Dressed in the attire of one of the ANBU guards he had overpowered when leaving his cell, a lone figure traversed the woods, jumping from tree to tree, until he finally stopped and took off the mask which his his identity from the world around him.

In plain sight, down below in the valley, he could see the village hidden in the leaf, the crown jewel of Hi no Kuni and his own birthplace. Konoha even from so far away did truly look like a pearl in the lush green which surrounded it. However, the man did not feel peaceful, nor did he feel happy.

The fact that his niece had managed to scramble up his organization, raiding base after base of his carefully created Black ANBU, was of great concern, yet at the same time...perhaps it was indeed time for a new approach, a more open and daring approach. There were still bases beyond even Lamya's reach, he still had a vast network of operatives to be used at his own whim.

It was a rare occassion though, as his rage managed to surface, the tree upon which he stood, creacking and cracking under the very weight of his chakra's pressure until it eventually buckled and he had to jump to another tree.

Enaka rarely got truly mad, always priding himself on his emotional control, yet now there were two things that made him ticked off as a bat out of hell. First of all the idea that his Black ANBU had been decimated and many of them either joined her or died, the other fact being that he had no idea where Hataro or Myra were. In a silent sigh, he cursed konoha for turning its back on him, yet as soon as he had spoken those words ever so softly, his rage vanished and Enaka managed to smile his trademark glib and slimy smile. "With her imprisoned and myself free,
I should be thankful for this bout of luck that has been given to me. Yet I know my family, I know my niece and her tenacity...she'll seek me out eventually and I will welcome this new form of hers with open arms, but I need to focus my efforts first...Kirigakure seems a nice place to start with my new plans."

A chuckle left the man's lips, as he suppressed his chakra completely to an almost unnoticable, regular villager's level of output, using the anbu attire's ability to cloak it beyond recognition. Putting the anbu mask back on his face, he dropped down from the tree upon which he had been perching and started to traverse on solid ground, using the forest's shadows to his advantage and keeping a watchful eye on any if not all ANBU patrols that would come by.

The world had yet again changed, but still not into the shape and form the former advisor and anbu captain had wanted. With his freedom, the world would yet again know change and it would know fear. With a smile hidden behind the mask, he made his way towards the border, hiding in the shadows every time he noticed something or someone possibly crossing his path.

Amidst the emerald green leaves that resided upon the pines of the forest that neighbored the great village hidden among them, Sousetsu would be seen wearing his signature outfit consisting of a white yukata with a blue swirl pattern on the bottom and ends of the sleeves. In a small opening, on the soft soil he sat uncomfortably still, his mind traversing the memories of days that had come to pass once again. Flashing images, sudden drones of wailing ghosts of his past continued to remind him of the terrors of a day one could not so easily forget.

Crashing rivers, a roaring ocean, a steely heart and sturdy blade within his grasp he would swing. Tethers bound to villagers, shinobi, and kunoichi alike would be broken as their bonds to the caster of puppetry would be severed by the condensed water that enveloped the palm of the great Monkey Sage. Or rather the, Azure Beast. His imperfect transformation born from the natural energy that surrounded him was no longer a hindrance, now perfect shown by a blood orange tint around the closed eyes of the Senju.

He wanted to wince, but he could not disturb his meditation. He wanted to roar with all his might, but he refused to let it be known that he had a voice during his ritual. He wanted the darkness to cover his vision, but his mind would paint the canvass of the might he displayed in great detail of spilling red and raging blue. It was not until the sudden surge of chakra in the near distance that his eyes would reveal themselves in an instant as the signature was all too familiar. Familiar to the memories that would attempt to haunt him to this day.

Without hesititation, he had leaped into action. The nostalgic signature would lead him to what he could only hope to be some kind of retribution. An answer to a question he did know, he would continue to be drawn until he found what he had been looking for. Before long, the signature had disappeared to not but a small hint, a scent that even the flora that infected the lands could hide. He did know this however, it made its way to the border to flee the lands of the Azure Beast.

The twigs and branches of the pines brushed passed the Senju as he dashed from its bark that supported him. Not so much as a creak fell upon the ears to anyone that listened, only leaving the brief wisp of wind that carried to the same direction to leave the the forests hospitality. A sudden halt, widened eyes, a grasp upon the hilt of his blade. An ANBU operative would walk upon the earth into the night skies. The stars accompanied the moon as they danced and twinkled under its pale light that cast shadows on any travelers path. This was no ANBU Sousetsu established, but an unwanted remnant of his past. He let go of the hilt rather softly. What harm could the fleeing individual bring if none stood in its path?

"The same surroundings become rather dull. Heavy on the mind, is it not?" Sousetsu stood not too far in the distance from the operative, fully emerged from the shadows and gazing upon the pale moonlight. The sentence was rather similar to one of the last he had shared with the great conflicting mind once before.

"If you are leaving, I will not stop you. But do not return..."

The man did not move at all for quite some time, seemingly taking in the very serenity of his surroundings. The mask in front of his face hiding his intentions just as much as the emptiness of the void within his own eyes, no emotions and no sort of stress or disappointment seemed to move the man nor pull at his heartstrings. he had once lost the fight for the title of Hokage, he had been denied that place another time and now... he simply had no more desire for nor the title nor the village known as Konohagakure no sato at all. he had extended his view, extended his beliefs and extended the desire that fueled him in the past.

The man hidden behind the mask could feel a presence closing in at him, yet he did not react and simply continued to walk, until he was finally spoken to, by a voice he had not heard in quite some time. "Heavy on the mind, but not on the heart...my old enemy."

Enaka turned around to face the one called Senju Sousetsu, as he removed his mask to look at this former hokage face to face. The former Ouroboros regent did not smile as he usually did, nor did he squint his eyes, he simply looked at the senju, the former hokage with something that was probably quite rare to see in the man's face: tranquility.

"Oh yes, I am indeed leaving...Konoha has become much to small for my ambitions," The orochi showed an actual smile for once, relaxing himself a bit, while walking closer to the former hokage. "There's nothing left for me here, my Black Anbu have been decimated, my niece is in prison and I am free to go and do as I please. So I was thinking: why would I need to be content with just limiting my research and my ambition to konoha, why would I want to become hokage if I could become a god?"

Enaka stood there, silent, looking up at the moon with a content smile on his face, glad that he had chosen this time to retake his freedom and to continue his pursuit of becoming the absolute top of the shinobi world, the pinnacle of perfection. "You are not going to stop me...pity, given that last time we met...you mentioned killing me if we were ever to meet face to face again or did you finally realize how futile your efforts would've been if you actually tried it?"

The man laughed and walked up to Sousetsu until he was standing next to the former hokage, suddenly unleashing his Chakra, showing his true strength to the man who had once been his captor, his lord and his target all at once, only to calm himself down yet again. It was a simple show of force, a flexing of muscle to show the former hokage that if it had truly come to it, his own life would've been the only thing he had taken.

"Dark are the days that are coming, Sousetsu-dono," Enaka sighed, placing a hand onto Sousetsu's shoulder. "I admit to my own surprise that you were the only hokage I actually liked, despite our differences you were... most amusing to me. Alas, all games have a beginning and an end. Take my advice now, just as you once had before... fear what will come, hide and you may yet live, but stand in my way again and you will die the same death as all the others, to be ground into the dust beneath my boot."

With that said, the man placed the mask in front of his face again and vanished, leaving no trail of even having been there, the sign that he truly was once an ANBU for good reason.

exit thread