Soon I had distanced myself from Konoha and made my way to a neighboring village not to far from it.
I need to stock up on new gear and I definitely needed a change of clothes.

Not wanting to waste any time or as little as possible I searched for something that wasn't either uncomfortable or inconvenient.
Pulling out a black and red short kimono I headed to the counter to pay assuming it was the right size and if it wasn't I could always fix it.
After paying for the kimono I headed to a shop specialized in weapons to stock up on my kunais and shurikens, after finishing with that I headed towards a hotel near by to get a room, even though I wanted to spent as little time here as possible I needed to rest, the fatigue from my previous fight with Itachi still present.

After putting away my stuff in a small closet I headed to the bathroom with recently bought supplies and my pajamas.
Steam quickly fogged up the mirror as I let the bathtub fill with hot water, turning it off after it was full.
Dipping in my toe first to check if the water wasn't to hot I let myself slide in relaxing almost instantly after I had.
I closed my eyes for a moment to enjoy the sensation of the warm water relaxing my sore muscles but knew I couldn't spent too much time in the bath soaking.
I still needed a plan for both my targets, I had lost my element of surprise with Itachi since he now knew I was alive.
Orochimaru was a whole different story and I did not know yet how to approach that situation but I knew for certain I could not let him do as he pleased.

The moment my head hit the pillow later that I was out and fell into a restless sleep.
When I woke the next morning I wasn't feeling well rested at all but despite the feeling I rose from the bed to wash up and change.
After breakfast I checked out and gathered my stuff ready to head out to the next village not wanting to waste more time.

Apparently I had forgotten one thing, I had no idea where to search for them, not being a shinobi anymore meant that I was out of the loop.
I had little to no information of their whereabouts and concerning Itachi I had very little information about the organization he had joined.
No way they would just let me go ahead and kill the bastard, there was also little change that when I found him he would be alone, he had a partner after all.
I could try to enter one of the bigger villages to gain information but that wasn't without risk, though it seemed I had little choice.

My afternoon was spent training in a remote area of the forest, I had fooled myself thinking thinking I could beat him the way I was now.
It wasn't like I had wasted time when I was working in the tea shop but I had not trained like I used to, and my training sessions when I was younger had almost always been with Itachi and Shisui which meant little time for rest and ferocious sparring battles.

I was left breathless after I was done and my muscles felt even more sore then they did yesterday.
Lying in the grass staring at the endless leaves which deprived my eyes from seeing the sky I nodded off into a peaceful slumber that did not last long.
Feeling slightly more rested I rose from the ground and dusted myself of and stretched my sore muscles before taking off.

During my previous fight I had noticed the headband of Kisame, the village of the hidden mist would be my first destination and I hoped it would give me a solid lead to finding Itachi but a feeling in my gut told me it would not be that easy.
I could not forget I was dealing with S-ranked criminals and to top it off I didn't know how many of them there were.

Days passed before I reached the village, I was no longer used to traveling such long distances so I felt wrecked when I reached.
I once more needed to find a place to stay, this time for a longer period of time because I wanted to be thorough with gathering as much information as I could.
The constant cover of mist quickly got on my nerves, yes I was aware it was called he village of the hidden mist for a reason but that didn't mean I couldn't get uncomfortable.
With knowledge that the seven ninja swordsman also came from this place it was not surprising I felt on edge, the shinobi that originated from his village were violent more often than not.

It was late when I finally checked into a hotel, having a proper meal before finding a decent looking hotel.
Once more I placed my stuff in the closet and took to he bathroom only taking a quick shower this time.

I braided my hair as I sat down on the bed staring out the window at pretty much nothing but mist.
No matter what I would get some answers here, maybe someone would tip of Kisame that someone was going around asking questions but I figured it would not happen.
I would try to use as little violence as I could and if that would give me answers I could always try a different approach.
Placing an hand over my eyes I smiled, oooh yes I would get my answers one way or another.

Rising early I set out to explore the village, there most likely was a place where all information about the village shinobi's was stored.
It would be like hitting the jackpot if I could find that, I laughed quietly a rush of excitement going trough me how long had it been that I used to do this on almost daily basis.
I looked over my shoulder as I sensed something behind me but shrugged it off when I saw nothing, turning my ahead again I stumbled backwards as I came face to face with a man.

"Can I help you" I asked politely as I cocked my head, his headband a dead giveaway to what he was.
"I don't ever remember seeing you here" He spoke with a sickening fake pleasant tone matching his sickening grin.
"Maybe because I am not from here" I raised my eyebrows if he thought I would be that easy he was sincerely mistaken.

He whistled and more men appeared, coming from several directions.
I sighed, one day I would learn to trust that feeling in my gut and I wouldn't end up in these kind of situations, I thought to myself as I looked at the men slowly creeping closer.
"Well what is it exactly you want" I did not change my tone, I spoke calm and clear o them.
My only response was laughter and once more an eerie feeling came over me.
"Not even one damn day" I cursed under my breath