Chapter Five: Tell Me the Story of Your Life

Ino was not allowed to be present at the meeting. In the room with the envoy, Sai felt immediately uncomfortable despite her warm greeting.

"Sai, you honor us with your presence. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I am An and this is Reina," An gestured to the young woman standing quietly behind her, "She is the daughter of our great leader." Sai looked at the young woman because Koharu's current glare seemed to require him to do so. She was pretty by normal standards with cascades of dark wavy hair framing the delicate features of her ivory face. She had dark piercing eyes that were edged with a look of mournfulness, like someone unable to turn away from a tragic scene. She stood with her head bowed slightly, giving an impression of shyness although she somehow managed to keep her dark eyes locked on Sai's face. "Thank you for meeting us." Reina offered. Her voice was hypnotic like soft music. "I have admired you for a long time."

"I'm not marrying you." Sai said flatly. He saw Reina blink at his blunt reply but she retained her composure. Sai was tired-it was almost dawn—and he was tired of this meeting and didn't mind showing it. Koharu's authority forced him into this room but, other than enduring their presence for the required amount of time, that was the end of his obligation.

"We have something to tell you." Reina invited him to a chair. "I hope it will make you reconsider your position and come to think of the Rain as your home." She looked over at An anxiously. Sai felt subdued annoyance as he reluctantly sat down with the three of them, his scrolls and tanto slung behind him. Now that he was legally betrothed they would need to have his voluntary consent to go with them. He anticipated some extravagant offer of wealth that he would quickly refuse so he could finally leave and get back to Ino. But the envoy An's next words took him by surprise.

"It's about your mother, she was from the Rain. You are one of us." For the first time in a long time, he was at a loss for words.

"Sai is a Konoha orphan." Iruka's voice floated from the corner where he stood distant but watchful per Ino's insistence.

"Yes, I know he was found near Konoha but we know that his mother was from the Rain. She was a civilian artist and teacher before the Third War destroyed what little we had left in the Rain. She disappeared from the village after suspicions arose that she may have been consorting with an enemy shinobi, possibly from the Leaf. Her body was found a few years later in a cabin in an area outside of Konoha." Sai looked back at Iruka in confusion and then returned his gaze to An.

"How would that make her my mother?"

"Those who found her also found evidence that a child had been there—small toys and a child's crayons."

"That doesn't mean…" Sai stopped talking suddenly, wondering why he was taking part in this absurd conversation. He knew it was a lie or a…mistake but he couldn't help feeling newly broken at even the abstract concept of having had, and lost, a mother.

Iruka stepped over to him. "I think we're done now, Lady An, Lady Reina. Please have a safe trip back." Looking over at Koharu he nodded to her as he turned to leave. He saw her hands twist together in frustration. Sai followed him out the door without another word.

Sai stepped into Ino's embrace as soon as he exited the room and saw her waiting in the hallway. "I'll leave you two alone." Iruka said somberly and walked away.

Sai looked down into Ino's sea blue eyes.

"I need you to help me remember."

Ino, shocked, felt herself pull away from him slightly.

"What? No!" Although Koharu made her wait outside, she had heard everything.

"I just want to know the truth..."

"No, Sai, of course not. That would be far too dangerous for you—you could end up with permanent brain damage." She felt her breath catching as his expression became despondent. "And, they're…they're lying. You do know that? They're manipulating you!" She hated the panicked pitch she heard in her voice. How could she compete with a ghost?

He disentangled himself from her and walked away, leaving her momentarily in stunned silence. He kept walking, lost in thought, as he exited the safety of the village gates and continued onward into the approaching dawn. He wasn't angry. He just needed some space to think. And, actually, he knew she was still with him, he could sense her following from a distance in the woods surrounding the village. Eventually he stopped and turned back to see her, shining in the early morning sunlight. The space between them seemed infinite. He knew she was disappointed in him.

"Please, Ino, I just need to know."

The breeze was tousling his dark hair across the pensive curve of his lips. Ino thought he looked like a marble statue brought to life. But she was not going to relent on this. A memory search of that magnitude could destroy Sai's mind and it was all for the false hope of finding a dead woman. Although she couldn't figure out what it was, it was clear that the Rain wanted more from Sai than recovering a lost village orphan and securing a mate for their insipid "princess". They were hiding something.

Suddenly, there was the slightest rustle of leaves and both Sai and Ino tensed, reaching for their weapons.