Why did he save me? It won't change anything. I'm still going to drag his corpse back to the village.
Face-to-face with the man she'd come to kill, Hotaru sized up her lackluster rival. His dark sunglasses. His upturned black collar underneath a green coat. His stubbornly unreadable face. And that spiky black hair that stuck out like a tumbleweed from his Leaf headband.
"My insects seem to like you," Shino said to her. "Why, you ask? Because kikaichū are worst than bedbugs when it comes to a meal, and you slept soundly without a single bite. You should consider yourself lucky."
Bugs?
Hotaru blushed, remembering the defiant dream that had dragged her into sweet delirium.
You mean he didn't even touch me?...Last night, he did all that...with just his bugs?
What's wrong with me? That's not the point!
Hotaru shook herself out of it.
This wasn't the time to think about dreams.
Shino's remark wasn't a compliment.
It was a warning.
And now she faced him alone.
Just like Hachimitsu Sensei told her not to do.
She had to stay focused. It'd be a mistake to let her guard down around this guy.
"As promised, you're still alive," Shino said. "I kept my word to the beekeeper. At least for tonight. But what happens now, depends on the answers you give me."
Inch by inch, Hotaru's eyes skated down to Shino's huge...
..pockets...
...bulging with his hands stuffed inside...
...where dozens of bugs crawled freely from under his sleeves and from the inside of his turned up collar. Tumbling over each other like little psychos in a race to do their master's bidding.
A daring foreshow of what was to come if she didn't submit to him.
Another Aburame parasite... Hotaru thought resentfully. He's nothing without those damn bugs.
"You can't fight me. Even after giving you some of my chakra, the odds are against you," Shino warned her. "After taking me on, you would never recover."
He's annoying, but he's right. He's got me cornered. Hotaru calculated the odds. I wasn't trained to ever fight him directly in battle. I'm in too deep...but I can't let him know that he's got the upper hand here...He has to keep thinking that underestimating me would be his mistake...At least until I find a better way out of this.
With slow and steady breaths, Hotaru met Shino's gaze again, unaware that the weapon keeping Shino on guard was her own golden eyes, and not the jutsu she hadn't mastered yet.
"Who are you?" Shino asked. "Why is the beekeeper dragging things this far to protect you?"
The beekeeper? What is he talking about?
Even if she knew, Hotaru wouldn't tell him. Silence was the last promise she made to Hachimitsu for the sake of the village.
"And if he captures you," Hachimitsu had warned her. "Say nothing, even if he kills you for it. Do not give him any information that would lead him back to our village. He can never know who you are, where you came from, and why you were sent to kill him. Whatever he does to get those answers from you, endure it. The less the enemy knows about you, the less he can use against your village."
"Unless," Shino pondered on. "He's in on your plan to kill me too. Why do you all want me dead?"
But Hotaru's silence was unbreakable. Out of her vows to her village. Out of defiance to him. Out of love for the Kamizuru clan.
Out of hatred for the Aburame of the Leaf.
"I prefer that we settled this peacefully. Why, you ask? Because I won't fight a girl. Not in your condition," Shino told her. "It's not too late to change your mind. Because fighting me isn't your only option."
You're not like the Aburame they talk about...Why do you keep trying to save me when it's obvious my mind is made up? Hotaru wondered. It's like you don't even know we're both fighting a war we didn't ask for. It's our destiny to kill each other. Why do you have to make it more complicated by acting like a gentleman? Just shut up and fight me already!
"I see. Silence protects your mission. I admire your courage as a shinobi," Shino said. "But I can't honor you with this fight. You're already too weak. There must be a way I can give you what you want without either of us dying."
But...if I let you live...more of the people I love will die. You're too dangerous. If killing you is the only way to stop you from destroying my village, then I won't stop hunting you until I do.
"So," Shino acknowledged the determination burning in her eyes. "You choose to fight me then."
What did you expect? I'm a Kamizuru. I'll never surrender to an Aburame!
"It seems I have no choice. But only on one condition," Shino continued. "It's shinobi form to honor the skill of your opponent, should you lose to them in battle. I am Aburame, Shino of the Hidden Leaf. Tell me your name, and I will accept your challenge."
Hotaru stubbornly held her silence.
"I see. This mission means a lot to your village then. Talking will only compromise that," Shino concluded. "However, until I know your name, I will never face you in battle. Why, you ask? Because killing you without a reason is what thugs do, not real shinobi. When you're ready to talk, we'll decide the winner of this fight. Until then, my insects will keep an eye on you."
Shino turned to walk away. Leaving her burning in the spark of his self-righteousness. Was this him calling her a thug? How dare he turn down a fight with her! He wouldn't even give her a chance to prove herself.
That was worse than defeat.
And she wasn't done with him yet.
So you think you can hold me captive here like one of your insects?
Hotaru dared him to try.
Even a honey bee is never fully tamed.
And merging his chakra with the last of hers, Hotaru formed the bee hand sign for her first attack.
"Insect Summoning Jutsu. Killer Hornet Swarm."