Leaves in the Wind

Chapter Twenty-Six: Homicidal Intent

For ages, alcohol reduced the best of men to squalid babbling idiots. It loosened minds and tongues and warped perceptions to the point where up was down, left was backwards and forward just didn't exist. The basis for this fact was assuming, of course, that these 'best' weren't Shinobi trained to react even under a haze of dementia. Umino Iruka was barely able to withstand the effects of intoxication, but he could still contemplate and comprehend cause and effect while drunk. It didn't stop things from looking oddly out of place, turn slightly pink or, in certain cases, fuzzy. Occasionally, when he glanced over at Kakashi, he would find himself unable to observe anything else but a singular, slightly curled hair. If it wasn't the hair, then it was some other minor detail about the people and streets of Konoha.

The birds, though still following at a far distance, no longer bothered him as much as they should have. He'd found himself counting feathers….

Fifteen minutes had passed since their encounter with Yasuo and Isamu. That was, apparently, more than enough time for Iruka's condition to worsen and lighten simultaneously. While still smashed, he could at least walk a straight line. In fact, he was seeing straight lines everywhere right now. The world around him was straightening right before his eyes, thus he closed them tightly for a moment. Opening them, it was still the same. Lines still obscured his sight and were certainly in places they weren't supposed to be.

The world around him -it was blue. Not quite pink anymore. It was blue and oddly, it was the same shade of blue as the skin of a dead man. Like the corpse he saw bleeding blue out onto a blue patch of dirt in the blue shadows of a side alley.

Corpses, Iruka knew, merited attention. "K-Kakashi…" He broke away from the Jounin, hands clenching and unclenching, ready for the detention and release of a weapon. "There's…a blue- a man over there. He's…dead…"

Kakashi had already scented death long before Iruka had made mention of the body, and that was precisely why they were heading in that direction. The Jounin took Iruka's shoulders and made him stand next to the wall of the alleyway building. "Stay," he commanded softly before turning away. He stepped forward to kneel next to the body, taking a routine check of condition.

It was a fresh kill; the blood was just beginning to coagulate. Thick mahogany body fluid streamed out of the old man's unseeing eyes, out of his mouth, and out of his nostrils. There were no marks implying the use of weapons. The injury was internal.

The victim seemed to be in his upper seventies. Nothing about his clothing stood out beyond the fact that he was dressed as a civilian. His body was positioned as if he had fallen limply to the ground, so apparently he had been standing when the attack occurred. He could have been searching for someone, or considering the location in this dark shadow, speaking to someone with hope of not being noticed.

Iruka murmured inaudibly from behind as Kakashi thoroughly examined the corpse. Finally, as though annoyed that the Jounin was overlooking the obvious, he lightly nudged the old, wrinkled body and pointed to the man's tainted hazel eyes. "They used some sort of jutsu to attack him from the inside…"

"I see this, Iruka," Kakashi murmured patiently, looking up from the body to the corroding ally. The lane stretched backwards into a dead end. There was a stream of garbage containing random objects such as broken bottles and newspaper. Nothing else living was around, and there was no evidence of a struggle. The Jounin looked over his shoulder, gazing at the Konoha pedestrians on the brighter main street. An ordinary citizen wouldn't have noticed the body; it was too well hidden among the shadows. He looked back. "Internal pressure." With a lowered glance, Kakashi could see red fluid dribbling out of the ears "Liquefied the brain, that's for sure."

Irritated at Kakashi having merely stated the obvious, Iruka shifted his attention to the area surrounding the man. Most of it appeared to him as fuzzy splotches of black-blue but he saw enough. His gaze lifted upwards, and some miniscule, probably irrelevant detail caught his drunken eye. It was something akin to Kakashi's single curled, silver strand. There it was, floating downward through the air to land near the pool of blood. Iruka blinked. "The murderer was sitting against that wall," he pointed into the darkness where a tiny clump of pale hair continued to captivate him. "Whoever it was came down from the rooftop…" Meaning the old man never had a chance.

Kakashi searched the victim's pockets, looking for identification. He pulled out a small change purse and opened it up. Inside, packed neatly between some folded dollars and a collection of loose coins, was an identification card issued to Konohagakure citizens. It acted as a passport, proof of age, and, on rare occasions such as this, a name tag. "Kosuke Jiro, 78 years old. Lives near Isamu's apartment complex, but doesn't share it." He placed the card back in it. "Nothing too significant beyond the fact a ninja was the one to off him. Anything else, Iruka?" Kakashi looked up to where Iruka had spotted the long, pale strand of hair.

"I don't think this was an accidental victim; he wasn't killed by chance." Iruka shifted around the body, kneeling down and gingerly picking up the hairs. "This man doesn't have any particular importance at first glance. He could have been involved with something illegal, but I don't think that's it…" The Chuunin turned an eye up into the darkened skies. "The birds did it."

This comment made Kakashi sigh. "It was a ninja, not the birds, Iruka."

"Yes, but why would a Konoha shinobi murder a citizen?" Iruka frowned, hazed, deep brown eyes lowering upon the limp body. "No, why would a Harogami murder an old man?" He stood, carefully stepping over the corpse. "It doesn't feel like a slip on their part…" He resolved to ponder on what they could do about this. His partner would have to go get someone. "I'll watch him," the Chuunin pronounced.

"No," Kakashi murmured.

The two ninja huddling around some unidentifiable lump in the shadows had garnered some attention form the main street, but with a smile from Kakashi they left the men alone. The Jounin stood, keeping a casual appearance to minimize curiosity from the passing citizens.

"Jiro!"

Their heads turned simultaneously as a grating, fear stricken voice pierced the collective murmuring of the crowd. An elderly women, tattered shawl trailing behind her, shoved her way toward them with surprising force, knocking men and women to the side. She screeched to a halt at the threshold of the dead end. Glazed over yellowed eyes widened as she craned her head, glancing around Kakashi and Iruka to the thing that had once been her husband. "Jiro!" She raised her gnarled, knotted hands over her mouth, flinching and turning her face away.

This was, apparently, Kosuke Jiro's wife.

"Kosuke-san?" Kakashi asked, keeping a careful yard between him and the woman.

"…Yes." A look of suspicion flickered on and away from Kakashi.

Kakashi shot Iruka a glance, making sure the Chuunin was still where he belonged. He looked back to the old woman. "This is your husband, correct?"

"It was my husband," she replied faintly. "That there, that is a corpse, sir…"

Iruka raised a brow but he said nothing. People weren't supposed to speak of a loved one in the past tense so readily. He was about to say something, but a glance from his partner kept him quiet.

Kakashi watched her very carefully, checking every slip and twitch of her body and facial expression. "Do you have an idea as to who might have done it?"

"He was supposed to meet me at the home furnisher," she pointed in the direction the two ninja had departed from. "But he didn't come." Jiro's wife lowered her gaze. "A young man approached me just a moment ago and told me he saw my husband go this way."

"Was your husband with you earlier?"

"No. He was coming to meet me after his usual outing with friends."

Kakashi stared at the man, observing the blood pooling around his head. Gravity was pulling it through popped eardrums. "What did the young man look like?"

"Well let's see…" She chewed on a chapped lip, eyes sliding over to her husband's body, then to Iruka and finally, though briefly, to Kakashi. "It's strange, but I don't remember…. I know I saw him, but…his face is blurry." Watery eyes squinted, pointedly diverting from the body on the ground. "Very pale. I can't recall, but perhaps he had white hair? No, no, it was black…and his eyes. His eyes were…either black or gold?"

The vague description did them no good, though it gave enough reason to believe that the murderer was, indeed, Harogami Kuro. However, the question 'But why?' still remained. "Who were your husband's friends? What was his business? What did he do in his free time?" these questions were rattled off so quickly it made the woman twitch.

"Kakashi, gently…" Iruka laid a hand on the woman's shoulder, "Was he involved in anything that might have ended with this?"

The woman's squint intensified. "No. Jiro drank with his friends; they swapped stories of their ventures on the merchant's trails. Nothing dangerous."

"Kekemoro Suien," Kakashi said quickly. "Did he associate with a man by that name?"

"Kekemoro-san? Once. They weren't friendly with each other." She pursed her lips together, reaching up to pat Iruka's hand before gently prying it away. "My husband was a simple textile merchant. He wasn't involved with anything dangerous."

"Is there any reason he would have been targeted?" Iruka murmured quietly.

"No."

This woman wasn't lying to him, Kakashi could tell.

"He was quiet." She stated suddenly.

"Who?" Iruka said softly and a little slurred. "The young man that came to you?"

"He approached me, and his voice…it was very soft. Very polite." The old woman tilted her head to the side, "He had a very pretty face…"

"I thought you said you couldn't remember it," Kakashi's attention snapped towards her.

The Jounin's rapt scrutiny forced her to draw back. "W-well…yes, it's hard to remember, but I know somehow that it was as lovely as a young woman's…"

This made Kakashi exchange glances with Iruka.

"Though, it was pointedly a young man," the woman offered to clarify herself.

Iruka's frown deepened severely, and this time it was aimed at the sky. "You said his eyes might have been golden? His hair maybe black?"

"Possibly…" Jiro's wife raised her eyes. Long, pale strands of white hair were placed in her face by Iruka. "Ahh! He did!" She suddenly exclaimed. "He had white hair! White hair, golden eyes and a-" She paused, blinked, squinted, paused. "A…a very feminine appearance…"

Iruka and Kakashi stared at one another, silently communicating and plotting their next moves and questions. However, before they could say anything or come to any conclusion, Jiro's wife interrupted.

"Please…I feel ill and my husband is still lying there. No more questions…" Groaning softly, she placed her face in one of her hands.

The Chuunin drew next to his partner, whispering lowly, "Send Pakkun for someone so we can get this body taken care of…"

Kakashi pulled out a kunai and slit his thumb, then re-pocketed the knife. He knelt down by the ground and formed a quick series of seals before he pressed his cut finger to the ground. A poof of smoke exploded into the air and when it cleared, a lazy eyed pug stared back at him. Kakashi pointed at the dead man. "Get someone to handle this body. Iruka and I are on investigation. Tell them so."

The dog nodded and stood up, taking a quick survey of his surroundings before leaping out into the main streets.

A bird passed by overhead, and in that split second, Iruka bodily jerked, swiveled in place and watched the avian vanished over the rooftop. He barely had time to register his own movements before he was scaling the wall, clambering heaven-ward at a frantic speed. The old woman stood dumbstruck as she watched him ascend.

"What is-?"

Kakashi looked over and immediately started scaling the wall after Iruka. "Iruka!" The Chuunin's foot disappeared over the edge of the roof, and Kakashi's hand followed, snagging Iruka's ankle. It stalled the Chuunin just long enough for Kakashi to let go and flip upwards, landing in front of him on the roof.

Iruka rolled, leapt to his feet and immediately took off after the black bird hopping tauntingly several yards in front of them. He turned back long enough to warn, "It's henge!"

With that, shuriken shot forward and pinned the bird's back tail feathers to the roof. The two ninja dashed over, surrounding the fowl. Kakashi towered over it, head shifting to block the bright rays of sun pounding down from a blue sky above. The bird squawked feebly as it gazed up at the dark figure of the Shinobi, but it remained a bird. The grey eye narrowed at the feathered creature, and his foot pressed down on the bird's back, pinning it to the tiles. "Don't test my patience, asshole."

"I'll give him credit for detecting something," The bird squawked loudly, uselessly fluttering its wings. "Especially while intoxicated. But alas, I'm afraid I'm an ordinary avian."

Kakashi's foot pressed harder on the bird.

"Impatience will kill you one day, Kakashi-san." It croaked as the pressure accumulated on its fragile spine. "This is not henge! You won't accomplish anything by killing this innocent creature."

Kakashi edged up his hitae-ate to peer just below the fold of fabric. The red Sharingan eye glinted in its own cast shadows, and then disappeared behind the folds of fabric. It was, indeed, a simple bird. The pressure relented as the Jounin removed his foot.

Iruka pointed a tan finger at the creature. "Did you-?"

The bird's soft, lilting voice interjected. "I didn't touch the old man. My servants did it for me."

Kakashi's eye narrowed in extreme irritation.

Iruka glared down at the feathered creature. "What are you trying to accomplish with murdering citizens?"

"I'm not murdering citizens. I'm punishing traitors. In time, you, Iruka-san, will understand." It offered another feeble croak.

"Kill it, Kakashi…" The Chuunin turned away.

He would have; however, the man was not quite finished with the creature. He pulled out a kunai knife and aimed it at the bird. "So you are so-called 'Sensei'?"

"Yes. A pleasure, Sharingan no Hatake Kakashi." The bird's nails scratched at the rooftop as if it were making some sort of greeting. "Perhaps it will please you to know that if you hadn't gotten so involved with my specimen, those people at the hospital might not have died. Nor would I be forced to move so rashly. Unfortunately, I have to quicken the pace just to stay out of your lissome grasp."

"You flatter me so," Kakashi offered bitter sarcasm. The knife flashed as his wrist tilted slightly. "Are Kuro and Kuro acting on their own free will?"

"Of course they are. More or less."

"More or less?" Kakashi demanded clarification.

"More or less." And Sensei wasn't willing to give it. "Harogami Kuro is loyal; occasionally I need to remind them of that."

"And Matsuhara Tekki?"

"Of his own will. It's all about connection, you see."

Iruka was staring fixedly at a wall, teeth clenched together.

"And you, Sensei-san, are also connected by the Kekki Genkai."

"Oh yes," Sensei's prideful voice created a neat incision in Kakashi's irritation, allowing the condition to fester. "Anything you've seen is merely play compared to what our clan's bloodline limit is capable of."

"That's a stiff bluff to pull, Sensei-san," the Jounin retorted, fingers flexing and relaxing around the handle of his weapon. "It's impossible for four people to possess enough chakara to accomplish more than your current projects. The bird possession should be your limit unless you stop and redirect your energy."

"Impossible?" Sensei murmured seductively; the beady eyes of the bird glinted with an unnatural intelligence. "No. It's entirely possible. I need only be around a living organism containing a sufficient amount of chakara. If you recall, I believe you noticed an abnormal chakara flow in my kin?"

Kakashi gave no indication of positive or negative. He kneeled down next to the bird, staring at it intently as though he could see through it to the man behind the curtain.

So their aura absorbed chakara from any nearby living creature. That would have explained Isamu's complex system and ability to hold a massive amount of power. To control so many birds as to attack the hospital in the fashion it did, 'Sensei' had to have been surrounded by people, but at the time he would have been defenseless.

The Sharingan user placed the tip of the kunai against the bird's head. It raised its crest, ruffling its feathers and clicking its beak in response to the silent announcement of dominance. "And so how many people have you captured to feed off of? An impressive number, I assume."

Laughter flooded his mind. "Capture? You're close but if I'm guessing correctly, you're assuming I'm powerless when controlling a vast number. Very close but not quite."

Iruka's clenched fists were trembling. His head bowed forward with a set jaw. Sensei-san's response would mean that the people he took chakara from were either followers or were possibly unaware of being used.

Kakashi's eye narrowed at the bird dangerously. "What 'freedom' is it that you're offering, Sensei-san?"

"You don't need to know that. I'm offering you nothing, scarecrow."

There was nothing more Kakashi would be able to collect from him right now. "And I'll accept nothing from you. Not even your bullshit." CRUNCH. Blood spurted from around the kunai knife now lodged in the tiny skull, piercing through to the tile. He yanked the knife out and the bird's body slipped off, flopping limply to the ground.

Iruka gasped and gulped. "Wait…. Nngh…." A loud thud reverberated through the roof and the Jounin knew, without turning around, Iruka had passed out.

---

A shirtless Yasuo stepped out of the bathroom, rubbing the white towel into his long, damp locks. He yawned, pulling the towel away from his head, holding the cold terry cloth in his hands. He had just gotten back from his "tea kettle assignment" with Isamu and had taken his break to have a nice, long shower. He had felt rather guilty about shoplifting the kettle, so he was sure to return to the shop before returning to his residence. He slipped the money in the register without his sensei or the shop keeper knowing. At least his conscience was free, but that didn't keep Isamu from picking up on his distress. His current sensei had decided that Yasuo needed a few hours off from training so he could try to recover his energy before resuming. The man had promised to bring food to Kakashi's apartment so they could eat and converse together.

The boy strolled into 'his' room and dropped the towel to the floor near the futon. He'd pick it up later. Yasuo dropped to his knees in front of the dresser, and pulled open the bottom drawer to reveal his personal belongings. He'd forgotten to take a fresh shirt into the bathroom with him. At least having a uniform kept the selection simple. He pulled out a folded Chuunin shirt and waved it open, then began to pull it on over his head. Perhaps he would go into the city today for some fresh air, or if that didn't work out, he'd read some Icha Icha Paradise. That action would most likely come from his Academy Student-like desire to spite his former sensei. Although…he did enjoy the book.

Yasuo shook his head, letting his wet hair fall loosely around his face to dry. He slid the drawer shut with a soft click.

Another click, this time of a door shutting, followed directly after.

He could feel them before they reached the bedroom. Only one came to greet Yasuo; the other lingered in the hallway, tensed and ready to spring. The boy turned around slowly, eyes landing upon the elder sibling.

Harogami Kuro was shirtless, and he was covered in bruises, his long, flowing hair disheveled and messy. He looked as disoriented as he was feeling. "Yasuuo-kun…" The slight distress was apparent in his slur.

Yasuo took in the condition of both visitors and immediately knew not to startle the younger sibling. He did not stand, but carefully shifted to his knees as if he were trying not to startle a panicking, cornered animal. "K-Kuro-san," damn it, he had stuttered. The boy took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "What happened to you?"

"S'nothing…" Kuro slid into the room, gracefully curling his legs beneath him as he sat next to Yasuo. He possessed the grace of a bird, yet each movement whispered of the danger of a snake poised to strike. A charmed snake was no less volatile as one aware of its surroundings. "Kuro-kun and I were just playing." After a long pause he added, "We had to kill again."

"I've been telling him it's a waste of time dwelling over it," Younger Kuro sneered. "We're Shinobi. It's our job to kill."

Yasuo's eyes remained trained on both of them. His hands instinctively lifted in front of him, and he began pulling at his earlobe nervously. The boy brushed back damp locks, being sure to keep them out of his eyes. "Who'd you kill?" he whispered.

"Some woman." The nearest Kuro said softly. "Neither of us knew her, but Sensei did. He wanted her dead." A thin, pale hand extended, fingers lightly brushing against a few stray hairs that his new friend had neglected to move.

Yasuo shrank from the touch, though not enough to irritate Kuro. "Oh…Looks like she gave you some trouble…" he murmured softly, eyes slipping over the bruises and occasional scrape that the brother wore.

"No, Nii-san killed her. These are from him too."

The Kuro in the doorway scowled viciously. "Kuro-kun, shut the hell up!"

A soft puff of air escaped Kuro's pale blue lips. "Sensei is pushing us quite hard."

Yasuo's eyes switched over to the younger sibling. The glare he collected sent a shiver down his spine and he quickly looked away to avoid causing trouble. "Oh."

"I wanted to see you," the elder brother continued, ignoring his sibling's glare. "Isamu-san was not home, and sensei forbade us to see him again anyway." He repeated, "I wanted to see you."

"You're getting too sentimentally attached to this boy," Kuro muttered dangerously.

They exchanged heated glowers before both turned their heads; the younger to stare blankly at the wall in front of him and the elder to stare at Yasuo.

The idea of getting caught in the middle of a fight between these two was not something Yasuo deemed intelligent. He bit his bottom lip, looking to the dangerous brother once before turning his attention back to the eldest. "Oh, well, I guess it's a good thing I was here rather than out." Yasuo carefully stood, reason half being the desire to find a more defendable position in the room. He reached over to the dresser top to grab a comb. The boy quickly ran it through his hair then tied his hitae-ate in place. Anything to help him keep his nerve around the twins.

"You should hate us, Yasuo-kun," Kuro said, watching the boy's movements from his vantage point on the ground.

"He does, Kuro-kun."

"But I still hope one day, when this is over, we can watch the birds and you won't be afraid."

Yasuo was silent, and he turned, leaning against the dresser. He pocketed his hands and stared at his feet. "Under different circumstances, I'm sure we would be good friends, Kuro-san."

"We lie under a misfortunate moon." Warm breath bathed Yasuo's neck as he was suddenly enveloped in a pair of strong, pale arms. "Yasuo-kuuun, you are so kind."

Yasuo's eyes widened and he caught himself before he could throw Kuro back. The Chuunin gulped, realizing what a mistake that reaction might have been. His light brown eyes flickered over to the younger brother, and Yasuo collected a glare so deadly he withered inside. "U-uh, well, I, uh, try to be kind to people…." His heart pounded heavily and he fidgeted uncomfortably.

Kuro nuzzled the boy's neck from behind, smiling into Yasuo's hair and patting his head, arms still firmly wrapped around him. "I feel much better now, Nii-san!"

The youngest Harogami grumbled darkly to himself.

Yasuo's eye twitched and he tilted his head away from Kuro, still futilely attempting to put some distance between him and the twin. "Haha…." Oh god, what had he gotten himself into?

"I must thank you, Yasuo-kun!" And just when things seemed to spiral into chaos, salvation came in Yasuo's sudden, shocked release. Both brothers tensed and their heads snapped towards the apartment entrance. They were gone in three seconds.

Twenty-nine seconds later, he heard the door to the apartment open and a loud, cheerful voice proclaimed, "Yasuo-kun! I brought the rice balls!"

---

Kakashi walked down the hallway of his own apartment building, hands pocketed and pace idle. He had taken Iruka back to the man's apartment, laid him in his bed with water set beside it, and then set up traps of all kinds. There was no way anyone was getting into that apartment without the knowledge of where the traps were located, and the only person on the entire planet that knew how to get around them was himself.

With that small comfort in his mind, Kakashi had left to check on his own apartment and see if Yasuo was still there. Perhaps the Kuro brothers had even stopped by some time after their murder in the streets. Kakashi rapped on his door three times and opened it.

Yasuo's head snapped towards him. "I thought I locked th-"

Kakashi laughed lightly at the boy's startled look. His eye switched over to Isamu, who was sitting at the table eating a rice ball. "Yo."

"Hello Kakashi-san!" Isamu waved from the table. "Rice ball? They're very good. I brought some earlier, but I ended up eating all of those so I had to go out and get more. This is the third batch." The man laughed gaily, tossing a treat at the Jounin. His mirth extended to his eyes, the gold gleaming brightly under the artificial lighting.

Kakashi caught it and handed it to Yasuo. "No thanks."

Yasuo stared at the food now in his hands. "Uh, hey, Kakashi-san. What's up?"

"Did Kuro and Kuro come by here?" The Jounin jumped straight to the point.

"Um…." Yasuo's eyes flickered to Isamu and then to his rice ball. "Yeah. They both stopped by for a visit."

Isamu sighed, shaking his head at Kakashi's discarding of the food. "According to Yasuo-kun, they departed merely seconds before my arrival. And yet, I didn't sense them at all…"

"Any information for me, Yasuo-kun?" Kakashi asked.

"They came over after killing a woman."

"Woman?" The Jounin's voice contained a certain degree of surprise that both Genjutsu users immediately picked up on.

"Yes, a woman." Yasuo nodded to aid his correctness. "It was someone they didn't know themselves, but their sensei had requested they kill her."

Kakashi lifted a hand to his temple, pressing gently. "I just came from the murder sight of an old man."

"Perhaps each brother murdered one person?" Isamu suggested.

"Perhaps."

Yasuo ate the rice ball. "I dunno. They didn't boast about a second murder, but who was the man?"

"A Kosuke Jiro. Recognize it?"

"Nah." The Chuunin shook his head.

Isamu raised his tea cup to his lips, a brief light of recognition expiring in his eyes before either Shinobi could see it. He smiled serenely and sipped. "No. Can't say I recognize it either."

"Alright," Kakashi nodded. "Iruka is asleep back at the apartment. I've got to get back to him, so if you two come up with anything more, come see me there."

"Of course," Yasuo grinned.

Kakashi vanished out the door.