[center][u]Act I - The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions[/u][/center]

Never had there been peace for such a time that the Shinobi world was experiencing at the moment. So much so that this generation scarcely knew the true nature of war, only the hand-me-down storytelling of their forefathers to remind them of the harsh realities of the world they lived in. Names of villains were but stories of boogeymen to scare children into obeying their elders. Little did they know of true evil. Some even became so complacent with this peace that they foolishly took it for granted, and believed it always to be that way. But as the old man always said, history repeats itself. You cannot kill the evil in men's hearts with tools of war. And when history repeats, it comes back with a vengeance. 

The missions given out to young Chuunin and Genin were usually deprived of any real combat. Of course you had your occasional missing-nin or thief, but those missions were usually relegated to the Jonin or ANBU to take care of. Of course saving the little girl's cat from a tree or helping the old woman with her crops was morally rewarding it offered little in the nature of war. Anyone under the age of 25 knew not of the old days and how things once were. 

It was an average summer day, the sun was beating down on the three young Chuunin as they left their squad leader, conversing amongst themselves how odd it was to receive a B ranked mission. The Leaf village had a boisterous population, the younger generation crowded with talented Shinobi, all clamoring for missions to prove their worth, with barely enough work to go around. Most had to get part time jobs just to make ends meet. Long past were the days of getting by as a mercenary or on mission pay alone. So such a beautiful day was welcomed with what their squad leader had called a blessing of a mission for them to uptake. How wrong he was. 

"You guys know it's gonna turn out to be lame as usual, when does something exciting ever happen around here?!" The cynic of their group, Mizuki Dokugami, mused over the rarity of this occurrence. He was but sixteen, a Chuunin for just barely over a year. Certainly not the weakest of his class, but still green behind the ears in terms of combat. He had dark brown hair, with a slender frame built for stealth rather than brute force. He was of slightly shorter stature than some of the other young men his age, but he was but a boy with time to grow. He came from a tall order of elder Shinobi in the Leaf village, his clan being masters of subterfuge and assassination. They possessed a Kekkei Genkai of unique property, their very existence poison to the world. Their very blood is poison to all living beings, as is their chakra to those who it touches. First thought to be an elemental release all its own, it was soon realized to be a very fundamental difference in the chemistry of their bodies, similar in concept to the Shikotsumyako Kekkei Genkai. Upon coming of age for the Dokugami, which for them comes around 12 or 13, barely pubescent children find their bodies becoming toxic, their own blood and saliva becoming unbearable to them, and so most members of their clan die an early death, succumbing to the poison of their own existence. Thus, Mizuki was one of the few of his generation accustomed to being surrounded by death from an early age. The blessing of being alive as a member of his clan was not lost on him. 

"Don't say that! Keep an open mind Mizu! You never know what life's going to bring our way today! This mission itself could be a blessing for all we know, it's the first B rank we've received together as a team!" The kindhearted and always jubilant Senna Akizakura chimed in, always trying to set straight the cynical mind of her comrade, two years her junior. She had light blonde hair and a slim, petite frame. Her eyes were a crystal blue, paired with a coy little smirk that had all the boys of her generation butting heads with each other over her beauty. Senna had a very bright mind to go with her appearance, something overlooked due to her natural looks. She hadn't seen the kind of death that Mizuki had, even with her two years experience over him. Her loving nature covered the reality of herself, that she had felt more emotion in her first few years of life than Mizuki ever would in his entire Shinobi career. This was due to her own bloodline, coming from a clan of empaths that felt the emotion of everyone around them. And so she was the sensor of their group, always guiding them to the point before the other two even knew what was going on. She was a bit of a know-it-all in that sense, but her cocky attitude had its own kind of charm to it that attracted the two other boys. She knew that they both had a crush on her, she could feel their emotions even if it wasn't written all over Mizuki's face, even though it mostly was. Though greater than that feeling of lust for her was his jealousy and envy toward their third comrade. 

"It's our duty to complete whatever mission sensei gives us. And today is that's a B ranked mission. Whether that ranking is worth it or not is still to be determined." These were the impartial words of Kyotoumaru Uchiha, or just 'Kyo' to those close to him. He was never one to judge a situation at first glance. He was the oldest of the three at nineteen, and the prime candidate of their group for the Jonin exams. He was widely regarded in the village as one of the top Chuunin and in the underbelly of the local bars he was a ten to one bet to be part of the Jonin class of his generation. He was tall and had a stern, focused look to him. He looked slightly older than his age would indicate, coupled with his disciplined demeanor gave him a very mature look. His jet black Uchiha hair was tied back in a ponytail, his bangs falling to the sides to give light to his eyes. 

"I bet you these guys just drank too much sake in the forest and all passed out. Let's just wait here outside the village gates for them to stumble back home to their families in shame." Mizuki joked. 

"That's not funny Mizu! What if you were the one stumbling around wallowing home to your mother?!" Senna snapped back at her teammate. 

"My mother's dead, Senna. Remember?" Mizuki retorted with a bit of sharpness from his tongue. Realizing that his comrade could sense the pain behind his words, because she was nosey like that, he quickly covered his tracks. "Not like it matters anyway. Such is the nature of my clan, it makes us who we are. That's why my father was such an asset in the last Great War." 

"Enough." Kyo muttered. "Our mission is to locate the lost squad of Chuunin from the Forest of Death that is to be used for the Jonin exams tomorrow. It doesn't matter if they're just a bunch of drunks, if they got eaten by a giant snake, or if they're just lost like fools. Our mission is to simply locate them, not wait here for them to locate us." His word was final among their squad. He was the undisputed leader of their team, even if Mizuki harbored a resentment that only Senna could feel. And Senna herself never thought anything of that resentment, as it was human nature to feel such things, and she had grown to accept those natural human flaws as all Akizakura women did. Just as they all learned to accept that their beauty attracted men for all the wrong reasons, and yet she couldn't help but fall for Kyo, his leadership and level-headedness were naturally attractive qualities. And the way he could hide his emotion from the world and pretend like everything was fine mystified the girl who felt everything. She was the only one who knew the depth of his character, the only living soul that truly knew just how conflicted he truly was inside. And she knew that deep down, Kyo believed in the good in people's hearts because of her. She knew it was more than just her pretty face, she was his light. And he was her enigma. 

So the trio departed into the Forest of Death. They searched for signs of the missing squad everywhere, but found no trace. Kyo's Sharingan found nothing of importance, which was odd to him. Even with Senna's impeccable tracking, she could sense nothing. Not a clue was left for them to follow. It was as if their targets had vanished off the face of the earth. 

"This is pointless!!" Mizuki finally broke, succumbing to his boredom and arrogance. "I'm telling you, they obviously were never even here! They went to the bar that's just outside of town, got so wasted that they blacked out, and probably took a few girls down to the inn next door and are holed up their nursing their hangovers and laughing it up about how we're out here looking for them!" He kicked at the grass in a childish manner. 

"I told you. We search until we have something of merit to bring back to sensei. We don't go back empty handed." Kyo asserted. 

"And who died and made you captain of the ANBU huh?! What makes you so fucking important that you decide what the three of us are gonna do all the time?!" Mizuki spat, his irritability reaching a peak. He knew that Senna could feel his resentment, so there was no use holding it back at this point. 

"Mizu stop it!!! You know Kyo's right! He only has the best intentions for ALL of us!" Senna interjected, trying to prevent the situation from escalating any further. She could feel Kyo growing impatient with their younger comrades arrogance, and it was her self-imposed role amongst them to diffuse these situations. 

Mizuki paused for a moment as he looked at Senna's eyes. In that moment she felt his longing for her to look at him in the way that she looked at Kyo. He quickly recoiled, realizing that she knew this. His jealousy reached a peak that it could no longer be kept hidden. He spat upon the ground they stood on. "You WOULD say that, jumping at the chance to defend your little boyfriend like that. You do LOVE him after all!" He said it in a matter-of-fact tone that made it seem as if love were something ugly to be ashamed of. After all, his clan were taught never to grow attached to others, even family. He never knew the love of another human. Such was the way he was raised. He was a weapon, born and raised. 

"Mizu that's not fair!! I love you too, it's just-" Senna started to explain but the right words escaped her. She was caught in a storm of emotion between the three of them. 

"ITS JUST WHAT, SENNA?! You don't love me like you love him, you're IN love with him! And he knows it too!! You both know it, I'm just the third wheel on these stupid missions. And this ones just as bullshit as the rest!" Senna's face turned red the moment Mizuki spilled the truth that everyone had already known for a while. He didn't know what else to say, he just stared at Kyo with true hatred born from his resentment toward their not-so-hidden love for each other. "You and those FUCKING eyes of yours!!"

Kyo just let it play out. He observed the two emotional members of his team go back and forth. But deep down, if Mizuki took one more step over the line toward Senna, he would have spoken up sooner. Truth be told, Mizuki could direct all the hatred and jealousy he wanted toward Kyo. The Uchiha was used to people either looking down on him for being gifted or envying his skill. But when he snapped at Senna, well, that was something unforgivable to Kyo. Against his better judgment, he simply said this. "Maybe it would be better if you just went home. If this mission is so pointless to you, maybe you should just leave it to us to complete it." 

"Yeah right, and have you bitch to sensei later about how I deserted you two and jeopardized the mission?! I'll find the missing squad on my own, I don't need either of you! You two lovebirds can sit here and fuck each other's brains out while I do all the work!" Before either of his friends could say anything in response, Mizuki was marching off, deeper into the Forest of Death. 

"Wait Mizu!!! Sensei specifically told us not to separate from each other in here!! This place is dangerous even for a Chuunin!" Senna called after him, but to no avail. Mizuki continued to storm off, deeper into the forest. She took a step to run after him, but Kyo's hand fell on her shoulder, holding her back. 

"Don't. Don't bother. He won't listen no matter how far you probe into his psyche and try to reason with him. You know he's too stubborn to listen." said Kyo. "Besides, you're the best tracker of our entire generation. We might lose sight of him, but you'll be able to find him even if he storms off for miles." He reasoned. 

Senna gave Kyo a telling look that showed him her concern. She had a bad feeling about the whole situation, and normally an Akizakura never turns away from their gut feelings. But she was still young, and all the emotions being thrown around clouded her judgment. She could barely figure out how she really felt. Was she really in love with Kyo? If so, why did she feel so guilty over it? All she wanted was for her friends to get along, and now she felt like the cause of their conflict. "I guess you're right.. even so, sensei warned us not to take this lightly.. I'm worried about him Kyo, he's our friend regardless of what he says.." 

The concern in her voice was genuine, and it hit Kyo hard. He shook it off and reasserted his point to himself. He had to justify it somehow. "The kid is a walking poison bomb. Anything he touches dies. I think he'll do just fine. Let's just keep searching for these missing Shinobi so we can go home already." His own impatience was beginning to show. Senna pouted in response. Kyo saw this and turned away showing no emotion, he was great at hiding what he felt outwardly, but Senna knew what he was feeling. He thought her pouting face was adorable. So she giggled at him, and he knew exactly why. "Quit it." He groaned, turning back to look at her as he rolled his eyes. He had no choice but to smirk and laugh at her. He dropped the cold, steely demeanor he had grown so accustomed to carrying around. Mizuki was gone so he had no one to put on a show for but himself, because no matter how hard he tried, there was no fooling Senna, she innately knew the truth on matters of the heart. And that's why he was so drawn to her. That it didn't matter how hard he tried, he couldn't lie to her. He couldn't hide his true self from her, and that was both terrifying and fascinating to him at the same time. He thought all this over as he looked at her and couldn't keep the thought of how much he really did love her from crossing his mind. She looked back at him with the same passion, and they both accepted a fact that between the both of them had been known for a long time but both were too shy to admit to each other for some time now. They were raised Shinobi and would die Shinobi, they were tools of war and would remain such until the day they died. They were never taught how to love, and their feelings were still in that awkward youth stage where they didn't know what to do with it. It took Mizuki's angry ramblings to even push it out of them. And in truth, if it hadn't been for their spiteful comrade, they may have kept their lips sealed from each other for quite some time. But at that moment they couldn't, they moved in toward each other for that fateful moment. It seemed destined at this point, why had they not gave in to their feelings sooner? It felt so right for that split second, until-

"MIZUKI!!" Senna yelled. Her eyes were wide with fear. The moment was gone, their lips had not yet touched, just a hair's length away. Kyo looked utterly taken off guard, and it didn't take long for her to explain why. "His chakra just disappeared! It completely vanished out of nowhere!! We need to find him!" 

They darted off together into the forest. Kyo was much faster than her, but after seeing the look in her eye, he merely kept up with her instead of going after his friend. Some would argue that it was his duty to go as fast as he could to find his teammate. Others would say he was doing the right thing by sticking together. The truth is, she was his one weakness. It wasn't a matter of what was right or wrong as the unofficial leader, he cared about her more than he cared even about the village itself. She would be his demise one day. 

They arrived where Senna last picked up Mizuki's chakra. What they saw left both of them speechless. Two dead bodies, each belonging to members of the missing squad. The third was nowhere to be found, and neither was Mizuki. Senna was frantically looking around, trying to use her ability to locate their friend. Kyo was doing the same, his Sharingan scanning the forest for anything. 

"This doesn't make sense!!" Senna exclaimed after several moments of searching. "His chakra can't just disappear like that!! He always has a bright purple aura that's thick with energy! I can always tell when he's coming from hundreds of yards away! His clan are so distinct in their presence, and yet I can't feel him anywhere!" Tears welled up in her eyes and ran down the valleys of her cheeks. 

"It doesn't make sense at all... we have to go deeper and find him. We'll bring him back at any cost!" Kyo broke his calm demeanor once again, as the weight of the situation fell on him. He was their leader, whether official or not. He was the oldest, the one who took the weight of the world on his shoulders. There was no way he could go back to their sensei without Mizuki. He took a step forward, about to dash deeper into the forest. 

At that moment Senna froze in place. Her eyes fixated ahead on where Kyo was about to dash off toward. She was paralyzed by fear, overcome by a great feeling of despair and evil intentions. Kyo turned back to see why she wasn't going to leave with him. Before he could ask what was wrong, she gasped for air, as if she was choking on the evil she felt around her. "...we need to leave" she whispered, still in shock and barely able to speak. Kyo opened his mouth to protest, but she knew exactly what he wanted to say. "NOW KYO!!!" Senna shrieked, her voice cracking as she did so with the kind of fear that Kyo had never heard from another Shinobi. He couldn't refuse her, not when she truly sounded as if they were going to die. His gut told him to flee as well, and yet he still felt guilty about making this decision when they still hadn't learned the fate of their friend. 

Kyo grabbed Senna, scooping her into his arms and darting the opposite way. If she truly felt something to unnerve her the way it did, he was sure it was something horrible. And whatever could make their friend disappear like that and kill a squad of three other Chuunin would surely do the same to them, despite how confident Kyo was in his own ability. 

Senna was silent the entire way back to Konoha. She didn't look Kyo in the eyes once the entire way back, though he knew this was not his fault, it was because whatever she felt had traumatized her temporarily, whatever it was was so malicious that she had never encountered something like it before. He was simply glad she was safe, and yet the thought of Mizuki and what may have befallen him in that forest without them there, and possibly because of them, still haunted them both. 

They arrived back home and went immediately to their sensei's home, and told him of Mizuki's absence, but before they could explain anything, their sensei explained that the Hokage himself was to be informed of the results of their mission, and he was eagerly awaiting their return. 

Kyo and Senna made their way as fast as possible to the Hokage's manor, and entered his office. "Hokage-sama, we are here to report the results of our mission to find the lost squad in the Forest of Death." However being one man short, the Hokage would already have his answer. He would not be pleased with the news they brought, as it would only serve to worsen the suspicions of what caused the disappearance in the first place. There was only one man with the capability to produce the malicious intention of such magnitude to pierce the heart of an Akizakura and paralyze Shinobi with that kind of fear...