Setting Sail

Blood dripped from Natsume's thumb. Nearly an hour had passed since she first heard the familiar voices. With little time to spare, she did not hesitate to call for help. Using her blood as the catalyst to the summoning contract, an intricate pattern appeared on the ground. After a puff of smoke, a tall, red figure stood in front of her. He had held a long wooden staff slung over his shoulder, and wore black pants with a golden rope belt. Saru looked around for immediate threats before turning to Natsume. When they made eye contact, Natsume activated her sharingan and sent him into a genjutsu.

After briefly explaining the situation, Saru nodded his head in understanding. He leaped onto the wall and did a somersault. His furry body blurred and instantly moved a thousand feet with every full revolution. Natsume quickly returned to the main gate and appeared next to Daichi. "Change of plans, to the east." She didn't explain herself and turned toward the main hall while Daichi began going east toward the coast. Once she landed on the roof of the hall, she threw a kunai with a short message into an open window.

'Hikari. East.'

Soon after, Natsume felt the tug of the reverse summoning technique as she puffed out of existence. When she reappeared, she smelled the salty sea air and the sound of crashing waves. The sky was starting to brighten up as dawn had just arrived. The five Samurai were tied up with a golden rope while Saru stood at the side holding the loose end. "You! So, you were a spy as well."

One of the Samurai spoke up when they saw Natsume appear. They recognized her easily since she never disguised her appearance. Saru smacked the person who spoke with his staff, causing him to go into a daze. Saru gestured toward the water, a medium sized ship was currently anchored to the dock. "The girl was put on a different ship. I just barely missed them. They set off a few moments ago but used some kind of technique to escape my senses."

"Heh, give up! You won't be able to find her now that they have entered open waters." One of the other Samurai taunted. He seemed a bit ignorant of his situation, causing the other conscious Samurai to glare at him. Natsume looked over as if she was looking at an idiot. Realizing his words would only worsen their situation, he choked on his saliva and started coughing. Although she was angry, it was mostly directed toward herself. If she had not spent so much time being cautious, she would have discovered the kidnapping earlier.

"Forget it." Natsume didn't waste any more time talking to them, so she grabbed the samurai and looked directly into his eyes.

Natsume activated her sharingan and pulled the blabbermouth into a genjutsu. From there, she learned that the fake Samurai were agents of a North Sea pirate gang. They mostly dealt with information and smuggling. These five were trying to strike it rich by smuggling weapons and techniques from the Land of Iron. With the Shogun being overthrown, they saw this as a good opportunity to make a lot of money. Born from a grudge against the Itto-ryu school, and the high selling price, Hikari was directly sold off.

"2 million Ryo…" Natsume checked the scroll which contained the pile of money and confirmed the quantity. However, as she inspected the bundles of 100,000 ryo, she saw that other than the outer bills, the rest of them were altered explosive tags. She broke the paper ring holding together the bundle of bills causing the explosion to trigger. She expected as much and easily tossed the bundle far away before it went off.

Seeing this, the pirates turned pale, realizing the implication of the explosive bills. Natsume stopped paying attention to them and boarded the boat. Saru punched the ground, causing earth to rise up and firmly grasp onto the five pirates. Then, he released his golden rope and followed Natsume to the ship. When Natsume landed on the deck of the ship, several middle-aged men surrounded her holding rusted sabers and cutlasses.

"Stop right there! Throw down your weapons and… surrender?" The one that was dressed slightly better than the others spoke up. Although his words sounded strong, the panicked tone made his command seem more like a request. Once Saru landed next to Natsume, several sailors fell backward due to his sheer size and the shaking of the ship. Seeing the large red furred monkey, many had the urge to abandon ship.

"Surrender?" Natsume asked in a calm voice.

"Ah! Yes, w-we surrender! Uchiha-sama needs voyage, right? The crew of the Kujira is at your service!" The captain's tone changed to fear and reverence once he saw Saru. Natsume also did not release her sharingan, so her status was undeniable. A young Uchiha running around the chaotic regions was a significant occurrence.

"Can you chase after the ship that left earlier?"

"Chase after the Kitsune!? Theres no way. Even if we were as fast as them, by the time we prepare the riggings and push off, they would have a significant lead on us." Once he finished explaining, he felt the dreadful aura from Natsume. He gulped and sweat began to drip down his forehead. He stammered to correct himself, "W-what I meant to say is, we should go directly to their destination! Any valuable goods would be saved for the largest market."

"How can you be certain of that?"

"I swear on my mother's grave! My intuition has never failed me!"

Natsume could tell that he wasn't lying. But whether or not he was reliable was to be considered. However, she had nothing else to go on. Unless she wanted to risk using her Mangekyou Sharingan to scan the vast sea in search of a single ship. Natsume turned to Saru in hopes that he had a method to track the ship, but he gave her a helpless shrug.

"Very well, set off immediately."

"You heard her, get moving! We are going back to Lightning Country, set sail for Pirate's Cove!"

"Aye aye captain!"