And finally, the antagonist makes his appearance!

Chapter 27

The barefaced liar

Day 2

The instant Sachi awoke she bolted up from the bed. She recalled what happened and knew in an instant that this was not her bed. It was far too soft and fluffy like it was made entirely of goose down.

She knew she had been kidnapped but she had no idea where she was now.

She assumed prisoners would be held in some cold dungeon in chains not completely unrestrained in a soft feather bed.

"I am glad to see you are awake."

Sachi turned her ear to the soft female voice in the room.

"Where am I? Who are you?"

The woman stood and did not answer. She slid open a door and spoke. "She's awake. Alert the master."

The door closed and the woman approached Sachi again.

"My name is Kimiko. I'm here to take care of you."

"Take care of me how?"

"I am here to see to any of your needs. Feed you, bathe you, change you, whatever you require. Is there anything I can do for you?"

The woman, Kimiko, had a soft voice. Gentle and kind like a mother whispering to her child. It was this calm that induced a minute amount of hope in Sachi.

"You could let me go home."

The door slid open again allowing a second voice to interrupt.

"You are home dear Sachi-chan. This is where you belong."

This man's voice was confident and falsely cheerful. She took an instant dislike to it for the words he spoke.

"What do you want with me? Who are you?"

"Pardon my rudeness," the man said in a sickly sweet tone. "I am Hiro Kamizuru and what I want is for you to feel at home here. You aren't a prisoner. Here you are family." His hand came up to pet her head. She shied away, shaking her head to remove it. "Kimiko-chan will take good care of you. I'd like you to get cleaned up and dressed. And I will show you around your home when you're done. Kimiko-chan?"

"Of course," the woman answered immediately.

"I will leave you in Kimiko-chan's capable hands. Send for me when you are done."

Hiro left. Kimiko's delicate hands found her shoulders and Sachi jumped.

Kimiko apologized genuinely. "I'm sorry. I'm just going to lead you to the bath."

Sachi frowned as the woman pulled her along but she said nothing. It seemed they wanted to treat her well and Sachi didn't have the bravado to back talk and risk worse treatment.

She wasn't a shinobi, she couldn't handle pain like they could. If accepting their hospitality meant she was treated well she wouldn't fight even if it came with a blow to her pride.

She allowed Kimiko to bathe, dress and even put makeup on her. She didn't bother with the stuff herself and now that it was suffocating her face she could see she wasn't missing anything.

Kimiko prattled on about how excellent life was here and how much Sachi would like it. Sachi could barely hear her over the sound of her own thoughts.

She worried about Kai-chan possibly dying in the forest. She wondered how long it would take before anyone realized she was gone. Her family would know things were amiss when they saw all of her things still in her room. But they may not suspect anything until she didn't return from her usual schedule of work and seeing Shino.

Shino.

How long would it take him to realize?

He usually waited for her at the bookstore. Would he assume he missed her or she was absent from work for any number of reasons and see nothing amiss till days later?

She had no idea why she was taken let alone when someone might start looking for her.

Kimiko had ushered her back to the room where she sent for Hiro again.

"You look lovely Sachi-chan! As promised I am here to take you on a walk through the gardens of your new home."

He grabbed Sachi's hand in his and snaked his other arm around her waist, pulling her along with him.

She grit her teeth.

Did they think she was incapable of a single step without assistance? Even without a cane, Kai-chan or her chakra sense she could still find her way around a room.

"The Kamizuru," he began as they strolled around the gardens, "is a small clan of bee users. This land is new to our family but it suits us well enough. It's a small compound still large enough for our clan to grow into." He began to describe the gardens for her all while she remained tight-lipped and compliant. Sachi understood from his explanation that the gardens were the center of the compound with buildings surrounding the whole area. The gardens themselves held a diverse compilation of flora, no doubt helped by a large amount of bees the clan had buzzing around the area.

"You can speak up," he chuckled at her. "No need to be shy. Tell me what you think."

"I'm sure it's just as beautiful as you say," she said unenthusiastically.

Hiro placed a flower stem into her hand. "A beautiful rose for a woman far lovelier than an entire garden."

She sniffed it. It seemed to burn her nose with its sweet odor. She thought it a fitting comparison to his sickly sweet voice. Both suddenly far too much for her liking. She wasn't one to be wooed by a single cheesy one-liner. Her heart belonged to Shino and that is where it would stay.

"You don't need to be so shy," he reminded. "I want you to feel comfortable here. You can ask for anything."

Sachi gulped and stole herself for every ounce of bravado she possessed.

"Can I go home?" She asked timidly.

Obviously, the ninja career was not for her.

Hiro laughed good-humouredly as if she told a joke.

"Oh, Sachi-chan," he pulled her along with him again, "you are home."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hiro walked her in back talk the gardens telling her the history of the Kamizuru clan. He highlighted the impressive points and stories without any feedback from her whatsoever.

He bored her long into the night until dinner where she ate while he highlighted all the grievous crimes the Aburame had done against the Kamizuru.

Sachi wasn't an uneducated idiot. The Kamizuru had been a footnote in Konoha history, where the Aburame prevented the Kamizuru from attacking Konoha as, it seemed, the best way to fight insects was with other insects.

Hiro had permitted her to retire after dinner. Kimiko escorted her back to the room she had woken up in, passing a guard at the door.

After aiding Sachi in washing off her makeup and dressing her for bed Kimiko spoke.

"If you need anything at all I will be just next door to the right. The guard outside will protect you and help you to my room if you need me. I will be here tomorrow morning when you wake up."

Kimiko left Sachi alone with a multitude of thoughts and questions.

She obviously wasn't going to be able to sleep so she shuffled herself around the room.

She wasn't sure if it was wise to let the Kamizuru know she could make it around with the use of chakra. If it happened that the bees were attracted to her as well...

Well, she really didn't think it would be pleasant to be covered by chakra eating killer bees.

Instead, she had to resort to a very child-like shuffling while holding her arms out and began to discover her current living quarters. The bed and door were at opposite ends. The wall and door were wood and paper in traditional shoji style.

Closet doors adorned the left wall while a bookshelf stocked, surprisingly, with braille books, sat on the opposite wall.

Braille books were not a common household object. If they had gone to the trouble of buying the books that must have meant they had planned her kidnapping long ago.

They also seemed to want her comfortable for some reason. But she still couldn't figure out why.

She eventually tired from exploring and laid in bed listening to the buzzing of the Kamizuru's bees and hoped someone would come for her soon.

Are you enjoying the roller coaster I made for you? Is the antagonist living up to your expectations?