Chapter 17: The Snake Charmers Temptation
(Warning: This chapter contains Spoilers for those not up to date with the Naruto Manga)
The Raikage stands in his darkened hall surrounded by nothing but shadows and several torches along the walls of the palace, and a single bonfire in the center of the room in front of his throne like chair. He stands several meters across the room from a man, clad in black with a heart and intentions that are just as dark. The Raikage crosses eyes with the legendary Orochimaru, S-Rank criminal and former shinobi of the hidden leaf, now the leader of the more recently formed Hidden Sound village. The man responsible for the death of the third Hokage and many others during the invasion of the leaf village. His reasons for being in the hall are unknown, and it is unknown as to whether or not he is alone.
"What could we possibly have to talk about?" The Raikage questions, "We have never met before. In Fact, I am not even sure I know who you are."
Orochimaru maintains the smile across his face and offers a silent laugh as he moves some strands of his pitch black hair out of his face, swiping it over his shoulder. "I am surprised you don't know who I am. Perhaps you would like to check the bingo book. The last time I checked I was around the top of the list." Orochimaru glares deep into the Raikage's eyes sending shivers down the cloud leader's spine. His eyes shine bright with a glow and slitted black pupil reminiscent of those possessed by the most cunning of snakes.
"Those eyes . . ." The Raikage thinks to himself, "Orochimaru . . . the snake charmer."
"Haha, I'm glad to see that my reputation is so widespread, that even in the cloud village I can still send chills down a man's spine."
"You are indeed one of the top seated S-Rank felons and it would be my duty to arrest you or kill you as stated in the treaty among the five countries. Any S-Rank felon must be apprehended at all costs despite any crossing over into foreign jurisdictions."
"That is in fact true Raikage-dono." Orochimaru then begins walking closer to The Raikage who raises his hands, ready to engage the Sannin in battle. Orochimaru then raises his hands in front of him, parallel to his shoulders. "You can relax Raikage-dono. I did not come here to fight or to start a war with your village. I came here because you and I share a common problem."
"And just what exactly is that?" The Raikage questions, as he reaches to his side shuriken pouch.
"I understand you are looking for the dragon . . ." Orochimaru's words immediately draw the Cloud leader's attention and he stops his motioning to his weapons. "A boy by the name of Akira Toshida if I heard correctly."
The Raikage stands down from his offensive stance and has decided to listen to what the Sannin has to offer. "All right Orochimaru . . . you have my attention. Make it quick before I change my mind."
"I have an informant under cover who has told me that Toshida has received sanctuary from the Hokage and the village of Konoha."
The Raikage begins to fume with anger at Orochimaru's words. The thought that one of his counterparts overseeing the fire country could be sheltering a man that may hold the Raikage's future in his hands. "All-right Orochimaru what is it that you want from me?"
"I know that apparently that man is a threat to you and so I can understand your desire to see him out of your way. I am offering my services to eliminate this threat for you as a show of good faith."
"I am not naive Orochimaru. You are not the gracious type to simply offer yourself to my service. What is it you plan to receive in return?"
Orochimaru smirks at the Raikage's words and offers his explanation. "Are you familiar with the organization known as the Akatsuki Raikage-dono?"
"The Akatsuki?" The Raikage asks, "From what I hear they are a group of S- Rank felons working together for some purpose. But I thought they were only a hearsay organization. Some underground myth."
"Unfortunately no they are not. I am a former member of the organization. I left several years ago for my own reasons."
"What does this have to do with anything Orochimaru? I told you to get to the point or you are wasting my time."
"This Toshida kid definitely seems to have you on edge Raikage-dono." Orochimaru snickers in a mocking fashion only further angering the Raikage.
"Damn you, you bastard!" The Raikage pulls back a fist faster then Orochimaru can even see and thrusts his fist toward Orochimaru's face at an incredible speed. Orochimaru's gaze does not change as the milliseconds go by as if in slow motion. His sight then focuses away from the Raikage's eyes and just over the Raikage's right shoulder.
Suddenly a shuriken passes past the Raikage's head and around his wrists, dragging behind a narrow almost invisible but incredibly strong strand of kurot wire. The shuriken completely entangles the Raikage's wrist and stops it only an inch away from connecting with Orochimaru's face. As the Raikage slowly turns his head around to see where the restraint came from, he can see the same silhouette that he saw before the young man holds the kurot wire around entangled loosely around his middle and index finger still managing however to keep the Raikage from striking Orochimaru.
"Who the hell are you?" The Raikage asks, seeing only a solemn smirk across the dark figure's face.
"It doesn't matter who he is." Orochimaru says, drawing the Raikage's attention back to him. "The important thing is that you simply take me seriously. Both you and I know that you could have killed my servant easily, but instead you have not. Because I would in turn kill you. I want your time Raikage. And if I have to restrain you in order to get it from you . . . I will do so." With a quick nod of his head, Orochimaru signals to his associate to release the Raikage's restraint. The Raikage's hand comes loose, and after several moments of silence and pondering, he chooses not to strike Orochimaru, in favour of listening to his proposal.
"All right Orochimaru, I apologize. But please, get to the point."
"As I was saying, I am familiar with the members of the Akatsuki and I know what they are capable of and what their mission is, and suffice to say it greatly interferes with my own interests. What I need is a source of power that can rival that in which they are trying to obtain."
"And what is it that they are trying to obtain?" The Raikage asks as he remains in suspense.
"They are after the nine bijyuu.(tailed-demons)"
The Raikage's face displays an intense showing of dread as the thought of a criminal organization possessing the tailed demons is a truly frightening thought. "They want to possess the power of the demons? But it is impossible for them to contain those massive energies, how in the hell can they . . ."
"It isn't important, but I can assure you that they are indeed capable of doing so. If they do then all of my plans will be seriously hindered."
"So what does this have to do with my problem."
"Have you heard the story of the four cardinal beasts that watch over this world?"
"I am vaguely familiar with it. Four demon beasts overseeing all that happens in their dominion below. But those are just the stories . . . fairy tales told to children as bedtime stories."
"Unfortunately those bedtime stories are a reality." Orochimaru's words are once again a surprise to the Raikage.
"You must be joking Orochimaru. Surely no such thing can be true."
"Why do you dismiss the possibility so quickly? There are already nine demons that the leaders of each village know of. Why is it hard to believe that there are four demons at a higher level looking over the nine?" Orochimaru begins to pace around the room as the Raikage follows him with a questionable glance. "The four demons each hold a dominion over the realm in which the bijyuu come from, divided into north, east, south and west. With the demons being a Phoenix, a turtle, a tiger and . . ."
". . . a dragon." The Raikage finishes the Sannin's sentence as he begins to understand what Orochimaru is getting at. "I think I finally understand Orochimaru. Your plans will be in jeopardy if the Akatsuki are to get their way and obtain the tailed beasts . . . so you want to do them one better and obtain a power higher then what they seek."
"That's correct Raikage-dono. The reasoning for the dragon ending up in this world and then into the man that you wish to see disappear is knowledge that I do not possess. But I am going to resist the urge to obtain that knowledge because I believe it has something to do with why you wish to see this child killed."
The Raikage tries to show no emotion in reaction to the snake charmers words, but his frustration over the situation becomes quickly evident. "So what do you propose?"
"I will use a newly developed jutsu that I have created, to extract the demon from the boy's body. After the demon is in my possession, I can return the boy to your custody or simply kill him . . . that is of coarse if he survives the extraction process."
"That sounds very interesting Orochimaru, but how are you going to get the boy to cooperate or even capture him. As you said, he is in the leaf village. From what I understand, you are not the type to simply be allowed to walk in and do as you please." The Raikage crosses both arms in front of his chest as he awaits the answer.
"That is what I need from you Raikage-dono." Orochimaru turns to his left to face the Raikage directly as the final piece of the puzzle is ready to be revealed. "I need your forces to assist in a full scale invasion of the village. They will all be dressed in sound village uniforms, making the leaf village simply believe that it is just I attacking them."
"Hmpf." The Raikage says, unimpressed. "From the information I received, your last attempt to invade the village was a failure. And you had manipulated your allies through deceit and murder." The Raikage's words succeed in angering Orochimaru who grits his teeth as he stares deep into the Raikage's eyes. "So why should I take part in anything that you are involved in?"
Orochimaru laughs as he readies to reveal his edge. "Because without me, or my knowledge of the village, you will fail in any attempt to retrieve Toshida. And the knowledge that he possesses will come to light someday, and I don't think you want that. I can easily get my informant to get the knowledge from Toshida . . . and then that is just one more person that could possibly end your career . . . and many more then that after I receive his report." Orochimaru's words stab like daggers into the mind of the Raikage, fully aware that he is being manipulated, he can only agree with Orochimaru in the back of his mind. "I have several smaller objectives that I wish to accomplish with your help in this situation, but me and my men will take care of it personally . . . all I need is for you and your men to keep the village distracted long enough for me to accomplish my goals."
"There are two other Sannin in Konoha at this time from the knowledge I have received! One of them is the Hokage for god sakes, how do you plan to take care of them?"
"I have a plan to take care of Jiraiya, and many of the other Jounins in the village . . . and Tsunade . . . I will take care of her personally. You need not worry about her."
"I don't know how you can take care of two Kage level shinobi by yourself. It seems almost impossible. How can I trust you?" The Raikage questions.
"You simply have no other alternative Raikage-dono. Either you cooperate with me and we can help each other . . . or your secret will be brought to the light of day."
The Raikage returns to his chair, placing his head in his hands and crouching down with his head between his knees, as a difficult decision lies before him. He ponders all that has been told to him this day as Orochimaru looks on. His words have been venom to the Raikage and only the snake charmer can offer an antidote for his salvation. "This is madness. All because I did not kill Kunashiro (see Village of sin back stories) when I had the chance. I cannot trust this man . . . nor can I neglect his offer. But I will not let that boy destroy my career! I will not be removed from my position . . . Forgive me cloud village . . . but I must take the devils fruit."
The Raikage rises from his chair and walks back toward Orochimaru. The two stand only a single pace apart as the Raikage holds out his hand which is soon accepted by Orochimaru who brandishes a sinister smirk across his face.
The Raikage takes a deep breath in as he inhales, "Orochimaru . . . we have a deal." The Raikage regretfully says, as he exhales the deep breath.
"Excellent Raikage-dono. We will meet again in five days in my village to discuss the plans in full detail . . ."
The Raikage and Orochimaru continuing discussing matters while the focus turns to the dark figure standing across the room, leaning against one of the large bronze pillars of the decadent hall. He then says with a smirk as evil as Orochimaru's stricken across his face, "Its Time to go home . . ."
Several minutes later both the dark figure and Orochimaru disappear leaving only Orochimaru's laugh to echo throughout the hall. "Remember what we talked about Raikage-dono . . . be in the sound village in five days . . . or the deal is off . . . and your secret is out."
The massive doors of the hall swings open from the Inside and the Raikage steps out with all of his guards quickly rushing to his side as he has emerged for the first time in hours after receiving the news of Shin's demise. "Kambei!" The Raikage bellows out with a firm determination in his voice.
Kambei rushes to the Raikage's side and bows before him, "Yes Raikage-sama?"
"Congratulations Kambei, you are now Shin's replacement. And as your first act as my right hand, I want you to gather our forces together immediately and have them assemble here in the main hall . . . we are going to war."
"Y-yes Raikage-sama." Kambei stands up and quickly departs with the rest of the guards all to assemble the army of the hidden cloud.
The Raikage then thinks back to the last words Orochimaru said to him before he disappeared and the focus was on the dark figure.
The two stand several meters away as Orochimaru begins to walk away from the Raikage. He turns around slightly to make eye contact with the Raikage, "Oh and one more thing Raikage-dono . . ."
"Yes, what is it?"
"Bring three . . . volunteers with you when you come . . ."
The words catch the Raikage by surprise, but he nods his head and accepts Orochimaru's condition. As the seeds that have been planted this day can never be unearthed, the Raikage is left to contemplate his actions as his fate lies in the village of the hidden sound . . . five days from now.
Meanwhile, it has been almost six hours since Kakashi and Toshida left the safety of Konoha to return to the village of sin. The two have traveled across the vast forests and plains of the fire country and have past the valley of the end, the damage from the fight over a year ago still evident throughout the surrounding landscape. Kakashi cannot help but find nothing, but a feeling of intense melancholy as he passes the two statues. He changes his direction and lands on top of the eastern most statue, kneeling down surveying the area where Naruto and Sasuke fought one year ago. The cliff sides still damaged, some trees still burnt, and blood now dry, still strewn across parts of the landscape. Kakashi lowers his head for a moment as the thoughts of Naruto's defeat, and Sasuke's defection once again rush back into his mind.
Toshida lands just behind the leaf jounin and begins surveying the damaged landscape for himself. He walks forward coming up slowly behind Kakashi as he stops his surveying of the area.
"What's the matter Kakashi?" Toshida asks as he lowers his head to get Kakashi's attention.
Kakashi stands up and turns back toward the northeast as he answers solemnly, "Nothing," He crouches down and readies to leap once again to continue their journey. "Lets go." The two then take off at lightning fast speed back on their course toward the village of sin, leaving the damaged remnants of the valley of the end behind as the deafening roar of the valley's waterfall slowly fades to become nothing more then a solitary rumble in the distance. Kakashi's mind still remains in that valley. "I'm not giving up on you Sasuke . . . ever."
The two continue on their way through the countryside through the demilitarized zone between the thunder and fire countries. They begin to take a slight right curve on their way toward the coastline as to not cross into the thunder country and risk detection. After about an hour of traveling the two make it to the coastline, renting the services of small boat and navigator from a small store along the coast. The two board the boat and begin checking their supplies and provisions as they ready to enter colder territory.
"Just how far north am I taking you sir?" The boatman asks Kakashi.
"Until the ice is too thick for you to maneuver in." Kakashi replies. "We will then pay you double the amount promised and you will forget that you ever saw us."
The boatman's face lights up with the prospect of the doubling of his fee, "Y-yes sir!" The boatman exclaims with an almost childish glee.
"But make haste for this journey or you can forget the bonus." Toshida says, grumbling from underneath his thick white scarf as he buries his face into it in an effort to keep warm and make himself comfortable.
"Y-yes sir." The boatman nervously says, as he increases his pace and therefore the boat's momentum as they continue on their journey. He throws on a thick over coat as the air already begins to demonstrate the cold sting of the northern climate.
"Was that really necessary?" Kakashi says to Toshida, just load enough for Toshida to hear.
"No, but I don't like waiting." Says Toshida with a smirk across his face. "And it is too bloody cold up here so I would like to get in and out as soon as possible."
The two laugh just under their breath as the expression on the boatman's face reeks of zealous determination as the promise of more money has sparked a great enthusiasm in their navigator.
The two shinobi then begin to relax and try to get some sleep as night begins to fall over their location. It would be seven hours before the two would awaken.
Back in the leaf village, Keinea is cooped up in the library in the Hokage building continuing his research through the records and journals of Sarutobi, The Third Hokage. The room is empty except for him, a few candles and hundreds of books and scrolls all pertaining to the chronicles of the third Hokage. It is now 12:30am and the leaf village is asleep all except for Keinea and all those continuing their research. Suddenly, the door to the library opens and Tsunade walks in to check on Keinea's progress.
"It's 12:30 Keinea . . . any luck?" Tsunade asks as Keinea does not even turn his eyes away from the book he is engrossed in. "And I thought you were going to start by going through the 4th's records first.
"That is what my brother suggested." Keinea says as his eyes remain forever focused on the script on the page. "So that usually means that the opposite is the right thing to do." Keinea says with a silent chuckle. "Besides, the fourth may have been some supreme shinobi, but his documentation skills were horrible. Nothing in the scroll is listed in any form of chronological order. It is as if it was rewritten or something . . . pieced together by bits and pieces of data. It makes it extremely frustrating to try and filter through."
"Yes from what I hear the fourth just had a bad habit of not dating his logs. And he was rather untidy when it came to filing them. When he died, the third had to retake the position of Hokage and had all of the fourth's documents rewritten on that scroll to keep them all together. The originals should be somewhere in this library, but you are better off just searching through that scroll."
"Yes I have seen his writing on some of these mission transcripts that were filed away in the cabinet to the far left of the room. It is quite messy. You can barely make out his signature. I have no idea what the guy's real name is, you can't read anything that he wrote."
"I understand." Tsunade says as she takes a position over Keinea's left shoulder, reading over what he is reading. "Is their anything remotely helpful in Sarutobi-sensei's records?"
"So far nothing." Keinea says, as he lets out a frustrated sigh. "I haven't found anything pertaining to the nine tails or the sealing jutsu that the fourth used."
"It all happened around 13 years ago if that narrows your search at all." Tsunade offers as she searches for the correct date in the scroll, unraveling the massive text. "No it isn't in this one." Tsunade then searches the pile of scrolls on the table Keinea is seated at. After filtering through more then a dozen scrolls she finds the one with the correct dates indicated on the bottom. As she rolls the scroll out she searches for the correct date. "We need to find something during the time in which Sarutobi-sensei was retired and the fourth was in power. The third new how to perform the technique of the fourths so he must have learned it from the fourth himself in order to have used it during the invasion."
As the two search through the numerous listings throughout the enormous scroll, it is Keinea who finds the first bit of useful information. "Ok this may be something . . ." He says, bringing Tsunade over to his side of the scroll. "It has mention of a new jutsu being developed by the fourth for use in a desperate situation. And in this log here made a couple days later he talks about his training with the fourth. Hmpf, to think that an old man called the "professor" or "god of all shinobi" would be training under his own successor."
"Sarutobi-sensei, made it a mission to know all jutsu in the leaf village so that he may assist anyone at anytime. He was not limited to the student and teacher style relationship. He believed that those with the strongest "will of fire" as he called it, were always the younger and more ambitious ones. He was not against learning from those younger then him."
"Hmm, what an interesting man. Would have been interesting to meet him." Keinea remarks almost sarcastically as his eyes do not leave the portion of the scroll he has fixed himself on. "AHA!" Keinea shouts aloud, "Here it is, a mention of the sealing technique. It describes how the technique is used . . . what hand seals are used . . . " After a few moments of reading Keinea becomes frustrated slamming his hand down hard on the table. "Dammit! There is nothing in here about how the technique works or how the fourth was able to originate it."
Tsunade lets out a sigh as she has become almost as frustrated as Keinea has become. "I suppose it is because the technique takes the life of whoever uses it . . . I wonder if the fourth even knew how the technique worked."
Keinea lowers his head into his hands as he rubs just underneath his eyes in an effort to stay awake. Tsunade notices Keinea's fatigue and offers a word of encouragement. "Don't worry Keinea, we will find the information that we are looking for. We just have to be patient and thorough."
"I suppose you are right. I will continue my research until brother gets home. Hopefully I will have a solution by the time he comes home." Keinea then returns his attention to the third's log and once again focuses on the task at hand.
"Keinea you really should get some sleep." Tsunade says as she makes her way to the door. "It won't help your cause if you are too exhausted to make sense of what you are reading."
"I will sleep enough when I am dead, or my brother is cured . . . whichever happens first." Keinea says, as he simply waves Tsunade off with his right hand.
Tsunade takes her leave of the young shinobi and closes the door behind her as she makes her way to her room for the night. "Let us hope it is the later of the two, young shinobi." Tsunade thinks to herself as she turns in for the night.
Within an hour of Tsunade's departure from the library, Keinea succumbs to exhaustion and falls asleep. His head still buried in the large text of the third's journal, and with his slumber, the whole leaf village can be but to sleep for the night.
After several hours of rest, the team of Kakashi and Toshida are awoken by a hard jostle of the boat slamming against a small underwater ice flow. The two are startled and slightly disorientated but after soon realizing their location then turn their attention to their attention to the boatman, shivering due to the cold and lack of sleep.
"I think this is far enough kind sir." Toshida says, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. "My associate here will pay you what we promised in full with the doubled amount if you keep your mouth shut."
The boatman simply nods at Toshida's remarks and continues his relentless shivering. As he turns around to face Kakashi, he walks directly into Kakashi's open Sharingan eye, spinning and hypnotizing the boatman and knocking him unconscious. Kakashi then places his blankets on top of the ferryman and lines the man's coat with the money the two promised. The two then step off of the boat, channeling chakra into their feet to stay on top of the water. Toshida pushes the boat off into the direction in which they came as Kakashi starts a jutsu. Rat, Boar, Ox, Hare, Snake, Dragon, Rat, Ram.
"Suiton: Totsunyuu Shuuha no jutsu" (Rushing Wave Technique) Suddenly, the water underneath the boat begins to bubble before rising more then fifteen meters into the air and then rushing south toward the outpost that the three all left earlier that day. The wave then dissipates almost as quickly as it had began, but the current it has created is enough to start the boat on its way home.
"All right, lets get going." Kakashi says just seconds before the two take off into the air leaping along the water until the two soon reach thick ice, strong enough to carry the weight of the two. As the two travel along the icy path set before them, the increasing amount of snow makes their journey more and more difficult. There is too much snow for the two to easily track through, not enough mass in the snow for the two to use as a launching point. The two can no longer leap through the air and cover more then 10 times as much ground. The snow is too thick for them to run through either.
"Well this sure is inconvenient." A sarcastic Toshida hollers aloud as the current snowfall begins to change into a blizzard, deafening the two shinobi with the chorus of blistering winds befalling them.
"Indeed. We have to figure out a better way to travel in this weather to we wont be able to make it to the destination in time."
"Agreed."
Kakashi then bites down on his thumb drawing blood before he starts another jutsu. Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram.
"Kuchiyose no jutsu" (Summoning Technique) Suddenly all of Kakashi's dogs appear in full force ready to help out in the situation. Kakashi then begins taking out parts from the packs that all of his nin dogs possess. He begins putting all of the pieces together while Toshida looks on. The stranger's presence has garnered an unwelcome reception from Kakashi's dogs who all bark incessantly at the unfamiliar shinobi. Kakashi tries to keep the dogs quiet, but their instinct to protect their master is too much for Kakashi to control. Pakkon then turns to address his master.
"Kakashi, who is this guy?" The small dog says as he leaps onto Kakashi's shoulder and stares menacingly at Toshida who finds himself at a loss for words.
"The dog . . . is talking?" Toshida says as he shakes his head from side to side.
"Pakkon, tell the others to be quiet. This is Akira Toshida. He is my latest assignment. So please, enough with the barking. We are running behind schedule." Kakashi says, as he stands to his feet and begins tying numerous tassels and harnesses to the dogs, connecting it to the initial contraption he was constructing. When all the preparations are complete, Kakashi has created a makeshift dog sled to transport him across the landscape.
"Lets get going. We have a lot of ground to make up." Kakashi then turns to Toshida who still remains weary of Kakashi's dogs. "Hop on and lets get going."
Toshida shakes his head, "I don't think so. I will take another way to get to where we are going. Growing up in this country I spent a lot of time in the snowy north." Toshida then gets some distance between him and Kakashi. "I have learned a number of ways to travel through the snow." Toshida then claps his hands together and begins channeling chakra.
Kakashi's shrugs Toshida's actions off and gets ready to set off. "You had better keep up. It may be my mission to watch over you, but you need to reach the village of sin, not me. If you fall behind then I will not turn back to retrieve you." Kakashi then orders the dogs off and with the blink of an eye the dogs explode at high speed transporting Kakashi across the landscape.
"Hmpf." Toshida says to himself, "I suggest that you try, and keep up . . . with me." Toshida then separates his feet and gets into the proper stance as he starts a jutsu. Tiger, Snake, Monkey, Bird, Rat, Horse, Ram, Dog, Dragon.
"Hyouton: Barike-do Aisuma no jutsu" (Ice Element: Ice Horse Barricade) Toshida then slamshis hands down to the ground at his sides as he kneels down on one knee. The ground around him then begins to rumble and massive snow drifts then lift him off the ground more then twenty meters. The snow drift then begins to move gradually forward as Toshida remains in his kneeling position. As the drift gathers momentum and speed, the technique completes itself as the drift begins to form into several large horses all made of ice and snow, galloping at full speed in the middle of the snow drift. The back ends of the horses remain unseen as they still remain part of the main snow drift.
Within moments Kakashi's dog sled is passed by Toshida and the rushing waveof snow and ice. Toshida waves at Kakashi as he passes and jokingly remarks, "I suppose,I'll see you at the finish line!"
As the two continue speeding toward the north, it is only a matter of hours before the two are forced to cross the northern section of the thunder country, and then from there . . . it is on to the Village of Sin.