Its the first chapter of the month! Read and enjoy! Its mostly just transition stuff with one significant event. Read and Enjoy! I'm practicing characterization more and I'd like to heat what y'all think! Also, the paragraph length...is it ok? I'd like to hear your opinions. ^_^
It was a cold, quiet and windy night. The moon was absent so the sky was a mere black, star spangled blanket with some feeble clouds floating across it like light streaks of a paintbrush. The air was silent save for the occasional yawning of the trees when swayed by the wind and the distant cries and howls of the forest denizens. The team had been traversing the woodlands of the Fire Country for about two hours, each dressed in the normal shinobi attire of blue long sleeved shirts wrapped in Chunnin flak jackets and blue pants along with sandals. Backpacks were also strapped to their backs and the entire ensemble wrapped in thick, white, cotton travel cloaks with raised collar and a hood. Aoran was a mere fifteen minutes away now. The formation by which they were structured placed Sato in front, followed by Itachi and Hoji and Himura who were leaping side by side with Itachi at the center, then the team’s leader Nara Shiko, while Tenzo brought up the rear.
Hoji glanced at Nara Shiko, the one appointed to lead their team. There was a dull, melancholic air about him as he leaped on languorously, his eyes droopy and sunken like a tired, old man. His lazy and thin appearance made it hard to believe that the twenty five year old was a great legend in the ANBU, one who had earned the soubriquet The Black Scorpion.
Though the Hokage was the official head of the Black Ops, Nara Shiko was the one who ran the organization. He was the only sedentary shinobi in Konoha besides the Third and his Council, spending most of his time on active duty behind a chair at their headquarters, coordinating all ANBU missions. It was said that he had only been sent on missions about twenty times in the last two years and every single one was an S-class assignment of immense gravity. Each of those missions ended in success. So the fact that he was their captain gave Hoji a certain amount of confidence in their chances of success.
However, the team medic was still distraught. It showed in the slight pallor of his cheeks and the worried expression on his face. He turned to Itachi, who looked completely unruffled, his eyes facing forward with their trademark indifference as dark hair billowed behind him. “So, how strong do you think Akakuma is?” asked Hoji with a barely noticeable tremor in his voice.
“I don’t know.” Itachi replied listlessly.
“But it must be pretty strong. It killed all those Chunnin and even Danzo’s ANBU.”
“I imagine we’ll have better luck than them.” returned Itachi.
Hoji smiled. “Someone’s an optimist.”
“Whatever happens, I know I can’t die here. I have important things to do.” The Uchiha stated firmly.
“Like marry Mitsuki-chan?” The medic’s eyes gleamed mischievously and a wide grin spread across his face. The light-hearted talk seemed to alleviate his fears.
Itachi frowned. “Don’t be silly. I mean—”
But he was interrupted by a deep, loud roar which echoed from within the forest. The trees seemed to shudder and tremble in fear at the menacing howl. Tenzo hands closed in a seal, Hoji gasped in shock, Itachi activated his Sharingan, Himura armed himself with several kunai, Nara Shiko merely quirked a startled eyebrow and languidly raised a right hand to signal a stop while Sato was already at work, scanning the forest with his Byakugan for the source of that ominous, bloodcurdling cry. There was a ruffling of cloaks and a staccato of soft, low thuds as the team halted amidst the tree branches and leaves, and then silence.
“Well?” drawled Shiko after a few moments.
“I don’t see anything.” replied Hyuuga, still glancing about keenly, veins throbbing around his eyes.
“Then let’s move on.” ordered the team leader.
The ANBU team plodded on in silence. Hoji’s eyes were wide and projecting with cold fear as he bounded onwards. If he was nervous before, now he was completely terrified. The medic hoped none of his companions would notice his apparent cowardice, and his anxiety about this weighed on his worries about Akakuma that the young Senju’s heart was pounding in his chest and his face was white with dread.
What he did not know was that the terrible cry which had risen from the darkness also struck a chord in the hearts of his teammates, such that Sato kept glancing about apprehensively with veins throbbing on his face, the countenance of their team leader was changed from lazy and apathetic to alert and grave, Himura’s right hand remained hovering loosely over the shuriken holster strapped to his thigh, Tenzo had already begun to knead chakra in order to cast a technique at the merest provocation and Itachi’s Sharingan remained glaring beneath furrowed brows.
It was not long after the unsettling incident that they arrived at the entrance of Aoran. The name of the town was written in Kanji on a large, rusted and bent sign which stood at the side of a broad avenue that served at the primary means of ingress. Their entrance was impeded however ,by a large gate which was locked. The team simply leaped over the obstruction and began to stroll placidly into the village.
There was a small structure which stood near the large gate. It was little guard post with old, lichen mottled concrete walls, and small windows. Its old, plain wooden door swung open and a tall, portly fellow appearing to be in his fifties, with grizzled mangy hair and whiskers, alighted from inside with his tubby frame wrapped in a large tattered trench coat, a flashlight in one hand and a large wooden spear in the other, squinting his tiny eyes warily at the cloaked strangers who were passing by his little abode into Aoran.
“State your business here.” he grunted, dragging himself towards the ANBU team.
Shiko walked up to the fellow and lifted his hand to his headband. The light from the torch in the man’s hand gleamed on the metal plating bearing the symbol of Konoha and his weathered face was overcome with a look of understanding. He smiled warmly, an expression that did something to improve his visage. “Ah, Konoha sent help! Thank goodness! Sorry, ‘bout the inconvenience. I’m security as far as this town goes. Name’s Kato.” and, plunging the sharp end of his spear into the ground with considerable force, he extended a fat, grimy hand towards Shiko.
The Nara wrinkled his nose at the black finger nails and the faded stains on the outstretched hand but nevertheless took it out of politeness. “I’m Shiko. These are my teammates; Himura, Itachi, Hoji, Sato and Tenzo.” he said hastily, indicating to each of his companions as he called out their names.
“Pleasure to make your acquaintance.” the man said, still flashing yellowish teeth in a grotesque smile. He ran his tiny little eyes through the faces of the team. “I’m glad Konoha sent six of ya this time.”
“We’ll be needing accommodations.” said Shiko.
“Of course, of course. Please follow me.”
Kato took up his long spear once more and began to lead them into the village with his flashlight acting as a beacon to guide the way. It was a very small settlement they found themselves in. The whole village, like Konoha ,was surrounded by a large wall beyond which was simply forest. The buildings were smaller than those in their home village and very much more clustered and older looking. The main avenue branched out in the craggy and narrow streets which led to other parts of the village. Throughout the town, there was not a single trace of light gleaming from any window and no one else on the streets save for the company of ninja and Kato. It looked positively deserted as a cold breeze swept up the dust on its streets and the cloaks of the ANBU team billowed.
“Ever since this monster incident started, there’s been a curfew around seven o’clock. Nobody dares step out of their houses past that—unless they got a death wish.” explained Kato in his cracked and raspy voice. He was addressing Shiko who was walking by his side, examining the town with keen, gray eyes. The rest of the ANBU team followed quietly behind the two. “I left Aoran as a boy and trained as a shinobi in Amegakure; even reached Chunnin rank. Had to leave when I got a nasty injury during the Second Ninja World War. Anyways, cuz of my limited training and skill, I was appointed town guard,” he chuckled, “like I could do anything to this—this beast…I mean it killed a team of four Konoha chunnins! Nearly ate their bodies too—well, here we are.”
Their guide took them through two different streets before they came upon a three-storey building with mullioned windows, enclosed in a quaint garden, with a small portico leading up the entrance. There was a wooden sign which read ‘Odara Inn’ near the entrance gates . Like the rest of the town, it looked uninhabited and was eerily quiet. It wasn’t until Kato pounded relentlessly on its low, padlocked iron gates for a full minute and announced his own name loudly and annoyingly, that the front door opened and someone came to meet them.
It was a woman holding a small lamp in her right hand, which was visibly trembling. She was young, slender, pale-skinned, possibly in her late twenties, with a wide eyed expression of terror and curiosity on her face—which was rounded, pretty cheekbones set between long brown bangs. She looked cautiously about her, her small button nose darting every which way like a bird’s beak, as she walked along the narrow path leading to the gate; it was like she was afraid that some ghoul would jump out at her from the garden on the grounds. A few words passed between her and Kato and he informed her that the silent, cloaked figures were Konoha ninja. At this she beamed with a bright smile. There was a jingling of keys, a creak of iron and they were all beckoned into the inn.
“Finally! There is hope!” she cried exultantly as they followed her up the portico into the lodgings, basking in the pleasant scents pouring from the flowers of the garden. “I have the best rooms ready for you. I didn’t expect so many though. I am Mikasa Odara. The inn belongs to my family and was built by my grandfather. He was a—”
“No need to bother them with your chattering, Mikasa.” Kato groaned as he followed the party of ninja. She shot a furious glare at the old man who simply shrugged his shoulders and scratched his beard.
At once she led them all through a small quaint lobby with old furniture and a low, polished front desk with fluorescent lights on the ceiling. They ascended a dark, narrow flight of stairs. On reaching the landing, they were taken through a lit and tight corridor, with doors leading to bedrooms on either side, before arriving at a red door bearing RM 37 on plaque. She extracted a bunch of keys and unlocked the room.
“I hope you like it.” she said in a singsong voice, her eyes gleaming obsequiously as she looked on all six of them. It made them quite uneasy. She then turned on the lights.
Shiko smiled nervously , hurried into the room and began to inspect it. The floor was tiled and uncarpeted and the walls were painted green. Two bed of moderate size overlain white sheets with flowery designed duvets , each flanked on both sides by dressers bearing lamps. Another door led to the bathroom. There were two windows covered by blinds and long, muslin curtains. Shiko sauntered towards one of them, swung it open and was caressed by the cool night breeze. It had a view to the outside garden of the inn. He noticed that there was a small fish pond surrounded by flowers on the grounds. It was barely visible in the darkness of night but there was a tiny shimmer of the water as a result of the light from the room dappling its surface. Upon examining and finding the bathroom acceptable, he gave a nod of approval and flashed a small smile to Mikasa who flushed ecstatically.
They were led to two similar rooms—Rooms 34 and 30—on the same floor by Mikasa and finding them satisfactory, it decided that Shiko and Tenzo would share Room 37, Hoji and Sato would share Room 34 while Itachi and Himura would share Room 30. Mikasa informed them that she would be bringing dinner in a moment and the accommodations would cost them absolutely nothing. Kato said his goodbyes and skulked back to his guard post at the entrance of the village. Tenzo gave him some Mokuton seeds with instructions to channel his chakra into them were he to notice anything suspicious. Dinner was served, eaten in silence and then the Konoha ninja retired for the day.
As Itachi laid on his own bed next to Himura’s, the sound of crickets pouring in from the open windows along with a chilly wind, he could not help but ponder on that deathly howl that thundered in the forest during their journey. Was that Akakuma? If it was, why wasn’t Sato able to find it with his Byakugan? Was the beast somehow able to make itself invisible? He had heard of a Earth technique which could turn the user invisible. But Akakuma had lost his mind, according to the Hokage. It shouldn’t have the necessary intelligence to weave seals and cast techniques. Perhaps its mind wasn’t that far gone? But if he did retain intelligence, it was a very stupid and un-shinobi like thing to do; howling like some base animal. Maybe it wasn’t a technique. Perhaps some physical modification to its body that allowed it to turn invisible… These thoughts raced through the young Uchiha’s mind like lightning and kept him wide awake.
After about thirty minutes, he seemed to tire of his fruitless ponderings and sighed, turned on one side, pulled up his blanket and shut his eyes firmly. He decided that whatever Akakuma was, or could do, they would beat it anyhow. After all, his cardinal rule of battle was ‘Every technique has a weakness.’ He found his thoughts drifting towards his parents, the Uchiha clan, Shisui, Mitsuki and finally centering on Sasuke before he fell asleep.
To Be Continued.
It was a cold, quiet and windy night. The moon was absent so the sky was a mere black, star spangled blanket with some feeble clouds floating across it like light streaks of a paintbrush. The air was silent save for the occasional yawning of the trees when swayed by the wind and the distant cries and howls of the forest denizens. The team had been traversing the woodlands of the Fire Country for about two hours, each dressed in the normal shinobi attire of blue long sleeved shirts wrapped in Chunnin flak jackets and blue pants along with sandals. Backpacks were also strapped to their backs and the entire ensemble wrapped in thick, white, cotton travel cloaks with raised collar and a hood. Aoran was a mere fifteen minutes away now. The formation by which they were structured placed Sato in front, followed by Itachi and Hoji and Himura who were leaping side by side with Itachi at the center, then the team’s leader Nara Shiko, while Tenzo brought up the rear.
Hoji glanced at Nara Shiko, the one appointed to lead their team. There was a dull, melancholic air about him as he leaped on languorously, his eyes droopy and sunken like a tired, old man. His lazy and thin appearance made it hard to believe that the twenty five year old was a great legend in the ANBU, one who had earned the soubriquet The Black Scorpion.
Though the Hokage was the official head of the Black Ops, Nara Shiko was the one who ran the organization. He was the only sedentary shinobi in Konoha besides the Third and his Council, spending most of his time on active duty behind a chair at their headquarters, coordinating all ANBU missions. It was said that he had only been sent on missions about twenty times in the last two years and every single one was an S-class assignment of immense gravity. Each of those missions ended in success. So the fact that he was their captain gave Hoji a certain amount of confidence in their chances of success.
However, the team medic was still distraught. It showed in the slight pallor of his cheeks and the worried expression on his face. He turned to Itachi, who looked completely unruffled, his eyes facing forward with their trademark indifference as dark hair billowed behind him. “So, how strong do you think Akakuma is?” asked Hoji with a barely noticeable tremor in his voice.
“I don’t know.” Itachi replied listlessly.
“But it must be pretty strong. It killed all those Chunnin and even Danzo’s ANBU.”
“I imagine we’ll have better luck than them.” returned Itachi.
Hoji smiled. “Someone’s an optimist.”
“Whatever happens, I know I can’t die here. I have important things to do.” The Uchiha stated firmly.
“Like marry Mitsuki-chan?” The medic’s eyes gleamed mischievously and a wide grin spread across his face. The light-hearted talk seemed to alleviate his fears.
Itachi frowned. “Don’t be silly. I mean—”
But he was interrupted by a deep, loud roar which echoed from within the forest. The trees seemed to shudder and tremble in fear at the menacing howl. Tenzo hands closed in a seal, Hoji gasped in shock, Itachi activated his Sharingan, Himura armed himself with several kunai, Nara Shiko merely quirked a startled eyebrow and languidly raised a right hand to signal a stop while Sato was already at work, scanning the forest with his Byakugan for the source of that ominous, bloodcurdling cry. There was a ruffling of cloaks and a staccato of soft, low thuds as the team halted amidst the tree branches and leaves, and then silence.
“Well?” drawled Shiko after a few moments.
“I don’t see anything.” replied Hyuuga, still glancing about keenly, veins throbbing around his eyes.
“Then let’s move on.” ordered the team leader.
The ANBU team plodded on in silence. Hoji’s eyes were wide and projecting with cold fear as he bounded onwards. If he was nervous before, now he was completely terrified. The medic hoped none of his companions would notice his apparent cowardice, and his anxiety about this weighed on his worries about Akakuma that the young Senju’s heart was pounding in his chest and his face was white with dread.
What he did not know was that the terrible cry which had risen from the darkness also struck a chord in the hearts of his teammates, such that Sato kept glancing about apprehensively with veins throbbing on his face, the countenance of their team leader was changed from lazy and apathetic to alert and grave, Himura’s right hand remained hovering loosely over the shuriken holster strapped to his thigh, Tenzo had already begun to knead chakra in order to cast a technique at the merest provocation and Itachi’s Sharingan remained glaring beneath furrowed brows.
It was not long after the unsettling incident that they arrived at the entrance of Aoran. The name of the town was written in Kanji on a large, rusted and bent sign which stood at the side of a broad avenue that served at the primary means of ingress. Their entrance was impeded however ,by a large gate which was locked. The team simply leaped over the obstruction and began to stroll placidly into the village.
There was a small structure which stood near the large gate. It was little guard post with old, lichen mottled concrete walls, and small windows. Its old, plain wooden door swung open and a tall, portly fellow appearing to be in his fifties, with grizzled mangy hair and whiskers, alighted from inside with his tubby frame wrapped in a large tattered trench coat, a flashlight in one hand and a large wooden spear in the other, squinting his tiny eyes warily at the cloaked strangers who were passing by his little abode into Aoran.
“State your business here.” he grunted, dragging himself towards the ANBU team.
Shiko walked up to the fellow and lifted his hand to his headband. The light from the torch in the man’s hand gleamed on the metal plating bearing the symbol of Konoha and his weathered face was overcome with a look of understanding. He smiled warmly, an expression that did something to improve his visage. “Ah, Konoha sent help! Thank goodness! Sorry, ‘bout the inconvenience. I’m security as far as this town goes. Name’s Kato.” and, plunging the sharp end of his spear into the ground with considerable force, he extended a fat, grimy hand towards Shiko.
The Nara wrinkled his nose at the black finger nails and the faded stains on the outstretched hand but nevertheless took it out of politeness. “I’m Shiko. These are my teammates; Himura, Itachi, Hoji, Sato and Tenzo.” he said hastily, indicating to each of his companions as he called out their names.
“Pleasure to make your acquaintance.” the man said, still flashing yellowish teeth in a grotesque smile. He ran his tiny little eyes through the faces of the team. “I’m glad Konoha sent six of ya this time.”
“We’ll be needing accommodations.” said Shiko.
“Of course, of course. Please follow me.”
Kato took up his long spear once more and began to lead them into the village with his flashlight acting as a beacon to guide the way. It was a very small settlement they found themselves in. The whole village, like Konoha ,was surrounded by a large wall beyond which was simply forest. The buildings were smaller than those in their home village and very much more clustered and older looking. The main avenue branched out in the craggy and narrow streets which led to other parts of the village. Throughout the town, there was not a single trace of light gleaming from any window and no one else on the streets save for the company of ninja and Kato. It looked positively deserted as a cold breeze swept up the dust on its streets and the cloaks of the ANBU team billowed.
“Ever since this monster incident started, there’s been a curfew around seven o’clock. Nobody dares step out of their houses past that—unless they got a death wish.” explained Kato in his cracked and raspy voice. He was addressing Shiko who was walking by his side, examining the town with keen, gray eyes. The rest of the ANBU team followed quietly behind the two. “I left Aoran as a boy and trained as a shinobi in Amegakure; even reached Chunnin rank. Had to leave when I got a nasty injury during the Second Ninja World War. Anyways, cuz of my limited training and skill, I was appointed town guard,” he chuckled, “like I could do anything to this—this beast…I mean it killed a team of four Konoha chunnins! Nearly ate their bodies too—well, here we are.”
Their guide took them through two different streets before they came upon a three-storey building with mullioned windows, enclosed in a quaint garden, with a small portico leading up the entrance. There was a wooden sign which read ‘Odara Inn’ near the entrance gates . Like the rest of the town, it looked uninhabited and was eerily quiet. It wasn’t until Kato pounded relentlessly on its low, padlocked iron gates for a full minute and announced his own name loudly and annoyingly, that the front door opened and someone came to meet them.
It was a woman holding a small lamp in her right hand, which was visibly trembling. She was young, slender, pale-skinned, possibly in her late twenties, with a wide eyed expression of terror and curiosity on her face—which was rounded, pretty cheekbones set between long brown bangs. She looked cautiously about her, her small button nose darting every which way like a bird’s beak, as she walked along the narrow path leading to the gate; it was like she was afraid that some ghoul would jump out at her from the garden on the grounds. A few words passed between her and Kato and he informed her that the silent, cloaked figures were Konoha ninja. At this she beamed with a bright smile. There was a jingling of keys, a creak of iron and they were all beckoned into the inn.
“Finally! There is hope!” she cried exultantly as they followed her up the portico into the lodgings, basking in the pleasant scents pouring from the flowers of the garden. “I have the best rooms ready for you. I didn’t expect so many though. I am Mikasa Odara. The inn belongs to my family and was built by my grandfather. He was a—”
“No need to bother them with your chattering, Mikasa.” Kato groaned as he followed the party of ninja. She shot a furious glare at the old man who simply shrugged his shoulders and scratched his beard.
At once she led them all through a small quaint lobby with old furniture and a low, polished front desk with fluorescent lights on the ceiling. They ascended a dark, narrow flight of stairs. On reaching the landing, they were taken through a lit and tight corridor, with doors leading to bedrooms on either side, before arriving at a red door bearing RM 37 on plaque. She extracted a bunch of keys and unlocked the room.
“I hope you like it.” she said in a singsong voice, her eyes gleaming obsequiously as she looked on all six of them. It made them quite uneasy. She then turned on the lights.
Shiko smiled nervously , hurried into the room and began to inspect it. The floor was tiled and uncarpeted and the walls were painted green. Two bed of moderate size overlain white sheets with flowery designed duvets , each flanked on both sides by dressers bearing lamps. Another door led to the bathroom. There were two windows covered by blinds and long, muslin curtains. Shiko sauntered towards one of them, swung it open and was caressed by the cool night breeze. It had a view to the outside garden of the inn. He noticed that there was a small fish pond surrounded by flowers on the grounds. It was barely visible in the darkness of night but there was a tiny shimmer of the water as a result of the light from the room dappling its surface. Upon examining and finding the bathroom acceptable, he gave a nod of approval and flashed a small smile to Mikasa who flushed ecstatically.
They were led to two similar rooms—Rooms 34 and 30—on the same floor by Mikasa and finding them satisfactory, it decided that Shiko and Tenzo would share Room 37, Hoji and Sato would share Room 34 while Itachi and Himura would share Room 30. Mikasa informed them that she would be bringing dinner in a moment and the accommodations would cost them absolutely nothing. Kato said his goodbyes and skulked back to his guard post at the entrance of the village. Tenzo gave him some Mokuton seeds with instructions to channel his chakra into them were he to notice anything suspicious. Dinner was served, eaten in silence and then the Konoha ninja retired for the day.
As Itachi laid on his own bed next to Himura’s, the sound of crickets pouring in from the open windows along with a chilly wind, he could not help but ponder on that deathly howl that thundered in the forest during their journey. Was that Akakuma? If it was, why wasn’t Sato able to find it with his Byakugan? Was the beast somehow able to make itself invisible? He had heard of a Earth technique which could turn the user invisible. But Akakuma had lost his mind, according to the Hokage. It shouldn’t have the necessary intelligence to weave seals and cast techniques. Perhaps its mind wasn’t that far gone? But if he did retain intelligence, it was a very stupid and un-shinobi like thing to do; howling like some base animal. Maybe it wasn’t a technique. Perhaps some physical modification to its body that allowed it to turn invisible… These thoughts raced through the young Uchiha’s mind like lightning and kept him wide awake.
After about thirty minutes, he seemed to tire of his fruitless ponderings and sighed, turned on one side, pulled up his blanket and shut his eyes firmly. He decided that whatever Akakuma was, or could do, they would beat it anyhow. After all, his cardinal rule of battle was ‘Every technique has a weakness.’ He found his thoughts drifting towards his parents, the Uchiha clan, Shisui, Mitsuki and finally centering on Sasuke before he fell asleep.
To Be Continued.
You must be registered for see links
/
You must be registered for see links
Last edited:
You also captured an eerie atmosphere concerning that old Airon village and of course, the Akakuma. Very Yamato-like with the seeds ^^ I liked Itachi’s various thoughts towards the end of the chapter and Sasuke’s name was mentioned-YES!!!!! XD As usual you closed this chapter up well. Needless to say, the writing was pretty flawless and I definitely enjoyed this one 
Maybe I should pm my stuff to you for corrections before I release....it could be a wonderful patnership ^_^ Thanks again!
