9 The leaf village

(Kaz)

After the subsequent fight with the two akatsuki, Kaz was much more motivated to train while he traveled. He had a concern, however, what would he do when he had to fight itatchi of the sharingan an Kisame again? They wouldn't fall for the same trick, and Kaz would get his ass kicked by a user of the sharingan.

There was only one thing he could do, and that was train his ass off. He would run hard for half the day and then use his lightning nature until the other half.

He did this for nearly seven more days until he was about a day's travel from the leaf village. By the end of his fourteen day journey, Kaz was absolutely sick and tired of eating plain spiced rice. He was also ragged from the intense training and decided to give himself time to get to recover his chakra. He was practically salivating at the thought of ramen or some slow roasted pulled pork, as he choked down a plain rice ball.

He traveled the last day, realizing that without training to occupy his time, he was bored out of his mind.it was on the morning of the twelfth day he sensed two figures attempting to hide their chakra signatures.Kaz pretended not to notice and simply waited for the leaf shinobi to reveal themselves. His patience was rewarded when two figures leapt from the side of the road and landed softly in front of him.

"Stop right there. What is your business this close to the leaf village?" one asked, his tone soft yet stern. "And who are you to demand such information?" Kaz asked, annoyed. First off, he smelled awful in his sweat-soaked, dust covered clothes, and second, it was hot out. Why was this man was stopping him when a proper meal was so close?

"I'm Kotetsu Hagane, and this is Izumo Kamizuki. We are on patrol for the leaf village. Now who are you and what do you want in the leaf village?" Kotetsu demanded. Kotetsu had long, spiky, black hair and dark eyes.

He had a strip of bandage running across the bridge of his nose and a light-coloured marking on his chin. The man was tall and athletic, wearing black pants and shirt with a green flack jacket covering his chest.

The other one, Izumo had brown hair, and dark eyes. His hair was combed down and covered his right eye. He wore his forehead protector like a bandanna along with the standard leaf shinobi outfit, which cover his body all the way up to his chin.

Kaz ran his callused right hand through his sweat soaked sky blue hair and tapped the forehead protector on his head."I'm Kaz taberu, a ninja from the former hidden grass village."Kaz said, projecting an heir of exhaustion.

"Former hidden grass village?" Izamo asked, raising an eyebrow."Yes, that is why I came to the hidden leaf. The hidden grass was attacked and destroyed by the hidden cloud several weeks ago."Kaz replied, keeping his voice low.

Their eyes widen and Kotetsu took a step back."Please come with us, Kaz." Kotetsu order, gesturing down the road towards the leaf village."Are you taking me to your leader or something?" Kaz asked, following the two leaf ninja wearily. "Yes, he will want to talk to you."Izumo replied.

"And where did the hidden cloud ninja go after they attacked your village?" Kotetsu asked, his tone bleak. "They headed north away from the leaf village back towards the hidden cloud village."Kaz replied evenly. Kotetsu let out a relieved sigh, slowing his pace considerably.

Kaz wasn't sure if he wanted to meet the hokage, but after revealing the fate of the hidden grass village, it was a forgone conclusion he would meet the hokage. On second thought, the third hokage was renowned to have mastery over all five elements. It was said that Hiruzen Sarutobi could master a jutsu after only seeing its hand seals one time.

Kaz tempered his excitement as he followed the two leaf shinobi, it's not like he could kill the man. He would be a colossal moron if he tried to kill the hokage in the middle of the leaf village. Not to mention the fact that the third hokage wasn't just some paper pusher, the hokage was one of the strongest ninja in the five great nations.

His thoughts drifted like the trees along the road as he followed along with the dreadfully slow pace of the two leaf ninja. Wait a minute? Sarutobi, that name was familiar.He patted his hand over the bulge on his flack jacket, touching the light leather bingo book. Was it a coincidence, or was Azuma saratobi a relative of the hokage?

Well, they were from the same village, so it was extremely likely.Kaz swallowed, he would need to be weary who he hunted from the bingo book, as having one of the kage hunting him down would not be good. A massive wooden wall towered over the trees blocking the road, intersected by a green paneled gate with a symbol of a leaf stenciled above the doors.

The gates were open, revealing a bustling village within. As they approached, Kaz revealed in the cool shade of the walls, and took in a deep breath of the fragrant air of the village. Despite being only at the gate, he could already smell something cooking nearby.

Grilled pork, freshly baked bread and steamed rice drifted in the morning air as they enter the leaf village. He glanced at his escorts, wondering if they would allow him to stop and grab a bite to eat.

"Do you know any nice places to eat?" Kaz asked, his mouth watering already. The two leaf shinobi glanced at each other. Kotetsu adjusted the massive kunai on his back and replied."Well, there are several places you can go, but only once you get clearance to stay in the leaf."Izumo said, eyeing Kaz's hidden grass head band with a raised brow.

Kaz reached up and tapped his forehead protector, his fingernail clinking softly on the steel."Dont give me that look, as a grass ninja, I am allied with the leaf village."Kaz said, folding his arms as tho it was really that simple.

"That is not for you to decide, the hokage will be the judge of that. Keep in mind you are still a shinobi from another village." Izumo said, his tone firm yet kind.

The arch of the village gates passed overhead and the merciless sun returned with full force, no longer denied by the shade of the gates. His two escorts approached a booth to the left of the gates. "Ahh, Izumo, and Kotetsu, who is that with you?" Asked a leaf shinobi, looking up from a stack of papers."Greetings Iruka, this is Kaz from the hidden grass."Kotetsu said with a smile.

"Another hidden grass shinobi? You are a little old to be a part of the chunin exams?" Iruka asked, eyeing Kaz up and down."I am here to-" Kotetsu cut Kaz off. "He is here to deliver sensitive information, come Kaz."

"If you are going to stay in the leaf after you report to the hokage, return to the front gate and I will enter you in the logs."Iruka said as Kaz was led away by his two escorts.Iruka gave him a friendly wave, his smile genuine and likable.

"Iruka seems nice enough."Kaz said in an attempt to break the silence.

Kotetsu nodded but didn't say anything after that, leaving a long, awkward silence between the three of them. They walked through the bustling traffic of the leaf, but despite the fact that Kaz was being led by shinobi the villagers didn't shy away from them.

Unlike the hidden grass, the ninja leading him actually received several smiles and even a few waves of hello. Despite shinobi being needed for defence in the hidden grass, they were not liked. Come to think of it, maybe that was why he made no friends amongst the other grass ninja. Zosui had been a dictator, using everyone like a thing, going so far as to throw away lives of those who weren't useful.

Kaz let out a frustrated breath at the thoughts of the past. The city streets twisted and turned, the building obstructing his view. The street opened up, and he came into sight of something incredible. His eyes widen as they walked between the tall buildings, and the mountain towering over the village came into view. He gaped as the sheer scope of the engraved stone faces were revealed in all their glory.

Being told of the great stone faces and seeing them were two completely different things.Izumo grinned at him."First time being in the village?" Izumo asked curiously."Yea, it's my first time being here. To be honest, I didn't believe the stories about the faces carved into the mountain."Kaz replied, cocking his head up at the stone faces.

Three stone faces stood out in all their glory, each one larger than a two-story house. His heart raced and excitement filled him, what else was out there? His eyes landed on a ninja from the hidden stone, the genin walking down the street without a care in the world.

Was Karin near? She would be near the other hidden grass ninja preparing for the upcoming chunin exams. He glanced at Izumos back and then back over his shoulder at Kotetsu weighing his options. He was weary to push out his senses amidst the leaf ninja, but he wanted to find Karin.

He decided it wasn't worth the risk for now. If his two escorts sensed him doing something suspicious, they might overreact and attack, and so Kaz kept his chakra to himself, masking his chakra pool.

His head was on a swivel as they passed civilian, and then an ever-increasing number of foreign ninja. There were some hidden stone ninja, hidden sand ninja, and even some hidden sound ninja. Kaz stopped in his tracks as he passed several hidden cloud genin.

Kaz took in deep calming breaths, of course the hidden cloud sent genin to take part in the chunin exams. If they didn't, the leaf might have been suspicious. What was their overall objective? And why did they care so much about that stupid anuki?

He was escorted through the bustle if crowd, receiving several interested looks. But, Kaz doubted anyone here would bother to remember him. They would be used to the odd faces of all the new genin ranked ninja. They might find his blue hair interesting, but aside from that, they would most likely forget him completely.

A large round red building towered over the two-story houses, it was flat on top with several stone pillars appearing like flat pointed claws curling towards the center of the building. Izumo opened the front door, and led Kaz down the hall.

Kaz wanted to explore the building's secrets, but despite the fact this place felt mostly empty, he could sense several ninjas in hiding. His heart beat quicken, they but be the infamous anbu of the hidden leaf.

He smiled. They were skilled at hiding, but Kaz possessed the mind's eye of kagura, and almost no one could hide completely from that. He shook himself, finding the Anbu and being able to defeat them were two completely different things. They stopped when he came to a lovely young lady sitting behind a desk.

Kaz strained his ears to listen in on their conversation. "The hokage is busy, but I can leave a message for him." She said, smiling up at Izumo with a bright toothed smile.

"It's extremely urgent, he needs to hear this right away."Izumo said, his body stiff.

The young woman behind the counter nodded her head and disappeared into the door behind her.The young woman returned several seconds later and gestured them in. Kaz followed Izumo, with Kotetsu right on his heels. He took in a deep breath, his body tense as he sensed the intense eyes on his back. The room was stacked with piles of papers and shelves of books on each wall.

The far wall was a set of windows that spanned the length of the outer wall. An old man sat in a high backed chair, his body mostly covered by the stacks of papers and scrolls on his desk. He wore the red and white robes of the hokage with an unpractical hat adorning his head.

The old man stroked his white goatee as Kaz was escorted into his office."Lord hokage, this is Kaz Taberu of the hidden grass village." Izumo said bowing to the hokage.

He took the young man in, his expression one of calm assurance.Kaz swallowed, his heart racing as he was examined by that intense gaze. "Izumo, Kotetsu, please wait outside."The third hokage said, his voice soft yet firm. The leaf shinobi left the room, but that didn't mean Kaz was alone with the hokage. He could sense the hidden anbu nearby waiting to strike if he made an aggressive move.

Despite his outward appearance of calm, Kaz was nervous. What if this man already knew he killed Zosui of the hidden grass? "Well, what did you come to report?" the hokage asked, clasping his gnarled hands in front of him.

"The village hidden in the grass was annihilated about two weeks ago."Kaz said, deciding to cut the chase. The old mans eyes widen at those extremely blunt words. "Are you sure about that?" the hokage asked, his tone calm yet somewhat rattled.

"Yes, I don't think everyone is dead, but the last I seen of the village it was a pile of rubble and ash."Kaz said, making sure not to make any sudden moves. "And who was the cause of this surprise attack on our doorstep?" The third hokage asked, his voice low.

"The hidden cloud sent a squad of nearly forty ninja to our village."Kaz reply, his heart racing as he remember the battle."Do you know why they were there?" The hokage asked, curiously.

Kaz really didn't want to tell the hokage, but he wanted to gain the older mans trust, and he doubted he could do that with simple lies. Kaz slowly pulled a scroll from his tool pouch and held it up. "They were after a rogue medic ninja that has been hiding out in the hidden grass village for several years."Kaz replied, waving the scroll through the air.

The hokage reclined back in chair with a light creak of leather."Do you want me to show you his corpse?" Kaz asked, sensing some activity in the hidden anbu black ops nearby. He was on the edge of being attacked, all it would take was one slip up and this could go out of proportion.

"That is quite all right, I will have one of my anbu examine the body when you leave my office." The third hokage said dismissively. Kaz nodded, returning the scroll to his tool pouch, his body tense. "No wonder none of their bigshots have shown up yet for the chunin exams. Several of their genin have already been kicked out in the first two weeks of preliminaries." The hokage mumbled, scratching his grey goatee thoughtfully.

"Will I get the body back after your people take a look at it? That guy's body is quite valuable."Kaz said, not really knowing how valuable. "Of course, once we find out who he is, then I will make sure you are paid if full for the bounty."the hokage said dismissively, still lost in thought.

Kaz wasn't sure if he believed the man, but at this point he was a fly and the hokage was a dragon. "What are your plans now?" the hokage asked, eying Kaz's green flack jacket and up to his headband.

"Well, I was planning on doing some bounty hunting now that I am no longer bound to a village."Kaz said, smiling. "A bounty hunter? What about mercenary work?" the hokage asked, steepling his fingers.

"That depends, if you are offering me a job, then maybe."Kaz said, excitement filling him. "Have you told anyone about the hidden cloud attacking your village?" the hokage asked.

"Nope, no one aside from Izumo and Kotetsu." Kaz said wearily. "Thats good, keep that information to yourself. For now, I have a task for you if you are willing?" the hokage said. "That all depends on what task you want me to do?"Kaz reply cautiously.

"The hidden cloud sent almost two dozen genin as a token for this year's chunin exams. They are not the main concern, however. There is a new smaller village taking part for the first time. They are the hidden sound, i have suspicions that the hidden sound are lead by a criminal name orochimaru."the hokage said.

"I am familiar with orochimaru, he is in the bingo book for good reason. I'm not foolish enough to fight him at my current strength."Kaz cut in. The hokage sighed, massaging his temples. "As a third party, you can go unnoticed in the village, even ignored. I suspect the hidden cloud might make a move on the village, and orochimaru won't be far behind." The hokage said, seemingly exhausted.

"What does this orochimaru want from the village?" Kaz asked, raising an eyebrow."Sasuke uchiha, we suspect that is the real reason Orochimaru is here in the village is to take the genin."The hokage said.

"And why are you telling me, a complete stranger, all of this?" Kaz asked, dumbfounded. "To be honest, it is because I am desperate, orochimaru is extremely dangerous. He has already infiltrated the village and i believe he is waiting for the right moment to strike during the chunin exams." the Hokage said wearily, his shoulders slumping.

"And you want me to what, commit suicide by fighting orochimaru?" Kaz asked in bemusement. First there was the akatsuki and now someone like orochimaru? "No, there are two weeks until the finals of the chunin exams. I believe that orochimaru and one of the other hidden villages will strike together. What I want you to do is to discover which of the other hidden villages is working with orochimaru, and when you do report back to me."The hokage said, laying out the information.

Kaz listened intently, aware that the hokage was only giving him the crumbs of his information. He could refuse, of course, but just looking at the man, he realized if he wanted to stay in the village, refusal wasn't an option. Either way, he would be dragged into this conflict and besides, Karin wouldn't be able to leave until the exams finished or she was kicked out.

He let out a frustrated sigh and scratched the back of his head, unaware that he was nearly attacked for the sudden movement. "Alright, I will look into the other enemy of the leaf village. But as a mercenary, I expect compensation for my effort."Kaz said, deciding to push his luck.

"Talk to my secretary, she will give you some paperwork to fill out. And Kaz, don't let anyone know why you are in the village. If they ask, simply tell them you are here to watch the exams."the Hokage said calmly.

"Of course, lord hokage."Kaz replied bowing slightly, before turning and walking out into the hallway.

..............

Hiruzen saratobi watched the athletic blue-haired young man leave the room, his front door shutting with a click. That young man was either who he said he was or he was one of Orochimaru's spies. Hiruzen was willing to bet he was legitimate. Orochimaru wasn't a fool, he would know a spy standing out that obviously would be easily discovered and taken.

He pulled a long wooden pipe from his desk, ignoring the fact that his secretary would scold him for smoking inside. Smoking helped him think, and right now, he needed a sharp mind. A trickle of grey smoke drifted in front of his face, calming his fraying nerves..

Another shinobi to help him was always welcome, but was hiring Kaz smart? The young man had excellent chakra control, it was almost like he was a normal man without the chakra pool of a ninja. That told him a lot about the young man's skill. At the very least, the man had to be a low ranked jonin, and if that was the case, he could be useful.

Through the thick walls he could hear Kaz talking with that young receptionist, their voices a faint murmur. After several minutes, he raised one hand, and a shinobi appeared kneeling, bowing its red and white bird mask."Lord?" the anbu asked. "Did you receive the scroll?" Hiruzen asked.

"Yes, and the body is quite interesting. We will need to do a more thorough inspection, but we believe the medic ninja might be a rogue ninja that fled the hidden cloud five years ago with some top secret information."The anbu said, his voice sounding excited.

"Very good, learn everything that you can. I doubt his killers left anything important on the body, but I'm not willing to risk that."Hiruzen said. The anbu bowed once again and then slowly faded back into the shadows.

That was a good sign, the body was already turning up some interesting things, and the study had just began. Hiruzen grinned, what would Kaz do? Would he find himself face down in a gutter, or would he get some results? His pipe ran dry, signaling an end to his break. Hiruzen really hoped the Kazekage didn't get in his way, as two enemies were already bad enough.

His heart beat faster as he thought on the potential looming fight. Sure, his former pupil might outmatch him one on one, but that didn't mean he would let orochimaru do whatever he wanted. If that snake was going to be so bold as to attack the leaf, then he was going to get a bloody lesson.