Chapter 111: 110. Deepening Mystery

MrProper

Late evening in Kumogakure

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING??!!!" (A)

"♪I packed my bags and got to steppin! Killer-kill keeps it real, what were you expectin?!♪" (Killer B)

"DON'T GET SMART WITH ME YOU LITTLE-!" (A)

CRUNCH!

"♪Goodness gracious, I completely thought wrong! Despite yer years, da Iron Claw's goin strong!♪" (Killer B)

"YOU'RE CALLIN ME OLD NOW?!" (A)

"Raikage-sama..." (Mabui)

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Motoi! F! I'll speak with you later! Right now, I need to take this idiot back!" (A)

"R-Right" (F)

"Hehe...later B" (Motoi)

"O-kay" (Killer B)

The two bumped fists before A dragged B away

On their way back, taking Rei's advice, Motoi decided to bury the hatchet. Only to find out, just as he said, B held no grudge for his past actions whatsoever. In fact, the whole reason he snuck out of the village in the first place was due to hearing about the mission Motoi was undertaking with Rei

"Here you go Mabui" (F)

"Right, you two should get checked out at the hospital. Especially you Motoi-san, you don't look so good" (Mabui)

Because he was going to personally escort Killer B back to Unraikyō1Valley of Clouds and Lightning, A couldn't make time to hear what they had to say. Submitting a small report to his aid Mabui, the Raikage agreed to speak with F and Motoi tomorrow morning

"Hm? Where's Rei?" (Mabui)

"Ah! That's right, where did he go Motoi?" (F)

"He said there was something he needed to check and went to see Pyua" (Motoi)

"Check? Check what?" (Mabui)

"No clue, that kid is a busy one to say the least" (Motoi)

"No argument there" (Mabui)

♦♦♦

The library in Kumogakure

"Hmm...not here either. Maybe I'm looking under the wrong section?"

After returning home late at night from his mission with Motoi and Team F, Rei immediately took to reading in the library. As for the identity of the mysterious "other clan" aiding the Fuma, Shisui Uchiha's hint prompted Rei to immediately research Kumogakure's history with the Land of Hot Water. Asking his friend, and head librarian Pyua for help, she pointed him in the right direction

Despite reading past midnight, the library was fortunately open 24/7 for Kumo-nin. But even with the hours spent, he couldn't find anything even remotely related to Kumogakure besides occasional conflicts and war stories

The main problem stemmed from the fact the Land of Hot Water was a very young country. Even its, formerly shinobi-led, capital Yugakure was created some time after the implementation of the shinobi village system

"Nothing, even dating back to the era of the 1st Raikage, there's nothing pertaining to it and Kumogakure..." {Could Shisui have been lying to me after all?} (Rei)

As time passed, Rei began to show some regret for sharing information with Shisui. Wrestling with the idea of the Uchiha Clan being involved and Shisui being there was simply to cover their tracks, giving him and Kumogakure a false lead in the process

But he ultimately decided to shut them out. Focusing on solving this mystery, rather than becoming consumed with wild speculation and conspiracy theories. Soon after, Pyua had laid several more books on the desk in front of him

"Pyua-nee?" (Rei)

"I just had an epiphany, if you're going to research our relationship with that country, you'll need to go further than the reign of the 1st Raikage-sama. Do you remember what came before the shinobi villages?" (Pyua)

"The Warring States Period, right? You're saying our countrymen we're involved with that land even back then?" (Rei)

"Back when then were no nations, but countries ruled by Daimyō's with shinobi mercenaries for armies at their beck and call. Before the 1st Hokage, Hashirama Senju" (Pyua)

"Right, thanks for the help" (Rei)

"No problem, I was on my way out anyways. This is obviously important to you, but don't stay too long or Mabui's gonna freak out" (Pyua)

"She's not coming home tonight, so no worries. Be careful on your way home Pyua-nee" (Rei)

"No, that's not why you should...sigh. Never mind. Good night Rei" (Pyua)

Leaving Rei to himself, Pyua left the building. No stranger to long nights of studying, he wasted no time getting to work absorbing every piece of critical information he came across. Never overlooking even the slightest detail, he was completely engrossed in his studies

{All this research...it's like I'm in college again} "YAWN! Still...why do I get the feeling I'm forgetting something?" (Rei)

♦♦♦

The next morning

A was currently in his office receiving the mission report from Motoi and F. The present company included Mabui, Dodai, and Tango...all members of the Raikage's "Inner circle"

"Futoi, you bastard. I always knew you were a coward, but to sink so low as to work for the likes of Orochimaru, now that's just plain disgusting" (Dodai)

"He was crushed to death by the cave-in he caused. Guess you could call it karma for betraying us...again" (Motoi)

"But still, to think Orochimaru is involved in this..." (Mabui)

"What else do you know?" (Dodai)

"Rei had managed to place Futoi under his Genjutsu before he died. He told us many things, including intel that suggests Orochimaru, like the Fuma, were under service to another unknown party" (Motoi)

"Then it's just as we suspected, Raikage-sama" (Dodai)

Although they long believed someone else was pulling the strings behind the many strange incidents involving their village, A had hoped such a scenario wouldn't be the case and this was just the Fuma's doing. Having an unknown person or persons remain in the shadows with great power and influence, while maintaining a hostile outlook towards Kumogakure was the last thing they needed right now

The village itself wasn't doing too bad after the Hyuga Affair, but it wasn't doing too great either. Losing the trust of many, job requests for their ninja had all but halted. Only their economy, which is boasted to be the best out of the Five Great Shinobi Nations, and Tetsuo Mori's company, was the only thing keeping them afloat

"After fleeing Konoha, the first thing he sought was protection in exchange for his services. Makes sense. What of your assailants?" (A)

"The ones my team fought were wearing masks, and they all committed suicide before we could question them. One of them made use of Jutsu from Sunagakure2Hidden Sand Village" (F)

"As for the two Rei and I encountered, one used Kenjutsu3Sword Techniquethat easily identified him as someone from Kirigakure4Hidden Mist Village. As for the other, he used hidden jutsu belonging to Konoha's Akimichi Clan" (Motoi)

"Shinobi from different villages all working together as a cohesive unit? During these times, just the idea of it is absurd" (Dodai)

"The one in charge was called a Supervisor and the subordinates were called Employees. We still don't know what these aliases imply" (Mabui)

"Is this really all we know?" (A)

"Unfortunately on my end, yes. What about you Motoi?" (F)

"There wasn't much before I passed out, but Futoi noted whoever employed Orochimaru was also keeping him confined. In response, he hired Futoi to spread rumors of his presence in the area. His guards would combat any investigative party, while he would slip away in the chaos, which is exactly what happened" (Motoi)

"In other words, this whole ordeal was orchestrated by him. Tch!" (F)

"Rei also managed to confirm with his Genjutsu from Futoi the Uchiha Clan are NOT the ones working with this rogue branch that split off from the rest of the Fuma Clan" (Motoi)

"Great, so we're back to square one" (Tango)

"Look at it this way, at least now we won't have to waste resources following a false lead. The only problem is-" (Mabui)

"Where do we go from here?" (Dodai)

While it was good they eliminated a major dead end in their investigation, they had no idea of what to do next. Trying to find such a small branch of mercenary ninja like these Fuma, who are used to moving around like nomads, was the equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack

They've been under attack by those capable of influencing even their own government, and despite all they learned, the number of questions the had only increased. Call this situation "frustrating" was the easiest way to put it

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"Motoi...is there anything you can remember before you defeated your attackers? I know after escaping that cave-in, you had no choice to kill them in that situation but-" (Dodai)

"Um, sir? I never said I was the one that killed them, nor did I claim I was the one to get us out of that grotto" (Motoi)

"Huh? What do you mean? These were experienced killers correct? Who else could have done it in that situation?" (Dodai)

"Did another party rescue you?" (Tango)

"No. It was Sano-kun that saved us. He used Doton5Earth Styleto dig us a way out" (Motoi)

"Huh?" (Dodai)

"Wait, that doesn't make any sense. My cousin only knows how to use Inton6Yin/Shadow Style, Katon7Fire Style, and a little bit of Suiton8Water Style. He doesn't have Doton" (Mabui)

"I was surprised myself. But after meditating for a while, carefully kneading his chakra, he was able to successful perform a Doton Jutsu on his first attempt" (Motoi)

"You're saying...that kid has-!" (F)

"Mm. Three" (Motoi)

"Tango, did you know about this?!" (Dodai) 

"I was in the dark. Maybe Suzu gave him some hints or something" (Tango)

"Hehe!" (A)

None of them could hide their surprise. Achieving a change in multiple chakra natures was something expected only from higher ranked ninja like Jonin. For a Genin of nine years to have access to three of the five basic nature transformations was nothing short of astonishing. A, on the other hand, was pleased the village was home to such a genius

"Wait, hold on! You said you passed out after you got out of the cave-in. Does that mean the one who killed the last two enemies was-" (Dodai)

"I passed out before I could see the end but, he was indeed the one combating them while simultaneously defending me. Sano-kun even stated he took care of them and when F arrived, they were already dead" (Motoi)

"He, after fighting Futoi and enduring a cave-in, killed two elite Chunin-level shinobi by himself? Unbelievable...is he a monster?" (Dodai)

Mabui glared at Dodai's remark and her voice turned hoarse

"Hey..." (Mabui)

"Ah! Sorry Mabui. But you must understand my reaction, if Motoi and F weren't saying it I'd never believe it" (Dodai)

"I'm quite shocked myself" (Tango)

"Funny, it sure doesn't look like it" (Mabui)

"Just your imagination Mabui" (Tango)

"Including everything in Rei's testimony, this is all we know. Which is to say, not much" (F)

"Let's look at what we do know. At his core, Orochimaru is a scientist, so what was he commissioned for?" (Dodai)

"More like, mad scientist but yeah, whoever hired him needed his skills for something. It probably has something to do with the stolen chakra taken from Yugito-sama" (Tango)

"That only makes me even more nervous" (Dodai)

"But, he left whoever he was working with right? Who knows if he completed whatever it is said persons had him working on" (Motoi)

"That thought's a bit optimistic wouldn't you say Motoi? My policy is to hope for the best, and prepare for the worst" (A)

Something was coming, they all felt it. The Hyuga affair reeked of foul play and that incident caused severe damage to them. If the perpetrators behind that previous incident were planning something even bigger, Kumogakure could suffer irreparable damage to say the least

But just as it seemed hopeless to find any clues for this situation, someone knocked on the door

"Who is it?! We're in an important meeting!" (Dodai)

"What I have to say is probably more important!"

"F, if you would" (Dodai)

"Sure" (F)

F opened the door to find Rei standing there with several books and scrolls in his hand. Not even asking for permission, he barged right in the room without a care in the world, standing in front of A's desk. Laying out what he was holding in his hand

"Rei? What are you doing here?" (A)

"I needed to talk with you, so I scanned the village for your chakra. The more important question is, do you have coffee?" (Rei)

"H-Huh?" (A)

"I'll take that as a no. Oh? Hey sensei, so this is where you've been" (Rei)

"Um...well, more or less. Rei, why are you-?" (Tango)

"Wait a sec, why do you look so awful?!" (Mabui)

"Nee-san, I-umph?!" (Rei)

Before he could speak, Mabui rushed over and held his head. Getting a close look at his face, she could see the bags under his eyes and pale complexion. For better lack of words, he looked terrible

"Mabui..." (A)

"Nee-san, I'm fine. Really" (Rei)

"I'll be the judge of that! And these scrolls and books, you stayed overnight at the library again didn't you! I've told you time and again it's bad for your health! As soon as I'm done here, you're going home and getting some sleep!" (Mabui)

"Sigh..." (Rei)

"Mabui!" (A)

"Hm?" (Mabui)

"Might we actually hear as to why Rei has come? I have some questions for him myself" (Dodai)

"Oh...uh, right. Sorry" (Mabui)

Rei opened a scroll and gestured everyone to come close

"I've found it" (Rei)

"Found what?" (Tango)

"The Fuma clan's hidden partner" (Rei)

"?!" (Everyone)

"Truth be told, its understandable you couldn't find them. They haven't made an appearance after the formation of the shinobi villages. I had to dig deep in the lore, but dots eventually lined up" (Rei)

"This scroll is-" (A)

"A list of families and clans associated with the acting Daimyō in the Land of Lightning prior to the ascendance of the 1st Raikage" (Rei)

Rei pointed to one of the clan's on the list...

"Eh? Wait! The Fuma's partner is-?!" (Dodai)

"Dodai-sama?" (Tango)

"Do you recognize this name?" (F)

The Clan Rei had identified...

"That's right" (Rei)

Carried the surname...

"They're the only ones with a Dōjutsu besides the Uchiha capable of placating the Two-Tails and the rest of Team Mabui. The one with red eyes Hikaru-san mentioned" (Rei)

Chinoike...

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