Chapter 7
Tsunade sat in her office squaring away the last of her paperwork for the morning. "Finally, that's over with." she said to herself. She leaned back in her chair. "Now I can just relax until something comes up." She smiled as a thought came to her head. "I guess since no one's here I could have a small one." Tsunade ducked down and reached under her desk for a bottle of sake. But as her fingers closed around it the door burst open revealing Kakashi, carrying a large bundle.
"Lady Tsunade!" he yelled clearly worried about something. "We have an emergency!"
Tsunade tried to stand up but her head bumped into the top of her desk, smashing right through. "Arg!" she shouted as she rubbed her head. "What is it, Kakashi?" she spat.
"You know that kid that Sakura, Naruto and the others brought in a few days ago?" Tsunade nodded. "I followed his trail back the way he came and I found these." Kakashi stepped up to Tsunade's desk and laid a sword and shield down on it, as well as a leather bag with a complete set of ninja gear inside.
Tsunade picked up the sword and looked at it for a moment. She then dropped the blade and opened a cabinet beside her desk. "I can't be!" Inside, she pulled out a copy of the bingo book. As she flipped through the pages, she stopped on one that had a picture of a seventeen year old boy. The boy had dark brown hair with white streaks on the sides, and under the picture was the name Ryo Higawa. "I don't believe it." Tsunade whispered. "He just walked in."
Kakashi looked at the picture. "Yeah, that's him alright." he said, a hint of fear in his voice. "He's wanted dead or alive by the Land of Lightning. He's a traitor, a murderer, a terrorist. He even went so far as to kill his own teammates when they refused to join him against the Land of Lightning. What makes it worse he's from the Higawa clan."
Tsunade looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Ok, who are they?"
Kakashi glanced at the ceiling as he thought. "They're an old clan that has tried it's hardest to stay unnoticed." he began. "During the last war with the cloud village they were almost invulnerable, namely due to their clan's kekei genkai." Kakashi spoke as if he had first hand experience of what the Higawa were capable of. "Their blood line trait comes in the form of a sixth sense that, allows them to see into peoples souls and sense emotions. They can even use it to communicate telepathically with each other."
Tsunade's eyes widened. "You mean something like the Hyuuga's Byakugan?" she asked.
Kakashi scratched the back of his head as he thought of a good way to put it. "Well, no. When they look at you with, the sense as they call it, they aren't using their eyes. They appear to be concentrating on something that isn't there." Kakashi looked back to the Hokage. "I know it doesn't sound like much but it makes them perfect spies. Not only can they read your emotions they can almost predict your attacks in battle."
Tsunade stood from behind her desk with a look of determination on her face. "Kakashi Hatake, I want you to find teams Gai, ten and eight. I'll bring Sakura." she said. "If this turns ugly we may have a major fight on our hands and against someone like him, I don't want to take any chances."
"Well, what's it going to be, kidos?" said the one eyed man his knife sliding down Hanabi's chest pausing at her navel. Hanabi tried to keep tears from rolling down her cheeks. The two men that had her by the arms noticed this and snickered.
"You bastards." snarled Kiba. "If you so much as put a scratch on that little girl I'll…"
The man mouthed Kiba's words mocking him. "Oh, shut up!" he snapped. He then turned his gaze to Hinata, who now appeared to be angrier then her team had ever seen her. The one eyed man nodded to his partners who then flipped Hanabi facedown and held her there. "You have the power to stop all this." He said, his voice cutting Hinata like a knife. "Where… is… RYO!!!!"
Hinata looked at her sister. She was being pinned down by the foot of one of the sound ninja while the other used his fist to drive her face into the mud. Hanabi was now sobbing from fear and pain. The one holding her by her hair bent down to whisper something incomprehensible. The man then opened his mouth and, to the horror of team eight, licked the side of her neck and face. Hinata watched as her sister turned and mouthed the words, "help… me…"
"I DON'T KNOW WHERE HE IS!!" screamed Hinata. "And if I did," she continued in a low tone with hatred lacing her every word. "I wouldn't tell you."
The eyed man sighed. "Very well, you had your chance to go about this willingly." Once again a sick smile crept across his face. "But no, we had to do this the hard way. Ah well, more fun for me, he he." The man then turned to his two minions, "Make sure our guests have a front row seat, and have fun boys."
With a tremendous roar Kiba and Akamaru dashed forward to rescue Hanabi. In a flash of light and a deafening crack, the two of them were thrown backwards. Both the dog and its master howled in pain, clutching their faces.
Shino knelt by the sides of his comrades to see the damage. They both had large bleeding scars running horizontally across their faces. "Don't try anything," he said in a low whisper. "I sent that grasshopper I was holding for help when they first got here."
The team looked up to see what had hit them.
The one eyed man was slowly coiling his whip. "If I were you I wouldn't do that again." The man was grinning wildly. "Please enjoy the sho-"
"NA!" Naruto shot out of the ground in a flying kick stance. He blasted the sound ninja, with his foot on Hanabi's back, forward. "RU!" A second Naruto did the same to the second sound ninja, landing him next to his partner. "TO!" As the two got up, a third Naruto shot up out of the ground directly beneath them. Using a double punch, he smashed them in their jaws, rocketing them straight into the air. Appearing as only a blur of orange, the real Naruto flew out of the trees behind the enemy in a cannon ball. As he sped toward the dazed sound ninja, he opened his legs into a 'V' form and flipped end over end towards to the Hanabi's, flying, would be violators. With an incredible feat of aerial acrobatics Naruto smashed his heels into the faces of his enemies. "UZUMAKI BARRAGE!!"
Ryo dashed out of the tree line. In one quick movement he dropped to his knees, slid across the ground, scooped Hanabi off the ground and came to a halt in front of Hinata. "Here, take your sister," he said passing Hanabi to Hinata. Ryo looked back see Naruto who had just landed in front of the one eyed man. "Oh no," he said. "I didn't think they'd send him."
Ryo's eyes hurt as he was dragged into the sun by two of the king's personal guards. As soon as his eyes adjusted to the light he glanced up at the men who had him by the arms. They were the royal guard wearing their full bronze chest plates and helmets. They also wore their signature round shields and gladius swords.
Upon reaching their destination, which was directly in front of the gallows Ryo was forced to his knees. Up on the decks were two small genin, one a boy the other a girl, both with red hair. Both of them had a large thick noose around their necks. Ryo's heart stopped as he recognized them as Kenji and Akiko. Kenji's head was hung low and his face appeared to be just as beaten as Ryo's. Akiko was trying hard not to cry but her breaths came in short flutters. To their right was a large lever, that as soon as it was pulled, Ryo's friends would drop though the floor.
Ryo looked back over his shoulder to see a large platform with a tall red curtain, baring the royal seal, behind acting as a rear wall. Three men were standing around a tall thrown with a forth man seated upon it. The first and closest to Ryo was the same man who had tortured him. He stood there and grinned at Ryo his one eye blazing with hate. His usual bull whip was wrapped around him.
The furthest from Ryo was an elderly man dressed in a long, white and bronze robe. On his head sat a large semicircle hat, of the same colors, with the symbol for lightning written on it.
So Lord Raikage, here to see what your lack of leadership has brought us? Ryo thought sarcastically to himself.
The third man was tall and his hair was bleach, white. His clothes reflected that he was a man of great wealth but did not flaunt it. His face was full of sorrow.
Father? I didn't expect to see you here.
The forth man sitting on the thrown was almost the opposite of Ryo's father. His clothes wore adorned with jewels and gold. His hair was dark and slicked back. Upon his head sat a crown made of golden leaves. There was also a gleam in his eye, a gleam of great excitement at the sight of approaching death.
"My Lord Ryuichi," said Ryo's father. "I implore you. This is unnecessary. They are only children,"
Lord Ryuichi held up his hand lazily to silence Ryo's father. "Tanaka, that is enough out of you," he said. "Unless you think your children need lessens in loyalty," he added with an evil smile.
Tanaka Higawa looked away from him and stared forward. "No sire. The twins do not need lessens." A single tear rolled down the side of the head of Higawa clan's face as he looked at his son below him who was being held by two of the king's guards.
Finally the Raikage stepped forward. "That's enough, Ryuichi! You go to far this time," he said angrily. "First you imprison Ryo, without trial over simple disobedience. Know your executing his teammates simply because they treated the torture wounds your men gave him. If you wish me to continue with your-"
"Old man, to whom do you think your speaking to, with that tone?" said Ryuichi glaring out of the corner of his eye at the Raikage. "The act of giving care to a traitor is treason by association. Need I remind you who holds the leash of the cloud village?"
The Raikage made an attempt to rebuttal. But when Ryuichi motioned for a guard to approach, he stopped.
"That's what I thought," Lord Ryuichi waving down his crony. He then turned to the one eyed man and nodded. The man pulled his whip off of his shoulder and shouted out to the two genin.
"You have committed treason against his majesty the king, the penalty for which is death." The man paused as he made his usual sick grin. "Do you have any last words?"
Akiko looked up at Ryo, whose eyes were watering. "Remember what said Ryo." Her voice was meek and trembling, yet there was calmness now in her eye's that comforted Ryo. "The people of this country need your help. Someone has to protect the cloud village from…"
"TOO LONG!!" shouted the one eyed man. He then lashed out with his whip which wrapped around the leaver and jerked it forward.
The trapdoors of the gallows dropped suddenly and with them fell, Kenji and Akiko. Their bodies came to a short stop eight feet in the air. Miraculously, their necks didn't break. Instead they hung there, suspended by their necks, strangling.
At that moment Ryo rose to his feet quickly. With one swift movement of his heel, he tapped the bottom of the sheath worn by the man to his right. The sword flew out of its container and into the Ryo's open hands.
"What the hell?" was all the man could say before Ryo viciously slashed his throat open. As the man's blood splattered the other guard, some of it found its why into his eyes.
"AHHH!!" he screamed before being silenced by Ryo's blade.
Ryo used his moment of freedom to dash to his friends' aid. As he neared his friends, he tossed the sword into the air, which then came back down spinning. Ryo held out his bound hands. The edge of the blade sliced through the bonds that held him and landed point first into the dirt.
"HANG ON!!!" yelled Ryo as he stood on his toes and stretched out his arms to try and hold up Kenji and Akiko's feet.
Kenji grit his teeth to resist the noose and managed to say, "Get out of here, you idiot… Save yourself…"
"JUST HANG ON!!! I'LL SAVE YOU GUYS!!!"
Akiko did the best she to hold off against the rope. "Please Ryo… for me..."
At that moment two shuriken, appearing only as spinning black circles came, flying from the direction of king's platform. The two flying weapons buried into both Kenji and Akiko's throats.
All time seemed to stop for Ryo as his two best friends breathed their last breaths and their blood dripped onto his face. "NOOOO!!!!" he screamed, in complete agony. All the torture he had endured in his cell, the floggings, the brandings, it was as nothing to what he felt now.
From the platform there came the one sound Ryo least expected to hear.
CLAP!! CLAP!! CLAP!!
Ryo turned to see Ryuichi applauding. Both Ryo's father and the Raikage were looking at the king with expressions of grief and anger on their faces.
"Excellent shot, my good man," Ryuichi said to the one eyed man.
"Thank you, sir," said the man with a grin as he recoiled his whip.
"Well, as much fun as this has been," said Ryuichi with a smile. "I'm afraid that, that's all the time I have to spend here." Ryuichi stood up and turned to leave. "Take the young man back to his cell and continue with his… schedule."
As the man disappeared through the rear curtain of the platform, several of the royal guards began to approach Ryo slowly. They drew their swords when they grew close.
Ryo stepped toward the gladius that he had dropped in his rescue attempt.
"No…" he said in a low tone as he pulled it slowly out of the earth. "No,"
A pair of the attackers moved in to take him.
"NO!!" Ryo Lunged at the first man, grabbing his wrist to prevent him from swinging his sword. The man tried to bash Ryo with the edge of his shield. Ryo ducked the blow and then swung his blade upward severing the man's arm, shield all. Ryo caught the shield and replaced the man's arm with his own. He then threw the defeated man over his shoulder and moved for the next man. "NO! NO! NO!!!" he yelled as he battered through the enemy's defenses before running his sword through the man's gut. He cast the dead body aside and glared at the remaining guards. "WHO'S NEXT?!"
The guards hesitated for a moment. "He can't handle all of us at the same time," shouted one of them. The attackers moved into a circle around Ryo. "Get him!"
They all charged in at once and one after the other, Ryo slaughtered them without mercy. As the last man made a desperate attempt to lunge at Ryo, Ryo leapt over the attack. While in the air, Ryo plunged his sword into the base of the guard's throat.
"DIE!!" he yelled.
Ryo, stop! Ryo heard the voice of his father in his head. What are trying to do, get your self killed?
And take as many of these bastards with as I can, Ryo said.
But if you die, said Ryo's father. You'll never fulfill Akiko's final request, right. Son, please before others come, you must run for it! Only you can save our village and this country. If not for your own sake then remember the twins, your brother and sister.
Ryo looked at his father.
"Hey you!" came a voice closer to him. Ryo turned to see the one eyed man approaching lightly flipping his whip along the ground. Ryo looked to his father and then back to the man.
"You'll never know how much I'd like to kill you right now," Ryo said through grit teeth. "But I don't have time for this."
At that Ryo formed several quick hand signs ending with his palm on the ground. "SUMONING JUTSU!!"
A tall Buck skin horse appeared beneath him. "Let's go!" Ryo told the beast and the two of them road towards the gallows where his friends swung lifelessly. Ryo then threw his shield which flew like a shuriken, cutting the ropes that his teammates hung by. The two bodies fell onto the horse with Ryo. The shield bounced off of several trees and then returned to Ryo. Ryo look back over his shoulder as he galloped away.
"Don't worry I will protect the people of this country AND SAVE THE VILLAGE!!!"
A.N. Sorry for the wait. If you want me to continue please review.