Shadows Stir

Black and White watched the one called Reina Yuki be escorted out with a trail of children and teens leaping at her feet. It was the third house on the street she'd been to, received and sent off with the same energy. Less in houses with more adults but even then, the sentiment was set, the Kaguya were pleased with their would-be captors.

It infuriated Black so much— "It doesn't infuriate me."

White paused for a thought and said, "But you sound so angry already." Black growled but White snickered, "It can't be all that bad, that boy…Ina..something, he did well! Killed a good number of the—"

"And then the Yondaime Mizukage crushed him in a house!"

White hummed a silly tune, "Seee? You are angry! Sing with me and you'll breathe easy again!"

"Grrr! Enough, the Mizukage wasn't supposed to find them out so soon, they could have killed more but…mmm, it wouldn't have mattered. This Yagura…he's strong."

White had to agree, "And stubborn too. He should have exterminated the entire clan but instead he builds them a home?"

"That's dangerous behaviour, he wasn't supposed to do that." Black rumbled.

"We should have stopped him but how?"

"That might be beyond our mission scope, remember, Obito needs us to make them suffer while he prepares to visit…home."

White hummed, single eye tracing Reina until she disappeared into another house, "It's a good thing we returned to check on here then, they clearly aren't suffering enough."

They receded into the ground together, their watchful eyes travelling across the Kirigakure within undisturbed moments. Zetsu's face peeked at their new environment from a station on the roof of a highly protected and watched room. They had to be most careful here, it wasn't the Mizukage's Office directly but the room they spied on was situated within the Tower and watched at all times by multiple squads of ANBU.

Kirigakure wasn't very trusting of their guests. Moving across the roof Zetsu phased through walls to find their next target, the Konoha Shinobi sent to liaison Kiri and Konoha together. It's only recently Zetsu learned of such an arrangement and along with other anomalies like the Yuki and Kaguya being sheltered rather than slaughtered, coincidence was quickly becoming a pattern— Yondaime Mizukage will be a problem.

It didn't take long for Zetsu to hear the voices of one Genma and Aoba, he'd listened in on them before and their plot to do well by their Hokage was far too boring to stand, inconsequential drivel that couldn't turn into suffering for Kirigakure.

"There! Signed, dotted, stamped even. Hokage-sama will know it's from us and trust it." Genma said, he and Aoba sat about a scroll, both looking very unsure of themselves or rather, frightened, "What do you think will happen when he learns the Mizukage is a Jinchuriki?"

Aoba shrugged, "What do you think will happen when he learns we don't trust our mission captain?"

That made Genma gulp. He rolled the scroll up and shook it at Aoba, "That doesn't matter, Hokage-sama always taught me to look underneath the underneath and I'd say there's several underneath's here I'm not seeing, he has to know."

Aoba was about to say something but like last time, Zetsu found them all too boring, their plights would be useful against no one save that Danzo but they are already about to throw a hedge in his plans. What were his plans? Did they involve Kirigakure suffering? Is that why they mistrusted their ROOT captain? Zetsu doubted anything he could gain would be worth the effort but just in case, as he moved through the building down to the earth they split off a clone to eavesdrop on the ROOT-nin.

In all their time knowing Kirigakure, knowing Hidden Villages, there have always been rifts, fractures in the conglomerate alliances of clans and families that made them so powerful. He would find as many of those cracks and make Kirigakure suffer for it.

Zetsu slinked through the earth, under the foot of ignorant and vulnerable idiots until they were right underneath a beautifully terse conversation. The Funato clan compound was nothing to write home about but they were numerous, even when at war the clan remained a hub of activity simply from those underage or too weak to participate.

They were the first among clans or so they told themselves, Zetsu let their eyes peek over floorboards and listened to them moan.

"-taking us for granted, taking you for granted!" A large, loud man was yelling above a gathering over nearly fifty other Funato clansmen, all shared his furrowed brows and sneers. Together they addressed an ancient of days, the one known to all as Lord Funato.

Another man stood, adding fuel to the spark of dissatisfaction clearly brewing, "We are the descendants of the First Mizukage! Funato! That is our name should you need reminding now that we are all but forgotten by the Mizukage! Ignoring our Lord should not be taken lightly, we must make it known!"

"Kidou is right." Yet another spoke up, leaning out on his tatami at the front to press his head to the floor, "Funato-sama, let us protest Mizukage-sama's injustice against you, against the trust the First Mizukage placed in you as councillor!"

"Hmph! Protest? And end up like the Yuki?" Zetsu brought his attention to a burly man with a kanji of Sea tattooed on his left arm. He was the only one not sitting, preferring to lean against a pillar as he scanned the room. The clansmen's murmurs clamped down to listen to his words.

"Whether the Yuki did something to Lord Third or not, they are prosecuted now for speaking out against the Mizukage. Our clan maybe essential since founding but if Yondaime-sama is phasing us out, going as far as ignoring my grandfather…it means he's made up his mind.

He turned to his grandfather, "I heard Reina Yuki is basically the Kaguya's caretaker now, she visits nearly every day." He shrugged at the listening clansmen and sighed, "Now, I don't know what goes on in that tower, maybe she's working undercover, getting to know their names and favourite foods so they can be poisoned later or something…or maybe, maybe what we're seeing is the beginning of a new era, an era of Bloodline users! An era where we don't matter and will matter even less if we get in the way."

Ahh, envy. Zetsu licked his lips as the hall blew up at the tattooed grandson's words and yet all the while the Lord Funato sat still with his eyes shut as he breathed careful breathes. Zetsu saw the chance, the opportunity for chaos and suffering but not in the old man.

What is your name boy?

He bore the charisma, knew his people's fears well and had the courage to speak up. Best of all, if Zetsu did his clan math right…yes…he'd be in line to succeed. A brilliant idea for due suffering was blooming but first they'd need to research, make the proper steps or fuck it all and kill the decrepit old man. Either way, an interesting matter for later.

Zetsu slinked back into the ground, glad to have found at least one sure rift to tear the village apart so soon. He travelled back to the Mizukage Tower, ensuring his presence isn't noticed by any of the many sensors loitering nearby and quickly found the pesky Mizukage in his office.

Out of caution, Zetsu listened in from the wall of the next room, there were a myriad of seals guarding the Mizukage's Office from intrusion, nothing they couldn't get through if they wanted but the effort required along with the piss poor setting would make his chances of being discovered higher than they're comfortable with.

"-movements against Kurokami-jima for a week now, Fuguki-san thinks there will be an attempt soon though and by Lord Yakubi's messages, so does he. As far as Mei and Daiki, two reports have come in since you were...indisposed, Yagura-sama."

There was silence for a moment before being broken by near anxious speak, "What do you need us to do? We won't fail, I won't."

Zetsu recognized two voices immediately they spoke; Raiga, wielder of the Twin Kiba, and the infamous Reina Yuki. Silence prevailed for a moment longer and Zetsu wished he would allow himself the risk of visuals on the office.

"Recall Mei and Daiki, Hanzo's men will fight their war themselves."

Hanzo? Why..what? When!

The Mizukage continued speaking before either could affirm, "Extend an invite to them if they change their mind, this Pein figure will most certainly bring them their deaths once he finds them."

Nagato? How…why is this Kage poking into Amegakure?

""Sir!""

Zetsu slinked away at once, there was pressing need to gather their thoughts on Kirigakure's sudden interest in Amegakure. He's discovered Pein so soon and neither of them are ready for the attention of Hidden Villages. I already know that! I'm just saying, maybe we should tell Obito. No, he sent us here to make them suffer. Whatever this Yagura Karatachi thinks he's up to all we have to do is remind him there are more pressing matters at home. Ahhh, I see now, so…kill the old man?