This chapter comes early as thanks for the crazy support you showed to the last one. Holy Flames, it was amazing. Lemme repeat that: amazing! I hope I can keep you entertained with this one.
I will put a warning here: this chapter is part of the reason this story is rated M.
The days passed and resembled each other; Naruto kept training furiously as he waited with growing anticipation for the Toad Sage to come back to Konoha. The blond, with the help of Dog, developed an array of what he called "portable traps", little more than pranking supplies cranked up to eleven and turned deadly. They were to be his way of evening up a fight.
Naruto also visited Asuma, under the cover of his mask, in order to learn more about wind manipulation and the jonin was a tremendous help, and not only for his insight in ninjutsu: the bearded man showed the young ANBU he still had much to learn as far as dissimulation went. The boy left, sheepish but determined to do better and eager to master wind chakra.
The secret of wind cutting was to create two incredibly fast, extremely thin, opposite, grinding air-flows. When applied on a target, the opposite pressure fields would rip it apart. The next step was all about fiddling with the notion of vacuum -the absence of air and wind- and play possible combination without killing oneself but Naruto was not there yet. Following Asuma's directive, the blond made quick progress during the third week.
Naruto and a bunch of five Shadow Clones cut through a ton of leaves, shearing them so cleanly one could not tell they were, and adapted the refined wind manipulation to his kenjutsu while another group explored the concept of pressure itself. When the convocation to the Hokage's office came, the blond, shirtless and his pants rolled up, was already working on splitting the water of a pond.
"Maru," the voice of Tiger interrupted the blond's absolute focus and made him turn toward his leader and teacher. "Jiraiya-sama and Hokage-sama are waiting for you in the Hokage's office."
The blond lost no time and, after a series of Body Flickers, Tiger and he found themselves in front of their leader's office.
Naruto took in the sight of the office in a second. His grandfather, the Hokage, was sitting behind his desk. Standing behind him was Dragon. On the side, leaning against a wall, was a giant of a man, made taller by the wooden geta he was wearing, dressed in a muted green gi with a red, sleeveless haori on top. A mane of white hair cascaded on his back, held back by a headband with the kanji for oil on it. The Toad Sage, Jiraiya of the Sannin, an S-ranked ninja. A living legend.
A living legend that was currently sporting an easy going, relaxed grin, making him appear many times less intimidating to mundane eyes. It did not escape the blond's sense, however, that the man was an absolute monster possessing more raw power than even the old Hokage. Naruto felt a cold chill run down his spine. He was infinitely glad this man was an ally.
The ANBU commander ran through hand signs and the air shimmered in the room. The blond immediately identified a barrier type fuinjutsu.
"You may remove your mask Naruto."
The boy obeyed the Hokage's command without question, revealing his bright blond hair, his cerulean blue eyes, and his heart-shaped face adorning his six whisker-like marks. The old man had called him Naruto so there was nothing Dragon could do and the Hokage was the big boss anyway.
"So this Naruto huh?" The Toad Sage asked, seemingly more to himself than anyone in the room. "Well, let's get to work. Show me your seal gaki."
The blond nodded, removed his shirt, and turned to face Jiraiya. He felt the ninja seize him up with a glance. He saw him give an almost imperceptible nod that froze minutely when the Sanin's eyes noticed the thin line over his throat. The giant man promptly gathered himself, so fast Naruto was not sure if he had not just dreamed his hesitation, and nodded again.
Had Jiraiya of the Sannin… Approved of him? Before Naruto could think any deeper, the man was crouching in front of him, still nearly reaching the boy's shoulder.
After probably twenty minutes of silence only broken by Jiraiya's humming, the Toad Sage finally propped himself up and nodded.
"Alright, good news, bad news." The man exclaimed suddenly, motioning his hands like a balance.
A bit taken aback, Naruto found himself stammering for a second before. "B-bad news?"
"It's going to be easier for you to find yourself dragged in the seal."
The boy swallowed thickly. He did not want that. "Good news?"
"That's perfectly normal and there is no risk of the Kyuubi getting out by himself. The canal has just been… Enlarged." The man answered, giggling at the end.
Naruto ignored the salacious joke and breathed out, his shoulders sagging a little. He was not going to be devoured by a chakra entity anytime soon and that was mighty good news, in his personal opinion. Some kind of shared relief washed over the room for a few seconds before the Hokage clapped in his hands.
"Good. Very good. Tiger, Maru, your team is hereby returned to active, effective immediately," said the old Kage, brandishing a signed order to the sergeant. "You are free to go."
Naruto pulled his shirt back on, secured his mask over his visage, saluted with Tiger and moved out.
"So Jiraiya." The Hokage said conversationally.
The Toad Sage sighed. "He looks so much like his mother, it's terrifying. Except for the hair and eyes of course. And the… Whiskers?"
The Sarutobi nodded. "Indeed. As for the whiskers, I believe it is the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra during birth."
Jiraiya nodded absentmindedly. "So, ANBU huh? Why?" He asked suddenly, a bit of an edge in his tone. He had noticed the scar the boy was sporting. On his throat. His god damned throat.
"Because he is a well of potential that was nearly wasted," answered Dragon.
"But was it truly necessary?" The Toad Sage asked, his voice insistent.
"Given the circumstances, yes," said the ANBU commander, almost snarkily, making the Toad Sage blink.
"And you approved of that, Sensei?" Jiraiya asked to the Sandaime, incredulity shining in his slanted, black eyes, the edge of anger making his voice vibrate.
"I was not on it at first but my friend here presented me with very convincing arguments. And there is no denying the progress he has shown in a mere three months."
"He could have been placed on a normal team, Sensei! He should-"
"No," interrupted Hiruzen before Dragon could. "No, Jiraiya. I fear for his life everyday since he joined the corps but he still lives and he grows stronger. On the contrary, had he joined a regular team, he would never have been ready for what is to come."
"There was time Sensei," exclaimed Jiraiya reproachfully. "Hell, there is still time-"
"I think it would be better if your student had all the pieces, don't you think so Hiruzen?" Dragon interrupted.
The Sandaime nodded. "Indeed I do."
The next day, Naruto ran through a reduced morning routine before he and his team were called in the commander's office.
"Team Ro," began the ANBU general without much preamble. "There has been some new advancement in the investigation. Our analysts discovered fake Ryo typically forged in the Land of Onsen in the money given to the bandits by those Otonin."
Naruto nodded: this was giving credit to his hypothesis of a human trafficking ring in Hot Water Country. Or at least partially located in Hot Water Country. Illegal activities were more often than not like those nesting doll from Frost: there was always another layer behind the previous one.
"Your mission is to infiltrate Yugakure and find clues about how this money was in the possession of an unknown force of ninja in Rice. You're looking for anything linking this… Sound village to any lucrative traffic. The more we know about their businesses, the more we know about them."
"Sir, if I may?" Naruto asked.
"Yes, Maru?"
"Isn't slavery supposedly forbidden in the Land of Onsen?"
Dragon nodded curtly. "Yes but the Land of Hot Water has been the base for all kind of black market activities since their ninja village stopped being one and it is well known their authorities are rather… Complacent. They make a proper margin on everything that circulates there."
"Mhh, if that is so, why didn't we tidy the place up yet?"
The commander snorted and his answer chilled Naruto. "Are you really so naive, Maru?"
The boy swallowed thickly.
"Anything else?" asked the general.
"No sir," answered Tiger curtly.
"Very well. Dismissed." The ANBU commander slammed a red stamp on a piece of paper and gave a folder to Tiger. "And dispatched. Now go."
The team lost no time and gathered in the same briefing room they had prepared in for the Rice Country mission.
"We will move as civilian. We need to hide our weaponry and preferably only take small arms. Senbon and shuriken should be perfect. Everything else we either leave here or seal away."
"I can prepare enough sealing tag for everyone, taicho, if I'm given the materials."
"Your left hand is trained enough for that?"
"Yes, sir," confirmed Naruto.
"We'll make good on that then."
"What will be our cover?" Cat asked.
"Street performers."
"Wait," interrupted Naruto, suddenly realizing something. "I'll… We move unmasked?"
"Yes, initiate."
"But… Isn't that a problem?"
"You've seen each of our face during the mission in Rice, Maru. Seeing them again won't cause a problem."
Oh. That made sense, the blond supposed. Naruto nodded before he scratched his head in embarrassment. "Huh, I don't have anything to perform."
"We can iron it out on the road but what about knife throwing?" Cat proposed.
Tiger nodded in agreement. "You're talented enough at shurikenjutsu. Cat and I will show you some tricks to make it a bit more… Spectacular."
"What are our names and how are we related?" Dog inquired.
Tiger opened the folder. "Read who you are here." The ANBU looked at Naruto. "You need to know it by heart. We will question you on the road, there need to be no hesitation. Understood?"
"Hai, taicho."
"Good. Reading time, ladies and gents."
A group of four civilians was traveling, as fast as civilians possibly could, on the main road that linked the east of Fire Country to the Land of Onsen. They all wore worn-out garb, carried rather bulky backpacks, and all had the marks and roughness of people used to live outdoor.
One, a brown-haired kid, was demonstrating rather impressive dexterity by juggling one-handedly with three throwing knives while walking, under the watchful gaze of a taller, older male. Both were tanned in the same way, both had shaggy, short, dark hair, and both bore a distant resemblance to each other. One would peg them as family without too much question.
A woman, around the man's age, was tuning an expensive looking instrument, no doubt carved in some precious wood of Fire Country. Despite evidence to a life of constant travel, she was a rare beauty, with flowing red hair the color of autumn leaves and deep green eyes.
The last of the groupe was a girl in her teenage years who was holding three hoops and commanding three dogs to jump through them, encouraging the animals with shouts and vigorous exclamations. She was tomboyish, with short-cropped hair and a constant grin adorning her face that said: "come at me, Life".
"You're doing well Menma," said the tall man with several nods of approval. "A chance you're agile with both your hands."
"Thanks, Kinoe-aniki!" The boy answered with enthusiasm, his eyes riveted to the knives dancing around him.
"Keep at it and you'll be ready to show off in Yugakure." Kinoe answered, still nodding.
"Neh, Kinoe," called the musician in a drawn out, very suggestive tone. "I'll need to change my koto's strings." The woman's eyelash fluttered as she sauntered toward the older male. "You'll pay for it, right?" She asked, coiling herself against the man's side.
Kinoe stiffened and a strange, lost look fogged his eyes for a second before a completely stupid smile blossomed on his face. "Sure, my sweet Yuuki," said the man as he leaned for a kiss.
The woman simply shied away, giggling. "Kinoe, darling, not here on the road," she said, her voice a mix between a playful startlement and virginal plea, drawing a pout from the man.
"Stop doing that you skank," growled the teenage girl.
"Shut up, Nana," retorted Yuuki. "No one asked you."
"Yeah Nana, stop being mean to my Yuuki!"
"She is leading you by the nose bro, by Benten's tits why can't you see it? She is milking you!" The girl exclaimed furiously, her dogs growling behind her.
The red-headed woman yelped in fright and ran behind Kinoe, who looked at the teenage girl furiously. "Nana, stay the dogs! And it's not your say who I'm with!" The man chastised. " And don't swear!" He added after a second of reflexion.
"Huh, Bro, Sis, err…" The boy tried to interject, only to be ignored completely by his two older siblings.
Yuuki smirked as she started to insult Nana, still safely hidden behind Kinoe. The group kept bickering as they travelled the dusty road toward Yugakure, ancient hidden village of the Land of Onsen, nowadays a prosperous touristic town, and well-known capitale of all kinds of sins.
After an entire day of intense walk, only interrupted by a short pause for beef jerky and water, the four troubadours found themselves sharing a room in an inn. It was a modest hotel located in a small town the great eastern road passed through.
"Something wrong Menma?" asked Kinoe to his younger brother as he settled his backpack and opened it.
"I'm just amazed by how you do it," responded the boy with a look of utter confusion on his face. "Or creeped out. I don't really know," added Menma thoughtfully.
"Well, be amazed later, or you'll be distracted." Kinoe chided. "And it's not nice to say your big bro is creepy."
"I was more thinking about Yuuki."
Kinoe opened his mouth to say something, closed it, and thought for a second, his face a mask of intense reflexion. "She kinda is, huh?" The man said eventually.
Menma stared incredulously at his older brother, until he saw the tiny little smirk tugging Kinoe's lips upward. The sight made the brown-haired boy broke into a grin. "Whoa, is that a joke aniki?"
"Don't say it to her or you're dead meat."
"Hai hai."
"You know, you are rather good yourself. I expected you to slip more." Kinoe said, opening a folded shirt.
Menma looked down. "Yeah… I learned when I played my games, you know."
The man silently rummaged through his backpack, eyeing the younger boy pensively. "I see," eventually said Kinoe.
The boy looked up. "It's actually pretty fun!"
"Well, glad you think that." Yuuki interrupted suddenly, exiting the bathroom wrapped in a towel. "But try not to have too much fun on the job."
Menma stared at the redhead woman, his mouth gaping a little. Apparently not noticing, the woman removed her towel and vigorously dried her hair before she threw it unceremoniously on her bed and started searching her pack for a set of clothing. The boy vaguely felt his face heat up a little at the sight of the naked woman, not really knowing why.
It was actually the first time he was seeing a girl of any age entirely naked. He had bathed with other men before but never with any women and he was not really welcomed in any of the public hot springs he could visit. The boy felt a strange shudder of excitement course through him, something that confused him entirely too much to hear Kinoe calling him.
"Menma?" The older man asked for the second time, shaking his younger brother by his shoulder.
The brown-haired boy shook himself like a wet cat and blinked. "Huh?"
"Someone saw something he liked?" Yuuki teased with a wide grin on her face.
Menma felt the heat flush his face red and sputtered some gibberish to defend himself, his arms flailing in protest.
"Focus, Menma." the voice of Kinoe, suddenly stern and monotone, cut through his embarrassment, reducing the boy to silence and making him sit straight and at attention.
The older man sighed. "I tend to forget you're so young sometimes." Kinoe eyed Yuuki. "We need to address that before reaching Yugakure, don't we?"
The woman shrugged and offered him a sorry face. "It would be wise, otherwise we are going to lose the kid to the first prostitute we meet."
Kinoe hummed pensively. "We could ensure that he shadows one of us at all time."
Yuuki shook her head. "The situation might not permit it. If we lose a sweet spot because our youngest is dominated by his hormones, we take the risk of going back empty handed. That's not acceptable."
"Hum…" Menma muttered shyly but too low to capt the attention of the two adult.
"To think we had the opportunity to solve this not three days ago." Kinoe stated, his voice still set in a monotone. "Why didn't I think of that?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at Yuuki.
The woman shrugged. "I don't know. No one did. As you say, we tend to forget he doesn't come with the same baggage as us."
"Hum, should I…" The boy tried again, louder this time. "Should I go back?"
Kinoe and Yuuki eyed the boy speculatively for the woman, impassively for the man. Menma started to fidget after a minute of being intently gazed at.
The door to the bathroom opened suddenly, revealing a naked Nana, who strutted in the chamber without a care in the world, stopped in front of her pack, before she turned to look at the strange standoff she had walked in.
"Something up?"
"We just realized Menma has not been initiated to anything regarding sex." Kinoe said, his tone one used to note that the sun had once again arisen eastward.
"Oh," said Nana dismissively, turning back to her gear before turning again to the trio, a concerned look on her face. "Oh. That's no good. We are going to Yugakure."
"Not good at all," chimed Yuuki. "Now get dressed Nana, you're frying the boy's brain right now."
"Ah shit, sorry!" The girl exclaimed before she hastily threw some clothes on. Once she was done, she neared Menma and waved her hand in front of the boy's eyes, who blushed a fierce red. "Whoa, I hope I didn't break him," said the teenager with a wide, teasing grin.
"Stop it, Nana. Yuuki, I need to ask you to discuss sexuality with our youngest. I trust you better than myself to thoroughly address the subject."
"Hehe, afraid to slip Kinoe?" Nana teased.
The man cocked his head sideways and cupped his ear with one hand. "I feel like I can hear someone volunteering to take your place, Yuuki. Should I?"
The redhead smiled teasingly at the younger girl, who looked mildly panicked. "That'll teach you to run your loud mouth, Nana. No, Kinoe, dear, I'll take care of poor Menma here. We can't have this foolish girl filling his head with nonsense."
Nana scratched her ear sheepishly. "Sorry, got carried away."
"You did," chided Kinoe. "Don't forget who is your big brother just because we are on the road."
The girl inclined her head slightly. "It won't happen again, aniki."
"Good," said the man, turning to face Yuuki. "I'll let you handle it how you see fit. Just ensure he can survive Yugakure."
"Got it."
"You got all that Menma?"
Menma, as far as he was concerned, was feeling like steam was escaping from his ears at the moment.
"Now that it's solved, let's go get something to eat and discuss the trip in more detail."
A few minutes later, the group of four was seated around a corner table in the large dining hall of their inn. The aromas of various food were floating in the air, exciting their palate and sending the youngest in a drooling transe.
"Don't actually slobber over the table Menma, that's disgusting."
"Sorry," the boy answered, immediately wiping the saliva off the corner of his mouth. "But it smells so good and I'm so hungry," he groaned.
He had not even finished to say that that a young boy around his age with an apron presented himself before them, bowing slightly. "What will you have for dinner tonight, guests-sama?" He asked politely while showing the table a slate with three different choices for meals.
All four travelers ordered the same rice-based dish, with pork and vegetables on the side, along with a large bottle of cider and the waiter quickly scampered off.
"So," began Kinoe. "Now we can discuss business in a normal voice."
"Huh?" Menma made a surprised face. "Won't we be heard?"
The older man smirked. "In this large common hall, there is too much noise and people for anyone to actually pay attention to us. Sometimes, hiding in plain sight is the best strategy."
The boy nodded. It made sense. "Can I ask a question then?"
"Yes."
"Why are we going as… Us?"
"Because the mission is a long term infiltration. If the goal was just to go in and out, we'd go in gear but that's not the case. When you want to stay in the same place for an unknown time and you want to stay incognito, you need an identity."
"But couldn't we like… Hide?"
"That's much trouble for little worth," explained Yuuki. "We would have to go in undetected, in a place full to the brim with spies and nukenin. We are good but there is always someone better, so chances are, we would be spotted. Then we would have to stay undetected, burrowing ourselves somewhere, with the same risk. Why go through all this trouble when we can have an alibi as some inoffensive minstrels?"
"We go in, we play during the day and we investigate at night," Nana concluded. "Or the opposite, whatever works."
"But haven't we a safehouse there or something?"
"Yugakure is a lawless den of predators and the Big Five love to play their games there. Every ninja village tried to establish a stronghold in the city but it turned into a game to destroy each other's safehouse. Since fifteen years ago, the village started planting sleeping agents and moles to keep the information flowing."
Menma nodded but his utterly puzzled expression betrayed his incomprehension. "Why do we invest so much in this place? I mean, it doesn't really hold any kind of big strategic value as I see it."
"Because you analyze the problem without relevant information. The Land of Onsen is a handy buffer state between Lightning and Fire but more than that, it's controlled chaos." Kinoe explained.
"Controlled chaos?" Menma asked, wondering what such an antinomic thing looked like and if the concept would have interested his old class teacher.
"Yugakure is allowed to exist for two reasons. One, it caters to the needs of rich nobles; money laundering, drugs of all kind, sex slaves, and other darker fetishes."
"But that's illegal, right?" The boy protested heatedly but not actually shouting, his eyes wide with indignation.
"Powerful people like to think they are above the law. We let them be because it keeps them in check, as long as they do not hurt us." Kinoe stated monotonously.
Menma felt himself go green. He did not like what the older man was explaining to him one bit.
"The second reason it exists is its nature. Yugakure is an artificially created criminal hub. The Big Five made it so that if something illegal is happening anywhere in the elemental nations, there is a link to it somewhere in Yugakure."
The young boy felt his eyes go wide in realization. "It's an access point." He muttered. "Like those chimney to access the sewer back at home."
Kinoe nodded, a hint of pride gleaming in his eyes at Menma's deduction. "Precisely. Every business the Big Five allow the criminal world to run, it finds its source in Yugakure."
The brown-haired kid leaned back in his seat and crossed his arm on his chest. "I don't like it. It's wrong to allow it."
"There is a great deal of wrong in this world and this way allows to control it, if even a little," observed Yuuki.
"But… But at this rate why not run the business ourselves? If we know it exists, we know it hurts people, and we don't stop it, how are we any better than those… Those criminals?" Menma whispered indignantly.
Cat averted her eyes, Hana looked away from the boy, and Tiger sighed before he spoke in a hard tone. "You can forget whatever they crammed in your head during the Academy, boy. How are we better? We might not be. The only truth you ever heard in all this propaganda is that there is only Konoha. And the family."
Startled by the cutting edge in the older man's voice, Naruto looked down, lost in thoughts. He knew that being a ninja was about lies but he was beginning to wonder if it was not more about uncomfortable truths. He simply never had imagined there would be so much.
"We are an organized mercenary state specialized in assassination, intelligence gathering, and asymmetrical fighting. That is our official line of business, validated by the authority of Fire Country," said Tiger sternly. "Make no mistake: the only reason we are not running drug rings, slave markets, or trading contraband is because, as of now, it is more profitable to Konoha when we do not. We know, however, that if we try to put a stop to those businesses, they would organize themselves back again but this time, outside of our watch. We cannot stop what happens in Yugakure but we can limit it."
Naruto nodded, unconvinced, trying his best not to let his imagination run free. His previous mission ever had been about rescuing Fire Country citizens from being sold as slaves in Rice and now, he was informed that, in Yugakure, it was considered a normal business, with the benediction of Konoha no less! That did not sit right with him. It was not okay if they were citizens from the Land of Fire but the rest of the world was fair game? That really, really did not sit right with him.
And what about those nobles who thought the laws for the common men were not applicable to them? If something was illegal, everyone was beholden to its illegality, not only the people too poor to violate the law!
"I need your attention here with us, Menma." Tiger's admonishing tone snapped Naruto out of his angry thoughts.
The boy nodded answered with a dry voice. "Hai, sorry aniki. So, how are we going to do this?"
The way they were going to do this, Naruto discovered, was some part investigation, part some luck. The fact that the mysterious sound ninja had coins -real and fake- minted in the Land of Onsen pointed to them doing business there but not much else.
The reason team Ro was even going to Yugakure was that there was no other place to begin the investigation with in the first place. As Tiger had explained: all criminal ventures could be traced back to their start in the Sincity.
The only tangible lead they had was a peculiar imprint an analyst had noticed on many coins. According to the chief of the department, the mark was a way to confirm the coin was a real one and was typical of drug dealing business. Which could possibly mean the sound ninja were buying or providing drugs to someone in Yugakure, with a big maybe. It was not that surprising, according to Tiger and Cat: apparently, body enhancing drugs crafted by ninja for war were used as mere speed in some aristocratic circles.
Or it could just be by chance that those particular coins ended up in the possession of the Otonin. The analysts were not clear on that, as the marked coins had made up the majority of the Yugakure li found in the purse, but not overwhelmingly so, as there were also fake ryos made in the Land of Onsen. And fake ryos were absolutely everywhere in Yugakure, so much so that it was one of the main concern of Konoha -in the name of Fire Country- to tightly monitor fake currency traffic.
Truly, the investigation would require a fair bit of luck and stumbling around in the dark to get a reliable lead. Naruto asked, however, how they would proceed to force the Lady's hand and to that, Tiger actually gave him a smile that seemed genuinely amused.
"You'll see," said the man, with a conniving face. "You'll get to see a very interesting place and you might even meet a very interesting person."
Cat simply smiled when Naruto looked at her searchingly while Hana shrugged her ignorance. Dog had not been much to Yugakure in her career as of yet.
When morning came, the four went back to their persona and on the road. Naruto or rather, Menma, tried desperately to juggle throwing knives while Cat, back to being Yuuki, explained to him the wonders of sexual reproduction and carnal pleasure. The woman, as any good street performer should be, was rather graphic in her description. She topped by actually singing a bawdy song, accompanying herself with her koto. It made for an overall very embarrassing afternoon for Menma while Kinoe and Nana mercilessly snickered at his desperation.
Later that day, the older man brought everyone back on earth and warned his younger brother not to be distracted by flesh while on a mission. They were chances the circumstances would force him to make said distracting flesh dead and cold, after all.
Like this, day after day, the Quatuor progressed toward the Land of Onsen, using the time on the road to perfect their role, work on an actual show they could perform on the streets of Yugakure, and plan for their actual mission at least a minimum. After a little more than two weeks of travel, the band of fake minstrels entered the Land of Onsen, paying a ridiculously expensive tax to a corrupt frontier guard.
Menma was tasked with robbing the man blind as soon as he turned his back to the group. It was a way to "work on his left-handed dexterity", according to Kinoe.
The Land of Onsen, much like Rice Country, bore its name for a very simple reason: the earth was cratered with astounding regularity and hot water was boiling out of those holes of all size. From some special sources, Menma astonishingly saw water be naturally projected high in the air in an explosion of steam.
Kinoe called them "geysers". Apparently, plunging inside one of the growling maws was a test of daring and courage for the youths of the Land of Onsen, as well as a cruel method of execution for its governing body.
Three more days later and Naruto lay his eyes for the first time on Yugakure. The heart of the Elemental Nations' criminal ventures was a city of contrast. Impossibly high towers made entirely of steel, concrete, and glass rose in the sky, shining in the sun while casting shadows over tiny, rundown traditional houses made of wood and bricks. The streets were large yet made narrow by the sheer mass of people that moved through them, trying to go somewhere, anywhere really. Garments ranged from rich and colorful to disgusting and tattered. Nobles carried in palanquins, closely guarded by mean-faced individuals, parted the crowd, a retinue of beggars, adults and children, trailing behind them, pleading for a ryo.
Countless vendors created an aggressive cacophony of advertisement, forcing anyone who had the bad luck of nearing their shop too much to stop and discuss their ware. Traditional goods were far from being the only thing being sold however and Naruto saw many houses painted entirely red. After Cat's lessons, he knew what they were. A disgusted fascination took hold of him as he saw women, jailed in cages painted in gold, dance lasciviously in front of such a house, inviting customers of all kind to visit them.
The establishments of the second sort were far more discreet and only recognizable because of the swarm of desperate addicts scratching at their door, lost souls experiencing withdrawal yet too poor to ensure a dose of their favorite poison.
Naruto shuddered at the collective sight and did his absolute best not to puke. A bitter smile wrung his mouth at the memory of one specific placard that could be found in the Academy, promising adventure and novelty to the enrolled students. It had never clarified adventure and novelty would be that ugly.
"Watch yourself and accept absolutely nothing." Tiger reminded him in a stern monotone before slipping back to Kinoe.
Menma nodded, his eyes trained nowhere, flickering freely from unknown face to new sight while keeping his peripheral vision as large as possible, his mind whirling at full speed as he anticipated each movement as possible aggression. The boy shuddered when a prostitute threw him a saucy wink, licking her lips as she pressed between her breast one bar of her cage. He felt his stomach lurch when a living carcass of a man, a bona fide living wreck, shook in the ecstasy of a false orgasm provoked by some liquid he had just injected himself. His eyes widened to comical proportion and he stifled an astonished shout when he saw a man stabbing another to death in a narrow alleyway and stealing the victim's purse. Mildly sick, the brown-haired street performer did not see the fat man and his retinue standing in the way of their little group.
It was only when he received a harsh palm strike to the shoulder that he realized there was an obstacle in front of their little group.
The man was fat, obese even, and disgustingly sweaty. Two black beads were serving as his eyes, darting left and right, betraying impatience but not nervosity. He was surrounded by three men who were all muscular and mean-faced.
"How much do ya sell the two youngest?" The fat man asked to Kinoe in a raspy, tired breath.
Kinoe bowed respectfully, adding a little fioritura by crossing his legs like it was the trend in some court. "I regret, noble sir, but my brother and sister are not for sale." The man said, his voice a carefully crafted mix of obedience, respect, and sycophancy.
"Com'on, everything has a price here my good man." The fat man said sweetly, apparently used to this kind of negotiation. "See here, I'll give ya a hundred thousand ryos for the both of them, plus a commission on their actual auction. They are young and healthy, they'll fetch for an awesome price, let me tell ya!"
"Alas, my lord, appearance can be deceitful! My sister is not a virgin anymore and she lacks plenty of teeth!" Kinoe lamented, gesturing toward Nana who revealed a severely lacking dentition. "As for my brother, he is chronically sick each and every winter since he is five!"
The fat man hummed while holding his chin under two greasy, fat, sausage-like fingers sporting many rings. He appeared to think things through for a second, gear visibly turning behind his two beady eyes before he exhaled by the nose strongly.
"I might have a way, my good man. I know someone who will disguise yar sister well enough that whoever buys her won't see her as she is! As for your brother, winter is long away and auctions are every day in Yugakure!" The slaver exposed his plan with enthusiasm.
Menma could only watch flabbergasted as a fat, disgusting pig masquerading as a human was trying to buy Nana and him while Kinoe was diplomatically doing his best to divert the fat man's attention.
"Alas, my lord, alas, I fear whoever is rich enough to pay for my sister would have men at their service able to see through such deception!" Kinoe countered, his tone still the same honeyed whisper.
"That, I can manage my good man. Com'on I can make ya rich ya know? Honestly, how much do they fetch you on the streets with their poor skills? Sell them to me! The merchandise isn't perfect but it never is and I can tell from here their skin is soft and their flesh tender."
Being talked of as an object, a mere thing to be sold and exchanged revulsed Naruto who extirpated himself from his stupor to dart furious eyes on the merchant of human flesh, who paid him no mind and kept talking.
"I can tell she has a firm pair of breast and she is young! Who cares about virginity when they have a firm ass like she has, ya know?!"
The disguised blond felt red hot anger swell within him. Not only was the fat man buying and selling humans, but he was also envisaging for Hana a fate that left little doubt. At this moment, and for the first time in his life, Naruto actually wanted to kill someone. Not because it was a mission, not because it had been sanctioned by his Hokage. Only because the animal -no, that was not it as animals did not sell their own-, the trash in front of him did not deserve to live any minute longer, did not need any other opportunity to spread his sinister trade. Naruto despised nothing more than his cover and its necessity for the mission.
He would have bled the man like a pig otherwise.
A light but reassuring hand fell on his shoulder and Menma looked up to see Yuuki looking down at him with a slight smile. The boy gave her an interrogative look but she only motioned with her head toward Kinoe.
Menma nearly choked from surprise and actual fright when he saw his big brother level on the merchant an all-encompassing, positively terrifying stare. His black eyes were wide open and dead, like those of a fish, yet freezingly piercing, emotionless and unblinking. Strange shadows were dancing on his face, accentuating further the frightening effect of his glare.
"Alas, good sir, I fear our poor mother, the Great Mother has her soul, would never forgive me if I sold my family to you." The man said in the same honeyed voice, except it carried an untold threat within and actually sounded like a dangerous venom was dripping from Kinoe's mouth.
The fat man recoiled in fright and started to sweat even more profusely than he had been until now.
"I see, ha ha, silly me… If it's family I totally get ya my good man, myself, wouldn't sell my mother for a ryo! See ya and good luck, my good man!" Greeted the merchant hastily before darting -as much as he could "dart" with all his fat- away, motioning for his three guards to follow him.
Menma swallowed thickly even as Kinoe's face returned to a more amiable version of itself. The man turned to face his younger brother.
"As I was saying, watch yourself, don't accept anything, and also, don't sell yourself."
The boy nodded furiously and hastily followed the three adults in the ever-moving mass of Yugakure. They would reach their destination soon.
"It's… It's here?" Menma asked, looking up incredulously with wonder in his eyes and awe in his voice at the massive house standing across the bridge they were standing in front of. The bridge was a large construction elegantly arching over a large river and linking to the mainland an isolated island.
"Island" being a big word to name a rocky protrusion with sides as straight as a cliff, cleaved in two parts, one large and supporting the main building, the other many times smaller where a gigantic chimney smoking black coal was defying the sky like an erect finger.
On the island itself was their destination, a place called the Aburaya. Built on massive, grey foundations of concrete, an otherwise elegant, square tower of several floors, built in the traditional style, was projecting its warm red walls and its mint green wavy roofs toward the sky. Small windows were piercing the walls at regular interval when it was not large balconies of brown wood closed by sliding panels made of small squares of glass, running along the facade. The second to last floor was circled entirely by one.
Laid gracefully on it, a smaller floor, also all wood and small panels of glass, circled by a bright red fence, was topped by a large roof, the green tiles hosting four golden lions and the head of an oni.
However, the striking feature of the building, the one architectural dare that caught the eye, was an elegant marquee protecting a terrace projected by the tower at its mid-height, entirely open.
Menma could see countless shadows lounging on the large terrace, enjoying gods knew what, above and away from earthly troubles.
Under the balcony was the entrance, the two doors guarding it wide open, a small garden welcoming the visitor with delicate sight and exquisite smell. The finishing touch to this otherworldly sight was the strange flag suspended to a mast where the word "open" was written for all to see.
"Yes," answered Kinoe. "Welcome to Yubaba's lair. Welcome to the Bathhouse."
The group of four crossed the bridge in a slow walk, Naruto's eyes darting left and right like an irresolute butterfly trying to capture the building to the smallest detail. As the minstrels reached the highest point of the arc, the disguised boy shuddered suddenly, as if he had passed through a thin, invisible curtain of rain.
"A barrier," he realized after a second, his eyes widening in surprise. Whoever owned the place knew fuinjutsu or could pay enough for a master to compose for them. Naruto looked at his companions but they did not look like they had noticed or at least, the did not show it.
They reached the garden and the boy was once again captivated by the sight and this time, the smell. He fashioned himself a gardening amateur but the small space of greenery was simply astounding. Nana had to drag him away from an especially pleasant flower and they finally entered the tower.
If the outside of the Bathhouse was refined and elegant, the inside was absolute madness. It was a chaos of men and women, customers and servants, people drinking, smoking, gambling, talking, and a few actually bathing while girls of various age danced a ballet between countless tables, bars, and baths, carrying orders under the watchful eyes of a few very muscular men.
Naruto could not help but notice that some of the hostesses were wearing fewer clothes than others, who were already not much covered.
"Everything here," informed Kinoe, "is expensive and the price might not always be what it seems. Everyone, be careful and stay together."
For a minute, the group followed the man's lead, Menma taking great never to be separated from the others. He could understand why they were meeting their contact here: the rumor of the crowd would mask any business they would talk about here and no one would suspect a thing: they were four travelers weary from the road, they had all the reason to take a bath and relax a bit. Suddenly, Kinoe motioned for them to seat in a little alcove.
"Now we wait," said the man laconically.
And wait they did, sipping a glass of rice wine Kinoe had allowed them to order -a young girl with dark eyes and rosy cheeks named Sen had served them-, observing the ambient chaos, Menma and Nana exchanging veiled comments about how that man was ridiculously fat, how that woman's makeup was terrible, laughing silently at their own jokes while Yuuki appeared to tune her instrument and Kinoe was playing nonchalantly with a deck of cards.
Their cups were since long empty when an average looking man, whose age Menma could not tell, hobbled to their table. The alarms of his instinct blared at full power and the boy was immediately on guard, even more than he had been until now: no one was that average nor looking that harmless.
"It's good to be aware kiddo but ya're going to have us noticed if ya don't relax," said the stranger as his introduction.
Kinoe nodded almost imperceptibly and Menma forced himself to lower his guard slightly. Nana motioned the boy to scoot over a bit so as to allow the stranger to sit with an exhausted sigh.
"Ya had a drink already?" The unknown man asked, scratching the little mustache covering his lip.
"We were waiting for you to get second," answered Kinoe with a fake smirk that looked truer than some genuine article did.
"Perfect, I'm thirsty ya know? Oy!" The man exclaimed while frantically waving his hand in the air. "Another cup and a jug of rice wine here!"
The order arrived promptly and the stranger drank his first cup greedily as if the pungent alcohol was actually enjoyable and quenching.
"Ahh, that's mighty good where it goes, I tell ya. So, the name's Muta Ikko, what's yar business?"
Kinoe shuffled his deck and spoke in a light voice. "We are on a money trail. Some people are trying to make money by selling free, honest workers."
Muta barked a laugh. "Wouldn't be the first time."
"True but they angered the wrong people. Tough luck," explained Kinoe with a shrug of his shoulders.
Muta nodded his agreement. "Tough luck indeed. Who are they?"
Kinoe flipped a card where, instead of any of the traditional marking, a musical note was etched. The Quatuor of disguised ninja did not have to wait long for a reaction. Muta instantly became deadly pale, his breath hitched, and his eyes widened before he gathered his countenance again, all under a second. The undercover ANBU however, had seen everything.
"You can tell me anything on these newcomers?"
Muta swallowed thickly and hid his fear behind a confused face. He hummed for a second, appearing to carefully observe the card Kinoe was showing before he spoke. "Sorry my man, my memory isn't what it was ya know?" Shrugging slightly and raising his eyebrows in an almost comedic show of ignorance, the stranger shook his head. "I don't know this sign."
"Really now," Kinoe said in his monotone. "And how much money would it take to jog your memory?"
Muta paled and shook his head again. "I really don't know anything about them, ya know?"
Kinoe nodded ever so slightly, more for himself than for the man. "I see. The ravages of time can be unkind, as they say." The man said, his voice holding a dangerous edge. "Nana, fill the poor man's cup, he needs a drink for his woes."
The girl obeyed wordlessly but Muta instantly got up and coughed awkwardly. "It's alright ya know, I'm good and Ma Ikko is waiting for me at home."
A hand as strong as steel and as heavy as lead fell on the information broker's shoulder and forcefully sat him back again. Muta's head swiveled and stared with horror at the frozen smile Yuuki was giving him as she pressed down on his body. Menma observed with fascination as the man started to sweat his fear abundantly, the boy's sensible nose twitching at the acrid smell, the man's fright weighing on the boy's mind directly.
"Now are you sure you do not know them?" Tiger asked in his robotic monotone, a card dancing in his fingers.
Muta's eyes went wide in fright when he saw the card was a black four with a white skull on its back. The man swallowed, as if it was mobilizing all his strength, and coughed several times to clear the fear from encumbering his throat. Eventually, he nodded.
"I'm disappointed, Muta-san," Tiger said almost nonchalantly. "I don't like liars."
Sandwiched between Tiger and Cat, the broker could only shiver in fright, apparently too terrified to speak.
"If money does not clear the fog of your mind, maybe a bit of pain will do," commented the ANBU leader before, in a motion so quick Naruto almost missed it, mercilessly cutting one of Muta's finger with a shuriken.
The man was not allowed the chance to scream his pain as a strange tree branch, impossibly sprouting from the wooden bench, wrapped around and inside his mouth, muffling his shout and keeping Muta from biting his tongue off, as Cat started to play, apparently on a whim, a few notes that covered the whimper. Naruto barely stifled his own cry of surprise and indignation, his eyes darting from the severed appendage twitching in a pool of blood to his stone-faced leader. A foul smell hit his nose and the boy realized the man had released his bladder. He could feel the pain, the fear, the hopelessness mixing and oozing from Muta, scratching at the edge of his own emotions, trying to invade the sanctuary of his mind. Naruto felt himself break out in a cold sweat; he knew the fear was not his own but it was overpowering, like the staunch of a corpse.
"Now, shall we play a game?" Tiger asked, his voice suddenly too sweet, sickeningly so. "I bet you'll break at the next finer. If I'm right, you give us the information I want. If I'm wrong, the game start anew." The man explained with a terrifyingly out-of-place smile. "Oh yeah, I forgot; there's no way for you to win."
Muta looked like he could faint at any moment. His face was contorted in pain, tears were rolling from his eyes and snot was covering his nose.
"So, willing to talk?"
The tree sprout relaxed gently, allowing the information broker to weep. "They'll… They'll kill me if I speak," stuttered Muta. "They'll kill me…Anything… They said if I said anything, they would take him… Like… Like they took her..."
Naruto felt his guts twist and turn and protest. He still could not believe what he was seeing. He still could not believe the Tiger who had trained him, demanding, a true slave-driver even, yet helpful and kind nonetheless, was the same cold, merciless man who was torturing this poor sap. Someone whose only wrong was to know too much yet could not speak of it.
Who was "her"? Naruto would probably never know but it was someone dear to Muta. A wife, a sister, a daughter. A precious someone. The boy suddenly felt sick. Was that the work Konoha wanted of him? His gaze wavered for a second and Naruto was unsure if the disgust he was feeling was not against himself. He refused, however, not to look. He felt like he owed it to the man his captain was torturing. He owed it to the man he was torturing.
"Still not tenderized enough huh? Let's see if I win my bet."
Before their victim could protest, the tree branch gagged him again and his eyes went wide, with terror at first, with pain then, when a second finger was hacked off. Naruto felt himself tear up as another wave of nausea hit him and so he begged. Silently, Naruto begged the man to talk, to not prolong his suffering more than what was necessary. It felt weak, cowardly maybe, but the boy did not know if he could withstand the aggression of Muta's haywire psyche.
When the branch released its captive, the man was sobbing quietly.
"So?" Tiger asked.
Muta mumbled something incomprehensible before Tiger slapped him. "So?"
"The… The drug market, the Akira," whimpered the man in-between the body-wracking sobs that shook him. "They are in here to sell drugs, that's all I know I swear!" He continued in a low, broken voice, his pitch shifting higher and higher as he whispered.
Tiger laid a scrutinizing gaze on the wrecked man and concluded that quite likely, he indeed did not know more. He was an information broker after all, not a full-fledged spy. "Very well." The ANBU leader said suddenly, his voice as cutting as sharpened steel. "Nana, disposal, Yuuki, cover, Menma…"
Naruto swallowed thickly.
"Watch and learn."
In a second, Nana slipped something in Muta's drink, a pill that hissed and foamed as it made contact with the alcohol. The informant watched, terrified, as the teenager took the cup and forced him to drink its content, while Yuuki was playing a fast-paced melody, distracting anyone looking with radiant smiles, flowing robes, and agile fingers.
It took ten seconds for Muta's eyes to glaze over and another ten for the man to crumbled like a puppet without its string. Menma watched in horror, too shocked to say anything before he realized the man was alive. And fast asleep. The boy tried to swallow whatever he had through his throat and coughed when he failed.
Nana lost no time and, taking the two cut fingers, placed them in front of their respective stump. Before he could ask himself what she was hoping to accomplish, Menma saw her run through hand signs before he palm glowed with healing chakra.
A minute later, Nana, sweating and out of breath, had stitched the two fingers back into place. At much the same time, Kinoe had finished cleaning the blood.
"I feel sick," Menma informed his three companions before he dry-heaved over the empty wine jug.
Believe it or not, that chapter was a pleasure to write, save for that last part: that was intense. I hope it is also intense to read, even if a little bit.
To "Guest", who commented (on chapter 10) mainly on how "jutsu and chakra are incorrect in this fic": the Narutoverse is a fictional world whose magical rules are not clearly defined. You do not come from this verse and as such, do not possess superior knowledge about its magical rules. The information you do possess comes from Narutopedia at best and is just as incomplete. If I want to explain "why" Chakra works a certain, I am entirely free to do so.
It is unfortunate you commented so shortly on rhythm, character development, and character interaction because that is what actually interests me. I find you harsh as far as character development goes, considering all the changes in Naruto. I wonder what you would call "worthwhile interaction": Tiger, Dog, Cat, Konohamaru, Hiruzen, Ayame... Were all those interactions worthless and uninteresting? Is there not one that found grace in your eyes? As for the "training and only training", I edited chapter 5 with an offer that still stands (to all of you readers, actually): if you can point to me what part should, IYO, go and if you can explain to me why, please, do send me a PM! Finally, you find my story boring, well, not much I can do if you do not expand on that.
To all of you, do leave a review if you feel so inclined and please, logged readers, don't comment on this AN too much! (Send me a PM, they are here for just that! :-) )