Ojos Asi [[private -- nyrax]]

AKiko bit her lip softly. "Youki is not as cunning as you think. In times like this, when he needs constant supplies of information, he isn't a distance. If he moved into the village to speak to Xerion, then he's still around Konoha. I doubt he's more than five miles in any direction. If you want to protect Aaliyah, all movement of ANBU members and information needs to end. And, all the protocols we have to prevent theft need to be updated. Youki was in ANBU too, and there are ways to get around it." She paused, looking down at the floor.

"That's... what I think. If Youki stole information from Konoha, he's going to keep stealing it. All documents coming in or out of Konoha need to be replaced for new ones, fake documentation that will be enough to interest Youki. Something like an execution of shinobi. Give him a reason to come back for Suigetsu. He likes it when people have no options and he can force them."

The leader of ANBU grinned. "This is why you were brought back to me." He stated, ruffling her hair. "That seems reasonable."

Kiba watched the interaction between Akiko and the ANBU leader, taking note as to how quickly Akiko was able to relay all that information and also make a plan as to how to get things back in their favor. He scratched his chin once again, trying to think it through. If they used fake documents, it might interest Youki to get him to acquire them. Plus, if he ever learned that they were fake, he'd probably assume that Aaliyah wasn't an ANBU. Assuming he suspected that as it was.

"Suigetsu isn't capable of dying though", Shino said casually. "Wouldn't it make more sense to threaten someone like Karin? If we try to slit Suigetsu's neck he'd lose a bit of water and simply reform", Shino added.

Akiko shook her head. "That's not what I'm suggesting." She looked up at Shino. "Suigetsu and Karin are still on probation. This will be nothing more than acting to get Youki's attention. If you have Suigetsu suspected of trying to steal information, telling him about this, then it would make sense that he would attempt to run with Karin. She's the weakest of the two. So if they're faced with death, I'm sure that Youki will come to save Suigetsu, but only so he can use him as a weapon."

Xerion thought about it. "There's a chance she's right. I think Youki could be close. He's stealing information. I think he's looking for something specific, he just needs to find out where it is, because he doesn't know. While I'm here he's assigned me to read through ANBU logs and keep tabs on the movements of certain shinobi. He's particularly interested in Sasuke's movements."

Shino heard Akiko out, nodding as the words were now clicking in his head. Now he got it, they just needed to make it seem like they were in a no win situation. Upon thinking about it more, Suigetsu already knew that there were things worse than death out there. He had been trapped in a jar for years on end after all, and Shino very much doubted that he'd be looking forward to doing it again.

Kiba was still thinking on it. "One thing though", he said as he glanced towards Akiko. "Suigetsu and Karin stayed with Konoha because they wanted to get away from Youki. Don't you think it'd be hard to convince them to act this out with us, especially knowing that they'll once again betray him in the end? If Youki found I can't even imagine what he'd do to them"

Akiko bit her lip. "Well... Suigetsu is the type of person that will kill Youki to secure his safety. Though I doubt he trusts Konoha to keep him safe, I believe that he will do this when he found out it was my idea. He's not doing this so much for the village. If this succeeds, it's expected that the village would offer them their freedom, with the guarantee that they would not be hunted. That seems reasonable, doesn't it, Leader-sama?"

"Suigetsu is too dangerous to release Akiko. You're analysis of this problem is eloquent, but it's flawed."

Akiko glared. "He's done nothing that warrants what you're doing to him now. You can't keep him prisoner for the rest of his life. If I bring this to Tsunade--"

"In cases of war, ANBU operates against the Hokage to protect the village. The well being of everyone is more important than one person."

Xerion sighed. "Whatever. Where is the real leader? I grow tired of talking to this cock and pony show."

Shino was about to comment when the exchange took place between Akiko, Xerion, and the ANBU guy. Xerion's last comment was what struck home with Shino. Everything that he was going to say about Suigetsu now left his mind. Had he heard what Xerion said correctly or had he been deceived? Shino glanced from the ANBU leader towards Akiko and Xerion. "You mean to tell me that this man is not the leader of ANBU?"

Xerion shook his head. "No. The ANBU leader would never appear in front of this many people. All ANBU leaders stand in the background, operating from the shadows. They never make public appearances and very rarely are known to be affiliated with ANBU. This man." he pointed to the one in front of him. "Wears no mask and makes no efforts to hide his identity. He can't give us a straight answer and answers in accordance to a manual. No leader would be this brainless." Obviously, this comment infuriated the man before them.

"He's watching us, and I'm risking my life for this shit. I don't deserved to be handled. If you continue to treat me like this, I will simply leave Konoha and no longer supply information on my brother. You have Aaliyah, who you're willing to kill. I don't plan to wait until you're planning my execution."

The male shook his head. "Showing my face is a form of mutual respect between--"

Xerion waved his hand. "You're the face of ANBU. I will ask once more before I force the leader to come out." His hand slid against the neck of his guitar. "I don't like being handled. I'm not a child."

Gulping, the male nodded. "Wait here then." Forming the tiger sign, he vanished.

Shino glanced towards Xerion as he gave his long explanation. Shino should've known better. ANBU knew that Shino wouldn't take this information well, having someone like the leader come out and speak to him like this wouldn't make any sense. Xerion was right, he had this new guy pinned for the liar that he was. Shino just held his arms crossed. He didn't care if Tsunade ever begged for him to do it, he'd never join an organization like ANBU.

Shino turned towards Xerion once the man left. "Well played", he said with a simple smile.

Xerion smirked at Shino. "I have more experience with these assholes than you do. They don't have a title for me, but ANBU likes to think I work for them. I don't, but the thought lets them sleep at night and perpetuates the fantasy that helps them get off." He rested a hand on the top of Akiko's head.

"Are you in pain?" She whispered, touching his side, knowing the answer.

The male nodded. "They drilled holes into my bones. Of course I'm in pain." He answered, bending down and smiling at her sweetly. "But it's my legs that hurt."

Shino listened to Xerion's comment and merely raised an eyebrow at his choice of words. Hey, long as it worked at getting them results than Shino wasn't going to say anything in protest. He merely glanced at Shibi who gave him a tiny shrug as if to say, "Just go with it". Shino turned his attention back to the exchange with Xerion and Akiko.

Kiba just watched as well, smiling at the level of concern that Akiko was able to show with just the tone of her voice. It always amazed him how capable she was of making everyone around her feel so much more loved. It was one of her best qualities.

Akiko looked over at Kiba. "Maybe you were right..." She said, walking over to him. "Maybe my choice to rejoin ANBU was a mistake." Was her soft answer.

Xerion rubbed the top of her head. "Just wait it out. As soon as Youki is caught your missions will be normal. He knows the ANBU system, so they need people that know him just as well."

A puff of smoke appeared in the room and another shinobi appeared. This one was shorter than the former, but his face was covered and his arms were behind his back in the same way; giving him the look of a drill sergeant. The mask on his face that one of a threatening expression, rather than passive. Unlike the others, his mask was black and the paint a top it was white. "I'm here to address your concerns." The man had a deep and stern voice, showing that though he wasn't as tall as the one before him, he very well could be the drill sergeant he appeared to be.

"ANBU has only called you here to extract information and warn you, under the Hokage's command, of Aaliyah's injury. Kiba was asked here to track the scent Youki trailed through the village." He held up a sealed bag with a small ripped piece of cloth. "This was found and we believe it to be the clothing of the body Youki was using. It was eliminated to be owned by anyone in ANBU. He held out the bag towards Kiba, but did not move to close the distance between them. Instead, he waited for the Inuzuka to come and take it.

Kiba just held Akiko for a moment, rubbing her shoulder with his hand. He just smiled down at her. He didn't want to take the time for an "I told you so!" moment, that would only make things worse right now. Plus, this was good information that hopefully would change things for the better against Youki. They just needed to wait it out for now.

As the true leader of the ANBU appeared, Kiba couldn't help but almost get at more of a straight stance. The man just almost seemed to demand an air of respect around him. After a moment though Kiba fell back to his casual appearance once again. That was odd. At the mention of him potentially tracking Youki, Kiba only felt skeptical. He walked over and took the bag from the man. "Do you know anywhere he's definitely been? A start of anywhere will help me locate his sense easier than just running around the village. The scent will likely already be dying. If you want me to do this, it must be soon"

"You will be doing it now." He stated. "I will be accompanying you to make sure you do it right. He was in the hospital and went to the Hokage mountain. If you'd like to sample the air here and move to the hospital, feel free to do so, looking for a common scent."

Xerion arched a brow. "You keeping on that mask there buddy?" Apparently he didn't see the need to show this many any respect at all.

The male huffed under the mask. "Don't be so cocky." Reaching up, he pulled the mask off. He had dark brown hair that was short, close to his head. His eyes slowly opened, revealing bright golden eyes that faced Kiba. "We're wasting time, let us begin."

Kiba gave a simple nod. As much as he hated the ANBU he wasn't going to take a moment like this to just show any defiance. He could always let ANBU have a piece of his mind after this whole thing was over. For the time being though, they had a killer to track. He took the cloth and began to smell it, deeply smell it. He wasn't going to confuse this for anything.

Shino's eyes widened for a moment and he felt himself tense up. Those eyes, he knew those eyes. He had only seen one other person have those eyes. Aaliyah was the only person that Shino knew that had golden eyes. Than how did this man.......no. That couldn't be right. THIS man was Aaliyah's father!?

The man's golden eyes did not leave Kiba as he watched him closely, as if assessing if he was actually going to help. His pose did not ease up, and still resembled a man that has killed for any showing of disrespect. Turning to stand at an angle, he waited for Kiba to get a scent, lead him out of the tower the same way they came in. Once outside, he paused, waiting for Kiba to make the first move.

"If you have something to ask..." His eyes slid over to rest on Shino. "Ask it. Do not waste the effort to stare at me. Gennin stare like fools; I expect better from a Konoha Jounin."

Shino narrowed his eyes as the man spoke once again, telling that he was using every bit of his power to just try to make Shino look foolish. "Considering the lengths that ANBU goes to in order to keep their secrets I assume that you wouldn't answer this question honestly", Shino said simply as they kept following Kiba who seemed to be trying to narrow down the exact specific scent to follow. "Is Aaliyah your daughter?", he asked simply.

The man grinned darkly at the male before him. "Don't assume your superiority over me just because my daughter has made a foolish decision to be with a so-called man like yourself. Though Aaliyah is an adult and makes her own choices now, had she stayed in the village, I never would allow the blood of my clan to be tainted with the filth of yours." He turned his back to Shino and Shibi and continued after Kiba. Youki's scent was more important.

Shino felt his blood boiling as the man had the gall to not only insult Shino's clan, but to insult Aaliyah right in front of Shino! He wanted to just shock the guy into submission. Shino bit down on his tongue though to stop him from saying anything foolish. This guy was pissing him off, but considering who he was and what they were going after, it wasn't ideal to make a scene at this time.

Kiba continued to move forward, following the scent to the best of his ability. He was able to isolate it completely, sense it and feel it as a part of him. He had it memorized and down in his mind. He smiled, knowing that it wasn't to be confused with anything else. This was the scent that he was given. He moved quickly, not wanting to lose track of it. "We're on the right track", Kiba said with a grin as he looked back to the group before moving forward.

The man smirked as Shino backed down and Kiba seemed to come through. Apparently he was able to track better than he first thought. He followed Kiba throughout the village and then out of it. As they ran, another shinobi appeared beside the leader, mask covering his face. He whispered something and Aaliyah's father grew irritated. "Don't assume. Verify and then report back to me. Kill him if you have to. He's of no value to this village. Not anymore."

The male nodded and vanished in a puff of smoke. "Well? How far do you think he is?" The male questioned, less than five feet behind Kiba, his eyes fixed on him.

Kiba glanced back for merely a few seconds as the ANBU leader continued to question him about Youki's location. "I don't know, the scent is still pretty consistent, so we're not gaining any ground on him quite yet", Kiba said honestly as he kept moving along with the scent. He tried to pick up his pace while still keeping his nose tuned in. "Don't worry, no matter where he goes I'll find him now that I've locked onto this scent. It's only a matter of time"

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgk-Gu-4MX8]


Akira nodded as they followed. "Let's hope he didn't summon one of his flying summons..." He stated honestly, a worried look on his face. "That is normally how we lose him." He stated, a foul look on his lips. "Not to mention he makes long lasting clones and filtering them out in seperate directions from there."

Xerion snorted a laugh. "None of those are really his scents. Normally he has Akiko or I steal things for him because we run the fastest. Or he possesses someone's mind and has them do it for them. With everything that's happened, he's spooked and his faith in those around is shaken. He wants to make sure that whatever he stole had no chance of being tampered. ANBU keeps meticulous records of everything. They still have Itachi's original documentation."

"How do you know that?" Akira asked suspiciously.

The musician smiled. "I like to read."

Kiba listened to the comments that both Akira and Xerion made, not quite certain what any of it meant for him. If this scent that he was following wasn't Youki's, than who was it? And how were they certain that they'd be able to get to the real Youki? Kiba couldn't help but wonder if ANBU had documents about himself, Akiko, Aaliyah, and Shino. They were all getting heavily involved in this now after all.

"So Xerion, how do you even know if we're going in the right direction. I'd be lying if I said he hasn't fooled my nose before", Kiba admitted.

Xerion sighed, thinking it over. "Reasonably, I'd say that he had a plan to cover his tracks, however, considering that I'm coming with you, it's a far guess that he could show up to have me kill all of you. So either is a workable theory. But depending on what he stole, I'd assume that he is more keen to read it before engaging in combat. ANBU has records about all of it's members and high ranking officers. The fact that he possibly has Aaliyah's information leads me to believe that either that's what he was checking, or he wanted to check Akiko's status. His work with Akatsuki also makes it probable that he stole documents relating to Naruto. And from what I heard of his last temper tantrum, he bears quite a grudge against the Uchiha. I'd assume that he'd want to find a way to kill him or do away with him in a way that would improve his chances or settle a grudge. Like finding a way to make you kill Sasuke and have him kill you too, Kiba." He stated, offering an encouraging smile.

akira grew irritated. "Do you think we will find him?"

"I think we will find what he wants us to. If you want someone to understand Youki, you need someone that thinks like he does. Face it, not only is he a genius, but he knows too much about Konoha for Konoha to trace him. It's my advice that you contract with a village we have close ties with in an attempt to have them track him. Konoha is soft and teaches it's Gennin mercy. It's a hard lesson to unlearn, but Heisha know it well because we, along with the Uchiha clan, served as the clan to clean up after ANBU and the Hokage.

"Sounds like treason talk boy."

Xerion rolled his eyes. "Fine. Ignore my advice, but he will outpace Konoha shinobi and will instantly recognize and kill them. Another shinobi, such as Suna are less likely to draw his attention. Then again, they have drawn his interest as well, so who can say, right? What do you think, Shino?" he turned his head to face him. "You have more experience on his opposite side, I have more on his... I suppose you could see good side."

Kiba listened in on the conversation between Akira and Xerion, he couldn't help it since they were right next to him. Plus, Kiba would be lying if he said that he didn't enjoy it when ANBU was given crap by someone else. Kiba still wasn't their biggest fan. He turned his attention back to the scent, but with how the conversation was going it didn't sound like they would be doing this for long.

Shino turned his gaze towards Xerion as he spoke. "Youki didn't teach me much about how his mind worked while I was with him. All I know is the same as what you know, probably even less", he added as he turned his gaze forward again. "I could send my bugs in different directions in order to try to track him down, but by the time they found anything he'd probably be too far away to catch up with", Shino admitted as he glanced towards Akira and Xerion. "If you want to catch Youki off guard, you have to do something that he would truly never consider. Any allies that Konoha has, he'll suspect them no matter what"

Xerion nodded. "Yeah, I agree. Our best shot is to wait until he tries to return to the village. If we wait it out, he'll come back or send someone to attack."

"Why would he send someone when he has you already in the village?" Akira asked, glaring at the music master.

Sighing, Xerion looked up. "In either case, we should return to the village. We're not going to find him, and if we do, it's going to be a battle and I'm not strong enough to battle. In case you didn't notice, I have rather large holes in my bones from major surgery." He slid to a stop and turned around, looking behind him, his eyes wandering the area. "Let's go..." He started to run back to the village, but it almost appeared that he was running from something rather than insisting that Youki wouldn't be found. In either case, Xerion knew more than they did in reguards to Youki. He knew that Kiba and Shino would follow without question, but Akira was less likely to do the same.

Akira followed, without asking questioned, much to Xerion's surprise. "I will meet you back in the village." He vanished in a puff of smoke.

Xerion looked relieved. "I don't trust him." He added, smiling at the two of them. "I think he brought you two to lure Youki out as bait."