The Hunted

Deep within the mountains that surround Iwagakure, two shinobi from Konoha fight desperately to survive. The two were sent on a reconnaissance mission to Iwagakure, in order to determine whether or not the rumors that the village was preparing to go to war were true. After discovering that the intel was falsely spread by an unknown group, both Finvarre, and Hyaku were beset upon by shadows in the dark. The phantasms they faced were not only numerous, but also quite tenacious. It became clear to the duo that whatever these creatures were- they were nothing short of paranormal.

"Gods damn it..."

Cursing, I had my chakrams out in a flash, staring at the shadows that seem to pop up out of nowhere, completely surrounding us. My white hair was short, shadowing my eyes as I scanned each of them, or sensed their presence behind me. My comrade, Hyaku, was almost directly behind me, aiding me in this battle... That was guaranteed to be for our lives.

"Hyaku... Any plans?"

Preparing my Kekki Genkai, I got into stance- preparing for a full on war.

Hyaku gritted his teeth as he stepped backwards a little with his left foot, bumping into Finvarre who was directly behind him.

"Damn it... We're completely surrounded." He thought to himself.

He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something was off about their opponents. Aside from the obvious fact that they weren't from this world, they did not attempt to overwhelm he and Finvarre. They obviously had the advantage in number, yet the creatures seemed to linger in the shadows, just outside of view. A small bead of sweat ran down Hyaku's brow, how could they beat enemies that weren't alive to begin with?

Hyaku was brought out of his deep train of thought by a blood curdling scream, it was coming from somewhere to the north... Deeper into the mountains.

"Finvarre! Now!" Hyaku yelled, as he flashed a few hand signs. Once he finished the final sign, Hyaku released a Phoenix Flower Jutsu. The fireballs had cut a swath through the enemy, allowing the two of them to escape towards whomever had screamed.

550/575 Chakra

"What was that, back there? They had the perfect opportunity to rush us!"

Keeping low to the ground, I ran alongside Hyaku, matching him stride for stride. Sweat was drying, as we ran toward the scream that had pierced the air.

"I mean... We were not only surrounded, they had the advantage of numbers..."

Continuing our northern path, I waited for Hyaku to fill in the gap of my thoughts- to answer the question that was now at the forefront of my mind.

As they ran, Hyaku noted Finvarre's observation. She too, had noticed the odd behavior of the mysterious phantasms they were facing. It was almost as if the spirits were trying to herd he and Finvarre somewhere, rather than kill the pair. Pushing such thoughts to the bac of his mind, Hyaku focused on the spund where he had heard the screams.

As the two reached a break in the forest, they witnessed a sight that chilled Hyaku's blood. In the middle of the clearing lay two shinobi wearing clothing from Iwagakure. The bodies were mangled, covered in their own blood. The faces of the shinobi wore a look of sheer terror, their eyes rolled back into their heads.

Hyaku froze, he placed his hand over his mouth to prevent himself fro throwing up.

"This is..." He stammered, too shocked to finish his sentance.

Clenching my chakrams, I stared at the mangled and disfigured bodies of the Iwagakure shinobi. Anger and adrenaline hit me like a train, causing my vision to blur.

"Who would.. Do this to someone?"

Struggling with the urge to embed one of my chakrams into the nearest tree out of loathing for the murderer, I looked around the clearing. I sensed no one nearby, and couldn't hear or see any of the usual wildlife. A chill crept its way up my spine, and I turned toward Hyaku.

"Hya-san... What's wrong with this picture?"

Letting him get past the obvious moral undermining of the scene, I wanted to make sure that what I wasn't feeling, wasn't just me.

Hyaku closed his eyes and listened for movement, he knew that the enemy couldn't be far behind. The moaning of lost souls was growing louder with each passing moment, a tell-tale sign that they could not linger. Hyaku grabbed Finvarre's hand and lead her to a nearby cave, it was the safest place he could think of at the time.

Turning his head to look back at Finvarre as they ran, Hyaku spoke.
"At first, I thought this was all a trap set by Iwagakure... But now I can see that assumption was false. Someone else is pulling the strings, and I have a bad feeling about it all."

The jolt of electricity that went through me as Hyaku took my hand was alarming, and I tried to ward it off. Shaking my head, I focused on the problem at hand once more.

"What could make those things like that? I couldn't... FEEL any form of life coming from them, but I felt something off... Like what happens when lightning strikes the ground, and you were just far enough away- but every hair on the back of your neck is standing up."

Trying to describe my feeling wore out my tongue, and I left it up to him to decipher my thoughts. Staring at him, I continued to run at his pace- one chakram off hook.

Gods Finvarre... Get it together- your life and his depend on it!

Hyaku released Finvarre as they entered the mouth of the cave, they had earned a moment's reprieve from their relentless pursuers. As the adrenaline from their earlier fight wore off, Hyaku hunched over and took in some air. They had been fleeing for what seemed like hours, but now they were lost even deeper within the mountains. Looking around, Hyaku frowned at the cave they now resided in.

"That's odd... there aren't any mines, or tunnels marked on the most recent maps of this area. But by the look of it, this cave is clearly man made." Hyaku pointed to the wooden supports, and the small lanterns that lined the walls.

The still flames burning softly within the lanterns shook suddenly as a shrill cry pierced the air, the sound coming from deeper within the cave. Hyaku's blood froze over as the scream echoed within his ears, there was something very wrong with this cave.

Whipping around toward the sound of the scream, I locked my eyes onto the shadowy depths from which it came. My muscles tensed with the urge to run, to get out of this horrible area and the dark secrets that were hidden within it.

"What the hell was that!?"

The light from the oiled lanterns didn't pierce the veil of shadows that was concealing whatever dark entity that had forced the scream out. Swallowing, I looked over at Hyaku- who was panting more so than I. My Taijutsu had forced me to get used to more physical forms of stress, so I wasn't surprised at the result... I was, however, surprised that I was panting and shaking. Realizing that I was actually frightened of whatever was here, I took a deep breath.

"What do we do, Hyaku? We're out of the frying pan, and into the fryer..."

Looking at the beam supports, I took note that they were extremely dry- a good means of an ensured get away if we were pursued. Just light them on fire. The only issues were the shadows that we just escaped... Would they still be there?