The Chie chronicles

Part two: Taken

"Do you actually trust that man to retrieve his target?" Nara Kazu repeated, with a cynical tone. He was sitting near the forest line where they had set up camp. After all, their 'guest' needed to rest.

"He is a greedy man," Orochimaru chuckled. "So yes, if he is as capable as I think he is, he will succeed."

"Tsk. So much trust in an unknown man."

"Kenta-kun wants to gain power. And, he doesn't care about the methods. Didn't you notice how he acted?"

"I did," Kazu frowned. Even though it was a while back, he could recall that day perfectly. After all, he was a genius- a genius worthy to lead his clan- if he had lived in a reasonable world without favouritism. "You said Kenta noticed you, Orochimaru-sama."

"That wasn't all, Kazu-kun," Orochimaru smirked, pausing to let the Nara figure it out by himself.

"He noticed you, and knew something was wrong. That is why his team took the cautious approach. Kenta knew well enough that his team was already dead, so he set up the formation so that he would have the chance to escape," Kazu reasoned.

"Indeed. Like you, Kenta is only loyal to himself. His sensory abilities surprised me, as well. If what he told us was true, he noticed me far sooner than anyone should have been able to. I suppressed my chakra to such a degree that even that fool of a Jiraiya should not have been able to track me down… No, this boy is special, and quite the useful pawn in the game that will unfold."

"Still, you only gave him the least important target," Kazu deduced. "Of course, we knew the location of our target, after his foolish clan nearly annihilated itself with that pointless assault on Kirigakure. And this bloodline is far more important."

"Indeed. I was dying to get my hands on the shikotsumyaku kekkei genkai," Orochimaru whispered, as his long tongue hang out of his mouth. "So keep the boy safe in the hideout, Kazu. I would not be able to forgive you if you lost sight of this boy. I need focus on the experiments first. Let me know when Kenta returns."

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama," Kazu bowed, not completely able to suppress the shiver of excitement he felt when hearing the threat. In this boring world, Orochimaru was one of the few who could instill this fear; Kazu loved that emotion. In fact, there were but few things that triggered any kind of emotion with Kazu- well, besides torture, of course, he conceded to himself.

"What was that, yesterday, Mitsuo-two-leg?" Chie asked.

"Ah.. You mean that song?" Mitsuo said, cautiously. "I suppose there is no harm in telling you…"

The man sighed, and looked around. "My father was a shinobi," he started. "He lived in Kirigakure, at least until the wars came. Well, it wasn't just the war that forced him away, but rather how people responded to it. You see, all those wars created a very strong hatred amongst the people… hatred against the bloodlines which had caused the most victims. As such, the families cursed with a bloodline limit had to hide. Like me, completely hiding our chakra from anyone, and being cautious for every single moment."

"Bloodline limit?" Chie questioned.

"It is the condition when people are born with certain skills that no one else can master. For instance, there are people who can somehow create and manipulate elements like ice. But such a feat is virtually impossible for anyone who does not have that specific bloodline limit. It would require a very specific balance and control of multiple types of chakra, which is extremely difficult for anyone not born with such a gift. In the wars between nations, as well as during the multiple civil wars, the people with bloodline limits were feared the most. Because of that, the ordinary people began hating those with bloodline limits. Consequently, most bloodlines within our nation were exterminated."

"And what you did by singing… this is because you have a bloodline limit as well?" Chie deduced. "So that is why you are so secretive, and keep yourself and your nest away from other herds?"

Mitsuo blinked. "I possess the ability because of my father, but my wife possesses no such ability, as she doesn't carry that bloodline. We cannot be completely sure about Suzume, as she is too young to show us if she has the same ability or not. But if she does have it, and people find out…" Mitsuo half-looked over his shoulder, "She would have no control over it at this age, making it too dangerous for her to be around other people. That is why we forbid her to sing. Because, if others find out, they will hunt us down and kill us," Mitsuo sighed.

"Why not leave?"

"I once asked my father that same question. He told me that the other nations would be dangerous for us to go to as well. Foreigners are usually distrusted- especially foreign shinobi. It would be hard for us to start a new life in another country, especially if it meant that we had to leave everything behind. You see, migration is something which the bloodline hunters are the most suspicious of. If we had to leave, the normal way at least, we would have to go to the docks and take a ship towards the great harbor on the island north of us. From there the shipping routes lead to the mainland. With the ships, either they check your blood, or you have a chance that you are trapped by slavers."

"I see… travel is too dangerous in the lawless lands…"

"Yes, Chie, and though the mainland is said to have calmed down a little now that the wars have ended, I still don't want to risk the safety of my family. Not when things here seem to be calming down at last. It has been a while since we've last seen the hunters on our island. So for as long as no one suspects us…"

"…that means as long as Suzume doesn't give you away," Chie deduced. "I see, I suppose I will have to be more careful now. Especially with the kitten. Child."

"Thanks, Chie," the man smiled.

Seeing Suzume waddle around, Chie felt sorry for the child. 'Just when I think the humans are not as bad as the stories made them look like, I hear something like this. What kind of insane creature would persecute other creatures solely for the fact that they were born? As if a two-leg like her has any choice! No creature has. We are born innocent; we cannot help what we are.'

Chie couldn't decide whether it was the ignorance, or the long-lasting hatred itself, which was the problem. People like Mitsuo and Shiori showed that humans were capable of good. But why were there other humans that would label these people as 'evil', just because of their blood?

'Even if they have dangerous abilities… it says nothing about the intention they have,' Chie mused. 'As if a tool could be evil… it's not, it's the will behind it that is good or evil. No bloodline ability could truly be evil.'

It frustrated her a bit. Just when she thought she had figured the humans out, Chie realized that she didn't understand humans at all- especially if they were as hateful as she now heard. Would she even want to know any more humans? Were the humans really the scum that her elders told her? Lost in thought, Suzume used the distraction to sneak up to Chie. Before the poor cat knew what happened, the child grabbed her, lifted her up, and ran with her to the shoreline.

"O no… Not this again!" Chie uttered in despair. "Lemme go! Lemme go! Not the water."

Splash. Laughter. "Nooooo."

Of all the feeding rituals the humans had, one way was by far Chie's favourite. It was a little slippery creature, which did not even have any legs at all. The humans called this no-legged creature 'fish'. Unlike the regular ritual, this was preceded by something called 'fishing'. Chie didn't see the logic of it, considering how humans weren't 'porking' before eating pork meat. Nor were they 'cowing' because of eating the meat of that four-legged creature. But hey, Chie wasn't expecting any logic at this point. She had lived amongst humans for several months now, so she had accepted that understanding their logic in naming things would be a never-ending struggle with little to no reward. Most of the time, Chie just described things as she saw them, rather than making the effort to remember the human name of it.

The same went for the names of humans themselves. Though, she did use the names of those who had earned her respect.

But today, Chie joined Mitsuo on his 'fishing' ritual. Even if this involved a lot of water, as the no-legs had found a way to stay alive under the water. The latter was quite remarkable, as they never seemed to be very intelligent. Chie hated water with a passion, even more so due to the events that had brought her to this island. But the rewards outweighed the risk of getting a wet fur. Thus, Mitsuo had taken off with a small wooden construct that floated on the water. From there, he used some strange device: a long branch with a rope on it. According to Mitsuo, those things were used to catch the fish.

But so far, Chie remained rather skeptical.

Mitsuo, on the other hand, smiled as he saw the black-and-white cat stare at the bobber that floated on top of the water. "Don't be too impatient, Chie, they'll bite eventually."

Chie looked up, in what Mitsuo recognized as the 'what do you mean' look. This was usually followed by the 'explain everything you know' look that Mitsuo had grown wary of. "There is some bait at the end of the line; when the fish bites, trying to eat the bait, it will be caught as the hook on which the bait is attached latches into its flesh," he quickly explained, before the little cat would add all kind of odd fantasies to it.

"Are those no-legs really that stupid?" Chie wondered. "So, the fewer legs a creature has, the less intelligent it is?"

"No," Mitsuo nearly choked in laughter after the cat had still managed to catch him off guard. "Legs don't mean a thing. Really, I am still surprised that you have never seen other people before."

"Humans were not welcome on our island," Chie sighed, though she did think the man made a good point. After all, of the three humans, Shiori seemed to be the most intelligent, while Mitsuo had that odd looking, and seemingly useless little third leg.

So apparently the number of legs did not determine how smart a creature was. 'Perhaps it's the lack of whiskers,' Chie mused.

"Hmm.. So you said before. But you never really said much about your home. What was it like?"

"It was just an island, much like this one, but with a big mountain in the center. The forests were a lot denser though," Chie said, though with some reluctance. She didn't like to think too much about the home she had been forced to leave behind.

"Sounds like a perfectly peaceful place," Mitsuo smiled. "Why did you leave? I know you've been avoiding answering it, but still you-"

"I suppose it is right to question it, considering the information you entrusted me with," Chie cut him off. She sighed. "But my home… I didn't leave by choice. Like I told you, I was swept away by a large tidal wave. The reason why I didn't want to talk about it was because my only friend, my teacher, threw away his life to save me."

'So that is why she always appeared to be so sad,' Mitsuo realized. "I am sorry… I didn't know."

"Don't be. I now know it was Tomio's own choice. I know he could have saved himself, but he did not want to leave me. I suppose I can understand now... I wouldn't leave someone who is helpless, like Suzume, behind in order to save my own whiskers. No, the only thing I regret is that I was helpless. I never want to be helpless again," Chie declared, though almost whispering at the end.

"You shouldn't blame yourself, Chie. Nature has a will of its own. We mortals have just got to live under its reign," Mitsuo sighed. "You should proudly live your life, in his honor."

"How could I be proud, two-leg? He died," Chie shook her head. "Sometimes… sometimes I wish I could just forget it. Stop feeling hurt."

"You don't want that. Never forget about him. Even if it would give you a false sense of freedom, it would be the bad thing to do. Your memories of those you lost are the only things you have to remember them by. Love does not end where life ends."

"I know you are right… but it does not change the way I feel."

"Have I ever told you how I met Shiori?" Mitsuo wondered. Chie shook her head, a gesture she had copied from Suzume. "Twelve years ago, my father and I arrived at a nearby island, looking for a job. We were disguised as fishermen, I believe. Or was it as sailors? Well, it doesn't matter. We were on the run for the bloodline hunters, who had nearly caught us a few months before that, so we tried to build up a new life."

"And there you met Red-hair-two-leg?"

"No. Well, yes, I did meet her once, when I walked in the village, but she didn't really notice me. You see, she was the daughter of the mayor of that village, so she would not take notice of a poor brat like me. Though I do admit I was fascinated by her hair. I never saw someone that beautiful," Mitsuo smiled as he thought back. "No, we came to know each other a few weeks after that.. The hunters that had been tracking us believed we had come to that island, but they were frustrated because they couldn't find us. My father had drilled me in chakra control ever since I was a little boy, so they could not sense us as we hid outside the village."

"So the hunter-two-legs left?"

"No," Mitsuo sighed. "The hunters… a normal village has little manpower. Only a couple of guards, often not even trained properly. But the hunters, they were fully trained shinobi, each able to easily defeat a dozen regular warriors. The hunters knew they could do whatever they want to, as there was no one to stop them. I've seen that happen many times now… when people who normally live under a very strict regime suddenly gain the freedom to do whatever they want they turn into something worse than animals."

"What did they do?" Chie asked, not liking where this was going.

"They captured several women… for their 'amusement'. I heard that the mayor just stood by as they dragged away his wife… but Shiori ran away. She was young, and the cruelty they would inflict on such a young girl…" Mitsuo grimaced as if he remembered something bad, but Chie was afraid to ask. "By chance, she ran towards the place where my father and I were hiding. Two hunters ran after her, seeing the chase as just a game before they could have their fun. When I saw them catch up with her… I couldn't control myself. I knew I had to keep hidden, or risk getting killed myself, but I couldn't abandon that girl to such a fate. It was a good thing the hunters had already drank too much, as the second man could not respond after I killed the first. That day was the first time I ever killed someone," Mitsuo frowned. "But it also meant we had to run away again. And, that Shiori's life would be forfeit if she stayed there… I convinced my father to take her along, and she was desperate enough to agree. Well, cutting a long story short, ever since leaving that island, we moved three times, just to cover our tracks, before we arrived at this place. We built this house here and started living as simple farmers. And after a year or so, Shiori and I got married. My father died three years after, when Shiori was pregnant with Suzume," Mitsuo concluded with a sad sigh.

"That was… I never knew Shiori-two-leg had had such a rough life," Chie frowned in her feline way. "The three of you always seem to be so happy."

"It is because we know pain, that we enjoy life so much."

"Hmm… I suppose you are right. But when are those no-legs going to bite?" Chie faced away, trying to change the subject as he had given her much to think about. For one of the first times in her short life, Chie began to think that she had too much to think about.

"Patience, Chie. Patience."

In the end, Mitsuo caught too much fish. So, the day after, he sold what was left in the neighboring village. Chie, on the other hand, took some 'time off'. She wandered the landscape for a while, not so much out of curiosity, but rather to have some time alone. After all, Mitsuo's words had made her think about what life and death were truly about.

And those were not the things to think about while a two year old did her absolute best to catch your tail… a game that Suzume loved to play. Despite the risk, Chie never had the heart to tell her to stop. In fact, Chie doubted she could ever deny the child anything. Well, bathing was an exception…

Lying on top of a tree branch, Chie suddenly jerked up her head. 'Something is off,' she immediately realized. 'What is this chakra?'

Chie hadn't wandered off far, and quickly ran back. Standing outside the house, was a tall and thin man, with black hair that reached to his shoulders. The man carried a short sword in one hand, and a pink-haired bundle in the other.

"Suzume!" Chie cried out as she charged at the man. The man's smile vanished as he looked dismissively at the incoming cat. If he had been surprised by seeing a talking cat, he didn't show it. With the flat side of his blade he lashed out, knocking Chie away.

"Apparently it isn't just human stupidity to shout before charging," the man mumbled as he looked down at the unconscious creature. Not that it would have mattered, as he sensed her come near anyway. Though the odd chakra signature had given him the idea he would have faced something more interesting than just a little cat. He sheathed his sword and walked back to the house. The woman he had knocked out, after taking the child, was still on the ground, with the wounds on her body, especially the cuts on her face, bleeding profusely.

Kenta sighed. 'I wasted enough time tracking this damn kid down already. I can't understand why he wants to have this specific bloodline in his possession… That damned island he sent me towards was obviously a dead end, and this entire search felt so freaking aimless. But I doubt even I would have been able to track it down if it had not been for this stupid kid to be singing. Ah well, I better hurry back now. Too bad for this woman. Even after that beating I gave her, she looks good enough to be a nice little plaything for a while longer, but dragging her along would only slow me down.'

"And I had my fun with her anyway," Kenta chuckled out loud, thinking back. He loved this part of his job as a bloodline hunter: the power over ordinary people, the power to do whatever you want to do. Although Kenta preferred somewhat chubby women, punching them or cutting them, all women just looked so beautiful when in pain. The added despair she had felt due to him having her child in his hands made torturing her even more fun. "Now I had better get rid of the evidence," he frowned. He knew his fellow hunters would recognize his work if they saw this woman's mutilated body. His twisted hobby was something that caught the attention of others, though Kenta himself never understood why. Well, not that he really cared about the others in the first place. It was not his fault that they did not see the beauty of his art.

Placing a few explosive notes, Kenta walked off. As he reached the shore, he heard the house explode. "Bye bye, redhair," he mumbled as he hummed a song. He threw the unconscious child in his boat, and pushed the boat back into the water.

"And now it is time to claim my reward from that snake," he grinned.

A/N: Yeah.. I know it's been a while people. And I'm sorry about that, but I had little choice in the matter, as I've gotten quite ill, and this severely screwed up my agenda. Bigtime. Seems like these things always happen at the worst moments… So, I have to focus myself on my studies even more, to catch up with my schedule again. This in turn means that I have less time to write new material for 'The Honoured Guest'. So I hope you all will be patient and forgive me for my weak health.

I had planned to write more in this chapter, but the part that comes after this just gives me a giant headache. I know where to go, but writing the part and being satisfied with it.. Maybe this is what's called a writer's block? Perhaps I should try to see 'The Last' soon. From all the things I've read about the upcoming movie, it would seem that it would be a good source of inspiration for my NaruHina-colored heart!

Thanks again to Illuminated, my trustworthy beta. And to all of you who take your time to support me! THG passed the 150.000 views last week, and also has over 600 followers now. Perhaps my crazy dream of writing one of the top fanfics could come true after all ^^

-Z-