"I wonder what's taking Kakashi-sensei so long…" Naruto sighed looking at the clock across the room.

"What? Where did he go?" Kiba asked, looking up from his seat on the floor next to Akamaru in front of the fire.

"That Kenta guy told him he was wanted at the front desk. He's been gone for over twenty minutes now…" Naruto told him with a frown, only to jump when a loud piercing shriek filled the inn.

-Twenty Minutes Earlier-

Kakashi stood looking at the door, his hand curled into a first and raised, ready to knock. Behind the door he heard the dull thuds of stomping feet and watched as the door was retched open. The first thing he saw was the locks of ruby twisting and swirling in the air as Sayuri walked into her room again, not spending any time to give him the time of day.

"You're going to make the inn look bad if you hover outside of my room. The guests will think you're here to complain about something." she said sharply, making it clear for Kakashi to come in. The ninja gave a low chuckle under his breath. "Don't laugh at that." The manager snapped making Kakashi frown. She wasn't looking at him, in fact she wasn't even in the same room as him- she'd gone into her en suite- and his laugh wasn't even audible, so how could she hear him?

"What did you come here for?" she asked in an annoyed tone from the en suite.

"I came to apologize…" he said genuinely. "I'm sorry, miss."

"For what?" Sayuri asked, those few words weren't going to be enough for her. It looked liked he'd have to tell her.

"Following you this morning, it wasn't my intention at first. You see my group have a mission and last night you mentioned someone that we are meant to target." he paused and nothing but silence filled the room. Slowly her hand appeared at the doorway and she leaned against it. Her head slightly hung but she continued to look at the wall in front of her, she was refusing to look at Kakashi. "Kosuke?" she asked.

"Yes. Since you mentioned him, it meant you knew him so when I spotted you this morning I followed to see if you were really going to do what you'd said to the grocer. And when you were going to the river I recalled that Kosuke's followers are branded with a tattoo on their upper right arm; a scythe and crow next to it. That's all I wanted to see but couldn't." he explained. "But how did you find my book? Where was it?" he asked, not wanting to bring up his suspicions of her being a ninja just yet.

"On the ground next to the tree you were in. You'd dropped it before your team-mate began to yell for you." she said sternly.

"You knew I was there that long?" he asked unable to keep the impressed tone from his voice. He'd hidden his chakra well and stayed out of sight the entire time.

"Before then actually but that's not of any importance. You want to know about Kosuke. All I'll tell you is to be careful. This town is under his control, all rouges and criminals know to behave if they decide to stay here for a while. You and your team should have come in disguise. Word will have reached him by now of your being here. That's why Kenta doesn't like you being here for so long. The longer you stay in here, the longer you make Hideo traitor for housing foreign ninja who might be out to get him. Which in this case is true." Sayuri said heavily.

"Where is he based?" Kakashi asked seriously, the sudden stiffness in her body told him she knew.

"I've told you all that you are going to get from me, ninja." she said harshly, pushing away from the wooden frame and to the room door, Sharply opening it. "Leave." Kakashi turned and walked to the door but went no further. He put out his hand and began to push it closed. But Sayuri wasn't for giving in, she tightened her grip and tensed her muscles to challenge Kakashi. The door stopped halfway between the two. Kakashi's visible eye narrowed before putting more force against the door, smirking as Sayuri gritted against the added force. Fiercely she set her foot back against the doorframe and pushed harder.

However Sayuri knew the struggle would have to end soon, so when the ninja pushed again, she swiftly stepped away from the door, allowing him to lurch forward and hit his shoulder against the wood as it slammed shut. Kakashi grunted and glared at the red head who was heading to the en suite, clearly trying to separate herself from him. With his ninja speed, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, swiftly throwing her against the closed bedroom door, but made sure not to throw her too hard. His hand held onto her shoulder firmly, not letting her get away.

"I don't like the idea of threatening you but I want to know where Kosuke's base is." he said in a low voice.

"And I don't like the idea of telling you twice; you aren't getting anything more from me. Now leave this room or stay to regret it." she growled out.

"I'd think someone like you would like the idea of ninja getting rid of a criminal gang -that according to you is running the town you live in. So why won't you cooperate?" he questioned her.

"Someone like me? You don't know a damn thing about me OR this town! You stumbled on this place by chance and now that you find out it's someway linked to your mission you think you know what the people want?" she demanded angrily. "Cooperating with you is more trouble than it's worth besides your leader sent you out on this mission, not me. So do your job, unless of course you and your team are weak need a mere inn manager to do it for you." she smirked. Kakashi ground his teeth together angrily.

"Don't get so worked up, I know it must be hard for a group of four ninja and a dog to sniff out a building large enough to house weapons, criminals, rouge ninja and their egotistical, sadistic leader. A place like that would need privacy, good defence and a way to make sure your enemy could only enter and leave one way." Sayuri said innocently. Kakashi narrowed his eyes at her as he took in what she was saying. Her tone was condescending and defiant but what as he listened, she was clearly helping him.

"Thank you." he said. Sayuri took a deep breath and nodded, closing her eyes.

"You're welcome but now I really have to make your team leave here for good…You should grab your things quickly." she whispered. Kakashi tilted his head at her in confusion before wincing as a loud scream filled the room. Taking this as his sign to leave, Kakashi made a handsign and disappeared from the room, appearing in his own just in time to hear someone bursting into Sayuri's room.

"Sayuri! What happened?" someone demanded.

"O-one of the ninja!" he heard her sob. "He…he…" she broke off with more panicked sobs. Kakashi hurried to get his and Genma's gear before rushing down to the lounge to spot Kiba and Naruto.

"We're leaving. Now!" he said sharply. "We've outstayed our welcome."

"B-but Genma isn't back yet." Naruto said.

"We'll find him in town." Kakashi said, looking up to see Kenta glaring down at him along with some of the inn staff. Kakashi looked to the two ninja and Akamaru, without wasting anytime they ran knowing that they couldn't fight civilians.

The inn owner's son looked at the three ninja with deadly intent. "Get them."

"Kenta, aren't you coming with us?" the bartender asked.

"Someone needs to stay with Sayuri."

"So she pretended that you attacked her after giving you some information on where to find Kosuke and his base?" Kiba asked as they ran. "Why?"

"Kosuke runs this town, he knows we're here and is suspicious of us. Those that run the inn are at risk of suffering by his hand for just letting us stay. If Kosuke found out Sayuri helped us, he'd go after her and the inn. Saying one of us attacked her sets us as the target, focus is shifted away from her."

"So to lessen the target on her, she had to create a bigger one on us. I mean we have been getting hostile stares from a lot of people in that inn, they're probably just scared of Kosuke and his followers of taking it out on them." Kiba said, beginning to understand while Akamaru let out a loud bark of agreement.

"Okay, first we find Genma and head back to the inn." Kakashi said.

"WHAT? But we just left there!" Naruto complained.

"I know that but this time we go in disguise as rouge ninja. If word reaches Kosuke about us being run out of town and about the attack, he or one of his subordinates might go to the inn." he explained. "Kiba can you or Akamaru sniff Genma out?"

The two sniffed the air before Akamaru barked and shot to the right, leading them down through the back alleyways of a bar. The large dog came to a halt and sniffed before whining.

"All this stench of rubbish in the bins and the ground isn't helping…" Kiba sighed, looking around.

"Kakashi sensei!" Naruto called, Kakashi and Kiba looked up to see Naruto approach. There in his hand was Genma's headband with blood on the cloth and metal. The three men looked at each other silently.

"Kakashi sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Get your disguises ready." he ordered before looking to Kiba. "Akamaru can't come near the inn. Keep him at a safe distance but close enough for you to call him if we need to fight."

Kiba nodded before the three made their handsigns.

Pain, so much pain. Genma could feel it getting stronger and more pronounced as he slowly came to. And with each passing second he wished he was still unconscious. Wincing, he slowly began to open his eyes. Slowly he tried to breath through the pain as his eyes adjusted. He was not in the bar that was for sure.

"Yo, he's finally awake." a gruff voice said.

"'Bout time. Too bad the boss has gone out on business. Don't worry ninja, you'll be glad of this time. The Boss don't like ninja comin' in here to try and kill him and us for that matter." another chuckled darkly. Genma coughed and spat out the blood in his mouth. He'd dropped his guard and he knew that…he had been in a perfectly good bar with good drink that now seemed to have been spiked with a strong drug. He had no energy and very little chakra. For now he'd have to wait for Kakashi and the others to get him. His half opened eyes scanned the chains across his bare chest, around his waist, legs and ankles that were secured to the wall behind him. He didn't dare lay his back against it, it was rough stone with thin but sharp spikes scattered around it. His wrists were chained behind his back tightly, he had to force himself not to move backwards as much as he wanted to rest his exhausted, pain filled body. He looked up as the ornately carved door slowly opened from the end of the room.

"Welcome back. No word from the boss?" one of the men asked as the figure walked closer.

"He won't be back until tomorrow. Gives the ninja some time to rest and the others to look for his little friends."

Genma frowned and watched as the figure came closer and knelt down in front of him, a wicked, twisted smile on their face.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice cracked and strained more with every word that came from his mouth. He gritted his teeth when a hand roughly locked itself in his head and sharply pulled their head back.

"I'm here to make sure you thoroughly enjoy your stay here, Genma…waitress pay isn't that much but you get to hear a lot of interesting things. Now, you just rest, this is the best suite in the place so enjoy. Pretty soon your friends will be next to you or waiting for you in the afterlife."

Genma glared weakly at Ami as she laughed. Her voice was no longer overly cheerful and childish but laced with venom and malice.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT YOU LOST THEM?" Kenta yelled at the group when they returned.

"They're ninja Kenta, besides they won't attack civilians so they just ran. Probably out in the forest and hiding by now." the bartender explained, trying to get his breath back before looking over to Sayuri who was holding her cheek and a glass of whiskey that shook in her free hand.

"Kenta…did you…?" he asked.

"Yeah, I got angry and lashed out." he sighed, looking over to the manager. "Sayu…" he began but Sayuri just got to her feet and made her way out of the room.

"I've had it with this town, I've been here long enough." she muttered, passing the glass to Kenta as she went.

"What the hell do you mean Sayu?"

"I mean Kenta, that I was only meant to stay here a few months not a whole decade!" she said, walking up the stairs to her room, Kenta following directly behind her. When she walked into the room she froze, feeling a chilling presence in her room. Her body trembled slightly as a hand slowly cupped her face. Soon she was grabbed roughly by the throat and slammed into the wall. Sayuri choked and dug her nails into his hand while pushing to make him release her. Kosuke held on and lifted her away from the wall only to slam her back into it again.

"My dear Sayuri…" his smooth voice coaxed in her ear. "I know it was wrong for Kenta to hit you but to make such bold statements that you're going to leave… well that just breaks my heart." he sighed in a pained, saddened voice before he dropped her to the floor. She gasped and coughed violently, letting the air fill her lungs again. Kosuke looked to Kenta.

"Leave us Kenta, it seems I need to persuade Sayuri to stay…" he said with a dark laugh. Kenta tensed, looked to Sayuri before nodding and leaving the door, closing the door behind him. As he slowly made his way down the large staircase he heard Sayuri's yelp of pain soon followed by a crash and thud. 'Poor, stupid girl…' he thought to himself, walking into the bar and grabbing the first bottle of alcohol he saw before chugging it back. The atmosphere in the room was heavy and tense, only for it to be broken when the front door opened.

"We're closed, get the hell out." Kenta snapped, only to tense when in a flash, a large dagger was lodged into the bar surface, less than a centimetre away from Kenta's hand.

"Wanna say that again kid?" a low rumbling voice croaked in his ear. Kenta slowly turned his head to smirk at the three men who loomed over him. They were terrifying, their presence was nearly as overwhelmingly chilling and bloodthirsty as Kosuke's. Maybe they would be good additions to Kosuke's following. It might always distract Kosuke from damaging Sayuri too much.

"My apologies. Have a drink on the house." he said graciously. The three exchanged looks and sat down.

"Kenta…" a low voice sounded from the doorway. Kenta slowly looked up only to choke on his drink, Kosuke stood before all of them covered in blood and a large smile on his face. "Get me a large drink."

"Sure thing boss…" Kenta whispered moving out of his seat to go behind the bar. "Is Sayuri…" he trailed off.

Kosuke's smile twisted and widened making everyone in the room feel a blood chilling shiver run through their bodies- some more than others managed to hide it- The man clapped his blood stained hands together and laughed loudly. "Barely…that bitch is lucky I let her off with just a beating. Ami is tending to her wounds now. We can't have her dying on us. She's still of use." he chuckled, licking his lips as he sat down on one of the sofa's and Kenta brought his drink over for him. It was only then that Kosuke noticed the three rouges sitting and having a drink. "And just who the hell are those guys?" he demanded, his dark black eyes narrowing at them.