Chapter 2
The Meaning Of Dreams
Kakashi sat on the edge of the hospital bed staring down at his feet. For the fiftieth time that day he tried to will his toes to move – but, for the fiftieth time that day the stubborn digits ignored him completely. His eyebrows pinched together in frustration. It had been two weeks since he'd woken up in this hospital room, and he still wasn't able to walk across the room without the aide of others.
Kakashi clenched his fists. At this rate he wasn't sure he'd be able to take advantage of a chance to leave even if he wanted to. Two weeks – he couldn't believe how quickly the time went by. By this point the Hokage would have no choice but to declare him missing – likely she'd already declared him dead. Kakashi frowned. He doubted his enemy would do the same.
"Dammit!"
He slid himself off the bed and onto the floor – using his arms to make it seem effortless – even though it was one of the most difficult things he'd done in awhile. His brow was covered in a fine sheen of sweat by the time he settled on the cool tiles, but Kakashi ignored it and twisted his body until he was face down on the floor. Once he was certain his feet were in the correct position, he pushed his body away from the floor until his arms were nearly straight and then bent his elbows to let himself back down again. He continued with the push-ups until his breath was burning in his lungs and his muscles were trembling from the exertion. Only then did he lower himself all the way back to the floor and roll over onto his back.
Kakashi slid his legs back toward the side of the bed. Then he used his hands to pick each foot up in turn and work them under the edge of the bed's mattress – effectively pinning the useless feet in place. He proceeded to push his body through a series of sit-ups that would make a lesser man cry out – but he knew that if he didn't return to training now, that he'd be running the risk of atrophy in the unused muscles. He'd seen too many good shinobi make that mistake and never manage to heal fully from their injuries. Kakashi would not let that happen to himself.
"What in the world do you think you're doing, Kakashi Hatake?!?" Chuutetsu's voice held an edge of panic to it – which caused Kakashi to pause in his workout.
He twisted his head so he could get a clear view of the medic as he crossed toward him from the door and gave the man his most innocent smile. "Sit-ups?"
The gray-haired medic squatted next to the bed and placed his hands on Kakashi's ankles. "I think you've done enough for today, Kakashi."
Before he had a chance to respond, Chuutetsu pulled his non-responsive feet loose from the mattress and settled them back on the floor. Kakashi noticed a frown on the man's face and he ventured a look at his feet to see what elicited the reaction. He raised his eyebrows in surprise when he saw the telltale signs of fresh scratches and new bruises forming across the top of his pale feet.
The medic turned to face him, his frown growing more intense. "Kakashi – if I didn't know better I'd swear you had a death wish."
Kakashi bit back a laugh. "Don't be so dramatic Chuutetsu. I was simply trying to keep in shape. Is that so hard to understand?"
This line of logic would never have worked with the junior medic – Samidare – but Kakashi knew Chuutetsu understood the value of exercise. It was evident the senior medic was no stranger to workouts based on the defined layer of muscle visible on his arms as he moved to lift Kakashi back to the bed.
The older man sighed. "Listen Kakashi, I could tell when they brought you in that you are someone who has honed their body to its peak. But if you push things too far too fast it could end up backfiring on you."
Kakashi rolled his eyes and muttered quietly. "You sound like the Hokage."
"Well – whoever this Hokage is – sounds like they know you pretty well." He placed Kakashi gently back on top of the mattress. "Case in point are these feet of yours. If I hadn't stopped you when I did, you would have kept going even if you were rubbing serious wounds into the tops of your feet." He met Kakashi's eyes. "Am I right?"
Kakashi narrowed his eyes but gave no answer. Chuutetsu shook his head, turned to the bedside table and retrieved a tube of salve. He placed a large dollop on his palm and proceeded to gently rub the lotion into the damaged tops of Kakashi's feet. "I know you're frustrated with the speed of your recovery. I can see it in the set of your shoulders. But what I don't understand is why?"
The medic looked into Kakashi's face once more. "Anyone else who had the extent of injuries you had would still be hooked up to life-support and in a coma. You should be thrilled with how quickly you're progressing."
Kakashi took a deep breath. "I appreciate what you're saying, but I can't afford to take it easy right now. I have to get back before they . . ." He shook his head and didn't finish his thought.
But Chuutetsu wasn't willing to let it go. "Before they what, Kakashi?"
He opened both eyes and met Chuutetsu's gaze – knowing he needed help in this strange land – and trying to decide if this man was someone he could trust. His sharingan picked up nothing unusual about him, and as his mismatched eyes saw the concern in the medic's eyes, Kakashi made his choice.
"I have to get back before they find me."
Chuutetsu's face took on a look of confusion. The medic moved to the bedside and placed one hand on Kakashi's shoulder. "Are you telling me that you have people looking for you?"
Kakashi nodded. Chuutetsu stepped back, releasing the shoulder as he moved. A look of frustrated anger covered his features. "Then why don't you want them to find you? After all – wasn't that what you asked Lord Koharu to help you with?"
Kakashi sighed. He wasn't comfortable with where this conversation was leaded – but he saw no other options. "Not exactly, Chuutetsu. I asked for help returning home."
The look of confusion returned to the medic's face – but then slowly, understanding reached the depths of his eyes. "Oh . . . you're not talking about being found by your kinsmen, are you?" Kakashi shook his head. Chuutetsu glanced back at his damaged legs. "You're worried about the people who did this to you."
Kakashi nodded.
Chuutetsu sat back down on the bed. "What makes you so sure they're coming?"
Kakashi shrugged. "Because they'll sense I'm alive."
Chuutetsu said nothing for a moment before laughing softly at Kakashi's words, causing the jonin to frown. "You almost had me going there for a minute, Kakashi. You're quite the joker."
The medic's laugh caught in his throat when Kakashi leveled one of his most serious glares at him. Chuutetsu's dark eyes went wide. "Oh dear God . . . you're serious! What kind of people do you have after you?"
Kakashi maintained his gaze. "The kind that neither of us want darkening your shores."
Chuutetsu look at him incredulously. "Relax, Kakashi. Our cadre can protect us . . . and you – if it comes to that."
Kakashi arched a brow high in the air. "Is this the same cadre that found me in the water? The same that I managed to dispatch six of in my weakened state?"
Chuutetsu looked like he wanted to be sick as Kakashi's words sank in. The topic of the unfortunate slaughter of this city's elite cadre was one that was avoided on order of Lord Koharu once the young man pledged to help Kakashi heal and return home. Still – Kakashi needed to get these people to see that the longer he stayed here – the higher the probability that the ones who hurt him would track him down. And he knew that his enemy would not be gentle in their attempts to gather information.
Kakashi didn't want to be responsible for any more of these good peoples' deaths.
Chuutetsu was shaking his head. "I still don't understand why you are so sure they're coming."
Kakashi scratched his head. How could he make this man understand? He wasn't any good at teaching chakra theories to people with no real knowledge in the subject. He wasn't an Academy teacher for God's sake. Then a stray thought crossed his mind – what would Iruka do?
Kakashi smirked at the thought of the young chunin who had managed to get at least the rudimentary basics to sink into the hard heads of numerous groups of children. Hell – he even managed to get Naruto to pick up some of it. Kakashi decided to employ the most basic of Iruka's skills that he had witnessed over the years – which was to find out how much was already known – and then build on that.
"Chuutetsu – what do you know of the lands across the waters and their use of chakra?"
"Chakra? What's that?"
Kakashi sighed, then held his right hand up and gathered enough chakra to dance along his fingertips.
"This, is chakra."
Once Chuutetsu stopped gaping at him, Kakashi proceeded to try and explain just what chakra was and how the others might be able to use it to locate him.
-- --
Akuma stood on the deck of the sloop peering out into the fog that seemed thick enough to slice. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the sea air. For two weeks he'd been following the faint traces of his prey's trail, and today was the first time he was able to sense more then just a hint of the elusive Copy-ninja's chakra – which meant he was still alive.
A burst of wind sent a spray of icy cold sea water over the railings of the ship, but Akuma barely noticed the salty liquid as it coated his bare arms and face. His focus was on the flare of white-hot chakra that – although brief – allowed him to narrow his search to a set direction through the fog. He smiled while he sent his own chakra out in a thin stream toward where he'd sensed his target. Soon he'd know for certain if the flare belonged to Kakashi Hatake – and then the fun could begin.
-- --
Iruka knelt on the ground and held the blood-covered headband in his hand, wondering – not for the first time – if the scroll Naruto had placed into the Hokage's hands was really worth all this. He certainly hoped it was. He clenched his fist around the metal plate until it dug into his palm.
The headband would have been missed by most people. It was hidden in such a manor that only someone who knew what to look for would ever have noticed it. Fortunately for Iruka, their were members on the retrieval team who had worked with Kakashi Hatake for years in the service of the Hokage as ANBU. Because of that – they were all adept at looking underneath the underneath.
In this case, the underneath was more literal then usual. Kakashi left a few well placed kunai marks on a series of trees and rocks along the path. To the untrained eye they would look like the aftermath of a battle – which obviously had occurred – but the Copy-ninja's former squad-mates knew their Captain's marks well. They led them unerringly to the stack of branches and rocks at the edge of the shore. When one of the porcelain-masked ANBU waved for Iruka to join them he'd been unsure what they would show him. A part of his mind hoped it would be Kakashi's unconscious form – another, darker part figured it was the Copy-ninja's decaying corpse they'd uncovered. Instead they wordlessly pointed toward the strip of metal and cloth and then waited for his reaction.
If they had come across this a week ago, Iruka would have probably reached right out and grabbed hold of the headband. . . but after a week traveling with the retrieval team and watching their every movement, Iruka knew there had to be more to the headband then met the eye. He bit at his bottom lip while he tried to figure out the message. Then he noticed the item was not as haphazardly placed as he first thought. He turned toward the unreadable face of the bird mask.
"The way its folded and the direction of the emblem mean something – don't they?"
The masked head nodded. Iruka held back his grin and returned his attention to the sticks still covering the discarded headband. He knew they, too, must have a meaning – but what?
"The sticks have a message too?"
Again the nod, but this time it was followed by a low voice that was partially muffled by the mask.
"Very good, Iruka-sensei." He pointed to the top layer of sticks. "Kakashi-senpai has let us know that he is still pursued by ten enemy." He carefully removed the sticks to unveil the metal plate. "The direction of his flight is shown by the closed side of the leaf symbol." Finally the ANBU pointed to the folds of the material without touching them. "These folds show he is running low on chakra – while these mean he has been severely injured."
Iruka nodded his understanding and watched as another ANBU member stepped forward. They wordlessly held their arms out and streams of chakra-feeding insects streamed out of the sleeves of the ANBU's cloak. Iruka's eyes widened in surprise. He'd been unaware that any members of the Aburame clan had joined the ranks of ANBU. But now, as he watched the creatures land on Kakashi's discarded headband, he started to see the wisdom in it. The clan was perfect for infiltration, espionage and tracking missions. Moments later the creatures were heading in the direction that they sensed Kakashi's chakra and the group was ready to head out once more.
Only after he was sure they were ready to leave did Iruka pick up the headband and clutch it. Iruka had been marginally insulted by the way the others showed him the ropes at the beginning of their journey, but that was now replaced by a constant appreciation for just how many things beyond basic shinobi training these elite ninja had to learn and master. And Iruka took it as the honor it was that they were willing to share at least some of that knowledge with the likes of him.
He knew he had the basic skill-set to become a jonin if he ever decided to – but to have the ANBU recognize his abilities was something he never expected. Still, Iruka knew deep down that part of why they were sharing with him was that he'd be a liability without certain basic ANBU-level skills.
That realization was unnerving – and Iruka found himself wondering what the hell had made him impulsively demand to be on this retrieval team. And, for that matter, what had possessed Lady Tsunade to actually grant the request. But she had – and he was weeks into the quick-paced, no-frills assignment of ascertaining where Kakashi had gone to.
Of course – Iruka hadn't expected it to be exactly this intense. . . although in hindsight he should have read the clues. He wasn't allowed to wear anything that identified him as a member of the Leaf Village – no uniform – no headband – not even his ID tags. He'd been given fairly nondescript dark pants and shirt to wear under a tan hooded cloak and an unmarked porcelain mask to cover his face.
Iruka tucked Kakashi's headband into a pouch at his waist, resettled the plain mask onto his face and fell into step beside the rest of the team. Naruto's face flashed through his mind – the look of hope in the young man's blue eyes enough to steel his resolve to see the mission through to its end. After all, Naruto needed Kakashi – even though the young man would be the first to deny the fact. But Iruka knew – ever since the Copy-ninja took charge of Team Seven back at the Academy – that Kakashi Hatake was one of the very few to have Naruto count as a precious person. And in Iruka's eyes – that made Kakashi worth finding and bringing back to Konoha – regardless of what shape he was in when they found him.
-- --
Boudachi had been looking for Lord Kurogane for the past hour and his search finally ended when he remembered a little used practice yard located at the edges of Kuragane's lands. It was there that he found the man sparring with ten of the elite guards which normally watched the borders between the clan's lands and the areas still pledging allegiance to the current Raikage. Almost all of the guards looked worse for wear – while Kurogane barely looked winded.
Boudachi waited until he was acknowledged before he approached the silver-haired leader of the clan.
"Lord Kurogane, we've received a report from Akuma."
Kurogane walked to his side and held out one hand. Boudachi placed the small scroll onto his palm and waited while Kurogane read it. Boudachi watched the neutral expression on his leader's face shift to something closer to displeasure – which was confusing, considering he knew the message said Akuma had a fresh trail to follow.
"Lord Kurogane, is there a problem?"
The scroll was crumpled in one hand while Kurogane's dark gray eyes locked with Boudachi's. "Is there a problem? You ask such a ridiculous question as that when you know that time is running out?"
Boudachi swallowed and tried not the tremble at the intensity of the killing intent rolling off his employer. "Forgive me. I thought this would have been taken as a good report."
"How could you ever think that learning that Kakashi is farther away then expected would be a good report? Hmmm?"
Boudachi sighed. "I can see how that part is disappointing, Lord Kurogane – but the fact that Akuma has locked onto his trail surely is worthy of recognition."
Kurogane glanced down at the crumpled scroll before giving a short laugh. "I suppose it is at that Boudachi."
Boudachi caught the scroll as it was tossed at him. He would never get used to the suddenness of Kurogane's mood changes. But the man was undeniably the strongest shinobi in the Land of Lightening, and he paid him well for his services – so who was he to complain? He rolled the crumpled paper back up and slipped it into his pouch.
"Boudachi – tell me what you've managed to find out about my Nephew since we last talked."
Boudachi retrieved the small notebook he kept his research notes in and flipped it open to where he'd left off with Kurogane two nights before. "After the death of Sakumo Hatake, little is recorded of what Kakashi was doing – although the hospital records did show an increase in the number of times the man was admitted for more then light injuries. Most were officially entered as 'training accidents' – but the assumption is that Kakashi Hatake joined Konoha's ANBU forces at that time."
Kurogane's mouth twitched. "So, the brat handled his loss by immersing himself into an elite killing unit. Perhaps we're more alike then I'd thought."
Boudachi frowned but continued on. "His official public records show him as one of Konoha's top elite jonin – with specialties in tracking and assassination techniques – including the Lightning Blade."
Again, a twitch in Kurogane's mouth. "What of Kakashi's personal life?"
Boudachi sighed and flipped through more notes. "He doesn't seem to have one, Lord Kurogane." He turned to another page. "There has been no record of Kakashi Hatake having a personal relationship beyond the normal camaraderie shared over a drink after a mission – and even then, he never stays long."
Kurogane's eyes seemed unfocused. "How unlike his father."
Boudachi continued. "It seems all his free time is spent training, going on missions, and reading."
"What of his nickname? The Copy-ninja, isn't it?"
"Yes. Somewhere between his becoming jonin and his entry into ANBU, Kakashi Hatake was seen with one sharingan eye. I haven't been able to get any official details on it yet, but rumors mention it was either a gift – or he forcibly took it from one of his early teammates."
Kurogane's eyes sharpened and he ran a hand over his chin. "We'll need to take that into account for when the whelp is brought back. See to it, Boudachi."
Kurogane waved him away and went back to sparring – as though the conversation hadn't interrupted him at all. Boudachi sighed at the obvious dismissal, put away his notebook and started back to the clan house. He set his mind on what he could possibly do to prepare for Kakashi Hatake's arrival that would take a legendary sharingan into account. He'd have to do a lot more research before he'd be ready for his arrival.
-- --
Tsunade set jutsus around her office to prevent any unwanted eyes seeing what she was doing. She even went so far as to send Shizune to the other side of the village on a fairly complicated errand to ensure an hour or two alone. Now – she was ready to look at the scroll that was procured at such a high cost.
She held the ornate scroll case in her hand and frowned. She still couldn't believe Taisetsu was dead. She'd known that man for more then half her life – and although he'd become a Lord of a small area near Wave Country, he'd kept his shinobi skills finely honed. Tsunade frowned. The skills of the attacking forces must have been staggering to have been able to take out Taisetsu, injure Sakura so severely, and shake up Naruto and Sai to the extent they did.
Tsunade's thoughts moved to Sakura for a moment. Her young apprentice was still recovering in the hospital – but at least she was expected to heal completely. Physically at least. Whatever had happened on their way back to Konoha was bad enough that – two weeks later – Sakura, Sai and Naruto were still jumping at shadows.
To make matters worse – the retrieval team still hadn't given any news of reaching the target yet. . . Kakashi Hatake was still officially missing. If she didn't hear back differently soon – she'd be forced to declare him assumed dead. Tsunade sighed and opened the scroll case.
This would be the tenth time she was looking at the scroll – but she kept hoping that it would show her something other then what she knew was there. Tsunade placed the parchment on her desk and opened it to its full length. She stared down at the painstakingly drawn characters that covered every available space on the scroll, and returned her attention to where she'd left off the last time she read it.
The writing detailed the latest goings on in the Land of Lightning, and no matter how many times she read the scroll, she was left with the same feeling of uneasiness. The peace between the Lands of Fire and Lightning had never been strong – after the incident with the Hyuga clan - but the treaty signed by Hokage and Raikage had stood for sometime now. Unfortunately, if the document in front of her was accurate, that might be about to change. Taisetsu managed to uncover a plot within Lightning that could mean the current Raikage was vulnerable to an overthrow of power.
Although such an occurrence was not uncommon within the shinobi lands, it was who Taisetsu identified as the driving force behind these rumors that worried Tsunade - Kurogane Hatake.
She frowned and rubbed the bridge of her nose, trying to push down the headache she felt coming to life. The last she knew, Kurogane was supposed to be in prison for the rest of his life. And considering the source of that information had been Kurogane's older brother, Sakumo Hatake, she had taken it for the truth it was.
Sakumo rarely spoke of his time before moving to Konoha – but the few times he did, he made it crystal clear that his younger brother was not mentally stable. It was part of the reason Sakumo left Lightning – although Tsunade was never able to pull more then a few sketchy facts from the man.
She knew the two Hatake brothers has some kind of major disagreement – and that had led to the death of many of their kinsmen. At the time, she knew the Hatake clan was the strongest within Lightning and that their disbandment was at the order of the Raikage. No one in Konoha thought much more of the tale – considering it was because of that disbandment that the White Fang became one of Konoha's strongest protectors.
Tsunade sighed and rolled up the scroll. She needed more answers – but the only person who would have had them was Sakumo. Tsunade doubted even Kakashi would know too much about his father's past. After all, anytime she tried to broach the subject when visiting Sakumo she'd been efficiently shut down if Kakashi was within ear range. Sakumo raised Kakashi as a member of Konoha – and he wouldn't let any talk of his former life occur when his boy was around.
Tsunade's thoughts moved to Kakashi. She could remember him as a kid. His pale skin and silver hair made stand out amidst the majority of Konoha's citizens – but it was his aptitude with everything he touched that showed just how far ahead of the others he was. Tsunade remembered watching him in the chunin exams when he was six. Just like everyone else – she assumed the boy would be disqualified or injured before the first matches were finished. . . but he wasn't – and he ended up making everyone eat their words when he showed an exceptionally advanced ability to analyze and lead at such a young age. She'd even managed to make some money betting on the kid – much to Sakumo's displeasure.
Tsunade also remembered the strange look on Sakumo's face that day. There was pride – of course – that his boy would earn the chunin rank so young. But there was also an edge of apprehension that she'd never quite understood.
Perhaps he was remembering a similar aptitude in his younger brother – and he was afraid his boy might follow down whatever path Kurogane went. Perhaps that would explain why he pushed his boy so hard to become the perfect shinobi.
Tsunade hoped that the lessons Kakashi learned along the way would be enough to keep him safe during his current adventure. And that perhaps Sakumo had exaggerated the one and only time he'd discussed Kurogane in any detail – and stated he doubted that he'd have enough skill to destroy his brother if the two ever met again.
A shiver ran down Tsunade's spine at the thoughts of anyone being stronger then Sakumo Hatake. She released the jutsus on the room after securing the scroll back in her desk and sat heavily in her chair.
"Shizune!" There was no answer.
Tsunade shook her head – of course there'd be no answer – the young woman was still off on the errand she'd sent her on. Tsunade groaned and pushed herself away from the desk. She'd have to go see if she could find some tea on her own.
-- --
Kakashi's breath came in short gasps while he tried unsuccessfully to calm his heartbeat down. He sat up in his bed to find himself covered in sweat. After a moment of disorientation he remembered where he was and frowned.
The dream had been so real . . . right down to the tiniest detail . . . that Kakashi fully expected to be back in Konoha standing over the lifeless body of his father. He could remember the scent of the freshly spilled blood as it pooled around his feet. The ghostly shade and ice cold feel of his father's flesh when he reached to remove the blade still clutched in his hand after performing the ritual death.
Kakashi hadn't had that nightmare in over a decade – and it shook him to the core. That had been the moment in his life when he'd felt the most helpless – the most worthless – that he'd ever felt. The scenes in his mind were still so fresh that Kakashi very nearly missed the retreat of a tendril of foreign chakra from his consciousness.
"Dammit! I took too long."
The words were pushed through a throat that was tight with emotions that Kakashi had spent most his adult life pushing down. He tried to regain control by analyzing what he knew. Somehow, an unknown enemy was now aware of his exact location and was brazen enough to make their first move from a distance. He could only hope that whoever the owner of the foreign chakra was – they were not aware of his discovery of their presence yet.
Kakashi pushed himself out of the bed and carefully placed his feet on the floor. With Chuutetsu's guidance - and the minimal field medicine training he had – the two managed – with a lot of trial and error – to use his chakra to speed up the final healing in his feet. And although no where near as effective as Sakura or Tsunade's mending would be – they had at least managed to get him to a point where his feet could hold his weight without buckling.
Kakashi frowned. He'd hoped to be able to rest up a few more days before having to run again – but he couldn't risk staying put now that his enemy was obviously closing in on him. He walked over to the only closet in the room and pulled open the doors. He'd asked Chuutetsu to find his uniform for him, but the medic informed him that what was left of his clothes from before were burned. The material was so coated in filth and blood that there was no other choice.
So instead, the gray-haired man supplied him with what he could manage to find in the castoffs of the supply rooms. Kakashi sighed as he removed the lightweight hospital shirt and pants he'd been using for the duration of his stay, and replaced them with ill-fitting light blue pants, and a cream colored pullover shirt, that like the pants was slightly larger then he'd prefer.
The only piece of his original clothing that Chuutetsu was able to salvage were his open-toed shoes. Kakashi pulled them on and felt at least a tiny bit more like himself. He slid out the door and through the silent corridors – easily avoiding the sentries who wandered the hall. He contemplated relieving one of them of their weapons, but the cadre members favored the rather conspicuous spear-like contraptions and Kakashi didn't need the additional challenge of keeping such an item hidden during his departure. Besides – nothing screamed escape louder then a missing sentry.
Kakashi grinned at the thought. He knew he technically wasn't a prisoner of these people – but still, he couldn't help but doubt they'd just let him walk out of here without a fuss. He kept to the shadows and wound his way back into the open air for the first time in almost a month. Pausing to take a deep breath of the sea-chilled air, Kakashi headed away from the hospital toward where Chuutetsu had described one of the seedier spots of the city. He figured that would be the easiest place to pick up more appropriate weapons and more clothing. With luck he'd be on his way back across the waters by dawn.
-- --
Samidare's eyes widened in fear as he watched the cadre members bodies being flung around as though they were rag dolls. He tried his best to fade into the shadows of the supply room and crawled under the farthest shelving unit hoping to avoid detection. He, of course, was never that lucky.
A hand reached under the shelf and knotted itself into Samidare's shirt. With one swift movement he was pulled out from his hiding place and pushed painfully against the supply room's wall. His fear doubled when his eyes took in the visage of the man who had him pinned. The man was taller then any man he'd ever seen . . . easily half again as tall as himself. The bare arm holding him up was full of clearly defined muscle, and the skin-tight black clothing made it obvious that the man's entire body was just as honed.
Piercing violet eyes stared at him from pale skin and finely chiseled features. Long, black hair fell in waves over his shoulders and his thin lips curved into a slight grin as he spoke in a soft voice that sounded inappropriately sweet as it promised death.
"Tell me where he is and I'll finish you quickly."
"Who?"
"Kakashi Hatake."
Samidare swallowed. "I – I don't know . . . he was in his room when I left last night."
The violet eyes narrowed and the thin lips curled down in a frown. "That was the wrong answer."
Samidare struggled in the man's hand until he felt a sharp pain rip through his belly. He was released to fall to the floor where he watched in mute disbelief while his innards seeped out of his body. He looked up to see the stranger wipe his hand on his pants and walk out of the supply room, leaving Samidare alone. The young medic couldn't help but understand that this particular wound would take many long minutes to drain his life away. He choked back tears and wished he'd hid in the medical supply room instead of the linen room – then he could have had access to the medicines to end his life quicker. As he listened to the screams of others from outside the room, he closed his eyes and waited for death to claim him.
-- --
Akuma rifled through the patient records until he found what he was looking for – Hatake, Kakashi – room 313. He smiled and threw the chart onto the body of the shift nurse who'd been just a touch too slow in supplying him with answers. Akuma walked down the hall toward the room – and readied himself to face his prey. He could feel the target's chakra pulsing steadily behind the door – signifying the man was likely in a deep sleep – and looked forward to pitting himself against the infamous Copy-ninja.
Akuma pull the door open in one swift motion and stepped into the room to find an empty bed.
"Impossible."
He looked for the source of the chakra he'd sensed and was dismayed to see a small bundle of clothing, sitting in the middle of the bed and glowing with a slow pulsing of Kakashi Hatake's chakra. Akuma growled to himself. This target knew how to use his chakra sensing skills against him – and they hadn't even met face to face yet. The only contact was through the nightmare he'd incited within the target's mind to throw him off balance and allow for easier tracking.
Akuma was beginning to understand why Kurogane insisted his talents were needed for this mission. This target was obviously skilled beyond most prey, and the hunt would need to be escalated to take that into account. Akuma smiled and headed back into the hall. It had been a long time since he'd needed to use anything more then a basic nightmare jutsu to track a target. He was looking forward to the challenge.
