[OLD] To fix the broken (Old)

To Mend the Pieces

-

The barrier stood, unharmed despite the many efforts that had been, and still were being conducted. Silence had befallen from within, meaning either that the barrier's strength and capability had been intensified, or that hatever had been occurring within had stopped. The latter was unlikely due to the birds, raccoons, and various other forms of wildlife that hadn't thought of, hadn't succeeded, or hadn't made to abandon their territory prior to the barrier separating the foundation from other sources of land. These creatures, undoubtedly, would still be conjuring noises, screeches, or be scratching at the barrier with intentions of freedom, but none were present.

Additionally, and perhaps more peculiar, was the fact that they could no longer peer within. Gone was the transparent, bordering on translucent, field, replaced with an unbreakable sphere of an ash black color. This was, of course, unexpected, bit explainable nonetheless. The lack of pellucidity remained unchanged, unlike the lack of sound. Suddenly, and without warning, sound returned, but it was odd. It was loud and painful for the close range occupants, booming clearly and causing the weaker willed to retreat or simply back away. The least fortunate were those who had been directly near the barrier at the time of the initial sounds, most of whom having gone deaf almost instantly.

The words that arose could be defined most simply as a monologue of sorts, one that revealed the diabolical plot that had been set forth by none other than the leader of the village himself, Sarutobi. This was not just a simple claim of him being guilty, it was an admission of the fact, overplayed and long, as if he were speaking deliberately to someone, almost manically, and definitely angry. He spoke of past plans, now failed and futile, of orchestrating a massive war, the likes of which that would surely wipe out a number of people so high that it was near genocide. He spoke of horrible things, experimentation gone right, and experimentation gone wrong. He spoke of "test subjects", orphans who had gone missing in the dead of night, being knowingly bought and sold by the owners of the buildings opposed to stolen.

He ranted over soiled plans, of a ruined weapon, of wasted time and effort, but it was the way that he spoke that hit the hardest on the initially unwilling listeners. He spoke as if he had been far more than just inconvenienced, he spoke furiously, madly, his rage of words spewed being high as the rate of missing, nameless children within this and surrounding lands. He spoke, not to them, but to he who he claimed to be the weapon. A weapon that was now broken, soiled beyond repair, defecting from its owners and being mocked for that decision.

The initial reaction was confusion, fear, and surprise, but the end result was ravenous rage to the elder man and all of his conspirators. It was time for a change.

-

"Orochimaru..." Sarutobi's voice growled, anger flashing through his dimly lit orbs. The pale man stood a few yards away, a smirk staining the snake-like face that was almost snowflake white, a sickly color as it contrasted his oily, black hair. The pair began to advance towards each other, sick glee in one's eyes whilst the other's held callous. He signaled to his underlings to keep back, remain away, earning a few odd looks in return, confusion in their expressions and uncertainty in their movements as they sheathed their blades and other weaponry, bodies tense and postures aggressive, protective.

A figure, dressed in a cloak that shrouded their identity, appeared within a shadow, watching with predatory eyes as the fight began. He smirked beneath his mask as a blow landed on its target, speckles of blood spraying out in a beautiful array. The other onlookers, however, were none too enthused, some of them edging forwards, as if to join the fight. Now he would just have to wait for the next phase of their plan to take hold.