Kaito Chapter 61
Kaito Chapter 61
Suddenly, four shadows descended from the trees above, one of them being Kakashi. The masked man was nowhere to be seen now.
Kakashi approached Kaito cautiously, concern. "What happened, Kaito?" he asked gently.
"It was him, Kakashi," Kaito growled in frustration. "That bastard was here. The same guy who captured my-"
Kaito's words were cut off as his eyes widened. He muttered the word "mom" before suddenly body flickering away before anyone could stop him.
...
After the daimyo had finished his lavish lunch, Shikaku made his way over to him, urging him to start moving so they could reach Konoha before nightfall. As the daimyo settled back into his palanquin, Shikaku walked over to his team, but he couldn't help but notice Kaito's stiff posture and trembling hand. Hotaru, who was standing nearby, also noticed and asked with concern, "What's wrong, Kaito-kun?"
Shikaku approached Kaito, wanting to ask what was troubling him. But just as he opened his mouth to speak, he heard Itachi's voice calling out for him in a serious tone "Shikaku-sensei!". Turning towards Itachi, Shikaku saw that he was gesturing towards the road ahead.
As they all looked in that direction, Shikaku's eyes narrowed when he saw a figure approaching them from the distance. The person wore an orange mask with black zebra-like stripes stretching horizontally across it. And as he got closer, Shikaku could see that he was skipping towards them with an almost childlike bounce in their step.
Shikaku barked at his team, "Form up, now!" As one of the few people privy to the information about the Kyubi attack on the night it happened, Shikaku knew that Kushina had shared with the Third Hokage that a man wearing an orange mask had attacked the Fourth and Kushina just after Naruto was born.
Itachi and Hotaru quickly took their positions, standing ready for action. Shikaku's gaze fell upon the third member of their genin squad and he cursed internally. Kaito was frozen in place, not responding to any commands.
Shikaku thought to himself, "This is bad. Could this man be the one who attacked the Fourth and Kushina? And what is he doing here? Is he after the Daimyo? I need more information before making a move."
One of the elite members of the 'Twelve Guardian Shinobi' noticed the suspicious looking man asked, his voice serious . "What is going on here?" Shikaku clicked his tongue in annoyance, his hand already instinctively reaching for a kunai as he replied, "Stay alert. Be on guard." He couldn't help but wonder if this was the same masked man who had attacked Konoha with the Nine Tails all those years ago.
Remaining cautious, Shikaku took a step forward and addressed the stranger directly. "State your name and intentions," he demanded, trying to gather more information while simultaneously stalling for time to come up with a plan.
The closer the masked man got to them, the more tense the atmosphere became. Suddenly, he threw his right arm into the air and posed a question in an unnervingly cheerful tone. "Hmm, I have a question I would like to ask if you don't mind?"
Ignoring the man's strange behavior, Shikaku cut straight to the point. "The road is closed today. How did you manage to get onto it?"
The masked man simply smirked under his mask, thoroughly enjoying himself. "Oh, is it closed?" He exaggeratedly spread out both arms in a grand gesture, capturing the attention of everyone around him.
Before Shikaku could even blink, he found himself caught in a powerful genjutsu that rendered him completely immobile.
It took an immense amount of effort for Shikaku to break free from the powerful genjutsu, and it took him several moments to do so. When he finally escaped, he saw Kaito in the process of slicing the masked man in half with his tanto, enhanced by lightning chakra.
Shikaku couldn't help but notice that Kaito had greatly improved his control over the lightning nature, as he was now able to change the color of the lightning itself. Noticing that his other two students were also freed from the genjutsu, but still visibly tense, Shikaku thought to himself, "Their dojutsus must have given them some resistance against genjutsu, but they are probably rigid due to the intense killing intent emanating from the masked man."
Despite their stiffness, both Hotaru and Itachi were desperately trying to find a way to help their teammate Kaito. All of this happened in a matter of seconds.
Shikaku's gaze followed the masked man's swift movements as he dodged to the left, narrowly avoiding Kaito's vertical lightning-covered slash. Despite his agility, the masked man was not unscathed - Shikaku could see a deep gash on his right arm from where Kaito's sword had struck. In that split second, Shikaku also noticed Itachi running through familiar hand signs, preparing for an attack.
Not one to waste an opportunity to assist his student, Shikaku crouched and formed the ram hand sign, causing his shadow to stretch forward with blinding speed towards the masked man as he landed.
"It seems I have underestimated you again, Uzumaki Kaito," the masked man sneered at Kaito, acknowledging his strength. But before he could finish his sentence, Shikaku's shadow held him firmly in place. The shadow connected with the masked man, holding him in place.
"Now, Itachi!" Shikaku yelled at his student, who wasted no time unleashing the biggest and most powerful fireball jutsu he had ever made. The flames erupted from Itachi and engulfed the masked man in a massive inferno within seconds.
Shikaku's brow furrowed in concern as the masked man was consumed by the blazing fireball, his shadow losing its connection to the enemy and he saw Kaito frown as he watched the fireball engulf their opponent. As the flames dissipated, Shikaku's eyes widened in surprise and he clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Troublesome," he muttered under his breath as he felt his shadow reconnect with the unscathed masked man. The enemy stood in the center of the scorched ground, seemingly untouched by the massive attack.
"I see, so all of you wish to die..." The masked man spoke in a chillingly serious tone, sending shivers down Shikaku's spine. It was as if he had just been toying with them moments ago.He suddenly paused, sensing something in a specific direction.
"This chakra...Kakashi Hatake," he murmured, before turning back to Kaito with a deadly glint in his eye. "I'll be sure to kill you next time." His voice dripped with malice and determination, causing a chill to run through Shikaku's veins. This enemy was not to be underestimated.
Shikaku strained to hear what was being said before the attention turned to Kaito, who was threatened with death at their next encounter. Before Shikaku could react, the mysterious figure was sucked into a black hole on his mask and Shikaku's shadow was forcefully disconnected from him. "Troublesome," muttered Shikaku as he watched Kaito desperately try to stop the masked man before he disappeared.
Shikaku's thoughts were racing as he tried to make sense of what had just happened. "The Third Hokage mentioned that this masked man was able to use space-time ninjutsu. This must have been what Kushina was warning us about. How troublesome."
His attention turned to Hotaru, who had collapsed to the ground in shock. The pressure and killing intent had lifted with the masked man's departure, but it was clear that she had been deeply affected by the encounter. Shikaku also noticed Itachi looking shaken, but his focus was on Kaito, who was screaming and pounding his fists against the ground in frustration and grief.
Suddenly, ANBU members appeared, some going to release those trapped in the genjutsu while others landed near them. Even they had fallen prey to the powerful illusion, which affected everyone at once. "Even the ANBU couldn't escape its grasp. troublesome," thought Shikaku.
He saw Kakashi trying to calm down Kaito, and decided to approach Hotaru himself. "Are you alright, Hotaru-chan?" he asked gently.
She nodded, though her voice trembled as she replied, "Hai, sensei." It was clear that she had been deeply shaken by the experience.
Shikaku then turned his attention to Itachi, who was watching Kaito with a pained expression. He walked over to Kaito, wanting to offer some comfort or support. But before he could reach him, Kaito suddenly shouted at Kakashi, "It was him, Kakashi! That bastard was here. The same guy who captured my..." He trailed off, his eyes widening in realization and muttered "Mom." before he quickly body flickered away before anyone could stop him.
"Troublesome," Shikaku murmured to himself. He turned to Kakashi and ordered, "Kakashi, you and your squad will take over from here. Escort the daimyo to the village as quickly as possible."
Then, he glanced in the direction where Kaito had disappeared and added, "My team and I will head back to inform the Hokage and alert the village of what has occurred. and sending you reinforcements." Kakashi nodded in understanding.
Shikaku then looked at his remaining genin squad and asked, "Can you all move?" Receiving nods from them, Shikaku said, "Then let's go." He jumped up onto a nearby tree branch and began to swiftly make their way towards Konoha.
As they traveled from tree to tree, Shikaku turned to Hotaru and asked, "Hotaru, can you use your Byakugan to see how far Kaito is from us?" Hotaru replied with a quick "hai" and activated her Byakugan.
After scanning the area for a moment, she reported back to Shikaku, "He's about 2 km ahead of us and he's gaining distance." The urgency in her voice was evident.
Shikaku's brow furrowed as he muttered, "Troublesome...we'll have to increase our speed to reach him." The urgency in his voice was palpable as they picked up their pace. But no matter how fast they went, Kaito seemed to gain more distance with each passing moment.
Hotaru's voice rang out, strained with exertion, "I didn't know Kaito-kun could move so fast." Itachi, running at his top speed, narrowed his eyes in determination as they pursued Kaito. He turned to their sensei and asked urgently, "Sensei, what happened to Kaito? He's never shown this much strength when sparring with us before. And I've never seen him act like this."
Hotaru chimed in, her tone worried, "Hai, I've never seen Kaito-kun this angry before. He's always so calm and happy."
Shikaku sighed heavily and explained, "Kaito always holds back when sparring with us. He mentioned something about you getting a boost when your Sharingan improves. As for his behavior, do you remember Kaito's introduction during our first meeting?"
Both Itachi and Hotaru's eyes widened in realization as he continued, "That was the masked man Kaito mentioned."
Shikaku paused for a moment before adding, "I won't go into detail since I don't know all the details myself. You should ask Kaito himself. But from what I understand, the masked man is the reason why Lady Kushina almost died and why she can no longer use chakra. And if you know Kaito well enough, you would know that he loves his mother very much." Itachi and Hotaru nodded solemnly at this new information.
The dense forest rushed by in a blur as Kaito leapt from tree to tree with lightning speed, his mind consumed by one thought: to ensure the safety of his mother and brother. He muttered "please be alright, please be alright" repeatedly, the words a desperate plea to fate. Tears streamed down his face, unnoticed as he pushed his body to its limits, channeling chakra into his muscles for extra speed.
After what felt like an eternity, Kaito breached the Konoha sensory barrier and darted past the guard post without stopping to check in. Ignoring the shouts of the guards and shinobi chasing after him, he was just a blur as he raced towards his home at full speed. Only his mother and brother occupied his thoughts as he sprinted through the bustling streets and rooftops of the village.
Arriving at his destination, Kaito burst through the door, yelling "Mom! Naruto!" His breath ragged and his face covered in sweat, he collapsed against them both in a tight embrace. Kushina, who had been seated at the dining table teaching Naruto something, and little Naruto himself were startled by their son and brother's sudden appearance. Before they could react, they were enveloped in Kaito's arms as he cried against them, his body trembling with emotion.
Kushina's heart ached at the sight of her usually composed son so distraught. She hugged him back tightly, trying to calm him down. It reminded her of that day when Kaito had a premonition about Naruto's birth - she hadn't seen him this vulnerable since then.
After a grueling 20 minutes, Team 11 stumbled into the house looking disheveled and exhausted. Shikaku quickly led them inside. Kaito's mother, tears streaming down her face, cradled him in her arms as he lay unconscious. By the time Shikaku arrived, Kaito had already passed out from exhaustion.
When Kushina saw Shikaku, Hotaru, and Itachi enter the house, she immediately asked them with a worried expression on her face. "What happened, Shikaku-san?" she asked.
Shikaku let out a sigh before explaining, "During our mission, we encountered the masked man that had attacked you on the day Naruto was born. When Kaito saw him, he went into a rage and attacked him. After the masked man escaped, Kaito rushed back to the village to make sure you and Naruto were safe."
Looking over at Kaito once more, Shikaku said to Kushina, "I'll leave him in your care for now. I need to report this incident to the Hokage."
Kushina nodded and Shikaku ushered Itachi and Hotaru out of the house. As they stepped outside, Shikaku's gaze fell upon a nearby tree where he signaled something with his hand. Suddenly, an ANBU appeared before them.
Shikaku gave orders to the ANBU, "Double the number of guards around them and make sure nobody gets near them. The masked man was spotted just a few hours ago."
The ANBU replied with a quick "Hai" before body flickering away to carry out their orders.
"I have to head to the Hokage's office," Shikaku announced before turning back to Itachi and Hotaru. "You two can go back home for now. We'll probably be called in for questioning in a few days, so rest up until then." All three of them nodded before parting ways. Itachi and Hotaru made their way back home while Shikaku headed towards the Hokage's office to report the incident.
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