Chapter 2: The Rotator Virus
Lord Onoki, his son and his granddaughter arrived in the Head Samurai's edifice on the day of the meeting's dawn. It was early by a Kage's standard since they usually arrive an hour early at most but the Tsuchikage wanted to speak to the Head Samurai first before the meeting itself because the epidemic the Land of Iron and the Land of Earth was currently facing might be related. He didn't know the details of what had happened in the Samurai territory but his guts were telling him that it was this epidemic was related and not by coincidence. What bothered him was the difference of their climate. If a virus was to hit both of their areas, it won't have the same potency due to their contrasting weather and land conditions. Kurotsuchi was the first one to observe this difference and she did a lot of convincing to prove her point.
The samurai on guard duty greeted the Iwa Ninjas. "Welcome to the Land of Iron, Lord Tsuchikage."
"Thank you." Onoki said. "Is the Head Samurai in? I need to speak with him directly before the meeting."
"Yes my lord." The head guard said. "We'll be escorting you at you rcommand."
"Should we wait for you at the meeting room?" Kitsuchi asked.
"Alright." The Tsuchikage answered. "But Kurotsuchi will come with me."
"Hey gramps, you're just talking to the Head Samurai alone. There's no need for me to do the explaining." She barked at her grandfather.
"Kurotsuchi! Talk to the Tsuchikage properly." Her father ordered her.
The old man sighed. He had wanted to get that attitude out of her fast. Kurotsuchi is their Village's best young ninja and was in the pool for the next Tsuchikage. Criticisms that surround her are related to her laid-back nature and tendency to talk out of turn which is not exactly a bad thing but it could get in the way. "Then do what you want but you'll the explaining during the meeting."
"Got it gramps." She said while mocking him. "By the way gramps, why are you so stiff today?"
"Get going father. I'll take care of this brat." Said Kitsuchi while shaking his head. He can't place where Kurotsuchi inherited her tactlessness and playfulness. Both he and his wife, Keiko, had neither of these characteristics. Compared to Keiko who was a refined, modest and demure kunoichi, Kurotsuchi was boyish, frisky and sharp-tongued. Only one person was similar to her in some way and that is her grandfather himself.
Kurotsuchi chuckled at her father's comment. It was he who requested to chaperone the Tsuchikage when he found out that she'll be speaking in the meeting. Her father, as she thought, had wanted to keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't do something stupid like calling the Sixth Hokage sleepy or the Raikage funky. She was too old to be taught manners anyway. At age twenty-two, her father could do something better like stop inspecting her apartment at random to see if she's hiding a man inside her cupboards.
"So pops, should we wait at the meeting room? It's half a day too early for that anyway." She commented.
While his daughter was speaking, Kitsuchi asked for one samurai guard to usher them to the meeting room. They had a lot of material to present and what worried him was that Kitsuchi missed out some details in the presentation. "Do you have anything else to do, young lady?" He said while they were heading to the venue.
The kunoichi sighed. When her father was like this, the control freak daddy, she feels like she's the biggest idiot in the world. She hated that side of him but Kurotsuchi learned how to deal with it through the years. "Dad, I know what I will say later. I've been to these meetings more than you did."
"Your grandfather never let you spoke formally. You also didn't have the chance to be part of technical divisions in the Shinobi Alliance. I'm worried because it's not your cup of tea."
"Doesn't mean I'm an idiot. And I have my fair share of technical knowledge, dad." She has to weasel her way out or else she'll be too pissed at the meeting. "Even field-oriented divisions in the alliance need some form of intel. You know me, I always research before I act."
Kitsuchi didn't react anymore and the kunoichi felt she won.
When they entered the meeting a Samurai guard was stationed by its entrance. Guards don't guard if the room was empty, unless somebody had arrived earlier than them.
"Samurai-san, who's in the meeting room?" Kurotsuchi fired at him.
"Iwa Ninjas?" The samurai guard muttered to himself. "Excuse me! Kankuro-dono had instructed me to wait for any of the first Kage to arrive. The Kazekage is currently in the infirmary. It seems that he might not be in a condition to attend today's meeting."
"That is all?" Kitsuchi said.
"No that's not it pops." Kurotsuchi snapped at him. "The Kazekage is a jinchuuriki. He should not get sick at all… not to mention, they passed through the Land of Earth."
SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!
"I thought it was extracted from him." When the Akatsuki had captured and extracted Gaara's bijuu, it had been the talk of Iwagakure. Many of their local ninjas still hated any mention of the Sand Village even after the war. Although, relations are starting to get better especially when the current Tsuchikage had started being fond of the youngest Kage in history.
"You weren't informed then. After the war, the beast returned to the kid." Kurotsuchi said. "Samurai-san, please lead me to the infirmary. I will speak with Kankuro. Dad, please tell gramps about this. I think it's related to the epidemic. I'll explain the details later."
Kitsuchi simply nodded and asked some of the Samurai to lead him to where the Head Samurai's office was while Kurotsuchi hurried to the infirmary where the Sand Ninjas were. Without thinking, she attempted to bang on the door several times yet she only managed to hit it once because the man behind it immediately opened it.
He was pissed.
Kurotsuchi mentally cussed at her idiocy. Who the hell would bang a door of a patient? I'm an idiot. It's good it wasn't Kankuro himself who opened the door or else he'll strangle me.
She grinned. "I was in a hurry. I need to speak to Kankuro. It concerns the Kazekage." The huge brunette had a smug look on his face. Maybe he was a newly assigned bodyguard to the Kazekage as replacement to his sister, Temari. Between the two, Kurotsuchi would much prefer speaking to the sister instead of the brother because she was much more courteous. She's the kind of no-nonsense girl who also happens to have a lot of personality — the type of friends Kurotsuchi want. But her startling marriage gave the Iwa Kunoichi no choice but to speak to the strange, murderous brother in that situation… and the situations to arrive.
"Enter." The huge brunette said to her.
Kurotsuchi was so used to be around Akatsuchi who was around 2 meters tall. She was unbothered by his size but she was somehow affected by his irritation. He didn't say or do anything but Kurotsuchi was sure that the banging had created a fire of animosity between them.
The infirmary was wide and plain. It had a coffee table and two seats at one corner, a television set, a small kitchen and a wide window overlooking the snowy visage. Bed was placed by the window where the Kazekage was sitting up and looking over the snow-covered plains. He was scratching his eyes fresh from sleep.
Shit.
Kurotsuchi cheekily peered around to look for the Kazekage's right hand man. She thought maybe he was out or doing an errand for his brother like buying for ice cream.
"Kankuro, who is it?" Gaara asked without moving his gaze.
"Kurotsuchi from the Hidden Stone."
The pissed off man answered Gaara even if he was asking for Kankuro?
Shit.
Shit.
Shit.
Mega shit.
Kurotsuchi did her best to hide her 'shit happens' expression from the disguised man who happens to be the guy she had business with. She argued against her idea that the man is disguised; he had been wearing a disguise all this time and that the sultry brunette behind her was the man himself.
Fuck, I'd better watch my mouth this time or I would be asking for a death wish from the puppet guy.
"Greetings Lord Kazekage. I need to speak to Kankuro-dono about your condition. I believe it is related to the reason behind this emergency meeting." She said immediately.
The other man who was posing to be Kankuro — as Kurotsuchi had put it — nodded to the chair by the side of the Kazekage. She declined the offer as the man headed to the window and leaned back against it.
"Sit." He commanded.
This fucker is turning too rude. Was he still mad about the attempted banging? It was just one bang. If there's somebody to be mad, it should be the Kazekage but he ain't giving a shit about it.
The girl took a light breath and sat on the chair like a good lady would. She flattened her skirt against her lap before she continued her narrative. "In the past month, various towns in the Land of Earth contracted a flu epidemic. Medical experts have considered it as a flu epidemic however there are additional symptoms experienced by those who have been sick for more than three days. Thus, after observing hundreds of patients, the doctors have found out that there were two stages of the flu. The first stage happens from Day Zero to Day Three while the second stage from Day Four onwards."
She looked at the Kazekage and observed his skin. It was much redder than his usual pale complexion. Although he seemed to suffer a normal fever, it wasn't something to be alarmed about except the fact that Jinchuurikis don't get weak in the knees when they're afflicted by common colds.
"Nothing special happens during Day Zero to Day Three. A person would feel feverish, experience cough, colds and other usual flu conditions. If the patient gets healed within this time, then he is saved and immune from the Rotator Virus – the name Medical Iwa Ninjas gave it. However, it does not stop him from becoming a carrier."
"By any slim chance, do you think Gaara has it?" The Sand Jounin asked.
"Yes. But I'm not quite sure how it affects Jinchuurikis." Kurotsuchi said. "So, I'd say there's a fifty percent chance. You passed through the Land of Earth, am I right?"
After hearing what he wanted to hear, Kankuro coldly said. "Yes. Continue."
This time his jabs didn't bother her at all because he had seen like this during summits and division meetings. He had a sharp tongue, that one, she thought. Compared to his sister who was straightforward but tactful he is reserved yet uncouth. The Kazekage though, was unlike his two loud siblings. The youngest son from the Kazekage clan was silent and almost philosophical when he speaks.
"The Second Stage is where things get complicated. People start experiencing vivid hallucinations. Combined with worsening flu symptoms and delusions, patients at the second stage suffer from mild to severe mental damages. Although in Iwagakure, we already have four deaths."
"Four in one month?" The Kazekage clarified.
"In numbers it's actually a bit low to be considered as an epidemic. These four deaths we had are the very first patients of the Rotator Virus. It is expected that in the next five days, we'll be dealing with at least a hundred deaths."
"It wasn't until two weeks ago that we had received word that the Land of Iron has been experiencing the same flu epidemic. And that is what bothered us, Iwagakure; how can a virus thrive in extreme land temperaments at almost the same time?"
That time, she got the attention of the pair.
"Are you saying that this is not a simple virus, Kurotsuchi?" The Kazekage inquired.
"When we started thinking along those lines, Medical Stone Ninjas saw traces of a foreign in all patients. It was very faint but it still points that ninjutsu or genjutsu is being used."
"How about during the first three days? Did the victims had chakra?"
"None until yesterday." Kurotsuchi loosened up. She thinks that she'll do a great job in the presentation since the arrogant brute in the form of Kankuro and the indifferent Kazekage are hooked to her revelations. Pulling it off before the other villages won't be tougher than those from Suna. "We have requested for Haruno Sakura's consultation. She had arrived in Iwagakure yesterday and she found out that there are traces of chakra inside the virus itself."
"What made you think that Gaara is infected with this virus?" The puppet master interrupted. "He doesn't have any of the Stage Two symptoms."
"I'm not sure yet," Kurotsuchi sighed, "that's precisely the reason why I wanted to speak with you in the first place... since the Kazekage is in no condition to talk. Just let me hear what you know, Kankuro-san."
The brothers talked to each other before answering the Iwa kunoichi's request. She found it a bit amusing to see that she's one of the first few people to actually see the resemblance between the Kazekage and the Division-leader.
"Please talk to her." Gaara told the brunette. "I shall attempt to talk with Shukaku."
"Are you use you can do it now? When you tried earlier you passed out."
"It's because he passed out."Gaara told him softly. "Something's bugging him."
"You think it's the virus?"
"Yes." Gaara, looked at Kurotsuchi before returning his gaze towards his brother. "Please take care of the other matters on my behalf."
Only Kankuro can do silly things in unofficial meetings with a foreign delegate like placing the back of his hand against the Kazekage's forehead to check his temperature before saying "Got it". When he saw Kurotsuchi puffing her cheeks, he eyed the lava-user and slightly shrugged.
HE SHRUGGED?
What the fuck is wrong with him?
Whenever the Kazekage speaks politely to his brother, the kunoichi wants to snuggle him. She had seen him do it a two or three times in the three years she had known them. Usually he was like his siblings – strong-willed, candid and proud; but in a different way. It was like differentiating oranges and lemons even if they're both citrus fruits. Gaara was the orange, Temari and Kankuro are the lemons… except that the lemon version of Temari is juiced and mixed with honey. But this time, she had actually seen the mythical doting side of Kankuro that Temari had been ranting on whenever they meet.
Maybe he doesn't like anybody seeing that side of him because it's so unlike him.
"I'll be talking to Kurotsuchi." He walked off and gestured for Kurotsuchi to go ahead.
I know its a lame name for a "virus" but it has some plot significance. Please read on and review! xoxo