Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Utakata and the team escaped Daimyo's palace but were still in the capital. They didn't have enough time to leave it before the bells rang. Guards with spears, swords, and bows rushed toward Daimyo's palace, and they had to hide. Utakata still didn't understand what Yagura planned to do to frame the Cloud.

"Do not use your chakra from there on," Yagura said. "Enemy shinobi will arrive soon. If we are discovered, the mission will fail.

"Then how do we leave?" Zabuza asked. "The gates will be closed, as will every entrance to the city."

"Are you questioning me?" Yagura asked menacingly but let it go. "An escape route was already prepared. Just follow me."

Yagura led the team to the outskirts of the city. It was near the southern wall. The area was no better than slums, desolated with only guards running around, probably looking for them, and the residents hiding within their shacks. It would be too generous to call them houses. Yagura led them through shadows, avoiding everyone.

It didn't take long before they reached a rundown house, it was bigger than most shacks in this area, but it was still made of rotten wood. As they walked in, Utakata smelled blood. He saw dead bodies hidden in various places as they walked deeper inside. Yagura came to a stop once they reached an empty room. Yagura used his weapon to hook a floor plank and lifted it.

"There is our way out," Yagura informed them.

There was a tunnel dug under the floor of the house. Once they climbed down, they walked in the narrow tunnel for a while. Utakata understood that this house was probably a smuggling den. The tunnel was used to smuggle goods into the city, and the dead people were smugglers Yagura killed to secure the place.

It seemed that Yagura had planned everything. Yet that only unnerved Utakata more. He couldn't understand why they were needed for the mission. Yagura could have done it by himself. And there was the framing part of the mission that he couldn't understand how it would be done. But what could he do? To question Yagura's decisions would only bring death upon him.

Once they left the tunnel, they found themselves in a small patch of woods outside the city walls. Yagura smirked arrogantly and dared anyone to question him again. Utakata ignored him and fixed his jacket and scarf as the wind started to pick up, and the night was only getting colder. Seeing no reason to stay in the place, the team moved out.

…

Something was wrong. Utakata knew that Yagura was planning something. It has already been a day since they escaped the capital city of the Land of the Frost. For twenty hours, we ran at high speed. If they had taken the same path they came into these lands, they would almost escape the Land of the Frost, but Yagura led them in a different direction.

Rather than go straight to the sea, they ran in the Land of the Hot Water direction. It meant they were getting closer to the Land of the Fire rather than the Land of the Water. It disturbed Utakata immensely because he started to suspect the reason for this team's existence. If what he thought was right, he was in danger.

But what could he do? Others, too, started to suspect Yagura as he led them in this direction. Yet everyone knew that Yagura was more powerful than any of them. It was clear from Yagura's expression that if they questioned him, he would kill them. Utakata could only hope not to meet any shinobi from the Leaf as he was already quite exhausted from the running.

The cold didn't help, making Utakata feel pain in every breath he took. At least he was forced to control his breathing, which helped to save some energy. But his nose was almost blue from the cold, and his throat tightened, making it painful to take deep breaths. He didn't know how well he could fight in these conditions, but his senses proved that he didn't possess good luck.

Twelve sources of chakra were in front of them. Utakata could feel that they were at least as strong as he was, but he didn't feel anything that was similar power to Yagura. But it didn't matter much if what Utakata thought would happen. He considered warning the others, but in the end, he was silent. Yagura probably knew of the approaching shinobi as he led them straight to them.

It would only oust him, and then he would be questioned why he kept his sensing abilities a secret. Utakata could not trust the village enough to give them all his strengths. There might be a day when he has to rely on his secrets to save himself. He knew what was coming for the village, and for one or another reason, the village might want to get rid of him one day.

"Shinobi in front of us," It didn't take long before they could see the approaching shinobi.

"Mist?" Utakata looked at the leader of the opposing shinobi group. He didn't recognize anyone of the Leaf shinobi. So, at least there wasn't anyone significant in their group.

"What are you waiting for?" Yagura asked his team. "Go kill them."

While everyone rushed to list Yagura's orders, Utakata turned to Yagura. He was not moving, confirming Utakata's theory. He wanted them to die. That was his and the rest of the team's job. They were chosen for this mission to die. Neither Utakata nor anyone else in the group possessed bloodline limits, so their bodies weren't that valuable.

Yagura would leave the team's dead bodies for the Land of the Frost to discover. He would alter them so that they would believe they were Cloud shinobi that died while fighting Leaf shinobi. Not only would it frame the Cloud, but it would make the conflict between the Cloud and the Leaf even heavier. Of course, the Cloud would deny their involvement, but who would believe them?

Yagura smiled at Utakata. Yagura knew well what Utakata was thinking, but he didn't care. What would Utakata do? It was to fight Yagura, escape, or fight the Leaf shinobi and try to survive. There was nothing to think about as Utakata drew his tento blades and attached steel wire. Utakata could only hope that Yagura wouldn't kill him after he defeated the Leaf Shinobi.

The others were already exchanging blows with the Leaf shinobi, but without Yagura, there were only eight of them and twelve of the Leaf shinobi. Instead of rushing and taking more than he could chew, Utakata looked for the weakest shinobi to fight. He needed to cut down the numbers as fast as possible. The more of his team survived, the better chance it was for Yagura not to kill them.

Utakata quickly found his first target. A woman who didn't look well-versed in close combat as she tried to stay at a distance. Utakata threw his tanto blade at the woman, who managed to dodge. As the blade flew behind the woman, Utakata used the steel wire attached to it to return, hitting the woman with the hilt of the blade.

It wasn't enough for the woman to receive any damage, but it was enough distraction for Utakata to get close to her. From there on, Utakata used his tiny body to avoid any hits from the woman. Using his blades, Utakata would dodge the woman's attacks and leave cuts on her arms and legs. The cuts were shallow, but he injured her enough to make the woman slow and sluggish.

Seeing that the attack was too slow for Utakata not to be able to avoid them, he rushed to finish her. She was too injured to escape Utakata but still tried to back off. Not letting her do so, Utakata took a bit of risk and jumped at her tackling her to the ground while he stabbed her in the chest. Utakata knew being on the ground with enemy shinobi around him was a death sentence.

Utakata moved his body to roll off the woman's body and get the woman's body on him. The body blocked him from a kunai and shuriken that would have killed him otherwise. Utakata threw the body off him to incoming fire jutsu using all his strength. As the fireball exploited the contact with the woman's corpse, Utakata got his feet and rushed to fight another shinobi from the Leaf.

While concentrating on the fight, he didn't neglect to take the notion of what he sensed. He could feel there were still six Leaf Shinobi and five, including Yagura and himself, of the Mist. It was a close fight, and the shinobi he fought now wasn't an easy opponent. While the woman from before might have underestimated him, this shinobi gave his all to kill Utakata.

Seeing that his blades couldn't touch the Leaf shinobi and his foe's hits, even if they only grazed him, hurt like hell, Utakata jumped back and threw his blades at his opponent to buy some time. While the Lead shinobi blocked Utakata's tanto blades, Utakata used the time to make a set of hand signs and created a mist clone before him.

While the leaf shinobi destroyed the mist clone, Utakata used Carp rabid fire jutsu to push the Leaf shinobi even further away. Utakata could tell he would have difficulty winning against his foe, so he ran away. Using his nimble and small body, Utakata moved around the battle and got behind Zabuza. Zabuza had no choice but to finish his opponent and face Utakata as he neared them.

Yet Utakata didn't stay in place and did nothing. Waiting for a perfect opportunity, Utakata pulled his blades back with the steel wire attached to them. The Leaf shinobi who fought Utakata made the same mistake as the woman and took his eyes from tanto blades once they were out of Utakata's reach. The leaf shinobi blocked them in time, but it allowed Zabuza to stab him in the chest.

Once Zabuza took back his sword from the chest of the Leaf shinobi, he looked around to see if anyone else was left for him to kill. Utakata, on the other hand, felt that only one Leaf shinobi was left alive and four of his team, including Yagura. Seeing his situation, the last Leaf shinobi tried to escape, but before he could do so, he found a hook around his neck.

"Well done," Yagura said as he cut off the last Leaf shinobi's head.

"Why didn't you join us in the fight?" Asked Utakata's teammate, while Zabuza and Utakata stayed silent.

"Maybe you have forgotten what I have told, as you dare to question me," Yagura answered. "And there I thought I could keep you alive as enough have died for my plan. Well, it is always better to have more."

Utakata and Zabuza watched as Yagura butchered their teammate like he was made of nothing but straw. Zabuza didn't relax and was prepared to fight Yagura if he went after them. Utakata had his blades in his hand, ready to fight for his life, but he stood a bit behind Zabuza. Yagura seeing them, only smiled before disarming himself.

"Zabuza and Utakata, wasn't it?" Yagura said. "You did well for yourselves. I especially like your way of fighting Utakata. As you have realized, I needed some of you to die. That's why I led us to the patrol team of the Leaf."

"Why did you need some of us to die?" Zabuza asked.

"Are you questioning me?" Yagura asked.

"I am questioning the mission, sir," Zabuza bit his lip in frustration.

"Heh, good answer. They had to die because we needed to the Land of the Frost to find some of the Cloud shinobi in their lands for the plan to work," Yagura took out Cloud headbands from his bag and started to tie them on the Mist shinobi who were dead. "Too bad there weren't any for us to take, so I had to make my own. Now that it is done, it is time we leave."