That night, Robert awoke with a start, spooking Yuuki.
"What's wrong, Robert?" She asked still half asleep. Robert didn't respond. "Robert, what's…"
"Shhh. I'm checking something out." he whispered. "I felt something that is not an animal sneaking around the camp."
Robert then proceeded to climb out of the top of the cart and disappear. Yuuki followed him out and tailed him closely.
"You know, if it's one of those powerful gangs, I might not be able to protect you, right?"
"You will not let anything happen to your little angelbutt. I know you too well."
"Alright, then. Take the sword just in case." he said handing the sword to Yuuki.
"What about you? How are you gonna block attacks without hurting yourself?"
When Yuuki said that, Robert stopped then smiled at her. He then put out his right hand in front of himself and she saw what resembled a sword appear in his hand.
"The Crystal Claymore. I'll explain later." Robert said with a grin on his face that quickly turned into one of pure anger.
Robert saw someone dress in all black coming up behind Yuuki with a knife in his right hand. Robert then reached behind himself and threw something out to either side of him, the next thing the intruder knew, he was wrapped up from head to toe.
"Yuuki, duck down now!" Robert said through clinched teeth. When Yuuki ducked down, the intruder behind her was drawn over her and was stopped in front of Robert, who proceeded to remove the man's mask, but when Robert touched the mask, the intruder began to shake wildly then went limp. "Let's take him to the council and see what they think."
"Right."
After the council was awoken and in their places, one of them asked the same question everyone else was thinking: "Why are we called here at this time?"
After that was asked, the whole room had the dull roar of the council members asking various questions about the same thing. Robert walked in with Yuuki next to him, still in her pajamas, with the corpse on Robert's back.
"QUIET!!" Robert Yelled at the top of his voice. "I'm sure you are all asking the same questions, the reason you are all up this late is this." Robert then proceeded to throw the corpse on the table that the council members were all sitting around.
"Who is this!?" one of the members asked.
Chris, the lord's advisor, was looking over the body. "This is one of the people we told you to keep an eye out for. It's a chain of guilds owned be the same man, just like a chain of hotels or restaurants. They are known as the White Hands, Dark Shadows. They specialize in assassinations and information theft. They also use ninjutsu to aid themselves, the very reason that I made the suggestion that we hire you to protect us. I didn't want to take any chances on this mission with so many important people with us."
"Whatever. Now that I know who to look out for, it won't be guessing game. I'm going back to sleep."
"What about the body?" Asked the oldest council member.
"I don't care, he's not my responsibility anymore. Come on Yuuki."
"Oh, right." She said as Robert started to leave the room. She then skipped up to him and began to hold his hand. "I never said thanks."
"For what?" Robert asked.
"For saving me."
"You're my little angelbutt, why wouldn't I protect you with all of my skills?"
"Dunno, but thanks anyway." she said as she stared to lean into a kiss.
"Wow, this crap's so mushy, you could write your own sob story, Robert." said Kiba.
"Whatever, Kiba. Just head back to wherever you are sleeping. We're having a meeting early in the morning, about 0500 hours. You have about three hours before then. Be sure to tell everyone else."
"Alright. I got up to see what all the noise was about, but I'll tell them.." He said just before he leaped across the camp to where the rest of the team was staying.
"Well, he just saved me some trouble. Now we have more time together." Robert said looking at Yuuki. She looked up at him, then gave him a gentle kiss. The two proceeded back to their cart with Yuuki hanging on to Robert's arm
The next morning, Robert and Yuuki were the first to the meeting place. About ten minutes later, Tenten and Shikamaru showed up, but Kiba never come out. Robert, being the easily irritated person he id, went over to the cart Kiba was in and threw him up out of it and did a spinning heel kick that sent Kiba flying over to where they were having the meeting. Akamaru then proceeded to follow Kiba's scent. Robert jumped over to where Kiba landed and said whispered in his ear "Payback's a bitch, aint it?" "Kiba, 5:00 in the morning means 5:00 in the morning!" Robert yelled in Kiba's ear.
"Damn, I can't even sleep in ten minutes."
"Anyway, the group that we are to look out for entered and tried to get information about who they are dealing with. They are known as the White Hands, Dark Shadows. They specialize in assassinations and information stealing. Be very careful and keep an eye out for them. Do you understand?" Robert asked more to Kiba then the other two.
"Yes sir!" they said in unison and Akamaru just barked.
Right, now. Get the rest of your equipment packed and ready. We will get to the docks today and be on the other side by nightfall if nothing happens."
After they were ready Robert gave the signal for the convoy to move. He then sat down and started to scan the area like he did every time they started. Yuuki came up to be with him, but when she got to him, his eyes shot open and he told the convoy to stop.
"What's wrong, baby?" Yuuki asked in a very worried voice.
"They plan to intercept us and destroy the convoy. They are about two km away. Tenten, come here!" When she got over there, Robert told her to follow him and gave Yuuki his katana and the three jumped off into the distance.
Damn, I can't track their movements and watch these two at the same time. Robert signaled for them to stop and took a vile of blood out of an inside pocket in his coat, then tossed it in the air and did numerous hand seals , and on its was down, Robert caught the vile and smashed it on the ground saying: Summoning Jutsu: Jackal Army. After that, twenty Anubis warriors appeared around them and Robert told them to track down the force that they were going after.
"What kind of summoning are those?" Tenten shouted.
"They are elite warriors that my branch of the clan are taught to summon."
That just put Tenten in a greater state of uneasiness.
When they reached the interception point, they where ambushed by a large groups of thieves.
"Crystal Style: Heavenly Sea of Blades!" Robert then was turned the stone in the area into diamond blades and created a swirling barrier between them and the thieves. Robert then drew his hands together and told Tenten and Yuuki "When I do this burst attack, do not hezatate to start attacking whoever is left." He then slammed his hands down on the ground a solid wall of blue in all directions and yelled "NOW!" Tenten and Yuuki then leapt into action and Robert joined them in the on slot. After all was said and done, only those three were left alive, and Yuuki did not look well in Robert's opinion, so he went over to check on her.
"Yuuki, are you okay?" He asked when he knelt down to the ground. He then noticed that she was crying and she threw her self on him in a crying fit.
"I didn't mean to kill them, it was just self-defense… I…I…" she was sobbing too hard to finish her sentence. Tenten tried to comfort her, but Robert gave her a look that told her that he was going to take care of it. He then handed her a scroll and told her to give it to the man in the lead cart. Tenten acknowledged him with a head nod and jumped back towards the caravan,
"Yuuki, do you remember the story I told you yesterday? About me killing the closest thing I had to an older brother? Well, I was not a being of no emotions like I might have seemed like. I cried for several days straight. I wouldn't even talk to my sister. So it's okay for you to cry. The any difference between you and me, is that I refused to have a shoulder to cry on."
Yuuki looked up at Robert, and dried the tears in her eyes and just snuggled up to him and whispered "Promise me that it will never come around to that with us.."
"I promise." He said looking down at Yuuki and they both fell asleep under a giant oak tree until the caravan showed up and they got back on board and they made it to the docks by noon. After Robert, Yuuki, and Chris made sure that everything and everyone was onboard and tied down, They told the captain to leave the docks and head out to the other side of the sea
