Impossible to Foretell

Chapter 37: The Tormented Summon

Kakashi came to stand next to me as I loomed over Kanaye.

I snarled at him, "It seems that without your genjutsu, you're nothing. Defeated by a cripple, how embarrassing."

His eyes gave me a look that could kill, but he just coughed up blood pathetically.

"So you said that I seem to have skill with deductions. Let me show you just how true that is. Let me inform you of a few things that I've figured out. Your card, the Tormented Summon as you called it, couldn't be more accurate if you'd tried. You've been played, Kanaye. Used and abused like the very card that you chose to represent yourself. Maybe those cards really are more than just a party trick and do 'reveal the truth buried hearts of others.' Look at you, defeated fairly easily. Even with all of your preparations, jutsu, and strength, you just simply aren't powerful enough to pull off an abduction of the Hokage. The Leaf Village has Naruto Uzumaki, the hero of the Fourth Great Ninja War, and the rest of his team. You could never stand up to them."

"You're wrong," Kanaye croaked out. "Nori entrusted me with capturing the Hokage for her. She never would have given me the task unless she was sure that I could do it."

I laughed cruelly; it was my turn to lord my knowledge over Kanaye instead of the other way around, "No, that's where you're wrong. You were sent out to test the waters, to see how the Leaf would react to an attempt on the Hokage. It's painfully obvious. You were given limited strength and the promise of unlimited power down the road so long as you did one simple thing for my mother. You thought that even though she was your benefactor, you were still equals and that she would share her power with you after all of this was over. But you obliviously don't know her that well because she would never share her power with anyone, even you. Look at everything that you've done with your experiments, human trafficking for money, and attempted abduction. All of it only aided her. She used you and left you to die now that you've outlived your usefulness. The Tormented Summon indeed."

"No, you-you can't be right!" Kanaye was unraveling, trying to hold onto some last sliver of hope. I would have felt sorry for him, but thinking about all of the horrendous things that he'd done quickly demolished any feelings of sympathy before they could start.

"She is right." I froze as a new voice rang out behind me. "What a bright little daughter I have."

Nori materialized behind Kanaye, a short sword strapped to her back. Her dark brown hair was streaked with grey at the temples as it was pulled into the same tight bun that she used to wear when I was a child. Looking down at Kanaye with her remorseless, dark eyes, she smirked. "Thank you for being such a good little pawn while it lasted, like Sasainako. However, you've outlived your usefulness, just as Kaiyo said."

Without even batting an eye, her sword created a graceful arch as she drew it from the holster on her back and brought it down, separating his head from his shoulders.

Fear and confusion were written on Kanaye's face as his head rolled away from his body, leaving a thick trail of blood in its wake.

Nori looked up at Kakashi and I with a smile, "I'll be back for you later, last of the Hatake line." With that, she was gone just as suddenly as she appeared.

I deactivated my Fist Gate, and my hip crumpled under me. Kakashi caught me in his arms as Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Yamato rushed into the cave. The knife clattered on the cave floor as it tumbled from of my hand.

Kakashi stood up slowly, bringing me with him. "We need to get Kaiyo to the village right away-"

"No, I can wait. There are countless captives being held in this compound, and you need to get them out; they're our first priority."

Kakashi sighed, "Naruto, make a shadow clone to stay with Kaiyo and the two people who escaped with her. We'll head into the hideout."

Walking out of the cave, Kakashi laid me down in the shade of a tree, and Anzu and Bijonko walked up next to me. The three of us plus a Naruto-clone sat there in silence as the rest of the Leaf Ninja entered back into Kanaye's final project.