9 Silent Intruder

He would have practiced for longer, but...he noticed he was entertaining a guest. He could tell because he could sense the heartbeat about ten to fifteen trees away. Luckily he had decided to take a water break so he doubted the person saw anything. Unfortunately, he couldn't get a good look at them since it would most likely give his position away, but...he could feel it.

Their blood. It was strong. He wasn't sure how he could tell, but it oozed stronger than he had thought any blood could. It gave off a near overpowering aroma, but he did not yield. Whoever the blood was connected to they were very strong. So strong in fact that...he wanted them on his side. Such rich blood meant that the person was fit, such hiding tactics meant that they were a shinobi, and a good one at that.

"Hmmm, I bet Jiji sent them. Not like I didn't expect him to. Now, I can get started," Naruto thought to himself. You see, during his training period, Naruto had learned something. He had learned something that made him his face nearly tear in two. It almost made him blackmailing little Setsuna-chan almost not worth anything. Almost.

He picked up his things and exited the forest area he had been training in. Who says pranking doesn't have real world applications? He could feel the person still behind him. He hoped he didn't give anything away. After all, he had more things to test out. Having an unknowing partner was going to be more fun than he previously envisioned.

He climbed up the stairs of his apartment and grinned when he saw a pile of books in a bag just in front of his door. "Good girl, Setsuna-chan," Naruto thought. He grabbed the pile of books and walked into his house. Once he closed the door, he quickly turned around and faced it. Now he could look without being seen.

It was a woman based on the outline of her blood flow. The blood curved around hips that shouldn't be there for a male ninja. Plus, the blood smelled of a feminine aroma. Weird? Yes. Useful? Absolutely. Though judging strength level was beyond him, but from what he could gather...it wasn't a chunin. He had been chased by chunin-level shinobi before and, dealing with mostly Konoha chunin, he had a good tell of the chakra of a chunin shinobi. This was beyond that. Now, onto the next phase of his plan.

....

Uzuki Yugao sighed as she watched Naruto's apartment from about five rooftops away. She never doubted the word of her Hokage, but the most dangerous thing about the boy in front of her was his mere tendency to kill animals. So, in essence, it was nothing to be concerned about.

She didn't know why she was here serving surveillance over him. So the kid got a little hissy fit, given his current living arrangements it wasn't out of the ordinary for him to be angry. In addition, she sympathized with him in some areas, but suffering was the way of human life. Nothing would change that.

She released a breath. She hoped he would leave his house soon. She needed to have it investigated and searched as quick as possible. While she doubted she was going to find some S-rank jutsu scrolls or a message detailing information from some other village, it was good practice for a stakeout. She had a feeling this would be happening for a while.

Yugao stiffened when she saw Naruto open his door. He gave a wide stretch of his arms before he walked away from his apartment. "Well, that's convenient, but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth," she said. Standing to her feet, she closed the distance to his apartment. She didn't know how long he would be gone. True, she could knock him out before he could blink, but why take the risk?

Once she was sure the boy was gone, Uzuki Yugao stood on the railing of his outside platform. She noticed his glass window door. She grabbed the handle. She was surprised she heard the door slide open. "His doors unlocked? I figured the kid would have a higher case for self-preservation," she thought. She stepped inside and silently closed the door behind her.

The female anbu was rather surprised to see how clean his room was...for a boy. Not too many clothes laying around the floor, no dirty laundry, no...inappropriate reading material on the bookshelves. All in all, a fairly normal-looking room. "Among other things," she thought. She didn't see any harm in it, so she took off her mask and breathed a tad.

Her purple hair straightened itself out. She knelt underneath his bed and set up a small audio recorder with audio enhancement. Sorry Naruto, but this was for the good of Konoha. Unfortunately, your privacy wasn't a factor. After setting up a small camera near his closet, she opened the door which led from his bedroom and into his hallway. Her eyes moved with expert precision befitting a top-ranking kunoichi of Konohagakure.

Yugao placed mics and cameras in his bathroom, hallway, and dining room area. Now, all she had to do was the living room area. She stepped into the living room area. As soon as she stepped into the living room, she gave pause. Why did she feel tense?

She had watched the blonde leave his room more than twenty minutes ago. So why did she feel a bead of sweat drop down her back. It was as if the room breathed rage and resentment. She wondered if she had been taking too many missions and needed to request some time off. Hopefully, Hayate would appreciate some alone time with her.

Yet, as she worked, Yugao couldn't rid herself of the feeling that she was being watched. She'd turn around only to see rats scurry the blonde's floor before running once they were aware she spotted them.

"Ugh, what's wrong with me? It's just a kid's apartment. What am I worried about?" she asked before setting up the last camera with installed audio recorder. Great, now she could get out of here. The silence in the living room was becoming unnerving. It was like the very air had died around her.

Yugao was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard a shout. "What the hell?! Who are you?! What are you doing in my apartment?!" she stiffened and turned around to see her target staring at her in shock. Time seemed so slow to her. What...was happening? How didn't she hear him come in? Nothing should have been able to sneak up on her so easily! Plus...he got a clear look at her face.

She sucked her teeth. "Sorry Naruto, but I'm going to make sure you never remember this encounter!" She thought. In an instant, the anbu slammed Naruto against the wall, her hand around his throat.

The young blonde coughed and gagged as he grabbed her arm. She hoped to make him lose enough air to pass out, but his kicks and flailing were getting annoying. Suddenly, she flinched in pain when her she looked down at her gloved hand. The material had been cut open and so had her skin. She watched her hand bleed.

She dropped the blonde and backed away for a moment. She stared at her bleeding hand, yet...it didn't flow like she expected it to. She watched it slowly rise into the air. She took a step back, her legs shaky.

"You know, Anbu-neechan, it's bad to walk into people's homes without permission dattebayo. Now, why don't you tell me what you were doing in here?" Naruto asked.

Yugao gave no response. She could feel her chest burning, and she could feel her vision fading. She glanced up and her was struck by horror when she saw Naruto's arm coating in red blood, her blood. It fashioned itself into the form of a blade. Her blood dripped from his fingers. H...Hokage-sama had to be warned.

"Ah, the silent treatment? Well, no worries. I'm a former prankster after all. I have fun ways of making even Anbu talk. We're going to be good friends, Anbu-neechan. The best. Friends. Ever!" Naruto said and she watched him lick her blood from his hands.

Yugao stilled. It was as if pure thunder had been sent through her body. All strength left her form and she found the room tilting to the left. It tilted so much that she felt pain when her head slammed into his floor. Her eyes wide, she watched him stand over her.

With the last of her vision, she watched him take her bleeding hand. "Are you scared? Good. Because whatever hope you have in escaping me, I will destroy it. Just as…," he paused and touched her wound with his lips. Her vision became an abyss of nothingness. Her body numb.

"...Konoha destroyed mine. Hehehehehe...hahahahahahahaha!"

....

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