Ch. 20: Imposter Strikes Again!
While I ran, I had one hand in my weapons pouch, around the packet of rose seeds. I shoved chakra into them until they were almost rupturing at the seams. I then prepared a knockout mixture of pollen.
When I reached the guards at the doors, I tossed the powder and they passed out. I crashed through the doors, then ran to the stairs. I needed to travel up. I remembered what the view from the window in his office was like, so I deduced the general location, and traveled that way. I found myself in a hallway with a ton of guards. I gathered my chakra to my feet, and sprinted, scattering the rose seeds behind me. When they started to yell, I spoke the activation word.
"Burst." They grew into a dense tangle of thorns. I finally got to the office. I slammed into the doors, only to realize they opened out, opened them, ignoring the throbbing pain in my forehead, then stepped through into the Third Hokage's office.
"You're late," he commented amusedly.
"You come with me. Now." Okay, so my tact wasn't the best. "I need your help!"
"What seems to be the problem?" he asked slowly, patronizingly.
I bristled, agitatedly running a hand through my hair to fix the part. "Well, 'what seems to be the problem' is that I just left my friends in a dead-lock death situation, immobilized fifteen guards, and ran into double doors, trying to get help, only to have to speak to me in a patronizing tone! I think you may want to see for yourself, and quickly too. Shikaku-san's a part of it too. And so is Tsubasa."
That got his attention.
"Explain."
"On the way. I'm leaving now, whether you're coming or not." And true to my word, I ran to the window by his desk, jumped out, and fell. I landed softly, then immediately started running. I allowed myself a relieved sigh when I heard footsteps behind me, but frowned when I heard the voice.
"What's the problem?" It was that one ANBU, Ferret-san. Still, it was much better than nothing.
"There's someone, he or she has the ability to possess one's body, then leave it and overtake another whose body is close by. When I left, he or she had control over Shikaku-san, who had my teammates and Tsubasa locked in the Shadow Possession Jutsu. The attacker had Shikaku-san hold a kunai up to his neck, causing the others to follow his movement."
"How did you escape?" Ferret-san asked.
"Not sure. I just know that I was struggling, and then I was free."
He nodded. We continued on in silence.
"There they are." I pointed.
They all still seemed to be trapped, but each of them, barring Shikaku-san, had an extreme look of concentration on their faces, seemingly keeping themselves, and in turn, Shikaku-san, from slitting their own throats.
Then Shikaku-san relaxed and dropped his arms, releasing the jutsu. I barely had time to gasp before Ferret-san had an arm around my shoulders and a kunai up to my neck.
Instead of fighting, which could prove fatal to us both, probably having equal strength, I instead winked a conspiratorial wink at my friends before 'collapsing.'
Yumi started with 'concern' before yelling, "Shit! She collapsed!"
"Way to state the obvious!" Tsubasa shouted at her, understanding what I was planning.
"Then what would you do?" Yumi yelled back. The others soon joined in the shouting match until all of their backs were turned, save Tsubasa's, but he was unable to see past the rest of the arguers.
Ferret-san, rather, the controller, let go of me, letting me slump to the ground, before slinking towards my friends. Bingo.
I lunged for him, silently, and had just grabbed onto his leg when he tensed, surprised.
"What just happened?" he demanded.
"First, what did you get me for my skin upon our first meeting?" I asked.
He paused, thinking. "You had blood on your face, so I got you a damp towel." I nodded.
I turned to Deki next. What did I answer that morning we were keeping watch?
"Yes." I nodded my approval. "Who?"
He stopped, confused. "No one seems different."
Sure? He nodded. "I think so."
"You still didn't answer my question about what just happened," Ferret-san pressed.
"Let's get to the Tower first," Deki interrupted.
We took off, Ferret-san first healing Kazu's knee with the green-chakra jutsu, and we finally arrived, pushing through the chaos. "Retract," I muttered under my breath, and the roses shrunk back into seeds.
"Just what did you do?" Yumi asked.
"Knocked out two guards and busied this hall with the roses. Hey, I was desperate!" I whispered in response to her incredulous expression.
This time, at Sarutobi-san's door, I made sure it was open before we filed through it.
"Now what was all that about?" Sarutobi-san asked conversationally, despite the fact that I had been so rude before. "Ferret?"
"They have yet to tell me."
"So?" he turned expectantly towards me.
"You see? I always get the blame!" I complained while waiting for Deki and Kazu to finish the task they had automatically set themselves to. Deki nodded. I turned to Sarutobi-san, who had an interested look on his face.
"They set up a few security jutsus of our own," I explained. He looked more interested.
"Never seen anything like them."
I shrugged. "Can't be too careful." He nodded in understanding.
"So?" he pressed.
"We were attacked by one who can take control of bodies. He or she started with Tsubasa, then…" I paused, not knowing what happened after that and before Kazu's sneer. I shivered at the memory.
"It took over me next," Kaida filled in.
"Then me," Kazu continued.
"Then it was Deki, then me, and then—"
"Me," Shikaku-san interrupted.
"Yes, and after Shikaku-san was 'possessed,' if you follow my terminology, I was freed from Shikaku-san's jutsu and I ran here. I apologize for my rudeness, but I was desperate," I explained to Sarutobi-san. "Once Ferret-san and I reached the battle, Ferret-san was possessed. We managed to trick the possessor and, after a few checks, made our way back here."
"Were there any information leaks?" Sarutobi-san asked.
"Not as far as I know. The identity-testing questions gave away nothing past that he brought me a damp towel the first time Ferret-san and I came into contact, and that Deki answered 'yes' to some question. Oh, and what Shikaku-san's jutsu was, and that I am stronger than Deki here," I answered. The others nodded.
"Nothing other than that," Kazu confirmed.
Washi spoke up. "He knew we were coming to the Tower."
Yumi and I looked at each other at the same time, both of us suspicious about the same thing. I alerted Deki to our plan. Yumi and I approached Washi, with Yumi latching onto Washi's arm.
"So, sweetie…" she dragged out the endearment, "I know this is a bad time, but you promised you'd tell me, so do you know where we're going for our date tonight?" She fluttered her eyelids.
"Does Ichiraku's sound good to you?" he drawled, completely playing the part of a gentleman. Yumi and I struck.
"IMPOSTER!"
Immediately Washi's eyes went out then back into focus. He frowned. "Dude just left."
I turned to Deki. Who?
He just looked at me oddly. I sighed.
"I almost forgot, Deki, it's time for the team's daily tension-relieving. Come on, sit down, you know I don't bite." 'Deki' made his way to the chair, watching me warily. Yet another mistake—Deki trusts me with his life.
"There you go!" I crowed, putting my hands on his shoulders to 'work out' the stress, actually manipulating chakra to make his muscles even tenser. I traveled the chakra pathways to his center. Just as I suspected… There was a slight hint of a foreign chakra signature lingering around his core.
"Sarutobi-san, it seems my usual treatment isn't working. Would you mind taking a look? Since you are so knowledgeable? Maybe you could take a look at this core muscles too?" I asked. Sarutobi-san looked at me suspiciously and put his hands on an anxious Deki's shoulders. It was all of two seconds before he shook his head in disappointment.
"Yamanaka. What are you doing?" 'Deki' grinned sheepishly, another thing Deki did NOT do.
"H-h-hey, Hokage-sama. I s-s-see that these y-youngsters are just f-f-fine. U-u-umm… Bye!"
Immediately Deki's face was indifferent.
That you?
"Yeah." Upon seeing the confused and suspicious looks on Kaida and Yumi's faces, he groaned. "Yes, Kazu, I am Deki." We all sighed in relief.
"So, Tsubasa, what exactly do you know about the Mangekyou and the…"
"Taiyou?"
"Yes, the…Taiyou," Sarutobi-san said, as if confirming the name in his mind.
"Well, as I said earlier, the legends are wrong…"
I tuned out what I already knew and looked around the spacious room. My eyes settled on the thick oaken doors. Wondering if the wood would still respond, despite being dead, I curiously extended a tiny thread of chakra through the soles of my boots into the ground, and out towards the doors. Upon reaching one of them, I found a large amount of chakra imbued within it. That was what keeps intruders out. I wondered if it would be at all possible to bypass the door if you were an intruder. I searched with the tendril of chakra for a keyhole or something of the like. Found it.
Tinkering around a little, I felt a figurative 'click' as the lock came undone. The door was now unlocked and could be opened. Still, hopefully there was another layer of security.
"Tomoko, have you anything to add?"
"Oh, Sarutobi-san, if those doors were open, could anyone come marching through?"
Slightly puzzled, Sarutobi-san cautiously answered, "Yes, but they are hardly ever unlocked. Why?"
"I just unlocked them."
"What?"
"See!" I went to the doors and pushed on one. It swung open, outwards into the hallway. "You may want to add a secondary defense—maybe a chakra screen?"
Sarutobi-san looked amazed. "You'll have to show me how you unlocked it later on. But for the moment, Nekowa-san, what was it you wanted her to show me?"
"Tsubasa, please. Right, so Tomoko, do your genjutsu."
I immediately became somber. "But what if it happens again?"
"Then I'll stop you. I promise. Now activate it."
"…Fine." I did the short string of handsigns and put my hands together in my signature "warning! I'm doing genjutsu!" position.
Tsubasa nodded approval. "Good. Now touch the Sharingan Disk."
"Alright…"
As soon as I touched it, I felt that raw power. I found that this time, though, I could control my hunger to use it.
"Now, stop touching the Disk."
"Promise you'll stop me?"
"I swear it."
"Okay." I took a calming breath and took my fingers off the metal. Immediately, the power surged and became ten times fiercer. The hunger for another's pain grew stronger too, and in the face of these feelings, I forgot everything but the power and my insatiable need to use it. The world was dull, but life was vivid. Life that could be made fearful. Life that could feel pain. I closed in on the taller blond boy. His stoic expression made him look like he'd be fun to break. But before I could do anything, I felt a breath of wind and a sharp pain in the back of my neck before the darkness overtook me.