Waking up in complete darkness would worry most people, but it wasn't a cause for concern without other factors. Being surrounded by dirt was one of them. Not quite remembering how you got in that situation was another. Struggling to breathe was in itself something to be alarmed over though. All would've made even the most stoic panic.
Hinata activated her Byakugan, streamed a slight jolt of lightning through her savior to wake her, and made out tracks their first enemies left. "Anko-sensei."
"Wha–" Anko rose, uncurling herself off her. "Shit!"
"The others are unconscious a few feet behind us."
She looked up before tunneling back towards them. "Lightweight twinks." Reaching the other earth style user with some further instruction by her student, she shocked both Root agents.
Awakening, Sai reached for the tanto on his back and froze when he made out her mask. Their situation clicked in his mind. He grabbed Torune's still unmoving body, took a deep breath, and began digging upward with them following. Whatever air they had left, besides being hard to take in, wasn't sustainable.
They reached the surface in time, albeit heaving. Both conscious spies examined their surroundings, looked to their youngest, and followed her lead along the drag marks left behind. Her pace began to slow. When she stopped them by a tree, she dropped to her knees. Sai ran up it while Anko watched her.
"...Dammit." Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Dammit!" She fell on to her hands. "I was so close!" Balling them into fists, she punched the grass. "He was right there!" Frustrated sobs left her lips. "...Always chasing you. I'm always chasing you! I… I had you. Why did I let you go?!"
Anko gingerly lifted her into an embrace. She understood her feelings more than anyone, save maybe Naruto. They had him in the palm of their hands, and their love let him free to pursue his own path. Even if well intended, the consequences were anything but well for everyone involved.
One minute or so after, Sai ran and jumped down at a safe enough height. "There is another crater to the east and a town to the northwest."
"They couldn't have hid their tracks from the Byakugan if they were running from those two." She hummed, stroking the top of Hinata's head beneath her hood. "Not like Orochimaru to make two hideouts close together either, but he did plan to ambush those Akatsuki here." Tilting her own, she looked to the direction of the settlement. "Either they were told about both before coming here or maybe someone from there knew about it and did."
"An unlikely possibility. Regardless, it is our only lead, and the fate of the village is at stake. This could be our last opportunity."
She looked down at her snuggling, whimpering student. "What's a few more hours?" With a nudge, she put her aside along with her grief.
Together, with Torune's unconscious body, they traveled to the settlement. Hinata broke out of her stupor and took point when a certain house entered her vision. Saying the patrolling renegade ninja were inadequate against them would be an understatement. None could sense their presence, much less beat them.
A man of some high rank was pondering his predicament before getting choked out. Sai set Torune down to bound him while Anko followed Hinata to another section of the house. They stopped in front of a closed room only one of them could see into. Judging from the way she shook and balled her hands, Anko had a good idea of what was inside. A feminine uttering when the door opened confirmed it.
"N-Naruto?" A meek voice asked.
Anko put a hand on Hinata's shoulder before she could do anything. "I'm an old friend of his."
It was far too much of a coincidence for anyone with a modicum of sense to believe. Naruto wasn't there to present her, the hour was beyond late, and two of the loudest noises she ever heard went off consecutively. Even if she was telling the truth, everything about their situation warranted caution. She was defenseless, as she almost always was, too.
"Looks like I just missed him." She slid comforting arms around her student. "Do you know where he went?"
"...No."
She looked down for confirmation and hummed at a trembling nod. "Any ideas?" She squinted at the girl's blank, staring eyes.
"I'm afraid not."
Another confirmation from her cuddly made her frown. "Well, that's disappointing." She tilted her head. "Care to explain why you're in his home this late?"
The girl blushed and wisely refrained from asking her the same question. "Before he came, I would stay with other families if they'd have me." She tilted her own. "He cares for others but acts harsh and cruelly so he's not seen as weak." Her brow creased at a growl-like noise from below where the strange woman's voice originated. "Is...someone with you?"
"Did you fuck?" Anko asked, cutting out all indirectness.
Her pink cheeks turned scarlet. "N-N-No."
Hinata relaxed in her embrace, but she knew she was still angry from her own jealous encounter. "Good boy." She patted the top of her head for reassurance.
"Can you tell me who you are?"
"Good choice of words, and I already did: I'm an old friend of Naruto's."
"My apologies." She stopped herself from swallowing, which the only one who could see every slight movement in her body saw. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"
Pondering the question, she looked down at Hinata. There was little to be gained from interrogating the civilian further, but she wondered what she'd do without restraint and how Naruto would react. It wasn't like the blind girl was someone important outside of her connection to him. He would blame himself because, besides loving her, it would have never happened if he stayed loyal. Same went for herself to a very limited degree if he learned what she did.
Hinata stepped forward the moment her comforting restraints were gone. She stopped inches away from the girl. There was some similarities, mostly the eyes, but they were opposites. Who she most resembled was her old self, the meek waif Naruto thought was pathetic.
"Are you..also a friend of his?"
She didn't know whether to laugh or scoff. Really, she wasn't sure at all what to feel or do. Her hopes were raised only to be squashed twice. Infidelity, even restricted to the emotional variety, was reprehensible. The vow to never be replaced by anyone in his mind was broken. All so soon was too much.
Anko summoned her back with two clicks of her tongue. "If by any chance he comes back, say his first stopped by; he'll know what it means." She stepped out of the room, slid the door shut, and went back to where the other half of their team was.
Long having restrained their other potential source of information, Sai was molding an underground space in the house yard to interrogate him with the minimal possibility of alerting any passing guards. Anko helped with the finishing touches. Hinata, out of her own volition, shocked their captive conscious. The man made no attempt to resist or call for help. It was obvious who they were.
He sat up straight as much as he could in his bindings. "I didn't know we were working for Orochimaru."
"Where's the boy?" Anko asked.
"You're after…" He convulsed as the kitsune-masked girl shocked him. "I-I don't know." The next shock was far stronger. "R-R-Really, I-I don't know." Lightning shot through nearly every one of his nerves until the masked woman pulled her away from him.
"Let him breathe." She set her aside and leaned forward almost sweetly. "Are you sure?"
"I… I'm sure."
She looked to Hinata and nudged her head in his direction. Observing, she gave the occasional pointer. There were moments where she kept at it too long, but she seemed to know when to relent just before she'd intervene. He'd repeat his answer with growing sincerity each time he was allowed to speak. When she accepted he was telling the honest truth, she let it continue for a few more minutes, wanting something to alleviate her frustration.
"Ninja of his ability wouldn't warrant memory-locking, and his demeanor lacks signs of torture resistance training: he doesn't know," Sai deadpanned, eyes locked on his twitching body.
Anko sighed. "He'd be an idiot to come back."
The man unknown to them whimpered. "A-A-At least I-I'm finally free of that...monster." He groaned at the clinking of a drawn kunai.
By the time Hinata realized what she was doing, her mask had fallen off and she was stabbing him in the throat for the fifth time. She didn't stop. Frustration left her with every stab. His blood splattered across her face, barely missing her eyes, and on her sweater. It went on for minutes even after he died until the red slicking her gloves made the sharp metal slip out from her grip.
Anko stared at the corpse in surprise. "...He could've told us what Naruto was doing or about anyone who might have come to see him." Noticing her trembling, she embraced her from behind and shushed her. "It's really not that important." She could feel the judging dead gaze at the back of her head. "You should still wait until we're absolutely sure they're of no use from here on out." Her continued shaking spurred her to turning her around. "Hey." She took off her own mask and leaned in close.
Hinata flinched when she licked her sullied cheek. She turned away out of embarrassment, but her gloved hands guided her back. Not needing anymore direction, she trembled in position as the blood was lapped away. A furious blush blended with the red on her face the moments Anko's tongue neared her lips. The feelings unsettling her faded, her focus on the awkwardness more than her vicious outburst.
"There you go." She giggled at her cleaned yet flustered look, her own cheeks red. "We can still ask the girl." Spotting Sai staring from the corner of her eye, she turned to him. "What? ...What?" She shrugged it off and put her mask back on alongside her before leading them out of the underground space into the halls of the lord's house. "How did you know he was here anyway?"
Stopping by one of the rooms, she slid its door open, revealing it filled to the brim with ramen packets. There were blond strands of hair, thanks to his new quantity, around the entire place. Orange shirts and jackets were in the master bedroom's closet. Both of the latter details would've been coincidences if it wasn't for the abundance of his favorite food.
Anko stopped, looked inside, and laughed. "Adorable, like a kid spending their first inheritance."
They continued onward, seeking what little information remained.
For several hours straight, the rogue misfits trekked through the woods. Kabuto had Suigetsu, to his annoyance, turn into a living wave to carry them soon after they left, leaving no signs of their movements for a great amount of distance. They eventually reached one of the many farms dotting The Land of Rice. It was guarded by men from a neighboring town, as all were, but they were little more than nuisances.
Kabuto sat down and made an incision in the underside of his rib with a flick of his hand. "Step one." He brought his hands together, concentrating his chakra into unstructured substance. When enough water formed, he separated them and guided the small body into his own, subjecting himself to one of the greatest pains he'd ever felt as it squirmed to envelop as much as the parasites it could. "S-S-Step t-two!"
"Uh?" Karin gulped at his spasming form. "Is there any other way?" Only his tortured gasps answered her.
Suigetsu observed out of morbid fascination. "I knew this was a medic-nin procedure, but who came up with this crazy ass idea?"
He snarled out drivel at the squirming around his lungs and heart. "Ts-Ts-Tsunadeeee!" After he finished scrubbing his majorly affected organs, he practically flung the invasive substance back out from where it came.
"I can't sense the foreign chakra in you anymore," Karin said.
"Too…" He closed his eyes and concentrated on himself again. "...One more." Groaning, he brought his hands together for the second time.
She flinched as he began writhing again. "Can't you dull pain?" She watched him finish the extraction and stepped back when he pushed himself to his feet.
He twitched, sighed, and held out his hand. "Have you ever heard of medics not operating on themselves?"
"Ye–" She flopped to the ground the moment he touched her head.
Suigetsu laughed. "Well, that's disappointing." He wavered, the world around him blurring. "...Shit."
"Hydrofy." Kabuto scanned her form, made the incision into her, and brought his hands together. "If you do transform water you consume into your own flesh, you can just send out what you're currently using to compose your internal organs."
He became a watery image of himself but didn't say a word. That would kill him. None of his clan were actually made completely of water: they could only turn themselves and close objects into liquids at will and reflex thanks to an unthinkable permanent jutsu. Dehydration was a side-effect of consumed water evaporating thanks to the temporary loss of skin. For a few seconds, he became a series of rapid currents in the shape of a man, diluting the poison as much as he could.
Kabuto didn't need to turn attention away from his current operation to know what he was doing. "Make sure you don't move anything from your chest to your brain." He ignored Karin's unconscious squirming while isolating the parasites.
Suigetsu solidified, watched, and waited until he finished. "Alright, spill."
"Before deserting the Hidden Leaf, Naruto slept with the former Hyuga Clan heiress."
His eyes widened. "...Whoa." Blinking, his brow furrowed. "Wait, former?"
"Irrelevant." He sat down and shook his masked head. "I don't know what exactly happened. She either knew or the Hokage thought she knew what he was planning. There hasn't been a single word in the Leaf's forces about the incident, save for the sudden deaths of three genin on a false scouting mission report to conceal what actually happened. Someone of her status couldn't be disappeared without drawing questions, so she was likely held in custody for some time." Sighing, he looked down. "...That girl was her, Hinata Hyuga."
"Why the hell is she on an anbu mission dealing with the guy she helped?" He scoffed. "Back in the Mist, we'd slit her throat and be done with it, high-caste or not."
"Because those weren't anbu at all: they're Danzo Shimura's personal agents."
There was not a single person in any kind of prestigious position and clan that didn't know who The Shinobi of Darkness was or what he did. "Oh… Fuck."
Kabuto nodded. "You have some idea of what she's been put through then. Back when I was one, initiates were paired together and made to kill one another after they bonded enough to be considered kin." He recalled her brief pauses. "Too young for it to be effective and none of the usual marks. She had to have been put through some other conditioning." The questioning stare he received was expected and not at all offensive; he didn't trust himself either.
"So Naruto's crazy, brainwashed girlfriend is after us?"
"More or less, yes."
"Well, damn." He tilted his head. "Then who's the domme?"
"Anko Mitarashi, Orochimaru's former right hand and last star pupil."
"...You have to be fucking kidding me."
"My literal exact reaction." Kabuto sighed. "She was really close to Naruto and had to be the one who brought Hinata to Danzo." He shared his flabbergasted look. "If he finds out…"
"He'll lose his shit."
He stood up and walked to the patch of grass they left Jugo in. "Exactly." Crouching down, he set a hand on him. "Don't tell them."
Suigetsu squinted. "You trust me?"
"I know you won't feel guilty for keeping the truth from him." He stood back up, having seen no traces of the parasites nor their poison in his body.
"Okay, what about those two 'Akatsuki?'"
That was something he could divulge to all. He'd tell the other two when they'd wake. Besides that, there was still several safety precautions needing taking to ensure all traces of the insects were obliterated. Orochimaru told him before it all started where he expected to see him again, and he had an information network to manage. Babysitting any further would be detrimental as it would be annoying.
Everything became far too quiet after Kakuzu fled. Sakura rose from the ground, confused and alarmed, before Kakashi could sink to retrieve her. They regrouped with Kiba, handed care of the nobles to their guard, and scoured the immediate area as best they could to no avail. Hidan either burned to a crisp or escaped, which was the likely outcome if their luck was anything to go by. Kakashi and Guy collapsed when it was done thanks to their grievous wounds. Palace medics tended to them while the others split between who was still wired from soldier pills and those who desperately needed rest.
Sakura, lacking any ability to single out Hidan were he to return in disguise, was in the guard's quarters watching their savior rise in the afternoon. "Oh! Uh, thank you." Bowing her head, her thoughts turned to her brief capture. "Who knows what that monster was planning to do to me."
"He was…" Drifting off, he yawned. "After me before he changed focus to your group." He slipped out of bed as his head ached. "I was just trying to eliminate an enemy."
She tilted her own. "Where are you going?"
"That's no concern of yours."
"You're leaving?" Sakura's face scrunched at his stretching form. "Just like that?" She nearly facepalmed. "The Steam Daimyo was in our charge, and you saved him!"
"It was not my intention." He molded his chakra into sensory form, getting an overview of who was in his immediate vicinity.
"Huh?" She stared in disbelief as he began walking toward the exit. "At least stay to eat something."
Utakata froze, sleep deprivation no longer blocking out his starvation. "...I can do that."
Her face scrunched at him continuing onward. "What?" She followed, not wanting to let him go just yet.
Ignoring the questioning looks from passerby guardsmen he was all too used to, he wandered about. His self-invited company gave directions when it was clear he had no idea where he was going. She led him to the dining room where leftovers from lunch remained and watched him pile on as much as he could on a single plate. They stopped in the quarters where the rest of the Leaf shinobi were staying, Sakura wanting others to help in watching him.
Kakashi, scarf in place of his mask, observed him gorging on roasted pheasant from his bed, Guy practically mummified on the one next to him. "He must have hounded after you for quite some time."
Utakata hastily chewed and gulped. "Unfortunately, he's still alive: I could sense his chakra fleeing." He practically shoved another piece into his own mouth.
"Not surprising considering he survived the first Hokage," Guy chimed in.
"Is there a bounty on you?" Sakura asked. "Or did he think the Mist would reward him for bringing you back?"
"Afraid it's worse than both," Kakashi began, seeing no harm informing those present. "Kakuzu joined an organization called the Akatsuki some time ago, and their goal seems to be capturing the jinchuriki." He ignored the questioning faces of his comrades in favor of the stern, munching stranger's. "Each member is supposedly an S-rank criminal. Kakuzu may try to hunt you again with dangerous help."
Swallowing, Utakata frowned. Only disaster could come from anyone seeking all jinchuriki out, much less a group of powerful shinobi. A Leaf ninja telling him of such trouble instead of his former village meant they encountered them or, the likelier possibility, just had a better information network than the new Mist. Naruto didn't mention it, so he either forgot to in the heat of his emotions or was never told.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Sakura's scrunched her face at her sensei.
Kakashi, knowing she wouldn't be pleased regardless of what he said, nearly sighed. "I didn't want you worried anymore than you already were."
Utakata furrowed his brow for a moment before shrugging it off, returning his attention to his meal. He finished sometime after the girl left to assist guardsmen recovering the bodies Kakuzu impaled in his attempt to kill them. While leaving as soon as possible was for the best, he didn't mind staying for dinner. It would've been too discourteous to the lord of the palace to leave without paying his respects, however limited they were. Such acts were reserved for freeloading hermits he most definitely was not in spite of everything about him suggesting so.
A few hours passed until a servant stopped by to alert them. Guy took point, unwilling to let his injuries stifle his youthful energy no matter how detrimental it might be, with Utakata and Kakashi lagging behind. Other shinobi joined them on the way, occasionally glancing at the odd one out. The daimyo–dour, silent, and distant–was already present at the head of the table by his worried mother and old servant. Each took their seats and almost all immediately began eating.
"What does it mean to be a jinchuriki?" Sasuke blurted. He almost looked away from a questioning eyebrow and a few looks. "…Specifically, what is it like?"
Raising a hand to his chewing chin, Utakata pondered why he'd ask and how to answer it before swallowing. "Being cursed." He frowned. "Because of someone else's decision or by your own mistake, you are the host to a being no one can truly comprehend. Worse, for all intents and purposes, you may as well be it to those around you. Let's say shinobi are removed from the common man by one degree of separation. Jinchuriki are removed from shinobi by five." His eyes stared through him into nothingness. "All shinobi are tools, but jinchuriki in particular serve a role too vital for the great villages to ever drift away from that purpose. Our accomplishments mean nothing to others because we were made to succeed. Few approach us thanks to fear and hate, and we distrust those who do because of what we can expect." They narrowed. "It doesn't end until the day we inevitably die, whether on the battlefield or by the hands of our own village when we're too old to be effective anymore."
He looked down at his plate. There were times he felt like he was cursed, but it wasn't anywhere near that extent. It would all end when he killed Itachi, at least he hoped it would. Not telling Naruto about the Mangekyo meant more than he thought it did.
Kakashi focused on their host. "Your majesty, we've fulfilled the parameters of our mission." He ignored the furious glare from his mother. "We may be unable to return to our village in this state however. If we just so happen to eliminate anyone who threatens you at that ti–"
"That is unnecessary," He said, attracting all their attention. "The payment will be delivered to your village." He turned to the jinchuriki. "I was told of who you are and what you did in service of my people. You can leave whenever you wish."
"Minoru!" Hitomi scolded with worry in her voice.
"Guards, escort my mother to her chambers." He looked to his nearest man. "Do not let her out regardless of what she orders you to."
His oldest attendant put a hand against his own chest as the servants reluctantly obeyed their master. "Your majesty, plea–"
"Yoshio, I will confine to your quarters if you speak against me again." Minoru's voice and face betrayed no emotion whatsoever. "There is much you have both kept from me." He turned to the observing shinobi. "Thank you for everything." He bowed his head in respect.
They did the same, albeit with hesitance born of concern. From a professional perspective, nothing more needed doing. It was harrowing personally for someone to essentially ask them to let them die. None knew him personally enough to really talk to him, and the young ones were still processing what happened themselves. Little more than platitudes meaning little from strangers could be given anyway.
Utakata, thinking of the last person he wasn't truly able to help, frowned. The gears turned in his head with the final piece of the odd puzzle he walked into. Few people would ever hold interest in the jinchuriki unless they had experiences with them. Even fewer would be worried, which meant some kind of personal connection. It was quite the coincidence, but that was hardly the first time life put him in such a situation.
"Naruto Uzumaki," he muttered just loud enough for only them to hear.
For the rest of dinner, none said a word. Each shinobi left after having their fill. Those who finished first were waiting for him in their designated quarters, and they in turn waited until everyone else caught up. Any normal person who walked in would have the instinct to walk out pretending they didn't witness a single thing.
Kakashi led with the most important question. "Do you know where he is?"
"I crossed paths with him a little more than two months ago. He was with two other men: one who could control the flow of his own chakra and another with enough powerful, odd chakra to rival a tailed beast."
"Orochimaru and another one of his experiments."
Utakata blinked. "One of them was Orochimaru?"
"Did he tell you where he was going or what he was doing?"
"He only told me his ultimate goal was to destroy the shinobi system." He frowned. "If I knew he was being accompanied by Orochimaru…"
"You sound like you really care for him," Kiba said, furrowing his brow.
"We are jinchuriki; I don't expect you to understand."
Sakura had nothing but the utmost concern on her face. "Was he okay?"
"...No." Utakata sighed. "He was walking the edge of the abyss." He grimaced. "I'm not sure what use my words had with a bad influence like that about."
"And those were?" Sasuke questioned.
The interrogation he invited himself to wouldn't end soon. He couldn't blame them. It was the biggest existential threat to their village and the rest of the shinobi world. None of what he could tell them would help in his capture, but he could at least offer some peace of mind at the very least. Wherever Naruto was, he wouldn't care.
Countless of Orochimaru's bases permeated the land. A large number of them were in the Land of Rice so finding and settling down in one after the biggest was blown up took no time at all. It was small as far as they typically went, but that was of little concern. The only settlements nearby were too small to be near any roads and too far for their inhabitants to cross their paths.
The forest around the hideout was littered with scars. Fist indents, spirals, electric branching, and missing chunks marked nearly every tree. Being inanimate objects, they made terrible sparring partners and mediocre training dummies. It wasn't as if the creator of those marks had options though.
"Even if I could make clones, I'd only be learning how to fight myself at half my ability with that same half." Naruto looked down at his clenched working hand. "I can kill an entire squad with my Wind Blade in the blink of an eye, but that's not enough."
His 'Rasenshuriken' was an outright detriment to himself. The 'Rasenhirai' could at least devastate an army at the expense of crippling one of his hands for a time. Fire, earth, and water evolved Rasengans were theoretically possible. Both of his experiences told him they'd likely be just as harmful.
With a hum, he sat in the grass. "Maybe I could launch the fire and water in one direction? It'd burn and skin my hands, but it'd be better than taking them from me." He looked down. "...I could just impale everything around me with spikes, but that's useless against another earth style user." Placing his hand down flat on the ground, he shook his head, knowing his own folly. "Why am I like this?"
"Because you are human."
Spiraling earth chakra spread deep throughout the soil from his hand. "We don't know when to stop, do we?" With far greater concentration, the world began to shift around him.
Trees, ancient and young alike, were uprooted. Wildlife scrambled about in vain, trying to find stable ground. All only fell alongside the earth. Birds flying overhead and away could see everything spiraling down from above. Soon, only blackness was visible.
Naruto stared up from the epicenter of it all, clenching his still functioning hand. "I can work with this." He laughed. "Lead with Wind Blade or Wind Rasengans and then tear them apart when they sink." Laying down, he squinted, emptiness in his chest. "...This feeling."
"Ignore it."
"Doesn't make it go away."
Kurama grumbled. "Just focus on vengeance like a functional being."
"If you think you're functional, you have way bigger problems than I do." He scoffed.
"You are conversing with a being older than your entire recorded history." It would've leered down at him if they were in his mind. "Hatred will keep you going when everything else fails."
Naruto's lips thinned into a line before shifting into a frown. Gritting his growing teeth, his eyes reddened. The memory of someone calling out to him when he last felt such anger killed all feeling in him. He took a deep breath and sighed.
It was loneliness.
AN: I have no idea how this took me three months. That is a weird amount of time to be side-tracked. Unfortunately, something else related to that thing I don't want to talk about on the internet happened. I have a funeral to attend. What your thinking of is probably worse or just as bad as what happened, honestly. Jesus fucking Christ.
Rasenhirai 螺(ra, spiral)旋(sen, rotating/gyrating)飛(hi, Flying)雷(rai, thunder/lightning) is what I decided to name the Fuck-Off-And-Die jutsu because I couldn't think of anything cool enough to call it in English.
FF does not like Japanese characters or copy pasting them messes with the formatting, IDK.
Things are going crazy as of late. I don't mean that just because of recent political happenings. Economically and culturally everything just seems to be getting worse and worse. I know I'm just some random person on the internet but please take care of yourselves and those you love. You never know what might happen.
We are now over 900 followers! I have no idea why but I get more follows and favorites when I don't update, which is just weird to me. Is it an algorithm thing with Google or something? Hell if I know.
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the form of a review or PM.
