Kapitel 58: Anko's Revenge
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ROOT HEADQUARTERS
Tanuki, Sai, and Yakumo were now kneeling before a very disappointed Danzo Shimura, who is sitting on his 'throne' with a stoic and emotionless face to hide his growing anger for their failure.
After Tanuki briefed him about their failed attempt to retrieve the Uzumaki girl with the rare special chakra, he was obviously not pleased. Especially due to the interference of the Kyuubi Jinchuriki and his team.
Hearing that Tanuki, his most promising ROOT agent, with one of the rarest Kekkei Genkai in the world that he managed to acquire, was hardly a match against the Jinchūriki had obviously made him angry.
The thought of not acquiring the Uzumaki girl for his plans had obviously made his ambitions take a small setback. The girl could've been an excellent weapon and replacement for the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi if the current one is proven to be a threat to him.
For years, he had attempted to kidnap Naruto so he could turn the talented blonde into his most prized weapon. But unfortunately, he was under the protection of several strong ninjas, such as the Copy-Ninja, the Snake Mistress, and the old Hokage himself.
"I'm disappointed, Tanuki. You assured me that you would bring me the Uzumaki girl on her knees. And yet, I don't see her anywhere." Danzo said with a monotone voice.
"We did not take into account the Kyuubi Jinchuriki and his team to interfere. If they hadn't, we would have captured her by now." Tanuki explained.
"I'm not interested in excuses, Agent. I only want results. As a Shinobi, you must always expect the unexpected. You have failed in that, as well." Danzo scolded, as his emotionless voice promised a painful punishment for the three young Agents.
"Forgive me, Danzo-sama. I take full responsibility." Tanuki apologized. Tanuki, along with Fū Yamanaka and Torune Aburame, are probably the only ones in ROOT that have not been suppressed of their remaining emotions, as they are considered Loyalists. They wilfully follow Danzo, whether it is due to their misplaced faith in his ideals or they were taken in at a very young and were impressionable to the old War-hawk's ways of a Shinobi.
Tanuki was valued for his Kekkei Genkai, the Meiton (Shade Style), and his scientific mind. Granted, he is more of a scientist than a ninja, but despite his young age, Tanuki is one of his most aspiring and loyal Agents.
So Danzo decided to forgive his failure, just this once. "No matter. There will be another time to capture the Uzumaki girl. But given that the Kyuubi Jinchuriki is aware of our organization and your identity is troubling. This means that some of our Agents are compromised." Danzo said with narrowed eyes.
"What are your orders, Danzo-sama?" Tanuki asked.
"For now, we shall recall all our forces for the upcoming invasion. Orochimaru has already made his move, and we will soon hear the reports of him attacking the Uchiha in the Exam anytime now." Danzo stated.
"Are we participating in the Invasion as well?" Tanuki asked.
"No. We will not aid either side. Once the village is crushed, and Hiruzen is dead, I will finally claim my rightful place as the Fifth Hokage and rebuild Konoha in my image." Danzo said with a sinister smirk.
"With respect, Danzo-sama, but I doubt Suna and Oto will do much damage to the village. As you say, we are the superior village in the elemental nations." Tanuki couldn't help but be skeptical.
"Correct, you are, Tanuki. But the village will face many damages never-the-less. And Hiruzen will not survive against Orochimaru. I am confident the Snake has taken many steps to ensure his assassination is successful." Danzo said, with the smirk never leaving his face.
"It will be a glorious thing to witness, Danzo-sama," Tanuki said, as he couldn't help but smirk as well.
"Yes, it will. But moving on. Your team is now disbanded...." Danzo then turns to Sai.
"....Sai, you will go to one of our bases in the outskirts of Konoha with Shin to continue your training...." Danzo then turns to Yakumo.
"....Yakumo, your reprogramming will resume with Fū on sub-level 3. Meet him there now." Danzo ordered the two.
"Yes, Danzo-sama." Sai and Yakumo said as they left the room. Danzo then turns his attention to the last Agent.
"As for you, Tanuki. You will go to our hidden facility in Kusagakure to oversee the progression of Project Nue and Weapon RD. I want them finished as soon as possible. I will not accept any more setbacks. Soon, this world and everything in it will belong to me. This is the way." Danzo said with a slight smug.
"This is the way," Tanuki repeated before he left the room. All Danzo could do was smirk with satisfaction. Naruto may have denied him the Uzumaki girl, but he will soon have both of them under his control. He will not let a 14-year-old brat stand in the way of his destiny!
Anko
Anko would be the first to say that meeting Orochimaru was weird. The weirdest, really. From what she's heard, Orochimaru is the scariest motherfucker ever to live, and he's strange and probably conducts illegal experiments under Konoha. Still, no one can convince the Hokage of anything. So, really, upon meeting him, Anko kind of expected to be killed simply for existing.
Only that's the opposite of what Orochimaru does. Rather, he ensures she survives. It's... No one's ever done such a thing for her before. Anko doesn't expect anyone to either. She assumes it was just a one-off thing.
It was not a one-off thing.
With new genins having graduated from the Academy, Anko's been pushed closer to the war front. She now works as a messenger between various bases within Konoha-controlled land. It is, by far, more dangerous, and now she works alone. She's gotten faster and figured out better ways to lay down traps now, but that doesn't keep her safe.
Due to how often she's moving and how close to the frontlines she is, it doesn't surprise Anko that she comes across many frontline ninjas. Most of them she's heard of, their actions being listened to back home in Konoha. Still, she's surprised when she comes across Orochimaru yet again.
This time, however, he looks a lot less put together. His hair has been twisted up into a bun with spiked wire caught throughout it. Dirt and blood cover him, and rips on the edges decorate his clothes. He looks exhausted, too, from where he's leaning against a tree, eyes closed and looking half-asleep.
"Never seen the sannin before?" Someone gruffly says from beside her. Anko doesn't startle, but her hand might grip the hilt of a kunai before she relaxes. She turns to face the kunoichi, who looks just as dirty and haggard as Orochimaru.
"I met him in Konoha," Anko says, which is close enough to the truth that nothing else matters. "He, uh, looked different, then."
The kunoichi laughs, a bitter scoff leaving her lips. "Welcome to the war, kid," she says. "Appearances go to shit out here, no matter how much you try. Even Orochimaru-sama knows that."
"And Orochimaru-sama is trying to sleep," the ninja in question says, opening one golden eye to stare at them. "Your talking doesn't help."
Rolling her eyes, the kunoichi replies, "If you were trying to sleep, it wouldn't matter. You'd be out of it. Besides, no way you are sleeping when we're resupplying."
Orochimaru sighs but opens both eyes. He considers Anko, and Anko finds herself scowling in response. "Hello, Anko-chan. Hope you're doing well."
"Oh? You know the gremlin, Orochimaru-sama?" At that, Anko goes to kick the kunoichi in the ankle because Konoha-nin or not, she's not going to be called a gremlin by anyone. The kunoichi dodges with a laugh and heads towards the supplies in the middle, abandoning both Anko and Orochimaru.
When she looks at Orochimaru, she finds him smiling. Despite the dirt covering him, Anko can't help but think it suits him. It seems to add a new light to his eyes. "Have a seat, Anko-chan. I'm not moving anytime soon, and I doubt you are either."
For a second, Anko considers not doing it. She doesn't want to follow his orders, but her legs are getting tired. She drops onto the ground and crosses her legs, glaring at Orochimaru and daring him to comment. However, he just laughs, shaking his head. "You've gotten better," he offers, and, well, Anko would think it's a meaningless compliment, but this is Orochimaru, so... so maybe it isn't.
"At what?" She asks, cautious because she hasn't done anything so long as she's been here.
"Moving silently, leaving no tracks, being ready for an attack," Orochimaru shrugs. "It's easy to see in how you stand and how you act. Besides, you wouldn't have made it out here if you hadn't improved. You're capable of it, so I'm not surprised in the slightest. But, if you want, I have some advice for you."
Anko considers it. Getting advice from Orochimaru would be invaluable, and she wants to live, but it's also Orochimaru, and Anko's not entirely sure if she likes him. "If it's something dumb, I'm not listening. I'm also not going to call you sensei or some other shitty title!"
"No... That's okay," Orochimaru says. "I don't have students anyway." He pauses, tilting his head, and Anko folds her arms. "Your chakra signature, though relatively small at the moment, thanks to your age, is still noticeable. Most people won't look for it or search for it amongst the chakra signatures flaring during a battle. However, there is a chance people can locate you by it and hunt you down as a result."
"I can't do anything about that! You can't use chakra and hide your chakra signature. That's just- just impossible!"
"It's tricky," Orochimaru counters. "You need to pull your chakra into your core and only let a little bit trickle out of your feet. You can do this, and I dare say you'd be good at it; you only need to try."
Scowling, Anko does as he asked—but only because he seems legit! She finds her chakra in her chest, bubbling and flickering ever so slightly. Slowly, she crushes it down into something small and wraps it around her spine to hide it. She almost can't feel it, with how dim it becomes. She glances at Orochimaru, who's smiling.
"Good work," he says. "Now, try to channel some into your feet while keeping your chakra hidden."
This is where Anko thinks things will fail. Her chakra is almost out of reach, but she manages to send a trickle down to her feet. It pools there, not enough to actually tree-hop with, but after a few moments, she finds she has enough.
"I did it!" Anko says, grinning, before remembering who's in front of her and scowls. It's too late, though, and Orochimaru's eyes crinkle up in what could be a smile.
"I knew you could," he says. "Nicely done. You've picked that up faster than anyone I've ever taught to do that."
Anko sniffs. "Well, I am pretty good," she agrees. Then, after a pause, she says cautiously, "You got anything else to teach me? Not- Not that I'm your student! But it'd be useful, y'know?"
For a moment, Orochimaru just stares at her before getting to his feet. "Alright," he says. "Let's get to work."
Tomorrow
Anko decided to announce the rules and couldn't wait to see just how many would die.
"Welcome to training ground 44, also known as the forest of death. My name is Anko Mitarashi, and I will be your proctor for the second round. Before we begin this test, I have something to hand out to you all."
She took out forms from her jacket and continued, "These are just standard consent forms. Before the test, you all have to read over this form and sign it."
Yugito asked in confusion, "But why do we have to sign it?"
Anko smirked, and her tongue licked her lips slowly, making many male Shinobi blush, and not to mention her arms were crossed under her bust, making them look bigger. "There's a very high chance of death involved in this. Some of you may not come back, and by signing it, you agree that you will be taking part in this round at your own risk. Neither I nor the leaf village will take responsibility if anything happens to any of you in the forest." She said while grinning evilly.
Most of the genins gulped after hearing her say that, and some of them hesitated to continue the exams.
Anko noticed that Naruto wasn't paying any attention to her; while she would bet all her life saving's that Naruto would reach the Final, that didn't mean that the brat shouldn't pay her attention.
Her hand reached a kunai; she knew Naruto would probably see her doing this; he was trained by Kakashi for years, after all, but where was the harm in having some fun.
She threw the kunai towards his left cheek with an evil smirk, but Naruto suddenly put two of his fingers and caught it mid-air. Many genins around gasped at seeing him catching a kunai with that speed.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes slightly. He hadn't seen the kunai coming, while Sakura looked horrified, her eyes searching for whoever threw the kunai.
Ino smiled, despite thinking that her boyfriend was showing off; Shika rolled his eyes, finding the whole situation troublesome.
Anko suddenly appeared behind Naruto, her impressive bust pressed against his back; Naruto couldn't help but blush slightly from the close contact with his lover.
"I see you weren't paying attention, little brat; those that don't usually pay attention are the first to die... Slowly" she whispered in his ear and dragged the word 'slowly.'
Naruto chuckled at her words. "You don't need to worry, Anko-chan; after all, Big bro Kakashi did train me," Naruto replied and feeling malice intent coming from behind them.
Naruto's muscles tensed immediately, something Anko noticed, and she moved away; her eyes saw Naruto glaring at someone behind her.
Her eyes glanced behind to see a woman; at first glance, she looked normal, but Anko couldn't help but feel uneasy at her presence. She also noticed someone standing close to her, a male with what she thought was white hair since he was wearing a round hat covering his head, with little snake figures hanging at the edge of the cap.
The hat was made of straw, with a thin white rope around the top. Anko walked back to her old position.
Anko turned her attention back to the rest of the Genin, holding out three fingers one by one as she explained the rules for the test. "There are also some ways you can get disqualified. The first is simple: If all three members of a team can't make it to the tower with both scrolls after five days. Number two: If a team loses a member or if a member becomes incapacitated and cannot continue.
But most importantly, none of you, absolutely none of you, may look at the contents of the scrolls until you've reached the tower."
And with that said, all of the kids got into their teams and talked over their consent forms while some of them wandered off on their own to read them over. The air was heavy with anticipation, worried, and eagerness. Meanwhile, the other proctors drew up a curtain at the scroll distribution shed, ensuring no one else would know which team had which scroll.
Hmm... It looks like they're starting to understand what's really involved in this test. Anko observed the crowd of Genin with her hands in her coat pockets, pleased that some of them had just realized how serious this test was. Her eyes lingered the most on Naruto, sitting on the ground, writing something on a large blank paper. She liked the determination in his blue eyes, and something told her that Naruto would make these Chunin Exams far more interesting than any other exam ever.
Once everyone was ready to hand in their forms, Anko watched as they headed to the shed to collect their scrolls; a slight breeze wafted through her violet hair, and a smile graced her lips. I wonder if any of them will survive this...except Naruto.
Staring down at her wristwatch on her right arm, reading it as it was close to two o'clock in the afternoon, Anko's loud voice carried among the Genin.
"Listen up! All of the teams had received their scrolls, so everybody go to your gate and waited there! When the gates open, the test is on!" When it was close to 2:30, the proctors started to unlock the gates, letting the chains slide off the handles. As the clock stroked precisely at 2:30, the snake kunoichi finally gave out her last announcement. "All right, heads up, you maggots! The second part of the test has begun!"
The gates opened with a whoosh as soon as she spoke those words, and in went the Genin. It wasn't long afterward until Anko heard a couple of fearful male screams vibrating throughout the forest and to where Anko stood at the entrance.
A few hours later, Anko sat on the flat roof of the shed, her legs hanging in the air as she snacked down on her favorite food, enjoying herself while she paid no mind to the carnage that was taking place within the Forest of Death.
"Mmm-mm... Nothing makes dumplings go down like a little sweet red bean soup. Ahh... Nice." She happily sipped down the can of soup and then another bite off her stick of dumplings. "Guess it's about that time. Soon after I finish this little snack, I'll see how the kiddies are doing. The quicker ones will be finished soon. I suppose I'll wait and go greet them at the tower."
She munched down the last dumpling on her stick. She lazily threw to the trunk of a nearby tree with perfect accuracy without even looking, adding the last stick to complete an outline of a Leaf symbol that was made out of at least fifty dumpling sticks—a testament of how much she loved her village as much as her favorite food.
"There—a perfect Leaf Village symbol!" Anko smiled brightly at her completed design.
In a puff of smoke, a sentinel dressed in the standard Chūnin Exams proctor uniform appeared before the snake kunoichi, kneeling down on one knee. It was Mozuku, one of the other proctors for the exams. "Pardon, ma'am; there's a problem!"
"Hmm? What sort of problem?" Anko inquired calmly, swinging her legs from left to right.
"Corpses, ma'am! Three of them!" came the urgent reply.
However, Anko remained nonchalant about the news. Hearing about dead bodies wasn't anything new. People were killed in the Chūnin Exams all the time. Whatever they found was probably the remains of a bunch of kids that got themselves slaughtered in the exams. Mumbling, she continued to munch down her dumpling in her mouth as she replied in a slightly bored tone, "Come on. I'm trying to eat here."
"I think you'll want to see them. There is something strange about them." Mozuku told her. That caught Anko's interest as she swallowed the last of her food down in her throat, putting a finger to her chin. What could be so weird about corpses?
"Besides being dead?" she voiced her thoughts out loud.
When Anko arrived at the area, her stomach lurched at the gruesome sight in front of her. She gazed down at the awkwardly twisted positions that bodies were laid facedown on the ground and against the Leaf Village's Buddha statues as fear sliced through her.
It wasn't the splattered blood across the Buddha statues that bothered her, nor was the rancid smell of the three dead bodies radiating off them. What really frightened the brave and tough kunoichi the most was the fact that their faces were gone, as if something or someone ripped them off. The wind blew in the trees, sending chills down Anko's spine, giving the area an even more terrible aura.
"I went through their belongings and found their identification—Ninja from the Hidden Grass Village. All three of them were registered for the Chūnin Exams." Kotetsu Hagane, one of the other proctors for the exams, reported with his arms crossed over his chest. "They weren't just killed.
"All their faces..." Anko felt her fingers twitch at the nervousness she felt rising inside her, almost curling into a fist. She felt disturbed; an uneasy feeling of remembrance was nagging at the back of her brain. It was something darkly familiar... "They're gone..."
"Yeah." Kotetsu frowned grimly at the dead bodies. "There's nothing where their faces used to be like they melted or something."
She gazed down at one of the Genin, trying desperately to remember where she had seen that clothing before.
No doubt about it. She thought gravely, clenching her teeth together so tightly that it would seem like they were going to break. She closed her fingers over where the mark used to be that she had loathed so much ever since he gave it to her. This is his jutsu. Why's he here? What's he doing at the Chūnin Exams?... Naruto!
She felt her body almost trembling at the terror swirling within her, the sounds of shaking gasps escaping her lips. Snapping out of her own thoughts, she turned to the Chūnin behind her, pivoting around in a panicked state. "Okay, I need photos of what these three used to look like! Where are their IDs?"
"Right here, ma'am." Mozuku handed her the pictures. She gripped the photos in her hand, recognizing the first image of the Grass ninja immediately.
So this is the face he stole... The snake kunoichi's eyes widened at the realization, and she gasped in shock, remembering Naruto glaring at the kunoichi. Had it already happened when...?
"Ugh... We've got big trouble!" She swiveled around to face Kotetsu and the other two Chūnin, all of them startled by her alarmed and urgent tone. "Okay, get moving! Tell Lord Hokage exactly what's happened here! And while you are at it, tell the ANBU Black Ops they better get a couple of convoys to the Forest of Death!" She turned her back to them before she went on. "Meanwhile, I'm gonna head in after these guys! Now go!"
"Right!' The three men disappeared from her sight at once, knowing better to follow her orders and ask questions later.
He's come... He's here in the Hidden Leaf Village...Anko reached for her neck again, her face becoming dark and dangerously serious as a foul wind moved in the air. All her bitter emotions of hate and fury boiled inside her gut, feeding off the longing to settle the score between her and the man who had destroyed her life.
He was here.
It was time to end it.
Hours passed since the violet-haired woman journeyed into the densely overgrown Forest of Death, racing through the trees and avoiding the traps and ravenous beasts in the area. The sun was setting soon, its crimson glow shining beautifully over the Hidden Leaf Village. If it weren't for the dire situation she was in, Anko would've stopped and admired the sun's blood-like blaze.
She jumped from one tree to another, allowing herself to fall until her hands caught on a thick branch, using the momentum to swing herself upon it to halt her pursuit for her perpetrator, gazing as the sun was sinking further down in the sky.
Sun's going down... I gotta find him soon. My odds are bad enough; it'll get worse in the dark. But why now? I hope he hadn't gotten to Naruto yet; Anko shook off her musings; she needed to find him as soon as possible.
When night had fallen upon the village like a blanket, it was only then Anko's senses were able to pick his presence up. She darted through the trees, galloping from one branch to another and over many other forest obstacles that stood in her way.
I can feel him! He's somewhere close! Anko jumped down from one tree to land in a space between two enormous ones, her body running closer to where he was as if she was being drawn closer to him by a magnetic force.
He was upside, his entire body embedded itself in a tree, and to her surprise, he wasn't wearing any mask. She approached him almost casually, without a single hint of fear in her eyes. There was no room for it, not now.
She wasn't afraid of him...or maybe she was. She just didn't show it, not in front of him. She looked at him directly with bold eyes, although the aura radiating from his body could frighten any shinobi that came in contact with him.
However, Anko was different, knowing there was always that darkness, that malice in his golden eyes, even when she was under his tutelage. She was so young back then, blinded by her admiration to see what he truly was. She was so stupid; she should've seen his true, dark intentions.
Orochimaru chuckled softly, amused to see his old student again. "Well, well, Anko. It's been a while..."
"This is no time to reminisce; you're an S-class criminal, top of the most wanted list. You've got to be taken down, and it's only fitting that I'm the one to do it." Anko replied back at him harshly as she slid senbon needles between her fingers in her right hand, not taking his bait. "'Cause, after all, you're the one that taught me everything, right, Sensei?"
"Not quite," he answered simply. Anko growled, preparing to throw the needles at him when his expandable, long tongue shot out from his mouth as started to chase and lash at her. She leaped backward onto a side of a tree to dodge it, but his tongue followed and coiled itself around her wrist, forcing her to drop her weapons as he pulled her towards him.
She landed on the branch, and she held out her free hand at her old sensei. "Striking Shadow Snake!"
Green snakes from her sleeve slithered and crashed into the bark of the tree Orochimaru was embedded in, causing a large cloud of dust.
"Come outta there!" Anko yelled, pulling the serpents to force Orochimaru towards her and slammed him into the tree opposite of him. She retracted the vipers into her sleeve and quickly went over to him, pinning her left hand over his right hand against the tree, stabbing them both with a kunai to prevent him from escaping her.
Orochimaru was slightly surprised by her actions, observing her carefully with his exposed slit eye. She winced, panted heavily, and ignored the pain and blood flowing from the self-inflicted wound, its tangy smell invading her nostrils like a drug. "Hah... I gotcha'. Now then, lemme just borrow your left hand."
She entwined her right hand with his left hand, sticking up her index finger and pinky. Orochimaru gasped slightly; his eye widened in recognition and then drifted back to his old pupil. "That hand sign..."
"Right, it's over. You and I are going to die here." She gasped for air as she stared at him with tired eyes, a small fatigued smirk on her face. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and thought out the jutsu in her head. Ninja Art: Twin Snake Sacrifice Jutsu...!
Anko stopped midway when she heard an eerie laugh echoing in the air around her. "I'm afraid you will die alone, Anko..."
Her eyes snapped open in shock, and she gasped, pivoting her head slowly to see him standing on the other side of the massive branch, his pale features looking at her with a sneer.
"That's right; Substitution." He indicated the duplicate she pinned to the tree. She whirled her head back to the copy; her eyes broadened even more as it melted into the mud.
The moon shone down on them with its luminous light, giving Orochimaru a more oppressive aura to him. Anko heard him laughing at her near-death experience as she shut her eyes down in shame and agony, all of her confidence washing away from her. This was just too mortifying for her to endure, her gut clenching at her desperate attempt to stop him.
Sauntering to her with a haughty smile, he spoke to her in a taunting tone. "Of course, you're one of the elite now, a righteous warrior. How naughty of you to be using a Forbidden Jutsu I taught you."
"What do you want here, Orochimaru?" She asked, hoping he hadn't hurt Naruto, just the thought of him giving the blonde a cursed mark made her anger boil.
A shadow of anger flashed through his face, much to Anko's surprise.
"That's not important to you, my dear Student," Orochimaru spoke, hiding the anger inside him.
"Now, it is time for you to Die," As Orochimaru was about to attack. His body froze as electricity engulfed his entire body, pain ripping through every fiber of his being. A massive lightning bolt pierced his heart; blood flew everywhere as Anko couldn't believe the hand filled with lightning sticking out of Orochimaru's chest.
The Sannin slowly turned his head around to look over his shoulders. Golden eyes saw meet with the Sharingan of Kakashi Hatake.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein