I see Kakashi's eyes widening before I close my eyes.
Vaguely, I wonder what the hell I'm doing and why I'm acting so forward, but Kakashi doesn't push me away. I can taste the tea on his lips, and I use my teeth to pull on his lower lip gently. He hesitates then, but very soon he's kissing me back, albeit very in control of himself for a few moments before he pushes me away gently.
I sit back, mortified. "I'm so sorry," I blurt out hastily, "I don't know what came over me – one second you were talking and the next …"
Suddenly, inexplicably, he smiles. "Don't apologize." He tugs his mask up, to my surprise. "Act natural."
"Kakashi-sensei!" comes a loud, rather obnoxious voice from outside. It's Naruto. "Which room are you in?"
Kakashi rises to his feet and helps me up. "Thanks," I mumble, still a bit shocked at what I did, and also the coolness with which he reacted.
He opens the door, and I see Tsunade being supported by Naruto and Sakura, looking completely wasted.
"I'm not drunk!" she yells at Naruto, rather drunkenly.
"Ah," Kakashi says in a worried tone. "Tsunade-sama, you're in Room Six." He walks out to unlock the door for her, and his two students dump the Hokage on a mat before coming hastily out of her room. Kakashi places the key on a counter before coming out.
"She lost a lot more money," Sakura said, sighing and rolling her shoulders. "She wouldn't come back with us at first – refused, until Naruto threatened to tell everyone her real age."
"Hey, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto says suddenly, eyes widening. "What were you and Mirai-neechan doing together in your room?"
Sakura perks up too, and a heat rises in my cheeks.
"We were drinking tea," Kakashi says calmly, pointing to the evidence on the table. But the two wouldn't be discouraged, and their faces show nothing but suspicion. "Now, we should get to sleep to get ready for a long day tomorrow. Come on, Naruto."
Naruto gulps, realizing that he'll be alone with Kakashi for an entire night, and Sakura snickers. "It's not so bad," she teases, grinning.
"Easy for you to say," Naruto mutters, "Mirai-neechan isn't scary like him. Who knows what he'll do to me in the middle of the night." He jabs a finger at Kakashi's retreating figure before sighing and following him into the room. The door closes with a definite click.
Sakura and I chuckle as we head back to our room.
"Will your Hokage be okay?"
Sakura rolls her eyes. "She'll be find. She drinks a lot of sake on a regular basis, and a bit of an overdose isn't uncommon either. We do try to prevent her from doing these things, but…"
"'We?'" I repeat curiously.
"Oh, me, Shizune – that's her assistant – and Kiyomi-chan mostly. Kiyomi's one of the shinobi at your village right now." I nod. "Though some other medical-nin do tend to help out sometimes." She makes a face.
"Why does she do it? I mean, Tsunade."
"I'm not really sure." Sakura looks a bit pensive. "Well, the gambling I'm not so sure, because she has the worst luck. But the drinking is probably just a result of the gambling. And sometimes out of … sadness, I suppose?" She suddenly comes out of her reverie. "Forget that I said that, actually. Her past is complicated." She smiles suddenly at me, but I can tell it's just to distract me. "I'm going to go take a shower."
As Sakura disappears into the washroom, a wave of fatigue comes over me, and I sit down on the mat, head spinning a little. I rub my eyes tiredly.
There's a small sound at the window, and I look out curiously. It's a small grey bird about the size of my fist, quite nondescript, and it's pecking at the window as if it wants to be let in.
I lift the latch that locks the window and the bird hops in, onto the windowsill. It gazes at me with intelligent eyes and an intensity that surprises me. As if it's studying me. Figuring out who I am.
Suddenly I feel uncomfortable.
This isn't normal. Birds don't look at people like this. And then the bird opens its pale yellow beak, and a small roll of paper starts to come out of its mouth.
I jump back in shock. This isn't right. This isn't possible. The roll of paper is much too big to fit in the bird's beak or even its stomach for that matter in the first place, and how is it doing this?
The bird finishes regurgitating the piece of paper and it immediately flies away and out of the window.
Hastily, I close the window and lock it without touching the piece of paper on the windowsill. The paper looks normal enough – there can't be a trap that small, can there? I glance at the washroom door. The water is still running – Sakura won't be coming out in a little while.
Should I open it? There shouldn't be any harm in doing so …
My finger brushes the piece of paper.
Nothing happens.
I unfurl it and my eyes widen as I read the short note.
Destroy this and come out immediately.
Don't let any of the shinobi see, or you will regret it.
And underneath, in a completely different hand, there are another few lines, just above a splotchy damp mark:
Mirai,
Please help me. They have me.
It's unmistakably my sister's writing and her tears.
::~::
They have Tsubasa.
Oh heavens. They have Tsubasa.
My heart starts to pound, and the fingers that clench the paper shake.
I've got to get out of here or else they'll hurt her. I need to go before Sakura is done her shower. I can't let anyone know. I can't let whoever has Tsubasa hurt her.
Calm down.
I breathe – it's but a shallow pant.
Move naturally.
I walk to the door stiffly, the paper crumpled in my clenched fist.
And I force myself not to knock on Kakashi's door and tell him everything that's happened and how terrified I am and have him tell me what I should do.
I manage to get to the lobby. The toothless old man isn't at the reception anymore, and there's a little sign sitting on the table saying, "Back in an hour" with a smiley face.
I walk out of the inn, and I know I'm visibly shaking now. The cool night air does nothing to help.
I hear a twitter.
It's the gray bird, and it's as if it's asking me to follow it. I take a deep breath and I do just that as it hops down the path that leads away from the inn, away from the shinobi that might be able to help me. Away from safety.
And suddenly questions spring into my mind. How did they get Tsubasa, even with the Konoha ninja guarding the village? How did they know I was related to her?
My blood runs cold.
Were the Konoha ninja the ones who took her?
No, I think in horror. No. Kakashi wouldn't…
But what if it wasn't Kakashi? What if it was the Hokage who ordered it, and Kakashi really had no idea? And – I get even colder – what if he knew? It wasn't as if he had an obligation towards me. Why would he go against it?
But no, it made no sense. Tsubasa was kidnapped to get me to go somewhere. I'm the one they want. And somehow, knowing that, I feel a little less frightened, because at least Tsubasa will be let free if I comply.
Comply to what?
Why would anybody want to kidnap me? I don't even have a place in my village anymore, and I'm a trusted or important citizen of Konoha. If what Kakashi thought was true, that my father wouldn't hesitate to kill me, there was no point in kidnapping me to threaten our little village. Tsubasa is the important one.
The gray bird stops and suddenly flies away. I'm left standing on a grassy plain next to a large tree, about half a mile from the inn. It's so dark that I can only see the outline of the tree.
And all of a sudden a hand covers my mouth and two hands restrain my arms. There are at least two people, and one gags me and blindfolds me while the other ties my wrists together in front of me. The rope seems to be quite long, and one of my captors tugs on the rope. I walk in the direction in which I'm led.
The restraints aren't necessary. I'd do anything knowing that Tsubasa is in their hands. I couldn't fight back anyways.
I trip over the uneven ground, but my captors don't pause, not even for a bit to let me up. I stumble along and feel no more grassy plain beneath my feet, but rather a firm gravel path. I have no idea where we are and where we're going.
I hear no sounds but feet crunching atop the gravel and the slight breeze. No sounds of pursuit. Maybe Sakura has a habit of taking very long showers, or they assumed I was going for a walk. I realize the piece of paper is still clenched tightly in my fist. At this rate, my nails are going to break through the skin of my palms. I didn't think to leave the piece of paper there. And I wouldn't, even if I had the choice now, because if I had, and they came after me, Tsubasa would be in danger. Whoever took her is using her as a threat against me, and though the Konoha shinobi might not care about her, I do, and I can't let anything happen to her.
Suddenly we come to a halt, and I am forced onto what seems to be a boat. It's a rowing boat, and I can hear the splashing sounds that the paddles make as they break the water. We seem to be going quite quickly across water, and then they pull me out of the boat, and onto gravel once again. We walk for a short distance and stop suddenly.
There's a loud grating noise, like two rocks being scraped together. A hand pushes my head down roughly and the rope around my hands pulls. I assume we're walking into a tunnel or a cave of some sort, and I hear the grating noise again behind me. It's a boulder to block the entrance, I realize. There's no way anyone will find me here.
I swallow hard, but really, I'm much less worried now. I am willing to do whatever they want me to do, and now that I'm sure there's nobody who found out and followed, I know Tsubasa won't be harmed. My breathing is deeper, more regular, and my heart, though still racing, doesn't feel like it's going to explode in my breast.
Through the fabric of the blindfold, I can see bright spots of light that flicker slightly. Torchlight? It's rather primitive.
One of my captors tugs more roughly, indicating for me to hurry up, and I quicken my pace. This is a tunnel, I'm sure of it. A cave couldn't be this long. And judging by the echoes our footsteps make, it's a very long tunnel with various different paths.
I cough experimentally, and despite the gag muffling the sound, it comes back to me clearly different times. It's definitely more than one tunnel. It's like a labyrinth. There must be countless different paths here; if there was a final sliver of hope in my mind that someone would be able to find me here, it's gone now.
"Quiet!" hisses a voice from behind me.
We slow, and I hear the grating of another boulder. Are we leaving here?
But no, there is no caress of the wind, and no sounds of wildlife. It must be a chamber within the labyrinth.
My captors bring me to a halt, and I feel them moving on the spot. When the rope is tugged downwards, I realize they are bowing.
"You may rise."
Relief rushes through me suddenly, but disappears just as quickly.
And suddenly my blood runs cold again. My mind struggles to understand what's going on, but to no avail whatsoever.
My body sags in shock, and I barely notice it as my captors haul me to my feet.
I would know that voice anywhere.
They untie the blindfold, and what I knew before is confirmed.
"What's wrong, big sister?"
She's sitting on a large stone chair. A throne, my mind supplies feebly. Her lips are curved into a sneer, white teeth showing. The coldness in her voice causes my heart to constrict.
"Surprised to see me here?"
Tsubasa flashes me a feral grin.
Surprise! Anyway, I made a little change to Chapter 6, to keep consistent with what will happen later. You'll see. ;)
Short blurb today – I'm excited for what will happen next!
Please review, favourite, and follow!
-Jennifer *hugs*
