Edited.
Chapter 2: Of Troublesome Women and Poisoned Blades
Kiba glanced at his captain. I'm ready.
Neji nodded almost imperceptibly, and the two moved with practiced ease into their usual defensive positions: back to back, swords raised, steel blades gleaming dark red in a blurred reflection of their military coats. The wind whipped Neji's hair behind him, stray strands shaking out of his loose, low ponytail as his legs slid wider apart, finding better purchase against the slippery deck.
"What the hell do you want?" Kiba demanded loudly, teeth bared. He clasped his short sword tightly in his hands, each fibre of his body tensed in anticipation of a fight.
"Lighten up, puppy." The first woman's soft purr drifted towards them from the darkness and he bristled angrily, struggling to make out the shadowy outlines of the two figures poised casually atop the banisters. "We're only here to take back what's ours."
"What's that supposed to mean?" returned Kiba defiantly.
The figure next to her shifted, slouching lazily. "Tch. Always so melodramatic, Ino." Ino slapped his arm and he sidled away from her, muttering. "Troublesome wench." He cleared his throat quietly and continued in a rather bored tone, scratching his elbow in the process: "Right. So...well...what she meant was, if you want to live, you'll have to hand over the prisoner. Now."
Neji stiffened, surprised. How did they know about the convict onboard?
The low rumbling of running footsteps was vibrating through the deck underneath their feet; a muffled shout of warning was heard from below and he smirked, reassured, unconsciously standing a little straighter as he spoke. "The Hyuugan council has ordered the criminal to be executed in Sunagakure. It is my duty to guard him on this passage and you will not have him under any circumstances. Unless, of course, you can provide me with the correct paperwork, clearly signed, sealed and dated." He glared at the offending figures and Kiba could not help but marvel briefly at his inane ability to sound incredibly, exasperatingly proper even during the most risky of situations. "Any attempts to sabotage the course of justice will be met with due military retaliation."
"You fool." Neji turned his head, startled as the woman who had thrown the dagger suddenly snapped at him. "Have you truly no idea what is happening? You're going to die soon."
"Is that so?" Neji responded coolly, his smooth baritone threaded with arrogance. "I'll have you know, right this moment reinforcements are coming from below deck. You do not stand a chance against my men." He smirked as a small group of impeccably uniformed soldiers hurried out from the main stairways, boots clattering across the deck. Others emerged suddenly from hidden trapdoors that opened merely a few feet away, swinging up elegantly to position themselves next to their captain and lieutenant. Finely-honed blades were unsheathed; in an instant twelve swords were directed towards each of the enigmatic strangers still hidden in the shadows. "I would suggest you surrender now and subject yourselves to arrest."
An unimpressed snort. Neji had the distinct impression that somewhere in the dark Ino's eyebrow was currently raised in disgust. "Twelve? You're hoping to beat us with twelve sorry landlubbers?"
"Eh, Tenten, let's just skin these bastards and get it over with!" A bright, boyish voice suddenly growled as one of the vague shapes jumped forwards, landing in a tensed crouch a few feet away. All twelve swords immediately redirected towards the figure and the woman next to him yanked him back by the shoulder, hissing.
"Keep calm, Naruto! We don't have time for you to play around like last time."
A sudden flare of light blossomed in the dark. She straightened, spinning around abruptly. One of Neji's men had brought a torch and was now swinging the flaming stick about, casting long shadows across the deck. "Put that out now! Ya salty bilge rat, you might as well send up bloody fireworks to alert Orochimaru's crew to this ship! They're going to see it and find us and then all of you will die! Put that damn thing out now!" Suddenly she leapt forwards into the small circle of light cast by the torch. Neji glimpsed briefly a flurry of pink silk and light brown hair before Tenten tackled the poor man to the ground, grabbing the burning stick and throwing it overboard in a brilliant arc of light.
"Get her!"
"Tenten!"Naruto growled. "Ya scurvy seadogs, I'm gonna whip ya scrawny asses!"
Suddenly all was chaos; all five of the remaining intruders leapt headlong into the crowd of soldiers with various battle cries (and one disgruntled mumble of "...Women are so troublesome.")
Kiba grinned viciously before launching himself into the fray. "Bring it on, you bastards!"
"Lady Hinata, we must find someplace safe." Sakura grasped Hinata's arm tightly, trying to get the young woman to respond. Hinata had frozen at the sight of Daichi's fall, already painfully raw nerves completely overwhelmed by fear. Pale eyes were wide and unblinking as she turned to face the desperate woman beside her.
"M-Miss Sa-Sakura..." she stuttered, stumbling thickly over each word. Sakura bit her lip, dragging the stunned Hyuuga towards the door before turning around to address the young guard. "Excuse me, Sir Lee? Sir!"
Lee was still at the glass, tears streaming down his face as he wailed. "Sir Daichi!"
Sakura was near shaking with fear but forced herself to march around the table to the sobbing young man, tugging at a red cuffed sleeve. "Please, sir, help us. Please. We have to get Lady Hinata somewhere she'll be safe! You must show us where we can hide. Sir!"
Lee tore himself from the window, still crying uncontrollably. Sakura ran trembling fingers through her hair, ruffling the neat pink strands and tugged at his arm one more time, nearing the end of her patience. When Lee still failed to respond, she dropped his arm abruptly and ran back across the room to Hinata, picking up her long skirts to keep from tripping. "Come, we'll find some place ourselves."
"Wait!"
Sakura swiveled around, heart pounding in her chest. Lee was wiping the tears from his eyes in a very manly manner, wide eyes gleaming tragically at them. "The cellar. The ladies have to hide in the cellar, it's the safest place in the whole ship. I'll take you there, but we have to hurry! I must return and avenge Sir Daichi as soon as possible!" He strode across the room stiffly, before suddenly stopping in front of the two terrified women and executing an elaborate bow. "Allow me." He held out both arms and Hinata and Sakura rather doubtfully attached themselves to either side, allowing him to support them as they hurried down the chillingly empty corridors and down the stairs.
Sakura kept glancing worriedly at Hinata but her charge seemed to have calmed down a bit; her face was still stiff and rigid with apprehension but she managed to keep up with the mad dash down the seemingly endless flight of stairs, down, down, down until they reached a dingy passageway. The long corridor was dark and narrow, poorly lit by flickering candlelight. They were near the very bottom of the ship and the powerful, dull creaking of the hull echoed around them as they hurried forwards. At the end of the corridor there appeared two possible exits: on the left wall, a securely padlocked door with an empty chair beside it; on the ground before them, a small trapdoor. Lee immediately crouched down, working the lock mechanism with surprisingly deft fingers before flinging open the wooden paneling to reveal a large, unlit room below.
"Down here, quickly!" Lee ushered Hinata down a rickety, moulding ladder, himself remaining above them in the corridor. Sakura quickly reached out and grabbed a candle from a pewter dish left on the floor before stumbling down after her. "You'll be safest here, as long as you remain quiet", he promised fiercely. "Lady Hinata, Miss Sakura, I'm afraid I'll have to leave you for now. A glorious fight to the death awaits me –" Hinata and Sakura gaped at him from below, grasping onto each other, "- yet justice and goodness will prevail, and the Royal Guard shall protect you with our very lives! Yosh!" He wiped a stray tear that was tracing down his cheek and sat back. "Farewell for now, and good luck!"
The trap-door closed on them.
That woman was disturbingly competent at handling sharp objects.
Neji had attacked Tenten instantly if reluctantly, instinctively recognizing her to be the leader of the pirate gang. He still could only vaguely make out her lithe form as they dipped and twisted around each other in the dark, navigating between the other fighting bodies, though sometimes he caught brief, startling glimpses of large brown eyes and dark hair pulled back into two tight buns. So far she had managed to keep him at a good distance away from herself, allowing her to use a seemingly limitless supply of weapons in (he had to grudgingly admit) a rather powerful offensive.
But Neji Hyuuga was not a Captain of the Royal Guard for nothing. His face remained perfectly impassive as he ducked down, a sudden volley of metal needles arcing through the air where his chest had been. Immediately he flipped onto his hands, extending one leg in a powerful kick that knocked Tenten off her feet. A dagger plunged down, missing his leg by a hairsbreadth before she leapt up again, hands moving deftly to retrieve two curved blades from a leather scabbard swung over one shoulder.
"Give up," Neji advised her calmly, thrusting forwards with his own sword. She blocked the blow easily with one knife and swung around against his chest, swiping upwards with the other and nicking Neji on his chin. Dark brown eyes boldly stared into his; they were so close to each other her long bangs tickled his cheek and he could feel the heat radiating from hers, which were slightly pink from exertion. Rather pretty, really...
"I should be saying that to you, Hyuuga." Smirking, she danced away again as he scowled and wiped the blood off with the back of his palm. Shame she was so horrifically barbaric and unladylike. A woman fighting! ... ...Pfft.
"Uuuuzuuumaaakiiiiii!"
Suddenly Neji was thrown onto the ground, the air momentarily knocked out of him by the force of the blow. Naruto had leapt on top of him recklessly, one knee grinding against his back as he tackled him with a cocky grin. "Heh, you're way too easy….lily-livered swabbie."
"Yosh! Captain, I come to fight alongside your brave and noble spirit!"
All eyes turned briefly to rest on the energetic figure rushing towards them, sword hanging forgotten by his side as he threw himself bodily against Naruto, knocking the poor man off Neji.
"Lee!" Kiba shouted, audibly relieved. The youth saluted him briefly, still sprawled on top of a struggling Naruto. Kiba grinned. "Cellar?" he mouthed. Lee nodded vigorously and flashed a brilliant smile. Kiba turned back to face his own opponent, relieved that the two women were safe. He lunged forwards, slashing out with his sword and finding himself parrying blows with the man with the lazy, drawling accent. Back and forth they sparred, alternatively gaining and losing ground as they attempted to hack off the other's arm (or any other body part – neither were particularly picky about it). Kiba suddenly leapt forwards, bringing his sword against the man's neck; his opponent swung his own cutlass sharply up, blades locking firmly together. They held the contact for a long, tense moment, both unwilling to back away. His wrist started to throb painfully but he merely gripped his sword even tighter, glaring at the strange, spiky haired man.
"Shikamaru!" Suddenly Ino appeared, long blonde ponytail whipping around her shoulders as she knocked Kiba's sword away, sending it clattering onto the ground. He immediately lunged down to retrieve his weapon and the man glared balefully at her.
"Stay out of this, Ino." He held his cutlass between his teeth as he grabbed the protesting woman and dragged her back, pushing her behind him. "Don't be so troublesome."
"I just saved your sorry ass, you ungrateful jerk!"
"Tch. Women shouldn't have to fight." Shikamaru didn't even bother to look back at her before he set upon Kiba, surprising him with an uncanny speed. He seemed to blend into the shadows, using them to his advantage as he slunk around, tracing dizzy circles around the Inuzuka. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Ino storm off furiously, punching one of his men in the eye before delivering an angry kick to another in a very sensitive region. Kiba winced as the unfortunate man doubled over onto the ground and Ino kicked him again. The truth was that none of his men knew how to deal with the two aggressive females; they were unaccustomed to the notion of hitting a woman and therefore suffered cruelly at the hands (and feet, and nails, and knives) of these spitting wildcats.
"Shikamaru! Ino!" Tenten yelled, sending a deadly looking battle axe (Neji wondered how she had managed to hide that in her clothes) flying straight at Lee. He managed to veer off to the side and the axe ended up pinning a soldier against the deck instead. "You two get the boat ready, we have to leave soon! Go, now! Shino and I are more than enough to deal with these pox-faced swines. Naruto!" She turned swiftly, nimbly darting out of the way as Neji bore down on her with his sword. "Hurry!" She eyed the stairway meaningfully.
Kiba scowled when Shikamaru suddenly broke off from their duel, seizing Ino from behind. She shrieked but he ignored her, grabbing one of the ropes hanging off the side of the ship and swinging them both down out of sight, bickering voices trailing off as they disappeared from view. He twisted around and saw Naruto suddenly break free from Lee and sprint madly towards the stairway, roughly shoving random soldiers out of the way.
To find the prisoner, he realized angrily. He was about to send one of his men to go after him, wanting to stay near the fighting himself, when he suddenly stopped short.
The prisoner. Kept in the jail...right next to the cellar.
Kiba's eyes widened, the first sign of true fear he had shown during the whole ordeal. The cellar.
......Lady Hinata and Miss Sakura.
Kiba cursed violently and leaped out to give chase. "Neji! I'm going down to protect Lady Hina -"
A long, thin sword suddenly pierced the air in front of him, blade slicing through his coat to cut lightly into his arm. Kiba jerked back, surprised gaze landing on a tall, imposing fellow wrapped in a large grey coat. Half his face was hidden behind a tall collar and his eyes were unfathomably cold, glittering black and hard against his pale skin. The man simply stood there before him, immobile, calmly watching his reaction as Kiba snarled and lifted his sword to strike out. "Get the hell out of my way! I –oh- "
Kiba abruptly bent over, clutching at his stomach as an unbearable, sharp streak of pain shot through his body. He suddenly had trouble breathing and rocked backwards, gasping for breath. His eyes trained on the tip of the man's sword, stained a dark red from his blood. The rest of the blade edge was tinted black. Oh sweet lord …
"Poison. Not fatal, but I'm afraid you won't be fighting for a while," the man told him quietly, voice detached and flat.
Kiba squinted, struggling to see as his vision started to blur. A low growl rumbled in his throat and he roughly shoved the man away, concentrating all his energy on running after Naruto. His whole body strained forwards as he loped jerkily towards the stairway.
"Don't bother," the man called after him, turning away to slit the throat of a guard in one, efficient flick of his wrist.
Kiba scowled and tumbled down the stairs.
