[KAKASHI]
For once in his life Kakashi was on time. 11pm, on the dot. He was waiting, hiding behind a tree with his group of shinobis. Obviously he had his doubts, perhaps she had sold them out and they would be ambushed but it didn't seem like it. 11:20pm. No one was there.
The cold air sent chills down his spine and the suspense was undeniable. He had told his team about the girl and while they met with the family and had finished their very elaborate (and delicious) feast with the overwhelmingly welcoming Kazuki and Harumi they had not seen her anywhere. His mind went back to the dinner and the girl. The Morimoto family were famous for their beautiful ruby like eyes, all of them had black hair. Makoto, the girl he met this afternoon had the very same eyes but her hair wasn't black. Something was strange about her... something...
"Sorry I'm late. I fell asleep."
He snapped his head towards the sound of her voice, she made Naruto jump. Literally. She was standing there in the same clothes as she wore in the afternoon with her arms across her chest. Letting out a yawn he saw her eyes staring at each one of the shinobis.
"O-Oi! You can't just appear out of thin air like that!" The blond hissed, obviously annoyed that he didn't sense her first.
"So you are the ninjas Konoha sent? Hm, I thought you would be more cautious…" She muttered, rolling her eyes.
"Well I'm glad you didn't sell us out." Shikamaru retorted, at least that was one thing he could cross out from his list of 'bad scenarios'.
"Obviously not. You're going to help me. Now, follow me and be quiet. Since you've arrived, they ordered more guards to patrol."
"Where are we going?" Sasuke asked, raising his eyebrows.
The girl stared at him, slightly squinting her eyes as she observed him. The Uchiha boy squirmed under her eyes and glared back at her, "W-What?"
"Nothing. We'll go to the basement. No one will be there today." She ordered.
Silently, they made their way through the house with the girl leading the way. Kakashi wondered how anyone could not get lost, the hallways looked similar and it was as if it was designed to be a maze. But the teenage girl walked down the halls, her footsteps silent and finally they all piled down into the basement.
It was a bunch of rooms with metal doors that were locked, the damp air caused rust to form but it still looked sturdy. Ignoring the other rooms the girl continued walking until they reached the end of the hall and she opened the door to reveal a room the size of a closet.
There was nothing in the room but a small bed where he guessed she slept. There was a single light build hanging from the ceiling. In the corner was a wooden bookshelf with a few sets of patched up clothes neatly folded and a few books that were aged yellow.
"It isn't much but no one comes here so we can have a chat."
After brief introduction Shikamaru got to the point, "We're here to collect information about possible drug trafficking and underground battle ring. Tell us what you know about it."
Makoto paused. She was sitting in the corner of her bed with a pillow on her lap, "First we establish our deal, porcupine."
"P-Porcupine?"
"Yeah, your serious porcupine," She said, pointing Shikamaru, "your brooding porcupine and your blond porcupine. She said, pointing at Sasuke and Naruto before shrugging, "I can't remember all your names. You know brooding porcupine, keep scrunching up your face your eyebrows are going to knit together."
Kakashi stifled a laugh, Sasuke was not impressed. He scoffed at his nickname and glared at Kakashi when he heard his stifled laugh. The white haired wondered what nickname she had given him. He didn't ask.
"What do you want out of your deal?" Sakura asked.
Makoto lifted her hand and pulled back the sleeves of her yukata, "I want out of these. You get me out of these and I'll tell you everything about this damn family."
The shinobis looked at her, shocked. They had not noticed the bands around her wrists before. The brown haired girl lifted the bottom of her yukata and there were two more around her ankles and she pulled down the collar of the turtle neck she wore to reveal another one. Kakashi noticed that there were symbols engraved on the leather bands but once everyone saw them she pulled up the collar of her undershirt.
"W-What are-" Hinata began to ask but Makoto interrupted her.
"Chakra restraints. I've had them on since I was 10, that's why you couldn't sense me when I appeared behind blondie," She said, glancing at Naruto, "They only take one or two off when they want me to fight."
"Fight?" Kakashi asked.
"The reports of the drug trafficking and underground gambling battle ring? They're all true. Who do you think fights their battles? I do. Everyone here knows it, even the civilians but they don't say anything about it. The illegal business is what gives everyone the cushy lifestyle and if you disobey or runaway…" she trailed off.
"W-What happens?" Shino asked.
"You either disappear or they publicly execute you. That podium, you must have seen it when you walked in, the one in the middle of the town with all the flowers? That's the one. First they stone you, then they either burn you alive, chop off your head, or hang you... depends on what the public decide. The heads of the family have a flair for the dramatic." She stated, rolling her eyes.
This was insane. Kakashi had no idea that this was going on, the more she talked the crazier it seemed. There was no way that this could have happened but with all the wars and battles he could understand why it got swept under the rug. Would they be able to gather information and get out safely? What would the Hokage do with this information? The Mikazuki-Morimoto aren't the only ones involved but the entire town!
"How many?" Sakura begun, "How many battles have you fought in? What happens to the losers and where is it held?"
"You can't access it. They require all guests to submit a bit of blood. Only guards and the head family don't need to submit blood. You saw all those metal doors? That's the way in for fighters. There's another way into the basement to let fighters in but even I don't know where it is. They are always accompanied by one of the guards with the Mikazuki or Morimoto blood in them. To answer your other question... I don't know, I've maybe fought a hundred? 2 hundred? I lose track but this is the kind of battle ring where there are no rules." She said, resting her head on her hands, "It's kill or be killed. Only the winner walks."
The room was silent. Kakashi was overwhelmed with the information and so everyone else. He could feel the tension in the air, the only person who was calm was the girl sitting on front of him. How many people had she killed? She said she lost track but he knew that the number would be immeasurable. Makoto was only 14 years old, could she really be that strong?
"What about the drug trafficking?"
"I'll tell you about that another time." She said, getting off her bed and opening her door, "I think that's enough information for now."
"W-What? We need to know everything, we made a deal!" Kiba exclaimed.
"I already gave you information. You've yet to complete your part of the bargain."
"Fine, how do we get you out of those… things?" Kiba sighed, pointing at her wrists.
"You've probably met the head of the family? Morimoto Kazuki and his wife? Mikazuki Harumi," She asked and they nodded. They had dinner with the couple, "Get me his blood and undo the seal. I'm sure one of you higher ranks can do it."
"Why do you need his blood?" Kakashi asked curiously.
"Hm… let's just say he used it to bind these restraints together. I'll need it to undo them, you seem like an intelligent shinobi, you can unseal it right?" She asked.
Kakashi gestured for her to come towards him and she complied. Looking at the engraved seals on the bands they were familiar and he recognised them immediately and he knew how to get rid of them. Getting the blood from the head of the family who was always protected 24/7 was going to prove to be very difficult. If he was suspicious, he could have them arrested.
"I'll be able to undo them."
"Good. When you get the blood, get rid of the band around my neck first. That's the most dangerous one. That bastard put some poison in there and if he get suspicious, he'll activate it and I'll die. If I die, you won't get your information so do it discreetly. Tomorrow would be ideal."
"Why tomorrow?"
"The heads of the house are usually more relaxed when they're going to get money. There's a big fight and trade tomorrow, probably will rake in a few millions."
"T-Tomorrow?!" Naruto gasped.
Kakashi looked at the girl, worried. She had told him that she had won all her battles but he was still concerned, plus, she said it would be a big fight. The mission was only to get information but it was harder and harder not to get physically involved. The teen gestured for the group to leave again, crossing her arms against her chest.
"Now, go. I want to get some sleep. You better get the job done, and once these are off we'll have another chat. Trust me, you've only just scratched the surface and if or when you find out the truth… You'll wish you never dug for it in the first place."
A/N: Yup, new chapter. 3 chapters in 3 days?! I'm on a roll! hahaha, I hope you liked it :) Kakashi finds out more information and will they do anything about the upcoming battle tomorrow? I hope readers enjoy it (if there is any) but I like writing this story so yeah. Please reviewww, I'm sure everyone on can agree that they love reviews so leave one behind when you finish reading.
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a scribble with fangs: thanks for reviewing again! I think you're the only one hahaha. I'm glad you like the story and will be sticking around, I really appreciate it!