Chapter 14: Hell Hath no Fury(4)

The following week had gone off without a hitch. Nezumi and Karasu had been going from base to base, razing them all to the ground like it was a holy crusade. They were alone, the rest of the Ro-Han contingent staying with the Resistance, helping to prepare for the raid that was to come.

It never ceased to amaze Nezumi how efficient Karasu was when in battle. The Uchiha was only thirteen and he was the closest to Nezumi out of the four that were with him in strength. The blond realized that he couldn't really say anything when it came to someone's age, him being ten and all, but he was a special case. He was born with a power no one before him possessed.

Yes, there were other Sennin, but none of them were born so closely intertwined with natural energy like he was. So, for Karasu to show such prowess, with only the Sharingan to aid him, was no small feat.

Nezumi could feel his closest friend's heart; the boy was a pacifist – only taking lives so that he could protect his village. In a way, they were alike. Nezumi only enjoyed being a monster to protect his village. He didn't like to cause the innocent suffering. He was in a country torn by war to stop that very thing right now. He didn't like to hurt the weak or helpless either. He only enjoyed killing when the men and women he killed deserved it. People like Yagura, whom he was planning on adding to his already large and still growing body count.

Where they differed though, was that Karasu never enjoyed killing – ever. He only did so as a means to an end. He knew the act of killing was an important factor in a shinobi's life, and he dealt with it instead of complaining. There were only a handful of shinobi that the Hokage could trust completely to do anything he ordered unconditionally, and Karasu was one of them.

So they traversed the islands that made up Mizu no Kuni, bringing down to the ground any Kiri bases they could find. With Nezumi's extremely large sensory field, it was uncomplicated. Actually taking out the bases was like child's play. Without Karasu, Nezumi could have brought them down almost effortlessly. With him, the blond almost felt depressed at the ease they were able to finish their task.

Mei was telling the truth when she described the Mizukage's plan for overwhelming the Resistance.

Team Ro had been told that much of Yagura's armies were made up of very, very green genin. The man with questionable sanity had been promoting unready aspiring shinobi, the kind of people no sane Kage would ever let into their ranks, to genin so that he could fill the empty spots the Resistance made in his forces. He was giving weapons to men and women, boys and girls, who had no business being a shinobi in the first place. They couldn't even use them properly for god's sake. It was sad, and it angered Nezumi to no end.

The kind of person it took to send his people in the slaughterhouse like cattle was the kind of person that the young ANBU agent liked, loved, to kill. His Hokage knew of this as well, and the wrath that was the God of Shinobi was already in Mizu no Kuni, in the form of one nezumi-masked ANBU operative.

The man never should have touched a Hi no Kuni citizen. He would die for that now. Konoha would have her vengeance.

"Nezumi." Karasu suddenly spoke. "This will be our last target before we have to return." He finished, his voice only audible to the blond. Even though they were friends, the two hardly ever shared words. It was like a silent friendship, each knowing what the other thought of them. In Nezumi's case, he actually did know what the Uchiha felt.

"Hn." Nezumi replied. He already knew as much. The week had been a slow one and the blond couldn't wait to return to the Resistance. Mei had told him that when he returned, he was welcomed to sleep in her bed with her again. She had enjoyed his company, too. Nezumi couldn't wait.

They could see their target in the distance. Karasu activated his Sharingan. The walls were a light shade of grey. The exterior was reinforced with metals, three different kinds. The guard's tower had two men inside it. Both were of short stature, no older than twenty if their complexion was anything to go by. Fifteen traps set, they were getting nervous. Good. Inside the fortress, the walls were made up of some kind of hardened clay and wood. Flammable. The ground was nothing but earth. Good. The cobblestone they saw in the markets would have been inconvenient. Conclusion; it's going to be just as easy as the other eighty. All of this happened in the time span of three seconds. Itachi had mastery over the Sharingan most adult Uchiha couldn't hope to accomplish.

Time to work.

Karasu could see Nezumi take off his mask in his peripherals. The vicious smirk on his face told him all he needed to know. Naruto was awake. The monster was off its leash.

Time to play.

"You two were able to take out eighty one bases in a week?!" Ao sputtered unintelligently. He was stricken with shock and awe. That many bases would have taken the Resistance months to complete. These Konoha ANBU were terrifyingly effective.

"Correct, Ao-san." Karasu replied. "Eighty one Kiri controlled outposts are no more." He clarified, the man's facial expression slightly amusing him.

Neko gave a short nod. "Good. Now that we're so close to being ready to hit the factory in Shio, all of this should be finished up within the next week." It couldn't happen too soon either. She really missed her boyfriend.

"Yes." Mei sighed contently. "And Mizu no Kuni will know war no more." The huge, heartwarming smile on the woman's face even made Nezumi smile. He was glad that he could help these people out in their time of suffering; they deserved it. When the blond thought about it, he realized how absurd it all was. A monster was the hero, setting a land free and saving its people. Ah well, nothing about him was normal, might as well live in irony.

"Mei-sama." A woman Nezumi didn't recognize appeared from the entrance of the hideout. "A man is here claiming to be Jiraiya of the Sannin." The woman reported. "He's here to speak with the Konoha ANBU." She finished, giving Mei a deep bow before vanishing again.

Mei raised an eyebrow. "Did Konoha send a Sannin to help me as well?" She asked Neko with an incredulous expression.

Nezumi thought he felt his fellow sage. "It would seem so." The blond replied for his captain, already making his way to the entrance. He hadn't seen his sensei in a long time now.

"Are you sure it's him?" Neko asked, also confused as to why the Hokage would send someone as renowned as the legendary Toad Sage to a place such as this. The man may be the most perverted human being alive, but he was still shown the highest form of respect, even from women – at times. He was a hero, an extremely powerful and, at times, wise man who helped in the last two Great Shinobi World Wars.

"It's him." Nezumi said excitedly. "I'd recognize my old Ero-sennin anywhere!" Mei giggled. This was the first time she'd seen Nezumi act, even if only a little, childish. It was a welcome sight; it reminded her that he was still human, capable of things besides death and destruction.

The blond disappeared into the small tunnel that led to the hut above, and when he returned, sure enough, the aforementioned Sannin was with him.

Neko, Karasu, and Saru all immediately bowed their heads. "Lord Jiraiya." Neko greeted. She was in the presence of a living legend.

The man gave them a nod, allowing them to rise. "So." The Sannin said, taking a moment to look around the underground base. "What're you up to now, kid?"

"Ah, you know, just a little mission Jiji wants done. What about you?" Everyone present sweatdropped. He was speaking so casually about something so important to someone so legendary like it was the most natural thing in the world, not to mention his completely disrespectful way of addressing the leader of Konoha. "You better not be here for your research Ero-sennin! In case you haven't noticed, we're kind of busy with a war right now." He added, narrowing his eyes at the older man underneath his mask.

Jiraiya waved his hand in a dismissive manner. "Nothing like that, kid." He replied, smiling at his godson. "I just thought I'd come and see how you were doing. I haven't seen you in a while you know." He finished, using his large hand to mess up the boy's hair.

Nezumi swatted the hand that was attacking his already messy hair away, mumbling something about old perverts. "Well, since you're here you can help us on our next assignment." The blond said with a smirk. "You can have a hand in freeing Mizu."

Mei took this as a way to enter the conversation. "That would be wonderful, Jiraiya-sama." That was her first mistake. "With the help of both Nezumi and yourself, the Resistance is sure to win." Because now the pervert saw what a beauty she was.

"Oh-ho!" Jiraiya shouted, steam seeming to rush out of his nose. "And what do we have here?!" His voice was now annoying Nezumi. "Such a beautiful woman as you should be sitting on a throne with a crown on her head, not in a place like this!" He used his hands to gesture to the earth-made base. That was his first mistake.

Nezumi was about to say something about him leaving her alone when the auburn-haired woman seemed to glide towards him. "I made this comfortable base, Jiraiya-san." She said in a sickly sweet voice, causing the Sennin to shiver. "Are you trying to say that I am not proficient with Doton?" Jiraiya gulped.

Nezumi chuckled before he rescued his terrified sensei. "Mei-san, we need him alive so that he can help us when it's time for the raid." Mei sighed, but relented.

"Thanks, kid." One Sennin whispered to another.

Nezumi shook his head. When was his sensei ever going to learn?

"So, the crazy bastard sent their heads to sensei then…" Jiraiya repeated with his voice now serious. When he became like this, like the respectable veteran shinobi that he was, everyone paid attention to him. "That sounds like something sensei would send someone like you to retaliate for."

Naruto – his mask was off and he was able to truly be himself in front of the man who had familial feelings for him – nodded his head in agreement. He knew he was the Sandaime's top operative by now, up there with Inu-taicho and Karasu. Whenever there was an important issue that needed to be handled, with a one hundred percent guarantee of success, Naruto was the person to be sent, especially when it came to missions that involved a lot of destruction and mayhem.

"Yagura tried to play games with Jiji, which was not something he should have done." Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head absentmindedly. "He'll soon know the consequences of his foolish actions." He finished, stretching his back with a resounding pop.

"Death to those who purposely try to harm Konoha or her citizens." Jiraiya finished what his godson was implying.

Naruto nodded, making his way to the door where he paused and looked back at the white-haired man. "Hell hath no fury." He whispered before leaving Jiraiya's personal room.

He was tired, and he couldn't wait so share a bed with the beautiful kunoichi named Terumi Mei again.

The blond's unfinished sentence was left to the breeze inside the base.

Like a woman scorned.

Konoha being the now blood thirsty woman.

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