Chapter 8- The Little Weasel.

She'll never be caught, or will she?

Enjoy

Three Years Ago

Location: Nation of Kumo, southern borders.

Rouge Mission: When it rains, it pours.

Rated M for Gore and violence.

The name given to her years ago was Little Weasel.

She had been small then, forced to act as a follower, forced to obey. Her father's teachings stuck to her, expected to be his perfect firstborn, his perfect daughter. The stress had nearly killed her then, the unbearable need to make sure she impressed just enough to avoid the disapproval.

Only death had helped her.

It helped her see, although her fathers rage remained. The walls, they had come down, the world was bigger than any of the books she had read, so much bigger. Freedom was hers all she needed was to take it.

Though free now, she was still in chains.

Literal ones.

Head slumped forward, groggy and weak, but alive. The tingling feeling of becoming conscious again gave her a headache unlike any other, she quite hated waking up after being hit unconscious. Drugs she preferred, at least they wouldn't leave a scar, or the trail of blood she knew had started when the pistol had hit her earlier.

Temari had remembered the sounds, chain her, we'll interrogate her when she's awake, nice ass. She was no longer small, now lean and strong, hanging by her wrists from the ceiling, the floor a few inches away. A drip from a leaky water pipe, it was chilly in the room, possibly a basement of some kind, she confirmed when her eyes slowly began to wake.

Blurry at first, she looked past her bangs a gaze so cold it could freeze anyone who dared look in her direction. The feeling of fight or flight in action. Staring ahead at the steel door, she heard a yawn and shifted her gaze over to the man, his back turned to her.

His mistake.

The guard looked to his phone, unaware that behind him his prisoner had stirred. She began by slowly lifting her body, holding the chain above her cuffs tightly, rising like a snake prepared to strike. He shifted his weight from his right foot to his left and her opening was made. She swung forward quickly circling his neck, trapping him between her legs. Locked tightly he gapped like a fish out of water, throwing useless punches at her weapons to no avail. As he struggled, she used her unbreakable hold to keep him still enough in order to lift both herself and his body weight off the ground. He choked and gasped unable to escape, swinging his own legs uselessly now.

Glaring down she jerked her muscles hearing the sick crack of his neck as he went slack, a second more confirming she killed him and he fell to the ground face first. She let out her breath, relaxing her own body. Part one complete, part two just what she had been after, the keys hanging from his back pocket.

And her escape began.

"Pair of sixes!" outside the basement door, a wooden crate sat with a game of cards being played. The supposed winner flashed his cards confidently to his two companions, their task of guarded some woman their boss wanted interrogated, boring them.

"Fuck, again" the other two groaned "you're cheating!" one accused the winner.

"No way" he paused his grip on the pile of Kumo silver and smirked "I played for it fair and square"

"Hey don't start arguing now" the third glared between them, and slapped his cards down "cause the pot is mine, pair of kings!" As the winner cackled, his companions groaning in their loss, the sudden sound of a door slamming open silenced the room.

Song Suggestion- Edith Piaf- Non, Je ne regretted rien

One of them reached for his gun, the action met with a bullet to his head. Quickly the other two panicked, jumping to stand. Two shots and each fell, one groaning as he put a hand to his chest, his companion twitching one final time from the shot between his eyes.

The cold teal gaze stared down and before he could say anything another shot, his words lost until the end of time.

Temari leaned down exchanging her gun with his and took a breath, remembering the layout of the target's villa. Above her she could hear the shouts and loud steps of boots hitting the floorboard. Stepping past the bodies, she moved towards the stairs down the hall, guns slowly rising as the voices neared.

"Get her!" Someone yelled in Kumonia, rushing down the stairs with his squad. Two shots, two tumbling bodies, the third who had shown himself gasping as a throwing knife found on one of the guards came to pierce his chest, he looked down and back up as she passed, grabbing the knife.

His final sight, a gun to his head.

Ascending the stairs, every step with purpose, the rain of gunshots and shouts echoed through the villa. Bodies fell, others groaned in pain, some even screamed, but passing the second floor proved a simple task. The smell of blood waved through the air as she made her way to the third floor staircase. With graceful movements she passed the men, leaving their bodies behind.

Two left.

Slipping right, the first of the two tumbled past her, tripping down the steps with her shove, his companion winced when his face connected with the wall. Above her the Kumonian shout to halt was quickly silenced as she finally made it to the crowded hall of the third floor.

Her target at the end of the hallway.

His name was Goda Hotoka.

A man who forged a claim to land that had not belonged to him. His rule over the village people taken by force, his people fearful and quiet. A man who had made his mistake when he grew to hungry, greed his downfall.

Goda now stood at his balcony, gazing ahead into his mountainous country side, his expansion just within reach. His glaring amber eyes hungry for more.

The woman who had been at his party last night had been caught snooping in his office, now he needed to know why. No one entered his domain without his knowing. When she awoke, he would find out.

A sudden sound of gunfire.

Or maybe not.

He turned to the door, the guards he had posted there would stop whoever that was, he prayed they would. The gunshots rained, people screamed. The doors suddenly opened, his guard stumbled in, going to speak, but stilling as he choked, vomiting blood from his lips, a knife sticking from his back. As he fell to the ground with a thud, she appeared.

Untouched.

As Temari entered the room, the metallic smell of the bodies hit his nose, he nearly gagged at the sight of the sprayed blood around his once pristine halls.

"You killed everyone of my men" he breathed out quietly, still in shock. With a narrow of her gaze she dropped the remaining empty handgun she had to the floor and moved to the middle of the room.

"You tied me up" she pointed out and sat leaning back against the imported velvet couch, crossing her dirtied legs, she let a wicked smile grow on her lips "is that how you treat all the guests at your parties?"

"Who are you?" He held his shaky gun to his side, his action met with a fearless laugh, light and mocking his terror.

"Your witness, of course" she tilted her head resting it on her fist and narrowed her eyes, he was too far back, she needed him closer to her, so she made herself harmless. No weapons to aid her "Unfortunately for you, you've caused too much concern for the stability of southern Lightening and that has put a rather nice price on your head, Mr. Hotoka" the sudden raise in his voice as his fear was replaced with anger, he stepped forward.

"This all belongs to me" he raised his gun to her, she was unarmed, he had the upper hand "I built this with my bare hands and I've worked too hard to just give it up" another step, so she spoke, commanding his final seconds.

"It belongs to the people outside of your walls, they slaved for this, not you" a flashing scene played behind her eyes, large sandstone walls and signs of the hourglass. The golden hourglass of Suna "you will no longer hold power over the innocent, we will make sure of this"

"Who's we?" one final step and he stood just in front of his glass coffee table "I only see you"

"You forgot about your executioner" she tapped a finger on her knee and grinned.

A loud sound.

A single shot to the head.

The bullet hole just missing her, buried in the couch beside her, she knew it would, just like she knew his shot would never miss his mark.

A perch nestled a hundred yards away, a smoking sniper, and a dark focused glare moving the patch over his scope as he stood, Itachi Uchiha's mission complete, aided by an old friend.

6:25PM, Monday

Location: Fu Enterprises, Wealth District.

Mission Status: Ongoing Surveillance.

The mistress of the agency had been cruel to them.

Though, Kotesu didn't believe in the punishment of surveillance as being the fair one, he didn't complain as much as his partner, Izumo did.

"Another stakeout" Izumo groaned as he looked through the paper files handed to him for his current mission, he threw his head back in the passengers seat "fun times sitting around watching low life's making sure they don't do anything stupid" another groan.

"We were assigned to watch Dai and let the man get shot" Kotetsu muttered, reminding his partner of their current misfortune, while skimming to the next camera on their laptop, still nothing "we're lucky Tsuande only gave us surveillance instead of desk duty after that failure" he glanced up to Izumo, a almost childish huff greeting him.

"So, who are we looking for anyways?" Izumo asked, both having been sent by Shikamaru earlier in the day. They had been watching Haku, for his financial interference in the land of Rivers. Why had the man been hiding his reports and emails lately? Shino would find out eventually.

"Don't know, Shikamaru just said to keep an eye out for anyone suspicious walking near Haku's office" so far he'd seen Haku's secretary, a woman named Seni, and an intern with short mousey brown bangs rushing around with three different coffee cups in her hands. Neither of the two raised any flags, though they felt bad for the intern when she had been fired for spilling one of the cups onto Haku earlier. Her crying scene unbearable to watch as Seni had to guide her away to comfort her.

Now the front desk to his office down the hall was empty.

Until.

"Whoa who's this one?" Izumo whistled as he sat up staring into the screen. There was a third, a woman.

"Don't know" Kotetsu zoomed in, nothing standing out. She simply walked with purpose, holding a clear garment bag for what looked like a suit and knocked on Haku's door before opening it, eyes hidden behind her bangs. As they watched her enter, engrossed in seeing her face, Izumo nearly jumped from the screen when his phone rang.

"It's Shikamaru" he quickly slid it open and answered "Sir?"

"Are you two by Fu enterprises?" He could hear the pant of breath as if his boss was rushing down the steps.

"Uh yes sir" he quickly clicked the speaker option for Kotetsu to listen in.

"Who has gone in and out?" He asked.

"No one, building had been cleared for almost an hour sir" Kotetsu replied back.

"What about surveillance on Haku's office?"

"Well we have the secretary and her intern, nothing out of sorts there" a pause "then a third, but she didn't show up on any other camera, sir"

"Uh Kotetsu" Izumo nudged his partner, turning them both to the camera as a stomping women entered the lobby of Fu enterprises, her picture posted in their mission file. The wife of Haku Fu, Yanagi Fu. Married nearly twenty five years, the perfect couple, people once called them.

"Sir, it's Haku's wife" Kotetsu informed Shikamaru "She just entered the building"

"She seems pretty mad" Izumo winced as the wife shouted to the security guard posted at the front desk of the lobby.

"I need both of you in there now, ignore the wife" they both looked to one another, hearing the urgency in Shikamaru's voice, then a car door slammed shut "your target is the woman, level one status, proceed with extreme caution" a sigh "I need you to catch, avoid killing at all costs" the two field agents looked to one another, it was time to redeem themselves.

"You got it, Sir"

6:30 pm, Monday

Mission: Desert Storm Part Two

The click of red heels on marble white tiles echoed down the hall. The front desk empty, both secretary and intern gone from the scene, just as planned. The black garment bag hiding her body from the camera.

A mumbled curse had echoed in the office of Haku Fu.

A middle aged man with slicked back silver hair, a clean shaven face, and his years of military service written by the sharp wrinkles on his face. When he had returned, he made his move, building his own empire with the help of the four. A man who buys silence, who uses what he wants when he wants. A powerful man who won more than he lost.

The man had just spilled his remaining coffee from his cup on his already ruined white button up, this loss, however, had not been his fault "stupid interns, can't even close a fucking lid. Why do we even hire them?" he huffed annoying and beeped his phone.

"Seni?" He grumbled into the mic.

"Yes, Mr. Fu?" Seni quickly replied with a yelp.

"What time is that dinner tonight?" He asked, skimming a email send from Dai Shimaru during his hospital stay, quickly deleting it from his desktop, those emails gone.

"Seven thirty, Sir" the woman replied back.

"Hold all my calls for the rest of the evening" Haku grunted into his speaker "and get me a new suit from the wardrobe, preferably something from Iwa, I need to make a good first impression" he glared at his coffee cup, narrowed his eyes and demanded with a low voice "and while you're at it, fire that new intern, little mousy looking one, she's pretty, but incompetent"

"Right away, sir" the woman buzzed out. With a sigh, he skimmed the remaining emails and logged out, just about ready to close the laptop when a knock came to his office door.

"I said no calls, Seni" As he went to stand and give a piece of his mind to his secretary, the door slipped open and in entered a woman. He stopped somewhere from fixing the glaring look on his face to taking in the woman's sudden appearance. In her hands a black garment carrier.

"Mr. Fu?" the woman called in hesitantly "you asked for a new suit?" Looking up past her golden bangs, a shining teal gaze met his. A tight pencil skirt and loose white blouse tucked in, golden hair pinned neatly on her head, professional as could be.

"Oh right" he slowly straighten and cleared his throat, suddenly calmed, more charming as he offered a smile "that must be my suit" the woman nodded, searching around the room for a second before settling her eyes on him.

"Quite the mess you made there" the woman lowered her gaze from his to the stained white button up.

"Oh" he looked down and wiped at the coffee stain, uselessly trying to brush it off "just a little mishap is all. I have a dinner to get to"

"Allow me to help you" she offered with a bright smile and laid the garment bag on the leather armchair beside his desk, circling around, walking confidently, but truthfully stalking her prey "you have to look you best, I'm sure"

"First impressions" his eyes fell, drinking in her distance from him "are very important to me" he settled to the opening in her blouse, her eyes almost rolled, typical men.

"Even more serious" she agreed, instead offering a raise of her brow as she gave him a look as he had her.

"I dont think we've met?" His brows furrowed down to her, following her movement as she slipped behind him "When did you start working here?" She hated idle chitchat, and with a target at that, but she kept light. She just needed one gesture, one move, and he would fall, and she already knew his weakness. His girlfriend on the side was an easy woman to follow, an absolute airhead with only her body to offer.

"Just last week" she began casually, using a hand to pull one side of the suit jacket off his shoulder, taking the coat as he shrugged it off, making sure to brush her fingers against the skin of his neck, a shudder. Her glare turning past him to his desk, laptop closed, nothing but a desk phone and lamp on the side. The two drawers he had could work.

"How do you like it so far?" He swallowed, the light touch to his back making him turn to face her. She met him with a soft hum, as if debating what to say, debating how to search the desk.

"Well" she peeked up innocently to him "it's been a little stressful, if I'm being honest, Sir" holding the suit jacket close to herself, guiding his eyes down to her chest.

"Well we can't have that, now can we?" He cleared his throat, a charming smile making way as if to ease her "Bad for business"

"How would you destress after a long week?" She made a step forward, brushing lightly past him to set the suit jacket down on the desk, the drawer just to her side.

"I'm sure I can come up with a few idea how" his gaze lowered, the curve of her back purposeful.

"Show me" she glanced back with hooded eyes and pursed red lips, one gesture, her invitation given, he fell for her trap. As he pressed himself behind her she let out a strained moan, her eyes quickly turned down in the distraction as she observed the contents. Just what she had been looking for.

A silver letter opener.

Now to get the man's boner off her ass.

Ignoring the kiss to the back of her bare neck, she pushed backwards, grinding and fighting to turn around, proven easy as any sound she made engrossed the man to do as she wanted.

She began with the top bottom and delicately dragged her finger against the fabric, the dry coffee stain remaining. Needless to say the attention was on her and only her, just like she wanted. Wrapping his dark blue tie around her hand she jerked him down to her lips. He moaned, loudly, her eyes rolled, but she kept at his sloppy pace, wishing to rip the tongue out when he shoved his in her mouth. Her hand worked behind her, feeling for the silver and just grabbing the weapon when he pushed her up and onto his desk pushing to enter between her legs.

The glossy red now staining his lips when she pulled back, a silver letter opener moved from the drawer to the end of his desk, the only option.

When he leaned forward again, eager, his push was met with her own. Using the tie she leaned him forward before pushing back, swaying him just enough to get her leg up and him away from opening them. The red heel pressed on his chest until his back hit the back of the chair, Temari tsked, ready for her final strike.

"Down boy" his mouth went dry, unable to speak past the command "if you're going to be late" she leaned back on her hand, her other slowly dragging up her blouse to the top button, counting the time. Any minute now "might as well savor it"

"You are a bad girl" he breathed, attempting to push against her hold.

"You have no idea" the glare returned, the first button opening accompanied it, leaving him gawking.

"Haku?" the room stilled, oh how she wanted to smile, the urge almost impossible to ignore. Just tilting her head back she noticed the wife, Yanagi.

Even with the herbal serum given to her she looked like a docile little thing, so small, so innocent, pretty and aging gracefully. The effects beganning the moment she saw her cheating husband. Herbs to energize the body, weeks of paranoia beforehand, her morning tea replaced with a new one. She hadn't been herself, someone will say, to appease the public as to why the wife had killed her cheating husband.

No time to feel bad for pinning this on her.

"Yanagi? What are you doing here?" Haku pulled away as quickly as he could, coming to stand and uselessly stuff his stained shirt into his pants, as if to hide the evidence.

"How could you!" She screamed, eyes set to Haku, almost not noticing Temari when she slid off the desk, fixing her skirt nonchalantly.

His wife raged on, shouting obscenities towards Haku, her moment of escape more than easily taken. Her work was done, the hot shower after this a prize for the easy night.

As she left her caution instantly spotted two men speaking to one another by the still empty front desk, as she passed them, they looked. Behind the scene, Temari manged to keep her calm walk even, ignoring the two men dressed in black now following her. She could hear just the faintest sound of one of them speaking over a radio, no, an earpiece.

Agents.

He knew.

On one hand she was going to greatly enjoy this. She had warned him to stay away.

Song Suggestion- Billy Eilish-Bad Guy

As she went for the elevator waiting, hearing the two stop at a distance she walked in and they followed. The elevator doors shut, eighteen floors left to go. Temari leaned against the back of the elevator facing their backs, dragging her hands against the railing, deep breath, muscles ready to move. The one to her right subtly moved his jacket, reaching for a weapon.

The elevator began to move.

"Alright boys" her sudden echoing voice froze the man to her right, hesitant. She was wanted alive "let's make this quick, shall we?" The one to her left glanced back, eyes narrowed. A tense air began and floor seventeen rushed past them.

The jacket moved.

Temari instantly swung forward catching the arm of the one to her right, Izumo, as he turned, using her hold to twist his elbow upward to release his weapon, the gun that would have been her end, now on the floor. While in her hold the other, Kotetsu, aimed, but never made the shot, his partner now falling towards him when he was forced forward his his twisted arm, slamming chest against chest.

Quick to recover, Kotetsu moved his partner aside and was met with a sharp kick, his gun joining the other on the floor, another kick to his jaw to force a stumble back. Now with both men disarmed she focused on their movement. Izumo rushed her first, she ducked slipping past his body, his attempt to catch her useless. Behind her, Kotetsu managed to grab her, arms wrapping around hers, now this was useful. As he held her she jumped up, Izumo had just turned around only to be met with her legs kicking right into his chest, his partner aiding her attack. He fell back into the wall, hitting the back of his head with a groan before stumbling down to the floor.

"Izumo!" His partner called out, tightening his grip on her. Now to get out from this one. Temari shoved her heel into his foot, a shout her reward, and for good measure threw her head back into his nose, instantly released. Stepping back, one down behind her the other groaning as he stomped the pain from his foot and held his nose, he narrowed his glare back at her.

One gesture to set him off.

She flashed a mocking smile.

That did it.

Using his running weight as he charged, she gripped an arm, throwing him off balance and turned his body right, slamming the front of his face directly into the steel doors of the elevator.

"Fuck" Kotetsu groaned holding his now bleeding nose as he braced against the door of the elevator, stinging pain blinding him for a moment.

A ding, someone had stopped the elevator to get on.

What a pleasant addition.

As the bell rang, she shifted a step to the back of the elevator, Kotetsu perfectly in position, her signature move if she had to give it a name. The elevator opened to floor eight, the one who had attempted to step in gasping as Kotetsu was shoved into him, the kick powerful enough to knock both of the men on their backs.

"Kotetsu!" Izumo gasped as his partner vanished into floor eight. Inside Temari gave a wave of her fingers before turning to the other agent, still shocked on the floor. When the doors shut closed the remaining opponent had recovered enough to stand from his previous downfall, wiping quick at the trail of blood off his mouth "now I see why you got marked level one" he groaned, holding his bruised side.

"I'm honored, really" Temari remarked sarcastically, slowly raising the side of her lips as he looked down to the gun he had lost in the start of the fight "I'll make this fair for you, even give you a head start" she teased, sliding the gun toward him with her heel and taking a step back.

Izumo growled as he lunged for his weapon, able to grab the gun with his right hand and turned, firing.

A final ding.

The doors slid open.

Inside the parking garage, Shira had waited by the doors, seeing his mission as lookout through without a complaint. He simply followed his orders and kept what he knew to himself. His addition to aid the once dead royals his life's purpose. He heard the soft ding of the doors and set a hand to his gun hidden at his side. When it opened he let out a breath, relieved.

"Mistress" Temari didn't reply immediately to Shira, arm still gripped tightly around Izumo's throat, his reddening face slowly turning purple, unable to escaped the locked position. He gasped silently, kneeled before the opened doors, and after a few more seconds his eyes shut leaving him unconscious. Only when he stopped moving did Temari release him, dropping his body to the floor "I see you ran into some trouble" Shira observed offering a hand to her. Temari huffed as she took it getting up from her opponent.

"Just a couple of field agents to watch me" she glanced down fixing her blouse back into place "I'm insulted" as she went to smoothen down the skirt, she glared at the large tear on the side and grumbled "Damn, I liked this skirt"

"Let's head out, Puppet should be on his way back to base" Shira began to walk towards their parked car, but something stopped her.

A phone rang.

Curiosity sparked, she searched the pockets of her fallen foe and grabbed his phone to answer.

"Izumo?" she knew the voice, it instantly brought a grin to her lips.

"Sorry, Nara" she was met with a loud silence, sure that he could hear the smile grow "but Izumo can't come to the phone right now. Can I take a message?"

"Are they alive?" He asked slowly.

"Wrong question"

"Wait" she paused, her thumb over the end call as he asked "Where did you go after you left Sasori?" The pause after he spoke lasted longer than she anticipated, she quickly side glanced at Shira, already waiting by the car.

"I went home" she spoke quieter than she wanted to.

The line went dead and his grip on the steering wheel tightened.

Monday 8:56PM

Yanagi Fu now sat in the back of a police car, screaming and spitting out curses, her crime caught by the shuddering secretary. Her once clean sky blue blouse, spotted in red. Found standing over her husband's body with a silver letter opener.

Staring at the trail of blood from his throat down to his unbuttoned shirt, Shikamaru could only blow out a heavy breath. Once again she had slipped out, just under the radar.

That woman was starting to piss him off, an afterthought.

He took in the spots of blood leading to the letter opener, the one the wife had used to kill her cheating husband. The way she did it, to make it look like another committed the crime.

To make it look like a accident.

"Act of passion" Ino muttered snapping a pic for forensics. Her sudden voice behind him bringing him back into the world away from the loud noise in his mind. It hadn't shut off since he heard her voice a couple hours back. No more bleeding walls, just spots of real blood, just thoughts of how she had done it "wife clearly killed him"

"Something seems off though" he furrowed his brows looking back to the body. The faint red lips framing the pale skin of Haku's lifeless face, the drool of blood on one side of his mouth, his throat slit open "it's made to look like the wife found him in a vurnable position"

"So you believe Yanagi was called to come here somehow and see this happened" Ino glanced over to him "see her husband cheating"

"What do you think?" He asked rhetorically, frustrated, circling around the desk as he observed the marked spots of blood on the tile, useless evidence "Yanagi knew her husband had a girlfriend on the side, yet she never tried to kill her" he pointed out and tilted his head as he walked past Haku Fu's achievement shelf, lined with awards, signed pictures of Haku with other Kage and even a black and white picture of him with a group of three in military attire "all known data on Yanagi is about her being a kind and generous woman, not a murderer. She's not the type. This wasn't some kind of act of jealously, she was already wired up when she got here, seeing what she saw just pushed her over the edge" he brushed away the image, the sudden image of her seated across the lap of another man pulling him close to herself. Shutting his eyes briefly, shuddering uncomfortably, not an expected thought to say the least "Have them test her blood, I've got a feeling we are working with another cocktail here" he added.

"That woman doesn't even dirty her own hands to commit a crime" Ino breathed and shuddered "it's almost the perfect murder" she mumbled to herself.

"Oh they are filthy, I am sure of that" he muttered, now distracted as he grabbed the black and white picture in his hands, a younger Haku stood next to Dai Shimaru and two others. It took a moment, but he understood now.

"So, what now?" Ino asked coming over to his side "not like we could pin any of this on her" she added with more bite "can't pin a crime on a dead person"

"First Dai, then Haku" he ignored her mood and watched Ino closely. She truly was a pain, but one of the only people, aside from Choji, who understood the way he thought almost as well as he did "What do the two have in common?"

"Weopon distribution?" She guessed, smiling to herself when he nodded.

"What else?" He pressed on.

"Thinking is your job, genius" Ino huffed shoving his shoulder when he smirked, a bit proud in explaining.

"Ino those guys were on the same squad during the third war, generals under the Sanin" he remarked "they are all aiding the military"

"So you think it was their squad?" She questioned.

"Don't you recognize them?" He pointed out each person to her in the picture "Haku Fu, Dai Shimaru, Sato Maasaki, and Kai Yoshito"

"You say it like I should know them" Ino put a hand to her hip, giving a look.

"First platoon, the ones who led that big march in Rain, stopped the whole army in a single night" as he threw out facts he groaned and put a hand to his head, history wasn't her strongsuit "don't you ever read anything besides fashion magazines?" She gave a shrug in response "Sato Maasaki is a councilman with his wealth coming from old money made during the third war" Ino blinked at him, slower to follow, so he continued trying to push her thoughts towards his "and Kai Yoshito is a silent investor in the military stock market, millionaire, known for his foreign fine arts collection" it clicked, he could see her brighten.

"Doesn't he throw those big fancy balls every year? You know the one with all the newest art pieces and up and coming designers. I read all their fashion magazines" just a second more and she gasped covering her mouth quickly "Oh my- it's this Friday! She's gonna kill Kai then" she whispered urgently, looking around to see if anyone heard.

"Glad to know all those nail polish fumes haven't gone to your head" he deserved the smack this time and made his way towards the elevator, the line of yellow tape easily stepped around as he stepped in with Ino.

"How sure are you that Kai will be a target" she glared at the blood droplets on the floor, the smeared stain on the door as it shut, Izumo and Kotetsu already taken back to headquarters for treatment.

"It only makes sense she'd go after four men who knew each other" he muttered leaning against the back railing, bracing against his hands with a sigh. Who was she trying to provoke with this attack? When he glanced to Ino, he tensed, he knew the look.

"I guess we'll have to get you a suit then" her smile turned mischievous and Shikamaru groaned loudly.

"This is going to be a drag"