Aizawa has long held the suspicion that Hitoshi was being groomed to be a child soldier at one point in his life. His skills, his mindset, and overall apathy towards life were alarming. But Aizawa couldn't find external evidence for the strange behavior of his adopted son. Until his first lead dropped from the sky in the form of a white-haired man and three children. They were immediately apprehended, and now Aizawa will get his answers.
This is a fanfic of a fanfic. Road to Nowhere by Aerugonian
Notes:
Inspired by Road to Nowhere by Aerugonian.
(See the end of the work for other works inspired by this one.)
Chapter 1
Chapter Text
Condensation was so thick Kakashi had to swallow with each breath. His clothes clung to him uncomfortably, restraining his movements. His hitai-ate had sagged down from the weight of water, and the salt stung his eyes. Kakashi thanked every higher being in existence that Zabuza wielded a large blade with a damn hold in it. Dramatic bitch. His blade whistled as it careened through the air, and Kakashi could dodge what he could not see. He ducked down and took a swipe at the missing-nin’s ankles but missed. Zabuza must be further back than he initially thought.
Another whistle, and Kakashi dove to the side. He wanted to scoff; this man was likely an S-ranked missing-nin solely on rumors. Who the hell uses such a noisy and slow weapon with a silent killing technique? The technique would be better utilized if Zabuza used a damn kunai. Then he would deserve his reputation: Demon of the Bloody Mist. This guy couldn’t even figure out how to assassinate properly. What was Mist even doing?
Kakashi jumped, keeping staying mindful of his young team. He was coaxing the missing-nin to follow him further away from his client and students. “Zabuza, Demon of the Bloody Mist. I’ve seen you in the bingo books!” he called out. “Why would someone like you be after a lowly civilian? Seems beneath you.” A little flattery goes a long way. Gloat at me, big guy.
Zabuza’s hoarse laughter echoed through the air ladened with water, making it difficult for Kakashi to pin his location down. Fucker used an auditory genjutsu, something his Sharingan doesn’t help with. Either Zabuza did do his homework, or it was just a lucky happenstance. But this guy cared more about embellishing his reputation than doing his job correctly. Kakashi didn’t bother to try breaking the genjutsu, wanting to coax Zabuza into a false sense of security. He still had his sense of smell, though in this instance, perhaps that wasn’t ideal.
Another whistle and Kakashi moved out of the way, but he had to divert immediately when he nearly lost his foot to the blade. So, he was using the genjutsu on the whistling from his sword to make it difficult for Kakashi to pinpoint him. Kakashi grinned; the bitch liked to play with his food. Well, Kakashi could mess with him in equal measure.
Kakashi flipped backward, his hand partially sinking into the moist ground. He was being driven back into the water. Zabuza probably assumed he would have the advantage here, except Kakashi could electrocute him using the water as a conduit. However, he’d rather show Zabuza how a real shinobi plays with his prey. After all, sharks get eaten too.
“Money is money, Kakashi of the Sharingan. You have a pretty bounty on your head too.” Kakashi frowned at the lack of whistling. Where was he? Zabuza’s voice reverberated in the air. Then the genjutsu snapped, and the fog gave away. “But I am not being paid for your head.”
Kakashi’s genins and the lying foolish bridge builder stood frozen as Zabuza’s Executioner’s Blade reared back. Sasuke-Stupid-Uchiha shoved the bridge builder out of the line of attack instead of moving himself. The bridge builder fell and skidded across the ground on his shoulder. Naruto and Sakura didn’t move in their terror. All of Naruto’s boisterous promises shattering before the blade could even make a connection. Sasuke had wasted his one move to delay the garbage builder’s death. Everything meandered forward, giving Obitio’s eye plenty of time to ingrain this into his memory, bit by gory bit. This was supposed to be a C rank easy mission: a camping trip! He was supposed to be teaching them how to snare rabbits and gut fish. Laughing when they used poison oak to wipe their butts.
