Grey
Chapter 2
I glanced over my shoulder at the group of jounins trailing behind me and frowned. It wasn't as though having a group of bodyguards following me was something new; in fact it was already an integral part of my life.
I turned around, hands on my hips, and pouted. "Could you all please leave me alone for just ten minutes? I promise I won't run away. I'll be in that alley over there." I pointed at a dark and dingy alleyway to my right.
The squad leader said mechanically, "No. Orders from Raikage-sama."
"Come on, I won't eat a cockroach or anything. I'm four, and Raikage-chama says I'm of at least Genin level." I stood up as tall as I could and glared at the rather flustered jounin, who eventually spoke, "Uh, then could you at least tell us what you'd be doing there?"
I rolled my eyes and complained, "You guys are supposed to be one of the best ninjas around, aren't you? Have you lost your sense of direction? This is the very alley we were in yesterday, and I'm going in there alone so you all won't have to snigger about the way I feed a puppy."
I stopped, out of breath, and glared at them indignantly. It hadn't escaped my attention that they were laughing at the way I crooned to the filthy grey puppy that I had adopted as my own. I didn't dare to take it home for fear of facing the wrath of 'tousan for wasting my time on a stupid dog.
I could see that the jounins were rather stunned, and I took this chance to run off into the alley. Although they knew that they could catch up with me easily, they left me alone, and prayed with their lives that I would be safe and sound.
*****
"Pochi! Pochi! Where are you?" It was filthy in the alley, and large ferocious rats scampered around in the shadows.
In response to my call, Pochi crawled out from behind an overturned trash can, whimpering pitifully. Its left foreleg was bleeding, and I guessed that it was caused by one of those disgusting rats. It was difficult to fathom how a weak and vulnerable puppy like Pochi could survive in such unfavourable conditions. Oh, how I ached to bring him home! However, due to 'tousan's restrictions, I could not do so, and hence had to continue feeding him as often as I possibly could.
I dug around in my pocket and found the small slice of bread I had brought along especially for Pochi. I offered the bread to Pochi, who gobbled it down eagerly. As I was looking through my pockets for more food, I heard a back door open, and footsteps followed. There seemed to be two people, and I caught a whiff of alcohol coming from their direction. Not wanting to be involved in a drunken brawl, I picked Pochi up and ducked behind a garbage bin.
I held my breath as the footsteps drew closer, and held the squirming Pochi close, as I prayed to the gods that I wouldn't be discovered.
The footsteps stopped, and I heard a drowsy voice say, "Jiro, what was it you wanted to tell me?"
In between hiccups, the other person said, "It's top *hic* secret. You mustn't tell anyone... *hic* I heard that Konoha is developing a forbidden *hic* jutsu. Apparently, it *hic* enables the user to bring the *hic* dead back to life..."
I sat up, ears wide open to whatever secrets these drunk men were about to reveal.
"Isn't Konoha the village we have a verbal treaty with?"
"Yeah. And by doing *hic* this, they have violated the terms *hic* of the treaty. If Raikage-sama gets to *hic* know about this, there may be a *hic* war..."
The two drunkards then proceeded to wail about their families, about the country, about the economy and just about everything else that was wrong in their lives. One of them gagged and was sick into a trash can. The smell of vomit filled the air. I felt a faint sense of nausea wash over me, not because of the stench that hung in the air, but because I was afraid of the possibly impending war.
Once the men had left, I made for the main road as quickly as I could after putting Pochi down, and was met by the familiar, comforting sight of my jounin bodyguards.
*****
I climbed up the tree near the edge of the cliff, watched by the hawk-eyed Anbu squad that had been marked out to protect me. I settled myself on a thick bough and leaned against the rough trunk. This was the spot where I passed the time when I wasn't training. I had grown up with this tree, and its leafy branches offered me a cool and comforting shade for me to sit in. This time was no different, except that I was greatly troubled.
I wondered if I should tell 'tousan about the conversation I had overheard in the alley. Logically, I should, but that could lead to a war, and hence cause further damage to our country's resources and economy. However, I refused to allow this matter go to rest, for the village was endangered greatly by this forbidden jutsu, which could possibly bring past ninjas to life.
After much consideration, I realised that no matter which choice I made, the village, my home, would still suffer the consequences of a devastating war. If we waged war on Konoha, we would still keep our honour even if we lost the war. On the other hand, it would be greatly humiliating to be caught unprepared and be ravaged by the shinobis of Konoha.
With that in mind, I hopped off the branch and ran to 'tousan's official quarters.
When I reached the Raikage's headquarters, I was told by the chuunin on guard duty that an emergency meeting was in progress, and hence I was not to interrupt under any circumstances.
So I sat on the steps outside 'tousan's quarters, waiting impatiently for the meeting to conclude. My jounin bodyguards followed suit, and sat beside me on the steps. Despite being ordered to be my bodyguards and not nannies, they did not hesitate to keep me entertained with jokes, stories and riddles as we waited for 'tousan to come out.
At long last, I saw the village elders and jounins filing out of the meeting hall. Last of all came 'tousan, and I ran to him and flung my arms around his thigh and buried my face in his warm stomach. In response, he patted my head gently.
"Good timing, Kurai-chan. I was just about to send for you."
I glanced up at 'tousan, a questioning look on my face. "Why were you about to send for me?"
"Because, my good son, you have been chosen to go on a mission to Konoha."
My eyes widened as I realised that I was going to be sent onto enemy ground. Caught by surprise, I nearly forgot to tell 'tousan about what I had overheard from the drunken men in my shock and excitement.
After I had finished telling him about Konoha and the forbidden jutsu, he smiled proudly at me, and told me that I was a good ninja, always subservient to my superiors. He also told me that he had known this for quite a long time already, and that he had thought very hard about the possible solutions to this threat.
And the solution was to send me over to spy on Konoha, and check the movements of their ninjas. 'Tousan told me that the village council had chosen me because I was a young and innocent child, and there was a chance that they would let their guard down when dealing with me. Moreover, I was also an unofficially trained ninja, and this would make me all the more viable as a spy since they could not check up on me.
As a result, over the next few days, I was given a new identity, and was told to tell a flawless sob story to whoever found me.
And hence, with such preparations, I bade a tearful goodbye to my family, and armed with some supplies, set off on my first mission ever.
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A/n: Thanks to those who reviewed ^^ The reviews really gave me an ego boost ^^ Thanks again!!