Life in Konoha's ANBU by Shezza

Chapter 15: The Blood Cult: Part II

The Blood Cult- II

Team Kage left Konoha and travelled north-east, towards the borders between the Land of Fire and the Lands of Rice and Hot Water. This part of the Land of Fire was perhaps the least inhabited and there was still an almost untameable quality to the area. Long ago, before the founding of the Hidden Villages, the infamous Senju clan had called these lands home. It had been a dangerous place for somebody not affiliated with the clan to travel and many people have simply disappeared within the Senju borders, never to be heard from again. In time, the mystique died and some settlers did venture into the lands, joining the remnants of the Senju clan who had remained in their ancestral homes. Together, they carved themselves a niche in the industrial sector.

Whether it was due to the powers of the First Hokage, or perhaps a Senju in the long-forgotten past had also possessed the notorious Wood Release techniques, but the trees in this part of the Land of Fire were different. Some would say that they were sentient, aware of the coming and goings of those around them. The villages and towns in the area didn't seem to think so and made their living in the lumber industry. The wood here was highly prized, very sturdy and in high-demand in all parts of the world. Initially, there had been some concern that sacred trees of the Senju would all disappear. Early on, though, the lumberjacks had discovered that the stumps of the trees they had fell would relatively quickly regenerate and within the span of a few years another tree would have taken its place, as tall as any of its brethren. It made the lumber industry extremely profitable, cutting down on costs, and they used the rivers in the area to transport the lumber to other parts of the Land of Fire.

Given the mystique of the area held by much of the common populace, the region was relatively quiet. War had not touched the land there since the time of the warring clans. Any hostilities between Kumo and Konoha had taken place in the bordering countries between them, the Land of Rice, the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Frost. This had not endeared the Great Villages to the populations in those areas, but some would argue that it was a worthwhile sacrifice. As the area was relatively peaceful, there wasn't actually a large shinobi presence. There was a battalion of Leaf Nin located on the border between the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Fire and a few scattered Chunin Police Squads in the region but that was about it. Occasionally, outlaws or bandits did try to intercept travelling merchants and supply caravans but lumber was a hard commodity to smuggle and many thought that it wasn't really worth the effort.

Team Kage consisted of the remnants of Recon Squad Iota and Gamma Team's Third Squad. Naruto was still officially attached to Gamma Team and had joined Jonin Komachi, Chunin Towa, Chunin Yuuka and Chunin Daichi in this mission, all under the command of Jonin Captain Kage. For the first few hours, Team Kage patrolled the border, flying through the trees. Kage, Daichi and Yuuka were in their elements here as they occasionally stopped to look at tracks and signs that Naruto hadn't even noticed. Komachi and Towa also looked out of their elements as well – they were combat specialists, not trackers.

It was several hours into their patrol and Kage had taken them closer to where one of the attacks had reportedly occurred, just fifteen minutes outside the nearest town. The ANBU leaped from branch to branch, Kage in the lead, and came to a halt when the captain raised his hand. Naruto, who had taken position at the back, watched as Kage cocked his head. A minute went by as the ANBU squad waited patiently.

"Listen," murmured Kage, his voice barely audible. "Do you hear anything?"

Komachi, his second in command for this mission, tilted her head. Naruto frowned underneath his mask, straining his senses to the maximum. He closed his eyes and allowed the sounds of the world around them to drift into his ears. He could hear birds chirp, the wind rustling leaves, the faint cries of distant animals and the chirp and buzz of insects. His own heartbeat filled his ears, the rising and falling of his breath quite noisy when he was still. Yet, from all of that nothing unusual struck his senses.