Complete Mayhem (3)

Under the clear blue sky, the tall grass—taller than the height of an average adult man—bustled as the wind gently breezed. 

The scene was silent. Based on this information solely, one would've come to think just how peaceful the view was.

Unfortunately, such wasn't the case.

Below the tall grass, numerous corpses were scattered. Surprisingly, those corpses had barely any damage done to their bodies; it was an indication of deaths by poison.

"That damn prick... making me waste my time in cold..."

The red-haired boy, wearing a cloak, growled as he stood in the middle of tall grass as if unbothered by the corpses around him.

Sasori of the 'Red Sand'. He stood at the border between the land of iron and the land of hot water, now staring into the deep forest just ahead of him.

The corpses around him were the samurai who were guarding the border. Unlike Akashi's group who sneaked their way in, Sasori made a brutal breakthrough, facing all of them and coming out on top.

"...Damn it."

But of course, his win wasn't at a cost. Having let his impulsive tendencies get the better of him, Sasori has lost a great deal of weapons in his arsenal. Furthermore, he did end up getting wounded. 

A flash of regret entered his eyes. With a grimace, Sasori clicked his tongue and viewed the forest with a desire, but eventually backed off, unwilling to enter the battlefield at his current state.

However, that didn't mean that he would be giving up his goal.

"Red Blade... soon or later, you will be my puppet."

The idea of possessing the strongest ronin as his weapon wasn't something that Sasori could give up on. It would be the closest thing to the 'true art' that he pursued, his instinct spoke to him.

__________

"Let's recap as we rest momentarily."

Hiding deep in the dark and gloomy forest, Mei muttered while trying to catch her breath. Zabuza was found drinking water from a small bottle that was previously strapped to him, completely drenched in sweat. Gai, still hidden behind him, was glancing at Zabuza timidly.

Ao nodded as he placed the eye patch above his Byakugan and leaned back on a tree bark. 

Mei unrolled a roughly drawn map, one that she had previously managed to attain from one of the fallen Kumo ninjas. 

"The border that we entered through was quite close to Kumo's base. No wonder we encountered 'A' of the renowned 'A-B Combo'..."

Mei shuddered.

"Now that I think back to it, we were very lucky that A wasn't with B. If both of them were present, I could not guarantee the survival of all of us."

'B.'

Akashi knew well who Mei was talking about. 

B. He was the current jinchuriki of the Eight Tails, Hachibi. A jinchuriki at the combat level of a jonin was scary enough, but that wasn't the end. 

His teamwork with A, the expected one to succeed the title of Raikage after the current one, was known to be perfect. It was said that even a ninja of a kage level would have difficulty facing the infamous A-B combo, the people said.

Just as Mei said, they got lucky this time around. Should B have been present, Akashi knew that a simple trickery wouldn't have worked, and he may have needed to pull out more cards—enough to reveal his true identity.

'...I need more strength.'

For the first time in a long while, such a thought reached Akashi after years. 

He needed more cards at hand, more as 'Taka' of Kiri, not as Red Blade.

Without a word, Akashi viewed his hand, one that was quite unsightly due to it being hard-skinned from the countless hardships he's gone through.

'For now, I will have to focus on getting us through this forest, but...'

The idea of widening his arsenal of skills surely was something to think about. 

...

After a short rest, the group resumed their dash through the forest. 

Their goal was to reach the neutral ground, Yugakure, of the land of hot water. 

Such a feat was possible thanks to the quick movement of the daimyo of the land of hot water, who immediately contacted the daimyos of the lands of fire and lightning following the start of the war. In return for not interrupting them and allowing them to cross the borders freely, the daimyo was promised in return the safety of Yugakure and those within the walls. The ninjas of Yugakure, too, weren't allowed to leave the boundaries of the village, and as such, were serving as the guards of the village.

That meant that the security was high. Missing ninjas didn't bother to visit a village like this; the risk was simply too high. Furthermore, the small number of ninjas from Konohagakure and Kumogakure regularly visited the village to, believe it or not, trade with Yugakure. 

After all, war was very costly, and the resources of the two hidden villages were decreasing as time went by. Yugakure, which already served as a trade hub for a long time, was the secondary site after their own villages, where they restocked their tools.

Ironically, the people of Yugakure therefore became wealthy. Even in the midst of the war, many of them dropped their guards. The ninjas too, recently, seem to have gotten lax... based on an intel that Akashi and the others managed to receive in the land of iron.

"Listen."

Based on the information, the group devised a plan.

"We need to go through the land of hot water to reach the land of whirlpools. It is impossible to bypass their surveillance in doing so, but we have a chance at creating a gap."

Akashi recalled said plan as the group continued their travel. The forest was silent, but the more silent it was, the more careful they had to be.

"Let's separate the group into two."

It wasn't long before they finally managed to find an exit from this forest. Passing through it, they were met with the sight of mountains on the left and right. In the middle, there were pools of bubbling-hot water between the rocks. Beyond, the castle-like walls were present. 

At the entrance of the village, a long line was found. Every person, before they got to enter the village, seemed to be getting checked by the ninjas thoroughly.

Mei nodded at Zabuza and Ao before taking out a forehead protector and wearing it.

"Time is a factor here."

She said sternly.

"We will see you in the land of whirlpools."

Zabuza and Ao nodded silently before leaving with Gai. Akashi watched as they went around the village without trying to be seen. Usually, such would be nigh impossible, however,

"Halt!"

if there were Akashi and Mei who walked in the open toward the village, the guarding ninjas of Yugakure would lock their attention on them.

"Ninjas of Kiri... state your business!"

As Mei faced the numerous ninjas of Yugakure, Akashi silently eyed Zabuza and Ao who were managing their way through. 

"..."

Eventually, they were brought into the village. Sending eyes of suspicion that had subtle killing intents hidden within, the ninjas of Yugakure ensured that Akashi and Mei had no chance of wreaking havoc should they decide to do so.

Within the castle-like walls of Yugakure, there were houses, buildings, and the community of people who lived their daily lives. In the middle of the scenery was a large building. Such building, so luxurious when compared to the other buildings nearby, was clearly the residence of the daimyo.

Surrounded by the ninjas of Yugakure with no escape, Akashi and Mei were brought into the building. Then led up the stairs.

'How bold.'

Akashi had to resist the urge to chuckle. He knew far well that they were being led to the daimyo. It was probably because of Mei's presence, who introduced herself as the heiress of the Terumi clan of Kiri. Her title would've been of no help to ninjas, but to the prestigious ones like daimyos, it was a different story.

One ninja went through the doors and then came out shortly after. The door was then opened, and the ninjas had Akashi and Mei enter the room—the top-most room in the building. 

"Greetings, Terumi Mei."

It was the second time Akashi saw a daimyo. 

Surrounded by numerous ninjas and bodyguards, the daimyo in front of them seemed confident that Akashi and Mei couldn't do any harm to him.

"For what reason have you visited this lowly land of mine?"

Seeing that the political mind game began, Akashi tuned off from the conversation, letting Mei handle such. Instead, he focused on the surrounding ninjas, trying to identify and analyze the situation and prepare for a potential happening.

His lone eye swept through the scene. Such an eye read the eyes of many, before stopping in front of one particular person.

Grey hair, purple eyes. At least 30 years old in terms of age. This shinobi, unlike others in the scene, held no reluctance in his hollow eyes. 

Jonin at the very least, Akashi deduced. Based on how lax the other Yugakure's ninjas were at the scene, he assumed that should a fight break, this man was the biggest threat to their safety.

"Give them a room!"

At last, the conversation between the daimyo and Mei ended. The daimyo ordered, and Mei bowed along with Akashi in thanks. 

The shinobi with grey hair and purple eyes made a signal. All the ninjas then simultaneously disappeared from the scene, resuming their normal duty.

Akashi and Mei were brought down to a lower floor of the building that was full of rooms meant to be used for the guests. 

"You can stay here."

A servant spoke respectfully. As the door was opened, Akashi and Mei saw a luxurious room larger than any that they had used in the past. 

"Thank you."

Mei nodded and the servant left. The door was closed and the silence filled the room. 

In this state, Mei sighed in exhaustion before sitting down on one of the two beds laid out. 

"As you heard, we were asked to stay here for 3 days to cross-check our story with Kiri."

"...3 days?"

Akashi narrowed his eye.

3 days was far too short, even for ninjas, to travel all the way to Kirigakure and return. 

It meant that Yugakure clearly had an alternate objective.

They couldn't ignore the possibility of Akashi and Mei having collided with Yukigakure's daimyo, but Akashi assumed that such a possibility was low because the information tended to flow slowly during wartime.

Nevertheless, he couldn't speak about it. The place where they currently dwelt was the daimyo's building. The surveillance was tight, and Akashi knew that the ninjas were eavesdropping on their conversation.

For 3 days, the daimyo expected them to remain in the room he'd given them. However, Akashi's planned meeting with Jiraiya was tonight. It meant that he had to secretly escape under the heavy surveillance to meet the man and return just as secretly.

It was something for him to think about—

"Fool, ya fool!"

—?

A noise interrupted Akashi's thought. Turning, he continued to hear the ongoing noise just outside.

"P-Please remain calm, B-sama! Lord daimyo told you that he will call once your demand is ready—"

"I ain't got no time for this shit! Ma brotha's fighting a war and y'all making me sit here like-a co-war-d—! Lock me in a jar, piss me off and you fear, quit making me watch my people die from a-far!"

"Please..."

"Is something the matter?"

A new voice entered the conversation. Though Akashi couldn't see what was happening beyond the closed doors, his instinct told him.

It was that guy, the shinobi with grey hair and purple eyes.