Chapter 61
“Tobu's dead,” Shizune said plainly as she dropped a stack of reports onto the Hokage's desk.
“Tobu?” Tsunade asked, frowning in confusion for a moment as she searched for an identity to go with the name. At last, it clicked, and she swore. The man had been an informant. A member of the criminal underworld, to some degree or another, who traveled a great deal and had good ears.
“How?” she asked.
“A rather obvious murder. They didn't even try to make it look accidental,” Shizune said, handing one of the reports to Tsunade.
When she opened it and saw the photograph, she flinched. “Messy,” she said weakly.
Shizune nodded. “We don't have a culprit for it, unfortunately. But to go by some of the notes among the man's belongings, he had been found out and knew it. The analysts think he was fleeing for one of the smaller islands in the Land of Water, hoping to disappear.”
Tsunade swore again. “How did he get made? The man was one of the best liars I've ever met!”
At this, Shizune fidgeted with some of the paperwork. When she wouldn't meet Tsunade's eyes, the Hokage rapped her knuckles with a pencil.
“Ow! All right, we're not sure. We worked really hard to keep him a secret. The only file on him was the one in the archive library.”
Tsunade paled. She leaned back in her chair, remembering the rainstorm.
“Kiba smelled the intruder's scent all over the library, even if it was strongest in one spot,” she said. “They had plenty of time to look. There's no telling what else they might know.
“You think it was cover for a larger information grab?” Shizune asked, pulling up a chair to sit.
Tsunade shrugged. “Could be, but were they there long enough to memorize much?”
“They could have had a camera, or someone with an eidetic memory, or even some kind of jutsu to copy it down,” said Shizune.
“They could know anything. That library has records going back since the founding of the village.”
“Not just that,” Shizune said. “It's one of the few places that survived Pein's attack, so we've been storing more information there.”
Tsunade swore loudly. “How was it left unattended? For something that important, it should be guarded round the clock!”
“It normally is. We think they used genjutsu to distract the librarians and send them away.”
Tsunade groaned and ran a hand over her face. “We need to find out how much they know.”
“How?”
“A spy, I guess.”
“Spy on whom, exactly? We don't know for sure who did this,” Shizune said, frowning.
“Well, we'll start with the most likely suspect. Amegakure.”
“Yes, but they may very well already know all our existing spies.”
“Then we'll find a new one or something,” Tsunade said, and lapsed back into a muttered litany of obscenities as she thought about it.
---
Tsunade glanced around the room. She had invited a handful of jounin and tokubetsu jounin to her office, hoping for a variety of backgrounds and ideas, but so far it had gone nowhere.
“You'd probably know more about Amegakure than any of us,” Kakashi said, nodding to her. “You and your team fought Hanzou there, after all.”
“That was a long time ago,” Tsunade said, though she hated to admit just how much time had passed since then. “They've been isolationist for a long time. Who knows how much has changed?”
“It's opened up some since Pein and Konan died,” Shikamaru said. “It sounds like they're letting civilian merchants move in, even. We could probably put someone in without drawing too much attention, if we're careful.”
“Are you volunteering?” Tsunade asked archly. “You and Sumire are both levelheaded, and know as much about the place as anyone these days, I think.”
He shook his head. “Hibiki knows our faces.”
“We don't even know if she's involved in this, though,” said Kakashi.
“All the same, it doesn't make sense to risk her finding us out. Even if she is on our side, she might take offense at our spying and turn against us for that,” said Eri.
“And we can't use an existing spy,” said Kakashi. “We need someone who either doesn't have a file in the archives, or who just doesn't leave an impression.”
Anko snorted. “What, send a genin in? Let some damn rookie fool get caught and blab the whole thing.”
“We could send in someone from Anbu,” said Eri. “Or did we have a file on them, too?”
“Not on the members, no,” Shikamaru said, frowning. “But there was enough additional information that they could figure out who was Anbu easily enough if they read the right files.”
“Someone totally new, then,” Tsunade said with a sigh. “Someone who can pass inspection and look absolutely harmless.”
“Someone who looks like a civilian?” Anko asked, grinning.
Tsunade arched an eyebrow. “You have a suggestion?”
“Somebody who looks like a harmless little nobody that you'd never expect to be a ninja? I might have someone in mind. I don't know her name, but I can find it out pretty easily.”
Tsunade nodded. “Get her name, bring her here, and we'll see.”
---
All the blood seemed to drain out of Sasaeko's face at the Hokage's words. Beside the official desk, Anko watched her expression, grinning.
“Did you hear me?” Tsunade asked, frowning.
Sasaeko nodded, mute.
“I think she has a spine under there somewhere,” Anko said with a laugh. “She hasn't run from the room, at least. You have to admit, though, she looks the part. Little, soft, harmless. Thoroughly average. I thought she was a civilian when I first saw her, you know. Even when Kurenai said she was a kunoichi, I thought she was having me on. I mean, would you think she's a ninja, just to look at her?”
No, though Tsunade, but instead she said, “She's wearing a shozoku.”
“Yeah, but not when she was babysitting. She just looked like a squishy little pink teenager.”
Anko's words hit Sasaeko like a blow. She knew that, technically, they were recommendations of her skills for the mission, but they did nothing to reassure her. Instead, each comment made her less sure she could handle it.
“So will you take the mission?” asked Tsunade.
Sasaeko opened her mouth, still not sure what she would say. There was a knock at the door, saving her from having the decide right away.
“Come in,” Tsunade said, and the door opened.
Taki stepped inside and caught Sasaeko's eye.
“I take it you've heard, then,” Tsunade said wryly.
“With all respect to your judgment, ma'am, I don't know if my student is right for this mission.”
“It's an undercover mission to gather information,” Tsunade said, her voice carefully bland. “I understand your team's specialty is in surveillance and capture. It's not such a stretch, I think.”
“You're not sending my entire team, though. You're planning to send her in alone, when she's a support specialist. I'm sorry, but I really think you should pick someone else,” said Taki.
“What, you think your precious little baby isn't up to this?” Anko asked. “She's a chuunin, right? Says she's been one for a few years now, so she should be ready for this kind of thing.”
“I just-” Taki trailed off with a sigh. “I don't think she's the right choice for this.”
“You have been heard. You may leave,” Tsunade said.
Taki cast one last worried look at Sasaeko and left. Sasaeko let out a breath she hadn't realized until then she had been holding.
“Your sensei is worried about you,” Tsunade said. “Do you think she doesn't have faith in your skills?”
Sasaeko's face burned. “I can't speak for her, ma'am. But if you truly believe I can do this, then I will accept the mission.”
“Attagirl,” Anko said with a chuckle.
Tsunade nodded. “We'll have the details ready for you later this afternoon. Return for your briefing at four. Until then, you may leave.”
Sasaeko sketched a shaky bow and backed out of the room. Tsunade waited until her steps faded away, and looked to Anko.
“I'll admit, I wasn't sure who she was until Shizune dug her file out of storage for me,” she said. The file had had a thin coating of dust on it, with no fingerprints except Shizune's. The girl was still an active shinobi, but no missions since before the rainstorm, by the looks of it, or the librarians had forgotten to update her folder. “On paper, she's perfect, but meeting her in person...”
“If all goes well, they'll never notice her,” Anko said, shrugging. “If not, well, it's not like she knows any state secrets or has any skills they'd be after. And Kurenai could always just use genin teams for babysitters.”
Tsunade frowned, part from Anko's callousness, but also as a memory picked at the edges of her mind. “Earlier this spring, when all the younger folk were talking about some kind of challenge or something...”
“What, that was her?” Anko barked out a laugh. “See? She's not as mousy as she looks! She'll be fine.”
---
Sasaeko accepted the information packet with a stiff bow. Nothing in it would be new. They had already told her everything she would need to know, but she would be able to read it over and memorize it, and then burn the papers when she was done. As much as she would need to sleep before leaving, she wasn't sure how she would be able to, and was glad of the packet giving her something more productive to do than just worrying.
“If you have no questions-” Tsunade began when there was a knock at the door. She cast a quick glare at Sasaeko. “Come in.”
Chouji stepped inside, his face grave. Sasaeko tried to catch his eye, but he only looked at Tsunade.
“What is it?” the Hokage asked, visibly irritable.
“Hokage-sama, I volunteer to accompany her on this mission. The danger is too much for a single chuunin, and if we pose as a married couple, I believe it would attract less attention than a single civilian woman moving into a hidden village where she has no ties. And if anything were to go wrong, I think I would be able to secure a way out for us...”
Tsunade looked from him to Sasaeko and shrugged. “You make some decent points, I guess. Very well. Permission granted, but don't do anything to make me regret it. And I won't ask how you heard about this very secret mission.”
At the last part, they both blushed. Sasaeko hadn't said anything, but she knew Shikamaru had been part of the earlier talks, and she remembered Taki's interruption earlier. She didn't know for sure how word had gotten to Chouji, but she wouldn't throw anyone in the way of trouble, either.
“You'll have to share the briefing packet, though. Just make sure you destroy it after,” Tsunade said, waving them out.
---
Sasaeko went over the list in her mind as she watched Chouji secure the pushcart. The briefing papers were ash now. Someone from the Hokage's office had secured them the cart that would serve as their cover story. The two of them would be posing as a newlywed couple. Merchants, branching out from a larger family into a new market. They had even dressed the part, in simple kimono that were nevertheless nicer than her everyday clothing. The cart was piled with leather and leather goods, always welcome in a shinobi village, though she wondered how well they would fare in the rainy climate of Amegakure.
“Everything looks okay,” Chouji said, his voice kept quiet to avoid disturbing anyone.
It was the dead of night, after all. They would follow the road while it was mostly empty, and double back onto the path to a civilian village for a few miles, just in case. She nodded and forced a smile. Behind them, they heard footsteps. They both turned at once, tense, kunai at the ready.
“It's just me,” Shikamaru said, stepping out into the circle of lamplight.
Chouji relaxed visibly, though he didn't smile. Sasaeko moved to stand closer to him, Shikamaru's eyes on them both. He seemed to be struggling with himself.
“Take care of each other,” he said after a while, clapping Chouji on the shoulder.
Chouji nodded. Sasaeko met Shikamaru's eyes. She tried to smile reassuringly, but it just came out as a twitch of the lips. Without any more goodbye than that, they left, Chouji pushing the cart before them.