15 Chapter 14: Pirates and Assassins

Well, a lot of you actually seemed much happier with what I did to Hinata after reading the last chapter, though most of you still were yelling about getting that seal off of her. With regards to that, you all will just have to wait and see. Don't want me spoiling anything important to the plot, now would you?

Now, with regards to a few reviews I've had, I want to clear a few things up. Weapons and equipment that popped up in Assassin's Creed: Revelations, ACIII, and ACIV will more than likely NOT be appearing within this fanfic. Some of it might if it is conceivable that the Naruto world shinobi could make it as well, like the rope dart for example, but things like the hook blade will more than likely NOT be appearing in this fanfic. Those things popped up in time periods AFTER Raphael disappeared into the Naruto realm. So therefore he was never exposed to them and has no idea they even exist.

In other news, lovenaelita has a challenge for anyone interested in taking it. I shall copy and post their message to me here.

"To all who have seen dragon ball z and Naruto i lovinaelita issue a challenge of epicness in the crossover category if you seem interested contact me via pm or kik kingdeviluke thank you. p.s. u must be serious about writing it"

Now, I'm out of comments, so let's get this show on the road!

Chapter 14

Pirates and Assassins

Konoha

Hinata hesitantly approached the Hokage's office, adjusting the bandana that now covered her forehead and the top of her head. Knowing that she was self-conscious about the Outcast Seal on her forehead, Anko had suggested Hinata wear a bandana around the top of her head, similar to the way some of Konoha's shinobi wore their forehead protectors. It was more fashionable and less eye grabbing then the bandages she had previously wrapped around her forehead. Anko had bought her several in different colors, mostly ranging from lavender to dark blue to dark purple. Currently she had one that was almost the same shade as her indigo hair.

As she arrived, she approached the secretary. "U-Um excuse me? I-I have an appointment with Hokage-dono," she said shyly. She had made an appointment to meet with the Hokage, because she felt she needed to talk to someone about what she had learned from Anko, Naruto, Raphael, and Yugito. And the Hokage was the wisest person she could think of.

The secretary nodded and indicated a nearby chair. "Please wait here while I see if he's busy," the secretary said as they stood and knocked on the Hokage's door. Upon being called in, the secretary opened the door and poked her head in. There was some muffled talking, and then the secretary turned to Hinata.

"You can go in," she said, opening the door for Hinata. Hinata nodded in thanks before quickly entering the room.

Sarutobi smiled kindly at her. "Hinata, welcome," he said. "What can I do for you?"

Hinata bowed to him. "H-Hokage-dono, I-I need to ask your advice on something," she said.

Sarutobi nodded in understanding. "I think I know what, but I'll let you explain first. Please, sit," he said.

As Hinata sat down, she nervously played with the hem of her shirt. "W-Well…I…A-Anko-san recently…she brought me to see Raphael-san, Yugito-san, and Naruto-san," she said. "Apparently they're part of some group and they…they invited me to join them."

"I thought as much," Sarutobi said, sitting back in his chair. "Anko was the one to suggest it to Raphael, actually. She felt that you would be very useful to their group and that the group could help you deal with certain…'problems'."

Hinata just looked down. "I…I'm just not sure about this though, Hokage-dono," she said. "They…they're going to be killing people. And I…I know they want to help me, and train me, but…e-even if I did join them…I-I think I would be a burden to them."

The aged Hokage shook his head sadly as he looked at her. "Hinata…if they felt you would be a burden to them, do you think they would ask you to join in the first place? You do not do that for someone who will detract from your group, you do it when someone will help your group. But as for joining them…Hinata, do you know what it is to be a shinobi of Konoha?"

Hinata looked up at him. "I-It means that I become a kunoichi, w-who fights to protect the village, and goes on mission's t-to earn the village fame and money," she said quietly.

"A good answer, but do you truly understand what that means?" He asked her. When she blinked in confusion, Sarutobi began to elaborate. "When you go on missions, you'll always run the risk of having to fight enemies and kill them," he said. "Sometimes it'll be to protect the village, to protect other people, or to protect yourself and your teammates. But there are times Hinata, where you won't be fighting and killing to protect people. You'll be doing so because that is your mission. Some of the missions you'll be assigned will be ones where you're ordered to kill people Hinata. And it won't be to protect innocent people, or to protect the village. It'll be for no other reason than the mission increases the fame, fortune, and power of the village."

"In this day and age, Hinata, shinobi are truthfully little more than mercenaries. We accept contracts and complete them to earn money. We fight, kill, and die, so that the village earns more money, fame, and increases the number of job offers clients give us. In Konoha, we do try to limit the more morally questionable missions we undertake, but we are still shinobi and sometimes those kinds of missions need to be done," Sarutobi said, watching Hinata's head bow down low.

"I-I see, Hokage-dono," she whispered quietly.

"Please try to understand Hinata. I am not trying to scare you or push you away from being a shinobi. I am simply trying to help you understand the true depth of what being a shinobi is. With that being said, Raphael's group, the Assassins, are both similar and different from us shinobi. They kill people, just like we do. But the difference is they don't kill for money. They kill for a different reason. From what I understand from Raphael, the Assassins only target people who seek to threaten the peace, safety, and freedom of others. In fact, shortly before the Uchiha Incident, Anko and Raphael took down a man who sold weapons to mercenary and bandit groups, thus encouraging attacks on villages, who he then sold weapons to so they could defend themselves. He encouraged battle and bloodshed so that he could make a profit from it all. That is one example of the kinds of people the Assassins kill," Sarutobi said, watching her.

Hinata slowly looked up at him, as he smiled softly at her. "You have a kind heart and soul Hinata. I see it in your face and eyes. You are not one who wishes harm on others, nor do you wish to be the cause of it. But you must ask yourself this Hinata, if someone you cared about was being attacked and their life was being threatened…what would you do?"

Hinata was about to open her mouth and speak, but Sarutobi raised a hand, stopping her. "I do not expect an answer from you, Hinata. But I want you to think about what I've said here today, all of it. Perhaps you'll be able to come to your own conclusion, one that you'll be happy with."

"I-I understand Hokage-done," she said softly. "Thank you for speaking with me."

"It's no problem Hinata. And if you have further questions, feel free to come see me again," he said, as Hinata stood, bowed, and left. Sighing softly, he glanced down at his paperwork. More than anything, he wished that children like Hinata didn't need to grow up in a world where they had to learn how to fight and kill. But it was a sad truth of this world, at least in its current form. Who knew what the future held? He smiled faintly at the thought, returning to work as he did so.

Kiri, Buru Jinkoukou

The trade port of Buru Jinkoukou was currently enshrouded in a light fog, which was dispersing as the sun rose higher in the sky. Near the mouth of the harbor, a massive fire had been burning in a lighthouse tower, while the operator blew on a large horn at regular intervals. This had helped warn incoming ships of where the harbor mouth was, and where the shoreline was.

A rather large cargo ship was currently slipping into the docks, its crew throwing mooring lines over the side for dock hands to tie the ship off with. Several people watched the ship, curious about what was on board. Most went about their business after a few minutes of watching.

From the roof of a building near the docks, a hooded figure was crouched, watching the ship intently. Their black eyes scanned the entire deck of the cargo ship, before moving to the bow and narrowing as they saw the name of the ship. Pulling out a scrap of paper in one of the supply pouches on the belt they wore, they studied it before nodding, and reaching up to touch a radio around their neck. "Neko to Washi (Eagle). You read me Washi?" Yugito said into her radio.

There was some static, and then Raphael's voice echoed in the earphone currently nestled in her left ear. "Copy Neko. Status?"

"Target ship has arrived. Awaiting confirmation of cargo," Yugito said, watching the ship intently. A man, probably the captain, had stepped onto the dock and was conversing with a dock manager, whose aide was writing in a ledger that they carried. He handed the dock manager a small bag of what was probably coins, and the dock manager nodded, signaling some dockhands to help the crew start unloading the ship's cargo.

As cranes and cargo nets began hauling the cargo out of the ship's hold, Yugito kept close watch on the cargo being unloaded. According to the reports that Raphael had gathered, the specific cargo they wanted were long rectangular crates marked with either red or blue kanji. So far, most of the crates didn't match the full description of what they were looking for.

Yugito kept watching the crates being unloaded; occasionally checking to make sure she wasn't spotted by anyone. Last thing she wanted was some Kiri shinobi or civilian militiaman to come charging up the roof at her.

Eventually, her eyes locked on a group of crates being raised out of the hold. They were a series of long, somewhat narrow rectangle crates that were stacked three high. Currently there were twelve crates being raised out, each marked with red kanji. She touched her radio again.

"Washi, this is Neko. Package is confirmed. Tracking," she said. She slowly began to move from her position, watching as the crates were placed on trolleys and wheeled away from the dock towards a nearby warehouse. Yugito followed them, stopping on a neighboring roof and watching the crates being transferred into the warehouse. Glancing around and not seeing any watchers, she silently moved to the warehouse's roof and slipping through a window.

Finding herself in an upper storage area, she slowly slipped out of the room, finding herself looking down at the main floor. Spying her targets, she followed the crates from the upper area, watching where they were being stored. She had turned her radio off so Raphael didn't accidentally call her and give away her position.

Soon enough, the crates were stashed away and the dock workers left, leaving Yugito alone in the warehouse. Grinning a bit, she turned her radio back on. "Washi, package has become stationary. They're in the lower area of a warehouse along the dock, about three or four buildings to the right of the ship, if facing the waterfront."

"Confirmed Neko. On my way," Raphael said.

Yugito remained where she was, keeping an eye on the crates, until Raphael joined her. She pointed the crates out to him. "There," she said. "The dockworkers haven't brought anymore cargo into this warehouse so far."

Raphael nodded. "We'll take shifts watching the cargo," he said. "As soon as someone comes by to get it, we'll follow it. You should head back to the hotel room, get some rest. I'll keep an eye on them. You'll take over later."

Yugito nodded and started to head off. "Be careful Mentor," she said, as she left.

Raphael just sighed, leaning against a nearby box and settling in. This could take a while.

Outside the warehouse, a pair of figures were watching the entrance from the dock. One of them turned to the other. "I'm telling you capn', they offloaded some of the crates into this warehouse instead of the other one. Whatever went in there is either special or valuable. Or both," the first figure said.

The other figure nodded to the first. "Alright. The crew's already in position to raid the first warehouse. They'll sneak in around midnight, start liberating anything useful that came in on Gato's ship. I want you and a couple of the other boy's to keep an eye on this warehouse. Let me know if anyone tries to move those crates."

The first figure nodded and settled in, as the second one headed off, toying with the hilt of one of the two katana sheathed at his sides while whistling to himself.

That Night

Rain was pelting both the roof and ground outside, as Yugito calmly sat on the upper catwalk area, watching the crates. She was slowly sipping from a cup of hot tea, to ward against the chill that came with the rain. She had taken over from Raphael about six hours ago, and he would be taking over watching the crates in a couple of hours.

As she sipped her tea, she heard something scratching outside the walls of the warehouse. Blinking, she looked over the side, just in time to see a section of the wall being removed. She quickly slid back, so she was barely visible, and remained still.

A couple of figures entered the warehouse, wearing black cloaks and black masks that covered their heads. One of them nodded to the crates, and the pair went to them, as two more entered. The first pair lifted one of the crates and passed it to the second pair, who carried it out of the warehouse.

Yugito slowly began to crawl away, getting a safe enough distance away, before tapping her radio. "Washi, come in. And keep it down," she whispered.

A few moments later, the radio quietly crackled. "Neko, what's the status?"

"Packages are being taken. Four targets are removing them out the back," Yugito said softly.

"Copy. I'll be there shortly. Maintain interior observation until they're gone."

Yugito slowly moved back into position, watching the masked figures continue to move the crates out of the warehouse through the back. Whoever they were, they more than likely had to be working for whoever was selling the weapons to both sides in Kiri's Civil War. Yugito knew the plan was to track the weapons to their destination, and identify the dealer, before removing him.

Yugito shifted slightly, getting a better position, only to freeze as the wood underneath her creaked. She remained frozen, but thankfully no one seemed to notice, as the masked men continued their work, pulling the second to last crate out of the warehouse.

At that moment, she sensed a presence moving quietly towards her, and shifted enough to look over her shoulder, only to relax as it was Raphael, who knelt next to her. "There's two more outside," he whispered to her quietly. "They're loading everything into a wagon with a tarp."

"Then let's get out there and watch them," Yugito whispered, slowly backing away from the edge.

Outside, the cloaked figure who had been watching the warehouse blinked and wiped rainwater out of his face, cursing the downpour. As he did, another figure joined him. "Someone's taking the cargo," the second figure said. "They're sneaking it out the back."

The cloaked figure nodded. "Get the captain and the crew; tell them what's going on. I'll follow the cargo," he said. The other man nodded and ran off, as the cloaked figure signaled to another man, and the pair headed towards the back of the alley.

The four masked figures loaded the last crates into the wagon and covered them with a tarp, as two more figures sat at the front of the wagon, ready to go. At a signal from the four on the ground, the driver started the wagon off. None of the six masked figures were aware of the two hooded figures following the wagon from the rooftops, or a pair of figures that began following the wagon on the ground.

Konoha, the Next Day

Ganzo looked up as the bell above his door rang, grinning as he saw Anko enter. "Ahhh, Anko-san! Come in, come in," he said with a smile. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm here to get my little imouto here some training weapons," she said with a grin, as she indicated Hinata, who had been shyly standing behind her.

Ganzo blinked as he looked at the girl, then at Anko. "She's your little sister?" He asked.

"Not by blood. I'm her guardian, but I think I'm too young to be a mother," Anko said with a smile. "Besides, always wanted a little sister to tease and such," she said, ruffling Hinata's hair.

"A-Anko nee-chan," Hinata murmured, trying to stop her.

Ganzo grinned as he watched them. "Well alright then. So what exactly do you need for her?" He asked.

"Training kunai, shuriken, and other implements," Anko said, walking over with Hinata in tow.

Ganzo nodded as he began gathering the items requested, all while studying Hinata. Eyeing the bandana, he looked at Anko. "I take it she's had a falling out with her clan," he asked softly.

Hinata looked down while Anko's eyes hardened. "You could say that," she said testily.

The blacksmith looked at the young girl sadly. "I'm sorry to hear that," he said. "Tell me…what kind of fighting style do you use?"

Hinata blinked, and looked at Anko, not sure how to respond. Anko looked at Ganzo curiously. "She's working on a rather flexible style of fighting, focusing more on agility, speed, and flexibility."

Ganzo nodded as he set the last of the equipment down. "Here you are. And if you like, please come back in a few months with her. I might have some surprises for you," he said with a grin, ringing up the total.

Anko paid for the equipment, and nodded. "We'll see. For now, thanks for the weapons," she said.

"You're welcome. And good luck, to both of you," Ganzo said with a smile and a wave.

As they left, Ganzo grabbed a sketch pad and began sketching, muttering to himself. "Hmm, yes. Agility and speed, mixed with Hyuuga's dexterity and telescopic vision. These can work," he said, sketching out weapon designs.

Mizu no Kuni countryside

It had been two days since Yugito and Raphael began following the wagon of weapons. The two men with the wagon had been going at a fast pace, stopping briefly for meals and sleep. Yugito and Raphael had followed on foot, using chakra to catch up to the wagon when it started to pull ahead of them.

It was currently raining, and they both had their hoods pulled up, as well was cloaks to guard against the rain. They were moving quickly along the dirt road, which was starting to become like mud. Both were channeling chakra to their feet to keep from slipping in the mud. The road was passing through somewhat hilly, grass country, with occasional turns in the roads going around the hills instead of over them.

Raphael glanced ahead, seeing the two trails caused by the wheels of the wagon they were pursuing. That was their way of knowing they were still behind it, since the mud and rain were slowing them down.

Yugito growled in annoyance as she wiped some rain water from her face. "Have I mentioned how much I hate rain? And not just because of Nibi, I really do hate rain," she said.

Raphael chuckled softly. "I think you've mentioned it once or twice," he said.

Yugito just hissed in annoyance, as they continued along their way.

Up ahead, the wagon continued to roll along as the drivers huddled under their own cloaks against the rain. The road had taken a turn and was now passing between two hills, when the horses pulling the wagon suddenly stopped, neighing nervously and stomping their feet.

The man with the reigns cursed and tried to get the animals to move, but they refused, ears twitching. The other man hopped out and moved towards the horses.

"What's wrong with you?!" He shouted at one of them, pushing the beast. The horse refused to budge, and the man cursed, moving to the front of the horse to try and pull it. But almost as soon as he stepped in front of the horse, he disappeared with a yell and a muddy splash.

The driver cursed and hopped down as the other man surfaced, covered in mud and hollering. The driver tried to pull him out of pool of mud he was in, and finally got the man onto the mostly solid ground of the road.

The pair lay there panting in the rain, not noticing the shadows coming over the hills on either side of the road.

The driver slowly sat up, only to find the tip of a katana blade pointed at his throat. "Well well. You seem to have run into a spot of trouble there mate," the owner of the blade said.

A few minutes later, Raphael and Yugito were rounding the bend in the road. As the road ahead came into view, Raphael's eyes widened and he cursed, pushing Yugito to the inner part of the curve in the road.

Yugito blinked at him. "What is it? What's wrong?" She asked.

Raphael slowly peeked around the hill again. "Bandits," he said softly, as he looked at the twenty or so men surrounding the wagon, and two huddled figures.

Yugito took a look as well and cursed. "Damnit. What do we do?" She asked.

Raphael sighed. "Well…we've got two options. We either negotiate...or we kill them. Yugito, move slowly up the hill there and make sure there aren't any at the top. Once there, hide and wait either for them to attack me, or for me to give you a signal. Understood?"

Yugito nodded and quietly began moving up the hill at a crouch, almost crawling through the wet grass of the hill. She also began traveling to the left, to circle the hill and ensure there weren't any enemies on that side of the slope.

Raphael kept an eye on her, while quietly drawing his crossbow and readying a bolt on it. Seeing her reach the top and give him a quick thumbs up, he nodded before stepping out around the corner of the hill, on the road.

The two drivers of the wagons were huddled on the ground, their limbs tied, while the men surrounding them were joking and laughing, while a couple of them were yanking the lids off the crates. That is until they heard a voice call out to them. "Lovely weather today!"

The bandits turned, finding Raphael standing in the middle of the road. The leader moved forward, as his men shifted behind him, some gripping swords, axes, and clubs while a few held bows or crossbows of their own. "Aye, tis fine weather for Mizu no Kuni," the leader said. "Can I help you with something?"

Raphael smiled easily. "As a matter of fact, I was wondering if you would mind perhaps releasing those two men and allowing them and their cargo to go on their way? It's rather important for my business here that they arrive at their destination."

The men surrounding the wagon chuckled, as the leader grinned a bit roguishly under his hood. "Sorry mate, but I'm afraid I can't do that. These weapons will fetch me and my crew a pretty penny, once we've found a buyer for them. Are you some type of guard or escort for them?"

Raphael shifted a bit, sliding his left foot back slightly. "No. But as I said…I have a vested interest in them reaching their destination."

The man's smile tightened a bit. "Do you perhaps work for Gato then? An agent overseeing his work? Because if you are…that would be most unfortunate," he said, as his crew all drew their weapons.

Raphael tensed, raising his own crossbow slightly. "I'm not working for Gato," he said. "And judging by your reaction, you're probably not too fond of him either. If that's the case…perhaps we could come to an agreement."

The leader glanced at his men, before stepping forward. "What sort of agreement?"

Raphael kept a good grip on his crossbow, ready to bring it up in a moment's notice. "I've been investigating Gato for some time now, since running into some of his goons in Suna. I found out about his weapon shipments here to Mizu no Kuni, weapons he's selling to someone who's selling to both sides of the civil war. I'm here to stop whoever's selling the weapons."

The leader of the bandits crossed his arms. "A noble pursuit, true enough. But me and my men are interested in profit, not nobility," he said. However, he glanced at the weapons. "On the other hand…we're also very interested in payback. Something a fair amount of us owes Gato in one way or another."

"I see. Then perhaps we can come to some agreement. One that can benefit both of us," Raphael said. "If you help me track down my target, you can get vengeance on Gato, and I'll let you and your crew keep any money, valuables, or goods we find. Though I reserve the right to lay claim to any documents or valuables that help me track down further targets."

The leader chuckled. "You're rather quick to trust, aren't you? We are pirates after all. We could be stringing you along," he said, as his crew let out chuckles of their own and a few 'ayes'.

Raphael sighed, rolling his eyes. "Very true, but I figure that the profit you can earn, and the chance at hurting Gato, are worth more then what little money and trinkets I carry."

The leader glanced at his men, and grinned. "You play this game very well, mister…?"

"Washi," Raphael said, as he raised a hand. This caused Yugito to slowly rise from the hill. "And that is my associate, Neko," he said, as the pirates turned to look at the hooded young woman slowly coming down the hill to join Raphael.

The pirates all blinked, as the captain grinned. "Clever," he said. "Well, I guess I should introduce myself," he said. "I'm Mukei Gorotsuki (Moral Rogue), and this is part of the crew of the Ru-Same (Red Shark)." The crew all grinned and raised their weapons, cheering at the mention of their ship. As they lowered their weapons, Mukei yanked one of the two tied up men to his feet. "Now, how about we find a bit of cover from this deluge we're in?" He asked cheerfully, shoving the captive towards the wagon, where a couple of his men hoisted said captive up into it. He was soon joined by the other driver, as the majority of the pirates formed around the wagon, while two began filling in the trap hole they had dug.

Raphael glanced at Yugito, who shrugged, before they began following the pirates and wagon.

After about an hour of travelling, they came across a wooded area, which Mukei and his crew entered, followed by Raphael and Yugito. The pirates began setting up a camp, as Mukei grinned at the two tied up men in the wagon. "Now I do believe we should have a nice little chat, don't you?" he asked one of them, while lowering the hood of the cloak he was wearing. This revealed he had black hair tied back in a short ponytail, along with a few days growth of stubble on his face and a scar running down his left cheek. His brown eyes sparkled with merriment, but as Raphael got a glance at them, he could see a dark fury lurking in the depths of them. He also had a bandana tied around his forehead, keeping his hair out of his eyes.

Mukei tossed aside his cloak, as they were mostly protected from the rain by the trees. This revealed his outfit, which consisted of long sleeved shirt covered by a vest, and pants with calk high boots and hardened leather bracers covering his forearms. He also had a pair of katana strapped to either side of his waist.

He nodded over to Raphael. "Washi, why don't you join in this little chat? After all, you're the one who wants the information, don't you?"

Raphael approached, studying the two men. "So, my friends," Raphael said to them. "What way shall we do this?"

"What are you talking about?" One of them demanded.

"It's rather simple. Do you wish to do this the easy way, where I ask questions, and you supply correct answers? Or do you wish to do this the hard way, where I ask questions, you refuse to answer or lie to us, and Captain Mukei and I are forced to cause you pain till you answer us truthfully," Raphael said, as he removed his own cloak, but kept his hood up.

The other driver sneered. "You really think we'll just give up and give you answers? Dream on," he said, spitting at Raphael's feet.

Raphael sighed, shaking his head. "The hard way it is then," he said. "Let's start with this one." He indicated the other one who had spoken first.

Two of Mukei's crew hauled him out and tied him to a tree. Raphael drew his crossbow, and loaded a bolt. "So, mi amigo, this is how this will work," he said, drawing the bolt back. "I'm going to ask you a question. If you answer me truthfully, I'll do absolutely nothing to you. If you answer me falsely, or not at all…well I'm going to put this bolt into a part of your body. Where, well I'll leave that to your imagination," he said, his voice turning cold.

Yugito glanced at Raphael, a bit surprised. She hadn't ever really seen this side of Raphael before. She had seen him angry or disgusted with bandits or criminals before, in some of their joint missions. But she had never seen him so cold.

Raphael looked at the man, who was trembling but glaring at him defiantly. "Now…where were you taking these weapons?" He asked.

The man remained silent, so Raphael raised his crossbow. "Where were you taking them?"

When the man didn't answer, Raphael aimed and fired. The bolt shot from his crossbow and imbedded itself in the man's right bicep, causing him to yell in pain at the impact. Raphael slowly loaded again. "Where were you taking the weapons?" he asked.

His only answer was a defiant yet pained glare, and barely suppressed grunts of pain. Sighing, Raphael fired again; this time aiming for the main's left calf. The man let out another yell of pain, slumping as much as he could with the ropes keeping him to the tree and the crossbow bolt going through his arm. Raphael loaded a third bolt. "This next one is going to go through your kneecap," he said simply. "It is excruciatingly painful, I've been told. If not treated quickly and correctly, you may in fact not be able to ever walk again, or be forced to limp for the rest of your life. If you don't answer after this one, then I'll move to the most painful area I can think of to shoot one of these into," he said, his voice become emotionless, as he prepared to aim. "Where are the weapons going?"

The man, whimpering, eyed the crossbow, and saw it drifting towards his right knee cap. Just as Raphael was about to pull the trigger, he blurted out "Sokonashi! Lake Sokonashi!" (1)

Raphael looked at Mukei, who nodded. "Lake Sokonashi is about twenty miles south of Kirigakure no Sato. It's a lake connected to the ocean by several underground springs. Has a rather large fishing town on its banks."

Raphael smiled as he looked to the wounded driver. "Now that wasn't so hard, was it?" He asked. "Now, how about the man who hired you. He's in the town, yes?"

The driver nodded slowly. "Y-Yeah…he's hiding in an old warehouse in town. We get the weapon shipments, bring them to him, and he leaves us our payments to pick up on the way out. Never really met him though."

Raphael nodded. "Is there anything else we should know about? Does he have guards, security, etc.?"

The driver shook his head. "Beyond a couple of local thugs, no guards. Security, I don't know. Please, that's all I know!" He shouted.

Raphael slowly walked over to him, stopping so his face was mere inches from the driver's face. "Do you know where these weapons go after you leave? Do you?"

"Y-Yeah. The man's selling them to the rebels and Kiri," the driver said.

Raphael glared at the man. "So you're knowingly helping a man to further the civil war here in Kiri. I honestly should kill you," he whispered, before reaching up and yanking the bolt from the man's arm. He yelled in pain, followed by a second scream as Raphael yanked the second one out. He turned and walked away, while a couple of Mukei's crew came and started treating the man's wounds.

Yugito watched Raphael stalk off, before following him, having questions about what just happened. She followed Raphael to the edge of the camp, where she saw him stop behind a tree. Her eyes widened as he trembled before leaning over and throwing up on the ground.

After a few minutes of throwing up and heaving, Raphael slowly gagged, spitting on the ground to rid his mouth of the taste, before slowly standing. He reached into one of his supply pouches, pulling out a small canteen of water. Unscrewing the lid, he sighed. "You have questions, I'm sure," he said softly, indicating he knew Yugito was there.

As he drank some of the water, Yugito approached. "Are you alright?" She asked him worriedly.

Raphael rinsed his mouth a bit and spat the water out, before taking another drink. After he finished that, he glanced at her. "To be honest? No. Interrogations were never my favorite part of all this," he said quietly. "It's one thing to kill people…this was requiring me to inflict pain on someone for information. Sadly, sometimes this is necessary."

Yugito glanced back at the driver, who was being bandaged and treated. "That was still rather brutal," she said.

"I know. But it could have been worse. I could have done damage to him that was permanent and that he would never heal from," Raphael said. "Thankfully, it didn't come to that."

As Yugito nodded, Mekui came over to join them, holding out a flask to Raphael. "Here, this'll help," he said.

Raphael slowly took it, blinking at Mekui, who just nodded to it. "It'll get the taste of your innards out of your mouth for sure," he said.

Raphael slowly took a small draught from the flask, only to cough a bit as the liquid burned his throat a bit. Mukei grinned, taking the flash back. "Strong stuff, isn't it?" he asked, taking a big swig himself, as Raphael coughed some more. He let out a breath, grinning to them. "So…if it's not personal, can I ask why you two are after Gato and his minions?" he asked them. "You two don't seem like you're shinobi hired to go after him."

Raphael, after steadying himself, answered. "It's…a little complicated. Let's just say that we're part of a group that takes issue with anyone who spreads war and misery to make a profit. Something that seems to be right up Gato's alley."

Mukei nodded at that. "Alright, so it is professional. But why exactly do you target people like Gato?" He asked.

"As I said, it's complicated. I can't exactly spill my group's secrets, but what I can say is that we work from the shadows to protect the freedom and wellbeing of mankind. People like Gato are a threat, and so we deal with them when we can," Raphael said. "What about you? Why are you so interested in dealing with Gato?"

Mukei's face hardened and he took another swig from his flask. "The bastard destroyed my life," he said, before walking off.

Raphael and Yugito looked at each other, till a voice disturbed them. "Gato killed his family," said one of Mukei's crew, who came over to them. "He used to be a captain of one of Gato's trade ships. It seemed like honest enough work, but what he didn't know was that Gato was slowly moving in on towns and ports his company traded with, slowly bleeding them dry before seizing the towns at dirt cheap prices and using them as 'free ports' for his ships. No need to pay docking fee's or taxes on cargo if he owns the ports. Unfortunately, one of the towns was Mukei's home town. He came back from delivering cargo to Tea Country, only to find that bandits had attacked his home town and were still pillaging it. He raced ashore with the crew, driving the bandits out of town. Afterwards…he found his wife and son, slaughtered on the doorstep of their house."

Raphael and Yugito looked towards Mukei, who was drinking heavily from his flask. The crewman continued as they watched the pirate captain. "After the crew buried the dead of the town, one of them approached Mukei with a letter he had taken off the bandit leader's corpse, a letter from Gato, instructing them to attack the town. Mukei swore vengeance that day…and that's when our piratical career began. All of us here…we've suffered at Gato's hands in one way or another. Some of us have lost loved ones to him. Others had their homes and jobs taken away to fuel Gato's greed. All of us have sworn we would see him ended."

Raphael and Yugito looked at each other, and Raphael nodded. "Well if we ever track him down…we'll be sure to give you all a call," Yugito said.

The crewman nodded. "I'll hold ye to that miss," he said, before heading off.

Raphael sighed as he leaned against a tree. "We'll need to look into those claims when we get back to Konoha," he said. "If Gato is taking over towns and such, this could lead us to what we need to take him down."

"Why don't we just take him out now?" Yugito asked.

"I've thought about it, Yugito. But killing him now may not entirely solve the overall problem. If we take Gato out, we need to do it in a way that makes anyone wary of picking up the pieces of his company and plan and starting over again. Simply killing him won't stop someone else from continuing his plans. We need to expose him to the world, and then kill him. That way, we send a message to anyone else who might think of continuing Gato's plan," Raphael said.

Yugito nodded in understanding, as Raphael pushed off the tree. "For now…let's focus on the upcoming mission." With that, the pair rejoined the pirates, who were making dinner and setting up blankets for the night.

Konoha Academy

Naruto grinned as he and his classmates were out in the taijutsu area, where their instructor Ryu was waiting. Standing behind Ryu was a group of older students.

Ryu nodded to the younger kids as they lined up. "Welcome class. Today, I asked the students in the year above yours to join us to help you all gauge your progress, as well as to give you all an idea of what fighting a more skilled opponent is like. These students have a year's extra experience over you, but if you're clever enough, you could surprise them." He turned to the older students. "This is as much a lesson for all of you as well. Some of these younger students may surprise you, so do not underestimate them."

All the students nodded, and Ryu gave a smile. "Now, everyone line up and let's get ready for the matches," he said.

Both groups of students lined up on opposite ends of the sparring circle, where they began sizing the other side up. Hinata bit her lip as her eyes landed on one of the male students who was dressed in the training kimono worn by the Hyuuga branch Family. The boy's pearly white Byakugan eyes landed on her, and a sneer formed on his face, causing her to flinch.

Naruto noticed Hinata flinch, and blinked. "Hey, what's wrong Hinata?" he asked, looking up. His eyes narrowed when he saw the boy sneering at her. "What's his problem?" he asked angrily.

Hinata looked away. "T-That's my cousin, Neji," she whispered softly.

Naruto growled. "Well if he doesn't lay off, I'll have to kick his butt," he said, moving in front of Hinata and glaring back at Neji. Neji just smirked and turned to look at Ryu, who had called for Kiba to fight a boy from the other class named Rock Lee. A boy with black hair in a ponytail and massive black eyebrows eagerly rushed forward to face Kiba. He was dressed in a Chinese style martial arts shirt and baggy brown pants.

The two faced each other, before Ryu gave the command to fight. Almost immediately, they rushed at each other, and began what almost seemed like a brawl more than an actual taijutsu battle. Rock Lee tried to punch Kiba, who ducked under and tried to kick Lee, who simply jumped back before yelling and kicking back at Kiba, launching the Inuzuka back. Kiba grunted, rubbing his chest, before lunging at Lee to tackle him. Lee lunged as well, and the two started grappling. Eventually Rock Lee threw himself backwards, throwing Kiba over his head before leaping to his feet and charging the downed Kiba, who was getting up. With a roar, he leapt into a flying kick, which connected and threw Kiba out of the ring.

Ryu grinned, holding up a hand. "Match goes to Rock Lee!" He shouted, who was grinning happily and cheering.

"I did it! I did it!" He shouted excitedly. Kiba meanwhile was groaning as he got up, rubbing his chest which took the majority of hits during the brief battle.

Ryu grinned as he called out students out to fight, resulting mostly in victories for the older students. However, Sasuke Uchiha managed to get a victory over his opponent, being the first of the younger students to do so. This made several of the girls in their class cheer for him, declaring him the best there ever was.

Ino merely rolled her eyes at those girls, crossing her arms. "Can you believe them? Shouting and cheering for that jerk," she said, still holding a grudge for when Sasuke had knocked her over after the capture the flag exercise.

Her friend Sakura glanced at her. "He did do very well," she said softly.

Ino nodded. "Well yeah, but still, he's a jerk."

Ryu smiled, as he called out the next two students. "Hinata Mitarashi vs Tenten!" He called out.

Hinata shyly stepped forward, as a girl wearing a long sleeved red shirt and white calf length pants stepped forward. She had brown hair down in two buns on either side of her head, and brown eyes.

Both of them bowed to each other, as Ryu raised his hand. "And, fight!"

Hinata slid into her taijutsu stance, as Tenten adopted the standard Academy stance. "How come he called you Mitarashi?" She asked curiously, before trying to punch Hinata.

Hinata deflected it to one side, stepping back slightly. "W-what?"

"Ryu-sensei, he called you Mitarashi. Aren't you a Hyuuga?" Tenten asked, as she followed up with several more punches and high kick to Hinata's head, all of which Hinata deflected or dodged.

"N-No, I'm not," Hinata said, trying to find a moment to strike back. "M-My clan kicked me out. I-I'm Hinata Mitarashi now," she said with as much courage as she could muster, before stepping into one of Tenten's jabs and delivering a non-chakra laced palm thrust to Tenten's stomach.

Tenten stumbled back, holding her stomach, but Hinata didn't let up, spinning and delivering a palm strike to Tenten's shoulder, knocking her off balance. Tenten tried to stumble back to create some distance but Hinata was already sweeping her legs out from under her. She hit the ground on her back, as Hinata rose up, ready to strike at her. Tenten groaned, rolling to one side to dodge another palm strike before lashing out with one foot and hitting Hinata in the leg, forcing her down to one knee.

The two kunoichi surged to their feet and Tenten went on the offensive, launching several jabs and kicks at Hinata, who kept dodging and deflecting them. Unfortunately, one got through and struck her in the shoulder, knocking her back. Tenten launched another punch that hit Hinata's cheek, knocking the former Hyuuga onto the ground, where Hinata winched, gently rubbing her jaw. Tenten prepared to punch again, but Hinata kicked at her, landing a foot squarely into her stomach, sending Tenten skidding back. Hinata quickly rose to her feet, and actually grabbed Tenten's arm as she punched at her again before spinning around and delivering an elbow to Tenten's stomach, then a palm strike to her face, sending Tenten skidding and rolling along the ground and out of the ring. (2)

Hinata panted softly, as Ryu smiled. "Winner, Hinata Mitarashi!" He called out, a several of Hinata's classmates cheered, Naruto being the loudest.

"That was awesome Hinata!" He yelled, hugging her when she got next to him, causing her to yelp and blush a bit. She winched though, as she felt her face swelling a bit, and he instantly let her go, becoming worried. "You okay? You need an ice pack or something?" He asked.

Hinata nodded a bit weakly. "T-That might be nice," she said, as she stumbled over to where the Academy nurse was standing, having been asked to attend to any injuries the students got while fighting. Currently she was taking care of Tenten.

"There you go. Just rest and you'll be better," she said, wrapping a bandage around where Tenten had skinned herself while skidding on the ground. She turned to Hinata, and shook her head. "Ugghh, these taijutsu spars. I never enjoy them, seeing children hurt like this," she said, getting an ice pack and handing it to Hinata. "Just hold it on your face, and it should help bring down the swelling."

Hinata nodded, as Tenten came over, grinning. "That was one heck of a spar," she said, holding out her hand. "Congratulations on the win."

Hinata shyly took it. "T-Thank you, but…I-I was just lucky," she said.

"Nonsense. I'll be the first to admit taijutsu isn't my strong point. Now put a kunai or shuriken in my hand, and that's something else," Tenten said with a grin.

At that moment, Ryu was calling out the next contestants. "Naruto Uzumaki vs. Neji Hyuuga!"

Hinata gasped, while Tenten blinked. "Ouch. I don't want to be that Naruto kid. Neji's the Rookie of the Year so far in our year group," she said, as the two headed back over to watch the fight.

Naruto was bouncing lightly, eager to get this fight started. He didn't like how this jerk had been glaring at Hinata, and wanted to make him pay. The boy, Neji, had a neutral expression as he took his own position.

Ryu looked at them both and raised his hand. "Fight!"

Naruto got into his stance, while Neji just stood there. Naruto was about to speak when Neji beat him to the punch. "You should forfeit. Fate has already decreed me to be the winner," he said.

Naruto blinked at that. "Are you serious? How do you know what fate is?" He asked.

Neji just sneered. "Fate is the all controlling force in the universe. It was fate for that pathetic excuse to be banished from the clan. It is fate that you and I would fight, and it is fate that I will win. So you might as well forfeit now."

"I don't ever give up!" Naruto shouted. "So bring it ya jerk!"

Neji just sighed before settling into his Jyuuken stance. "Very well. Come and see the futility of fighting fate," he said.

Naruto held his own stance, watching Neji carefully. He had fought Hinata with her own Jyuuken, so he had some idea of what to expect. But Hinata hadn't been that skilled in the traditional style. So he needed to be wary of Neji. He remained where he was, staying defensive.

Neji just smirked. "Well? Are you going to just stand there? Perhaps you've accepted your fate already?"

Naruto just scowled. "Only an idiot charges in without knowing what his enemy can do," he shot back, as Ryu nodded approvingly.

"Then allow me to show you what I can do," Neji responded, before rushing at Naruto, driving a palm strike right at Naruto's face. Like Hinata, Neji hadn't put any chakra into the blow since this was only an Academy spar. But it would still be painful if he connected.

Naruto tilted his head to the right, raising his left arm and deflected the blow to his left right launching a right hook at Neji's face. Neji easily moved away from the blow, launching a right jab at Naruto with his fingertips. Naruto dodged to one side, kicking at Neji's leading leg to try and knock him off balance, only for Neji to back step away from the blow. Naruto spun, trying to back hand Neji, but Neji blocked his arm and launched a palm strike to Naruto's back, hitting him and sending him stumbling. Naruto whirled, sensing Neji coming at him from behind. He easily ducked under Neji's strike, and launched a one-two combo to Neji's midsection while the young Hyuuga was still off balance from his strike. Neji stumbled back, as Naruto rose up with an uppercut. Neji's eyes widened and he managed to lean back, the uppercut missing him completely as he back flipped away from Naruto.

Naruto panted slightly, grinning, as he resettled into his stance, while Neji rubbed his stomach. "Guess fate didn't warn you about that, did it?" Naruto said with a smirk.

Neji's eyes narrowed, as he got back into his stance. "You are a fool," he said, before attacking again.

Naruto found himself hard pressed to deal with Neji's attacks, as the older boy was moving faster than before, launching barrages of palm thrusts and jabs. He let out a yell as one jab hit his arm. The blow wasn't that strong, but it had hit a nerve, sending pain through Naruto's right bicep. He stumbled back, as Neji pressed his attack, getting another hit on Naruto's left shoulder followed by a palm thrust to the stomach, sending Naruto reeling back almost to the edge of the circle.

Hinata gasped, her eyes wide with fear as she saw Naruto in trouble, while Tenten winced. "Ow. I've never seen Neji get this ferocious before," she said.

Neji smirked as he rushed forward to deliver the final blow, not noticing Naruto's own small grin. As he sent a powerful palm thrust at Naruto, Naruto stepped forward much like Hinata did, getting inside Neji's guard and delivering a powerful right jab to Neji's face, sending the Hyuuga boy reeling. Before Neji could recover, Naruto stepped forward, keeping close as he punched with his left hand, connecting with Neji's stomach. Neji hunched over, gasping for air, as Naruto then delivered a right uppercut, sending Neji flying back.

Neji hit the ground with a thud, as Naruto grinned, only to wince in pain, hunching and gripping his right arm. As such, he didn't notice an enraged Neji getting up off the ground.

Neji growled angrily, glaring at Naruto as he spat blood from his mouth. As he did, he saw Hinata's worried look at Naruto and grinned, seeing a chance to kill two birds with one stone. He lunged at Naruto, who was starting to stand up straight, and launched a strike at Naruto's stomach, slamming his right palm into Naruto's stomach. Only this time, his strike was infused with chakra.

Naruto's eyes went wide and he let out a yell of pain as it felt like fire was spreading through his stomach. He hunched over, only to fall on his back as Neji pushed him over. The whole time he kept yelling in pain. (3)

Ryu cursed and rushed over to Naruto, dropping next to him, as the nurse rushed over as well. However, before either of them could touch him, they were both stopped as red chakra began to appear around Naruto's stomach. It began to spread over Naruto, as he screamed more in pain, causing all the students to back up fearfully as they watched Naruto become engulfed by the red energy emanating from what Neji had struck him. And just as suddenly, the red chakra dissipated, and Naruto slumped on the ground, unconscious.

Ryu cursed as he picked Naruto up, handing him to the nurse. "Get him to the hospital and get him checked out. I'm going to inform the Hokage of what happened. And you!" He snapped, grabbing Neji. "You're coming with me," he snapped. Turning to the rest of the students, he quickly yelled at them to return to their classrooms.

Hinata trembled as she watched Naruto be carried away by the nurse. She turned just in time to see Neji smirking at her, before he was yanked away by Ryu. Hinata felt herself go numb, her hands trembling and slowly clenching into fists. She barely reacted to Tenten placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, you okay?" The bun haired girl asked Hinata.

Hinata didn't look at her, instead looking straight ahead. At once her hands stopped trembling, and she seemed to stand a little straighter.

"I'm going to be," she whispered, her eyes set as she went to join the other students. Hinata had the answers to her questions.

And that's that. Not quite where I wanted to end it, but I actually felt like this was a good place to end it. Next chapter will hopefully bring the Kiri arc to an end.

To those of you who are wondering, yes Mukei is inspired by Edward Kenway, the Assassin of Assassin's Creed IV. Whether or not he BECOMES an Assassin though is still up for debate. You'll have to wait and see.

I hope you all enjoy this. I'll admit, the part with Hinata at the end feels a little off to me, but I also really like it as well, so I guess I'll wait to see what you all think.

Thanks go out again to my awesome betas, Bill Alain and Kyuubi123. You guys are awesome.

Until next time readers!

1. If my translation is right, Sokonashi is bottomless.

2. To those of you who think Hinata was too strong here, please remember that Tenten even during the Chuunin exams was never a close quarters fighter. So taijutsu DEFINITELY isn't one of her strong points. Whereas Hinata, even though she's a year younger and shyer, has spent the last two, almost three years training in Jyuuken and her modified version. I think Hinata would win here.

3. To those of you who think Naruto was doing a little too well against Neji here, please take the following into account. First off, as mentioned Naurto has been sparring with Hinata, and so does have some understanding of fighting the Jyuuken. Second, Neji wasn't allowed to use chakra, so he couldn't disable Naruto except for strikes at nerve clusters and pressure points. Third, Neji would be underestimating Naruto, while Naruto was taking him serious. And lastly, this is Naruto with roughly two, almost three years of actual training. Look at what he's done in canon with the lack of dedicated training he received and now think what he could do if someone ACTUALLY trained him from the start.