Sorry about the long wait for this one. Between Christmas and the rest of life this kind of got set on the back burner for a bit but I'm back into the swing of things now so I will try to have a new chapter ready at least every week. Hope you enjoy :)
After they were on their way again Asuka caught up with Kakashi Sensei and told him about their conversation.
"If what he says is true then aside from some father-son rivalry I don't believe he would attack his own father. At the same time if they are as dead set on getting their money as Haru says they are then they will probably try to find him."
"That explains the people following us."
"What? I should have noticed them!" Asuka exclaimed confused.
"Don't be so hard on yourself, they are up wind from us. They have been careful to keep a good distance so someone without a good sense of smell wouldn't have detected them."
"Okay, I'm gunna get back to Haru, he may still have information for us."
"Good thinking, I will fill Neji in when I can." Kakashi concluded.
They continued the rest of the day's trip mostly in silence. Haru continued to hit on Asuka and Asuka pretended to play along. Finally it was time to stop and make camp again. After Asuka placed her ice dome, she went just outside of it and behind a tree to get a little peace and quiet. With her dome up she could let her thoughts wonder and still be alert to any enemy activity. Why do I always have a hard time with these assignments where I have to play the love sick girl? I gave Neji the signal that this was just a cover. Is he thinking about me? Asuka let out a sigh. She let her thoughts sort themselves out and then went back inside the dome.
Upon entering the dome she saw that everyone was sitting around the fire. She managed to lock eyes with Neji for a short time but then he returned to absently staring at the fire. Asuka then took her seat beside Haru. Everyone was quiet. Asuka decided to break the silence by asking the Feudal Lord some questions and giving him a chance to come clean.
"So my lord, do you have any clue as to why someone would be trying to kill you?"
"None, I do not have a quarrel with anyone."
Asuka caught Haru rolling his eyes. Maybe if I get the Feudal Lord to flat out deny it consistently maybe Haru will call him on it.
"It doesn't have to be a verbal argument. It could be something as simple as mistrust or an unpaid debt."
"I just told you there is nothing!"
"Oh please father! Just admit it!" Haru snapped.
Well that didn't take much.
"Admit what?!"
"You've had gambling debt for years and now the people you owe finally want their money!"
"That's not true! And I'm hurt you would even suggest that Haru!"
"If it's not true then what is this?!" Haru pulled out a ledger from his bag.
"How did you get that?!"
"It doesn't matter! The point is that this secret ledger of yours explains why money was missing from our household records!" Haru tossed the ledger to Kakashi, "Read it and you will know I'm telling the truth."
Kakashi flipped through it enough to get the idea of what was in it. The Feudal Lord was speechless. Haru was going red in the face from rage. Asuka looked at Neji to get a read on him to see what he was thinking about the whole thing. However she noticed that Neji had his byakugan engaged.
"Neji what is it?" Asuka asked.
"We have visitors." He said as he stood up and readied himself.
Asuka and Kakashi Sensei did the same. Almost immediately they were surrounded by a group of about ten fighters.
"Well look at what we have here. His lordship went and got himself some more bodyguards." One of them teased.
"Don't be so foolish as to think they are just bodyguards. Look closely." A smarter one piped up.
"Oh crap! They are Hidden Leaf shinobi!"
Asuka sensed someone standing on top of her dome so she looked up.
"There must be chakra in this dome if you noticed me that quickly after a soundless descent."
"And you sound like the smartest one of the bunch so I'm guessing your the leader." Kakashi said.
"That would be an accurate assumption. Care to let me in so we can talk?"
"Talk? You bring a whole unit out just to talk?" Haru said.
"Just for insurance purposes."
Asuka looked a Kakashi for a decision. Kakashi gave a subtle nod. Asuka then made the appropriate hand sign and just opened the small portion of the dome that was under the leader's feet and he gracefully dropped to the ground.
"Allow me to introduce myself, I am Kin and your Feudal Lord there owes me five million yen."
Everyone's mouths dropped. Then came the anger from Haru.
"How could you owe that much?! Are you a complete idiot?! Or better yet you're a child who doesn't know about responsibility!"
"H-how about a payment plan?" the Feudal Lord stuttered.
"Yeeeah... No, you see we tried one of those about five years ago and we still haven't seen any of it. So I figure we just kill you." Kin said coolly.
"No!" Haru spoke up and stood between Kin and his father, "He may be a selfish pig but he is my father and I will protect him."
"Is that so?" Kin said smiling smugly.
Asuka saw him reaching for a kunai and quickly did a blizzard wind push and knocked Kin into the side of the dome. Unfortunately it also hit Haru knocking him backwards. It would have hit Neji too if his byakugan hadn't been activated allowing him enough time to dodge.
"Boss!" all the men outside shouted in unison.
"I'm fine," Kin said as he sorely got up.
"You said you wanted to talk," Asuka reminded him.
"Yeah well sometimes things don't always go as we plan."
"Listen," Haru said stepping forward, "I have been taught but some of the best sensei's in the nation and I know more about the workings of money then my dirt bag father does."
"Yeah and?"
"And I want propose something... My father retires as a Feudal Lord and names me as his replacement, then we do all the official paperwork saying that I will pay you back over time..."
"See the problem is I have no proof that you will pay." Kin said
"You didn't let me finish. Take my father to work off some of the debt and if I miss even one payment then you are in your right to kill him..."
"What!" the Feudal Lord shouted.
"You got yourself into this and this is the only way I see out. You will have to trust me to make those payments," Haru then spoke to Kin again, "However if you kill him then I owe you nothing more and if he dies or is mistreated before payments are complete then I am dept free and I will come after you."
Kin stood there with a smirk on his face.
"Alright pretty boy you got yourself a deal." Kin agreed.
"Haru are you sure that's wise?" Kakashi asked.
"I've made up my mind, once we get back home I will assume my place as the new Feudal Lord and begin changes at once."
"Alright," Asuka said lowering her dome.
"Okay men lets tie him up and get this retired Feudal Lord back to base."
"Before you do that I need him to write out his resignation and me as the successor."
"Well get on with it then," Kin said growing impatient.
The now retired Feudal Lord pulled out a scroll and pen and sat down and wrote everything out. Then he was tied up and ready to go.
"Show up at the house a week from now to make our deal official, if you don't show I will assume you have killed my father and I will hunt you down." Haru said laying down the law.
"Don't worry pretty boy, we'll be there." Kin said.
And with that Kin's group departed and Haru finally had a chance to breathe.
"That was very clever of you Haru." Asuka complimented.
"Almost as good as you pretending to be in love with me?" he jested.
"How did you find out?" Asuka asked very curious.
"It was only tonight when I saw the way you looked at your squad mate there." Haru said gesturing to Neji.
Asuka felt herself get hot.
Haru's eyes went wide and blood shot out his nose.
Asuka looked down and there she was in her bra and panties again.
"Damn it! I almost went this whole mission without this!"
"You mean this is a regular thing for you?!" Haru asked trying to compose himself.
"Yes its something we all have to get used to." Neji piped up with what Asuka could swear was the beginnings of a smile.
After quickly putting her clothes back on everyone settled down to sleep the rest of the night then to head back to the Feudal Lord's home in the morning.