Chapter 5: Shinobi
"She's made her move." Shikamaru leaned back in his chair, the black leather creasing into the familiar outline of his ANBU jacket. It was early in the morning and the semi-darkness of the spacious room emphasized his sharp features; dark shadows ringed his eyes, the little light there was gleaming briefly over his gaunt cheeks and the overnight stubble on his chin. The years as Head of Intelligence and ANBU captain had taken their toll on him and he looked weary, even thinner than he used to be. He flicked excess ash from his cigarette casually into the bin at his feet, exhaling a faint breath of smoke before tapping the map with the tip of his pen. "Here."
Neji bent over the faded scroll, watching intently as Shikamaru proceeded to draw a thick black line across the marked territory of Tea country.
"We've managed to link a whole string of past unsolved cases to her, now that we know approximately where she has been for the last few years," Shikamaru told him quietly. "The murder of the Tenkechi Lord, in the North of Tea country. The kidnapping of the three sons from the Matriarch of the Hebeki clan to the West. The burning of the family shrine near Tawasaki - and so on. Her fighting style has largely remained the same, but her execution and performance has improved greatly – so much so that we were unable to recognize her patterns or any traces of her when shinobi were sent to investigate. From the little that we know, she had been drifting slowly southwards, taking on jobs as a private mercenary until she came...let's see now...around here." He circled the town of Kyotamura. "There, presumably, she came into contact with Orochimaru or his men."
"It might not have been Orochimaru who ordered her to assassinate Miyake Akio and I," Neji pointed out, frowning, and Shikamaru rubbed his temples thoughtfully.
"While we cannot rule out the possibility that she had been hired to kill off Leaf shinobi by other organizations or individuals, considering the present situation – Orochimaru about to attack Konoha, the whole country on the verge of war – and considering just who the targets were – Miyake was posted at the brothel frequented by Orochimaru's men, remember? - it's most likely that it was him, or at least one of his subordinates," he explained, before picking up the pen again and continuing with his briefing. "So, she got to Kyotamura and met you. From what you've told me of your encounter, she had not expected you to be one of her targets." Shikamaru glanced at Neji, who nodded. "And you are sure it was not an act? To pull you in, somehow?"
Neji closed his eyes briefly, considering the notion. When he opened them again there was no trace of doubt in his pale stare. "No."
Shikamaru nodded, accepting his judgment without comment. "Alright. Well...recently, she has moved here."
Another streak across the map, and he pointed to another small town, this time on the border of Rock and Leaf. "She's taken the long route around Rock to get to Isako, presumably to stay away from our hunter-nin, and now..." Here he stopped, suddenly a little hesitant. Neji watched him impatiently.
"Well?"
"She's waiting for you."
A short, surprised pause. Neji's hands fisted underneath the table but he kept his tone tightly controlled, low and level. "How do you know?"
"Yesterday a messenger came in from the town, reporting that seven of the town's most wanted had been found dead, all in the town square - in the space of two days, no less. Now, who do you think is capable of doing that?"
"It could have been any other mercenary." Neji shook his head slightly, but his mind was already whirling with the implications of his words. Seven bodies. Seven years, Tenten. Seven fucking years -
"Not one of this caliber, no. Also, an inn keeper reported that a stranger with brown hair and eyes had checked in to his establishment three days ago. It was Tenten, I'm sure. My guess is that the killings are a signal for you to find her."
Neji nodded and stood up, a tense, dark figure in the shadowy confines of the Intelligence headquarters. "Thank you."
Shikamaru eyed him carefully from his chair, hard black eyes glancing over the stiff Hyuuga. He had not been surprised when word came out that Neji was going to personally hunt down and execute Tenten, though he wondered whether the Hyuuga would be able to complete his task. He remembered Tenten and how they she and Neji had been nearly inseparable – for a while – and he wet his lips unsurely. "You know, Hyuuga. Are you sure you want to –"
"I'll be ready to leave by eight."
Shikamaru blinked, sighed, flicked his cigarette into the bin. "You'll be there by late afternoon, then. It's not far from Konoha."
Neji nodded again and swept out of the room.
The Hokage was waiting for him at the gates. Neji narrowed his eyes when he saw the tell tale blonde hair, the lazy, yet subtly dangerous slouch of the woman leaning against the perimeter walls. Tsunade refused to wear the Hokage robes but her very presence alone was enough to convince anyone of her superior status.
"Tsunade-sama." Neji bowed briefly, dark hair slipping over his shoulders.
"So you're off now, are you?" Tsunade was gazing out through the iron wrought gates, watching a pair of swallows as they circled gracefully against the clear blue sky. Neji nodded anyway.
"Yes."
A long, drawn out pause. He was impatient to get going but stood at attention, figure erect and defiant. His pack was swung over a shoulder; the edges of his thin cotton shift fluttered in the light wind. Suddenly she turned to him, directing her piercing gaze onto his face.
"Remember where your loyalties lie, Hyuuga Neji."
"I will." He bowed again, but Tsunade seemed to be unsatisfied.
"As Leaf shinobi, your duty is to follow my orders until I die or a new Hokage is elected. Remember that. I will expect nothing less from you."
"Yes, Tsunade-sama."
She eyed him keenly for a moment before sighing softly, brushing stray strands away from her face. "Hurry back, Neji. Orochimaru is moving his forces closer again. I've decided to send Team Seven out against him."
After his return nine years ago Sasuke had been put under house arrest for nearly a year. Only the combined efforts of Sakura, Naruto and Kakashi had persuaded Tsunade to allow Sasuke to move freely around the village, occasionally taking on C or D class missions. Sasuke was still one of the most powerful shinobi of the village, but he had been severely injured during his escape from Orochimaru; that had healed quickly enough, but in the meantime Tsunade had placed a seal on him that limited his range of jutsu, forcing him to fight with a mere fraction of his former power.
Her decision to let Sasuke go on such a delicate mission was an indication of just how urgent the situation had become.
"You have released the seal on the Uchiha."
"I have, yes. He will need all his fighting capacity to destroy Orochimaru."
"Hn."
"Without Team 7 guarding the village, and with you gone on this mission...Konoha is left too vulnerable for my liking. You will complete the ...execution," Tsunade told him quietly, wincing slightly at the word, "And return immediately."
"Yes, Tsunade -sama."
A long, magnificent range of mountains skirted the Leaf side of Isako. Despite the steadily drying climate - what with its proximity to Rock country - during the summer the forests sprawled luxuriously over these mountains were a wet, thriving stretch of lush green. Covered in a wild tangle of vegetation, a wide plateau nestled snugly between the central peaks of the range before dipping gently towards the town, tapering into flat ground at the Eastern perimeter walls. A soft, delicate mist hung suspended between each valley and slope, a white shroud spun in the air like glistening spider silk, at times hiding and revealing glimpses of dark foliage and the frothy trickle of a distant waterfall.
A roughly beaten track ran directly through the mountains and over the plateau before following the gentle curve of its journey downwards towards Isako. Today the mist crept low on the ground and it was from this white, damp haze that Neji appeared, treading softly on the dirt path, a lone figure in the wilderness. He was at the very tip of the plateau; below him the land stretched on in a gentle incline. Despite the mist, from his vantage point he could faintly make out the awkward, ugly outlines of the small town, countless multicoloured rooftops glimmering in the distance.
He paused, wondering briefly under which one Tenten currently resided. Perhaps she would be waiting for him at the gates. Perhaps not. Neji had spent the entire journey wondering what her intentions were, why she wanted him to come to her after that display back at the brothel where she had made it blatantly clear that she did not want to see him again. Was she planning to finish her job and kill him? Or was she repenting, calling him to her so he could escort her back to Konoha?
...No. Neji closed his eyes. He was only making it more difficult for himself. If Tenten meant to come back, she wouldn't have killed those seven men. Would she? They were vagabonds, outlaws. It could have been a gesture of goodwill. He groaned, slamming a fist into a nearby tree. It didn't matter anyway; she was to be executed. He knew why he had volunteered for the task. On the spur of the moment he had came the closest he could to begging, unable to face the idea of Tenten being killed by any other man; if he was the one, he could at least grant her a quick, painless death. Right?
But there was something more, some other reason buried in the depths of his heart, a tight, burning core that made him thirst for the sight of her again; it kept him awake and hurting at night, remembering the way she had left him behind - because he still loved her, damn it, what he had told her that night was true, he still loved her far too much. And now he was to murder her. Execute, kill, these words were all just dressed up versions of the ultimate truth – he was about to murder the woman he loved.
Was he?
... ...Yes. Neji knew unconditionally that he was ultimately shinobi of Konoha first, man second. Both of them had chosen a higher calling which presided above all others, including love. Tenten had chosen Anko. Neji had chosen duty.
It was going to have to be enough.
He arrived at the foot of the Eastern walls within an hour. Earlier on he had decided not to enter the town through the gates - he could not risk being seen, by Tenten or by the civilians of Isako. The town guard force was small; the length of the perimeter walls were left unmanned, with security concentrated on either end of the town. He had considered scaling the walls, but they were simply too high. That left the northern gateway at the other end of the town, where he knew a small river flowing into Isako created a slim opening. That waterway would be guarded and manned, but there it would be easier for him to slip through unnoticed.
He was currently near the southern end of Isako. The afternoon sun was already waning, the shadows cast by the wall lengthening rapidly, creeping further along the stretch of wild grass that enclosed the town. He would have to hurry if he wanted to slip inside with enough time to find Tenten before nightfall. The walls were made of a bizarre mishmash of brick, bamboo and wood – anything the original founders of Isako had managed to find, really, recently patched up in some areas with concrete. Neji began making his way quickly northwards, keeping inside their shadow; he traced his fingers absent-mindedly along the rough, mismatched surface as he ran, preoccupied with too many thoughts of Tenten, of the past and the possible future.
A sudden glimmer of white, hot metal; half a second later a kunai was embedded less than three feet from his foot.
Fuck.
Neji started, leaping away just in time to avoid another weapon flung down from above. The dagger dug into the moist earth, buried to its hilt and he grit his teeth, Byakugan activating immediately even as he jerked his head up; he was momentarily blinded by the sunlight, blinked, and looked again. A small silhouette was crouched atop the wall directly above him.
"Tenten?" he called out, voice thick and hoarse, but she was already falling down, down, plummeting towards him, blades poised and flashing in the sunlight.