Sakura knew when she entered the Hokage's office, there was something interesting afoot. There was the sound of a crying woman and a chorus of voices that she did not recognize echoing into the hallway. She knocked on the door and Tsunade's voice boomed from within over the chorus for Sakura to come inside.

There was a small group of people in the Hokage's office. It was composed of mostly of older women in traditional farmers attire or clothing unique to their own clans outside of Konoha and the Five Great Nations. The rest were an assortment of people who wore finer garments, but appeared well traveled from the wear on their shoes and some stitches on their clothing. They were all speaking together in a hum of voices that carried tones of worry and exhaustion.

Sakura quickly noted a singular child in the room who was standing quietly in front of Tsunade's desk. The girl had short, boyish red hair and resolve in her stance, Sakura kept her eyes on her out of curiosity as she moved through the room to stand off to the side of Tsunade's desk. The girl kept fixing a scarf at her neck even though it was reasonably warm in the office.

An old woman was standing next to the girl, waiting for Sakura to take her place next to Tsunade. The woman gave a polite nod to Sakura before beginning to speak.

"I am here to represent the Fujiwara clan and I stand here today with the representatives of other clans, villages and families from outside the Five Great Nations. We are here to ask for help."

Tsunade's expression grew firm, there with shadows of exhaustion under her eyes. "What kind of help?"

"We need justice."

"Please explain."

"Our children have been stolen."

A hush fell fell over the room. Sakura felt herself freeze in shock.

What? Why would someone steal children?

The old woman from the Fujiwara clan put her hand on the red-haired girl's shoulder, "This girl and two others returned a few days ago during our annual trade negotiations, Setsuna and the other children told the assembled clan leaders how and where they were taken before telling us about the spear-woman who saved her life."

Spear-woman?

The red-haired girl looked at Sakura with dark blue eyes and Sakura felt a gentle smile tug at her lips. The girl was no older than thirteen, nervous but holding her own in a room of adults.

"Lady Hokage," Setsuna began to speak with a strong voice that echoed through the room, quickly silencing the others in the room with a raised hand. "The bounty on Ren of the Spear grows higher with each of her victories against the child thieves. We have come here to beg aid for her and the children who are still missing."

The old woman removed her hand from the girl's shoulder before beginning to speak again. "What she has done for me, and our people is immeasurable. Returning our children home without asking anything for herself in turn speaks volumes of her character. Rogue ninja are now answering the call for her bounty and we must repay her with her own life."

"How high is the bounty?"

Setsuna pulled a couple sheets of paper out of her pocket and gave them to Sakura.

The picture on the poster was drawn from a description of someone who had survived their fight. The woman had short, dark, crooked hair and a white tiger mask dangling at her neck. There was another picture next to that featuring her weapon, a finely crafted iron spear.


Ren of the Spear

No known village affiliation.

Uses illusions and sojutsu. Has killed Samurai in single combat. Burned shipping boats in port and stolen valuable cargo.

Ten million ryo reward.


"Ten million ryo…" Sakura breathed before handing the poster to Tsunade. That was a lot of money for a wandering civilian martial artist.

"She came through our refugee camp on her way west after the war," a man in the back spoke up. "She killed a rogue shinobi who was trying to take control of the region."

An old woman in the back chimed in, "Strange times when we have to rely on wanderers even when we can afford shinobi, because we can't get any to come out and help us."

Tsunade's teeth clenched and Sakura swore she could hear them grinding together in suppressed rage and irritation.

"The cargo on those boats were children with bloodline abilities! And crates of weapons to take who knows where!" Setsuna's small form hid an air of authority that was evident with each word she spoke. She stepped forward and slammed a check on the Hokage's desk. "My village and two others have pledged a fifty thousand ryo apiece to pay for aid. We need your best people!"

"My forces are spread thin to try and keep up with similar demands from within the Land of Fire, why should we stick our neck out for a foreign nation when we have other clientele within our own?"

That was not the truth of it, not the whole truth at any rate. Shinobi forces had been decimated by the Fourth Great War, it was the same story all over the other shinobi villages. Fighting forces were rebuilding, but they may never reach the heights from before the war. There were many reports of instability in smaller nations, petty warlords trying to step up and take control with brute force or gangsters with money to buy reluctant aid and silence.

The Fujiwara clan head seemed to snarl, "How arrogant! How long do you think it will take for these kidnappers to move into a large country like this? To take the children of your outlier communities or from Konoha itself?"

Before Tsunade could offer a counter argument, Setsuna spoke up again, her voice strong and taking the attention of the room. "Then allow me to sweeten the deal. One year of access to our iron mine in addition to what our group is willing to pay you. Lady Hokage, your civilians will help boost the economy through this contract and when it is complete, we will negotiate trade with your village first!"

Tsunade looked at the girl, her irritation seeming too recede to curiosity.

"Aside from saving your life, why do you wish to help the spear-woman?"

"When I last saw her she was hurt. Her cause has become more dangerous the longer it goes on." Setsuna paused. "My sister, Hotaru, is still in their clutches. To stop this operation entirely, to save my sister and the other children, I believe she needs help!"

The room was quiet, a heavy weight of expectations pressed in so quickly it was being crushed by a wall of earth or slammed to the ground in a fight. These representatives were tired, it was in the shadows of their eyes, some seemed thinner than they should reasonably be. Sakura had not been on many missions outside of the Land of Fire in the last few months, the demand for Medical Shinobi at home was still very great. If these were the people who could come up with enough money to help their own, what about those who could not leave their communities or find the funds to do so?

Tsunade smiled, "Very well. Sakura!"

"Yes my lady!"

"Since you treated Ren when she was here, you are going to lead this mission. Have Setsuna walk you through everything that happened to her from capture to rescue and find three available Chunin or Jounin to go with you first thing in the morning. I trust to find appropriate people through who we have available."

Sakura nodded. She had a few in mind but she needed more information before she put them on her squad. She motioned for Setsuna to follow her while the rest of the group stayed to arrange their parts of the payment.


Oo0Oo0


Setsuna sat quietly on the stool and examined the collection of weapons in Tenten's apartment. Sakura had to admit it was a… through collection. Finely crafted swords and knives, maces and chains and other uncommon weapons that she had only seen pictures of in books and a few others she had never seen before. In truth, the apartment more resembled a storage warehouse than a living space, or at least the living room did. Though scattered, the room also held photographs of Tenten and her team on the tables and the walls, as if to remind Tenten that she did live here and it was not just storage for her weapon collection.

Sakura let her gaze linger on the pictures of Team Gai for a moment, Gai was definitely a sensei who wanted a picture of his team every year. Her attention was drawn to the picture that was clearly the last one they took together before the the war and Neji's death. They all looked so happy, Gai was ruffling Neji's hair, Lee had thrown an arm over his rival's shoulders and Tenten wore a smile and playfully rolling her eyes.

Tenten was reviewing the seal on the back of Setsuna's neck with a critical eye as she alternated her attentions to book with unusual sealing jutsu. She seemed satisfied with what she had learned and turned her attentions fully to the seal once more.

"You said you were the leader of the Mori clan, right?" Sakura asked in an effort to start a conversation with the girl.

"Clan leader? You're so young." Tenten chimed in as she traced the seal with a finger to double check the length and chakra input.

Setsuna smiled grimly as she played with the scarf in her lap, her fingers tracing the stitched pattern of trees and birds upon it. "We are a small clan. My father was killed the night my sister and I were stolen away, tradition dictated that I take his place upon my return."

"I am sorry."

Setsuna sighed, the heavy sigh of an old soul in a very young body. "My father always said that life was a cycle. We are born, we live, we die. Acceptance helps us understand the world, but he was not sure it lessened the pain of it. I missed his funeral, but I am sure he understands why."

Tenten looked up from where she was attempting to undo the seal on the back of Setsuna's neck. "Your father was a wise man."

The girl nodded and closed her eyes for a moment, Sakura let her have moment to collect herself.

"You said the stolen children had bloodline abilities, right?" Sakura kept her voice low, but friendly to allow Tenten enough silence to work and investigate as needed.

"Yes, I don't know why Hotaru and I were taken away, we're quite normal aside from our mother being from Eddies." Setsuna touched the edges of her red hair with a slight smile. "Maybe they thought we had something that we don't, Hotaru and I know a lot about sealing jutsu, but nothing powerful or unusual."

"What about the other children?" Tenten asked as she double-checked something in her book.

"There was one boy who could see the future, a girl who could create fire with a snap of her fingers, I didn't get to see much after they put me in a box."

Bloodline limits were feared for the most part, it would be easy to snatch children who had these powers as they were often not cared for in outlier villages unless there was a war or conflict where they could be used as weapons. According to a book Sakura had read, some more isolated communities in the Land of Iron believed that children with kekkei genkai were a gift from the gods, though this was a rare thing to find in Iron country, bloodline abilities were incredibly rare rare to begin with but more so in that part of the world. These were communities that were often in hard to reach places with difficult climates and not often visited by outsiders.

Setsuna told her story, about being rescued by Ren of the Spear with some other children and the ferocious fight to escape the ship Ren had found them on and the events that transpired after about the fight on the bridge and Ren's self healing that made Sakura wince before the rage settled on the the improper wound care. Cauterizing wounds was a last resort, not something that should be the first thing to come to mind for treatment unless someone was truly out of options.

The conversation shifted to a comment Tsunade had made about Sakura meeting Ren a few weeks ago. Sakura was quick to tell the story, seeing how the mention of Ren seemed to steady Setsuna's nerves as Tenten began to disassemble the seal on the girl's neck. The story was a short one, but it kept the girl entranced and distracted from the stings of pain that showed on her face as the seal was pulled apart piece by piece.

Tenten made a triumphant noise as leaned back in her chair. "Got it!"

Sakura rushed over to see the results. The seal was completely gone except for a slight pink burn mark on Setsuna's skin. Sakura leaned forward to heal the rest of the damage, removing all physical traces of the encounter.

"You were right, Setsuna." Tenten said as she got up to work the kinks out of her hands and shoulders. "This seal was suppressing your chakra, it made it a lot easier for the people who captured you to keep you quiet and docile. It's surprisingly complex under the surface."

Setsuna nodded, running her fingers through her short hair thoughtfully. "Thank you so much for your help."

"No problem!"

Sakura's brain was whirring through several possibilities along with what she had just seen. Setsuna had spoke of boats and ports and there was a high chance of an observation period before they could act with confidence without alerting the enemy. She would need someone skilled in seals for sure, and someone to act as a spy and secondary support unit in case Sakura had to engage the enemy. There was no telling how many children would need rescuing. The likelihood of being engaged in strictly close combat was very high. As she digested the information, certain members of her team became more obvious in her mind.

"Tenten, are you free to go on this mission?"

"I would love too!"

Sakura would have to see if Ino was available or if she knew someone else from her clan who was. There was a high chance that radio communications could be compromised and Ino was making noise about wanting to lead her own team of genin in the next couple of years, she might want the field experience for her own record and a genuine desire to help these children.

"Do you know anyone else who's not on a mission right now?" Sakura was drawing blanks on third or fourth team members if Ino was not able to go.

"I know Lee just got back from a mission yesterday morning, he would agree to go. I don't know about anyone else who is not on a mission right now."

Sakura nodded, she would stop by Lee's apartment on her way to Ino's before dropping of Setsuna at a guest house by the Hokage Tower. A walk with someone closer to her in age then the rest of the clan heads she arrived with would be good for Setsuna. It would give her a chance to be a kid for a couple of hours while the rest of her group sorted out their part of the payment.

"When you get to the Land of Rivers," Setsuna's voice cut through Sakura's thoughts with the clarity of a ringing gong. "Go to the capital city and find Shinju the Kimono Maker. She can help you with whatever you need."


Oo0Oo0


Ren groaned as she tightened the sarachi around her waist before stepping into the small office for a talk with Shinju.

"How's your back?" The old woman looked up from her account ledger and examined Ren with a critical eye. The large desk acting as a physical barrier between the two women, Shinju seemed much smaller behind it.

"I'll live," Ren limped over to the desk and leaned against it with a tired sigh. One of the people she had fought last night had tried to break her back by swinging her into ship mast before she could light the fire to burn the boat. Ren did not hurt at the time, but she felt it in the afterword when the adrenaline wore off and her chakra stilled. Nari said the bruises were several very pretty colors once they showed up on her skin. If Ren sat in the chair, it would be uncomfortable and she was not sure she would be able to get out of the chair after their meeting.

"Good. I like you alive," Shinju's proud little smirk made Ren smile in turn.

"You just like to hear me complain."

"You young people make a much bigger deal out of things than they need to be. I find it entertaining."

Ren laughed quietly as she stuffed her hands in her pants pockets after finding her footing. "Any leads?"

Shinju's tone shifted to something quite serious. "The Feudal Lord for this country has hired foreign clothes designers for his daughter's wedding. I suspect one or two may be bodyguards, but he's also too arrogant to believe anyone would stop him from bankrupting this country."

"Nice to know the ship captain's ledger book was accurate."

"Did you have doubts?"

"About the wedding? No. I'm more curious about where he's getting the money for this event while people are scrapping by on practically nothing. Why would he need bodyguards for the wedding?"

"The husband-to-be is bringing a lot of money into this marriage, his father runs several mines and has a lot of business investments. It may be enough to pay debts but any shrewd businessman marries their child for an increase in either status or wealth, both if it can be managed."

"Damn rich people."

Shinju smirked, "Watch it you, that girl getting married is my great niece."

"Nobility?" Ren brushed her hair from her face to get a better look at the little old woman. "You?"

"I was too tomboyish and outspoken to stay cooped up inside like a good little doll. Satoru was a good man who ran a shop in the city, we fell in love and I left it all behind to have a life of my own choosing. Incredible scandal. His mother loved me."

"I thought you said you beat him in arm wrestling?"

"I did that too."

Ren was quiet for a moment. "I want to be like you when I grow up."

"Good luck with that."

"Anyway," Ren sat on the table, swinging her legs back and forth as she got comfortable. "What do you think about this, Shinju?"

"These things might be connected, but I'm not convinced."

"Should we crash the wedding? I would love to crash a wedding."

"I have clothes in case we need to get into the wedding."

"Oh, there's an us?"

"You're pretty, but you can't pass as a rich girl. You're too tough and independent. I could be your very mindful grandmother."

"And Kai?"

"Stableboy."

Ren giggled. "Anyway, jokes aside, if this goes up to the Daimyo, should that be sorted by the politicians after I set this harbor on fire?"

"Maybe, if these people are so hungry for peace, let this be their first real test. I don't think anyone in power wants to be known for child trafficking and I'm not sure any Kage would stand for it, especially as decimated the military forces are. Let the shinobi throw their weight around to handle it." Shinju paused, "Though, the other option is to replace the fool with another member of the family. It would be a less messy transition of power that would keep foreign agents out of most of our affairs."

Ren raised an eyebrow, "You mean yourself?"

"If we let the Five Great Nations in to handle a rich coastal nation like this, we will just become a vassal state. The Land of Rivers has no Kage, we're too small and we expect actual governance from our Daimyo, not just political grandstanding in the capital cities."

There was a moment of silence in the room, Ren's thoughts drifted to familiar incidents, her voice was low and dangerous. "Is this why you wanted me here? To support your bid for power?"

"No, I wanted you here for the same reasons I hired you for. Getting to the heart of this trafficking matter, if this goes to the top of this community we may have to make some choices, but taking that job is the last resort for me."

Ren sighed, blowing a few strand of hair out of her face. "If none of these crazy ideas work out…?"

"Then you can come back and bully the idiot."

"It would be my pleasure."


Oo0Oo0


Notes: I like the Child in Position of Authority trope. Setsuna is my tribute to the concept.

I like tying in some of the political stuff we see in Boruto beginning to take shape here, the wealth gap, rapid political changes and power vacuums alongside new career opportunities in a time of peace where being a soldier is not the only option for a good life. Radical generational changes like that interest me so it's nice to explore some of that though multichapter short fiction