Darkest Night Hidden in The Leaf (7)

*Drrrrrr*

The bunkers within Mount Kage shake as some of the more jumpy civilians let loose scared yelps and cower in the darkness, fearing the predicted end to their lives! But it's not the Anbu members hiding in the dark that assure the men and women in various bunkers to keep calm. They merely appeared to apprehend any ill-minded men and women who wanted to find some gain in this moment of panic.

Hibi's byakugan fades into the darkness as he looks at other Hyuga members comprising the Elder Body of the Clan.

"The Anbu members are in their usual rotation. But I sense Hizashi and Hiashi, too. Hiashi is with Hon in the same room as Mukai, Hizashi, and his wife, Umi."

Hibi's words spread confusion within the group. The sudden explosion of Bijudama near Mount Kage sent Anbu members into a more active role which also meant that the Hyuga members could discuss things without fearing any lasting eavesdropping. Aside from confusion, the elders also felt relieved. At least, Hiashi is safe.

Since Mukai, Hiashi, and Hizashi cannot hide from Byakugan, they settle for something simple. But as Kai expected, the Hyuga Clan has one ironical tunnel vision despite their Byakugan as they begin discussing plans to settle their circumstances.

"Konoha is intent on destroying our foundational practices," one elder hisses softly.

"I think Hiruzen is upto something worse. Why else would he have all our civilians return? The entirety of the Hyuga Clan is in a single spot. Wiping us out never became easier!"

Hibi thinks silently with a tight frown. He once ran the Clan and knows how Konoha works.

His Byakugan works again as he looks through the floor he is standing on.

"We are hostage in a sense," Hibi begins with a grimace. "Hiruzen desires the Clan's strength to follow his command and my youngest, Hizashi, was too much of a fool to see who Hiruzen enslaved him with his naive ideals. We brand our loved ones with seals to save them the fate of being robbed of their strength!"

His words earn Hibi appreciative murmuring from the group of Elders as the former Patriarch of the Clan continues, "My father made a pact with Hashirama Senju at equal standing. As age wreaks havoc in Hiruzen's mind, he forgets that we are not weak. If we are hostages to Konoha's schemes, the Hyuga Clan shall hold Konoha hostage through this rare opportunity!"

The Elders look at Hibi curiously as his wrinkles deepen with a shrewd expression on his face.

---

Perfect Jinchuriki—B.

A man whose accomplishment is considered dangerous to the point that spies in Kumo sent the information to their respective Villages even if it meant exposing themselves—a truly high-priority case, a being that mastered his Tailed-Beast! The implications sent other Shinobi Villages and Daimyos scrambling for a short time. The next war should have started right then if Kumo arranged assaults on other nations. But they didn't.

What does perfection implies in matters of a Jinchuriki? What kind of power does such an existence boasts? B is the first to accomplish such a feat since the existence of Jinchuriki, and other Villages, including the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning, believe that Kumo cracked the code. But really, Kai found it a simple case of understanding.

Is it THAT hard to understand that enslaved monsters are unhappy? That they can be uncooperative?

Yes, it is hard for men and women thriving on the backs of enslaved in the world of Shinobi and aristocrats to understand this.

In some of their minds, it is a privilege to be someone special's slave.

Freedom? It is merely a luxury of the powerful.

Few others aside from Kai understand the reality of things unchecked by power, hatred, and love.

Dodai stares at the massive eight-tailed bovine monster with a fond smile before recalling the young girl who left the location after summoning everyone except Hachibi.

"Ow! Ya fool! That technique sucks ass, yeah! My body felt like it was on fire, and fire in my blood screamed—YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

The monstrous Tailed-Beast lets loose another roar as Dodai stares at burnt spots on Hachibi's body.

'Hmm, the Heavenly Transfer Jutsu is hard to bear even by the likes of a transformed Jinchuriki. But B is already healing.'

Dodai raises his voice, "Focus, B! The enemy who teleported your attack is the Dragon Sennin. He boasts he's stronger than the Three Sannin who captured Lord Third's son, and I'm starting to believe there's some truth to his words!"

The giant body of the brownish monster flinches before he suddenly lashes out with one of his octopus tails.

Dodai calmly prepares a Jutsu of his own as the tail tears through a large chunk of the forest when the tip of Hachibi's tail explodes, tearing open clumps of bloodied flesh.

[Rasengun].

Kai's body zips on the long tail and dodges the furious slap of the beast's wide hand only to target the one-eyed leader of the invasion with his hands clad in surgically sharp chakra! He already revoked his Sage Transformation when he felt Jiraiya move, but Kai was never weak without Sage Transformation.

An appropriate Rasengan is good enough to hurt a Tailed-Beast right where it's supposed to—the tail. Meanwhile, he uses his go-to Jutsu whenever possible, [Chakra Scalpel].

"Quite bold," Dodai raises a small slate of rubbery material before it surprisingly expands and turns into bubbling Lava that tides over to Kai in an attempt to melt him.

"Dodai! That looks human, where's the dragon? Ya, fool!" B growls, his mouth letting out a geyser of ink from his mouth that cuts Kai's path.

*Blink*

Kai disappears quietly, reappearing on B's already healing tail as he dispenses the Chakra Scalpel.

'Hey, you asked for the Dragon,' His grin grows wicked behind his mask as electricity sparkles in his hand.

[Lightning Release— Body Pathway Derangement].

"Hmm?" A curious grunt echoes from B's mouth as his hand stops in its track while his third tail whips and smacks his head the next second!

*Thwap*

"Ow! Hachi, your tail is moving on its own! Friendship and loyalties tested, bonds forged, tails smacked over it all, yeah!"

"It isn't me. It's the Jutsu. Change bodies. I will need some time to remove the chakra from the affected region since his chakra is moving with a mind of its own." A deep grumble responds to B as the monstrous body of the Tailed-Beast blinks away with a blonde-haired, dark-skinned muscular youth with a pair of shades free falls from the height before landing on a branch and breaking past it to unsheathe his sword at once and cutting at Kai's hand aiming for his neck!

*Crack*

Kai's hand cuts the thin sword cleanly as the dark-skinned youth grins widely.

"Yer damn slow, ya fool!" Crimson chakra bubbles around him, and he evades Kai's attack the next second.

"And you're the first one to accuse me of being slow," Kai appears next to B the very next second, his hand barely stopped by a rubber whip coiling around his wrist.

"No, you don't," Dodai narrows his eyes, holding the other end of the whip.

Kai snorts as a powerful force tugs Dodai forward instead. Kai, meanwhile, jumps in a spiral to evade B wielding two swords to cut him from the waist.

*Thud*

A low grunt escapes Dodai's lips as breath escapes his lung with a resounding kick in the abdomen with his body smacked into B. Kai does not let up. Instead, he pulls Dodai back, only for the man to disperse his jutsu and fall face-first on the ground. A clone forms around the man to stop the flurry of Senbons with his body and turns into a 'Gooish' beige, rubber-like thing.

Kai only stops when the mass of chakra around B turns so dense that his skin peels off to reveal a red monster with four flailing tails behind him.

"Dragon enough for you?" Kai finally speaks as he unsheathes his sword. His humored tone through the hilarious octopus mask looks anything but comedic to the duo as Dodai catches his breath and stares at Kai with a hint of cautious murder.

Such an opponent must not remain with Konoha—Never.

The round white-eyed B snarls softly as his claws dig into the dirt. "Dodai, this isn't anything like what Mubai told us! That fool promised us an assassin, not a raging brawler or the next Suna Widower, yo!"

"Hmm, Kumo Widower?" Kai looks at his sword before looking at his opponents, "Sakumo wishes to keep up with me."

His figure blitzes forward and suddenly disappears. His sword drives through Dodai the next second as the rubber-wielding master of defense looks down with a shocked expression.

"Dodai!" B snarls and almost attacks when Kai snickers, "Are you going to kill the both of us? I don't suppose you formed a connection with your Tailed-Beast with such a lack of compassion."

B's body stills as Dodai continues to stare at the sword through his abdomen.

"When… you kicked me, was that it?"

Kai looks at the man before tapping his head. Dodai loses consciousness. To be precise, Kai uses one of the two time-perception-altering Genjutsu in his arsenal.

[Hold of the Reaper].

"So, you came to rescue A's son, huh?" Kai pulls out his sword and presses his green-tinted chakra-clad hand on Dodai to provide rudimentary medical assistance under B's anxious stare. "He'll live." He supplants to keep B stalling, "After all, he has value as a prisoner."

"This isn't some chat and greet!" B's tail waves anxiously, "Hold him still, ya fool, don't let Dodai bleed!"

"Is this a verbal tick like the Uzumakis?" Kai inquires calmly.

"No verbal tick compares to my musical talent! Yeah, my talent is not an ailment, yeah!"

"B, I sense another team approaching us quickly. He's a distraction." Hachibi's voice snaps B out of his musings as the Jinchuriki attacks without another word, four tails extending swiftly to stab Kai, only for him to disappear with Dodai!

"And here I truly enjoyed conversing with you a bit. Hope you don't die, bud. And… get a lyricist to rip off from." Kai reappears on a faraway tree before disappearing as he leaves a simple statement.

"I dealt with the more technical one. I don't think I can handle perfect jinchuriki just yet." Kai lies through his teeth as another team flickers to existence near the spot he disappeared.

The leader of the team grins widely in response as his long, spiky white hair sways to the wind.

"Leave it to the Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku!" Jiraiya extends his hand forward with his palm stretched open as Shikaku, Choza, and Inoichi stare at the snarling Jinchuriki.

'We are way out of our league, aren't we?'

They think at once as Jiraiya raises an eyebrow before landing on the ground. His stare turns intense as he forms a one-handed seal.

Orange pigment darkens around his eyes, his dark irides turn yellowish, and his hair seems to grow out further, but he is free of warts on his nose or his hands and feet enlarging.

---

"Slow! Sloppy!" Onoki growls as his stone-armored fists smash down on the adamantine staff, pushing Hiruzen further into the ground as if a hammer nailing down an unrelenting nail! Hiruzen's clones are the first to disperse, but their battle grows more intense by the second.

*Zip*

*Flash*

The pillar of light outside Konoha's perimeter barely bothers Onoki and Hiruzen as the former scoffs, "That A and his obsession with researching every weird thing!"

"Better be a researcher than an old has-been who claims a product of research as a Kekkei Genkai!" Hiruzen grins suddenly. The staff explodes into a plume of smoke before the white-furred Enma grabs Hiruzen by his head.

[Adamantine Exchange Transformation].

The summon wields a pitch-black, golden-handled blade that slices through the rock around Onoki's fist, barely scraping the old dwarf's wrists as he flies higher.

"Cheap tricks like this Jutsu are beneath you!" Onoki scoffs, "And Dust Release is the proud Kekkei Genkai of my lineage!"

"We disagree on both terms!" Enma grins brutishly, sniping the sword forward while forming simple seals.

[Sword Clone Jutsu].

Onoki rolls his eyes as he sees hundred of swords flying in his direction before slapping his palm together.

Chakra converges in a short second and flies out the next while expanding wildly.

"Turn to dust!"

*Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof**Poof*

Hundreds of popping sounds echo, accompanied by exploding smoke as the Dust Release disintegrates even the smoke!

Onoki frowns as he stares at Enma.

'Where did Hiruzen go?'

*Bang* The teleported Bijudama explodes as the shockwave barely reaches their spot of battle.

Onoki realizes belatedly that another staff hung from Enma's waist as the old man grits his teeth, "Stop fooling around, you damn monkey!"

"I think he is talking about you, Enma," the staff transforms into Hiruzen as he clears his throat.

"I'm a noble monkey. You're the only 'damn' Monkey among us, Saru," Enma half-shrugs in response as Onoki narrows his eyes.

"That Dragon Sennin of yours won't be able to keep up with Hachibi's Jinchuriki. You just had to cause issues with the Hyuga Clan, did you not? If you only kept your sense of morality and greed in check, your village won't be in such a dire state."

Hiruzen takes a breather with a smile, "And what state would those be? Did Konoha lose a Jinchuriki by chance? And you think the mysterious benefactor feeding the rest of the Villages information is not providing Konoha similar knowledge? Let's be clear on one thing, Onoki. We are fighting someone else's battle willingly! Someone wants us to fight like this. Someone wants to hurt all villages. Even our Daimyos are happy to see that!"

"And that is supposed to unite us?" Onoki huffs a derisive snort followed by a chuckle. "Is that it? Common enemies? The ploy leading to Konoha's current circumstance is a simple one. But we, at the top, understand that a common enemy will never band us together. We are backstabbing croons blessed with powers that others, not even most Shinobi in our ranks, dare understand!"

As Onoki derides Hiruzen, the old dwarf's stubby hands form a single hand sign.

"Let me repeat myself, Hiruzen Sarutobi. There is no scenario where Konoha can talk itself out of this situation. Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju did not talk, Tobirama even more so. Their dreams of unification only led to killers like us gathering in five different spots. Nothing has changed since their era."

"Change only takes place when—" Hiruzen frowns, only to be cut off by Onoki as a mass of chakra forms around him.

"I will drag Konoha to the same level as Iwa," Onoki vows seriously. "You were the strongest Village."

"Unfortunately, you're wrong," Hiruzen grunts a sigh. "Had you let the younger generation prosper instead of solely focusing on building a degrading whirlpool of slavery, your village would truly amount to something."

Enma quietly transforms into another staff as Sarutobi weaves more seals and creates an expansive summoning seal.

[Summoning Jutsu: Monkey King's Parade]!

---

The militaristic Kumo has several specialized teams of Shinobi collectively falling under the umbrella of Alphabetical leadership. A, the Raikage, leads all other teams and other alphabetized shinobi. B is a role saved for A's partner.

The current Raikage was once a 'B,' but that term has a different meaning since the rise of Jinchruiki as the Third Raikage saw it fit to bestow the title of the Second Strongest of Kumo to the Tailed-Beast of the village. The current B is partnered with A's son since Blue B, the previous jinchuriki, lost his life when he lost control of Hachibi. Next in line is C.

Code 'C' belongs to the most skilled sensor of Kumo in a given generation. The sensing aspect of Ninjutsu is not only related to sensing chakra. One of the simplest examples is Kai and Kushina's (in her Kyubi Chakra Mode) ability to discern emotions through Chakra. The basic knowledge of Chakra indicates its formation from the combination of the spiritual and physical aspects of the body, so sensing chakra means sensing a particular facet of the body and the mind.

Technically, Yamanaka Clan's telepathy falls under the umbrella of Sensory Skills. The Yin Eye formed by Tsunade's parents is similar, too.

C is similarly skilled in some interesting Jutsu. There is a reason why he is leading a team of elites to locate A's son and not Dodai.

His team consists of Kumo's two recognized elites and three renowned Jonins. C's team is near the Uchiha Police Building, where the middle-aged, fair-skinned blonde observes a vial of blood changing color under the effects of his chakra. The color tints pale yellow before returning to its crimson shade.

"Lightest yellow… it means Lord Raikage's son isn't here," One of the elites sigh. They expected this much. Konoha's preparation definitely involved the relocation of many significant prisoners, and A's son may just make the top of the list.

"Information regarding Konoha stopped right after the imprisonment of Raikage's son. Konoha likely has some manner of understanding of how this mysterious informant works. But Lord Third and Dodai noted some possible Konoha personnel that might help us get Lord A's son."

C's words confuse others as one of the Jonins voices out hesitatingly, "We aren't unwilling to face Tsunade Senju. But that would be a pointless sacrifice."

"It would be pointless," C adopts a calm expression. "We are not meant to die fruitlessly at the hands of the Sannin."

"We are just as elite as them," spoke the second red-haired elite of the group.

"Maybe," C sighs. "We all have our missions. Unlike others tasked with raising organized havoc, our mission is to capture Nawaki Senju."

As C admits, the sounds of clashes among different Shinobi fill Konoha's perimeter as Kumo did not stink of sending out some of their more capable shinobi. It's already a substantial investment from Kumo's side as A does not cultivate slave-oriented armies of Shinobi like Iwagakure. But the multiple specialized teams also mean that Kumo's combat effectiveness was matched only by assassination-focused Kiri.

"So… we have to leave others the second any of you capture Nawaki, as planned," C repeats, especially for the red-haired elite with a dubious origin, who snorts and flexes his arm to give C the finger quietly.

"What of that weird fellow who joined in last?" The first elite, a dark-skinned slated-grey-haired man, questions while scratching his full beard. "Haven't seen that fellow. Do you know something about him?"

"Just that he is to follow Dodai's instructions and target whoever Dodai deems troublesome. So, I guess he is to counter Konoha's jinchuriki."

"A pure-blood, eh?" The redhead scoffs under his breath as the team of six promptly disappears when C stops speaking and forms a gesture to show which direction they will be traveling in, having already found their target.

***

Alternate Title: A Hostage Situation; Playing With Fire; Precise Dragon; Sticking to the Basics for Maximum Potency; When a Tail Rebels; Rubber V Teleportation; Kai's Got no Chill; Compassion is a Weakness on the Battlefield; Strongarming Dodai; Willingly Retreating; The Toad Sage Arrives; Out of Depth; A Handsome Sage; Adamantine vs Rock; Words Fail in War; Everyone Before Talk no Jutsu's Invention—Murder; Monkey King's Parade; Damn Monkeys!—Frieze is Onoki's Fan; Dwarf V Monkey; Turn to Dust! *Chad Hiruzen who bagged Biwako* No.; Blood Sensing is Some Xianxia Shit; True Target; Half-Blood Elite; ABC; When Alphabets are More Murderous

***

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