The tough bit of the mission had begun an hour ago: trekking through the outskirts of Kumogakure trying to not get outed as a Konoha ninja. Sasuke stalked through mud, sludge and grime unhappily. This was not fun, useful, nor did it help in the war effort. He lost count of how many traps he had to avoid.
And then he didn't. He stepped on some stupid thingamajig that sent him tumbling several feet into a hole in the ground. After years of traversing high-end, intricate traps, in his grumbling, self-pitying state, he succumbed to the oldest trick in the book: the 'hole in the ground covered by leaves and branches'. This was the kind of stuff they'd teach in the first year of the Ninja Academy.
Sasuke would've climbed out of that ditch in a second, flat, albeit part of him did wonder what would happen if he just sat there contemplating life for a few minutes. He realised he didn't need to when a blonde, heart-shaped head peered down at him curiously with striking brown eyes.
"Oh my God, it's you!" Yugito seemed torn between giggling and astonishment. He stared at her, part exasperation, part wonderment. She extended him her hand to help him up. He accepted, despite them both knowing he didn't need it. With a powerful tug, she hauled him upwards and herself downwards, so he ended up in a rather mortifying position on top of her.
Not that he'd care too much normally, except he was sort of covered in mud and dirt and didn't smell too great. Yugito wrinkled her nose, not voicing what he knew she was thinking.
"Sorry," he muttered, hoping his breath didn't stink, rolling to the side, lying next to her. Neither of them bothered getting up.
"So, what brings you to the lovely, effervescent Lightning Country?" Yugito traced a cloud with her index finger.
"Mission," he whispered tiredly. Honestly, Sasuke just wanted to close his eyes and fall asleep, maybe using Yugito as a pillow. She probably wouldn't take the opportunity to kill him. Just as he was about to actually consider that, she bolted up.
"Alright, get up. You have a mission," she chided. He stopped himself from whining like a toddler begging for 'five more minutes' to sleep. Yugito pointed north-west, away from Kumo.
"There's a town a few miles from here. I suggest you get some sleep, food, and perhaps a shower," she wrinkled her nose again, "Let's just say you're not impressing anybody with the scent of roses."
He got up.
"Thank you," he lightly patted Yugito on the back. She flashed him a thumbs-up in response. Before Shunshining off in that direction, Sasuke had to pause. He examined her easy-going expression.
"Do you want to come with me?"
Yugito hesitated. "I can't just abandon Kumo." Sasuke scoured her eyes for any sign of wavering loyalty.
"I can't imagine they treat you very well," he decided to voice his opinion. It was probably tactless and uncalled for, but if Yugito was slightly offended, she didn't show it.
"They don't. But it's my village and I have to remain loyal." She crossed her arms, probably trying to assure herself of her convictions or whatever.
"Well, I asked if you wanted to come with me. You came up with the 'abandoning your village idea' yourself," Sasuke pointed out, shrugging.
She stared at the ground contemplatively.
"Are you trying to convince me to go rogue?" Sasuke had the sense to look ashamed, just now realising how crude and uncouth it was to even try to convince someone to abandon their village.
He was about to apologise when Yugito's expression relaxed.
"Because it's honestly working." She shrugged, then started leading the way.
"Does this mean you're...?" He trailed off.
"Undecided," she mumbled, not looking back. She sped up.
It was a nice town. Somehow, it was so close to a ninja village and yet, it remained untainted to the horrors of war. In actuality, it was of his opinion that the residents were rather naive. Yugito seemed to know the place well, implying it was frequented by Kumo ninja. They spent the night at some inn.
"So, where are you headed?" Yugito cut into her breakfast waffle with a knife and fork, nibbling on it. She suggested this cafe. Sasuke typically gulped down coffee and devoured an egg for breakfast (sometimes a kale smoothie, which were frankly disgusting), but he munched on a pretty unhealthy pancake smothered in Nutella topped with whipped cream and a cherry. He could feel the diabetes emanating from it.
"Land of Snow. I have to bodyguard some Daimyo." In fact, he should probably be on his way there now. Oh well.
"You're not going to come with me that far, are you?" He asked. Weirdly enough, Yugito earned a spot on his short (but increasing) list of people he could tolerate in the short time they knew each other.
She knew when to shut up, was polite but not a pushover, strong and not a complete airhead. And she had a witty, sarcastic sense of humour.
The idea of her accompanying him didn't bother him. The prospect of not being alone for this mission actually sounded pleasant. Some stupid part of him hoped she'd reply in the affirmative. God, he was becoming social. Like a regular teenager: he actually wanted a pretty girl around for once. But if he had to pick one person to stave off his boredom, it would be her.
"Fuck, I might as well. Alright then," Yugito cleared her throat, tying her hair into a ponytail. Sasuke thought it was kind of an ugly do and a total waste, but it was convenient for kunoichi and so he said nothing.
"Come on," he said. She flashed a smile, and they both Shunshined off.
Of course he should've worn a bit more for the Land of Snow. It was in the name: it was fucking cold. And yet, Sasuke (how could he be such a dumbass?) didn't pack enough. He shivered in his stupid weather-worn jacket, checking his pockets. Yugito skipped off to go find a good hotel, leaving him quivering in the cold.
Ugh. Empty. Nor did he have enough money, so a day before he'd have to meet the Daimyo, he was penniless.
And then he spotted a God-given blessing; he strutted into some random casino to try and con some poor civilian sod out of their Poker earnings.
There was a shitty ambience, heavy with noise and disgruntlement. Sasuke didn't garner the attention someone usually did when walking into a small casino, because all the attention was on someone else. He stealthily weaved through the surrounding crowd to make out two people playing Blackjack. Most people fixated their focus on the loser.
He recognised the face instantly, regarding this newfound person with mixed emotions. But right now, he was broke and this woman was the richest person in the room. Or well, judging by her massive loss, she used to be. Hopefully, she had a little bit of fortune left. After all, Sasuke figured that Sannins, even ex-Sannins, typically made a great salary.