Chapter 127: Naturalistic Savagery! Pt 1

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Mishiro's POV (Underground Hideout - Land of Water)

Mishiro sighed as she watched her helpers work. Ikam would be sour with her if he knew she let the lessers do the seal work, but Mishiro had always struggled with those who were not Ikam. So instead, she watched with feigned attention as the males plus Leifazu worked. The males mostly moved supplies and lit the dim cave enough for Leifazu to work. The walls of the cave were covered in Fuijutsu and paper tags. It would make for a giant seal in the cave for their next mission. Such a thought reminded her how she had met him. 

Much of her early life were grim days Mishiro had no intention of revisiting. Days full of pain and resentment, headed by tormentors who were supposed to be protectors. In truth, in those days Mishiro had often wished for death. Surely the cessation of life would be preferable to the endless pain that it had been so far. Until one dark grizzly night…

She had been sixteen, so long had been her torment that she had long given up on escape or even death … until he had come… Mishiro could remember watching from the back of the room as he had slaughtered her captors mercilessly. Mishiro had grimly accepted her fate; after years of seemingly endless suffering she had given up on living, but when the blood-soaked, raggedy murderer's eyes had landed on her. She had felt an absurd kinship with the murderous man. Somehow the man matched her disdain for her captors. By the time the two had locked eyes Mishiro had barely felt fear. Ikam had been much different then; he had yet to forsake his original identity, but his mission had been the same. His words had been rough, and yet Mishiro held onto them; she considered it a promise from her love. One she believed in even thirty years after their meeting. 

"Your… you're like me…" Ikam had whispered as he roughly held her face in his hand. "You feel no sorrow or pity for your brethren I slaughtered."

"They-... they were monsters… they… they hurt me… I'm glad they can't anymore…" Mishiro had stuttered out. She wasn't fearful of being killed as well yet she felt overwhelmed by his mere presence. His passionately, yet undeniably lifeless eyes entranced me.

"But they were your kin…" Ikam had whispered. "You should hate me for spilling their… our blood." 

"My family is gone… those that are left are no better than the monster that took the others…" Mishiro had explained.

Ikam grimly nodded. He stared at her openly for a few minutes. "You can join me… make no mistake, I will kill every Uzumaki. I will not tolerate a useful follower, and you will be expected to pursue my dream as your own. That clan must die… but I will protect you if you can stand such." 

Mishiro had not thought it over for very long. Her family had been destroyed, and those who remained had betrayed her. If Ikam kept her safe, their deaths would be a small price… besides, she wanted vengeance for years of pain brought on by her own blood.

"Do you truly intend for my men to do all the work? Do you feel you are above the Kamizuru clan?" An all too familiar voice ranged out. Mishiro made no effort to hide her annoyance from being broken out of her reminiscing. She raised her eyes to the annoying woman who had disturbed her. One Suzumebachi Kamizuru. Leader of the shinobi they hired for this excursion.

Suzumebachi was a short woman—shorter than her—with shoulder-length brown hair, steel eyes, and light makeup. She was unremarkable, though Ikam had spoken of her clan once being held in high regard in Iwagakure. Mishiro eyed her odd purple kimono and her glare and realized she detested the woman—a small fry pretending to be big. Like them…

"Why do you bother me?" Mishiro asked arrogantly. Smiling internally at the annoyed twitch pulsed on Suzumebachi's face. "Are you prepared for me to start?" 

The woman growled at such. "I asked if you're gonna bother helping us! We were hired as muscle, not mere grunts! You promised access to new species to finally allow us to surpass the Aburame! Yet you make us do grunt work and have yet to explain why we're doing so!"

"I told you we should kill them~!" Leifazu sang with "her" newfound womanly "sass." As she would put it. Mishiro was surrounded by idiots.

"We cannot; they may prove useful," Mishiro answered. "Though apparently, we do need to establish a pecking order." Mishiro snapped her fingers and smiled at the startled cry of the woman's two foolish brothers. Leifazu had gotten even stronger in her newest form. The body of a female Uzumaki known for her impressive physical speed and strength. Leifazu now with ease quickly grabbed and held both brothers up by the throat. Mishro smiled wider as Suzumebachi's face lit up with fear as she fumbled for a weapon. In what Mishiro was sure seemed to be instant to the foolish woman, she appeared, her katana aimed for her throat. "You all are NOT muscle; you are a group with a similar goal that we have brought in to ensure things go smoothly. Do NOT mistake that we need you. I'll kill the lot of you long before I allow that idea to be planted in your head. Understood?"

"My point stands…" Sazumebachi said bravely. "We are constructing this seal when we should be traveling to our destination. Explain why."

Mishiro chuckled but sheathed her blade. Leifazu noticed and released the other two as well. Dropping the pair of brothers who coughed for air as they fell. "Fair enough." Mishiro crowed. "This seal is one designed by my Love. One that will transport us all to our destination."

"We are no seal masters, but I have some knowledge. Enough to know; even Fuijutsu masters do not boast of having seals capable of safe instant teleportation. The ones who have attempted such often suffered painful deaths. Why not simply manually travel to where we are going? It would be less risky, and shinobi of our caliber would make it in great time." Suzumebachi reasoned. 

"It's simply not possible~!" Leifazu sang from the roof as she applied various last-minute modifications to the seal matrix. "Besides, our master is one of the few noble Uzumaki. The true masters of Fuijutsu, mere practitioners, do not determine the limits!"

"My detestable companion speaks the truth. My Love does not practice the art of Fuijutsu; he has perfected it. This is to all our benefit, allowing us to reach our destination without the risk of open travel. After all, our little group is considered enemies to plenty. Besides, we are going to another world. It does not exist within the same realm as us and, as such, cannot be reached without the use of powerful Ninjutsu or Fuijutsu." Mishiro explained. "But our destination holds a most worthy reward for all of us."

"What is this all for anyway, little sister?" Kurobachi asked with a glare toward Mishiro. "You failed to inform us of the details. We do recognize you as the leader of the Kamizuru clan…"

"But- why do we need to follow the orders of these fools!" Jibachi roared while grasping his throat. "What could they possibly offer us that Iwa doesn't?"

"Silence the two of you." Suzumebachi started admonishing her family and underlings, but a light giggle stopped her. Mishiro was unable to stop escaping her.

"My my," Mishiro crowed. "A leader with not only a loose grip on their subordinates but one that also fails to fill them in." In truth, Mishiro recognized why Suzumebachi had not informed them of the full details. Such open communication between teams could lead to leaks or betrayal after all. "See, our destination can be considered a gathering hub of various undiscovered summoning clans. Ones that very well may rival the infamous summons of the Sannin. We, the true Uzumaki, wish to control this hub for various purposes. But it won't be as simple as settling wild lands. The specific location we are discussing is full of lethal, powerful, and potentially aggressive summoning clans. Some may wish to approach us, others… Well, they may very well attempt to kill and consume us. As such, we contacted your group with open hands for a mutually beneficial arrangement. Your group helps us carry on, as either extra muscle or simply helping hands and in exchange…"

"We let peons get access to a summoning clan of your choosing. We'll even assure you that you will get full control should they be less than willing. Something I'm sure a disgraced clan like yourself would find more than agreeable." Leifazu chimed in with a toothy grin. 

"Indeed, after your poor performance in the last war, your acclaim and status have fallen… all due to a certain Leaf clan." Mishiro continued with her voice sounding much more genuine than she felt. "But perhaps with a strong summoning clan backing you, you could reclaim your former glory…"

Suzumebachi growled angrily, much to Mishiro's amusement. She knew the young clan leader would not appreciate her leadership being so openly questioned. But better than to start further drama here, it was only harming her status as leader.

The other males of the clan gasped openly, nodding their heads and working with renewed vigor. It seemed the pair were just as hungry for redemption as their petulant sister. Seeing the support of her followers being so flippant, Suzumebachi glared and offered a middle finger to Mishiro before stalking off to observe her underlings' work. Ikam certainly choose good help, should the woman keep raising issues Mishiro would simply encourage the other two to be ambitious…

Mishiro, content with such, subtly signed to Leifazu, asking how much longer it would take. The newly arisen woman signaled back a mere hour. Mishiro nodded as she signed to keep their eyes on the clan; they should not be protected or trusted…