Kaito Akaden (Kaito)

Kaito Akaden Chapter 125

Hiruzen nodded in understanding. "I see. Well, I'm glad both of you managed to escape that ordeal unharmed."

He then glanced at the book in Kaito's hands. "It will be difficult for you now that there's a price on your head."

Kaito closed the book and handed it over to Homura. "I don't think things would be much different if people knew I could use Hiraishin. It might even serve as a deterrent."

Hiruzen chuckled. "Yes, that might be the case. Your father's use of that jutsu is quite well-known."

Just then, they heard a knock on the door, and Hiruzen called out, "Enter!"

A familiar black-haired teen walked in, followed by an unfamiliar-looking Anko and a few other shinobi. It was Shisui, standing at the front. He bowed slightly and said, "You asked for us, Hokage-sama?"

….

Kaito sat on the front porch, slipping his sandals on as the front door of the house creaked open. His mother, Kushina, stepped out, holding a packed bento in her left hand while keeping her right hand hidden behind her back.

Kaito finished putting on his sandals and stood up, turning to face her.

"Here you go, Kai-kun!" Kushina said, handing him the bento with a warm smile. "I packed you some lunch for later." Then, with a gleeful grin, she brought her right hand forward, revealing a large bowl brimming with takoyaki. "And I made you some takoyaki to snack on!"

Kaito couldn't help but grin back. "Thanks, Mom. You're the best." He took the bento and sealed it away for later, then eagerly grabbed a piece of takoyaki. Popping one into his mouth, his eyes lit up. "Mmm, these are so good, Mom!"

Kushina's grin widened. "I'm glad you like them, Kai-kun."

Kaito popped another piece into his mouth, nodding as he chewed. "See you later, Mom," he said, his voice slightly muffled by the food. With a quick wave, he turned and started walking away.

"Good luck on your mission, Kai-kun! Do your best, ya know!" Kushina called after him, her voice filled with a mix of pride and affection.

Kaito hopped leisurely from one tree to another, heading towards the main gates of Konoha while enjoying a large bowl of takoyaki.

Finishing the last piece, he let out a loud burp and licked his lips in satisfaction. before, he teleported the empty bowl to a hiraishin marker in his house. It was a variation of the Hiraishin technique that his father had created, allowing him to send objects without needing to teleport himself along with them.

Picking up his pace, he reached the main gate of Konoha within a few minutes.

Landing near the entrance, Kaito spotted Shisui standing with the assigned team. Walking over, he gave a short wave. "Yo, guys."

Shisui, who was in the middle of a conversation with one of the chunin on the mission, turned at Kaito's voice. With a teasing grin, he said, "Well, look who finally showed up—the resident S-rank shinobi!" He was poking fun at the threat level Kumo had assigned to Kaito.

Anko, standing nearby with her hands lazily behind her head, grumbled. "What took you so long, brat?"

Kaito scratched the back of his head sheepishly, a small smile on his face. "Yeah, kinda woke up late, ya know."

Shisui just chuckled. "Alright, let's get going, shall we?" They all nodded and followed him towards the village guards.

The four-man team left the village, heading west and hopping from tree to tree. Shisui took the lead, as he was the mission's designated leader.

Jumping to another branch, Kaito's mind drifted back to yesterday's mission briefing.

Shisui had entered the room with Anko and another shinobi Kaito didn't recognize. They stood beside Kaito in the Hokage's office as Hiruzen puffed out a plume of smoke and said, "Good, you're all here."

Hiruzen then began, "We've received reports of disturbances near our border with the Land of Water."

Koharu continued, "Some of Konoha's border patrol have gone missing, and there have been skirmishes with Kirigakure shinobi near the border."

Homura added, "We want you to investigate and, if possible, push back the Kiri shinobi."

Hiruzen took a deep breath, then said, "That's why we've chosen you for this mission. We're hoping that your presence alone will be enough to deter them."

He stood up and walked over to the window, looking out over the village. After another puff of smoke, he sighed, "The village cannot afford a war with Kiri right now."

Turning back to the assembled shinobi, Hiruzen continued, "Shisui, you will lead this squad. You leave tomorrow. Dismissed."

Shisui nodded, a confident glint in his eye. "Leave it to us, Hokage-sama," he said with a slight bow.

Anko and the other shinobi bowed deeply, while Kaito gave a respectful nod before following Shisui out of the office.

After two days of travel, they finally reached the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water. Settling around a campfire, they took a moment to rest and plan.

Shisui, looking at the group, began, "As you've been told, most of the attacks happen at night. So, we'll split into two teams." He crouched down and started drawing a map in the dirt with a stick. "Each attack has been carried out simultaneously."

He pointed to a spot on the makeshift map. "This is the nearest border post to the Land of Water. We'll be patrolling this area." Moving the stick to another point, he continued, "Once we get there, we'll split into two teams to scout and set traps. We'll meet back here afterward."

Looking up at the group, Shisui added, "Our goal is to ambush the Kiri team."

Kaito, Anko, and Misaki nodded in agreement with the plan.

Seeing their readiness, Shisui nodded back. "Alright, scatter!"

With that, they split off, heading towards their designated locations in the darkening forest.

Kaito and Anko had just finished setting traps in the western area.

Standing up, Kaito glanced at Anko. "Hey, what's with that curse seal on you?" he asked casually, acting as though he didn't already know.

Anko, who was a few steps ahead setting another trap, froze. Her hand instinctively went to her neck, where Orochimaru's mark was hidden. She jumped away from Kaito, eyes narrowing. "How do you know about that?" she demanded.

Kaito shrugged. "I can sense it. It disrupts your chakra and stands out from your chakra signature," he replied. He wasn't lying—Kagura's Mind's Eye allowed him to pick up on such things.

Anko glared at him. "It's none of your business, brat."

Kaito shrugged again. "I could take a guess. You were Orochimaru's student before he defected, right? He must've been the one who put it on you."

Anko's glare intensified, her eyes becoming moist with anger. Without a word, she threw a kunai at him, shouting, "Like I said, it's none of your business!"

Kaito lazily caught the kunai mid-air, twirling it around his finger. "Poison-laced, huh? You really shouldn't be throwing this kind of thing around so carelessly."

Before Anko could respond, chakra chains burst out from Kaito's back, wrapping around her and pinning her in place. The sudden move caught her completely off guard.

"Let go of me, you bastard!" Anko struggled, her face now showing fear as she fought against the chains. "I'll kill you once I get free!"

Kaito calmly brought her closer. "Relax. I'm just going to take a look." He glanced at her, his expression serious. "And besides, what makes you think you can break free? Not even the Nine-Tails could get out of these chains."

Anko stiffened as Kaito brought her closer and moved her collar aside to examine the seal.

Looking at it, Kaito frowned. "What kind of lousy seal is this? Orochimaru really doesn't know how to make a proper one, does he?" he muttered, inspecting the mark. "And who put this Fūja Hōin on top of it? That's just stupid."

After carefully studying the seal, Kaito released Anko, who immediately jumped back into a defensive stance.

"What I don't get," Kaito began, eyeing her curiously, "is why you haven't removed it yet."

Anko scoffed, her hand instinctively going to her neck. "You think they haven't tried? I'm stuck with this thing until I die."

Kaito tilted his head. "Huh? Who said that?"

Getting irritated, Anko snapped, "Who else? The Third Hokage, you idiot!"

Kaito shook his head, a hint of disbelief on his face. "Who died and made the Third a seal master?" He sighed. "Let me guess, he's the one who placed the Fūja Hōin on it? The old man thinks he knows seals, but he really shouldn't mess with them if he doesn't know what he's doing."

Anko snorted. "Like you could do any better."

Kaito shrugged. "Of course I can. Unlike the old man, I am a seal master. Just looking at this one, I can already see several ways to remove it."

He shook his head in annoyance. "Mom could've removed it easily. But instead, the old man decided to play seal master."

Anko's eyes narrowed, anger flaring. "Don't talk about things you know nothing about, brat."

Kaito simply shrugged again. "I could remove it right now, but it would leave you in a coma for a few days since it's connected to your chakra network."

Anko's expression shifted, a mixture of disbelief and hope. "You… you really mean it? You can remove it?" she asked, her voice unexpectedly vulnerable.

Kaito nodded. "Yeah. But let's focus on finishing this mission first." He turned and began walking in the opposite direction. "Once we get back to Konoha, I'll take care of it." With that, he leapt onto a nearby tree and started moving away.

Anko stood there for a moment, holding her neck, then quickly chased after him.

Landing on top of a tree, Kaito held out his hand, signaling Anko to stop. Closing his eyes, he used the Mind's Eye of Kagura to sense the Kiri shinobi.

Anko halted on the same branch, looking at him with a frown. "Why did we stop, brat?"

Kaito focused for a moment and sensed a six-man squad moving toward the east, right in the direction of the Konoha border patrol. Opening his eyes, he said, "I sense them coming from the east. We need to inform Shisui." Without waiting, he leaped in that direction, with Anko following close behind.

As they moved, Kaito glanced at her. "You know, we're not that far apart in age. Why do you keep calling me a brat?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Anko shrugged with a grin. "You're still younger than me, so you're a brat."

Kaito shook his head and picked up his speed, leaving her behind. "Hey!" Anko yelled in protest as she tried to catch up.

Reaching Shisui, Kaito quickly reported, "They're heading toward the border post from the east."

Shisui nodded. "Then we'll ambush them there."

As they closed in on the Kiri shinobi, Kaito muttered, "They're about 1.5 kilometers away from us."

Shisui raised his hand, and they all came to a halt. "I'll cast a genjutsu on them from here. It might be enough to make them retreat," he said calmly.

Anko blinked in surprise. "You can cast a genjutsu from 1.5 kilometers away? Don't you Uchiha need eye contact for that?"

Shisui nodded. "Yes, I can. It depends on the caster. The more powerful ones usually don't need eye contact."

Kaito, leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, closed his eyes. "It's worth a try. Less work for us," he said, a smirk on his face.

Kaito closed his eyes, using the Mind's Eye of Kagura to sense the movements of the Kiri team approaching their position. He could feel Shisui placing one of them under a genjutsu, and soon after, one of the Kiri shinobi dropped to the ground, clutching his head in pain.

The rest of the Kiri team stopped immediately, rushing over to their fallen comrade. Their leader looked sharply in Kaito and Shisui's direction.

Kaito's focus zeroed in on the leader, his senses picking up something strange about the man's left eye. His eyes widened slightly as he realized it—it was a Byakugan. He hadn't noticed before, but now he was certain: the leader of the Kiri squad possessed a Byakugan.

Opening his eyes, Kaito stared intently in their direction and thought, "That must be Ao, one of Terumi Mei's bodyguards."

"That should do it," Shisui said, satisfied with his genjutsu. But before he could finish his sentence, Kaito body-flickered away, rushing toward the Kiri team.

"Fast!" Anko thought, her eyes widening as she saw Kaito body-flicker toward the Kiri shinobi.

"Damn it, Kaito!" Shisui cursed, immediately chasing after him, with Anko and the others following close behind.

Kaito reached the Kiri shinobi before they could move their injured comrade. The moment he appeared, chakra chains erupted from him, wrapping around all six of them.

They struggled against the bindings, shouting, "What the—?" "How?" "Damn it!"

Ignoring their protests, Kaito pulled Ao closer. "Let go of us, you Konoha scum!" one of the Kiri shinobi yelled.

Kaito paid them no mind as he reached for Ao's left eye. As he attempted to extract it, a seal activated, blocking his efforts.

"Tsk," Kaito clicked his tongue, tearing through the seal to reveal the Byakugan hidden beneath.

Shisui landed behind him, concern evident in his voice. "Kaito, what are you doing? This wasn't part of our mission."

Anko and the other shinobi arrived moments later, eyes wide as they took in the scene.

Calmly, Kaito plucked the Byakugan from Ao's eye socket. "Just taking back what doesn't belong to Kiri," he said, showing the eye to Shisui.

Retrieving a sealing scroll, he secured the eye within it. Turning to Shisui, he asked, "Can you alter their memories? Make them think he lost the eye to a rogue shinobi on their way here?"

Shisui sighed but nodded. "Yeah, I can do that." Activating his Sharingan, he cast a genjutsu over the captured Kiri shinobi, altering their memories as requested.

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