Uchiha Kai walked silently through the rain, his mind circling back to the events from a few hours earlier. He sighed, the cool mist clinging to his cloak.
A confrontation with Aya Hyuga hadn't been part of the plan. But Kai wasn't the only strategist in the room. Aya had proven herself sharp. Still, she wasn't the only one. Kai liked to think of himself as perceptive—perhaps too much so at times.
Yet the one who had truly shifted the board was the boy who wore a constant smirk—Kenta Imai.
Kenta's presence hadn't only been detected by Aya. Kai, despite his average sensory abilities, had noticed him too. And that alone meant something. Kenta's concealment skills were superb.
Which led Kai to one conclusion—Kenta wanted to be discovered.
That fact alone had been enough to make Kai pause. He had been moments away from unleashing lethal force on Aya. But with Kenta's sudden and calculated appearance, Kai had hesitated.
Not because he feared them—he didn't—but because he had no time for meaningless skirmishes now. The situation demanded subtlety, not brute force.
Kenta's intervention was clever—an unspoken deterrent. It created just enough friction to force everyone into conversation rather than combat. It changed the dynamic, albeit temporarily. It was risky, almost reckless—but effective.
Kai didn't want to play that kind of long game with Kenta. Not yet. But the boy was clever, and clever people were dangerous. Whether he would prove an ally worth cultivating, or a threat to neutralize, Kai would decide once they were back in the village.
Now, he had more pressing matters.
Following Kakashi's trail had taken him more than three hours. And so far, there hadn't even been a trace—not even residual chakra.
Had he gone the wrong way?
Unlikely. Kai had retraced enough signs—scuffed earth, broken twigs, lingering chakra—to know he was on the right path. But now, that path had gone cold.
A pit began to settle in his stomach.
Then, suddenly—he felt it.
A sudden, oppressive chakra flared in the distance. It was wild, raw, and—strangely—teeming with vitality.
Kai's eyes narrowed. It felt familiar. And unnatural.
He frowned, reached into his satchel, and unrolled a small scroll. With a burst of chakra, a black cloak and a plain ANBU mask appeared. No insignia. No allegiances.
"Doesn't feel like Obito's work…" Kai muttered, donning the cloak and mask. "But...someone has to remind him what he left behind."
Shrouded now in anonymity, Kai vanished toward the chakra's origin.
Meanwhile...
"This should be the place," Kakashi murmured, crouching at the mouth of a narrow cave. Rain still slicked his flak jacket as he examined the evidence—cut hair and a bloodstained kunai.
There was no mistaking it. Rin Nohara had been taken.
By whom, he couldn't be certain. But whoever it was, they'd just marked themselves for death.
Still, Kakashi wasn't impulsive. Charging in was easy. Protecting Rin was harder. If she was inside, he couldn't risk a prolonged fight.
He remembered something Kai had once said, half in jest: "If I pick up the sword, I can't walk with you. But if I put it down, I can't protect you."
It had sounded corny at the time. But now, it felt painfully true.
"Pakkun," Kakashi whispered.
The small ninken glanced up, his expression serious. "Tracking's done. She's inside. Be careful, Kakashi."
With a puff of smoke, the dog vanished.
Kakashi exhaled slowly and slipped into the cave's shadow.
Despite its narrow entrance, the cave opened into a cavernous hollow—big enough to house at least thirty men. But eerily, it was silent.
No guards. No patrols.
Kakashi frowned. A trap?
He activated his Sharingan, his left eye glowing scarlet beneath his forehead protector. The enhanced vision revealed details—residual footprints, discarded rations, still-warm lanterns.
They had been here recently.
But where were they now?
Then—voices. Faint, muffled.
Kakashi crept toward the sound, hugging the shadows. There—tucked inside a chamber—he spotted her.
Rin.
She sat against the wall, dazed. Her expression vacant. An illusion, no doubt. Genjutsu. Two Kiri-nin in ANBU gear stood nearby, talking in low tones—something about the Three-Tails, sealing techniques, and a contingency plan.
Kakashi barely registered their words.
His chakra surged. Steady. Focused.
They didn't sense him until it was too late.
With a flicker, he was in front of them—his Sharingan gleaming, his blade slicing once, twice.
By the time he stopped moving, the two Kiri-nin collapsed behind him, lifeless.
"Rin!"
He dashed to her side, pressing his fingers to her neck. Pulse—steady.
One-handed, he formed a seal. His chakra pulsed gently through her body.
Rin blinked. Her dazed eyes slowly cleared.
"Kakashi…?"
"I'm here. We're getting out."