"Yes, we're from the Land of Water," Sakura replied, steeling herself. Since she couldn't pinpoint the source of the guard's suspicion, she decided to just go along with it for now.
"From the Land of Water?" The Kiri ninja nodded, seemingly about to say more when another ninja approached from the side.
"Another ship just docked over there," the newcomer said curtly. "Hurry it up here."
"Yes, sir!" The first guard immediately waved Sakura and Mei through. "You can pass."
Sakura stared, startled and uncertain, at the ninja who had just arrived. How could it be him? Seeing Sakura frozen, Mei turned back and tugged gently at her hand. "Let's go, Sister Mikoto."
"Ah, right, okay," Sakura snapped back to reality, letting Mei lead her away.
If her memory served her correctly, based on the attire and the covered eye, that ninja was almost certainly Ao of Kirigakure – the one with the Byakugan. If he did have the Byakugan, then their Transformation Technique wouldn't have fooled him at all.
The Transformation Technique worked by coating the user's body in a layer of disguised chakra. While the Byakugan might not penetrate the visual disguise to see their true faces, it could detect the unnatural flow of chakra masking their forms. That meant Ao had definitely seen through their ruse. The only reason they hadn't been apprehended immediately was likely because he hadn't confirmed their identities yet, or he was waiting for something.
As Mei pulled her towards the small port town ahead, Sakura leaned in. "We might have drawn attention."
"Hm?" Mei stopped and turned, looking confused. "What? Whose attention?"
"Honestly," Sakura began, lowering her voice, "back in the Land of Water, we had a… confrontation with some Kirigakure ninja. They're hunting us now, so—"
"So," Mei interrupted, biting her lip, her voice sinking low with familiar guilt, "I've become a burden, haven't I?"
"No, that's not it!" Sakura exclaimed, caught between exasperation and amusement at Mei's default self-pity. Seriously? "I mean, you need to stay alert. We might end up fighting. Whatever happens, don't let them catch you, understand?"
"I understand!" Mei nodded, her tone heavy with determination. "If it comes down to it, I won't drag you down."
Sakura glanced at Mei, surprised. She really was acting like a protective older sister concerned for her sibling. Was this Mei's true nature surfacing, or just a personality formed post-amnesia? Did Mei actually have a younger sister somewhere?
"Don't overthink it," Sakura said, trying to sound reassuring. "They might not have identified us for sure yet. If a fight breaks out, I'll protect you."
"Mm!" Mei nodded firmly, her heart swelling with gratitude while she silently hardened her resolve.
As the two figures walked away, Ao turned to the Kiri ninja beside him. "Follow them. They were using the Transformation Technique."
"Transformation Technique? Then why didn't you stop them just now?" the subordinate asked, puzzled.
"We saw the signs of the technique, but we can't be certain it's them yet. Observe them for now," Ao explained calmly.
The truth was, the targets on their wanted list were reported to be extremely powerful. Starting a fight here, with limited manpower, risked letting them escape. It was far better to track their movements discreetly and wait for reinforcements from the village. Only then could they ensure a successful capture.
I wonder if Mei has returned to the village yet, Ao thought with a flicker of concern. She had been gone a long time for a simple mission. Had something happened to her? If these two really were the ones who assassinated the Fourth Mizukage, their current team stood no chance.
"Chojun," Ao ordered, his voice turning grim. "Contact the village. Request immediate backup." He paused. "And if Terumi Mei has returned, tell her to come as well."
"Yes, sir!" the ninja named Chojun responded sharply.
"Did you memorize it?"
Sakura and Mei sat opposite each other in a small tea shop. Mei was happily munching on dango.
"Memorized," Mei mumbled around a mouthful of sweet rice cake.
"Okay, repeat it back to me," Sakura pressed, needing to be sure.
"Mm," Mei nodded, putting down her skewer. Her hands began to move, forming seals—
Sakura flinched, waving her hands frantically. "No, don't perform the jutsu! Just recite the hand seal sequence I taught you!"
Sakura had already sensed they were being followed. Using her Sage Art perception to evade the tail wasn't feasible; activating it now would be like waving a flag announcing she was hiding something. Besides, she couldn't easily slip away with Mei in tow. If Mei got caught by Kiri, Sakura knew her own face would soon be plastered on wanted posters across the Elemental Nations. The frustrating, tangled situation grated on her nerves. While Mei had insisted on stopping for dango, Sakura had used the time to teach her the seals for a couple of A-rank jutsu. If things went south, Mei could at least cause their pursuers some serious trouble.
"Tiger – Ox – Monkey – Hare – Rat – Boar – Bird – Ox – Horse – Dog – Tiger – Dog – Tiger – Snake – Ox – Monkey – Hare," Mei recited the sequence flawlessly. She finished, then looked up at Sakura with wide, pitiful eyes. "Can I have more?"
Sakura glanced at Mei's empty plate, then pushed her own untouched one across the table with a sigh. "Here. Now, listen carefully. The next one is Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique."
Seriously, who's the older sister here? Sakura thought wryly. She's acting more like the kid sister every minute.
After finishing their snacks, Sakura led Mei towards the main docks, intending to ask about ships heading to the Land of Tea. Let the Kiri ninja follow if they wanted; acting suspiciously would only confirm their fears. If Kiri was already certain, a fight was inevitable anyway. If not, maybe the tail would give up eventually. It wasn't like Sakura held the initiative here.
Arriving at the pier, Sakura saw a large crowd gathered. People were muttering anxiously about the "sea monster" mentioned earlier. A prickle of unease went down Sakura's spine. Don't tell me there's another problem now.
Pulling Mei along, she squeezed through the throng towards the edge of the docks, spotting a burly man dressed like a boatman standing on the gangplank of a sturdy-looking vessel. She hurried over. "Excuse me! I'd like to ask when the next ship to the Land of Tea departs?"
The boatman shot Sakura an irritated glance. "Are you an idiot? Buzz off, kid. Go play somewhere else."
"Do you want to die?! Apologize to my sister!"
Before Sakura could even react, Mei surged forward, glaring furiously at the rude boatman.
Seeing Mei leap to her defense, Sakura felt a small warmth bloom in her chest. Okay, maybe taking care of you hasn't been entirely thankless. At least you know how to stand up for me.
"Ooh~" The boatman whistled, his eyes lingering on Mei's frilly dress and cute twin tails. A lecherous grin spread across his face. "Want me to apologize, little lady? Sure thing. I'll apologize if you agree to one little condition."
"What condition?!" Mei demanded, disgusted by his expression but determined not to be a burden to her sister. Protecting "Mikoto's" dignity was her only thought.
"Just come with me to that little place over there," the man said, gesturing with his chin towards a nearby tavern known for certain 'services', "and I'll apologize to her." Establishments catering to the flesh trade were common in port towns like this, havens for sailors weary from long voyages on islands with few other diversions. "Do that, and getting you two passage to the Land of Tea will be no problem at all."
Mei glanced towards the building, clearly having no idea what kind of place it was, her expression blank. Sakura, however, worldly-wise from another life, knew exactly what he was implying.
Now it was Sakura's turn to glare, her eyes fixing on the boatman with icy fury. "It seems," she said, her voice dangerously low, "you really do want to die."
"Hahahaha! Who're you trying to scare?" the boatman scoffed, looking Sakura up and down dismissively. "Though, lookin' closely, you're not half bad yourself. Sister's pretty, so the little sis can't be too shabby, eh?" He leered. "Say, does your fancy older sister treat you badly? Won't even buy you decent clothes? Come along with me, and I'll make sure you get dressed up just as pretty as her."
Sakura's anger spiked, her hand twitching, ready to strike. But the boatman's last words hit her like a physical blow. A sudden, horrible realization dawned.
Damn it! So THAT was the problem! No wonder that Kiri guard had focused on Mei!
Mei, in her amnesiac state, had chosen a transformation that looked like an expensive, foreign-style dress with elaborate hair. Sakura, focused only on the absurdity of the image at the time, hadn't considered how out-of-place and eye-catching it was compared to everyone else on the ship, let alone compared to her own simple, practical traveling clothes. When Sakura had claimed to be the younger sister, the stark contrast in their appearances must have screamed 'lie'.
Ao must have noticed it immediately, Sakura realized with dawning horror. That's why he stopped the questioning – to lower our guard! He hadn't made a move because he likely assessed they couldn't take her down easily with just the guards present. That meant reinforcements were almost certainly on their way from Kirigakure.
If she didn't get out of here now, Kiri ANBU could be swarming the port any minute. Surely they wouldn't deploy that much force just for me? she thought desperately. I didn't even participate in the Mizukage assassination! But she couldn't afford to gamble. Getting cornered here would be a disaster.
This whole convoluted mess was giving Sakura a massive headache. None of this should have been her problem! All she did was fight Mei and inadvertently cause her amnesia, and somehow she'd gotten tangled in Kiri politics and assassinations like gum stuck to her shoe.
Fine. Since a fight seemed inevitable sooner or later anyway, Sakura decided she might as well throw caution to the wind.
Damn it, she snarled internally, her eyes locking onto the leering boatman. Like hell I'm going to let some sleazy creep walk all over me.