Four months later…..
Arriving at a large, majestic oak door within the Hokage headquarters, Sasuke Uchiha knocked on the door before twisting the doorknob and stalking in. Shikamaru Nara stood in the center of the room along with Naruto Uzumaki, who was seated behind the grand office table, his fingers interlocked as he waited for the meeting to start.
"Sasuke," Naruto addressed from the cushioned chair, crossing his arms. "Any luck with the investigation?" he inquired tentatively.
"I'm afraid not," Sasuke said in a blunt tone, a tad bit dejected at their lack of progress. "I only have a theory, but it appears that there's no other further information other than the ones given."
"So you're in the same place as the investigators themselves," Shikamaru murmured speculatively. "Whatever this is, seems to be extremely careful, for them to go to such lengths. Not only that, but it appears that whoever this person is, has a knack for not being noticed by even bystanders themselves," Shikamaru adjusted the cigar in his mouth uncomfortably.
Clenching his jaw, Sasuke simply stared into the adjacent window, watching as clouds floated away in the afternoon air, being carried with the breeze. He inhaled patiently before facing forward. "There are reasons to believe that this recent assassination was not meant for just Eso. The target was likely meant for the Mizukage and everyone in his circle."
Shikamaru nodded understandingly. "Eso's death was distinctly different. The other deaths seemed isolated, but this one was far too bold to pass on as a sudden death. So many who were exposed to him got sick almost immediately. Whoever killed him, wanted him to take others with him. Thank goodness, he didn't get in close contact with the Mizukage himself."
Naruto, who had gotten all the crucial information from Shikamaru, piped out. "What bothers me is how confident they are—to go as far as to take down an entire government like that."
Shikamaru nodded. "Six different people dead in the span of months in separate different nations proves that there must be one or more assassins. So it must be connected to an organization that we're not aware of." Shikamaru crossed his arms before slowly adding. "Konoha is probably next on their radar."
Sasuke looked at Naruto. "…I think I managed to find one face of one of them."
"What?" Naruto blinked.
Sasuke then fished into his pocket. "During my investigation, I did manage to find a witness, a tourist who claimed to have caught the individuals in a photo when she was taking a picture of the city." He placed it on the table, sliding it towards Naruto. "It's not a great photo,"
That was an understatement. It was an awful picture. Gritty since the camera in question seemed to be wet and of low quality. A hazy photo aimed at the shining buildings and steel bridges that could be seen from the local bus stop. People, women, men, and children mesh into the background; their faces either obscured by the poor quality. Naruto was staring hard at the photo, his eyes struggling to find the actual target until Sasuke laid a finger on it.
"Here," Naruto's eyes followed his finger and saw the hazy forms behind Eso; a willowy woman with short black hair and dark brown eyes, dressed in a pitch-black coat and boots.
"I think a child is a person of interest as well." Sasuke laid a finger on the tiny form beside the woman. Beside her was the form of a young girl that looked to be her guardian. Both were cladded in matching black raincoats, the little girl holding a dark umbrella in her left hand and the woman holding her free hand, seemingly staring at the street, at something beyond the lens. Both of their faces were partially obscured, but there was enough of a glimpse to gather a look at the girl's black hair and at least one black eye that was visible.
Naruto's blue eyes widened to the size of plates, shock gracing his features. "What do you mean? I thought you suspected the woman? So you think a kid is responsible for all these deaths?"
Shikamaru stared at the Uchiha, his gaze demanding an explanation. "Sasuke, how did you come to this?"
"It's just a theory, but one thing is clear — two of the victims all claimed one single thing; they all saw someone specific at one point days before their deaths or hours before their deaths. A girl. Short. Black hair, black eyes. Usually accompanied by this woman or another few adults."
"What did the tourist say?" Shikamaru questioned.
"She said that this could be the ones we're looking for, even she did admit that she wasn't aware of them until she printed out the picture."
"How do you know it's not a coincidence?" Naruto inquired with a slight hint of skepticism.
"I don't, as I said before it's just a theory. For all I know it could be an odd coincidence, but—" Sasuke frowned. "What I'm trying to say is, this could be the case. Other than the dying statements and a few witnesses, there's not much to go on of in terms of speculation."
Shikamaru nodded his head as he processed Sasuke's words."It is a possibility. Certainly a plausible explanation to how this individual manages to blend into society so well. Child assassins aren't as common as it was back in the day. So the girl would have the element of surprise on her side." Then he added with a pensive tone. "Any details on that woman and the other adults?"
Sasuke shook his head. "No. They're all inconspicuous, with nothing but vague descriptions. "
"Well whatever the case is, we need to stop them before another life is taken." Naruto sat up straighter. "I'll assign a search party as soon as possible."
Sasuke replied. "Boruto and his team should be the ones to help in the search as well. Higher numbers will cover more bases. I'll continue my search on my own."
"Hah, it seems that you're always prepared for everything, Sasuke," Naruto said lightly.
"However…" Shikamaru regarded Naruto, starting out in an exaggerated slowness. "Even if we mash up an entire team for this, how exactly will we track them down with only one bad photo to even identify anyone? The assassin could be anywhere in the world right now."
"Then we have to spread out. Scout each endangered village with high levels of government." Naruto answered, looking contemplative. "If there are enough search teams, one of them will find another witness to point one of them out. And hopefully, if we act quickly, we might be able to capture them."
NEXT CHAPTER IN DECEMBER.
