Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
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'Person thinking'
"Person talking"
"Jinchuriki talking inside his head with Bijuu"
'Bijuu thinking'
"Bijuu talking"
"Bijuu talking inside jinchurki's head"
Chapter 32 – Lambs and Serpents
"Welcome, good sir, to our fine establishment. I am Madame Sato and I shall do my best to provide you with the best entertainment this evening. Is there anything in particular that you would like to, experience, tonight?"
"Show me what you have and we'll go from there." Said the guest.
"Of course. Right this way."
Madame Sato trotted a few feet in front of her new customer, on her way to a private room. Once inside, she motioned for the man to take seat on a cushion behind a chabudai.
"Please wait here and enjoy some of our sake. Imported all the way from Rice Country. I will be back with the girls shortly."
"Thank you, Madame."
With a short bow, the Madame retired from the room and went to find the girls. All of them were waiting in the master room, a spot from which they could discretely make their way to all of the guest rooms through passageways known only to them.
As soon as she arrived, the girls stood up, already knowing that a new client might be asking for one of them.
"Girls you will have to present yourselves in room 12. The gentleman there would like to inspect and select." They all nodded and slowly trotted their way towards their destination. All, except one.
"Yukio, what are you doing? Off you go, I will be there shortly."
"I… I can't, Madame Sato. I'm sorry!" she said, meekly looking to the ground.
"You know you can't afford not to go. Your father has a debt to pay. That is why you are here, as I'm sure you know."
"I-I know, Madame. It's just… I can't do this anymore! Please, I'll do anything else! Clean, prepare the other girls! Anything, just please, not that!"
"I'm afraid that's not possible. No other type of labor can possibly cover the loan taken from our patron and you now must honor the contract, as signed by your father."
"Please, Madame!" by this point, the girl was prostrating herself at Madame's feet, much to the older lady's chagrin.
"Sigh… Wait here. I'll go deal with the client and will be back for you shortly."
"Y-yes, Madame Sato."
A few minutes later, all the other girls except for two returned to the master room, whispering amongst themselves, quietly, their eyes trained on Yukio with a mix of pity, frustration and outright disdain. Madame Sato followed right behind them. As soon as her eyes fell on Yukio, her expression hardened and sternly called out to the girl.
"Come, Yukio, we must go see Mister Myamoto, in order to discuss your future prospects."
"Y-yes, Madame."
As she walked towards Madame Sato, Yukio overheard one of the girls whispering "There goes another one." Needless to say, that did not make the young girl feel very confident about what the future might hold in store for her.
Through a backdoor of the master room, Madam Sato and Yukio slivered through a narrow hallway, much like the ones that connected the master room to the guest rooms. They exited the establishment in a back alley and made a quick left, by the building's wall. A few meters ahead, Madam Sato opened a sliding narrow door and made a sign for Yukio to follow her inside. Unnerved but without much choice, the girl complied. The two suddenly found themselves in the storeroom of what seemed like a two story manor. Madame Sato led Yukio out the storeroom and up the stairs, by two guards – mercenaries, not shinobi, if Yukio wasn't mistaken – and arrived in front of an unnecessarily extravagant and ornate double door that led to what she could only assume was an even more extravagant office space. There, they stopped and Madame Sato looked at Yukio once more with the hardened look that she greeted her with in the master room.
"Yukio, I cannot follow any further. Should you be returned to me, we will discuss proper disciplinary action for your lack of motivation. Otherwise, I wish you luck, wherever you will be reassigned."
"I…I understand, Madame Sato. Thank you for everything."
Without another word, Madame Sato knocked three times, paused and knocked twice more. A command came from the other side, inviting whoever knocked to present themselves in.
Madame Sato motioned for the girl to enter. Yukio bowed slightly and pushed on the door with a knob to open and enter. Once she was in, Madame Sato turned and left. She already knew she wouldn't be seeing the girl any longer.
Upon entering the room, Yukio was surprised to find it furnished with two lavish couches and three bookshelves, all much more refined than the finishes on the walls and ceiling, which looked garishly unpolished. Thick cigar smoke permeated the room, making the young girl's eyes water a little from the stinging sensation. She soon caught sight of her employer, Mr. Myamoto, a man in his fifties, with gray hair, tidily combed and gelled, wearing a burgundy coat with a white flower boutonniere, over a white shirt that was traced from top to bottom with straight light purple stripes. The man was studying a document of some sort held in his left hand, his right hand playing with his thick cigar, while a guard dressed in gray pants and a dark cloak was standing right behind him, stoic but tense, with his right hand resting on his katana, ready to strike any who would dare threaten his employer. With a motion from his right hand, the old man commanded the girl to take seat on the chair across his mahogany desk, to which the girl swiftly complied.
An eternity seemed to have passed until the man finally spoke up, still not looking at her, his eyes focused on whatever the paper in his hand was conveying.
"I hear you're having a tough time performing for the clients."
"I, I tried, Mr. Myamoto, Sir. I really did! But, it's just not for me. I know there is a debt to be paid, and I want to pay it, but-"
"Now, now, calm down, no need to start crying." The man said, finally looking at the girl with surprisingly warm eyes. "The debt does have to get paid, yes, but I understand your predicament. I happen to have a business partner outside of town. He needs people to help him with his work. It's simple work, with the hands and I have a deal with him to cover my expenses if I provide him with good labor. Think you'd be up for that?"
"Y-yes, sir! Thank you, sir! I'll do my best! I won't disappoint!"
"I'm sure you'll do just fine." He said smiling. "Niji, call in Raido to take over for you and guide the girl to her place to pack her things. You will be her guard for this journey and will relay any and all happenings upon your return. Understood?"
"Yes, sir." The guard said with a slight bow. "Yukie-san, follow me. We leave at dawn."
"Y-yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Myamoto!"
"No problem, young one. Just make sure to do good by your word." He replied warmly and waved her out of his office, in a stern but pleasant way.
The girl excitedly followed her new guardian. Niji seemed very much disinterested in the happenings in the office and simply guided her silently. As far as she was concerned, that was alright. She was more than ready to leave that place and start a new job. What was it again? Eh, she'll find out soon enough, she supposed. Anything was better than here and Mr. Myamoto seemed really nice.
Dawn came and, after hugging her former work mates goodbye, Yukio and her guardian took a wagon out of Konoha. Once outside of the hidden village's perimeter, the guard informed her that they were bound for Onsatsu village, which was a full day's journey away. There, they would meet their contact for her new job. Yukio tried to make small talk with the guard, but he seemed very much the silent type. Thus, she resolved to admire the scenery on their way to the destination.
Nightfall brought them on the outskirts of Onsatsu village, a small place, very much outside regular travel routes. Insignificant, discrete, peaceful. Yukio surmised that she would have loved to live there. Maybe work the fields? Yes, that would be nice, she thought.
"He's here." She heard Niji say, her musings thus abruptly interrupted. Looking around, she found a broad man with a dark cloak covering him from head to toe, the only things distinguishable about him being his single layered white turban. A few strands of hair seemed to have escaped at the base of the head cover, showing that his hair reached at around the base of his neck. He stopped a few steps away from the wagon and waited.
"Come, let us meet with him." Said the guard. Yukio climbed down the wagon and followed Niji, curious but tense. It was almost midnight and her only light was the full moon that, luckily, was left naked in the clear sky.
"Good evening, Renji."
"Good evening, Niji. I see you made it on time. I take it she is the new asset?"
"Yes."
'Asset?' Yukio thought in confusion.
"Payment will be available in two days, in the marked location, as usual."
"Noted. I will take my leave then."
With a nod, the man now known as Renji, turned towards the girl. "Girl, name?"
"Y-Yukio." She was a bit startled by his impassive tone.
"Follow me. We have a long way ahead of us."
"R-right." Idly, she heard the wagon leaving, and realized that she was now alone with this complete stranger.
"W-where are we going?" she asked, hoping to find some comfort in some form of information.
"To my employer's office." He said blankly.
"What does your employer do? What's his trade?"
"He is a bit of an inventor. A once in a lifetime kind of visionary."
"Oh, sounds really interesting. I bet he's really smart."
"That he is." The man said, with a reverent smile on his face.
"Umm, do you know what my job will be?"
"You will be assisting him in his experiments."
"Oh, that sounds like fun!"
The man said nothing in response, which unnerved her a little, but she figured he might just be the silent type, much like that Niji fellow was.
After a while, they were at the edge of the village, opposite from where she had entered with Niji, near a wide and dense forest.
"We will cut through the forest, to a road just beyond. Stay close, otherwise you'll get lost."
"Right."
They walked in silence for what felt like a few hours, her legs starting to hurt from the exhaustion. She was not used to this kind of effort. She looked down towards her legs, a feeling of pain stinging in the soles of her feet. She looked up and noticed Renji wasn't there anymore.
"Renji? Where are you?" she looked left and then right, back and forwards once more. Nothing. "Renji?!"
She turned, in an attempt to run back the way she came, fear gripping her heart. A few steps in, a hand struck her hard in the back of her neck and her entire world went dark.
Looking down at the fallen form of the girl through the clear moonlight rays was a boy, maybe nine years of age, with straight white hair, finely combed, that ran down to the base of the neck. His eye brows were trimmed, only two short stubs left and dark red makeup covered the base of his eyes gracefully. Piercing green irises took in the form of the girl. With a sigh, the young boy placed a seal on the back of her neck to ensure she wouldn't wake up while he travelled. Struggling a little due to the size difference, he heaved the girl on his back, in a fireman carry and took to the trees.
All night he travelled until he reached the borders of the Land of Rice, where, through a path known only to him and his master, he snuck through and made it to the base of a tree. He placed the girl down to the side and, after a few handseals, the earth parted to reveal a trapdoor hidden underneath. He placed his hand on a specific spot. The door glowed slightly, indicating that he could now enter. He opened the trap door and carried the girl to the base of the tunnel, ten meters underground. He closed and sealed the entrance behind him, after which he grabbed hold of the girl once more and trudged forward through the now ornate orange passageways, the occasional torches his only source of light.
At an intersection, he was greeted by the silhouette of his master, a shape he could never forget, for he revered this man above all else. Tall, thin, with gaunt white skin but full of vitality he was, with long dark brown hair flowing down his shoulders. His body was covered by a dark pollo blouse and pants, over which a gray garb flowed down to his knees. The entire ensemble was connected by a purple rope tied around his waist that matched the makeup lining the base of his eyes. His yellow slit irises pierced deep into the soul of his subordinate, and soon a knowing, dominating smile graced his lips.
"Orochimaru-sama." the boy said, bowing slightly at his sight. "I brought the specimen to you as per your request."
"Ah, Kimimaro-kun. You never fail me. If only all of my subordinates did as clean a job as you."
"I live to serve you, my lord."
"And your loyalty shall be greatly rewarded. Now come, and bring her with you as well."
"Yes, my Lord." He continued forward, thoughtful look on his face.
"What is on your mind, Kimimaro-kun?"
"If I may, Orochimaru-sama, why take specimens from Konoha? Seems like an unnecessary risk. We have more than enough in the Land of Rice for our purposes."
"Indeed, we have. But that is not the sole purpose of this transaction. What I am looking for with much more interest is information and, a man like that Myamoto, her employer, is a very useful tool in obtaining it. He is well aware that, were he discovered to have ties to me and my activities, his life would be forfeit."
"Then, why pay him, if he's so thoroughly compromised?"
"Because, my dear Kimimaro, by taking that money, he sealed his fate as a co-conspirator. He is no longer just a victim, but also an accomplice."
"I see."
"Nevertheless, you are right that Konoha has become a high risk venture for us at the moment. There are rumors of reform about to take place within the village. Sarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage, seems to have grown a spine after all these years and men like Myamoto are likely to be driven out as a result of these changes. We will have to rethink our information gathering strategies as far as Konoha is concerned. But you need not worry about such things. You have done your part splendidly. Now, let us press on and discover the secrets to immortality, shall we?""
"Your will be done, my lord."