A tense, aching silence carried all night and into the next morning. She slept in his arms, but only winced and nodded the slightest bit when he wished her a good morning after slumping out of them. The two didn't speak otherwise until they met up with Sakura and gave her the details of their job, or potential job, it should be said. A deepening of her frown was all he got off her face, but fortunately she was blunt with her concerns.
"I cannot enter but the largest of homes, and I fear my cudgel wouldn't do much to a fleshless spirit,"
"I know. You're just coming along to add credibility to our… outfit. Our mercenary team, however you'd like to refer to it, the fact is we look a lot more fearsome with you than without,"
It might have been the first time he saw Sakura smile.
More the shame, it was beautiful. So soft and feminine despite the massive face and the arms that could break him like a twig. Hands which probably would do just that if she got the details of last night's talk with Sasuki. Naruto found the smile contagious in spite of this. It even grew as she continued her words of praise.
"So that means you can kill a spirit, mighty warleader? Incredible, you continue to impress me,"
"I… it's the magic weapon," said warleade`azsxd3er quickly brushed off, eyes widening as she stepped briskly on the trail to start their hike. Another benefit of waiting a day was the chance to send a messenger ahead for a silver piece alerting the Hyuuga's of their arrival and purpose. Supposedly, this also strengthened their image and general employability.
Though Naruto was still worried about the job itself.
"Are you sure you can kill or… banish or whatever a ghost?"
"Kill is the right word," she said plainly, but she didn't look at him. "A ghost, as in a mortal who kept their conscious self and remained in our plane after their body died, stops existing after they're killed,"
"They go to the void?"
"Maybe, all that's clear is that none of the Gods take them; it's what makes a mortal a ghost. Refusing to leave with whatever comes for you, meaning that your average ghost has incredible power and force of will! Or just that they worshiped a deity that cared about having their permission before taking them,"
"And, I'm just gonna ask one more time, are you sure you'll be able to kill one of these?" he pressed.
"It'll be fine! I just need to pop up behind them and get one good strike; it'll be easy I-" she paused to look down the trail, to confirm that Ironhold was a spot in the distance and that nobody was within earshot. "-I can teleport now!" she revealed, smiling in spite of everything at the amazement in Naruto's face. "Only a dozen yards or so and only from shadow to shadow, but I think that'll be fine in an empty house, especially if we go in at night,"
"When did-"
"-after I killed all those orcs," she explained. "Seems the dark lord of blood and hunts noticed that too. Although even with this, you'll probably have to play distraction, what with Sakura outside," she added.
"Great," he agreed enthusiastically, especially delighted by the lack of thought or concern in her voice when she made this plan. Whatever. He was the best one to take a hit, the most durable at least of the two of them, and besides that, he was still a fair bit awestricken by his incredible girlfriend.
That last word strengthened his grin.
Fortunately, the picturesc landscape gave an excuse for this smile. As soon as they were out of town, just about every direction was filled with fields and fences, most of which were naturally empty on this cold winter morning. Still, it was a staunch reminder of how much land it took to feed even a small town like Ironhold. Something to think about in the long walk before they saw their destination.
Though it was difficult to say for certain that they did. Every building they passed was covered in snow, and this orchard didn't actually have any adult trees to alert them of their arrival. In fact, the small plot on this land was largely covered by a long tarp protecting the saplings. Similar material to the dozen odd tents and such surrounding the smaller of two large buildings.
Thankfully, as they drew close, the Hyuuga crest was easy to see on a wall, and to Sasuki, the family's blood was easy to identify from the first servant who came to greet them. Enormous, pupiless white eyes that Naruto did his best not to stare at. They weren't ugly or anything, just highly unusual, alien. The servant shivered as she spoke.
"H-hello! You're the ones Master Hyashi is e-expecting?" she chattered out, hands clasped demurely, even as she clearly struggled to keep her pristine posture.
"Oh! It is one of his sons," Sasuki casually remarked, drawing the woman's eyes away from Naruto. "Yes, we're the mercenaries here to skewer your ghost," she added bluntly. Even the ever-oblivious Naruto saw the hurt and heartbreak flash across the young lady's face at this. It was only for an instant, but it was there. Then the same polite smile forced its way back.
"R-right this w-way!" she said, quickly turning and, before even entering the house, pulling her ratty brown cloak off to reveal a simple, clean servant's dress. At least inside was warm. Surprisingly humble too, a long table with a few chairs, a large but plain hearth, and a set of stairs going down were all he saw. Not counting the people, of course. A man with long brown hair was already at the table, scribbling away at some letter or another, barely glancing up as they came in but not taking long to put down his quill.
The charcoal gray robe he wore looked soft and smooth, but otherwise was quite similar to the dress of his servant.
This made quite a contrast to the young man on his left, with his autumn red hair and blood red vest, but most of all with the wide, almost manic smile on his face.
"The visitors you were expecting, Master Hiashi," she said with a short bow, practically flying back out of the warm room into the freezing campsite outside when he dismissed her with a short wave of his hand. Naruto felt uneasy. Neither Sasuki nor he took a seat until the order was given.
"Sit," Hiashi said, finally glancing at them and waiting for compliance to continue. "I will cut to the chase; if you two can solve my problem, I will make you very rich. My manor has been uninhabitable for nearly a month now, and this is no small inconvenience to me. What's worse, my only daughter is still held captive within,"
"Oh Gods!" Naruto blurted out without thinking, earning a long, dry look from their employer.
"Quite. I can't imagine what spurred my precious firstborn to take her own life, but even with such a surprise, I still doubt she's caused her little sister any harm. Your first priority is recovering her; how you go about this I leave to your discretion," he kept his monotone as he spoke. It put a ball in Naruto's stomach and even affected his raven a bit. Still, she spoke respectfully.
"If she's actively holding on to her, there's no chance we're going to manage that without um… destroying your elder daughter, or what's left of her,"
"Of course. I've long since made peace with this,"
"And is this one helping or-"
"-he is of no concern to you," Hiashi interrupted sharply, locking eyes with Sasuki and speaking with more emotion then when speaking of his own daughter's death. "He has an interest in this situation as well; that is all you need to know,"
Despite this firm assurance, the strange young man offered up more.
"It's my betrothed in there!" he explained. "I'm just so eager to finally see her rescued and safe!" the large smile he maintained was strange, to say the least, but neither of the two commented on it. "You can handle this, right? You've taken care of ghosts before?"
"Of course we can!" Sasuki shot back, ignoring the second question as if insulted. Whether that was a ploy to avoid answering or genuine indignation, Naruto wasn't sure; either way, she didn't give them time to respond. "In fact, if you don't' mind, we'll go and do it right now, good sir," she turned to face Hiashi with that last remark, offering a short bow before standing up immediately.
Nobody stopped their departure.
X
X
X
Thanks for reading!
Search Macko Bole on the kindle store if you want full length novels by me, including several steamy options!