I'm sorry. I am so very sorry. I planned to have this finished a long time ago. I know, I suck. Anyway, as an apology, I made this chapter pretty long and you meet a 'shiny' new face. Uh… yeah, anyway… enjoy, and please review.
NOTE: There is a little bad language in this chapter and probably will continue through others. There is also violence (duh… it's a Naruto fanfic) which could be uncomfortable for the soft-at-heart people to read. I'm going to say PG-13. At least. Enjoy.
Chapter 4 - Team Sabaku
"So, today we should arrive at a small town that has to be a favourite of mine. It's very traditional. I think we should get there by noon. Okay?" Kyori sensei smiles at us.
"Okay, whatev-" I'm cut off by Kins' shouts.
"You said that yesterday! Are you sure?"
I roll my eyes as Kyori sensei instantly fires up.
"And whose fault is it that we didn't get there yesterday? Who nearly passed out from dehydration, when I told you to drink plenty of water?" I smirk as I can tell where this is going.
"So maybe I did get dehydrated, but I wasn't the only one not drinking water! Yuki wasn't either!" Kin shouts at our sensei.
"Yuki doesn't need to drink! She can absorb the water from the air and from the ground! That's why she has total control over water!" I start packing out stuff. The argument will last a while and I want to get to this town as fast as possible.
Just as the argument escalates, I decided to interject. "Okay you guys! That's enough!" I shout, stepping in between them with each my palms outstretched towards them. "You two are acting like children, not shinobi. Pull yourselves together, pick up your stuff and then let's leave for the town!" They stare at me. It's so annoying that they get so argumentative.
"Yuki's right. Come on, let's go." Sensei sighs as she picks up her bags. Kin follows suit and we begin walking.
We walk for an hour in silence, when Kin decides to break it. "You seem very… rushed to get to this town. Why is that Yuki-Chan?" I look at her, smiling.
"It's because we've been wandering around in the desert for the past three weeks. I haven't seen any buildings in so long. The idea of a bath and proper bed is just so tempting!" I have sand in my hair, rips in my Yukata and small bruises where the weights keep banging against me feet. Yeah, I have shoes, but I like the feeling of sand between my toes. Also, it hurts to get sand stuck in your shoes when you know you don't want to stop walking it's also annoying.
The silence resumes as we walk for three more hours, with Kyori sensei occasionally telling Kin to drink more. Finally a small dot appears on the horizon that wasn't there before. Noticing this I speed up a bit, like a man near death walks towards an oasis. I walk faster and faster, slowly breaking into a jog.
"Yuki, stop!" I freeze at the sound of senseis' voice, "There is no need to exhaust yourself before we even get there." I bow my head slightly and wait for my team to catch up, and then walk directly behind Kyori sensei, staring at her feet but not paying attention, just remembering when my life was at its best.
An hour later, I find myself walking into kyori-senseis' back when she stops suddenly, and I fall to the floor. I peer around her legs and see that we have arrived at the edge of a village.
"We're thirty minutes earlier than I expected. That's probably thanks to you, Yuki. If you hadn't been in such a hurry to get here, no doubt Kin and I would still be arguing in camp." She smiles at me and pulls me to my feet. I nod and smile back. This place looks pretty small compared to Sunakagure, but it's good to see some buildings for a change.
"Come on girls, there is a place that I know of that is an awesome place to stay." Sensei says, as she leads the way towards the commercial area of the town. I notice how I seem to be getting stared at a lot, and some are pretty weird looks, but just like at home, I hold my head high and just watch where I am going, or in this case, the back of my sensei.
"Here we are girls! Our home for the next week." I notice that we're standing outside of an inn. I think they're called Ryokan. Sensei slides the door open and steps inside. She takes off her shoes whilst standing on the mat and, carrying the shoes, steps onto the raised wooden floor.
I follow sensei onto the tatami mats while Kin removes her shoes. "Take a seat while I get our rooms." Kyori says, pointing to some seats against the wall. Taking a seat, I look around the small entrance hall, taking note of the window next to the door, the paintings on the walls, the nice looking old lady behind the counter, the door behind the counter and the only other door leading to what I can only assume is the rooms.
"Hey, Yuki. Are you going to keep training as much now that we aren't in the desert? Or are you going to relax a bit?" Kin asks, looking at me curiously.
"I'm going to continue working hard. If I have to reach a certain level before returning to Suna, I am going to reach that level as quickly as I can." I shift my gaze from the window to Kin, "What about you Kin? Are you going to train more? Or argue as much with Kyori-sensei?"
"No, I am not going to argue with her." Kin pouts, "actually, I'm going to train more and argue less, okay?" I giggle at her and she pouts some more.
"Alright girls, come on. I got three rooms, Yuki is in fourteen, Kin, you're in sixteen and I'll be in fifteen. Go get cleaned up, leave most of your stuff in your rooms, but bring money for food, your weapons and add another 5kgs to your ankle weights. Don't forget your shoes, and don't put them on until you get to the door. I'm going to go and have a bath, then relax in the onsen for a while. I will meet you here in the entrance hall in two hours. I told the owner that we do not require her to bring us any meals, so don't try to order anything." Kyori hands us the keys to our rooms, before leading the way down the hall.
"They have an onsen? Wow, can I come in too?" Kin asks Kyori, whose eye starts twitching almost immediately.
"No! I need some alone time in which I can relax. Go to your room and relax for a little while." Kyori hisses.
Before Kin has the chance to retort, I rip open the door to my room and dive in before sliding it shut and locking it. I sigh to myself, drop my bag next to the small chair in the corner of the room, and walk over to the window. I see that the room looks out to what must be a market.
After a few minutes of people watching, I walk to the chair and drop onto the floor next to my bag. Tugging my bag a little closer, I pull out some tape bandages and the extra weights. Scooping up the tape and weights, I walk into the en-suit and put them down on the floor next to the bath. I turn on the taps and, while the bath fills, I look at my ragged reflection in the mirror above the sink.
"I don't think I've ever been this sand covered. Or sore." I say to my reflection. Crouching down, I gently remove the weights from my ankles, and then my wrists, before inspecting the bruises on my wrists, ankles, hands and feet.
I notice that the bath is getting close to overflowing, so I turn off the taps and fill up the sink with water too. Once the sink is full, I remove my clothing, shake as much sand from it as possible and put them in the sink to soak, before climbing into the bath. I clean myself, and then relax for a little while.
After I finish in the bath, I use my powers to dry myself and my hair. With a towel wrapped around my now dry body, I pull my clothes out of the sink and watch as the dirty water runs off of it. Tutting, I use my ability to separate the dirty water and clean water, and then do the same with the bath water, filling the bath with the dirty water and the sink with the cleaner. I attempt to clean my clothes in the cleaner water, and manage to get most of the dirt off, but there is only so much I can do.
Giving up on cleaning, I dry my clothes, pull them on and sit on the floor. I start wrapping one of the tape bandages around my foot and ankle, which should hopefully provide support and lessen the bruising. Once I finish with the right one, I do the same with my left, and then wrap them around my wrists and palms, leaving them loose enough to allow freedom of movement and tight enough to provide support. I add the extra weights on to my current ones and put them on my wrists and ankles.
Once finished in the bathroom, I glance at the clock on the small table and see that I've still got another hour and a half. I grab my bag and pull out 2,000 Ryou from my money pouch and put it in my weapons pouch. I pull out a bit of fabric and use it to disguise my pouch.
I hide my bag in the wardrobe, before picking up the pouch that now looks like a small handbag, pick up my shoes and the key and walk out to the hall.
"Yuki, where are you going?" A voice calls out, making me jump, as I lock the door.
"Sensei, I was wondering if I can go out for a little while?" I ask, reading her facial expressions the best I can.
"I told you to not call me sensei while in the village." She simply states after a moment of silence.
"Sorry sen-, I mean, Kyori-nee-chan." I say, catching and correcting myself.
"That's okay Yuki. I guess you can go out. Just remember what I said, okay? And be back at the entrance hall in ninety minutes." I nod my head and walk off down the hall and out of the building before she talks my ear off. When I reach the step, I sit down and pull my shoes on, before standing on the lower part and walking out of the building and almost running head first into the chest of a random man that was approaching the inn.
"I'm sorry, I should have watched where I was going." I say, bowing my head to the man.
"Whatever, move outta my way." He grunts and pushes past me.
I stand to the side of the door with my mouth hanging open and the mans rudeness. Shaking my head, I walk away from the building and towards the centre of town, where I think the markets are. As I walk, I think about the rules Kyori-sensei told us about before we arrived at the town. 'Do not let anyone know that we are ninja. Do not wear your ninja headband. Do not call me sensei. Be careful, cautious and considerate. Keep a low profile and don't do anything stupid.' I can't help but think that she didn't need to say the 'don't do anything stupid' part, but stuff happens. Sometimes you do something without thinking and later on look back and think 'aw man, that was really stupid'.
I look up from the floor and notice stalls lining the streets and people bustling by. I continue forward, looking around as I walk, until something catches my eye and I force my way through the crowd to reach the stall. I squeeze past two ladies and stumble to the stall.
"Hello little lady, do you like anything you see?" The man behind the stall asks as I peer at the goods for sale.
"How much is that?" I ask, pointing at a small brown gourd with blue pattern spreading over it in a liquid fashion.
The man chuckles, "That, my dear, is 1,000 Ryou. Would you like to look at one of the cheaper ones? I have this lovely one for 200 Ryou." He says, indicating to a lilac gourd, slightly smaller than the one I'm interested in.
"Thank you, but no. I would like to buy the blue one." I say, pulling the money out of my weapons pouch and handing to the man. I pick up the gourd and study it carefully. I smile and look up at the shocked face of the stall owner. "What?"
Suddenly, the man starts laughing. "Haha, you're going to go far, kid. You know what you want and you get it." He leans over the stall and ruffles up my hair, chuckling still. I force a smile and turn away, and then walk into the crowd.
I let myself get dragged along in the mass of people. Not really caring where I end up, I know I will find my way back. Eventually, the crowd starts to thin and I look around carefully at where I am. Noticing that there are no more stalls in this area of the village, I guess that this is a more residential area of the village.
Glancing at the crowd behind me, I walk over to the shade by the buildings. Through the small crowd I see two boys playing, one clearly older than the other and I smile.
Continuing along the street, I come across a fork in the path. I know I need to return to the inn, I take the right path, staying in the shade. This street has noticeably less people, to my preference, thankfully.
As the streets twist and turn, I get bored of guessing and, glancing around, walk into the nearest alley. I look up to the roof to the left, and centre myself.
Abruptly someone holds a knife to mu throat and a gruff voice says "That's a pretty gourd. A little expensive for a street urchin like you though. Why don't you be a good little girl and hand it over?"
"Street urchin? What's that?" I ask, intrigued by the name he called me, not even thinking about the threat on my life.
"You're one, you homeless brat, now hand it over!" He growls angrily, pressing the knife against my neck painfully. I feel the skin break a little. "No one would miss you if I were to kill you right now, so don't play games!"
"That's not true," I whisper, "I know that is not true!" I shout.
I control the water in the air to wrap around his arm and pull it away from my neck. I step away from him before I increase the pressure of the water currently wrapped around his right arm. The air is suddenly filled with the snapping of bones and the screams of the man. I then gather more water and it takes the shape of a fist, which flies towards the mans' head, knocking him out on contact.
I stand there panting over the strangers unconscious body and realisation hits me. "Kyori-sensei is going to kill me." I sigh and make a cloud of water to carry the guy, and then jump onto the roof. I glance around before heading towards the inn, jumping roof to roof.
When I finally reach a rooftop near the inn, I glance guiltily at the man I have dragged all this way. I walk to one side of the roof where one of the many alley ways are.
Making sure no one is there I jump down, bringing the man with me. I walk to the end of the alley and am happy to see that there are so few people around. I run across the street to the inn, dragging the body with me.
I drag the man into the entrance hall, and glance around while kicking off my sandals. Noting that there is no one in the hall, I pick the man up with water and, glancing around, run through the door to the hall, before racing to Kyori's room and banging on the door while trying not to attract attention, which is very difficult.
Sensei rips open the door and hisses at me. "Yuki, what is so important?"
I push her through the door and hurry in. She gapes at me when she sees the body. "I can explain." I say before she can say a word. I turn and close the door, then walk to one of the cushions on the floor.
"There better be a damn good explanation Yuki. Did you not listen to a word I said?" Kyori starts, placing her hands on her hips.
"Of course I listened to you, sensei; this was a life or death situation." Her face has a look of disbelief on it, "Honestly. I went to the markets, bought a gourd, wandered round, and started to come back, decided to travel by the roofs so I went into an alley, where he held a knife to my neck and threatened me. I broke his arm and punched him. He isn't dead. At least I don't think he is." I trail off.
Kyori sighs, "It's hard to have a simple life if you're a ninja. Okay, so I won't be too angry, but you're still in trouble. Before your punishment, we have to figure out what to do with him. And no Yuki, he isn't dead." Kyori sensei says as she stands up.
I sigh in relief. The last thing I wanted to do is to kill him. "So, what do you think we should do?"
"Well, we can find out who he is, and when he wakes up, apologize to him." Sensei says.
"What? Really?" I ask, confused.
"No, you idiot. He tried to kill you, which means that he didn't know who you are, or that you are a ninja. If we let him go now, he might tell people, which could get us in trouble. We will wait for him to wake, but first I think we should tie him to a chair. This will teach you how to interrogate people. Go and get Kin, I want her to learn this too. And tell her about what happened." Kyori instructs me. When she sees that I haven't moved she turns to me and shouts "Go, now!"
I turn and walk out of the room and, once in the hall, I close my eyes and focuses on trying to find the familiar energy that I know as Kin, just as Kyori taught me.
It takes a little while, but I soon locates it surrounded by water, which I can only assume is the onsen. Following the energy, I discover that I was right as I find myself standing outside a large wooden door with a plaque that has 'onsen' written on it.
I gently push the door and it swings open, granting my entrance. I walk in and find that I'm in a large changing room. By passing this room, I walk past the shower area and finally arrive in the bath part. I notice that there are only three people in the bath. Picking up a clean fluffy towel I skirt around the edge of the large pool of water, until I find the green-black hair of the girl I'm looking for. Crouching down by the side of the water, I wait for her to resurface. As her head breaks the surface, she comes up coughing and spluttering.
"Are you okay? Kyori sent me to get you." I say, patting her back gently.
"Yeah, I forgot I was underwater and sneezed. It's a very bad idea." She says between coughs.
"Come on, climb out. I have a towel for you right here." I straighten up and hold the towel out unfolded for her to just step into. As she steps into it, I wrap the towel around her.
I walk into the changing room with Kin and wait while she gets changed. Then leads the way into the hall and quietly tells her about what happened.
"Whoa, so you don't even know who it is? And he didn't know that we're shino-?" Her voice is cut off as I slap my hand over her mouth.
"Kin, don't you remember what Kyori said? Do not say anything about that." I hiss. Kin bows her head, and I leads the way into Kyoris room.
"Yuki, Kin, What took so long?" Sensei asks. Looking past her I notices the man tied up on the floor with his back against the wall and his chin resting on his shoulder.
"Kin was in the onsen." I reply, staring at the man.
"You knocked him out? Wow, you're getting stronger Yuki!" Kin says gleefully.
"Quiet Kin, we don't want to attract any attention. It's good that I'm getting stronger but this was out of hand." I say, groaning.
"Yes, well. We can sort out that problem later. Being a ninja isn't very predictable, don't expect everything to follow the way you plan it. Trust me." Kyori says.
Suddenly there is a loud noise, like a door slamming, from the hall. "What on earth?" Kyori mutters, before leading the way out of the room.
Kin and I follow, after a quick glance at the man. And I closes the door gently, then follow Kin to the reception area.
"- and that's when he gave me these leaflets to put up and hand out. Please put one up! People need to know!" The boy tells the lady behind the counter.
"This is bad I'll –" She began.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Kyori asks, panic in her voice. I notice the quick worried glance in my direction and lower my head.
"You need to keep both eyes on your children! At all times! The notorious Hamano Kazuma is back in the town! He's a very dangerous man! Take extra care!" He said, clearly rather distressed. Kyori pulls both of us close in a motherly fashion.
"Well, give the woman a leaflet! You need to do what you're told and be quicker about it, Ayumu!" The old woman scolds him.
Ayumu blinked, shook his head and gave Kyori a leaflet. It had Wanted written across the top and a photo and other details about Hamano Kazuma.
The eyes of all three Shinobi are drawn to the photograph and my jaw drops open. 'Crap!'
"Nee-chan! Look!" Kin gasped.
"What? What is it? Have you seen him? Do you know where he is?" Ayumu asks franticly.
"No but that's a lot of Ryuu for a 6 year old." I say looking pointedly at Kin.
"Oh, okay. Well, any information that you have is very valuable." He mutters, before handing the woman behind the counter a leaflet and walking out of the inn.
"Come on girls, back to the room." Kyori says, nudging us gently.
I lead the way into the room, my mind working overtime trying to process what we had just learnt. I knocked out a criminal… without meaning to. By doing the worst thing possible, by losing control. This can't be a good thing. I look at the man. And stops dead in my tracks.
He's gone.
I look up. The windows open.
"Kyori!" I shout.
"I see it Yuki." She says, panic reflecting my own is present in her voice.
"What?" Kin asks.
"What's missing Kin?" Kyori says. Kin gasps and I turn to Kyori.
"Did you only tie his hands up?" I ask desperately. She nods. "Oh no, what do we do? Should we go after him?"
"Where would we look?" Kin shouts at me "We hardly know this place!"
"This looks like good tracker training. Well, what do you think we do first?" She looks calmly from me to Kin and back.
"Split up?" Kin asks
"No, you aren't at a level where you can take him down by yourself. Yuki only just made it out. A proper ninja wouldn't have a knife held at their neck by anyone other than another ninja. What else?"
"Search from the roof tops? You can see further and hide easier." I suggests.
"Well done. Come on, to the roof." Kyori says, leading the way through the window.
We follow her out and jump onto the roof. "Now Kin and I can work together to get him, right?" I ask.
"Yeah, we can use both of our skills to beat him." Kin says brightly.
"Yes. But don't get too confident. He is taller and older, he could use that against you." Kyori warn. "Now, start tracking. I will come with you, but I won't help at all."
"Ossu!" Kin and I say in unison, before looking around the building.
"Kyori, can we use the radios?" I ask.
"Good thinking Yuki, here." Kyori says, handing us a radio each.
About five minutes later I land on a roof as silently as a cat, Kyori Sensei, or her clone, right behind me. I glances around and notice that Kin is on the other side of the inn, heading towards the market. I glance down at the small gourd now hanging at my right hip and can't help but glare. It's all because of this stupid gourd.
I walk around the edge of the roof, looking into the alleys, just when I feel ready to leave this roof, the man, Hamano Kazuma, runs into the alley and throws himself to the floor behind a dumpster. I jump backwards, away from the edge of the roof.
"Kin, I've found him. Come quickly and silently." I hiss into the radio. Hoping that both Kin and Kyori will come silently, I stay low and hidden, while spying on our target.
I look up as Kin lands silently on the roof, Kyori right behind her. We nod to each other and walk to opposite ends of the roof, watching Kazuma the whole time. Kyori watches us carefully. Raising her hand, Kin holds up three fingers.
I ready myself.
Two…
Deep breaths…
One…
Jump!
Flying through the air, I brace myself for the impact, keeping my face vacant of any expression.
We both land on our feet with a small thud, quite enough to go unnoticed by passers by, that much I'm sure of. Resisting the urge to check over my shoulder, I start to walk towards the man on the floor, Kin mimicking my movements.
Suddenly Kazuma struggled to his feet and pulls the knife out of his pocket, the same one that was at my throat only an hour ago.
He eyes me wearily, before tightening his grip on the weapon. I pull out my own kunai, dropping into a defensive stance. I let my glance slide from Kazuma to Kin and am shocked to discover that she hasn't drawn a weapon.
I look back at Kazuma and pull out another Kunai. Holding it by the point, I wait for Kin to nod, then flick my wrist, which sends the knife flying into the soft sand at Kins feet with a soft thud.
"What the hell? What kind of fucking parent lets kids run around with knives?" Kazuma ask.
"Surely you realise, these girls are more than just children. They are trained in combat. They are just as strong as you." Kyori says gently, landing with the cat-like grace that Kin and I lack. The man jumps backwards, staring at Kyori.
"Knock him out Kin." Kyori states simply, staring Kazuma in the eyes. She then starts pulling a rope out of her bag, as Kin smacks Kazuma on the back of the head with the rounded handle of the Kunai. Kazuma slumped to the floor instantly.
Kyori ties him up securely, then looks at Kin.
"Oh no, not a chance." Kin says, holding her hands up in front of her, backing up a little. When Kyori advances on her, Kin shouts "I'm not carrying him, you twisted bitch!"
I jump and glance at the entrance to the alley "Shut up!" I hiss "Both of you make sure the way is clear. And keep it clear. I'll carry him."
"Keep it clear? Why?" Kin asks me a confused look clouding her expression. I roll my eyes.
"Fine then. Kyori, can you place a strong enough genjutsu over both me and this guy? Pretend it's anything." I snap.
"Then when we get to the inn, put a genjustu on the old woman, making her think he jumped in through the window and tried to attack us and fell or something." Kin added, staring at the entrance to the alley over my shoulder.
I pull the man onto my back and wait for Kyori to put the justu on me. When she signals that she's done, I follow Kin and Kyori as we walk through the maze of alleyways.
We manage to navigate the alleys until we are across the street from the inn. Walking carefully across the street, trying to make no noise, I don't notice the little girl that runs into Kin until she's lying on the floor.
She looks up at Kin with a stubborn expression on her face, and then looks directly at me. Her eyes widen in horror and her mouth falls open.
"Kyori –?" I hear Kin, but I cannot tear my eyes away from the girl on the floor.
"I know Kin. She shouldn't be able to see Yuki or the man." Kyori answers the unasked question.
"How -?" Kin starts again.
"I don't know." Kyori cuts Kin off, before crouching down until she's eye to eye with the girl. "Hi there. My name's Kyori-chan, what's yours?" The girl remains silent, flicking a quick glance at Kyori, then returning her gaze to me. "Can you tell me what you see?" Kyori continues.
"Him." She manages to gasp out.
"Do you know him?" Kyori asks, her voice pitched a little higher than normal.
"He killed my father." The girl manages to choke out through the tears clouding her eyes and voice.
"He isn't light Kyori." I murmur.
"Can you come and talk with me in that inn over there?" The girls horror-filled eyes meet Kyoris'. "You wouldn't need to be in the same room. And even if you were, I promise you'll be safe."
"O-ok." She stammers, taking Kyoris hand.
I follow them into the inn, watching as Kyori does her thing on the woman behind the counter. We walk down the hall and into Kyoris' room.
I dump the guy in a corner, before wrapping more rope around him and trapping the rope to the ground using several kunai.
"All clear. He won't get out."
"Why don't you just use your water?"
I look at Kin, "And if he wakes up and I lose control? I'm not chancing that. It will defend us by itself, but I can't make sure it's doing as I say."
"So, he's in this room, but he won't hurt you, I promise. Yuki will keep you safe." Kyori lead the girl into the opposite corner of the room. "Now I told you that my name is Kyori, but this is Kin and that is Yuki. What's your name?" Kyori indicates Kin and myself as she says our name, and she's still speaking in that soft, slightly higher than usual voice.
"I'm Kimura Megumi." She mumbles.
"Kimura? What a strange first name." Kin says placing herself between the small girl on the floor and the man tied in the corner.
"Kin, you baka. Megumi is her first name." I shake my head gently, my hair brushing against the wall that I'm sitting against. I can see everyone in the room from here and that's how I like it.
There's a small giggle, which makes both Kin and I turn our heads to the corner. "You guys are funny."
"I assure you, they don't mean to be." Kyori catches our eyes. "So, I'm going to have Kin get Baa-chan to alert the authorities to the presence of our friend here shortly. Do you mind if you're in the same room or do you want to go into one of the others?"
"I don't want to be in the same room as him. But I don't want to be alone."
"That's okay. You can be in here with Kin and I or in the other room with Yuki, as I will need to supervise this guy. It's your choice.'
"The other room please." Megumi decides.
I stand up and look over to Kyori sensei. "Check which room is easier to guard her from Kazuma, and also to escape in a hurry if you need to."
"What do you mean 'If you need to'?" Megumi asks, looking panicked.
"Don't worry." I say, pulling her to her feet and leading the way out of the room, "It's just a ninja thing. We have to be ready for anything." I peer into Kins room and see things thrown over the room and back out immediately. "Wow she's messy." I open my door and shoo Megumi inside. I knock on Kyori senseis door and follow Megumi inside.
"Please sit in the middle of the room with your back against the wall. If the window is our escape route, I promise I will help you to go first without getting hurt."
"How can you help me to go first without hurting myself?" Megumi asks, confused.
"I have my ways. Don't worry though, we will be fine. Remember, Kyori sensei said 'if you need to' and we probably won't need to."
We fall silent and listen to Kins voice getting louder and two sets of foot steps walk up the hall to us. We heard the door open and a woman scream, at which Megumi flinches and I tense, ready to defend and get her out of here.
Kyoris raised voice permeates the wall, but the words are unclear. I rise to my feet and walk gently towards the door, keeping myself in between Megumi and the door.
The door is flung open and I drop into a defensive stance.
"She expects me to believe that a child like you caught that man? Utter rubbish." I don't recognise the man, but I recognised the obnoxious tone.
Kyori stands behind the man in the door way. "Don't talk about Yuki like that. You don't even know who she is, or what she can do. You're the one sprouting rubbish." I hear Kin, and give a sad smile. I know she shouldn't have said that, but it made me happy at the same time.
"How dare you say such a thing, you insolent child." He raises his hand at her, as if to back hand her.
"You will do well to not threaten a ninja. They may be children, but they are trained in the art of combat and could kill you quite easily. Fortunately neither has killed as no one has been stupid enough to test them. The last person that did push us is in the room next door, unconscious on the floor. Feel free to threaten Kin some more if you want to end up like Kazuma. Kin and Yuki are like sisters and fight as if they could speak to each other without words. You are an insolent fool that lets looks deceive you and that will be your demise. Now if you will please pay Yuki her money and have some people come around and collect Kazuma, you can leave." We all stare at Kyori. That was the most praise that she has ever given us, and it was shocking.
The man turns to glance at me before leaving and I snap my mouth closed.
"Your money will be delivered shortly." He spat at me. I bow politely.
"What are you going to do with all that money Yuki?" Kin asks eagerly.
"Nothing."
"What?" Kin, Kyori and Megumi look at me in shock. "That's 100,000 Ryo!"
"I know how much it is. I don't want it. I don't deserve it."
"You don't want the money?" The man at the door looks flabbergast at the concept.
"Well, yes and no. I don't want to keep the money, but I want it spent on the townspeople. There are people walking around in patched up clothing while you're wearing a very expensive looking outfit. I want this money given to the people that need it most. If we hear that it wasn't given to them -"
"Yes, alright. We will find the poorest people in town and split the money evenly. Thank you for your generosity."
"What about you, Megumi?" She looks at Kin.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, where do you and your mother live in town? Is it near here? We can walk you home if you'd like."
"My mother died when I was born. I live alone." She trails off into an uncomfortable silence.
"Have you ever wanted to leave here?" I ask her quietly.
"Where would I go?" Megumi asks sadly.
"You could come with us. We can always use more ninja." Kyori says gently.
"Really?"
"I don't see why not. There are no parents to stop us. It's one less child for the town to focus on. She'll be protected by us and trained to the highest level. It's all up to you Megumi." It's easy to see why she would find this a hard decision. She's lived in this town, quite possibly all her life, but she doesn't have anyone here anymore.
"I guess so."
"Don't jump into this. It's not something to be take lightly. Being a ninja is dangerous, you must think hard about this. Get some rest. We will stay here one more night. Tomorrow morning, at first light, we will leave to go and train in the desert and possible go on some D rank missions. Kin will walk you to where you live tonight and we will come to your house in the morning."
"I don't want to go back."
"You must at least collect your things. You can stay with us tonight if you want, but we will go to your house and get what you need first, then make sure the place is properly locked before we leave." Kyori insists. "Yuki, you and Kin take her home, I'll sort out any paperwork."
We walk out of the inn and let Megumi lead us to her house.
"So, do you have many friends here?" Kin asks as we walk though the milling crowds.
"Not really. Since mum died, my dad was very protective of me. He taught me everything. I miss him a lot."
"It must have been nice." All eyes turn to me.
"What must have?" Kin asks. Always full of questions.
"To have a dad. You guys must have had some fun."
"Yeah, we did." Megumi replies quietly. "What happened to your parents?"
"Well, I was abandoned. Kin's parents died in the Great Ninja War."
"They were ninja too?"
"No, they were killed by ninja. They were looking after some poisoned ninja from the hidden mist and other ninja from the mist thought that my parents were trying to get information. I was getting herbs from the greenhouse when my home exploded. The Kazekage had Kyori and her family look after me ever since."
We walk in silence with Megumi staring at Kin.
"I think you broke her Kin." I mutter, looking at Megumi.
"How can you sound so alright with that?" We can hear the disbelief in her voice.
"I've come to terms with it. I try not to make assumptions like those Mist ninja did. But I see the bright side of things. If not for those ninja, I wouldn't have met Kyori. If not for Kyori, I wouldn't have met Yuki. If not for Yuki, I wouldn't have met you. It's all has a good side."
"You mean a silver lining." I correct her.
"Yeah, that's the one."
"We're here." Megumi stops in front of a small apartment near the edge of town. The paint's peeling off the wooden door. Megumi opens the door and we follow her in.
"It's not much, but I always thought of it as home."
"I still have a home in Suna. It will always be my home."
"Do you have a back pack? You should pack a bag with money, clothes and any other necessities. We can buy you weapons and clothes before we leave."
"Kin, you're jumping to conclusions. She may be staying here."
"No I'm not. I'm making sure she has everything. She should know what to expect if she wants to come. She should have all the facts."
"Alright. Fact – being a ninja is hard. Sometimes you have to do things you don't want to but it is all worth it in the end. Fact – training is hard. No one likes being covered in bruises because you're fighting with a friend, but when it comes to an enemy you need to be ready. Fact – the weights we wear are so heavy, they nearly cut off your circulation. But in the long run, they increase your speed and your strength. Fact – as a ninja, you need to be able to take the good with the bad. If you can't do that, you won't make it. You need to decide as no one else can make that choice for you."
With that said, I drop down onto the sofa and relax, eyes closed but listening intently.
"I know it won't be easy. But with you two, and Kyori, I'm sure I will have all the help that I need."
Both Kin and I look at her.
"Are you sure? You have to be 100% on this. You can come back from the desert, but you can never undo what you see, what you do or what you learn. You have got to be certain." Kin says quietly "We don't want you to make the wrong choice."
"I know this is the right thing. Dad would want me to be able to protect myself when he isn't here."
"Alright, pack what you need, keep your bed clear and tidy this place up a bit. We'll go back to the inn once we're done here." Kin and I sit on the sofa while Megumi looks for the things that she needs.
Once she finds everything, we help her tidy up. "Yuki, why did you say make sure there's nothing on the bed?"
"Because sometimes you just want to collapse on to your own bed and you can't do that when there are things in the way."
We finish tidying up, making sure that nothing can get in through the windows and finally leave the house and lock the door.
We walk through the door to the inn and Kyori is at the main desk. I direct the others silently to the chairs that Kin and I occupied when we first arrived here.
"How much more?" Kyori asks in a strained voice.
"That is the last form. You just have to get the child to sign it too."
"Which one of us, Kyori?" Kin speaks up and Kyori turns around and the man standing next to her jumps out of surprise.
"Megumi, if you want to come with us, I need you to sign this form. This will mean that even though you aren't in your house, it's still yours. You are still a resident of this town and you are free to come back here whenever you want, no one in the village can stop you."
"Yes, I'm coming with you. Where do you want me to sign?"
"I'm glad she's coming with us. It's like we're a proper squad team now. Three students and a Sensei."
"You're way too over-excited about this. It's good we have a new sparring partner though, we have to toughen her up first."
"You won't be too rough now. Don't you remember what it was like when you first joined us in the desert? It's a good job you can do what you do or else you would also have passed out of dehydration." Kyori startles us both.
"What do you mean? She looks like a normal child to me." The man asks.
"I can drink water really quickly. And I have a bladder of steel. I was built for the desert." I chime in quickly. "It was nice meeting you, but we have to go now. We still have some shopping to do and the shops will be closing within the next couple of hours."
"Let's get going girls, we have to buy lots of things before the shop closes." Kyori shoos us all out through the door.
We hurry through the streets and go into the clothes store. After an hour of searching through the many different styles and colours of the clothes we each had some outfits to wear.
"Right, we all have clothes to last for the next 6 months or so. We should head back to the inn to rest for the night. I'll buy some food in the morning." Kyori leads the way back to the inn with the three of us in tow.
"So we leave Bouken tomorrow. Are you going to be alright?" Kin asks Megumi. We all glance at her.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I will miss here, but when I come back, I'll be a powerful ninja that's travelled through the dangerous deserts of the Wind Country! And I'll return with my three friends."
"She's almost as excitable as you Kin." I smile slyly.
"Come on guys, we have an early one tomorrow. Go to bed now. Do one of you girls mind sharing with Megumi?"
"I will!" Kin shouts almost before Kyori even finished.
"That's fine, but don't stay up all night. I want you in bed and asleep within the hour."
I walk into my room and hear the conversation continue down the hall. I check the windows locked and close the blinds over it, then make sure the door is locked.
I change and climb into bed on the futon. The last thing I hear is Kyori shouting at Kin to go to sleep through the walls.
Okay, before any of you say "How could someone forget they were underwater and sneezed?" don't bother. This actually happened. When I was younger my friend and I were playing in the swimming pool at the Recreation centre and she sneezed while underwater. It was funny for me... not so much for her.
I hope this was long enough for you.
Like I said at the start, I'm sorry this took so long. But in my defence, it's really, really long, you meet a new character and I think there's plenty of character development. I hope you enjoyed this and that I don't take so long with chapter 5. Let me know what you thought.