AN: Hello once again! I have not received a lot of votes in the poll on whether or not a romantic relationship between Naruto and Ryuuzetsu should develop. Please go to my profile and vote. Also, I have not received a lot of reviews for the story. Let me know what you think of the story so far. Other than that, on to Chapter V.
I do not own Naruto.
Chapter V
The crackling of the gravel under Naruto's feet was the only sound that permeated the silence between Naruto and Ryuuzetsu. They had just left breakfast and were on the main trail that ran down the middle of the institution. They were just a couple of buildings away from the recreation building. Inside the recreational building is the seal workshop and subsequently where Mui is recruiting sealers for his secret project. Approaching the building, Naruto noticed that the building looked like an exact copy of the 15 other structures in the compound.
Naruto was brought out of his musings by Ryuuzetsu's voice, "How would you like to scout out the area? Each of us take one side and work our way around?" Naruto processed Ryuuzetsu's suggestions before answering, "I agree, I think it would be best if we each took a side. This way when we are across the floor from each other we will be able to not only communicate with each other but also let the other know if we see anything suspicious." Ryuuzetsu nodded her head along to Naruto's words. She readily accepted his proposal as they were now standing in front of the large recreation center.
Walking through the doors, Naruto and Ryuuzetsu observed all of the amenities of the first floor. The left side of the floor was lined with bookshelves. Rows upon rows of books filled the entire left side of the room. Turning their heads towards the opposite side of the room they could see tables and chairs spread amongst the room. Several inmates were seated in the chairs and were reading books presumably taken from the abundance made available on the other side of the room. Calmly walking through the floor as to not disturb anyone Naruto spotted a staircase in the very back right corner of the floor. Ryuuzetsu carefully emulated Naruto, walking swiftly behind him, not drawing anyone's attention.
Passing through the opening and into the stairway Naruto and Ryuuzetsu noticed a commotion towards the second level. Immediately, Naruto and Ryuuzetsu jumped against the wall. Hoping they were not noticed by the two fighting parties, Naruto and Ryuuzetsu slowly peered upwards to catch a glimpse of the commotion. On the level above them Naruto saw an inmate pounding another into the ground. The winning inmate was at least six and half feet tall. He was not only tall but he was exceptionally muscular. It looked like he could bench the Nine-Tailed Fox. His long dark hair hid his features as he stood over the other inmate that could only be described as small civilian. Naruto and Ryuuzetsu could barely see his white hair as he was curled up in a fetal position on the metal landing.
A grizzled voice caught Naruto's attention. The larger man was saying something to the smaller man. Naruto turned back to Ryuuzetsu and made a "stay here" motion with his hands as he stealthily moved up the stairs. Keeping his body flush against the wall, Naruto hoped they wouldn't notice his presence. "…cigarettes. You said the fucking shipment would be here yesterday. I don't see any god damn sticks, Genji. You ripped off the wrong bastard. Free period tomorrow, during the riot, the walls will be stained with your blood." With his monologue finished the larger man proceeded to spit on the smaller man now identified as Genji.
The bulkier man waded towards the current stairs occupied by Naruto and Ryuuzetsu. Not wanting to be seen, Naruto slowly backtracked down the stairs until he was back on the first level with Ryuuzetsu. Without hesitation Naruto grabbed Ryuuzetsu's hand and pulled her around the corner of the doorway to the stairwell. Standing off to the side of the entrance, the pair hoped the large man would not notice them. Several seconds later the muscular man traveled out of the opening, across the library, and out of the door. He gave no sign that he ever saw Naruto or Ryuuzetsu.
Naruto let out a breath he did not know he was holding and titled his head to the side to see a slightly blushing Ryuuzetsu. It was only then Naruto noticed that in his rush to not be seen he had grabbed her hand and pulled her to the point where their bodies were almost touching. Producing a blush of his own Naruto quickly apologized and took a swift step back.
After a couple of awkward silent seconds Ryuuzetsu asked, "Were you able to find out what the fight was about?" Shaking off his embarrassment, Naruto responded, "It was a fight over a broken deal. The smaller man, Genji, ripped off the wrong person. There was another interesting part of the conversation though. The larger man mentioned a riot happening tomorrow. Did you know that a riot was happening tomorrow?" Ryuuzetsu adopted a quizzical expression after Naruto's last remark. They have only been in the prison two days. It would make sense that nobody would tell the newbie about a possible break out plan. "No, but we could use this to our advantage. This riot could give us an opportunity to do operations that would not normally be possible with normal security," said Ryuuzetsu.
Naruto started to consider all of the possible actions that they could take during the riot before he stopped himself. He was currently in the middle of a reconnaissance mission. The riot plan could be discussed tonight. Speaking his thoughts Naruto said, "We can discuss the riot plan tonight after lights out. At the moment though I think we need to focus on finishing our reconnaissance." Ryuuzetsu nodded her head and readily agreed with what Naruto was saying. Tomorrow's course of action could be discussed tonight.
-On the Second Floor-
Walking through the doorway of the second floor Naruto and Ryuuzetsu could tell this was the workshop area for not only sealers but for metalsmiths and wood workers as well. The left side of the room was full of desks and tables. Each table had a different saw with a different blade. The desks that fit in next to the tables were being used by other inmates to work on their creations. Turning their heads towards the middle of the room Naruto and Ryuuzetsu saw what had to be the seal work area. Like the wood working area there were tables and desks fitted together. Instead of fixed saws sitting on the tables there were sheets of paper and bottles of ink with brushes inside. Peering farther to the right they saw the metal smiting area but that area was of little interest to them. They just came for the sealing workshop.
A voice broke the two-roommate's concentration and they both looked to see two guards walking towards them. "Since you two look new here I will give you the quick low down on how this area operates. The room is available only during recreation hours, you may not bring anything out of said room, and if the guards think you are doing anything suspicious you will be banned from said room. Is that all understood?" the guard finished his statement with a firm glare. The glare did not intimidate Naruto or Ryuuzetsu but they swiftly responded, "Yes sir." The last thing they needed to do right now was to draw the ire of one of the guards.
Doing as they discussed previously Naruto and Ryuuzetsu each separated and walked towards opposite sides of the room. Ryuuzetsu made her way towards the wood working are while Naruto walked into the center of the sealing area. Naruto observed the heavy wooden tables, dried brushes and ink. Wait. Dried brushes and ink? How long has this area gone without use? Looking closer at the tables Naruto could vaguely make out a layer of dust. Taking his hand Naruto swiped two of his fingers across the desk. Bringing his hand into a prone position he noted the layer of dust stuck to his fingers. Naruto glanced over to the left side of the room to see Ryuuzetsu inspecting the metalsmithing equipment. Returning his focus to the adjacent area, Naruto heard a faint voice. Following the soft noise Naruto found himself walking towards a cracked door in the corner of the room. The door was labeled as a custodian's closet and it was hidden behind several support posts. Giving in to his curiosity Naruto peeked through the crack in the closet door.
On the other side of the door was anything but a custodian's closet. It was a long hallway with pipes of multiple sizes lining the walls. It was dark and gloomy, like the set of a horror movie. Sliding the door open several more inches Naruto slid his body around the door and into the new space. Now that he was on the other side of the door the voices in the distance increased by several decibels. Despite the increase in volume he couldn't understand the transpiring conversation.
Carefully, Naruto crept his way down the hallway. Naruto thought he could hear his feet patting against the concrete floor but one look to his right revealed the source of the noise as a leaky pipe. He continued down the hallway for close to a minute before the hallway opened up into an actual custodian's room. Support beams were scattered around and stacked on racks against the wall was different custodial equipment. Just before Naruto peered around the corner a voice froze him in his tracks, "Do you understand what I am asking on you," said a cold depraving voice. That voice could only belong to one person, Mui. Who could he possibly be talking to in this setting? It only added coal to the inferno of questions burning inside Naruto's head. "Yes, I understand Warden. It the coming days I shall recruit the most adequate group of inmates I can find in the prison for a special project," the inmate seemed to speak robotically in response to Mui. Most likely repeating whatever Mui had said previously to him. "Good, I will return in a week to this very spot, hopefully by then you will have found a couple competent people." With those final words Mui departed from his spot and walked by towards the hallway. The very hallway Naruto was eavesdropping from.
Naruto was panicking. He needed to find a place to hide, fast. If he tried to retrace his steps down the hallway and out the door Mui would hear him. If he tried to move out from behind the wall and slide behind a post Mui would see him.
Frantically, his eyes danced across the room looking for any cover what so ever. Then his eyes landed on the ceiling. Like the walls it was lined with pipes but there was a small opening between two of the pipes. Just large enough to fit a body. Crouching down Naruto then exploded upwards, jumping and contorting his body to fit in the opening. As Naruto was about to grasp the pipe he sent minimal amounts of chakra to his hands and legs so he could land as silently as possible. Hopefully, the chakra amount would stay minimal enough to not trigger the seal. Right as Naruto landed, he looked down through the small opening to see Mui walk by. Mui walked by without noticing anything ominous and he continued to walk all the way out the door. Naruto observed him leave and he dropped down from his perched position within the pipes.
Peeking back around the corner Naruto saw the inmate making his way towards the hallway. Molding a miniscule amount of chakra again, Naruto changed his appearance. He changed his skin to be a pale white. Going along with whitening his skin he made his hair jet black and change his eyes to be a jade green. Feeling the jutsu take effect Naruto walked out from behind the wall and made his appearance known to the other inmate.
The inmate wore a shocked expression and initially took a step back. The expression soon fled his face and was replaced with a look of confusion. "Who the fuck are you?" questioned the prisoner.
Now that Naruto was standing in front of him he could get a good look at to who he was talking to. The inmate was shorter than Naruto by a full foot. His brown corn rows interweaved over his brown skin. His face was angular and his bright blue eyes contrasted with his dark skin tone. He was built like a pure speed demon. He was skinnier than the average person but despite his lack of large muscles Naruto could see tell that was a false assumption. He was toned and dangerous.
"I'm Hiro and I want to know what your deal is with Mui? If it is good, I want in." Naruto egotistically told the prisoner with a straight face. After hearing Naruto's words, the inmate just laughed. "Haha yeah, I'm sure you do. You can fuck off Hiro." With that statement the darker skinned man started walking around Naruto. Naruto wasn't going to let him leave without answers. Getting aggressive, Naruto shoved the inmate back into his original position. It was not a powerful push but enough to get his point across. Naruto was not going to let him leave without answers.
The inmate stared back at Naruto. The piercing glare he was sending Naruto's way would have killed a lesser man. "You really don't want to do this shithead." The threat was full of anger. The angry expression on the face of the prisoner only added to his threat. Naruto absorbed his glare and just stood his ground in front of the man.
Naruto was not going to leave without the answers he wanted. In the blink of an eye the prisoner shifted his feet into a wide stance, in one fluid motion he twisted his body back and threw a roundhouse kick with his left leg at Naruto's head. Without skipping a beat, Naruto dropped into a crouch under the kick and went straight for his exposed side. Showing his immense strength, Naruto threw an undercut right into his kidney. The loud grunt expelled from the prisoner told Naruto he struck gold. Quickly, Naruto followed up his body shot with a snap kick to the inside of the inmates planted right leg. The kick strained the ligaments and tendons holding the joint together, his knee was nearly destroyed. The impact caused the inmate collapsed in excruciating pain. So much pain the he could not even scream, only clench his knee and fall to the ground.
Standing over the inmate after the quick exchange, Naruto peered down on his prey and said, "I believe I deserve some answers." The calm tone Naruto used seemed to frighten the downed inmate. Through a strained stern expression, the prisoner looked Naruto back in the eye and proclaimed, "I'm not telling you shit." As the inmate finished his statement his mouth was introduced to Naruto dominant right hand. The right cross from Naruto sent the prisoner sprawling across the concrete floor. When the prisoner garnered the energy to push himself off the ground Naruto marched across the room and launched a left legged kick into the rib cage of the prisoner, robbing him of all the air he just had in his lungs. The force of the kick made the inmate roll back into the nearest post. Looking dazed and confused, Naruto stationed himself in front of the man.
When it looked like the man was returning to reality, Naruto said, "I can do this all day, I'm leaving it up to you though on how you want to leave this room. Do you want to walk out under your own power or be carried out in a body bag?"
The man's eyes rose up to meet Naruto's predatory orbs and he simply said, "Walk out, you win Hiro. What do you want to know?" Naruto's lips curled into a smile before he said, "I want to know everything Mui said to you." The man tried to push himself up into a more comfortable position but could not do it without wincing. Now recalling the past conversation, the inmate said, "Mui wanted me to meet with some of the dealers and kingpins in the prison. He wanted me to find anyone with large chakra reserves or sealing knowledge or both. They would meet me back here in this room in one week's time. He never gave me a reason as to why but he promised me that my parole officer would be more lenient in my upcoming hearing." The inmate gasped for air as he finished his statement. The kick from earlier still fresh, making breathing difficult. While the inmate was gasping for air Naruto started formulating a quick plan. It could easily backfire but he needed to take this chance and get in on this. This could very well be the project Maroi was mentioning.
"I think I could help you with your mission." Naruto's statement caused a confused expression to grow on the face of the inmate. Answering the unasked question, Naruto replied, "If you got a softer parole hearing then maybe if you could squeeze me in this program I would also get a softer sentence." The inmate looked up to Naruto and sassily said, "Oh yeah? Who said I would include you in on this?" Looking down upon the man, Naruto smoothly said, "I know of a man that fits both of those qualities that Mui is looking for. One of the freshman that just came of the boat is an Uzumaki. I can get close to the Uzumaki in my cell block. I can get you the ultimate weapon for this." As the inmate heard Naruto talk a grin slowly grew larger and larger in his face. "That's an interesting proposition Hiro. If I can meet this Uzumaki for myself then consider it a deal. It won't be hard to bring in a straggler if I can get an Uzumaki." Naruto just nodded his head along to the other man's words before he asked, "Where do you want to meet this Uzumaki?" The inmate brought his right hand up and cupped his chin in thought. Several seconds later he said, "Tell the Uzumaki to meet me in this room tomorrow during free period. Lead him here. I will return to this room and be waiting." Naruto nodded before walking back towards the entrance. Looking back, Naruto nodded in acknowledgement of the other inmate and made his way back down the long hallway.
Peeking back through the opening of the door, Naruto saw that the coast was clear. Sliding the door open a few more inches he slid his body through the opening. Arriving on the other side Naruto started looking around for any signs of Ryuuzetsu. But, the only thing that he saw was an empty room. Naruto's observations were interrupted when two arms suddenly shot out from behind his back….
-Until Next Time-
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Thank you for reading!