The Asgardian ship docked at one of Knowhere's outer platforms. The ramp didn't lower. No crew stepped out.
Within five minutes, the vessel detached and vanished into the space.
Dock workers muttered about "must be some emergency" and went back to their drinks. No one noticed the grey-skinned, three-eyed Gruk slipping through the crowd, long arms swaying, blending perfectly with the mercenaries, smugglers, and scavengers who called this place home.
Gruk were one of the alien species and one of the most populated ones on Knowwhere.
'Sif said Gruk are common mercenaries here. Easy to blend in,' Kakashi thought, keeping his gait loose and his third eye half-lidded. The disguise was a simple transformation jutsu. He moved like he belonged, and in a place like Knowhere, belonging meant not being noticed.
He had seen strange things in his life, tailed beasts, moon-sized eyes, god of thunder, but nothing prepared him for this.
Knowhere wasn't a planet. It was a head. A colossal, severed head floating in space, its skull hollowed out and turned into a city. The Asgardians had told him the truth, but hearing it and seeing it were different beasts.
Knowhere was the decapitated skull of a Celestial. According to Sif, the Tivan Group had colonized it, mining the bone and brain matter for profit. The Collector, Taneleer Tivan, ruled from the center, inside a museum built into the creature's cranium.
The sheer scale of it made the Ten Tails look like a puppy. The lingering chakra in the air was thick, ancient, and godly. Even dead, the Celestial's presence pressed down on Kakashi.
'Someone killed this thing. Cut off its head.' Kakashi's jaw tightened. 'Whoever did that… I'm no match for them. Not even close.'
'Someone who could kill someone that could create life and planets...I can only hope and wish that the person responsible does not turn his sight towards Earth.' Kakashi thought
He had asked Sif about Celestials on the way. Her answer had been short and chilling:
"The oldest race in the universe. They created the Big Bang which resulted in creation of Earth. They made planets. They made life. They judge entire worlds and erase them if they fail."
Kakashi had stared at her.
'Someone killed one of them. And now I'm sneaking into its skull to steal a dog.'
He shook the thought away and kept moving.
The streets of Knowhere were filled with aliens of every shape and color. A four-armed bartender poured glowing liquor into a tankard held by a floating jellyfish. A pair of rat-like scavengers argued over a glowing orb. Somewhere, a fight broke out, blades clashed, energy blasts cracked, and no one looked twice.
He had infiltrated various places before so he knew how to act. Act like you belong in the place. Show confidence but not so much confidence that you stand out. And don't act nervous whenever someone asks you a question or talk to you.
He reached the inner ring, the Collector's territory. The air changed had changed as the voice levels decreased. Kakashi could see increased security here.
The museum was ahead: a towering structure of white metal and glass. Runes glowed along the walls. Magical barriers shimmered like. Turrets tracked movement with red targeting beams. Cameras swiveled. Guards in armor patrolled with energy blasters.
Kakashi stopped at the edge of the restricted zone.
"Stop right there," a guard barked, stepping forward. His blaster hummed. "State your name and business. This area is off-limits without authorization. Show your ID card."
Kakashi turned slowly. The guard's three eyes blinked. For a split second, Kakashi's Sharingan flared beneath the disguise, just a flicker.
The guard froze. His expression went blank.
"You can pass, sir," he said, voice flat.
Kakashi walked past. Behind him, the genjutsu faded after ten seconds. The guard blinked, shook his head, and resumed his patrol with no memory of the encounter.
He used the same trick on three more checkpoints. Each time, the Mangekyou Sharingan slipped into their minds like a shadow. No resistance. No alarm. These people had never seen chakra, never trained against genjutsu. The Sharingan was a ghost in their thoughts.
Kakashi had realised that the Mangekyou genjutsu was more powerful and effective than the normal sharingan genjutsu. Since the guards allowed him to pass so easily, the people on cameras would also not report him and would not find him suspicious.
Kakashi looked at the main entrance of museum. The doors were sealed with a glowing runes. He knew that he can't turn intangible and walk inside since the cameras would capture it and raise an alarm.
And he was pretty sure that these barriers would also prevent it. 'Barriers that interact with space. This collector guy is more resourceful than I thought '
He decided to enter using teleportation. With such small distance, he could just anticipate how much distance he would need to teleport.
He focused. Kamui stirred behind his left eye.
He vanished in a spiral of space-time.
And reappeared exactly where he started.
The swirl spat him back out like a bad joke.
Kakashi sighed, hands in his pockets.
'Of course, they have got barriers to prevent teleportation,' he thought, rubbing the bridge of his nose. 'This mission just turned very troublesome. What a drag.'
------Author Notes---------
Do check out my new novel.
Naruto: The Eraserhead of Suna.
Y'all can now read the next 15 chapters of the fanfic on my pat*reon.
Also you can also now read exclusive one shots on it.
https://pat*reon.com/Charizard6
[No star]