Chapter 18

The smell of blood hung heavy in the late night air. Ashidon stared down impassively as his crows finished off the latest enemy encampment. He had received word that a high priority target was hiding out in the area. Moving as fast as he could he went about scouring the area for his target. Having found his target he began his deadly work. Now that the dust had settled and his crows finished off any who were hanging on he planned his next move.

Ashidon took out a scroll from his person. This scroll had a list of names and pictures, and many of them were crossed out. Finding what he was looking for he crossed out a name. "Another one down, things have been progressing smoothly, don't you think Nakko?"

Nakko, who had been approaching from behind, nodded before answering. "Indeed they have, Captain. We have been clearing out enemy encampments and scouts without much issue. Of course, none of this would have been possible without your skills."

Ashidon, after having crossed out the name he hid the scroll among his clothes. Standing and turning he faced Nakko. Nakko, like all the others under Ashidon's command, had made changes to their attire. Normally the attire of leaf shinobi consisted of a green flak jacket and their headbands that denoted their affiliation. Under Ashidon's command they all smeared dirt over their flak jackets to better blend into their surroundings. Not only that but they also smeared dirt on their headbands to keep their reflective surface from revealing their location. Lastly, They each had the closest thing to warpaint on their faces. A skull-like face surrounded by dark dirt made each of them look like a messenger of death.

"We should get moving." Ashidon said.

"Before that, I just received word from the commander." Nakko said while pulling a scroll out and handing it over to Ashidon. Taking the scroll Ashidon read the contents.

"We are ordered to recall our forces to assist in a siege. Apparently the enemy have hunkered down in the path of the main force and they are having difficulty clearing them out." Nakko said.

"So it seems," Ashidon replied.

"Indeed, I've already taken the liberty to organize the others and they are waiting on your command."

"Good work, we leave immediately. There's nothing left for us here anyway." Ashidon replied and they all made their way to the designated location.

As they traveled, Ashidon thought of his progress thus far. 'I can feel it, I'm so close to unlocking my final ability. Once I unlock it I'll be complete and I'll feel much safer. I've done well in keeping myself out of harm's way up to now but there's always the possibility that an enemy might reach me. On a more immediate note, my skill with my current abilities have been progressing smoothly. It's true what they say, war is a great anvil to temper oneself. I doubt I would have been able to make this much progress in such a short amount of time otherwise. I can't even begin to recall how many souls I've absorbed already. Also, my fame or rather infamy has spread nicely. At this rate I'll be spoken of in the same magnitude as Minato.'

Ashidon and his company arrived at a camp filled with leaf shinobi. The camp was in motion with people moving here and there and in the distance the sound of combat could be heard. As Ashidon made his way near the camp they were immediately noticed. The lookouts seemed tense and wary of Ashidon and his company. They stood just on the edges of the camp waiting to be admitted. Not long after, a shinobi of some rank showed up, but he wasn't alone.

"State your business stranger."

"I am Ashidon, Captain of the scout teams and am responding to a summons."

The shinobi looked surprised and stared wide eyed at them. Not only him but the others around him looked surprised. Some even whispering amongst themselves. The shinobi eyed their attire with curiosity before asking. "Why are you dressed like that?"

"I have a scroll verifying my identity and my orders, if you must please look at them. I have to meet with the person in charge here." Ashidon replied, not wanting to waste anymore time.

"Right," The shinobi said while having one of his men go and retrieve the scroll from Ashidon. After looking over the scroll the shinobi looked back up.

"It checks out, come on in."

Ashidon and his company entered the camp. Picking a place to rest Ashidon left his company under Nakko's command. Making his way to the command tent. There were two shinobi standing guard and they eyed Ashidon as he approached. Presenting the scroll to them, he was allowed access. Entering the camp Ashidon scanned the interior until his eyes landed on a lone figure standing before a table while seeming deep in thought.

"Ashidon Ajin, Captain of the scout teams answering a summons."

The figure continued to study the papers on the table for a moment longer before speaking. He didn't take his eyes from the table however. "So the dreadful Wraith of Konoha has finally arrived. You've made quite the name for yourself, boy."

The man looked up and Ashidon was surprised, he recalled meeting this man back at the Commander's tent. This was that same Captain who spoke up for him when the Commander was reprimanding him. Ashidon stood at attention before addressing his superior. "Sir!"

"There's no need for any of that, relax."

"As you say Captain."

The Captain eyed Ashidon for a moment before smiling. "You've come a long way. A one hundred percent completion in every encounter. You've proven to be quite the little nuisance for the enemy, going as far as instilling fear into them. You've even earned yourself a moniker, the Wraith of Konoha. Quite the dramatic name, but very fitting."

"I was simply doing what I thought to be the most effective, Captain." Ashidon replied.

"Hahaha, no need to be so modest young man. You've earned the praise."

"Thank you, Captain."

"Now, let's get down to business shall we?" The captain said and Ashidon focused entirely on what the Captain had to say.

"The enemy have fortified themselves on a hill not too far from here. They are directly in the path to the next staging area and we need to remove them. Unfortunately, that has proven easier said than done. Not only that but the enemy have been sending out kill teams to poke at us while we were distracted. They've been harassing the main force making advancement slow. We've also received word that reinforcements are on their way to support the enemy."

Ashidon was surprised by the situation. He had not expected the enemy to be putting up such a strong resistance. The Captain continued and Ashidon listened intently. "We need to take that hill before their reinforcements arrive. That is where you come in, your mission is to eliminate the kill teams harassing us. Once they are dealt with we can close in on the hill. From there you will infiltrate and sabotage their defenses so we can occupy the hill. Once we have the hill we hold it until our main force arrives, we need to prepare for a siege. You and your company will join in the defense of the hill until we get reinforcements."

"I understand, Captain."

"Good, begin as soon as your able, you're dismissed."

Ashidon nodded before leaving the tent and meeting up with Nakko and the others. "We have new orders."

Ashidon shared the mission objectives with his company and they prepared to head out. While his company was getting prepared Ashidon couldn't help but smile. 'This should be it, I should unlock my finale ability by the end of this battle. I'll finally be able to live up to the title of Wraith of Konoha, they haven't seen anything yet.'