Sealkeeper: He Who Binds
Chapter 150-A "Involuntary Naptime"
Patron Release 2021.12.20
"Kabuto-Kun! Kabuto…..Kun?" Jundo's head tilted to the side as she barged back into the work area of Orochimaru's right hand. "What…what are you wearing?"
What Kabuto was wearing happened to be a bright pink poncho with the hood pulled up to cover his silver hair. At just a glance it was plain to anyone looking that it was too small- probably intended for a child- for him but he didn't seem bothered by that fact.
"I'm tired of getting wet." Was his only response and Jundo rolled her eyes with fond exasperation.
"Kabuto-Kun, darling, that's not going to stop me from getting you wet. She giggled and added "Or stop you from getting me wet."
He flushed red but managed to catch himself before responding. The odds of him saying something that she could make worse were simply much too high to risk it. She pouted, crossing her arms in a huff as she realized he was learning but that was quickly replaced by a mischievous smile.
It wouldn't be as fun if it was too easy, his learning was just going to make her victories sweeter. Her target shivered as a feeling of dread wormed its way down his spine. He'd worked with Orochimaru for years, aiding him with all sorts of horrid experiments, but nothing had ever terrified him as much as the tiny water sprite managed to.
It wasn't dignified but he could hardly bring himself to focus on that fact, he was too busy worrying about what she might do next.
After a moment of thought he did decide on words he figured were safe enough. "It will keep my hair and shoulders dry, those are the parts that have been the most wet recently."
Jundo raised a challenging brow in response. "You wanna bet, Kabuto-Kun?"
His lips pursed and his eyes narrowed. "That it will keep my hair and shoulders dry or that those are the things that keep getting wet?"
"Yes."
"...No. Not really."
"That's okay," She reassured him, drawing nearer and patting his cheek. "You'll still find out anyway."
For some reason, Kabuto didn't find that reassuring or comforting in the slightest.
Jundo gave his choice of clothing another look and after a few moments concluded; "You know, it's actually kind of cute." She tilted her head again. "Hey, take off your shirt real quick and put the pink thing back on, I wanna see how it looks."
"No."
"You take yours off and I'll take mine off."
"I don't want you to take your shirt off."
She rested one hand on her hip as she cocked it to the side and shot him a disbelieving look. "That's a damn lie, Kabuto-Kun."
"...No it's not."
Her look became more pointed.
"Okay." He admitted. "Maybe just a little."
"So you'll take off your shirt?"
"No." She pouted but dropped it…..for now. She had other things she needed to take care of before she forgot, anyway.
"So I talked to Tsukuyomi…" Kabuto just about choked on his spit as he heard those words, his attention immediately snapping to the sprite just as she liked it. "He's pretty important around here, isn't he?"
Pretty- Kabuto's earlier feeling of dread had been completely blown out of the water by what he was now experiencing. "He's- he's more than a little important, Jundo. Please tell me you didn't bother him." While it hadn't been his idea in the slightest, Jundo was considered his responsibility and Orochimaru would not be pleased to hear that Kabuto had 'allowed' her to go bother his crimson prince.
"No, of course not!" She protested. "...He was already finished with his work."
Kabuto blinked. "That…that doesn't mean you didn't bother him! That just means you didn't interrupt anything!"
She gave a lazy, dismissive flick of her wrist. "Bah, same thing."
"That's not the same thing at all!" Oh, he was so dead.
"It's close enough." Shrugged the water sprite. "But that's not why I mentioned it. He says he wants you to have my Hishaku brought to him so he can examine it." She spent a second trying to remember what else he had said. "Oh, yeah, and something about needing to speak with something called an Orochimaru about what he was doing."
Well, maybe the opportunity to see Naruto would distract Orochimaru enough that Kabuto might manage to slip out of this unscathed.
Probably not, but a man could dream.
"...I'll pass it on." He promised with a sigh. "Please don't go anywhere else without me ever again."
"Oh, Kabuto, that almost sounds like a marriage proposal. I had no idea you felt so strongly about me." She gave a giggle. "I'm flattered, really, but you must know I'm really only interested in the sex."
"...If i take off my shirt will you promise to never say that ever again?"
"Only if I can take mine off too."
On second thought, maybe the gods would show him some pity and Jundo would join whatever harem seemed to be building around the young Daimyo. Then she should have the attention she so craved and he wouldn't be responsible for her anymore.
"Ah! I almost forgot! He said you were to keep me away from something called an Anko, said he was worried we might get along." She grinned at the aspiring scientist. "I think she sounds pretty fun, do you think she'd like me?"
Kabuto stared at her in silence for nearly a full minute. "...She would absolutely adore you."
Jundo cheered and Kabuto wondered if it was too late to choose a new career path.
Gods knew anything would be better for his physical and mental well being than this.
"That's…actually kinda hot." Tsunade admitted, peering down at the table. "How the hell did you make progress so fast?"
"I didn't." Orochimaru admitted with a careless shrug, his attention focused on some of his notes. "This took me a month and a half."
Tsunade stared at him blankly. "I…..I agreed to help you model it after myself yesterday."
"Mmhmm." Orochimaru gave an agreeing hum.
She continued to stare before it clicked. "You bastard! You had already been trying to make a copy of me, weren't you?!"
"Hmm?" He glanced up. "Well, yes, of course. Who else would I choose? I was doing pretty well if I do say so myself but it wasn't quite turning out right and I didn't want to keep wasting time on it when I could just get the answers I needed directly from the source."
She looked back down to the body, now much less interested than she had been at her alternate self. "Well, I guess it's better than you trying to clone me."
"Of course," He scoffed. "Why would I clone you again?"
"Yeah- Wait. What?"
"Hmm?"
"Did you say again?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Tsunade."
Three wolves scuttled around the camp, tending a large fire and setting plates on a makeshift table. The clearing they had found wasn't exactly large but it was more than sufficient for the hunting party and Sakura who currently sat on an old log sharpening her favorite Kunai.
Not for the first time she wondered if she should have some other sort of blade to use considering the Kunai were more intended for throwing than anything else. There were probably better options out there, she just hadn't really bothered to look because she already had plenty of Kunai.
Maybe something small and easily hidden would be better, something she could conceal as a backup or pull out whenever she was going to use it outside of combat. It wouldn't see the same stress as a Kunai was expected to be under which meant she could probably maintain a much finer edge on it without too much trouble.
Kunai did their job but she couldn't help feeling they were a bit….crude. Maybe if she was really lucky one of the people the Wolves brought back would have something to catch her eye. If not, well, she was sure the Wolves would at least know a good place to go buy something.
And speaking of the Wolves, there was a rustling in the foliage before one popped out, a body draped over their shoulder and one more being dragged behind them. The one on the shoulder wasn't moving beyond the raising of their chest Sakura could only just make out from this distance but the one being dragged was noticeably struggling against their captor.
They were gagged and their hands were bound but Sakura had a distinct feeling that their legs had been left alone because their fruitless kicking amused the Wolf. She couldn't really judge, she thought it looked pretty funny too.
After the first Wolf came the rest, each of them with captives of their own. Some were draped over shoulders, others were held suspended between two Wolves and still more were being dragged carelessly by their legs with heads hitting scattered stones and tree roots.
Most of them were in some state of consciousness, though many of those being dragged were closer to the sweet embrace of involuntary naptime. She wasn't sure if they were the fortunate ones in that regard or if being saved for later was worse for them. What she did know is that she wasn't touching any of them that wouldn't be awake and aware as she performed her role here among…them.
To be perfectly honest, Sakura didn't know if this specific group actually had a name. They were unmistakably different from the regular Wolves- the unique markings they all possessed led credence to that- but she had heard some of them call themselves Maneaters and others refer to the group as the Ravenous. Still another said they were 'Marked' and the young Genin wasn't sure if that was a reference to the fact that they were physically marked or was being used as yet another name.
Maybe they simply hadn't picked one yet? That thought made her feel a little better about not knowing it. If that was the case she could probably help by offering suggestions. She'd try to come up with a few over the next weeks or so. Something that played on the fact that they were already Wolves, perhaps.
But that could wait until later, it looked like it was Sakura's turn to do some work.
Akunaki was the last Wolf to enter the camp and Sakura was quick to leave her perch to approach the woman. She didn't even get a chance to greet the leader of these Wolves before she was given an indulgent smile and a nod.
"Take your pick," Akunaki instructed, gesturing to the captives. "We'll probably go through three tonight, maybe four. The rest are coming with us to Kirigakure."
Sakura cocked her head to the side and looked over the prospects. None of them immediately jumped out at her. "Are any of them going to be more difficult than the others to travel with?" She didn't turn as she asked but was sure Akunaki would know she was speaking to.
"Not really." The Wolf shrugged next to her. "They weren't hard to catch, either. We were a little disappointed how easy the hunt was."
"Hmm." It was half agreement and half consideration on Sakura's part. After a second she gestured towards several of the Wolves. "Separate them by how aware they are at the moment."
The Wolves shared a look and after a nod from Akunaki set about to do just that. There were ten people in total with three of them being completely out, two on the brink, three more slightly dazed, and two fully awake and in control of their mental faculties.
"Those two," She pointed at the latter and then moved towards the conscious group of three. "I'll pick a third from this group."
"You heard her, pull 'em over here." Akunaki didn't even have to say it, two Wolves were already dragging the captives to a space between the fire and the table.
Sakura didn't pay them any mind, instead squatting down to examine her options. Two women, one man, she peered back to the first group only momentarily to confirm that she already had one each. She didn't know if there was a difference between the two genders as far as these Wolves were concerned but she figured having some variety wouldn't be a bad idea.
With that covered, however, it simply became a matter of Sakura's personal preference. Who did she feel like playing with? They were all slightly dazed but aware enough for their eyes to be filled with a fear that sent an anticipatory shiver down Sakura's spine.
Her focus was on the blood currently being pumped by frantically beating hearts- and it always had been- but the rush of power and control she got when they showed fear always gave her a warm feeling. She couldn't wait for those teary eyes to lose their light as she brought her painted flowers into the world.
The first woman was pretty enough, if a bit plain. Long brown hair and teary black eyes, her skin was relatively clean and unmarred. She looked…soft. Not in her shape but she gave off a feeling of being perhaps a little sheltered and…motherly? No, that was the wrong word. Maybe 'gentle' was more accurate. Hospitable…no….ah! Welcoming. There was something about her that just seemed open and inviting. Her fear would probably be the sweetest of the three.
Sakura moved onto the man. A little unkempt, it was clear he had probably been traveling for a while now and it obviously hadn't been very kind to him. His scraggly jaw trembled around his gag and when she moved closer to him he let out a tiny whimper. Sakura's green eyes trailed the man's hand as it did it's best to reach for the first woman from behind his back. It was more interesting that the woman seemed to be doing the same thing. A couple, then? It was pretty tempting to separate the two and it would make picking a potential fourth later very easy.
She'd keep that under consideration.
Sakura moved onto the last woman and immediately paused. Her long blonde hair wasn't nearly as vibrant and her eyes were more of a grey than blue but there was still a resemblance to her teammate Naruko. She felt her tongue dart out to skim her lips and the woman shot her a defiant glare, fear still unmistakable in those misty depths.
Oh, yes. Naruko never looked at her in fear- Sakura hadn't known what she was missing. Her blood couldn't possibly be as sweet as Naruko's but there were few who had blood so close to Naruto's, she was sure nothing could ever compare.
That didn't mean she wouldn't hope it would remind her of it, though, there was no way she could wait until they reached Kirigakure and then risk not getting to be able to sink one of her blades into that skin. For all she knew they were just dropping off the bodies and heading back to Konoha.
She wouldn't miss this opportunity.
"Oh, I like that look." She told the woman. "Fear and defiance. Keep it up for me, will you? I want to taste it in your blood."
The fear grew twice as much as the hate but she managed to keep it from showing on most of her face. The gag probably helped with that.
"This is the one," Sakura informed Akunaki as she stood back up. "I'll save her for last, though. Wouldn't want to delay anything too badly."
Akunaki gave an understanding nod and the Wolves shot her appreciative looks for not making them wait too much longer.
"Very good." Akunaki turned to some of the other Wolves. "Alright, secure the others out of the way." She pointed to two Wolves in particular. "And you two keep a damn eye on them. We'll bring you food."
Their shoulders sunk but with resigned nods they acknowledged their orders.
"Do you need anything else before you get to work, Sakura?"
"No, not really." The Genin shrugged. "I'm really no butcher, so I'll leave the cuts to you. You don't mind if I play with your food a bit first though, do you?"
"Just try not to waste too much or we will have to use a fourth."
"Yeah, no problem." Sakura waved off her concern. "I wasn't planning on removing flesh anyway." Her head tilted to the side. "You don't normally do anything with the blood, do you?"
"Not usually, though Nayo said he might have a new recipe he's been wanting to try."
"Oh." Sakura thought about it. "Well I'm still going to be spilling a lot of it, so you might want to grab something to catch it. I guess that means I should probably make use of the table too, otherwise it's just going to be wanted on the ground." The flowers that made weren't quite as good anyway and it's not like she really had a good canvas out here. She would just have to be satisfied with being able to kill.
And maybe she'd paint a few bouquets on her new toys. That should satisfy her for a while.
"Anyone want their clothes?" Sakura asked as she made her way to the table where her first new friend was being taken. A few of the Wolves were grudgingly recollecting the plates they had already set out. "They're going to have to come off so they don't soak up all my blood so if anyone wants them remove them now before my Kunai does."
No one made any move towards tonight's meal. "Alright, just lash them to the table or something. Face up, I like to see their eyes while I work."
Two of the Wolves did as she asked while the rest shot looks over to Akunaki. This one really was like a mini Anko, wasn't she? What a scary thought.
Most wondered if that meant there would be a second Fang at some point.
Akunaki wondered if Tsukuyomi's lovers were going to have more competition for his time soon.
Ōnoki had to admit, he hadn't actually expected all of those minor villages to accept so readily. He had apparently underestimated just how nervous Hi no Kuni's occupation of Kaze no Kuni and their alliance with Nami no Kuni made them.
It was understandable. Kaze no Kuni brought Hi no Kuni right to their borders and Nami no Kuni- or rather the Wolves- were known primarily for conquering a very profitable minor country. With Hi no Kuni to back them it would not be difficult for those Wolves to set their eyes on expanding and those smaller countries were eager to have a major village to back them.
Most of those countries had remained fairly neutral due to their position between Tsuchi no Kuni and Kaze no Kuni. Choosing either neighbor could set the other against them and so while both major villages tried to swing them ever so slightly in their favor in case conflict should ever break out they had never been able to pull them to a side.
Until now. Kaze no Kuni was no longer a factor, now being a part of Hi no Kuni, so Tsuchi had very little trouble garnering their full support. That was only the beginning though.
Using Kiba and Tsume no Kuni to supplement Iwagakure forces, he had split the total combat-ready troops into two groups. A third of those troops would disguise themselves as various caravans pushing into Kaze no Kuni and dropping off teams to take and hold the various settlements on the way south. Half of the remaining would then leave for Sunagakure to disrupt Hi no Kuni control in hopes of sparking disgruntled Suna natives to revolt.
The chaos would keep Konoha occupied as they rushed back to restore order and it would stress the recent alliance between them and a newly re-emerging Kirigakure who would be held at blame for losing such control. A wedge between them would help and may even provide a chance for Iwagakure to ally with Kirigakure instead. Using them to advance on Hi no Kuni from the east would split Konoha even further or, if nothing else, keep the Wolves in Nami busy and unable to join.
They weren't especially numerous, those Wolves, but rumors had them all in the Jounin range and it was expected that they had significant ANBU style training.
Ōnoki did his best to repress a shiver. ANBU, that was a terrifying word. Civilians, minor countries, and even some academy students wondered how it was possible that Konoha had always emerged from wars in a position of power while avoiding any atrocities and ANBU was the simple answer. There were plenty of atrocities committed, they just never saw the light of day. ANBU was too good at hiding their work for anything to ever be pinned on Konohagakure.
Warcrimes and foreign terrorism were their specialties and Iwa had felt it enough for Ōnoki to have a healthy respect for that group.
That's what made the Wolves a threat. A group of people even half as skilled and atrocity-inclined as ANBU was a force to be reckoned with. They seemed to lack the ANBU's subtlety considering how openly they conquered Nami but that also showed aggression that far surpassed ANBU operatives too.
Aggressive, blatant ANBU operatives? There was the potential for a hell of a lot of damage in that.
Potential that he might not have to see realized if they were busy fighting what remained of Kirigakure. Not that they hadn't already shown themselves to be more than a match for that village- an absolutely terrifying thought even if the village had been in a bad spot from a decade-long civil war- but it would still keep it from being employed against his forces until they were well rooted in Hi no Kuni.
And, if they could pull things off quickly enough, Nami may even stay out of it entirely. Of course, that would require taking over Hi no Kuni completely to the point where there was no helping it. Only then would the Wolves consider just keeping to themselves on that nearby island.
Not that Ōnoki would be comfortable leaving them there. When he would then have to maintain control that stretched from Tsuchi no Kuni to what was Hi no Kuni there was no way he'd leave a potential powder keg so close to an area that would already resent their occupation. That was just asking for the Wolves to do the same thing there that he was planning for Sunagakure.
He would have to be especially foolish to allow that to happen to him after employing it himself and Ōnoki was no fool.
He was getting ahead of himself though. While half of the remaining southern forces would cause chaos in Sunagakure- undetected, if at all possible. he was hoping to take a page from the book of Konoha's ANBU- the rest would continue down to the coast where Kaze no Kuni's capital sat to secure it.
The Daimyo would be quick to fold as his powerbase and influence had been all but castrated after Suna's failed invasion of Konohagakure. It should require only a small force to maintain control there, especially if they could direct the Daimyo to utilize what Samurai forces he still had to keep the peace among the civilians there. That would allow the majority of the southern force to turn their attention east to Kawa no Kuni. Ideally, they would be able to convince Kawa no Kuni to join them but Ōnoki wasn't counting on it. They hadn't wanted to risk sending any diplomatic groups considering it's vicinity to Hi no Kuni and the possibility of running into Konoha Shinobi on the way to or from Kaze no Kuni.
That would be a fast way to tip them off that Iwa was up to something and Ōnoki would prefer to retain the element of surprise for as long as possible. No sense giving that up if they didn't need to.
Should Kawa no Kuni no be interested, however, the remaining southern forces should be enough to subdue the minor country or, at the very least, hold them up until the eastern force met up with them.
In reality, it was the eastern force that was the most important to his plans. Containing the other two-thirds of his amassed forces they had a much riskier job. Leaving Tsuchi no Kuni along the border of Taki no Kuni and Kusa no Kuni. Small teams would branch off for either of those to further surround Hi no Kuni. Kasa no Kuni wasn't terribly important but it should be easy to maintain a hold on which would be important because Taki would be a bit more challenging.
With their Hero Water and the Nanabi Jinchuuriki they could cause some major damage to his plans which was why only small groups were going there. If something happened, losses would be minimized and with any luck Taki would decide not to do anything when they were absolutely surrounded by Iwagakure troops and had been cut off from Hi no Kuni's support. It helped that the Jinchuriki was known not to reside within the village and that if Ōnoki's team managed to get in and secure the Hero Water then Takigakure would have no Shinobi who could pose any sort of threat. Get in, get the water, keep them from recalling their Jinchuuriki and the village was theirs.
Not that they wanted it, the cost of the Hero Water was too high for regular use and there wasn't enough value in the country to justify any expenditure of manpower after all was said and done but the important thing was to keep them from coming to Konoha's aid.
Should be manageable.
While Kusa and Taki were being taken out of the picture, the eastern forces would follow the Hi no Kuni border down past Ame no Kuni- whom Ōnoki desperately wanted to avoid dragging into this conflict due to the known residence of Akatsuki- until they covered the endite Kawa-Hi boundary. This would let them finish taking over Kawa if necessary and if they decided to join them then Ōnoki would have a massive staging ground for a push further into Hi no Kuni.
Coming in from the south-west, they would aim up towards Yu no Kuni taking settlements and small towns until they came up to a curve that touched from Tanzaku Gai, the capital of Kagayaku Machi, and the furthest inlet of Hi no Kuni's southern peninsula.
It was by that time that Ōnoki knew without a doubt Konoha would be very much aware of their actions. Granted, Konoha could know at anytime- especially with a Spymaster like Jiraiya, hell they might even know now- and Ōnoki knew most of this plan wouldn't go as he had planned it but it was at this stage that his plans became much more loose because he would have to rely on Konoha's movements to decide their next actions. If they continued south to cut off Hi no Kuni down to near Nami- and perhaps braved the area between Nami and Konohagakure- they could have forces push in from the Kusa area to pin Hi no Kuni's territory against Yu no Kuni and Ta no Kuni.
Neither was allied with Hi no Kuni or Konohagakure and at that point there would be little benefit to. Surrounded by hostile forces, Konoha would either have to fight or remain in their village with the remaining Hi no Kuni ground.
Ōnoki was not an idiot, pushing all the way up to Konoha would cause a major conflict and he was not so old that he had forgotten the results of the previous war. No, they would sit well outside Konoha's borders and provide some of Hi no Kuni's land as a barrier. If they wanted to attack they would have to withdraw from Konoha's walls which exposed both their Shinobi and the village. They probably wouldn't go for that.
It also let civilians escape from the village proper and his forces were already under strict orders that no harm was to come from them. They could continue living in the Hi no Kuni land around Konoha or they would be allowed to join the former Hi no Kuni citizens in Tsuchi-controlled land. Not only would it help Iwa's image and keep them from being labeled monsters or warmongers- which was bad for garnering support from countries not involved- but it would make the lives of those remaining in Konoha all the more difficult.
Sure, their supplies might last a bit longer but many of the regular services would cease and the sudden ghost town would strike a large blow to their morale. Perhaps even enough to keep them from becoming too aggressive. It was harder to justify your fighting when those you were fighting to protect were now on the side of the battlefield you were taking the conflict to.
Iwagakure would also hold Kagayaku Machi and the Daimyo residing within which meant Konoha's funds would be limited. The goal here being to remove them from being a Greater Village and recreating a much smaller Hi no Kuni that, likewise, would become a minor country with borders completely surrounded by Tsuchi no Kuni land.
Of course, unlike Hi no Kuni, Ōnoki wasn't planning on holding everything that would stretch his resources far too thinly. Kaze no Kuni held no value to him, it would be divvied up- well, the useable parts to the north would, the rest would probably just end up reverting to Kaze no Kuni and try to keep to itself as it recovered- between Tsume and Kiba no Kuni in repayment for their aid.
Kusa would be annexed as would Kawa if they didn't join earlier. Both would be massive footholds to defend Tsuchi no Kuni should Konoha start pushing back. Hi no Kuni itself would mainly be cut into new provinces like minor countries all under the banner of Tsuchi no Kuni. These would be given out to those with the favor of Tsuchi's Daimyo and to Iwagakure Shinobi that performed exceptionally well.
Tsuchi would still profit from holding these lands but wouldn't have to concern itself managing them on the daily and it would provide ample reward- and incentive- for those participating in the conflict.
All said, the plan had major potential and Ōnoki- unlike Hi no Kuni or Konohagakure- was ready for the aftermath of obtaining so much land. He had supplies stored up and ready to be sent out both for the conflict and for securing things afterwards. He had supply lines ready to be deployed, chains of communication that would keep them in touch with future provinces, and several minor nobles allied with Tsuchi's Daimyo who were eager to deploy their Samurai to Hi no Kuni land to form the new courts to add legitimacy to the new 'minor countries'.
While Hi no Kuni had seen opportunity in a conflict they had not started and seized it without hesitation of foresight, Tsuchi no Kuni was about to make their own opportunity.
Iroh and Asuma should have known better than to overstretch their reach like this. Ōnoki would be happy to show them this error in a lesson they would not soon forget.
The silent stone sat still and enduring but when it fell it struck with the might of the gods.
It was time to remind the world of that fact.
Iwagakure was ready.
Sealkeeper: He Who Binds
Chapter 150-B "Dual Custody"
Patron Release: 2021.12.30
The smell of cooked meat filled the camp, Wolves scattered about the clearing tearing into their meal as the table had been repurposed. Carefully watched by two of the Wolves who took turns enjoying their own plates, their captives stared out towards the fire in horror.
Not all of them had been fully conscious when they had been dragged in but many of them had regained their awareness around the same time the first servings had been passed out. Watching as the Wolves continued cooking the second, not one of them had been interested in asking for any.
That hadn't stopped a few of the Wolves from offering, cruel grins pulling at unmasked lips.
Those few captives who had been able to bring themselves to respond through the horror they were witnessing were quick to decline, curses trapped behind their gags.
Sakura wasn't aware of any of that, too enraptured by her work. Well, work was probably not the right word in this case. With the first two captives sped along to allow the Wolves to start cooking, the Genin was now enjoying herself on her third victim.
She was very happy to see the woman was following her instructions, the hate and fear in her eyes was captivating. The pain just made it sweeter.
Of course, being finally able to cut loose and enjoy herself, it wouldn't be wrong to say Sakura may have been enjoying herself- and her captive- just a tad too much.
"Your skin is so soft," Sakura murmured almost gently, one hand tracing the underside of the woman's right breast while her right hand spiraled a thin line down her victim's left arm.
Akunaki- fed the first serving, as was only proper- had stepped in to assist the mini-Anko without being asked and found herself impressed at how well the girl was wielding that Kunai of hers. The spiral was tight and even, slipping fully around the arm without breaking away from the skin, and Sakura had yet to look away from the woman's teary eyes. Watching her fingers dance around the Kunai and across the soft skin of the arm in order to reach both sides was a thing of beauty- nearly as beautiful as the design itself.
The girl may have had a future as a tattoo artist had she not become a Kunoichi. Akunaki found herself glad that hadn't become the case.
Sakura's wrist finished its last few twirls- Akunaki silently lowering the arm as she finished to make it easier to reach. She wasn't sure if Sakura was even aware of that fact, she seemed entirely focused on her new plaything- choosing to trail down the women's middle-finger rather than break the spiral to include any of the other fingers.
The Kunai was brought down into the table by the women's hip, lodged solidly so it wouldn't be knocked away.
Akunaki idly noted that it also stopped the woman's poor attempts to escape Sakura in that direction. Perhaps the girl was paying more attention than Akunaki had given her credit for. The fact that she thought it was safer towards a Wolf than next to Sakura was a little insulting but Sakura had been the one doing things to her, so maybe that was a fair choice for her to make.
The Wolves typically played with their food during the hunt. They weren't often patient enough to continue playing with it when it was time to eat, though there had been some notable exceptions back in Mizu no Kuni.
For the first time Akunaki had seen, Sakura broke eye contact with the woman to examine the arm. The way she cradled the bleeding wrist between her fingers was almost lovingly and she ever so carefully brought it closer to the woman so she could see what had been done.
"And like this, your skin can be beautiful too. Isn't it gorgeous?" Sakura didn't give the woman a chance to answer, leaning in to run her tongue over the fresh cuts. She lapped softly at first but it wasn't long before she was roughly- greedily- scooping up whatever blood escaped. More than once she seemed to attempt sucking the blood from the cut, especially around the wrist.
Akunaki didn't know if it was fortunate Sakura hadn't cut deeply enough for that to actually be viable, for Sakura or the Woman. She did know it wasn't pleasant, judging from the way the woman's face scrunched up in pain.
For someone like Sakura civilian targets were probably the best. She could inflict pain without having to worry too much about critical injury as their thresholds were much lower than that of Shinobi.
"You know," The Genin frowned as she pulled away, her tongue darting out in search of traces left on stained lips. "Your blood isn't quite as good as Naruko's. I knew it wouldn't be but it's still a bit disappointing." A pause. "You probably don't know, do you? Here, let me show you."
Fingers leaving the woman's breast she reached up to undo the gag but before any cries, screams for help, or curses most vile could spill out at the demon tormenting her a pair of soft lips had replaced it and in the same moment a bloody tongue forced its way in to share its bounty with an unwilling recipient.
She struggled- oh, yes. She struggled- but the ropes that bound her to the table were only slack enough- at Sakura's request- that she could flail slightly and writhe in a futile attempt to get away.
Sakura's left hand remained behind the woman's head and now cradled it. If someone couldn't see the whole picture they might think it normal but as gently as she seemed to hold it anyone in that clearing would know it was to keep the woman from being able to pull away. Her other hand, however, remained free. Rather than supporting her weight with it to hover over the woman, Sakura opted to simply lay against her bare flesh and used her right hand to continue exploring the woman's body.
Akunaki was pretty sure she was just trying to decide where she wanted to start cutting next.
When the girl pulled away a string of crimson saliva still connected her to the horrified woman. What defiance she had let burn in her eyes had been replaced by a very different sort of fear as Sakura's hand drifted lower and lower, eventually settling on her inner thigh.
The pain she had been expecting, she had been mentally prepared to endure that, this, however, was a completely different matter entirely.
"Are you getting as excited as I am?" Sakura practically purred, eyes half-lidded but burning with a sadistic lust. The woman beneath her struggled to regain her breath in her panic, her chest heaving in a way that drew Sakura's immediate attention and apparently gave her the answer she was looking for. "Oh, good, I thought it might just be me. Don't worry, dear, we won't be done anytime soon. We have all night to play together, though you'll have to forgive me for not letting you touch too." She bent back down to steal a quick kiss and broke off to trail across the woman's jaw and up to her ear.
"There are only two people who I'd let touch me as they please, and only one other who I'd let touch me if she let me at that sweet blood of hers unhindered. Unfortunately you're not any of them, so you'll just have to enjoy my ministrations."
The woman whimpered.
Akunaki began to wonder if this one would actually end up being cooked sometime tonight, it looked more like Sakura intended to keep her as a pet. Her gaze drifted among her people. They had all eaten at least some by now, the third was just to help satiate their hunger.
She looked back towards Sakura who was busy removing layers of the woman's skin so the bleeding colored the carvings of flowers she had already traced out.
Well, she supposed they could catch one or two more on the way to Kirigakure. She gestured towards one of the Wolves and pointed to a captive, holding up a single finger. They understood quickly and were eager to obey.
Akunaki didn't bother watching, she had a much better option for entertainment right next to her.
She wondered if she could manage to steal the girl from Anko or at least arrange some sort of dual custody.
She also wondered if Sakura would mind if she joined in a bit; that looked like fun.
This was the Hishaku then, was it? Naruto inspected the ceremonial ladle, looking for anything that might set it apart from any other Hishaku that could still be found in the shrines dotting the elemental nations. Beyond its apparent age- and it didn't show that at all- it seemed simply like a well-used Hishaku.
He knew that with age- specifically one hundred years- common household items could develop their own souls as lesser Kami but that was the item itself that was supposed to become aware. For this 'Jundo-Hime' to be a lesser Kami possible of leaving the immediate proximity of her Hishaku, had the Tsukumogami* simply continued to develop as the years passed or, instead, had Jundo-Hime as a water sprite simply felt a connection to the Hishaku in particular and with the eventual decline of the temple had been left with no other anchor?
The theory that she was a wandering spirit or that she was a spirit of the shrine connected to the last remaining piece of it sounded good but the way she referred to the Hishaku as being hers felt like there was more to it than that. He was disregarding her comments about it being the equivalent to her body as teasing at the moment but if she had been even partially truthful in that maybe she really had been a simple Tsukumogami at some point.
Naruto wondered what could have caused the change.
Perhaps an act of a more powerful Kami? But if so, why? What purpose was Jundo-Hime supposed to serve, if she had any purpose at all?
He had never really concerned himself with matters of the spirits before- hardly anyone did these days- but now he was starting to see that they may be more present and more active than he could have imagined.
Speaking of which, he did wonder how Akishi was doing over in Yu no Kuni. Hopefully nothing had gone too poorly. Not because he was worried about whether she succeeded but because he was sure that somehow any failure would end up making its way back to be tied to him.
Maybe he shouldn't have given her something that could turn out to be such a sensitive matter.
To say Akishi was pleased was to say the ocean was big or to say there were a few twinkling stars in the summer sky. It was only through supreme force of will that her face remained in an expression that could be considered respectable rather than pulling her lips up in a grin like a loon.
Ichika had been more than a fantastic find, she had been the key to everything Akishi needed. Her two sisters- one younger and one older- her mother, her father, and her aunt had all been struck by the glory of Great Au's Ak'Gyun with a single glance and it had been a trivial matter afterwards for Akishi to twist them to her purposes.
The Shinobi of the world and those who dealt with them often might not think quite so much about her form- there were people like Hoshigaki Kisame she had heard about who had an appearance nearly as exotic as her own- but for civilians in a country that no longer had their own Shinobi? A sheltered group of nobles who saw only their associates and servants on a daily basis?
They had convinced themselves of her divinity before a word had dripped from her tongue.
And then she had started speaking.
The glory of the sun, the power of the serpent, the rewards of the faithful. They were hooked. Akishi wasted no time in moving her temple into one of the larger rooms of their home. It wasn't the largest manor in Erai Onsen Kyūden Ichi- she still absolutely loathed that name. She couldn't wait until she could hand over control to Naruto and he would be able to change it- but it was large enough for her purposes and, more importantly, it was a place befitting a daughter of Au.
Some of her current followers, not so much, but the husband was looking into cleaning them up and inserting them into at least semi-respectable positions so they could be of greater use later. Akishi was pleasantly surprised to hear a majority of them had no issues adapting and a few were even excelling.
Perhaps she had been a bit too quick to judge those who she found down on their luck, not all of them were bums and wastrels.
What the Elder Serpent enjoyed most of all, however, is the fact that the entry room in the manor was absolutely flooded with natural light during a majority of the daylight hours. This meant the Sunshrine no longer had to be moved and, placed where it was, it was easy for all of the faithful to access it.
The family- Shiyayoki or something, that sounded right- had been carefully instructed that should any visiting guests question the Sunshrine as more than an elaborate artistic piece they were to explain it honored the family's patron fire kami. They were not to name it, they were not to offer any more details, and if they truly wanted to introduce their guests to the light of Au they would arrange something with Akishi and the younger serpents.
Akishi was not about to trust the introduction of the faith to those so taken by her being they probably couldn't retain a single word of Au that came from her mouth. If it helped her bring more under her influence, fine, but she did not want the basis of this new faith to be founded on her divine image rather than on great Au himself.
Then again, so long as she managed to acquire Yu no Kuni for Naruto then he could set the faith. Either these people would accept the truth of it or they would be discarded in whatever way benefited Au and the spread of his faith the most. Or, if no option provided that, then in whatever way brought Akishi the most personal satisfaction.
The fact that Ichika's older sister actually worked in the Daimyo's palace meant that day may come sooner than Akishi could have hoped. The next time she went in one of the smaller children would be brought with her to begin gathering everything Akishi would need to replace the Daimyo and his family.
They were still weeks off at the very best but the Ak'Gyun finally had some progress she thought Naruto might be proud of. Now she just needed to decide if she would tell him now or wait until she was certain the completion of the task she had been charged with was assured.
Damn that woman! Damn that woman to the deepest depths of the underworld! Mikoto grit her teeth, futilely hoping the slight discomfort might dislodge the thoughts now plaguing her.
Thoughts that similarly belonged in the as far down in the underworld as any of the greater Kami could shove them and then some.
Tsunami's words had seemed dangerous enough when they first left the woman's lips but Mikoto could have never imagined the sort of power they would have contained. The very specific phrases she had spun flowed together so well that Mikoto couldn't stop thinking back on the masterful performance and that only led to her remembering the actual content and meaning of said words, sparking thoughts that should never see the light of day.
She had to wonder if the woman knew the sort of power she wielded with that and if any of the Wolves- specifically Naruto- were aware. Mikoto had to assume they were not, otherwise they would have already attempted to weaponize it somehow.
Unless….
A frown pulled at the last Uchiha's lips. Had that been some sort of attempt to utilize it? Had it been a test to see how effective it was or someone trying to manipulate things in the palace in a way that favored them?
She didn't see the benefit for anyone else in trying to inspire such improper thoughts about her Naruto, the closest that came to mind was Anko wanting to drag someone else into his- or her- bed. The only issue with that was that while Anko could be subtle she hardly ever was, especially about personal matters such as this. If she wanted Mikoto in her bed she probably would have just dragged her into her room or started undressing the both of them in one of the libraries.
Gods knew the impressive amount of time the woman spent in those rooms had nothing to do with literature.
So if it wasn't an Anko-scheme - or something along those lines- it stood to reason that it had to be something along the first theory, right? By why her and why…that?
Maybe…maybe because they knew she would never be so improper as to go through with it? Could they have given the woman an 'impossible' task to measure the effectiveness? If that was the case someone would eventually have to talk to her about the effects to properly gauge just how much it had affected her but so far no one had said anything .Was it a long term test, then?
Some way to plant thoughts into a target's head that would affect their actions for the foreseeable future? That was the sort of thing she might expect Naruto to be able to make use of but if that was the case did it mean, ultimately, that Naruto had ordered this specific test.
Had her son instructed Tsunami to convince Mikoto to consider him in the context of a potential lover?
Mikoto bit her lip.
Had he known it wouldn't work or was he hoping that it would? Who was he rooting for in this situation?
Did he…want her?
Her thoughts would continue to trouble her, creating circle after circle in her head as she considered the matter throughout the day.
Tsunami, making beds on the upper floor of the palace, was completely oblivious as to how effective her words had actually been.
Just to be extra safe, Orochimaru was not the one performing the Edo Tensei. Nor were any of his clones. Oh, no, even though the Edo Tensei didn't actually require anything but the Chakra of the user he wasn't about to risk anything when he was toying around with S-ranked Kinjutsu.
He wasn't that mad, despite what some of his colleagues might say to the contrary.
Not that he really had colleagues, per say, but if he did have any they would probably contradict him like that, bastards that they'd be.
Instead he had spent many painful hours coaching a class of Genin he'd…acquired… from around the elemental nations over the last few months. Generally from smaller countries, as they couldn't raise as much of a fuss or cause him any real problems, but a few here and there who had probably been considered traitors by their home villages by now.
All they had to do to get back to those villages- assuming they would take them back at all- was perform this single Jutsu successfully. By successfully, he of course meant deriving a result he was pleased with.
He had also forgotten to inform them that there was a ridiculous likelihood of death during this.
Oh, yeah, and he had lied about letting them go, too, but they were hardly going to be motivated to learn the Kinjutsu knowing that he'd still keep them around for whatever experiments he had next.
Anyone with half a brain would carefully read the fine print of any contract of Orochimaru's but Orochimaru was twice as smart as even the greatest genius so he had just stopped offering contracts they could read over entirely. If they didn't have the contract he could make it whatever he wanted whenever he wanted, as suited his purposes. Things were so much easier that way and it's not like anyone could really do anything about it, either.
What, were they going to go complain to a Kage? A Daimyo? Naruto?
Well, actually, that last one would probably work if they could convince him but fortunately they wouldn't be able to complain to anybody because Orochimaru kept a very secure grip on his test subj- erm, research assistants. Voluntary, mandatory, compulsory research assistants.
Or something. Kabuto had the legal definitions written down in a book somewhere but Orochimaru hadn't even glanced at it in years. It's not like he often recruited personally these days, he didn't need to work off any scripts.
It also wasn't as if anyone was about to call him out on lying. He was Orochimaru for fuck's sake.
Well, okay, Naruto might call him out on it if the matter had something to do with him or anyone he associated with and Anko was confident- and spiteful- enough to call him out on whatever she could. Considering she was protected by Naruto, that confidence wasn't unfounded. Orochimaru couldn't touch her.
Not in this body, at least, that might change later when he had a body modeled after Tsunade.
…..He did hope she didn't try to take out any of her remaining aggression on him during those activities. It really would be a terrible shame to waste any Naruto-time on past grudges. Couldn't they just move on and share a bed with the Daimyo?
Probably not, she had been his apprentice, after all. Hmm, she used to call him 'Master', though, maybe he could get her to start calling him 'Mistress' in the new body? It would be just like old times. Kind of.
Maybe he should go talk to her and start hinting at it, see if her response was favorable at all or if the idea was even feasible. She was probably on the upper floors of the place, that's where she always was, so it's not like it would be terribly hard to track her down or just casually encounter her…..
Wait, no. He was doing something. Orochimaru frowned. What was he doing again? Oh, yes, looking into ways to slay gods, that's right. How could he forget?
He pulled himself from much more pleasant thoughts of pineapple-haired snakes in gloriously tight fishnet and directed his attention to the subje- erm- students before him.
"So, again, I will bring you forth one at a time to attempt this Jutsu. You will get one try. If you fail you will return to the others. If you succeed you'll get to return home. We will be continuing this until everyone has managed to succeed-" Or has died, he silently added. "-Though it may be weeks between each series of attempts so if you want to see your families and friends anytime soon I would recommend giving it your best.
Any questions?"
Seven hands shot up.
"No? Good." He made a shooing motion with his hands. "Back to your rooms. Whoever wants to go first, stay."
It did not go unnoticed that they all fled to their rooms. It hadn't been unexpected, either. With a sigh Orochimaru silently stalked after them. It looked like he was going to have to do things himself. Oh well, he'd make sure to pull them out of order to make them question how everyone else was doing, that should panic them a good bit.
Besides, it's not like he expected any of them to actually succeed this first try. A little worry would add complimenting incentive to the chance to go home. Fear and hope was much better than just one of them alone, he'd probably have the answers he needed in the next month or so.
And if not, well, he had a few Chunin and Jounin he could probably afford to spare. It might very well be time for another performance review.
She had thought about it for longer than could be considered healthy. How could she not? Tsunami's words had refused to be banished and every attempt she had made only brought them back into focus.
Attempting to busy herself with other things didn't work either. This was Naruto's palace- everything in it reminded her of him! It didn't help that half the library was filled with a collection of smut owned by Anko, the Wolves, and even a few marked with Kakashi's name or the fact that everywhere else she turned she found herself in the presence of one of his lovers.
The palace was only so big and with them sticking mainly to the upper floors it became even smaller. When you considered that next to the number of lovers he actually had here with him- her official count was five but she suspected at least three other individuals- privacy was going to be hard to find.
Her only sanctuary ended up being her own small room but that too held a large problem- her bed.
It took up the majority of the room and excluding the small stool near a vanity she never really used it was the only place to sit. Being on the bed led to thoughts about who else could join her there and that into what they could be doing and before she knew it she was seriously contemplating Tsunami's suggestions.
The woman hadn't been wrong when she pointed out that they weren't related by blood. She certainly wasn't when she said they were both attractive individuals. It wasn't bad that she could see him as handsome when he was handsome, was it? And surely he knew she was an attractive woman because she was an attractive woman. It was only natural to recognize those simple facts.
She was also right that they cared for each other. He had become the light in her darkness and she had tried to be there for him in the absence of Kushina.
But they both had needs, didn't they? Tsunami had pointed out her own similar needs and Naruto's abundance of lovers surely stood testament to his own so maybe he didn't need her as a mother. Maybe he needed her like any other young man might need the company of a beautiful woman.
In fact, why was she letting the other see to his needs when she had been there for him first? She knew him before any of them and the only reason he hadn't turned to her was surely because she had been off ensuring he'd be safe from Akatsuki. If she had stayed with him- she wasn't sure how theory could have arranged that, maybe if they had both left for a different country together?- then it was only natural that their existing affection would have turned into something more, right?
Spread limply across her bed, Mikoto bit her lip.
It was hardly the first time, she had been worrying her bottom lip for the better part of the day as she mulled over her newfound dilemma.
…She wasn't the only one involved in this dilemma, though, was she? Everything she was thinking of also depended on how receptive Naruto was to the idea so if she could get a feel for his position then she might be able to disregard these thoughts completely.
After all, if he didn't see her that way then nothing was going to come from anything Tsunami planted in her mind so she could just bottle it up and ignore it. There was no harm in asking, right?
But…what if he did?
Well, in that case it was her duty to take care of his needs, wasn't it? She was just doing what she was supposed to.
Mind made up she slid off her bed and peered out into the hallway. Almost as if the universe itself was trying to aid her there was a Wolf who she was easily able to flag down.
"Mikoto-Sobo?" They inquired, tilting their head. That was almost enough to make her discard her planned course of action but she pressed forward. All she needed was an answer.
"Could you be a dear and fetch Naruto for me- the real one? I need to…bring something to his attention."
The Wolf still seemed confused but gave a slow nod. "Of course, Sobo. I'll see if I can find the original form."
"Thank you dear." As soon as that was confirmed she shut her door with a soft click.
And then she started to panic.
How long would it take for him to be found? Minutes? An hour? Two? Was she ready for him to be receptive? Was she ready for him to not be receptive? Would her lack of preparedness affect that outcome? She had spent all day thinking, why hadn't any of that been to the actual act itself?
She glanced down at her outfit. Nami was no Ame- thank the gods- but it still got a bit humid so her choice of clothing when here was usually a skirt she had stolen from Anko and a white button shirt she was pretty sure had been Naruto's. With the humidity the buttons at the wrist were always undone and while she tried to keep them rolled they tended to fall back down with an irritating frequency. In the semi-privacy of the upper floors she could usually only be bothered with a few of the middle buttons and she generally skipped a bra unless she was going down to one of the lower floors.
Mikoto still tended to skip the bra in that case but she did toss on her Akatsuki cloak to better cover herself.
That wasn't exactly relevant to her current predicament. What it came down to was that Mikoto didn't have anything she would consider 'enticing'. She'd never bothered. When she left Konoha she had only what she had worn to Naruto's apartment and what he had been able to spare for her. When she joined the Akatsuki she hadn't needed anything more than a wiggle of her cloaked hips to have the attention of almost everyone there.
She hadn't bought anything sexy, what was the point? Besides, one of those lonely S-ranked Shinobi was likely to have stolen it from her closet before she even had a chance to wear it.
Now, though, she was starting to wish she had something to let her feel like she had dressed up at least a bit for him.
Maybe Tsunami had something she could borrow? Gods knew the woman owed her at this point- this whole mess was entirely her fault!
Just as she was considering rushing to the woman's quarters to steal something there was a brief knock at the door.
Her desperate, silent pleas that it was a Wolf come to inform her that it would be an hour until Naruto could stop by were cruelly ignored by the gods when she opened the door to see Naruto waiting there.
Well, it was now or never and she had already stolen him away from whatever he was doing. And the original, no less! She could have asked any of the clones and received an accurate answer, what was she thinking?
"Did you need something, Mikoto?"
"Ah, yes…uh…please come in." She reached out for his hand while pulling back the door and led him gently into the room. "If you could just take a seat on the bed, please?"
He raised a brow but nodded and moved to take the offered seat while Mikoto closed the door and locked it as quietly as she could. She did not want to be disturbed, she was too close to losing her nerve as it was.
Facing the door she took a deep breath to steady herself, her efforts almost undone when a simple "Mikoto?" sounded behind her.
With a second breath that was mostly an exhale she undid the skirt with one hand and the three buttons of her shirt with the other, allowing the latter to slip down her shoulders slightly. She turned just enough to be able to catch Naruto's gaze and, steeling herself, rotated the rest of her body to follow. She let both pieces fall to the floor
The way his eyes traced over her exposed skin gave Mikoto a surge of confidence she very much needed. Taking his appreciative silence for acceptance she sashayed towards the bed, taking extra care to ensure her hips moved in the same way that had hypnotized some of the most powerful Shinobi in the world.
She gave a quick spin when she reached him, allowing him to see all that she had, and when she stopped to shoot her best smoldering smile down at him found herself captured by the hips with a pair of amethyst eyes staring directly into her onyx.
She didn't realize he had already grown so tall.
"...Is that a yes?" She managed to ask.
"Did you ask a question, Mikoto?" His fingers were already slipping over and under the waist of her panties but he maintained a firm grip on her hips. She wouldn't have been able to pull away if she wanted to.
She didn't.
"Didn't I?" She pressed herself as close as she could.
"Maybe I wanted to hear you say it."
"Maybe some things don't need to be said, Naruto-Kun."
Sitting on the recently cleaned wooden floors, Anko's arms were just as folded as her legs. While she would usually delight in knowing that anyone passing nearby would have an all but unobstructed view up her skirt in this position she was too busy pouting to take any joy from that.
How come she had to fight another person for Naruto-time now and, more importantly, why hadn't they invited her to join them?
Tsukumogami - Tool Kami
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