Chapter 7

-Vengeance Rising

Concealed in the trees, Team Kari examines the densely packed forest around them. According to the map the supposed hide out should be in their current area. The team patiently waits for their captain's cue for what to do next.

"I want this done by the books..." Shizake states. "Spread out, pinpoint an entrance and alert the rest of us with the call sign."

The three answer with only a nod, flickering out of the tree and into the surrounding area. They spread out in a shotgun formation, quickly surveying the area for things that look out of place. Shozen activates his Byakugan looking for any significant sign or hint of chakra signatures. Toshi focuses in on the sound of the forest, a skill she picked up during her time as an ANBU, where she is able to completely block out her other senses except for sound.

Shītto peruses the forest regularly, deciding to keep an eye out in case a quick reaction is needed. Naturally, Shizake has his Sharingan activated, able to pick up minute changes in the forest's thick overgrowth.

After a long half hour of searching the area, the three meet back up back where they started to discuss their findings.

"Anything on your end Shozen?" Shizake asks in a hushed tone.

"Yeah... almost missed it though. I found wire running along the ground. Nearly missed it except that I noticed it was covered in a thin layer of chakra. It was obviously attached to something but I thought it was a trap. Searched around but couldn't find anything that looked remotely like a trap. When I tugged the wire there wasn't any slack but I didn't want to possibly activate anything." The Hyuga explains.

"Wait, did you say a wire? I stepped on one just like that. The only reason I knew it was there was because when I stepped on it I could tell the difference in noise from the regular forest floor. " The brunette girl interjects.

The black and blonde spiked Shītto chuckles before explaining the same thing, a wire attached to an unknown source. The three of them turn to Shizake before he too nods his head and confirms the same thing.

Shizake clears his throat, getting ready to explain the plan.

"We're not sure what it is. Just because there's nothing to signify a trap it could very well be one that's concealed in some unknown way." He says.

"True but it could be a way in... some sort of... puzzle maybe?" Shozen adds.

"How so?" Shītto curiously wonders.

"Bear with me... but what if it's meant for all the strings to be pulled together. One person alone would need to know a clone jutsu. I assume only very few know the way in and out of this place." The Hyuga explains.

"Hm..." Shizake thinks, sitting on Shozen's words. "It sounds plausible... but I don't want to risk anything."

"They were covered in chakra though, as far as I'm aware, I've never encountered a trap with chakra laced lines unless it was connected to a puppet..." Shozen trails off on the last word.

"What would a puppet be doing out in the middle of the forest alone?" Toshi asks.

"Not sure... I'm just basing it off of what I saw." Shozen says with a shrug.

Shītto scratches his head before snapping his fingers, "Then how about we set it off safely? We each make a clone and pull the wires together, that way if anything happens our clones will take the damage."

The three of them look to Shizake for confirmation who nods his head slowly. The four of them disperse, finding the wire once more in the forest and tracking it back to the point where the squad of four can see each other. Once they are in range of each other the four of them skillfully create one clone. The clones proceed up to the wire, each looking at one another for the cue to pull on it. The original Shizake, Shozen, Shītto, and Toshi each step back a few feet, ready to observe what shall unfold before them.

On the count of three the four clones tug the wires up to waist level. The wire cuts through the forest with nothing noticeable happening. Suddenly the ground trembles and the clones disappear away with a poof of smoke. The squad members each look at each other confusedly, waiting for someone to say something, anything. Finally Shizake begins running headlong into the forest to pinpoint the origin of the ground tremor.

Deep into the undergrowth, the team discovers a manhole, big enough to only fit one person at a time. They stare into the shadowy depths of the hole, wondering where in the world it leads. Shozen examines the depths with his Byakugan, though, he is unable to see or sense anything. He turns to Shizake and shrugs.

"We're going in." Shizake states.

"In?! We don't even know what's down there! Isn't it obvious that this is a hideout of some sort?!" Toshi exclaims.

"Maybe... but we have to be sure."

Shozen approaches his captain, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"We shouldn't tread into the unknown just because Sasuke might be down there..."

Gritting his teeth Shizake turns to his comrade, "This is not because of Sasuke."

The young girl turns her head towards Shītto, giving him a worried look from behind her mask. Shītto shrugs at the girl, unsure of what to make of their current situation.

Shizake sighs, aware of the apparent worry that the rest of his team is giving off.

"I want to make sure this even belongs to Orochimaru... I could care less if Sasuke is down here or not. Orochimaru has done terrible things to too many innocent people. We can't... we can't let him get away with those things. He needs to answer."

Sensing his resolve, Shītto, Toshi, and Shozen nod their head, prepared to follow their captain's orders. From this point on there will be no questions asked, no doubts, and no worries. There will only be the undying loyalty to their captain and The Leaf Village.

With everything said and done, Shizake crosses his arms over his chest and leaps feet first into the manhole, dropping into the eternal darkness. Shozen shakes his head before he too follows after the captain, and after shrugging at one another; Toshi and Shītto leap down also.

The four of them land one by one, holding a crouching position until all of them have descended. Toshi is the last to drop in behind the three boys, looking around once she lands. The four of them try to get a good look at the underground chamber but fail because of the dim lighting. Shizake holds a fist up, which is only barely visible to the rest of the team, especially with their masks blocking most of their peripheral vision. The three gather up behind him, keeping close as they continue through the entrance chamber. Tapping his head twice, he signals the team to put their masks atop their head, to increase their field of view. Slowly their eyes adjust to the room around them, the darkness seemingly crawling out of their vision. Shozen grabs a torch off the wall so that they can see what is ahead and around them.

"Keep your Byakugan ready..." Shizake says to the Hyuga.

Shozen forces chakra to his eyes, veins bulging around the blank irises as he scans the building with his chakra viewing Kekkei Genkai. Stunned, his eyes widen before he taps Shizake on the shoulder.

"Multiple signatures throughout this place... they aren't moving though. I assume prisoners." Shozen whispers.

Crimson eyes shining in the dark, Shizake keeps a close eye around the pitch-black corners and multiple hallways. Shozen leads the group, cautiously walking forward while keeping an eye out for unknown chakra signatures. Shītto and Toshi watch the squad's backs, watching out for sudden movements even in the dark.

"How do they fit all of this down here...?" Toshi whispers, her words echoing in the humid chamber.

"Not sure... Shītto. Check one of the cells." Shizake says with his head turned over his shoulder.

Shītto, without hesitation, runs up to one of the holding cells and peers through the slit hole. He scans the room thoroughly before turning around with a shrug.

"Nobody." He says, his words echoing throughout the chamber.

Shizake begins running up to each door and opening the slit holes only to find nobody in them. The whole team begins running amok, checking all the cells they can find. After ten minutes of frantically checking, they meet back in the center room, each of them with their arms crossed. The team looks up to Shizake who is deep in thought, glaring at the ground while plans of what to do next go through his mind.

He lets out a sigh, putting his mask back over his face.

"It could be abandoned... no one is here." He says defeatedly.

"How is this possible...? My Byakugan picked up multiple chakra signatures." Shozen says.

"Hm. We'll do one last run through before we leave. I have a feeling we won't find much..." Shizake trails off before spinning around on his heel and examining the place on his own.

In one of the doorways of the chamber, a shadowy figure stands in the darkness of the next room. Shizake freezes in his tracks, turning his head slowly as the figure un-blurs itself. Coal eyes meet coal eyes, lifeless, emotionless pupils staring into one another. The culmination of years of abandonment finally come crashing down upon the Uchiha, rage and sorrow quickly bubbling up to the surface.The figure dawns a long white sleeve shirt, the torso loosely opened up, a purple robe belt tied around their waist.

"Sasuke," Shizake whispers to himself before the figure suddenly disappears from sight.

Shizake bolts out of the chamber, disappearing into the dark hallways of the underground chamber system. The rest of the team stares blankly at the dust trail their captain has left behind until they spring into action and follow after him. The Uchiha captain of the ANBU team chases after the shadowy apparition of his cousin around corners and through the empty and seemingly identical hallways of the chamber. Just mere seconds behind him is Shozen, Shītto, and Toshi, trying to catch up with the berserk Uchiha.

Finally, Shizake slides around a corner, facing the apparition. Sasuke looks up at Shizake, smirking before disappearing into wisps of flames. The black haired boy approaches the spot where he last saw his cousin, dropping to his knees and clutching his fists so hard his knuckles turn white. Within moments, the rest of the team comes sliding around the corner, the only thing they see being their captain on his knees.

"I lost him..." He says, trailing off.

Toshi walks up to Shizake, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Kouen...I'm sorry."

"That wasn't the real Sasuke." Shozen exclaims, resting a hand on his hip. "I still had my Byakugan activated, the chakra system was extremely flawed, nearly non existent. I believe it was a genjutsu..."

"A genjutsu...? Then that means-" Shizake stops himself, standing up immediately and causing Toshi's hand to slide off his shoulder.

Shizake turns to the door, placing a shaky hand on the eye slit and sliding it open with a jerk. He places his eyes up to the slit to gaze upon a man meditating in the center of the room.

"Welcome..." The man says with an avaricious smile.

"W-who are you...?" Shizake demands, the shock still escaping his body and mind.

The man's black hair is tied back into a long slicked ponytail, strands hanging off both sides of his head as well. Thick scruff lines his chin, reaching all the way up to his sideburns. He wears a gray and black striped robe, a leather belt tied around his waist to keep it all held together.

"Well, the name is Kankaku. Nice to meet ya." He says charmingly.

"You... were you the one that created that genjutsu? Of Sasuke?"

"Heh. Gotta admit, yeah, it was me. For a good reason though." The man says.

"What reason could that be." Shizake bites back, wanting answers as to why someone would toy with his mind.

"Hmph. Let me out of here and maybe I'll tell ya." The man says with a cocky smile.

"I let you out of here and you explain everything or else I'll tear you limb from limb." Shizake sharply states, pulling the handle on the door and opening it for the man.

The torchlight blinds Kankaku for a minute before his eyes adjust to the four figures before him. He examines the ANBU team for a moment before Shizake comes up to him and grabs him by the collar.

"So tell us." Shizake demands.

"Right right...well... to be frank, I've been kept prisoner here by Orochimaru." Kankaku begins.

"So this is a hideout," Shītto says.

"Something like that, I'm not too sure. Anyways, I could sense you four in here due to my ability." Kankaku continues.

Toshi interrupts, "What ability might that be?"

"Think of it like a pulse that extrudes around me. When I close my eyes I can see a three hundred and sixty degree field of the area around me. I can't make out specific figures and shapes but what my ability does is make chakra signatures visible to me. I could see your outlines with my ability." The ponytail haired man explains.

"I'm assuming it only goes so far?" Shozen asks, curious to learn about another sensory type ninja.

"Indeed. About twenty five meters... but... Orochimaru designed this special pad in my cell that could increase that range," Kankaku answers. "He's been forcing me to use it to keep watch..."

"Hn. Okay, then explain that genjutsu of yours. To create that, you must have seen Sasuke recently." Shizake coldly says. Out of anger, the Sharingan activates behind the eye slits of his mask.

Kankaku stares into the bloodthirsty Sharingan eyes, finally coming to realization the situation that he has gotten himself into.

"About a month and a half ago. I only caught a glimpse," Kankaku says. "But it was enough to create that genjutsu."

Shizake's grip tightens, his left arm trembling as well, "But why... why use an illusion of Sasuke to get our attention?"

"Like I said before, I can see outlines of chakra. Your chakra and his chakra were extremely... similar," Kankaku explains.

"That explains why it wasn't a perfect recreation," Shozen says to himself. "Wait! What about the multiple chakra signatures we picked up when we first arrived? Was that you too?"

"Hmph. Yes. It was." The man says while slicking back his hair.

"I see..." Shizake says, relaxing his shoulders along with the Sharingan disappearing from his eyes. "So... where is everyone?"

"Not sure... I don't think anyone resides here. The only time I've seen any guards come around was to drop off food," Kankaku explains.

"Hn. Well then count your lucky stars because we can get you out of here," Shizake says emptily.

"That would be most preferred. I was getting extremely bored of this dump," Kankaku says while stretching his arms in the air.

"So what are we going to do?" Shozen asks the captain.

"I think we're done here. We'll mark it as abandoned and leave the demolition squad to it," The Uchiha says.

"Abandoned?" Kankaku interjects. "Aren't there other prisoners here? You know...aside from the fake ones I created?"

"We checked the other cells, there was no one," Shītto says with a shrug.

"So they left me here alone huh? That's not very nice of them," The man says jokingly.

"Follow us," Shizake says to the former prisoner, commanding the team to follow him as well.

The five of them begin down the hallway, Shizake in the front and Kankaku trailing behind the other four. He greedily smiles to himself, his thoughts racing through his mind. They walked right into my hands, I just have to play innocent prisoner for now and I'll be good. Silly Leaf ANBU they have no idea what they've walked them selves into, Orochimaru will be pleased once I bring him back three test subjects and another Uchiha! My heart races at the power I'll be bestowed with.