Strong Like You: A Naruto Fanfiction ON HIATUS

Chapter 31. Despondent

Welcome back to Strong Like You!~

I hope you got a chance to see some of the art for 'Strong Like You' in the previous post! I absolutely adore them! :3

Let's continue...

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Zantetsu POV

"You what?" Ryozo growled, one of his demonic red eyes twitched.

"We failed to capture the girl," I repeated myself.

My body was knelt down, resting on a single knee close to the ground. I bowed my head in shame to Master Ryozo, not wanting to stare into his bloodthirsty scrutiny any longer. Twice now because of that girl I had failed to procure something or fulfill a mission ordered by our Master. Twice I had to prepare myself for the backlash of his temper and what ever outcome that would lie afterwards.  

Retched girl. I internally scowled.

The brothers who had accompanied me to track down and bring the brat back stood rattled and trembled in fear beside me under the gaze of Lord Ryozo. They had volunteered for this task initially in order to prove themselves valuable assets to the organization, however, this endeavor had shown otherwise. They were all useless in my eyes, well except for maybe one or two in the whole establishment.

Ryozo roared, his enraged voice deafening. He thrusted his body up from the chair and stomped towards the brothers in fury, their eyes wide and bodies paralyzed in fear as he stalked closer. Long beast-like fingers wrapped around each of their throats and lifted them off the ground, their toes dangling above the hard surface of the floor. I heard the rampant sounds of choking filling the air. Sending a sideways glance their way, all i could see was the two pairs of kicking feet hovering in my peripherals. 

"We just... want to.. prove ourselves to you.. Lord Ryozo," one of the brothers choked out.

"You proved nothing more than your worthlessness. You know what I do with worthless trash. You'll do better to remember next time. I don't give a third chance," he growled, sending one of them flying through the back wall with a crash.

The second brother landed with a thud on top of the other sibling. Ryozo was beyond furious this time. This seemed different. Remembering our previous conversation back in the Land of Wind, losing what he thought was his one way ticket to ruling the shinobi world was a hard blow. While I had seen the girl fight once before, she had shown little to no strength in my eyes, making me wonder what in the world he saw in this child? She appeared to be tactful, I'd give her that. But after all her little tricks, where was the pure, unfiltered and raw power?

"Zantetsu, yet again you disappoint me," he said, his voice low and full of malice.

I didn't have to look into his face to know what would be waiting for me. I could picture his snarling demeanor, his unforgettable, monstrous qualities that made even the bravest man cringe with fear and shake in their boots. 

"We did, Master. We didn't expect the Blue Beast of Konoha to intervene. He along with his team knocked out Komura in seconds. I was under the impression you wanted this done discreetly. If the Hidden Leaf knew we were attempting to control her, it might be a nuisance later."

Ryozo took a deep breath, cracked his knuckles and walked back towards his chair in silence. Part of me let out a relieved breath.

"Never the less, the Hidden Sound village has reached out to us about an upcoming event that will involve taking out the Hidden Leaf for good. I am angered that we don't have the Uchiha girl with us to start this endeavor. However, If we can help raze Konoha to the ground, we shall have her in our grasp."