AN: Author Note – Alltariss – This chapter reveals more about the matron of the orphanage and also reveals sets up the stage for Yamato's introduction into the story.

Chapter 11

Lingering Nightmares

The patrolling guards walked past the door, paused, and then continued down the hall. Kakashi let out a breath that he didn't realise he was holding.

What the hell am I doing? This wouldn't just get me court martialed, but possibly executed for sedition!

The particular archive he was inside of was only to be accessed by those with Code Red Clearance. As a Jonin he was granted such access, but only after specifically asking the Hokage or the Jonin Commander for permission. He would have gladly asked the Hokage for access, but that was before he was approached by Danzō.

He had been standing before the Monument of the Fallen, his thoughts wandered to his recently deceased sensei and his fallen teammates. He was now the only one left of the squad that was still alive. So caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't sensed Danzō approaching him.

"Hatake Kakashi, correct?" the senior shinobi questioned.

Startled, Kakashi turned around and immediately bowed in respect. "Danzō-sama."

"I was wondering if you would consider working for me in my division," the elder man asked.

Kakashi was surprised by the request, but nonetheless answered quickly. "But… I was Minato-sensei's…"

"The Yondaime was wise to recruit you into ANBU. Your skill and talent has only grown by your placement in the Black-Ops forces. Minato was good at recognising potential." Danzō stated.

Kakashi blinked rapidly as he processed the praise he received.

"But, unfortunately Minato is no longer with us," Danzō continued, coldly. "If you stay where you are, you will be under Sarutobi's command who has taken up the Hokage title once again."

The elder shinobi's features twisted into a grimace that clearly showed disdain.

"It was his constant ideals that he so foolishly pursued that made the war drag on as long as it did. It was that behaviour that led to the deaths of Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin."

Kakashi couldn't believe his ears. He knew the Sandaime Hokage as a man who sought peace, but yet the words of the man before him birthed doubt into his heart.

"But…" he weakly tried to speak, yet his tongue failed to function. Unable to come up with any explanation.

"Furthermore," Danzō continued. "On the night of the Kyūbi attack it was his order to have you and the others held back within the barrier that night. Thus, you weren't there to assist the Yondaime. Don't you think that he would have survived if he had back-up with him?"

His words cut through the young shinobi like a hot knife through butter. For days and nights he had dreamt all sorts of scenarios where he was alongside his sensei and in each one he had emerged victorious. Minato was alive and well and everything would have returned to normal.

"I don't want to believe such a thing, but I have begun to suspect that it was a plot to get himself back into the Hokage position after he was forced to abdicate after the messes he made during the war."

Danzō turned and walked away leaving the young teen to ponder over his words.

"It is clear that Konoha cannot be trusted in the hands of such a man," he said before vanishing in a swirl of leaves.

So lost in his memories that he failed to notice the Hokage standing before him in the dark. The Sandaime flicked the light switch and watched amusingly as the young shinobi jumped in fright before realising exactly who had caught him.

"The information you're looking for is in the top left shelf," Hiruzen informed.

"Hokage-sama, forgive me for my curiosity, but after the incident from the trip to the capital…"

The aged man looked weary as he sighed heavily.

"The boy with Mokuton, huh?"

Kakashi nodded. "I was under the impression that only the Shodaime had the ability. Not even his descendants inherited it. So where did this kid get it? A member of the Senju clan?"

"No," the Sandaime replied. "He isn't a member of the clan, but rather a survivor of a terrible experiment."

"Experiment?"

"At some point in time there were multiple kidnappings of young children from around the country. It was only later that we located a facility where these children had been taken. They had been genetically modified, an attempt to replicate the Shodaime's Kekkei Genkai."

"It's clear that whoever it was, they succeeded," Kakashi stated.

"Indeed," Sarutobi replied. "The boy is about ten years of age which matches the timeline of the kidnappings."

"Am I to assume that we should keep him under surveillance?" asking the Hokage for permission to participate in the task.

"Yes, keep tabs on the boy and in time we could induct him into ANBU and will have a valuable asset."

Kakashi kneeled before the Hokage and promised that he would not fail in his task.

Ever since Danzō found the survivor from the kidnapping incident, he had instantly suspected Orochimaru's involvement. There was no evidence that pointed to who could have been responsible. The introduction of Western technology had radically changed Nihon in the short amount of time that the nation had been exposed to it. While it made life easier in many ways, it also came with its own problems.

The introduction of electricity and technology associated with it had made ninja everywhere stand and take notice. No longer did people use candles or fire as a source of light, when light bulbs were so much more efficient. The introduction of short range radio transmission allowed for the coordination of soldiers on the battlefield to become far more organised. The only thing that didn't improve was the field of medicine.

Each nation's skill when it came to medicine was entirely based on the energy their nation revolves around. Chakra, Mana, Chi, all had their methods of use when it came to the healing arts, but they weren't perfect. Scholars across the world all arrived to the same conclusion when it came to the medical field. The use of their primary energy for medical purposes provided a method to heal people far quicker than relying on older methodologies, but it came with a price. The energies had limitations, barriers that medical experts constantly failed to break through. Thus, while the overall lifespan of the people increased they still failed when it came to curing diseases.

Diseases affected the body in various ways and as such required different methods in order to cure the patient. The problem is that the usage of their respective energies followed the same principle of simply making the patient fight the disease by using their natural immune system. While it worked in most cases, it failed for those whose immune systems were weak since birth or over time. Elderly people when afflicted by an illness had weaker immune systems and couldn't survive the therapy to heal them.

The most prevalent theory amongst researchers was that through the manipulation of a person's genes could allow one to be naturally resistant to diseases that afflicted everyone to the point where even age would not be a problem. The cases of kidnappings for the purpose of genetic experiments wasn't common, but it wasn't a scenario hadn't been considered already.

The first lab was located on an island in Water Country with vats of test subjects all modified in various ways. The scientist behind the incident was a middle-aged woman who clearly had no problems with breaking the law and any ethical or moral principles. The lab was shut down and quarantined before placing it under strict twenty-four hour guard.

Danzō had agreed with the Shogun's decision to not destroy the lab and all its contents. While the research would forever be tainted by the sick twistedness that birthed it, it could still be used at a later date for study when Nihon's own level of technology had risen high enough to comprehend the work done.

That was what Danzō had waited for, hoped for in the future. The only minds who could comprehend the work performed at the labs would be those who not only studied Western sciences, but also thought many steps ahead of the most brilliant minds that Nihon currently had. The scholars and researchers from the capital had all been sent to the lab, but failed to understand the notes and work of the woman who created it all.

In hindsight we were probably hasty in executing her so quickly for her crimes. It would have been more prudent to first extract all details of her work from her mind and then dispose of her.

The woman had evaded the military and all police forces for three years until the Shogun finally requested that ninja forces become involved. By then she had made a total of three labs before being caught by Suna-nin.

If we want to have any hope in understanding the work done in any of the labs, we need a brilliant mind. A mind that thinks not ten or a hundred steps ahead, but ten thousand steps ahead of everyone else.

Orochimaru wasn't an ordinary shinobi. The man had shown incredible talent as a young boy and was taught by Sarutobi Hiruzen who was hailed as one of the most feared men in the ninja forces. What made Orochimaru become a legend wasn't his fighting ability, but his intelligence. Danzō had always known that if anyone could understand the work the genetics labs had within, it would be Orochimaru.

Although now it is clear he has followed the same path as that mad woman.

The old war veteran shook his head in disgust.

To actually create another lab dedicated to such perverse research… What madness has consumed you? Or is that the price for knowledge beyond all your peers?

Danzō stopped before the doors to Sarutobi's office. He took a deep breath before entering to explain the situation and plan the assassination of his rival's cherished student.

As Sarutobi blazed through the trees at breakneck speed his thoughts wandered to his student. Orochimaru was a gifted child; anyone who met the boy in his youth would give the same assessment. His parents were not ninja or had any military heritage. They had been killed by bandits when he was only three years of age.

Old enough to remember that he had parents, but too young to truly know them.

He was given a scholarship to the Ninja Academy after showing remarkable intelligence whilst his short time at his local civilian school. Since then he only proved to be far more gifted than anyone could imagine. His genius often left him as a loner since the other children failed to understand the world around them on the same level. Sarutobi understood this when he first took the boy on his team.

Yet, Jiraiya and Tsunade were just as equally talented and skilled. Not in the same way, but nonetheless still considered prodigies of the same level as Orochimaru. Their personalities weren't the best of combinations, but war had a way of bringing people together. An orphan determined to make his own way in the world, another orphan who was isolated by his own intelligence, a girl from a clan that may as well be royalty who wanted for nothing.

Sarutobi was a firm believer in teamwork. It was the belief that was inherited from his sensei and from the Shodaime. The lesson he had learnt from Tobirama-sensei was that teamwork didn't just happen. Solid teamwork was born from trials and tribulations equally faced and overcome together. It was because they walked through the fires of war that they become close, a family.

And now I have to kill you, you who I had come to love as one of my own sons.

Sarutobi motioned for the team to surround the entrance of the facility. Kakashi stood the farthest from the entrance as he was ordered to watch for anyone escaping. The doors of the lab were solid steel and designed to take a decent amount of punishment.

Unfortunately they were never built to keep out a Kage. With a series of hand-seals the Hokage drew a deep breath before unleashing a torrent of flames towards the door. Within seconds the metal heated till it reached an orange glow, at that point Sarutobi increased the temperature of his flames. It melted until all that remained of the entrance was a molten slag. With a hand signal the team rushed through. He looked to Kakashi and nodded towards him, receiving a salute in return to acknowledge their orders. With a calming breath he ran through the destroyed doorway preparing himself to face his student.

Orochimaru calmly stood before the ANBU squad members as they slowly spread out to possibly attack from multiple angles. They didn't dare move as their opponent wasn't one could take lightly. None could ever underestimate Orochimaru's skill in battle, his cunning strategies devastated many in the war.

"What happened?" Sarutobi asked as he stepped into the room. "What changed to turn you towards this path?"

Orochimaru smiled, before chuckling softly. "I wonder about that? Do you truly know who I am? What I am?"

Sarutobi frowned at his words, unsure of what his student was trying to say.

"I want more than what was given to me, more than what you or the village are willing to give. I want more."

Sarutobi gripped the staff in his hands with white knuckles. He could feel the tension rising with each second. It was clear to him that his student was no longer of proper mind and needed to be put down. As soon as he tensed, Orochimaru unleashed a technique that he had inherited from his teacher.

"Kanashibari no Jutsu(Temporary Paralysis Technique)."

The technique was a weak one. It wasn't that hard to perform and it entirely depended on the skill and power of the user. Orochimaru was no ordinary shinobi and this particular technique was amongst his favourites to use in battle. He had learnt it to a degree that he could do so without hand-seals or even looking at his opponent.

The entire squad including Sarutobi had instantly frozen as the technique took hold. Orochimaru ran towards the exit only to collapse clutching his stomach. The staff that Sarutobi had slashed at him when he attempted to escape. The staff morphed into a human-sized ape that he instantly recognised.

"Enma," he seethed in anger.

The ape was equally furious at the shinobi. "Make no mistake snake; I will tear your throat out with my bare hands."

Sarutobi shook off the effects of the technique and turned around to attack his student. Orochimaru laughed madly at the scene. The Hokage struck first with a fist towards his head. Orochimaru leaned sideways and retaliated with a short kick to the shin. Sidestepping the move, Sarutobi lashed out with a kick that launched his student across the hallway until he slammed into the wall.

He clutched the wounded side of his body and focused his Chakra to force his blood to rapidly clot.

Looks like your lessons on Iryō Ninjutsu(Medical Ninja Techniques) came in handy once more, Tsunade.

Sarutobi grabbed Enma who transformed back into a staff and charged straight forward, but it was too late as Orochimaru had formed multiple hand-seals before vanishing from their sight.

"Damn it," Sarutobi shouted. "Shunshin, but I didn't see any illusions of leaves or such meaning he's weak and would seek shelter."

He turned around to return to the squad of paralysed soldiers and would immediately set them on the search for the traitor.

I can't use that technique even if it means healing myself far quicker than normal. The Chakra usage would be more than enough to alert my pursuers of my location.

Orochimaru continued to walk towards the location of one of his allies, the Iburi Clan. He had first met the clan by chance years ago during his own journeys around Nihon. When he first began his genetic experiments he had attempted to recreate the lost Kekkei Genkai of Senju Hashirama.

It was his first foray into the realm of forbidden sciences. He needed many test subjects and had been fortunate to locate and copy records detailing the first person in Nihon to actually step into the dark side of science. Soon after, he had carefully taken many children and kept them sedated at the disposable facility he had built for the single purpose of the experiment.

He had kidnapped a grand total of forty children. None of which were older than five years of age. Their bodies were still young and still malleable to perform the tasks he desired. The most difficult task had been to actually acquire the various genetic samples he wanted to use. He originally desired only the Shodaime's bloodline, but also took his brother's. The Nidaime, Senju Tobirama, showed no signs of a Kekkei Genkai, but was known to have an affinity to water than allowed him to perform techniques that would exhaust or even outright kill other Suiton specialists.

In the end it turned out the experiment was a failure. Every single child had shown signs of organ failure and in some cases their own immune systems would attack their own cells. He abandoned the facility when only five children remained. There was no point in staying if he knew none would survive or add any more data than what he had already collected.

He paused to lean on a tree, his breath deep and rasping. He had managed to put some distance between himself and his pursuers through chaining multiple Shunshin manoeuvres together. The usage of Chakra would leave enough of a trail to at least point them in the right direction.

They won't use Shunshin to reach me. They would rather chase after me normally to conserve Chakra. I might be wounded, but even they know I won't be so easy to kill. I will never fall to such insignificant whelps still wet behind the ears. Sarutobi-sensei is the only one who would be able to finish me without much trouble. As long as I don't encounter him, I should be able to flee successfully.

Prior to meeting Sarutobi, Danzō had called in his most secret agent to inform him of his latest task. Danzō considered Kinoe to be amongst his greatest successes. It was purely by luck that he had located the genetics lab that Orochimaru had built before anyone else. The investigation squad he sent in had returned with a small child with them. Weak and with high fever Danzō expended every resource he had available to ensure the child's survival. Afterwards he raised the boy as one of his agents as soon as it was possible.

Kinoe's inheritance from the experimentation was the long dead Kekkei Genkai known as Mokuton. The abilities granted by the bloodline was one of the most feared and respected in the entire nation of Nihon. It was a delicate balancing act when it came to moments where Kinoe would be sent on missions outside the village. Rumours spreading about the sightings of a young shinobi wielding the bloodline soon spread across the nation.

Danzō couldn't be more pleased when his agents across Nihon reported that every ninja force had heard of the news and were each eagerly sending out their forces to investigate. They would never be able to confirm the rumours, but the suspicion alone would make them wary of attacking Konoha in any way.

The door of his office opened and Kinoe walked in before kneeling in respect.

"I have a very important task for you," Danzō informed.

"What will you have me do, Danzō-sama," Kinoe said, still kneeling.

"Orochimaru has betrayed us and the village."

"Am I to assume that he is to be eliminated?"

Danzō shook his head. "I want you to assist him in escaping."

Kinoe paused in confusion before nodding in understanding. "Any side orders?"

"If he asks, inform him that it was me who sent assistance."

"Understood, Danzō-sama."

Kyōko was resting in the medical tent when she woke up. The white cloth walls, the smell of blood, and the sounds of wounded soldiers reminded her that she was still alive. After the ambush during the mission she was humiliated and left for dead. Luckily she was noticed by a patrol team and was immediately taken to the nearest medical outpost.

She tried to sit up only for a sharp spike of pain to pierce through her. She pulled the collar of the hospital garment and peered down to reveal a series of stitches from one end of her abdomen to the other. Her right arm was sutured and bandaged as she recalled the slightly deep cut she received from a kunai when the enemy attacked.

She noticed the other patients in the beds next to her in the tent. Some were sleeping either from exhaustion or from being injected with a cocktail of drugs. She noticed a few were missing limbs, some lost an arm or a leg, one patient on the far end had nothing but stubs where his arms and legs should be. She felt disgusted at the relief that rushed through her as she thanked whatever gods that would listen that she still had all her body parts intact.

He'll never be a ninja again. He won't even be able to pursue a life as civilian. What possible job could he seek when he can't even take care of himself? Who on earth would hire such a person, and for what purpose?

She turned to the entrance when a medic walked in. She noticed Kyōko was awake and moved towards her with haste.

"How are feeling?" she asked, whilst placing her fingers on her wrist and checking her heart rate.

"I only felt pain when I move," Kyōko answered.

"At least the local pain relievers are working," the medic stated. "The wound was luckily not infected when you were dropped off by the patrol team."

With a few hand seals she moved her hands over her midsection and scanned her for any irregularities with the gentle pulse of Chakra.

"I'm afraid you'll have to be here for week before being let out back on the field. If the cut was even a slightly bit deeper you'd have seen your guts spill out."

Kyōko wanted to protest, but stayed silent. She knew better than anyone how close she was to dying.

"I'll have you set on Chakra Therapy and if all goes well you could leave here earlier."

Kyōko swallowed the lump in her throat before speaking.

"What about the team I was with?"

"Dead," the medic answered without pause. "We've sent the bodies back for proper burial."

Why didn't I die? If I was faster, stronger, then maybe… They would still be alive.

The night was warm, but Kyōko shivered violently as the memories consumed her in a repeating cycle of agony. She grabbed the covers of her bed as she moved to the far corner of the room to once more conceal herself in the shadows.

She put her hand in her mouth in an attempt to muffle her desperate sobs. The near death experience had left her scarred in more ways than flesh. She remembered the faces of her comrades who were with her on that fateful mission.

She cried and wept as the image of their names engraved on the Monument of the Fallen flashed into her mind. The cries of their wives and the anguish and lack of comprehension on the faces of their children haunted her. They were too young to understand the circumstances that took their fathers away from them.

Their tears were burned into her mind as she stood before their resting place as the last lone survivor. The funeral was silent and not a single word was spoken save for the customary words spoken by the Hokage. As she crawled further into the corner of the room she had only one thought run through her mind.

Why am I alive?

Another chapter done, soon you'll see the descent into madness that the matron goes through.