The Cult

In the dimly lit cave, a group of ninjas gathered around a twisted statue on a raised platform.

Kakashi's trained eyes scanned the uniforms, identifying nine Kiri Anbu and two Konoha chunins.

They stared at the monstrosity with obsessive smiles, their eyes reflecting the statue's twisted form.

Beside the platform stood a man in Kiri chunin attire, his expression the most composed among the group, yet still hinting at a deep-seated obsession.

The statue itself was far from beautiful, its grotesque features seeming to draw the group in with an otherworldly power. Yet, despite its ugliness, it had captivated everyone present.

"R'lyeh... R'lyeh... R'lyeh..." the Kiri believers murmured, their words devolving into mindless chanting.

The missing-nin's gaze swept across the new believers, and then he began to speak.

"Hail Great Cthulhu, the Sleeping God, Lord of R'lyeh!" he declared. "He'll transform our bodies, grant us eternal life, and welcome us into the endless ocean."

"In the underwater city, our ancestors celebrate and rejoice. We'll join them, the most faithful of His followers."

"We'll rest alongside our ancestors in R'lyeh's vast vaults, protected by Cthulhu's power until the stars align, and we rise again in triumph!"

"In His house at R'lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming!"

As the missing-nin's sermon reached a fevered pitch, a disturbing transformation began to take hold of his followers.

Their hair fell out in clumps, and their skin turned a sickly pale, as if drained of all life.

The believers' faces reflected a mix of emotions - awe, fear, and ecstasy. It was as if the missing-nin's words had shattered their sense of identity, leaving them lost and disconnected.

Witnessing this from his hiding spot, Kakashi fought to keep his grip on reality.

He bit down hard on his tongue, using the pain to ground himself and prevent his own mind from slipping into chaos.

As he regained his composure, he tore his gaze away, catching a glimpse of the statue's edge

But strange images still flashed in his mind.

He pictured the sunken city - R'lyeh, hidden deep in the sea, where Cthulhu slumbered, waiting for the stars to align and bring disaster to the world.

He pushed the revelation aside, knowing he'd have to process it later - if they made it out of this nightmare alive.

Survival was their top priority now. He assessed their situation, sizing up the threat. He turned to Yuma, intending to order a tactical retreat.

But Yuma was already rising to his feet, his face slack and expressionless, moving towards the statue like a sleepwalker.

Kakashi lunged to grab him, but Yuma shrugged him off with an unnatural strength.

"Snap out of it!" he growled, trying to shake his comrade back to reality.

But Yuma kept moving, his eyes fixed on the statue.

Thinking fast, he clapped his hands over Yuma's eyes, blocking his view of the statue.

Instantly, Yuma went limp, the strange force controlling him dissipating like a bad dream.

Seizing the moment, he hauled Yuma back into the relative safety of the cave wall.

Yuma's eyes fluttered open, confusion and fear written across his face.

"What... what happened to me?" he asked, his voice shaky.

"The statue had you under its control," Kakashi said grimly.

Yuma's eyes widened in horror. "I... I don't remember. Kakashi, what do we do?"

Kakashi weighed their options. A frontal assault was out of the question - they were outnumbered, and more importantly, they had no defense against the statue's power.

He couldn't shake the feeling that he had been lucky to break free from the statue's control.

Catching only a glimpse of the statue through the small mirror had likely saved him. 

Yuma, on the other hand, had looked directly at the statue and had fallen under its control almost instantly.

Motoki's sunglasses, standard issue for his clan, might have slowed down the statue's effects, giving him a bit more time before he fell under its control.

The nature of the threat was becoming clearer. The statue's influence seemed to require direct line of sight.

As long as they avoided looking at it, they might be able to resist its allure.

He searched his mind for any technique that might help them escape this nightmare.

Then, an idea flickered through his mind. His Sharingan... could its power be used to counter this power?

As soon as the thought occurred to him, he dismissed it.

If the statue could project its will across vast distances, trapping minds even from afar, what chance did his genjutsu stand?

It was absurd to even think about trying to hypnotize a statue. Kakashi almost laughed at the ridiculousness of it.

"It's pointless," he muttered to himself, more than to Yuma. "We can't fight this, not here, not like this. We need to regroup, report back to the village."

But before they could go, a mocking voice called out from deeper in the cave.

"Hey, you two little mice hiding back there! Come out, come out! Let me introduce you to our Lord and Savior!"

Kakashi stiffened. It was the missing-nin, the only one of the fanatics who seemed somewhat sane.

Was he behind this genjutsu? The leader of this cult? Yet, despite his authority, he seemed like just another servant, trapped under the control of the one he called Cthulhu.

Silence was their only response. Kakashi and Yuma remained crouched behind their meager cover, hardly daring to breathe.

They remained frozen behind their cover, barely breathing.

When it became clear they wouldn't take the bait, the missing-nin dropped the act. Kakashi heard the soft rustle of hands forming seals, and then...

"Water Style: Exploding Water Shockwave!"

A massive wave burst out of the cave, filling the small space in an instant. They were caught off guard and swept away like leaves in a flash flood.

They tumbled through the air, barely avoiding being smashed against the trees as the jutsu violently expelled them from the cave.

Finally, the waters dispersed as they reached the open area of the bandit camp. They stumbled to their feet, gasping for air and disoriented.

As they surveyed the destruction, the tents and shacks of the camp reduced to splintered wood, Kakashi couldn't help but be amazed by the jutsu's sheer power.

"What's the plan, boss?" Yuma asked, looking around nervously. They were alone and vulnerable, their teammates nowhere to be seen.

Every instinct screamed at them to get out of there, to put as much distance as possible between them and the horror they'd just witnessed.

Kakashi was about to give the order to retreat and regroup, but the words stuck in his throat.

A strangled, agonized moan sounded from behind him, making him spin around. What he saw was unbelievable.

One of the bandit corpses, pale and stiff, had somehow come to life and bitten down on Yuma from behind. Its teeth sank deep into Yuma's skin, refusing to let go.

Yuma was paralyzed with fear, too scared to move in case he made it worse.

The corpse's head, once misshapen and deflated, had somehow regained its shape. Beneath its waxy skin, sickly blue veins pulsed with a faint sign of life.

Even more terrifying were the other bodies scattered around the camp. They, too, began to twitch and stir, slowly getting to their feet.

Their dead eyes fixed on the two living shinobis with a predatory glare.