Scarlet Justice - ep. 92
"Divisible"
[Crimson, Part 1]
It's another cold winter day.
Inside of the Hyuuga compound, Hina and I go through several of her kata together, working up a sweat in one of the many training areas. The flowing movements and focus on aesthetic help greatly with chakra flow and chakra control, as well as physical flexibility. It definitely came in handy on the last major mission, against Fubuki. I have to wonder how many more people like her are out there...or really, how many people like me exist in the wild. Those with untapped potential...
Hina slowly walks around and catches her breath as we finish. She runs a towel over her face and I do the same while walking beside her.
"Thank you for doing this with me," she says.
"All you have to is ask. I'll do whatever I can to be there for you when you call, Hina."
"I'm glad to hear that. I always am. Ah...today was intense, though. I might be getting carried away because of you, you know."
"As long as you get carried away properly. Just picture yourself in a few years, Hina. A healthy, voluptuous beauty."
"I wonder about the voluptuous part."
"Every night, I pray for you to blossom into one of the Leaf's finest beauties. Alongside me, of course."
"You don't do that." She blinks. "Do you?"
I put my hands on my hips. "Surely you don't take me for a liar?"
"You shouldn't petition heaven for such silly things," she says with a smile. "But thank you. I hope that I can meet your expectations, and mine. I wonder...would he notice, though?"
"Probably not."
"You're right." She sighs. "But I remember what you told me on that day, when we first met at the Academy. I'll fight on, no matter what. Eventually, I'll have to get through to him."
"That's the spirit."
"Well, if it's all the same to you...I think I would like a shower and then some rest. We don't have any missions scheduled, but anything can happen."
"Yes, that's right. I'll leave you to it, then."
"You shouldn't go home all sticky, you know. Please use one of the guest showers before you leave, and take a set of clothes with you."
"I'll do that. Wouldn't be good to ruin my new jacket so soon," I say with a light laugh.
"Good. Will you have time for a chat later?" she asks.
"I should. I won't be busy with anything today. You'll get a call from me later."
"Alright. Stay warm on your way back, Lili." We trade air kisses before she leaves. I find my way to one of the guest rooms and the shower nearby, washing away the dirt and sweat from earlier. There is indeed a plain white robe ready for use on one of the shelves, and I throw it on after folding up my own clothing properly. I put on my jacket over top of my clothing and venture out into the cold air of the village, heading home along the rooftops quickly.
"Hm...I should take a proper bath once I get inside. It would be very lovely in this sort of weather."
My eyes spot something strange as I near my home. Someone in the vicinity, just leaving the steps. There's an object attached to the front door...an envelope, pierced by a curved knife. Whoever it is has jumped onto the rooftops and is making their way out of sight. But they won't run from me. I dump my clothing in front of the door and take off after the messenger, ignoring the biting cold as I close distance in an instant. By the time they turn their head to check on their surroundings, it's too late.
"Mine."
I stretch my left hand forward and several snakes shoot out from my sleeve, biting into the person just ahead and binding them in a coiling, pulsing mass. We land on the nearest roof and I look at my catch with disdain.
"If this was part of some prank, you've made an extremely poor choice," I say with malice. "You're coming with me."
"No, wait...I can explain-"
"You will explain. I will make sure of it, boy." I put his struggling form over my shoulder and make for home once more. Irritating little bastard...making me run around with clothing this thin, and in this weather. He's done a fine job of pissing me off if that was indeed his goal. But I have a feeling this is just the start of it.
I drop him in front of the door without ceremony and fish my key from my jacket pocket. Opening the door, I remove the knife and envelope attached to the front of it, then pick up my clothing and toss the items into my room.
"Gods, it's cold right now...I can't believe this nonsense."
"I-"
"Shut the fuck up," I say while kicking the idiot in the back. I then pick him up by the neck and toss him to the floor inside, closing the door afterwards. "Lie there like the useless fuck you are. I'm going to put on warm clothing."
He groans as I head into my room, taking off the robes and putting on my warm pyjama bottoms along with a sweater. I feel better immediately. Some tea would be nice, but...I have urgent business to take care of. I walk back into the common area and turn the boy over with my foot. I just as easily use my toes to pull away the face covering he was using. This really is just a boy. Young, and obviously foolish. Inexperienced...but knowledgeable enough to know not to squirm too much in my presence.
"You're...just a kid?" he squeaks out.
I press my foot into his neck and he panics.
"Agh...I didn't...mean that..."
"I told you to shut the fuck up. You can cooperate, or I can crush your windpipe right here and now. Do you understand me?" I say evenly.
He nods and I lift my foot from his neck. I take the knife and envelope into one hand and pull a chair from the kitchen table with the other, setting it down next to him before I take a seat. I cross my legs and twirl the knife in one hand, letting the room settle into silence for a while.
"I am going to ask you several questions. If I desire a yes or no answer, I will end my question with the words yes or no," I say to him in a calm voice. "For all other questions, I want you to answer with as much detail and accuracy as possible. Please do not lie to me. I will find out, I promise you. I can feel your heartbeat through your chest, against the floor. I can hear your breathing. I can see the way your eyes move back and forth. If you lie to me, I will kill you. Do you understand, yes or no?"
"Yes, ma'am," he answers in a small voice.
"Good boy. I am simply upset right now, and that is why you are in your current state. If you do as I tell you, I will become calmer...and soon enough, you will be gently sent off into the world once more. You would like that, wouldn't you? Go ahead and answer."
"Yes. Yes, ma'am."
"That's a good boy. You're doing well." I stop spinning the knife around and examine it in my hands. "Now...here is a question for you. Why did you attach this letter, with this knife, to my front door?"
"I-I was ordered to by someone, ma'am...a man. He was a...a giant, he gave me no name..."
"I see. How long ago was this?"
"One day ago, ma'am."
"Yesterday...alright. What else can you tell me about this transaction?"
"The giant...he promised me one hundred thousand ryo when I reported back..."
"One hundred thousand. A rather princely sum for a simple delivery. I have my suspicions that he never meant to pay you that amount."
"W-what...? Why would...?"
"You really are a naive little boy. Upon completion of your task, you would likely be killed. I assume this person did not reveal their face to you in full, and made all of their subsequent communications through a broker or someone similar?"
"Y-yeah...how did you know all that? Just by...asking?"
"I am just a bit more experienced than you first assumed." I pause a moment. "You were offered money to deliver this note here. That means you were given this specific address, weren't you?"
"Yes."
"Which means the person knew me or knew of me. A giant...that's entirely unfamiliar to me," I mutter. "What is in this letter?"
"I dunno...I never opened it..."
"You would make a decent courier, at the least. So this wasn't a prank after all. This was deliberate." I lick the outside of the letter once and focus. Nothing of note...no strange substances, like a poison or powder. No unusual chemicals. Nothing on the knife either. Standard items. But the curved knife...it's some sort of throwing knife. Very good balance on it. Not only that, but it looks and feels expensive, like some sort of collector's item. Is there a message that I'm supposed to be getting from this item? What am I missing?
The letter simply has 'Kobayashi' printed on it in the requisite characters. It's definitely addressed to me, if the boy was directed to this particular place to drop it off.
"I can't think of anything else to ask you. It seems that you were caught up in an unfortunate situation. But do me a small favour, yes? Don't take assignments from strange men without going through the proper channels. If I was in a worse mood you would be a corpse right now, being fed to one of Ane-ue's hungry little cousins as an evening snack. Understood?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Good. Now you're going to leave this village as soon as I release you. A moment." I rise from my seat and walk past the boy on the floor into my room. The little cache should be here...yes, perfect. I peel some banknotes from the roll I have, and count off ten thousand before stopping. Rolling up the little bundle, I put a rubber band around it and head back, snapping my fingers to have the snakes release themselves from around the boy's body. They disappear up my pant legs, and I watch my unwitting guest get to his feet slowly.
"Here."
"Uh...I-"
"Do you remember what I said earlier?"
"Shut...the fuck up?"
"Shut the fuck up. Take the money. Don't be a damned idiot after coming this far."
He nods and takes the roll of money from me.
"Ten thousand. That's a tenth of what the mystery man promised, but you should be satisfied with that much and leaving with your life and limbs intact. Stay far away from him, or anyone else like him. Don't report back. Do you have a home, yes or no?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Then go back to it and stay there. And use that money to make something more for yourself." I nod towards the door. "Get the fuck out of my house. Pray to all the gods you know that we never see each other again."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Good boy. Now fuck off."
He nods gratefully and picks up his headgear before opening the door. I hear him scamper down the stairs before jumping the last few steps and then taking off into the distance.
"Couldn't even close the door. Fuckwit."
I sigh with frustration and slam the door before locking it. It's possible the day could get worse, but I don't want to tempt fate. This has been exhausting enough already.
"The letter..."
Right. I still have to open it. What could have been so secretive that some random boy had to deliver it blind? I move the chair back to the table and sit down before running the knife lightly over the top of the envelope. After that, I delicately pull out the letter inside. The paper feels a bit thick...it's folded over twice.
As I unfold it, I'm greeted with...the most bizarre thing imaginable.
"What...the hell is this?"
The characters on the paper have been pasted on. Cut outs from multiple sources...magazines, newspapers, books, manga...they're arranged in a haphazard fashion, chaotic in nature. It looks like a ransom note that one would see in movies. But it's not a ransom.
It's a threat.
EVeryTHING yOU hoLd DEar wiLL reTURN TO asheS
evERYthing You loVE WiLL beCOME dUsT
thE burNING has alREADy begUN
THE FIRE riSES
This...what kind of sick joke is this supposed to be?
"Fucking nonsense. I should find that boy again and...what's this." I spot something that I missed, on the back of the letter. That accounts for the extra thickness...it's a photo, taped on backwards. Cut into a small square as well. I remove it to take a look.
This is...Emi and Luna. They're outside in the garden, but this picture...it's been taken without their knowledge. I can see branches in the frame, like someone was hiding...spying on them. And on the bottom of the photograph...a single word.
-WITNESS-
I'm trembling. I realize what's happening now. That threat wasn't for me. It was for my loved ones. Whoever this person is...they're taunting me. Saying that Emi and Luna are going to die.
Telling me that I can't do a thing about it.
"No...that can't be the case. It can't be true. There's...no, stop. Calm down." I take several deep breaths in as I run to my bedroom. I find whatever is wearable and put it on. A sturdy hooded sweater and a pair of pants will do. I ready my tools, pull on my sandals, and inspect the letter one last time before putting it securely into a pocket.
I have to be calm. I have to keep it together, for everyone's sake. One day...twenty four hours.
First...make a call.
Midori-nee...I need your help urgently.
Lili, my love. What's wrong?
I...just got a suspicious letter. Some child attached it to my door, and I interrogated him, but...nothing. There's been a threat against the estate, Luna and Emi especially.
Goodness. I'll have a look...hold on a moment. This isn't...right.
Ane-ue...please tell me everything is okay.
Dammit. I can't contact Luna. Worse than that...I can't even locate her.
Can't locate? What does that mean?
She's either in a place that I can't reach her, or she's trapped behind some sort of advanced barrier. And...it's covering a wide area, or someone has targeted my Fire Country home as well. I can't go there either. Someone is definitely after them.
This really can't be happening. Please...
Lili, sweetie. Be calm. Take deep breaths, okay?
I-I'm trying...sorry.
You have nothing to apologize for. Okay, listen to me. I'm going to do what I can to investigate on this end. Meanwhile, you have to run as fast as you can towards the mansion and survey what's happening on the ground. If any trouble comes of this, I can work something out with Sarutobi. I know that it's an unsavoury thing, to intervene so boldly in your affairs, but these may be very drastic times.
Yes, I understand. I'm on my way out now.
Don't burn up too much energy on the way there. There's no telling what kind of nasty traps might be waiting if they have this sort of barrier technology available. It feels like...I'm being rejected in one way or another whenever I try to reach out for Luna. No summoning, no reverse summoning. I just have to wonder who the hell is behind this...they know too much about me.
I'm still focused enough to operate at a high level. I...can do this. I know I can.
Forty-five minutes has to be the limit.
Remember what I said. Travelling at high speed is one thing, sustaining it for that long is quite another. Be steady, my love. Luna and Emi are strong, vibrant women. If anything is happening, they will not go quietly into the night. Believe in them.
I will. Ane-ue, I'm off. I will see you again soon.
Take care, Lili.
I shut off the lights in the apartment, leave a note on the front door, and ultimately leave the apartment through my bedroom window, sealing it from the outside. Then I tense my legs and start my run through the village, going as fast as I can safely before reaching the front gates.
Once I'm clear, I push myself to full speed. My chakra mode surges on and I rush through the forest. The mansion is a good distance away...well over fifty kilometers, possibly close to a hundred. I can move quickly, but it's as Midori said - endurance runs and combat runs are entirely different things, and most of my high speed movement comes in bursts during combat. I don't want to overexert myself and end up useless once I reach my destination. I have to keep my head...even as much as it hurts right now.
I don't know what is going on, and it scares me like nothing else. Whoever this is...they're too intimate with our relationships. They know just about everything. Enough to seal off Luna's ability to call for the strongest help there is, enough to spy on her and Emi without them knowing, enough to find my address and send out a note taunting me. This...this is almost too much to bear. I just hope that they're okay. That they're alive.
I have to make it in time. I just have to.
It's so tempting just to burst forward and...but I can't. I have to conserve my energy. The opponent is unknown, and likely to be extremely powerful. A protege of Orochimaru, like Kimimaro? An enemy from another village? A mercenary? Does that so called giant from before have anything to do with this?
My head is throbbing. I have to stop whipping myself into a frenzy like this...steady breaths. Focus on my running.
And...I'll pray endlessly. I need everything...and everyone...to be okay.