"I spy something…green."
"Is it a tree?"
"Which tree?"
"How am I supposed to know that? We're surrounded by trees."
"Which tree?"
Yamato hung his head, having folded under my interrogation. "I don't like this game anymore."
"That's why I'm not playing." Yugao said, leaning up against the trunk of the tree branch she was standing on.
"We could try–"
"Masks on." Hound cut me off.
Like a switch was flipped, we were all immediately in ANBU mode. We'd been pulling village protection for the last few hours and nothing interesting had happened, but Hound sounded serious.
"What's the situation?" Cat asked, adjusting the sword on her back.
'Patrol returning with wounded. Pursued by enemy. We move to support.' Hound sent through Telepathy. 'On me.' He flickered away, the rest of us following.
We were outside of the village in under a minute, speeding along the road at a ridiculous speed. Konoha disappeared behind us and we kept running, following Hound towards our objective. We reached it after fifteen more minutes.
Two Konoha chunin had kunai drawn, standing side-by-side over three of their fallen comrades, broken and bleeding on the ground, protecting them from a force of over twenty nin across from them.
"Surrender, little leaves." One of the enemy nin was saying, his skin an unhealthy green hue, his skin forked like a snake's. "I promise we'll be gentle."
'Rules of engagement?' I sent to Hound.
'Capture as many as possible, but prioritize the safety of our nin. Badger, focus on healing. Move now.' Hound sent to us all.
Team Ro exploded into the battle like a pack of ravenous wolves. The nin that had been speaking fell apart in two pieces before he'd even realized he was being attacked, Cat standing between the pieces of his fallen body, sword slick with blood.
Panther leapt into the chaos created by Cat's appearance, landing in the midst of the enemy, having wove hand signs as he ran. He slammed his hands into the ground, thick, twisting roots exploding out in every direction around him, trapping several of the enemy before they were able to move.
Owl and Hound gave chase after the ones who'd managed to avoid Panther's attack while Weasel and I landed next to the Konoha nin.
"Remain here. We will handle the fighting." Weasel said to them while I knelt down to start healing their comrades.
The two standing Konoha nin slumped in relief, letting out shaky laughs.
I held a glowing green hand against the chest of two fallen nin, stopping as I realized they were both dead and moving on to the two others. They were dead as well. All of them had been cut or stabbed, but they were killed by various poisons mixing together within their systems.
One of the enemy nin let out a warcry as he charged towards us, slashing his sword down through…nothing. Weasel flicked a kunai into his throat, sending him tumbling into the ground. He'd created a fake image of me that the nin had attacked, leaving himself wide open to counterattack. So that was what genjutsu was like from the other side. It was terrifying.
'Two dead Konoha nin matching the appearance of the two standing nin one kilometer north. Beware of henge.' Misaki sent to all of us.
Neither Weasel nor I acknowledged the message or gave any sign we'd received it, but I let my shadow extend a little further than it naturally would to envelop the standing 'Konoha' nin, watching their movements.
'Eliminate all others and converge on henge.' Hound sent to us all.
I made a show of trying several things to save the lives of the already dead men to buy time for the rest of my team to get here. When everyone flickered in, I wasted no time, trapping the imposters in their shadows. Immediately, I felt them struggling to break free, but my control was absolute. A paralysis senbon in each of their necks prevented them from struggling any further.
'We return to Konoha. T&I will take these two and learn what they were planning. Another team will be sent to recover Konoha's fallen. On me.' Hound ordered.
We made it back to Konoha with no issue, sending out another team to secure the sight of the battle and bring out people home while we gave our captives over to T&I.
"Masks off." Kakashi ordered as we entered our team's ANBU quarters.
We all clipped our masks to our belts. Before anyone else could say anything, I walked forward and said, "I need to check everyone for poisons." I'd already told the T&I guys and the ANBU we sent after our people to be careful, but I hadn't checked over my team yet.
Silently, my teammates formed a line and let me check them over one-by-one. Yugao, Misaki and Yamato were fine. When it came to Itachi's turn, I paused, frowning as I pressed my hand into his chest.
Itachi tilted his head. "Is something wrong?"
"Clothes off. Lie down on the table. Kakashi, let me check you while he gets ready." I ordered. Kakashi walked over without complaint and let me check him. He may be in charge, but no one argued with a medic when they were doing their job.
Kakashi was fine, I gave him the all clear and moved over to Itachi. As I'd told him to, he'd stripped and was laying naked on the table, staring up at the ceiling.
"Was I poisoned?" Itachi asked.
"I don't know. Whatever is affecting you is really weird." I said, placing both of my hands on his chest.
"Do we need to get him to the hospital?" Yugao asked.
"He's not injured. If it was poison, it would've had to be airborne. And…" I trailed off, absorbed in my work.
Itachi seemed perfectly fine except for a small collection of weird cells around his lungs. If I hadn't dedicated so much time to medical pursuits over the years, I would have missed it. It didn't seem like they were negatively affecting him in any way, but it had the potential to grow into some kind of problem. I'd never seen anything like it, but it was clear that it wouldn't be good to leave it alone for too long. Best to just deal with it now.
"This'll probably hurt a bit." I warned. After Itachi nodded, I sent a spike of chakra through my technique. Itachi grunted in discomfort but didn't otherwise react. I checked the quality of my work, and didn't find any abnormalities. Better to be safe.
"Misaki, do you see anything weird around here?" I asked her, pointing towards where the cells were.
Misaki focused on Itachi's chest, her byakugan active. After studying it for a moment, she shook her head. "He looks good."
I nodded, satisfied. "You can get up and get dressed. Stop by the hospital before you go home and tell them to look at your lungs. I'll check you over tomorrow to make sure everythings still good."
Itahchi stood and pulled on his clothes. "Thank you, Shinto."
"What are friends for?
"Itachi, I will take you to the hospital. The rest of you, remain on standby." Kakashi ordered, back in captain mode now that I was done with medic things. "Someone attempted to infiltrate the village. I expect this is the beginning of something bigger. Stay ready." He left the room, Itachi in tow.
"I've got 70/30 odds that it was Kumo." Yugao said the second he was gone.
Yamato snorted. "Sucker's bet. They're probably trying to probe us to see if they'd be able to start another war."
Kumo was not happy with the ending of the last war. They'd intended to cripple our military might in one fell swoop with their jinchuriki, but they'd ran into two susanoo that stopped that plan in its tracks. Konoha still lost a lot of people, but Kumo lost just as many. Add those losses on top of the forces they lost as they lured Konoha into their borders and they were not doing well on the world's stage. They wanted payback, but they also didn't have the manpower to get that payback.
"It wasn't Kumo." I said, thoughtful. "They don't have the resources for another war. It's probably someone else trying to take advantage of the weaker position we're in since clashing with them."
"Iwa?" Yamato said.
I shrugged. "Could be. It could be Mist for all I know. I'm not sure who exactly is in a position to attack us while also having a reason to attack other than knocking us down a peg. Kumo is weakened. Mist is…we've all heard about the bloodline war going on over there. Logically, Iwa would make the most sense."
"Yugao? I changed my mind. Put me down for 500."
Yugao narrowed her eyes at Yamato. "Bet's off."
They kept bickering about who should be able to gamble on what while Misaki walked up next to me, taking my hand in hers. She fixed me with an intent gaze. 'Do you think this will lead to another war?' She sent with Telepathy.
'Not necessarily. Maybe they were just trying to get spies amongst our ranks to judge our current combat capabilities. There's no reason to believe this is the precursor to another war. It's probably just basic espionage.'
Misaki nodded, giving my hand a little squeeze.
As I looked around the room, her words stuck at the back of my mind. This wouldn't turn into another war…would it?
X
Inoichi frowned as he looked over the report his team submitted to him. When Team Prodigy brought back two henge'd enemies attempting to infiltrate the village, he'd expected them to be spies from Kumo. Konoha's major enemy sought revenge after the most recent war where their plans had been undone by the Head of the Uchiha Clan. Konoha had been hit hard after the Kyuubi, then they'd lost even more people to Kumo's trap. It made sense their adversaries would want a better idea of their strength.
Inoichi was surprised to learn the men weren't from Kumo but from Iwa. It made a certain amount of sense. Iwa saw Konoha's spent numbers in the war with Kumo as their opening to finish Konoha off. Konoha was weakened. This would be their best chance to remove them from the global stage.
Still, something confused Inoichi about the intelligence he'd secured from the invader's minds. They were sent from Iwa, but they felt secure in their infiltration of the village, they'd had help from an outside actor Inoichi was not familiar with.
What was Oto?
X
The last few days were tense. We didn't joke around or chat on duty like we typically did because we could all feel the tension in the air. The civilians in the village didn't notice the difference, but us ANBU saw what others didn't. There were less nin off duty, as if they'd all been put back on standby for some reason. Every entrance to the village aside from Konoha's main gate was 'under construction', creating major delays as traders tried to get in and out of Konoha. There were more ANBU patrolling the village than we'd seen in the last three months. We all knew something was coming. We still weren't prepared for it when it arrived.
'Main gate. Full speed.' Hound ordered out of the blue, surprising me with his Telepathy casting.
Even surprised, I fell in behind Cat immediately as our team sped off unseen towards the gate.
'Situation?' Cat sent.
'All ANBU teams have been recalled to briefing center beneath Hokage Tower immediately.'
Even as we dashed over the rooftops of Konoha, Owl's gaze met mine through our masks. This had happened once before. Last time…
My wandering mind refocused as we arrived into the subterranean ANBU headquarters beneath the Hokage Tower. I had several very unpleasant flashbacks as our team fell in at the front of an assembled formation of ANBU. The Hokage was standing at the head of the formation facing us, his expression grave.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flicked around the room, tracking each ANBU team as they appeared and took their position in the formation. Several minutes after Team Ro arrived, he spoke.
"The Land of Fire is under assault once more. Several villages along our border with Grass were attacked one hour ago in a coordinated strike. A declaration of war from Iwagakure followed this attack. We are at war."
I felt a profound sense of deja vu as his words washed over me. Here I was, again, standing in total silence as I heard that a foreign power once more sought to dismantle the world I'd come to know. Konoha was weakened after our war with Kumo, and now we were supposed to fend off Iwa? When did the cycle end?
Ignorant to my internal turmoil, the Hokage continued speaking. "Captains, report to the briefing room for your team's missions. May your blades strike true. Dismissed."
As Hound moved to follow the Hokage, he stopped as the Hokage whipped a scroll towards him before he'd even made it a step. Hound easily caught the mission scroll and unrolled it, quickly looking it over. I'd spent enough time around Hound to recognize the tension grow in his body as he read the contents of the scroll. The announcement of Iwagakure declaring war had not shaken him, but the contents of the scroll did for some reason.
"Hokage-sama," Hound said, hesitant. "It is not my place to question you, but–"
"I understand your reservations, Kakashi." The Hokage said, shocking the assembled ANBU into complete silence as they hung on the Hokage's every word and gesture. No one was supposed to address an ANBU by their true name while they were on duty. "However, our adversaries seem to have forgotten their fear of the leaf. They believe us to have grown weak, unprotected." The Hokage's eyes narrowed, his lips thinned into a hard line. "You will remind them why they fear us."
Hound bowed at the waist. "Hai, Hokage-sama." Hound spun around, pulling his Hound mask off his face and tossing it carelessly to the side. Kakashi Hatake, blood-red sharingan revealed, stood facing us with determination in his eyes. "Team Ro, unmask."
Yugao was the first to discard her mask, following Kakashi's order immediately, staring at each of the ANBU around us challengingly as they silently observed the spectacle taking place before them.
Yamato was next, huffing as he pulled his mask off, a faintly amused expression on his face as he gave the rest of us a thumbs up.
Owl and I shared a look. We reached up and took our masks off at the same time. I felt the eyes of dozens of ANBU on my face, tracing the scar that ran up my cheek to my miscolored eye.
Itachi was last to unmask. I heard an ANBU gasp as they took in the sight of the young Uchiha heir in their ranks. I'd thought everyone already knew who he was. Maybe they'd only known he was a young Uchiha? Oblivious to the fact that he was the son of the man who'd saved Konoha's invasion force from the Eight Tails.
"Team Ro," the Hokage announced, calling the attention of the room back down onto himself. "Effective immediately, you are removed from ANBU and transferred to Konoha's regular forces. Meet the enemy. Remind them of Konoha's strength."
"Hai, Hokage-sama." Kakashi said, bowing to the Hokage. He motioned for us to follow him and flickered out of the ANBU headquarters. One by one, we vanished as we followed him.
"What's our mission, Kakashi?" Yamato asked once we were away from the Hokage Tower. Kakashi was leading us in a straight line towards the nearest village gate, not slowing.
"Iwa attacked because they believe that we are weak after the war with Kumo. Our mission is to move through their frontline, showing off our strength and stalling their advance to give Konoha time to prepare a counter-attack."
"How far have they made it into the Land of Fire?" Yugao asked as we leapt over the gate, leaving Konoha behind us as we sped off into the woods.
"ANBU teams have engaged them at several villages near our border with the Land of Grass, holding them until our forces can arrive to relieve them. We will be the first of their reinforcements."
"We're supposed to face their entire invasion force on our own?" Yugao asked, an uncertain frown on her face.
"We just need to force them to withdraw to regroup. That should buy ANBU enough time to effectively mobilize." Yamato said.
"Why did Hokage-sama tell us to remove our masks?" Itachi asked.
"Morale," I said before Kakashi could answer. "Both to boost Konoha's morale and weaken the enemy's."
"I do not follow."
"What do you think an Iwa team would do if Jiraiya of the Sannin suddenly appeared between them and their mission objective?"
"They would likely flee with haste."
"Exactly," I said, sticking my thumb out towards our captain. "We have the Copy-nin with us. It's the same principle. They'll be wary of engaging us, and our forces will feel more secure with him at their side."
Yugao snorted. "The Copy-nin, Lady of Lightning and Shadow of Death all appearing at the same time? Yes. They will run to report our location to their superiors so they can send their heavy hitters after us. That'll buy enough time for our reinforcements to arrive."
I frowned as she said the nicknames Kumo's bingo books labeled Misaki and I as. Sure, we had A-rank bounties, but we weren't really seen in the same light as Kakashi, right?
'We are leaving controlled territory. Proceed as if we are already behind enemy lines.' Kakashi's Telepathy message broke through our conversation.
No one else spoke as we silently rushed through the land of fire, Kakashi, Yugao and Misaki in the lead with Yamato and I behind them and Itachi bringing up the rear.
After over an hour of running, Yugao broke the silence.
'I sense Konoha ANBU ahead. Surrounded by another group.'
A moment later, Misaki sent another casting of Telepathy.
'I confirm. Konoha ANBU engaged with Iwa force 1.4 kilometers ahead. ANBU have casualties.'
Yugao's sensing range was longer than Misaki's byakugan range, but Misaki's eyes were far more detailed than what minimal information Yugao could give us. As such, Misaki acted as our team's main sensor with Yugao only speaking up to give us advance warning.
'Prioritize saving our nin. Eliminate the enemy quickly. No prisoners.' Kakashi ordered, speeding up into a sprint as he altered course slightly in the direction Misaki indicated.
'6 living ANBU. 24 enemies. More arriving. 32 now. 800 meters.' Misaki continued to report as we closed in on the location.
'Prepare to engage.' Kakashi ordered.
Yugao made a single hand sign and three clones appeared around her, each drawing its blade.
Small twigs grew from nothing to curl around Yamato's arms and shoulders, his lips pulled into a thin line.
My shadow slunk up my body, solidifying into my modified Shadow Armor.
The seal in the shape of the Hyuga's crest on Misaki's shoulder unraveled as inky flames crawled up her neck to frame her face. With a thunderous boom sound, her lightning aura appeared around her.
'Combat has ceased. They are aware of our approach. 200 meters.' Misaki sent, not that she needed to. A literal lightning strike on a cloudless day was a good way to break cover, but it was a good thing in this case. No fighting meant our people were more likely to survive. Besides, we didn't need the element of surprise.
'Shinto, now.' Kakashi sent to me alone.
I melded into the shadows cast on the ground by the large trees around us, shooting ahead of my team like a bullet. While in my shadow state, I was our fastest combatant, moving even faster than Misaki's aura-assisted pace. The tradeoff was that I couldn't do much while moving as a shadow. But I could do enough.
My shadow armor curled around me to create vents as I exploded into a clearing. Six Konoha ANBU were surrounded on all sides by an ever-growing number of Iwa nin swarming in through the trees. I didn't hesitate. The moment I entered the fray, steam hissed out of the vents in my armor, spilling out to cover the entire area in my wake as I ripped around the ground in my shadow state.
"What the fuck is this!" one of the Iwa nin yelled, looking around frantically.
"Leaf reinforcements! Everyone regroup!" An Iwa jonin bellowed, her voice piercing through the confused shouts of her allies. Despite their confusion, the Iwa nin rallied to her call, breaking away from their attack on the ANBU, falling into a defensive formation around their commander. As they moved, the steam in the area grew thicker and thicker. I was still spewing steam upwards as I zipped around the ground, blanketing the area in mist and bringing visibility down to near-zero.
'Regroup.'
I cut off my steam and turned around immediately upon receiving the one word order. I zipped back behind a tree, meeting up with the rest of my team as Kakashi landed in front of the Konoha ANBU, facing the Iwa nin.
"Retreat," Kakashi ordered the Konoha ANBU. "My team will take things from here." He spoke aloud, his eyes fixed on the Iwa nin formed across from him. Each of the Iwa nin was brandishing some form of weapon, be it a kunai or a sword.
The ANBU didn't argue. The captain, Leopard, organized his team and they fled. I saw Leopard shoot a brief glance my way before disappearing through the trees, but I didn't focus on it.
A smile grew on the lips of the Iwa jonin as she pushed to the head of her nin. "The Copy-nin? How nice of you to stop by."
"Rem, there are more. There's a massive chakra signature back through the trees. 200 meters. He isn't alone." another Iwa jonin warned her, his lips pulled into a thin line.
"Let them come." the now named Rem said, eyes still locked on Kakashi. "Killing the Copy-nin will remove one of Konoha's last hopes. Even if we all perish in the act, he must die. Am I understood?"
A chorus of affirmations rose up from the assembled Iwa nin.
"Ro, report back to command. Tell them the Copy-nin is here. Tell them to send reinforcements in case we can't beat him. At the very least, he'll be tired after fighting all of us." Rem ordered.
A chunin behind her nodded, flickering away.
'Target fleeing at speed. 400 meters and moving. Pursue?' Misaki sent through Telepathy.
'Negative. Let him call for reinforcements. That will direct their nin here. We won't have to track them down. They will come to us.'
"Surround him and cut him off from his allies. The others don't matter. Killing the Copy-nin is our top priority." She stepped forward, addressing Kakashi. "I thought you leaf-huggers were all about protecting the weak and all that drabble? I would've thought that you'd defend your civilians better. They barely put up a fight." She was grinning, but she was on guard. She was trying to goad us into attacking in rage. I knew she likely wasn't lying about them having slaughtered civilians, but freaking out wouldn't change that, and we all knew it.
Rem's grin faded as she saw Kakashi wasn't going to rise to her bait; her lips thinned into a determined line. Behind her, all the Iwa nin tensed, preparing to attack.
'Itachi.' Kakashi sent with Telepathy.
A loud raven's caw sounded through the clearing, causing several of the Iwa nin to flinch. The sound of flapping wings rose up from the surroundings as glimpses of fluttering feathers could be glimpsed through the thick mist. More cries rose up, drowning the clearing in a cacophony of flapping wings and screaming birds. All around the area, a murder of ravens could be seen flying through the mist and trees around us.
The Iwa nin were shifting uncertainly from foot to foot, going back to back as they faced off against the birds.
"Stand fast! Kill the Copy-nin!" Rem ordered, trying to rouse her forces.
'Shinto.' Kakashi sent me with Telepathy.
I inhaled deeply and reached outwards. The mist I'd released through the area was thick. We were surrounded on all sides by tall trees. Shadows were abundant in the space around us. The Iwa nin were focused on Itachi's birds. They weren't expecting an attack from below.
The shadows blanketing the floor of the clearing solidified. Immediately, I felt the strain on my chakra and my control as over a dozen nin thrashed against my shadow binding simultaneously.
'Move!' I sent, desperately holding all of the nin in place.
A streak of blue passed through the clearing, moving faster than many of the Iwa nin could track. A shower of red mist followed in its wake as the seven nin that had been in its path evaporated under the force of its might.
Four shapes flickered through the clearing. Each shape slashed out with a sword, afterimages trailing in the wake of each movement, making it appear as if there were forty swords instead of just four. They slashed to and fro, slicing through immobilized nin with each movement.
The remaining nin struggled desperately to free themselves from my clutches, but their frantic desperation was manageable with the others dead and therefore not contributing to the strain of holding them all simultaneously.
'Send a message.' Kakashi sent to us all, but it was primarily directed at one of us in particular.
A final figure blurred into the clearing, landing just in front of Kakashi. Yamato flashed through hand signs before crouching down to slap the ground. The Earth heaved and rolled as twisting roots exploded out of the ground, wrapping up around the rest of the Iwa nin, binding their limbs and lifting them aloft.
I held them in my shadows, feeling their panicked, desperate thrashing as the roots moved up to entomb them, sharpened points piercing into their flesh. When Yamato was done, the clearing was no longer a clearing. The space was filled with new trees, each displaying the bloodied corpse of an Iwa nin in their hollows and branches.
'Return to the shadows. We backtrack 400 meters and wait for the reinforcements.' Kakashi ordered.
Misaki's lightning aura vanished instantly as we all followed Kakashi back the way we'd come, leaving a forest of death in our wake.
X
This was it. Aki had trained his whole life to get here. He was the best in his class at the Academy. He was the first in his class to make it to Chunin. In a few more years, he'd be ready to become a jonin, but that was for later. For now, his village needed him.
It had only been a day since the invasion began and they'd already won so much ground. Konoha's border patrols were not equipped to deal with the flood of nin that swept them to the side. Iwa's numbers were supplemented by their new allies, allowing them to overwhelm the Land of Fire's meager resistance, and Aki had been on the front line through it all.
He'd saved Aya when he fought a Konoha ANBU one-on-one, emerging victorious. He kept the ANBU's mask as a trophy. That, more than anything, had assured him of Iwa's inevitable victory. He, a chunin, had bested one of Konoha's ANBU, their best. It was only a matter of time until they took Konoha.
Konoha was even more desperate than they'd expected, weaker than anticipated after their losses in their war with Kumo. Why else would they send one of their best ninjas this close to the front line without support?
It was clear what Konoha was doing by sending Kakashi Hatake this far on his own. They were trying to trick them into retreating, into giving ground and allowing Konoha time to regroup. They didn't expect Iwa's numbers to be supplemented by their allies. They didn't expect Iwa's nin to be so strong.
The Copy nin was one of very few notable nin among Konoha's ranks. The monsters that once kept the rest of the Elemental Nations at bay were no more. The Yellow Flash was dead. The Slug Princess was a washed up drunk who'd abandoned her village. The Third Hokage was old, crippled by too many years. And the Snake Sannin…
Aki chuckled to himself. The Land of Fire's time had come. At the conclusion of this war, Iwa would be the greatest hidden village in the land. And he will have played a key role in that victory by killing one of the few genuine threats Konoha still possessed.
Kakashi Hatake would die today. Aki was prepared to give his life to see it done, as were the six teams that charged through the trees with his own.
"Remember, do not look him in the eye. The sharingan will trap you in a genjutsu." Su said, leading the combined teams towards the Copy-nin's last known location. She was focused, more determined than Aki had ever seen his former jonin sensei. He remembered a story she'd told his team when they were genin, of events during her time in the war.
This mission was personal for her. She would do anything in her power to kill Kakashi Hatake, no matter the cost.
"Sensors?" Su said. They were coming up on Kakashi's last known location.
"Nothing yet. I don't sense ours either."
"They are likely dead." Su said gravely. "Fighting that many of us will have exhausted him. This may be our only chance. Do not let our brothers and sister's deaths be in vain. We will kill Kakashi Hatake."
"Captain!" one of the sensors yelled. "There's a signature a kilometer out. It's weak. There's nothing else around it."
"You and Jo check it out. Everyone else, hold here." Su ordered.
Aki and the rest of the nin who'd come to kill a legend crouched down in the grass as the sensor ran ahead to scout. They waited in tense silence, no one speaking lest they give away their position. They kept their eyes peeled on the trees above them. The first time Aki had fought Konoha ANBU, they'd emerged from the trees as if they were invisible. They need to remember that these nin grew up in these forests, they knew them just as well as Aki knew the mountains. He wouldn't let them catch him unaware again.
He'd already lost too many friends.
A brilliant chakra flare blazed to life from the direction the sensor had run in.
No enemy. 1 injured. Backup. Medical.
"On me." Su ordered. She led them at speed towards the flare.
The smell was what hit Aki first. The air was thick with the stench of rot and decay. There was death here.
Su stopped next to the sensor, he was kneeling at the base of a tree. "Injured?" she demanded, eyes up, scanning their surroundings for hidden combatants.
"In…" the sensor gagged. "In there." he forced out, looking like he was going to puke.
Aki was confused, he'd pointed at the tree. Why would…
Aki heard weak tapping coming from the tree. Someone was inside that thing.
"Get this open!" Su demanded.
Two chunin rushed forward, prying at the bark with their kunai while everyone else took up sentinel positions to guard them.
"Captain…"
Su and Aki turned as one to the disbelieving voice. Aki very nearly puked when he saw what Jo was pointing at.
A tree stood nearby, roots and branches twisted around a corpse, framing a bruised, bloodied, dead face like the centerpiece of some twisted piece of art. The face was pale. The dark hair was matted, slick with blood. There was an Iwa headband hanging loosely from the figure's forehead.
Aki looked around, feeling his stomach turn. All around them were trees displaying corpses. Some had been impaled through their midsections, left to hang limp in the air. Some were confined in a prison of roots on the forest floor, their bodies broken and contorted in unnatural ways. Others were framed like the first Aki had seen. All of them were dead.
"Prepare to fall back." Su ordered, eyes alight with fury, but she was keeping her cool regardless. "Get that survivor out. Be ready to move the second they're secured. Jo, take Ying and go ahead. Let Command know we're facing the Mokuton."
"Hai." Jo and Ying flickered out of the clearing, retreating at Su's orders.
Aki's head snapped to look at Su. "Mokuton? Sensei, but that's…"
"Keep your head, Aki. We are deep in enemy territory."
Aki took a deep breath and refocused. If his sensei thought this was the Mokuton, he was inclined to believe her. He'd never known her to be wrong about something like this before.
Aki tensed, a shuriken already in his hand, reared back to throw as he heard a bird call into the silence. Around him, his allies were similarly tense, all watching the trees for signs of any Konoha nin.
"Hurry." Su said, curt.
"We've got her!" one of the chunin called triumphantly.
Two of the three medics they'd brought rushed up to the chunin as they extricated the brown-haired woman from the tree. She was holding her sword in an iron grip, shaking as she flinched at every motion around her. Her headband was dangling around her neck, slick with blood.
"Get her under control. We need to move now." Su said, tense as she watched their surroundings.
The forest was empty around them. Nothing moved. No sound could be heard. The towering trees scattered shadows and blades of light. The shadows of the trees were vast, the trees so tall they'd choked away Aki's view of the sky. Su was right, they needed to get away. If Konoha really had someone who could control wood… This place was a deathtrap.
"The birds were first…" a weak, broken voice said. Aki realized it was the woman they'd pulled from the tree.
"Shut her up and grab her. We're moving now." Su said, motioning for everyone to get moving. She paused at the edge of their formation, glaring at two approaching nin. "Jo? Ying? I told you to go ahead."
Aki tensed as a high-pitched screech sounded through the woods, another bird call.
"Then the woods were alive. We all died. Even me…" the woman said sadly. She looked up at Aki. Her skin began to rot away before his eyes, sloughing off in blackened clumps.
"Move!" Su yelled, but it was too late.
The decaying woman moved faster than a striking viper. Her sword blurred, appearing as if it was in several places at once. The medics tried to block, but their kunai passed through after-images, the decaying woman's true sword cutting into one of their necks and stabbing through the other's heart.
Su was on the woman before she could move again, a kunai buried up to the hilt in the back of her head. There was a symphony of shrieks and flapping wings as the woman dispersed into a flock of ravens, flying away in every direction.
"Retreat now! It's a trap!" Su yelled.
"We're sorry, captain." Jo said, standing in the path several nin tried to flee through. "The birds… They got us too." It was only then that Aki realized Jo and Ying were staring blankly forward. Suddenly, the pair collapsed, falling into a heap on the ground. Aki saw blood leaking from the corners of their mouths.
"Up into the trees!" Su ordered. "Stay together! Defensive formation!"
More shrieks rang through the woods. Aki saw caught glimpses of birds fluttering between the trees. One of the genin was too slow to follow Su's order. A bird's talons latched onto his collar from behind and pulled him backwards. He disappeared into a tree, a strangled cry was cut short, then the genin was gone.
"Move!" Su bellowed, leading the way high into the trees as they all ran up the trunks of the massive trees.
They ran. And kept running. And kept running. And kept running. How tall were these trees?
Three chunin around Aki screamed. A spike of fear was driven into his stomach when he looked over at them. Sharpened tendrils of solidified darkness had impaled them all and were now wrapping around them, dragging them down towards the ground.
"They're hiding around us! Destroy the forest!" Su yelled. She was already moving through hand signs. "Doton: Earth Dragon Bomb!" Su spit a clump of mud from her mouth that solidified into a dragon. Her technique blasted into the trees around them, sundering the bark and cutting through the deadly canopy.
Several others followed her lead, blasting the surrounding forest with jutsu with large areas of effect, hoping to catch the leaf-huggers in their effects.
"We need to–"
There was a crack of thunder that cut off Su's words.
Aki turned around, freezing. His captain, his sensei, his mentor had gone slack. Her face was impassive. Her eyes didn't see.
Standing behind her was an azure demon. The creature had hair black like night floating around its head as if under some strange spell. Dark flames shifted on the monster's skin, rolling up and down its face, covering the entirety of its neck and framing two piercing opal eyes, bulging with hate. The beast was crowned in a corona of violent energy, wreathed in blue power that Aki felt even as far away as he was.
The demon looked at the Iwa nin surrounding it and spit out a single word, its speech colored by its unnatural power.
"Weak."
The visage of the creature flickered, then vanished. Four cries of pain shot out. Four Iwa nin fell from the treetops, tumbling to the ground after Su's body as the Monster reappeared.
"Weak." It repeated.
"Fall back!" Aki shouted, turning and running in the direction of their forward operating base. They needed to report back to command. They needed to know that a demon resided in these woods.
Another crack of thunder. Another death cry.
The sky was red. The trees around him were twisting, curling around themselves and whipping out to attack his allies, his friends. Another bird crossed his path, shrieking.
Somehow, Aki made it to the treeline. He was the only one. He wasn't sure if anyone else was still alive, but even if they were, he couldn't go back for them. He had to report back. They needed to know. He skidded to a halt as he saw something blocking his path.
Standing on the plain in front of him was another monster. A being made from pure darkness. A rounded, misshapen head sat atop a lithe, plated body. Parts of the form shifted and bulged as if it was alive. Dark tendrils drifted off its back, waving lazily against the blood-red sky.
These monsters had killed the woman who'd made him what he was today. He'd be damned if he went down without taking them with him.
Snarling, Aki reached into his weapons pouch, rearing back to throw a shuriken at the monster.
Aki froze. He tried to move. He could not. His every muscle strained, his full will demanded he end the monster's life, but he could not move. What was happening?
The monster raised an arm. Aki felt his arm rise without his consent, moving to mirror the monster. The monster touched its neck. Aki's blood ran cold as he felt the sharpened edge of his own shuriken bite into the flesh of his neck. The monster made a slashing motion with its arm.
Aki felt a flood of warm liquid spill down the front of his chunin vest, covering his arm and even splashing onto his leg. He felt dizzy. The world spun. Why was it so cold?
Aki fell, a shadow rising up to embrace him as he died.
X
The last time Fugaku had received a summons like this, the fate of the village had hung in the balance. He had not known it at the time, but that meeting would drastically alter the course of his Clan's future as well as his own, ending in a far more favorable outcome than Fugaku had dared to hope for. With Iwa's declaration of war having been announced this morning, Fugaku could only hope such would be the case this time.
Unlike the setting of their last meeting, Fugaku was not hidden in the back room of a small shop. No, this meeting was held in the home of the Nara Clan Head, and he was not the only party invited.
"This way, Fugaku-sama," a guard standing vigil outside Shikaku Nara's home said, bowing respectfully and leading him inside. He was brought to a room with several figures seated on cushions around a low table, the same worried frown on all of their faces. Shikaku Nara sat at the head of the table, flanked by Inoichi Yamanaka and Choza Akimichi. At Choza's right sat Hiashi, Hyuga. There was an open seat next to Inoichi.
Shikaku looked up as he arrived. "Thank you for coming, Fugaku-san."
Fugaku nodded respectfully as he sat down, squinting to better see the men arrayed around him. "Of course. You said the safety of the village was at stake. I will always be at Konoha's service."
Choza, arms crossed over his chest, huffed. "Good. We're gonna need you. We're gonna need everyone."
"I believe you agreed to let Shikaku and I explain?" Inoichi said, was polite but firm.
Choza grunted, but did not comment.
"Now that we are all here, may I ask why you summoned us?" Hiashi asked with no trace of inflection in his voice. Fugaku had tried to crack the mask that Hiashi Hyuga wore to shield himself from the world for years to no avail. The man had supreme control over himself. Fugaku respected it, even as it aggravated him to no end. He could not determine how Hiashi felt about his inclusion in this meeting.
He was, of course, aware that Hiashi had been meeting with the heads of the Nara, Yamanaka and Akimichi Clans weekly for the last year. It was only a matter of time until they outright stated their unity. The seeds had already been sown, and there was nothing to be done about it now, especially when even attempting to do so would weaken the village. No, Fugaku had no desire to unmake what these four had forged, but he did see potential for his own Clan.
Shikaku sighed, running a hand through his long hair. "I'm not going to sugar-coat anything or beat around the bush. Iwa has us outnumbered. We lost too many of our stronger fighters in Kumo to fight Iwa the same way we fought Kumo. My teams are too understaffed and I have too many missions I need to send them on without enough people to take on those missions."
"That's not the worst of it either," Inoichi said, hands resting on his knees, a furious scowl on his face. "T&I has known something was coming for a while now. Unknown nin in our borders, patrols going missing, I've had my people looking into this for a while now."
"If you knew a war was coming, why were we not better prepared?" Hiashi asked. His tone lacked inflection. Fugaku did not think his question came with condemnation, but he couldn't truly tell one way or the other. Hiashi's control was infuriating. If it wouldn't be seen as rude, he'd be tempted to observe the man with his sharingan to detect the most minute motions even a Hyuga would be unable to hide.
"I was following a different lead," Inoichi said, crossing his arms over his chest. "A lot of the nin I've interrogated over the last two months were all at least passingly connected to something called, 'Otogakure'."
Fugaku frowned. "The Village Hidden by Sound? I was not aware of such a village."
"No one I've talked to has ever heard of it. I'd think it was just an underground cell if it weren't for the fact that I've had so many nin come in from all over all tie back to the same name. We grabbed some from Mist, Grass, and here. All of them were somehow tied to Oto."
"I do not know the limits of your abilities, so forgive me if this question sounds rude, but were you not able to extract their memories?" Hiashi asked.
Inoichi scowled at nothing. "No. They all had seals at the base of their skulls. The moment I uncovered their connection to Oto, the seals activated and the subjects went braindead, preventing me from learning anything else. More conventional methods have failed to extract information from them as well. They seem to delight in pain."
"While this is concerning, I do not see how it ties back into our conflict with Iwagakure." Fugaku said, attempting to lightly bring them back on topic. As intriguing as this mystery was, Shikaku would not have called him to this meeting if he did not need something, something important.
"Long story short," Inoichi continued, "The few Iwa nin we've been able to capture have painted a clearer picture. Whatever Oto is, it's allied with Iwa and is actively aiding them in their war against us. That's not the worst of it though."
"I found three nin under my command with the seal Inoichi found that relates to Oto." Shikaku said, expression grave. "All of them came from Elder Shimura's…force." The word was strained.
Fugaku carefully controlled his expression. He had many grievances with Danzi Shimura, but this… "You are aware of what you are insinuating?" Fugaku said, needing to be completely sure what he was dealing with.
"I am." Shikaku said, unflinching as he looked Fugaku in the eyes. "It's a problem, but not one we can deal with right now. The Hokage and I have been working closely to coordinate our forces. Speaking plainly, if things continue to progress as they are. We'll lose. Iwa will overwhelm us. We don't have the numbers to beat them."
For the first time since the beginning of the meeting, Hiashi's features shifted, a light frown pulling at his lips. "I expect you have a suggestion to deal with this?"
Shikaku took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Yes. Konoha's regular forces and ANBU are not enough. We need to pull from the Clans to bolster our ranks. I've already mobilized every Nara I can."
"We've both done the same." Chozo cut in, indicating himself and Inoichi.
Shikaku looked at Chozo out of the corner of his eye, but otherwise ignored the interruption. "Additionally, Chozo, Inoichi and I will be going to Hot Water personally. If I were Iwa, I would strike from there once we muster our forces to defend from Grass. I will coordinate forces there and Chozo, Inoichi and I will fight. InoShikaCho is feared for a reason. It's about time we reminded our enemies of why."
Fugaku saw a fierce glint in the eyes of the three men. It seemed they were all not only prepared but eager to fight.
"What of us?" Hiashi asked. "Where do you intend to deploy us?"
Shikaku met his eyes. "You, I want to stay here."
Hiashi's small frown grew. "I am sure you will explain."
"Someone is attempting something from inside Konoha. I have a good idea who it is, but I don't know what it is. Of the four of us, you're the best equipped to keep an eye on things."
"Literally." Chozo said, grinning.
Shikaku sighed at the man's humor. "Inoichi has done all he can here. We can't do more until we've dealt with Iwa, but I'm not willing to leave certain actors free to act with impunity. I know you well enough by now to know you wouldn't stand by while someone destroyed the village from the inside. I want you to protect our home and our Clans while we're gone. Things seem to be lining up too well for my liking. In order for us to fight Iwa effectively, the Clans need to go to war, leaving those Clans completely reliant on Konoha for protection."
Hiashi's frown turned determined. "I understand. I will safeguard our home while you are gone."
A small smile pulled at the corner of Shikaku's lip. "Thank you, Hiashi."
"And me?" Fugaku asked.
Shikaku turned to him. "While I'm as certain as I can be that Iwa will strike through Hot Water soon, they're currently hitting us from Grass. The Hokage already sent some heavy hitters in that direction to boost morale, but none of them will have the same impact you will. You single-handedly held off the Eight Tails. Seeing you among the ranks will do wonders for our nin's morale while simultaneously making our adversary wary. They won't want to risk a major confrontation with a man who can stand against a bijuu."
Fugaku's lips pulled into a frown as he considered the request. He wanted to help his village. He would help his village, but he was not certain he would be able to do what Shikaku was asking of him. If Konoha's nin needed to see his golden armor to be inspired, then he would fail them. Fugaku was not sure his eyes were strong enough to allow him to summon the susanoo again.
No. He would find the strength needed. If the village's future and the future of his Clan required this of him, then he would do it.
"When do I leave?" Fugaku asked.
"Same time we do – tomorrow." Chozo said. "Use the night to say goodbye to your son and wife."
Fugaku nodded, turning to look at Hiashi. His Clan's relationship with the Hyuga had always been…strained. They were similar in so many ways, yet polar opposites in others. They had never been on the best terms, but that needed to be set aside now. "I am entrusting the safety of my Clan to you. Do not allow the plots of the Elders to tear our village apart."
Hiashi nodded. "You have my word."
"And on that note, let's all get a drink. It'll be the last chance for a while." Shikaku said, producing a bottle from somewhere.
Fugaku accepted the offered glass, enjoying the rest of the night with his fellow Clan Heads, the demands of the future stuck at the back of his mind.