Thank you so much for reading and reviewing Scroll! Here's another chapter. Do tell me what you think about it. Naruto is not mine.
Sasuke sighed as he gazed at the snow falling harshly on the black and white forest.
It was evening and he had to stop because of a strong snow storm.
…One-day-journey? Hn.
Sasuke pulled his cloak tighter around him.
He made a thick cave-like shelter out of the snow and made a fire inside it to warm him. With the strong snow storm plaguing the woods, the make-shift shelter was easily concealed.
Sasuke could barely see anything through the frosty fog. But he kept himself prepared for anyone who might try to attack him. He even activated his sharingan to be sure no one was trying to entrap him.
The coast was clear.
…Or so he thought. On a branch of one of the hibernating ebony trees in the woods stood a shadow of a man, eyeing him cautiously.
He smirked.
"This will be interesting," the man thought to himself.
It took another day for Sasuke to reach the village.
It was past noon when he reached a tall wooden gate that marked the main entrance to the village.
"You are..?" A burly, tall, dark man standing guard near the gate asked – his hand ready to wield his katana in one wrong move.
"I was called for by Dr. Kayuki Kaitaro," Sasuke answered, his cloak still covering his head like a hood. He kept his head bowed a little to keep his head protector from being seen.
The man snorted. "There's no Dr. Kaitaro in this village," he said smirking at Sasuke.
Sasuke pulled out the scroll that Tsunade gave him before he left Konoha.
It was a hand-written letter from a Dr. Kayuki Kaitaro of the Frost Peak Village.
The man took the scroll and read it. His face contorted into a frown before he threw a glare at Sasuke. "New assistant, huh?" the man said staring at Sasuke from head to toe. "You don't look like someone who'd assist a doctor."
"Hn," Sasuke replied looking bored at the man.
A pale thin man in thick robes walked out of the open gates and approached the man on guard and whispered something in his ear.
Sasuke watched them, knowing what the news given to the guard was.
By the frown on the guard's face and the intense glare Sasuke was receiving, the thin man had just informed the guard about a request from the doctor who requested for Sasuke's presence.
The guard nodded and told the messenger to run along. "Do you know what this Dr. Kayuki Kaitaro looks like?" he grumpily asked Sasuke.
"This is the first time I will see him," Sasuke replied.
The guard grunted. "Follow me," he said motioning for another guard to take his place. "Apparently someone is looking for something in the likes of you."
Sasuke ignored the comment and followed the guard into the village.
It was your average snowy village. Houses were made more from wood than from stone. High walls made of cemented rocks surrounded the place from the harm of the gloomy woods.
Everyone in the village seemed silent and wary.
Sasuke and the guard went through the market place. Despite the number of people exchanging goods, the place was plagued with whispers.
People also either watched Sasuke cautiously or glared at him viciously as he walked down the street.
"We don't like strangers here," the guard said, his eyes focused on the path they were taking.
Sasuke stayed silent.
The village itself was located far from the villages on the island's shore. How people there viewed strangers was expected.
They passed through several houses before they reached a house that had wide wooden doors. The doors slid open, allowing an old woman and a young woman to walk out from the house.
The young woman held a bag that Sasuke supposed was medicine.
The two stared at Sasuke. The old woman seemed frightened at his presence while the young woman looked more like she was flirting.
"Is the doctor in?" the guard asked the two.
"Yes, I am in," a man said as he walked out after the women. He was a middle-aged man. His eyes smiled with his mouth. "A pleasant day to you, Daiki."
The guard bowed at the man. "A good day to you too, doctor," he said. "I have a man here looking for Dr. Kayuki Kaitaro."
"Ah! You must be the assistant my friend sent me," the doctor said smiling excitedly at Sasuke. "Come in! Come in! Thank you so much for taking him here, Daiki."
The guard, Daiki, stared warily at the doctor.
The doctor chuckled. "You can stay here if you wish," he told Daiki, shrugging his shoulders.
Daiki shook his head. "I better get back to my post," he said before turning away and glaring at Sasuke.
Sasuke stared apathetically back at him.
"If you even dare to touch a hair of the doctor," Daiki whispered. "I will chop you to pieces."
Sasuke ignored him and walked to the doctor.
The doctor sighed and led Sasuke inside.
"I'm very sorry for how Daiki treated you," Kaitaro said pouring Sasuke a cup of tea.
Sasuke sat in front of him in the receiving area of the house.
Kaitaro's house turned to be more like a mansion that was divided into two parts – the clinic that housed the main entrance, and the main house.
Kaitaro led him into the main house.
"He's a good child," he said. "He just had this trauma on strangers." Kaitaro handed the cup of tea to Sasuke.
"Same as the villagers," Sasuke said, taking a sip of the tea.
Kaitaro sighed. "Yes," he said looking sadly away. "A lot of things happened these past few years."
Sasuke put his tea cup down in front of him. "I was told to deliver a scroll to Konoha."
Kaitaro chuckled. "Yes, you were," he said. "I'm afraid however that the scroll is yet to be finished."
Sasuke raised a brow at the doctor.
"I hope you weren't given a deadline for this mission?" Kaitaro said.
"A month," Sasuke answered.
Kaitaro nodded. "That is sadly good enough," he said looking away and standing up from his seat. "My daughter will take you to her tomorrow morning. It's a little late for you to go on another journey up the mountain."
"You're not the one writing the scroll?" Sasuke asked, standing up to follow the doctor.
Kaitaro chuckled. "Nope," he said. "Don't blame your Hokage though. I asked her not to tell anyone, not even the one she will send to us, who the one writing the scroll is. That last one who knew about that fact almost died on his way back to your village."
Sasuke stared at the doctor. "Jirotaiku..?" The name slipped off his tongue with ease.
The doctor looked at Sasuke sadly. "Yes, Jirotaiku," he said. "Come. I'll take you to your room for tonight."