It's Not Really A Date, but is sort of kinda (Boruto x Sarada)

Part 12

'Ummmmm Uhhhhhh....'

"Wakey, Wakey...."

His head pounding and his eyes barely coming into focus in the dim light of... wherever he was, Kawaki turned to the direction of the speaker, and realised he had been tied down to a chair. He grimaced. Though the face with the hood down in the darkened space was barely distinguishable from the others huddled around them, he could tell the man's skin was darker. And there was no mistaking those eyes!

"Welcome back to the World of the Living, Kawaki... Nice to see you finally awake. I was starting to fear my friend there might have overdone it." Kawaki's gaze flickered to the right of the dark-skinned speaker. Towards a large bald lighter-skinned man with a snide grin, and an Earth-Style-clad right arm which he proffered towards the Young Shinobi threateningly. Then back to the speaker. He wouldn't rub his sore head now even if his hands weren't bound. He wouldn't give the man the satisfaction of showing his vulnerability.

"Really scraping the bottom of the barrel, ain't ya Yudoku (A/N: An original character; 'Yudoku' a Japanese Name meaning (according to Google) 'Toxic/Poisonous').." Kawaki scowled at the man as a jibe to the group around him, showing his unbreakable nerve in a bid to unsettle the other guy's position. "...Then again what else can you do now that Boro and Jigen are pushing up daisies-"

"That's LORD Boro and MASTER Jigen to you Kawaki!" the dark-skinned man snapped letting his cool and confident composure slip for a second. But only for a second. "And these are all faithful followers of the Master's Great Will! But then again, I suppose I should expect not an ounce of faith, as well as such heresy from an ungrateful brat like you. As if it wasn't enough to be raised up from your squalid little life and chosen as the next Otsutsuki Holy Vessel! Not that you'd even be here spouting such blasphemy without Naruto Uzumaki, his boy or Sasuke Uchiha coming to your rescue. Funny how we the least of our Lord's Accolytes were able not only to enter Konohagakure undetected but also to capture you with incredible ease..." and Yudoku's confident look became a derisory sneer.

The Young Shinobi continued to glower. Despite the stinging of his head his recollection of events gradually came back into focus. Kawaki had followed Yudoku along that alleyway into a surprisingly busy restaurant and towards a certain back room. It would have seemed like a safe idea sneaking through the air vents to get close to the room without detection. Only for a certain mousy-brown-haired woman among the gathering to detect him almost instantly despite Kawaki surpressing his Chakra, and reacting by casting out some kind of aura. Presumably a Genjutsu. If only he'd realised in time it hadn't been to distort his perception of his surroundings directly, but to disguise the big guy directly under him with an Earth-clad hammer arm primed and ready!

Well in any case Kawaki was alive, meaning Yudoku intended him for something. The dark-skinned silver-eyed man continued to sneer. "As it happens, you dropping in on our gathering saves us the trouble of tracking you down. For though Lord Boro and Master Jigen are no longer among us in body, their Divine Will lives on through Lord Code and their faithful followers. And having you here and now at our disposal will most certainly be a boon for Lord Code's grand designs upon our world!

"It is on this very night of the '5 Great Nations Cross-Cultural Festival', a supposed celebration of international unity and strength between the Lands of this Shinobi world, that you will be presenting a certain gift to the esteemed 5th Mizukage on behalf of the 7th Hokage!" And another male follower wearing a hood and bandana presented an open box containing a locket on a chain. An iron locket faceted with polished blue glass panels, each seeming to contain something shimmering in the dim light of the room that moved fluidly.

"You remember the nature of my particular Jutsu, don't you Kawaki? The kind that enables me to manipulate the rare and potent element 'Quicksilver', also known as mercury?" Like Kawaki could forget. The times during his training sessions orchestrated by Jigen in which Yudoku when he was present would employ his element of expertise to train (torture) the young boy as part of Kawaki's conditioning as the promised Holy Vessel. Training to the point when he couldn't think of anything but the pain, only to be healed by Amado later on. And go through the process all over again.

"The subtle Art borne of my inherent preference for Earth-Style Ninjutsu for which I was branded an outcast in Kumogakure [Village Hidden in the Clouds]! And later branded a 'Rogue Shinobi' and 'Traitor' because I used my talent to defend myself after some 'honourable Shinobi' of that village had deemed me a disgrace to the nation that needed taking care of. A talent for which Master Jigen found me, took me in, gave me a purpose! Just as he did for ALL us Outers!!"

There was murmurs of agreement among the group which Yudoku allowed to play out before carrying on his monologue. "My lovely companion here... (he indicated the brown-haired woman)... is quite adept at Genjutsu you see. She already has the entirety of the restaurant staff under her thrall. Those who weren't already ours to begin with anyway. Indeed, many have been in operation undercover within the Leaf's borders for quite some time, exchanging intel between our many factions right under your Security Force's noses. And not just in the Leaf, Oh No!! Our Lord's influence is such that he has followers operating secretly in every major city in the Shinobi World!! All to further our Lord's grand plans which your naive Hokage thought he had thwarted with Master Jigen's demise. WELL HE THOUGHT WRONG!!!!"

Yudoku marched forward and grabbed Kawaki's cheeks roughly, locking the two pairs of silver/grey eyes in a fierce battle of mental resolve. "My friend here will place you under a Genjutsu so potent even your stubborn resilience will be powerless to resist. And under our control you will seek out the Mizukage in the company of the Hokage. His security forces dimished with your precious 'Barrier Team' spread thin over the village looking for 'bombs' all thanks to a faux tip-off from our helpful benefactor. No one will be able to free you from our control, and no one will be able to stop you handing the locket to the Mizukage, primed and ready to poison him with my special brand of Quicksilver at the pivotal moment, before multiple witnesses. Fingers will be pointed. Suspicions and accusations will run rampant. And the Flames of War will be reignited between Kirigakure and Konohagakure as in times past before the Third Great Ninja War! And the peace that the 'kage fought so hard for will crumble, ushering in a New Dawn for Kara the Husk, for Lord Code, and for the Age of Otsutsuki!!!!"

Kawaki maintained a quiet resolute scowl a moment. "Right, you done now?" Yudoku and his followers looked confused by the entrapped lad's blasé attitude given his dire situation. And all the more alarmed when his scowl.. became a smirk. "I'll take that as a 'yes' then. Thanks for the heads up and all... LORD 7TH!! NOW!!!"

Yudoku barely had time to contemplate what Kawaki meant before the door burst open, flying off its hinges and knocking a few members of the nefarious group down. Lord 7th Hokage Naruto Uzumaki strode boldly through the now open doorway. Glaring with unbridled fury at the man standing over his son.