Chapter 4
Mist Village: To Catch a Thief
Day 2
Okay, a lot happened since Jiraiya-sensei was, and still is, in a Tsunade-induced coma. Right now, here are the facts.
One, I am, currently, in Mist Village on a mission that Jiraiya-sensei is (indirectly) responsible for.
Two, I am undercover in a teahouse as a waitress.
Three, I am in deep shit.
Now, how the hell did I get into this mess? It's a long story.
Since Jiraiya-sensei had the nerve to peek on Tsunade-sama (again, according to the Hokage), the blonde decided to beat the crap out of him and, for good measure, break his hands so that he wouldn't write anything Make Out related with regards to their encounter. After hearing about his condition, I found out that he named me as his next of kin. And, since then, I've been acting as a temporary manager for all of his affairs that aren't ninja-related. This "next of kin" status is what led me to Mist Village.
Kind of. Sort of. Eh, maybe.
Anyway, several days ago, Tsunade-sama summoned me to her office to give me an update about the whole attempted Akatsuki invasion. (If it really was an invasion.) Basically, my worst fear was confirmed. An important looking scroll was stolen by Akatsuki and it was one written by Jiraiya-sensei. Unfortunately, since he wasn't fit to go on a mission, the Hokage gave me the mission to Mist Village since it was their last known whereabouts. On the bright side, it's not a solo mission. On the down side, Mist Village is a village full of murderous-looking missing ninja and I feel safer in a pit full of poisonous snakes. And, to top it off, the Akatsuki members in question aren't, according to Tsunade-sama's and my sources, the more high profile members.
So, now, I am in Mist Village with my teammates at the House of Leaves, a high profile teahouse with questionable sources of entertainment. My teammates are Ino, Shikamaru, Hinata, Kiba, and Shino. Ino, Hinata, and I are undercover. Shikamaru is too, for that matter. Kiba and Shino are still staying at the inn and searching around the village in case the Akatsuki members are not at the teahouse.
Surprisingly, the girls and I managed to find work at the teahouse a lot faster than I imagined. And while Ino and Shikamaru acted as decoys, Hinata and I searched the rooms to find the Akatsuki members' room. Unfortunately, there were too many rooms and their room had to be the last one we searched. And, instead of finding the object we want, there was a thief escaping with the object that we want and that rightfully belongs to Konoha.
After the thief-in-question escaped and aside from that feeling that I was in deep shit, there was something about the thief that made him feel familiar to me. Have I met him somewhere before? Honestly, I don't know. If only there is a black market in this village, then I would be able to get more information about the damn thief. Then again, this village is a known festering pit of evil. Maybe there is a black market.
Minutes after the thief's escape, Setsuna still stared in shock. Soft footsteps entered the room, though the teenager barely recognized them. Suddenly, when she felt a tap on her shoulder, the formerly blue-haired girl whirled around, tantō at the intruder's throat.
"Um…relax. I—It's me," the disguised Hyuga nervously said.
Setsuna breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew the weapon. "Sorry, Hina," Setsuna apologized. "But, we just got screwed over."
"Um, we're about to get screwed more if we don't get out of here." Hinata pointed in the direction of the outer room. "I see them coming."
Setsuna could hear the footsteps stepping loudly in the hallway. Without any hesitation, she grabbed the Hyuga heiress by the arm and hauled her to the window. Hinata needed no further prompting and jumped out of the window. Setsuna followed after her, only pausing to close the window. She looked down and noticed her teammate wasn't there.
The girl frowned. Where the hell could Hinata be?
The door to the sitting room rattled open. Above her, Setsuna heard a loud hiss and looked up. Hinata stood on the roof, gesturing to her. Relieved and slightly panicked, Setsuna pooled chakra onto her feet and ran up to the roof as quietly as she could. As soon as she reached her teammate, the girl backed away from the ledge and lied down, flattening her body against the roof. Hinata followed suit. Beneath them, they heard loud voices coming from the room they recently vacated.
"I'm telling you, there was someone here," a male, gravelly voice said.
"And I'm telling you, you're out of your damn mind. The only people who could've been here are the maids. And, the maids are less likely to actually take something since they're practically brainless—especially the mouse-haired brunette maid-slash-waitress with the rack that looks like they've been stuffed with steamed buns."
Setsuna fumed and was tempted to storm in and kill the criminal for the comment. But, instead, she refrained and focused on the matter at hand. She heard footsteps walking across the bedroom. She peeked out of the ledge, making sure to be barely visible to the missing ninja. Suddenly, there was a loud bang and the girls spied a dark head looking down and side to side. The duo kept still and concentrated on masking their chakra signatures.
"Damn it!" the man swore. "There's nothing out here."
"I told you so, you paranoid moron." The dark head moved back into the room.
Relieved at not having been caught, the girls inched away from the ledge and let out quiet sighs of relief. When they were sure that the S-ranked missing ninja were too distracted to hear anything on the roof, the duo swiftly walked back to the room where Shikamaru and Ino occupied.
"Brainless!?" Setsuna muttered under her breath as the three looked on quizzically. "Oh, yeah, I'm so brainless that I managed to fall so easily into the heavily concealed traps that you hid for us. At least I didn't leave a valuable scroll behind before I left to go screwing around with a bunch of easy maids. Damn bastards." She looked down at her chest and added as an afterthought, "And I do not stuff my chest!"
2
It was at three o'clock in the morning when the undercover team returned to the local inn. The quartet opened the door to their room to find Shino and Kiba staring at them impatiently. Well, at least, Kiba was. Shino, from what Setsuna could tell, was just staring at them.
"Well?" Kiba asked. It sounded more like a demand than a question. Setsuna noted the stiffened spine and the tense shoulders. She inwardly groaned.
This is going to be a nightmare, she thought as she closed the door.
"Hina's fine," Setsuna bluntly answered his nonverbal question. "But, we're screwed."
"What happened?" Shino asked.
"Yeah, Setsuna. You didn't really give us any details about what happened," Ino commented.
"I figured I might as well tell you guys all at once. It keeps me from repeating myself and, therefore, keeps me sane." She shrugged. "Either way, the Akatsuki no longer has the damn scroll."
"This is a pain in the ass," Shikamaru muttered. Sharp, dark brown eyes turned to Setsuna. "How did that happen?"
"By the time we got to their room, the scroll was in the process of being stolen…by a professional thief."
"A professional thief?" Hinata turned pale eyes to Setsuna. "How can you tell?"
"Easy." The formerly blue-haired girl shrugged. "The way he moved, the way he looked, and the fact that he didn't leave a mess when he entered and left the room. It was like he was never there…except for the part where I saw him slip off with the freaking scroll in his hand."
"When did you see him?" Ino asked.
"Just before he left."
Shino turned to look at his female teammate. "Hinata, did you see him, too?"
The quiet girl shook her head in a negative. "No, I was in the other room. By the time I got there, the thief was already gone."
"This is getting more troublesome." Setsuna glanced at the now undisguised Shikamaru, his hair styled in his classic ponytail. The girl couldn't help but inwardly agree.
"Well, this has just gotten more complicated." The girl snorted. "Typical. Guess we have to find more information on the thief."
"But, how?" Kiba asked. "We don't know anything about the thief."
"You guys don't," Setsuna pointed out.
"And you're saying that you do?" Shikamaru asked questionably.
"Maybe," Setsuna answered cryptically. "There's something familiar about the thief. But, actually, the more obvious reason is to find someone who does."
"And how do you propose to do that?" Shino asked.
Setsuna waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Don't worry about it. Besides, we should get some sleep. If I know anything, it might take the whole morning to find it before we find any information on our thief."
Before the others could say anymore, Setsuna had turned her back on her teammates and headed for the bathroom, missing the five's shared looks of puzzlement. As soon as the bathroom door closed, the quintet had the same thought.
What on earth does Setsuna mean by finding "it"?
3
The sun barely reached its zenith when Setsuna and the others gathered in the girls' room. The others, with the exception of Shino and Hinata, looked at the recently brunette girl in various degrees of irritation.
"Is there a point for you to wake us up at an ungodly hour in the morning?" Ino asked, trying to stifle a yawn. "Besides, who died and made you the leader of this mission?"
"Nobody's died. Well, not yet anyway," Setsuna answered tartly. "Besides, we're supposed to be looking for information on the thief, right?" The others nodded, albeit hesitantly. She ignored their reluctance and started pacing the room. "Well, then, the only sensible thing to do is to find some people who do…know about the thief, that is."
"And how do you suppose we do that?" Ino shrilly asked. "Go door to door and ask if they notice any of their things missing? If you've forgotten, but we're also supposed to keep a low profile."
Setsuna gritted her teeth to refrain from hitting the blonde woman. Instead, she turned to the blonde, crossed her arms, and stared levelly at her. Ino shifted uncomfortably. "No, we're not going door to door," Setsuna answered as soon as she knew she won the standoff. "But, I know of a place that usually has information about our little thief."
"Well, that's good," Hinata pointed out. "What is this place?"
"A black market network."
"How would you know?" Shikamaru asked, skeptical of the teenager. "To my knowledge, and from what Tsunade-sama knows, you've never been to Mist Village."
"No, I haven't," Setsuna agreed. "But, every village has a black market network. To say that they don't means you're either very gullible or you're on something."
"What is the black market network?" Hinata asked. There was a curious tone in her question.
"It's an underground economy. Some of the things sold are underpriced, others are overpriced. But, one thing's for sure, there are no taxes, no receipts, and no paper trails."
Wide, innocent eyes bore onto Setsuna's. "What do they sell?"
For a second, Setsuna briefly hesitated as to whether she should tell the Hyuga. Then, she shook her head. Eventually, the young teenager would have to learn about the more, shadier sides of human nature. She might as well learn it from someone who wouldn't treat her like a porcelain doll and wouldn't try to dress it up.
"They sell a lot of things," Setsuna carefully began. "They sell normal products that are sold in the legal tax economy, but they're sold at a low price. Then, there are illegal drugs, illegal weapons, stolen goods, prostitution, and mercenaries for hire. For all intents and purposes, it's a giant pit of the worse things known to any human."
"If it's so bad, then why are we going there?" Hinata questioned, sounding slightly unsure.
"Well, honestly, I'd prefer if all of you not go with me to the black market," Setsuna stated bluntly.
"Really? And why is that?" Ino asked. From the tone of the blonde's voice, Setsuna could tell she was offended.
"I didn't think your parents would approve of you going there and I'm definitely sure that the Hokage would be very angry if her ninjas were abducted." Setsuna shrugged. "For some reason, the pathetic losers who created human trafficking rings aren't above abduction to increase their supply of people…especially young girls."
"And what makes you so sure that the same thing won't happen to you?" Shikamaru asked. His dark brown eyes locked with her disguised cerulean ones, staring in a calculating way. If she were a lesser woman, she would have fidgeted under the intense stare.
Instead, Setsuna scoffed. "They'd die before they could even try."
The air was tense as the others looked at each other, most of them sporting various looks of puzzlement. Before the obviously puzzled ninjas could ask, Shikamaru intervened. "Then it's a good thing that Tsunade-sama chose me as the leader of this mission. Despite your confidence in not getting abducted while going to the black market alone, we're a team and we never leave our teammates behind."
"Even if it's for the good of the mission?" A slim, feminine eyebrow arched in question.
"Even then."
Her eyes narrowed and her face took on a look of cynicism. "Somehow, I doubt that." The tense moment passed and she backed off and gave a dismissive wave. "But, if you want to come along, fine. It's your prerogative." Then, she muttered under her breath, "It's not like you're going to actually enter the black market when we still haven't found the damn entrance."
"What was that?" Kiba demanded.
"You heard me. We haven't found the entrance. And, to find the entrance, we have to search through the entire village…or, at least the downtown business districts and whatnot. And, it's better if we go in teams of two in case anything happens." Setsuna turned to the bedside drawer nearby one of the beds and took out several vials and two decorative senbon needles that could pass off as hair sticks from the top drawer.
"What are those?" Hinata asked.
Setsuna shrugged. "A backup plan," she answered as she dipped the senbon needles into one of the vials. When she styled her hair to a casual bun with the senbon needles-turned-hair-sticks holding the hairstyle in place and placed her remaining vials in her various hiding places, she turned to her teammates and noticed their slightly off-kilter look. "What?"
"Do you always clean the tips of your needles before putting them in your hair?" Shino asked.
"It relaxes me." She wiped her hands together. "Now, are we ready?"
4
"Are you sure you know where to look?" Ino asked Setsuna again for the third time they had been walking around their part of the village. It had been three hours since the group was separated into teams of two. And it was taking all of Setsuna's willpower to refrain from strangling the whiny blonde.
Each pair had their own section of the village to search. Shino and Hinata had the east side, Shikamaru and Kiba took the south, and Ino and Setsuna had the west. Then, at noon, the groups were to meet at the pub nearby the inn they were staying in and report their findings. However, with Ino's constant questions and subtle digs at Setsuna's competency, Setsuna was starting to reconsider going to the meeting place at the designated time.
"Yes, I know where to look," Setsuna all but growled. "If I had it my way, we'd be checking out the red light district. But, your boyfriend disagreed and started to pull rank when it looked like I wasn't going to back down."
"Shikamaru is not my boyfriend!" Ino practically shrieked.
The recently-turned brunette shrugged. "Looked that way to me." Then, she paused. "Unfortunately, I do have to agree with him. The red light district is no place for a girl to go by herself."
"Well, I'm glad you admit that you can't do everything by yourself."
Setsuna frowned. "Who said anything about that? I was referring to you." She gave the blonde a sly look. "There aren't a lot of guys who would be unwilling to let a female teammate go some place that runs the risk of her getting abducted…especially if he knows that she can take care of herself."
"And what makes you think that he wasn't referring to you?" Ino asked stiffly, refusing to believe the other girl.
"Because I don't know him long enough or even well enough." Setsuna scanned the area. "There's nothing here. Let's go."
"Wait." Ino stopped Setsuna before she could leave. "What makes you so sure?"
"The people around here don't look like they just got back from shopping at the not-so-legitimate stores. And, the only thing surrounding us is vendors. Lots and lots of vendors. Besides, even if they did return from the black market, they don't look as suspicious as the more obvious people," Setsuna explained as they walked back to the inn.
"And what are the more obvious people?"
"You'll see," the aspiring ninja answered cryptically.
"You know, from your explanation, one would think that you've been to the black market before," Ino observed as the duo started walking back.
"One would think that," Setsuna said, giving no further details.
"So, have you?" Ino pressed, wanting to know more about her.
Before Setsuna could say anything, they arrived at the inn's front desk and were met with two familiar males.
"Did you find anything?" Shikamaru asked.
Setsuna shook her head. "No, we didn't. Did you?"
"No," Shikamaru answered.
"Damn it," Setsuna muttered under her breath. She turned away and focused her gaze at the inn's door. "So, when are the others coming? I'm starving and I don't see why we have to wait for them so we could all go get lunch."
As Shikamaru answered her question and Ino and Shikamaru got into a discussion in hushed voices, Setsuna tuned out the noises and watched the people coming into the inn.
Interesting, she thought. "Huh? What?" The girl practically jumped out of her skin as soon as she felt a tap on her shoulder.
"We're here." Kiba looked at the startled girl and struggled not to laugh. "What got you so startled?"
Setsuna scowled at the surprise in his tone. What? I'm not allowed to let my guard down every now and then? Unbelievable. "Nothing that I can talk about right here," she answered easily. "So, where're we going for lunch?"
Without answering, the others turned and walked out, leaving Setsuna with no choice but to follow. When they reached the pub she had entered the day before, her question was already answered. After taking a seat in a booth at the far end of the pub, everyone, with the exception of Hinata, stared intently at Setsuna.
"Care to tell us what that was all about?" Shikamaru asked in a low voice.
Setsuna stared at the quintet and gave them a wry look. She scoffed. "Huh. That was fast. The waitress hasn't even arrived yet and you start the inquisition." She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms. "Well, that blows my plans out of the water."
"What plans?" Shino demanded. The harsh glint of his sunglasses gave Setsuna pause to answer.
"What other plans do I have?" Setsuna retorted.
"You found the entrance, didn't you?" Ino whispered.
Setsuna shrugged. "I may have a suspicion."
"And you want to go by yourself," Shikamaru concluded. "Why? And don't say it's for our protection. Somehow, I doubt that's the case."
"My reasons are my own and I don't know you long enough to actually tell you." The disguised blue-haired teenager paused. "Hell, I don't even tell Jiraiya-sensei a lot about my reasons."
There was a tense silence. A waitress came to take their orders and left, once again leaving the booth full of awkward silence.
"We're still going with you," Shikamaru stated as if it were a fact.
"Fine," Setsuna replied tersely. "It's not like you'll be exposed to anything new, then, if you feel so strongly about it."
"So, um," Hinata began, trying to keep the peace, "where's the entrance?"
5
"That's it?" Ino asked incredulously as they walked back to the inn. At Setsuna's insistence, she and the group had followed a man at a discreet distance only to be led back to the inn.
"Yeah, that's it." Setsuna gave the blonde Yamanaka an assessing look as a thought occurred to her. "You've never been to anything like this before, have you?"
"And you have?" the blonde retorted. They turned a corner and were stopped by a bare wall with a lone bookcase standing formidably in front of the group of six. They were at the end of one of the inn's many hallways and, interestingly enough, this hallway was bereft of any rooms.
Setsuna didn't reply as she searched the wall in front of her. Shino and Kiba were acting as lookouts while Shikamaru stood off to the side to plan the next strategy. Hinata and Ino stood, watching the disguised blue-haired girl study the wall that, according to her, led the way to the black market network.
The apprentice to Konoha's self-proclaimed super-pervert sighed as she pressed her ear to the wall and started knocking, noting the sounds. As she neared the bookcase, she paused when something on the wooden floor caught her eye. She growled.
"Damn it! I should have known," she half muttered and half growled.
"Known what?" Ino demanded as Setsuna stood in front of the bookcase and examined the books. "Uh, Setsuna, I don't think now's a good time to get reading material."
The girl in question gave Ino an annoyed look but didn't answer. She tried pulling the bookcase away from the wall and grunted when it didn't budge. "Of course it wouldn't open easily," she muttered. She backed off and went back to standing in front of the bookcase to look at the books. She moved to take the books off the shelf and then put them back.
It was while Setsuna was half-way finished half-moving the books off the shelf that Ino spoke again. "What are you doing?"
"Looking for the secret passageway," Setsuna answered. She increased her pace. "It should be here, somewhere."
Suddenly, as she pulled the last book out, the book only partially moved out and the girl heard a faint click. She stepped out of the way as the bookshelf moved, revealing a dark tunnel-like structure and a flight of spiraling stairs.
"There!" Setsuna turned to the others and grinned. "Knew it would take a while. So, what's the plan?"
"We're going into two groups and separating as soon as we get to the market. As soon as we get there, each group is going to search a different part of the market for any information on the thief or, if possible, they'll be searching for the thief," Shikamaru explained. "Shino and Kiba want to go with Hinata."
Setsuna nodded, not surprised. "It's just as well. Human traffickers won't hesitate to take vulnerable-looking people and they're more suited to protecting her." Then, without waiting, she walked down the stairs. It wasn't until she was at the ninth step that she heard other footsteps following her. After a silent walk as they descended down the stairs, they reached the end of the passageway and the two groups went their separate ways.
"Do you have any idea where to start looking?" Ino asked Setsuna as they walked down the crowded street.
Setsuna vaguely heard Shikamaru mutter his favorite word under his breath as she surreptitiously noted the shops and the people around her. The shops on the street the trio was standing had a few weapons and weapon repair shops. There was an apothecary near the corner of the street and there was a very popular and very dark shop sitting across the apothecary.
Without answering, she turned the corner of where the dark shop was—and noticed the red lantern hanging on the door. Her eyes narrowed as she just realized who the passersby were. Although there were some passersby looking to get their weapons fixed or to refurbish their supplies of medicines and other medical paraphernalia, the rest of the passersby, mainly the males, were hoping to get their other tools fixed at the shop. Her shoulders tensed as she clenched her fists.
Ino and Shikamaru noticed the miniscule action and exchanged a look. After a silent, non-verbal conversation, Ino spoke. "Is there something?"
Setsuna let out a breath as she heard the worry behind the question. "It's nothing…much. It's just that I'll need to request a mission to kill the person responsible for this crime syndicate."
Once again, an uncomfortable silence settled over the trio as Ino and Shikamaru could find no reply to Setsuna's statement. The three continued walking down the street until the pineapple-haired boy noticed something after they passed another business with a red lantern hanging on the door.
"Setsuna, what are we doing in the red light district?" His tone was serious, yet his face looked bored.
The girl in question raised an eyebrow at the question. "What made you think so?" At the Nara's bored look, she hurriedly answer, "Okay, fine! Yeah, it is and it isn't. It's one of the reasons why I wanted to go alone."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ino asked, confused.
"It is a red light district, of sorts," Setsuna tried to answer carefully. "However, this district offers more than what your standard red light district does. This district supplies the red light district."
"Human trafficking?" Shikamaru murmured.
"Got it in one, pineapple head." Setsuna tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Not only that, but if the red light district is too vanilla, then the black market's very own district offers more than what one person could bear."
"Then why are we here?" Ino demanded.
"It's because we're looking for a pawn shop," Setsuna answered, exasperated, as she met the blonde's cerulean gaze. When she looked away, something caught her eye. "Ah, there it is!"
Before she could be interrogated, Setsuna's pace quickened, leaving the duo to catch up to her. Ignoring the ring of the shop's bell above the door, she stopped before the register and patiently waited. By the time the pair caught up, Setsuna was busy examining a short sword just as a man of average height and build walked up to the formerly blue-haired girl.
"May I help you, Miss?" the man asked.
Setsuna frowned at the man, his stiff and condescending tone grating on her nerves. "Yes, actually, you may." She slowly turned to the man. "I need information."
When she did not elaborate further, the man got impatient. "About?" he prompted.
Instead of answering, Setsuna turned her attention back to the short sword and sheathed it. "Hm. Did you know that this sword was reported stolen?" she asked, the tone of her voice sounding innocent. "By a very ruthless crime lord from a renowned syndicate in Rain Village at that, too. After the theft, he put a hit out on the thief. They never did catch him. But, they did manage to kill any potential fences that would sell the sword for the thief."
Gone was the condescending attitude and, instead, shock overtook the man. "How—How did you—I mean, what are you talking about?"
Setsuna rolled her eyes. "I think you know what I'm talking about," she answered quietly. "The thief, who happens to work mostly in Rain Village, tends to steal from the filthy rich. And, apparently, he enjoys taking the items that are practically out of reach for the mere challenge of the game. He's here, isn't he?"
One look from the girl made the man gulp. "Um—" he began.
"And don't bother to lie," she abruptly interrupted. "I won't hesitate to kill you if you do."
The man sighed, defeated. "He never told me his name," he said under his breath. Setsuna had to strain her ears to hear him. "He came into the shop a few weeks ago and dropped the sword off for a hefty sum of money. He said that he has more stolen items that are worth selling in his room and that he'll come back later within the month…after he finishes his big job."
"Did he say where he's staying?" Setsuna asked.
The man shook his head. She sighed, exasperated. "Of course he wouldn't."
"But, he did say that the job might take a while and that he'll be staying for a month or two," the man added.
"Well, thanks anyway." She turned to the silent pair. "Let's go."
No sooner did they walk out of the shop when the trio was attacked by a hail of sharp, pointy instruments of death. The three managed to take cover under a stand full of banned books. But, that didn't stop the unknown assailant to throw a kunai in Ino's direction, aiming for her face. Setsuna barely made it in time to catch the weapon in midair. The blonde looked on in shock.
A few more inches and I could've been dead, Ino thought as she watched Setsuna put the weapon away.
"Damn it, I'm getting slow," the other girl muttered as she looked around for the assailant. She looked up and noticed a lone figure clothed in black, standing on the roof of a building across from them and giving her a mocking salute. Her eyes narrowed. "Shikamaru, take care of Ino and get back to the inn," she ordered.
"What are you going to do?" Shikamaru asked. He didn't like the sense of urgency in Setsuna's command.
"I've got a thief to catch." Then, without another word, she ran to the building. And, without stopping, she scaled the building with her chakra-enhanced feet. As soon as she reached the top, the roof was empty, but she saw a black figure running away from her two roofs over. She grinned, excited at the challenge. You're not going to get rid of me that easily.
The chase continued well after there were no more roofs to jump over. Irritation swam over Setsuna as the thief continued to run. Setsuna grunted in annoyance.
Oh, forget this! She took a flying leap and pounced on the thief.
"Oof!" they both grunted.
The thief moved to push her off. Setsuna, in turn, tried to swipe at his head to take off the mask covering his face. The tussle continued until the thief finally pushed her off. The two stood up, facing each other like two warriors in a fight to the death. Just as Setsuna was prepared to make the first attack, the thief bolted.
"Hey!" She dived and knocked the feet from underneath him, causing him to hit the ground front-side down.
"Ow!" The thief groaned. Then, without wasting a second, she turned him over, straddled his waist, and removed his mask. Disguised cerulean eyes widened.
"You!"
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Please read and review! Constructive criticism welcome.