A Shadow Darkly

XII

Whispers.

The Sharingan? Here? Were they positive?

Of course they’re positive. The spies had informed them of Sharingan no Kakashi’s arrival. The girl was just an added bonus.

Was everyone in place?

Even the traps.

It wouldn’t be easy to catch Sharingan no Kakashi. It’s not supposed to be easy. If it were easy, Kakashi would be long dead.

Prepare, watch, learn. It was the Sharingan they wanted, not the man. And the girl?

She wasn’t important, but find out about her anyway. Perhaps she has a strong bloodline that could be utilized. Trap him on the new moon, when darkness is our ally. Then we’ll take that eye and we will be unstoppable.


Sasuke carefully placed the parasols he carried onto the racks, ever aware of eyes – Kakashi’s or another’s – on his back. He knew his beauty and flaunted it, playing the game just as easily as his master. And always, he kept an eye on Kakashi. Snippets of conversation were logged away for later review and Sasuke was careful not to let anyone get too close. A choker hid his collar, and the significance of it was something only Sasuke knew.

He’d found it quite by accident, and he knew it wasn’t the original, but it looked exactly like Itachi’s necklace and he had to have it. So he’d saved what little money he was given – and when the vendor tried to get a higher price, Sasuke had let the shy girl persona drop.

The man had done well and kept his mouth shut about the mysterious slave girl. It would have been a shame to kill him, Sasuke mused. He did make spectacular pieces.

They’d been in Yagami for days now, settled in as merchant and daughter, though the villagers had their own suspicions. It was good they did, for they talked openly around a slave instead of proprietor’s daughter.

A civil war brought about by the sudden death of a respected elder. One side proclaimed he’d been murdered; the other a natural death. The daimyo had done all the peaceful things he could think of and then decided to let the villagers destroy themselves. However, both had become militant, and it had spread to the groups trying to unseat the daimyo in power. However, Sunagakure had stepped in on behalf of the daimyo.

Enough said.

But even though peace had been made in public, the more militant of the two sides had shifted from fighting for the wrongful death of a loved one to trying to grab onto power. And this was what Naruto wanted. This information would help him decide if the time came to choose a side or stay neutral. Of course, there were always bottom feeders to turn to should a powerful shinobi village refuse a contract.

“Shiki!” Kakashi bellowed from somewhere within the establishment. Sasuke broke from his musing to find his master, bowing politely toward the guests the silver-haired man seemed to be entertaining.

“Yes, father?”

“Fetch some tea for our guests.” Kakashi said dismissively. Sasuke bowed again and shuffled away, pausing only to listen. Contacts? No. More than likely Yakuza, wanting a piece of profit. Sasuke hurried to get the tea before he was yelled at for lingering. His mind turned over the possibilities. Yakuza, small time thieves, other shinobi – the list grew longer. Carefully, he carried the tray of teacups and teapot back to Kakashi, kneeling to serve each man before making to retreat. He’d demean himself by listening at a keyhole or something.

It was dark by the time the men left and Kakashi hobbled out, the grizzled old man melting away to give birth to the shinobi Sasuke was used to.

“What was that about?” Sasuke asked quietly. Kakashi only gave him a sharp glare as a reminder about speaking out of turn. The nukenin bit his cheek and bowed his head.

“Villagers come to give a warning,” Kakashi said in a voice that meant he wasn’t going to heed it. “Close up and go to bed.”

Sasuke looked at the silver-haired man for a long while, wanting to tell him of the sick feeling he felt, but he kept his mouth shut. Kakashi just shook his head.

“I’ll be going out. You know what to do.”

He was gone before Sasuke could tell him to be careful. The nukenin just stared a the spiral of smoke that marked Kakashi’s departure. When it finally dissipated Sasuke moved to close up the shop, moving to his bedroom once he was finished. A bath and then he move for his nightclothes, pausing to look a the clock.

Ten.

Kakashi had been gone for only two hours,. No need to worry. Not yet. Sasuke crawled into bed and curled up, listening for Kakashi’s sounds. He woke hours later, a feeling of dread making him nauseous. He rose from bed and made his way to Kakashi’s, fingers scraping along undisturbed blankets. Kakashi hadn’t returned. It was like him to be late, but Sasuke knew his master wouldn’t leave his pet to fend for himself. Which meant something bad had happened.

The nukenin stepped back from his keeper’s bed and stared into the dark, frowning. What could possibly have happened? Footsteps scuffed the wood outside the bedroom door. Impossibly black eyes grew darker at the sound and Sasuke eased himself back onto his bed, carefully getting a grip on one of his senbon. He closed his eyes and listened.

The footfalls belonged to a man heavier than Kakashi. An untrained mercenary, more than likely, one who was paid a pittance to do minor tasks. The bedroom door clicked open and Sasuke forced his body to remain lax as though sleep. Those footfalls came closer and fingers trailed over Sasuke’s jaw, over his shoulders and down to his hip. Hot breath hit his face and the nukenin fought the recoil that would give him away. He had to wait.

Shuffling. Just one enemy then. Just as well, Sasuke mused as he opened his eyes in the dark, sighting his enemy. The moment the mercenary took his attention off Sasuke, the broken shinobi struck. The man didn’t have a chance to even scream as Sasuke’s senbon sank into a nerve cluster, paralyzing the man. With Sasuke’s weight, they toppled over, and Sasuke reached for the mercenary’s knife, easing it up to the man’s jugular.

“I’ll give you five seconds to tell me everything.” Sasuke said softly. “One.”

The mercenary snarled. “Like hell I’ll tell you anything!”

“Brave words for one about to die. Two.”

“What are you?”

“Shinobi. Three.”

The mercenary tried to squirm, but Sasuke’s senbon was well placed. Sasuke merely pressed his knife harder and felt flesh give way.

“Four.”

“All right!” Words gushed out of the man, details Sasuke didn’t even care about. Still, the man was thorough, and Sasuke had gone nicely cold when the mercenary’s voice died away.

“Now you’ll let me live?” the mercenary pleaded as Sasuke rose from his back, pulling out the senbon as he moved. Sasuke canted his head at the man, allowing a small smile.

“I never said that.”