Previously:

Just as he moved to step on her chest again, an angry shriek erupted from Setsuna as she grabbed Viper's left foot and pulled it out from underneath him. His body met the floor and she moved to get on top of him. With her senbon needle disguised as a hair stick in her right hand, she angrily gave him numerous small cuts in the chest with her accessory on his chest. Before she could stab him in the face as punishment for his taunts, he pushed her off. She landed on her feet and stood, waiting for the next attack.

Refraining from wincing at the sight, Viper inspected his injuries. Feeling something trickle down his left cheek, he wiped away the fluid only to find blood on his fingers. "Well, that hurt," he said, trying to sound as indifferent as possible. "You know, you're not a very good thief and you haven't even made me vulnerable enough to steal the item you wanted. You know I'm the best at what I do. You might as well give up now."

"I guess you're right," she said, tucking the tantō into her obi. "What was I thinking when I hatched this hare-brained scheme to steal from the master thief?"

Viper smirked. "It's okay, Coral. It happens to the best of us."

"Well, I do feel bad for injuring you," Setsuna said, scratching the back of her head. "As a sign of good sportsmanship, how about I serve you some tea?"

Viper gave her a skeptical look. "Will you drink with me?"

"Of course!" She paused. "Oh, I see how it is. You want to make sure that I don't poison you." She gave him an odd look. "Did you really think I would poison your tea?"

"No," he quickly answered.

"Okay, then. Because I wouldn't do that if I didn't have the time." She positioned herself at one side of the table and took out the tea cups. Gesturing for him to sit on the opposite side, she served the tea, placing the filled tea cup in front of Viper as he sat himself opposite her. He was about to take a sip only to have his cup fall, spilling its contents, as he dropped to the floor, curled into a ball.

"What—what did you—?" he asked in labored breathing as searing hot pain coursed through him.

"Oh, would you look at that?" Setsuna asked. She stood up, towering over the prone form lying on the floor. "I might not be a good thief. Hell, I may not be a master thief, but I'm very good at what I do. Arguably, the best. Besides, I never said that I wouldn't poison my accessories."

"What…did…you…use?" he asked, sounding more in pain.

Setsuna rummaged around his pack. "This other snake venom that I also acquired while I was here," she answered, feeling that he had a right to know. "Black mamba, I believe. Its effects are quite painful. Aha! Got it." She grabbed the scroll and tucked it into her uniform sleeve. Reaching into her obi, she took out an exact replica of the scroll and placed it into the travel pack. She walked into the sitting room.

Viper lied supine on the floor, his eyes stared up at Setsuna, and his face was sweaty. "How?" he asked.

"I never said that I wouldn't put poison in my accessories," she repeated.

Shifting from being informational and light in her information-sharing, Setsuna's demeanor turned serious, almost grave. "You have at least fifteen minutes before you die. Before that, you may have convulsions, cardiac arrest, and respiratory arrest before you slip into a coma and die. I just thought you should know."

Without another word, she left him lying on the floor.

xXx

"What did you do to the thief?" the Nara asked.

"What I had to," she answered enigmatically.

xXx

Shikamaru reached into his pack and placed it before the Hokage. As the Hokage removed the seal from the scroll, the other occupants in the room leaned closer to see its contents. As the older woman unfurled it, Setsuna's eyes widened.

"Oh, crap."

Chapter 6

A Day in the Life

Day 13

Just when I thought it was over, I get sucked right back in. I thought retrieving the stolen scroll would mean that it would be the end of my duty as Jiraiya's next-of-kin and his "other" apprentice. Boy was I wrong.

Now, what happened? Well, here's a recap.

As I suspected, the professional thief was Viper, well known in the underground as one of the fastest thieves in business who likes priceless artifacts and expensive objects that are considered impossible to steal and who likes nothing better than to steal said items. Of course, no one knows what his real name is, only that he's aptly named Viper because he moves like the snake, fast and deadly, and you don't even know something is wrong until it's too late. His reputation precedes him…and from what I saw, he lives up to it. And, judging by what he called me, I'm sure he knew me by reputation too.

Anyway, after I discovered who the thief was, Viper decided to run instead of actually fighting me, or at least try to kill me. (Wow, so not like the actual snake.) While I was on the chase, I got ambushed by a bunch of Mist ninjas. After blindsiding me with some fog and chucking me with a butt-load of flying projectiles, they nearly got the drop on me until Viper decided to show up and save the day like some low-rent hero. Pfft. What a pity. I was about to slit their throats and make them die slowly and painfully. Seriously, the thief needs to work on his timing. If he had done that earlier, I wouldn't have had so many bruises and I wouldn't be as sore. Pfft. Nezumi was right—thieves are worse than assassins.

Anyway, after killing the contract killers, Viper and I went out for a drink to catch up on what's happening in Rain Village since I left. Even after I told him that two S-class criminals would be after him for stealing the scroll, he wouldn't budge. Apparently, his client has a bigger pull than two Akatsuki members. After telling me that he doesn't want to piss off his client, he leaves. Geesh, what a douche bag.

So, being the good apprentice that I am, I got information from my informant and staked him out. When I slipped into his room to steal the scroll, he caught me red-handed. (Note to self: Get better at slipping in and out undetected—I am rusty.) I tried to stab him…that didn't work out. He practically kicked my ass. I managed to get a few kicks in until he got the upper hand. Then, Viper got full of himself and taunted me for not being a better thief. Instead of breaking me, he only succeeded in pissing me off and making me stab him with a poison-laced decorative senbon needle. While he was dying, I stole the scroll and left. When I went back to the inn, the teams and I packed up and left.

Now, a new can of worms is opened because of the damn scroll.

"Oh, crap."

"That's it?" Ino loudly asked. Her disappointment was not lost on everyone in the room.

"Where's the rest of it?" Hinata asked, curious.

Lying on the desk was the unfurled scroll. Half of it was missing. Setsuna suppressed a frustrated grunt. Well, she thought. We all know where this is going. Her eyes wandered over the contents of the scroll. She spied the Hokage's eyes scanning over the important piece of paper. The blonde leader's expression turned from one of intense concentration to that of sheer revulsion.

"Why does this scroll contain one of Jiraiya's porn chapters?" The Fifth Hokage demanded. "This is supposed to be an S-class scroll."

"Yeah, one would think that an important S-class scroll would contain top-secret information that would lead to the village's downfall. And it would be so easy for any of the enemies to read once they get their hands on it," Setsuna murmured as she walked closer to the desk to study the scroll. She turned her head sideways to get a better view of the writing. "Huh, it looks like a deleted portion of Make Out Paradise." She tilted her head even more. "Oh. I can see why."

Ignoring the last comment, Tsunade asked, "How can you tell?"

Setsuna gave the blonde woman a look that said, "Do you really have to ask?"

"Never mind," Tsunade said as she remembered exactly how Setsuna, an outsider, was in the village in the first place. She started to stack the papers on her desk, making sure to avoid the rolled out scroll lying on the center of her desk. "Despite the events that took place in the process of retrieving the scroll, the mission is a success. You will have the next day off. Until then, you are dismissed." She turned her head to look at the uncertified ninja. "Except for you, Setsuna."

Setsuna watched the others leave; ignoring the various glances and whispers around her. When she heard the door shut, she continued to stand and watch as the Hokage read over what she assumed was the mission report. She struggled not to fidget under the intense silence and waited for the blonde leader to say something.

Tsunade looked up from the paper and placed it to her right. "Well, I suppose you know why you're here."

Setsuna shook her head. "No, not really." She paused. "Wait, has Jiraiya-sensei's condition changed while I was away?"

"No."

"Oh, okay then. Does this involve the scroll?"

"Yes and no." Tsunade exhaled a breath. "You know that Jiraiya has been pushing for your citizenship into this village since your arrival."

Setsuna carefully nodded. "Yes. I'm supposed to get formal training as a ninja at the Academy and then get tested to become a ninja for the village."

"Well, Jiraiya has mentioned your skills and potential as his apprentice. And from recent developments, you are knowledgeable of Jiraiya's work and you know Jiraiya as much as Naruto does, if not more." Tawny brown eyes stared at Setsuna, daring her to challenge the statement.

"Yes," Setsuna confirmed. "At least, I would like to think so."

The Hokage nodded. "Good, then your mission is to decode the scroll and find the missing half."

"Um, pardon me for asking, but if I'm supposed to decode the scroll and find the second part of it, how am I going to attend the Academy and get formal training at the same time? I would think that during the time to look for the second half I would be absent from school and as for the decoding, well, I'm pretty sure teachers frown upon not paying attention in class and electing to do recreational work."

Tsunade waved a dismissive hand at the young girl. "Don't worry about it. It will be taken care of. Report to me on any progress you make." Sharp eyes looked over Setsuna. "You are dismissed. Now, get yourself to the hospital. You look like hell."

Setsuna glanced down at her body and noted the familiar feeling of soreness in her chest, arms, legs, and face. Suddenly, images of her fight with Viper flashed through her mind. Funny, I must have forgotten about it on the return trip, she thought. With a respectful bow, she left the room and went to the hospital.

When Setsuna arrived, she spotted a familiar pink head speaking animatedly with a nurse. As soon as viridian eyes met cerulean, the rosette teenager rushed over to Setsuna.

"Setsuna!" the medic cried. "You look like hell."

Setsuna grimaced. "Thanks, Sakura. Your Hokage told me that too. It's one of the reasons why I'm here. That, and the fact that Tsunade-sama looked like she wouldn't take no for an answer. Otherwise, I would've gone about my merry way."

"Yeah," Sakura said, leading the other girl to an empty examination room. "For some reason, every ninja I ever met have this aversion to hospitals. I don't understand why."

"Maybe it's because the medic treating the ninja has a fifty-fifty chance of killing the ninja," Setsuna pointed out as they entered an examination room. "I mean, the medic has the ninja's life in his or her hands. Besides, the hospital is a perfect opportunity to kill a ninja."

"Really?" Sakura raised a pink eyebrow, humoring the other girl. She examined Setsuna's injuries and made a face. "Geez, what the hell happened to you? You look like you were tortured or something."

Setsuna chuckled darkly. "You've never seen a person getting tortured, have you?" she asked rhetorically. She waited a beat. "I got beaten almost to a pulp by a thief."

"What did he steal?" Sakura asked, curious. She methodically checked Setsuna's body for any broken bones.

"Something that belongs to this village."

The pink-haired medic accepted the vague answer. "So, you were on a retrieval mission," the medic surmised. "Did you get it?"

Setsuna nodded. "Yup. You should see the other guy." The girl barely restrained a hiss when the pink-haired medic's hands were pressing too hard on a particularly ugly bruise.

"He was beaten worse than you were?"

"He's probably dead," Setsuna answered. In an instant, her face turned grim at the reminder of how she left Viper to die.

Sakura noticed the look as she went about to heal a bruise on her abdomen. "Was it your first time killing someone?" she asked.

"Have you ever killed anyone?" Setsuna glared at the ground.

"No," the medic answered. "And you're avoiding my question."

"Well, if your intention is to cheer me up and try to make me feel remotely better, don't bother." Setsuna stood up as soon as the other girl finished. "I can't believe I wasn't able to kill him fast enough. Besides, I never said it was the first time I killed a man."

Sakura flashed the girl a surprised look. "Wait, so the thief wasn't your first one? Then how many—"

"Are we done here?" Setsuna asked.

Sakura stiffened at the brusque way Setsuna interrupted but then nodded at the other girl's question. As much as the roseate wanted to pry, the fact that Setsuna was quite capable of killing someone and appeared to have no qualms about it made the former pause. "Yes, you're done. Use this healing balm for your bruises. They should be gone in a week or two." The medic handed Setsuna a small jar of healing balm.

After awkwardly thanking the young medic, Setsuna ventured out into the village. The past few days had been one big mess after another. The unnatural brunette frowned. Had my life always been this complicated? She wondered as she mentally recounted what had happened since her arrival in Konoha. Or was it Jiraiya-sensei who made it complicated? The girl shrugged off the notion and shook her head. Then again…nah, it was already complicated before that.

The girl walked on, unmindful of the various civilians around her. As she passed by the bookstore, she paused in mid-step and then scurried over to the stalls, scuttling to and fro like a crab. As soon as she saw the familiar orange-covered novel, a feeling of euphoria and giddiness erupted within her. She fought the urge to giggle.

Oh, my god. I haven't felt this excited since that riot in a bordello in that one village. Setsuna smirked at the memory. I wonder why, she wondered. Her eyes continued staring at the title as another memory filtered to the forefront of her mind.

2

Setsuna let out an angry huff as she started walking away from the inn where she and Jiraiya were staying. "You tell the man that you want to do something exciting for a change and he makes you do something that you've done before," the thirteen-year-old blue-haired adolescent muttered under her breath. "I wanted to be the one peeping in bathhouses!"

It wasn't until she passed a couple of buildings that she felt a tingling sensation. She glanced around, seeing if she was being followed. As she looked around for the second time, she quickened her pace, but it was too late. As she turned a corner, she saw a hand coming at her and a cloth covering her mouth. Then, there was darkness.

Setsuna awoke, disoriented and slumped over a bony shoulder like a sack of rice. Pretending to still be unconscious, she surreptitiously observed her surroundings. She recognized the worn path and the pattern of rocks on the ground; they were headed for the compound. Knowing there wasn't much for her to do yet, she waited.

When she heard and felt her captors' pace slow down, Setsuna was prepared and eager to kill them as soon as she escaped. She heard the gate creak open and close. A couple of paces later, another door opened. Her captor shook her awake and pushed her into, from what she could tell, the prisoners' holding cell.

Before the kidnapper could slam the door shut, Setsuna grabbed the door and stabbed him in the neck with her lethal hair stick. Shouts filled the air and adrenaline coursed through her body as she ran out in an attempt to escape. She didn't even reach the halfway point from the gate to the holding cell when the guards surrounded her and started to attack. She held them off as long as she could, but it wasn't enough as she felt something hard hit the base of her skull. Once again, her world turned black.

Setsuna woke to a dull, throbbing pain in her head. As her eyes focused, she saw her lap and tried to assess her situation. Okay, she thought. I'm in a room that is surprisingly well-lit. Now, can I move? She tried to move her wrists, only to find that they were strapped to the arms of a chair. Again, she struggled to move her arms.

"That won't work, you know," a cold, male voice said as Setsuna tried to get out of the binds. She looked up only to find herself surrounded. She glared at the well-dressed man who spoke. "We took all of your weapons."

Setsuna glanced at the three burly men who were holding her weapons and inspecting the blades of her favorite knives and daggers. "I gathered that." There was a pause. "Taisho."

The well-dressed man smirked. "Ah, so you do know who I am."

"You're a crime lord who specializes in drugs and human trafficking, known for kidnapping girls and keeping them drugged so that they don't run away. And, you're not above using your connections in the village to cover your tracks." She glared at the man. "You're a pathetic excuse for a human being."

"Maybe, maybe not," he said. "But, you're no better than I am. After all, no ordinary girl carries that many weapons. And, they're very sharp—several of my men have cut themselves while they were inspecting the blades. So, tell me, who are you?"

"Not only that, but you're a sexist too." Setsuna grinned as she noticed the varying cuts on the men's hands. "Anyway, why should I tell you?" she asked haughtily. "You'll kill me anyway."

"That is true," the crime lord conceded. "I just want to make sure that nobody will look for you."

The blue-haired teen shrugged. "If I don't tell you, you'll torture me and kill me. If I tell you, you'll torture me and kill me. Either way, I'm screwed." Then, the girl grinned knowingly. "And either way, your men are all going to die."

Taisho raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what makes you say that?" he asked, his voice condescending. "As I recall, you're tied up and I have your weapons." He stretched his right hand out to one of his guards as if he were a doctor asking a nurse for a scalpel while performing a surgery. Likewise, the guard handed Taisho a familiar-looking knife. It was a sharp, double-edged fixed knife with a wooden handle that provided an easy grip. Setsuna had always kept it strapped to her thigh for easy access; it was her favorite.

"Huh." Setsuna looked impassive.

"From that reaction, one would think that you've been through this before," Taisho commented. He pointed the knife at her left forearm, the tip of the blade mere inches from her skin. "Now, tell me, are you a ninja?"

"A ninja?" Setsuna echoed. "What makes you say that?"

She let out a hiss as a thin red horizontal line appeared on her arm and crimson fluid started to seep out. The girl glared at the criminal.

"You cannot be a civilian," Taisho stated as if the last couple of seconds did not happen. "Most of the civilian girls that I've taken do not think to arm themselves with a couple of daggers, knives, and a short sword. So, I repeat. Who are you?"

Setsuna didn't answer. She glared at the men before her, a look of contempt in her eyes.

Taisho sighed. "Well, this looks like it will be a long night." He leaned close to the bound girl, his lips hovering over her right ear. "Rest assured, though, I will break you."

Several minutes and several cuts later, Setsuna bled from her arms and abdomen. It had taken almost all of her self-restraint and her will to not cry from the injuries she had sustained. And all the while, Taisho circled her the way a lion circled its prey.

"I must say; I am impressed. You're not like any other girl," he said, his voice filled with awe. Setsuna could hear him behind her. She felt his breath over her right shoulder as he whispered into her ear, "Most girls would break in less than twenty minutes. But, you, on the other hand, have managed not to say anything in the last thirty."

Setsuna snorted in disgust. "Too bad I can't say the same about you. You're pathetic and sadistic. I mean, torturing me with my own weapon with the sole intention of letting me bleed to death. How cruel is that?" She looked around and grinned. "But, it doesn't matter anyway. Your men are dying right as we speak."

"What—?" Finally, Tashio looked away from the young teen and turned to find his men on the floor and in pain.

"They should be dead in fifteen more minutes," Setsuna said. "They'll be going into cardiac arrest right now."

Tashio stared at the knife in his hands and looked back at his prisoner. Suddenly, it dawned on him. "You tipped them in poison. But how did you—"

Before he could finish his question, there was a loud explosion. As the smoke cleared, Setsuna could see Jiraiya standing in the doorway. Without thinking, Taisho threw Setsuna's knife at the Toad Sannin only to have the older man dodge it as the knife lodged itself into the wall. Then, without stopping, Jiraiya formed a spinning ball of chakra and plunged it into Taisho's abdomen, sending him crashing into the far wall.

"What took you so long?" Setsuna asked, grumpy.

"I had to make a quick stop along the way," Jiraiya answered blithely. He noted the bodies on the floor. "You did this?" he asked, walking past her to take care of the crime lord.

"They took my weapons and got themselves cut." Setsuna shrugged. "It's not my fault that they didn't bother to check for snake venom." She turned her head over her shoulder. She could see him tying up the prone body on the floor. "Um, Jiraiya-sensei, when you're done, can you untie me?"

"Why would I do that?" Jiraiya asked. "I thought you would be able to get yourself out by the time I arrived."

"And, normally, I would. But, the minions took all of my weapons and that sadistic bastard decided to cut me with my favorite knife. And, as you can see, I'm bleeding." She turned her head away from her sensei and blew a stray strand of hair away from her face. "And I'm still recovering from the poison that was on the knife."

Setsuna could hear footsteps walking toward her and saw Jiraiya entering her field of vision. He knelt in front of her, almost at eye-level, and began to work on the binds at her wrists. "Oh, there's something I've been meaning to ask," he said as he finished freeing her left wrist. "If you make it a habit of dipping your blades in poison, then how were you not dead when Taisho used them on you?"

"What can I say? I'm special like that," she replied.

"You know that answer won't keep me satisfied for long."

Setsuna nodded as her right wrist is freed. "I know," she said. "And when the time comes, I'll make sure that you'll be surrounded by a harem full of girls to keep you properly distracted. Now, let's go." She struggled to get up and winced in pain.

"Hold on, you've lost a lot of blood." Jiraiya grabbed several cloths and placed them on Setsuna's cuts to staunch the blood flow.

"Thanks." She grunted. Feeling less lightheaded, she went to collect her weapons. "Good thing I didn't use a hemotoxin."

"Which poison did you use?" Jiraiya asked.

"Snake venom." Setsuna put her knives and daggers in their proper hiding places. "Can we go now?"

Jiraiya assessed his young apprentice. His right shoulder burdened by the unconscious crime lord. "Yeah, let's go."

After dropping the crime lord off to the proper authorities and sending Setsuna to have her injuries looked over, she and Jiraiya were back on the road. After a couple of minutes of silence, Jiraiya cleared his throat.

"Setsuna," he began.

"Yes, Jiraiya-sensei?" the young girl looked up at him.

"You asked me why I let you get yourself kidnapped instead of doing other grunt work," he continued.

It took a couple of seconds for her to remember the conversation they had before she left. "Oh, right." She nodded in understanding. "You wanted me to find where they hid the girls."

"One of the reasons why I wanted you to go undercover is because I know about your past and I know what you're capable of."

Setsuna tensed and then inwardly smacked herself. I should've known. He wasn't good at research and intelligence gathering for nothing, she chided herself. "If you know who I am and what I'm capable of, if you know that much about me, then why did you rescue me?" She gave him a skeptical look. "Weren't you worried I might kill you in your sleep?"

He shook his head. "Nah…not really. When we met, you already knew me by reputation. And if you were to know that I'm a perverted pedophile, you would have killed me before I could say anything. But, since I'm still standing and you're still following me, you already know that I'm not that kind of a pervert." He shrugged. "Besides, you're my apprentice and I like you."

"Okay," she said. Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. "By the way, how did you find me?"

"Are you aware of animal summons?" Setsuna nodded. "I had one of my toads follow you at a safe distance."

"You do realize that my being your apprentice still doesn't fully explain why you rescued me. So, why did you rescue me?" she prodded.

"Since you're my apprentice in my literary affairs, you're going to have to carry on my legacy in case something happens to me," Jiraiya explained. "And if you're dead, then who's going to carry on my Make Out legacy if I'm dead, indisposed, or in a comatose state?"

3

"Oh, crap. Jiraiya-sensei's in a coma and he's supposed to write a manuscript for the next book in the series," Setsuna said aloud. "How in the hell am I going to write a full-length Make Out novel?"

"Excuse me." She whirled around and looked up to see a tall man with silver gravity-defying hair, a black mask covering most of his face, and his left eye obscured by his forehead protector. For some reason, he reminded her of a scarecrow.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Aren't you a little young to be getting Make Out Tactics?" the man asked.

"Yes, I am," she conceded. "But, it's a special edition novel that includes several scenes that were edited out because of its racier-than-normal content. In fact, this one actually includes the scene in which Junko visits a bordello for the first time and has to carry out her assassination mission."

"You know your novels." The man sounded impressed.

"I've read Jiraiya's work cover to cover. Some maybe more than once," Setsuna added as an afterthought. "And anyway, even if I could buy the novel for myself, why would I when I have the uncut version of the novel already?" Without bothering to see the reaction on the man's face, she left the bookstore.

The sun was warm on her face as she walked down the street. Remembering Jiraiya's words to her during the early stages of her apprenticeship, Setsuna was excited and nervous at the same time. How in the hell am I going to ghostwrite a novel within the next five months? She thought to herself. Feeling in way over her head, she made her way to the ramen stand.

"Setsuna-chan!" Naruto waved her over as she approached the blond teenager.

"Naruto." She nodded and took a seat beside him. As a serving girl walked over to her, she said, "I'll have a pork ramen, please."

"Where were you? I haven't seen you in a week," Naruto said as he started on a fifth bowl of ramen.

Setsuna shrugged. "I was on a mission," she answered.

The whiskered blond looked at her pointedly. "How was it?" he asked, pressing for details.

As soon as her order was placed before her, she grabbed a pair of chopsticks and began eating. After her first taste of the noodles, she started telling him about the events that had happened while she was in Mist Village.

"So, did you get it?" he demanded as she paused to eat her ramen.

Setsuna nodded, her attention more focused on the bowl in front of her.

"What about the thief?" he asked.

"Taken care of," she answered. She continued eating her ramen.

When he realized that his friend wasn't going to elaborate, Naruto frowned and returned to his new bowl of ramen. "Wow," he said as he thought over what his friend had told him, "that sounds like something out of a book."

Setsuna's back straightened, her shoulders relaxed as she sat up. She turned to the blonde teenager, a look of realization in her eyes. "Naruto, you genius," she muttered. She stood, slamming some money on the counter to pay for her bill. Then, to the blonde's surprise, she gave him a one-armed hug. "Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Without another word, she left. She arrived at the house with a renewed vigor and set about her appointed task of carrying on her sensei's legacy. By the time it was mid-afternoon, the table was littered with scrolls, journals, and books as Setsuna worked on a general outline and character description for the novel. Just as she was taking a break and studying the copy of the first part of the coded scroll, she heard a knock at the door.

"Yes?" Setsuna asked as she saw a young woman standing on the doorstep. The young woman was attractive looking with a good complexion and who appeared to be in her twenties.

"You must be Setsuna," the young woman stated.

Setsuna nodded, her eyes cautious. "Yeah. And you are?"

"My name is Haru. Tsunade-sama sent me as a trainer to help you prepare for being a ninja. Since you can't attend the Academy, for some reason, she thought that you would benefit more if you were privately trained," Haru explained.

"Oh, okay," Setsuna said, nodding as if that made sense. "Are we going to start training now?"

"How about we get something to eat and get to know each other first?" Haru offered.

"Okay," Setsuna agreed. "Just let me clean up before we go."

4

An hour later, Setsuna and Haru were sitting in a booth at the local dango shop. Each stared at their plate of dango. A tense silence hung around the duo, reminding Setsuna of an awkward first date between a teenage boy and girl.

"So," Setsuna began. "Is this the part where we tell each other about who we are?"

Haru nodded. "Pretty much. It would help if you give me something to work with so that we could skip over the boring parts."

The teenager nodded. "That makes sense." She placed her ice tea back on the table. "I've been Jiraiya-sensei's apprentice for four years, give or take. Before that, I had some training and I travelled a lot. As of now, I need to improve my speed."

"How did you work that out?"

"On my last mission, it took me longer than I would like to take down the target." Setsuna paused to think. "And while we're at it, I should probably work on my fighting skills more. I shouldn't have had that many bruises."

"Okay," Haru said. "And your interests?"

"I have a lot of them. But, the only one worth mentioning is poisons." Setsuna sat back in her seat. "I find that they're much easier to use and they're classier."

"How so?" Haru asked. "With a kunai or a katana, you can easily injure, kill, or maim your target and there isn't that much of a waiting period for death to occur."

"That may be true," Setsuna conceded. "But, it's more obvious and it's messy. I mean, any idiot can use a weapon and kill the target, but there's also the off-chance that the person will miss. And what happens then? The target will live to see another day and the mission is a failure. With poisons, though, most people rarely give it another thought whenever they're hit by something or feel something weird. And by the time they realize something's wrong, it's usually too late."

Haru eyed the young girl. "You must have given this a lot of thought."

"Eh." Setsuna shrugged. "It was something that was drilled into me."

"You must have had a hell of a sensei."

Setsuna grinned. "You have no idea."

"Interesting," Haru replied. "I also have a preference for poisons. Unfortunately, one of the drawbacks is making sure that there isn't any contact with the poison."

"Really?" Surprise showed on Setsuna's face. "I don't have a problem with that."

Haru snorted. "For some reason, I find that hard to believe."

"Of course you would." Setsuna took a bite of some dango.

"Anyway, have you met the other senseis?" Haru asked.

Setsuna shook her head. "No, I haven't had the opportunity."

"Okay. Well, next time, I'll be sure to have Gai come with me the next time we meet. He should be able to help you improve your speed," Haru said.

"What happens if he doesn't?"

"Trust me, he will." Haru gave the sixteen-year-old a look. "If he and his protégé can't, then we're doomed."

For some strange reason, Setsuna felt a sense of dread settling over her as she heard her new teacher's words.

5

By the time Setsuna returned to the house, she had to turn on the lights before she could continue working. Several scattered books and pieces of papers later, she had written all of chapter one and was working half-way through chapter two until a book and several sheets of paper fell along with a familiar-looking scroll. She bent over to pick up the sheets of paper and the scroll, only to have her eyes glued to the particular phrase on both documents. Her eyes widened and she frowned.

"This doesn't make sense," she said as she glanced back and forth between the two documents. "This doesn't make sense at all."

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Sorry for the long wait. I had major writer's block. And, sorry if this chapter came out more as a filler. I'll try to make the next chapter more exciting. Anyway, please tell me what you think. I always love to hear from my fans. Read and review!