Rise From The Ashes (Kakuzu Story)

Chapter 9.

A few minutes later and Hidan and Kakuzu were simply waiting in the kitchen to hear what would be going on that day in terms of their missions—or whether Kakuzu would simply drag Hidan round on some bounty hunts. But when they finally got told what their mission was, it was a bit of a surprise to both of them. Just like always, Pein's voice had appeared in their heads, with both him and Zetsu too far away to give them their mission face-to-face. But accepting that fact, Kakuzu concentrated on his voice, not passing a thought to what the mission might be, but simply waiting for it to be told to him. After all, what did it matter what they had to do? It was their mission, and they had to carry it out, regardless of what it might be. Hidan might be a little more concerned about what the mission would involve, only liking those that interested him, meant he got a lot of sacrifices and that didn't involve money in any way, but Kakuzu wasn't about to let his opinion get in the way. He worked for the Akatsuki, and that meant doing what was needed, even if he had to force Hidan to do the same.

Only as it turned out, it wasn't going to be just him and Hidan. As Pein spoke, he revealed that their mission was to take down a group of ninjas, having been hired by a nearby village because of the trouble and chaos they'd been causing them. But though normally it might have been fine with just a partnership doing the mission, things were a little more complicated than that. It was a big group, for such an unknown collection of ninjas, and right away that made things a little more difficult. Not to mention, in the same way as the Akatsuki, they had more than one hideout. The most important part of the mission was killing their leader, as without him the rest of the group would just crumble—but the village had had no idea where the main hideout was, or the current location of the leader. With that in mind, the Akatsuki would have to find out where it was, or at least where the leader was at the current moment in time. But they would have to be careful, as spreading the knowledge that they were in the area and on a mission, could risk the group finding out what they were up to, and ultimately putting them on guard. It would also create the risk of their leader immediately getting out of the area to avoid anything happening.

With all this taken into account, having just one partnership take on the mission wouldn't be enough. Before they even had the chance to wipe out the entirety of the group, it would require a lot of information gathering and reconnaissance, and though the area wasn't particularly big, it was big enough that it would take quite a while for one partnership to get the information they needed. So overall, it meant the best option was for everyone to join together on the mission. Pein had told the others several days before, in order for them to be able to gather in the area at the right time, but considering Kakuzu and Hidan were only a few hours away, there had been no need to tell them until now. Understanding that, Pein told them the location of the area, and where exactly everyone was meeting up within it, and then once everyone was there he would elaborate on what they each would be doing for the mission.

Once Pein had explained what was needed, his voice faded from their minds, allowing Kakuzu and Hidan to fully concentrate on what was around them. Glancing over at Hidan, he saw him with an eerily happy smirk, his eyebrow raised at what this would all mean. For once, Hidan was getting interested in the current mission, and although that in itself would bring problems—namely, him never shutting up about what he thought would happen—it would also mean he wouldn't have to deal with him dragging behind and complaining every step of the way. At least this way he would be keeping up, and they could get there as soon as possible. Kakuzu wasn't about to hesitate, knowing they had to be there on time, and as such turned from Hidan and headed for the exit of the hideout, the sound of Hidan's footsteps behind him telling him that he was following. They knew where the area was, and how long it would take to get there—so there was no point holding back.

By the time they arrived, all but Deidara and Sasori had arrived, though Pein stated they would be there in a matter of minutes. No one said much as they waited, Kisame and Hidan merely speculating what would be happening while Itachi and Kakuzu stood by. Not long after, however, and Deidara and Sasori appeared, and nodding in greeting to both of them, Pein waited until they were with the rest before he finally began to explain the plan. Though there was no telling where the main hideout was, to begin with, it was best not to just head out into the forest and look for any building they may come across. The village might not know much, but it was a good place to start in getting any ideas for where they should head, and ultimately, that meant they would be heading down there to start with, asking around and doing some simple reconnaissance. Accepting that, they all followed on as Pein led them down into the village.

Instantly they split up, knowing how things worked: it would allow them to look over a greater area, it would look less suspicious, and being alone would mean they looked at least a little less intimidating rather than the whole group. As they wandered round, they saw what Pein had said to begin with; that the villagers didn't know much, but they were able to find out some things, and what some of them had noticed in the nearby area. With it being a smallish village, it meant that it was relatively easy for people to know what was going on with everyone around them. But with it being a smallish area in general, it meant that information reached everyone sooner or other, and with it being about a group of ninjas, it stood out from everything else people talked about. So they might not know everything, but the villagers would definitely know something. It wasn't the most interesting work, but even Hidan would put up with it in order to find out the information they needed that would allow them to find and kill the group they were after.

Still; with it being a smallish village, and in turn a smallish area, it was a double-edged sword, as the Akatsuki could find out more about the group, but the group, in turn, could find out about them. The village was the only place nearby that would be able to supply food and other resources that the ninjas might need, and though they might not have passed much thought to the Akatsuki at first, knowing ninjas passed through all the time—though noticing they looked different than most that travelled through—they couldn't help but pay attention as they heard the questions being asked. Hovering nearby as they became suspicious, it didn't take long for those in the village to understand what was going on, and ultimately, that meant they had to do something about it. By this point, Itachi had noticed something wasn't right, and quickly told Pein what was going on. This raised a problem, however, as they couldn't simply kill them, when it would lead back to them and practically broadcast the situation. But the group didn't know who the Akatsuki were, and that presented an opportunity. If they left now, then they would have no clue who they were or anything about them, and it would appear as if they'd retreated.

Seeing no other way out of it, the plan was instantly passed on to everyone, and within seconds they were heading out of the village and back into the forest. It wasn't quite as easy as that, however, as it was soon clear they were being followed, and others had joined them. Unsure where to go with their location and knowing they had to stay nearby, they headed off towards the edges of the area—at least that way the group would think they were leaving. Though they weren't about to let them just escape, as they began to be coming in from several sides, beginning to box them in and reducing the number of escape routes. They could just kill them, but that was as a last resort...though as things continued it was beginning to feel as if that was all they could do.

It was as all of this was happening, however, that Kakuzu noticed something. It started off small, but as he travelled on he was certain that the token was...humming, somehow. Reaching into his pocket to brush his fingers across it, he was certain of that fact as it was practically vibrating. Why exactly it was doing it, and why exactly now, Kakuzu had no idea, but as it continued, he couldn't help but feel that it wasn't just the token. That same humming was coming from somewhere else, almost calling him. From the looks of things, no one else noticed it, but the more time that went by, and Kakuzu couldn't ignore it anymore—it might as well have been music, as he could tell where it was coming from and what direction he should go in to find out its origin. He continued on with the others for a little while, but he constantly looked around for the source, and eventually it was impossible for him to just dismiss it, and glancing over at the Akatsuki, he brushed them aside—they'd follow.

To where, he didn't know.

But he had to find out where that humming wascoming from.