Prologue

The man before them had blue skin, gill-like markings on his cheeks, and towered over all of them in a way that they had only truly seen with the likes of Ibiki Morino.

"You sure you want to do this?" Naruto asked her softly, which immediately made Ino want to glare at the idiot.

Of course she wanted to do this! What Itachi had done to their Gen-Gen was inexcusable! And the fact that the rest of the adults in their life wanted to keep everything hush-hush only made this situation a thousand times worse.

If they wanted answers, they were going to have to look for them themselves. It didn't matter if they were only twelve years old and only genin, they were going to have to take matters into their own hands yet again. The adults weren't even trying to cover up their tracks anymore- they were blatantly keeping important information from them because they thought their young age impeded them from being useful or even understanding the minimum of what was happening.

Currently, the man that had been capture on the same day that Gen-Gen had been mutilated by Itachi Uchiha was feigning sleep. Ino wasn't dumb enough to fall for the act- he had been aware of their visit from the moment they had stepped into his cell. She was sure of it from the way that his face was too relaxed. No one, no matter how strong, would be as experienced as this guy was supposed to be and in complete ease within enemy territory.

"Kisame Hoshigaki." She repeated the nin's name for the hundredth time that night- she had memorized the file her father had on him, as well as all the information the rest of her friends had been able to find. "Native of Kirigakure. One of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Traitor of both factions. And a member of the Akatsuki. Have I missed anything?"

At first, there was no response from the chained behemoth. But Ino didn't believe the forced relaxation he was trying to portray. She was more than smart enough to fall for the ruse. Her father had taught her better than that. Asuma Sensei had explained the seriousness of the Akatsuki threat to them. And being around the likes of her friends all her life had taught her how to read all sorts of personalities without even having to break a sweat.

Kisame was a challenge, she was not blind to this. But he wasn't an impossible challenge. The only issue was that the time she would need to thoroughly break him was not time she had.

He didn't say anything. He just kept quiet, head hung low with his chin heavy against his chest. His eyes were closed.

With a roll of her eyes, Ino sent one stiff nod towards Naruto. From his spot in the doorway, the blonde offered a stiff nod of his own. Then he stepped outside the door to stand guard.

Shino, who had been otherwise quiet to her right for the past few minutes, let out an unamused scoff. Then he stepped forward, raising one hand to Konoha's captive.

Ino took one look at him and understood exactly what it was that he wanted to do. Under any other given circumstances, she would have pushed him off, told him that she would find a way to find the information they needed without the need of such force. But right now, Gen-Gen's life was on the line. And she wasn't about to hold the Aburame back from what they knew would be an effective torture tool.

"If I were you, I would open my eyes right now." Ino called out to the Hoshigaki, earning a barely perceivable fluttering of his eyelashes. "What we're going to be talking about requires you to see so you can fully understand the threat you're under."

For the next few seconds, everyone within the room was completely still. No one moved. Ino remained rooted in her spot, all the while Shino kept his arm raised, pointing directly at Kisame's chest. And Kisame himself hung suspended by his wrists, waist, and ankles, unmoving.

Eventually, though, his impatience got the best of him. The man growled and cracked one eye open, sneering at them with inhumanly sharp teeth. And as soon as that one eye caught sight of them, both of the man's eyes widened in unabashed shock.

"You're children," after a second of not keeping the surprise in check, the man's white eyes narrowed and a frown overtook his thin lips. "Konoha must be desperate if you were sent in."

Ino offered a dangerous smirk up at him, "Who said anything about us being here with permission?"

His left eyebrow raised in curiosity, then he lifted his head up and rolled his shoulders. Even though he was very much chained up and had no way of utilizing his chakra because of the chakra draining seals that had been stuck onto his skin, he still was an imposing sight. This was a giant made up of muscle and danger- Ino was not foolish enough that they would be able to take him on if he escaped.

Luckily enough for them, though, Konoha's T&I Department was renown for one thing that played to their needs: no one had ever escaped from their clutches. And Kisame wasn't about to be the first, Ino knew.

"Kisame Hoshigaki, I tire of this chatter." Shino announced coldly, drawing Kisame's attention away from his Yamanaka teammate. "My name is Shino Aburame. Do you understand the importance of my name?"

Ino crossed her arms over her chest as Shino took reigns of the interrogation, all the while making her way towards the chair tucked into the far left corner of the room. From here, she had a clear view of both their prisoner and Shino, allowing her to properly watch them both for any reactions she needed to be aware of.

Even though she wasn't a fan of profiling her loved ones, she wasn't blind to the need to do it every now and again to make sure that everyone was okay. And profiling their captive was of utmost importance tonight. This would be the only night they would be able interrogate Kisame without having to rush. All of the Clan Heads were in a meeting, along with the heads of all the departments. And their older friends had been kind enough to take Genma out for a night of drinking.

Effectively, anyone that could have gotten into T&I to interrupt them was busy tonight. And they had planned to strike tonight for this very reason.

Kisame turned his chin up, offering an unimpressed look at Shino. "Announcing your name to a dangerous enemy known for murdering people that piss him off isn't the smartest thing."

"I did not announce my name to boast." Shino's right hand turned upwards, his fingers curling into the palm of his hands. His kikaichū began to trickle out of his sleeve, slowly crawling over his fingers in an almost lazy manner. "I am an Aburame. These kikaichū live within me- we live together in a mutually helpful relationship."

Kisame blinked at him, glanced quickly at Ino, and finally shook his head minutely. "I don't need a lesson on the Aburame of Konoha. You understand just how dangerous it is to talk about your skills to an enemy, right?" if Ino didn't know any better, she would think that Kisame actually sounded worried over what they were doing. "Telling me about those bugs-"

Shino lifted his left arm up, silently asking for the man to shut up. Kisame frowned, seemingly prepared to call him out on how stupid he was currently being. But then Shino spoke up once more, effectively cutting him off.

"Tell me, Kisame Hoshigaki," one of the bugs climbed onto the tip of Shino's thumb, then flew up into the sky. Then another followed. And another. They began to circle each other. "Have you yet been subjected to any torture by any of Konoha's Torture and Interrogation Department in the hopes of getting any information on Itachi Uchiha from you?"

There was a flash of disbelief in Kisame's eyes, then he growled, "I'm starting to get pissed off with you guppies."

Guppies. That wasn't brat. It wasn't an insult. It was a term of affection for children in Kirigakure- that much she had read from her father's old report about the Hoshigaki Clan, which he had written up after he had visited Kirigakure a year ago looking for information on this missing nin. A term of affection- much like when Gen-Gen would call them chickadees or Kakashi's mongrels?

Kisame didn't consider them threats. And even though he was faking being irritated, he had most probably been isolated since he had been brought in- he was actually comforted by having some kind of human contact.

"Ino?"

The blonde shook her head softly, "There are no physical markings on his arms, neck, or face. The fact that he didn't even flinch at the very possibility means that he has not yet been subjected to any physical harm- and he doesn't actually think he'll be affected by it."

Now the man turned to look at her, his face trying to remain stoic even as his eyes shown with amused surprise. She offered him a pleased smile, then looked back at Shino.

His back was ramrod straight and his posture was tensed and prepared. Shino was here with one goal only- much like her. But he was the one prepared to get his hands uncharacteristically dirty to accomplish said goal.

"You're a Yamanaka," the Kirigakure native noted after a few seconds of silence, "What- you in my head without me even knowing? Fishing around for things you don't even understand?"

"Not at all." she shook her head and shrugged, "We don't resort to intrusion of the mind unless there are exigent circumstances that cause us to have no other option. Right now, I'm merely watching an interrogation conducted by my Aburame comrade."

"Seeing how you have not yet been interrogated by any Konohagakure operative recently," Shino cleared his throat, now allowing his kikaichū to begin to swarm the air around him.

Kisame's lips curled in disgust at the sight- he had shown no problems around the bugs when they were few. But seeing them all beginning to unite; hearing the beginning buzzes of a dangerous swarm; caused him revulsion. Possibly, he was even worried over what Shino was planning.

Good. That meant that he would be more susceptible to the fear Shino was attempting to implant.

"You have not yet actually been put through any pain within these walls, have you, Kisame Hoshigaki?" Shino didn't wait for an answer before he swirled his hand, causing the swarm of kikaichū to follow the motion of the hand, even as more bugs began to join it. "Tell me, have you ever felt a kikaichū crawling over your skin? The Aburame's partners are much stronger and sturdier than a regular insect- oftentimes, this translates to the sensation of their legs walking on you being slightly more perceptible- there is more weight on you."

Kisame was attempting to maintain his cool, even as his mind clearly worked overtime to reach the conclusion Shino was working towards. His shoulders stiffened and his eyes continued to track the movements of the swarm, even as the rest of his body attempted to remain relaxed.

When Shino had pitched this idea for a possible torture method to get Kisame talking, their friends had immediately decided it to be the most effective way to get a battled hardened monster like Kisame Hoshigaki to talk. They had all known that this wasn't a man that would respond to run of the mill bodily threats. And none of them, even as committed as they were to bringing Itachi Uchiha down, were prepared to actively mutilate a man, even one as vile as him.

Psychological torture; the threat of something horrible; was sometimes all someone needed to get a criminal talking. This had been one of the first things Ibiki and her father had ever taught her.

"Tell me, Kisame Hoshigaki..." Shino didn't move any body part other than his hand, which he flew into a flourish that sent the large cloud of his kikaichū to begin circling around the criminal.

Involuntarily, all of Kisame's body tensed.

Ino stopped her face from showing any emotion- she kept her lips in a tight line and her eyes focused wholly on Kisame's reactions.

"How do you think it would feel to have these heavy kikaichū infesting your insides?"

Kisame's eyes widened; the restrains on his wrist shook when he tried to move his hands. "You wouldn't-"

"Tell us all you know about Itachi Uchiha and my hand will not be forced." Shino cut in speedily, then cocked his head ever so slightly to the side. "And I mean all you know. Leave any details out, Kisame Hoshigaki..." the swarm of insects tightened around Kisame's head, some of them even beginning to land on the sides of his mouth and nose.

Fear consumed all other emotions within Kisame's eyes- Shino's tactic had almost worked. Ino still kept an unreadable expression on her face- she was more than aware that they had not gotten the information they needed yet. And she had yet to truly play an active role in the interrogation- she needed to be careful over the technique she chose to use.

Still, Kisame was a man filled with bravado. He wasn't about to give information so quickly, it seemed. He narrowed his eyes suddenly, his gaze hardening as he turned a cold glare on the Aburame.

"I'll never squeal. Loyalty is something I pride myself o-" the man choked when a kikaichū threw itself into his throat, apparently hitting him harshly. He began to cough, eyes going wide.

Fear was slowly becoming terror as Kisame's chest began to rise and fall in a much quicker pace than before.

"Your loyalty is to the Akatsuki's plans, isn't it?" Ino called out, standing up from her chair to make her way in front of Kisame once more.

The kikaichū buzzed around the man menacingly, Shino's arm still outstretched menacingly at him. But now Kisame was focused on her, eyes frantically searching for a way out.

Now was when she showed empathy.

If this man was a sociopath, he would not have even turned to look at her. He wasn't one- he was a cold and callous individual, yes, but he was still capable of feeling human emotions. He was afraid to die, but he wasn't willing to give up secrets that would harm his mission. This mission was paramount to him- which was the reason why he had allowed Itachi to take Gen-Gen on alone; he had known that Itachi would be fine. He had just not expected to be surprised by Konoha's forces.

She was sure that her father and Ibiki had not compiled an extensive profile on the psyche of all the members of the Akatsuki they knew about for her to manipulate one of the most dangerous S-ranked missing nin in the world. But the resources had been at her disposal- their parents were careless with worry over the Akatsuki threat and trust for their children. It was only the shinobi thing to do to take advantage of such weaknesses.

Ino could use this.

"We're not here to stop your mission, Kisame." Ino smiled reassuringly, softening her face into a façade of sympathy. "We just want to know about Itachi Uchiha- what you know about him. His background, his loyalties, his reason for being in the Akatsuki. He's a traitor of Konoha and he hurt someone important to us- we want answers."

Kisame frowned at her, "How dumb do you think I am?"

Ino turned a look to Shino, who glanced back. Even through his sunglasses, she knew they were on the same page: Very dumb.

But she didn't tell him the truth.

Now was time to play ignorant innocence.

Clasping her hands behind her back, Ino shrugged her shoulders, "The adults refuse to tell us anything. They want us to think that this isn't something that we should be worried about. But we just want to understand exactly why it was that someone from our Village would hurt someone so important to us? It's like..." she sighed now, turning her back on the man. "It's almost as if he has no loyalties. I mean, if he was able to turn on Konoha, what's to stop him from turning on the Akatsuki?"

Kisame growled audibly, "I've been interrogated before, kid. I know the tri-" he choked once more, though, indicating the fact that Shino had not liked his answer.

Ino frowned to herself, but soon turned back to the man with her eyebrows drawn in with worry, "We just want your thoughts on Itachi."

"You just want a location!" Kisame lost his cool now, his body trying to push forward even through his restraints.

The swarm began to buzz aggressively, some kikaichū beginning to land threateningly on the man's blue skin. Then Shino scoffed, causing both Ino and Kisame to look at him.

"Did you know that my kikaichū feed off of chakra?" He asked conversationally, his tone taking on a lighthearted nature for the first time since he had first spoken within the room. "Even though you think you'll be able to kill them once they're within your body by forcefully elevating your body's temperature through the rapid use of chakra, this won't be a tactic you'll be able to utilize for more than a handful of minutes."

There was a knock on the door- Naruto was signaling them.

Kisame hissed now, "You're not going to get me to talk- I told you-"

"We don't even want a location on the guy!" Ino finally relented.

They wanted one. But they wouldn't be able to get one from Kisame. And their time within his cell was drawing to a close- they had been here for half an hour at this point.

Kotetsu would be returning to the Aburame home that night- he had said that he wanted to see Shino before he went to sleep, just to make sure that his little Aburame brother was safe. That meant that they had a deadline to meet before Kotetsu finished with Genma. Even though the Clan Head meeting would end later, Genma's outing with their older friends would end in ten minutes.

Kisame blinked at her, completely confused. "Then why are you here?"

Ino sighed heavily, forcing tears to come to her eyes. "Because I want someone to tell me about the monster that betrayed my village." she was playing up the betrayal angle, hoping it would strike a chord within this guy. It was a long shot, but it was still a shot. "I want someone to talk to me about the history of the jerk that put one of the kindest men in the world in the hospital. And I don't want to be told that I shouldn't worry about it because I'm some dumb kid."

There was a flash of emotion within Kisame's eyes at the end of her plea- Ino caught it and was left confused by it. Then he closed his eyes, shaking his head at them.

"You're just a bunch of dumb kids messing with problems you don't understand." He offered a smirk, absolutely delighted even as he ignored the increasing noises from Shino's swarms. "Stand down, bug boy. I'll tell you what you want- if only because you actually had me going with the threat of torture. Not many have managed to actually react to threats."

Ino didn't like how nonchalantly he was treating them. She also didn't like the fact that they would be leaving without the one piece of information they really needed.

… but... well, she guessed that getting Itachi's partner's perspective on who he was as a person might just help them hunt him down later on.

Besides, Kiba, Sasuke, and Tenten should have snatched Kisame's cloak from the Evidence Vault by now- if there was even the smallest molecule on the piece of clothing, she knew he and Akamaru would be able to track him down.

Shino looked at her, looking to see if she was satisfied with what Kisame offered. She wasn't, but she knew that he wasn't going to willingly give them anything else. And she couldn't invade his mind just yet- her father would undoubtedly have to resort to this tactic and she didn't want him to know that she had used such a dangerous jutsu in her search for answers.

After she gave a nod to her friend, Ino turned to Kisame and offered a small thank you. Then she walked towards the chair to the back, brought it to stand in front of him, and finally sat down to listen to what he had to say.

Before he said anything about their Uchiha target, Kisame nodded at Shino with respect. "That is a novel form of torture. Keep it as a backup, though. If you come out swinging with such a heavy hitter, any other tactics are more likely to fail."

They were getting advice on torturing from a criminal.

Ino couldn't help feel that Kisame felt some sort of compassion for them- but she was at a loss as to why.

Still, Kisame held his end of the bargain. He told them what he knew about Itachi- about how he had gone through with the Uchiha massacre because he had felt like it, how he was a cold hearted ninja that accomplished the mission no matter what, and about how he never talked about his family or Konoha unless Kisame somehow managed to get under his skin.

Admittedly, it helped expand Ino's profile on Itachi Uchiha- this was a person that had changed exponentially in the years since he had betrayed the Village. But she still felt unsatisfied with the fact that they would not get a last known location from Kisame himself.

"Thank you." she smiled at the man once he was finished, "That's a lot more than any of our parents has told us."

Kisame waved his left hand noncommittally, all the while shrugging.

Ino stood up and nodded at Shino, silently telling him that they could leave the cell now. So they both began to walk away... until she was hit by an odd idea.

She wasn't sure if she would be able to get Kisame's trust- but there was no loss in trying.

"Do you think you could keep our visit a secret?"

Kisame would need some kind of confidant within Konoha. He wasn't the completely isolated individual he wanted people to think. He had been relieved to receive a visitor after having been left alone since being incarcerated.

Maybe... Maybe if she played up their innocence, made him think they were completely out of their depth... maybe then he would let slip important information he had not given right now.

If this worked out, it would take a lot longer than just one visit.

Well, she was willing to go to hell and back for Gen-Gen. Forming some form pleasant relationship with a criminal wasn't morally correct, but it was something she was willing to do to get revenge on Itachi Uchiha.

Kisame scoffed at her, shaking his head softly. "What're you willing to offer me to keep my mouth shut?"

Ino clasped her hands together in front of her, offering him a kind smile, "Weekly visits. With your favorite food."

"What makes you think I would even enjoy your visits?" He challenged, only for Ino to continue smiling brightly at him.

"Did you forget the part where I had profiled you within a second of having seen you?"

"I bet your profile is wrong."

With a shrug, Ino turned around. Shino opened the door, stepping through before he kept it open for her to cross through. She walked out, ignoring the curious expression on Naruto's face.

"Did you get what we-" Naruto began, only for Ino to ask him to shut up with a quick cutting motion with her hand.

She took one step outside of the door's range, then began to close the door behind her.

When there were only a few inches left before the door was shut completely and automatically locked once again, she heard Kisame call out, "Shrimp and crab! Bring me anything shark related and I'll gut you!"

Sticking her head through the open threshold, she offered him her most blinding smile, "Will do!"

Once finished with that, she closed the door behind her. Then she backed up onto it, allowing herself to rest against the cold metal for a moment; a heavy sigh left her lips as her head hung.

"We didn't get anything particularly useful." She admitted to Naruto, who gasped.

"And how do we know that what we did get is true?" Shino questioned clinically, leaving her feeling as if there was a void within her chest.

Nothing had gone as they had planned in there- but they couldn't let Kisame think that. He was a man that knew more than he let on- just like he was a man that felt a lot more than he wanted people to know. Even though it was risky, if they wanted to make full use of him, they would have to play him for more than just one interrogation.

"Hopefully, his extreme sense of loyalty transfers over to the deals he makes." She offered, then shook her head, "We're going to have to do this again next week."

"What? Why?" Naruto voiced his extreme shock, all the while Shino turned to her with an eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Because I just struck a deal with him and if there's one thing he values, it's honor." She hissed back at Naruto, then looked at Shino. "We weren't going to get anything out of him by manhandling him. He's just too proud of a man. I think that the one way we'll be able to get answers from him is to make him underestimate us... And... Well, empathize with us."

Stunned silence fell over both boys at that, then Naruto pointed out, "I don't think a monster like that is capable of feeling anything, Ino. Much less feeling anything for anyone else."

Guppies.

Kisame had humored them, even though he had tried to seem distant; disinterested.

He had even offered Shino advice.

"Trust me, will you?" She pushed off of the door and began to make her way towards the opening of the tunnels that were supposed to be secret access ways to all of Konoha's underground structures. "I'm the Yamanaka here."

Neither of her lifelong friends said anything, letting her know that they trusted her judgement. And Ino breathed out, trying to calm her raging thoughts. Even though they had not gotten the information they had wanted, she was going to make good use of what they had gotten.

~..~..~

This will be a short sequel to Genma Shiranui: Mother Hen Extraordinaire that will follow the cast during the three year skip that took place before Shippuden! I hope you all liked this chapter and are wholly prepared for a ride!

Please review and tell me what y'all thought!