'I was right.'

That was the thought that flew through her mind alongside so many others, brought to life by the shuffling outside of her hotel room's door.

'That bartender couldn't be trusted.' 'The people here are dangerous.' 'I wasn't being too careful at all.' Her mind was swimming, hands wrapped tightly around the hilts of her blades, body tensed and ready. And then…

It was quiet. Steps sounded out, padding slowly down the hall, muffled laughter coming from what sounded like two people getting quieter and quieter. Minutes passed by in silence.

...nothing? Nothing!? Every sound, every voice, every indication that something was going on throughout the entire night kept resulting in NOTHING. Was she paranoid? No, no way. Ringo was a famous swordswoman and a high ranking kunoichi from Kiri, gone traitor and turned up in a different country. There was no 'too careful' about this. Still, caution being the only thing to think about until the sun rose was maddening. Every time the floor creaked, she was ready to decapitate anyone who dared open her door.

The sun was slow to come up, and Ringo was more than ready to leave. She'd need to sleep sometime but tonight wasn't the night for it, and the more she thought about it, the more it seemed like a bad idea to rest now anyways. If Mist did assume she'd left the village and wasn't simply missing, they'd send hunter nins to catch her and either bring her back, or bring back her head. Right along the coast of a wealthy neighboring country? More than likely to be in the immediate search area. She was possibly a full day's worth of travel ahead of them if that was indeed the case, but it would still be a good idea to move further inland at the first opportunity. As soon as the travel shop the bartender mentioned opened, she would get her supplies and leave.

When the time finally came, light raising over the ocean and signaling the town to begin its daily work, she was more than a little anxious to get out of the inn. Which was an endeavor in and of itself.

Perhaps it was a bit overdoing 'careful', but she didn't want to open her room's door. Fine as she was now, there was shuffling outside a few times in the night, and risking a trap as stupidly obvious as "wait behind door" would be foolish beyond belief. Rather, she cautiously made her way to the entrance, Kiba in hand, and undid the locks, slowly retreating backwards towards the bed. She gently placed her key in the center of the sheets, then moved over to the room's window, forcing it open with a protesting squeak.

She dropped down from the second floor onto the soft grass below, landing with a thud in a low crouch. Looking around, the streets were far from empty, but most of the morning commotion seemed to emanate from the docks. The vast majority of them were probably readying to sail, and paid her no mind while she wandered towards the northern part of town, following the largest road she could see.

Not much time passed until she found the road connecting Hidoku-Wanai to the outside world, and, sure enough, a small shop was placed right along the edge, just before the thick dirt and gravel path met dense forest. A few words were etched above the doorway, likely declaring the store's name.

Immediately upon walking in, a soft chime ringing from a few bells attached to the door, it was clear that everything on display was of good quality. Equipment, heavy travel clothes, ration bars, anything you'd need to get around on foot. And lining up the walls anywhere there wasn't a shelf...maps. Perfect.

'It ain't bad in here.'

As she looked around the walls, figuring which map was of what, a head popped up from behind the counter, and an energetic voice called out to her.

"Oop! Welcome! You're here pretty early! Just opened the doors a few minutes ago!"

Oh. He was...loud.

'How can someone with such a soft voice be so noisy?'

Small, too. He looked even shorter than herself, freckled, with hair curled and bushy as a rabbit's tail. As well, he seemed absolutely overjoyed for no reason whatsoever. Ringo was quickly coming to terms with the fact that everyone in Fire Country was...unique. But those smiles were rapidly becoming extraordinarily disturbing.

"Ah. Yeah."

Her terse response didn't throw the man off at all. Chipper as before, he maneuvered out from behind the counter and skipp-he SKIPPED. The guy skipped over to her, prancing like he was in a field of daisies.

"Welcome to Mono's! Need a thing or two? I got 'em!~"

This man was easily scarier than anyone she'd ever encountered in Mist. What was this? Was this...psychological warfare? She could already feel the beginnings of a migraine form just from looking at the bright aura he exuded, and was filled with a need to avert her eyes. Maybe that was it.

Or maybe this town was utterly insane. There must be something in the water here. Quickly, she found herself regretting drinking two glasses of the stuff at the bar. And then even more so...bathing in it. If that was some kind of indoctrination...

She shivered. That wasn't something she ever wanted to think about.

"Name's Muryō Mono, and welcome to the drifter's paradise! Can I help you with anything?~ Looking for something in particular?"

The ache in her head worsened with each word that left his mouth, and the way he looked at her made it seem like he was eagerly awaiting a smile in return. Maybe she'd already died and gone to hell.

"I need a map. Of Fire Country."

Thankfully, after stating her business, he settled and seemed to take on a more professional attitude.

"Map, huh? I got maps! Looking for the whole of the place? Main roads, provinces?"

The following minutes were a pain filled with questions about what she was looking for and clipped responses of affirmation or corrections from her. The man would take out different maps of the region, and after looking them over herself, she'd roll them up and tuck them under an arm.

She had to admit, as much as she feared this man from the depths of her soul, Mono had a good amount of information. She had four maps showing the roads and village locations of different areas of the Land of Fire, covering essentially every area by the time he finished going through them. He even mentioned areas of interest just in passing, likely trying to make conversation. Because he couldn't just let it be silent for a second. Though, his pointing everything out on the maps was helpful, letting her silently place names to various points of the country. She'd keep that to herself, however.

"So, what are you traveling around for?"

"Mm."

Well, this was as good a time as ever to ask, and he seemed to be knowledgeable about Fire Country. A name as famous as her target's shouldn't be hard. She still couldn't bring herself to look him in his bright and shiny eyes, however, focused instead on some food bars that looked decent. Fruit and nuts, maybe? She grabbed a handful and decided to ask what she came here for.

"I'm looking for Tsunade of the Sannin. Do you know where she might be?"

"Ahhh, Tsunade huh? Now there's a name! And what brings her into the spotlight here?"

His tone had become...cautious. He was watching her intently, like he wouldn't answer if he didn't get a response he approved of, or if he thought she was lying. People probably tried to find others for some nasty reasons all the time, and her foreign clothing likely didn't invoke a picture of innocence.

"Personal. Nothing ill intentioned. I just need her help with something."

It was entirely true, and that seemed enough to placate him after a moment of consideration. Mono hummed in thought, leaning against one of the shop's walls.

"Wellll...I can't say I know where she is right now, but Tsunade has a couple notorious tells to her whereabouts. First off…"

He pushed off the wall with a grunt, bringing his hands up, moving them animatedly as he spoke.

"Never a smaller village. Not enough in any of them to hold her interest. She goes back and forth between most of the bigger places. And the second factor that matters...Gambling!"

Oh. There was something in the bingo books about that, wasn't there? Perhaps Ringo should've read through Tsunade's page again before coming here.

"The bigger the gambling town, the more likely she is to turn up there, and she'll likely have been to it before. Little hint for you, closest gambling spot is Sonzaishinai, riiiight…"

He walked over to one of the maps on the wall, looking it over for a moment before pressing his finger on a marking a little further away from the coast.

"Here!"

Well. Damn. This was far more helpful than she ever could've expected, honestly. People in Hidoku-Wanai gave information and aid out like candy. Ringo looked at the map a little stunned, and actually managed a sharp smirk. Maybe this guy wasn't too bad once he got down to business.

"Huh. Thanks."

"No problem at all!"

He eyed the contents in her hand, still gripping onto the food bars she'd found.

"Ah, if you need supplies, you should probably take some water, too. I have-"

Her smile vanished as her head whirled towards him, and for the first time since deciding the man was some enigmatic evil in human form, she looked him in the eyes, glaring harshly.

"NO."

He stopped mid sentence, clamping his mouth shut with a click and bringing up his hands in a show of surrender. Ringo grumbled, angrily reaching into her pants for her wallet. Modesty be damned, that comment clinched it; she wanted out of here no matter how much this guy knew. She took out a few small bills, not bothering to count the amount, crumpling them in her fist and dropping them on the counter. She didn't want to pay this guy, not at all, and his whole "I am super friendly and harmless" demeanor practically screamed "free stuff" to anyone who wanted to just come in, grab things, and walk out. However, he did give her a lot of good info, more than enough to get started right away, and she didn't want to get in too much trouble with law enforcement in this country.

She stomped towards the door and Mono called after her.

"Ah...ma'am? This uh, this isn't, enough."

"Burn in hell."

She slammed the door shut behind her, heavy clack tearing through the street. Finding herself incredibly thankful the road out of this place was right under her feet already, she started into the forest, soothing her hot temper with the sweet fact that she'd never have to come back here again. She wouldn't have to meet any of those people ever again. With any luck, other places would be more normal, and this town was just a freak accident.

After a few minutes of walking she was surrounded entirely by thick forest vegetation, and looking back, the town was completely behind her and out of sight. She slowed, sighing. With that burst of energy gone, she was...tired. Exhausted even.

What caused that? Her state of mind? She already knew her usual playful and taunting mood had plummeted down into the dirt when she first learned of her illness' severity, but was that why she was constantly tired lately? Was it just the situation wearing on her, or was it the condition itself? It could be that it was sapping her energy more and more now that it was worsening.

...or it could be the lack of sleep.

Or all three. That was entirely possible. Maybe she'd get a bit of her spark back when she could stop feeling her insides being slowly destroyed.

'Heh...spark...'

She chuckled, running her free hand over the handle of one of her swords. At least she was well enough to entertain herself.

Besides! When this plan worked out, then she could start on the good things around here. Strange as the people were so far, the land was prosperous. Secure her health, know that she'd stay safe, then the fun could begin.

...Now that she'd calmed down, she sincerely hoped that Mono guy wouldn't try to get her into legal trouble.

...Or come after her himself. She got the feeling he was a lot more than he let on. Her anxiety and frustration had just boiled over for a moment with that...water comment. She'd likely have to watch her temper a bit more closely from now on. Blowing up at random people who smiled at her wouldn't be good for a stealthy search.

Setting a pace much faster than she'd used when walking to the coastal town, Ringo followed the path on the map. A few munched food bars later, and she'd reached Sonzaishinai before it was even noon. It wasn't the largest place, but it was easy to see why it was notable in her search; the gambling hall was right smack in the middle of the place and seemed to be its main attraction.

As well, it was fairly obvious that people here stared at her. They cleared out of her way, and most would turn if she looked in their direction. Thank Kami they didn't look like they'd scream and wet themselves like someone she'd met, but it was much more of a group reaction. There wasn't a single person here that looked at her kindly. Some clearly had more...malice than others, but they were all wary.

Not that it was a bad thing, necessarily. She was here for information, not to be a crowd pleaser.

'Though…' Ringo noted, 'if there are ninja stationed in this town, it could lead to some problems.'

She'd likely be questioned, and there weren't any answers safe to give. She betrayed Mist and was smuggled here? Leaf ninja wouldn't just drop that, nor would they accept "I'm trying to find Tsunade of the Sannin because I want to." Her affairs from now on would have to be quieter. She should probably get a new outfit too, but...Eh. She liked this getup, and she was more than skilled enough to skulk around a bit.

As it turned out, nobody here was willing to let anything slip without asking for something in return for it. It was hard to believe that this place was so close to Hidoku-Wanai with how stingy everyone was, but on some level this was comforting. She was used to dealing with a lack of cooperation. She couldn't threaten anyone, not if she wanted to remain discreet, so in the end she bribed one of the casino's owners with money from his own wallet. It was easy to take and there wasn't much guilt in pocketing the rest.

The information wasn't anything too exciting; Tsunade hadn't been by here in nearly a year. It did, however, at least reveal a trail. After coming here, she'd apparently made a sharp turn to the north of the country, towards one of the largest villages in the province that wasn't Konoha itself. That was...a bit of a problem. She couldn't get too close to the Hidden Village. However many Leaf ninja were around other regions of the Land of Fire, around Konoha the amount would multiply. There's no way she could get in the area undetected, let alone move past it to her next destination.

Luckily, with a bit more asking and a few more stolen bills passed around, Ringo was able to mark down the major gambling towns of the country. Marking the map with the Sannin's last appearance in the area and drawing out the path she took, it was easy enough to figure out where she'd probably gone afterwards. Everyone had been quite sure that the medic never stayed in one place long, so with almost a year of slow going travel between them, it was fairly safe to assume she was gone from the area by now. Ringo could catch her path again in a spot not quite as near the Leaf Village and carry on from there, further along the trail than could be done simply by following each step.

When the time to leave Sonzaishinai had come, she had quite the haul of information under her sash. It was...almost shocking how clear and concise the info they had on Tsunade was, and it wasn't until she'd heard the woman's nickname that she figured out why they bothered to keep her path and every encounter on record.

'The Legendary Sucker.'

She had assumed that a woman as legendary as the Sannin would be good at whatever hobby she picked up. That had been oh so wrong. Tsunade, legendary Konoha medical specialist and last of the Senju, was terrible. Every stop she made, fortunes were made in the pockets of the house, and she collected debts like Amegakure collected rainwater. The gambling areas kept each other well aware of her movements.

A smile slowly crept onto Ringo's face as she passed beneath Sonzaishinai's village gates. Having gotten all the information she could from this place, it was time to start the final part of her search. Find the damn woman. She had a trail to follow, now she just had to play catch up. A bit more effort, and she'd be in Tsunade's care in no time.

The move towards the northwest of Fire Country was going fairly quickly, though not as fast as Ringo may have liked. As much as she hated to recognize it, she'd become slower than she was not so long ago when she'd first left Kiri, and that fact shook her no matter how little she attempted to dwell on it.

It was absolute, undeniable proof that she was deteriorating, and that her illness truly was as bad as she'd been told. Pain, she could handle; she was used to pain. It was a part of her process, how she learned and improved, how she lived. She could work through pain. But now, this was affecting her skills, forcing her to acknowledge the truth of the situation.

She was being eaten away at.

It was all of her fears in a form she couldn't disregard; the way she tired easier, how little time it took for her breathing to become ragged, how she'd sometimes be forced to stop traveling entirely from the wrenching that grabbed at her guts like a vice grip until her body couldn't even function before the bout of feeling passed. It was as if the illness was punishing her for ignoring it so long, now showing itself in an unmissable display of spite, jumping in front of her face at every turn as if to say "notice me now?"

It was infuriating.

Still, despite her health, Ringo was still an S rank shinobi. She was in no danger of something as silly as a bandit raid, or poisoning herself with the local fauna, however unfamiliar the territory around her was. So the very idea that she could fail her mission simply because she expired, just withered away on the side of a road, it was- it was maddening.

Her teeth clenched, sandals clacking loud against the dirt path beneath her. The sun had set some time ago, but she'd chosen to forego a night of sleep in favor of continued, albeit slowed, travel to make up for the time lost from her lowered pace.

She didn't delude herself with the idea that maybe she'd simply find Tsunade the moment she reached the northwestern borders of the country. Once she picked back up the trail the Sannin will have left in a wake of drinking and gambling debts, she'd still have more distance to cover, and Kami knows how much that could actually be.

So she had to keep moving. Through the pain, through the exhaustion, through the unusual heat and wooziness, and especially through the sudden dizziness that was making everything blur and spin and- oh, shit.

Her steps slowed quickly to a stop, though the world kept moving around her in a disorienting display of fuzziness. Trees melted together into an undefinable mess for more reason that just the darkness of night, even the ground beneath her feet refusing to still, spinning and resetting itself over and over again as she tried to maintain her balance.

This was new. Alongside the cloudiness in her head came a wave of fatigue, a sudden weariness that slowly drowned out her senses until there was nothing left but a bizarre spinning. And then, all at once, it began to hurt. Her head was gripped hard by an ache that refused to let go, piercing through her skull like a knife.

Some thirty yards away was a small roadside inn, one of many that dotted civilian pathways around the country. The odds of someone being awake at this ungodly hour were slim, but all she needed was a place to rest until this passed.

Somewhere, deep in the back of her mind, there was a festering fear that maybe this wouldn't pass. The pain from her disease had never spread far from her center, and certainly never to her head.

Those thoughts were promptly shoved aside, laid to rest behind the sight of the inn she trudged towards. It only took two tries to properly grab the handle of the worn wooden door to the building, stumbling in with heavy thunks against the floorboards, bracing herself with a hand on the front counter.

She was inside. Just a minute, that was all she needed. Just a minute to catch her breath, to-

Suddenly, the room was awash with light; bright and terrible disorienting light alongside a few heavy thumps by the stairway on the side of the room, a low pitched feminine voice calling out a wary "Hello...? Is someone here?"

A woman trudged cautiously down the last stair, peeking around the corner to meet Ringo's eyes, squinted in focus as sweat dripped down her forehead. The woman was incredibly plain, probably around forty or so, and obviously civilian by way of clothing and the clear surprise in her expression. For a brief moment, Ringo thought she might panic and flee, but-...well, she did begin panicking, throwing off all sense of caution to run over to her side, asking question after question.

"Are you alright!? Are you injured!? Oh, oh, dear, just a moment I'll, I'll get my son, um-"

Either Ringo was too slow to wave her off, or she was deliberately ignoring every feeble attempt of hers to do so, possibly due to her exhausted sputtering as she tried to piece together a string of coherent words as everything jumbled together in her head. Nevertheless, the woman ran to the stairs and shouted up, "DOKKU!", quickly returning to Ringo's side.

She was likely talking more, asking more questions about her condition, but her voice was quickly being drowned out by a ringing that filled Ringo's ears. Every thought she had was becoming less and less aware, and her stomach swirled as if she was either about to die or throw up. Her knees buckled, sinking her close to the ground, head resting in her arms against the counter she'd been using to stand.

Slowly, so very slowly, everything began to recede. The ringing quieted, and her vision slowly returned with her breathing, deep and methodical.

As well, she could hear the alarmed concern from the middle aged mother crouched beside her, shouting something to her son, who'd plodded- in just his boxers, she might add- down the stairs to see what was going on.

"-ku, yes, call a doctor please, I don't know what- I-"

The moment she heard the word doctor, Ringo decided it was time to put a stop to their impromptu care.

Once she was sure the world had properly settled back into place around her, she tried to stand with a grunt, slowly pushing herself up using the counter and-

"Oh, no no no, whoa, dear, please no, it's- are you-"

"Fine- I'm, I'm alright."

The pursed lips the woman, likely the innkeeper, was giving her was a clear indication that she didn't believe her for a second. Taking a deep breath to compose herself now that she was standing, Ringo turned to face her properly.

"Ma'am. Could I, uh- could I trouble you for a room? I can uh, I can pay, I-"

Immediately, the woman's concern returned, somehow even stronger than before.

"Dear, are you- are you sure? We can get a doctor if- if you-"

Ringo waved an arm tiredly in front of her, weakly explaining, "No, I'm fine. I just- need proper rest. I apologize for troubling you like this."

The woman was placated well enough, though she absolutely insisted on helping Ringo to a room, calling for her son to assist as well. The boy, likely still a young teenager- and STILL in just his boxers, moved towards Ringo to take one of her arms. The moment he was beside her, reaching for her, she took a step back, fixing him with a scrutinizing look that traveled down and back up to meet his eyes. Slowly, very very slowly, he came to the realization.

"...Ah! AH! I-i'm sorry, I- uh- um-"

Ringo shook her head, taking a few steps forward with the innkeeper's help, only mildly shaky now as the worst of the feeling passed.

The morning was substantially better than the night, Ringo decided. All of the cloudiness and freaky headaches were gone, peace of mind being delivered with the morning light. In fact, she felt...not terrible. Mostly. Which, honestly, was an accomplishment all considering. The only thing was a scratching in her throat and chest, which was decidedly not nearly as bad a state as she'd been in the night before.

She was rested. However frightening that experience had been, she was alright now. Ringo roused from the bed, shaking herself awake, rubbing a hand against her jaw to wipe off the drool on her chin. Idly, she brushed her hand against her clothing to see the-...the red drool.

Her head whipped back to look at the sheets she'd rested on to see dark, dried specks of red splattered across the blankets and pillow, scattered and staining.

Blood. She was coughing up blood now. Great! GREAT! A fantastic sign!

And once the inn's matriarch caught sight of this, she'd NEVER let it go without calling a doctor, and-

Ringo couldn't deal with this. She'd hoped to stay for a meal, but the sight of her blood staining the bed she laid in brought on the overwhelming need to start moving once again.

Her wallet dropped onto the bed; there was enough left in it to pay for her costs and damages, and she moved towards the rooms window, preparing for the increasingly familiar method of exit from Fire Country inns. With a pained grunt, she dropped onto the grass from her second floor room, ready to continue her search. She was running out of time. There wasn't enough to waste resting here.

It took about another week to reach the village she was moving towards, nestled cozily against the northwestern border, but she was happy to find that the trail she was following was much warmer than her previous stop. She'd managed to gather a great deal more information about the Sannin; she'd known already that she traveled with a companion, but there was a stunning lack of clear detail about who or why. Now, she'd learned that the companion was an apprentice, a young woman apparently related to her in some way. And the most important thing she'd learned...

Tsunade was there about two and a half months ago, and left due south.

She didn't even bother spending another minute at the place; the anticipation was getting her far too excited to sit still no matter how much her body begged for rest. This was working. She was well on her way to finding the one woman in the world who could help her. She would be ok if she just kept moving.

Unfortunately, she could no longer risk another maneuver like her first shortcut across the country or it would be possible to overshoot and lose the trail completely. For now, it was simply following from village to village and hoping her pace would be fast enough to reach her target soon. Now that she was closer, she had to move as fast as possible. If Tsunade cut back east for whatever reason, she'd once again be in the vicinity of the Hidden Leaf Village. It was at least comforting that the woman herself seemed to be avoiding traveling too close to Konoha, but she could still pass near it without problem. Ringo could not. If she drew back too close to the Hidden Village, it would leave her with only guesswork on where to go next.

That encouragement brought her to push herself all the harder.

Over the next month of travel, village hopping along the country's western borders, the cough that had plagued her in her earlier years had slowly returned, and this time it stuck, sometimes accompanied with flecks of blood. Whereas her chest had previously been only an occasional source of pain, her lungs had begun to feel scratched and strained almost constantly. The pace she'd managed to hold was forced to slow more at every stop, and it was worrying her. If she came all this way and couldn't catch Tsunade now...

She pushed on closer to the southern coast.

Slowly but surely, her quarry was nearing, and there wasn't any time to waste.

Tanzaku Town

(Tsunade)

'One last pull...I've got a good feeling about this one…'

The slot machine's handle was slick with sweat, and pulled down easily in a practiced motion; one that had been performed thousands of times until it attained a perfected ease. The slots whirled and blurred as the all too familiar tune of the game encompassed her.

*bing!*

7 read clearly in the first slot. This was it.

*bing!*

Two 7's! Tsunade glared at the final space, willing it to stop.

*bin-SMASH*

Before the cherry could even finish taking its space in the third slot, the machine was shattered, impacted directly in the center by the Sannin's fist, broken bits of metal flying around her as a wrenching crunch consumed the casino. Shizune shrieked behind her.

'This machine is rigged.'

She was seething. How long had she been here!? All this time, all of those pulls, and she gained absolutely nothing. It HAD to be rigged.

A few seconds passed in stillness while the utter destruction of her slot machine quieted, scraps and pieces of it still falling to the floor in a flurry of clinks and bangs. Once the atmosphere calmed into silence, she turned with a violent huff and stormed towards the door.

"L-lady Tsunade!"

She didn't spare Shizune a glance, stomping past her as the girl tried to get her to stop. She looked utterly helpless, and the Casino's owner coughed beside her, letting her apprentice know she wouldn't be escaping without establishing some monetary recompense. Add the debt to the pile. Shizune would have to catch up back at the hotel.

Nobody dared stand in the way of Tsunade's march, quickly moving back to the room she'd gotten just outside of the city's walls. The roads were illuminated by streetlights, and it was quiet save the hum from the casino and the harsh cracks of her sandals against the ground.

Tanzaku Town was a bust. This town brought on the worst luck she'd had in ages! She'd stayed here for so long, figuring that something good must be just around the corner with how utterly terrible every try had been, but each morning brought nothing but more failure.

'This town is like a host of bad luck.'

Maybe she'd come back here in a few years, but for now it was far past time to get the hell out. Nothing good ever seemed to happen here.

When she'd finally reached the hotel, she went straight to her room and threw her haori to the floor, laying back on the bed and sighing as a still quiet fell over her.

"...This place sucks."

It was a good half hour of blissful silence until Shizune finally burst into the room, still frantic.

"Lady Tsunade! You can't- you can't do things like that!"

She was about to get lectured. Fantastic. She rolled onto her side, back to her student.

"Ugh. Be quiet…"

"Wh-No! No I will not be quiet!"

Uuuugh. Now she was angry. The girl was out of Tsunade's view, but it wasn't hard at all to picture her right now. She'd put down Tonton, would curl in on herself angrily, and exclaim "You need to listen to me here!" with her hands balled into fists at her sides.

*tap*

"Oink..."

"You need to listen to me here!"

Easy.

"I'd rather not…"

She could hear Shizune practically shake in her displeasure, but instead of more yelling she sighed, breathing a few slow and deep breaths. She was going for the sentimental route this time.

It was going to be a long night, huh? Why couldn't she just be allowed to sleep...?

(Ringo)

More than two full months had passed since Ringo first set foot in the Land of Fire, and she was getting desperate for clear progress. She figured when she left Kiri that there was at least a year left in her, but when the doctor in Mist told her it would get worse quickly, he meant it.

Currently, she was lying on a bed in another roadside inn. She'd needed to rest just a bit, no matter how much she wanted to continue. The past two weeks had been astoundingly terrible on her health.

Breathing had become a painful experience at all times, and her chest felt raw with every cough. Simply taking in air was a chore now, and it was one that required constant attention. Any exertion at all and her breaths would become heavy and labored, leaving her panting.

The worry that filled her was beginning to boil over. She'd remained about a week behind Tsunade for the past three stops. That was almost the worst possible scenario, simply being unable to move fast enough, however close she came. She couldn't...if she couldn't reach her soon, she would die. Until now she'd been able to delude herself with the escape the Sannin offered; she'd be fine because there was a way out. She wouldn't fail when there was a clear way to get through it.

Now...now she was faced with the very real possibility that she might not find her in time, and she was angry. Furious that she was letting herself come this far just to drop dead. This whole thing...

It was terrifying.

She stared at the wooden ceiling above her bed, trying to quell her coughing fit. Once she was strong enough to move again, she'd leave immediately.

Every cough wracked her body, and combined with the burning sensations now constantly accompanying her in her abdomen. It was a disturbingly harsh experience. And this one...this seemed the worst yet.

She covered her mouth with her hands, letting the ordeal run its course until something wet smacked against her palm. She lifted them weakly, blinking away the blur in her vision.

'Blood.'

More blood. This was becoming a common symptom, and certainly not a good sign.

A shot of anger brought on by the sight of her blood tensed her body, which quickly brought on more coughs. After the brief rage left her, she once again felt...empty. She couldn't...she couldn't actually die here, could she?

"...hell no."

She wouldn't let that happen.

Pushing herself up with a pained grunt, bloody hand propping against the bedsheets, Ringo forced herself to stand. She was far too afraid of death to just lay down and let this happen.

Shuffling her way out of the inn and back onto the road, she began on what could be the final stretch of her search. The road to Tanzaku Town was long, but she could do it, she was sure. She could probably even reach it before morning if she pushed her luck a bit. Besides, if Ringo didn't go all out now, it would all be for nothing.

Tsunade was close. If she pushed herself as hard as possible now to catch up, she could reach her. Then it wouldn't matter how much trouble she put herself in; she would have help.

It was a gamble.

This was her final gambit, putting up her life as the bet.

Inn outside Tanzaku Town

(Tsunade)

Tsunade woke suddenly, before the sun had even risen. She'd barely had five hours of rest after Shizune finally stopped nagging her, but now…

Something felt wrong.

She had a...feeling. A bad feeling? Good feeling? It was hard to tell, but it sure as hell wasn't normal. That was concerning.

Years of experience of being a ninja as well as a gambler had taught her that her instincts were often right, and at the moment her instincts were screaming that something was about to happen.

She stood quickly, throwing on her coat and briskly moving to the door, shaking Shizune on her way. The girl looked up groggily, Tonton cuddled against her stomach.

"Whhh...Lady Tsunade...?"

"We're leaving."

Her student's eyes opened fully as she sat up and shook herself awake, taken off guard by the sudden declaration.

"What? Wait, what-what time is it?"

She glanced between Tsunade and the window, scrambling to stand as her teacher marched into the hall and towards the staircase.

"L-lady Tsunade, wait! Did something happen!?"

She didn't answer. Something wouldn't happen, not if she could help it. And if something did, she'd beat the hell out of it until it stopped happening.

But if it was something else...something like a debt collector, or...

Well then she'd have to move fast.

That was a headache she did not want to deal with right now.

(Ringo)

Tanzaku Town was surprisingly small for all the attention it attracted, something that Ringo found herself hugely thankful for as she shuffled through it. Information was easy to gather because there was only a few places to ask, and she didn't have to walk very far for any of it.

And information...

She was right to come here as quickly as possible. For whatever reason, Tsunade had stayed here for quite a long time, and many claimed she'd been in the casino just last night. If she was still here, and if she could find the place she was staying...

She went from hotel to hotel asking for the woman, but she hadn't stayed at any of the places closest to the gambling hall. Asking was getting annoying; every time she stopped to talk to anybody they would ask if she was ok and try to sit her down.

It must have been horrifically obvious how bad a shape she was in. The exertion from this last leg of the search weighed on her back like a mountain. She was sweating terribly, and her breathing was shallow and erratic. A few people even mentioned she looked pale, so there was yet another thing to worry about.

Still, she just had to push through for one last night...just this last night and she'd be ok.

She'd checked the entire town, and almost doubled back thinking she'd missed something when someone had informed her there was a small hotel on one of the larger roads leading to Tanzaku.

When she finally reached the place, she felt the very real risk of collapsing at any moment, her hand clutching her chest, trying to push down the static stings that coursed through it. Rather than fully enter, she bashed the door open with her shoulder and leaned against the doorway, locking eyes with a girl behind the check in counter.

"You!"

The girl 'eep!'d, looking nervous.

"U-uh, yes ma'am? C-can I help y-"

"Is Tsunade here?"

She looked from side to side, as if she wasn't sure she could answer that.

"Um, I-"

Kami, there wasn't TIME for this!

"Tsunade of the Sannin, is she staying here!?"

"S-she was, yes! She um, she just left not even ten minutes ago..."

Ringo's eyes widened. Ten minutes. Tsunade was less than ten minutes away.

"She was moving down the main road, away from town...I think she-"

Ringo bolted from the doorway. Finally. Finally. This road went straight for miles. She would catch her here! Everything began to fade. The burning, the exhaustion, every weary ache and pain left her mind as adrenaline poured into her tired muscles, spurring her forward faster than she'd been able to run in weeks.

Her swords padded against her side as she ran, and a toothy smile creeped onto her face. She was giddy! She would be free from this damn disease, she would be able to live out her life, to find what she wanted to live for and take it too!

'I'm going to be ok!'

She almost felt like crying. She nearly felt free from everything that ailed her already!

Her sandals were loud against the path, but she couldn't bring herself to care for subtlety. Not now.

Barely two minutes of running had gone by when she saw something in the distance take shape as she neared it. Two figures.

She ran faster and failed to hold in a barking laugh as they came into proper view. A green coat. Blonde hair. A girl stood next to her in black.

Ringo gathered as much energy as she could, and didn't even try to stop herself from shouting,

"HEEEY!"

Her voice echoed across the stretch of road, and the green coated woman stopped dead in her tracks. The younger girl who could only be her assistant turned around completely, looking at her. A few seconds passed while Ringo continued towards them, and the taller woman looked back over her shoulder.

Ringo's smile widened, her excitement clear in her eyes.

"Finally…" she whispered in a breath as gravelly as the road she stood on.

There was no longer any doubt.

She'd found them.

AN: Whoaaaa happy decemmmmberrrrrr! Welcome to the biggest chapter in this fic to date, at about 7.5k words of story, and breaking the 30k mark for the fic's total!
Definitely glad I switched to every other week updates, because there's no way I could do this weekly. That said, there's a lot of moments I really enjoyed in this one, and I'm feeling good about the progression of it. Next chapter is a, uh. Well. It's certainly a big big important one. Had to do a lot of research for it.

By the way, did y'all know Tsunade is super fun to write? Because she is. No matter what scene, no matter what fic, writing her is always an absolute joy.

I'll see you all in two weeks! Have a good one, and I'm sending out good vibes to each and every one of ya.

xxx

hanami cascade - Aw shoosh, thanks! That all means a whole bunch to me! I think that I'm doing a character justice is the best compliment I can receive. :D I'll be sure to update whenever I can. Glad you're enjoying the story, and I hope you can stick around for more!

Burkinator - Whether or not she'd been out of Mist before was actually a pretty big point of contention when I was writing! In the end, I thought it would just be a better story if she'd been kept in Mist till that point, but it was definitely close as to whether or not that would be the case. Plausible enough considering the state of Kiri and its canon policies, and I felt like it added enough to the character to be the way to go. It's something that'll definitely be touched on more in the future. Thanks for reading, I'm glad you could find enjoyment in this story! And, as for whether or not there'll be anymore gritty stuff, I can guarantee there will be. Not an every chapter thing, but it'll definitely be used to the best of my ability.

IronIolite - Can I say your enthusiasm made my week? Cause it did. You single handedly made me twice as excited for this update, so thank you a ton and a half! And high five for shared seven swordsmen favorites! Hope you can stick around, cause there's lots more to come!