More Deception

It was morning… The sun has just set, reflecting the array of orange hues.

In the forest, two men conversed; both squinting as they exchanged words.

"Cold trails!" Sazike grunted, shouting at Sauko.

"First, the dog sensed the trio's scent vividly but then, their scent was slightly fading away as we neared Konoha's post."

Even Sauko had no words, considering what the situation was.

All this time, they had been expecting their trio to come back with the scroll, but on the contrary, not one of them came back. They even bought a dog specifically for this but the thing was useless.

The only thing possible was the trio had gone further, nearing the camp's border. This was what they were going to do next– follow them, thinking of another possibility.

"What's fishy is that there's one scent from the forest that's still in our path," Sauko said with squinted eyes.

Ever since they had walked from that tree, a scent which was not familiar kept following them. Even until here, it was still there, confusing them both. Although they didn't know whose scent it was, they had their suspicions. This meant that the familiar two scents, aka their team had gone a different way.

After, the pair had gotten everything ready, including the camp they set up which they put away. Then, hurriedly sprinted toward their next location– the edge of konoha's camp.

As they were on their way, Yokuma was exiting his tent, ready to deliver the scroll. Lately, he had been thinking about the close situation he had been in. It has made him think a lot, and if he didn't do what he did…. He may have died.

It also showed him his shortcomings and flaws, which he was ready to cover back at the compound. Right now, he had all the time to plan his schedule– what he was going to work on first and later. One example is, honing his sharingan was a priority, including his genjutsu prowess.

His endurance had gotten a lot better when his reserves had shot up, but the feeling of exhaustion was still there. Compared to other shinobi who could do what he did for a continuous amount of time; he would have gassed if it was a bit longer. Even certain genin could outlast him in a battle of endurance.

This didn't mean that enemies could beat him simply by outlasting him. Yokuma had covered this weakness long ago by changing his whole style of fighting.

Chakra threads, traps, trickery and deception was his style. He was never the type to fight head on, even in a one on one. This was why until now no enemy could defeat him, he was too quick and his chakra control was absurd for a mere genin.

Before they could think, Yokuma had planned a few steps ahead, effectively finishing the fight. Efficiency was the core concept of his style. The quickest possible way to kill someone, there was no wasted movement. Exactly with these points he was also such a good tactician, killing a special jounin with genins.

Right now, Yokuma walked up to the queue outside the commissioners camp, and proceeded to wait.

At this moment, he stood in front of a vicious looking man. He looked no older than 50 but the scars on his face aged him by a few years. Yokuma, bending his arm toward his back, upholstered the massive scroll. It was enormous for a normal scroll but it wasn't any of his concern.

The other man in front of him raised a brow. "Where's the messenger."

To his question, Yokuma looked away, avoiding eye contact whilst taking a deep breath. He sighed, running his hand through his hair as he looked down at the ground. The man looked at Yokuma shaking his head before saying, "They all died."

There was no sad expression, nor a longing one. It was just a face full of pity and regret, sighing at their loss.

The shinobi looked at Yokuma for a second then back to another man behind him. "Kenpachi, are you hearing this?"

"Mori's dead."

Kenpachi, who wore no flak jacket and did not look like a shinobi, turned around. Hearing this, he also shook his head and sighed in pity since he was a messenger as well. Because of this, he knew Mori pretty well.

"Can you at least tell us what happened," Kenpachi calmly asked.

Yokuma had a thoughtful face for a few seconds as a lot of emotions crossed his face. "From the start, a trio targeted us…"

The more he spoke; the more scrunched their faces became. He explained the whole story with half truths and lies. Instead of saying he slaughtered them all; he said their team did with some struggle. Then, he killed the last one, who killed Mori as he hunted him down for the scroll.

He had been planning out the story for one day, filling out any flaws or holes inside of them. Although, the situation wasn't dire enough where they would thoroughly investigate him. Still, to be cautious, it wasn't a loss to have a near perfect story.

"It seems information has been leaked," Kato, the shinobi said. That was his name.

Kenpachi raised a brow and added, "If they knew from the start, they must have sent others."

"It obviously was planned, but it doesn't seem like it's from another village."

Yokuma also had his suspicions. The enemy wore no headband nor anything to show they were from another village. This guy was right but maybe there was more to it.

A few minutes passed before the news was passed to others. Immediately, Yokuma was told to stay in the camp for a day just to be careful which he agreed to of course. He still had a few days before the next team mission, so he might as well get some things done.

"We have sent a bird to the other camp about your story and the completion of the mission," Kato explained and carried on. "I suggest you stay here for more than one day actually since they may have sent others."

Yokuma gave some thought to this and simply replied, "I will see what happens first, then I will decide."

Kato nodded, understanding his decision.

The pair then conversed more about the battle in the forest. Just to quench his curiosity, Yokuma answered all his questions just like he planned. After everything had been done, he made his way back to the tent, thinking about the enemies.

***

So, what do you think about the 3rd pov?

Like it… Dislike it? Lemme know…. But it's not like I care for your opinion 😉 I like writing in it.