Thank you to my beta and muse, Small Fox. This story grew from a plot idea he gave me.
Also thanks to Slynx, satterb, Procrastination_is_key, SidonieStarr, melissen, sadie237, Aflyingmonkey, telynaayuri and disembodiedvoiceofthedying for reviewing after the first chapter of the interlude was posted. Readers’ feedback, support and comments mean a great deal to me. Feedback keeps me writing.
Hits are nice. Ratings are welcome. Reviews encourage and inspire.
Leader
Interlude 50: Vignettes: In Tarrasade
Konohamaru
Konohamaru stared at the image of Sasuke’s face, which had frozen as the message ended. Did he want to leave Tarrasade? Two divs ago the answer would have been no.
Now it was different; Biwako-san had chosen to leave this life fifty-five days ago.
He missed her. Her death had thrown him back into loneliness and grief he had thought behind him. He could not even see his grandfather without resentment creeping in because Hiruzen-sama’s age retard was still holding while Obaa-chan’s had not.
A change would help. For a while he had imagined that Sasuke, Naruto and the children would come home. Now he knew that would not happen. If Sasuke set foot in Tarrasade, Izuna would challenge him for the leadership.
Konohamaru had watched Izuna train. Sasuke would lose.
He imagined Uchiha under Izuna and shuddered. Izuna treated women as inferiors and thought hybrids inhuman. He intended to build a strict hierarchy with him at the top.
Most of those Sasuke had recruited or raised would not belong in Izuna’s Uchiha.
There would be a place for him; Konohamaru knew that. Izuna had made it clear that he saw Konohamaru occupying as high a position as would be possible for someone who was not a full blood Uchiha.
But there would be no place for Kamatari. Moegi would be condemned to a lowly position because of her gender and her association with Udon. Lady knew what Izuna would do with the kits and Ryuu; probably expel them from the clan to fend for themselves.
No, Sasuke had to stay away.
He would have been more enthusiastic about leaving if Sasuke had suggested that he join one of the ships pursuing the vendetta. He could have served on Inari’s ship. That was what they had always imagined: Inari as captain; Tayuya as pilot; him in charge of communications.
Sasuke was not offering that. He was proposing a trip to the new base. He wanted Konohamaru to be the chief negotiator with the toad hybrids.
In many ways it was a fantastic opportunity. How many people got to help a rediscovered planet integrate?
So why was he so reluctant to go?
He switched off the projector. It was time for his daily foray into Izuna’s territory.
Konohamaru never missed a day. It was important that he walked that floor of Uchiha headquarters as if he belonged there. He made sure he greeted each guard by name. He chatted with Sakura and even managed to initiate the occasional light-hearted exchange with Ino.
He knew Sumaru looked forward to each visit; Konohamaru could see it in his eyes.
Today he lucked out and met Ino as he walked towards Izuna’s office.
“Ino-san,” he acknowledged with a bow.
“Konohamaru-san,” she replied and waited.
He smiled. This particular exchange always went the same way. He invited her to the evemeal in the household and she politely refused. “Please do us the honour of joining us for our evemeal. Would this evening be possible?”
“Thank you, Konohamaru-san. That would be most pleasant. I accept.”
He almost gawped at her but managed to pull himself together. “I look forward to it, Ino-san.”
She slowed. “Our ways part here, Konohamaru-san, I shall see you this evening.”
He watched her walk away down one of the long corridors. She fascinated him. Part of him wished he found her sexually attractive so that he could have the challenge of pursuing her.
She did look like her father. Not that Konohamaru would ever mention it, just as he would never openly acknowledge Asuma as his uncle.
He wondered why she had accepted this invitation after turning down all those before it.
Izuna kept him waiting, as always. Konohamaru filled the time by talking to Sumaru, who was in a good enough mood to interject the occasional response. Konohamaru decided to push his luck.
“Have you asked one of them out yet?” he asked.
Sumaru looked at him as if he hadn’t a clue about what Konohamaru meant, which was probably the case.
“Sakura-san or Ino-san. Have you asked one of them to accompany you on a social engagement?”
To Konohamaru’s delight Sumaru flushed, which was as adorable as it was unexpected.
“It would be inappropriate,” he muttered.
Any further teasing had to wait because Sakura put her head around the door.
“Izuna-sama will see you now, Konohamaru-san.”
“On my way, Sakura-san,” he replied.
Once he was through the door he saw that Sakura had tea prepared.
“I’ll take that,” he said, claiming the tray before Sakura could stop him. “You get the door.”
He knew that being nice to the hired help annoyed Izuna. Pouring tea was even better because it reminded Izuna of Sasuke.
“Izuna-sama,” he acknowledged as he entered. He placed the tray in its usual place and then bowed.
“Konohamaru-san,” Izuna replied, trying but failing not to look annoyed.
“Please allow me the honour of serving you tea, Izuna-sama.”
He could see Izuna trying and failing to come up with a way of stopping him that did not sound ungracious.
“That would be appreciated, Konohamaru-san,” he replied, as always.
They exchanged news, each only telling the other what he wanted him to know; Konohamaru learned more from the information Shikamaru sent him.
The meeting was even briefer than usual. Izuna stood and had taken a step towards the door before Konohamaru could put his cup down.
“Please tell Asuma-san that I will not be at the meal this evening. I have an engagement.”
Konohamaru stood and bowed. “I shall convey your message.”
It was only when he was walking back along the corridor that he made the connection. Ino had agreed to come to the evemeal because she had known that Izuna would not be present.
Choza
Choza was suspicious as soon as he saw Konohamaru at the kitchen door. Although Kamatari would occasionally drop in during the day with a message, Konohamaru very rarely came himself.
“Kono-san,” he acknowledged, continuing to chop vegetables.
“Choza-san. Izuna-sama asked me to tell you that he will not be at today’s evemeal, which means that Sumaru won’t be there either.”
Choza made a mental note to set some food side for Sumaru; he never got to eat when Izuna had an evening engagement. “I’ll pass the word,” Choza promised.
Konohamaru grinned. “And make lots of extra food because everyone’s excuses for not being here will vanish as if by magic.”
It was true but better not said; Choza remembered Uchiha under Fugaku-kyou.
“I am bringing a guest,” Konohamaru warned him.
“Udon-san?” he queried.
“No, although Moegi might if she knows the coast is clear. Ino-san. She finally accepted.”
The knife slipped. Luckily it caught the end of a nail rather than a finger.
“Is that all right?” Konohamaru asked anxiously.
“Of course it is,” Choza assured him. “She is very welcome.”
Choza had known she was Inoichi’s daughter as soon as he had spotted her at Izuna’s side in a news vid. Once he was over the shock it made sense. The only mystery was how one of the whores Inoichi had fucked had ended up pregnant; they were usually so careful.
He hoped that Inoichi hadn’t been selfish enough to fuck a non-professional.
Konohamaru had barely left when Asuma was at the door.
“I am fine,” Choza assured him.
Asuma came in, took an apple from the bowl on the counter and sat at the table. “You sure?”
“About the girl? Yes. I am glad that she exists.” He thought about the assured young woman at Izuna’s side. “She must be very successful to have landed the job with Izuna-sama.”
“She was raised by the Sisterhood,” Asuma replied, taking a bite from his apple.
That told Choza everything he needed to know. It had been old Uchiha’s way of dealing with unplanned offspring: males were raised as elite fighters; females were given to the sisterhood. Inoichi would not have been informed of her existence.
The girl’s mother must have had guts to face Fugaku-kyou.
“Something is worrying you other than the girl,” Asuma observed.
Choza sighed. “It looks like Kiba is going to stay with the children in the new space station.” He found himself blinking back tears; it had to be the onions. “I understand. He missed them so much when he was here and they were on the Oak.”
Asuma had finished his apple; he came over to put the core into the recycle and paused to pat Choza on the shoulder. “You should go to him. I know Sasuke-sama has suggested it.”
“But what about you? And everyone else here? Who would cook for you?”
“Cho-chan, we would miss you but we would cope. Truth is, the new space station is going to be the main household for the foreseeable future. You belong there, looking after them.”
Choza was not sure. He wanted to be with Kiba but he did not want to leave Asuma. Akemi being missing had hit his old friend hard. It had reminded him of the hole Kurenai’s death had left in his life. It had distanced him from Tenten.
Keitaro was due to leave in a few days’ time, outward bound to serve in Inari’s crew.
“Cho-chan?” Asuma pressed.
“I’ll think about it,” Choza evaded.
Ino
Ino checked her appearance. Everything was suitably groomed and perfectly placed. Even Sister Miroku would not have found fault.
She put on her second best coat: the dark one that covered her from her neck to her wrists and her knees; the one that hinted at the curves beneath rather than displaying them.
One of the advantages of her job was that she had enough credit to buy good-quality clothes and accessories.
She set out towards the Tube.
Agreeing to share a meal in Sasuke Uchiha’s household was a step she had decided on many divs before. Now it was here she found herself surprisingly nervous.
That would not do. She estimated the time between the door of her apartment and the Tube, chose a mantra and recited it.
It calmed her and she found it pleasing that she reached the last word within five steps of her destination.
She usually used the Tube to travel from Level 4 to Level 1 so it was not unexpected that the JSF operative greeted her by name. What was different was that she had a car to herself and the operative assured her than the fee would be charged to the Uchiha household.
Konohamaru-san was waiting to greet her when the door opened. He bowed. “Ino-san.”
“Konohamaru-san,” she acknowledged and then walked with him to the right rather than taking the path she usually took towards Uchiha Headquarters.
They passed two checkpoints each manned by two members of the USF. Konohamaru knew their names and greeted them, as he did when in the Uchiha Headquarters.
It was nice or clever or possibly both.
So far she had met six members of Uchiha. Konohamaru was like Asuma, with whom he shared some elements of his appearance, movement and manner; Ino would not be surprised to learn that they were related.
She found Kamatari, Konohamaru’s assistant, harder to read. Firstly, he was a hybrid. Secondly, his friendly and humorous behaviour gave the impression that he was harmless and yet he was obviously Konohamaru’s bodyguard.
Then there was Sumaru, whom she found disturbing. After much consideration she had decided that looking at him was like using some strange mirror. The mirror changed surface characteristics, like gender and appearance, but nothing essential.
He called himself a Knife. She had been a Sister.
Finally there was her boss, Izuna Uchiha, who thought very greatly of himself. Perhaps that was justified. He was a legend: the founder of the Uchiha clan; the hero of countless songs and sagas; the man who had risen from the dead after a thousand standards.
Time to pay attention; they had reached the entrance to the Uchiha household.
“Please excuse us using the family entrance, Ino-san,” Konohamaru told her. “We do not use the main doors except on special occasions.”
It contrasted sharply with Izuna-sama, who expected every word and movement to reinforce the difference in status between him and others.
Konohamaru took her coat and gave a small smile of appreciation as he saw what she was wearing.
“Should I take off my shoes?” she asked, mindful of the roots of the Uchiha clan.
“No,” Konohamaru answered. “That is one advantage of living in a space station. It is all indoors.” He looked down at her shoes. “Anyway, it would be a shame to detract from your outfit.”
Ino knew what the high, slim heels did to her legs, particularly when she wore stockings and a fitted dress. “Why thank you, Konohamaru-san,” she replied and studied his reaction. It was as she had anticipated; he was definitely uninterested in women.
The household was beautiful. It looked exactly as it should given that it had been occupied by a single family for a thousand standards. She imagined each generation lovingly maintaining it while modifying it to their needs and adding their mark.
It reminded her of the Seminary.
Nothing else about the occasion was as she expected. They ate in the kitchen around a big table. Asuma sat at the head of the table, but otherwise there was little ceremony and much laughter. There was even a child there, Konan’s son Nagato, and the other guest was Udon, the ex-Scavenger who ran the hospice in Sublevel C and whose very existence offended Izuna.
It made her even more aware that Izuna did not fit into the modern Uchiha.
Once the meal was over, people left the table in ones and twos. Konan and Hana took Nagato off to bed. Keitaro and Kamatari were on watch. Moegi and Udon excused themselves, followed by Asuma and Tenten. Konohamaru started to clear the table and load the dish cleaner.
“Can I help?” Ino asked beginning to get up.
Konohamaru gestured her back to the table. “You talk to Choza-san. This won’t take me long.”
“Sasuke-sama believes that all simple tasks in the household should be shared by all,” Choza told her.
Ino could not imagine Izuna concurring with that.
She focused on Choza. It would be easy to stereotype him as a fat, jolly cook but she knew better. Behind the eye-patch lurked an elite fighter’s implant. He might have retired but he had not fully moved on or he would have had replaced it with a flesh and blood eye.
Not that he wasn’t a truly superb cook; Ino had eaten more in a single meal than she usually did over three days.
“Why don’t you show Ino around why I finish this?” Konohamaru suggested. “Maybe the Hall?”
Choza hesitated.
“Asuma-san suggested it,” Konohamaru added. “I’ll catch up with you there.”
It was interesting; a window into how Sasuke Uchiha had built bridges between Uchiha’s past, the present and the future he wanted for it.
Then, suddenly, an older, one-eyed, male version of her face was looking out from the wall.
She froze her expression and her body language before she could lose control of either. The image was confirmation of what she had suspected since Most Senior Sister had told her who had paid for her education and keep.
She was an elite fighter’s by-blow.
“This is the memorial to those we have lost since the founding of new Uchiha,” Choza said softly.
So he was dead. In a way she was relieved. “Why is this one separate?” she asked before she could stop herself.
“He gave his life to save over a thousand defenceless adults and children. It was a heroic act.”
The trained, logical part of her mind noted that Choza had not said that the man was heroic, only the act. “Did you know him?” she asked.
“Yes. We were raised together. We were close for many standards. He wasn’t a perfect person, but who is? When I look at this, I remember that he did one great thing.” He turned to her and smiled. “Now I know he did two.”
Ino felt herself flush, which would have earned her a beating from any Older Sister who had seen it. Choza had resumed walking. The conversation was obviously over and, given old Uchiha’s policy of never recognising a child’s parentage, it was far more than Ino could have expected.
She caught up.
“Still no sigh of Kono-san,” Choza observed. “Let’s head back to the kitchen.”
It turned out that Konohamaru had been detained. Sumaru was sitting at the table and Konohamaru was serving him food.
Sumaru had taken off his jacket. His mesh undershirt hid none of his magnificent musculature. He stood and bowed. “Ino-san.”
“Sumaru-san,” she replied. “Please sit down and continue with your meal. I know how delicious it is,” she added, smiling at Choza.
“It is kind of you to say so, Ino-san,” Choza acknowledged. “Can I interest you in a cup of coffee? Or tea?”
It was tempting, if for no other reason than to observe Sumaru on his home territory. “No thank you, Choza-san. It has been a long day.”
Once home in her tiny apartment, she took off her shoes and each garment in turn. Each item was examined carefully. A burr on the edge of the heel of one shoe was trimmed away and the cut edge smoothed. The silk stockings were carefully washed and hung to dry. A pulled thread on the sheath dress was caught with a tiny hook and pulled through to the back of the fabric.
Each object was put in its place in her closet.
She washed thoroughly, loosened her hair from its chignon and brushed it; ten strokes for each section.
Then, finally ready, she opened the shrine.
Each Sister picked a focus. Ino’s was a reproduction of a statue. The original was carved in black marble, life-sized and in the garden outside the Institute of Psychology on Centre One. It showed a naked man whose body suggested serene beauty but whose expression hinted at internal torment.
The Sisterhood had a holographic reproduction in one of the cloisters at Seminary.
Ino’s version was the size of her hand and made of polished resin. It did not matter. It served its purpose.
She systematically cleared her mind. Then she waited for the first thoughts.
Izuna the great leader; hero and legend. Izuna the man she knew. The two jarred. It did not fit.
She waited. There was nothing else. No thoughts of her father or any of those she had met for the first time today.
She stepped forward and closed the shrine. She would think on it.
Sumaru
Seeing Ino in the kitchen had been a shock. Sumaru had not known that she had been invited to the evemeal. She looked different; slightly softer.
Maybe it was her clothes or the way she had her hair.
He was relieved when she left. He sat down and resumed eating.
“Nice looking girl,” Choza commented from over by the counter.
The fork froze halfway to his mouth. Sumaru looked across. Choza had a bottle of whisky in one hand and three small cups in the other.
Three; that meant he was expected Konohamaru to come back after escorting Ino out.
“Is she as nice as she seems?” Choza asked.
Sumaru did not know how to approach the question. Ino was not nice, at least not in the way Choza used the word. “She was a Sister,” he replied.
Choza shrugged and sat down at the table. “I was an elite fighter, you are a Knife. New Uchiha is about embracing difference.”
Sumaru conceded the point. “She has many qualities.”
“So you like her.”
It was a ridiculous suggestion. She had been a Sister. “Choza-san, the Sisterhood is a cult of assassins.”
Choza waved a hand. “Nonsense. Rumours. You know what people are like. They are a religious group that raises and educates orphaned girls. They do a lot of good.”
They certainly killed a lot of people who deserved to die. The Sisterhood did not kill for credit. They charged a flat fee and expenses but the client had to convince a Senior Sister that the target deserved death.
Occasionally they waived the fee, particularly if the target was a man who abused women or children.
Choza filled the three cups. “You are twenty-six, Sumaru-chan. You do not have a lover. You refuse to visit courtesans. It is not healthy.”
Sumaru ate more quickly. If he finished before Konohamaru returned he might have a chance.
“Whisky?” Konohamaru’s voice asked from the doorway. “What a wonderful idea.”
His plate was still one-third full. He was trapped.
Saying no to Konohamaru was always unbelievably difficult. Sometimes Sumaru thought it was because they had been adolescents together but it was probably because Konohamaru was such a skilled negotiator. Before long Sumaru had downed five shots of whisky and was losing control of his tongue.
“I’ll leave you youngsters to it,” Choza said with a smile, putting the empty bottle into the recycle and then closing the door behind him.
“I am not going to fuck Ino,” Sumaru stated once Choza was out of earshot, hoping that a bald statement would kill the subject.
Konohamaru gave him that understanding little smile. “She is a bit scary.”
Sumaru felt himself bridle and almost fell for it but he wasn’t that drunk. He tried another tack. “She is not Uchiha.”
“Misora? She is due back here to replace Keitaro.”
There were so many things wrong with that idea that Sumaru was spoilt for choice. “She dislikes me.”
“She does not understand you,” Konohamaru conceded. “You do want someone, then?”
Sumaru belatedly realised his error. He decided to appeal to their friendship. “I wish you would leave it.”
Instead Konohamaru pushed harder. “Tayuya is with Inari. Building your future on the off-chance he dies is not a sensible strategy.”
Unfamiliar emotions churned around Sumaru’s body: anger, jealousy, frustration and shame. “I do not wish Inari dead.”
“No, but you covet his lover.”
“Tayuya made her choice a long time ago,” Sumaru insisted.
“Exactly,” Konohamaru pointed out.
There followed a silence that Sumaru chose not to fill but Konohamaru finally broke.
“I will be leaving Tarrasade for a while. Itachi will be filling in for me with Asuma’s assistance. Kamatari will stay for a while longer to ensure a smooth transition.”
Sumaru was surprised; he had thought that Konohamaru was a permanent fixture in Tarrasade.
“I won’t be around to look out for you,” Konohamaru added.
He was about to say that it was not necessary but Konohamaru did not give him a chance.
“So I will ask Haku to do it for me.”
Sumaru stiffened. “I wish you would not.”
Konohamaru shrugged. “It could be worse. It could be Iruka-san.” He got up and collected the three cups. “I know you; you’ll be gone as soon as I turn my back to wash these up. Sleep well.”
For a few moments Sumaru thought about staying at the table to prove him wrong. Then he realised that it was yet another of Konohamaru’s tricks for getting him to stay.
He made his way to his room and his bed.
Sleep came slowly. What if Sasuke stayed away indefinitely? Sumaru imagined standard after standard of being Izuna’s bodyguard; since Sakura and Ino had arrived that was all that Izuna expected of him.
Izuna did not even need a bodyguard when he was within headquarters. Sumaru was little more than a status symbol.
He had spent the last fourteen standards making himself Sasuke Uchiha’s best Knife and he was; he could even defeat Naruto. When Sasuke had made him Izuna’s bodyguard it had been an honour; an acknowledgement of his skill. Sumaru had been pleased.
Now even that memory had soured.
Sakura
Sakura did not know how Ino and Sumaru were not screaming with frustration. Sumaru was the best purebred fighter in known space; maybe the best outright. Ino had spent her life training to be a Sister. Now they were mere accessories; there to remind others of Izuna Uchiha’s importance.
They did not even have everyday tasks to perform; Izuna-sama allotted them all to Sakura.
On balance, Sakura thought it must be worse for Ino. At least Sumaru had a purpose. If someone attacked or challenged, he would kill them.
Maybe Ino was spying for someone else; like she worked for Chaaruzu-san. Perhaps Sumaru reported to Sasuke Uchiha.
She suppressed a sigh. She had hoped that Izuna-sama might have been like Sasuke-sama. She recalled sitting beside him on the couch as he showed her the pictures of his children.
It was hard to believe that Izuna Uchiha had ever had children.
This morning was particularly bad. Both Ino and Sumaru had their expressions fixed in a neutral expression that looked natural in passing but never changed.
She wondered if they were excruciatingly bored or just thinking.
“Tea or coffee?” she queried brightly.
Ino switched into ‘be nice to frivolous female colleague’ mode. “Tea would be lovely Sakura-san, thank you.”
Sumaru gave a small bow. “Coffee would be appreciated, Sakura-san.”
Sumaru rarely accepted and Sakura had never known him to drink coffee. She studied him more closely while appearing to be occupied and decided that he looked a little weary.
She decided that being particularly cheerful might yield a reaction and smiled brightly as he thanked her for the coffee.
“You are welcome, Sumaru-san. As neither Ino-san nor I were with Izuna-sama yesterday evening, would it be possible for you to update the database of contacts?”
He frowned slightly. “I cannot, Sakura-san. Izuna-sama ordered me not to.”
Sakura hoped that her interest had not shown. In case it had, she smiled. “An assignation. How romantic.”
Both Sumaru and Ino looked at her as if she was insane.
It was a full morning. Sakura served two rounds of refreshments, listened to Izuna’s ideas for the next episode of his history programme, updated the database of contacts and archived the previous day of his diary.
She suspected that ‘archiving’ sent a copy of the diary and the database to Chaaruzu-san, although she was not sure how.
She had just finished when Ino sat on the edge of her desk.
Ino did not sit on edges of desks.
“Come out with me for the midmeal,” she proposed. “I have asked Izuna-sama if I can move my break and Sumaru-san has agreed to cover.”
Sakura was careful to react as Izuna Uchiha’s personal assistant rather than as Tennyo Three. “Girls together? That would be lovely, Ino-san.”
Sakura kept up a constant barrage of chatter, peppered with complements about Ino’s appearance, elegance, demeanour and sense of style.
The astonishing thing was that Ino responded in kind. It was a side of her that Sakura had not suspected existed. Maybe they had more in common than she had thought.
Then, suddenly, Sakura realised that everything Ino was doing was modelled on her own behaviour. It wasn’t a copy; that would be too obvious; everything was given a little twist to make it more believable.
It was an astonishing display of skill.
Then, suddenly, Ino took charge of the conversation. “Why did you decide to apply for the post as Izuna-sama’s assistant?”
Sakura surprised herself by being slightly shocked; spacers did not ask each other such direct questions. She had to remind herself that Ino was not a spacer. Luckily, it was easy to slip into the explanation she had prepared.
“I happened to be working in the Warren when there was that trouble between the AHB and the Kaiju. I thought what Uchiha did there was remarkable, saving so many lives, so when the agency contacted me about this position, I jumped at it.” She could see that Ino was still unconvinced. “To be honest, when I was young I was one of those silly girls who mooned over Sasuke Uchiha. It isn’t often that a poster on a wall turns out to be someone you can admire when you grow up.”
Ino appeared to accept that, which was a relief.
“And you?” Sakura asked.
“The Sisterhood and the Uchiha clan go back a long way,” Ino replied. “When I decided the Sisterhood was not for me, Asuma-san was kind enough to forward my details to Izuna-sama for consideration.” She paused and looked at the chronometer on the wall of the cafe. “Perhaps we should be getting back, Sakura-san.”
Sakura could feel Ino’s eyes on her throughout the afternoon, which drew Sumaru’s attention. It was more than a little disconcerting. She concentrated on being efficient and cheerful; the perfect personal assistant. It was a relief when Izuna-sama decided to retire to the household and she could go home to the apartment in Level I that Sakura had begun ‘renting’ when ‘Solange’ moved out.
The evening began like any other. She changed into casual clothes and then went through the cupboard and down the long ladder to Arella’s apartment in Level 3. Halfway she altered her nanobots so that she had Arella’s colouring.
In Arella’s apartment, she recorded, encoded and compressed her daily message to Chaaruzu-san before copying it onto a data crystal sliver. Then she went through the secret passage to Angela’s apartment, again alerting her appearance at the halfway point.
Once there, she changed her clothes and rearranged her hair.
It was an enjoyable evening. She got her business out of the way first, visiting the Stellar Exchange and sending her message. After that she made her way to the eatery where she had arranged to meet Karenbana, Ishidate and Kongo.
They updated her about the situation in Sublevel C as they ate. Everything seemed to be going well. Once they had finished their meal they moved onto a bar and she encouraged them to talk more generally.
They mentioned both the vendetta and Izuna’s history programme. Next they began discussing what would happen when Sasuke Uchiha returned to Tarrasade.
Ishidate thought Sasuke should yield the leadership to Izuna in return for being recognised as his heir. Karenbana thought that wasn’t likely. Kongo was looking forward to a challenge between the two of them in the killing square.
When she said she had to leave, Ishidate insisted on walking her home. At the door he made it clear, as he had done many times before, that he would welcome an invitation to enter.
As much as it appealed, Sakura could not risk it.
That was one of the problems of being a Tennyo; she could not lower her guard with anyone, even someone as pleasant and straightforward as Ishidate.
Never mind an ex-Sister and a Knife.
