The leaders of Akatsuki sat around a table, all falling silent as they heard the report Yahiko gave them. None of them liked what their fellow Akatsuki member had told them, but it was an issue they couldn't ignore.
"How do we wish to handle this problem then," Yahiko finally asked, knowing it was the question that weighed on everyone's mind. The leaders and founders of Akatsuki all stared at the table in front of them, nobody saying a word. "I suggest a covert strike. It's imperative that we move fast and hard against this...Yomi character immediately."
"Even then, your covert operatives lack the manpower necessary to bring down the heavier targets," Tsunade answered truthfully. Yahiko glared at the older woman who gazed up at him. Undaunted by the younger man's stare, Tsunade matched his gaze. They both knew that as far as rank they were equals, but Yahiko knew all too well that Tsunade wasn't afraid to use force to get her point across. "You'll need a lot of heavy hitters in order to stand a chance against this supposed Ghost Army..."
"Not if we can take out our target first," Yahiko snapped, slamming his open palm against the table. "The more time we waste here twiddling our thumbs, the closer this Yomi gets to reviving his army!"
"Yahiko," Jiraiya spoke, drawing all attention to him. "Don't act rashly. Tsunade is right about this. We shouldn't rush into something like this without knowing everything first."
"Then what do you suggest," Yahiko demanded impatiently. The orange haired man had grown infuriated that his opinions and many requests of his have been shot down ever since the mission in the Land of Snow.
Jiraiya looked down again as he began to think of alternate choices they might have, while trying to think of a way to keep Yahiko happy at the same time. Konan then turned her head to Yahiko, having grown sick of his attitude already. She knew too well why Yahiko had been so insistent on his ideas, but she held no sympathy for him since he tried to order a hit out on Naruto's crush without telling anyone else.
"Perhaps we should have another mixture of the two divisions," the blue haired woman suggested. "A combination of stealth specialists as well as the heavy hitters Tsunade advised."
"No, last time that happened, Naruto lost control and attacked one of our own."
All eyes turned to Yahiko, with a specific set of amber eyes glaring furiously at him."One of your own Yahiko!" Konan slammed her hand on the table and suddenly stood up out of her chair, glaring at her partner across the table. "You had that assassin in my regiment to kill Sakura without my knowing!" She restrained herself from walking around the table to smack Yahiko for even suggesting that Naruto attacking Kiriya was the fault of the boy she saw as her little brother.
"She's a danger and a threat," Yahiko snapped, glaring back at Konan. "Who knows how long it'll be until she persuades Naruto to join the Alliance!"
"Do you honestly have that little of faith in him?! You honestly question Naruto's loyalty to us?!"
"Both of you, enough!" The two arguing lovers turned to their former sensei who stood up slowly out of his chair. "Sit down..." Konan sighed and immediately flopped back into her chair while Yahiko stayed standing, glaring at Jiraiya for a moment before slowly lowering himself back into his chair. "Our meeting is not to question Naruto's loyalty, nor is it to bring up past mistakes...it's to decide how we want to handle this Yomi situation in the Land of Demons..."
"Personally, Jiraiya sensei, I see a well put together strike team being most efficient," Nagato said, voicing his opinion that Konan was right. "I don't see why it has to be a complete covert operation just because it requires us to pass through enemy territory. I mean I did it with Naruto of all people, as well as managing to bring a few Kusa shinobi back out from the deal as well." Konan smiled to her redheaded partner, thankful that he could be unbiased and not always follow on Yahiko's every word.
"I would hardly call getting involved in a small war like that subtle though," Yahiko snapped. Konan rolled her eyes with an overly dramatic sigh, catching the orange haired boy's attention.
"Do I need to put you two in separate corners," Tsunade asked with a hardened glare. The two looked away from one another, taking the Sannin's threat seriously. "I vote for Konan's plan as well. A combined unit from the various other groups we have will be more effective in unknown territory."
Jiraiya nodded in agreement with Tsunade before turning to Yahiko, "My vote also is cast for a joint unit. Four against one Yahiko, the purely covert strike is overruled. Diversity is our best option in this case..." Yahiko huffed bitterly before standing up out of his chair and heading towards the door. Nagato looked to the side and sighed with disappointment while Konan merely glared in disbelief at him. As he reached for the door, Jiraiya spoke with a hard, sharp tone, "Sit. Down." Yahiko flinched a bit at his former sensei's voice. Even Konan and Nagato looked at their old teacher, a twinge of fear running down their spines. Neither of the Ame founders in Akatsuki had heard that tone from Jiraiya in years, and even then they only heard it on the battlefield. Yahiko sighed, surrendering to his senior, before turning back around and then taking his seat back at the table. "Last order of business now is to assign members from each unit to the Land of Demons."
"I'll lead the group," Konan offered.
"I will too," Yahiko muttered. Konan's eyes turned back to Yahiko, who was staring at the table with his hands holding each other in front of his mouth. Yahiko then looked up at Jiraiya, his eyes no longer bitter or angry. "Two of us will be able to lead a larger team more efficiently."
"Anyone against this," Jiraiya asked, turning to Tsunade and Nagato.
"As long as they can act like grown ups I don't have a problem with it," Tsunade answered. Nagato stared at his childhood friends for a moment before reluctantly nodding. The Rinnegan owner could feel Konan's eyes burning through him. Nagato avoided looking back at Konan, and stayed silent as he hoped that his two friends spending time together would hopefully force them to get along again. Jiraiya then looked at Konan who made no remark before prying her angry eyes off of Nagato.
Jiraiya sighed, restraining himself from going into a fatherly lecture about how his old students should get along better, and specifically for Konan not to take her anger towards Yahiko out on other people. "Alright then...who do we send on this mission with them...?"
"I request Deidara," Konan asked, turning up to Jiraiya. "He's apart of the Intelligence Division anyway, under my jurisdiction, and he's proven himself time and time again as a reliable soldier under my command." Jiraiya nodded in agreement with this and quickly looked around the table for disapproval. When nobody spoke, Jiraiya nodded to Konan. "I would also like to bring along Naruto Uzumaki as well. I think with some help, I could teach him to further tap into his wind style ninjutsu so that he doesn't have to rely on the Rasenshuriken jutsu. Also, his destructive capabilities, combined with his naturally strong chakra and will, could help against an army of any size."
"I'll allow it," Jiraiya said with a smile and a nod. No matter what the vote was, everybody knew Naruto's well-being was Jiraiya's choice in the end, as he was the boy's godfather.
"I'd like to request Obito and Itachi Uchiha accompany us as well on this mission," Yahiko said. "Itachi is potentially one of the most skilled shinobi in Akatsuki outside of those within this room in all fields of combat. Obito is also good for support, and when he gets serious, his fire style can be devastating." Yahiko looked around, making sure nobody opposed his suggestion. For once, he had gotten his way during the meeting, and flashed an appreciative smile. Yahiko looked down, knowing what he was about to say would likely get shot down. "I would also like to request Kiriya to join us as well."
"Absolutely not," Konan snapped, her anger flaring up again. "Not with Naruto in this unit!"
"Listen, I know it may be stupid, but he's skilled at infiltration and assassination. If we even get within a mile of Yomi, Kiriya can take him out." Yahiko stood up slowly and looked at Konan, eyes softened a bit. "I promise there's no secrets this time. No ulterior motive behind me bringing him besides his usefulness towards the mission."
"We don't really have time to argue this," Tsunade stated. She looked at Yahiko, eyes hardened, "If you can keep that assassin of yours on a leash, then I'll agree to it."
"I promise he'll listen to my orders," Yahiko affirmed. If nothing else, Kiriya would surely listen to him on the mission. Also, with Yahiko there, he wouldn't allow Kiriya to go off to act on his own agenda as he had sometimes been known to.
"I trust Yahiko wouldn't make the same mistake twice," Nagato said, looking down at his hands when Konan shot a glare at him. The redhead knew full well he was digging himself a deep grave with his friend, but he had always tried to be the unbiased one when the two of them fought.
Jiraiya took a deep breath through his nose before letting it out and turning to Yahiko. "If the same thing happens again between your boy and Naruto...there's going to be a much harsher punishment than last time."
"I understand Master Jiraiya," Yahiko replied, bowing his head gratefully. He knew Jiraiya meant every word he said. While Yahiko felt that the leaders of Akatsuki babied Naruto far too much, he knew better than to cross the line where Jiraiya would intervene.
Konan had the urge to walk out of the meeting in outrage now that they had allowed Kiriya on the mission. She glared at Yahiko before the other leaders stood up from their chairs.
"We'll have your team assembled in the entrance within the hour," Jiraiya said as he followed Nagato and Tsunade out of the room. As the door closed, Konan stared solely at Yahiko. The orange haired rogue sighed before looking back at Konan.
"Look, this isn't to spite you in any way..."
"Then why the hell does it feel like you're just trying to piss me off," Konan asked angrily.
"I genuinely believe Kiriya could be beneficial this mission. And I wanted to come with you to...hopefully fix a few things between us." Konan glared at him, though her heart sank a little. It wasn't a secret that their relationship had been crumbling since the whole incident after the Land of Snow. "At least give me that chance...I promise I'm the only one who will be dealing with Kiriya..."
"That's what I'm worried about," Konan muttered. She looked up at Yahiko and sighed before holding up her finger. "One chance is all you get. If there's some other secret mission or ulterior motive to hurt Naruto I-,"
"I know how much he means to you and Jiraiya...I...I only had his interests in mi-,"
"Don't," Konan cut him off, having heard all his excuses before. She didn't want to hear anymore of Yahiko's bull before she headed to the door. "I'll be...less abrasive for the mission. Then we'll see where we're at afterwards." Yahiko nodded as Konan left the room, closing the door behind her. A smile came across Yahiko's face as he was hopefully give another, fair, second chance with Konan, that he didn't intend to waste.
In a rocky area, far west from the Land of Earth, Kin sighed as she was followed by Orochimaru's Serpent Five through the Land of Swamps. Below the rocky hill that the six just climbed, was a nasty, foul smelling swamp that Kin couldn't have been happier to get out of.
"Ugh, next time I do something like this, remind me to kill myself," Kin told herself.
"Do not complain about a mission from Lord Orochimaru," Kimimaro said, scolding Kin. "You should be grateful he trusts you with a mission that he hides from that old Hokage."
Kin huffed with an amused smirk on her face, "Oh you have no idea the secrets Orochimaru keeps from Danzo, little man." Kimimaro huffed back at Kin, ignoring her comment as she took the lead. The pale young man didn't like the fact that Orochimaru put Kin in charge of this mission, but he went along with it anyway to please his master.
Behind Kimimaro, the rest of the Serpent Five secretly enjoyed the fact that Kimimaro was put in his place by a girl younger than him. Kin got to the top of the hill and surveyed the area closely. She then knelt down and pulled her backpack off and set it on the ground.
"I don't understand this process at all," Kidomaru said, whispering towards Tayuya. "I thought the Hero Water was supposed to kill living things faster..."
"Kin and Lord Orochimaru worked on the properties of the Hero Water and compared it to previous notes of other cases of life giving water," the redhead stated, her arms crossed over her chest as she watched the black haired girl. "I guess they were relatively successful if they're going to try it out here..."
Kin pulled out an odd device that looked like an oversized compass with numbers on them. She made a face as she stared at the meter going back and forth wildly. "Damn," Kin muttered as she stood up. "This area has too much Dark Chakra in the air for me to perform my experiment..."
"Shit, are we gonna die from exposure to it," Jirobo questioned, tensing up as he looked at his hands.
Kin rolled her eyes, along with Tayuya and Sakon as well, "No idiot. Dark Chakra exposure is only dangerous for prolonged periods of time. Besides, it's faint here, not enough to affect us, but the Hero Water Orochimaru and I tampered with is extremely sensitive you see. Exposure to Dark Chakra might tamper with it in a manner we don't want." Kin bagged up her meter and looked around, "Though this does seem like a good area to study the land some more...you five, keep watch." Everyone except Kimimaro nodded, but all five of them fanned out from the location while Kin pulled out some other mechanical pieces of equipment.
Kin stabbed a series of stakes into the ground, and connected them with a wire. She placed a small device on one stake, which then popped up a digital number. "Hm...Dark Chakra is in the air, but the land itself is...greatly unaffected...most curious." Kin then unraveled a scroll across the ground and clapped her hands together. The various seals all across the scroll then produced eight bound, unconscious bodies that Kin brought with her. Kin stared at the nameless men and women laid out before her, smirking coldly as she readied the experiment. "Orochimaru gave me permission to use this jutsu anyway." She then unrolled a kit full of vials of blood. Kin walked around, pouring the contents of one vial out on a person, then pouring another vial on the second, and so on until the eight bodies were covered with eight different sources of blood. Kin then cast a series of hand signs with rapid movement before clapping her hands together, "Edo Tensei..."
The earth came up from around the bodies, still unconscious, and formed around the sacrifices, encasing them in earth and taking separate forms. As the earth began to settle around the bodies, take shape and add color, the eight new individuals were finally formed.
Kin smiled over at two individuals in particular before walking over to them with the talismans Orochimaru gave her. One by one, she implanted them in each individual's head before activating them, bringing the undead summons to life, so to speak.
The eight shinobi all seemed startled by silence and life as they looked around in awe. "W...where are we?"
"I thought I was..."
Kin stepped forward, smiling that the Edo Tensei worked for her, and that the minor traces of Dark Chakra had no ill effects. "Welcome back to the land of the living ladies and gentlemen." All heads turned to Kin, just noticing her for the first time. The black haired girl smiled and turned to one figure in particular who scowled at her. "Sorry about how things ended last time Suien, but well, business is business, and Orochimaru doesn't like traitors."
"You evil bitch," Suien snapped, "You brought us back with the Edo Tensei?!" Everyone seemed astonished by the name of the jutsu Suien spoke of. Kin shrugged carelessly and looked around at the rest of her soldiers.
"So, we have Suien the spineless, Shibuki, the hero, leader, and destroyer of Takigakure..." The, revived young man scowled bitterly, mostly at himself, as Kin's words were like a dagger to his heart. Suien stared at Shibuki silently, never having seen his former apprentice during the whole war against his old village. "Kandachi, Hisame, Kirisame, Murasame, all of Amegakure..."
"You dare bring me back to life with this foul ninjutsu," Kandachi snapped. "I'm Lord Hanzo's second in command, and if you think-,"
"You're also now disgraced as one of the most incompetent leaders in Alliance history," Kin interjected, silencing Kandachi due to pure shock. The Salamander's former right hand fell silent as he stared at the ground in disbelief. Kin sneered sadistically, feeling no remorse on inflicting such a personal blow to her new, undead slaves, "The least you can do is be of some use to Orochimaru now as a sacrifice in the Edo Tensei. Be happy that your...fairly limited abilities warranted enough to at least be an experiment for us." Kin's smile widened and then went to the the remaining two shinobi, both from different villages. "Gari of the Explosions Corps in Iwagakure, and Pakura of the Scorch Style kekkei genkai from Sunagakure. I must admit, Lord Orochimaru gave me quite the lineup for a simple experiment." Kin shook her head and shrugged, "But, I guess when the price is so high, Orochimaru wouldn't want to leave anything to chance."
"What exactly are we doing, where are we," Gari asked, looking around the immediate area.
"We're in the Land of Swamps, far beyond the borders of the Alliance," Kin explained. "There's a mission of the utmost importance to our cause, and...well let's just say it's in our best interest to find out what's going on." Suien and Shibuki both had tried struggling against the Edo Tensei, but they did so in vain, unable to break free from their bonds. "Now this'll be a fun little trip. For the time being though..." Kin wiped the eight sacrifices of their personalities before placing them back in empty coffins to use them at a later moment in time. Kin chuckled before whistling loudly, calling the Serpent Five back to her before moving forward, towards the location where Moryo's body was sealed.
In the Land of Demons, a group of men wearing black clothes, led by a group of four others wearing white robes led an assault on an ancient shrine, filled with armed soldiers. Alongside them, three other shinobi wearing wearing white vests, with similar long, spiky hair of different colors, smiling as they rampaged through the shrine, killing anyone who stood in their way.
The four in the white robes lingered back for a moment while the subordinates and the other three killed the grunts in the shrine. The four turned their heads and bowed to a dark figure in a black coat and grey attire as he walked in. The man didn't stop to acknowledge his subordinates as he continued though, passing the lines of corpses and blood on his way.
A few subordinates stood on either side of a massive, blown open doorway, allowing their master and superiors inside as they bowed down on one knee. Inside, the three odd shinobi out were waiting, with an orange haired man holding the face of a soldier before he turned to stone. The orange haired man smirked before using his fist to smash the statue into pieces before he and his two partners looked up at the dark man.
The man reached into his coat and pulled out a wad of paper bills and tossed them to the brute-ish man to the right. "Half now, the other half when the job is finished," the dark man spoke.
"As you wish Yomi," the orange haired man said before stepping out of his way with his comrades.
"Only I may continue through here," Yomi said. "The dark powers of the underworld lie ahead, and only I who bear the name Yomi may be allowed forward." The dark man then stepped down the steps, descending into further darkness until he approached the a singular stone monument surrounded by stone pillars, with a seal above the monument, shining down light upon the monument. As Yomi walked towards it, there were thousands of stone rocks to both his left and right.
"Jutsu ceremony, COMMENCE!" The ground shook under Yomi's feet as he extended his palm towards the doors, held together by sealing tags. The dark man began chanting loudly, his eyes widening as he felt power surging through his arm. When he finished his chant, a dark power shot out from his palm and onto the door, burning the seals in purple flames. The door began to crack and crumble before exploding outward, the inside blowing out from pressure as dark tendrils shot past Yomi, who covered his face.
"Ahhhh, how nostalgic," a dark voice echoed loudly from within the shrine. "So I have finally returned to this world..."
Yomi smiled and then knelt down before the dark mass, "After such a long time...Lord Moryo..."
"And you are...?"
Yomi didn't show any signs of shock, but merely questioned the demonic entity, "Have you forgotten...? I am Yomi."
"Yomi..." the voice murmured softly.
"I am a survivor from a clan of shinobi that used your dark powers to create the Ghost Army..."
"Why have you summoned me...?"
"The stars are aligning," Yomi explained eagerly, "It is time for us to join forces, and create the Thousand Year Kingdom!"
The spirit remained silent for a few moments before speaking again, "Where is my physical form? Without it, my spirit will scatter to the winds if I attempt to leave beyond this shrine..."
"Please," Yomi begged as he stood up, "Use my body as your avatar. With my dark medical arts," Yomi pulled open the two sides of his jacket open, showing various medical tools. "I will take hold of your spirit, and transfer it to the confines of my body." The man undid his shirt as he pulled out a scalpel and a pair of tweezers. Yomi stabbed himself in his upper chest, and then tore downward. He took two hook like objects and then pulled his body open, revealing a mass of Dark Chakra, like the mass within the shrine. "Now come, enter my body!"
"Very well," Moryo murmured as he shot out of the shrine and forcefully pushed himself within Yomi's body. After managing to brace himself on the ground, once the demon was inside of him, Yomi quickly sealed his wound up with medical ninjutsu, finishing his binding with Moryo.
Yomi smiled anxiously as he felt the power flowing through his body, "Ceremony complete." Yomi began to cackle loudly as he threw his hands up into the air as a powerful blast of Dark Chakra throughout the chamber. "Arise! MY ARMY!" The temple began to shake under the power Yomi unleashed, and the thousands of rocks on the ground began to quake and crumble, but revealed another form underneath it. The rocks then took the shapes of thousands of stone warriors, that all developed glowing green eyes. "On your feet," Yomi commanded with a wave of his hand. The stone warriors came to life, readying their weapons in their hands as Yomi stepped back towards the entrance, smiling with pleasure. "Let us embark, on to the place where our master's body rests!"
"No...there is an enemy that we must vanquish first," Moryo stated. "Seek out the High Priestess in the Land of Demons. She is the only one with the power to reseal me. She must be eliminated."
"Understood my lord," Yomi replied.
"Good. Once I have been reunited with my body, I will annihilate the Five Great Nations, and establish a singular kingdom, to rule the world..."
After a full day of traveling, when night fell, the Akatsuki team decided to set up camp and start moving immediately the next morning. Thankfully, due to their fast paced moving, the group managed to get halfway through the Land of Waterfalls, which was mostly vacant with the exception of a few, mildly populated villages.
Naruto hated every second of the mission, as oppose to his usual joy and love for being out of the hideout. The main reason for hating the mission was that he was stuck to be on the same team as two of his least favorite members of Akatsuki; Yahiko and Kiriya.
Although Konan explained that, while admitting it was a bit selfish, Yahiko being apart of the mission was to help them fix their relationship, and having Kiriya along was to show that she still had some trust and faith in Yahiko. Naruto, out of his respect and love for the blue haired woman he viewed as an older sister, begrudgingly stayed quiet about the whole ordeal and went along with it.
Thankfully, Naruto had Deidara and Obito, along with the occasional Itachi, to socialize and interact with instead of dealing with Yahiko or Kiriya. Naruto sat with Deidara as he tried to explain to Obito the principles of art, which the spiky haired Uchiha wasn't really grasping. The blonde smiled at Deidara's aggravation before looking out at the rest of the camp. Itachi was keeping watch, Yahiko and Konan were talking instead of arguing it seemed for once, and the silver haired assassin was sitting on his own.
Naruto turned his head back to Deidara, attempting to change the subject before Obito got a fist to the face. "So, do either of you know what's the big deal with this Dark Chakra stuff?" Both the senior shinobi turned to the blonde with shocked looks. Deidara looked to Obito, who kept looking at Naruto.
"Well...Dark Chakra is a weird thing..."
"I gathered that," Naruto replied with a snarky tone as he rolled his eyes. He asked Obito, because even though the Uchiha was a bit slow, he could explain it in terms that Naruto would at least understand. "But what make it so special that we immediately haul butt after someone who uses it?"
Obito sighed, sitting cross legged with his arms folded over his chest as he grew a thoughtful look on his face. Naruto raised a questioning brow before looking up at Deidara who shrugged. "Well...Dark Chakra is essentially the manifestation of pure evil to put it simply..." Obito opened his eyes and looked between the two blondes. "Dark Chakra is negative thoughts, feelings, emotions, actions, all condensed and built over what usually takes centuries. The legends for those who believe in a creature like the Ten Tails is that it was the original source of all Dark Chakra, as it was a being of pure raw, killing power. And as such, its power still lingers here in the world today."
"So, it's just a bunch of bad vibes floating around in the air," Deidara asked, stifling a laugh. Naruto gave Deidara a quick glance, slightly shocked that even Deidara, with all his knowledge that was well beyond his years, didn't know what Dark Chakra was either.
Obito groaned a bit as he rubbed his head, "It's...difficult to explain really. Okay, let's say there's truly an evil person in the world, whose only purpose for doing said evil acts is because...well, they're sadistic evil people."
"Like Danzo," Naruto said sarcastically, using the Akatsuki's mortal enemy as an example.
"Well, kind of...Dark Chakra are purely negative emotions, like hate, anger, sadness, and so on. Danzo...really doesn't have a lot of those. He believes he's leading a crusade to bring the world to peace. He doesn't do it out of spite, or vengeance, and he only uses power because he knows it'll lead him to his eventual goal which is world domination. So, he's not much of an example."
Naruto huffed bitterly, mentally disagreeing with Obito, but stayed silent. Deidara turned to his senior shinobi, "So then Dark Chakra manifests in evil feelings or actions right? There are plenty of sadistic freaks in the world, how come Dark Chakra isn't more well known about?"
"Well Dark Chakra takes up some time to build...mass genocides being one specific example of how you can get a bit of Dark Chakra. It's a very rare element to be honest..."
"You're really bad at explaining this ya know," Naruto stated. Obito laughed, a bit embarrassed, in agreement with the spiky haired blonde.
"Well, all you need to know is that Dark Chakra is evil, rare, and extremely dangerous in the wrong hands...which is why we've been sent to stop this Yomi guy from reviving his demon buddy hopefully." Obito's face grew a bit more somber before he shrugged, "Honestly, pure Dark Chakra is something that's unheard of. That's why it's so difficult to explain exactly what Dark Chakra is."
"So, it's an artificial thing," Deidara questioned while playing with a wad of clay in his hand.
"Realistically, yeah. But people theorize that Dark Chakra came from an original source, which is what most of the 'artificial' Dark Chakra has to be based on. Like I said, some people think it came from the Ten Tails, for those who believe legends like that." Naruto nodded firmly, turning his attention slowly back to Yahiko and Konan, leaving Deidara and Obito to continue discussing Dark Chakra themselves. The young boy would never admit it, but he was worried about her whether or not her relationship with Yahiko could be salvaged.
The couple laughed softly together, causing Naruto to stick out his lower lip in a skeptical pout. Though he wanted whatever would make Konan happiest, a bitter part of him really didn't want her to get back with Yahiko.
While staring at the two though, Naruto couldn't help but feel envious as Konan rested her head on Yahiko's shoulder. The blonde thought of a certain pink haired girl before looking up at the starry night sky, and wished that he could share a moment like that with Sakura.
Sakura sneezed just as the team entered Iwagakure. Rin, being closest to Sakura, turned her head with a quizzical look, "Are you catching a cold now?"
"No," Sakura said rubbing her finger beneath her nose. "It was colder at the shores anyway..."
"Then maybe some stud is talkin' about you," Anko joked, standing on the other side of Sakura. The pink haired girl blushed a bit and scowled at her sensei. Having gone so long without being on the same team as Anko, Sakura forgot how haughty she could be.
Thanks to sticking to the paths, and taking a few shortcuts through the Land of Earth, the team managed to get to Iwagakure within a day and a half's time. The whole group voted on taking a rest in Iwagakure, instead of in tents, and then continue to the Land of Swamps in the morning. Somehow, the Tsuchikage caught wind of their stopping in Iwagakure, and decided to give them the nicest lodgings the village could spare.
Sakura had to admit that it was a nicer welcome than the last time she was Iwagakure, and she hoped this time she could leave the village without any trouble caused.
The lodgings were very large, especially for only two people per room, and for it being less than a full night. Zaku and Dosu shared a room next to Anko and Rin's, and across the hall was Kurotsuchi and Fu's room next to Sakura and Higure's.
Higure wasted no time before falling into the bed face-first and relaxing. Sakura rolled her eyes at her uncle's laziness before sitting on the bed across the room. "You act as though you haven't walked in ages."
"I haven't," Higure said in muffled reply to his pillow. He sat up and turned to Sakura, his hair a mess and hanging partially in his face. "Do you forget all my physical activity before this was walking around the house and around the village?"
"Oh you seriously can't be that lazy already," Sakura teased with a laugh. Higure pouted before falling back onto his pillow. Sakura smiled before looking over the room again, still not getting over how large it was. "So...what else do you know about the mission, Uncle?"
Higure opened his eyes halfway before sighing a bit and sitting up on the bed. He turned towards Sakura, rubbing the back of his head before he looked at her. "Basically, some crazy guy is trying to revive this demon, and some army along with it, and that poses a threat to blah, blah, blah." Sakura raised her brow and crossed her arms, giving her uncle a look that told him to reconsider his answer. Higure sighed as he removed his headband, placing it on the nightstand. "The biggest issue I think is the fact that there's proof that someone has managed to harness and utilize Dark Chakra effectively..."
"Dark Chakra? What's that?"
Higure smirked a bit at how nice it was to be ignorant to some things in life. "Dark Chakra is the manifestation of anything evil within a person. Evil deeds, actions, thought, they build up over time and manifest into a malicious, evil form of energy that influences and increases those evil actions the more it's used." Higure looked up at Sakura for a moment, seeing her face that she usually wore when she processed new information. "It's like a drug to be honest. It increases your power exponentially, but at a terrible cost. Too much reliance on Dark Chakra will leave you addicted to it, and without its power you won't be able to survive. It will also affect your personality and mind, making you into some sort of monster who just enjoys to do whatever malicious thought comes to mind until you're even less mentally inclined than some beast."
"So...you trade your humanity for power...?" Higure nodded, eyes down at the ground as silence hung in the air. Sakura couldn't imagine trading her feelings for some mad, constant bloodlust all just to be stronger.
"There are many people who would gladly give up their humanity for the power Dark Chakra can offer them..." Higure looked up at Sakura for a moment before moving his gaze up to the ceiling. "Never underestimate the drive some people possess for power..." The Commander yawned loudly and then flopped backwards onto the bed, stretching out his arms and legs. "BUT! Enough of that for tonight I think. We should get plenty of rest for tomorrow's journey..."
Sakura huffed with a small smirk at this before simply nodding. "I guess you're right..."
"Goodnight Sakura," Higure said with a yawn. Sakura got under the covers of her bed and lied down, his mind restless but her body tired.
"Goodnight Uncle..." Sakura sighed and then closed her eyes, hoping that her mind would let her sleep after awhile. She wished that sometimes she could be as relaxed as her uncle on issues like this. She honestly wondered if the man ever stressed about anything in his life.
In the Land of Demons, a group of six stood before the burning shrine that formerly housed Moryo's spirit. One member of the group, with white, shoulder length hair and wearing a robe similar to the rest of the part, knelt down and observed the ground carefully.
"Well...it looks like a large group hit the temple..."
"We can see that Mangetsu," the tallest man, Kushimaru, replied. "The question is, was it the Alliance, or Yomi?" The other masked man, who stood in the center of the group with his hood up over his head unlike the rest, stood in silence. "What do you think Madara?"
The second masked man pulled off his mask, his hood staying over his head. A few of the others, Mangetsu especially, were surprised by the act, having never seen their leader's face before. Despite this though, the hood did a rather successful job of hiding the man's face from sight. After a few seconds of his arm by his side, Madara turned his head to the right and put his mask back on.
"It was Yomi's group...they split up into two groups." Madara pointed in one direction with his gloved hand, "One went east, and the other went more northeast."
"The question is why," Jinin asked.
"One group deals with the High Priestess to ensure she can't reseal Moryo's spirit, while the other heads to the Land of Swamps in order to reunite the spirit with its original body."
"Then do we split up as well boss," Mangetsu asked, crossing his arms over his chest. Madara shook his head and headed directly east.
"The Priestess doesn't concern our motives. Shinno requires the Dark Chakra in order to complete my wish, and Moryo is a being of pure Dark Chakra and malice. Its spirit should be more than enough for us to cipher off for the old fool." As the masked man took the lead, the five swordsmen followed behind him.
Mangetsu crossed his arms over his chest, staring at the back of their leader's head before leaning towards Ameyuri. "Hey, how is it that the boss man always knows what to do and where to go?" The kunoichi looked up at the taller boy with a raised brow and questioning gaze. Mangetsu ignored the stare and continued. "I mean...there's no way he can actually know everything, right?"
"I don't know. I just follow the orders given to me. The only ones who know much about him are Kisame and Kushimaru, and their predecessors as well as ours before them."
"So, do we even know what his goal is," Mangetsu questioned suspiciously. "Or even why he needs this Dark Chakra stuff...?"
"I don't question the need," Ameyuri stated firmly. Mangetsu turned to the kunoichi in a bit of surprise, as her gaze was kept firmly forward on their leader. "He saved my life, and as such, my life is his to do with what he pleases. I don't question, doubt, or judge him or his motives. I have no room, nor say for that kind of nonsense." The kunoichi turned her attention upward towards Mangetsu, frowning slightly. "You're one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, and as such you should act like one and follow your leader."
"Enough, Ameyuri." Both Mangetsu and the short redhead turned towards Kushimaru, who was only ahead of them by a few steps. "If Mangetsu wishes to know so much, all he must do is ask Madara himself." Mangetsu looked forward at Madara, who kept walking forward. Somehow, even with his back turned, Mangetsu felt their leader's cold, blazing red Sharingan as if it was burning holes through him.
"Eh...n-not right now," Mangetsu replied with a shrug. "Don't want to distract myself from the mission." As he said this, Mangetsu felt a huge weight off his shoulders, as though Madara's killing intent had gone down. The young swordsmen shook it off as paranoia, knowing that even though he very easily could, Madara wouldn't kill him without justifiable reason, like Fuguki. The young master swordsmen turned back to Ameyuri, who mentally rolled her eyes. "So, how did he save your life exactly? I don't really see Madara being the type to go out of his way to save someone..."
Ameyuri sighed before her eyes fell upon the man who saved her life again. As they walked, the memories came flooding back to her all at once. "You really question too many things Mangetsu..."
Ameyuri watched as the older man was on his knees before her, pleading as rain fell down upon them. Around the two were at least a dozen dead bodies of Iwagakure Jonin, none of which were allies to either of them. The man, Raiga Kurosuki, had asked to become the young girl's apprentice, an act which was truly odd in her mind.
"Please...I swear I will not disappoint you Master Ringo! Please, just let me find some meaning in my life!" Ameyuri narrowed her eyes on Raiga, having half a mind to kill him for his pathetic display. However, she thought far in advance, knowing that her time was limited unless the Kirigakure medical teams could find a cure for her disease.
"If you really want to find meaning in life, then fine," Ameyuri finally answered. Raiga gasped as he looked up at the shorter girl. Ameyuri held her swords in front of her, showing them to Raiga. "If you want a purpose in life, then your purpose will be to surpass me one day, and kill me in order to take these blades from my dead, lifeless body, and continue on the legacy of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Do not expect me to be your friend, or your ally! We are enemies, but I will oversee your training nonetheless, until the day comes when you can kill me, Raiga Kurosuki!"
Weeks had passed, and while the man showed considerable eagerness to serve, his skills with the Kiba blades were developing at a much slower rate than Ameyuri's. Due to her young initiation into the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, Ameyuri was undoubtedly skilled, but still had room to improve, and she did so each day. She was a prodigy, second only to the newly inducted Mangetsu Hozuki, who proved to be a master of all seven blades, something which had been unheard of since the Third Mizukage, Saizo Hideyoshi.
Every day when Ameyuri trained Raiga, one of the other swordsmen would watch, out of sheer curiosity, and most of them would taunt, mock, or tease both Ameyuri and Raiga. The only exceptions seemed to be Kushimaru, who only watched once in pure silence before telling Ameyuri that Raiga would never be a suitable replacement to her, and Fuguki, who could care less about Raiga's development. Jinin chastised Raiga for being weak, and told Ameyuri she should focus more on her duties, rather than finding a replacement so early. Jinpachi insulted both of them, saying he would sooner kill Raiga then let him join, and verbally considered doing the same to Ameyuri to put her out of her misery. Mangetsu was young, and nobody told him about Ameyuri's sickness, but he remained obnoxious and rude to both Ameyuri, but especially to Raiga. Zabuza continually watched at least once a week during their training sessions, often saying nothing but negative comments towards Raiga's growth. He would also tell Ameyuri the same thing that the others told her, which was not to waste time with Raiga, as he showed very little potential.
The criticisms and insults got the better of Ameyuri, as she forced Raiga to learn faster, and push him harder. His ninja skills improved greatly under her, helping him even achieve the rank of ANBU in Kirigakure, but still his swordsmanship lacked greatly. He had no problem using the power the Kiba blades granted, but when using the swords themselves to kill or defend himself, it was like giving a katana to a five year old. For someone to truly surpass Ameyuri, they had to use the blades and their specialized powers in harmony, as Ameyuri did. It frustrated her when Raiga couldn't utilize both abilities, which often resulted in Ameyuri severely abusing Raiga, physically and mentally.
For months, all Raiga heard was criticisms towards him, and the word 'replacement' became a common thing. He learned of Ameyuri's sickness, and realized why she chose him to begin with. He knew however, that he would not be strong enough to kill Ameyuri, even on her sickest day.
Ameyuri had become busy with treatments and missions when she had free time, having almost completely abandoned Raiga altogether. One day, she received a mission to find and kill a young boy who bore an unusual kekkei genkai, which brought the village fear of the young child.
Ameyuri arrived at the place where the child was supposed to be, but found only an empty cot. The swords woman scowled and looked around, seeing no footprints or any trail to go off of to find the brat.
She heard a dull thunk before turning towards one of the wooden walls before it exploded, throwing her backwards through the opposite wall, and sent her bouncing and rolling through the snow. Ameyuri groaned before her chest felt constricted and her limbs tensed up in pain. She shuddered and coughed painfully, hacking up blood with each cough, coloring the snow red.
"Well, that seems to have worked," a voice said. Ameyuri slowly turned her head up, seeing a cloaked, hooded figure staring down at her. He recognized him immediately and scowled.
"R...ai...ga..." Ameyuri began coughing harder, coloring more snow red as she collapsed upon it.
"You know, I came to you trying to find a purpose in my life," Raiga stated as he knelt down, picking up one of the Kiba swords. Ameyuri scowled furiously as she saw her blade lifted out of the snow by Raiga's hand. "Instead, you and everyone else in the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist made me steadily hate it more and more. When I kill, my heart cries for my victims. But when I thought of killing you..." Raiga picked up the other sword before standing up over Ameyuri, gazing down at her with a look of pity and hatred. "Seeing you die at my feet now...I feel nothing for you..."
"B...bastard...c-coward..." Ameyuri coughed, unable to get out more than one word as her head, body, and eyelids felt heavy and darkness started to cloud her vision.
"I'll leave you to rot away in the snow, slowly," Raiga stated. "And I will work towards killing the rest of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist to taste my revenge. And I'll do it, with these very swords." Raiga held up the Kiba blades, causing more anger to course through Ameyuri's body. As she began to cough from stress and pain from her body, Raiga lowered his arms, and his new blades before glaring down at his former master. "Goodbye, Ameyuri." Raiga then turned around and disappeared through the fire and into the forest.
Ameyuri groaned weakly, blood trickling out of her mouth as her eyes fell shut and darkness overtook her. Hatred and anger coursed through her body, more than the blood that rushed through her veins. She hated Raiga more than any other target, more than any other prey she had hunted before in her life, and couldn't live with the thought that Raiga would get away with his betrayal. She tried to force her body to move, but with the explosion, blood loss, and illness overtaking her body, Ameyuri felt life slowly fading from her body. Darkness overtook her vision, though her eyes were wide with rage. She knew death was about to consume her, but fought it with all of her being until her last moments.
"Not like this," a dark voice said. Ameyuri questioned the unfamiliar voice as she felt life restoring into her body. She opened her eyes slowly, seeing a masked man standing over her, wearing a hood over his head, and a single dark hole for one eye staring down at her. "Ameyuri Ringo...you're much to valuable for me to let you die like a sickened dog..."
"Who...?"
"Question me not, child, I will heal you." Ameyuri felt as though she were sucked into a tornado, before just as quickly being spat back out on what she felt was a table. The masked man lowered his hood, revealing long, spiky black hair. He placed a mask over Ameyuri's mouth, which made her drowsy. "When you wake up, you'll be alive again..."
Mangetsu remained silent as Ameyuri finished the story. The kunoichi spoke first, "I don't question why he saved me, beyond my use as a tool for his overall plan. I don't even question why he waited until I was dying before he saved me. Perhaps he thought the same thing I did, and that Raiga had the potential to surpass me."
"But there's no way that he could have," Mangetsu replied sternly. "We all saw it, nobody besides you felt that Raiga could live up to your potential."
"Raiga Kurosuki's mind was distracted and clouded with questions. What is my purpose in life? Why do we live life only to take others? These were questions Raiga confided into me, and I told him to block out meaningless questions. Had his mind been clearer, or had I been able to clear his head, Raiga could have excelled at using the Kiba blades far beyond what I could have reached by the end of my natural life. I'm sure Madara saw it as well...and that's why he waited."
"In the end, he proved to be skilled with the blade's natural power," Madara spoke, catching the attention of the swordsmen around him. "But his ability to kill in cold blood, slaughter countless people, and to use the blades to their fullest potential, is something Raiga Kurosuki lacked until he went rogue." Madara turned his head, his Sharingan staring at Mangetsu. "If you wish to survive, Mangetsu, I suggest you clear your mind of questions. Lest I suspect you of doing what Kurosuki did."
Mangetsu felt a shiver of fear before nodding to Madara, "Yes sir, my lord. M-my apologies." Madara turned his head back around and continued forward, leading the group in silence.
Kin and the Serpent Five stood before the shrine that housed Moryo's body, which happened to be within a dormant, volcanic mountain. The group observed the shrine closely, seeing no obvious signs of a giant demonic body of any sort. Despite this though, a few of them felt uncomfortable being so close to so much lava, and began sweating a bit.
"Alright then," Kin muttered to herself as she pulled out the odd meter from before. She turned it on, and was surprised when she read there was no Dark Chakra in the immediate area. "Well okay then. This will be the perfect place for a base of operations..."
"How can there be no Dark Chakra in this place," Sakon questioned. "It feels dark, and it houses the body of a demon somewhere."
"Most likely the Shrine Seal placed on this area prevents any Dark Chakra from coming in and making Moryo's body stronger," Tayuya guessed.
"I want you all to scout the area out," Kin ordered as she unrolled a map of the Land of Swamps. "Set up traps and a perimeter, keep anyone and everyone out of this shrine until I'm finished with my experiments for Orochimaru."
The Serpents nodded and then headed out of the cave. Kin went over her list of Edo Tensei soldiers, wondering if any of them would be helpful for setting up traps. She shrugged before focusing more on her studies, deciding to leave the hard work to the Serpents.
Kin held up a vial of an odd, white substance that seemed to be alive as it moved around in the glass tube. The black haired woman held the vial closer to her face and smiled with appreciation as the substance inside the vial were thousands of tiny white snakes. Kin pulled out another vial of the modified Hero Water and opened it. Holding the vial out, Kin bit her finger open, dropping in a single bit of her blood into the Hero Water before opening up the vial of snakes and then dumping them into the red Hero Water.
After dumping the last of the snakes into the vial, the tube of Hero Water eventually busted open as the snakes multiplied at an astronomical rate, forming a giant ball before taking on shape and more defined features. Kin grinned, eyes wide with glee as the snakes took on a unified, physical shape in the exact replica of Kin herself. Though the copy was much paler than the original, as well as lacking clothes, and black eyes, it was exactly like Kin in terms of facial features, hair, and even body structure.
"Perfect...absolutely perfect! Lord Orochimaru will most definitely be pleased with this," Kin stated. She pulled out a kunai with a seal tag on it and then pushed it into the copy's head. The copy's eyes grew with black sclera and white irids as it seemingly came to life. "Now, I'll just keep you close by until further tests are needed." Kin reached into her side pouch, pulling out a handful of seeds. "Orochimaru doesn't wish for this mission to fail...he's really pulling out all the stops to ensure our objective proceeds as he wants."
Kin knelt down and found a soft patch of dirt before scooping out a hole. She planted the seeds within the dirt and covered them up, getting another vial of modified Hero Water before dripping a few droplets onto it. She stepped back and watched as nearly a dozen, wooden copies of the same man came out of the ground. Kin snickered to herself, her head spinning a bit at how much power Orochimaru allowed her to have on this mission.
After the Yamato clones formed, they all turned to Kin, recognizing her as their master and kneeled before her. Kin ignored the gesture before turning and kneeling down at the map of the Land of Swamps, drawing out their current location with a pencil.
"Let's see...if I set up a perimeter of a few miles...have the first line of defense out here...then the Edo Tensei sacrifices, and whatever clones I can make with experimental clone snakes Orochimaru developed...and then the Serpent Five as the next line of defense around the mountain itself..." Kin giggled to herself, unable to contain her excitement. Her eyes widened with glee before she turned to the Yamato clones. "Head out at least ten miles from the mountain, and form a solid perimeter! Walls, traps, defenses, I don't care, just make sure it can stall and keep enemies out! But first..." Kin turned to the clone of herself before pulling out of her backpack, a kit that held many more vials of the clone snakes. "Now..." Kin approached each of the Yamato clones and performed a one handed seal sign. Each Yamato clone then opened their mouths, and Kin poured one vial of clones down each of their mouths. "The Hero Water will be help keep the snakes alive inside of your bodies hopefully," Kin said as she poured more snakes into the wooden clones. "Whenever your bodies are dead, or rendered useless, the snakes should take the opportunity to absorbed the Hero Water from your bodies, and increase at a rapid rate before latching onto whomever killed you. Then, they should become an exact copy of whoever that person may be. Now go!"
The Yamato clones turned and exited the cave, leaving Kin alone with her copy. The young woman grinned maliciously, realizing that her chances of success were beyond what she expected, feeling in complete control of the entire mission, and becoming so much closer to accomplish Orochimaru's plans successfully.
The Akatsuki team had woken up at the crack of dawn, and wasted no time in running across as much land as they could. Yahiko believed that they could get just past Iwagakure before nightfall, should they manage to avoid any complications. Their timing was nearly cut in half when they realized Deidara could take them flying over the rough, rocky terrain of the Land of Earth, and across the sea that separated the Land of Swamps from the Land of Earth with ease.
Naruto sat with Obito and Deidara once again at the lead of the flying trio of clay birds. Itachi and Kiriya sat on the second one, while Yahiko and Konan sat on the third one. Naruto still stayed silent, bitter and hoping that their mission could be over with sooner rather than later for him.
The silence was getting the better of both Obito and Deidara, who looked at one another with the same expression and the same thought. They both turned their heads, seeing Naruto looking off far to the side with a pout on his face.
"Sheesh," Deidara muttered.
"Nothing we can do about it though," Obito replied with a shrug. The young Uchiha turned to Deidara, and realized in all the time they both spent complaining about Naruto acting like a brat, they never really talked much about each other. "So," Obito began, "Um...what do you think of the mission?"
"Well, undoubtedly we'll run into Alliance," Deidara stated firmly.
"What? What makes you think that?"
"We found out about this guy in the Land of Demons, Yomi. The Alliance has more spies than we do, so most likely they've got spies all throughout the countries outside their borders. And if they know even half as much as we do, they would've already sent out a team, or a party to stop it." Deidara looked back over his shoulder at Yahiko and Konan, who smiled and laughed while they talked. "They've gotta know that too...or at least suspected as much."
Obito turned around and nodded before looking back at Deidara. The blonde artist sighed before rubbing the side of his head. "Well," Obito said, hoping to relieve his partner. "That just means we have to be extra careful." Deidara rolled his eyes at the obvious statement, while Obito only smiled kindly. A though occurred to him as he looked up at the sky. "So...do we know what else do we know about the mission? Besides demons and Dark Chakra?"
"Well," Deidara muttered as he began mulling over the quick mission brief that he was given before heading out. "Demonic cults, the Ghost Army we were all told about...I guess the sealing that kept Moryo's body and spirit bound..."
"What kind of seals," Obito asked. He felt as though the Alliance may have sent a bunch of egg-heads on the mission, as it sounded very advanced beyond the simple smash and destroy mission.
"Very advanced seals obviously," Deidara said, "Complex stuff which most sealing jutsus don't even compare to anymore..." Obito's eyes fell softly as a thought occurred to him.
"Uzumaki brand seals?" Hearing his last name caught Naruto's attention, as well as Deidara's. The older blonde stared at Obito with shock, but shrugged truthfully as he wasn't sure. "If they're Uzumaki grade seals used to keep Moryo's body and spirit suppressed...then I think I know who they'd send on this mission..."
"Who then?" Naruto stared at Obito, also curious to the answer of Deidara's question.
"My sensei's old teammate and friend," Obito replied. "Higure Haruno..."
"There's no damn way," Deidara exclaimed. "He's Commander of the First Division! There's no way Danzo would send out one of his Commanders to deal with such a small scale problem!" Obito's eyes narrowed, unconvinced by Deidara's protest. The blonde artist huffed bitterly, thinking Obito was an idiot for even suggesting a Commander would be sent out from their post.
"Higure was one of Minato sensei's closest friends...and as such, they both understood, studied, and learned a variety of high level sealing ninjutsu, due to Kushina's lineage as an Uzumaki." Naruto's eyes narrowed a bit too, skeptically analyzing Obito's words.
"But...mom wasn't a ninja...how could she teach dad or Sakura's uncle ninjutsu?" Obito's eyes widened a bit with surprise as his mind quickly sifted through information before he remembered the sensitive nature of Kushina's history.
"W-well, as a member of the Uzumaki Clan, she still had scrolls and information on how the ninjutsu worked. And your dad and Higure took that information and well...the rest is history." Obito chuckled nervously under the questioning stare of Naruto. The blonde turned his head away, ignoring the half-ass answer Obito gave him.
The black haired Uchiha sighed before turning to Deidara who also gave him a questioning gaze. Obito gave the artist a stare that told Deidara enough, as they both turned and focused on the horizon ahead.
On the other bird, the silver haired assassin overheard the conversation, and stared intently at Naruto. Kiriya smirked inwardly before turning his head away from the Jinchuriki.
Kin grew increasingly frustrated at her attempts to break the seal binding Moryo's body to the mountain. She needed a sample of the body in order to resume the experiment, but the Shrine Seal went above and beyond what she and Orochimaru predicted. They expected it being of Uzumaki origin, which it was, but there was even more complexity beyond simply that. She would need an expert on sealing ninjutsu, such as Higure. Kin shook her head, reminding herself that her mission needed to be a secret, and make sure that Danzo wouldn't be aware of Orochimaru's goal.
Another thought came into mind, which Kin knew that she would have to be extremely careful in playing it if she was going to risk helping that man. Still, it was the only way she could foresee herself breaking the seal before the Alliance team arrived on their mission. Kin turned to her clone, eyes narrowed as her mind began devising a new plan.
Yomi, his gang of four, the three mercenaries, and the large group of shinobi under his command marched towards the Land of Swamps, and had been doing so for days now, nearly the border of the Land of Swamps. The group looked up as they saw a lone figure with long, black hair staring at them. Yomi stopped, followed by the rest of their little army.
Yomi stared at the black haired girl, by herself, standing in the middle of the forest while the sun began to set behind her. Dull, lifeless eyes looked at the possessed Yomi, who stared back at her. "I am Kin Tsuchi. I am a rogue kunoichi who currently has control of the Shrine Seal holding Moryo's body captive."
Yomi narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, "And you're telling me this because...?"
"I believe we can work out a partnership," Kin said through her clone's body. "I went through all the trouble of setting up hundreds of traps and defenses all around the Shrine Seal's perimeter. Now, I can allow you all to pass through easily, and without trouble, or you can make this more difficult on yourselves, and prolong Moryo's revival."
"You think my men are afraid of death," Yomi asked, scowling with narrowed eyes.
"No, but I think your demonic god is," Kin replied with a smirk on her clone's face. Yomi twitched slightly at this while Kin's smirk grew. "You're clearly housing the demon's spirit, in order to transport it to the Shrine Seal. However, how long can your body withstand such power, Yomi? How long until your body gives out, and Moryo's spirit fades and dissipates into nothingness?"
"What do you want then...?"
Kin smiled and nodded with approval, "I'm well aware that undoing the Shrine Seal will take nearly a full day to do, even for an expert like you. I simply require a sample of Moryo's body. So you see, our goals are the same. Not only that, but the Alliance is on its way to stop Moryo's body from being released. With your forces and mine combined into one, we will be able to stop anyone who wishes to see Moryo forever sealed away."
All eyes turned to Yomi, who in the end could make this decision. Within him, Yomi could feel his master Moryo tell him to side with her. Yomi finally nodded to her, "Very well...lead us to Moryo's shrine then, witch." Kin laughed at the nickname before her clone turned around and headed back towards the Shrine Seal, as Yomi and the others followed.
As his four main subordinates flanked either side of Yomi, the dark master murmured to them softly, "Moryo is redirecting the Ghost Army to the shrine where his body is kept. One way or the other, this woman will not survive to see Moryo's revival..."
"But if the Ghost Army is heading towards the shrine, what of the Priestess," the leader of the four, Kusuna asked.
"We have devised a plan for her," Yomi said with a small smile. "Moryo senses that she is alive...and he tells me that she will be of great use to us in the near future..."
Danzo sat in his office, reviewing what limited information they had on the demon Moryo, and the Ghost Army. His eye scanned the files over and over, trying to find a way to stop Moryo after he was revived, without having to rely on the young Priestess. Danzo also worked his mind to hopefully find a way to possibly use Moryo to his advantage. The Hokage was conflicted about that option however, as Moryo was a being of Dark Chakra, which made it unreliable and would make it even more difficult to master, should there even be a way to control it.
The Hokage was then joined by the two elders, Homaru and Koharu, who entered the room unannounced. "What is it," Danzo asked, not taking his eye off the papers.
"Are you sure it was wise to only send such a small team out to deal with this Moryo threat," Homaru asked, taking a seat on the other side of the Hokage's table.
"Haruno is the best one to deal with sealing," Danzo stated, his eye shifting up to Homaru. "And as such, he'll hopefully be able to understand how the seal works, and strengthen it when the time comes."
"And if he isn't able to," Koharu asked, standing next to Homaru. "What then, Danzo? If Moryo is released, along with this Ghost Army, we'll have to fight a war on two fronts...can the Land of Fire stand such another war like that?"
"What would you have me do then," Danzo asked mockingly. "I've sent one of my Division Commanders out to deal with the problem, along with a company of his choosing."
"Perhaps if we were to somehow use the Ghost Army to our advantage," Homaru suggested. Danzo waved his hand dismissively at the two before looking back at his files.
"I'm already trying to work on that as we speak..." Though Danzo hated to admit it, the information on Moryo was scarce, and he couldn't tell myth from fact either unfortunately. The Hokage never liked being left in the dark on any subject that was a threat to him.
"Perhaps you should call in the aid of a...specialist who tinkers with Dark Chakra," Koharu advised. Danzo's eye shot up at the two elders dangerously, knowing what they implied. The two held their ground, and their gazes respectfully. "Orochimaru knows his boundaries, and as such, he would have undoubtedly have experimented with Dark Chakra in the past."
"Orochimaru also seeks to go far beyond his boundaries," Danzo said, reminding the two of that fact. "This is why I didn't send him on this mission...because I can't fully trust him." The two elders stared at each other before looking back at the Hokage. Danzo also knew, that if Orochimaru was even half as devious as he thought he was, then he would have already devised some backup plan to gain something from the mission. "Iwagakure has offered to keep the enemy at bay, should the Ghost Army arrive to their borders. If that happens, I'll send the Fifth Division to support them, as well as any reserve ninja we have on hand. Your worries are pointless, councilors." The elders scowled softly, upset that they were completely ignored. They both knew pressing the issue was pointless, and stood up to leave the Hokage's office.
Danzo paid attention to his files as they left his office, and his mind began to wander about the issue of Moryo more and more. The Hokage calmed his mind, and reminded himself that he has conquered larger obstacles before, and he would continue to until the world was at peace under the Wrath of Fire.
When Akatsuki arrived in the Land of Demons, they were horrified when they saw the Priestess's palace completely broken down and destroyed, with small flames dwindling down upon piles of ash as bodies littered the ground.
They quickly searched the area, finding no survivors, nor any sign of the Priestess, dead or alive. Yahiko searched the remains of the Priestess's chambers, finding nothing before he threw a piece of charred wood across the way in frustration. He looked up, seeing Deidara flying around the area, trying to find something of value.
"Damn it," Naruto snapped as he pushed a piece of lumber over. "What caused all of this...?"
"The Ghost Army," a voice stated. Naruto scowled angrily before walking away to another location. Behind him, a young man with silver hair and two hook swords followed him. "The High Priestess of the Land of Demons was the only one who could stop the Moryo. As such, they sought to eliminate her as a threat first."
"Yeah, that's what you cowards always do," Naruto fired back as he began looking over a pile of ash and wood.
"You consider me a coward then?" Naruto huffed bitterly before he began digging through the pile, sifting through the remains. "On this mission, for better or for worse, we're comrades. We need to put personal differences aside."
"I can put you aside if you leave me the hell alone!" Naruto threw a piece of lumber at Kiriya, who simply moved his head to the side to avoid it. Naruto glared at the assassin before pointing a threatening finger at him. "You just stay out of my way, alright?! I warned you once before, or do I need to break your wrist again?!" Kiriya huffed before crossing his arms over his chest, having lost his patience.
"It's sad really. That you devote so much time and effort towards that Alliance dog, Haruno." Naruto's eyes flared wider with anger as he clenched his fists tightly. Kiriya narrowed his eyes on Naruto, "Honestly, it's a waste of time. Yahiko told me to abort the mission, but if I already informed him that if I get the chance again, I will kill that trash."
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Naruto's anger got the better of him as the Kyuubi's chakra began to leak out, covering him in a chakra shroud. "You shut your damn mouth before I rip your throat out!"
Kiriya shuddered a bit with fear as he felt the powerful chakra press down upon him, but he tried to hold his own. "Honestly, you even lack control! I don't see the point in keeping the truth about your mother from you if it only makes you lose control!"
"You don't know ANYTHING about my mother!"
"Kushina Uzumaki?! The Red Haired Demon of Konoha?! The Hot Blooded Killer of the Alliance?! Stop me if you've heard any of these before?!" Naruto growled angrily, the Kyuubi's hatred growing more and more of a solidified hold over him. "Your mother and father both were both tools of the Alliance, and cowards for not breaking away from the village despite their beliefs! I have no pity for them, nor you DOG!"
"That's IT!" Naruto shot forward, darting across the ruins in a flash towards Kiriya. The young assassin attempted to grab his swords to defend himself, but was too slow before someone grabbed him and jumped out of the way.
As reality gripped Naruto, he realized his mistake and wasted no time in running away out of repressed fear, and moved into the forest.
Konan, who had saved Kiriya, threw the boy towards the ground and scowled, "Why I bothered saving your worthless hide is beyond me!" Yahiko, Deidara, Itachi, and Obito all joined shortly afterwards, shocked and confused by what happened. Konan glared at Yahiko, "You told me you could keep your mutt on a leash!" Yahiko was severely shocked for a moment before turning to Kiriya with a hardened stare.
"What did you do?!"
"Deidara, take to the skies and try to catch up with Naruto," Konan ordered. The artists nodded and then flew straight up on his clay bird. "Itachi, Obito, you're both with me! We can't afford to lose Naruto right now!" The two Uchiha nodded before following the path Naruto took. Konan turned around, glaring at Kiriya and then Yahiko before running off to find Naruto.
Yahiko, at this point furious, turned to Kiriya before repeating himself, "What did you do?"
"I...I only wanted to see your point proven Yahiko," Kiriya replied. "You thought Naruto couldn't control his anger, nor the Kyuubi, and see, you're right?"
"Because you provoked him," Yahiko snapped. The orange haired man clutched his head before glaring at Kiriya. "You and I are going to look for the Priestess. And if I see you around Naruto again during this mission, so help me, you're going to wish to a gentler punishment." Kiriya lowered his head and nodded to Yahiko before the two continued their search for clues about the Priestess.
Naruto continued to run through the forest, by this point his demonic chakra reseeding. He blocked out Kiriya's words a long time ago, but was now more worried about what might happen to him after taking a swing at a fellow Akatsuki member. He knew he barely got away with attacking Kiriya last time, and he was terrified about what might happen this time.
The blonde jumped over a hill and landed in a clearing, grinding to a halt as he nearly jumped on a young, pale blonde haired girl with unusual purple eyes. Naruto froze, panting heavily as he simply stared into the young woman's eyes as she did the same, neither of them quite sure what happened, or how to process each others presence. Before Naruto knew it however, there was a sharp, firm strike delivered to the back of his neck, causing his eyes to roll into the back of his head as darkness overtook his senses.
That awkward moment where you're writing and writing and writing, and you realize you're already three chapters ahead in your story...that rarely ever happens with me xD
So yeah, currently working on chapter nine of all things. Doesn't mean I'm posting all my chapters back to back. Maybe weekly if I can get a schedule going where I write enough to actually post a weekly chapter for awhile to get a good chunk of my story taken out. We'll see what the future brings as I always say lol
Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm planning things to accomplish in this arc, so I hope you all look forward to it. Feel free to leave a review on your way out ^^ Thanks for reading!