Welkin
Chapter Two: Cantina Yamato!
"I passed! I passed the medical entrance exam!" He heard his daughter cry as she rushed into his work area, a holomessage in her hand and a huge smile on her face.
He set down the armor inlay he had been working on, lifting up his shield visor and giving her a hug, "That's wonderful Sakura!"
"The Republic military has the hardest medical exam in the core systems, dad," Sakura said with a roll of her eyes.
"Ah…well, it's extra wonderful then."
Sakura groaned.
He smiled, turning back to his work but carrying on the conversation, "Do you know which squadron you're going to be assigned to?"
Sakura chewed on her lower lip, taking a seat next to her father's workbench, "No…"
"But?" prompted Haruno, his plasma torch soldering together two pieces of durasteel.
"But I hope I get squad seven," Sakura said, almost guiltily as her feet started kicking in the air, "That's the one Uchiha Sasuke-"
Haruno set down the torch and faced his only child, "Sakura, this is your lifelong career-"
"I know dad."
"-request a squadron you want to be a part of, not the one with the boy you like."
Sakura crossed her arms, her chin tilting up stubbornly, "The squad I want to be on is the one with Sasuke."
Haruno sighed, frowning as he went back to his work, his daughter quickly changing the subject to what she was going to wear for her induction ceremony.
---
Seven years later…
"I believe you owe this man some money," Sakura said politely, her blaster digging into the ribs of the Rodian she had in front of her, his wrists and ankles bound with restrainer cuffs.
"Me no owe anything! Me no owe!" He said, squirming and failing to get out of Sakura's grip.
A booming laugh was heard across the room as the Hutt placed its short arms over his bulging torso. The Twi'lek translator to his side nodded, and she turned to face Sakura.
"My master finds it amusing that anyone on Nar Shadaar thinks he doesn't owe him money."
Sakura nodded, her mouth in a grim line, before she turned her attention back to the alien in front of her, "Here's the deal, if the Hutt doesn't get paid, I don't get paid, and that's not a good situation for any of us," she said, and the Rodian suddenly found the blaster pressed alongside his temple.
The alien let loose a nervous chuckle, his hands up in a placating gesture, "Me willing to reach compromise."
The Hutt started laughing again, his massive tongue trailing over his lower lip as a string of garbled mess came out of his mouth.
"My master is willing to pay you full price, if only for the entertainment," the Twi'lek said, addressing Sakura.
She gave a tired sigh, placing her blaster pistol into its holster on her utility belt, thankful to be done with this utterly annoying job. The Rodian had been hard to track down, his contacts constantly misfeeding her information, but after a solid week's worth of hunting, she had finally cornered the irritating alien in a cantina playing pazaak.
Sakura finally managed a smile, "Oh good."
The Twi'lek went over to a metal container, and the Rodian in Sakura's hands twitched in dread as she opened it and withdrew something.
"For the bounty hunter," she said, holding a pouch of credits, "Ms.-?"
"Haruno," she said easily, letting go of the Rodian who fell forward without her supporting his weight.
"Ms. Haruno," the Twi'lek said with a polite bow of her head, her lekku twitching slightly, "My Master is impressed with your services, he'll be sure to put a good word in for you within the circuit."
Sakura felt her face twist into a grimace at the thought of being a highly commendable bounty hunter to the Exchange, "That won't be necessary," she said, grabbing the pouch of credits and counting them out on her hand.
"It is nothing, the Exchange rewards its bounty hunters well-"
"Thanks," Sakura mumbled after she had finished counting. And, ignoring the Twi'lek, she bowed her head low to the Hutt, who only laughed in return.
Without a second look at either the Hutt, his translator, or the Rodian, Sakura turned on her heel and left the Hutt's apartments, thankful to be out of his presence. She hated working for the crime lords on Nar Shadaar, but as an otherwise unemployed bounty hunter she had little other options. The Hutts ran crime on this planet, and crime was what usually put out bounties. There was a small comfort in the fact that anyone likely to be dealing with the Hutts was just as slimy as they were, but Sakura was sure once she got enough credits to make the tune-ups on her ship, she'd be more than eager to kiss this corrupted planet goodbye.
Her walk was slow as she made her way back to her temporary apartments, seeing as the bunk on her ship had been destroyed during the same firefight that was to blame for her miserable amount of debt. It was her own fault, for flying without security codes in military controlled space, but if she were to give her real reason for her ship hovering in the Outer Rim, they would have shot her down faster. Sakura counted her fortunes though, as her ship had enough power left in her to limp to the nearest spaceport, which was, unfortunately, Nar Shadaar.
As she walked, she was oblivious to the crowds, the merchants, the flashing advertisements urging her to watch Aburame Shino in the swoop racing finals, and most importantly, the news holovids that were projected every standard block.
On the entrance to the pazaak den.
JEDI KILLER STILL ON THE LOOSE!
Next to a droid mechanic's shop.
JEDI COUNCIL HAS STILL NOT ISSUED AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT REGARDING THE DEATH OF REVERED MASTER UCHIHA ITACHI-
On the outside of her own apartment building.
INVESTIGATORS HAVE FORMED A CONNECTION BETWEEN THE LATE JEDI MASTER AND REPUBLIC DESERTER UCHIHA SASUKE-
Sakura stopped as she read that one, and felt something heavy sink into the pit of her stomach.
Forget the nice, hot shower in the refresher unit and subsequent early bedtime, she was going to the cantina and getting a drink.
---
The nearest cantina was a shoddy place, at best. The flickering neon light outside of the double pressurized doors barely glowing enough to proclaim Cantina Yamato! in Basic. Sakura sighed, fingering the bag of credits in the pocket of her overskirt, her mind mentally assessing how much was an expendable allowance in light of her ship repairs and whether or not that allowance was enough to get her properly tossed.
Putting on her best tough girl face, and making sure her blaster was within reach, Sakura trudged in.
Instantly, her mind observed the layout of the area. In the immediate entrance were a few gambling and pazaak tables, leading up to a bar where a very plain looking man served drinks with next to no enthusiasm. To the left was a dancing stage, a few Twi'leks and humans gathering the attention of the male crowd as they moved sinuously to the music provided by a Bith band.
She could feel the eyes train on her as she entered, the small size of the cantina definitely indicating this was a 'members only' sort of establishment. She ignored them, however, walking straight ahead and taking a seat at the bar.
The person next to her, a sickly looking man, gave her a disinterested glance before turning back to his cup, a coughing fit delaying his drink for a few moments.
"Bartender!" Sakura said loudly, straining to be heard over the music.
The dark haired man turned to look at her, his round, large eyes staring without blinking.
Sakura waited for a few moments for a response, and, receiving none, she hesitantly asked, "A glass of juma, please?"
The barkeep gave a long suffering sigh before pouring the glass, sliding it over to her.
Sakura tried to fight the frown on her face, put off by the barkeep's rudeness, but the juma was cheap and strong and she wouldn't be able to remember even the name 'Uchiha Sasuke' if she had enough of it, so she let the impoliteness slide.
By about her fourth glass, the barkeep finally spoke to her.
"You look familiar."
Sakura froze the hand reaching out for the glass, "What do you mean?" She asked levelly.
"Not too many people have that color hair, even out here," the barkeep said, his eyebrows furrowing, "But where do I know you from-?"
Sakura grabbed the glass and polished it off in one gulp before slamming it down on the counter, "Another," she demanded.
Barkeeps didn't live long as barkeeps if they didn't notice the stop asking questions tone of voice when they heard it, "I'll make it a double," he said with a smile.
Sakura smiled back, "That'd be appreciated."
"Republic," came the low voice of her neighbor for the first time, his dark eyes scrutinizing his drink and not looking at her.
She felt her heart slow down a few beats, because she wasn't so drunk that she didn't understand, "…excuse me?"
"You're Republic," the man said, picking up his drink and sipping from it.
"You're mistaken," Sakura replied, thankful when a small cup slid forward to her.
"No, I'm not."
She could feel her infamous temper start to rise within her, "Yes, you are. Not that it's any of your business."
The tired looking man laughed, a low, guttural sound, before placing a few credits on the counter, "You never leave behind being a soldier," he whispered, leaning over her shoulder before turning away and heading towards the exit.
Sakura watched him go, a queasy sensation filling her when she saw that the back of his flight suit had a faded spiral logo imprinted on it. Mechanically, like a poorly lubricated droid, she turned forward on her bar stool and took a long drink from her glass.
The barkeep was staring at her, an all too knowing look on his face, "Want another?"
"I'm cutting myself off," Sakura said quietly to her juma juice.
---
Not too far away from Cantina Yamato!, The Paper Tiger descended onto a landing pad with a heavy sort of clunk, causing anything not bolted down to fly.
Including a very irritated astromech unit.
K0-N0 screeched, its sensors flashing red and its head swiveling around in complete circles.
Sai, from where he was trying to catch his breath after having dug a crash webbing into his gut with the speed of the landing, said dismissively, "You have no nerve endings, there is no way you felt that all the way to your core intel, like you claim."
K0-N0 only screeched louder, turning around and wheeling out of the cockpit in a rush.
Sai carefully undid the safety restraints on the crash webbing, looking out of the window and taking in the sight of Nar Shadaar for the first time.
The surface of the planet was almost entirely covered in metal buildings and infrastructure, not too unlike Coruscant. However, Nar Shadaar had a distinctly unwelcoming atmosphere to it, and Sai felt his Force enhanced intuition warning him against this place.
"I suppose it would be prudent to survey my surroundings," Sai said, the slightest of touch of apprehension in his tone.
K0-N0, from its place before the star charts, gave a two note beep that sounded suspiciously like, "Well, duh."
Sai ignored him, dutifully preparing a voice lock on the cockpit controls and lowering the docking ramp. The pressure door barely creaked open before K0-N0 was speeding towards it, Sai frowning before chasing after the unruly astromech.
As soon as Sai hit the open air of Nar Shadaar, he cringed and stopped mid-jog, wishing he could go back to where the atmosphere didn't reek of vomit and rot. However, his K0-N0 unit, who did not have olfactory sensors, paid little heed to the stench as it wheeled forward quickly off the landing strip, making a sharp turn towards the entertainment district of the seedy planet.
Sai debated the worth of following the droid, somewhat glad to be rid of him if for only a few moments. However, a nagging thought in the back of his mind, the one that sounded like Master Danzou, reminded him that the K0-N0 held all of Sai's navigational charts and mission objectives, and should it be intercepted by the wrong people, Sai's entire mission would be compromised.
With a forced, grim sort of determination, Sai started to run after the unruly thing, and was amazed at the speed the little droid could maneuver. As soon as he left the landing docks, there was a noticeable surge of people, aliens and humans alike, who made spotting a tiny, helmeted droid infinitely more difficult.
Sai, however, was not as inconspicuous in his Jedi robes, and as he weaved through the crowds, several heads turned his way, most stares landing on the cylindrical weapon attached to his belt.
After a few moments, Sai stopped running, his jog descending into a walk as he realized that he had given his droid too much of an advantage and that the linear pursuit wasn't going to be benefiting him anytime soon. His eyes were scanning the rooftops of the buildings for a possible vantage point when he heard a strained man's cry.
"Someone! Help!"
Sai inclined his head in the direction of the noise, and through the intermittent gaps in the crowd of people, he was able to make out the scene of a man being cornered by two others, both wearing a black and gray uniform. His curiosity compelling him, Sai slowly walked over, his step cautious.
As he approached, he noticed that a human male, younger, probably in his mid to late twenties, and a Devronian were both assaulting an older man, kicks and punches going at him as he cried. Sai noticed that the Devronian had a particularly close handle on the blaster pistol by his side.
"What are you doing?" Sai asked finally, announcing his presence as his stance tensed, a hand drifting to his side.
"None of your business," growled out the human.
"Keep walking," agreed the Devronian next to him in Basic, the man in front of them tensing.
"A Jedi!" The man seemed to realize, his eyes brightening, "You've got to help me!"
Sai's face was emotionless as he surveyed the area, his tone completely neutral as he stared at the man asking for help, "Why are they beating you?"
The troubled man looked at the ground, licking his split lip with his tongue, "I owe some money…"
The human assaulter snorted, turning and glaring at Sai, "This is business, Jedi, no need for you to get involved," he said with a disrespectful snort, "Or are you going to cut down two civilians with your lightsaber because a man can't pay off his debt?"
"It's not my fault! Your thugs already raided my apartment-"
"Because you were late with the payments, old timer!" The Devronian said, sending a harsh kick to the man's ribs. The older one let out his breath, gripping his sides and groaning heavily.
Sai went to the beaten man's side, helping him up with a steadying hand, "I would be willing to settle his debt," he said matter of factly.
The human snorted, "You couldn't afford it, Jedi dog."
Sai's smile spread, "I happen to have a state of the art astromechanical droid for sale, a K0-N0 unit."
The wheezing man's hand clenched around the sleeve of Sai's Jedi robe, for once feeling a strange sort of hope filter in.
The Devronian looked at his human partner, asking the man something in a language Sai couldn't comprehend. The human replied quickly, the two of them sending quick, nervous looks over to both the indebted man and Sai.
"Who're you thugs beating on now?" Came a feminine and slightly slurred voice from behind the pair of assailants, and Sai tensed his muscles, a hand going for the lightsaber attached at his belt for the first time in this conversation.
The human's tone was hardly welcoming and his hand went to the holster at his side, "You!"
"This is Hutt business," emphasized the Devronian.
Sai gave the old man a steadying hand up, his dark eyes peering behind the thugs to evaluate the intruder. She was young, but probably older than him, and her stance indicated inebriation. On her waist was a utility belt, and she had what appeared to be several grenades, different models of ranged weapons, and a vibrosword hanging from it.
"You think I care?" She demanded, a hard glint in her eyes and her mussed hair falling over her face.
The human looked away from the female intruder, a wary sort of respect emanating from him like a bantha cornered by a krayt dragon, he muttered something to his partner in the strange language again.
The Devronian turned to Sai, "You can contact our employer, Katsuya, if you want to talk about absolving this wretch's debt," with a nod, the two of them turned around, giving the woman some space as they left the area, she grinned in a feral manner at both of them, and when the Devronian passed he gave a visible shudder.
The man still holding his breath collapsed in relief, "Thank you Jedi!"
"Jedi, huh?" Said the woman with a snort, her eyes narrowing at the man, "You again? I thought I bailed you out of your pazaak debt last week."
The man struggled to stand, scratching the back of his head, "I…may have gone back into the den this week."
Sai smiled at the man that he had helped, "…You are being harassed for a gambling debt?"
"…and for being late on spice payments, but I swear I'll afford to pay them back after you help me with Katsuya the Hutt!" The man said frantically.
The woman looked at the Jedi levelly, "Don't bother with him. He'll just spend it on more stims. Trash is better left in the compactor, if you catch my meaning," she groaned, rubbing the spot between her should and neck before giving a drunken wave goodbye, "Oh well, he's your problem now, Jedi."
Sai was silent as he watched her walk away, a slight stagger to her step.
The indebted man turned to Sai, "We're lucky we're alive. Do you have any idea who that was?"
He didn't even bother waiting for a response, which was fortunate, as Sai was unlikely to give one.
"Mitarashi Anko. She's dangerous, they even say she's an ex mercenary for the Republic," the man's voice dropped to a darker, bitter tone, "Not that the whole kriffing planet's not crawling with ex Republic already."
Sai suddenly paid the man much more attention at the latter statement, "Ex Republic?"
The man snorted, "That's right, and they bring a whole bunch of trouble with them."
"Do you know if someone named Uchiha Sasuke has been through Nar Shadaar?"
The man snorted, a chuckle escaping his mouth before he noticed Sai's completely level expression, "Oh, you're serious. If the Uchiha Sasuke were to come to Nar Shadaar, I'd give him five minutes before some desperate bounty hunter ties him up with a pretty purple bow and hands him over to one of the numerous interplanetary governments posting a target on his head," the man rolled his eyes, "Everyone has been after that kid since the war ended. You'd have better luck trying to kill a bantha with a plasma torch."
Sai stared at the man for a few minutes, and it was obvious that behind his dark eyes calculations were occurring.
After a few moments, Sai gave a perfectly polite bow, "I'm afraid I must be going. Good luck in absolving your completely earned debt."
The man's mouth dropped, "Hey! You said you were going to pay it off with your astromech-!"
Sai smiled evenly, "I had no intention of doing so. If it escaped your attention, my astromechanical droid is currently not with me."
"B-b-but you're supposed to be a Jedi-!" the man pressed, completely flabbergasted.
Sai stood up from his bow, "Enjoy your evening."
With that, Sai began his walk back towards the entertainment section of the planet, hoping there would be a lead to information on either Uchiha Sasuke or the infernal droid that he didn't really want back.