The Anti Thieving Duo

by Power of Magic

Raised on an island and trained in the arts of thievery, 'Dark Fox' (Naruto) and 'Black Sheep' (Carmen) find out the truth of the school. They then leave, and decide to steal back what was stolen and return everything back to the people.

6. The Chasing Paper Caper

The Anti Thieving Duo

"Hello" - (Normal talking)

"What happened?" - (Thoughts)

"What do I do?" - (Flashback)

{"Hey, can you hear me?"} - (Communication)

"\Prepare for departure\" - (Radio and speakers)

Hope that you all enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 6 - The Chasing Paper Caper

(2 days later, VILE Academy)

Maelstrom stood before his fellow Faculty members in their head room with his arms folded behind his back, while the screen behind him was changing into different and various shapes.

"Esteemed fellow VILE faculty" he said as an opening, with an eyebrow cocked while tilting his head. "As you know, I, Gunnar Maelstrom, have been called demented, deranged, psychotic even" he added with a mad look in his eyes, and a mad grin on his face, while the others either had raised eyebrows or neutral looks on their faces, with their arms either folded or hands steepled together.

He then narrowed his eyes, saying "Justifiably? Perhaps. But I feel these are merely labels. Safe ways to categorize my unique intellect, which enables me to see opportunities where others do not. So allow me to draw your attention to this: the very foundation of law and order in the Western world" he finished, while gesturing at the screen.

Coach Brunt looked confused, as she said "Looks more like a lion cub sniffing its own tail if you ask me."

Maelstrom turned around, and saw that was exactly what the picture was. "Uh, wrong slide," he said in embarrassment. He then made the screen go to a piece of old paper. "This. The Magna Carta!" he said, with a hand pointing at it.

Coach Brunt was leaning her head on her hand, while her other one was a fist on her hip, as she said "You're saying words I don't understand" raising an eyebrow.

Gunnar raised his own eyebrow at her, as he groaned before saying "Coach Brunt, I suspect you are familiar with the US Constitution?"

Coach Brunt sat up straight, as she slammed her fist on the table. "Darn right. I'm Texas proud" she said with a frown.

Professor Maelstrom looked back at the screen with a smile, as he said "Think of the Magna Carta as the British version of it, written more than 500 years earlier. And for the first time in history, every known original copy of this historic document, all 17 of them, (here the screen showed the 17 pages) will be on display under one roof. Here, at this renowned museum, in Mumbai, India (the screen then changed to show the museum)." He then turned to face the others, with a cruel grin saying "Which means we have an opportunity to steal it in the name of law and disorder" while clenching his hand into a fist.

Shadowsan looked at Gunnar, as he asked "Would I be correct in assuming that you have a particular operative in mind for this misdeed, Professor?" causing everyone to look at him.

Maelstrom gave a smirk, as he replied "The crime involves stealing paper, does it not?"

Shadowsan gave a frown as he said "She is far from ready" before facing forwards again.

"Questioning my sanity after my compelling intro, dear Shadowsan?" the Professor said with narrowed eyes.

"Carmen Sandiego and Naruto Uzumaki were both unruly and undisciplined when they were students here, and your newest star pupil is cut from the same cloth" Shadowsan said with a deep frown, looking back at Maelstrom.

"Shall we vote? All in favor" Gunnar asked, with his arm raised.

All the others, except Shadowsan, raised their hands in agreement.

Shadowsan gave a grunt of disapproval, while Professor Maelstrom gave a smirk.

0o0o0o0

(Meanwhile, in Mumbai India, outside the museum)

Naruto and Carmen were sitting at a table outside a cafe, drinking some tea and eating some food while looking at the museum.

{"You sure about this, guys?"} Player asked them. {"I'm not picking up any chatter about VILE operatives in India from any of our usual sources."}

Naruto and Carmen took a sip of their tea, before Carmen said "They'll be here. We know how Professor Maelstrom's twisted mind works, and he'd never pass up an opportunity like this."

Naruto nodded in agreement, as he added "Stealing the Magna Carta would be VILE's way of symbolizing that evil can triumph over law and order. At least, that's what they'd tell themselves" while leaning back in his chair, after helping himself to some butter chicken to eat.

Player was typing on his computer, causing some pictures to appear on his screens. "I think I see what you mean," he said, raising his eyes a little before lowering them again.

"In the year 1215, England was ruled by some guy named John. And if he were alive today, he'd probably feel right at home on VILE Island with your former teachers. King John figured he could take anything he wanted just because he was in charge, and he abused that power constantly. The Archbishop of Canterbury stepped in and helped shape a set of laws that gave citizens rights. Basic stuff like you can't be arrested for no reason, or have your horse taken away from you just because the king wants it" Player explained to them.

{"These combined laws were named the Magna Carta, Latin for 'the Great Charter of the Liberties.' It was the chief cause of democracy in England and a huge influence on the American Constitution"} Carmen said.

"Speaking of democracy, India has more people than any other democracy in the world, which is where you happen to be sitting right now," Player said with a grin.

"And since we favor democracy over tyranny, VILE won't be sinking their mangy claws into any historic documents on our watch" Carmen said with a smile. After they finished their drinks and food, they then placed some money in a folder and stood up and walked towards the museum.

Naruto gave his own smile, as he said "We'll do one last perimeter check tonight - see if we can find any weak links VILE might exploit."

0o0o0o0

(Later that night)

That night, Naruto and Carmen were both geared up as they were running on the rooftop of the museum.

{"Ready to shut down the security cams, guys?"} Player asked them, as they were running along, before they spotted something from the corner of their eyes.

"Looks like somebody already did," Naruto said, as he and Carmen spotted an origami throwing star lodged into a shattered screen of a security camera.

Carmen knelt down, and pulled it out as she and Naruto looked at it briefly before she said "She's here" with a frown on her face.

Naruto gave a groan, while dragging his hand down his face saying "Oh great, my adoring, creepy and psychotic fangirl is here" while in a sarcastic tone.

0o0o0o0

(Flashback starts)

A young Naruto and Carmen were walking in the hallways of VILE Academy, while they both had frowns on their faces.

As they were walking, they both raised an eyebrow as they heard someone saying "La, la la, la la... la, la la, la la…" and saw the person skipping towards them, which happened to be a girl who looked to be about a year younger than them.

The girl's hair was heterochromia, meaning it was black on one side and white on the other, which she wore as side buns. She wore the VILE school uniform, and had dark brown eyes.

The two of them watched her go skipping into Shadowsan's classroom, with curious looks on their faces, as the doors closed behind the girl.

"She was at VILE Academy during our holdover year," Carmen said.

Naruto and Carmen saw shadows of the girl and Shadowsan bowing before each other, before the girl ran at Shadowsan, who dodged her attack by sidestepping. The girl then threw something, which Shadowsan dodged before it cut through the paper doors, causing Shadowsan to give a grunt of annoyance.

"And had a reputation for putting her own spin on Shadowsan's origami lessons, which didn't exactly make her teacher's pet" Naruto added. He then gave a shudder, as he said "And for some reason, she took a real liking to me."

The girl was seen following Naruto from time to time, hiding behind pillars, peaking round corners and things like that, all with a creepy smile on her face.

(Flashback over)

0o0o0o0

Naruto and Carmen found a window that was left open, and snuck inside the museum. They quickly and quietly ran towards where the Magna Carta was being held, and when they arrived they saw someone skipping along saying "La, la la, la la... la, la la, la la... la, la la, la la" while taking out the security cameras….with paper shurikens.

She was wearing a neon green leather jacket with spikes on the shoulders and wrists over a V.I.L.E. stealth suit, along with heavy purple lipstick on her lips, multicolored nail polish, and she wore dull purple thigh-high platform boots. She was also creating her paper shurikens with just one hand, showing that she was ambidextrous.

Before she could skip any further, Carmen said "Museum's closed" which caused her to stop. "We're here to give you your walking papers," Naruto added.

"Mm. Papers" the girl said with an evil smile, holding a small piece of paper in her hand.

Naruto and Carmen fired their grappling hooks, and swung towards the female, who created two throwing stars and threw them at the lines, cutting them. Naruto and Carmen both flipped through the air, and grunted as they landed safely behind her in a crouch. They stood up, and walked off to the side of her.

"Paper Star. We see you haven't lost your touch" Carmen said with a neutral look on her face.

"Red is a smart color for you. It will hide the stains" Paper Star said to Carmen, before she showed multiple paper shuriken in her hands which she then threw at her, causing Carmen to dodge them, before she cartwheeled away from a large bunch of them, causing them to either end up in the wall or the pillar behind Carmen.

While this was happening, Paper Star briefly looked at Naruto and said "Naruto-kun, I'm hurt that you left VILE Isle before we could get to know each other better" with a fake hurt look, while still grinning psychotically. She then threw paper throwing stars at him too, making him dodge them by somersaulting and cartwheeling over to Carmen.

"Sorry Paper Star, but you were just never my type" Naruto told her.

Paper Star glared at them both, before she put both her hands into the pouches on her hips and quickly began making shuriken stars before she began throwing them at Naruto and Carmen.

They both dodged them by leaning to the side, or side stepping them and even had to cartwheel once or twice. They then ran towards her while avoiding the shuriken, with Carmen kicking a vase at her while Paper Star leaned to the side to avoid it, before Naruto leapt up and kicked at her. Paper Star put her arms up to block, making her slide back a bit while giving a grunt. She then lowered her arms, and gave them both a psychotic grin

Naruto and Carmen stood next to each other in fighting stances, as they gave Paper Star smirks. Paper Star held up her hands, showing a throwing star in each hand, before she spread her fingers out to show many more in her hands, causing Naruto and Carmen to both tense up.

Paper Star then threw all the paper throwing stars at them, causing them both to run off to one side, while Paper Star kept on creating more and more paper shuriken to throw at them. And while she started off slowly at first, she then gained speed and started creating and throwing them rapidly.

Naruto and Carmen dodged all the paper throwing stars heading their way, where they all ended up in the wall or the pillars they ran past. They both leapt up, and springboarded off a wall so that they could hide behind a pillar.

Paper Star kept on creating paper shuriken, and peppering the area where they were hiding with them, until she suddenly stopped. When they heard nothing hitting the pillar, they both peaked round the corner slightly until they heard a crinkle of paper being folded. They both had looks of realisation, and dodged Paper Star just as she tried to stab them with knives of paper from behind.

They backpedaled as they dodged a few of her swings, before turning around and running off to dodge more of her paper throwing stars. They bobbed and weaved through her thrown paper shuriken, while Paper Star had a sadistic look on her face as she chuckled.

Paper Star then reached into her pouches, and tried to find some more paper but found out that she didn't have any more, causing her to sigh in annoyance.

Naruto and Carmen backflipped to avoid the last few paper throwing stars, before they both landed in a crouch. They then looked up at her with smiles on their faces, as Naruto said "Out of ammo? That'll teach you to litter."

Paper Star gave them both a scowl, before she looked to the side and saw a few brochures. She then gave a smirk, while Naruto and Carmen both raised an eyebrow.

"I really should reuse, reduce, and recycle," Paper Star said with a smirk, as she picked some up and started folding them. "These brochures are chock-full of 'cutting-edge' information" she finished with a cruel smile, as she held them up as large paper shuriken.

She then started throwing them at Naruto and Carmen, who dodged them by weaving around them, before they both ran for cover behind a statue.

They both had unhappy looks on their faces, as they each peaked round a corner with the front part of Carmen's hat being sliced off.

"Oh, come on," she said with a frown, as she looked up at the damage.

"All this talk about the great Carmen Sandiego and Naruto Uzumaki, but in the flesh, you're both just paper tigers. Mrowr" Paper Star said, as she had two paper origami tigers in front of her, as she made them move about a bit. She then threw them both at the statue's head, beheading it. Naruto and Carmen caught it before it broke, and carefully placed it down on the floor before seeing that Paper Star had disappeared. After looking around for her, they spotted her entering a room on the second floor.

They both frowned, before they ran up the stairs as they headed for the room she ran into, which they saw had the copies of the Magna Carta in a glass case at the end of the room.

They both were cautious as they entered the room, making sure to look everywhere for Paper Star, while hearing her singing "La, la la, la la... la, la la, la la... la, la la, la la... la, la la, la la" quite faintly.

As they walked further into the room while looking for her, they had to quickly move as various paper weapons tried to hit them. As they looked around for Paper Star, they looked up as a hanging scroll fell from the ceiling, with Paper Star hanging from it before she tied them up in it with their backs pressed against each other.

Paper Star gave a giggle, as she watched them struggling to escape. "Such a pretty package. Hmm, think I'll keep you under wraps" she said, before skipping towards the display case where the Magna Carta was being held. She then pulled a tool out, which she used to cut through the glass.

Naruto and Carmen struggled even more in their bindings, as they both gave a yell.

Paper Star turned around and wagged her finger at them, while shaking her head slightly as she said "Mm-mm-mm. The more you struggle, the tighter it gets." She then pulled out a collapsible bag from her jacket and extended it to full length, and started rolling up the pieces of paper before placing them inside the bag.

Naruto was able to move around enough that he was able to grab a small knife, and used it to start cutting through the scroll, while being careful not to cut himself or Carmen.

Paper Star rolled up the last piece of the Magna Carta, and placed it in the bag as Naruto continued to cut through the scroll while he gave off a few grunts.

Paper Star placed the bag over her shoulder, and placed a bear origami in the case before she skipped past Naruto and Carmen, until she reached a fire alarm switch.

She looked over her shoulder at them, as she said "Bye-bye, little Black Sheep" as she pulled down the alarm with a cruel smirk on her face, setting it off. Before she left, she blew Naruto a kiss and gave him a wink saying "Catch ya later foxy" before she skipped off.

Naruto and Carmen broke out of the scroll, and jumped off the ground before running after Paper Star. They ran out of the room, and briefly looked around, before they looked down to the ground floor and saw Paper Star skipping off to the exit, while giggling.

They both gave frowns, before dashing for the stairs and then for the exit. When they got outside, they looked around and couldn't find Paper Star anywhere.

"Damn it, she got away," Naruto said with a glare, slamming his fist into his palm.

Carmen gave her own glare, before looking at her hat and gave a sigh of annoyance. "Looks like I'll need to buy a new hat" she said unhappily.

"C'mon, let's head back to the hotel and get some sleep," Naruto said, as he placed an arm around Carmen's shoulder, and led her off to where they were staying.

0o0o0o0

(The next morning)

Chase and Julia were in the museum with a few other A.C.M.E agents, who were either taking photos or looking the place over, while Chase and Julia stood before the glass case the Magna Carta was in.

Chase picked up the bear origami, as he said "It seems Carmen Sandiego and Naruto Uzumaki have found some new hobbies: arts and crafts and stealing historic documents!" while frowning.

"It is origami, the Japanese art of paper folding," Julia explained, as she looked at the bear in Chase's hand.

"Ugh," Chase groaned out, as he tossed away said origami before he turned around and walked away.

Julia frowned, as she said "Right. Dull facts, boring things" before she followed after him. "But Carmen Sandiego and Naruto Uzumaki's recent MO seems to be returning valuables to museums, not stealing them" Julia said, as they walked past the other agents.

Chase raised an eyebrow, while rolling his eyes as he said "Again with the Vermeer paintings, Agent Argent? That has not been proven, so please, do not romanticize the scoundrel's" as they exited the room, before he leaned on the rails and looked down at the ground floor.

Julia looked down herself, as she said "The crime scene is also sloppier than Ms. Sandiego and Mr. Uzumaki normally leaves it. Wouldn't you agree, Agent Devineaux?" while narrowing her eyes slightly

"Well... it does look like a monsoon hit in here. They both must have been in a hurry" Chase said, looking at all the destruction with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"Or in a struggle" Julia said looking at him with furrowed eyebrows, causing Chase to look at her with a cocked eyebrow.

Before anymore could be said, Chase heard a beeping noise, causing him to reach into his inside jacket pocket and pull out his ACME pen, which was making the beeping noise while its button was flashing.

Chase pressed down on the button which stopped the beeping and flashing light, and turned around before he dropped it on the ground, where it landed on its tip, and caused a hologram of the Chief to appear, with her arms folded behind her back.

"Greetings from Mumbai, Chief," Chase said.

Chief looked from one to the other, with a cocked eyebrow as she said "Agents, I trust that you were able to gain entry to the crime scene without incident."

Chase pulled a card from his jacket with a smile on his face, as he said "This toy is incredible" revealing the card to be an ACME keycard. "We were able to clear all local authorities away with one flash" as he pressed on it a few times, causing his face to appear on it along with some other info.

Chief walked over to the doorway to watch the other agents work, as she said "Your ACME keycard will provide you with Level One clearance anywhere in the world. And gets you 10% off your purchase at any company store" she finished with a smile.

Chase looked at his keycard in interest, before he said "Where can I find these stores? And do they carry bulk quantities of razor blades, cheese, or breath freshener?" causing Chief to frown, as she looked over her shoulder at him.

Chase then looked worried, before coughing slightly into his hand, as he said "Uh yes, the case" while looking off to one side.

Chief faced the front again, with an arm raised as she said "ACME has just obtained this surveillance footage. It's taken from the cafe across the street. Unlike the museum, their security cameras weren't disabled" as a photo of Naruto and Carmen appeared, with their eyes hidden by their respective hats.

"Aha! Carmen Sandiego and Naruto Uzumaki!" Chase exclaimed with a smile on his face and narrowed eyebrows, as he clenched his fists, while Julia and the Chief looked at him.

"I need you to be certain that the woman isn't another copycat, like your snowmobile incident?" Chief said, as she looked at him with a cocked eyebrow, making Chase avert his eyes. Chief turned around, and said "You are the only ACME agent who has been face-to-face with them both, Monsieur Devineaux" narrowing her eyes slightly.

Chase gave a nod, as he said "That is indeed Ms. Sandiego, I'm certain of it."

Julia looked at the photo with a frown and adjusted her glasses, as she asked "Can we roll it back 30 frames, please?" making Chase look at her in surprise with a raised eyebrow for a moment, before looking back at the screen.

Chief nods before she looks at the screen, as it rewinded slightly and stopped, as it showed a blur.

"Do you see that blur of color?" Julia said, pointing at the screen, as it zoomed in on a blurred Paper Star running through the bushes.

Chief raised an eyebrow in interest, as she asked "A second figure?"

Chase scowled, as he said "An accomplice!"

"I was going to suggest a rival," Julia said, making Chase and Chief look at her with a raised eyebrow each. "Which might explain the debris," Julia finished with a cocked eyebrow, as she turned her head slightly to look down at the ground floor.

Chief turned around herself, and looked shocked as she saw the damage before asking "Whoa. Who TP'd the place?"

0o0o0o0

(Sometime later, with Naruto and Carmen)

Both Naruto and Carmen were sitting on some rocks along a canal in Mumbai, while Carmen looked at her ruined hat.

"That multicolored freak show owes me a new hat," Carmen said with a frown, as she looked into the water, while leaning against Naruto.

{"Make her take you shopping"} Player said.

"I would, if she left a paper trail" Carmen said, as she touched her earpiece.

This caused Naruto to throw his head back, and laugh as he said "Oh, oh that's a good one."

{"Ha! If only"} Player said with his own laugh, with Naruto and Carmen knowing that he was smiling.

"We need to find Paper Star before she hands off the Magna Cartas to the next operative" Carmen said with a slight frown.

{"Why not just take them back to VILE herself?"} Player asked.

"Standard procedure on all VILE operations" Carmen said, as she and Naruto stood up and started walking along the canal. Naruto nodded his head in agreement, saying "This way, no one operative knows too much about any given job. If they get nabbed, they can only divulge so much information."

Player was in his room, playing with a fidget spinner with one hand and typing with the other, as he said "Well, don't sweat yet, guys. I'm scanning all local surveillance and pushing my new facial recognition software to the max. If she's still in India, I'll pin her down" while giving a small frown, as his computer screen flashed through different cameras and multiple faces.

0o0o0o0

(That night, at Mumbai's Elephanta Caves)

Le Chevre was climbing down a cliff, and once he reached the top of the caves he jumped down and landed in a crouch before he got up and entered the caves.

As he was walking along, he looked from side to side with a cocked eyebrow, before he could faintly hear "La, la la, la la... La, la la, la la... la, la la, la la…" letting him know that Paper Star was already here.

He soon arrived at the back of the temple, where he saw her sitting cross legged and two floating lanterns on either side of her, as she folded paper to make some kind of origami, while the bag was in her lap. He gave a small smirk as he continued walking towards her, while narrowing his eyes a little.

He soon stopped before her, and said "I see that I am not the only one who admires Mumbai's historic Elephanta Caves."

Paper Star ignored him, as she kept on singing while folding origami.

Le Chevre gave a disapproving frown, before he cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow as he whispered "The fish swims at midnight" while glancing off to one side with narrowed eyes. Paper Star continued to ignore him, as she kept on making origami while singing, until she'd finally finished her origami creation which was a fish.

Le Chevre had a cocked eyebrow, as she was still ignoring him. "I repeat, the fish swims at midni-" he said more loudly, until he was interrupted.

"No need to speak in code" Paper Star told him as he jumped slightly, while she held her fish origami off to one side. "Now, tell me where to escort this. A designated safe house outside this country's borders, I assume?" she asked him, with slightly narrowed eyes

Le Chevre looked outraged, as he walked over to her while saying "What? That is not how this works. Protocol dictates that you give me the package to deliver" as he had a frown on his face, while cocking an eyebrow at her.

Paper Star had closed her eyes, and lowered her head slightly for a moment, before opening them and looking up at Le Chevre as she said "Protocol exists to protect VILE should an operative get caught. And you look like an operative who would get caught" as she gave him a frown, along with a scowl.

Le Chevre scowled back at her, as he said "I have completed more successful missions than you, Pippi Punkstockings! Now give me the package."

As he tried to take it from her, Paper Star used her fish origami to cut his finger.

"Ouch!" Le Chevre exclaimed, before he started sucking on his finger, with a look of concern on his face.

Paper Star held the origami fish up with a cruel look on her face, as she said "Perhaps the fish does swim at midnight" before she stood up.

After sucking his finger, Le Chevre looked at her in anger as he said "You gave me a paper cut!"

Paper Star moved her hand slightly, which made the origami fish tail puff out and its face to extend, causing Le Chevre to look at it in surprise. "Puffer fish. Very lethal. It will give you a thousand paper cuts unless you tell me the next drop location" Paper Star said with a sadistic look as she walked forward, causing Le Chevre to back up as he held his hand with a look of worry on his face.

She then used the fish to cut him again, causing him to yell out "Ouch!" as he hit the stone pillar behind him, before he slid to the ground. He then looked up, as Paper Star towered over him. He then held his hands up over his head, as he said "No, not my hands! Not my hands!" as Paper Star held the puffer fish origami up menacingly in front of her face, while narrowing her eyes at him, before she raised it up and cut him again, causing his screams to be heard all the way outside the caves.

0o0o0o0

(Sometime later, VILE Academy)

Le Chevre was on the big screen, after telling the Faculty everything that happened with him and Paper Star.

Shadowsan had his eyes closed and head slightly bowed, before looking up and opening his eyes as he asked "Where is she now?" as he narrowed his eyes.

Le Chevre looked worried, as he replied "On her way to Agra City."

"And how did she learn of Agra?" Maelstrom asked with narrowed eyes.

Le Chevre looked off to the side at this. "I-I had no choice! She is psychotic!" he said with a look of fear on his face, as he held up his bandaged hands. This caused the Faculty members to look at each other.

Gunnar laughed quietly, as he said "Merely a label, you know" while shrugging slightly.

0o0o0o0

(The next day, with Naruto and Carmen)

Naruto and Carmen were walking along, as Carmen held her phone, which had a picture of a ferry on it, along with a familiar someone as a passenger.

{"This was taken less than an hour ago, on a ferry coming into Mumbai Harbor"} Player told them, as Carmen zoomed in on Paper Star on the ferry.

"Looks like our litterbug is still packing the Magna Cartas" Carmen said, seeing that she still had the tube slung over her shoulder. Naruto cocked an eyebrow at this, as he said "I wonder why she didn't hand it over to the next operative as protocol dictates."

{"Maybe she sees herself as being confident enough to finish the job herself, without any help or assistance?"} Player said.

Both Naruto and Carmen gave slight nods at that, with Carmen saying "Or, she doesn't want to follow the rules."

"Yeah, maybe," Naruto said with a small shrug. He then asked "Can you access the passenger list Player?"

{"Coming your way"} Player told him.

A whole bunch of names appeared on the phone's screen, which Carmen scrolled through until she stopped at a certain name. Naruto looked over her shoulder at the name, and said "Tammy Origami." He and Carmen looked at each other in realisation, with Carmen saying "She's going by an alias."

{"That's not too obvious"} Player said in disbelief.

"It's Paper Star's way of saying, 'Come and get me if you dare,' which suits us just fine," Naruto said, punching his fist into his palm. Carmen nodded in agreement, as she looked to the sky, while saying "Player, I need you to cross-check that name against any mode of transportation that you can think of. Plane tickets, train tickets, car rentals, anything."

Player was quickly typing on his computer, until he got a beep, meaning he'd found something. He gave a smile, as he said "Found her. One 'Tammy' bought a one-way ticket to Agra City on the 9:30am express train. Guess she wants to see the Taj Mahal."

Both Naruto and Carmen smiled while looking off into the distance, before they looked at each other as Carmen said "Let's chase that paper" and turned to walk off, with a confident smirk on her face, as Naruto nodded while following after her with his own smirk.

0o0o0o0

(A few hours later, on the train)

Naruto and Carmen were both on the train, as they walked through the carriages while looking for Paper Star. As they entered the next one, they saw Paper Star a few seats in front of them, as they sat down.

"Target spotted," Carmen said, while Naruto leaned against the window and watched the scenery pass by.

{"You guys gonna make a move?"} Player asked curiously.

"In close quarters like this, with a wild card like her? Someone could get hurt" Carmen said with a frown. Naruto nodded in agreement, saying "We'll strike the moment she gets off the train. Until then, we just need to stay out of her sight while keeping her in ours."

As they were looking at the back of Paper Star's head, Chase sat in the seat opposite them blocking Paper Star from their view, with his arms draped on the back of the chair and a confident grin on his face.

"Ms. Sandiego and Mr. Uzumaki, I presume" he said to them, with narrowed eyes.

Naruto and Carmen both groaned at seeing him, narrowing their own eyes in annoyance.

"I almost didn't recognize you two without your... evening wear" Chase said, as he raised his hand.

They both raised an eyebrow at him along with a small smirk each, as Carmen asked "Aren't you a bit out of your jurisdiction, Inspector Devineaux?"

"I recently acquired greater authority," he replied with a smile, acting as though they were old friends.

"Wow, that's awfully vague, Inspector. Is it even 'Inspector' anymore?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow.

Chase then leaned forward, and placed his arm on his knee. "Enough chit chat! Where are you hiding the Magna Cartas?!" he asked them with a small frown.

"Us? Nowhere" Carmen said, as she and Naruto both gave a slight smile. "But they are closer than you think," Naruto added, as he and Carmen saw Paper Star get up off her seat and walk off.

Chase narrowed his eyes on them both. "You will both take me to them," he said.

Carmen and Naruto both smiled as they looked at each other with a side glance, before looking at Chase. "Or what? You'll cuff us?" Carmen asked, as both her and Naruto raised an eyebrow at him.

Chase briefly looked surprised, before composing himself as he pulled some cuffs from his jacket and said "Why, yes. I lost you both on a train once before. Never again" as he frowned at them, before standing up as he leaned towards them.

Just as he did, the train entered a tunnel, and the clicking of the cuffs could be heard. And when the train exited the tunnel a moment later, it revealed that Chase was the one who was cuffed to the seat's armrest, instead of Naruto and Carmen.

"Wh-what?" Chase said in shocked surprise, as he struggled to escape from the cuffs. He then looked around, as he said "No, no, no, no, no, no, no!"

0o0o0o0

(Meanwhile)

Naruto and Carmen had left the train carriage, and were going to the next one while Carmen held Chase's ACME keycard.

"ACME, huh?" Carmen said with a raised eyebrow in interest.

"Most likely an acronym, like VILE is" Naruto said, as he rubbed his chin in thought.

Carmen gave a nod of agreement, as she pocketed the keycard before they both entered the next train carriage, which happened to be the dining carriage.

They carefully closed the door, and used the window to see that Paper Star had sat down at the other end of the carriage, and was being served a meal, where she gave a smile upon seeing it.

Naruto and Carmen both frowned, as they turned around and walked over to a table, just as the waiter left through the other door.

Upon seeing that the table was occupied with only one person, Naruto asked "These seats taken?" as he and Carmen sat down in two of the spare seats, with Naruto next to the person already sitting there, while Carmen sat across from him.

"Actually, yes" came a reply from the person, which happened to be Julia. "But... feel free to use it until my partner returns," she said with a slight smile and an uneasy look, while looking at something on her iPad.

Carmen used the mirror in her pocket mirror to look at Paper Star who was folding her napkin into a fork, while Naruto held a menu up to his face and had his eyes peeking over the top of it.

"Partner?" Carmen asked curiously with a raised eyebrow, with Naruto raising his own eyebrow in curiosity, before they both looked at a briefcase next to Carmen with a small frown each, which had the initials C.D. on the side.

Julia coughed into her hand slightly, before saying "Travel partner" clarifying things for the two of them, as Carmen saw with her mirror Paper Star use her napkin fork to eat her food.

"I see," Carmen said, closing her pocket mirror and putting it away. "And you are?" she then asked.

"Julia," Julia said in greeting.

"So, Jules... Off to see the Taj Mahal?" Naruto asked her, as he placed the menu down before putting his elbow on the table, leaning his chin on his hand, while Carmen used a spoon's reflection to watch Paper Star.

"Oh, I wish. The architecture, the history" she said with a smile. "Sadly, I'm traveling on business" she then said with a frown, placing her elbow on the table while putting her chin on her hand.

"Don't like your job, huh?" Carmen asked with slightly raised eyebrows.

"No, no. I love my job" Julia said, glancing off to the side with a slightly raised eyebrow. "I just love history even more, I suppose" she finished, looking back at Carmen.

"Then you must be really upset about the Magna Carta," Naruto said to her with his eyes slightly narrowed, as Carmen nodded in agreement.

"What?" Julia asked while sitting up in shocked surprise, looking from Naruto to Carmen with a small frown.

"The theft. It's in all the news" Carmen said to her, as she glanced at the spoon and saw Paper Star getting up from her table and leaving the carriage, causing her and Naruto to narrow their eyes.

"Wonderful chatting with you, Jules!" Carmen said, as they both got up.

"Yeah. Hope to see you again sometime" Naruto said, as they waved at her before walking off.

"But I never did get your names" Julia said, before narrowing her eyes with a raised eyebrow and a frown. She then gasped in realisation, as she stood up and watched the two of them exiting the dining car.

She then pulled her phone out, and pressed a button on it, before placing it at her ear where she heard it ringing.

She frowned as she kept on hearing the ringing, as she said "Come on, come on." She then heard a click, before she said "Agent Devineaux, I've found both Carmen San -" until she was interrupted.

"\You've reached Inspector Chase Devineaux. Please, leave a message\" she heard his answering machine say, before hearing a beep.

"Oh dear" she said, taking the phone away from her ear, with a look of worry on her face.

0o0o0o0

(In the trains cabin carriage)

Naruto and Carmen closed the door behind them with suspicious looks on their faces, seeing that they were in the carriage that had the cabin seating area. They carefully crept along, pressing themselves against the walls, as they looked in the cabins while trying to find Paper Star.

They eventually came across the cabin that she was in, and peeked in to see her taking the bag off and placing it on an overhead shelf. She then quickly turned around, and threw paper shuriken at them, which caught them by surprise as they leaned back while the shurikens nicked the door frame.

They then frowned as they ran into the room, with Carmen tackling Paper Star, just as she was about to make more paper weapons, and holding her down, while Naruto climbed onto the seat to grab the bag with the Magna Carta inside it.

"Hey!" Paper Star exclaimed, as some of her paper got tossed in the air when she was pushed down. She soon pushed Carmen off of her, sending her onto the floor, before she grabbed Naruto and pulled him down just as he was about to get the bag.

Paper Star held him down, before they started rolling about on the couch while gripping onto each other's wrist. Paper Star looked up at Naruto with a smile, as she said "You know, if you came back to VILE Isle, we could do this every time. So long as you dumped the red head of course."

Naruto gave Paper Star a scowl, as he replied "Sorry, but I don't go for crazy. It's a real turn off."

Paper Star gave him a scowl in return, before shoving him off of her and onto the floor next to Carmen, who was rubbing her head. They then both looked up at Paper Star with raised eyebrows, as she dipped her hands into her pouches to grab some paper….only to realise that she had none.

While she was distracted that she had no more pieces of paper to use, Naruto and Carmen flushed the paper that they'd grabbed from her pouches down the toilet in the next room.

The two of them turned to Paper Star with confident smirks on their faces while walking forward, as Carmen said "Stinks running out of paper." Naruto folded his arms over his chest while saying "Now can we try chatting without killing any trees?"

Paper Star placed the bag over her shoulder with an upset look on her face, before looking at something off to the side, which caused her eyes to widen along with giving a smile.

Naruto and Carmen looked in the same direction with raised eyebrows, and saw that there was a travel brochure on the table.

Paper Star gave a smirk, as she said "You should run" with them both looking at her in surprise, before narrowing their eyes at her.

After staring at each other for a few moments, they then lunged for the brochure as they grabbed it at the sametime. As they tried to stop the other from taking it off the table, Naruto barged his shoulder into Paper Star which sent her stumbling back with a yell.

After righting herself, she then went to punch him which caused his eyes to widen slightly, before he dodged by leaning back and moving to the side. Seeing Naruto had dodged her, Paper Star instead threw a few punches at Carmen, which she dodged by moving side to side, while having a frown on her face.

Paper Star then did a spinning back kick, which Carmen dodged by jumping into the air and grabbing onto the light, before bringing her feet up and letting go as she extended her legs.

Paper Star dodged the attack, as she rolled to the floor before she got up and tried to run for it. Carmen and Naruto ran after her, with Carmen grabbing the bag and spun her around while Paper Star had a look of shocked surprise on her face, as Naruto tried to sweep her off her feet once Carmen let go, but Paper Star avoided this by doing a cartwheel over his leg.

Naruto then got up, and stood next to Carmen with them both glaring at Paper Star, who glared back in return. Paper Star then ran towards them, and started throwing punches and kicks at the both of them, which they avoided by leaning out of the way. Naruto then grabbed her arm and slammed his palm into her chest, which sent her back a bit.

Paper Star held her chest in pain for a moment, before she tried to grab the brochure from Carmen, with Naruto trying to stop her by getting in the way, but Paper Star punched him in the stomach and shoved him to the side. She then reached for the brochure, which Carmen tried to keep out of her reach, but Paper Star was able to grab it and stepped back with a victorious smirk on her face, while Carmen frowned along with Naruto who stood next to her, while holding his stomach in pain.

Paper Star ripped the brochure in half, and turned the two halves into triangles. "Care to run now?" she asked them with a smirk, which soon turned to surprise, when she noticed that Carmen had the bag with the Magna Carta over her back. "See ya later" Naruto said with a cheeky grin, as he gave her a two finger salute before running after Carmen.

Paper Star gave a growl of frustration, before she ran after them. Carmen opened the door at the end of the train carriage, with Naruto close behind her. As Naruto reached for the door into the next carriage, Paper Star threw one of the paper triangles at the door to stop him, causing them to look back in surprise and they saw her running towards them, with a scowl on her face.

"Looks like we go up," Carmen said, before she started climbing up the ladder. "I'm right behind ya," Naruto said as he followed after her, with Paper Star not far behind him.

As they went to the roof, they ran to the front of the train before seeing that there was no more train to run on, and no way down.

They turned around and saw Paper Star walking towards them confidently, while having a smirk on her face.

"Nowhere to hide. Not very smart" Paper Star said with narrowed eyes, before throwing her final paper triangle at them. They both put their arms up to protect themselves as it got nearer, but the wind caused it to boomerang back to Paper Star, causing her to duck under it with a frown.

"Oh, really?" Carmen said confidently with a smirk. "Wind beats paper," Naruto added with his own smirk, while folding his arms.

Paper Star grit her teeth together in annoyance, before she charged at them as they ran towards her. As they neared each other, Paper Star moved one of her shoulders forward, while Carmen went for a punch and Naruto decided to go for a karate chop.

Paper Star ducked under both their attacks, and barged her shoulder into Carmen, sending her back a bit.

She then turned to Naruto, and tried to uppercut him but he dodged it by moving around her, and kicked her in the back. Paper Star stumbled forward slightly, before turning around and gave him a spinning kick to the chest, which sent him flying back a bit where he ended up at where they'd climbed up.

Paper Star then turned around and threw a few punches at Carmen, who moved her head out of the way before she grabbed her arm and threw her over her shoulder. Paper Star gave a yell of surprise, before planting her feet so she didn't end up on her back, and grabbed hold of both Carmen's arms.

Carmen looked at her in surprise, while Paper Star gave her a smirk before she jumped over Carmen and shoved her in the back, while grabbing hold of the bag with the Magna Carta. She then spun Carmen round, and threw her towards the side of the train as she slipped the bag off her.

Naruto got to his feet, while holding his chest in slight pain, and saw this. "Carmen!" Naruto yelled out in worry as he saw her teetering on the edge, before he gave a sigh of relief as he saw her grab onto the strap of the bag, which caught Paper Star by surprise.

Carmen then looked towards the front of the train, and saw some metal beams coming towards her, which Naruto soon noticed as well.

"Babe, you need to get out of there! Now!" Naruto shouted, as he ran towards her and Paper Star.

Carmen reached out, and grabbed Paper Star by her stealth suit causing her to let out a gasp of surprise, which Carmen used to pull herself up and avoid the metal beams hitting her. She then gave Paper Star a smirk, who gave her a frown, before Carmen headbutted her which sent her back with a yell of pain, as Carmen jumped away from the edge.

The two of them both pulled at the bag in a game of tug of war for a few moments, before Paper Star swung her around again, and threw her back over the side again, where she hit the roof and fell over with a yell.

"CARMEN!" Naruto yelled with his hand outstretched, before kneeling down as he looked over the side and saw her hanging onto the edge of the roof, where he gave a sigh of relief.

"I'm fine, get Paper Star" Carmen shouted to him, as she tried to climb back up.

Naruto nodded his head, and stood up as he ran after Paper Star. When he was close enough, he tackled her to the ground which caused her to yell out in surprise.

She then elbowed him in the face, causing him to cry out in pain as he was forced to get off her. They both climbed to their feet, with Naruto glaring at her and Paper Star was giving him a smirk.

"Ready to dance, foxy?" Paper Star asked him, sending a wink his way.

Naruto just growled, before dashing at her with Paper Star doing the same.

Naruto threw a punch, which she ducked under before trying to slam her palm into his chin, which Naruto avoided by leaning his head back slightly. Paper Star then did a side kick at him, which Naruto dodged by throwing himself backwards onto the trains roof with his hands next to his head, which he used to throw himself back to his feet, as Paper Star had done a full spin and leapt into the air as she'd tried to slam her foot on him, which he dodged.

Paper Star then looked over at Carmen, just as she pulled herself up onto the roof, before looking at the front of the train, and saw it was about to pass under a bridge, which had a ladder going to a walkway.

Paper Star gave her and Naruto both a smirk, before she ran forward and jumped as she grabbed the ladders bottom rung, and held on as she gave them both a mocking wave.

Naruto and Carmen frowned at this, before they ran back the way they came. Knowing they were not fast enough to get to her, as the train kept on getting further and further away from her, they spotted a small chimney-like object on a carriage with a metal plate on top of it.

They ran over to it, with Naruto yanking it off and preparing to throw it. "Here goes nothing" he said, before he threw it at the straps on the bag which cut right through them, making Paper Star look upset.

Carmen was racing towards the back of the train to grab the bag, which she did as she threw herself forward and grabbed it before hitting the tracks.

She then stood up while holding the bag, giving Paper Star a smirk as Naruto walked up behind her with his own smirk. Paper Star watched them go, with a frown on her face.

0o0o0o0

(Back on the train)

Julia opened the door into a carriage, as she looked around for Chase. She was walking down the aisle, when she heard a groan from a seat and when she looked over, she saw it was Chase who was still handcuffed to the armrest.

"Agent Devineaux? How did you...?" Julia was asking him, before he interrupted her.

"Never mind that! The keys are in my briefcase!" Chase told her angrily, with a frown on his face.

Julia nodded in understanding, before she turned around and headed back to the dining car, just as the train was pulling into a station. When she got there, she saw that there was a bag leaning against Chase's briefcase. She popped the lid open to look inside it, and saw that the Magna Carta's were inside it, which caused her to gasp in surprise.

0o0o0o0

(At the station)

Naruto and Carmen were getting off the train, with their arms looped together.

{"So you have the docs?"} Player asked them.

"They're in good hands," Naruto said, as they both looked back with a smile. Carmen nodded her head, before saying "Though it seems our friend Inspector Chase Devineaux may be running with a slicker outfit these days. Picked his pocket. Think you can hack a keycard?"

{"Worth a try. Send it over"} Player said.

Carmen reached into her pocket for the keycard, only for her to realise that it was gone, which caused her to gasp in shock.

"What is it?" Naruto asked her, as she looked around.

"I don't have the keycard" Carmen said, which caused Naruto to look shocked himself.

{"Did you drop it or something?"} Player asked her.

Carmen shook her head at this, as she replied "No. The only way I could have lost it, is if someone picked my pocket."

"You think someone did it when we were on the train?" Naruto asked her.

Carmen shook her head at hearing this, as she said "Not possible, what with our pickpocketing skills thanks to VILE. The only person I can think of that was close enough to do it was…." before her eyes widened in realisation, before narrowing into a glare "...Paper Star."

0o0o0o0

(VILE Isle, a few hours later)

It was nighttime at the island, and all the Faculty members were meeting.

"Did you not assure us that Paper Star was ready?" Shadowsan said with a scowl.

Gunnar sighed at this, with his fingers pressed together. "I never instructed her to break protocol" he said, as he looked over at Shadowsan with a frown.

Before anyone else could say something, they all heard Paper Star singing "La, la la la, la... la, la la la... la, la la la…" which made them look forwards, as they saw her come skipping into the room.

"Faculty only, Sassy Pants" Coach Brunt said with a deadpan.

Paper Star shrugged her shoulders slightly, as she said "But my ears were burning" with an apologetic look on her face.

Professor Maelstrom narrowed his eyes on her. "You failed to complete your mission" he said, before standing up.

Paper Star gave a small smile, as she said "Guilty as charged. But I never come to a party empty-handed" as she narrowed her eyes slightly, before holding something up in her hand then throwing it on the table, where it landed in front of Maelstrom, causing Brunt and Cleo to lean away in case it hit them.

Gunnar picked it up, and narrowed his eyes with interest upon seeing it was a keycard that had A.C.M.E on it.

0o0o0o0

Hope that everyone enjoyed the chapter, and that you're doing what you can to avoid getting this COVID by following the rules. Let's hope that now the vaccines are all done, we can rest a bit easier.

I have also posted a few story ideas on my home page, and if any of you want to use them please let me know.