Fate Wheel | Naruto

𝟔𝟒| Creatures In The Dark

"They were tricky, those demons. Could they be trusted? Of course they could be trusted. She'd created them. She owned them. They wouldn't lead her astray."
— Rachel Cohn

───※ ·❆· ※───

[5 months later, October.]

DAWN'S POV

I never liked the cold.

Coldness represented the absence of warmth, normality and life. It ominously reminded me of the constant need to stay alert and paranoid. At least, that was what I used to believe.

The dark, night clouds had shedded a thin layer of ice that glazed the buildings and window panels. Almost every time I exhaled, I could see the puff of smoke loitering in the air. Temperatures had dropped rapidly, to the point I had to wear numerous layers before being deployed on a mission. It also meant that staying indoors was one of my safest options which I didn't mind that much. Usually, I'd spend my time staying over at Hitomi's or helping Kei whenever things became a little difficult for her due to her pregnancy. It had been only recent that I haven't been able to spend as much time with everyone, ever since Lady Tsunade had assigned me on patrol duty.

I sighed, stuffing my hands into my pockets. It was mind blowing how, years prior to this, the Leaf Village's streets were the safest to roam around without constant fear of looking over your shoulders. Now, it was a norm to see Chunin, or the occasional Jounin, monitoring property and areas under high suspicion.

After the Chunin Exams five months ago, cases of the 'burning' had only began to become a public affair as people started noticing that the excuses, given to prevent exposure, wasn't plausible according to the continuity of the victims' lesions. Latterly, they'd been calling the incidents Internal Ignition as the pain mirrored a singular flame igniting in the mind of a person, this broadens until the body is unable to fight off a certain heat that spreads from the lower abdomen; eventually leading to inevitable death.

Jiro stopped walking.

"What's wrong?" I asked in concern.

His face was contorted in deep concentration, he lifted his snout up in the air and turned towards the opposite direction.

"Seven corpses around the corner." Jiro gestured towards the direction he was facing. "It seems like pineapple head had already informed the police and the investigation team."

My eyes widened in incredulity, an uneasy feeling growing in my stomach. There was no predetermined way of knowing who the next set of victims were going to be. My insight power had been useless- as if it was overlooking the entire issue completely and appeared only when it wanted to. Although, a part of me had accepted that this was beyond my control, it didn't stop me from feeling that there was more I could do to understand who the perpetrator was and their reasoning behind killing innocent people.

"Let's quickly go." I said, Jiro nodded in agreement.

We made our way a few blocks ahead, only to be welcomed by the sight of yellow tape bordering the area, civilians outside of their houses and police surrounding the crime scene along with a few other Shinobi. My nerves began to overwhelm me with dread as I closed in, managing to get a glimpse of the body before it was sealed away in a body bag. It was like seeing Yin's body all over again, I could never seem to adjust myself to the sight of death; not when it brought up unwanted memories.