tracks so far, and I won't slip up now."
Only an hour after the Raikage had left the cloud village, Kunashiro has arrived at his destination . . . the border of the Raikou Colony. Kunashiro has been discrete and stealthy during his entire journey, but he cannot help but rise to his feet and stand in awe at the scenery before him.
"What the hell is this place?" Kunashiro asks himself, as he looks up and area of the Thunder country that very few have had the displeasure of casting their eyes upon. The sight of this dreadful place leaves even a battle hardened shinobi like Kunashiro with chill down his spine.
Kunashiro stands at the edge of a tall mountain top that over looks an area filled with rock, black and jagged like polished pieces of razor sharp obsidian. The sky is black, everywhere with menacing storm clouds churning and brooding like none that Kunashiro has ever seen before.
"Wh-what is this place? The skies are not natural . . . the clouds churn as if constantly in motion and the ground is lacking any colour. No vegetation . . . no sun blanching of the rock . . . it is as if the sun never shines in this place." Kunashiro's thought process is interrupted as a loud thunder clap is heard above him. However, this is no ordinary storm of thunder and lightning. The thunder sounds structured and put together like the deep throated growl of some angry beast.
Kunashiro shakes off his doubts and fears as he moves toward the cursed place. His destination is one of the guard towers that are set up along the border of the area. Each tower stands roughly 10 meters off the ground and is occupied by two guards in each tower.Kunashiro reaches into his pouch and pulls out his orders.
"So I am supposed to take out the guard in tower 4-A. But what about the other guard in the tower?" Kunashiro returns his orders to his pouch and makes his way around the border of the cursed area.
The span of the territory is massive. Kunashiro moves along the border quietly searching for the appropriate guard tower that holds his final prey. As he approaches the first guard tower, he notices the number is 1-C, and he makes his way along the western most side borders, leaping from shadow to shadow in an effort to remain unseen in the dark wasteland. It takes Kunashiro over an hour to find the guard tower that holds his target. He approaches the tower from the shadows twenty meters behind and pulls binoculars out from his equipment and examines the occupants in the tower. Kunashiro finds himself confused yet again as there is only one guard in this tower as opposed to the two guards located in all other towers.
"This just keeps getting better and better. One old retired shinobi, reassigned to the most secluded area of the most barren wasteland in the five countries, and left to guard an area by himself with no backup. What the hell is going on around here?"
Kunashiro has finally grown weary of all the confusion and immediately leaves the shadows and most quickly toward the guard tower, leaping high into the air and sneaking up on the unsuspecting guard with his kunai drawn.
Kunashiro is caught by surprise when the old shinobi spins around quickly and parries Kunashiro's kunai with a large spear, sending the would be assassin reeling. Kunashiro braces himself against the wall of the guard tower and lunges at the old man yet again with identical results. The old shinobi raises the blade of his spear threatening his attacker with it by waving it back and forth, like a hunter threatening a cornered animal.
"Who are you and what are you doing here?" The old shinobi asks.
Kunashiro lowers his kunai and drops off of the wall landing in a crouched position. "My name is Kunashiro. I have been sent to seek you out. What is your name?"
The old shinobi remains cautious of Kunashiro and does not lower his guard for a second. "My name is Bishamon."
"You are a former member of the cloud village ruling council are you not?"
The old shinobi still does not phase as he tightens his grip on his ever present spear. "Yes. Until the Raikage disbanded the council and reassigned me here."
Kunashiro returns his kunai to his side holster andcontinues his questioning of the elderly man. "Do you know why you were reassigned here?"
"What does it matter? What are you doing here?"
"I have been given explicit orders from the Raikage to find you. But I did not know your name, just where I could find you."
The old shinobi shakes his head and grimaces in anger as he begins to understand what is going on here. "I suppose that explains why you attacked me." The old man's remarks surprise Kunashiro as he continues. "I suppose I am to assume that you are to be my executioner."
"Wh-what? You mean you were expecting an assassination attempt?"
"Of coarse I was expecting you. I have been expecting it ever since I was brushed to the side so easily by that bastard Raikage. Am I to assume that since I was able to see your attack coming that I am the last of your targets? "
Kunashiro nods, "That is correct. Your two former colleagues were taken care of by me."
"I understand," says the old man, as he lowers his head, and his spear in a moment of silence for his fallen comrades.
"I am sorry sir. But you understand, I am only a shinobi following orders?"
The old man nods again and then grimaces as he thinks of the betrayal he has found himself a part of. "I hold no quarrel with you . . . only to the back stabber that sent you to find me."
"Why does the Raikage want you killed?"
"Because I am a liability. The Raikage is covering his own ass, and that just happens to involve taking all of our lives."
Kunashiro slowly walks toward the old man with his hands raised, showing he holds no weapons and that he wishes the old man no harm for the time being. "I must ask You Bishamon-sama, why does the Raikage want you dead? What did you do to him?"
The old man turns his back to Kunashiro and looks out upon the cursed land he has been sent to guard. "Me and the other three members of the council helped Yamato Dake to become the Raikage."
"Helped? How?"
"What do you mean how? The three of us held the decision making power in the village. The Raikage reigned supreme of coarse, but we were the ones that named the Raikage. When the previous Raikage died, the task fell to us to name his successor. There were several prime candidates for the position. Leading the group was the son of the previous Raikage, a shinobi of great skill, in his late 30's. The perfect candidate for the position of Raikage. There was also another candidate who stuck out from the rest. Another strong shinobi in his late twenties, the son of a wealthy family named Yamato Dake. He did a great job impressing the council, but the decision was to name the former Raikage's son as his successor. It seemed only natural, and the public loved the man. Dake and his family were seen as snobby aristocrats by the people and the council was worried there may have been an uprising if Dake had become Raikage. Besides, Dake was more interested in titles and grandeur then he was interested in the well being and prosperity of his people. He did not take kindly when we told him in private that he was not selected as the new Raikage. Before it was even made public, of whom the new Raikage was."
"If he was not selected, then how is it that he came to be in the position?" Kunashiro asks.
The old man takes a deep breath, closes his eyes and shakes his head solemnly from side to side. "All the members of the council were nearing our retirement. Needless to say, when a shinobi retires, his usefulness is not what it used to be. And since the life of a shinobi does not offer the opportunity to create a financial backing for themselves, retiring is a scary thing for an old man."
Kunashiro looks to the old man in shock as everything finally makes sense to him. His mission, the reason for the councils reassignment, and the shame that this shinobi holds burdened over his head. "You allowed Dake to pay for the position didn't you!"
"Yes. I am ashamed to say so, but the entire council was bribed into naming Dake the Raikage. You have to understand. This gave all three of us the opportunity to be able to live for our remaining days. Not just brushed aside like old farm equipment and left to rot. We had the means to live comfortable in our final years and it was an offer we had no choice but to accept. However, we have had to live with the shame of knowing that we made such a deal. And when I found out that all three of us were not given our retirement rights, and instead we were dissolved as a council and reassigned to backwater outposts in the country, far out of the way of all the Cloud village affairs, I realized that we had made a grave error and we would not live to see our final years. We were a liability to the Raikage. If what we all knew were to get out, the Raikage would be forced to abdicate or face a general uprising in his country. Losing all of his power and likely banishing his entire family from the village and the country, which is why he needed you . . . to cover up his mistake."
Kunashiro finds himself overwhelmed by the news that three of the finest shinobi's in his village, we seduced to give up their honor and make a wrong decision that may hold dire consequences for their countrymen. And the wound that cuts even deeper . . . is the fact that it was all for money.
"I don't believe this. I was used . . . from the moment I was sent on this mission. The Raikage has been using me to cover up his liabilities. I cannot believe I trusted that snake."
"Believe me when I say Bishamon-sama, I will not let the Raikage get away with such treachery. I will let you go free and tell the Raikage that my mission was successful, then I will return to the village to take care of . . ."
Before Kunashiro finishes his sentence, he turns around after being startled by a strange sound. He turns in time to successfully dodge and arrow that was aimed straight for his head. The arrow passes Kunashiro, but pierces the chest of Bishamon sending him to the ground as he coughs up blood. Kunashiro looks to the hillside behind the tower and sees seven of the Raikage's personal guards standing on the hillside all armed with bows aimed at the tower. Standing on the left side of the guards, is the Raikage's assistant Shin, holding above him the sword of Murakakumo.
"SHIN YOU BASTARD! I SWEAR I WILL KILL YOU WITH MY BARE HANDS!"
Shin laughs on the hill top as he swipes the sword down signifying to the archers to unleash the next volley of arrows toward the Raikage's former prized assassin. Kunashiro ducks behind the walls of the tower and finds himself face to face with the now deceased Bishamon. As the arrows fly over Kunashiro's head and embed themselves in the thatched walls of the guard tower, Kunashiro makes a promise to the old man.
"I have killed three men, guilty of nothing all to aid a man guilty of the highest treachery. I vow to you Bishamon, and to your comrades, that I will let my mistake go avenged. I will kill the Shin if it is the last thing I do. And see to it that the Raikage's deceit becomes public."
Back on the hill, Shin Raises the sword again and the archers ready their next volley or arrows. Shin smiles as he taunts Kunashiro, "I would love to see how you expect to get out of this alive Kunashiro. We know what Bishamon told you, so you must understand why we have to kill you now. There are to be no liabilities for Raikage-sama's plan, and I am afraid we just don't trust that you would keep your mouth shut. So do yourself a favour and just take one in the head. It will be over quickly and your dishonor won't be as substantial."
Kunashiro rises to his feet and perches himself on the top of the guard towers' barrier wall. Signifying to Shin that Kunashiro has accepted the idea, "Now that's a good boy Kunashiro, just make it easier for us to hit you, and you can take all the arrows at once. Then it will look like you put up a fight!"
Kunashiro broods in his anger for a minute just before he leaps from the guard tower toward the hill that his would be executioners' stand perched with arrows ready. Shin swipes the sword of murakakumo down in front of the archers, and the marksmen unleash the next volley.
"Not today Shin, I will not die before you breathe your last breath." Kunashiro then faces down the storm of arrows' head toward him at highspeed. Then as if almost in slow motion, Kunashiro avoids all the arrows.
The first arrow is struck in half by a perfectly timed side left-hand chop by Kunashiro. The second is caught in between Kunashiro's right middle and index fingers. Kunashiro then uses the same arrow to knock away the third, and the fourth is deflected with a quick snap quick from Kunashiros right foot, and the same happens to the fifth, deflected by a left legged kick. The sixth arrow is dodged as Kunashiro perfectly times the last kick, to twist his lower half clockwise, avoiding the arrow. The final arrow is dodged as Kunashiro inverts himself, performing a forward-moving back flip, causing the arrow to speed by, only inches away from Kunashiro's face.
Kunashiro lands on the ground and immediately runs toward the hillside with his arms thrown back behind him. The archers on the hillside struggle to ready their next volley, still in shock at Kunashiro's amazing agility. Kunashiro readies two kunai as he prepares to do what he has been trained his whole life to do. He leaps up the remaining meters of the hill and strikes down the first archer on the right side with a kunai slash to the throat. He swings his other kunai at the next archer and slices the string of his bow, causing it to snap back toward the archer's face. As the archer is distracted, Kunashiro aims low and stabs the archer in the back of the knee, sending him to the ground. However, before he hits the ground, Kunashiro strikes him with a thrust kick to neck, crushing his larynx and killing him shortly afterward.
The fourth archer in the firing line manages to launch his next arrow that is avoided by Kunashiro who uses the third archer as a human shield. The arrow pierces the archer through the eye and out the back of his head, stopping only inches from Kunashiro's head. Kunashiro then pushes the body toward the fourth archer, knocking him off balance, as Kunashiro leaps toward the fifth archer and stabs him in the chest with his kunai. When his back is turned however, the sixth archer pierces Kunashiro's soldier with an arrow, using it like a kunai and stabbing Kunashiro. Kunashiro grimaces in pain for only a second as his sends the archer to the ground with a backhand strike.
The fourth archer then tries to attack Kunashiro from behind as he removes the arrow from his shoulder. Kunashiro dodges the fourth archers' attack and spins behind him using him as a shield as he moves toward the seventh and final archer. The archer tries to find somewhere to shoot as he backs away from the advancing shinobi. He cannot react fast enough however, as Kunashiro throws the arrow he removed from his shoulder, piercing the archer's chest and killing him quickly. Kunashiro then reaches over the sixth archers shoulder and grabs him by the chin. Kunashiro quickly swipes his arm, and snaps the archers neck killing him instantly and sending him spinning to the ground. Now only Kunashiro and Shin remain.
"Well Kunashiro," Shin says, as he raises the sword in front of him. "That was quite impressive. But I am afraid from this point on, you will not have things so easy."
"I look forward to it Shin." Kunashiro raises his fist and readies himself for a fight and also readies his right hand in a flat palm and beckons Shin to attack him. "Well lets not wait any longer Shin . . . Come!"