"Talking"
'Thinking'
Jutsu/ Bijuu/ Summons
Flashbacks, Letters, and Setting
I don't own Naruto
Chapter 53: Kusa's Hospitality Part 3
Hozuki Prison Mess Hall
Naruto looked down at his hands and stared at the nameless, beige glop in his bowl. A small piece of grilled fish was carelessly thrown on top of it.
"And don't bother asking for more. That's all you get." The guard serving the prisoners the food said callously.
Naruto shrugged and moved along. He wasn't planning on asking for more of this crap anyway.
He looked around and saw his cell mates sitting together at a table. He saw an open seat next to Ryuzetsu and sat down next to him.
Ryuzetsu saw his blonde cell mate take a seat next to him and groaned internally. Why did this unruly maverick have to sit next to him? Ryuzetsu didn't know him that well but couldn't help but feel that Naruto was the type that trouble followed around.
"Ah, shit. Look, Hanayama is at his shenanigans again." Doppo quietly pointed out to his cellmates.
A few tables away, an absolutely massive man with numerous scars walked around tables, collecting the fish from the other inmates.
"Listen, you don't want to mess with Hanayama. The man is an absolute animal. They say he's on par with the Raikage in terms of pure strength." Shibukawa told his cellmates. "If he comes and asks for your fish, you give it to him."
"You can try cutting a piece of your fish and burying it under your porridge if you want to keep some." Doppo advised. "Works sometimes."
Shibukawa shook his head. "But sometimes it doesn't. And that's when the infirmary has to deal with serious injuries. Is it worth the trouble for a piece of fish?"
"Ha! Look at you Shibukawa! You got new underlings!" Hanayama shouted out in a loud voice from across the hall when he noticed Naruto's table, before he walked over.
"Remember what I told you. If you want to avoid trouble that is." Shibukawa warned quietly one last time.
"I hope Shibukawa here told you about the "tax". Or do I have to explain it myself?" Hanayama asked the table as he walked over with a pile of grilled fish that he had "acquired" on his tray.
"I told them Hanayama." Shibukawa told Hanayama, who only took half of Shibukawa's fish out of some kind of respect for the cell leader.
Ryuzetsu and Kuronagi meanwhile, followed Doppo and Katsumi's example and placed their fish on Hanayama's tray.
Hanayama then stuck his tray out at Naruto, who ignored him and continued to de-bone and fillet his fish.
"Hey. Blondie. Your fish." Hanayama demanded.
His cell mates began to sweat, wondering what Naruto was thinking.
Naruto picked up his now boneless fillets of fish and promptly proceeded to shove both fillets of fish in his mouth.
Shibukawa, Doppo, and Katsumi's jaws dropped at the sight, while Kuronagi looked back and forth nervously at Naruto and Hanayama, wondering what was going to happen now.
Ryuzetsu just sighed. There was really no reason to start trouble over a piece of fish. The guy really was just defiant for his pride's sake it seemed.
For a moment, Hanayama's face was full of disbelief, wondering how some newbie weakling dared to go against him, before his face became filled with anger. But what scared Shibukawa the most was when that look of anger turned into a smile.
"Looks like you got a tough guy here, eh Shibukawa?" Hanayama commented before he gave a whistle.
One of his lackeys came running over by his side. "You called, Hanayama-sama?"
Hanayama handed him his tray of fish. "Make sure you take good care of that."
He then turned to Naruto, who was still calmy eating.
Ryuzetsu and the other inmates of cell 4C slowly inched away from Naruto, hoping to put some distance between them and the trouble that was obviously brewing.
Hanayama grabbed the front of Naruto's prison shirt and brought Naruto's face closer to his.
"I'm going to have to teach you a lesson, don't I, tough guy?"
Before Hanayama could say another word, Naruto smashed his bowl of porridge into Hanayama's face.
The thick slop coated his face, obscuring his vision for a short moment before he could wipe it off his face.
However, that short moment was all Naruto needed, before he grabbed Hanayama's wrist with his right hand and smashed Hanayama's elbow inwards with his left.
The pain from his overextended elbow made him let go of his grip on Naruto's shirt, and Naruto used the same momentum from the palm strike with his left hand to transition into a devastating spinning hook kick which brought his right heel into Hanayama's collar.
Hanayama crumpled to the floor in pain, and Naruto jumped a short distance away.
A silence fell over the hall at the unexpected sight of a fight, and even more unexpected sight of Hanayama on the floor.
However, Hanayama wasn't done yet. Though his right arm was temporarily paralyzed from Naruto's two strikes, it was his turn to surprise Naruto with his immense strength.
With his vision still impaired from the slop on his face, he grabbed the leg of the joined bench and table the cellmates of 4C were sitting on with his left hand and picked up the entire thing.
The inmates went flying off as the man swung the entire thing at Naruto with one arm.
Naruto jumped and kicked the solid wood table with both feet, which had the effect of launching him across the mess hall, instead of being smashed by the unconventional weapon.
By this time the mess hall was going crazy with excitement over the fight, with cheers and yells breaking out all over, with occasional separate independent fights breaking out over the commotion.
Naruto landed on his feet, and sprung back at Hanayama, sliding under the table to give a sweeping kick at Hanayama's ankles, which brought the big man back to the floor, and the table fell between them.
Hanayama punched through the wooden table to grab Naruto by the shirt once more, and this time Naruto was unable to shake off the man's iron grip, who was prepared this time.
He instead had to tear his shirt off of himself to free himself.
However, before the fight could continue further, guards poured in to suppress the inmates, and several guards went for Naruto.
Naruto dodged the blows of their clubs and disarmed them with strikes to pressure points in their shoulders and arms.
The chaos in the mess hall only came to an end when Mui stepped into the hall.
He easily dispatched several inmates who came flying at him with his smooth, elegant, and impressive taijutsu, before he formed a single hand seal.
Naruto fell to his knees again as he felt burning consuming his entire body.
"Guards, take him away." Mui ordered, as the mess hall was soon brought to control by his presence.
A semi-conscious Naruto was dragged away by the guards.
Ryuzetsu dusted himself off from the small scuffle he found himself in from the commotion Naruto caused as he watched Naruto be dragged out of the mess hall.
He shook his head.
'I knew he was trouble. I better stay away from him if I don't want to attract attention to myself.' He thought to himself as he re-tightened the bandana on his head.
Back at the Hokage's Office
"WHAT?" Hiruzen shouted as he slammed his table with his hands and rose to his feet. "Kusa did what?"
Tsunade, while understanding Hiruzen's anger, didn't expect her usually calm sensei to show so much outrage openly.
"What are we going to do sensei?" She asked. With 2 of the most precious people in her life at stake, she couldn't help but feel concerned.
"It seems they mistook my kindness for weakness… It seems I've been too lenient on everyone too long… " Hiruzen said to himself.
"Sensei, we cannot allow such a grave insult to our village go unanswered. Otherwise, every village will think that they can treat our village the same way!" Tsunade shouted.
"Indeed." Hiruzen replied. "What do you propose we do?"
"Well, we need to punish Kusa severely for their breach in diplomatic conduct!" Tsunade demanded.
"And what would an appropriate punishment be? War?" Hiruzen questioned.
While Tsunade was furious at Kusa, she had been traumatized by war in the past, and remembered everyone precious to her that she had lost to war.
"W-well maybe war shouldn't be our first option." She answered.
Hiruzen, despite being furious with the situation, smiled a little at her answer.
"Good. Seems like you know that war shouldn't be our first option all the time."
"But what should we do then? We can't afford to look weak to other villages either! If we let one village mistreat our diplomats with no consequences, we risk exposing all of our diplomats to mistreatment." Tsunade pointed out.
"There are diplomatic ways to punish a village for their misconduct. However, I am also ready to enact military retribution if it comes to it." Hiruzen answered.
"So… what should we do?" Tsunade asked.
"Before we can really carry out any punitive measures, there's something else we need to take care of." Hiruzen told Tsunade.
"They currently have 3 valuable shinobi of Konoha in their hands. We'll need a more covert approach to break out Naruto, Shizune, and Izumi, and perhaps we could even get some more information first before acting."
Tsunade nodded in agreement.
"Yes… that's a good idea, Sensei. Kusa might do something to them if we just declare war or use them as bargaining chips if we try something diplomatic."
Hiruzen nodded before he turned to the door and called for his secretary.
"You called, Hokage-sama?" She asked as she opened his door.
"Yes. Please tell Kakashi to come to my office at once. Tell him it's serious business, and I need him right away. I will not tolerate lateness."
She nodded as she scurried off to do his bidding.
In Hozuki Prison
After being beaten by the guards, Naruto was thrown into solitary confinement.
Trusting in the security of the Tenro and the prison, the guards had locked him in without any other bindings. As such, despite being in terrible shape from being beaten, he smiled when the guards locked the doors and walked away.
He was finally alone. Finally free from prying eyes who would watch him as he began his plan.
He sat cross legged on the floor and closed his eyes. He put his hands into the rat hand sign and began to channel the smallest bits of chakra possible.
The amount of chakra he was channeling was too little to perform even the weakest of jutsu, but the pain that accompanied it was also miniscule.
He began to increase his chakra output slowly, acclimatizing himself to the following pain.
His body shook and sweat dropped down his forehead as he forced himself to endure more and more pain, but he couldn't help but smile.
Despite the fact that there was an upper limit as to how much chakra he could use due to the pain, they'd soon realize he didn't need much chakra to be dangerous.
He'd remind them soon enough what a true Uzumaki could do.
Back at the Hokage's Office
"You summoned me, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked, at the office in what seemed to Hiruzen to be record time in peace times.
"Good to see you understood the urgency of the situation, Kakashi." Hiruzen commented.
"What did you need me here in such short notice for?" Kakashi asked, curious about what he could have been summoned for, with a hundred different scenarios running through his mind.
"We've received word from Izumi and Shizune that the negotiations in Kusa have gone awry, and that it is likely that Naruto has been imprisoned." Tsunade informed Kakashi.
Kakashi's one visible eye widened in shock.
"Neither Izumi or Shizune nor we are sure of what the exact situation is, but we know this is serious. We are considering war, Kakashi." Hiruzen told Kakashi.
Kakashi felt his heart beating fast in his chest. Another war? The last war he was in saw the death of his best friend. Now another war was potentially starting over his favorite kouhai and sensei's son, who he saw as a younger brother of sorts.
"I want you to go and personally put together a team of ANBU and go to Kusa to figure out what is going on. Find out what happened to Naruto, find out where he is being held, and break him out. You have my full permission to use lethal force when judged necessary, and even to start a war if it comes down to it." Hiruzen told Kakashi.
Kakashi was blown away by the severity and implications of his mission but kept himself calm as he nodded silently.
"I want you to leave for Kusa right away. Are there any questions?" The Sandaime asked.
After a short pause, Kakashi opened his mouth. "What will happen to Team 7 while I'm gone? We still don't know what Orochimaru has planned for them."
"Jiraiya should be able to guard them. I'm sure he'll be able to fend off Orochimaru long enough to get reinforcements." Tsunade replied.
"Is that the best course of action? You know how Naruto feels about Jiraiya-sama… I'm not sure he'll be so happy with him coming into contact with his sister…" Kakashi pointed out.
"I considered sending Jiraiya to Kusa instead. His stealth and infiltration skills are nigh unmatched in Konoha, save for maybe Naruto." Hiruzen told Kakashi. "However, I'm well aware of Naruto's dislike of Jiraiya like you mentioned, which is precisely why I decided to send you instead. I can't have them bickering in such a precarious situation."
Kakashi nodded.
"Any more questions?" Hiruzen asked.
Kakashi shook his head.
"Then get going right away. We don't have a moment to waste." Hiruzen told Kakashi, who nodded and shunshined away after saluting Hiruzen.
"Naruto is not going to be happy when he finds out about Narumi meeting Jiraiya when he gets back." Tsunade mentioned.
Hiruzen immediately felt a headache coming on from that news and reached for his tobacco drawer, which Tsunade kicked shut.
"I've told you so many times how bad smoking is for your health!"
He pinched the bridge of his nose. Why couldn't he get a break from crisis after crisis? He needed a vacation. And quickly too.
In the ANBU HQ
The ANBU who weren't currently on security duty from the Chunin Exams were lounging around the ANBU HQ, still on standby just in case they were summoned.
When Kakashi appeared in the lounge with a swirl of leaves, they jumped to attention.
"Kakashi-taichou!"
"I'm putting together a team for an important mission." Kakashi told the ANBU there in a serious tone that immediately put them on alert.
After looking over the available members, Kakashi pointed at an Aburame and a Hyuuga. "I want you and you to come."
"Anybody know where Tenzo is?" Kakashi asked.
"He's watching Naruto-taichou's sister, Kakashi-taichou!" Yugao replied.
"I see. I want you to take his spot on guard duty while he's away."
She saluted him in response. "Got it!"
"Alright. Get your packs. NOW." Kakashi told his picked group of ANBU. "I'll explain the details on the way."
His team nodded and quickly began to prepare to leave.
As they left, the remaining ANBU wondered where they were going so hastily. Kakashi was usually more laid back than this. Clearly there was something serious going on, and that put them on edge.
In Hozuki Prison
Ryuzetsu was mopping a secluded section of the prison, looking for an opportunity to do the mission he had set himself on.
He was just about to leave when he spotted Shibukawa.
"Shit." He cursed under his breath. He didn't have anything against the older man, as he had been kind and helpful to the newbies, but his appearance just ruined Ryuzetsu's chance to go off on a covert excursion.
He just gave Shibukawa a polite nod as a greeting and proceeded to mop the floor, not wanting to start a conversation.
Shibukawa looked around to see if anyone else was around before he approached Ryuzetsu.
"Hey."
"Hello, Shibukawa-san." Ryuzetsu replied back politely, though a bit begrudgingly.
"You know, you're an interesting one, Ryuzetsu-chan." Shibukawa said teasingly.
Ryuzetsu tried to hide his nervousness as best he could, and only the smallest of twitches on one of his eyelids betrayed him.
"What are you on about?" He asked Shibukuwa, feigning ignorance.
Shibukawa leaned in close with a knowing smile.
"I know your little secret, Ryuzetsu-chan… You're a girl."
Ryuzetsu felt like lighting had just struck him, as he jolted up, stopping the mopping he was doing. He felt a chill running through his spine at the smile on Shibukawa's face.
"W-what are you talking about! That's preposterous! Whatever made you think that?" He shouted out defensively.
Shibukawa's cheeky smile never faltered.
"You're never in the showers with us men. And I've seen how you look around to make sure no one else is in the bathroom when you go."
"That's just because I'm used to privacy! Do you really want to see me use the bathroom that bad?" Ryuzetsu answered back.
"Fufufu… You think that's all? In all my years, I've seen some feminine looking men, but none as pretty as you. Your voice is higher than everyone else too." He pointed out. "But I still wasn't 100% sure you were a woman until I saw your reactions just now."
Ryuzetsu tried to play it off. "I don't know what you're on about. I was shocked about the random shit you were accusing me with more than anything. Stop playing these games with me and let me continue mopping, Shibukawa-san."
Ryuzetsu went back to mopping and tried to play off his accusations, but Shibukawa wasn't going to let the issue go like that.
He suddenly moved to grab Ryuzetsu from the back.
"W-what are you doing?" Ryuzetsu gasped out in surprise, his voice becoming even more feminine in the confusion.
"That was a cute little squeal, Ryuzetsu-chan." Shibukawa teased as his hands began crawling inside Ryuzetsu's shirt. "Now, why don't we really find out if you're really a man?"
Ryuzetsu closed his eyes shut as he shook nervously, debating if he should just attack Shibukawa or hope to just convince Shibukawa this way.
Shibukawa began to grope at his chest eagerly, hoping to find a pair of big women's breasts.
His face looked a little confused as he felt around some more.
"Eh? What the…"
Ryuzetsu's face turned beet red as Shibukawa squished his chest in disbelief.
"W-where are the boobies? This is as flat as a wall!"
"S-see! I told you I was a man!" Ryuzetsu yelled, though a little offended.
"Still… they're much softer and squishier than a male shinobi's chest should be!" Shibukawa argued.
"But to be sure… there's only one way to find out for sure…"
His hands began to slide downward towards Ryuzetus' crotch.
That was when Ryuzetsu couldn't take it anymore.
"Enough!" He screamed and he elbowed him in the chest.
Shibukawa was taken off guard and staggered back from the pain.
However, a smile was still on his face, as he had enough time to find out that Ryuzetsu didn't have male genitals.
"Well well well… look at you Ryuzetsu-chan. Looks like that confirms things."
"Fine. I AM a woman. Are you happy now!" Ryuzetsu growled.
"VERY. You know, I've been here for nearly 10 years. I haven't seen a woman in a long time if you know what I mean." Shibukawa began.
"Don't. You. DARE." Ryuzetsu warned ominously.
"If you let me sleep with you, I'll keep your identity a secret. I'll protect you from the others too." He offered.
"FUCK. OFF. I can protect myself!" Ryuzetsu fired back as she crossed her arms across her chest protectively.
"Listen. I didn't become the head of our cell for no reason. I'm trying to be a gentleman by asking, but I always get what I want. So stop playing tough and just agree with my generous terms or I'm going to have to take what I want by force."
"You lay a hand on me, and you'll regret it." She warned Shibukawa through gritted teeth.
He just smirked. "We'll see who regrets what."
He then lunged for her, intent on making her succumb to his lustful desires.
He was surprised when Ryuzetsu weaved under his arms to give a series of rapid strikes up his exposed ribs and armpit as she wheeled around to his left.
"Oof! You bitch!" He shouted out as he rubbed his side in pain. "I was going easy on you because you were a woman, but I'm going to teach you the difference in strength between a man and a woman!"
He ripped off his shirt to reveal a truly impressive physique for someone his age, before he got into stance and attacked her more coherently this time.
Ryuzetsu knew he was right about men being stronger than women in general, but she also knew strength didn't always decide a fight.
She used her superior speed and flexibility to dodge and redirect his attacks away from her, while she landed her pot shots from angles he didn't expect.
Each of her individual attacks didn't do that much damage, but they began to pile up as she continued to successfully strike him in exposed areas.
"Damn bitch! You're not too shabby! What are you, some sort of Jonin?" Shibukawa asked.
"Why don't you use your detective skills again to find out?" She said sarcastically as she eyed the shirt he took off earlier. She'd show him that anything could be a weapon in the hands of a Kusa ANBU.
She jabbed her foot forward, causing him to flinch, now that he was more cautious of her attacks.
Seeing now that he was now overreacting to her movements as she had intended, she smiled.
She threw a jab at Shibukawa's face, causing him to raise his guard, which proved to be a mistake as it had been a feint, and she threw her real attack at his stomach with her other hand, causing him to bend forward in pain.
She then quickly circled behind him, placing herself between the shirt and Shibukawa.
She hooked her foot backwards to throw the shirt into the air, which she snatched out the air and wrapped each end around her two hands with some length in between.
Whenever Shibukawa threw a punch, she would use that length of shirt in between to redirect his punch.
She was finally able to wrap one of his wrists with the shirt when he threw a punch as she dodged the punch with good head movement.
With one of his hands bound by the shirt, Ryzuzetsu jumped above his head and landed behind him, before she wrapped his neck with the shirt.
Choked by the shirt and with one hand bound, all Shibukawa could do was throw his one remaining elbow at her.
This predictability made it very easy for Ryuzetsu to dodge, and she soon decided to end this little game and swept him off his feet with a low kick and made him land face first with her on his back as she continued to choke.
"Bet this wasn't what you had in mind when you wanted me to mount you, did you, you rapist piece of shit!" Ryuzetsu growled into his ear as she pulled the shirt tighter.
Shibukawa couldn't respond with anything other than choked gurgles with the shirt nearly making him unconscious.
"I should just kill you and hide your body. I'm sure people go missing here all the time, right?"
Shibukawa shook his head and tried to plead with her as best as he could.
"P-p-lease!" he managed to choke out.
Ryuzetsu tightened the shirt around his neck a little harder as she contemplated what to do.
"If you EVER mention my secret to ANYONE, I'll make sure I finish the job, you hear me?"
Shibukawa nodded desperately.
"And if you EVER try to lay your filthy hands on me again, I'll cut that shriveled, decrepit cock of yours, and shove it in your mouth!"
He nodded desperately once again as his faced turned blue.
She released her choke on the man, who grabbed his neck and began to gasp for air.
"Now get the hell out of here and leave me alone, before I change my mind."
Shibukawa scurried off like a scared rat.
"Good. Hopefully the bastard can learn a lesson. Now, back to my mission…"
With Kakashi, a couple days later
"Looks like we're here, taichou." An ANBU with long brown hair wearing an owl mask told Kakashi.
"Good. See if there's anyone nearby." Kakashi ordered.
"Understood." Owl replied before quickly scanning the area.
"Coast is clear. There isn't anyone nearby in a 1-kilometer range." Owl reported.
"Good." Kakashi nodded, before turning around to face the rest of his team.
"Alright, so here's the plan. From here on out we'll be communicating with hand signals. Once we infiltrate Kusagakure, I want you to release your Kikaichu and search for any sign of Uchiha Izumi, Kato Shizune, and Uzumaki Naruto. Got it, Mantis?"
The heavily cloaked ANBU with a mantis mask simply nodded.
"Good. And Owl, I want you to use your Byakugan to search for them as well."
Owl nodded as well.
"Our presence will be seen as a threat and may prompt an attack. We are authorized to use lethal force, but considering we're infiltrating a shinobi village, there's a chance we may be swarmed. We'll have a higher chance of overcoming a disadvantage in numbers with our teamwork if we stick together. Usually for stealth missions I'd have us spread out to cover a bigger area, but Mantis' Kikaichu will be doing that for us. As such, we will be following Owl over here for security until either he or Mantis locates our targets." Kakashi briefed.
"Any questions?"
"And what if our targets are all in different locations?" Mantis asked.
"In that case we will have to split up. Izumi and Shizune might find themselves in danger if we are discovered so we'll send Tiger and Mantis to search for them if it comes down to it. However, our goal is to get everyone together and get out together asap. Avoid contact if possible. Got it?"
His team nodded.
"Alright. This will be our formation. Owl in the front to look for our targets, me second to quickly respond to situations, Tiger third to take defensive measures if necessary, and Mantis at the rear to cover us with his Kikaichu."
His team nodded again.
"Alright then. Let's move out." Kakashi ordered.
With Naruto
"Alright, you're free to return to your cell now. Hope the few days of no food calmed you down and you learned your lesson, hot shot." A guard told Naruto as he took him back to general population.
Naruto just smirked. No food? He had been eating MUCH better food than this prison had to offer.
He had storage seals covering his entire body, which were normally invisible, something the guards never even imagined was something they had to check for. He had access to ramen from Ichiraku's, his own cooking, and food from other restaurants he liked, all sealed and perfectly preserved, even down to the temperature they were at when they were served to him.
But that also meant he had access to other things. A dangerous implication for the prison.
"Now behave yourself this time." The guard told Naruto as he took him to the mess hall for dinner, though it was wrapping up.
Naruto was forced to eat quickly and clean up after himself to catch up to everyone else as they headed back to their cells.
As he was scraping his bowl clean, he saw his cell mates, sans Ryuzetsu, in a huddle in a corner, whispering quietly.
He decided he was going to mind his own business and finished scraping his slop when Doppo noticed him.
"Hey look! It's Naruto!" Doppo pointed out to the others.
When Shibukawa saw Naruto, his face lit up with a smirk.
"Well, ain't that right! Come over here, Naruto!" Shibukawa called out.
Deciding not to start unnecessary beef this time, Naruto walked over.
"Hello." He said tersely.
"How would you like to be part of our little plan?" Shibukawa asked. "We can always use a strong person like yourself."
"Yeah! I was surprised at how you were able to handle Hanayama like that!" Doppo commented.
Naruto wondered if they were planning to break out. He wouldn't join, but he could at least use them as a diversion he thought.
"What plan?"
Katsumi gave him a mischievous grin.
"You wouldn't believe what Shibukawa-san found out!" He said, itching to reveal whatever it was.
Naruto just raised an eyebrow, signaling for him to continue.
Katsumi looked around to make sure nobody other than them were listening before he leaned in to tell Naruto.
"You know Ryuzetsu? He's actually a woman!" Katsumi told Naruto eagerly.
Naruto had already suspected so and wasn't terribly surprised.
"So?"
Doppo put his arm around Naruto's shoulder.
"You've only been here a few days so you don't know how lucky we are to have this opportunity, do you? We have a woman with us in our cell." Doppo pointed out.
"And?"
Kuronagi was fed up with the roundabout way this conversation was going.
"And? And we can all fuck her!"
Shibukawa shushed him, making sure nobody else heard him.
"Keep it quiet, Kuronagi. Do you want to share her with everyone?"
Kuronagi scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"So, what do you say? Wanna join us?" Shibukawa asked.
"You need 5 guys to rape one woman?" Naruto asked in disbelief.
"We don't NEED you. We were just trying to be nice in offering!" Doppo replied.
"Well, at least it would be safer with the 5 of us. She's deceptively dangerous." Shibukawa pointed out.
Naruto shook his head disapprovingly. "Forgive me for not wanting to be a piece of shit this time, but I think I'll pass."
Doppo was pissed at the insult and was about to attack Naruto.
"What did you just say?" He growled as he rolled up a sleeve.
Shibukawa held him back with one arm.
Naruto just gave them a look of disgust before he left.
"What the hell? Why did you hold me back!? Are you gonna let him talk to us like that?" Doppo asked Shibukawa.
"Do you think you can do a better job than Hanayama?" Shibukawa asked back. "That man is dangerous. Leave him alone for now. We can always take him out when he's not expecting it."
That seemed to appease Doppo's fury, who looked forward to offing Naruto. As soon as the opportunity presented itself. But for now, he turned his attention back to their plan.
With the Konoha ANBU
The 4 masked ninja were silently moving around secluded areas of the village, when Owl put his hand up, stopping their movement.
'What is it?' Kakashi signed.
'Behind. Mantis calls for attention.' Owl signed back.
Kakashi turned around to give his attention Mantis.
'Kikaichu caught trace of target chakra. Around 800 meters to our 5 o'clock.'
Kakashi nodded before he signed back to Owl.
'Can you check that direction?'
Owl nodded before looking in that direction intently.
He put up a sign to indicate success.
'Target 2 and 3 spotted. Guarded by 2 potential enemy shinobi.'
'Unnoticed infiltration possible?' Kakashi asked.
Owl focused his vision to get a closer look at the situation, straining at the current distance.
'Possible. Guards' chakra is disturbed. Possibly under genjustu.' He reported back.
'Genjutsu?' Kakashi thought to himself. 'Why are the guards under genjutsu?'
After taking a second to contemplate, he signed back to his team.
'Will proceed to infiltrate. Potential fight. Keep it quick and quiet.'
His team nodded and quickly moved out.
At the Kusa Guest Quarters
"I can't believe that this is happening…" Shizune muttered as she fell into a couch.
"Hozuki Prison? The Blood Prison? How could they! How DARE they!" Izumi shouted angrily as she gripped her hair in distress.
"W-what do you think is going to happen now?" Shizune asked Izumi.
"I'm… I'm not sure. War perhaps…" Izumi responded.
Shizune looked up at Izumi in shock. "W-war?"
"War became a possibility the moment they arrested Naruto. I was naïve in letting Naruto go for questioning. And he was arrogant in thinking he could get out of any situation on his own. We let a bad situation get worse…" Izumi told Shizune.
"But if war breaks out… what's going to happen to Naruto-kun? Or us?" Shizune wondered.
Izumi clenched her fists. "We'll have to hope Hokage-sama has a plan… in any case, I don't plan to go down quietly."
Shizune's mind was racing as she came to grips with the fact that a fight for her life was a very real possibility.
The two were still in silence with the grim reality that they were in.
As tense as the situation was, the two immediately sprung to a defensive stance and drew a kunai when a figure burst into the living room they were in.
"Woah there. Let's all calm down now before we do something stupid." The dog mask wearing ANBU stated in a cool tone, while he showed a Sharingan flashing in one of the eye holes of the mask.
"Oh. It's you." Izumi said in relief. "How were you able to get in so easily?"
Dog put a hand over his heart.
"Oh, come on. You gotta give us more credit than that. Do you expect Konoha ANBU to not be able to get past a couple of fools under a genjutsu? I'm hurt."
"I suppose you're right. Though how did you know they were under a genjutsu?"
"Perimeter secured, Taichou." Tiger reported as he entered the living room with Owl and Mantis.
Kakashi pointed at Owl behind him with his thumb. "Let's just say a pair of Byakugan comes in pretty handy on any mission."
Izumi nodded, once again admiring the powerful capabilities of the Byakugan. Despite the genjutsu prowess of her clan, the Hyuuga were one clan that they had to stay wary of, due to their visual prowess negating theirs.
Meanwhile, Shizune was relieved that a team from Konoha had come as a response from the Hokage. Hopefully they had some instructions and a plan for them.
"So, what's going on? What are we meant to do?" Shizune asked.
Dog scratched the back of his head.
"I was kinda hoping you'd be able to tell US what's going on." He replied. "What is going on with Naruto?"
Shizune and Izumi's eyes met as they looked at each other, wondering who the bringer of bad news should be.
"He's… been taken to Blood Prison…" Izumi responded.
Tiger's cool was clearly disturbed when he heard the news. "B-blood Prison? As in Hozuki Blood Prison?"
Izumi sadly nodded her head.
"Leave it to Naruto-taichou to find himself in there." Owl commented.
Dog scratched the back of his head again. "Well shit. Guess this operation got a lot messier."
"So, what's the plan?" Izumi asked. "What are we going to do?"
In a Hidden Location
In a dimly lit room in Hozuki Prison, 4 cloaked figures wearing animal masks were gathered around a 5th person.
"So, how are the preparations coming along, Mui?" One of the cloaked figures wearing an ox mask asked.
"Preparations… are now complete." Mui responded.
"So we only need the chakra source to begin?" The cloaked figure wearing a ram mask asked.
Mui nodded. "This Uzumaki is different… his chakra is way more potent and vaster than the girl's. It's… it's almost like that of a Jinchuuriki."
"Amazing… these Uzumaki surprise me again and again." The cloaked figure wearing a monkey mask said in awe.
"Let's stop wasting time then and get started right away then. The Grass Fruit Faction has been hiding for way too long. It's time we make ourselves known." The cloaked figure wearing a dog mask told the rest.
They nodded in agreement.
"Kusa has had to suffer indignation as a minor village for far too long. It's time that it takes its rightful place! It's time for Kusagakure to rise as the most powerful village!" the cloaked man with the ox mask shouted, getting shouts of agreement from the others.
"Go bring the Uzumaki, Mui!" they told Mui.
Mui nodded before heading out of the room.
"So… it begins…" Mui quietly muttered to himself.
*Author's Notes*
And that was the latest chapter of the Jinchuuriki's Brother! How did you guys like it? Hope you guys are excited for what happens next as the climax of the arc approaches!
Lol also, it's been 53 chapters and Hiruzen's poor secretary still doesn't have a name. I have to keep referring to her as his secretary, and it's kinda hard. I'll take some suggestions if you have any!
Soooo I need to bring up something. I know this arc wasn't some people's favorite, and that's fair enough. Maybe you felt like the quality has dropped, maybe you felt like the characters were inconsistent, maybe you didn't like the plot. Maybe you're right, maybe you're not. It can be subjective. In my mind, I thought everything was explainable considering the circumstances, but maybe it was harder to believe for some people. That's fair.
What's not fair though, is writing things that aren't true to make readers drop my fic. I've had people say that I'm rehashing canon, implying that it's not worth reading, and I've had readers drop my fic because of that. Really? How am I rehashing canon? Because there are some similar plot points? Come on now. You're just being vengeful for some reason. Whatever happened to quietly dropping a fic if you don't like it? Why do you have to go out of your way to try to harm my fic?
I don't know, maybe I'm being too sensitive. But it's somewhat discouraging when people make up their mind so quickly before giving it a chance. It would be nice if you could wait until the end of the arc until you make up your mind about it. See how it's different. Maybe you'll find something you like about it.
Anyway, that was my little rant. Just sharing how I feel about the situation. I still appreciate the comments and reviews others have left. It's nice seeing what people think about the chapter and what they think will happen next. It's like watching an on-going tv series with a friend and talking about the latest episodes when they drop. Reading people talking about the fic like that is probably my favorite part of writing this fic. So I really appreciate you all.
Anyway, thanks for reading! I hope you guys enjoyed this latest chapter! Let me know what you thought of the chapter or ask any questions you may have through comments or reviews!
I hope you guys all stay safe and hope you have a great day! Until next time!