Aww, only three off of my goal… Hehe, anyway, this chapter was a pain in the bum to write, so I apologize if it's kind of suckish. I can't believe this already has as many chapters as Alternate History! But wait, there's still more to come of this one, much more.
Chapter 21- A Lead
Once again, I found myself outside the gates of Konoha. But this time I had a much more complex disguise, as did my comrades, Sasuke and Kisame. I found it ironic that I found myself here again so soon. I had thought that I would never set foot in this place again.
I was happy to spend more time here, but there was a problem. We had arrived approximately twenty-four hours early. The Water representatives weren't expected until tomorrow evening.
Of course this wasn't something to be overly suspicious about, but it was enough to set the guard who had greeted us on edge.
"Who did you say you were again?" He asked as his eyes scanned the open scroll. I hadn't actually been on guard duty before, so I didn't know exactly what he was checking. I guessed that he was searching for our names. I looked at Kisame pointedly. He would have to answer for us.
"Kawaguchi Daichi, Emiko and Megumi." He replied, pointing us out in turn.
"Hmm, you are rather early. I suggest that you go and see Hokage sama and ask about your lodgings for tonight."
Go to the Hokage for something like that? No, he just wanted someone of a higher rank to deal with us. He was obviously suspicious and I didn't doubt that he'd subtly sent a message ahead to warn the Hokage about us.
"Just head towards the big red building." He finished and pointed out said building. I briefly wondered whether the guards on the front gate were trained to unnecessarily point out the building before I followed Kisame into the village.
We were inside the famous 'big red building'. We were being ushered into the Hokage's office by an ANBU member. The ANBU took up a position behind the Hokage, near the very large window.
"Ah, the Kawaguchis are here already? You don't need to worry about accommodation because you will be able to stay in the same hotel room until the exam has concluded." The Hokage said as soon as he saw us enter the room.
"Thank you." Kisame replied.
"As was agreed earlier, I will have two of my shinobi escort you around the village and show you points of interest for the next week or so. I have called for the two shinobi already; they should arrive at any minute." Sandaime continued.
I assumed that this was a purely political visit. The Fire country was trying to forge trust with the Water country by showing a few representatives around their main ninja village. If all went well, a few Fire representatives would be shown around a few of the smaller ninja villages in the Water country.
It was risky for Konoha to initiate this exchange, but something had to be done about the tension between the nations. I knew that the Water country would never initiate something of this kind.
A knock on the Hokage's door effectively pulled me out of my thoughts. "Come in." Sandaime called.
The door opened and Hatake Kakashi and Haruno Sakura entered. "This is Hatake Kakashi and one of his genin students, Haruno Sakura." The Hokage said a moment later. "They will be your guides for the next week and a half."
This was not good news. Hatake Kakashi was the last person that I wanted to be constantly nearby. I doubted that he could see through my extensive genjutsu, but if he lifted his headband and used the Sharingan properly, it would be very likely that he would be able to see us for who we were.
"They will take you to your lodgings now. I hope your time in Konoha is informative." Sandaime finished before returning to a stack of paper work.
"This way please." Kakashi said and almost halfheartedly motioned for us to follow.
We walked through the quieting and darkening town in complete silence. It was more than a little awkward. Eventually we came to a stop in front of a small yet tidy inn. I didn't remember this place being in this part of town. It must have been a new establishment.
"Well, this is where we part ways. Sakura chan and I will be here at nine o'clock tomorrow morning. I hope you rest well." Kakashi said in a bored tone before waving and walking away.
"See you tomorrow." Sakura added hesitantly before she followed her sensei.
The inn turned out to be practically the same as the one in the village that we stopped in a few days ago. A cheery hostess showed us to our room and left quickly.
I was relieved to find that we had a private bathroom here. I hadn't washed properly for days. That meant that I could easily be tracked by smell. Not to mention, with a private bathing facility, I wouldn't have to bother upholding a convincing female henge either.
I entered the bathroom and rolled back the mat, which covered the bath. The bath was already filled with steaming water so I rolled the mat back into place to preserve the warmth.
I created a bucket of warm soapy water with the tools provided and used it to scrub myself clean. I rinsed off underneath something, which seemed to be crossed between a shower and a tap. It wasn't exactly comfortable under the strong stream of freezing water, so I quickly made my way to the warmer bath.
Again, I rolled back the mat that covered the small yet deep bath and sat down in the steaming water. I sighed quietly, hoping to release some of my stress into the water.
Feeling more relaxed after the heat of the water; I got out a few minutes later and covered the bath again. I dried off and changed into the provided yuukata. I put the henge back in place properly before exiting the bathroom.
I noticed that three futons had been set up as well as a table in the middle of the room with dinner on it. Kisame and Sasuke were sitting at the table already. Screens could divide this room as well, but they had been folded back to accommodate for the low table.
"Can I go next?" Sasuke asked as I tried to gracefully sit down on Kisame's side of the table as a lady of Emiko's political status would. Unfortunately I wasn't very successful. I saw that Sasuke had eaten next to nothing, judging from his full bowl.
"Yes, but please eat something more when you're finished." I replied politely. I was practicing speaking to him as though he were my elder. He nodded and made his way to the bathroom.
Kisame was shaking his head. "It takes years of practice to be able to sit like that you know. What do you think geishas do with all their time?" He asked as he served himself another bowl full of rice.
"It's stupid really. Kunoichi learn all about culture and the way of other countries. Male shinobi should learn all of that as well. I find myself needing to cross-dress and I realize that I have no idea…" I began speaking, not quite sure how to finish.
"I suppose that's why teams in Konoha have at least one female shinobi in them." He replied, putting his already empty bowl back on the table. What did he do, inhale food? He took my bowl and dished up a serving of rice for me. There was an assortment of seafood on the table as well, including prawns, crab and some sort of sliced raw fish. Kakuzu would have a fit if we had to pay for this.
"I guess my parents, my entire clan, focused on the masculine side of training. To think, there's a whole side of being a ninja that I know next to nothing about. Yet I'm still called a prodigy. Maybe I should find someone to teach my brother kunoichi ways?" Of course our conversation was barely above a whisper. The last thing we wanted was to be overheard.
"They say knowledge is power, but I have no idea who could teach him. She is much too busy these days… Maybe Kana chan could?" He teased. I knew that the first woman he had been referring to was Konan. No matter how quietly we were talking, we would never say names that could give us away.
I ignored his tone and shrugged. Kisame stood and wandered over to his futon. He dragged it closer to the one, which was presumably mine. Kisame must find it difficult to supply me with chakra when he slept, just as I had difficulty maintaining the genjutsu whilst sleeping.
"This place has better service than the last one. They even set our beds up." Kisame said off handedly as he partly closed the screens. He returned to his place at the table. We sat in silence until Sasuke exited the bathroom.
"Good, that means I'm next." Kisame said happily. He was probably pleased to get away from the silence more than anything else.
Sasuke sat down in the spot that Kisame had recently vacated. He breathed in deeply before speaking. "Niisan, I… I think I know who the nine tails is..." He said hesitantly and very quietly. I let him know he had my full attention by looking at him directly.
This seemed to make him more nervous. "Well?" I encouraged when he didn't continue.
"I think it's… Uzumaki Naruto."
I recognized the name and remembered the loud, orange and possibly dyslexic genin. "Why do you think so?"
"Well, you never got to see him with the Sharingan, but you should see his chakra. There's so much of it and he seems to have two different types or something…" He responded. He sounded a little… afraid? But this sounded very promising.
"Why didn't you mention it earlier?" I asked Sasuke.
"We became… friends I suppose. I would prefer it if he didn't die, but it seems that I will have to live with it. It seems you either kill or threaten to kill anyone that I end up liking or loving, even yourself." He said, his voice getting quieter and quieter.
I felt as though I had just been slapped across the face. I was suddenly wracked with guilt to the point that it was painful. He continued to stare at me somberly. "I'm sorry it had to turn out this way." I muttered as I tried to clamp down on my emotions.
"It isn't your fault really…" He replied after a lengthy pause. He slowly began to eat.
"I'm glad that you think so." I responded as I set my own bowl on the tabletop. I inspected the raw fish and tried a little. "I don't know what this is, but it's disgusting." I warned before leaving the table. He smiled a little as he continued to eat.
"Did I hear correctly? Food someone else doesn't want? I'll eat it if you like." Kisame added, rather loudly in comparison to our whispered conversation. He properly distracted us from our depressive moods.
"Oh how kind of you." Sasuke replied sarcastically as he too left the table.
When I reflected on that conversation, I couldn't help but think it was very strange because we were all henged as different people. It was even somewhat humorous.
Well, I think that will be the last update for quite a while. I have to go back to school on Monday. Yes I will have very little time to write but I will try to update at least once a month. See you whenever I end up getting the next chapter up.
Oh and it is possible to feel so much guilt that it hurts, I've experienced it unfortunately. Stupid conscience...
Cultural Note: Well, I've never had a bath Japanese style, but from what I've read, I'm guessing that's similar to what it would be like.
Anonymous Reviewers:
yo: Glad you liked the last chapter.
iwalkinthelight: Yeah well... who cares about Sasuke anyway... hehe. Yes, the wonderment of the blind ninja! I don't think 'wonderment' is even a word. It doesn't sound right, like 'headed' and 'gotten'. But, I digress!
HinaWeasel: I'm glad you liked the last chapter and I hope you liked this one too. Hopefully no more shocking behaviour from Itachi hm?