Chapter 4: A New Wave
Hiro was waiting patiently on sturdy, wooden stool in the front office of the police headquarters rocking side to side. Recklessness and emotional scars have slowly acclimated his soul to a numbness to danger. Two months ago he had failed his graduation exam at the academy for the accusation of cheating. Later that night Hiro's teacher attempted to kill him and succeeded in murdering his best friend, miraculously surviving a stab wound. The next morning his mother was arrested on grounds of treason and executed a few days ago. Following his mother's initial trial, he was informed of his half-truth jinchuriki status, to be pronounced graduated as his existence is a weapon to be wielded by the village. Each day the events piled on his mind, always to wonder, "what if?" A mere simple question provoked a grandeur, unquenchable rage nauseating his stomach. But Obito's leadership was a divine elixir, satisfying Hiro's wrath. Hours of physically being pushed past his limits allowed the anger to be released and justified in every thrust and slam of his staff.
"Hiro, stop rocking back and forth", Ino said. "You'll fall and hurt yourself." Hiro stopped fidgeting, dropped his eyes, and inhaled a large breath. He continued.
"Leave him alone", Akira said. "His mom died a couple days ago."
"How is that relevant?" Ino asked. "He's going to hurt himself." She shook her head. "As the temporary leader of team seven, I am ordering you to stop!"
"Aren't you only team leader because you begged after Obito mentioned leaving us for the next month?" Akira asked.
"Shut up", Ino said. "That doesn't mean I'm not in charge." She placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward. Akira took notice and sat down on a couch opposite side of Hiro. "Where are they?"
A man in his twenties entered the main office; the first human contact they've found after Obito had them wait since six in the morning, "not knowing when they'll get here". Standard Uchiha clothes were his attire, black with a pronounced collar. A small piece of leather wrapped around his chest and held up a tanto on his back. Spiky black hair, dark brown eyes and two odd creases underneath his eyes and nose made up his face indicating an age irregularity.
Hiro fell off and Ino laughed.
"Nice to meet you all", the stranger said. "I'm Shisui Uchiha. Obito requested my partner and I lead your squad in his absence as well as train you. I'm normally here before five thirty, but a case came up. Follow me. Can you introduce yourselves and say something interesting about yourselves?" The group headed out.
"I'm Akira, and I like oranges", Akira said. Ino and Hiro gave a blanketed stare. Shisui pointed at Ino to go next.
"I'm Ino Yamanaka and I'm the squad's temporary leader", Ino said. Shisui tilted his head.
"I wasn't informed you had another temporary leader" Shisui spoke. "Can you two verify?"
"She's making it up", they both said. Ino stopped in her tracks, seething behind the rest of the group.
"I am Hiro Okada and I bought this staff yesterday", Hiro said. The weapon was carried freely in his right hand.
After a few minutes of general conversations, the squad began to approach its stopping place: a medium sized warehouse drolly painted was a few feet ahead of them. Large doors were open ahead, operated by a chain. Dirty windows were scarce and scattered on the lightly shaded walls. Cracked and crumbling stone formed the walls themselves, as well as the few surrounding buildings. This warehouse had around twenty feet of dirt pathway from the street to the entrance. The two neighboring buildings both started at street level and ended where warehouse began. Trash covered alleys existed on opposite ends between the warehouse and its neighbors. Only in noticing the dreary atmosphere from the surroundings was the sun noticed to have teased the skyline with its missing presence.
Walking in the grand front door, the dark inside became perceivable. A young adult with long black hair wearing typical Uchiha clothing with its symbol on the high collared shirts back; who was standing next to a small person lying on the ground. Behind them were stacks of wooden boxes with the tallest nearing thirteen meters high, with each individual box of formidable size, and covered the back ends and sides to the center of the warehouse. The only exception was near the northeastern corner was a flight of stairs that led to an office, where crevices for walking existed.
"Pleased to meet you all", the other Uchiha said. He stepped forward, then glancing over to Shisui.
"This is Itachi Uchiha everyone", Shisui said. "He's the older brother of Sasuke, a classmate of yours. Itachi, this is Ino, Akira, and Hiro."
"He's not as weak as Sasuke, is he?" Ino asked. Shisui laughed.
"Sasuke preferred to play than to practice like a normal child", Itachi said. "He's not weak."
"Itachi here is one of the strongest shinobi in the Hidden Leaf", Shisui said. "He and I are two of the few people who can actually challenge Obito in a fight." Ino covered her mouth hastily.
"Back to important matters", Itachi said. "This is your first case, and you will be working on it with us."
Shisui spoke up, "Through this, you are challenged to find information, expand critical reasoning, and develop various other skills you have yet to need."
"Our current case is a murder", Itachi said.
Murder. The body behind Itachi that was seen sleeping before was already dead. Hiro took a gander past Itachi only to confirm what was already spoken. A swallow of spit was half taken before the brief waft of a terrified sweat wept in his nose. The stubborn standstill consciousness of a boy who yearned for arrogant rebellion nauseating in his stomach was voided clean.
"Try to get up", a stern voice said. A slight push began rocking Hiro's body gently in a wave motion. Hiro slightly opened his eyes- it was Itachi speaking. "I understand from your teammates you've been through a lot these last few days. However, you cannot pass out every time something difficult comes up. Rage, anxiety, depression, loneliness… these are all overwhelming emotions, but as a shinobi, you must learn to live beyond them." He outstretched his arm, helping Hiro to his feet. "Before I give my full report, I'm asking your team to discover as much information as you can." Hiro nodded slowly.
Akira and Ino were looking moving about the warehouse, not looking at the body albeit from already examining it. Hiro kneeled over the corpse; a small girl his age who is also a former classmate by the name of Fuki Ashihara was lifeless and exposed. Bits of her clothes remained, but most of it was ripped to shreds and trailed in pieces around the body. Her training bra and shoes remained mostly intact. She had short reddish brown hair with brown eyes and pale skin. Her face was covered in tearfully wettened and then dried small amounts of makeup. Around her neck, wrists, and genitalia was severe bruising, with mouth sized bruises sparsely covering her chest and upper legs. A thin ivory substance crusted on the outside of her genitals. On the back of her left calf was a four-centimeter-deep hole, with trace amounts of blood on the floor leading outside.
Following the trail of blood outside, there were two sets of unnoticed footprints leading Hiro around to the front of warehouse's right side neighbor. It held a wooden sign saying, "antiques" on the entrance. Sitting inside a dusty window on a rocking chair was an elderly woman in a faded green dress. Footprints disappeared near the entrance into the constant kicked up dirt of the daily used market path.
"Can I help with something, young man?" the older woman asked. She was now standing with a cane in the front door.
"Hopefully, you can", Hiro said. She reentered the store and showed Hiro in, offering to move another rocking chair which Hiro declined. Sitting down, the woman let out a weary groan. The first question asked would be the most important. First impressions, honesty, approachability… these qualities matter. Hiro took a deep breath, not knowing the woman had already gathered her own feelings forward.
"You wish to know if I saw something?" the woman asked. "Forgive my forward question. My name is Tai. You seem to be searching for something."
"I'm a shinobi, currently working with the police force", Hiro said. "Have you noticed anything particular since last night?"
"No, has something happened?" she asked.
"Nothing to be worried about, miss", Hiro replied. The elderly woman giggled, and Hiro thanked her before exiting the door. The trail was dead. With nothing left to do, Hiro walked back to the warehouse. A new figure was speaking to Itachi; a middle-aged man with short graying brown hair and an anxious face.
"Did you learn anything?" Shisui asked.
"There are two sets of footprints, one larger than the other that lead around the corner", Hiro said. "I asked an old woman in an antique shop, but she didn't know anything."
"I've heard your good at retaining details", Itachi said. "As our subordinate and temporary officer of the law, you must careful with your word choice and decision making. You can remember all the details of a case, but if you can't act when needed it means nothing. Stressing out exasperates the situation."
"I know", Hiro groaned.
"Arrogance", Itachi said. "You don't know. You presume because you're trying to think of the consequences, but what did you say to that woman? You only asked if she saw something, not hear, denied what happened, and gave up after only a brief interaction. I already interviewed Miss Tai. In the middle of the night, she heard several loud grunts and shouts by a masculine voice."
"They didn't hear the girl's voice?" Shisui asked. Itachi shook his head. The older man previously speaking now seemed to be getting impatient. Veins on his forehead bulged in manga fashion and a countdown appeared overhead. "What were you saying, sir?"
"I said I don't know this girl", he replied. "I've seen her talking to one of my workers, Deck, who is a bit of a loner. That's all I know. Can I get back to work now?"
"You can go", Shisui said. "Thank you for the information." Shisui pointed to the far-left corner and explained the four workers, who formed the entire staff, were talking to Ino and Akira. The middle-aged gentleman, Mr. Yahiko, was the owner of the warehouse for storing various children's toys. They shipped out regularly in caravans to other villages in the land of fire while hand delivering stock to buyers in the hidden leaf.
Ino and Akira came walking back, each giving information from the various workers of from the business, but nothing useful related to the girl. No one claimed to know her. Shisui raised his voice, asking for Deck. The eldest of the workers bolted out an emergency door disguised by the multitude of boxes. Hiro gazed back to his commanders, longing for the order to chase the man down. Yet Itachi had vanished only to reappear a blink later with the worker in tow pinned to the ground. We asked questions as a group, but Shisui took the lead. Whenever he seemed unsure of answering Itachi would twist his arm ever so slightly.
The runaway, Deck, admitted to knowing Fuki in past encounters originating during a time he dropped off a box of goods to a local store over two years ago. She was looking for a doll with the appearance of Tsunade Senju. Knowing he had one, taking one out with no onlookers was easy. After giving the Tsunade doll away, the younger Fuki grew stitched the man's side when she saw him and never stopped talking; always impressed with the great wisdom of the "old guy." Within a few weeks, she learned his typical routes and would follow him in hopes of free dolls. Free dolls turned into more conversations; happening more often until the time spent together was in private. Deck had a key to the warehouse to open in the early mornings; with his differentiated power, he would take to the warehouse roof and stare into the night with her.
"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Shisui asked.
"My wife…" Deck spoke up. "She's been convinced I've been cheating on her for years now. If I was arrested, she wouldn't defend me. She would accuse me of having sex with a child." Running only makes things worse.
"It won't matter", Itachi said. "We'll have to search the entire place now. There are no kunai or blood stains in sight to match the wound she was given." The search began and ended over a short course. A roof had been discovered atop as mentioned with blood stained rags out of the common sight. A weapon was inexistent still, but it was only a matter of time.
"Akira and Ino, follow Itachi and me", Shisui said. "We will talk to Fuki's family. Hiro, report back to the police headquarters with our current information. Following will be a patrol of the village until dusk. You will report to us after."
"Any other directions you can give me?" Hiro asked.
"Trust your instincts", Itachi said. "Look for anything suspicious relating to the murder."
The depth of the inner beings of the ninja is a difficult subject to meditate over- more to a younger ninja. Lying and secrecy come easy to some, but Hiro wasn't so lucky. A simple lie to an enemy would never be difficult. But concealing the truth to those under your authority? Hiro couldn't stand the idea. Shisui and Itachi were giving Hiro busy work. Hiro passed his exams in the academy to the point of becoming genin. He was being trained in teamwork and tactical espionage the last two months under Obito. However, he had never been trained to spot a murder- let alone have the first clue in the matter. Dwelling in his knotted stomach was the truth. The Uchiha feared how he would respond to the victim's family. If Hiro was friendly he would be overly concerned with their pain and identify with them. If by chance someone opened up to being the murderer than he would be in shock with rage or motionless. Either way, he was a liability to them in the current moment. He understood why they lied, but it hurts. Part of him was a particular candor. His mother raised him to be respectful but speak his mind. Hurtful truth can be spoken in gentle ways. Bluntness was a problem Hiro slowly became self-aware of but still struggled with. Not speaking his mind was a response from pure laziness. In his ideal world, the shinobi investigators would have told him- flat out- he was a liability. He wasn't living in his ideal inner world, though. Whether it hurts him or not- regardless of how feels over the issue- he is forced to learn to cope with the reality. Living as a ninja is living in a world of deception. Worst of it all, he understood Itachi and Shisui were trying to be kind about it. They were giving him responsibility. Yet being seen as such a liability brought out an old insecurity walking the roads of his soul. He felt powerless.
Despite how the minor issue bothered him greatly, he remained in obedience. The five-story police station had become far more lively. Shinobi police were strolling throughout the building, engaging each other or immersed into their work unyielding the acknowledgment of others. Sounds of rustling papers and the occasional lengthy swearing match of a criminal filled the outspoken background noise. When Hiro arrived at the offices of Shisui and Itachi, a young, diligently secretary pointed him to report to the Chief a few offices over. They might not act particularly special, but being next to the chief has to mean something. Over a few more offices was a door. A simple wooden door with a single word engraved on it- Chief. Inside was a simple man who asked Hiro to enter before he had even knocked. Tall and fair looking, but with a plain expression. Another Uchiha, but older. The report seemingly pleased the Captain, a huge grin spread across his face. All Hiro did was speak which he remembered.
With the report done a new task was underway. Only midday, Hiro has to patrol the village looking for suspicious activity. The task had incurred a few problems in Hiro's mind as he began walking around the village. First, he was not sure what to look for. Straight up murder and sexual harassment of young women or potentially petty crimes? Should he look for the crime itself or an event that looks connected to the crime? Second, he lived in a ninja village. If another ninja killed the young girl, Hiro would lose outright. He was far from a decent fighter. Although superior to both Ino and Akira, it isn't impressive. A new weapon is nice, but it's only his second day wielding it. Third, and most importantly, the task was boring. Who wants to walk around staring at random people? Granted, seeing people walk throughout the town performing awkward acts was amusing. Attempting to perceive all people as potential threats was tedious. Is the random old man wielding a kunai ready to pounce, or does he have to scratch his testicles quick? The answer was obvious. An empty stomach and miserable spirit slowed time all the slower. Nonetheless, Hiro obeyed the one command of Itachi which surpassed the others- trust his instincts.
Wandering his way through the markets led to a familiar sight. Although it had been two months since Hiro truly noticed its presence, it feels longer. Obito forced team seven to visit periodically for him to see Rin regularly. Still, something felt different. Nothing was off- just different. The Ninja Academy was in walking distance. Classes were in session for several minutes longer. Finding his old door, he waited outside as he saw new faces and a few unhappy familiar ones pass him in the hall. Stepping foot inside the room now felt different. Something proud settled in the soul of Hiro. For the first time, he was at the academy on official shinobi business.
Chalk writings about chakra where smothered across the board. Random forgotten textbooks and pencils covered the floor. Rin was sitting at her desk, breathing a sigh of relief and offering a pseudo nervous smile. "What can I do for you, Hiro?" she asked. "Is Obito here?"
"He's off on a mission without us", Hiro said. Rin raised an eyebrow.
"Really?", she asked.
"We were told it would last a month", Hiro replied. "Our team is being led by Itachi and Shisui Uchiha in the meantime." Rin's face turned puzzled. The nervous smile as if ready to be jumped in surprise left. In its stead were a furrowed brow and puffed cheeks. "Anyway… Rin, has anyone let you know why Fuki didn't come to class today?"
"No."
"Last night she was killed", Hiro said. For the first time, his heart didn't sink from the words when they finally came out of his mouth. Oddly, he even felt cold to the subject as if he had no choice in the matter. "And raped." Those words were still difficult to swallow.
"Poor girl", Rin mumbled. "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"Honestly, I don't know", Hiro said. Rin got up from her official chair and decided to take up the odd position of sitting on her desk. She patted the desk, asking Hiro to sit down next to her. Obeying his former instructor, he sat on the creaking wooden desk. A soft hand found its way on top his head and pulled him.
"Tell me what's wrong," Rin said. Hiro looked up to meet a gaze filled with tenderness.
"I don't know what I'm doing", Hiro said. "Itachi and Shisui asked me to patrol the village looking for something suspicious, but it's simply because I'm a burden. I can't help so they have me doing busy work."
"What's really wrong?" Rin asked.
"What do you mean?" Hiro responded.
"You enjoy doing nothing, don't you?" Rin asked. "Something is eating at you, but you aren't being honest with yourself." Hiro forced his way up.
"Why because my mother died?" Hiro asked. "Bullshit."
"Why do you bring it up then?" Rin asked. Hiro shook his head. "You are afraid, Hiro. That's ok. It's ok to be afraid. It's ok to be weak."
"I can't afford to be weak!" Hiro shouted.
"Why?"
Why can't he be weak? Had Hiro ever truly thought that question through? His tightened fists loosened their grips, but what about his mind? Tensed and anxious inside all parts of Hiro raised the question. Despite wanting to run away the question kept raising red flags. Alerts range throughout his skull. He needs strength for power. He needs the power to accomplish what he wants. He needs to accomplish what he wants to feel happy. Why does he need to feel happy? More importantly, why can't he feel happy by being weak? "I don't know", Hiro groaned.
"Deep in the hearts of people everywhere is a longing", Rin said. "Everyone wants to feel whole or satisfied. We have this irreplaceable longing for something we can't quite understand. When this irreplaceable longing is threatened we go through fear or grief. Some people do anything to make themselves feel whole. You don't have to always worry about being the strongest. You have friends. Always think about why you need to do something. Do your best when you can, but don't worry when you fail." Her words struck a chord to the music of Hiro's soul. Something spoke true which he didn't understand itself, but he did understand the lesson at hand.
"I don't need to be the strongest", Hiro said. "I only need to do my best." Rin nodded her head and hugged the young boy tightly.
"You're getting there", Rin said. "Your parents are proud of you." Undoubtedly, they are proud of him and they loved him. Even if they aren't here now their memory and actions of love linger on inside Hiro's spirit.
"I need to be getting back", Hiro said. "Do you have any advice for searching the village?"
"Focus on what you can do", Rin said. "Keep searching. Harder activities will be done with experience."
Emotionally charged and inspired, Hiro set out into Konoha leaving behind the old building in fonder memory. Searching the village was more relaxing, yet also more appealing. Passed three in the afternoon the marketplace was more lively with a refreshed smell of ingredients and supplies. In midst of the crowds was a friendly face calling out.
"Hiro, wait up!" Akira shouted. His dark haired, calm postured teammate was running over to him.
"What's up, Akira?" Hiro asked.
"Itachi and Shisui asked me to help you search the village", Akira said. "They wanted us to stick together."
"Sounds good", Hiro said. "We can observe people do stupid crap while we wait for something to happen."
"Chill", Akira said. While walking through the village he explained to Hiro some of the information they had found out. Each of the family members- a mom, dad, and a chunin older brother- claimed their innocence. The mom accused the dad of being abusive in private practice, begging for safety in case he thinks she "ratted" him out. It ended with Itachi and Shisui taking all three family members to the station a short while ago. During which Akira was ordered to meet up with Hiro. Yet, by all accounts, the short details of Akira's version of events left a rather strong impression. A wife quick to betray her husband, a husband quick to raise his fist, and a shinobi without a word to remark on the matter.
On to the matter of people watching, neither Hiro or Akira seemed to take their role serious. Both genin pointed out the weird actions of others in the marketplace. The ramen chef at Ichiraku was checking out girls far younger than his age, although clearly adults. Team 10 and team 3 were met along the way, taking either a late lunch or an early dinner. Of course, they had "happened" to meet each other. Sakura "happened" to spill water on Naruto's jumpsuit. Sadly, polite Naruto simply took off the jacket instead of letting her dry it. Why would he make a friend do that? They saw an old academy instructor get rejected by a girl. Using shadow clones in his pick-up lines didn't help. Oddly enough, Akira pointed out amidst the crowd that store worker, who happened to be the only one, was out shopping. Who just happened to almost always leave his store unlocked. According to Akira, he sold groceries, drinks, and magazines.
With nothing to do, Hiro followed his teammate without question. Twisting the wonderful doorknob at arrival inspired a face of awe on Akira's face the likes Hiro had yet to see. Inside the shop seemed fairly average, although they sold more alcohol than groceries. Akira was more focused on the magazine articles, reading through them like wildfire and placing them in his bag.
"Hey, Hiro, you like Hinata right?" Akira asked. How does everyone know that?
"Yes", Hiro said.
"You've got to see this", Akira said. Hiro walked over and saw something new he had never fully imagined. The magazines Akira was stealing were filled to the brim with naked women. On this page Hiro witnesses a Hyuga girl with the bright, white eyes poise herself in a single headband lying on the forest ground. Her body was flushed red. A dulled kunai was in hand rubbing her personal privacies. Her breasts were large and with a figure interesting to the say the least. Her nipples were… "What happened to the magazine?" Akira said. "My bag, it's gone! My porn is gone!"
Outside the shop, a new, speedy evil figure rose from behind a window with a gentle wave. There was no way he was older than either Hiro or Akira. The two genin exchanged looks and took off after the academy looking drop out- at his best. The chase exhausted itself throughout the village, from the academy rooftops, towards the hokage offices, the markets, and stone faces. Nothing was off limits in the chase. Miraculously, the kid was able to walk up walls with ease! Every step into an odd direction almost made Hiro lose sight of the kid. But when the kid reached the forest, he was toast. Pointless missions for two months and constant training allowed for the genin to know the forest well. The punk was in their territory now. At least until the boy they were chasing stopped abruptly. Through the forests' trees was a temple made of stone, with a familiar architecture.
"You two are faster than I thought", the boy said. A slight explosion cloud burst forward. Outside of the dust stepped an old, short man with a thick, gray beard. "But these are my magazines now."
"They were mine first!" Akira said.
"And I want the one you took from my hands!" Hiro said. Akira laughed. Without realizing it, Hiro embraced a bit of his perverted side for the first time.
The elderly man's gaze fixed itself on the weapon attached to Hiro's back. "Is that Bo staff yours? Fight me for the magazines. If you win, you keep them. If I win, I keep them." From the old man's sleeve came a small branch, which transformed into a staff in the same likeness as Hiro's own.
"I'm getting a bad vibe from this guy, Hiro", Akira said. "Maybe we should give up."
"No, I'm kicking his ass and taking those magazines back", Hiro exclaimed. Pulling the weapon from his back, Hiro readied his stance. The old man charged, striking with a slam. Hiro managed to block the attack, but barely. A sweep kick was next, which Hiro managed to jump backward to avoid. Another attack struck forward, this time a swift knee to Hiro's stomach and made firm contact.
"I'm not giving up that easy", Hiro said. Pushing his body up, gripped his bo tighter than before. "I can do more." On the offensive, Hiro went for the sides strikes and jabs, yet all of his multitude of attacks were blocked. Failure after failure went through his Hiro's mind, angering him all the more. Chakra began gathering in his muscles. Yet again every blow was blocked. The alcoholic smell from when he fought Naruto returned once more. The chakra in Hiro's hands centered around his grip, taking a stronger hold of the staff. Attack after attack continued. The elderly man stopped blocked and started merely dodging. As the fight continued the opponent quickened his pace, directly proportional to Hiro's own frustrated desire to beat him over the head with his staff. Dodge after dodge remained! Hiro could do nothing to get his hands on the enemy.
"Do you give up yet?" the elder man asked.
"NEVER!" Hiro roared. The old man laughed. For the first time in several minutes of fighting, he swung his staff, slamming Hiro into the ground. With a quick maneuver of the hands, the elderly man twisted his own staff behind Hiro's and pulled towards himself, forcing him to let go.
"You give up now?" the elderly man asked. Hiro didn't say a word back. His eyes were inflamed with an enraged view. "Give up. Do not fear failure with malicious aggression."
Rin came back to Hiro's mind. He does not need to be afraid of losing; he does not need to worry about being the strongest. "What is your name, sir?" Hiro asked.
"Quite a respectful gentleman now", the old man said. "My name is Satien. I'm the master of this temple. Your mother raised you well."
"You won", Hiro said groaning. "There's no point in being angry about it anymore." Satien tucked on his own beard and let out a chuckle.
"Wise words from a young man", Satien said. "You got that Bo staff yesterday, right? How about you study how to use it under me? This is a bojutsu school after all." Hiro lay with slight shock in his face, although nothing compared to the completely stunned Akira helping him up.
"I'm thankful", Hiro said. "But I don't know the first thing about bojutsu; let alone how to use this staff."
"That's what learning is for", Satien said. "Don't worry about your ninja training. If you want to learn, we can work around it." Satien seemed determined, although slightly relaxed, to teach Hiro. Hiro, on the other hand, was nervous. Exchanging blows with the older man left with him the obvious knowledge he is a master of his craft. Almost no effort was put into Satien's side of the fight. He determined the flow of the fight till its end. Yet Rin's question urged itself forward.
"Why do you want to teach me?" Hiro asked.
"I want to find the answer that myself", Satien asked. "We can search for the answer together as student and master." Hiro, whether humbly admitting the truth or not, agreed with Satien's heart over the matter. He wanted to search for why. Something about these last few days stood out to him.
"I wish to learn under you", Hiro said kneeling down.
"Good", Satien said. "For now, it is dusk. You must get back to your superiors at the police station before it gets late. When you want to train, Hiro, come visit this temple. I'm here most of the time." Reaching into his bag Satien pulled out a magazine and handed it to Hiro. "I think you wanted this." In a shameful happiness, Hiro accepted realizing what would happen if Hinata or any other girl saw him carrying this.
"Can I have the others back?" Akira said. "You did steal them from me."
"No", Satien said. "They're mine now." Akira hung his head. With nothing left, Hiro got Akira to reluctantly leave behind his brief collection of beauties.
"Did they ask you to report back?" Hiro asked. Akira looked caught off guard.
"No, all they mentioned was to help you", Akira said.
"I give you permission to leave", Hiro said. "Enjoy your night off. No point in making you and me report all the fun we had today."
"Chill", Akira said.
After Akira left, it didn't take long for Hiro to reach the station. A large amount of the police had left for the day, heading back to their families. Itachi's and Shisui's secretary had already left, with piles of mess on her desk. In their office were the two detectives and Ino waiting. To Hiro's joy, Ino looked bored out of her mind.
"You're late", Itachi said.
"Nothing we can do about that now", Hiro said.
"Somebody's gotten cocky while on patrol", Ino said. "Did you learn anything?"
"Not about the case, no", Hiro said. Shisui laughed. Hiro had a good day- seemingly lightening up his spirit since this morning greatly and in spite of rather boring job. To their instruction, Hiro told Itachi and Shisui all the events that transpired. Ino stayed in to hear but seemed to pay attention to only one every few sentences.
"Just like Obito told us", Shisui said. "And what the captain said earlier." Hiro looked puzzled, but the two Uchiha told him to not think anything of it. Hiro dismissed his confusion and followed up with his own question- any knowledge of the murder case did they gain? To his surprise, Itachi, Shisui, and Ino interrogated valuable information out each of the victim's family and the warehouse worker Deck. The mom was speaking the truth about the abuse. A coroner looked at the Fuki's body and found severe, lasting bruising and scar tissue to the extent of. The father, when questioned, opened up to abusing his wife and daughter because they are disrespectful and don't love him like he did to them. On the other hand, the brother spoke openly once he was in the station. He seemed to love his sister very dearly, to the point of watching over her regularly. When asked about her dad's abuse, he spoke highly of his father. Although his son claimed his dad has had a few internal issues since he gave up being a shinobi. All indicators seem to point to the dad or Deck being guilty, but neither Uchiha was certain.
"Why aren't you certain?" Hiro asked.
"We're going to answer your question with another question", Shisui said. "Which of you is better at memorizing and reading reports?" Ino finally gave her full attention to the situation at hand and immediately pointed to Hiro.
"Don't worry, this task for both of you", Itachi said. "Shisui wanted Ino's full attention."
"You know me too well, Itachi", Shisui said. "Our secretary left information about other similar cases on her desk. You two will go through them all and see if you can find anything useful." Both genin were in shock.
"Goodnight", Itachi said. "See you tomorrow morning."
Ino and Hiro stared at each other.
"Let's just get started", Ino said. Rummaging through the piles on the desk was painful. Not all papers were even related to the murder or sexual assault crimes, let alone both. Little by little Ino and Hiro made progress into eventually organizing the desk and sorting all her files. There were no folders to place the other files, though, to Ino's frustration.
"Why does it matter?" Hiro said.
"If she can't be organized, why does she even do this?!" Ino asked. Hiro shrugged. After a while, all the files connected were together in awkwardly placed piles across the desk while Ino and Hiro moved into Uchihas' office. A short stack of thirteen cases in the last few years was left, all with the same crime: rape-homicide. The details on each on a piece of paper were similar. A young girl of the beginning stages of puberty was raped and murdered. Each time the suspects were family members, who were abusive or manipulative in cruel fashion.
"I can't believe it", Hiro said.
"What is it?" Ino yawned.
"They aren't sold on Fuki's killer because this has happened before", Hiro said. "The details are so similar in every case regarding the young girl's life. There's a serial rapist in the land of fire." Ino flung herself up.
"What?!" Ino screamed. "You don't think he will come after me, do you?"
"I don't know", Hiro said. Ino began breathing heavily. For once, Hiro spoke hurtfully more than he meant. "I'm sure you'll be fine."
"Are we done?" Ino asked. "I want to go home."
"Yes", Hiro said. "We've figured out what they wanted to show us." Ino pushed Hiro outside with great force.
"We are leaving then!" Ino said. Despite wanting to move fast, Ino was frozen after a few short steps. "It's freezing outside!" Hiro laughed.
"Want my jacket?" Hiro asked. "I'm always wearing one, but I don't really need it." Ino looked excited for a second but turned away.
"I don't need your jacket", Ino said annoyed. "What were you saying before we left now?"
"Shisui and Itachi have already realized who is behind this crime", Hiro said. "There is someone connecting them all."
"Why in the hell didn't they tell us?" Ino asked.
"Probably to give us experience", Hiro said. "Our goal is to learn from them, right?"
"Yes", Ino said. "By making us learn everything on our own we input our own thoughts and feelings into the cases as well. Information isn't purely secondhand."
"Yeah, that makes sense", Hiro said. "We can talk to them tomorrow. It's time to go home, though."
"Wait, Hiro!" Ino shouted. "Where are you going?" She looked scared. Even though she denied it earlier, she definitely needed a jacket.
"Home", Hiro said. He continued to walk.
"Wait!" Ino said. "Please walk me home! What if the killer comes for me next?" Hiro sighed in defeat. Why fight against it? Hiro nodded his head. "Thank you! It's not that much farther!"
"No worries", Hiro said. "Why are you afraid of it?"
"I don't want to die, numbskull", Ino said belligerently.
"But why?" Hiro asked. "We aren't in control of what happens. No reason to be afraid if it is out of our control. You have people who love you. Maybe try to find solace in your friends."
"I've never thought of it that way", Ino said. "Can I borrow your jacket?" Hiro handed it over kindly. The black and green looked weird surrounding Ino's purple outfit.
"Huh", Hiro said. "Can you see your breath? It must be cold."
"Of course, it is!" Ino said. "No one could stand this weather."
"I can", Hiro said.
"Shut it", Ino replied. A few minutes longer and they finally reached Ino's house. An oddly shaped and crumbled paper appeared on the ground after handing his jacket back. Bending over, Ino took a closer look. It was a magazine… with naked women on it. Ino's face turned flush with both embarrassment and anger. "You were almost the slightest bit cool, Hiro! But you are a pervert! I can't believe I have even worn your jacket!" Hiro's face seemed to not match the circumstance at hand- mainly because he wasn't even paying attention. Staring into the night sky was one of his favorite hobbies. Looking down at the wide-eyed, angered face of Ino Yamanaka ruined the moment.
Hiro noticed what was on the ground.
"I don't know what to say", Hiro said. "My master gave it to me."
"Obito gave it to you?" Ino asked. "What the hell?! Are all men perverts?!" Ino entered her house, slamming the door behind.
"I meant my other master", Hiro mumbled. "I guess she didn't hear that part." Nothing he can do now. Ino hated Hiro's guts anyways. Tomorrow is a new day to look forward to.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Leave a review if you liked or disliked anything. If you have any critical comments to my writing style, be sure to leave them. Enjoy the remnants of your holidays!