Chapter 08

(That Night)

The ANBU were dispatched to rescue and bring back Naruto by whatever means necessary. The villagers had no idea what was going on as the ANBU made thorough all-out searches of everyone's homes, restaurants, shops, clubs, taverns, wherever they could think of. Among the ANBU on the search was a teenager named Hatake Kakashi, who lost his sensei and master, Yondaime Hokage, a week ago to Kyuubi No Yoko. He was still affected by the event and loss of his master, although he tried not to show it. Kakashi already knew who Naruto truly was and why he was kidnapped. He wasted no time or energy in searching for the son of his master, determined to locate and return Naruto and protect him. Kakashi, with all of the ANBU, had to take an oath of secrecy not to reveal Naruto's true identity and heritage to anyone under severe penalty from the Hokage himself.

The Jounin and Chunnin in the meantime were under direct orders of the Hokage that no one was allowed in or out of Konoha until the search was over. It was no secret to anyone that something very big had happened seeing that Sandaime Hokage ordered a massive lockdown and search of this magnitude. If anything, it was the last thing they needed especially since Kyuubi's attack was merely a week ago and practically no one healed from it.

(Meanwhile)

A very beautiful woman with brown eyes, long blond hair and a most slender and nicely built figure and large breasts was running and leaping from roof to roof at top speed like a true athletic shinobi. Although it already dawned on her that she was barefooted and only in her sleeping kimono which was flying with the wind and movements of her body however, right now that was of little importance to her. All that mattered to her was getting to Naruto and fast. After seeing the names written down on that sheet of paper she found in her hotel apartment, to say that the kidnapper was up to no good was understatement.

Taking a break on top one of the buildings to catch her breath momentarily, Tsunade scanned the area to see if there was anything that seemed out of place. So far, all she saw were the ANBU making searches of every building they were going into and the Jounin and Chunnin remaining at their posts. The search for Naruto had gone for almost an hour and the kidnapper was still at large. She decided to head to where Naruto was last seen.

(Elsewhere)

A few of the other ANBU were searching around the room Naruto was in earlier to see if the culprit left any clues behind that might provide a lead as to where he may have ran off to after kidnapping Naruto. Tsunade jumped down from one of the roofs of the building and gracefully landed down on the surface, running over to the small house that once housed Naruto. Stealthily she searched around the outside section of the small house, searching for anything she could find that would serve as a lead from her. So far she found nothing, which served to frustrate her. She knew that the kidnapper couldn't have gotten too far with all the ANBU in pursuit of him in an all out manhunt.

Her ears soon picked up on a conversation between two ANBU. They were conversing with each other on how the kidnapper used a Henge No Jutsu to deceive their two ANBU comrades into thinking he or she was Sandaime. That was when it dawned on her that the kidnapper wouldn't have so foolishly attempt to make an all out escape from the village so quickly with every ANBU after him or her. Most likely, he or she was hiding somewhere in the village. Leaving the scene, Tsunade went to search for anything that seemed out of place in the village.

The ANBU were still searching everywhere, with no success. It's been three hours and no one has seen either the criminal or the child anywhere. The Jounins reported that no one at the stations attempted to leave or enter the village. Sandaime was growing frustrated as he was angry, but managed to maintain a calm demeanor. Tsunade decided to redo her search all over as she ran and leaped from roof to roof.

As she was on the move, her eyes fell on a particular young ANBU whose name was Kakashi. She recalled whose student Kakashi was and his status among the ANBU. She was about to take off when something caught her attention. Some of the other ANBU approached him asking why he strayed from where he was assigned to search. He made a quick excuse before taking off to perform his job as the other ANBU went on their way. Tsunade decided to secretly follow Kakashi and see where he was going.

As she continued following after Kakashi, she noticed how he was heading in the wrong direction, completely off course from where they said what was suppose to go. Something unprofessional of an ANBU who was supposed to know the routes of Konoha inside and out. Something was up she realized as she continued secretly following after him.

She soon noticed that he went into a small hut of some sort for a few moments and came out with what looked like a backpack filled with additional searching gear. Kakashi then took off towards the main exit port where he met up with two Jounins stationed at the port. Acknowledging his higher rank and explanation for him to begin his search on the outer skirts of the village, the two Jounins stepped aside as Kakashi hurried out from the exit port. Tsunade saw this and gave way to chase speedily before the Jounins noticed her presence and departure.

(A While Later)

The same two ANBU went to regroup with four other ANBU when they ran into a most familiar ANBU who was heading towards them with Sandaime.

"Kakashi," as the first ANBU, "What are you doing here? Didn't we just meet up with you a while ago?"

"What do you mean," Kakashi asked, "I was with Sandaime-sama for the last hour."

That was when it dawned on Kakashi, Sandaime and the other ANBU.

"Which direction did you see the other me ran to," Kakashi asked as he, Sandaime and the other ANBU gave way to chase after the phony. It was clear that this kidnapper was a clever and elusive deceiver, whoever he or she was.

(Meanwhile)

'Kakashi' was running through the forest with the backpack leaping from tree to tree at top speed. Tsunade was in hot pursuit of 'Kakashi' but kept a safe distance until she knew where he was going. As of now they were a good distance from the village and Tsunade didn't like where this was going. Soon she saw him touch down into clear open field but she kept herself hidden in the trees as she looked on. After making sure he was in the clear, 'Kakashi' placed the backpack down on the grass and dispelled the henge that was around him.

"Kai," he said as the henge collapse, revealing his true appearance. The man was geared in a standard Konoha Jounin uniform. He had brown hair and a Konoha forehead protector that had a slash across it.

Clearly this shinobi is a missing-nin of Konoha, Tsunade realized, This helps to explain how he was able to deceive and elude the ANBU, Jounin, and Chunnin. He might even be a former ANBU himself.

Tsunade soon saw that the henge on the backpack also dispelled revealing none other than baby Naruto sleeping in a carrying baby-basket with two straps to place over your shoulders. The missing-nin looked over at Naruto and said, "Yondaime Hokage…reduced to an inescapable captivity inside your own child; a fitting undoing for the likes of you. I'm sure I can be get a hefty price from any village or clan who'd love to buy your child."