Thank you to new reviewers, returning reviewers and silent stalkers alike for your support so far. Also big shouts for ShipperTrish for her huge efforts in making this readable and generally for her support! This is slowly turning into a MONSTER!
SlinkyM x
Chapter 15: Flashback, Crawl Forward…
The first explosion sent a low rumbling tremor through the bowels of the complex. The damaged strip lighting stuttered and blinked, sending another sheet of white sparks down into dark water. The reflection looked like festival fireworks igniting in the summer sky, brilliant starbursts in the dark confines of a library. You almost couldn't tell which way was up. Tipping forward and gripping onto the large wooden table for support, blue eyes met black in the strobing light and a pregnant silence descended as both shinobi listened keenly to the faint sounds of destruction above them.
A crack in the ceiling appeared, moving like lightning across the smooth surface, its journey quick and determined as it snaked its way through the room as if tugged by invisible wire.
A fine rain of plaster and dust fell into their now upturned eyes and Naruto blinked rapidly, grinding his sleeve across his irritated sockets.
Without the need to communicate their situation verbally, both ninjas sprung into action.
Naruto leaped over the table on unsteady feet and over to the large map of Konoha and began hastily ripping down the pinned bingo pages, the sheets of statistics, and any other anonymous pieces of paper which looked as if they might be of use. Rolling them up quickly and hurriedly, he passed them to Sai who pushed them deep into his satchel.
The second explosion ripped through the room with such violence that both shinobi' were thrown to the floor, Sai's head cracking painfully against the corner of the table. He sunk limply into the water.
The shelving units tipped and swayed, finally falling like dominoes. Books and folders spewed out into the shin deep water.
The tremors increased in violence and Sai felt himself dragged by the collar under the large oak table as he tried to blink the stars out of his eyes. The ringing in his ears was irritatingly persistent as he turned his blurry vision to Naruto who was trying to shout above the all encompassing noise of the complex ripping apart.
Large chunks of plaster fell like meteors into the water and other slabs of debris onto the desk above them, which cracked and splintered, but remained stable.
"Sai…SAI!!!"
Sai inclined his head towards his teammate and blinked slowly like a lizard as he tried to decipher what was being said to him.
Naruto's hand found its way to the back of Sai's head and he winced as Naruto's fingers prodded none too gently around the crown of his skull.
"You're bleeding!" Naruto shouted, wiping his soiled hand on his jacket and thrusting a small roll of bindings from his weapons' pouch towards Sai.
Sai's eyes rolled a little, losing focus, and he grasped Naruto's shoulder to keep himself from tipping sideways.
Naruto cursed again, leaning forward and wrapping the makeshift bandages around Sai's head as tightly as he could.
The blonde's mouth was moving again, but Sai still couldn't quite understand what was being asked of him.
Snapping his fingers impatiently in front of Sai's face, Naruto tried once again.
"Wake up! We need to get out of here! Can you walk?!"
Sai's head lolled to the side in response and bobbed in what could have been in equal parts either a nod for the affirmative or a shake for the negative.
Naruto huffed again, throwing Sai's arm over his broad shoulders and tugged the slighter man out from under the relative safety the large desk offered.
Slowly, agonizingly slow, they made their way towards the door.
They shakily navigated their way through the large corridors, past the large arenas and various medical rooms, leaning heavily against the wall and using blind hands for guidance.
Thick, black smoke billowed up and around them, shortening the visibility to only a few feet ahead.
The heat was sweltering, the raging inferno blazing somewhere above them sucking out valuable oxygen with every second that passed.
Smaller explosions shook the corridors and sometimes weight bearing beams became fully visible behind the crumbling walls.
Naruto struggled forward, Sai's weight against his side hindering his progress as he tried to remember which way they had come.
"Sai…Sai? Which way now?" he stuttered out between chocking coughs. "Sai, come on! I can't remember…cough…All these corridors look the same!" he said close to his companion's ear, jiggling his grip slightly in an attempt to rouse a response from the frighteningly quiet artist.
Another tremor pitched him further into the wall.
"Shit…SAI! Come on, WAKE UP!"
Slowly Sai's hand came up motioning them left before dropping back to his side.
"Okay…okay. Good."
Finally, the recognizable doorway to the stairwell came into view and Naruto heaved a sigh of relief, hitching his friend up higher on his shoulder. With a determined growl, he strode forward and pushed the door aside.
They began the long climb up numerous flights of stairs.
Sai, whose head was still feeling foggy and unclear, watched with an expressionless face as Naruto kicked and swore at the wall, his frustration giving him the energy to curse every god he could name in a spectacular tirade that even Sai, with his own famously barbed tongue, was a little shocked at. Sai hadn't even heard some of those expletives.
"…fucking-shit-eating-cocking-bastards-couldn't-have-given-us-a-fucking-break-and-blocked-the-way-eight-shitting-flights-ago! We're fucking trapped!"
"Naruto, you're using up all the oxygen." Sai interrupted, working his tongue slowly around the words, which felt too long and complicated in his current condition.
"We're trapped!" Naruto repeated and gave one last kick to the mountain of hot debris blocking their path before slumping dejectedly against the wall next to Sai. He unzipped his jacket and used it to wipe the sweat from his grime covered face.
"Do you think Kakashi and Sakura are-" Sai's half finished wheezed question had Naruto clamping his hand firmly over Sai's mouth.
"Don't even finish that sentence!" Naruto snapped with uncharacteristic venom. "They're fine and when we get out of here she'll fix your head, give me a nice massage, and agree to let me take her out on a date," he finished in a softer voice.
The stairwell shook and the debris shifted. A pebble of plaster rolled down the blockade, clicking shapely against the floor and came to a stop by Naruto's thigh.
Naruto removed his hand from Sai's mouth, picked the pebble up, and rolled it between his fingers. Closing his eyes, he leaned his head back against the wall. It was getting harder to breath.
The silence stretched between them for long seconds before the foreign sound of Sai's dry chuckling reached Naruto's ears over the grinding and rumbling going on around them.
Eyes blinking open, Naruto fixed Sai with an astounded look.
"Are you actually laughing?"
The chuckling increased in volume, Sai's eyes closed as he wiped a tired hand across his eyes.
"What's so funny?"
Sai coughed once to dispel the fit of laughter and met Naruto's questioning gaze with a cockeyed smirk. "I think Sakura would rather cut out her own tongue than give you a massage. She'd need a microscope to find it anyway."
"Eh?! What are you talking about, arsehole?!"
"Sakura doesn't seem the type to willingly oil and massage your intimate parts. I would quite like to see you attempt to convince her that it would be a beneficial experience for her. She would probably-"
"Not that kind of massage, you pervert! Where the hell did you get that idea from?!" Naruto squeaked, trying to fight the flaming red blush that was imprinting itself under layers of sweat and soot.
"Kakashi recommended a book on understanding the relationships between men and women. One particular chapter went into great detail on the use of massage in foreplay." Sai stated matter-of-factly.
It was Naruto's turn to chuckle. "Well, I had meant more of a physiotherapy type of massage, but now that you mention it…"
"She'd kill you." Sai said.
"Yes, she would." Naruto said fondly, a touch of worry colouring his words. "I can't believe you actually laughed."
"Neither can I. Must be the lack of oxygen."
"So…Any good ideas on how we can get out of here and find our team before we choke to death?" Naruto asked, hurling the small rock in his hands back into the debris.
Sai seemed to consider this for a long time, conscious thought seeming harder to grab hold of than usual, but he did have an idea…just not a very good one.
"Pass me my bag."
***
Naruto glared at the group of three rats milling about trying to push their way through the compressed rubble in front of them.
"This is your plan? More rats?"
Sai shrugged in a noncommittal fashion and replied with a short "Rats always abandon a sinking ship."
"We aren't on a ship, idiot."
"Rats are survivors."
"Huh? Oh, look!" Naruto pointed as the three small inky animals turned in unison and started scampering back down the stairs.
"Quick, follow them." Sai said, latching onto Naruto's shoulder again as they navigated the smoky stairwell.
The rats led them back through the lower levels of the complex, sometimes stopping to dig at holes in the walls, sometimes doubling back on themselves, or leading them in circles. Occasionally, they would disappear from sight, running away into the stifling smoke only to reappear seconds later, squeaking out high pitched commands that even Sai couldn't understand.
Eventually, chests heaving with exertion, the boys caught up to the rats in a grotty toilet cubicle where the rodents were clawing excitedly at the toilet basin and a small grating in the cubical floor.
"I see..." Sai said, holding his hands up in a single seal.
The rats instantly dissolved into inky puddles, which slowly drained into the grating on the floor.
Digging around further into his satchel, Sai pulled out what Naruto recognized to be an explosive tag and slapped it over the grate.
Both boys moved quickly back into the corridor, waiting with backs to the walls as they both mentally followed the time release countdown.
4…3…2…1…
The small controlled explosion was barely heard over the din of the levels above them collapsing.
Rushing in to inspect their handiwork, Sai gave a grunt of satisfaction at the sight of the gaping hole in the cubical floor. The toilet basin was cracked and charred and Sai wasted no time in kicking it out of the way, fully exposing the large open copper pipe.
Naruto wrinkled his nose at the foul stench of ammonia and faeces wafting up from the drainage system and suppressed the urge to gag.
"So I guess we're going down there?"
Sai crouched down, bringing out a lighter and holding it down into the small crawl space. The flame flickered and dragged. "It's a way out. The fire's jumping towards fresh air."
Without preamble, the artist passed Naruto a glow stick. Snapping his own, he placed it firmly in-between his teeth and carefully lowered himself into the pipe and onto his stomach, crawling forward on his elbows.
Naruto took one last look around at the small room, wondering how much longer the floors would hold, and dropped into the pipe behind his partner.
"I guess it's better than dying," he mumbled before shoving the stick in his mouth as he lowered his stomach into the vile sludge that coated the pipe and began edging forward after his partner.
The pipe was long and tight. As they crawled further, the sewage seemed to get deeper and the crawlspace funnelled smaller.
Naruto's neck and shoulders had started to seize as he tried to keep his mouth and nose above the sewage, which was now sloshing against his throat. He had to angle his hips slightly to move through the pipe and didn't know whether to be grateful or appalled by the noxious ooze that lubricated their journey. The chemical stench of industrial disinfectant was making him feel even more nauseous and dizzy than the overpowering smell of bodily waste.
The eerie green glow from the stick held tightly in his teeth surrounded him like a halo, only allowing him to make out shuffling sandals, the bobbing of a dirty satchel, and the curve of Sai's arse as he set a brutal pace through the pipe.
His hand sunk into something just shy of solid and he growled low in the back of his throat as he once again struggled with the need to gag.
"T'is is 'ishustin."
"I 'umpletely a'ree."
A tremendous crash from roughly half a mile behind them resonated through the tight pipe and even though both shinobi knew that the lower levels of the underground complex had finally collapsed, neither particularly felt like voicing it.
Taking a deep calming breath and then immediately regretting it, Sai cracked his neck from side to side before shuffling forward again towards where he hoped they would find a way out of this mess.
In a dingy back alley in the centre of Taki, just streets away from the market district, long, blackened fingers curled around the grated iron of a manhole cover and with great effort, lifted it up and pushed it aside. One figure emerged, bent and weary, and then another who promptly fell to his knees and retched into the gutter.
As they crept silently through the shadowed back streets, the watchful eyes of Taki's homeless regarded them from the gutters with fear and trepidation.
In the failing evening light, the two shinobi' appeared as demons from another plain. The word "Shinigami" was whispered between old wizened men who rubbed their hands together and passed around bottles clothed in brown paper.
Naruto and Sai remained oblivious as they moved from shadow to shadow on their way out of Taki, but their presence sparked the start of a story that would prove to be one of Taki's most enduring urban legends for years to come, the story of twin death gods born from the devil's bowel. Black and deadly, they rose from the gutters to spread pestilence among the impure.
"Hours, it took hours! I'm never gonna get this taste out of my mouth!" Naruto grumbled, spitting into the bushes as they slipped out of the city.
"That was a most unpleasant experience," acknowledged Sai, trying in vain to wipe his dirty hands on his dirty clothes.
"Let's go find Sakura-chan and Baka-sensei!"
"Yes, let's."
Tenzou wiped the back of his hand across his forehead and started the long walk back up his self made tunnel. The wooden beams and struts he had constructed latticed up towards the starry night sky and he palmed each one as he passed, imbuing a little chakra into each of the joints to reinforce them. It was a long, slow process that was eating away at his chakra supply with each foot he dug. He had already expended a large amount on the journey to Waterfall Country, his team pushing themselves to their limits to arrive on scene in a matter of hours instead of days. Standing at the mouth of his construction, he pushed up his mask and closed his eyes against the cool night air.
"Here." called Genma, chucking down a canteen of water from on top of the large pile of rumble they had excavated, his mask also pushed up, a familiar piece of metal glinting in the moonlight.
Catching the canteen with ease despite his fatigued state, Tenzou gratefully swallowed the lukewarm water, splashing a little over his head and neck to cool off.
"You should take a break."
"Can't."
"You'll kill yourself if you keep up this pace."
Tenzou grunted in response before riffling in his bag for another soldier pill.
"And stop popping them like candy! Kakashi would never approve and you know how dosing yourself up with stims makes you moody."
"Maybe if you stopped sunbathing and did some work I wouldn't have to."
Genma grinned at that and pointed a finger up at the moon. "I need to work on my tan to look good for all the ladies, ne?"
Tenzou let out a snorting chuckle that quickly turned into a yawn.
"Maybe a little break to work on my own tan wouldn't be entirely out of the question."
A sharp, static rustling in both men's ears quickly laid waste to that idea, however.
"Otter, Cougar, two chakra signatures are closing in on your location. Do I intercept? Over."
Jerked out of their companionable conversation, both men instantly dropped into defensive stances and tipped their ANBU identities back down over their faces.
"Is she sure?" Genma asked needlessly.
Pressing a finger to his ear, Tenzou spoke in a calm, precise voice. "Owl, this is Otter. Please confirm that targets are heading towards our location. Confirm visual. Over."
"Negative on clear visual. Targets' trajectory will lead them directly to your location in approximately six minutes coming from south, southeast. Over."
"Dammit!" Genma hissed.
"Owl, why negative on visual? Please confirm number of targets. Over."
"I only sense two chakra signatures. Targets are ahead of me by three hundred meters and are too well camouflaged to confirm numbers by visual, although-"
"Although?"
"Targets are leaving a very…obvious scent trail. Over."
"Some sort of camouflaging genjutsu? Designed to disguise numbers by messing up sensory pathways maybe? It wouldn't be the first time I've seen something like that. You know, killing Taki shinobi' would be a bad move for national relations." Genma supplied, his weapon drawn as he leaped into position some twenty meters away.
"They have to pin it on us first." Tenzou muttered before once again lifting his finger to his earpiece. "Owl, fallback to our position immediately and assume a staggered defence formation. Over."
"Roger that."
Naruto stepped into the clearing ahead of Sai and stood, mouth hanging from its hinges, arms by his sides, and eyes bugging out of his head at the sight of the colossal crater stretching out ahead of him.
"Wow…"
Walking forward and gingerly fingering the sore lump on the back of his head, Sai let his gaze follow Naruto's. He dropped his satchel down onto the ground by his feet and tried to discern the expressions playing across Naruto's face, which was made harder by the layers of grime caking his features. His body language, however, was easier for Sai to interpret: the way Naruto's shoulders slumped a little at the sight before them, the way his Adam's apple quivered slightly, and the way his fists clenched and unclenched in quick succession.
"Wow…" Naruto said again, his voice sounding croaked and almost mechanical. "There's nothing left…There's…I mean, what if…"
Sai stepped forward and awkwardly placed what he hoped would be a reassuring hand on Naruto's shoulder.
"She's going to fix my head and then give you an erotic massage, remember?" he said, fixing a smile on his face that felt more forced than usual.
Naruto's own face stretched into what Sai recognized as a different kind of fake smile, the kind he often gave Sakura when they talked of bringing Sasuke home, complete with overenthusiastic nodding and a shaky thumb's up.
"Of course." Naruto said simply, not trusting his voice enough to say much else.
Sai's hand tightened its grip on his shoulder, fingers digging down deeply into his clavicle in a way that drew Naruto's attention at once. Sai's narrowed eyes and whispered command of "Down" had them both dropping quickly to the floor in unison as a kunai sailed with a whistling whine past their heads.
Naruto rolled away, sliding quickly behind the cover of a badly burnt tree stump as another kunai embedded itself in the badly scorched ground where he had just been.
Snatching his bag up from the ground and looping its strap around his shoulder, Sai leaped down the wall of the crater, dislodging a layer of warm topsoil as he gathered speed as he ran full pelt down the unstable sheer sides.
His free hand reached around to grasp the hilt of his flat edged tanto, bringing it smoothly in front of him to deflect three senbon' which were sailing toward his carotid artery. A fourth and fifth senbon struck him in the thigh and threw him violently off balance, tumbling forward.
His knee met the ground, throwing him head-over-heels onto his back and knocking the air clean from his lungs.
On autopilot, he thrust a gloved hand out, his palm dragging down the side of the crater in an attempt to slow his fall, and then spinning right ways he landed at the base of the crater and slipped neatly behind a pile of rubble, rubbing a hand across his chest to ease the uncomfortable tightness.
Through the clouds of kicked up dust he could make out the silhouette of the enemy flitting into cover.
This one favors mid to long range projectiles that require skill and accuracy to be successful. So by deduction, my opponent is less comfortable with close range hand to hand combat or is proficient at both. Either way, I have to get closer...
Plucking his sketchbook from the satchel, he hastily began sketching, using the blood soaked senbon from the wound in his thigh.
Naruto thumbed his shuriken pouch as he tried to think of a way to get out of the exposed area he found himself in.
Sai had dropped out of view only a second ago. The familiar clang of metal on metal let Naruto know that Sai was hopefully holding his own.
Naruto poked his head up from behind the tree stump in the hope that he would be able to locate his target, but was greeted by another kunai sailing close enough to his face to graze his cheek. Slumping back down into cover, he brought his hands together and shouted the words "Kage Bushin no Jutsu!"
Genma cursed when he saw the first barrage of senbon' deflected so easily. The second set hit their mark, though, and sent his opponent tumbling out of sight behind one of the many clusters of rubble. He wanted to get closer, but was reluctant to relinquish his position until he was sure Tenzou could gain the advantage. He wasn't sure how Yugao was doing, but he'd seen her jump down from her vantage point in the trees only seconds before.
Tenzou's smooth voice broke through his analysis. "Cougar, any information on the first target? Over."
"Male. Uses a katana or other one handed blade. Quick reflexes. Seems to prefer to keep his dista-Shit!"
"Cougar, Cougar! Stop! That's-"
Genma rolled backwards in shock, knocking the earpiece off his head as the swirling black wings of a giant bird broke through the dust clouds, beating strongly against its breast as it turned and swooped towards him. It seemed to hover for a split second before exploding into a raining cloud of black ink, which splattered across Genma's mask and chest. He was already reaching for his katana, but he didn't get to it quickly enough. The veil of black opened to reveal his opponent twisting gracefully in midair, blunt tanto poised and ready to strike at his throat.
A pillar of wood shot up from the ground a hair's breadth from Genma's nose and the tanto sank harmlessly into it. The attacking shinobi's feet met wood as he sprung safely to the side, ripping the weapon out with a sharp, splintering tug.
Tenzou appeared between the two looking from one to the other and holding up a placating hand to his teammate and filthy former subordinate.
"Sai? Is that you under there? It's good to see you. I'd recognize that technique anywhere," he said, carefully gesturing to Genma's ink splattered form.
Dusting himself off and clearly favouring one leg, Sai smiled blankly back, dipping slightly into a shallow bow.
"Yamato-sempai. What are you doing here?"
Genma, who was now leaning against the pillar with a perplexed look on his face, opened his mouth to speak when the cry of "Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" was heard loudly from high up above the crater followed by the familiar bursting pops of Naruto's signature move.
"Naruto!" Tenzou exclaimed, pointing up at the rim of the basin.
All three shinobi turned to run.
"Owl, fallback, we're dealing with friendlies! I repeat, friendlies!" Tenzou shouted frantically down the mic as they scrambled up the sharp incline.
Upon cresting the hill, they were met by the sight of Naruto lying face down in the dirt with Yugao standing over him, grinding her heel into the back of his head.
"Owl…" Tenzou started.
"Yeah, I heard you. Friendlies." she said, placing her hands firmly on her hips and grinding her foot down harder.
Naruto answered that with a muffled "humph."
If the blank expression of an ANBU mask could scowl, then the Owl was doing just that.
"What happened?" Sai asked, a little stunned that Naruto would go down so easily even to an ANBU elite.
"He created fifty clones, took one look at me, then promptly dispelled them saying he 'wouldn't hit a girl'." Came her venom-laced reply. She flicked her long, purple hair haughtily and crossed her arms looking pointedly at Otter.
"Mrrr mred mrr mm'dun 'it ma meaff mimmomi mssmermy ma murl!" Naruto said incoherently into the ground.
"What was that, Naruto?" Otter asked.
Owl removed her foot, allowing Naruto to sit up and spit out the dirt in his mouth.
"I said, 'I wouldn't hit a leaf shinobi, especially a girl!'" he cried defensively.
"How did you know I was Leaf?" the owl masked kunoichi asked in a tight voice.
"The hilt of your katana is carved from 'pink flamewood' a type of maple tree only native to the central region of Fire Country. Touchy tree, very specific about its climate and also very expensive." Naruto shrugged, then noticing the stunned look on Sai's face and the rigidly shocked postures of his other comrades, he spoke with clear indignation. "What?! Iruka-sensei has a thing for hand carved furniture. He bought a chest of drawers in that same type of wood last year and went on and on and on about how buying pink furniture does not make you gay, just open minded."
The Otter made a wet spluttering noise, the Cougar coughed a cough that sounded awfully like "Denial much?", the Owl nodded in agreement, and Sai looked unmoved.
"So what are you doing here, Yamato-teichou?" Naruto asked.
"You knew it was me?" Tenzou huffed, pushing the otter mask up onto the top of his head.
"Scary voice and scary eyes, no offense."
"Oh." Tenzou said, trying not to take offense. "Well once you two get cleaned up, we'll be escorting you back to Konoha."
"What the hell happened to you two anyway? You look like shit and smell like, well, shit." Cougar asked, waving a hand in front of his face.
"Our escape route was unorthodox." Sai supplied.
"Unorthodox?"
"Improvised." Sai stated flatly.
"Wait, wait, wait. Konoha?" Naruto cut in. "What about Sakura-chan and Sensei? We can't just leave them here!"
"Sakura and Kakashi are fine, Naruto."
Both boys breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hokage-sama received a communiqué informing her that they would be following up a lead on a man by the name of 'Nakamizu Hiroto', which I believe you supplied them with, Sai, before continuing back to Konoha. They should arrive slightly behind us if we leave now. I know you both must be exhausted, but it's prudent we report any details you may have on your mission as soon as possible."
"But Yamato-teichou, Kakashi said to meet him here for a regroup. If they're following up our lead, we should make sure they have all the information."
"That is correct." Sai agreed.
"Sorry, Naruto, Sai, but our orders are to bring you back to Konoha immediately."
All five ninja regarded each other as the temperature seemed to drop by twenty degrees.
"We are not going anywhere." Naruto said eventually, crossing his arms and squaring his shoulders as if he was rooted to the ground.
"Naruto, please don't make this difficult. We're all tired and the sooner we get back, the sooner we can let the Hokage know you're both alright."
"No."
"Listen, you little brat," spat Owl, "We outrank you, so we'll damn well drag you back if we have to!"
"Actually…" Sai said, lifting a finger to interject. "You don't outrank me. I'm also ANBU, which in this instance makes Naruto my subordinate."
"Listen here, you bastard-"
"Let me finish, Naruto," Sai said, cutting him off with a convincing glare, "the absence of our team leader means that as the highest ranking member of our team, I am now responsible for the mission. I wish to help supply Kakashi and Sakura with the information they will need."
Naruto's open mouth clicked shut with an audible snap as he regarded Sai with impressed eyes.
"Also," started Sai, bringing out a bundle of papers from his satchel and holding them up for all to see, "Kakashi and Sakura may be having a more difficult time than we first imagined."
Tenzou stepped forward to study the papers. "What's this?" he asked, his eyes scanning the long list of names.
"It's the file detailing all the ninjas and mercenaries currently in the employ of Nakamizu."
Rubbing his face with both hands, Tenzou turned to his two teammates. "So I guess we have a change of plan."
Both Owl and Cougar nodded.
"So how do we go about finding Nakamizu?"
"Easy." Sai smiled behind his dirt encrusted features and brandished another sheet of paper. "I have the address right here."
Kenta took another deep drag on his cigarette and kicked the tree next to him in agitation, sending gnarled chunks of lichen covered bark falling down onto the moss cushioned ground.
Although it was still an hour shy of sunrise, the birds were already chattering agitatedly in the branches, their song at war with the commotion in his head. Kenta usually found the sounds of the forest soothing, but tonight they only seemed to amplify his raging emotions.
He had helped that bastard to the infirmary. He actually helped him!
Kenta's fingers had itched with suppressed anger as he had lowered that sick brute of a human being onto crisp, white bedsheets while his daughter lay, most probably broken and violated, in one of the many heavily guarded observation rooms. Maybe she was out there now, marching towards Konoha, a mindless, impulse-driven shell. Maybe she wasn't even alive. Maybe, hopefully, the seal had failed and she'd died quickly, maybe even painlessly before they could abuse her, before that filthy, bloated sack of shit could lay a hand on her.
When he had seen the devastation Hatake Kakashi had reaped on Nakamizu's face, he could only inwardly seethe that it hadn't been him knuckle deep in bloody flesh, but in reality he knew he lacked the courage. He was a weak man, a stupid man who had put family before both duty and country. He couldn't lift a finger against Nakamizu, a mere civilian, and he most certainly couldn't lift a finger against that psycho Kuma.
Kenta flicked away the crumbling ash of his cigarette and sucked deeply down to the filter.
He was a traitor and nothing was going to change that.
The kunai against his throat made him drop the smouldering butt onto the forest floor. He shifted his eyes down to see a black sandal stub it out and Kenta noticed absently for the first time that the birds were silent.
Hot breath fluttered against his ear. "How many guards are patrolling the perimeter?"
Closing his eyes and releasing a shaky breath that only caused the blade to bite deeper, Kenta replied with calm acceptance that he was going to die.
"Six on the outer perimeter and another nine at vantage points across the grounds."
"Very good. Now please point to where the highest concentration of guards are and where we can locate Nakamizu Hiroto."
An unfinished, crudely drawn and dirtied map of the manor and grounds was held in front of his nose.
"Hiroto?" Kenta whispered. "What do you want with-"
"Just answer the question." came another voice from in front of him.
Looking over the edge of the map, Kenta's eyes met coal black ones framed by pale alabaster skin, a thick, dark curtain of hair, and a headband engraved with the symbol of Konohagakure.
"Leaf." The single word left his lips like a prayer.
"If he won't cooperate, kill him." said the shinobi who looked barely older than seventeen to the man over his shoulder. The blade at his throat cut deeper.
"No, no, no, wait!" Kenta hissed desperately. "You also came for your friends, didn't you? Hatake Kakashi and the pink haired girl…Sakura?"
Sai's disinterested expression fell into a keener arrangement.
"What about them?"
"Kuma-san's holding them captive. He's probably torturing Hatake Kakashi as we speak. I can help you. I really, really can help you."
AN: Next Chapter = Back to the present…wooo! Peace.