Hello.
I don't own Naruto. Sometimes I wish I did, Kiba and Shino would appear more often. I love those guys.
Hmm…well, I think this chapter is a bit longer.
I wanted to update sooner but I was much busier than I expected and I had a small accident.
Anyway, I was really surprised to have those two reviews in the same day I posted this story. I was really happy.
I'll be answering and thanking to reviewers, readers, etc at the bottom of the page.
Now, continuing with the story, I've added more to Sayuri's background with Itsuki's help. Just please, remember, her secret is troublesome not dark. Or at least I don't consider it dark. (Dark for me is something related with revenge, deep hatred…I dunno, Sayuri being some secret noblewoman or ridiculously strong because she's a jinchuriiki or something like that). The best fight in my opinion will be for Shino in the next chapter so I'm sorry if I disappoint you with the action scenes of chapter 2.
"TALK"- Talk
'THOUGHTS'- thoughts are in italic and this thingies called apostrophes ' '.
Betting on a Bug
By Meian Tsukino
Chapter 2:
Rescuing the princess
"Just for once, let's do something very predictable…"
-Meian Tsukino
.
"Thank goodness you're here," said a chestnut-haired man in his early forties, "I was worried that you'd delay but you're already here, just what you'd expect from Konoha."
"We appreciate your praises, Kimoto-sama," said Sayuri, "My name is Ito Sayuri and these are my subordinates. The young lady is Hyuuga Hinata, the young man to her left is Inuzuka Kiba and the other shinobi is Aburame Shino. The last member of my team is Akamaru."
The members of Team 8 nodded.
Behind Kimoto Daisuke, a couple of teenagers nodded back. They'd already been introduced to the Konoha squad. One of them was a chestnut-haired boy with green eyes, who resembled the daimyo. His name was Taiki and he was the future leader of Sugar country. Beside him, his sister, a pretty girl with wavy auburn hair and green eyes, watched Kiba appreciatively. Her name was Tsubame.
"Here's a photo of my Aiki," said the daimyo. He gave Sayuri a photo of a cute little girl that shared her siblings' eyes but whose hair was more like that of her brother's.
"She's cute," commented the leader of the Konoha squad. She didn't mention the fact that her squad had already seen the photo that the daimyo had sent to Konoha. There was no need to make the daimyo feel like an idiot. It would not do to offend such an important person when he was worried about his youngest daughter. "Could you give us some clothes of her? Or toys? Anything that's got her scent so that Kiba-kun can track her."
"Yes, of course," said the Daimyo, "Kentaro, bring one of Aiki's kimonos."
A dark-haired young man nodded and bowed respectfully. He left immediately.
"Aiki is only four and she is sickly, Sayuri-san," the daimyo's son commented, "We fear that her condition's worsened because she's stopped taking her medicines. We didn't ask for Konoha's help immediately because we were waiting for a ransom note but it never arrived."
"Please, bring back my daughter," said the daimyo, "She's so fragile, she used to be such a lively thing until a few months ago…" He clenched his fists. "I want those shinobi dead and cut into a thousand pieces!"
"You're completely convinced that your daughter was kidnapped by shinobi," Sayuri pointed out.
"They killed two of my guards in one single night and nobody heard or saw a thing," said the daimyo with a grim expression. "Oh, look. Kentaro's back." He addressed his servant. "Give the kimono to Sayuri-san."
The servant obeyed his master, although he seemed reluctant to approach the kunoichi.
"Is this new?" asked Sayuri. The servant nodded bashfully. "Kimoto-sama, could you let us inspect your daughter's room?"
"Of course, of course, anything to help you find Aiki," said the daimyo, "Kentaro will show you the way. Feel free to ask him anything."
"Thank you," said Sayuri. She bowed and her team mimicked her.
Kentaro began leading them to the little girl's room, he seemed nervous. They walked through many corridors and suddenly, they met a robust, brown-haired man in his late thirties. Said man glanced them distrustfully.
"Who are they?" he demanded to Kentaro. The young man winced but replied nonetheless. "T-They're …th-they're the Konoha shinobi that Kimoto-sama hired." The older man widened his eyes almost imperceptibly.
"Who are you, by the way?" asked Sayuri.
"I'm Ryota Hachiro," replied the man. His brown eyes regarded her disdainfully but the kunoichi merely responded with apathy. Finally, he turned to glare Kentaro. The servant blanched under his gaze.
"Kentaro-san, we don't like to waste time," the mantis summoner said. Inwardly, she rolled her eyes at the advisor. 'I suppose dealing with a Hyuuga's glare of doom makes you immune to any derogatory gesture.'
The servant nodded with relief and he began walking in a faster pace. He was almost jogging. They went past many corridors again. When he reached a corner, he bumped into someone. It was the daimyo's eldest daughter, Tsubame.
"My apologies, Tsubame-hime," Kentaro said, "Are you fine?"
"Of course," the girl replied dismissively. She glanced Kiba happily. "So, where were you? I left a bit after you and I arrived sooner."
"We met a man called Ryota Hachiro in our way here, he was curious about us," the Inuzuka replied.
"Ryota-san? The advisor?" repeated Tsubame, "But he lives in the other side of the compound."
"I-I got lost," explained Kentaro and he began sweating before the green-eyed girl's disbelieving face, "I-I mean, I get lost when I'm scared because Ryota-sama is scary and cruel and…I mean…shinobi scare me…" He suddenly paled and turned to glance the Konoha nin behind them. "Not that I don't like them but they're scary…"
"Oh, please," mocked Tsubame, "They aren't scary." She glanced Kiba appreciatively. "Especially this one." The dog nin felt himself blush slightly at the praise. The princess smiled at him flirtingly. "Are you single?"
"Tsubame-hime!" the servant glanced her scandalized.
"I am," replied Kiba, smiling. The princess gave him a predatory smile and began playing with a golden bracelet by removing it and putting it back.
"Aren't you worried in the slightest for your sister?" asked Sayuri in a scolding way, "She's sick."
Tsubame frowned in annoyance and stopped playing with her bracelet. "Of course I am."
"Then, let us do our work," said Sayuri. The kunoichi pulled Kentaro by his sleeve and in response, the servant cringed. "Kentaro-san, Aiki-sama's room, remember?" She spared the princess a glance. "I'll make sure Kiba-kun asks for you later."
"I don't know who put her in charge," muttered the princess but it was obvious that she'd wanted the kunoichi to hear her, "And what a horrible hair..."
Sayuri's hands twitched. 'I really, really hope to return to Konoha before Neji...Akira-sensei is so dead...'
"F-Follow me, please!" the servant immediately slid the closest door, revealing a room. "This is it." It wasn't the most usual room for a girl of Aiki's age, the Konoha nin noted, because while it had the expected furniture it was also filled with medicines instead of toys and it reeked of medicinal herbs.
"If you don't mind, we'd like to inspect the room by ourselves," said Sayuri. "We're grateful for your assistance."
Kentaro nodded. "P-Please, bring Aiki-sama back…she's been missing for almost a week." And with that, he left.
.
.
Sayuri sighed and extended her right arm. Itsuki came out of her right sleeve and for once, he was the size of a normal mantis.
"Finally, I was getting tired of being hidden, especially after that tour he gave us," said Itsuki. He glanced the room with interest. "Not exactly what a little girl would want for a room…"
"Hinata-sama, you can read the body's language," commented Sayuri, "What can you tell us about Kentaro-san?"
Hinata was taken back by the question but she promptly responded. "He was scared of us but he was even more scared of Ryota-san. His eyes moved to his upper left as soon as he saw him…" She smiled sadly, as she was about to repeat something that Neji had told her in their first Chuunin exam. "That action is a sign that he is remembering his past experiences."
"I see," said Sayuri, a thoughtful expression on her face, "Was he so scared of us that he got lost?"
"I…I'm not sure about that," replied Hinata, "He was scared but he seemed to know what he was doing."
"Hinata-sama," said Sayuri, "I want you to use the Byakugan to look for anything that looks out of place as far as you can. I want you to start with this room, then the house. But before you start searching for something unusual in the room…could you look for Aiki-sama in the compound?"
"What kind of question is that?" interrupted Kiba, "What kind of shinobi would keep her in her own house?"
"I'm not completely sure that the princess was kidnapped by shinobi," said Sayuri, shrugging. "The daimyo suspects that the kidnappers are shinobi because of the silent way they killed the guards and got the child, but a servant or more could've done that. The guards wouldn't have suspected them, they could have even been friends…and the girl…well, they could've fooled her easily. I'm sure that nobody's even bothered to look for her in the compound…If one or more servants have her, they could've easily hidden her in a storage room…" She glanced Kiba. "My sensei once told me that if I wanted to hide something, I should do it in the most obvious place possible so that it'd be overlooked…" She rolled her eyes in annoyance at the memory. "That man..he obviously told us that after he made us look for something for a whole day…"
"If you were right, it would mean that there are many servants involved," said Shino and Sayuri nodded, "And from that servant's words, the advisor and probably many other people already knew that the daimyo had requested a mission from Konoha so it'd be unlikely that they would keep the princess here."
"Maybe they couldn't transport her elsewhere because the daimyo increased the vigilance," replied Sayuri.
"If a group of servants had kidnapped the princess, I'm sure they would've tried to bribe at least a couple of guards," said Shino.
Sayuri frowned and she was about to say something when Itsuki coughed pointedly. Sayuri nodded. "Hinata-sama…"
"Hai," said the Hyuuga, "Byakugan!" Just after she activated her bloodline limit, Hinata adopted a surprised look. However, she quickly replaced it by a focused one and then, she began searching each room of the complex and at last, some of the surroundings, but she didn't find the girl. "She's not here. I'll look for anything unusual."
"Were you suspecting Kentaro?" asked Kiba.
"Not exactly," Sayuri replied after a long pause. "Kiba-kun, I think you should inspect the futon first. It looks like Aiki-sama spent most of her time there."
"Akamaru, time to work!" said Kiba and Akamaru barked.
"By the way, Kiba-kun," Sayuri started, "Don't take that pretty princess seriously, I think she's one of those selfish, spoiled nobles that act on whims." She glared at the ceiling and murmured, "I hate spoiled princesses."
Kiba turned to see her curiously but said nothing.
"Shino-san," called Sayuri, "I recall Itsuki telling me that your kikaichu drain chakra so..." she raised her left fist and then opened it, a kikaichu was revealed, "…so next time warn me before you plant one on me…there are many things beneath my cloak and it almost died after draining a bit of my chakra." A very short string came out from her right index finger and petted the kikaichu in the head. "It took me a while because I'm not familiarized with its anatomy but I think I healed it."
"Don't worry, he's got more kikaichu than my family could eat," said Itsuki, he glanced the kikaichu, "Can I have it?"
"Of course not," said Sayuri. She eyed the kikaichu with clinical curiosity. "I've never seen something like this before. How should I call it? It doesn't seem half as annoying as Itsuki."
"The kikaichu aren't pets," said Shino. The kikaichu that was on Sayuri's hand flew towards him and disappeared below the skin of his right cheek.
"Don't be so mean to my Sayuri-chan," said Itsuki. He went to poke Shino and then, he sat on the Aburame's shoulder. "You've got lots of kikaichu to worry about one, Shino-chan. You must be pretty popular with the ladies."
Shino raised an eyebrow.
"Shino-kun…" muttered Hinata, worry evident in her voice. Even Kiba stopped trying to pick the kidnapped princess's scent.
"I'm talking about the girls of your clan," Itsuki clarified, "I'm sure you must have a fan club back in Konoha." The mantis poked him in the neck. "How many girls are after you?"
"I'd like to talk with you after this mission ends," Shino requested. "Have you worked with an Aburame before?"
"Perhaps…" replied Itsuki and curiously, the ceiling suddenly became very interesting, "Oh…looks like my memory is failing and-"
"Itsuki, start working," interrupted Sayuri, then added, "And leave Shino-san alone or I'll make you regret it."
The mantis nodded and went to inspect a desk that was full of small bottles. Sayuri followed him and opened a few bottles, she smelled them as well. A frown appeared on her face. "Who prescribed her this?"
"We've picked up Aiki's scent," announced Kiba.
"Good," said Sayuri, "Hinata-sama, stop using your Byakugan." The Hyuuga complied. "Kiba-kun, lead the way." Below his hood, Shino raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
The squad left the complex and head to the woods, with Kiba leading the way. After several minutes, both Kiba and Akamaru stopped. The canine growled slightly and turned to Kiba, who quickly nodded.
"Looks like the daimyo was right after all, his daughter was kidnapped by shinobi," he said, "Oh, and we're gonna have company soon."
"How many?" asked Sayuri.
"Four," replied Kiba. He suddenly jumped from his place to dodge a shuriken. Shino's green sleeves were suddenly covered with kikaichu and Hinata activated her bloodline limit.
"There are three men and one woman. One of them is holding Aiki-san, it seems that he won't attack, he looks very scared," reported Hinata. She was barely done talking when she had to dodge a shuriken.
"How is Aiki-sama doing? I could almost assure you that she must be awake or at least, she doesn't look so sickly," commented Sayuri.
"You're right," replied Hinata, "She's tied up and her mouth's covered but she's fine." She frowned. "They're running away."
"Let's go after them, then," said Sayuri, "Be careful."
Soon, they found the quartet. It seemed that one of them was very slow so the others were forced to stop. The first member was a bald man with gray eyes and a mocking smirk. On a branch stood a man and a woman who shared facial features and whose hair and eyes were dark blue. Unlike the blue-haired man, the woman held a blue staff with blue crystals.
The last member was on the ground, a little girl on his back. His long, green hair was tied into a messy ponytail and his gray eyes showed nothing but concern and anxiety.
None of them wore a hitai-ate.
"Konoha nin, huh?" the bald guy said, "And a doggy, on top of that." Akamaru growled. "Easy there, doggy."
"We've come for Kimoto Aiki," Sayuri unnecessarily said. Itsuki, who stood on his summoner's shoulder, spoke. "Release her or we'll have to kill you."
"What do you think about them, Jiro, Junko?" asked the bald man, his head turned slightly to the dark-haired siblings.
"Looks like we'll have to fight against some kids, Tetsuo," the man called Jiro replied. He eyed the green-haired man with repulsion. "Kouta, stop trembling and act like a man for once."
"Hand the girl and we might not hurt you," said Itsuki.
"See, Kouta? You should be more like that bug," said Jiro, "I want to fight the kid with black clothes."
"Bring it on," replied Kiba. Akamaru barked.
"That's fine with me, I want the guy with the green coat," said Tetsuo.
"Then, my little sister is stuck with those two," said Jiro. The woman called Junko glared at him and she leapt to another branch, spinning her staff.
Sayuri glanced Hinata from the corner of her eyes. She didn't seem as shy and weak as Neji had described her, but when she had questioned her before meeting the daimyo, the heiress had admitted that she wasn't able to perform the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. However, Inuzuka Kiba had mentioned that she had created her own technique, the Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Besides, she'd accurately read the servant's body language and she seemed adept at using her bloodline limit. Neji hadn't probably given her enough credit or the heiress had greatly improved after becoming a kunoichi.
Junko launched at Hinata with her staff, which began glowing with light blue electricity. The Hyuuga dodged her easily but in doing so, began retreating to her right.
"Itsuki, assist Hinata-sama," murmured Sayuri. The mantis nodded and flew towards Hinata. With a puff of smoke, he grew until he was half the size of the heiress.
"Let's fight, kid," said Jiro. He threw several kunai to Kiba and then, he began retreating into the forest.
"Come back!" called the dog nin. Kiba and Akamaru went after their challenger.
"So you're going to fight the bald guy after all, Shino-san," commented Sayuri, "That leaves me with that guy over there." Kouta gulped. "Don't worry, I have no intentions of laying a single finger on you."
"Good for you, Kouta!" said Tetsuo, "Looks like that girl is a weakling."
Kouta sighed in relief. Suddenly, he jumped and dropped Aiki to the ground, making the little girl wince. He brought his hand to his left ankle and removed a senbon."W-What?"
"I told you, I have no intentions of laying a single finger on you," said Sayuri, she shrugged, "Midoriko-san, on the other hand…" A small mantis flew towards her and went to rest on her shoulder. "Good job. Now, please go check on Kiba-kun." The medic nin gave Midoriko a senbon. "Here's another one. You know what to do."
"Hai!" replied the small mantis and she flew in the direction where Kiba disappeared.
"W-What did you do to me?" demanded Kouta, "I can't move my leg!"
"Oh, that?" said Sayuri, "Midoriko-san poisoned you." She shrugged. "I wanted her to poison your other accomplices too, but she's young and lacks ability and experience in stealth."
"A-Am I going to die?" demanded Kouta.
Sayuri nodded. "I happen to have the antidote somewhere in my sleeves," she replied, "I'll give it to you if you answer all my questions truthfully. By the way, that poison is designed to paralyze the body and once you can't move a single limb…you die."
"If you don't give me the antidote, I'll kill the girl!" threatened Kouta.
"My, so you become a man when your life is endangered?" asked Sayuri, "Disgusting."
Kouta took out a kunai.
Sayuri rolled her eyes in exasperation. 'He's very naïve, he really thinks he's going to die.'
"Put that away, you idiot!" demanded Tetsuo. He frowned. "I'm sorry, brat. Looks like I'll have to fight her to get the antidote." He jumped to the ground and then, he performed a few seals. "Doton: Stone Spikes!"
Just like the name suggested, several spikes made of stone were shot from the ground in the Konoha kunoichi's direction. As expected of a medic nin, she evaded the attack easily.
"Looks like Kiba-kun and Hinata-sama got the interesting ones," said the kunoichi.
"Why, you-"
"Spindle Formation."
A cloud of kikaichu flew towards the doton user in a spiraling motion. However, before they could reach them, Tetsuo performed a few hand seals and a dome formed around him, protecting him against the attack.
"Like I want to get bug bites!" said Tetsuo, "They're probably poisonous."
"Well, it looks like you're in control, Shino-san," commented Sayuri. She turned her head to Kouta's direction, "I'll give you the antidote if you cooperate. Start talking."
"I don't know much! I'm almost new in this! Please, don't let me die! I'll tell you everything I know!"
Before the medic nin could begin her interrogation, she was forced to dodge another set of stone spikes.
"Shino-san…"
"I know," said the Aburame. His glasses flashed. "Find him." From his sleeves, kikaichu emerged in the form of black clouds and scattered. From the corner of his eyes, he watched as Sayuri examined Aiki, glowing strings surrounding them.
Kouta was on the ground and Shino could tell that he was trying to move his hands to no avail. Was he as weak and pathetic as he seemed? It didn't make sense for the other kidnappers to have someone like that in their team. He frowned.
His current leader was being careless and overconfident. She should be more cautious, he thought. Now he saw why the Hokage didn't trust Ito Sayuri's judgment. First, she had discarded Hinata's Byakugan, then, she'd used an inexperienced summon in stealth and lastly, she was endangering Kimoto Aiki.
"Sayuri-san," he called, "Aiki-sama is too close to that man."
"In case you haven't noticed, he's paralyzed," replied the mantis summoner, "I designed that poison, I know how it works. Besides, I'm fast enough to dodge any attack while carrying the little princess." She gave him a defiant glance. "I know where my strengths and weaknesses lie." Her eyes suddenly narrowed when her strings glowed even more and she jumped away with Aiki in her arms.
The little princess screeched.
In their previous place, a set of stone spikes had emerged from the ground.
"He's underground," Sayuri told Shino from the branch of a tree, "Your bugs could be easily buried if they go after him." She glared the dome that Tetsuo had formed. "Come here. I've got a plan."
"Stop moving!" demanded Junko after Hinata dodged another bolt of lightning.
"Very good, Hinata-chan!" Itsuki cheered.
"You shut up!" cried a very frustrated Junko and she sent him a bolt of lightning.
"Slowpoke!" replied Itsuki after he easily dodged her.
Hinata tried to attack her but her opponent kept her at bay with her staff. The Hyuuga threw a set of kunai but Junko deflected them by spinning her staff and when Hinata threw a kunai with an exploding tag, Junko deflected it by throwing another kunai. However, Hinata immediately threw another set of kunai and one of them cut Junko's cheek.
"That's it! I'm tired of playing with kids! Tetsuo and Jiro will hear me after I'm done with you!" claimed Junko. She threw a few exploding tags at her enemies but Itsuki threw them back with a gust of wind. The kidnapper glared at him and then, she began spinning her staff faster and faster. The crystals on the staff glowed a bright blue, then, a bright purple.
"Raiton: Violent Lightning!"
The staff released two big arcs of electricity towards the indigo-haired girl.
"Fuuton: Wind Scythes!"
"Konoha nin? How many?"
"Two boys, two girls and one big dog. They're a bunch of brats."
"You didn't hire us to deal with Konoha shinobi, this will cost you more."
"I know. I'll have your money ready when you get rid of them."
"Excellent. I'll leave, then. By the way, there are two kids eavesdropping."
"I can take care of them."
"Good."
Ryota Hachiro opened the door abruptly and found Kentaro's panicked face.
"So it was you."
"R-Ryota-sama, I can explain-"
"Yes, I can almost hear myself telling Kimoto-sama how I saw when a masked shinobi appeared and killed a young, brave lad...a brave lad whose name was Kentaro."
Ryota took out a dagger from his clothes.
"But, who's the other kid? Tell me and I'll spare your life," he offered.
Kentaro gulped. "K-Kill me!"
"Who's the other kid?" demanded the advisor.
"I-I'm not telling you," mumbled the servant.
"Is it your little sister?" asked Hachiro. Kentaro shook his head and stepped back.
Hachiro glared the floor. A golden bracelet was there.
"Tsubame-hime."
Kentaro widened his eyes and shook his head frantically.
"I'll go after her once I'm done with you."
The advisor raised the dagger and struck.
Blood was spilled.
"Ouch! That's gotta hurt, Hinata-chan. I almost feel bad for her. The Gentle Fist of the Hyuuga clan is brutal."
"Y-Yes…hmm…that wind jutsu you used was very impressive."
"Of course! That was one of the first techniques I learned!"
"Can Sayuri-san use it, too?"
"Hmm…no…I suppose not because she'd need weapons but she can use her strings to channel wind-natured chakra."
"I see."
"By the way, take the staff with you. Sayuri-chan will want to see it."
"That was too easy, right, Akamaru?" Kiba said. Akamaru barked in agreement.
"You're very fast, I hope I can be as fast as you one day," Midoriko praised, "Your teamwork is amazing."
Kiba rubbed the back of his head. Akamaru barked happily.
"Thanks, you're nice."
Midoriko approached Jiro and struck him in his arm with the senbon that her summoner had given her.
"A senbon? Is it poisoned?" asked Kiba.
"Sayuri-san uses them with a paralyzing substance but she always tells people that they're going to die to get information," replied Midoriko, "I think she got that idea from Auntie Midori."
"Another mantis?" asked Kiba, though he already knew the answer.
"Yes, she is very strong and her chakra control is amazing," said Midoriko, "But she is also very strict."
Shino made his way towards Sayuri and waited for her orders, even though he felt annoyed with himself for not being faster. Glowing strings came out from Sayuri's fingers and wrapped around Kouta. Then, Sayuri pulled her strings and took the kidnapper to the branch where she stood.
"Interrogate him," she said, "Ask him who hired them. I'll take care of the Earth user." Sayuri took out a senbon and handed it to Shino. "This will slow down the paralysis. Take care of the princess."
Before Shino could say something, Sayuri was already on the ground. Strings came out from her fingers again and they glowed even more than before. She jumped, just as a set of stone spikes emerged where she'd been.
"Interrogate him," she reminded him.
'A plan? That's more like a series of orders.'
Shino frowned but began making questions. The answers he got made him frown even more. He turned his glance to Sayuri, who was still dodging. The strings in her fingers formed a medium-sized cylinder on the ground and glowed intensely before creating a whirlwind.
Shino watched as the earth below the whirlwind cracked and from it, emerged Tetsuo. The Earth user had been caught in the whirlwind, in a way that reminded Shino of Temari's match against Tenten. Finally, Sayuri sent him crashing towards a tree and just before he could slide to the ground, several senbon flew toward him and hit him in different parts of his body.
Just as the medic nin was finished, Kiba emerged from the forest, Akamaru trailing behind him with their opponent on his back. Midoriko was proudly sat on Jiro's head.
"Sayuri-chan! Sayuri-chan!" called a very cheerful voice.
Itsuki and Hinata made their appearance. Hinata had the staff that belonged to Junko and she didn't appear to be injured. Apparently, they had worked well together.
Itsuki changed his size and went to sit on Sayuri's shoulder. "Sayuri-chan, Hinata-chan is really strong!" said the mantis, "She almost didn't need my help!"
Hinata blushed prettily. "T-Thank you. You're very strong, too."
"Where's the kunoichi?" asked Sayuri.
"Don't worry about her," said Itsuki dismissively, "Hinata-chan took care of her."
"There's an inconvenience," Shino announced. The Konoha nin turned towards him. "Ryota Hachiro is the person who hired the kidnappers and there's another kunoichi. She's supposed to get the payment from him today and it's probable that she's already arrived to the compound."
"What else?" asked Sayuri.
"She's a bug-user," replied Shino, "She uses wasps."
"And I suppose you'll want to fight her since I beat your opponent," said Sayuri. Shino nodded. "Sounds fair…but Itsuki will assist you."
"Shino-chan, we're going to be partners!" exclaimed the mantis happily and he even jumped. Shino frowned. "Considering that our opponents weren't too strong, I request that you let me fight her without his help."
"Itsuki will intervene only if it's necessary and he will behave," replied Sayuri, "Besides, in case you haven't noticed, I sent one of my summons to accompany your teammates." She narrowed her eyes at him. "I won't make any exceptions with my second-in-command. Is that clear, Shino-san?"
Itsuki cringed and flew towards Shino. "Just say yes, Shino-chan. I promise I'll be a good, nice mantis if you say yes." Shino nodded reluctantly. After all, Sayuri was being cautious.
"I'll take that as a yes," said Sayuri, annoyed, "Midoriko-san, you can leave."
"Good luck, uncle," said the mantis.
"Bye, Mido-chan," replied Itsuki and Midoriko disappeared in a puff of smoke. He glanced Sayuri. 'When she uses that tone, she reminds me so much of Midori.'
"Fight your opponent as far from the compound as you can," said Sayuri. "By the way, I left one of my summons in the compound so you don't have to worry too much about the clients."
"When did you do that?" asked Kiba.
"It doesn't matter," replied Sayuri, "I left someone who takes her work seriously. Her name is Midori."
"Oi! I take my work seriously, too!" Itsuki whined, "If you keep spending too much time with Midori, you'll end up being as cold and mean as her!"
Sayuri rolled her eyes. "You can go. We'll catch up with you soon."
"You're fine, aren't you?"
"Y-Yes but Hachiro-sama-"
"This man just tried to kill you in order to hide his crimes and you have the idiocy to call him Hachiro-sama?"
"S-Sorry."
"Stop apologizing. You need to grow a backbone, child."
In front of Kentaro stood a mantis that was as tall as him. It had suddenly emerged from his sleeve and counterattacked Ryota Hachiro. In the process, the advisor was wounded and his sleeves were covered with blood. After dealing with the traitorous man, the mantis had grown until it was the same size as Kentaro.
"T-Thanks a lot, you saved my life."
"You must thank me by living well, child."
"Y-Yes…by the way, who are you?"
"Ito Sayuri's best summon, Midori."
"She knows, you know," commented Itsuki. When Shino didn't respond, he continued. "She knows that Tsunade sent you to supervise her. I think that's why she's been more patient with me than usual, she hasn't really tried to stop me from annoying you."
"We were sure that you had left," said Shino.
"We left," said Itsuki, "But it's not that hard to guess why Tsunade named you second-in-command."
"Elaborate," Shino requested.
"Sayuri-chan hadn't set a foot on Konoha for years, she's sent her reports about her missions with my relatives," Itsuki told him, "It's not her fault, Tsunade has kept us away. We aren't exactly sure why, but every time we ended a mission, we already had another one waiting for us. She's kept us busy and most of the missions haven't been easy ones."
The mantis fell silent for a moment before he continued. "It's frustrating. Sayuri-chan thinks that Tsunade distrusts her because she has practically no bonds in Konoha but like I told you, it's not her fault. How is she supposed to make friends if she's been away for years?"
"She knows Neji," Shino pointed out.
"Oh, the Hyuuga brat?" said Itsuki, "The last time we saw him and that was when I met him, he was still a genin." The mantis grimaced. "I don't like him. His mentality annoys me. Besides, from what I've heard, he was only Sayuri-chan's sparring partner and that was many years ago."
"You said that she practically has no bonds," commented Shino.
"One of her teammates died in an ambush when they came back from a mission and the other hates her for not being able to save him," said Itsuki, "That's what Sayuri-chan told me when I asked her and the strange thing is that she wasn't sad about that. I think she's already accepted that."
Shino nodded.
"Her sensei suggested to break the team and the Sandaime agreed because of many things that I'm not telling you. I've never met him, but Neji insinuated that he's too cheerful and annoying because he said that Sayuri-chan's used to deal with annoying people," said Itsuki.
"Are you sure that he wasn't talking about you?" asked Shino, "Perhaps you're the reason why Tsunade-sama has kept her away."
"Very funny," replied Itsuki and he poked Shino. A single kikaichu came out from his cheek and buzzed angrily. "He made fun of me, Kikaichu-chan!" The kikaichu buzzed even more. "I mean, Kikaichu-san…I won't use the -chan on you again! You guys are very sensitive!" The kikaichu finally went back into Shino's body.
"What about her family?" asked Shino, "Is she an orphan?"
"Yes," Itsuki replied, "Her mother died in a mission shortly after she entered finished her first year at the Academy and her father died in an ambush or something like that…that's' what Sayuri-chan told us. She rarely mentions them."
"Why are you telling me this?" asked Shino.
"So that you don't get too annoyed at her, she's not a bad person," said Itsuki, "Do not forget that and she might like you. It doesn't hurt to have another girl after you. Especially one that doesn't like you because of the amount of kikai that reside in your body, I know how things work in your clan." The mantis poked him teasingly and he even snuggled against Shino's neck. "You're good enough for my Sayuri-chan, I can put in a word for you. I've always wanted a bug-user for her and you're more than perfect."
A small cloud of kikaichu held him and removed him from Shino's neck. They buzzed angrily. "Fine, I just wanted to be nice. No need to be mean."
"I requested to have this conversation after the mission ended," said Shino, "Why are you so familiarized with my clan?"
"I have relatives that have had the kikaichu as allies or opponents," replied Itsuki, "We avoid having them as opponents. And, if you want my opinion, they can be fairly communicative."
Shino opted to remain silent at this comment.
"By the way, I told Sayuri that your kikaichu are able to get rid of poison, even though I'm not sure about that," said Itsuki.
"Your assumptions are correct," said Shino.
"Good to know," said Itsuki, "Anyway, prepare for combat because there are wasps coming this way. I'll defend myself and I'll only help you if I think you're in trouble."
Shino nodded.
And then, his opponent appeared surrounded by a cloud of wasps.
.
January 8th, 2012. The story has been updated and Chapter 21 has been added. Changes might occur, i.e. I might move parts of Chapter 5 to Chapter 4. It's not a certainty. BTW, I'll be deleting the thanks for reviews, favorites, alerts, PM's, etc and leave the names to save space. I think they've been here enough time to be read.
Thanks.
As you can see, next chapter will deal with Shino's battle.
Sayuri's not a person who plans things ahead but she isn't too careless and I suppose that I've kinda pointed that out in these two chapters. Also, she hasn't been in a team for years but she's not antisocial (watch out for Ino and Sakura in later chapters). I guess she improvises.
I hope I'm not rushing things with the mission but I want them back in Konoha. They haven't had the best interaction because their relationship must be slow but the mission, yes…I think I might end it in next chapter. That's also why I wanted to be straightforward with this and not make a big mystery, I'll leave that for the rest of the story.
So, well, this is the second chapter. I hope you've liked it. I really want more reviews, they motivate me to write. Though I admit that I should write longer action scenes...oh, well...
Now, let's see.
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