Naruto tipped her drink at Onaconda Farr. "Thank you for telling me," she said in a low voice.
The Rodian laughed nervously. Naruto had the feeling he was always rather nervous.
"Anything for you," he promised, bowing his head.
Naruto smiled, tipped her head, and walked to the table in deep thought.
"Credit for a thought?"
Tal Merrick stood there with a sleazy smile.
"Simply thinking about a few personal matters, Senator Merrick."
The doors opened, and an assassin droid appeared.
Itachi sprang into action, stunning most of the Senators. Using the force with one hand, he activated a shoto saber. Naruto gaped, stunned, as he used the Force to hold the assassin droid aloft, then cut it in half.
A few shots with a deactivator he had on his person later, and all of the mini assassin droids were dead.
"Someone really wants someone in this room dead," Itachi said out loud. "My lady, forgive me. You have every right to punish me for using the Force -"
"Enough, Izuna." Naruto sighed. "Most of my people are Force-sensitive. No, we are not all Jedi," she added at the Duchess' frown. "Believe me, there are plenty of non-Jedi Force sensitive creatures out there. Izuna, would you - what in the name of all that is holy are you doing?!"
Itachi picked up one of the assassin droids.
"Get Skywalker up here," Itachi told Obi-Wan, holding the struggling droid. Obi-Wan tried, but shook his head.
"Anakin's hunting down another of the bigger assassin droids."
Itachi glanced at the small droid, then started to walk around the table.
The small droid showed a ton of hostility around Naruto and the Duchess; whoever programmed it also had the thought to program it to attack the Jedi Knight, which was odd - knowing that Naruto was going to be there when in fact the job was given on their way back...
Naruto looked at the Duchess as Itachi paused.
"Duchess, where were you coming from?"
"Kalevara," Satine replied with a minute frown. "Why?"
Itachi moved over to Merrick, who brought out a blaster and trained it on the Duchess.
Everyone froze.
"Too smart for your own good." He raised his communication device.
"Don't say a word."
Naruto found herself shocked she'd spoken, and Merrick turned to her, quickly switching targets.
"Oh?" Merrick laughed. "And what will you do about it?"
"I'll probably die," Naruto said as cheerfully as she could muster. "There are, currently, three Force-adepts in this room, five guards, and an assassin droid. And then there's you. A single, non-Force-sensitive piece of slime that wants to get the credit - pardon the pun, Duchess - for the Duchess' life. Or my life." Naruto shrugged. "Let me guess. Black Sun or Separatists?" She watched his face carefully, noting how his finger twitched. "Separatists it is. You don't care if either one of us is dead or alive; but you'll only get off one blast before you're dead. So who's it going to be? Me, who probably has a higher bounty for being dead, or Duchess Satine, who has a lower bounty for being dead?"
"This isn't about the credits," Merrick sneered. "Kalevara will be a Separatist planet. I will see to that."
"I don't think you'll live past tonight," Naruto said, standing slowly. "Not if you continue this course of action. Think any of the Separatists will allow you to keep control of Kalevara?"
Merrick frowned. "You said there were three Force-sensitives in the room?"
Naruto smiled.
"Yeah. Forgot to say. Surprise!" she faked a smile, using the Force with a sharp gesture to make the blaster get yanked out of his hand. A sharp pain made itself known on her shoulder, indicating she'd been shot.
Taking the pain, Naruto threw herself on the disgraced Senator's back, her claws coming out and sinking into his shoulders through his clothes. Using her empathic ability, Naruto shoved her exhaustion down into the Senator.
He dropped like a stone. Naruto got off of him after removing her claws, making a face as she did so.
"Obi-Wan, is there a glass of alcohol nobody's drinking?"
As she washed her nails in the refreshments, Naruto listened to the sounds of surprised muttering and Orn Free Ta's retching.
She turned to the group, discreetly throwing the bloody alcohol into a plant.
"So," she said to the room at large. "I'm pretty sure that an explanation is in order."
~:~
Having been on Mandalore before, Naruto was pleasantly surprised to see that the Duchess really had changed things.
So, when she asked the Duchess her next question, she wasn't expecting the reaction.
"So, have any problems with Death Watch lately?"
Duchess Satine froze. "You can help," she breathed, turning to her.
Naruto tilted her head. "With what?"
Prime Minister Almec approached. "Death Watch has been increasing its activity. However, our planet's youth has been getting involved. Perhaps if a Jedi who knew our culture came... No, no Mandalorians have been recruited by the Jedi. It's a silly idea."
"Actually," Naruto cleared her throat. "I was adopted by a Concord Dawn native."
She didn't mention that he was drunk, and fighting two other Mandalorians.
"I see." He stroked his chin. "Do you know the native language of Mandalore?"
"I don't see how that's relevant," Satine frowned.
"Cuy ogir'olar," Naruto said fluidly, causing the duchess and prime minister to glance at her. She had simply said what the Duchess had, but in Mando'a. That's irrelevant. "While Anakin is investigating with Obi-Wan, I would appreciate something to do, Duchess. Whether or not it's important to the society."
~:~
"...and that's how I escaped the jail from Hosnian Prime."
The students were all staring at her with shock.
"You escaped by being annoying?" one of the students asked blankly.
"It was harder than it sounds," Naruto pouted. "The Hosnian Prime government hates Jedi, so I had to be extra extra annoying. It was difficult, but I obviously got out. A friend of mine happened to be cashing in on a bounty, and she got me offplanet. To keep from an intergalactic incident, I apologized to the Senator and wasn't allowed off Coruscant for three weeks." Naruto shrugged. "I was then kidnapped by another bounty hunter friend, and he took me for drinks on Coruscant."
"Do you routinely get kidnapped?" asked another.
"I used to," Naruto nodded. "But technically I went with him willingly."
"Uh... Sorry to interrupt, Master Jedi, but we're supposed to be talking about Rodia," one of the students said awkwardly.
"Oh. Right. Rodia." Naruto thought. "It has big buildings."
She got blank stares in return.
~:~
Korkie Kryze stayed after the class was over.
"Excuse me, Master Jedi," he said, frowning a little. "What is your opinion on power?"
Korkie's friends paused at the doorway, both to wait for Korkie and to wait for their current teacher's words.
The Jedi hummed and frowned. "I believe in a lot of cases that power corrupts, and that absolute power corrupts absolutely."
"Does that mean that you are corrupt, Master Jedi?"
The Jedi chuckled. "I think I have a bad habit of accepting gifts and using my power, under certain circumstances, to sway others. I would not say I have been corrupted by my power. Not like I'm a real Jedi Master."
"I thought you were," Korkie said, surprised.
"Nope," the Jedi said, setting down the personal pad down. "I'm just a Jedi Knight. Obi-Wan Kenobi is a Jedi Master, and the Grandmaster is Master Yoda. None of the Jedi have absolute power, though; the Jedi have their ranks - from Youngling to Padawan to Jedi Knight to Master - and there is a Council."
"Don't you answer to the Galactic Senate?" questioned the nephew of the duchess, who got a smile in return.
"Yes, and out of the entire Senate, who has absolute power?" questioned the Jedi. Korkie's eyes widened, and his voice lowered. "Did you - are you accusing the Chancellor?"
The Jedi looked for a moment like she was angry, but not at Korkie. "Unfortunately nobody cares to listen to me. But yes, that does mean what you are thinking. Why do you ask me about my thoughts on power?"
"I..." Korkie hesitated.
"Let's go get something to eat," suggested the Knight. "I'm hungry and I don't think I can wait another standard hour before I pass out."
~:~
The group walked through the hallway to the mess hall, which garnered some attention.
The food was distributed, a little more than was strictly allowed to the Jedi for the differences in biology; Naruto explained that she expanded more energy to keep herself from getting frostbite on this planet, despite the fact it was actually a hot day on Mandalore.
The Jedi ate, answering the questions Amis, one of Korkie's friends, was asking.
Then she drank some of the tea, then stopped, looking in the tea.
"Stop!" Her shout stopped Amis from drinking the tea. "The tea's been poisoned." Her statement carried over the silent mess hall. The Jedi looked uncomfortable at the attention before she started to cough - just like all of the kids before her.
~:~
"She drank a relatively small dose of it, which ordinarily wouldn't have adversely affected her," the doctor said to Korkie, who was very concerned about the Jedi. "But, as her biology is very different and her metabolism works very fast, the poison worked through her system faster."
Korkie entered the room with a bundle of flowers.
The Jedi, who was in the process of climbing out the window, turned to see them.
"Oh." She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I left a note."
A message - BILL THE JEDI ORDER, OR ITACHI UCHIHA - was on the table in Basic.
The doctor facepalmed. "Damn Alterians."
"I brought you flowers, miss," Korkie said.
The Jedi smiled and accepted them.
"That's sweet," she smiled. "Thank you."
"No problem," Korkie said as the doctor took the note and left. "Look, we need your help. We were just attacked when we went to see my aunt."
"Okay," she nodded. "Wha - whoa!" She slipped as she went to come back in, her hand pulling her up, to Korkie's surprise. Her strength must have been enormous. "Okay. Not doing that again." The Jedi looked at them seriously. "Okay. For this to work, communication is key, so... What are you even looking into?"
"Well, according to this, the reason we've gotten half the rations we normally do is because the shipments are bringing in less," Korkie responded. He looked to the door. "Shoniee found that out. We want to go to the warehouse district, but my aunt's name only goes so far."
"Hmm, I see," Naruto nodded. "And you think I will do better?"
They looked at each other. "Well, you are a Jedi," Korkie said. "You're kind of short, wouldn't look like much of a threat."
A smile came over her face. "Please don't call me short."
There was something kind of chilling about that smile.
Korkie mentally noted that he definitely should not piss her off.
