Please remember to read and review. A few lines go a long way.
Chapter Two
Minato could count on one hand the number of times Rin Nohara had been late. As he shifted his gaze towards the brightening horizon once more, he wondered if he had given her the wrong rendezvous location.
"What are you still doing here, sensei?" Kakashi wondered as he and Jiraiya spotted him sitting cross-legged on a fallen tree's stump.
"Waiting on Rin." Minato replied.
"You're taking her along?" Kakashi asked clearly taken aback. Minato nodded.
"Obito running late again?" He asked with a knowing smile. Kakashi's eyes narrowed in response.
"You remind me a lot of someone I once knew." The Toad Hermit mused with a contemplative frown.
"Oh?" Minato sighed arching an eyebrow slightly in response.
"Why didn't you just use a transformation jutsu, sensei?" Kakashi wondered tilting his masked head slightly as he studied his sensei's newly dyed hair.
"Less chakra-consuming," Minato replied tersely as he was reminded of Kushina's inquiry the night before. "Headed towards the training grounds for your first sparring match?"He asked turning to give Kakashi a small smile.
"No. We've just received a D-Rank mission." Kakashi replied with an annoyed frown.
"You received the mission without Obito?" Minato wondered slightly taken aback.
"We decided that it was quicker to just fetch him from his house and debrief him along the way." Kakashi explained as his frown deepened. "I'm not getting stuck cleaning gutters four weeks in a row because that loudmouth can't read a watch properly."
"Kakashi, we've been over this—gutter duty is rotated equally among the rookie Chunin." Minato explained with a weary sigh. "No matter how early or late you are to the mission room, you'll eventually get gutter duty if your name comes up on the rotation."
"And yet somehow we always get stuck with it every. Single. Week." Kakashi grumbled beneath his breath. "Sensei?"
"Yes, Kashi-kun?"
"Rin's late."The silver-haired prodigy noted as if he had just noticed this for the first time.
"I noticed Kashi-kun, thank you." Minato replied with an amused chuckle.
"You have to leave soon right?" Kakashi pressed on. Minato nodded with a patient sigh. "Do you think something happened to her? Do you want me to go fetch her?"
"Thanks for the offer Kashi. But that won't be necessary." As he spoke the others turned in time to see two familiar figures approaching them.
"Sensei, I'm so sorry I'm late." Rin said pressing her palms together with a flustered smile as she jogged to join the group. "Oh, Kakashi, Jiraiya-sama are you both coming?" Minato couldn't help but notice the hopeful look in her eyes as she watched Kakashi expectantly.
"No." Kakashi said bluntly. Rin's face fell but she quickly recovered as she glanced around for Obito.
"We just wanted to see you both off before we head out to pick Obito." Jiraiya explained before turning to greet Rin's mother who was watching her daughter apprehensively.
"It's my fault she's late." Mrs. Nohara said with an apologetic bow as Minato rose to greet her. "Honestly I was hoping that you would excuse her from this mission completely. You see, she's not very well."
"Mother!" Rin cried out as her face turned a deep crimson. Kakashi's ears perked up as he suddenly turned to appraise his teammate's appearance.
"Mind if I ask why Nohara-san?" Minato wondered with a light chuckle.
"Don't mind her sensei! I'm ready to go whenever you are." Rin said grabbing her sensei by the arm as she tried to pull him away from her mother.
"Not so fast Rin! Try not to exert yourself so much during this deli—" Rin turned and leveled her mother with a baleful glare cutting off the doting housewife's fussing.
"Here, wipe that off." Minato said handing his student a water-soaked handkerchief as he pointed towards her cheeks. When Mrs. Nohara gave him a quizzical look he chuckled nervously as he turned to explain himself. "Our mission requires us to disguise our appearances. We can't risk someone recognizing the Nohara clan's markings along the way."
"Ah," Mrs. Nohara said with a relieved chuckle. "Thank goodness. I thought the dye-job was supposed to be some kind of fashion statement." Minato felt his cheeks flush with heat as he responded with an awkward chuckle. "I mean don't get me wrong, the color suits you but it's not as appealing as your natural color."
At this Jiraiya threw back his head, clapping his student's shoulder in amusement as he and Mrs. Nohara shared a hearty guffaw. Minato turned towards Rin and gave her a reassuring smile as she cast him an apologetic look, shuffling her feet awkwardly in embarrassment.
"Mother, please! We have to get going now. We're already late as it is."
"It's alright, we will make up the time." Minato said as he waved at Kakashi and Jiraiya. He immediately turned around, taking Rin's hand in his as he flew through a complex series of hand seals with his free hand. The front gates of Konoha melted into the evergreen hills that lined the Land of Fire's northwestern border with the Land of Rivers as the hard earth beneath their feet softened to vibrant dew-covered grass.
Rin stood blinking at the picturesque horizon with wide brown eyes as her sensei ducked into a dilapidated shack hidden beneath a thicket of smothering vines.
"Rin, over here," Minato called before ducking into the musty little shack. He pulled out a long grey chalk with his left hand and drew a large circle at the center of the shack. Rin watched as he marked and labeled the circle with an intricate pattern of symbols and characters before weaving a set of hand seals and slamming his palm to the ground. Five dark blue candles appeared along the marked points on the circle as Minato lifted his long-sleeved shirt over his head before settling down at the heart of the circle.
"T-this is the altar for the seal you assigned me to study last night." Rin gasped as her eyes widened in realization. Minato nodded without turning around to face her as he beckoned her forward with his chalk-stained hand.
"You remembered the hand signs for the seal don't you?" Rin nodded before remembering that her sensei's back was to her.
"Hai!"
"Good," Minato said pressing the chalk into her palm before turning away. "I want you to perform the seal."
"S-sensei?" She stuttered in disbelief. Minato turned and gave her a reassuring smile.
"It's alright, Rin-chan." He said.
"But sensei!" Rin cried out dropping the chalk in dismay. "Without your chakra, you won't be able to perform any ninjutsu or genjutsu."
"I know."
"So why are you asking me to do this?!" The petite brunette cried out shaking her head in confusion. "This is an S-ranked mission, sensei. You of all people should know how the dangers tha—"
"Rin!" Minato's voice was firm but kind. "Do you trust me?" The frightened kunoichi nodded once again as she slowly bent to retrieve the fallen chalk with trembling fingers. "Will you help me with this? I would do it but the seal only works when the caster is different from the subject."
"H-hai!" Minato watched his student's shadow in the wall opposite him as she carefully weaved the necessary hand seals before pressing her palm to the center of his back. Minato squeezed his eyes shut and stiffened his shoulders as a scalding heat spread from the place Rin had touched to the rest of his body. White hot pain engulfed him as he felt each of his chakra points abruptly shut down in rapid succession.
He doubled over with a pained expression as a heavy numbness finally settled over him. Several seconds passed as Minato slowly but surely rose to his feet, pausing briefly to extricate a dark long-sleeved shirt and matching pants from his backpack. He turned and held out the clothes for Rin who accepted them quietly.
"Change into those." He instructed before retrieving a white hooded tracksuit with blue stripes for himself. Rin retreated to a hidden corner of the shack within a dusty pantry and quickly changed into her new clothes. By the time she emerged, Minato was wiping away the last traces of their presence.
"Sensei." Rin's voice sounded tiny and frightened to her own ears as she followed her sensei out into the sunlit valley.
"Yes, Rin?" Minato said turning to give her an apologetic smile.
"W-why? Why did you make me seal away your chakra?" Minato beckoned her towards him as he unfurled a large worn map which he spread out on the ground before them.
"Our mission is to locate and destroy a secret laboratory in the Land of Wind." Minato's long finger traced down a winding line parallel to the Land of Fire's northeast border. "We'll enter the Land of Wind through the Land of Rivers. There are hundreds of scouts and sentinels guarding the borders. Since I cannot completely suppress my chakra at will, I need the seal to do that for me."
"But," Rin hesitated. "What would happen if we come across enemy shinobi? How will you defend yourself? Without your ninjutsu, we'll be sitting ducks."
"A shinobi must be versatile and prepared to adapt to any given set of circumstances," Minato replied. "Genjutsu and Ninjutsu aren't the only offensive tools we shinobi have at our disposal. My natural speed should be enough to handle any problems we encounter. Remember, no matter what happens, we are not shinobi of the Hidden Leaf. We are civilian travelers touring the countryside."
"Do I have to suppress my chakra as well?" Rin wondered with a wary frown. Minato shook his head in response and chuckled when he saw how relieved she was. He didn't have the heart to tell her that her chakra signature wasn't significant enough to attract any special attention.
"Any other questions?" Minato asked as he returned the map to his pocket before rising to lead the way.
"How long will this mission last?" Rin wondered.
"That depends on how fast we can travel." He replied with a shrug. "And whether or not we run into any problems along the way. Honestly, I have no idea. But typically, infiltration missions like this tend to last for quite some time so be ready and don't let your guard down. I'm counting on you."
"I'll do my best to keep up with you sensei." Rin declared with a determined cry. "I promise I won't let you down!"
"That's my girl," Minato said with a doting smile.
"Rin get behind me." Minato hissed in a hushed tone as he spotted two figures slowly approaching their campsite. Rin flew to her sensei's side, hunting knife drawn at her side as she squinted at the figures suspiciously. The metallic smell of blood filled his nostrils as the figures neared them.
"H-help, please!" A slumped figure rasped, his features contorted in a pained frown. Minato's eyes narrowed suspiciously when he noticed that the man's bloodstained forehead protector bore Konoha's emblem.
"What happened?" Rin gasped as she flew towards the injured man's side, her medic instincts suppressing her sensei's warning from before. Minato watched as healing chakra filled his student's palm as she turned to tend to the injured man's wounds.
"We were ambushed returning from a mission along the border." The second man replied as he lowered his injured friend to the ground and turned to give Minato a grateful bow. Minato lifted his knee catching the stranger in the jaw instantly knocking him out cold. Rin shrieked in horror as her sensei tackled his injured partner to the ground. The injured man threw up his hands to defend himself but Minato deftly twisted his neck, snapping his spine.
"Guard him!" Minato barked snatching the hunting knife from the ground where Rin had discarded it and disappearing into the surrounding trees. He plunged the jagged blade into the crouching hostile's chest shattering his sternum before leaping unto the neighboring tree to cut down his comrade. Only when he had slain all eighteen of the hidden hostiles did he descend from the trees and return to Rin's side.
"S-sensei?" Rin squeaked as she trembled uncontrollably. "You k-killed our comrade."
"You sure about that?" Minato asked as he hastily set about gathering their things. Rin turned towards the corpse at her feet. She noticed a red cloth sticking out of his flak jacket pocket and pulled it out. Her jaw dropped as the metal forehead protector clanged to the floor, Sunagakure's symbol glistening in the silver rays of the half moon.
"How did you—?"Minato groaned as he hoisted the unconscious shinobi unto his back and straightened up.
"There should be a cave around here." The blue-eyed jounin said cutting her off. Rin sheepishly rose and ran off to find the cave her sensei had mentioned leading the way. Minato walked past her into the cave, pausing to dump his load unto the ground. The injured impostor groaned loudly as Minato pressed his knee to his chest. When he motioned for Rin to start a fire, she hastily flew to his side and obliged. Minato pulled out the hunting knife from before, pausing to wipe it clean before using it to slash at the impostor's wrists and ankles. Rin grimaced as the man's wretched screams filled the cave.
"There." Minato said straightening up as he completed his gory task.
"You can torture me all you want!" The man cried out bravely. "I'm not going to betray my comrades!"
"I only severed the tendons in your wrists and ankles so you wouldn't be able to run away." Minato stated calmly as he turned away. The ninja recoiled in horror as he examined his slashed limbs. "Gag him now but wait until he falls asleep to bandage his wounds." As he spoke Minato laid out their sleeping bags before settling down to rest in one.
"Sensei, I'm so sorry." Rin squeaked with trembling shoulders.
"Do you still have the scroll I gave you?" Minato asked as he turned to lie on his stomach. She nodded, hastily wiping the tears streaming down her cheeks. "There is a formula towards the back I want you to memorize by tomorrow. Can you manage that?" She nodded feebly as her sensei's eyes grew heavy with sleep.
Minato watched as Rin flew through a series of hand seals that prompted familiar dark markings to appear on her palms. He directed her to press the seal unto the whimpering shinobi's forehead and waited for the markings to disappear into his flesh before proceeding. The shinobi's eyes glazed over as the seal markings spread down to the rest of his face.
"How old are you?" Minato asked quietly.
"Thirty-one." The man replied dully.
"Where are you from?"
"Sunagakure no sato."Came the impostor's reply.
"What rank are you?" Minato asked as he lowered his gaze to study the man's bandaged wrists.
"J-jounin."
"Very good." Minato said with a satisfied nod as he released his wrist. "What is your name?"
"G-Genma, Fujiwara G-Genma."
"Nicely done." Minato said turning to give Rin a pleased smile. "It seems that you really do have a talent for sealing jutsus."
"T-thank you, sensei." The guilt of her gullibility the previous day still weighed heavily on her. Although Minato wanted to offer her words of encouragement, he decided to let her grapple with the reality of her actions. "But I'm afraid I'm not quite sure how the seal works."
"It's very simple really." Minato replied. "The seal suppresses a shinobi's deceptive instincts forcing their actions and responses to reveal their true intentions."
"I'm glad." Rin said with a relieved sigh. "For a moment, I thought you were going to torture him when you started slashing his wrists."
"Physical torture hardly yields reliable information." Minato explained. "Although the interrogation squad has other ways of extracting information, I'm not very good at using their techniques. Just remember, this seal only lasts for twenty-four hours—shorter if the subject is especially strong-willed."
"Can't you just renew the seal once it wears off?" Rin wondered.
"You could but you'd have to be very careful." Minato replied. "Honestly I would advise against renewing the seal after the first twenty-four hours. A seal this invasive traumatizes the victim's psyche the longer they are subjected to it. The last thing you want is your prisoner's brain turning into goo."
"Hai, sensei."
"You've done well." Minato repeated with a pleasant smile. "I'm going to extract as much information about the guard posts and patrol schedules so we can proceed. You should try to get some rest."
"One last question sensei." Rin said pressing her palms together with a shy smile. Minato chuckled and gave her an indulgent nod as he turned to face her. "How did you realize that they were imposters?"
"My sensory skills are attuned enough to detect their chakra signatures even with my chakra network sealed." Minato replied. "Although I was able to sense their approach, I wasn't sure of their intentions until I realized something odd about their behavior."
"What was it?" Rin asked intrigued.
"If they had been ambushed like they claimed, they should have discarded their forehead protectors and been wary of any strangers they encountered."
"But sensei, we look like civilians. Couldn't that have been why they trusted us so easily?"
"I haven't been completely honest with you Rin." Minato said with an awkward smile. "The reason I didn't suppress your chakra was because I didn't think it was significant enough to be detected by average sensory type ninja."
"Oh, I get it now." Rin said, brown eyes wide. "Any ninja skilled enough to detect my chakra signature would be baited into investigating or ambushing us."
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you that from the outset." Minato said sheepishly. "You were really shaken by having to seal away my chakra that I wasn't quite sure how you'd take it."
"It's alright sensei." Rin said with an understanding smile. "I'll try to get stronger so you don't have to worry about protecting me."
"That's what I wanted to hear."
The information Minato had extracted from the injured Sunagakure sentry allowed them to slip past the other guard posts and stations virtually undetected. Although it would have normally taken them two days to reach their destination, they were forced to stop more often than they would have preferred so Minato could rest.
Although Minato had anticipated his significantly-reduced stamina as a side-effect of sealing his chakra network, he hadn't realized how much of normal physical exertions were reliant on chakra. While his body was in peak physical condition, it was unaccustomed to the rigors of shinobi life without a supporting chakra network. As much as he hated stopping to rest, he was forced to accept the limits he was beginning to regret placing on his body. As expected Rin considerately went out of her way to accommodate her sensei's weakened state, suggesting frequent rest stops and always taking the first watch.
By the time they finally reached the hidden entrance to the secret underground laboratory, eight days had passed since their departure from Konoha. They concealed themselves behind a pair of large boulders as they studied the patrol patterns of the guards stationed throughout the gorge.
"We'll make our move once night falls." Minato informed Rin as they settled down to make camp.
"Sensei," the concern in Rin's voice was impossible to miss. "I counted thirty-seven men at the entrance alone."
"I know." Minato said as he turned to count his explosive tags.
"There will be more men inside." She warned. "You can't take them all by yourself. At least…not like this." Minato chuckled and shook his head without saying anything in response.
"I'll go ahead and create a diversion." Minato said as he secured his weapons' pouch to his person. "I want you to stay close to the shadows and follow me. Don't fall behind, no matter what. You'll set the explosive tags once we've secured the lab and detonate it once we're out."
"Won't the explosion attract attention?" Rin asked.
"I'll show you how to set the charges so that the collapse looks more natural." Minato explained.
"Will that work?"
"No, but it should buy us enough time to escape and throw them off our scent."
"Right." A chilly breeze drifted through the gorge as the sun slowly but surely disappeared beneath the western horizon. "I wonder what Kakashi and Obito are doing right now?" Rin wondered as they finished their ration bar.
Minato shrugged with a small smile as he dumped the empty wrappers into a storage scroll they had been using to store their trash. Rin sealed the contents of the scroll and stowed it away before settling down to watch the drifting clouds above.
"I never thought I'd say this," Minato chuckled. "But I'm beginning to miss their constant squabbling." Rin giggled at this.
"It's probably best that they didn't come." Rin stated quietly. "Their raised voices would have given away our location." Minato grunted in agreement as he shifted into a more comfortable position.
"Did you ever go on a secret mission with Jiraiya-sama when he was still your sensei?" Rin wondered.
"Twice I think." Minato replied with a pleasant smile as he recalled the fond memories of their growing bond. "He'd accepted a mission to protect a merchant's beautiful daughter on her journey to meet her betrothed. He kept hitting on her and kept getting shut down. I'll never forget the disbelief on her face when he ended up saving the day."
"How did the second mission go?" Rin asked as her fit of laughter finally subsided.
"Not good." Minato replied with a somber frown. "We were sent to track down a rogue-nin who had kidnapped a member of the Yamanaka clan before defecting. Turns out the victim and her kidnapper had been childhood sweethearts so she turned on us the instant we killed him."
"What happened to her?" Rin wondered wide-eyed.
"She retired from shinobi life and eventually defected."
"W-was she killed." Minato nodded slowly as a grave silence fell between them. "That's awful."
"A lot of what we do is." Minato admitted. "Assassinations, kidnapping, espionage, sabotage—we're in the unique business of destroying people's lives."
"But we do protect others, don't we?" Rin asked hopefully. "Most of our missions involve doing chores, protecting travelers, retrieving stolen goods and guarding precious cargo."
"When you become a jounin like me most of your missions will be like this one." Minato said with a somber sigh.
"Is that why you never seem to mind whenever we're assigned C and D-ranked missions?" Rin asked with a sympathetic frown. Minato stared into the darkness without uttering a syllable in response. "Kakashi really hates going on C and D-ranked missions. Even though he won't say it, I know that he feels like we're holding him back from better missions."
"Do you feel like you are?" Minato wondered quietly. At first the petite kunoichi started to shake her head before slowly catching herself and nodding after some consideration. "How do you plan to change that?"
"By training harder."
"Very good." Minato said as he slowly rose to his feet. "Think that's dark enough, don't you?" He asked languidly stretching his hands high above his head as he pulled up the hood of his tracksuit.
"Sensei," Rin said blinking at the bright sleeve of his tracksuit. "Shouldn't you change into something…darker? With your tracksuit they'll see you coming from a mile away."
"Good. I'm counting on it."
The first kunai embedded itself deep within the first guard's forehead causing him to fall to his death with an earsplitting scream. The sound of his plummet drew three more guards from their stations on the lower levels of the gorge. Confused chatter filled the night air as the guards called out to their comrades on the ground level. Their confusion gave way to alarm and anger as the guards discovered the kunai lodged in their friend's skull. They scanned the horizon for the culprit and instantly spotted a white blur sprinting towards them.
The ground-level guards charged at him with an angry roar, as their comrades on the higher levels unleashed a hail of kunai. Minato deftly dodged and deflected the lethal projectiles as they hurtled towards him. Snatching a few kunai out of the air, the blue-eyed jounin spun into a spiral, planting the knives deep into two charging guards' abdomen before slicing at a third's throat. A large fist connected with his face knocking his hood off as he stumbled several steps backwards before regaining his footing. The towering guard bore down on him with another ferocious punch which Minato caught in his left palm before twisting the arm around. He slashed at the enraged shinobi's armpit, severing his arm from his body.
The ground beneath them shook with an unnatural energy as several shinobi slammed their palms unto the ground. Minato leapt high into the air, descending on the culprits with a vicious kick before taking them out with a lightening-fast slice at their throats. He lifted his forearm to absorb the force of a brutal roundhouse kick as his legs were swept from beneath him by another attacker. Pushing off from the ground with his palms, Minato drilled his heels into his charging attackers' chests, shattering their sternums with a sickening crunch.
He ducked out of the way to avoid a rolling rockslide, pausing to hurl a pair of shuriken that severed the culprit's head. A guard foolishly lunged at him with a katana which Minato quickly relieved him of before slicing him in half. Bloodcurdling screams filled the night air as Minato hacked and sliced his way through the waves of charging foes. With the ground foes vanquished, Minato took off towards the wall, scaling the steep mountain at a run. A guard reached to stab him with a kunai. Minato spun out of the way, yanking him off the ledge without missing a beat. The shinobi's shrieks ended with a sickening crunch as his body crashed into the ground below. The blue-eyed jounin noticed the retreating backs of three guards and hastened after them.
He hurled a large rock at one of the guard's head knocking him out instantly as he flung the katana in his left hand at the second's retreating back. The blade pierced through the guard's neck sending him crashing to the ground. Minato yanked the sword out as he sprinted past the gurgling corpse, icy blue eyes trained on his prey's trembling form. At the last moment, the frightened guard tripped and fell to the ground. He turned towards Minato, eyes wide and fearful as he prepared to plead for his life. The blue-eyed jounin ended his life with a sweeping slash of his arm, slicing the coward in half.
Minato strained his senses for any signs of any surviving foes as he smashed the skull of the guard he had knocked out earlier. Hearing none, he slowly climbed down from the mountain, landing gracelessly near Rin's hiding place.
"I think…you…k-killed them all." Rin said with a horrified gasp as she took in her sensei's blood-soaked clothes.
"I don't sense any chakra signatures inside the lab." Minato mumbled to himself as he cautiously approached the entrance.
"S-sensei, you're hurt." Rin said tugging meekly at his sleeve. Minato impatiently brushed her aside focusing his attention towards the depths of the cave. An eerie howl echoed through the cavern as a chilly gust blew in behind them. Although they passed a few guard stations and posts, they didn't encounter another living soul until they were deep within the laboratory.
They walked past giant vats of gurgling chemicals and steaming pipes until they reached a section of the lab with thick rusty bars lining the cells along the main corridor. The pungent odor of rotting flesh permeated the air around them causing their eyes to water. Rin shrieked as she recoiled from the severed hand of a freshly-rotten corpse. Minato turned to quiet her and instantly felt his body go numb at the sight of a trembling youth cowering in the far corner of a cell.
The youth was only barely taller than Rin with messy red hair that framed his boyish features. Minato's gasped as he met his wide violet eyes.
"K-Kushina?!" Without thinking, Minato had crossed the corridor, kicking the cell door open with his foot. At first the redhead fled from him, backing into the furthest corner of his tiny cell. Minato felt a twinge of guilt at the youth's distress and silently stepped away, allowing Rin to coax him out of the shadows with a kind smile.
"Sensei!" Rin said with a trembling whimper as she held out the youth's slender arm for Minato to inspect. At first Minato merely blinked at the expanse of pale flesh without comprehending until he finally noticed the dark purple veins littered along his limb.
"Poison." Minato's eyes narrowed into deadly slits as he turned to study the corpses in the other cells. Although most of the remains were far too decayed to make out any features, he counted six with the trademark fiery red hair of the Uzumaki clan. "Who did this?"
"L-Lady Chiyo."