"Okamoto, see about the man in bed 3 when you're done. I've tried everything, but he keeps complaining." One of the medical shinobi tapped the female on her shoulder before leaving to put her charts away.

Holding in the urge to let out a deep sigh, Risa finished tending to her patient before turning to see Jiro Otsuka smirking at her from his clinic bed. Ever since she'd been placed on medical duty, she'd basically been in charge of all of the 'difficult' patients, partly due to her temperament and mostly due to the running gag that she wasn't liked. The frequent flyers knew that once she was involved, there would be no shenanigans; in turn, they would receive any care they needed with no hesitation.

"Okamoto-san… My throat is parched." Jiro sneered. "Be a dear and fetch me some water."

There was only one person who seemed to bypass that rule and it was the male that was staring back at her. It was only because he knew of the stipulations that kept her there. For Kakuzu's sake, she was trying to stay out of trouble and keep a low profile, but the older gentleman was testing her patience.

"Mr. Otsuka, your stay here is well overdue. Your eyes are healed and you have no substantial symptoms." Risa handed him a cup of water. "Can you leave so someone more deserving can have this bed?"

"Do we not have cold water anymore?" Jiro frowned in disgust. "You know how I like my water."

"We've been at this for months now." Risa rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to sit here and play house with you. I've done my due diligence and you're a disturbance to everyone here. It's time for you to change and grow up."

Jiro laughed loudly as he eyed the irritation that was written all over the girl's face. "I should change like you? You don't even sound like a country bumpkin anymore - you just sound dead. Perhaps the weight of your partner's sentence has finally humbled you."

"If you're trying to rile me up, I don't have that kind of energy for you."

"I'll leave… on one condition."

"And what's that?"

"You come back to the ranks as my partner."

Risa had turned her back to him to leave, but his words made her stop in her place. Go back to the ranks? If only he knew how done she was with this village and how much had happened in the background. She would entertain his thoughts for the moment, but it would mean nothing in the end. Looking over her shoulder, she spoke.

"Why would I want to do that?"

Jiro swung his legs off the side of the bed and stood up with a smirk. "I can help you reclaim your honor. Think of your old man and the sacrifices he made. If I were you, I'd be trying to get back in good graces while everything is still fresh."

"I'll have the doctor give you your discharge papers."

Risa left the room, hearing nothing but Jiro's laughter, and went to the nurses' station. She didn't have time to dwell on Jiro's proposal as it wasn't even a consideration in her mind. After her shift was over, she quickly left and went to Kakuzu's hut. Her schedule involved dropping a bag off at the waterhole, then heading over for dinner with Kakuzu. While she was in the middle of cooking, there was a knock on the door and she stopped to answer it.

"Hello Risa." Tatsuo stood in the doorway with a smile, his hands concealed by the sleeves of his robe. "May I come in?"

"What did I do now?" Risa sighed as she turned away to finish dinner. Because she was in somewhat of a time crunch, she had decided to make something simple but now her plans were going to be further derailed because of this conversation.

Tatsuo stepped inside and closed the door behind himself before looking around curiously. The home looked the same as he'd last seen it, meaning she hadn't made the place look like her own. It was mildly concerning, seeing as how he knew she'd been living here ever since Kakuzu's sentence. "How are your parents doing? I can imagine they weren't too happy with this… change…"

"We can just skip the small talk and get to the real reason why you're here." The female responded curtly as she packed up some rice balls and soup.

"I'm changing your duty."

"To what?"

"You will be my bodyguard tomorrow." Tatsuo instructed. "I already know you're fully aware of the delivery that will take place. I want you to return back to the force, Risa."

"So I can be used and thrown away, right?" The bluette scoffed. "We both know the best place that I should be is at the clinic. There's no reason for me to be out in the field because I don't like it here. I have no loyalty towards you or this village anymore."

Tatsuo nodded in agreement. "Yes, we do know, however, I know your character and your sense of responsibility. You still have a tie to this village and that overshadows everything - Kakuzu. You also know your loyalty to this village is what keeps him alive."

"So now your only option is to threaten me."

"But it's not. As long as you wear that headband, you are mine. The moment you take it off, I will kill you. This is your only option." Tatsuo reminded her. "You're lucky just by being here because I could've had you imprisoned just like your partner. Now, are we clear on your new duties?"

"…Yes."

Tatsuo smiled. "Wonderful. Now, you don't need to worry about seeing Kakuzu tonight." He stepped forward and grabbed one of the containers off the counter. "Leaders help their followers after all. You'll need to relieve the night guards at 3AM so I suggest you get your rest."

Risa watched Tatsuo leave the hut with her hands balled into fists. Tomorrow was D-Day and although this could be a potential wrench in the plan, she wasn't going to let any obstacles stand in her way. Tatsuo was going to get what was coming to him. All she had to do was watch her temper and get through tomorrow. All she had to do was think of Kakuzu.

Risa stood at her post behind Tatsuo, her arms glued to her side. She was in the main meeting hall as the village leader addressed all shinobi on the momentous event happening today - they were finally being recognized. She could feel herself disassociating during the long speech, but the glares boring into her soul from the surrounding ninja were enough to keep her alert. Tatsuo, seeing how distracted everyone seemed to be, decided to point out the elephant in the room.

"Risa Okamoto will serve as my personal guard throughout this endeavor. Anyone who has reason to object may speak now."

Tatsuo waited patiently, only to receive no response. Once everyone was aware of their positions, the meeting hall was cleared and the Takigakure head returned to his office with Risa in tow. They spent hours in his quarters, Tatsuo focusing on work while Risa stood in the corner. She thought watching paint dry would be much more entertaining than this.

"There were plenty of shinobi that could've been your bodyguard." Risa suddenly said.

"You're the most capable." Tatsuo replied easily. Putting his pen down, he turned to her. "Do you realize how much of an asset you are to this village? You're technically our top shinobi and you're young, which means you still haven't reached your potential."

Risa frowned at his statements. If Kakuzu hadn't been disgraced, he would've been number one. "So you keep your enemies closer."

"That's where we differ. I don't see you as an enemy, Risa, but more so as a lost sheep." He smiled at her. "As your shepherd, it's my job to bring you back."

Their conversation was interrupted by a couple of knocks on the door, signaling that his guests had arrived and it was time for the exchange. Because she was trying to figure out his angle, she decided to let the conversation go and perform her job at hand. She walked with Tatsuo and the escort to a secret underground room in the caverns underneath their village.

"Welcome to Takigakure, Hokage Hashirama of Konohagakure. I trust your travels went well and you were able to witness the beauty of my village from the escorts." Tatsuo smiled.

"Leader Tatsuo of Takigakure." Hashirama grinned. "What a beautiful village you have here!"

Risa stood in shock as she stared at the God of Shinobi in front of her. This was the very man that was responsible for Kakuzu's imprisonment… but he was also the reason that he was still alive. Fear and anger swirled inside of her as she contained herself. He'd made a mockery of Kakuzu's reputation and, clearly, the smile across his features was pissing her off.

"I assure you, the rogue shinobi that attacked you has been dealt with." Tatsuo bowed to Hashirama. "Here in Takigakure, we don't condone that type of behavior as we share the same values of keeping children out of the war."

Hashirama raised an eyebrow, the grin slowly disappearing off of his face as he became more serious. "Dealt with how?"

"Behavioral rehabilitation." Tatsuo answered. "Originally, it would have been execution, however he is a child who was led astray. The one who truly advocated for him is the young woman I've brought with me today. This is Risa Okamoto, a contender to be the future leader of Takigakure."

Hashirama turned his attention to the bluette who was ushered to approach the male. Risa's heart was booming in her chest as this was not the way she envisioned meeting Kakuzu's target. So much information had been thrown around that she didn't even know what to focus on.

"Such a small woman made that big of an impact?" The male commented, causing Risa's eyebrows to furrow in annoyance.

"Risa is the top shinobi here in the village. Her strength, intelligence, and open-mindedness under my guidance has helped the village immensely. While it is a radical idea to have a female head for the village, I have trained her well. Children are our future after all."

"Male or female, someone with such a selfless spirit must be strong. I will trust your opinion on this. In return, I hope we will be able to maintain the peace between our two villages." Hashirama turned to Risa with an outstretched hand. "As the future head, I trust you will uphold that agreement as well?"

Risa looked down at the man's hand as she could feel Tatsuo's presence looming over her. So this was his angle… Anything for the sake of the village, right? Taking Hashirama's hand in hers, she gave it a firm shake as she smiled in his face. "I personally will never seek to bring harm to your village, Hokage-san. You have my word."

Afterwards, Tatsuo and Hashirama entered a room that not even she could follow them into. Reduced to standing outside the door while the exchange took place, she refused to acknowledge the Konoha guards that were standing with her. Instead, her mind dwelled on Tatsuo's deceitfulness. The moment Hashirama left the village, she was probably going to be sent back to the clinic and stripped of her rank. To introduce her as the future head of the village was preposterous.

The exchange on its own took hours and, following successful completion, Risa had to sit through dinner and hours of gambling and drinking. The Hokage's mannerisms weren't at all what she was expecting - he was very loud, yet kind to her and treated her much like an equal. Although he was sad that she won a few games over him, he would quickly turn around and have intellectual conversations with her.

The Hokage left that same night despite Tatsuo asking him to stay so he could rest. The bluette doubted she would ever see the man again, but she did recognize that she didn't harbor the same hate towards him that she'd festered before. Escorting Tatsuo back to his office was her last job of the night. Once they made it, she stood in front of his desk a moment before speaking.

"The future head of the village?"

"I sung your praises to arguably the strongest shinobi in the world." Tatsuo clasped his hands together underneath his chin. "I even told him it was your idea to keep Kakuzu alive."

"You didn't mean it."

"Of course I didn't."

That was it. Those were the words she was finally looking for. "That was the first thing we learned under you." Risa commented, glancing past him and out the window. "Anything is grounds to be accepted as long as it's for the benefit of the village. I naively thought that just meant murder, so that was my fault."

"You were my star, Risa." Tatsuo looked at her. "Your blind loyalty and your willingness to prove your worth - those qualities made you who you are today. Maybe in a different life, you could've been a true contender for the position of village leader."

"There's nothing I can do to fix that. I'm just here for your personal enjoyment at this point."

Tatsuo frowned. "You're here because you can change. I described to you everything that you are and everything you continue to throw away. That can be your future - it's not impossible. If you would just think about your parents-"

The door to the office burst open as one of the elite guards barreled through the entryway. "Lord Tatsuo! The elders… have…" He struggled to get the rest of his sentence out as he grabbed his throat and immediately fell to his knees. It was evident that he was choking, but Risa made no action to help him. Instead, she focused her eyes on Tatsuo, who had stood up from his desk.

"So you're still not above injuring your comrades, I see." He glared at her. "Too bad for you, your spores have no effect on me."

Risa sighed. "The best thing for you to do right now is take a seat. None of your precious pawns have been injured or poisoned. They are all simply asleep."

Angered, Tatsuo lashed out and flipped his desk. How dare she take out his elite as if they were nothing. The female jumped out of the way as he used it as a cover to throw a barrage of kunai and make his exit out the open door. What he didn't expect was for her to appear in front of him and kick him in his stomach, sending him back into the bookcase that was bolted into one of the walls. She used her vines to seal off the windows and door so they could be alone.

It was only right that the village leader was durable. Tatsuo took the blow to his abdomen as if it were nothing and quickly appeared in front of her. They went back and forth, exchanging hits and dancing around each other. Tatsuo knew every trick in her book because he'd taught them all to her, but in turn, Risa could read all of his diversions because she was aware of everything under his sleeve..

"You think you can take me down?" Tatsuo scoffed as he formed a couple of hand signs. "I created you, Risa. You owe all of your loyalty to me!"

The bluette wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and let out a small breath to relax herself. She was pretty sure he'd cracked a few ribs with his last hit on her, but she was able to blow one of his knees out and knock his speed down a few notches.

Suddenly, the floor began to sink and Risa jumped on the desk for a hard surface although it was disappearing quicker than she imagined. The walls and ceilings followed suit as sections of the floor above started to fall. A piece of ceiling struck her in the head as she tried to move towards him, causing her vision to acquire some dark spots.

"I'm only loyal to one person." She finally reached him. There was a flaw in his jutsu - he couldn't move as easily either. Luckily for her, loose dirt meant her vines could thrive. She restrained him to the ground, which caused the landslide to stop.

Her breathing was labored as she crouched beside him. The blood from the trauma to her head dripped down into the gravel around them. Here was the male equivalent of a father to her, yet that bond meant nothing anymore.

"You planned this with him, didn't you? This is the part where you kill me, right?"

"It's true that you made this easier for me than I expected. Originally, I was going to hunt you down." Risa responded to his sneering. "I was going to gouge your eyes out and use your body as a personal compost for my garden. Now that I'm here though… I just feel disappointed."

"You just don't have the guts to kill me. I don't need the pity of a traitorous bitch."

"It's not my job to kill you." Risa stood up and held her side. "It should be Kakuzu's decision. Besides, I'm late anyway."

The female turned around to leave the room. She was sure Kakuzu was waiting for her at the watering hole. They said they would meet at nightfall, yet she got caught up. Hopefully he wouldn't be too upset. As her vines disappeared from the doorway, Risa felt a sudden stinging sensation in the back of her thigh. Looking down, she noticed a senbon lodged deep into her leg. Snatching it out, she noticed it was like a syringe and whatever liquid used to be in it had diffused into her body.

"You thought that someone who had trained assassins wouldn't have a last resort trick of their own left up their sleeve?" Tatsuo smirked. "You should've killed me."

Risa would've responded, however her leg began to cramp up and she fell to the ground in agony. Whatever the substance was, it was fast-acting because she could feel herself starting to lose consciousness. She tried as best as she could to focus on him so her vines wouldn't retreat but she couldn't hold on anymore. Just as her eyes closed, she fell back against something and Tatsuo yelled out in pure distress as his eyes filled with horror.