Black Bird [Itachi Uchiha]

2: Akatsuki

The moon fell out of the sky, introducing the sun. The familiar warmth tickled my skin and nourished me. I stopped to allow the flooding rays to envelop me, the heat licking my skin, ridding the night's chill. I gazed at the sky and admired the sun.

I took the opportunity to pause and activate my Kekkei Genkai. The Murasaki clan had lilac colored eyes, but when we used the Murasakiro ("Kiro"), our eyes turned a royal, bright illuminating purple.

The Kiro was able to detect brainwaves from far distances, practically marking people with a pip and giving off their location. The Kiro could see through bad weather conditions, which wasn't entirely practical for battles outside of The Sand Village, but helped long-distance travel. I also had the ability to alter senses, like temporarily blurring their vision, or altering their ability to hear. The Kiro also paired strong genjutsu, such as the skill of temporary persuasive hypnotism and mental illusion, which I had not quite mastered yet.

I had planned on using my Kekkei Genkai at a few intervals during my travel, all locations I deemed to be hot spots for activity prior to leaving the Sand Village. Thankfully, I would not have to use it for long, as I was already halfway to the Leaf. I would turn my ability off an hour within the boarder of Konoha.

I was planning on stopping at Konoha for supplies, and I was already halfway there. Realizing I may run into Leaf Nin, I tucked my sand village headband in my pocket. At this moment, I was most likely a rogue ninja, escaped from the demonized Murasaki clan. I wanted to be in and out of Konoha without any issues.

I stopped in my tracks. Two enemies to the left. 20 miles away. I drew right to hide behind the bushes.

As the Kiro was more defensive than offensive, I jumped into the tree above, my sword clutched tight between my hands. My heart was thumping in my chest, my body froze up. Alarm bells had instantly rung in my head the moment I realized the amount of power radiating off of the two people, and the sword one of them was holding. Suddenly, they stopped moving and shifted, facing my way. I felt my heart almost leap out of my chest. Normally, they wouldn't be able to sense me from this distance. I prepared myself, readying my eyes for battle, watching them approach.

They were striding my way, calmly, quickly, through the trees to the trail I had been walking on, but all of a sudden, they disappeared from my line of sight, and I almost let out a yelp when they reemerged right below the tree I was in. I looked downward, my heart racing when I saw the two in clear view beneath me.

Both individuals were dressed in black cloaks with red clouds on them. One was a very tall, blue man, with shark features, including small eyes, gills, and razor-sharp teeth. He wielded a large sword with bandages wrapped around it, encasing the top. The second individual was a younger man, probably around my age. He had long hair tied up in a pony, and sectioned hair framing his face. He had such dark eyes, I couldn't make out the irises.

"Hm, where do you think she is, Itachi?"

I swallowed hard, keeping as still as possible, balancing on the branch. I shifted my feet slowly, thankful there were enough leaves underneath me to where my shadow wasn't visible.

I pushed my hand out towards the men, altering their brain pattern to blur their vision, landing in front of them. I swung my katana out in a long, swiping motion, catching the shark man's sleeve with my sword, but barely slicing his forearm. The man named Itachi had effortlessly moved out of the way before throwing a leg out to kick me in the stomach, sending me flying into a tree.

My back hit the tree as I wheezed. The wind was knocked out of me, and a little blood as well. I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth, shakily pushing myself back into stance.