And the next installment is up... Thank you for reading...
If any of the characters seem Mary-Sue-ish or anything like that, please inform me.
'Hurry up! Hurry up!' Kazuki egged on, as they sped towards the explosion.
'Kazuki… Nobu… slow down,' Naruto instructed.
'What if the perpetrator's escaped already?' Nobu argued.
'Idiot, we have to slow down for Inari-san. Not all people are shinobis…' Chikako told off.
'Oh… yeah… Sorry, Inari-san…'
'Heh… no problem, really…'
As they finally arrived at the scene, Chikako took out Inari's rolled-up drawing of the bridge from her weapons holster.
'Can you mark where this explosion took place?'
As Chikako looked at the twelfth circle on the drawing, Naruto looked through the rubble.
'Aha! A burnt exploding tag!' he yelled, then sniffed it.
'Naruto-sensei… What are you doing?' Nobu asked.
As Naruto sniffed the burnt piece of paper, his eyes widened.
'What is it, sensei?'
'This… this isn't any ordinary exploding tag…'
'W-what?' Chikako questioned. 'What's so different about it?'
'It smells different from normal ones… the smell is more… I can't find the right word… but it's not the usual, ash sort-of smell…'
'Ah! I see!' Kazuki exclaimed, then pointed at the burnt edge. 'It's more of a zigzag rather than how these tags usually burn…'
'Very observant, Kazuki!' his sensei praised.
'What can I say? I'm a Kien.'
'Can someone please insult him before his head becomes more inflated than necessary?'
'Are the explosions making a pattern yet?'
'No… it's still familiar… but I think Nobu's right… it is incomplete…'
'Who's the man? Hagane Nobu is!'
'Why do I have to be stuck with boys with more egos than sanity?'
'Why do you have to be so mean, Chika-chan?'
'Why do you have to call me that, Kazuki?'
Chikako sighed. 'It's so familiar… but I can't remember where I saw it…'
'How come I'm the only one not spotting anything here?' Nobu complained. He searched through the ruins to look for more clues beside the strange exploding tag.
'I think Father showed it to me… it was on some scroll… but I forgot what it was…'
'This is a serious matter,' Inari worried. 'The bridge is the only way we can trade with nearby countries… If it was damaged…'
'… Then Wave Country would eventually be in poverty…' Chikako finished.
'… Again,' Naruto completed. 'Just like before it had the bridge…'
'Hey, doesn't that mean the motive would probably be to stop Wave Country from prospering?'
'Probably, Kazuki, but we'll never know,' Naruto said.
'Oh my god, he's actually making sense.'
'Chika-chan!'
'Chikako…'
'Sorry, Naruto-sensei…'
Chikako put her hand on her hips. 'We're not getting anywhere, are we?'
'We found clues!' Kazuki defended. 'And don't be so pessimistic!'
'Inari-san, what are the length, width, and any other measurements of the bridge? And approximately how many exploding tags are used in each explosion?'
'Well… I think at least four tags are used for each explosion… and I'm not so sure about the bridge's measurement. You're gonna have to ask the one who built it…'
'You've grown a lot since I was your client years ago, haven't you, Naruto?' Then Tazuna laughed. 'You even have your own team!'
Naruto scratched the back of his neck. 'Heh… I guess so…'
'Naruto-sensei…' Chikako muttered darkly.
'Ah… yes. We need to ask you about the bridge.'
The smile slipped off Tazuna's face, then he brought his hand to his chin thoughtfully. 'Were you the ones assigned to this mission?'
Nobu gulped, and nodded.
'Well, what do you need from me?'
'We would like to know the bridge's measurements,' Chikako told.
Tazuna pointed at a table with papers scattered all over it. 'You can find anything you need to know about the bridge there.'
'Thank you, Tazuna-san.'
'By the way, where's Tsunami?' Naruto asked cheerfully.
Both Inari and Tazuna paused, before averting their gazes from Naruto, then returning them again.
'She's…' Inari started. 'She's… she's…'
'She's missing,' Tazuna completed, 'the purpose being as unfathomable as why shinobis are destroying the bridge.'
Inari was relieved to be taken off the burden of telling Naruto, yet worried of what he'd think.
'Since when?' Naruto asked, straight to the point.
'A few days after the explosions started,' Tazuna answered.
'Maybe the two incidents are linked together, Tazuna-san…?' Kazuki suggested.
Tazuna sighed. 'That's what we thought at first, but I can't see how it'll work.'
'She's related to you, am I correct?' Chikako interrogated. 'And you're the one who decided to build the bridge. The bridge. I'm sure the two incidents could be connected. Now, do you have any suspicions on who could've done this? Maybe someone who has a personal grudge against you… or the prosperity of the Wave Country?'
Kazuki snickered. 'You sounded like you're cross-examining an enemy-nin.'
It earned him a punch on the head.
'Even I'm not that stupid…' Nobu thought.
'Do you have in mind any countries that might be jealous of your country's wealth?'
'Well, uh… maybe nearby shinobi countries… like, the Lake Country, or… or… the Water Country… I don't know! Maybe far-away ones, too, but I doubt it.'
'There's always a possibility.'
'Now she's acting positive,' Nobu snickered.
In order not to embarrass the team in front of their clients after that punch, Chikako simply gritted her teeth, before saying, 'Shinobi Rule No. 23: A shinobi must find a possibility in cases that seems impossible.'
'You're making it up, aren't you? I've never heard of that one!' Nobu accused, and pointed at her.
'Well, maybe if you read the rulebook, you would!'
Tazuna gave a bark of laughter. 'What's your name?'
'Umm… it's Kotone Chikako, Tazuna-san.'
'You know, a very long time ago, there was a girl who stated a shinobi rule, similar to what you did before,' Tazuna explained. 'Well, in her case, she was crying over the body of her team mate she thought was dying.'
She didn't know whether Tazuna was telling this to her to make her feel guilty, but if he did, it worked. Even though it was probably only a story.
'Well, I guess you're not that bad, Nobu.'
'Not that bad? What's that supposed to mean?'
'That's the closest you're gonna get to a compliment.'
'What about me, Chika-chan?' Kazuki asked with interest, pointing at himself.
'…' Chikako decided not to answer, and returned to interrogating poor Tazuna again.
'I'm great, aren't I?' If Chikako wasn't busy thinking up forceful questions, she would've told him something along the line of: No, but your ego is.
'Any suspicious moves conducted by villagers lately? Do you think they might be involved with the perpetrator?'
'She should go join Morino Ibiki in the torture squad…' Naruto joked to no one in particular.
'Morino Ibiki?' Nobu questioned.
'Just one of our fellow shinobis,' Naruto coolly answered.
'Torture squad?' Kazuki lifted an eyebrow.
'Uhh… I'll explain that at some point. It's nothing brutal, really.'
The name indicates otherwise, Kazuki thought.
'… Tazuna-san, after the bridge's construction, have you even been drunk before? And who were the people around you if you have?'
Tazuna gave her a strange look. 'Is that relevant?'
'Eh… Chikako… You should stop asking questions right now… Just… Just read up the details on the bridge, okay?' Naruto pointed at the table.
'Uh… yeah… Sorry if I was disturbing you, Tazuna-san… I'm just a bit anxious.'
'Hey, is there a restaurant around here?' Nobu asked eagerly.
'Nobu! This isn't the time to be looking for restaurants! Here, why don't you help me look through the papers?'
'Naruto-sensei… Help me! And where are you going?' Nobu asked curiously.
'The bridge. I'm gonna find more clues, and you should stay here and help Chikako. Hey, Kazuki, since you have nothing to do, you can help me!'
Kazuki frowned, displeased, but reluctantly agreed. 'Fine, after all, a Kien always do his-'
'Will you shut it with your Kien crap?' Chikako's statement came off rather rudely. 'Umm… I mean, will you stop mentioning your clan name in every single sentence?'
While the revised statement sounded less morbid, Kazuki wasn't going to continue on the subject.
'Let's go, Naruto-sensei.'
'Which one should we kill first? The jounin will be more of a challenge.'
'But the genin poses no threat, so what's the point in killing him?'
'The jounin could block one of the needles, which will render the attack useless. The genin might not be fast enough to avoid a critical spot, which makes him the easier target. We shouldn't risk it.'
'If you're gonna be difficult… How about both? We can just knock them out temporarily, by the time they're conscious, we'll be finished. That'll get two at once, and increase the chance of success; leaving only two measly genins to face this.'
'H-hai… That's better… At least we don't have to-'
'You're still disapproving of killing, aren't you?'
'No… Just a bit… nervous, I guess, but I can handle it. I'll do this for Banrai-niisan.'
'Why did you even choose to become a shinobi, Enrai? You're too soft- too kind-hearted.'
'Don't feel sorry for me, Mato-san. I have enough of that.'
'Fine… Now, watch closely, and you'll see why then call me the undefeated Chuunin…' he smirked, and watched the two Konoha shinobis, senbon needles between his fingers.
'Hey, Chikako, we should compare Inari-san's drawing with these ones…'
'Good idea. Then we can estimate the distances and angles between each-'
'That wasn't what I meant… but… okay…'
'Can you find anything, sensei? We really should've brought a flashlight.'
'We're looking in the dark with a reason, Kazuki. It's to train our senses.'
Kazuki wasn't sure whether his sensei was serious or he was just giving a lame excuse for forgetting to get a flashlight.
It looked like he was serious, as he was sniffing the ruins.
'Naruto-sensei… I can't sniff out things!'
'But you have keen senses, Kazuki. Don't tell me you were number one rookie for nothing.'
'Yosh! I can do it!' Kazuki cheered, then felt the rough textures of the rubbles.
'Which explosion is this?' Kazuki asked.
'This one's the first one. I wouldn't be leading you to a place I didn't know, would I?'
'Chikako would've said you would.'
'Yeah, well, that's her. Now try to find something new.'
'Okay, sensei… Ouch!' Kazuki yelped in pain, then looked at his hand. It had a small prick on it, and blood was slightly pouring out.
'Oh, for the love of Kien!' Kazuki said 'I'm bleeding! And how the heck did a needle get here, anyway?'
The two ninjas watching them froze.
'Enrai… did you leave a senbon needle behind?' he asked.
'No, it must be one of yours,' she lied. 'I still have the original amount; there was one missing from the beginning.'
Mato, not believing her (and she knew it) decided not to discuss the topic any further, in order to continue the mission as planned. 'Yeah. Yeah, I guess, so, I'll check.'
'You know, Yondaime-sama told us it was probably chuunins handling this mission, not a genin team. This makes it easier in a way. And it looks like he was wrong…'
'Even the Fourth makes mistakes sometimes. Anyway, the jounin is still in the way; he could make the situation harder than it was meant to be. This mission should be A-rank to start with.'
'The jounins aren't needed for measly tasks such as these. Calm down, Enrai, we only have to get two people.'
'…'
'We don't have to kill anyone this time…' Mato put a hand on Enrai's shoulder comfortingly. 'If you mess up, I'll be there to fix it.'
'Thank you, Mato-san.'
'No need to be so polite, Enrai, we're friends, right?'
'Well… I guess…'
'Good. Now aim.'
'Naruto-sensei… what's so interesting about the needle?'
'Wait, Kazuki,' Naruto warded off, then examined the needle.
'It doesn't seem like it's poisoned… it's meant to hit you on precise points, not to enter poison into your body…'
'So… I'm okay?'
Naruto's face darkened under the moonlight. 'Listen, Kazuki. We have company; pretend you didn't know anything, but be alert. Keep a shuriken or two by your side, and listen to every single noise you hear.'
Kazuki gulped, and slightly nodded.
'Good. Now, be careful. If I was to help you, they'll run away, and we won't be able to find out who they are; I believe they could be the ones who's been doing this to the bridge.'
Kazuki stared at his teacher. Naruto-sensei's brain skills were seriously underrated.
'Ano sa… Why do you think so, sensei?'
Before Naruto was able to answer, he jumped out of the way of raining needles.
'Damn! I missed! I thought at least one would hit a critical spot!' Mato cursed. 'Hurry up, Enrai, or else the jounin will run away with the genin.'
'H-hai…' she replied, and fumbled over her needles.
'Kazuki, run!' Naruto commanded. 'This is serious!'
'Na-Naruto-sen-'
'They could kill you! Hurry up, run!'
Kazuki sped towards Tazuna's house, looking back every few seconds, wondering what is in store for his sensei.
Suddenly, a girl, about sixteen years of age, appeared in front of him. She was wearing a standard chuunin vest.
'Are you a shinobi?' Kazuki asked.
Before he knew it, the girl launched towards him. He blocked her punches and kicks with no ease. She was quicker than him, and he knew it.
'You can do it, Kazuki… Blood is just a part of a shinobi's life…'
'Argh!' Kazuki screamed, as he stabbed the kunai through the girl's stomach.
His father told him, if he was to kill, never hesitate. Hesitating will bring more pain than necessary to the victim. The least you can do is to give them a quick death.
'Now that's the Kien way,' his father stated proudly.
Kazuki panted. He was hesitating right now. Should the kunai be deeper? Should he just end it?
Then a log appeared from a cloud of smoke instead.
'Kawarimi!' he exclaimed, and looked around.
He looked behind him, and senbon needles were launched towards him.
Nothing a Kien can avoid, he thought.
Kazuki ducked out of the way, and held out the kunai threateningly.
'Don't move. I will give no harm if you do the same,' the girl bargained, dropping the senbon needles she was holding to the ground.
Kazuki paused, before dropping his own kunai. 'Why did you attack me, though?'
'I mistook you for someone else.' Contrary to her stuttering in front of Mato, Enrai was a pretty good liar.
'Oh… I see… You're a shinobi, right? Which village did you come from?'
'Amegakure. We're allies.' And the lies added on.
'Okay… Well… I'm Kazuki. What's your name?'
Ah. He's trusting enough to announce his first name, but careful enough not to mention his last. The typical Konoha shinobi.
'My name is Enrai.' She might as well do the same.
'So… Enrai-san… what brings you here?'
'Family business,' she lied smoothly.
'Oh! Do you have relatives here?' he asked.
'A few. How about your family?'
'I'm from the great, marvellous, KIEN CLAN!' he grinned after that.
Looks like she overestimated the Konoha shinobis.
Enrai thought it would be better to knock him out as soon as possible.
She threw senbon needles towards the boy, and it would be too fast for him to avoid this time. She almost felt guilty for doing so, but hey, it was her job.
The boy disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
'Kawarimi, too?'
It seemed that the boy was quick as well, and his instinct didn't prove him wrong.
Shuriken attacks launched towards her, which she avoided.
'Don't underestimate Kien Kazuki, Enrai-san… I'm not that slow…'
