Fandom Squad Shithead: A Naruto AU

[Pine]

Tetsuo had intended to rush through the dining room and move onto his next objective. However, now that he was inside, there was no ignoring the smashed pictures.

He furrowed his brow as he looked over each one of them. Just as he thought he was beginning to understand the situation, he came upon this scene, opening a hundred more possibilities to what exactly was the situation of this house.

Obviously, the dining room had come to be the way it was in one furious, malicious act. Was this the deed of an enraged spouse? Had they gotten into a big fight after all, then one killed the other in a tempest of rage? Were the mud tracks of that one's corpse being dragged? No, not likely. These were actual footsteps. Besides, that didn't explain Rei's involvement. And who was this other girl pictured?

He focused on one picture nearest his foot, where the couple was sitting close together on a porch swing, the man's hand covering the woman's. He wished he could see their faces. He was afraid he might not even recognize them like this.

Was there another party involved? Maybe someone looking for Rei had found this other girl instead, mistaking her for the missing girl. Then incensed to find out the truth, they killed the couple, or the girl, as some callous act of revenge? That did nothing to explain why Toshio was able to smell Rei.

Tetsuo shook his head to himself. He was getting nowhere with his theories. He had a decision to make.

He was in a bad spot. Between what he swore was mumbling, the fact someone must have set the music playing, and whatever that awful metallic sound was, he was pretty sure that someone was in the living room. The voice he thought he heard would not have been Rei's. It was someone else: someone who didn't care that they were sharing a house with a dead body.

If Tetsuo barged in on this person, he would have the advantage. Katsuro had said for them to apprehend whoever was responsible. Maybe if he hadn't seen the pictures, he may have been more confident in taking decisive action in immobilizing the threat, but now he wasn't sure if this person would be a threat. What if it was just an unaware old man and he attacked him out of the blue? This would do nothing to gain Rei's confidence in him.

On the other hand, this other room was a huge blind spot for him. If someone was attentive and he opened that door, they would have the jump on him, not the other way around. Tetsuo felt he may be able to recover from this, but the odds of whoever was in the living room overhearing and intervening were extremely high. Then he would possibly be having to defend himself against two attacking bodies. He would be pinned between them. But what if it was just Rei in there? Or she was being threatened right now by whoever had left the footprints leading into there?

For the moment, he was stuck in a state of indecision.

- - - - -

Haruki laughed a little awkwardly as the postal worker pointed out how strange they looked in their village. In such a short time, he had gotten used to the idea of tag teaming with a bear. Now with the second person in Ansu to have mentioned their association with Toshio, he starting to remember how odd of a group they must all seem. Maybe he should've been more specific.

Nevertheless, the young adult's cool attitude was soon putting Haruki back at ease. He was still bouncing his leg, but it was more intermittent now, as if he would forget he had been doing this to begin with.

He listened attentively to what the postman had to say. He didn't even have to ask about the couple's habits or the village's perception of them: this was information being freely handed out to him. It was a small gap in knowledge that had been left behind in his conversation with Mori.

It didn't seem to him very relevant to their mission, but Haruki was starting to worry missing old couple now. If what this man was telling him was true - and Haruki felt he had no reason to doubt him - this was a pair whose pattern of behavior had never changed until now. Something bad must've happened to them.

He frowned, confused, and turned back to look at where the man was suddenly preoccupied with what Toshio must've been doing. What he saw was the bear blitzing past him.

Haruki looked at Toshio with bewilderment now. Was he supposed to follow? He started to move after him, standing and taking a step, but he stopped himself short. He had never seen Toshio move so fast. He wasn't sure if he could keep up his pace, and now that he had paused to doubt himself, there was no way he could catch up to wherever he was going.

He stood still for a moment, puzzled. Toshio had been with Tetsuo, right? That's why he hadn't been at the shop when he came out? And Tetsuo was investigating the house or something, wasn't he? But when Haruki looked back at the house, there was no sign of him. Maybe he had already gone inside?

"Um..." Haruki paused for a moment more before deciding his course of action. He looked back at the postal worker. "I'm gonna' go ahead and check on that couple, make sure they're okay. Thank you for all your help." Haruki bowed respectfully to him before backtracking to where the house was.

When he got to the house, he could see what the postal worker was talking about. He had never seen a mailbox so crammed full of letters that it was overflowing. Then again, Haruki didn't spend a lot of time looking at mailboxes.

He bent down to pick up a few that had spilled out onto the ground. They were gross to touch, so his barely did more than pinch them between his fingers. It was either a sprinkling system or the general humidity of the Land of Birds that had turned these old letters yellowed and crusty.

As he walked up the porch to the front door, he dusted off some of the dirt with his fist, then shook the letters, trying to make them somewhat presentable. Haruki did not look up even when he knocked on the door, now trying to read through the names of both senders and addressees alike.

- - - - -

Tetsuo jerked his head at the sound of three sharp knocks. He heard them clearly, and he surmised there was no way the living room's occupant could not have heard it as well. Almost by complete chance, this gave him the exact opportunity he needed.

He did not stop to wonder whether the house's newcomer would be greeted with warmth or hostility. He just needed that attention drawn.

Tetsuo moved with haste to the other side of the dining hall where the mud tracks led, careful to avoid stepping on any glass. He stood now, because he had no more time for stealth, and he needed full access to his mobility if someone was going to see him. Tetsuo slid the door open with one fluid motion and braced himself for whatever was on the other side.

 

[Gilzar]

Following Haruki's knocks on the door, the strange noises suddenly stopped. The old music continued to echo through the home, but a loud whisper could be heard over it. What exactly the whisper said was anyone's guess. Tetsuo could soon hear the loud noise of someone big shifting across the living room and toward the knocks at the door. Each step the person took rattled the floorboards of the old house. There was likely a fair amount of distance between Tetsuo and whoever was in the other room.

The doorway slid open surprisingly smooth given the condition of the house. It was now completely open, and nothing was left to hide that the nightmare Tetsuo had unveiled. This room was dark and had little natural light, but Tetuso could still see everything clearly from the light coming out of the doorway.

Spoiler

Before Tetsuo was a room drowning in blood stains. At first glance everything in the room was covered with the horrible stains of red. The white bed at the center of the room was doused in the color of dried death and agony. It was likely the center of the vile act that occurred here, and the fibers of the bed had absorbed most of the crime. Yet there was more that happened in this room. The blue wall, nearest to the nightstand on the right side of the bed was also spattered with an ungodly amount of it. As Tetsuo's eyes followed the vile blood stains, the spattering grew closer and closer until it revealed another source: A large dried up pool of brown and red. Some parts still looked wet the puddle was so deep. Laying next to the puddle was a wood axe, covered in blood. It told Tetsuo all he needed to know about what had happened here.

Aside from the blood stains on the bed, and in the corner, there were other signs of a struggle. Lamps had been broken on the floor, dents were in the walls. Everything was completely out of order. As gruesome as the sight before him was, there was no bodies in the room. The mud tracks led all around the bed and the corner pool of blood. Whatever bodies were around here had to have been moved.

Before Tetsuo could fully investigate further, the lighting shifted in the doorway behind him. A shadow, visible on the wall, was slowly creeping next to his. Whoever was approaching from behind did not want to be heard.

"You're not supposed to be here." A little girl's voice whispered to Tetsuo, right behind his back.

-----------------

The door in front of Haruki opened only part way. From behind the door, a large man crept his head out. He was much larger than the likes of even Katsuro (Who stands at 6'2, 215 lbs for reference). From what Haruki could see his long dark hair was messy and unkept, and he emitted a foul odor. The bags under his eyes hinted that this man hadn't slept in days, and his eyes were forced open as far as they could as they frantically searched around for whoever knocked on the door. After his eyes darted back and forth, they suddenly looked down and spotted Haruki. The strange, giant man's gaze leered down at Haruki.

"What do you want?!" He aggressively asked.

----------------

"SOMEONE GET THE AUTHORITIES HERE NOW!!!" Katsuro shouted at a group of onlookers. He sprinted away, moving at a speed that Mizu had only seen him move during his fight with Genzo. This was serious. Toshio had told them everything that had happened earlier, from the missing couple to the Rei's scent at the house. The bear had even mentioned the smell of death...Mizu was petrified at what exactly that could mean.

"Come on!" Toshio said to Mizu.

Mizu nodded firmly. "I'll follow you!"

"There's no time. I can't slow down so you can keep up." Toshio let out a long sigh, realizing the only option that was available. If he left her behind Katsuro would yell at him...he didn't want to deal with that. There was no other choice...He took a big whiff of his pipe, before breathing out all of the smoke. Toshio was dreading what would come next.

"Get on my back..." He grumbled through his teeth.

Mizu stared blankly, not knowing if she fully understood what Toshio was saying. It was hard to understand him with that pipe in his mouth.

"I'm faster than you - Get on my back dammit!" Toshio yelled. He tried not to look at Mizu's hands for fear they would be sticky.

Not wanting to upset the ursine any further Mizu awkwardly got onto Toshio's back. Before she could fully situate herself the bear took off, dashing through the streets of the village. Mizu barely had a grip on Toshio as they moved at lightning speed, and it wasn't long before it slipped. Sliding back, Mizu desperately tried to find something to grab onto. Luckily her hands found the sash on Toshio's midsection, but it was a rough ride. The girl couldn't get her legs situated on anything, so they dangled in the air as Mizu desperately clung onto Toshio's gear sash. Every bump slammed Mizu straight into the polar bears stiff back. Sure this was faster, but was it really better?!

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo's body went rigid. The sight before him was the worst case scenario.

The music from the other room faded and distorted in his perception, becoming no more than a buzzing sound in his ears. He could hear his heartbeat pounding in his throat as his eyes flicked between bloodstain after bloodstain. What the hell was this? It was everywhere. A sloppy coat of paint sopped into every fabric, every wood panel it could find. He looked for a body that he did not see.

His own blood drained from his face the longer he looked at it. The axe. He remembered the other one found just outside the house. What an awful way to die.

Goosebumps rippled across his skin as his eyes locked onto the second shadow, where the light twisted through the doorway.

The girl's whisper sliced across all of his thoughts. Tetsuo started, a violent shake snapping up his entire body. Something purely instinctual and protective made him slam the door shut before he whipped back around to face the girl.

He said nothing as he stared wide-eyed at the girl. He was guarded as he searched her face. Was she speaking out of fear or malice?

And more than that, was this Rei or the other girl?

- - - - -

Haruki looked up from the letters when the door clicked. It opened just a sliver to reveal the hulking frame of a greasy, gorilla of a man.

Haruki frowned up at him. This wasn't the grandpa he'd heard so much about. Moreover, not only did this guy smell putrid, but his attitude was awful too.

He did not keep the same extensive formalities as he had with every other civilian he'd interviewed just before. "I'm looking for the couple who live here," he answered. "They haven't been seen in a few days and people are starting to worry. Are they around?"

 

[Gilzar]

The door slammed shut loudly. Its slam echoed throughout the entire house.

Standing before Tetsuo was none other than the girl they had spent days searching for: Rei Takara. Her appearance strikingly contrasted that of the house, and of the man at the door. Rei was impeccably clean for a girl who had spent so much time in the woods and in this decrepit house. Tetsuo couldn't see a single scratch or speck of dirt on her. She was no longer wearing her green dress, but rather a small white dress that looked to have been home-made. Even her hair was oddly clean. Having taken care of his little sister for so long, Tetsuo could probably see that Rei's hair had been freshly brushed.

Her brown eyes looked wearily into Tetsuo's. It looked like she hadn't slept in days.

"He gets mad when you go into that room." She whispered to Tetsuo.


--------

The odd man looked over Haruki more, and his eyes stopped right over the Konha headband tied to Haruki's arm. He stared at it for five seconds, before his gaze dashed back up at Haruki. This strange individual said nothing to Haruki as he stared into him. Finally, he opened his mouth to speak - but was interrupted by the sound of a slamming door on the other side of the house. Immediately the stranger looked back into the house, trying to see what had caused the disturbance.

He looked back at Haruki. "No!"

The door slammed shut in front of Haruki, and the figure disappeared back into the house.

It wasn't long before Katsuro came sprinting to the scene. The jonin tensely approached Haruki. He was not aware of any of the horrors inside of the house, nor did he know who Haruki had just had a conversation with. All he knew was that Tetsuo was sneaking around somewhere inside of this house, and that Rei's scent had been picked up along with the smell of corpses. Katsuro looked over the exterior of the home from where he stood; He had a bad feeling about this. Tetsuo was a capable shinobi, but he worried about the genin going into the place blindly. Files only told so much about a shinobi's stealth capabilities.

Katsuro was not mad at either of the boys for taking action. He had ordered them to act on any leads they found. What confused Katsuro was the methods: If Tetsuo was inside of the house, then why was Haruki just standing there outside the front door? Toshio didn't mention that Haruki had made his way over here.

"Haruki." He whispered loudly, waving his student over. Katsuro positioned himself just behind one of the trees near the outer fence, staying out the sightline of any windows in the house.

"Status report, now! What have you and Tetsuo been up to?" Katsuro was visibly tense, anxious for Haruki's answer.

Behind Katsuro, Toshio and Mizu finally caught up with the group. Mizu stumbled off of Toshio's back. She was so dizzy from the trip that she stumbled in a daze to the nearest tree. After a short while, she regained her composure. Knowing only as much as Katsuro did, she grabbed out her staff and stealthily positioned herself behind a tree near Katsuro. Toshio was laying flat on the ground, trying to use the brush to hide. All three of them were glaring at Haruki, waiting for an answer.


--------

The sound of the front door slamming shut rang throughout the house. Following the sudden noise, loud footsteps could be heard coming toward the dining room.

"Yasumi, where are you?" A male voice inquired from the living room.

 

[Pine]

The door slammed shut in his face leaving Haruki standing there, miffed.

He had heard the slam of another door coming from the interior of the house just before. Alarm rang through his head. The man's gruff attitude, Toshio locking eyes with him earlier as he ran past, the fact that he still had not seen his teammate. It was very likely to him that Tetsuo had just used this house as an excuse to get away from him and, not finding anymore leads, had already moved on to someplace else. That told him nothing about why Toshio had been in such a hurry, however, nor why the man had been so defensive by him simply asking if the couple were home.

He felt a little bad, remembering how the postal worker had said everyone was so focused on finding Rei, no one seemed to care about investigating the elderly couple's own disappearance. Haruki felt sure this man had to know something about that, at least. He was in their house, after all.

He was debating on knocking again when he heard Katsuro hiss his name out.

Haruki turned towards the source of the voice, finding the jonin partially sheathed beneath a tree. Haruki looked at him with bewilderment. He was unsure if Katsuro wanted him to act natural or if it would be better for him to try to conceal himself too. Haruki obeyed, but carried an awkward gait due to this uncertainty.

After he crossed the fence and joined Katsuro behind the tree, he took in all of the jonin-sensei's body language. It was as intense as ever. "Uh..." he started awkwardly, scratching the back of his head just to give his hand something to do. His eyes roamed to the side, where Toshio rushed towards them, Mizu practically flopping off the bear and onto the ground. He may have pieced together that she had actually gotten to ride the summon and felt proportionately jealous, but his attention was caught by all three glaring sets of eyes. Did he do something wrong?

"We were asking around the village, like you said. We talked to a toolsmith-" he only knew the correct terminology due to his own family's close dealings with various smiths to run their shop, "-at his workshop. Then we talked to the shopkeeper down the road." He jerked his thumb in the direction of the modest store. "Then we talked to the guy at the post office. Or, well, I talked to him. Tetsuo told me to and... I think he said he was going to try to found out more about the couple who live here? Because no one's seen them for a few days? I don't know where he is now," Haruki concluded his report, looking back at the house again in case he'd missed the other boy hiding under the porch or something.

- - - - -

It was Rei. He'd finally found her.

Tetsuo let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. He couldn't believe it. He'd found her, living, breathing.

Whatever relief he felt was quickly complicated as he took in the condition she was in. She had been taken around three days ago, and yet, if it weren't for the exhaustion in her countenance and every event that had led him to this point, he would've thought she had just left the estate today. She looked like she'd been groomed. Like a doll.

It was unnerving to see. Someone must have dressed her, touched her, and yet she must have been too tired to even flinch when he had shut the door.

A well of emotions swelled in him, but Tetsuo didn't have the time to process any of them. He heard shouting from the living room, then footsteps thudding in their direction. He belatedly realized what must've drawn the man's attention. The door.

He nearly swore at himself, but at the last second he held it back, sucking air between his teeth instead. He crouched down and began to offer his hand to Rei, but then the man called out for a name which Tetsuo dully registered was a name he did not recognize. Regardless, the man was much too close now for the young genin's comfort.

Even if she accepted his offer to help with no resistance - he, who was a complete stranger to her - there was glass all over the floor. It would be dangerous for her to walk. Another pang of emotion. He swallowed it down with his spit. He would not allow this man to so much as catch another glimpse of her.

Tetsuo looked into her eyes, making sure the gazes connected. "Forgive me," he whispered quickly.

With that, the hand that was meant to take her own lifted, and he swiped lightly at where he knew her vagus nerve to be. He did not need to knock her out. He did not want to risk any long-term damage that might occur if he really tried. He just needed to disable her for a moment. Making her dizzy would be enough.

As she swayed from the strike, Tetsuo caught her in his chest. In a single movement he had practiced a thousand times, Tetsuo shifted her onto his back to carry. He hooked his arms beneath her legs and held her steady by her wrists. Her involuntary cooperation weighed down on him, heavier than if he'd been able to invite her on, but this was also something he was used to. Soto was always heavier when she slept.

Without wasting a second, Tetsuo sprung into action. He dashed across the dining room, not caring about the crunch of glass beneath his sandals. If a piece pierced through and nicked him, he didn't notice. He turned fast into the kitchen. The silverware he'd so carefully avoided earlier now clattered against the flooring as he cut across the narrow passageway. Now came the hard part.

The window was large enough they could both fit through, but hunching would not be enough. Tetsuo shifted his shoulder so that her head slumped over it better. He jumped to keep his momentum. As he did, he locked his elbows over the window's lip. He let go of Rei's wrists, slapped down on the house's wall and pushed hard. It was enough to lift his feet and let him slide through on his stomach. The window's lip tugged uncomfortably at his clothes, but he did not feel Rei's body jerk in any unnatural way. He had successfully flattened himself so that she wouldn't knock her head against the glass pane.

He had essentially let go of her, however, and now he felt her slipping off him with alarming speed as a result. Quickly, he clambered onto the ground, ignoring the pain searing his shoulder now and running with his hands to outpace her falling body. He may have been embarrassed to be seen this way, scrabbling on all fours like a dog, but his only concern right now was keeping Rei unscathed. That, and the axe murderer who was undoubtedly hot on his heels.

As soon as he could, he righted himself and grabbed onto Rei as he had before. He turned to face the window, face flushed and panting breathlessly.

 

[Gilzar]

Rei easily went into the delirious state Tetsuo had intended. She put up no resistance on any of the actions he would take inside of the home. As he loudly dashed across the room, the approaching figure took notice of all the noise the crunching glass made. Tetsuo could hear someone large rush into the dining room behind them.

"What the hell?" The man shouted in disbelief. Tetsuo had been seen running into the kitchen. Immediately the old floor beneath Tetsuo began to shake, and the unmistakable sounds of pursuit were right behind him. Whoever was behind Tetsuo was breathing heavily, desperate to catch up to him. It wouldn't be long before a man of his size caught up with Tetsuo. In a turn of fate however, the man would slip on the shards of glass on a hardwood floor. The entire house rocked as the giant hit the floor.

As Tetsuo fled out the window, he could hear the stranger get back to his feet and rush over to them. Just as Rei slipped out of the window, a pulverizing forced slammed into the window. The wood of the window frame cracked as a large arms burst out of the window and tried to grab Rei, but she was just out of reach. Tetsuo and Rei were safe...for now.


---------


"So he didn't tell you he was here, huh?" Katsuro gritted his teeth together in frustration. Haruki was not the one to blame here. Was Tetsuo trying to play hero or something? Why didn't he tell Haruki, and send off Toshio? He truly went into that house completely alone, with no backup. Why the fuck did Toshio leave him alone?!

Sounds of a man screaming interrupted Katsuro from any further thoughts. His attention was once again fully directed at the old home. From out of the side of the house, Tetsuo suddenly fumbled out of a window. More unexpectedly, a girl flopped out of the window as well. She landed on Tetsuo's back. Even at this distance Katsuro recognized the girl. A light feeling elevated in his chest as he realized the significance of what had just happened. Once again though, his thoughts were cut off. A shadow slammed against the frame of the window, and a large arm crept out to try and grab Rei. Katsuro couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as the figure couldn't reach them.

"GET BACK HERE WITH MY DAUGHTER YOU BASTARD!" A desperate, enraged voice cried out from the window. Loud banging could be heard within the home following the outburst.

Katsuro immediately ran over to Tetsuo and Rei. He couldn't believe it, the dipshit had actually pulled it off. Rei was in a delirious state, but she was alive. Katsuro eyed the window as he helped Tetsuo to his feet and assisted in leading them over to the fence line. From here they were a safe distance from the house.

Even though Rei was secured, there was another matter at hand. They needed to deal with the psychopath inside. Katsuro didn't know everything that Tetsuo knew, but the look on the kid's face said it all. Something awful had happened inside that home. At the very least this man was a kidnapper, and he needed to be apprehended before someone got hurt. He stared at the front door of the house intently. His fist tightened, and a sneer grew across his lip as a quiet rage began to fume inside of the Jonin. He dropped his backback to the ground. There was countless ways they could have proceeded with this, but he had something special in mind.

"Tetsuo! Tend to Rei, make sure she doesn't have any wounds or anything we don't know about..."

"Haruki! Guard the perimeter of this shithole! Don't let any of the locals past the fence. We have authority until the constable of this town arrives."

He did not bark orders at Toshio. The two simply nodded at each other, knowing what they needed to do.

He began marching straight to the front door of the house. "Mizu!" Katsuro ordered. "Get the rope out of my bag and wait outside the front door."

"Y-Yes Katsuro Sensei?" Mizu replied immediately. She was unsure exactly what Katsuro intended to do, but had her theories as she began to scrounge through Katsuro's pack.

Katsuro didn't wait for Mizu. He barged straight up to the front door of house. In one powerful motion, Katsuro smashed the door open with a powerful front kick and walked straight into the front door. There wasn't a lot of time to get a view of the living room he was in. Once he entered the room Katsuro immediately spotted the giant of a man standing opposite of him in the doorway of the living room. The fiend was breathing heavily, gripping a bloodied wood-chopping axe with both hands.

"YOU!" He screamed in a bloody rage at Katsruo. "YOU'RE TRYING TO TAKE MY DAUGHTER TOO!"

Katsuro's angered demenaor remained unphased by the raging giant. If he was trying to intimidate the jonin it wasn't working. His nostrils flared outward, and his sneer grew to the point it showed his teeth. Behind his glasses Katsuro's eyes were locked right onto their target. The battle-scarred jonin cracked his knuckles loudly, challenging the man to try.

Immediately the crazed man came full sprint at Katsuro. With a bloodshot look in his eyes, he raised his axe and heaved it down on the Jonin. In one fluid motoin Katsuro's right hand shot up, faster than anything than this man had ever seen before and grabbed the shaft of the axe. In perfect sync with stopping the axe, Katsuro slid his foot over the legs of his opponent, grabbed the man's shirt, turned his back to the direction of the movement, and heaved. In flawless execution, the man was disarmed, tripped forward over Katsuro's leg, and was thrown straight out of the door. He crashed hard as his body landed in the front yard, with a satisfying thud and he slammed against the stone path leading to the front door.

Mizu jumped back in surprise, barely getting out of the way of the airborne man as he flew into the ground. She was not expecting that! Katsuro walked out of the front door in a relaxed manner, bloody-axe in hand. Casually, he chucked the axe into the ground a few feet away from the murder. As Katsuro's opponent tried to raise his head up, Katsuro bolted beside him and soccer-kicked his head. Katsuro held nothing back, and as his shin pulverized the creep's jaw he could feel the sensation of teeth breaking. The man cried in pain, spitting out blood and teeth as he desperately tried to catch his breath. Triumphant over his opponent, Katsuro put his foot on the lunatic's head. Perfectly veiling what he had done to Tetsuo just a few days ago, he dug into his vest and relaxingly lit a cigarette. This time though, he made sure to let the hot ashes trickle down onto his foe's face.

Katsuro slowly began to put pressure on his foot as he stood on his skull. "Give me a reason motherfucker." He threatened.

"Mizu, tie his ass up! I want you to use all 40 feet of rope on this piece of shit. Standard restraint knots."

Mizu couldn't help but stare in a mix of awe and horror at her instructor. This man looked like he weighed over 300 pounds, dwarfing even Katsuro. Yet their sensei threw him around like a rag-doll. Any one of them, including Haruki, would have been able to handle him. But Katsuro just made it look so damn easy. His form was perfect, flawless in its execution, but it was masked in an enraged brutality. The longer she spent with her sensei, the more she began to understand why there were so many stories about him.

As she began to tie up the brute, she almost felt sorry for him. He put up little resistance to Mizu binding his hands and feet. Working her way back up to tie yet another knot over his hands, she could hear sounds of sobbing beneath Katsuro's foot. This man was broken.

"Where - Where's my daughter?" He shrieked between his cries. "Where did you take Yasumi?!"

"What the fuck are you going on about?!" Katsuro yelled over his cries. "That girl's not your daughter."

"You sound just like the rest of them." The crazed man retorted. "How can you expect me to believe my daughter died during the war, when she's standing right before me! I have a picture inside that proves it!"

"Hey Tetsuo!" Katsuro called out. "You were inside that house: What the fuck is this nut talking about?"

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo flinched and turned his panicked gaze to a hand that was suddenly touching his arm. The hand was rough with calluses and textured with scars. He relaxed only marginally when he realized it belonged to Katsuro. He allowed himself to be led to where the rest of their squad waited, still carrying Rei on his back.

The boy was visibly rattled. That was close. Too close. He didn't know what would've happened of that man had managed to grab ahold of him or Rei. And what was this about taking his daughter? The way this man had screeched at him with such damn desperation almost made him feel like he was in the wrong.

Tetsuo came back to the present when the jonin-sensei began barking orders. He nodded back after receiving his instructions. Now that it was clear the man inside the home's pursuit was not imminent, it was the first thing that he wanted to do.

Tetsuo knelt by the tree hugging the fencepost where Katsuro had stood just earlier. With precise, extreme delicacy, he shifted Rei's weight from off of him and onto the ground. Tetsuo cupped the back of her neck and head as he brought them back to lay against the trunk. He turned back to face her and look her over, Rei's body now visible in the light of day. Worry knitted his brow. He couldn't tell how cognizant she was yet.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know what else to do," he explained to her softly. Tetsuo's chest still rose and fell with each breath he took. Adrenaline was slowly ebbing out of his system. "I'm sorry," he apologized again. "You should be safe now. We're here to help."

While she was a little more dishelveled than before, there was nothing that immediately stuck out to him about her condition. Now that they were out of the immediate danger zone, the emotions he had pushed down just moments before came back to him full force: Consternation. Grief. Rage.

Whoever this man was had turned Rei into his plaything. While he had paid meticulous attention to her exterior, he did nothing to care for her interior. While her hair had been combed, she hadn't slept in days. The kitchen had been a mess, and he could only imagine what sort of bacteria must have festered on whatever he may have fed her, assuming she had been fed at all. Then there was the dining room and bedroom. The glass from the dining room had not been swept. She very easily could've cut her feet on it, and yet she had been fitted into a new white dress, specks of dust which had only started collecting on it now that he'd brought her outdoors. The bedroom door had been left partly open, to where she easily could've caught a glimpse of the carnage behind even without her being there. It made him anxious to think about just how much of this she had seen to know that he "got mad" whenever someone goes into that room. What had he done to her when he was angry?

Tetsuo's hands balled the fabric of his pants legs. He knew what he wanted to do when he was angry.

He glared after Katsuro's back as it retreated into the home. There was some small satisfaction Tetsuo got by watching the man kick in the door, having a decent guess at what was to come next. It was as if he was siccing a dog on this man.

The satisfaction of his own vindictive whim lasted only briefly, however, for in the next few moments the man was hurled outside, and a sickening crunch echoed through the front yard as Katsuro punted the man's head. Instinctively, Tetsuo collected Rei into his arms and pulled her tight into his chest. He did his best to cover her ears with one arm draping her head. Katsuro seemed to be doing his best to make this as vulgar of a scene as he possibly could. It was not a sight Rei needed to see nor hear.

Tetsuo watched as Katsuro put the man's head in the ground undearneath the force of his boot. He began to recognize the manner that he lit a cigarette and tapped the ashes onto the man's face. The parallel between here and the event at the Hokage's office just the morning before did not escape him. Tetsuo deadpanned. Really?

The man was sobbing now, the distress in his voice begging for pity. Tetsuo had almost given some to him, but it only took a single recollection of the many ways he had neglected Rei's care for his sympathy to be swallowed in a blanket of rage. He was beginning to fit the pieces together, however.

"There was a picture of a girl in the dining room. She looked a lot like Rei, but it wasn't her. That must've been his daughter."

Maybe this man had not set out to look for Rei, but when he found her, his eyes must've been set on her. This man was volatile and unstable. He would've chased her all throughout the forest, even if it took a day's time to finally get to her. He was obsessed. An image of him finally managing to fool her into thinking it was safe to come out of the minefield flashed in his head, a violent grapple being enough to take her and drag her back to Ansu with him. Tetsuo still didn't quite know how the old couple fit into this picture, exactly.

Tetsuo glared at the murder weapon, now chucked into the front yard. Katsuro needed to know this man was not innocent, but with present company in mind, he chose to pick his words carefully. "That axe. He's definitely used it."

He turned his angry gaze onto the jonin now. Tetsuo's protective hold of Rei tightened, just marginally. "Katsuro-sensei, can you please watch the language? She can still hear you." Probably.

Haruki, meanwhile, did what he was told. Mostly. He was standing at the gate, yes, but there was no way he was going to be able to not stare and gawk as Katsuro singlehandedly dispatched this mountain of a man. Never before had he seen a man of that size be so effortlessly reduced to tears. Watching Katsuro get to work was like watching a scene at an action flick. Katsuro drank in excess, smoke enough to be qualified as a walking fire hazard, and he yelled but there was no denying it now. He was so cool.

He tried to turn his attention back to where a few civilians nearby were similarly started to gawk at the scene unraveling before them, but in no time at all was Haruki craning his neck to see what Katsuro would do next. He didn't want to miss a second of it.

 

[Gilzar]

More of the town's citizens flocked to the area in droves after hearing all of the commotion. Everyone wanted to see just what was happening in their small little village. The villagers got as close as they could to the home, but stopped at the fence. Likely none of them wanted to get in the way of whatever was happening. Haruki could hear the villagers as they quietly chattered amongst themselves. All of the chatter seemed to center around three topics: Rei had finally been found, who was the large man bleeding on the ground, and what had happened to the old couple?

Rei remained mostly silent. She occasionally would let out a confused look, but due to the lack of sleep and Tetsuo's discombobulation she probably wasn't 100% aware of what was going on. Tetsuo's words did seem to have some effect on her though. The girl relaxed a bit, and simply sat on the ground.

Mizu discreetly watched Tetsuo at a distance as she continued tying more and more rope around their prisoner. She watched him intently as he was ordered to take care of Rei. Just why Katsuro was letting the nastiest member of their squad watch over her confused Mizu. Tetsuo was horrible to his own teammates. Was it really a wise decision to put a victim in his care, when he might just terrorize her for looking at him? Confident that Katsuro would regret the decision, Mizu kept an eye on Tetsuo just waiting for him to do something nasty...but he didn't. For the second time on this mission Tetsuo showed a level of compassion that bewildered Mizu. He was caring for Rei like she was his own. All of his moves were gentle and delicate. Mizu let out a frown, almost disappointed that Tetsuo had defied her expectations. Why was he so nice to Rei, but terrible to them???

Katsuro thought about what Tetsuo said, though an annoyed glare escaped him as Tetsuo told him not to swear. If what Tetsuo explained was true, then this man wasn't of a sound mind. Questioning someone like this probably wouldn't get them anywhere. For the sake of proper procedure, as well as curiosity, Katsuro needed to go in the home to get the full picture. All he had were just bits of information that Tetsuo had given him. Where were the bodies of the elderly couple? Were there any clues of what the man was doing with Rei during their time together? Toshio was looking for anymore clue behind the house. He'd check in with him when he got back.

Mizu seemed to be nearly finished with tying up the suspect. She had at least three different knots on his hands and feet, and about 10 more feet of rope to use. Katsuro eased his foot off the man's head. "I'm going inside. If he tries anything funny, knock him out."

Once again Katsuro walked back in through the front door. This time he was able to get a good look at the living room. The room was messy, with random items and blankets laying about. It was clear this room was where they primarily spent their time in the house. Oddly enough, Katsuro found Rei's green dress laying on a coffee table in the room. Next to it was a rusty pair of scissors and a sewing kit. It looked like the kidnapper was trying to fix her dress, but wasn't doing a good job at it. An old stereo continued to mindlessly play some old tune. He promptly shut it off and proceeded in the dining room.

It didn't take long for Katsuro to find the photo both Tetsuo and the criminal had mentioned. Afterall, it was the only photo being presented in the room. All the rest were vandalized and had the subject's faces blacked out. Tetsuo had said the girl in the photo looked like Rei, and he agreed. Maybe this man really did think Rei was his daughter? That would explain why she was in such good condition, and why he'd even try to fix that dress. He picked up the frame the photo sat in and carried it with him as he toured the rest of the home.

The only bedroom in the house was a bloodbath. Katsuro didn't need to stick around long to surmise what happened here. Now he just needed to find the dead bodies. After a quick glance through the kitchen, Katsuro returned back to the front lawn. He knelt down in front of the criminal. This probably wouldn't go anywhere, but it was worth a try.

"Why'd you kill that old couple?" He asked sternly.

The man stared at Katsuro with the same crazy look he had given Haruki. "They tried to take my daughter from me."

Katsuro's arched a brow "They tried to take your daughter from you, in the bedroom of their own home?" He questioned in a condescending tone.

"I erased them so they couldn't. They no longer exist. That's my home."

The jonin shot a quizzical look at the man. What? He sighed, rolling his eyes. He knew this wouldn't get anywhere. All he wanted to do now was find the bodies, hand this prick over to the authorities, then get back to Sando. With any luck they'd be out of here in the morning.

Toshio walked out of the backyard and joined Katsuro back at the front of the house. He returned with some news for the Jonin.

"There's a freshly dug grave with two dead bodies in the backyard. This one's scent is all over it."

Then their work was nearly done. All that was left was waiting for the constable to show up. Katsuro no longer required Toshio's services.

"Thanks for everything, Toshio. You can go if you'd like."

The bear nodded, and disappeared into a cloud of dust. When it settled, he was no longer there.

Katsuro walked over to Tetsuo and Rei. The little brat had been through a lot today, and there was no telling what Rei may have been through.

"What you did was risky." Katsuro said to Tetsuo. "It wasn't perfect, but you did what you had to do. Good work."

He put his hand on Tetsuo's shoulder to try and fully capture his attention. "How are you holding up?"

 

[Pine]

Haruki continued to have his eyes trained on Katsuro as he re-entered the old home. He waited to see if there would be yet another bad guy to get thrown out of the house, but after nearly a minute of nothing happening, he returned to the crowd. In no time at all, the number of pedestrians huddling in the street and stretching their necks to see if they could get a glance had nearly doubled. The villagers kept an appropriate distance from the fence line, and with no sign of any local authorities in sight, he turned his attention to the second thing that made him curious.

He had seen Tetsuo's ungraceful exit from the home and had seen that he had a girl with him, but the giant of a man screaming and ramming the house had put him back on alert soon enough. He only just now had the time to really get a good look at them.

What he saw perplexed him. Tetsuo was still holding onto the girl long after the time it was strictly necessary to do so had passed. It was a fierce and caring behavior the likes of which he had never seen from the other boy. Haruki looked at Tetsuo as if he had grown a second head. It just seemed wrong coming from his fellow genin, who was always yelling, shoving him around, and being completely rude.

Not only that, but the girl he was holding was in fact the objective of their mission: Rei Takara in the flesh. How did Tetsuo go in investigating the missing couple and come out with the missing girl instead?

There were too many gaps in Haruki's knowledge for him to fill the full picture. As funny as seeing how out of character his teammate was acting, he didn't want to bring about Katsuro's ire by getting distracted on the job. So he turned back to the villagers, keeping one eye out for the authorities to arrive, the other for the shopkeeper to stick her head out of the crowd. After their last interaction, he was hoping she was not going to try to talk to him or anyone else on the squad for the time being.

As he listened to snippets of conversation and gossip pass between the people of Ansu, he zeroed in on one of the people standing closest to fenceline: a middle-aged man with a bold farmer's tan. "Excuse me," Haruki said, waving at him as he tried to get the man's attention. "I couldn't help but overhear, do you really not know who this man is?" He was referring, of course, to the man in the yard, who was panting and sobbing softly into the soil below.

- - - - -

Katsuro found Tetsuo still clinging tightly to Rei. His eyes had been locked on the strange man from the house, as though he was expecting him to break free from his bonds at any given moment.

Tetsuo's attention snapped to Katsuro as he approached. His lips were in a taut, serious line and his brow was knit in a glare. It was a silent warning to not yell or make any more uncouth comments. If he wanted to lecture him, then he was going to have to save it for later.

But as he listened to what the jonin-sensei had to say, it seemed as though he had not come to reprimand him. Instead of admonishing him, Katsuro was... praising him? Every interaction he'd had with this man since meeting him, Katsuro had either yelled at, threatened, or physically punished him. Now in the aftermath of what arguably may have been his most foolhardy stunt, was Katsuro actually showing his approval?

Tetsuo's guarded countenance became one of confusion. This even moreso after the jonin settled his hand on his shoulder and asked how he was doing.

Katsuro was many things. He was loud. He was crass. He was an alcoholic with no restraint and he smoked way too much. One thing Katsuro was not, however, was a bullshitter. If Katsuro was asking if he was okay, it was because he genuinely wanted to know.

Tetsuo looked away. For a long time, he didn't know what to say. It wasn't just because he felt awkward by the sudden pretense of intimacy between them, but also because he genuinely did not know the answer. Tetsuo was silent, but little by little, the tension fell from his body.

"I'm fine," he finally replied, even though his lips wanted to quiver and he thought his arms may have started shaking. He felt content to leave it at that, but at the last minute, he added just loud enough for Katsuro to hear, "I'm just glad we found her."

 

[Gilzar]

Katsuro gave a small nod of acknowledgement to Tetsuo. His student looked uneasy, but the jonin had a feeling the stubborn boy would pull through. Witnessing death on a mission was never easy its first time, but it was something they all had to do. Death was part of the shinobi life, whether they liked it or not. It was a grim reality, but his students would have to get used to it as he did.

In the nearby crowd of villagers a man began to sift his way through. He was an older man, roughly in his 50's. On his back he carried a large staff. Two other armed men followed behind him as he frantically pushed people aside to get to the fence. "Come on people, move out of the way!" He shouted.

Both the older man and his two followers made their way through the fence and into the front yard. After taking in the scene for a brief moment, the aged man approached Katsuro. Respectfully, he extended his hand. "Greetings leaf shinobi. I'm the town constable and these are my two deputies."

Cigarette hanging from one side of his mouth, Katsuro looked over the three of them. He then shook the man's hand. "Katsuro Katashi. The genin behind me are my students."

"Pleased to meet you." The constable replied. His eyes glared to the sobbing man on the ground, the bloody axe, and the little girl by Tetsuo.

"Yah' mind telling me what happened here?"

"Sure." Katsuro replied. His hand lifted his cigarrete out of his mouth so he could speak clearly, and he exhaled a small plume of smoke.

"That man on the ground kidnapped Rei Takara, and murdered the two people that lived here. When investigation led us here, we rescued Rei and apprehended him. I can submit you a full report when we return to Konohagakure."

"I see..." The constable replied. "That would explain why nobody's seen those two in days but...Do you know why he did it all?"

Katsuro handed him the framed photo of the suspect's daughter. "He's nuts. Guy thinks Rei is his daughter, who is the girl in that photo. Don't know why he killed the other two, but their bodies are buried in the backyard."

"Hmm...." The older man looked at the photo, then at Rei. Then he looked back over at the bound suspect. "There's been talk around town of a big man lurking in the woods these past two weeks. Guess that's him..."

An uneasy expression grew on the constable's face as he took in the sheer size and weight of the sobbing criminal. "Boys. Borrow a wagon...and a mule."

The two deputies nodded, and vanished back into the crowd. The old constable spoke up, and addressed the entire group, "Well, I'll have to get a full report from you just for record-keeping, but you can just mail that to me. Otherwise, as far as I'm concerned, Rei is safe and the criminal responsible has been caught. I see no reason to interfere with your mission and keep you or the girl here. This old lawman thanks you four for the help. I'll take care of the crime scene, and the murderer."

The constable then bowed, and began the process of taping up the crime scene while also keeping an eye on the criminal.

Katsuro waved to his students to follow, and the group began the short walk back to Takara manor. On the way back, the residents of Ansu displayed a wave of emotions. Some visibly mourned the loss of the murdered elderly couple. Others openly cheered for the recovery of Rei, and praised the group for their efforts. The rest of the villagers stayed silent and resumed their work, though they respected what the group had done.

----------

In just a short few minutes the group was already back on the path leading up to the mansion. The guards at the gate hailed the group, and the gates to the lavish estate opened.

"The shinobi found Rei!" One of the guards happily yelled into the courtyard. "Rei is back!"

Mizu observed the workers of the manor as the news verbally spread through the courtyard like wildfire. The news of the missing girl showing up could be heard was shouted person to person, bouncing around the entire property. Upon hearing the news, many of the maids and workers would stop in their place to catch a glimpse of the group and see it for themselves. The usual busy pace of the estate grinded to a halt, and within minutes a crowd of workers had massed in the courtyard.

The main doors of the mansion suddenly opened, and the workers hushed. From out of the doorway, Sando emerged out of the mansion with his personal servant Yoshiyo close behind. He frantically hobbled down the steps to the courtyard with his cane. His bald servant tried to assist, but the finely dressed businessman shooed him away with his free hand. In their brief time knowing him, Mizu had never seen the cripple move as fast as he was.

The crowd parted at the center to allow their employer through. Sando moved to the group as quickly as he could.

"Rei!" He shouted as he got close to the group.

Upon hearing the voice of her father, Rei's head bounced up and left its gloomy state. The girl ran ahead of the group, and leaped into her father's arms. A smile grew across Sando's face, as father and daughter were reunited once again.

"Thank you all!" Sando happily exclaimed, still hugging his daughter. For the first time since they had met him, Sando was cheery and at a loss for words. After a minute or so, he looked back up at the group of shinobi.

"Where was she?"

 

[Pine]

Before Haruki could get an answer, the constable had arrived. He stepped out of the way when told but watched and listened to the conversation between him and Katsuro. So that was what happened to the old couple. It saddened him, knowing they had passed with no one looking for them. It was only by incident it tied in the missing Rei case that their bodies were discovered to begin with. Beneath that sorrow came an existential fear: When he was gray and wrinkled, would anyone come looking for him? Or would he simply fade away in a land he had not been born into?

Both of the boys were all too happy to comply when Katsuro waved for them to move on towards the estate. Tetsuo wanted to put as much distance between Rei and her captor as possible. He began this by carrying her on his back, after receiving her consent. For Haruki's part, the sniffling cries of the strange man had begun to unnerve him. He wanted to share in the joy the villagers felt, bask in the praise they were being given, but a part of him felt it was tainted somehow.

Belatedly, he realized Toshio had been desummoned, and his chances of petting the bear today were ruined.

- - - - -

Tetsuo's march never once broke. Every muscle in his body burned by the time they had ascended the path to the manor. He would not let anyone know this, however, least of all Rei.

Then Sando came out into the yard.

Even though the weight of her clambering off of him should've been a relief, Tetsuo felt as if a part of him had been ripped off. At first it was like his heart had sank, but then his jaw tightened. He watched with a furious gaze as he watched their employer catch Rei in his arms and hold her there. How dare he look so relieved to have found her. How dare he act like he ever even truly cared that she had been missing.

"She was in a house with a psychopath in the village. Not even 500 yards from your mansion," he answered curtly. "Maybe if you'd actually had your guards looking for her instead of keeping them here to cover your own hide, she could've been home days ago."

 

[Gilzar]

"She was in the village?" A shocked look overcame Sando as Tetsuo told him where they had found Rei. That look soon soured into a stern glare. Tetsuo had finally struck a nerve with the businessman. "What are you getting at, boy?"

Sando slowly began to stand, leaning on his cane with one hand, and holding the hand of Rei with his other.

"You think I'm a bad parent, don't you?"

He paused. For a moment he glared over at Katsuro. Sando half-expected the boy's superior to say something, but Katsuro just remained silent. Tension between all of them had been brewing since the start of the mission. This was bound to happen sooner or later, and Katsuro had no intention of stopping it. With Rei back and the mission complete, Katsuro had answers he wanted as well. But for now, he'd let this play out.

Sando gritted his teeth. "The most powerful criminal organization in the world wants to use my business to ruin this country. Yet you want me to send out my only line of defense, when I hired everyone else in this country to find my daughter?"

He stomped his cane against the ground in frustration. "That's why I hired you! I told the leaf to send me the best, and they sent me you. Would you rather have had me limping around in the woods? I would have slowed everything down. You can't expect my employees to thoroughly search for my daughter and protect me."

Rei tightly hugged his leg. His daughter had an effect on the man, as he took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"You're smart, or at least you like to act like it. Ask yourself this: Do you really think that I, the most powerful businessman in this country, have just been sitting here in my house doing nothing?!"

 

[Pine]

Haruki looked with surprise as Tetsuo's one comment seemed to set Sando off.

After seeing the way Sando had treated Mizu yesterday in the first moment he set eyes on her, it didn't surprise Tetsuo to see their employer lose his temper. He noticed when Sando looked over to Katsuro but kept his eyes locked on the crippled man. He waited for an intervention from the jonin that would never come. It was as if, once again, Katsuro was granting him an unspoken permission to act.

What Tetsuo wanted to do was yell. The more Sando raised his voice, the hotter his blood boiled. The only thing preventing him from completely laying into this man was that Rei was still there having to witness all of this. Sando seemed to have no such inhibition, which only seemed to reinforce in Tetsuo's mind what he felt he already knew about the man. After all of this, he still was only thinking about himself.

"What have you been doing, then? Making more backdoor deals with the Naku Shita?" While he was able to restrain himself from full on yelling, he found his own voice was starting to raise, and there was no hiding the anger in his words. "It's your own fault that they want your business to begin with. You said so yourself."

 

[Gilzar]

"Making plans." He replied simply. "In order to keep my daughter safe, as well as this country, Rei and I have to disappear." He spoke in a much quieter, albeit still bitter tone.

"You think I liked working with scum like the Naku Shita, boy? I made a mistake, and if you can't tell I'm paying for it." Sando admitted bitterly. "The war was threatening to bankrupt this country. My business provides food, medicine, and other essential supplies we can't produce all over this land. The price of acquiring those goods from legitimate sources skyrocketed during the war. Buying my goods from the Naku Shita's black market ensured that I could keep goods and services cheap during the war, while still turning profit. Had I kept working the honest way inflation would have devastated what little we had left here, and I would have gone under in less than a year. Without my business this country would have struggled to get supplies, and the Land of Birds would be in even worse shape than it is now."

"What would you have done in my shoes, boy? Would you have done the honest thing and watched this country be destroyed by a tidal wave of famine and poverty?! All because the Great Nations decided to turn this country into a battlefield for a war that we weren't even involved in!"

Sando continued to stare straight at Tetsuo, expecting an answer from the boy who had been so critical of him since the moment they met.

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo frowned, caught off guard by his answer. He had not expected Sando to have been making plans to leave all of this behind. He couldn't picture a version of this well-polished and well-groomed man having to spend a single day on the road without a swarm of servants at his beck and calling.

It wasn't going to change Tetsuo's mind though. Nothing Sando could do or say would be enough for that in this moment. Not right after the things Tetsuo had seen that day.

"I would've come up with something," he snapped. "Something that wouldn't involve dealing with a bunch of thugs. Especially not when I had a daughter to think about."

He dug his heels in more, resenting that this man continued to try to justify his own criminal behavior and continued to try to garner pity from him.

"Don't act like you did this for anyone but yourself. We've been to the village. No one else here is living like you are with your big fancy mansion and millions of servants."

Tetsuo could feel himself grasping for straws, but that didn't matter. He started this argument and he wasn't going to back down from his stance. He continued to look Sando in the eye, less angry but every bit as antagonistic.

"If you're going to disappear, then you should hurry up and do it. Before you get anyone else hurt."

 

[Gilzar]

"That's enough Tetsuo." Katsuro finally interjected. He had heard enough of the two bickering back and forth. In his eyes both sides had finally been given a chance to say what they wanted. Tetsuo got to finally express at least part of how he felt about the shady businessman. Meanwhile, Sando finally gave the reasoning behind some of the things he had done in the past. The jonin doubted that anything between the two was truly settled, but at least now the air was clear where they all stood. While Katsuro understood a lot of the anger Tetsuo had toward Sando, he did feel that the boy was being a little unreasonable. Sando had his reasons, but regardless of whether or not they were justified, his past had caught up to him.

"We need to talk about your plan." Katsuro stated in a blunt manner. "Genzo is still out there, and these walls ain't gonna keep him back. How soon can you get out of here?"

Sando eyed over at Katsuro as the man finally intervened in the situation. "I have a few more phone calls to make, but with Rei back I can speed things up. My contacts want to send an envoy to escort Rei and I." He paused awkwardly for a moment. "Don't worry, they're legitimate contacts. My days of making deals with criminals are long over. I'll know by the evening what the plan is and I can fill you in. If you all remained here and protected Rei and I, we'd be forever in your debt."

"Alright." Katsuro nodded. Sando let out a small sigh of relief, and he began to walk his daughter back into the mansion. and all the workers resumed their busy work day.

"Listen up." Katsuro said, addressing all of his students. "This mission may be done, but we're not leaving yet. We can't let Genzo get either of them, there's just too much at stake. I'm going to help guard the estate. You can all rest, you've earned it as far as I'm concerned. I'll text you when where and when to meet this evening."

Mizu quietly nodded to their sensei's orders. Even though she didn't like being around Sando, she agreed with Katsuro. Sando was horrible to be around, and he had a sketchy past. But he was an important man. She didn't realize until now how important he really was. The land of birds was in rough shape to say the least. Yet the people, like in the village below them, lived honest lives. If they let him fall into the hands of the Naku Shita, who knows how many of those lives could be ruined? Staying here was the right thing to do.

The moment that Katsuro dismissed them Mizu marched straight to her sleeping quarters. After the events of today she needed a nice long nap, away from the drama of her two comrades. She slipped her toeless shoes off, then collapsed onto her sleeping pad. As she slowly drifted to sleep, she reflected over what Sando had said to Tetsuo. What would you have done in my shoes? As a shinobi, Mizu longed to live her life with honor and a high moral standard. Yet situations like the one Sando described complicated that. Sticking to a moral code in that situation would have had a terrible outcome, so what was the right thing to do?

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo kept scowling for a moment after Katsuro intervened, but ultimately, the boy relented. He huffed, folding his arms over his chest and rolling his eyes so he could glare off to the side at the estate's perfectly manicured grass. "Whatever," he said. Then he grumbled quieter to himself, "I was done talking with him anyway."

He listened as Katsuro and Sando discussed how to proceed. He made a point to not look at the businessman, believing that if he did it would somehow be interpreted as having any respect for him. Though his bitter countenance would not show it, he had found what Sando had said to be good news: he had a plan. If Katsuro and Sando had not already decided that further protection from Genzo was needed, Tetsuo would've said something. Luckily, he would not have to navigate the linguistic gymnastics of trying to persuade Katsuro, who seemed like he never yielded once he made a decision, or Sando, who Tetsuo had just freshly let any appearance of professionalism slip and would undoubtedly not be happy to hear him out.

Tetsuo only looked back up when Sando had turned his back to enter the estate. He watched Rei go in with her father, hand-in-hand. Now back at home, she seemed a lot better. Tetsuo had started to worry earlier when she didn't seem to immediately recover from his actions earlier once he'd gotten her out of the house. Despite the fact she must not have gotten a wink of sleep while she was away these past few days, it was as if she had finally come to life now that she was reunited with Sando. Again, a hollow feeling settled in the pit of his stomach.

He and Haruki both gave Katsuro their attention when the instructor briefed them on the current plan.

"Yes, Sensei," Haruki said in acknowledgement.

Tetsuo said nothing.

Haruki had felt almost uncomfortable during the exchange between their employer just now, but at the news they would finally get a chance to rest, he had perked up. Sando was planning to leave the mansion and go into hiding, so this may be the last chance they got to enjoy such luxurious lodging as this. He looked to Mizu with excitement, but she had already turned and left their group without saying a word.

He frowned to himself. Although his feet were throbbing from all the standing and walking he'd done this morning, he had hoped to at make plans with her to explore the mansion together. Haruki saw her walked with such purpose, however, he doubted she wanted to be around anyone right now. It was disappointing, and he had no idea what the reason for her avoidance was, but he let her go without protest.

He chewed the inside of his lip, thinking about how he could proceed from here.

After a moment, Haruki suddenly shot off, running into the manor. He slowed himself to a speed walk, but he was easily to catch up to where Yoshiyo was trailing Sando and Rei. There was a bit more distance between them than there usually seemed to be when they walked together, probably because Sando had shooed him off just moments before. "Mr. Yoshiyo, sir," Haruki addressed him to try to get his attention. "Are we allowed to explore the mansion?"

- - - - -

Tetsuo had been the last to move on from their dismissal. He had been waiting for the others to leave, but Haruki had surprised him with expediting that process when he literally ran off.

Now with the yard cleared of all but his instructor and the workers, he turned to look up at the jonin. "Katsuro, let me help you," he said shortly. Tetsuo said this with what he hoped was a determined look on his face, but as heavy as his eyes felt, it looked more like he was knitting his brows in a strained attempt to keep himself alert and focused.

 

[Gilzar]

"Hmmmm?"

Yoshiyo halted in surprise and turned his entire body to properly face Haruki. The bald servant was clearly not expecting to have been followed in by any of the shinobi. "Well..."

He awkwardly looked behind him to see what his boss, Sando, thought on the matter. However, Sando just kept walking with his daughter. Yoshiyo thought about Haruki's question for a few more seconds, then shrugged his shoulders. "I don't see why you couldn't. Just please stay out of the private quarters, and do not disrupt any of the workers."

"Is there anything else you need?"

------------

Katsuro's instinctively raised a brow, surprised by Tetsuo's request. Out of all of his students, Tetsuo would have been the last one he requested to help. If anything he thought it would have been Mizu, but the girl walked away the first chance she got. Surprising as it was, he'd be a fool to turn down extra help.

"Alright, if you want to." He responded to his student.

Katsuro began his walk around the inside perimeter of the estate, just next to the walls. The time was now around 2:15, and the day had reached its hottest temperature. Katsuro pulled out his canteen, taking a hefty drink from the container before stashing it away. This work wasn't fun in this heat, but it was necessary. A few guards could be seen patrolling the inside of the walls around a similar route that Katsuro and Tetsuo were walking. Occasionally, one would cross their path, and Katsuro would give them a nod of acknowledgement as he passed by.

"You feeling any better, kid?" Katsuro asked as they walked along the perimeter.

 

[Pine]

"Stay out of the private quarters. Let the workers work. Got it." Haruki nodded to emphasize that he understood and would be retaining these restrictions.

"I just have one more question," he said. "Do you have any rooms for any fancy anemities-" he meant to say 'amenities,' "-or anything like that? Like is there a spa room?" Haruki wanted to further describe some sort of chamber where they kept the kind of cucumbers meant to put on people's eyes, but he was afraid he might start to sound a little too silly if that wasn't the case.

- - - - -

Tetsuo, especially after seeing the look his jonin-sensei gave him in response, expected rejection. He saw Katsuro sending him off more firmly, maybe suggesting he would just get in the way, or maybe he would call him stupid for asking. Instead of any of that, he consented.

For reasons he would not process until later, he was relieved.

Tetsuo followed not too far behind Katsuro, but he wasn't quite sure what the appropriate distance between him was during these circumstances. He also quietly observed the jonin's focus at least appeared to be rather straightforward, rather than his keeping his head on any sort of obvious swivel. He was sure that in spite of the, the scarred man was taking in and processing even more information from their surroundings than he as a genin could even imagine possible.

Tetsuo had been making a concerted effort to appear as small and quiet as possible. Under the shadow of 6'2" Katsuro, this did not feel difficult to accomplish.

It was as if a spell broke over him when his instructor brought out his canteen. Tetsuo had seemingly forgotten that to patrol was not necessarily to be stealthy. With guards making the rounds all along the perimeter, there was no mistaking that the estate was being carefully watched. He briefly wondered if that was actually water in the canteen, but he didn't catch any new, ripe whiff of alcohol, and it nevertheless reminded him of the own tacky feeling in his mouth. He wished he had at least gotten the chance to brush his teeth before taking off.

He waited for a long enough period of time that it would not seem like he was copying the jonin before he brought out his own canteen. After a swig, he poured just a little onto his hand. Tetsuo closed his eyes and rubbed his wet thumb and index over his eyelids. He needed to stay awake.

Katsuro broke the silence for the second time. He was checking up on him again.

Tetsuo replaced his canteen in his sack while his brows furrowed at him, moreso in confusion than anything by the question. To ask him if he was feeling better was to assume that he had a state of being to feel better from. "I already told you I was fine," he said.

 

[Gilzar]

Yoshiyo listened intently to Haruki. His brow raised; he was visibly confused with what exactly the boy was implying until the mention of a spa.

"Oh!" He exclaimed, finally understanding what Haruki was asking about. "There is a pool room with a sauna that you are more than welcome to use."

Yoshiyo pointed to a hallway in the distance. "It's just down that hallway. The room is will be the third door on the right. We mark that area with signs for the staff to follow, so just follow the signs if you get lost."

Yoshiyo eyed the end of the hallway where Sando was currently walking. "Anything else?"

If Haruki desired, the pool room was empty and available for his leisure. As the name suggests, the room's primary feature was its simple, yet luxurious, pool. However, connected to the room was a large sauna of impressive size. Complete with a lounging area and a phone to call for service, Haruki was free to use the room as he saw fit.

--------

Katsuro smoked the rest of his cigarette down to the very end, then exhaled the fumes through his mouth and nose. His green eyes looked into Tetsuo's out of the corner of his glasses. "Look Tetsuo. You've had a pretty fucking eventful day. I want to make sure you're doing alright because you've never dealt with this shit before."

Katsuro stopped walking the perimeter. He tossed what remained of his cigarette to the ground and stomped it out. The jonin's full attention was now on Tetsuo. If there was going to be a time to have this conversation, it might as well have been now. Mizu and Haruki were gone and the estranged student and teacher could speak alone.

"But if you're fine, then we need to talk. What the fuck is your problem with Mizu?"

 

[Pine]

Haruki clapped his hands together in delight, grinning widely at Yoshiyo. It wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he was asking. He had hoped more for some tables to stretch out on and maybe he could get a deep tissue massage from one of the servants on standby, but he hadn't expected the manor to have a built-in sauna!

"No, that'll be it. Thank you!"

Haruki hurried off down the hall Yoshiyo had directed him to. Just like the servant had said, there were signs along the path indicating where to go. This was helpful to Haruki, because in his excitement, he had immediately forgotten whether it was the third or fourth room the pool was kept in. Haruki marveled at the prospect of living in such a large estate that signs had to be put up to keep people from getting lost.

The room he entered had a pool in it, just as promised, taking up the majority of the floor space. Haruki considered it might be fun to swim in that for a bit, but regrettably, he had not packed swimming trunks. Maybe if he asked, the servants would have one in his size they'd be willing to bring to him. He wasn't sure about this though. As far as he knew, it was just Rei, Sando and possibly his staff that lived here. Judging by the fact he was the only person in the room, he doubted the workers got to use this room a lot. Besides, the workers he'd seen would wear something with a much larger waist size than he did.

It took him a moment to recognize, but he found the sauna built into the far wall. To his surprise, it was small, having only enough room for one adult or maybe two kids. He knew this, too, because it was closed in by a glass door, rather than a wooden one. Haruki skittered around the pool towards the sauna. He cracked open the door and stuck his arm in. The inside of the sauna only felt modorately warmer than the rest of the pool room. This wasn't a problem though, because there was a phone to call service hung on the wall right next to it.

Haruki knew about saunas and their associated etiquette because he had gone with his parents several times since moving to Konoha. The one they always went to was traditional, with stove heated rocks and a bucket they would ladle water with to produce steam. This room seemed to have none of these features, and it excited him to think of what new age technology this wealthy elite must have used to make this work.

But first, he needed to shower.

Haruki opened the door to another built-in room adjacent to the sauna. As he expected, this was where the shower was. He walked back to the phone to make a few requests - he asked for the sauna to start warming to a moderate heat, a glass of water, and perhaps his clothes to be washed if they could do it quickly. All requests were accepted.

Haruki pulled his phone from his sack, making sure to turn it up to its maximum volume, before setting it on the floor between the shower room and the sauna. He kicked his shoes off and hurried to shower, leaving his clothes where they'd be easily accessible to the workers.

It was not a fully body shower he would do nor need. He didn't wash his hair, but he rinsed off the dirt and sweat that had clung to his skin from their morning's trip down to the minefield. After he was done, he grabbed a fresh, white towel from the cubby. His eyes widened as he did this, then practically moaned with delight. "I didn't know a towel could be so soft," he said to himself, for all the world sounding like he was on the verge of tears. Haruki rubbed the cotton blend against his cheek before wrapping himself in it.

The glass of water he'd requested had been set next to his phone. He took a swig from it, enjoying the crisp and cool taste of rich-person-water. Haruki smacked his lips as if to emphasize this to himself. A nice acoustics of the rather empty pool room gently echoed the sound back to him.

Still a little damp from his shower, Haruki padded into the sauna and shut the door quickly behind him. Still there were no rocks of buckets to be seen, yet the room had definitely heated by now. He touched his hand to the wall. It was as if the very heat was radiating out from it.

Pleased, Haruki slid onto the bench. He sat there for less than ten seconds before deciding that laying on his back with his feet kicked up against the wall would be much more comfortable, and so he did this.

A huge grin was plastered on his face. He earned this. After nearly dying yesterday being left alone with Genzo, training all night immediately following that near-death experience, then today having to be left alone with that jerk Tetsuo to conduct interviews (Toshio had been there, but he was kind of being a jerk too). Haruki had earned this time to kick back and relax.

Haruki was so excited for the chance to relax, in fact, that in less than a minute he was fidgeting with his hands and feet against the wall.

- - - - -

Before they even came to a stop, the confusion Tetsuo first felt had begun to transition into alarm. Katsuro's tone was almost as benign and gentle as the war veteran seemed capable of at first, but now that tone was beginning to have a more forceful edge to it.

It was true that Tetsuo had experienced a lot of things for the first time today. All other missions he'd been on in the past seemed to be the lowest of low ranking missions, essentially nothing more than glorified household chores for Konoha's elites. It was leagues away from what had happened down in the minefield and what he'd seen in the house. That's why he was trying not to think about it.

But then Katsuro did pull to a stop, and that dull ring of alarm became cacophonous. It felt like he had walked into a trap of his own making.

Tetsuo returned the attention he was given with a foul glare. Katsuro had been alone with Mizu when they were interviewing the civilians. At first Tetsuo had made peace with this, knowing if anyone was going to go along with his orders in the squad, reluctantly or not, it was going to be Haruki. Now, especially with the framing that these were his problems with her, he became agitated wondering what she must have said to him.

How much did he know about what happened this morning? Tetsuo imagined a warped version that Mizu must have told him, completely ommitting the fact that Tetsuo had been trying all since last night to be more cordial with his teammates. If it was his word against anyone else's on the squad, Katsuro wouldn't take his word for it. After all, Katsuro didn't like him.

Then there was the fact that Mizu had threatened to snitch on him day one when he'd tailed Katsuro to see the action of the fight at the memorial. Had she followed up on that threat and told him about it? If so, Katsuro made no indication of it. It wasn't something Tetsuo was willing to explain anyway.

Then finally there was the demon she harbored in her. Katsuro had to be playing dumb to ask what his problem with Mizu was knowing that.

"I don't want to talk about this," he said through gritted teeth. "I just want to focus on doing my job right now."

 

[Gilzar]

"This is part of the job, she's your teammate." Katsuro stated bluntly. The serious tone of his voice made it clear he wasn't taking this matter lightly.

"You two are going to get each other killed. It's almost happened already."

This conversation was a long time coming. There were always hints that it would come down to this. Katsuro had seen the glares the two gave each other whenever their backs were turned. At first he figured it was just typical child-like behavior, so he always shrugged it off. He didn't like having to tell his students to get along more than he already had to. However, after the events of this morning it was clear to Katsuro that he needed to step in. This was no longer petty banter between the two students. Now there was serious animosity brewing between the two of them, and it threatened the unity of the team. After his conversation with Mizu down in the village below, he was certain he knew what was causing it.

"Whatever you know about her and the Nine-Tails is wrong. That by-the-book girl who pisses you off so much is Mizu, not the demon. That thing doesn't affect her like you think it does."

 

[Pine]

A quiet rage began to bubble in him.

Katsuro was trying to keep his comments neutral and non-specific, but Tetsuo could read between the lines. He felt like Katsuro was patronizing him by even attempting to pacify him with this tactic.

When the jonin said they could 'get each other killed,' what he really meant was he was going to get Mizu killed. If there was any doubt he had before that Mizu had said something, it was gone now. She had accused him of playing with her life, and now Katsuro was doing the same even though he hadn't been there.

When Katsuro got more to the point, speaking explicitly about the Nine-Tails, Tetsuo couldn't help but scoff and rolls his eyes. That underlying anger was still brewing in him, but this was just ridiculous. "Oh really?" he said with clear I-don't-believe-you sarcasm in his tone. He was back to crossing his arms over his chest. "What don't I know, then?"

 

[Gilzar]

Katsuro gritted his teeth in frustration at Tetsuo's attitude. He knew this wasn't going to be an easy conversation, but somehow Tetsuo had managed to make it even more difficult.

"I don't know what makes you so fucking stupid kid, but it really works." He snapped back at Tetsuo. "I'm done fucking around, you cut the attitude right now and listen. That's an order!"

He removed his sunglasses from his face, and quickly folded them into his flak jacket. There was now nothing hiding the anger and frustration in Katsuro's eyes as he looked down at his student. Katsuro didn't care if Mizu and Tetsuo didn't like each other, but he would not tolerate bigotry of any kind. Sando was one thing, but he wouldn't tolerate it out of one of his students.

Katsuro knelt down so that he would be face-to-face with Tetsuo and not looking down on him like usual. With a stern expression, he stared into Tetsuo's eyes. Fighting the urge to yell or further insult his student further, Katsuro took several deep breaths before finally speaking. He hoped that this would make Tetsuo listen to him more.

"Mizu isn't any fucking different than you, me, or Haruki!" As he spoke in an a hushed yet angered tone, he prodded Tetsuo's chest with his pointer finger. "The kyubi doesn't have any control over her, so quit acting like it does! I've already told her that she's going to work with you no matter how much she hates it, and now I'm telling you the same fucking thing."

 

[Pine]

Tetsuo saw red the instant Katsuro prodded him in the chest. The boy swiped to bat his hand away.

"You're just saying that because you're her teacher!" he said in an equally low and angered tone. "You have to." Katsuro could lie all he wanted about Mizu being a jinchuuriki. If they didn't ever get along, then he would have failed as a sensei heading a genin squad.

This was perhaps the second time Tetsuo had seen Katsuro without his weird blindman glasses, the first being when he had crushed them off of his face. It made the scar on his face harder to ignore. Tetsuo hated how beady his eyes looked without them.

Right now, he felt like he couldn't care less about how many orders Katsuro gave him. It was hot, he was tired, and he was furious he was being insulted and yelled at and lied to over things that he knew.

"And by the way, I tried working with her. I tried last night and I tried this morning. I tried even though I know that she has that thing in her!" He then pointed in some vague direction towards the manor that was likely not indicitive at all of Mixu's actual location. "She's the one that got pissed at me."