Daichi held a stoic face as he looked at the grinning prisoner. Seeing Daichi's silence, the man felt happy. "It's not the answer you were expecting, was it?"
"It was the best deal you were ever going to get. So why did you refuse it?" Daichi asked the man.
Mizuki's face sported a furious expression as he heard that question. "An ordinary life? Are you joking… with me? I want… power. This village was holding me back. Now… they're going to pay."
"Is your hatred so big that you can't let go of your grudges and pick the logical choice?"
The restrained Chunin looked at Daichi and his malice was clear to everyone. "I hate this village. But… now… I hate you even more than that. Since I'm already dead… it doesn't matter anymore. I'll die knowing that you'll lose your precious sensei."
Daichi closed his eyes, took a deep breath of air and slowly exhaled. He looked at the man and his face softened. "Mizuki. There is still a chance to change your fate. Give me the information I need and I'll help you."
Outside, Ibiki frowned and shook his head. "It's not going to work. Mizuki won't change his mind. This was a mistake." He turned to the Hokage and spoke. "Lord Hokage. Let me and Inoichi take over. We need to get past his barriers and retrieve as much information as quickly as possible."
Hiruzen was silent as he looked through the glass mirror. "Just give him a couple more minutes… If his efforts seem fruitless then you can take over."
Inside the room, even though he was dying, Mizuki felt glee at that moment. Watching the Genin who ruined his plans, now pleading for his help made the Chunin happy.
"Look at you. Begging here in front of me. No matter what you say, I won't tell you anything. I want you to suffer. Orochimaru is going to kill Tsunade. I'm certain. That will be my revenge on you."
Daichi looked at the mad grin on the weakened Mizuki's face and sighed. "It seems I found the answer to my question." He spoke to himself but everyone heard his words.
Mizuki frowned as he looked at the boy. "What are you talking about? I didn't tell you anything."
Daichi ignored Mizuki, looked around the room and then nodded to himself. "This room will do just fine."
Nobody knew what Daichi had planned and they were curious. The Genin turned his attention back to Mizuki and after a few moments of silence he began to speak.
"When I was training with Tsunade sensei, she made me promise something... She made me promise to never let the shinobi life consume me. That I should never lose to this world and compromise who I am. Compromise my ideals. She saw my talent and potential and saw how much good I could do. But she also saw the misery and horror I could bring to the world if I used my skills the wrong way."
Hiruzen closed his eyes when he heard that. The similarities between Daichi and Orochimaru were many. But at the same time, the two couldn't be more different in who they are and the old kage knew that.
Daichi's tone took a cold edge as he looked at the tied up man. "I promised her that this life wouldn't change me. That I wouldn't become a monster."
Hiruzen, Ibiki and Inoichi had a bad feeling in their guts as they heard Daichi talk.
Mizuki looked at the boy in confusion and then sneered. "If you think you can scare me…then you're mistaken. No matter what you do… No matter what you say… I won't tell you anything."
Daichi chuckled and his tone sent danger signals to everyone. Even Mizuki looked at the boy cautiously.
Daichi looked at Mizuki with a small smile that sent shivers up the man's spine. "You know it's funny.. .The person I interrogated a few months ago said something similar. You see during that interrogation he was stubborn too. I gave that man a choice and I got the information needed. But you know, that wasn't personal. I was just doing what I had to, to complete the mission. So at that time a question arose in front of me. To save the someone I care about, would I go to any length? Would I break my promise to my teacher and compromise on my ideals?"
Mizuki was silent as he looked at the Genin.
"I've been pondering this question for months. I wanted to know the answer but at the same time I was afraid of the answer… And I was right to be afraid."
Daichi's face was devoid of any feelings as he looked at the man. The Genin at the moment didn't feel any emotion and it showed in his eyes. "Mizuki… I was begging you. But it wasn't to help me save Tsunade's life... I was begging you to help me save yours."
Ibiki, who was standing outside the cell, finally understood why the child gave information to Mizuki so freely. 'This kid… He wanted to know what Mizuki would do…'
Mizuki looked at the Genin and fear began to rise in heart. His body trembled for a moment and the terror was visible on his face.
Daichi sighed and shook his head. "I was trying to be kind. But since you've helped me find an answer to my query… We'll do this a different way. To save my sensei's life, I'm going to break my promise to her."
The Genin immediately turned around and came near the one way mirror in the room. He sensed the presence of the kage and turned his head in the man's direction. It was as if Daichi was looking at Hiruzen through the glass.
"Lord Hokage. I'm going to find Tsunade sensei and Shizune no matter what. I've made my choice."
Hiruzen heard the tone in which the boy spoke and knew that no matter what he decided, Daichi would do what he had to do.
The Genin in the interrogation room took a deep breath and stood firm. "Lord Hokage. Requesting permission to have full unrestricted dominion over the prisoner. I'll get the answers we need in less than two hours. Tap the glass twice if you agree with my request…"
Ibiki and Inoichi were silent as they turned to the kage. Hiruzen looked at the boy and then his eyes went to Mizuki.
'Time is of the essence. I need to make a decision.'
"Inoichi, if we use every method at our disposal, how long would it take for you to get through Mizuki's mental defenses?" Hiruzen asked the Jonin mind reader.
"If we work round the clock using additional forces… then around half a day. Maybe a little more…" Inoichi replied knowing that wasn't the answer the Hokage was hoping for. 'If it wasn't someone from the clan that placed those barriers, I could break through them much sooner. But Ko knows all our techniques and the methods we use to break through a barrier… What a troublesome situation… Now I'm starting to sound like Shikaku.'
"It might still be too late by then. Every second counts." Hiruzen shook his head.
'Perhaps Kakashi's team could gather some information and find her, but Orochimaru isn't someone who's careless. And the information I have on him… I'll have to give it to the analysis team and have them go through it. But still all those will take time. If Mizuki has any additional vital information that could help us… Then it can't wait.'
After thinking things through, Hiruzen sighed and closed his eyes. 'Tsunade, please forgive me for doing this.' His eyes went to Daichi and the kage made his decision. He raised his hand..
Tap… Tap
And tapped the glass two times.
Inoichi was surprised. He didn't know of the interrogation that happened between Daichi and Junichiro, so he was shocked that the Hokage would give such control of a prisoner to a Genin.
"Lord Hokage, are you sure about this?" The Yamanaka clan head asked.
"If Daichi says he can get the answers quickly then I have to trust him."
"But-"
"Inoichi. Let's wait and see what he does." Ibiki spoke and Inoichi's protests died in his throat.
Inside the cell Daichi heard the two taps and nodded. He created a shadow clone and looked at him. "Go get it for me."
The clone nodded and quickly left the room.
The real Daichi turned around and looked at the prisoner who was cautious and nervous. Daichi walked up to the man and placed his hands on Mizuki's chest.
[Skill Health Manipulation is activated]
[Skill Chakra Transmutation is activated]
A powerful green chakra glow formed between Daichi's palms. Mizuki felt vitality and strong chakra rushing to his body. At first he felt pain but then it disappeared and the silver haired Chunin felt pure energy coursing through his veins. He felt his muscles strengthen and chakra rising. His body began to bulk up and the skin that was wrinkled and had dark brown color began to regain its original luster.
It took almost half an hour but Daichi was able to completely heal Mizuki and restore his strength. The ninjas outside were astonished at Daichi's medical skills.
"To bring someone to full health from such a state… Amazing." Inoichi muttered as he looked at the boy.
"He certainly wasn't overselling his medical skills." Ibiki concurred. "Lord Hokage, perhaps now I can-"
"No." Hiruzen knew what Ibiki wanted to ask. "This is Daichi's choice. I want to see what he does."
To Daichi, the two skills leveled up multiple times after healing someone in Mizuki's state.
[Skill Health Manipulation has leveled up] x3
[Skill Chakra Transmutation has leveled up] x5
Even with his strength restored to his peak, Mizuki was still completely restrained. He looked at the boy in confusion. 'Even though he knows I won't tell him anything, he healed me… Does he really think I'm bluffing.'
"Your medical skills are certainly impressive. But it doesn't matter if you healed my injuries. I won't tell you anything." Mizuki spoke in a condescending tone as he looked at the boy.
"I didn't heal you on the belief that you would willingly answer my questions. No. I healed you because I don't want you to die too quickly." Daichi replied and went to open the door.
Mizuki was puzzled at those words. 'What is he going to do? No. No matter what he does I'm not going to give up. He ruined my goals and destroyed my future. I can't let him win.' Mizuki struggled in his chair but it was useless.
Daichi opened the door and his clone was waiting outside with a scroll. The Genin closed the door after the clone walked inside the room and didn't say anything to the curious eyes that were on him.
"Have you heard the story of General Akihiro of the Land of Water?" Daichi asked Mizuki.
The Chunin was silent as he looked at the boy. Daichi smiled at the silence and walked near Mizuki. He leaned against the wall while his shadow clone stood in the middle of the room. The clone placed the scroll on the ground and gave it some chakra.
In a puff of smoke several items appeared including several small wooden planks. The shadow clone went through several seals and placed his hands on the ground. Immediately the ground underneath them began to shift and it changed shape according to Daichi's will.
"From your silence I take it you don't know who I'm talking about. It's not surprising. I doubt anyone outside the Daimyo family of the Land of Water would know about him these days." The real Daichi spoke as everyone's attention was on the clone.
It began to create a contraption from the earth and wooden planks.
"What are you doing? What is that?" Mizuki asked the real Daichi.
"You'll get to experience what that is soon. But if you want to know what it is… Well, that is something a Daimyo in the Land of Water came up with a couple centuries ago."
"What?" Mizuki was confused and he wasn't the only one.
"Lord Hokage, do you know what that is?" Inoichi asked the kage since he too didn't know what Daichi was talking about.
"No. I don't know what he's building." Hiruzen replied with an anxious heart. He also tried to recall any mention of the name Akihiro connected to the Land of Water. 'General Akihiro. Who is he and what does he have to do with this?'
"Whatever that thing is, I don't think Mizuki is going to like it." Ibiki looked at Daichi's face and he saw no emotion. But that in itself was a tell. 'That kid is seriously pissed off right now.'
While the shadow clone was working, meticulously building the contraption, the real Daichi looked up at the ceiling and thought about the predictability of the human condition. 'It seems even I'm not immune to it.'
"The Human Condition. Most people in the world grow up with self imposed rules in their hearts. No cheating, no murdering, no thieving, no torture… Things like that. But we all have that something that would make us break our own rules and the rules society has imposed on us. For many, it's family, for others it's money and fame or their self interests. For most shinobi, it's protecting our home. But for people like you and Orochimaru it's power. The power to stand above others. And when you want that something badly or to protect it… you'd be willing to break the rules you'd imposed on yourself."
Daichi looked down from the single bulb in the room and fixed a chilling gaze at Mizuki. "I care about my teachers very much. So to save their lives… I'm going to break the rules I've imposed on myself… I'm going to dig deep and I'm going to unleash horrors on you the likes of which you've never experienced."
Killing intent rose from Daichi as he looked at the scared chunin. "Mizuki. This is your last day on earth. But before I sent you off to the other side…" Daichi came near the petrified Chunin and tapped his forehead with his index finder. "I'm going to learn everything I need… from that little noggin of yours."
"It's ready." The voice from the shadow clone drew the attention of Daichi and Mizuki. It dispelled and Daichi turned his attention back to his prisoner.
"Let's begin."