Unseen: A Threaded Tale — Act II

With a loud crunch, Kaworu's body slammed against the soil, the impact of the attack that had sent him sprawling now caused him to slide a good five metres through the mud. He rolled to his side, propping himself on one knee as he eyed his assailants. Three short, stout men. All middle aged, greying hair and heavily scarred features, weather beaten and looking worn. But today there was great purpose in their eyes as they drew their blades, spreading out to corner him. They were in the centre of the township, and bystanders began to move away from the scene of the looming fights, as the stores shut their doors and windows.

As the streets emptied, Kaworu rose up, a snarl on his face as he whipped a kunai from his sleeve mechanism. One of the assailants approaching him growled out in a low voice. "Put that razor down, kid. I won't ask again."

As they approached, Kaworu eyed each one. Studying their stance, their breathing, their caution or lack of. He twirled the kunai between his fingers in arcs as he backed away, eager to prevent them from surrounding every key angle. With a tone of defiance, Kaworu replied the man. "The Dune Snakes! Your repetition precedes you, but so does your age," he chuckled before giving the three men a frightening glare.

"You've been asking questions kid, we don't like that shit...plus...you've been asking the wrong questions. That makes matters all the more severe," the same man stated as he paced himself forward. One of his partners snapped, his face incredulous, roaring out in a booming voice.

"How much time and preparation are you going to give this newbie shit? I'll gut this punk right here!"

With that line he charged past his advancing peers and straight towards Kaworu, rotating his body at the very last minute as he twisted midair, leg aiming to cast a thunderous hook kick under Kaworu's ribs. A direct attack that did not go unfollowed. His allies instantly appeared next to Kaworu, their blades swinging down on his head with frighteningly devastating coordination.

But Kaworu wasn't about to be outdone.

He allowed the powerful kick to make contact, moving his body together with the foot of his opponent as he wrapped his forearms around the man's shin. As the blades came down on him, Kaworu pivoted on his heel, putting all his might into whipping the man around him. In a clean sweep, Kaworu used the man like a makeshift pole, slamming him into both of his comrades, scattering them on the ground. Kenta continued his circular spin before abruptly letting go of the man. He sailed through the air and smashed into a wooden stall about fifty metres away, causing the entire structure to collapse downwards with a massive crash after the pillars shattered. His two friends rose up from the ground, eyeing the collapsed structure and their friend who was buried beneath the rubble. Surely dead.

Kaworu raised his arms in front of his face, combat ready. He could see the bloodlust in their eyes, he wasn't going to waste words with them to convince them to surrender and answer his questions. He would fight them both, and the last one standing would be the one who answered his questions. Civilians fled from the buildings all around them now, unwilling to watch the battle. After the collapsing of the stall, they all knew that the wooden buildings in the immediate vicinity of the square would not be safe. Not from this kind of brute strength.

The two Dune Snakes twirled their weapons in their fists, long blades reflecting sunlight as they spun. Kaworu continued to twirl the kunai, his free hand reaching into his weapons pouch behind him. The Dune Snakes charged. Kaworu darted aside, allowing the first one to overshoot, before bringing his kunai across to the face of the second, who parried his attack with an almost lazy flick of his blade. Metal clashed with metal and Kaworu surged forward again, slashing upwards in an attempt to bisect the man's chin. He leaned backwards, shocked by the speed of the attack, and Kaworu was able to capitalise. He lashed a violent sidekick into the man's gut and sent him rolling backwards. But his ally was quick on the uptake, barging into Kaworu with his shoulder, sending the Taki Jōnin sprawling. He charged again, his speed enabling him to catch Kaworu before the young man rose beyond a crouch. He twisted his hip to launch a kick with his right leg, with Kaworu blocked by raising his left arm (which gripped the kunai) into a helmet guard beside his face, his right palm outstretched next to his left arm to cushion the blow of the kick.

But the man was a skilled fighter, whipping his knee forward again in rapid succession. The second kick broke Kaworu's guard and sent him flying into a wooden fence. But Kaworu had the last laugh. Making the seal of confrontation amidst the rubble of the fence, the Dune Snake's eyes widened as a sudden yellowish glow on his shin made him realise that his superior combat technique had actually failed him in the long run. That Kaworu's right palm had actually contained an explosive tag which had been attached to him when he parried the Dune Snake's first kick. There was a hiss, followed by a massive explosion and the man flew through the air like a rag doll, his right leg missing from below the thigh. He landed on the ground and writhed in agony, screaming as he clawed desperately at the torn stump of his leg, which was now aggressively spouting blood. The last standing Dune Snake roared in anger.

"You damned son of a bitch," he spat. In a rapid flurry, he formed hand signs, before leaning back and exhaling with all his strength. A sea of flames materialised from his lips, surging towards Kaworu who rapidly began to form hand signs of his own. The flames morphed into a huge serpent of fire, rising many storeys into the air as it poised itself for what would definitely be an attack with a wide area of effect. Kaworu formed the last hand sign and clapped his hands together, pointing his fingers forward.

A huge amount of water materialised around Kaworu, twisting and swirling as he willed it forward. With a loud whoosh, the torrent of water smashed into the serpent and continued its journey towards the Dune Snake. The force of the water created a rift in the earth as it easily neutralised the flame serpent to a tower of steam, blasting into the man who had casted it next with a satisfying crunch.

The battle was over. Kaworu walked to the man, who attempted to crawl away. He definitely had broken bones, from the way his limbs had been twisted—thanks to the force of Kaworu's Water Release. Kaworu grabbed him by the scuff of the neck and dragged him behind a wooden shack, away from the eyes of the public, propping him onto the ground. Without much time for deliberation, Kaworu jabbed his kunai into the man's thigh. He howled in agony.

"A man came by some weeks ago, started asking around in this village," Kaworu said softly, as he knelt beside his defeated, moaning opponent, pulling out the photograph of his uncle and holding it forward. "His...questions attracted the attention of the Dune Snakes, and he's been missing ever since. I know he asked about those two vigilantes, the Ripper, the Wrath...I know that's what attracted you bastards, and I know you hunted him down. So now tell me, where...do I...find him?"

Kenta said those two last words through gritted teeth as he pressed down on the kunai. The Dune Snake winced and eyed Kenta with rage. "You've heard about those two demons...which means you may know what they've done to us. To Lord Maeda. Killing his son brutally and laying his naked body in parts across this godforsaken village. Those two disappeared as soon as they'd arrived, but our hatred towards them didn't dissipate over these years. The pain they wrought still stays fresh and we've hunted them for years."

Kaworu's eyes narrowed and twitched. All this backstory to the Dune Snakes and their leader, Maeda's son were already known to him. "Get to the point. If I wanted a story, I'd hire a publisher."

The man coughed and grimaced. "You think you can get me to—"

He was interrupted as Kaworu pulled the kunai further up his thigh, shaking the blade violently. The man jerked and screamed, but Kaworu dug into the wound with his fingernails. The man panicked and shook in agony as he felt Kaworu's fingers approach a thin strand which felt like it ran from the inside of his thigh to his waist. Kaworu grinned as the man's face turned pale.

"Whaddya think happens if I pull my fingers and this string snaps?" He whispered with a growl.

The man shook in fear as he broke into wild sweat. "The boss has him..." He started. "We captured him about four weeks back, tracked his movements made sure he was alone, jumped him. He's at the Farmer's village...about ten kilometres from here. We kept him secluded in our stronghold," he grinned menacingly at Kaworu, his fear evaporating in an instant. "Good luck getting in, asshole."

Kaworu eyed him with contempt, slowly pulling his fingers out of the bleeding wound. "You think you're being funny?" He said softly. Raising his right fist, he brought it down upon the man's nose. The grounded man grunted. Again Kaworu raised his fist and battered the same spot. And again. The man groaned in agony, whimpering as his broken nose swelled up. Kaworu grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close.

"I know why you pieces of shit are interested in those two, the Wrath and the Ripper, knowing how they slaughtered your leader like cattle. Why was the man I'm searching for curious about this case? Answer me, or I'll consider rendering that leg of yours unusable for life." Kaworu threatened.

The man rolled on the ground, his nose definitely throbbing. In no mood for more threats, he yielded quickly. "Monsters with limbs sticking out of their bodies like threads, superhuman strength, invulnerability, fearsome attributes matched only by...brutality. The man told us it had something to do with the disappearance of his brother, and that he had evidence indicting these two with that incident. Who knew," he finished, a mild grin drawing across his face.

''His brother? Uncle Eiji was looking for...dad? But dad's been dead for twenty two years, died...that night. It doesn't make sense...''

As these thoughts raced through his perplexed head, sounds emerged from behind the wooden shack they were sheltering behind. Kaworu turned around to peak. There were six figures dressed in black garbs making their way across the old battlefield, checking on their dead comrades. Reinforcements. As Kaworu cursed beneath his breath, a quick movement caught his eye beside him. The Dune Snake moved like lightning and sprang upon him, knocking him down, a mad look on his swollen face. Kaworu was grounded immediately, as the man leaped onto his chest, pinning the young man down.

"Stupid kid! Didn't they ever tell you to keep your focus?!" He cried out gleefully, yanking the kunai from his thigh, while using his other hand to push Kaworu's chin upwards. Kaworu didn't think twice, instantly whipping his hand forward. He yanked his wrist backwards, and the hidden kunai mechanism activated, sending a kunai from his sleeve towards the Dune Snake's face with a soft twitch.

The attack caught the older man offguard, weapon burying itself above his left eye. His grip on Kaworu loosened as he toppled over, falling directly onto the weapon which passed through the back of his head as he hit the ground face down.

His friends found him seconds later, having been alerted to his maniacal screaming; facedown in his own pool of blood.

From the distance, Kaworu panted quietly, perched atop the thick branch of a tree. The townsfolk began to head back towards the battleground, curious to inspect the carnage, giving in to their feral nature. He recollected every little detail he had obtained in this one week excursion. He now knew where his uncle was being held, and he'd move in that night to rescue him...but most curious were his uncle's motives.

His uncle had told the tavern bartender that he was 'rediscovering his roots' and had told his captors the Dune Snakes that he was investigating the disappearance of Kaworu's father, Kenta. Even though Kenta had died in the Takigakure attack just over two decades earlier. The two monsters known as the Wrath and Ripper, whom Gangetsu Maeda was hunting down via the Dune Snakes...had characteristics and attributes that matched the infamous Kakuzu, who had fled Takigakure with its prized Kinjutsu. These two individuals also had matching abilities to the two creatures that had led the attack on Takigakure which had decimated the village's chain of command and also led to Kenta Kanata being killed in a massive explosion—and both had been killed by the interim village chief, Jouman Gankai. The two creatures that attacked Takigakure, the Wrath and the Ripper story, the connection with Kenta that his uncle was investigating. Something was wrong with the picture.

So what has uncle walked into? Kaworu asked himself. More importantly, what had he walked into?

He had a feeling he would find out that night.