Scarlet Justice - ep. 125
"Hospitality"
[Days of Thunder: Chapter of Spiral Fox, Part 3]
Another morning in late spring.
"..."
The fight with Naruto will take place in two weeks, as we've decided. Proper arrangements will be made and updated as the days progress. Until then, we will continue on our separate paths. I don't have any need to do special training for the upcoming event. Although what Jiraiya said was quite ominous...
"Scars, then..." A Naruto that was strong enough to overpower him so suddenly. Would he be about be even with Sasuke's curse mark form? Or stronger than that? It remains to be seen, but I did ascend to a new form and eliminate a strong opponent in Kakuzu. If it comes to that...I have the tools to crush him completely.
I yawn and rub at my head. That's enough worrying for now. Time to eat and take care of a few things. Fio is already out of bed, and I can hear the shower running faintly. Seems like she's on duty today, so I can cook her a good breakfast before she goes. I pick up the cordless phone, check the clock on my nightstand, and then dial Hina's number.
"Good morning, Hinata Hyuuga speaking."
"Good morning, Hina."
"Good morning, Lili. How are you doing?"
"Just fine, my love. I wanted to call and give you a proper update regarding your husband. Many things have happened...have you eaten breakfast yet?"
"Not yet. Have you?"
"No, I'm about to cook right now. Call me back when you've done so, won't you?"
"I will. Until then, Lili."
"Yes, until then." I hang up and set the phone down, then start with my usual stretches for the morning. Always nice to keep the body flexible, and if anything is off I can take care of it before I run into trouble.
"Hey, morning."
"Good morning, Fio."
"..." She steps into view, wearing one of my bathrobes. Her head tilts to one side.
"Something the matter, love?"
"Nothing. Just...wondering how you do that."
"This?" I currently have one leg against the side of my head. "It took a bit of practice to get it down cleanly. When I first started training with Midori-nee, I could only get it about...maybe three quarters of the way up? Not nearly as high as she could, either way."
"Even that much is impressive, though...hmm."
"If you want to work on your flexibility together, just let me know," I say as I smoothly set my leg down. "It might not be completely conducive to your normal combat style, but I don't think it would hurt."
"I'll think about it."
"Good. I'll make breakfast while you get yourself changed. Is it a busy day today?"
"Ah, not really. Just some conditioning and routines, simple things like that."
"I don't have too much to do myself, so I might pop in and see you."
"That'd be neat."
"Glad you agree. My presence is a gift in and of itself, you see."
She smiles. "Hard not to, with how you carry on."
I smile back and head to the kitchen. A nice big breakfast for today...let's go with rice and a tasty omelette, paired with yesterday's pot of rice. Enough to feed a household on its own, which means it's adequate for two growing kunoichi. Fio hops out of the bedroom in her now standard type of outfit: a shirt in rainbow colours and rugged-looking black pants that are rolled up past her ankles. I finish making our food and we sit down to eat together.
"I'll take care of our plates," I say as she finishes. "You go ahead and wash up before heading out. I'll be on the phone with Hina shortly."
"Got it. Thanks, Lili."
The phone rings and Fio gets up to toss it over to me. "Lili Kobayashi speaking."
"Good morning again, Lili. Have you finished breakfast?"
"Just now. Your timing is impeccable. So...our position as of right now. I had a lengthy chat with Jiraiya..."
I tell her everything that happened on the day in question. A sigh comes from the other end of the phone as I finish washing plates.
"So you've set up a fight with Naruto, then...I understand. It seems to be the only way. I've been keeping an eye on him, but he still seems a bit restless."
"I was thinking as much," I say as I set the last plate down to dry. I wipe off my hands and then return to the kitchen table. Fio quickly plants a kiss on my cheek before leaving. "Just as before, this is an attempt to head things off before they truly become troublesome."
"Yes. I wish that Lord Jiraiya was more responsible when it came to this. I know...that it can't be easy dealing with a world-changing power like that, and that mistakes would be made along the way. He's also been a positive influence on Naruto, which makes me happy. Having an older man in his life that pays attention to him closely..."
"The Hokage is a bit distant due to the nature of his job and that soft heart of his. And Iruka is more like an older brother."
"I was thinking the same, yes."
"Jiraiya does provide a unique and necessary influence."
"Even so...I think adults are supposed to give more serious thoughts to these sorts of things," Hina says. "I can't be wrong for thinking that, can I?"
"You're not, Hina. I feel the same."
"It's one thing to provide familial support, but that doesn't mean that everyone and everything else is meant to be sacrificed at the altar of progress. It's irresponsible and unfair. More than that, from what you've told me of the conversation you two had, he wasn't taking you seriously up until a certain point. I know you enough to figure out exactly what happened."
"I was thinking about showing more restraint."
"I know you were. With that said, I don't feel sorry for him after choosing to cross that line repeatedly. I'm not exactly sure how to feel about him right now, to be honest. I also have a desire to protect Naruto as much as I can, and so I don't want him to be recklessly influenced by others. Even if Lord Jiraiya has a close relationship with him, it doesn't mean that he can do whatever he wants. Pushing Naruto into his current state, and dismissing you so callously...I don't care for any of it."
I smile. Exactly the sort of talk I wanted to hear from her. "You can be assured that I won't allow this to go any further, Hina. As long as you continue to show your newfound strength on your side, things will end on a positive note."
"Thank you, Lili."
"Of course. I'm always here for you."
"It must be difficult for you as well. He's your precious friend, and you love him so much. Having to fight him so suddenly like this..."
"You're still thinking of me more than yourself...that's just like you, Hina. Thank you for worrying about me. I know that things will be fine in the end, especially once we get rid of all the tension trapped inside of him. I was nervous about my match with you, but after thinking about it for a while, I eventually came around. With these two weeks before our meeting, I expect the same thing to happen."
"If it's like that, then I feel better already. I'll pray for your safety and success from here on."
"Thank you, Hina."
"I should be thanking you. You really are an angel, Lili. Helping me to solve my problems...more than that, getting me into this happy situation in the first place. I didn't think I would ever be able to talk to Naruto, much less stand next to him. But now...um...hm..."
"Hina?"
"S-sorry. I was just thinking about...um...the fact that we..."
"Hold hands?" I say with a smug smile.
"Y-y-yeah. We, um...do things like that...sometimes."
"A bit scandalous on your part, no? What if someone saw you two?"
"W-we don't d-d-do things like that in p-public!"
I laugh. "So you two can show some restraint once in a while. Very good!"
"You really are terrible..."
"Aren't I? Did you want to take back that comment about me being an angel, then?" I tease. "Although, you probably won't have to. The great adversary of heaven known as the Devil had shining wings of his own, you know. Hmhmhm."
"I almost forgot about that out-sized ego of yours. But honestly, thank you for everything, Lili. I'm looking forward to where you'll lead all of us next."
"Well, one step at a time, as the ancients have said in one form or another. Let's bring our Naruto back to earth. From there, the world will be ours to conquer."
"Yes."
"Did you have anything else you wanted to speak about, Hina?"
"Nothing for now. We can have our usual chat later in the evening. Hanabi and I are going on an ice cream date today."
"Ooh, that sounds scrumptious. Both of you have fun. I'm going to buckle down on some paperwork and annoy a few politicians with phone calls. A light day, all in all."
"Productive as always. I'll call you later on, then. Take care, Lili."
"You as well, Hina."
I hang up and stretch my arms after setting the phone down.
"Alright. Let's do as I mentioned earlier and start on those documents...and if I do a good job, I'll treat myself to some mischief in town later. Hmhm."
"And done. Good work, Lili~"
I sigh happily and set my papers down into a neat pile. It's currently a little past noon, so...I think I'll head outside and pay Fio a little visit. I'm curious about her comrades - I haven't had a chance to see them around the village, though I have heard interesting things. Those young ones from the Hidden Sound, then.
Today isn't terribly warm, so I don't have to worry too much about sweating through my clothing. A regular shirt and jeans will work out. I find my sunglasses and perch them on my head, then do a mirror check. All set. I grab my keys, make sure all the entry points are sealed, and lock up before heading into the village. I should be able to find Fio quickly...she said that her team was using the common training area until they were properly assigned their own place within the village. It's a very large field where many different shinobi come to do standard exercises and conditioning. Because it's a shared space, there are restrictions on techniques and weapons so that no unfortunate accidents happen. Anyone with a desire to use such things is relegated to specific sections near the edges of the public space.
"Mm. She should be up there."
One of a few small streams cuts through this part of the common area. There are a few trees nearby, and flat rocks that can be used as seats or platforms. I walk on and finally see Fio, who is addressing her team.
"No slacking, please~"
"Eh, you already run us ragged. Let's have a break," one of the boys says.
"A break would be appreciated," the other chimes in.
"Hey! We've already had a bunch of breaks already, that's the reason we're still stuck here! And who asked you whether it was appreciated or not, weirdo?" The other girl present is clearly not amused.
"You guys really are boring sometimes. We haven't even started training yet, those were the warm ups," Fio pouts. "Come on, put some energy into this. For me, at least?"
"All of this after she went back and forth in that heat to check on you," the other girl says. "You ungrateful...eh? Chakra...so...so strong. Eh?"
"What's up all of a sudden?" Fio turns her head and spots me. I wave to her as I approach the group. "Ah! Lili, you dropped in after all!"
"Hello, my love. I finished up my work for the day, and my curiosity drove me to take a little stroll. How are we so far?" I ask as I push my sunglasses to my forehead.
"Doing great. Aside from the, you know, not training...but everyone's doing okay. This is awesome, I'll finally get to introduce you to the team properly!"
"Then by all means."
Fio nods and runs towards the first member, poking him in the side as he sits on one of the large rocks.
"Oi. Quit that..."
"This here is Suigetsu! You know him well enough from our daily talks. He's a member of the Hozuki Clan, he likes cutting stuff, and he really likes swords! He can also turn into water and junk. Not great in the heat, though. And he's a pretty thirsty fellow."
"Meh." A white haired boy with interesting blue eyes and very sharp teeth. On the tall side, and makes do with an oversized sword that is currently lying on the ground near his feet. It looks like something out of a fantasy manga, or an RPG. His dress matches his personality to this point, consisting of a plain purple shirt with blue pants. He also has several bottles on the sturdy looking belt around his waist, and is currently drinking from one as he observes me.
"A pleasure meeting you, Suigetsu," I say politely. "I trust that Fio has been treating you well."
"More or less," he says lazily. "Not half bad as a leader, if I had to say anything..."
"Aw, thanks!" Fio says with a smile.
"Yeah, yeah. Don't let it go to your head, punch girl. So...Lili. Or is it Lilith Kobayashi?"
"Lili is fine, if you like."
"You're the Scarlet Viper everyone's talking about."
"Indeed I am."
"Not bad...though you don't seem as menacing as people claim, you know. But I can totally see where they're coming from about the bitchy side," he says with a playful grin.
"An unfettered opinion, then. Refreshing," I quip.
He raises a brow at that. "Oi."
"My dear, you will have to do much better than that to get me to react. Fio will tell you the same. If you are attempting to have a confrontation, it will have to come at a later date. I am rather tied up at the moment."
"Tch. Right."
"Though I do appreciate your forward speech, Suigetsu. As long as you continue your good work, we will have no problems. I hear your swordsmanship is at a high level already."
"Yeah? Guess word's getting around, then. Fine with me. There are a couple of swords that I would like to collect in the near future..."
"I know a good smith, if you have any interest in quality products."
"I'll think about it. Thanks, though."
"You're quite welcome."
"And here's my other teammate! Her name's Karin!" Fio puts her arm around the red-haired girl's shoulder. She reacts by nervously pushing up her glasses. In fact, she's nervous all around, and her face is red with heat. Her eyes are a deep red behind her glasses, and she has fair skin. An unusual hair style as well: the left side is long and straight, while the right is shorter and spikier. She wears the regular Leaf uniform with the shirt sleeves rolled up. "She's pretty cool! Good with medicine, knows all sorts of things about chakra, and she's a sensor type kunoichi. Her ability to track people is amazing! And as you might have guessed, she reminds me a lot of you, Lili!"
"We do have a resemblance of sorts," I say with a smile. "Karin, is it? You have lovely hair."
"T-thanks. You...do too."
"You okay, Karin? You're heating up all of a sudden...does it have anything to do with that chakra you were sensing?" Fio asks her.
"Sorry, I was...just having a moment. Sorry about that. My ability reacts to certain things, and..."
"It's quite alright," I say gently. "If you need time to rest, please take as much as you need."
"T-thank you. It's really, um, nice meeting you. Fio has said a lot of good things, and...yeah. I'm not normally this nervous, but something's come over me all of sudden. I don't mean to be a bother."
"You're far from one, Karin." I give her another smile, and she timidly nods before smiling back. She's definitely...fixated on me. It's impossible to ignore at this point. And now I remember that this is the person Erika mentioned all that time ago, while we were on a mission together. She wanted to meet me, but was it for a romantic reason? I have to wonder. Well, now that I know she's part of Fio's group, things will be easier to sort out. "You've spoken to a good friend of mine in the past, yes? Mentioned that you wanted to meet?"
"I-I did...is it okay?"
"Yes. You may give Fio the information if it makes you more comfortable, and she can relay it to me later on."
"I might...do that. Thank you..."
"You're quite welcome." It's really hard not to tease her, but I don't want Fio to be inconvenienced today. But Karin is unbearably cute right now...oh, life can be cruel at times.
"And that's us! Leaf's Team Thirteen! There was another guy that they mentioned-"
"Hey, hey. Don't mention him by name. You'll jinx the security they've got on hand," Suigetsu says, interrupting Fio. "Besides, he's one of the last people I would want to be paired with."
"Yeah," Karin says in agreement. "I heard it took a whole platoon just to contain him during the invasion of the base. Of course, Sharingan Kakashi ended it in an instant once he arrived, but still...a rampage wouldn't be good for this village."
I'll have to ask Tsunade about this fellow later. He sounds lively.
"So I take it that this last member is merely a guest?" I say while turning to the other boy present. His skin is very pale, and he has an interesting sort of outfit...one that I recognize from Erika's description of it. A short grey jacket with black sleeves and red straps. The left sleeve for some reason is shorter than the right. He has black pants and the same coloured sandals. For some reason his entire midriff is exposed, and I wonder if that's a uniform requirement as well.
This one seems to be playing as an ikemen. The black hair and dark eyes remind me a lot of Sasuke, so I already feel bothered by him. And the tanto resting on his back doesn't help.
"Apparently he's here in some sort of supervisor role. Dunno what that means, but I'll have to talk to Lord Hokage about it," Fio says.
"See Erika about it first," I reply. "I have a feeling that dealing with this type will be especially troublesome." The boy's face is blank and emotionless. He's trying to figure me out before doing anything else. "And what might your name be, dear guest?"
"It's Sai. Quite nice to meet you, Captain Lilith Kobayashi."
Very unnatural, indeed. The spirit has been drained from him by way of some horrific method. The same as with the other members of ROOT. Sasuke would have ended up just like this. He still could, if we're not careful in the coming months and years.
"It's nice to meet you as well, Sai."
"So you're the one having illicit relations with the team leader, then."
"I beg your pardon?" I say, incredulous.
"Oi, Sai. Where the heck did that come from?" Fio says, frowning. "Lili and I aren't doing anything like that, and I never once said as much. That's not a funny joke."
Did this child lose his filter, too? What kind of training does ROOT put him through?
"My apologies. So you will be taking part in illicit activities with her in the future, then."
"This is why I don't want this weirdo around," Karin groans. "He's always saying stupid and off the wall things."
"Yeah, way to make a guest feel welcome, buddy," Suigetsu says.
"It may very well be an overreaction on your parts," Sai says in that almost mechanical tone of his. Though Erika does have a cool tone herself, they sound nothing alike. There's no sincerity or life when he speaks. It feels like everything inside of him has been hollowed out. "A viper of her sort wouldn't be worried about hurt feelings. After all, someone who gets off on murdering-"
"Sai."
Fio glares at him, looking like she's reached her limit.
"I think you've said enough. Tone it down, or leave."
"I apologize again. I merely assumed that Miss Kobayashi would enjoy unfiltered banter because of her nature. It seems that I have not read the mood properly."
"..."
"I ask your forgiveness," he says with a bow. "A woman of your prestige shouldn't be exposed to vulgar language in the first place."
I narrow my eyes. "Perhaps you should try being honest for once in your life."
He produces a phony smile. "Did Miss Asagao tell you of me?"
"Fuck yourself. I figured it out on my own, and I know that she wasn't made aware of your machinations."
"Machinations, huh," Fio mutters. "No wonder...it's not very nice, but it explains a lot."
"No idea what you guys are talking about," Suigetsu says.
"Keep yourself out of the loop, you don't want to be a part of this nonsense," I say to him. "The less you know, the better off you will be. That goes for you as well, Karin."
"Understood."
"There are little things that I'm aware of at the moment...believe me when I say that they will be taken care of soon."
"..." He's a bit difficult to read, but I can tell that he knows his cover has been blown. I'll leave him guessing at what I might do next. Erika can take care of the other end.
"I will leave you all to your training for now," I say as I put my sunglasses on again. "It was quite nice meeting you, and we will surely come together again as you spend more time within the village. Suigetsu, take care. And Karin, remember what I've said earlier."
Suigetsu gives a lazy salute. "Yeah. Take it easy, snake lady."
"Yes, I'll remember. Thank you...Lili." Karin blushes furiously at that.
"And have yourself a pleasant day as well...guest."
"..." Sai says nothing, his face already reverted to that blank slate.
"Fio, I will see you at home later."
"Yeah, for sure. Thanks for dropping by, Lili."
"As always, it is my pleasure." We share a long hug and I pat her head gently. "Be well."
I flip my hair back over my shoulder and start off.
"So you've decided to make your move, then...you who present yourself as the village's shadowy protector."
I wonder what exactly Danzo wants this time.
Itachi did give me warning of this type of scenario. But much in the way of time has passed since our meeting, and I have grown in many different ways. If there is a challenge at this juncture, I will have more than enough strength to meet it. As for that Sai fellow, he's as good as dead the moment he causes Fio trouble. But I should be careful, even if my mind is made up.
I will call Erika as soon as I make it home again. We're overdue for a proper lunch date, anyway.