Naruto was confused when he saw the lights ahead of him, from having studied the maps in his families library before he left, he knew that he wasn't have supposed to of hit the coast for at least another two days.
Frowning slightly he pulled out the map he had taken from the Clan Compound and lay it down on the branch he had just landed on, placing his compass next to it and trailing a finger along the route he had marked so far.
Staring at the map he found nothing that could explain the lights, there shouldn't have been as much as a village or a even small settlement for Loggers and their families for miles. And if it there was then he was much further North than he had expected, which would mean he would need to change direction slightly to get back on track.
Putting the map away again Naruto debated walking into the village or simple going around it, he did not want to be seen, a young boy on his own would arouse suspicion after all, but at the same time if he was found trying to skirt around it without entering then that would raise even more suspicion. He was quickly brought out of his thoughts however by a sudden sound.
"AAAAHHHH!"
And just like that his decision was soon made for him when the sound of a clearly female scream reached his ears, followed by several others.
Quickly jumping closer Naruto came to a stop just inside the tree line of the small settlement. Only for his eyes to suddenly widen in horror at what he saw before him, the buildings that made up the settlement were all on fire.
It seemed as though everyone that lived in the settlement was being herded into one place by a group of what Naruto could only assume were ninja, all dressed in black with hoods and masks so that only their eyes could be seen.
The only thing that identified them in any way were the standard Shinobi headbands they were wearing, all which displayed what looked like a musical note.
The few not herding the loggers and their families were using Fire Jutsu to set the buildings on fire, the wood and straw quickly catching and spreading with ease, the flames roaring high into the air with large clouds of black smoke beginning to billow up into the air.
Naruto could only watch as people were pushed and kicked, even thrown in the case of several children not moving quick enough until they were all huddled on the ground with the Shinobi standing in a circle around them.
Looking at the group Naruto's keen eyes were able to count eleven of them in total, his eyes able to see through the dark like it was day, he was even able to pick up the a faint blue outline that surrounded each of the people in the clearing, the outline being stronger around the Shinobi.
It was at that moment that one of the ninja stepped forward and pulled his mask down, showing the smirk on his lips as he stared at the cowering people.
"Alright you pathetic little shits, I'm going to make this easy on you. Tell us where the boy is, tell us and we will let you live.
We know he was in the area recently, we know he was here no more than a day ago. You know who I am talking about, and you know where he is. Tell us, and you live." The man said his voiced holding the arrogance that only those who have wielded power can possess.
Naruto had no idea who the boy the man was talking about, but from the looks of the people gathered in the clearing they did.
However from the looks on their faces Naruto also knew that they didn't know where whoever these men were looking for was, a fact that was confirmed when a large man with arms like tree trunks slowly stood up and moved to stand between the Shinobi that was talking and the rest of his people.
"H-he was here, not a few hours ago. But we don't know where he is now, he was just passing through."
The leader didn't even spare the man a glance; instead he simply flicked his hand out and threw a kunai aimed right at the man's head. Naruto who against all logically reason had been preparing himself to to jump down and attempt to stop it, the muscles in his legs tightening as he crouched. However before his feet even left the branch something… odd happened.
The kunai stopped in mid-air, not an inch from the loggers face as the man fell onto his back with wide eyes, the man pushing himself away from the Shinobi in front of him as he did so.
"You know it's not nice to throw things at people's faces? Very rude…what would your mother think..." A teasing voice spoke out cutting through the crackling sound of the flaming buildings as it did so.
All eyes turned in the direction of the voice, the Shinobi tensing and pulling out kunai as they tried to pin point exactly where it came from. Naruto found it instantly feeling the chakra of the speaker and seeing the strong blue outline around their figure, locking his eyes onto the top of one of the burning buildings as he focused in on the source of the voice.
There stood even as the flames under his feet slowly crawled closer was… a boy. He looked a couple of years older than Naruto, probably in his early teens.
He had dull grey hair that fell to just above his eyes, both of which were covered by a pair of round glasses that caught the light in such a way that it made them shine in the darkness of the night, the shine having a secondary effect of also hiding his eyes from sight.
What was visible however was the largest grin Naruto had probably ever seen, that was spread across his face, it was so large it looked painful to Naruto, and clenched between the boy's teeth was an unlit cigarette. He was a little pale, but not overly so and Naruto could clearly see several scars running along his face with the stitches still being present in his skin.
His frame while not as skinny as Naruto's was still quite slim, he was wearing a grey and brown patchwork shirt which seemed to cling to his chest like it was a second skin.
His pants were in a similar state, but probably not as skin tight. Then there was the odd white lab coat he wore over the top, the coat looked several sizes too big for the boy, with the sleeves falling well passed his hands and the bottom bunching slightly at his feet.
To finish off his strange appearance he also had for some reason or another a shovel strapped to his back, and narrowing his eyes slightly to focus in Naruto could see that fresh dirt still covered it.
Overall he made quite an unusual sight; to Naruto the boy looked quite deranged.
However as soon as Naruto finished taking in his appearance, he also noticed the boys outstretched arm with the sleeve pulled up so that his hand was visible. Said hand held with the fingers spread out wide, with the tips bent slightly. The hand was a pale white colour, and had scars covering it, and just like the ones on his face they were still had the stiches in.
It was while he was looking at the boy's hand that Naruto saw it, the light from the flames catching something and making it shine slightly in the dark night.
Wire…no it was too thin even for Ninja Wire. Whatever it was it was made up of hundreds of threads of string, each of which were shooting in every direction all over the burning settlement, the threads covering the area like a spider's web, and they all seemed to be connected to the boy's outstretched hand.
It was almost like a spider's web, which would make the Shinobi the flies that were trapped in the middle of it, with no apparent way out.
The reason the Kunai had stopped in mid-air was that it had somehow gotten tangled in the strings, and was for some reason unable to cut through the wire, which would led Naruto to believe that whatever they were, they were strong than they looked.
Naruto saw the moment that the Shinobi notice the strings to, and the one that had been smirking before suddenly didn't look so confident now. It was like the look of a man who had wielded power temporarily, only to realize he wasn't the biggest fish in the sea.
The unnamed boy suddenly leapt from the very top of the burning building he was stood on, allowing himself to drop so he was instead sitting on the edge of the roof, the strings shifting with his movement.
"AAAHHH!"
And somehow that sudden movement had caused one of the Shinobi to lose his leg, while another of the Shinobi lost his hand and a third his head.
It was quite a show to the watching Naruto, who with his enhanced vision was able to see the strings moving in the darkness, and how easily they seemed to cut through the flesh of the enemy Shinobi.
This left eight Shinobi who were still able to function at one hundred percent… all of which now looked very worried and very pissed off.
The same one that had been speaking before slowly turned to face the boy, getting a cut on his cheek for his trouble.
"You little shit! You know you will never get away with this! He will just send more, you will never escape!" The man shouted out, the arrogance that had been previously present fading to reveal a note of fear and anxiety in his voice.
In response to the man's threat the boy showed absolutely no sign of caring, instead all he did was lean back so his head was next to a flame, which with a slight tilt of his head he used to light his cigarette without taking it out of his mouth.
"You talk a lot don't you, I can fix that if you want. I always wondered what it would be like to remove someone's voice box, I know most go for the tongue but let's face it after so many years of it being the first choice it is kind of a bit boring."
Was the boy's nonchalant response, a cloud of smoke leaving his mouth as he spoke, the whispy white smoke being swiftly overwhelmed by the great billowing black smoke that was coming off of the burning buildings.
Then with a twitch of his middle finger two more of the Shinobi fell, one losing his feet and falling into other and getting slice into pieces while the other was simply cut in half at his waist.
The boy still showed no sign of caring, and the grin was still in place as he took a deep puff before leaning his head back and letting the smoke in a thick stream.
When he turned to face the man again he got a thoughtful expression on his face, the grin slipping for a moment as he took on a serious look and hummed to himself.
"You know, I actually think I have a better plan for you…"
A twitch of his index finger, this time only one being killed as the top of his head fell off.
"After all I could always use a few more parts…"
Another twitch, another two dead.
"And it's so hard to find volunteers…"
Twitch…and now only the Shinobi who had been speaking was left, looking like he was going to make a run for it any second now.
But before he could there was another twitch, only this time instead of cutting the man into pieces the strings wrapped around his body.
They dug in deep leaving lines all over his skin, but didn't cut. The Shinobi was spluttering as he took in deep gasping breaths now, eyes wide in panic as he found he was unable to move an inch.
He was however able to speak.
"Damn you Frankenstein, damn you to HELL!"
The now named Frankenstein just tilted his head to the side and gave a small smile, uncaring for the man's curses.
"Where would be the fun in that?"
And with a final twitch the last Shinobi fell to pieces on the ground.
...
If you're too impatient to wait for updates, the story's already at chapter 96 on P atreon.
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