Chapter 13:

The First Massacre

Yahiko clapped his hands together. "Thank you for the food!" he exclaimed, picked up his chopsticks and eagerly began chowing down. Nagato and Minato also ate, albeit in a more calm manner than the exciteable Yahiko. Jiroba, who had already eaten, had gone for a walk to stretch his legs, and Kosuke ad retired to bed.

It had been three days since Yahiko had sent his message to Hanzo. The five ninja had been welcomed into the small fishing village and were now local heroes, for saving them from Hanzo's military. They now sought refuge in a small inn, the dining room of which is where they sat now. Yahiko continued to wolf his food down, and of course asked for seconds. Minato ate contentedly and expressed his gratitude for the meal. Nagato was troubled, and barely ate.

"Oh, you old worrywart, nothing's going to happen!" Yahiko said, his mouth full. "Worst case scenario, he rejects us and we go home."

"Actually worst case scenario is that after we've gone home, he attacks this village anyway." Minato pointed out. Yahiko took a huge gulp and swallowed his food.

"Don't worry. I already sent a letter to Hanzo, informing him that this village is now under Leaf protection. So attacking it is attacking a property of the leaf. Even Hanzo wouldn't do that."

Nagato looked up. "Can we do that?"

"Sure. This village is independent, it isn't under the rule of any village or land. It can choose who it allies with, and since it sent its request to the Hidden Leaf, I managed to convince the elders to sign a treaty with us."

Nagato was impressed with Yahiko's political diplomacy. He's grown, no doubt.

The merriment was interrupted by a tap on the window. A carrier pigeon hopped about on the window sill, and Nagato hastily opened the window to let him in. The letter was from the Third Hokage, addressed to Minato.

Yahiko and Nagato watched Minato as he read the letter. His mouth formed a thin line, which turned further and further south as he read. At the end, he looked unhappy. "What's wrong?" Yahiko inquired.

"I've been summoned back to the village. There's a special mission the Hokage requested me personally."

"You're already in the middle of one. Can't you write back and explain?"

Minato grimaced. "There's something I haven't told either of you."

They looked at him anxiously, as he looked down at his shuffling feet. "A few months ago, Lord Hokage approached me and told me he wanted me to take on Special Jounin status, under his direct command. Danzo, however was against this, and fought with the Hokage to let me join the ANBU Foundation under him. Lord Hokage said he knew the darkness that the ANBU worked in, and it wasn't suited to me. As you know, there are two branches of the ANBU, there is the Foundation, headed by Danzo, and there are the Black Ops, under the Hokage's direct command."

Yahiko's eyes widened. "Don't tell me you joined the ANBU Black Ops?"

Minato gave a small smile. "No... well, yeah. I joined the ANBU, but not as a grunt. I was made the captain."

Yahiko and Nagato stared at him dumbfounded. They couldn't believe their ears. Minato was the ANBU captain?! There was no post higher than that, except for the Hokage seat of course. Technically, aside from Lord Sarutobi, Minato was the most powerful man in the entire Land of Fire. His ascension to the seat of Hokage was all but guaranteed now.

Shaking themselves out of their stupors, Yahiko asked, "So is it an ANBU mission?"

Minato nodded. "Looks like I'll miss out on the meeting with Hanzo. I'm worried though; I don't want to leave you guys high and dry."

Yahiko broke out into a grin. "Don't worry about us, we can handle ourselves. Worst case scenario, we get rejected. I don't think there'll be much fighting hereon in. We can handle ourselves."

Minato left early the next morning. Yahiko, Nagato, Kosuke and Jiroba stayed at the inn for another week. Finally, a full six days after Minato had departed, Hanzo's answer came. He had decided to accept the meeting.

It had taken Minato about a day and a half to cover the distance back to the Leaf Village. The Third Hokage and Danzo met him at the gate. Danzo was quick to fill him in on his mission.

Minato listened solemnly, before understanding and accepting. Before he departed, however, he had a request to make of the Hokage. "Lord Third, I cannot help but have a bad feeling about Yahiko's meeting with Hanzo. Especially now with me gone, he is a squad member short and that much more vulnerable. I'd like to request you to dispatch a squad of ANBU to send to their aid, to ensure their safety."

Before Lord Sarutobi could respond, Danzo cut across him coolly. "Think nothing of it, Namikaze. It will be done. I have business in the Hidden Rain myself, and I will be taking a team with me. I shall look out for them."

Minato's eyes widened. "Business there? Surely you don't mean-"

Danzo's eyes narrowed, and his jaw hardened. "What I mean is none of your concern. Refrain from insolence; it will help you in future." Chided, Minato bit back the rest of his question. Instead he answered, "Thank you, sir."

Four and a half days after that event, back at the fishing village, Yahiko received the reply from Hanzo. The mysterious leader had summoned him for the meeting the next morning, and had designated the meeting spot some way outside the village out of caution. Yahiko, who had expected no less, was quick to reply affirmatively.

He woke the next morning, early, around dawn. The sun had just begun to rise, and for once the clouds did not cover it, so the sky was lit in a spectacular blend of grey and orange. He got up and dressed, arming himself with his weaponry, just in case. He went downstairs, where he found a note on the table. It was from Nagato. Him, Kosuke and Jiroba had gone on ahead early to scout for possible traps, and would meet him there. Yahiko folded the note and tucked it into his pocket. He pulled on his sandals and exited the inn.

The meeting place was at a shaped rock in a wasteland, a few kilometres away from the village. The sun had risen till it was clear of the horizon by the time Yahiko approached the valley which prefaced the rock. It was here he found something strange.

He knelt down and examined the brownish spot next to his feet. Blood?

He stood and looked around. The rock faces of the valley were decorated with marks, gauges and depressions, presumably made by ninja tools and weaponry. There were also several of the brownish spots of blood, far too few to be made by so many weapons. And the weapons themselves were nowhere to be found. Clearly whoever had survived had attempted, and partly succeeded, to clear the area of evidence. What is this? What's going on here?

Yahiko leapt up onto the adjacent wall. He decided to scout the hill from a high altitude vantage point. But there was somebody up there waiting for him.

Three men in Leaf ANBU masks stood before him, arms folded. Yahiko looked over to the other rock wall, and saw more of them, in the same pose, all watching him. He looked guardedly at the officer in front of him. "What's going on here? What is this? Why are you here?"

"We're here under orders from Lord Danzo. We were instructed to accompany you to your meeting, to guarantee your safety." Yahiko's eyes narrowed suspiciously. He trusted Danzo about as far as he could throw him. Cautiously, he said "Oh…Okay.. It's just up ahead."

The three-man wall opened, allowing Yahiko to pass. They were indicating him to lead the way.

They ran, Yahiko in the lead, seven ANBU trailing him in perfect formation, across the valley banks. As he began to run out of road, Yahiko leapt to clear the gap between the valley wall and the other rock-face in front of him. A streak of black caught his eye.

He landed and abruptly stopped. He turned around. The ANBU had not slowed, and seemed as if they would run him over. "Keep moving, Lord Yahiko."

Yahiko jumped off the rock. The seven ANBU landed and leapt after him, calling his name furiously. He landed on the ground, and began to run. There was a torn piece of black cloth draped over a small stone. The ANBU suddenly leapt in front of him, halting his progress toward the cloth.

"Move." Yahiko said simply. They did not reply. He stepped forward. "Move." He said with more force. Their hands had risen to the hilts of their swords now.

Yahiko took a defensive stance. "Have you betrayed the Leaf? Or are you imposters?" Once again they did not respond. Their faces, masked as they were, were impassive. They slowly unsheathed their weapons.

Despite all his training and all his progress, Yahiko knew that alone, he was no match for seven ANBU, trained by Danzo. Still, he drew his own sword. Now the leader of the ANBU team spoke. "Do not resist us. It will not end well for you."

Yahiko ignored the warning, and raised his sword. "What happened here? Were you involved in the battle at the valley?"

The captain said simply, "Yes."

They attacked. Yahiko attempted to fend them off, but was quickly overpowered by their speed, and their precision. He was disarmed, suffering several cuts and slashes on his body, before someone smashed the hilt of their sword on the back of his head, at the base of his neck. He fell forward, his world going black. He looked up at the cloth one last time. His vision was blurry, but he recognised the signature red stripe on black cloth, and with his reconition, confirmed his worst fear. His last thoughts before he faded away were rambling and frantic concerns about Nagato and the others' safety.

"Wake up." Somebody roughly kicked Yahiko in the ribs to wake him up. He was lying facedown in the mud. It had begun to rain. He had been tied, ropes wrapped around him to the waist, pinning his arms behind his back. Groaning inwardly, he managed to kneel. Somebody yanked his hair and forced him to face up, to look up at the top of the rock face where he made out several silhouettes. A man was standing, surrounded by what appeared to be people kneeling. Beside each kneeling person there was somebody standing beside him. Yahiko blinked the rainwater out of his eyes and focused.

Before him, solemn and stoic, stood Hanzo. Yahiko's eyes widened in shock and fear as he recognised the kneeling bodies. They were the Akatsuki! His followers had been tied up, as he was, and were each guarded by a member of the Hidden Rain's military forces. Flanking Yahiko, stood the Leaf ANBU. Were they taking orders from Hanzo?

"Speak, maggot. You requested my presence, now I am here, in the flesh. Do not waste my time." Hanzo's voice rang out, cold, clear and cruel. Yahiko, in a haze of throbbing pain and choking fear, managed to sputter out "W-W-What's going on?"

"Your organisation has long since threatened the peace of this village. When I received such an open threat, I naturally took the necessary protective measures."

"Open threat? It was a simple meeting! It wasn't even all of us.. just the five.." Yahiko was disoriented, how had the rest of the Akatsuki been captured? Why did Hanzo think they were threatening him? "We never threatened you! We wanted a treaty.. I never wanted a war."

Hanzo bristled. He snapped his fingers. His men pulled the members of the Akatsuki to their feet. Yahiko's eyes widened with fear. "Stop it! What are you doing?"

Hanzo replied coldly, "You continue to lie to me. Your friends will pay for your insubordination. I will ask you one final question. Why do you seek to usurp me?"

"Usurp you.. I never wanted to usurp you! You can keep your position of power. Just let them go and we'll leave you be! You've proved your point! You don't need to do this anymore!"

Hanzo's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Let you go, hmm? Why, so you can run back to your village and declare war on us? A war you started!" His voice was filled with anger now. "You have trespassed on my land and threatened me. You will pay."

It was worse than Yahiko's darkest nightmare. Horrified, paralyzed with fear, he couldn't tear his eyes away, as one by one, Hanzo's men stabbed, pierced and ripped through the bodies of the Akatsuki members. Their throats were slit, their bodies and vital organs stabbed and pierced, their necks broken, their bodies thrown over the high cliff, not all of them dead. Yahiko's strength left his body, his voice caught in his throat. What is this? He was in shock. What's happening?

Kosuke, thrown from the cliff but still alive, groaned in pain. He had been stabbed in the stomach, his blood gushed out of him. He had broken bones in his fall and couldn't move. Yahiko, slowly, shuffled to where he lay coughing, where he lay dying.

"S-save us… Yahi…ko…" Yahiko groaned as tears began to flow from him now, as he watched one of his most trusted lieutenants die right before his eyes. He looked back up at Hanzo now, filled with grief. He felt like a zombie inside. But he received another massive shock.

Nagato was the last man standing alive. He stood, tall and proud, his jaw quivering in fear but his eyes defiant. He looked into Yahiko's eyes. Yahiko felt a big piece of him die inside, as he knew he was watching the execution of his best friend, his little brother, his most dear and beloved friend in the whole world. Hanzo stepped up himself, and put a kunai to Nagato's throat.

And Yahiko snapped. The ropes that bound him, tied with a sealing jutsu, seemed to loosen and tore through them without any effort. The ninja who flocked around to grab him and restrain him seemed to fly back, away from him. Yahiko hurtled forward at blinding speed, shooting like a bullet straight into the chest of one of the men who stood by Hanzo. He pulled out his sword, roaring like a beast that had been awakened. He slashed and cut down everybody around him, savagely. He severed their heads and their limbs, kicked their ribs in, bashed their skulls. He lifted two and threw them bodily off the cliff. His eyes burned, and his mind knew nothing but pain, and sorrow, and anger. Two more blasted fireballs at him, which as they grew nearer to him, simply seemed to get smaller and smaller, until they dissipated altogether. Yahiko felt himself black out.

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Nagato watched in pure horror, as Yahiko demolished the military, like a man possessed. He swung like a madman, his face twisted in fury, as everybody around him tasted his wrath. Then, all of a sudden, he stopped. He slowly turned. The remaining men stood at the base of the cliff. They were frightened by his sudden, extreme outburst, but stood their ground. Simultaneously they readied their weapons. Yahiko simply lifted a hand.

As if pulled by some giant magnet, they were lifted off their feet, and began hurtling toward Yahiko. To Nagato, he seemed to be moving in slow motion as he jumped, and curled his body into a ball.

Nagato's eyes widened in shock as Yahiko's skin seemed to tear away. Instead, dozens of sharp metallic objects, like black swords, erupted from his back and the back of his neck. Hanzo's men zoomed toward the spiked ball that was Yahiko at breakneck velocity. They never stood a chance.

Nagato couldn't bear to watch. He looked away. He heard, though, oh yes he heard the piercing of flesh as ten men were impaled on deadly spikes. He heard their dying screams. Yahiko stood before him now, blood dripping from his clothes. Nagato saw that he had been sliced, a deep, long gash had torn open his cloak at the stomach. He bled copiously, but stood straight, as if unharmed.

Hanzo, amazingly, stood calm. He grabbed Nagato's collar. Yahiko raised his hand again. But Hanzo was too quick for him. Nagato felt his world grow back, and felt great pressure on his body, as if he was being squeezed through a tight tube. He awoke to find himself on cold hearthstone, in a dark castle deep inside the Hidden Rain.

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Yahiko came to his sense, at least partly. He whipped his head wildly back and forth. His eyes couldn't handle the carnage and sheer amount of blood that flowed like a river in the barren landscape. He leapt off the cliff, landed on the ground, and took off.

He tore through the wastelands, the forests, past the inn where he had stayed, past crystal clear rivers and breathtaking mountains. He ran and ran, his breath coming in ragged gasps, but still he ran some more.

He approached the Hidden Leaf village. The usual two ninja stood guard at the gates. They had recognised him from a distance, but their mouths had fallen open in shock as they saw the state he was in, wild-eyed, dishevelled, covered in blood. They did not even attempt to stop him, and Yahiko did not slow down.

He ran until he reached the door of Minato's house. He raised his hand and, sluggishly, slammed on the door with his fist. It was a smiling Kushina that opened the door. "Hey, Yahiko, what's u-" Her sentence tapered off, and her voice turned to a scream as Yahiko, covered in blood, clothes ripped and near-death, staggered into the house. "Where's Minato?" he demanded.

Konan and Pinako had been visiting the residing couple, as had Jiraiya. They had all rushed into the room at Kushina's scream. They gasped when they saw Yahiko; Konan's hand went to her mouth. Minato and Jiraiya quickly rushed to his side as he collapsed. They carried him over to the couch and laid him down. He coughed and sputtered, and through his ragged breath, managed to roughly tell them what happened. Konan rushed over and had quickly begun to work on his gash, speechless with worry. Yahiko was surprised to see his own blood at his side. He hadn't even noticed he had been wounded. He closed his eyes.

Jiraiya, however, was acting strangely. He was poking and prodding various parts of Yahiko's body, pulling back his clothes or ripping them up. Finally he opened Yahiko's eyes. Yahiko heard the sharp intake of breath. Jiraiya leapt to his feet and pulled Konan away from Yahiko. "Minato, everybody, get back!"

Konan screamed at him. "What are you doing?! Let me get to him! He need help, he's bleeding out, he'll die!"

"Konan, go get Tsunade, now!" Jiraiya shouted. Konan managed to restrain herself from rushing back to Yahiko, nodded and took off as fast as she could. Jiraiya turned a serious face to Minato and Kushina.

"Doesn't it seem strange to you? The journey to the Hidden Rain is a two day. A ninja with exceptional stamina could make it in maybe a day minimum. How is it that he managed to cover that much distance, running full tilt, in just a few hours? Also, he doesn't seem to be feeling the effects of his injury. With a wound that deep, he would have bled to death in half an hour lying still, let alone sprinting."

Kushina's eyes were wide, and Minato's face was grim. "How did he do it?"

"At first I thought he had been possessed and was being controlled-" Minato remembered Jiraiya searching his body; he was probably finding chakra rods or something similar-"but then I looked into his eyes."

Jiraiya opened the unconscious Yahiko's eyes, and Kushina gasped. Minato drew in a breath sharply.

Yahiko's eyes had turned purple, and were ringed in a ripple pattern. He had activated the Rinnegan.

"His Rinnegan is drawing in nature energy around him and converting it to lifeforce. It's draining his chakra, but it's keeping him alive.. for now. Once his chakra depletes, his Rinnegan will deactivate, and he'll die."

"Why did you stop Konan from healing him?"

"Medical ninjutsu involves flowing your own chakra into somebody else to heal their wounds. The reason this technique depletes his chakra so much is because there has to be a fixed amount of nature energy in the world. So as his Rinnegan converts it to lifeforce, it also converts his chakra to nature energy, and it is lost to the surroundings."

Their eyes widened as their teacher looked solemnly at Yahiko, whose pale, gaunt, drawn face made him look as if he'd been through hell. And indeed he must have been.

"Konan could have healed him; she's that good. But this is her husband. She's way too emotional, and we can't afford a second's mistake. Tsunade is a professional, she'll be able to handle it."

"Handle what."

Jiraiya looked at them. "The Uzumakis specialise in sealing techniques. Minato, you've learned them from Kushina. I want the two of you to perform a sealing jutsu on his chakra. His Rinnegan is powerful, so the most you can do is suppress it. Suppress it long enough and his Rinnegan will deactivate. That's when we can heal him."

"How long is the window between deactivating his Rinnegan and him dying."

"About ten seconds." Tsunade had appeared, Konan by her side. "In ten seconds I'll have to stop the bleeding and repair the wound, and you two will have to lift the seal so his chakra flow can restore his life force. He'll be severely depleted of chakra for a week, but it'll save his life."

Minato gulped. His best friend's life hung in the balance, and it was all a matter of ten seconds between life and death. "We have to do all of that in ten seconds?"

"No mistakes."

Pinako held Konan as she watched in silent fear. The two bundled in a corner of the room, out of the way.

"Ready…" the room was silent. A bead of sweat formed on Minato's brow. Kushina trembled but held fast. Konan admired her strength, knowing how much she admired and looked up to Yahiko, to be able to stay calm in this situation. She felt ditto for Tsunade, who similarly was very fond of her daughter's godfather.

"Go."

Instantly Minato and Kushina's hands worked through a number of seals; they chanted the incantation. With picture perfect timing, they simultaneously laid a hand on Yahiko, and a seal formed where they touched him. They held postion, one hand on Yahiko, the other in front of them, first two fingers extended. Lightning quick, Tsunade jumped in as the seal was placed. She worked feverishly. Minato and Kushina held firm.

"Get ready…" Tsunade muttered. They tensed.

"Release!" They withdrew their hands, performed more seals, and once again with perfect timing touched Yahiko. The seal disappeared. Yahiko drew in a deep breath, his chest swelling, before he sunk back into the couch and moved no more. They collectively sighed in relief. Konan gingerly walked over to Yahiko and took his hand. She knelt beside him and kissed his forehead, dripping with sweat and feverishly hot.

"Konan…" he whispered hoarsely. She leaned down and offered her ear.

"They've got Nagato."

All at once her worry returned, and she looked down at him in horror. He had slipped painfully back into a coma. She relayed the message onto the others. Jiraiya didn't hesitate. He was out of the door by the time Minato called him to say he was coming with.

"No, its too dangerous. Hanzo still has a little respect for me, besides, infiltration and espionage is my specialty. Stay here." Minato protested, but Jiraiya flashed him such a deadly look that he stopped cold. "Stay. Here."

Minato had never seen his Sensei so agitated. He reluctantly complied, and Jiraiya was off in a flash.

A week had passed.

Yahiko was admitted to the hospital. He had slipped into a coma and had not awoken since then. Pinako everyday would bite her nails and watch the clock, staring out into the horizon, desperately searching for some sign of her husband and her Sensei. She offered countless prayers for them. Finally, after a week of mental torture, Jiraiya staggered into her apartment, a wounded and weakened Nagato slung over his shoulder.

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So this chapter is a bit darker than what I normally write, but well, there might be a few similar ones later on. I'd recommend placing yourself in Yahiko's shoes, watching all your friends die, who had placed their trust in you, and your best friend get kidnapped. Why? Because I'm not great with descriptions and I want the effect to come off as intense as I felt it :P

I'm going to try my best to shorten the time between chapters, and I'll also be trying to make the chapters long. Thank you all for reading, and look forward to the next one!