Chapter Twenty Six:
"Wow." Sakura commented, looking into the horizon. "You sure that's where we're meeting her?"
"Hm." Kakashi nodded. "Looks like a festival."
"I was more in awe of the amount of green. But yeah, that too."
The ground, bar a red stone path, was green. Lush, tropical, glowing with health green grass. It lined the village like a carpet. The roofs of the houses were covered with the same grass, potted flowers and containers lined across the verandas, the roofing, the borders of the gardens.
The flowers shone bright and healthy, colours standing out like blooms of fireworks on a green sky.
"You want the brief again?" he asked offhandedly, lifting his hitai-ate to examine the village with his sharingan.
Sakura helped herself to one of his pockets, withdrawing the brief. There was minimal information on there and still, as she re-read it, it meant just as much as before. She was leaning heavily on Kakashi for this one.
It was unlikely this was any trap, it had got past all intelligence work which was a good sign, but if it was indeed an elaborate ruse, Kakashi would be going from zero to fighting for their lives again very quickly.
He had a good ability to read people, to know their intentions from a single glance.
Of course, the sharingan helped.
"As if this is all we have to work of." Sakura huffed and re-rolled the scroll. It gave the location, it gave the date and it gave the information that their meeting was with a female who had a fondness for jutsu's involving snakes (always good for the flashbacks of Orochimaru trauma). She claimed to have information that deserved an audience with Tsunade.
"She's not hiding." Kakashi spoke, his guidance for his partner as he examined the chakra in the woman wearing the turquoise yukata and two snakes.
"What do you think?" Sakura asked, her hands moving through the seals to burn the mission now their target had been located.
"Hm." Kakashi was still trained on the woman that turned his way, as if she could see across the distance unaided, like she had located their chakra. From the way she ran her hand down the snake around her neck, perhaps she did. "She certainly has potential to make this an interesting fight if it does come to it."
"Strategy?" Sakura asked.
"She knows we're here." Kakashi turned his head to her, sharingan still active. "Would be rude of us to keep her waiting."
Sakura blinked as she felt his masked lips press to her forehead and then he dropped from the tree branch, casting a henge as he did. He landed on the grass in traditional festival dress, backpack disguised, weapons hidden. Just another travelling gentleman attending the festivities.
Sakura considered the meaning of the contact to her forehead for all of the seconds it took to realise he wasn't waiting for her. She bit a curse inside her mouth to him and cast her own henge, the subtle toned pink yukata cast over her gear and she dropped herself onto the illusion of red heels that matched her ruby obi. It was one similar to what she had for festivals back home, except this one had a slit from the hip of her skirt down. It was a go-to for seduction missions, and it was just enough to pass as decent for civilian gatherings. Multi-purpose, and that was why she liked it.
She tittered her way to catch up to Kakashi.
They made their way past flowers they had never seen, gardens tended to perfection and a lovely carpet of lush green.
Kakashi's plain navy garb did nothing to stand out, but his mask still drew attention and he placed her arm on his as they approached, the shadow of marriage sunk over them, a delicate cover for anybody who wanted to look twice. The sharingan was just another grey eye to anyone who looked that closely.
They moved at a sedate pace for nin meeting a potential target. Something she had to rely on Kakashi to set, her nerves were alert and ready to strike.
She concentrated on putting one leg in front of the other, smiling like an idiot at the elderly gents who gave her bare leg striding out of her clothing a deep visual examination.
"You're drawing more attention than I am." Kakashi whispered to her as they followed foot traffic into the centre of the village.
"Jealous?" she returned with a smirk to him.
"And here I thought I married a demure, sweet thing." he continued the charade. "What a surprise it was when I learned she was a sex kitten."
"Stop turning this into an Icha Icha plot." She gritted out through her teeth, a quick kick to his ankle as they turned past the flower tower in the centre of the village and towards the figure sitting backwards on the picnic table a short distance away.
"Icha Icha marriage." Kakashi continued dreamily. "He signs himself up to a foreign bride" he began, patting her hand on his arm as she started digging her nails in in reprimand. "Okay okay, he marries to save his village and it turns out she-"
"If you even think of pitching that to Jiraiya, you are in so much trouble."
"Don't worry dear." He stopped and smiled at her through the mask. "You'll be included for royalties too."
"You are-" But he straightened quickly, the chakra flare in his body drawing them back to the task, now in ear shot of the nin they were deigned to meet.
Sakura did as most women do, and pulled out instant judgement like it was a secret technique.
The Yukata was real, not a henge.
It was thick material, intricately hand sewn patterns that probably cost more than Sakura saw all last month. Which meant she had both style and money.
Considering she was meant to be a nin without a village, where was the money coming from?
Contract killings?
Theft?
She was easily pretty enough to distract attention in bars and clubs and come out with a bra full of wallets.
And she was quite gifted with a large bra size to start with, classically clean cut features. Perhaps a bit sharp though. A woman who gave orders rather than followed them.
A shouter, not a whisperer.
The tightly pulled blonde bun confirmed she was rather controlled, but the few whisps that freed and framed her features gave her an air of 'don't care'.
Her posture confirmed it, she sat, leaning against the picnic bench table top and hadn't moved even as two high level nin approached her. She just narrowed her eyes and took a breath.
Sakura didn't like her.
The woman uncrossed her ankles and stood as they stopped a few feet apart.
Sakura reached into her yukata sleeve for the senbon holster Shizune had taught her to sew into all of her formal outfits before recalling it was a henge rather than the real item.
She palmed the kunai hidden at her thigh instead. Never without a weapon.
"They said I was to expect a Scarecrow and Blossom. Wasn't expecting such a literal description."
Her voice was sharp, clean, finished without an err of hesitation.
The woman knew who she was and she didn't apologise to anyone for it. "But it's nice to see you survived. You were half dead last time I saw you." The words were directed at Kakashi and Sakura turned to him, unable to hide the surprise. They'd met before? When? Where?
Sakura instantly held herself back, those were questions that came from a jealous lover, not partners in a legendary assassination duo. She squashed the thoughts deep deep down and focussed on the situation again.
A grass snake slid from the sleeve of their companion's yukata, curling around her fingers like rings. She didn't even seem to register its presence, just adjusted the width between her fingers for it.
How many snakes were on her person, and of those, how many were venomous?
Sakura rocked onto her back foot, putting more distance between the bodies.
"Hm." Kakashi's lack of answer was both comforting and worrying. It obviously didn't deserve a response, but, it wasn't denying it happened. "You wanted to meet with our Hokage."
A cheer erupted in the festivities behind them, a round of applause following it.
"Correct." Her word was selected carefully and she turned her back to them, rounded to the other side of the picnic table, sliding into the seat. Elegant, like she'd been raised by a Lord, not the council of a warrior structure in a hidden village.
Sakura wanted to know where she was from, why she was here, what possible world she would trust her… but this is why she didn't lead these things. She wasn't objective enough to do anything than dismiss any potential risk from play. She wouldn't have even agreed to meet with this woman if it was her choice. They could survive without her information, whatever that was.
Whatever the past, Kakashi deemed it safe to take seat on the other side of the table.
"We need more than that." he instructed.
The way he sat took more room than required and he spread his posture over the seat, a silent gesture for Sakura to remain standing, to be at distance.
It was the trust he had for her to handle things if he was incapacitated. Trust enough that he was willing to stand directly in the firing line, knowing she was there.
"I figured as much." An observation, a predicted request. She wasn't even flustered. "I won't divulge the full extent of my knowledge to yourselves. I need to speak with your Hokage directly. However, I will provide you enough information to confirm that I hold the validity you seek."
Kakashi nodded once at her and she repeated the action, drawing up her hand with an elegant twist to furnish a viper from her sleeve. She clicked twice and the mouth of the snake opened slowly, a scroll emerging from its gullet.
Job done, it curled around her arm like a tree branch and tucked its head back down as if to sleep.
Even her summons weren't on alert it seemed.
Her painted nails tangled in the tie of the scroll before smoothing its contents out on the table.
"Hm." Kakashi's gaze was firmly on the photo displayed over the documents in the bundle.
"12 years ago I was in an academic and romantic relationship with Kabuto Yakushi. He not only assisted in my training, but he shared intelligence he knew about Konoha."
"Why?" Kakashi continued like her words didn't surprise him at all.
"I asked Kabuto for a medical favour. It was not a regular technique and neither my own talents or that of any other medic I have seen have been able to reverse it." She had Sakura's attention. Perhaps she didn't know Sakura was protégé to Tsunade-sama, she certainly didn't seem to indicate as much with the topic. She hadn't even flickered her sight to where Sakura stood. "I understand your Hokage may have the skills and I believe the information I hold will pay for the treatment I require."
"And your allegiances?" Kakashi probed.
"If this procedure can be successfully reversed, I would not wish to be unaligned any more. If there are any negotiations surrounding that I would undertake them. However, I understand the limitations of the request considering my background."
"The medical procedure." he asked, direct and unwavering.
"Irrelevant." she cut him off. "It does not pose harm to yourself or your kind."
But Sakura had an idea, pieces put together from the little information she had.
"Either you had a terminal illness and now wish to die to it," Sakura began. "Or, you asked him to sterilise you."
This time, the woman did meet her eyes.
"Does it matter?" she snapped.
"Yes." Kakashi answered for Sakura.
"I asked for stasis to my reproduction system." The woman answered bitterly, glaring at Sakura out of the corner of her eye.
And now, at the age she was, she was facing the idea of a family. If Tsunade could reverse it, she would want to settle into a village somewhere and put down roots. If not, it no longer mattered, she would die on the battlefield.
"You're a missing nin." Kakashi changed the subject.
"From sound. I rejected a change in leadership."
"Kabuto?"
"I caught his eye, I realised I was a replacement for someone else who he wanted. It ended without fuss. I am aware of his current status."
"There are stipulations." Kakashi continued. "We seal your weapons, you dismiss your summons, you will be taken to our custody until a decision is made by the Hokage."
"Nothing unexpected." She rose an eyebrow as if to challenge him to add anything else.
Kakashi didn't rise to it, there was nothing else, he was confident enough to see her chakra and if she started to gather it for any jutsus, he would be a step ahead.
It did mean he'd be travelling all the way back with the sharingan active though. Sakura was going to be pissed.
"We leave in 20 minutes. We won't be stopping for anything other than a water break, I trust you can keep the pace." It was Kakashi's turn for the verbal barb.
The woman just turned to Sakura, appearing to give her a once over again. "We'll be arriving around 5am." he purposefully drew back the attention, not liking the gaze she wore.
"Suitable. I shall collect my belongings together." she rose gently, nodding at Kakashi before stepping away from them, down the grass and towards the square where the festival continued.
"I don't like her." Sakura announced quietly, resuming her place to the side of where he sat. His sharingan followed her signature further away from them, towards the inn.
"Hm."
"Original plan was to observe her overnight, any particular reason you want to push ahead?" Sakura asked.
He stood, wrapping an arm around her waist, the appearance of the happy couple slipping back to them.
"If something happens, don't be alone with her." His message was guarded, she could feel it in the stilted way he spoke.
"You don't trust her." Sakura concluded, concern rising.
"Not until we get her to the intelligence division." Kakashi turned from the chakra collecting hidden items in a rented bedroom and to the blossom in his arms. "Be alert."
"You're not going to rest your sharingan are you…" she sighed heavily and rummaged in her pocket, securing her grip on the bottle of pills. "Take them if you need them." She passed the chakra tablets across. "I'll heal you when we get back."
Masked lips pressed to her hair and he guided her to fall into step beside him, leading her to the festivities in the square.