Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any way and make no claim on its copyright or any characters from the series. Original characters are my own property.
Author's Notes: Short chapter here, but it introduces the last of the new characters for a while.
Thanks to all who review, and hopes for new readers!
Other Gifts Continues
The next morning was cold, the autumn air whispered with the coming chill of winter, not long off now. It was not truly frigid, but Suzumebachi awoke to coldness, for the heat in the building had not yet been turned on, and likely would not be for weeks. Her first thought of the day was to take out another blanket that night. The second thing she recognized was the absence of raging hunger. She was hungry, yes, but only as usual in the morning, not like the day before. Kuroari was still asleep, her cousin having a more erratic schedule than Suzumebachi; she took the chance to sleep in longer. So Suzumebachi went through her morning routine quietly, eating a simple breakfast, showering, and putting together her gear for the day before heading out. She added a new element this morning as well, checking the hiding place of the forbidden scroll, insuring it was still present. It was, and Suzumebachi resolved to spend the evening, with Kuroari out helping her father, reading it intently.
After heading over to check her hives, she noted that several would need harvesting of stores to keep the insects working at their peak until the full onset of winter. The wasp ninja went through a common set of morning exercises she had been advised by her jounin sensei to never neglect unless it was a matter of life and death, she also added a few routines with some of her wasps. Varying the ones she used each morning kept the creatures closer to her than they would otherwise be. It was a greatly pleasing feeling to guide the wasps to swarm about her, glimpsing their power and capability.
With the usual tasks done, and the sun just creeping over the horizon, Suzumebachi headed to the location on the card the Tsuchikage had given her.
The address was not a familiar one. It laid in a portion of the village she, or most other ninja, rarely visited. Iwa village was deliberately not an industrial town, kept instead as a fortress for the ninja, but such a well positioned mountain valley was obligated to host at least a small amount of mining work. These, and the few other industries located within the town not suited to be placed with everything else, were located on the west edge, near a small stream that plunged down deep in the rocks not much further distant, carrying the wastes away from the village proper.
It took some time looking about for Suzumebachi to locate the proper place, she dodged harsh looks from dirty laborers as she did so, men not very appreciative of having a kunoichi poking around their workplace, and who constantly stared at her tattoo. The building she wanted, when she eventually found it, was not very large, built of squat construction heavily of stone and metal, with little wood. A squat smokestack belched black fumes carried west by the wind to the mountainside. The iron door was marked only by a simple number, nothing more, and no samples or signs stood outside.
Suzumebachi wrapped her knuckles soundly on the metal sheet, but no response came from within. Not wanting to stand about in the chill air and dirt of this area any longer, and figuring her note from the Tsuchikage would excuse any breach of etiquette, she pulled the heavy door back.
A blast of heat greeted her from within, spilling out into the open with feverish speed. The light within was low, but Suzumebachi saw a stocky man bent over the obvious forge before her. Strange pieces of equipment and weapons lined the walls, shining as the low yellow light caught them in turn, pieces glittering with power. She had only a short time to glimpse some of these before the man stood and turned to her.
"Close the door," he said. "You're letting the heat out."
Suzumebachi did as she was asked, pulling the door closed sharply, hearing it scrape against the frame as it did so.
The man before her nodded. He was not tall, or particularly wide, but his body held a vibrant and compact power, his arms especially coiled with muscle, bulky in a way that most ninja, even the strongest, were not, but he did not seem sluggish. Suzumebachi noted he wore only a thick white robe, obviously fire retardant, but the wasp ninja caught the forehead protector lashed about his right leg, holding the symbol of stone. She was somewhat surprised, not expecting this man to be a ninja.
"I don't recognize you," he told her, his voice stern, but open, direct. "You're one of our ninja, but what is your business with me?" The man had a stern countenance, but not a harsh one. Suzumebachi thought he simply did not need to express his emotions to others often.
"I am Kamizuru Suzumebachi," the wasp ninja replied. "The Tsuchikage told me to come see you."
"The old master himself, huh?" his expression remained even. "What about? You need something special for an upcoming mission?"
"Not exactly," Suzumebachi replied, recognizing that he had not been informed of her coming. "You are Otomo Katai, yes?" It wasn't very proper to ask his name like this, but she wanted to be certain.
"I am," he did not appear offended. "Otomo Katai, chunin of Hidden Stone, you are in my forge."
It was surprising to think of him as a chunin, for Katai was surely past thirty, and likely a good bit older, unless Suzumebachi was totally mistaken about his age. Yet she surmised that perhaps a ninja craftsman, of which Hidden Stone had a goodly number, might not be sent on as many missions and never reach the rank of jounin even if highly skilled. "I was told you could help me make a weapon," Suzumebachi informed him.
Katai's eyes looked her up and down, making a careful examination. Strangely, he completely ignored the obvious tattoo on her forehead, concentrating on other things, for Suzumebachi, already expecting people's gazes to halt there, it was somewhat surprising. "You look in good enough shape, but you've never forged anything before," it was not a question. "Why do you need to make it yourself? That's not something a Kamizuru's ever needed before."
"I have to make it for another," Suzumebachi answered, though she had no intention of revealing Chul'To's identity. "Forged by my hand and melded to my essence, those were the requirements."
Katai blinked, the only indication of surprise he'd made so far. "Essence forged is it? That'll be hard, and it takes some expensive ingredients. You're young, can you pay that?"
"I should have enough," Suzumebachi squirmed a little bit inwardly, wanting to avoid bargaining with this man, who she expected was much better at haggling than she was. "I'd like to keep the cost as low as possible though."
"Hmmm…" Katai's hands clenched slowly, and then unclenched. "You're planning on using this weapon yourself for a while, if it's to be essence forged. Do you use any special weapons?"
"Special?" the question caught Suzumebachi off guard.
"Some ninja use unusual weapons," Katai answered. "Chains, sai, metal fans, all sorts of strange things. What about you?"
"No," Suzumebachi told him. "Just the usual kunai and shuriken mostly."
"A tanto then," Katai said definitively. "Unless you would prefer an aiguchi? The cross-guard helps against kunai though." He named both types of knife easily.
"A tanto would do…" Suzumebachi returned hesitantly. That had certainly not been the type of blade Chul'To used, but such a broad sword would be useless in her hands, and the Vesp had not specified anything about the type of weapon. "Why do you suggest that?"
"The less material the cheaper it will be to make, and quicker too, in some ways," Katai told her. "My business is making fine pieces Kamizuru, not impoverishing young ninja. How about so much," he named a figure, that, while high, was payable out of the A-rank reward with a little left over.
"I can do that, yes," Suzumebachi told him, smiling a little, feeling easier.
"Very well," Katai nodded. "Half now, for the materials cost, half upon completion. What's your schedule?"
"I have nothing else assigned until this task is completed."
"Hmm…" Katai considered for a moment. "Well, I have a few commissions, I always do, though the winter glut hasn't piled up quite yet, but my last student got sent off to run a circuit of instruction to the south, so there should be space. We can get started whenever you want, right away even."
The man's direct form of efficiency was somewhat infectious; Suzumebachi could tell that his feelings in the forge were similar to her own when tending the hives, completely devoted to the task, and able to forget the other aspect of work, the ninja side, that made it all necessary. "Then let us begin."
"Grab a smock from the wall," Katai pointed. "Over there, on the left behind the shuriken molds. Then come over here and I'll start explaining while I pound on this sword for a while."
Suzumebachi was quick to obey the ninja smith.