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| - The small group had gathered at the village gates. Despite it being the morning hours, the sun had yet to rest. Perhaps it was the winter finally setting in, after all it had been unseasonably mild in the past few months. However, the ANBU masks prevented all of the participating individuals from knowing each others identities. A red-haired hunter-nin known as Fox stood a little ways from the rest, her gear masking her emotions from her comrades. "When are we going to start?" Fox asked, her voice retaining the same cold detached indifference that she was known for. Many found it hard to read her emotions, as they watched her easily switch temperaments like one changes socks. However, Fox's infiltration prowess spoke for itself, as her spotless assassination record made her a feared individual in the eyes of many. Thus they trusted her to do what she must, as the rest prepared themselves for deployment from the village. On the other side of the group stood a lone man in a black and white mask, though the thing that truly stood out was his red coat. This white haired Anbu was known as the Red Man, he was quite well known in the squads for being the most lethal of any member. He normally never spoke unless it was to make plans and even when he did his voice always sounded distant. Despite these qualities his fame usually caused him to defeat enemy squadrons just but them seeing him and hearing his name. For this reason he was one of the most sought after members for a mission. The red man looked over towards the group as he awaited their departure. At the signal, the group departed, disappearing in the forest that lie beyond the village gates. Their destination lie in a place north of the village, well removed from Eigakure, but still with the large boundaries of the Land of Focus. Fox's mind wandered slightly at the group silently traveled, some speeding across the forest floor, others nimbly leaped from tree branch to tree branch. "I wonder what type of mission it is," Fox thought, hoping it was of the infiltration/assassination variety. However, with a relatively large group of 10 anbu, she knew it would most likely be confronting an enemy force. Part of her hoped it was members of the Fire Nation, as she looked forward to disposing of their lifeless bodies after she had wiped them from existence. The red man who was currently leading the pack held his and up and motioned for them to stop as they neared a clearing. As he looked over the army he eyed the many Anbu from both Eigakure and Ryūseigakure. Ever since their two kages had wed missions for either place could be taken by anyone from either city. "I can sense the army that the fire nation sent, they're camping on here before their final push. Remember our mission is to kill off the army except their lead, for interrogation. Now as you all know I'll kill him on sight so I'll take the army." He spoke as he waited for further responses and planning. "So you plan on taking down the entire army by yourself?" Fox inquired as her squad silently dropped down from the treetops to the forest floor, "I guess we'll just sit back and watch then, unless of course you want us to capture him in the chaos." She surveyed the other 8 anbu who patiently waited for the strategy to be fully exhausted. "How about you and the rest go and raise hell? I'll make sure the leader is safely on the sidelines while you slaughter the rest of them," Fox said nonchalantly, as if she was talking about the weather rather than an opposing army's impending demise. "I'm pretty sure most of their army will leave as soon as they see me." The red man replied. "My hope was that in the chaos I cause you'll be able to capture their leader." He spoke as he stood and stretched his limbs. "Lets end this." He spoke between gritted teeth as he jumped towards the encampment. There was a small field before the camp began with a training yard where most of the army was. Behind that various tents were set up, the captain was most likely there too. The red man jumped into the fray as he landed low in the field and charged forward with his staff drawn, he tripped a few soldiers out of the blue and then let loose a fireball into them that turned them to ash in armor. He then jumped back and raised his hand as dozens of razor sharp blades of water protruded from the earth and impaled many of the soldiers. He then landed on the ground and raised one hand in a menacing fashion before speaking in a very demonic voice. "The red man is hear, you all best run in fear." "Someone has an inflated sense of self," Fox sarcastically supplied, as the Red Man roared into battle, awakening what had been a quiet campsite for the opposing forces. As he announced his presence with a brutal path of murder, Fox laughed, one filled with psychopathic excitement that many found intimidating. "You six, go back up that fool, and make sure that you eliminate as much of the Fire's forces as possible," Fox said, "And you two, stay here and disguise yourselves, I'll be bringing the leader back to this checkpoint. As soon as he comes into view, capture him," With that Fox melted into the chaos, skillfully mapping out the landscape while searching for the leader's tent. Sure enough she found it, with two bodyguards outside. With efficient ease, Fox dispatched both of them, before assuming the female bodyguard's appearance. She then found the leader inside furious planning and gathering any evidence he could. "Leader, we need to go now," Fox stated urgently as broke down the opposing forces penetration into their camp. Nodding his assent, they stole away through the chaos, Fox using the relative anarchy to her advantage to bring the man back to the checkpoint she designated. To his credit, he was quite calm, showing his leadership qualities. Once they reached the spot, the Anbu materialized before surrounding the two with a bristling circle of weapons and people. "Shit," Fox said, as both her and the leader were surrounded, though she was still playing the act of loyal bodyguard. The red man laughed as the six anbu jumped to join him but before they could even reach him a metal beast had appeared on the field and had stopped everyones movement. They all stood in awe at this terrifying monster, without hesitation the beast extended it's right arm and let loose a relentless barrage of poisoned needles that lay waste to all in it's path, cutting down a large portion of the army. It then fired a beam made of pure heat in a sweeping motion at such a blinding speed that the enemies had no time to react. What was left after the assault was a poisoned and burnt army of dead soldiers and a field of burnt wreckage. The monster disappeared as the red man hopped back to the original meeting place and spotted two survivors that the Anbu had surrounded. "Well well I guess we have some more flesh puppets here. Once your done with them I'll roast them." He spoke in his demonic voice. He then walked a small distance into the forest and sat upon a tree branch. Fox snickered as her disguise melted away, much to the leader's shock. "Take care of him," she said, her anbu mask hiding a grin that would strike fear into the man's heart. Respecting her abilities, the anbu parted, allowing her to walk through. As their prisoner tried to follow, she skillfully poleaxed him, allowing him to fall into a unconscious heap. Satisfied, she walked behind the group, before sitting on a tree stump to oversee the interrogation. "Bored?" she asked the red man as the process commenced; it was quickly decided that the process would be more effective back at the village. She then paused to pick up the unconscious body of the leader; maybe she had been a little too effective in knocking him out. Once everything had been gathered, the squad melted back into the night, Fox at its lead as they sped back in the direction of the village. "Let's take him to the prison for the time being," Fox stated calmly, "it is the most fortified location, before the fun can begin," At this the psychopathic smile returned. On the return trip the team had stopped in a forest clearing to set up camp for the night. The tents were circled around a roaring fire as the stars twinkled in the sky. While everyone was in their tents a certain individual had left and was currently sitting on a brach a good ways away from camp and staring at the stars. "Why did this have to happen again." The red man muttered to himself in a normal voice. "A whole damn army this time." He spoke through clenched teeth as he slammed his fist into the tree, leaving a hole in it. Having secured the prisoner and made sure he was well guarded and accounted for, Fox left the camp site, finding a suitable place well away from the camp. As she sat in the upper reaches of that large tree Fox heard the muttering of an ANBU operative in a voice that sounded vaguely familiar. Curious, she gently hopped down from tree branch to tree branch before landing on the forest floor below, standing slightly behind the Red Man. "Looks like someone is having a temper tantrum," Fox teased slightly, "want to talk about it? Also, please refrain from damaging the trees, they take a long time to be replaced." With nothing better to do for the night, she sat calmly on the forest floor, any psychopathic tendencies fading with the wind. Had her mask been off, she would look indifferent if not outright bored. "Who the fuck!" The red man stuttered as he whirled around to face Fox, her comments passed over him as his rage of her possibly finding him out was much higher. "Your sarcasm isn't assuming int the slightest." He spoke once again in his changed voice. "I suggest you just leave me alone Fox, you know nothing about me and I'd like to keep it that way." He trailed on as he stepped back and summoned his monster and began petting it." Please just leave me." The voice he spoke in was barley hearable. Fox noted the change of voice as if he was slipping back into a role; she wasn't impressed. "Please, I know more about you than you would care to admit.....brother," Fox responded, her voice cold. Annoyed by the atmosphere surrounding the Red Man, Fox turned to exit the small clearing. "I'll leave you to your misery then." She continued walking back to the campsite, which remained rather quite as the Anbu focused on maintaining secrecy within this large area that they called home for the night. The red man's eyes flashed for a second before he extended his hand and his monster appeared before Fox, blocking her path. "Wait." He cried out, no longer hiding his voice. "Nagisa is that you?" He asked aloud, his voice filled with confusion. Since when had his sister been an Anbu. The red man removed his mask, revealing the face of Kenzou Kantoku. It was a face filled with guilt, eyes darting around and mouth curled downward. "I knew it," Fox said, satisfaction filtering through her voice. Part of her was surprised to find her brother in the anbu considering his standing within the village as a sage; a man of deep reservoirs of wisdom and knowledge. What had initially tipped her off was his actions and voice; a common depiction of her brother was one who hated violence and killing, despite knowing its necessity in a hostile and somewhat broken world. "That it is, dear brother. What brings you to the ranks of the anbu?" Fox stated, detaching her mask before placing it on her hip. Standing in front of Kenzou was none other than his sister, her vermilion hair and eyes distinctive. Resting upon her face was a smirk as she stared him down, her Fox facade not quite faded; it amused Nagisa to see her twin brother in such shock. Kenzou laughed a little, it was a kind of manic laugh that emanated through the trees. His head hung low causing his shining white hair to cover all of his face, except his mouth. "Yeah must be quite the shock to see your older brother as the most ruthless Anbu to ever exist in our two villages." He spoke in a low tone. "It surprised me to but I need to make them proud and killing gets you there." He laughed a little as the words left his lips, tears flowed down from beneath the veil of hair and fell off his face. "It's really funny you know." "How cute," Nagisa stated as she approached her brother once more. "Do understand however brother, I've been in the anbu significantly longer than you have. I honestly don't understand why you would chose such a discipline when you hate brutality in general," Upon seeing her brother break down however, Nagisa's fox facade dissipated, replaced instead by that of a loving twin sister. For her MPD caused her to change personalities like socks depending on the situation, and it decided that a hardened and cold hunter-nin would not be appropriate for such a task. In a sense, it made a touch unstable, but the transitions were so seamless that almost no one picked up on it. Closing the remaining distance, Nagi hugged her brother, choosing actions over words to help combat this mental break. Besides, she found most dialogue too cheap for such a time. Kenzou flinched at the contact before simply wrapping his arms around her and crying a bit more. "You know that robot I have." He spoke slowly. "That monstrosity is a personification of everything Iv'e killed." He laughed a bit as he spoke."Killing has almost become a game of sorts to me. I hate it but I'm so good at it." He cried a little more."That is what seems to frighted me most." He stuttered as he continued to hug his sister. Kenzou's whole body shuddered as the monster that watched them disappeared, leaving the two alone in the woods. "I know." Nagi responded simply. Part of her wondered in absentminded manner when she would snap, and what the repercussions would be for those around her. In particular, if there would be significant collateral damage to any unfortunate passerby who simply happened to be in the wrong place at a dreadfully wrong time. She could feel it lurking within her, a product of walking the fine line between genius and insanity. Her thoughts drifted back to the times when she heard of the Red Man twice returning without the rest of the anbu squad he had been assigned to, and giving the reason of enemy attackers doing it the rest of the group. While she had eventually believed it, now that Nagi knew the red man's identity, she understood how they died; it wasn't by an enemy's hand. "You killed them didn't you," Nagi whispered softly as she continued to hold on to her brother. She expected that Kenzou would recognize what she was referring to. "of course you know, you always knew what was up Nagi." He spoke as he stood from the hug and turned away as he heard her begin to talk about his "incidents". He sighed as he heard her out and found that she came to the correct conclusion. His mouth twisted into a sad smile. "Yeah you're right I did kill them all, on one of the missions they found out who I was and I could never let that slip. On another I don't know what happened actually, I think I just kinda lost it. Woke up in a pool of blood but I never said anything. I couldn't, I can't let my life here be known to anyone, I can't tell anyone about this. Even our parents don't know I'm an Anbu, or at least I don't think they do. I hope not." He spoke to Nagisa as he looked off into the distance. "Thing is, if they didn't know, who appointed us to their ranks then?" Nagisa asked in response. As far as she was concerned, it was mostly the Kage who were responsible for electing people to the anbu ranks, as well as monitored their progress. Once they had separated she sighed, voicing a question that had been bothering her for a while. "Do you think we're damaged goods?" She saw the sad smile on her brother's face from earlier, and it caused Nagi's heart to twist. She still believed that Kenzou should have never been involved in the anbu; he was too good of a person for that, too filled with good wisdom that needed to be passed. In Nagisa's mind, he wasn't allowed to be the corrupted one; that distinction belonged to her only. She was the one to carry the darkness of the family, not her brother. "You have to retire from the anbu. I can't watch you compromise your principles like that." Nagi said as she walked up to his side, seeing another clearing and a star filled sky. "You don't get it do you, I can't because this is what they want. This is what they desire of me." Kenzou laughed as he turned to face her, a sick looking smile plastered on his face. "I'm their prodigy dammit I need ever aspect, wisdom, skill, intelligence, I MUST BE PERFECT FOR THEM." He screamed as he hit the ground with his fist creating a crater on impact. For a few minutes the world stood still as his sods filled the air. Finally Kenzou stood and looked at Nagisa. "Trust me, we're more than broken but that doesn't mean we're unfixable." He smiled softly as he spoke those words but in his mind it only seems like Nagisa could fix herself, he was gone to far. Most would have been horrified by the way Kenzou just acted, if not repulsed or outright intimidated. But Nagisa wasn't phased by her brother's temperament, even though the forest was silenced by his outburst of noise. "Perfection isn't worth selling your soul and sanity." Nagi replied calmly. It was clear that their pysche had felt the burden of growing up too quickly and remaining in a social isolation. She shook her head though, knowing that Kenzou's outbursts meant the opposite of what he thought. Rather than signaling he was too far gone, it meant he was still fighting, not quite resigned to his fate. Nagisa had never had such outbursts, remaining in tight control of her emotions by her own whim and her MPD. In this sense, the breakdown was coming, with the forfeiting of her sanity close by. Thus if anyone could not be repaired, it was Nagisa, a fact that saddened her little. "We should head back, our presence will most likely be missed." Nagisa said, placing her head on Kenzou's shoulder while placing her mask back on. As if slipping into another skin, her voice hardened at the end, her Fox demeanor firmly in place once more. "You go back, I'll meet up with you guys at the village." Kenzou spoke as he began to walk in the opposite direction. He needed some time to himself to think over everything, he needed to let some anger loose as well. Once he had gone very far away from his original place he placed his hands at his sides, crunching them into fists as he began to release his seal. 30 should be enough though a hundred would be more fun. He thought to himself as he released only 30 percent of his power and began destroying the surrounding area. Trees were uprooted, large boulders scattered to dust, the very earth itself scarred. Upon finishing his outrage massive crater of debris stood in his wake. "That feels much much better." He spoke to himself as he re-sealed himself and began to dash back to camp. Kenzou arrived just as the sun began to rise and positioned himself in one of the trees to look like he had just gotten up early. His mask was back and the ruthless red man once again showed his presence. If Nagisa heard the massive destruction that her brother unearthed, she made no mention of it. She hadn't slept, though her Fox personality remained firmly in place. "Enjoyed yourself?" Fox said, indifference prominent in her voice as she sat cross-legged on a rock. Once the rest of the Anbu had been roused from their sleep, they took the now awake leader and began the latter half of the journey. With ease, they sped through the forest, their prisoner complaining until Fox brutally knocked him out once more. They arrived at the village gates once more, before depositing their prisoner at the location. Because of the early morning hours, there wasn't that many about, but in typical anbu fashion, the hunter-nin disappeared, leaving the Red Man and Fox as the only remainder of the squad. "I guess I shall report to the Eikage. I take it you'll do the same for the Ryūseikage." Fox yawned, bored now that the prisoner was under lock and key. With ease, she ran to the Eikage's office, prepared to debrief the leader. Kenzou sighed as they reached the village he began walking off towards the portal to Ryūseigakure to report on his mission. Upon reaching the portal he began writhing his mission report to prevent speaking, he wrote this until he had reached the office and opened the doors. "Well if it isn't the red man." Makaze spoke aloud as he took the folder the man held out. "How are you?" He asked before the man simply disappeared.Ugh Kenzou is so difficult sometimes. Makaze thought as he went back to paperwork. Meanwhile Kenzou had already re-used the portal and reached Eigakure again. He walked into a surrounding forest before swiftly swapping his clothes and sitting down on a branch. Aka looked up when the door opened, to see anbu clad kunoichi stroll in. "I take it the mission was successfully completed." Aka stated as Fox handed her a completed report. "Of course, who do you think I am?" Fox responded with a sardonic grin, one that could be made out from her tone. "There's no need-" Aka started before her daughter with speedy ease, out of the building before the office door closed. What is Nagisa's issue? Could it be her MPD acting up again or something else? Aka wondered, remembering that her brother was assigned to this mission as well. Once in her apartment, Nagisa discarded her anbu attire; she would have to wash it later. She chose to take a shower, in the hopes of relaxing the nerves that permeated her body. With the hot water, her Fox masquerade was washed away, and Nagisa felt more like herself for the first time in weeks; though she wondered if this really was her.
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