Chapter 18: Muddy waters
Questioning took the rest of the day.
Cole was completely sacked of energy afterwards and sunk into his bedroll like a stone in water. It wasn't as much the amount of information Kakashi squeezed out of him, as it was the intensity with which he did it. To be alone with a man that can tear him apart on a whim was not an enjoyable experience. The prolonged silence whenever Kakashi digested his information was worse.
But it was over and done with and Cole was a free man once more.
The next morning started off early, much earlier than someone like Cole - who spent the last weeks in the embrace of Janaka till early noon - was accustomed to. Camp was broken before dawn, just as the sun was about to peek past the horizon. Tents and belongings were re-sealed into scrolls, stashed away and in under fifteen minutes everyone was up and about.
Cole could tell that with his announcement the air had shifted within the group. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura were much less confrontational, inside their own reluctant clique and with others, sticking close to Kakashi and the members of Team Guy, though they themselves didn't seem to notice.
No plan had been made, as they all would have been barebones things, falling apart at the first enemy encounter. Cole combined his rudimental knowledge with Kakashi's foresight, and with the help of a map they figured out which spots ran a high chance to contain an ambush, but overall high-alert was demanded throughout the entire journey. For example, puddles, that had no place being on the road in the mid-summer heat anyway, were to be steered clear of.
The old man Tazuna was more splenetic than ever, giving everyone the stink eye and generally having the likeability of spoiled milk. Cole wasn't actually put off by the man's demeanor. It was one thing to have your entire city squeezed for money, another to know that the gangster doing the crime is backed by a notorious shinobi. With scenario one you still had the chance to take back your home, scenario two was a death sentence for the peasant dissenters. Kakashi and Guy would try and rectify the situation, but until then Tazuna kept stubbornly to himself, worried sick about his family and fellow countrymen.
Their long walk just started when Tenten walked up to him. The kunoichi wrung her hands before exhaling through the nose, tension slacking.
"Cole, I... wanted to apologize. At the inn, when you flinched away, I kinda took offence. Being a medical-nin has always been my dream and... yeah, it's a bit of a sore topic for me. Your eyes were a bit - uhh - surprising too. And... that's all actually."
So he had been right. People tend to dislike not being trusted in their field of expertise after all.
Cole took the apology with an easy smile, unsure if it had been necessary in the first place. "No harm done, Tenten. I'd call it what it was, an unlucky coincidence, with what happened to my eyes and all that. Now that we are in this together, I'll count on you."
Tenten gave him a cheerful nod and reached out a hand across for Yuya. "Oh! Just to be really official. Hi, my name is Tenten. Nice to meet you."
Yuya gave her a wry smile and took her hand with delight. "Hi Tenten, I'm Yuya, as you know. Thanks for helping this klutz out, by the way. He's kind of a lost cause without someone around to take care of him. Though he does make a good punching bag. He's durable as bricks."
Cole forbode an ill-fated future by the way Tenten chuckled along the violent allusion. "Perhaps Cole can help me out with target practice then? I've been dying to try out these new weighted kunais."
"Ha!" Yuya barked out a laugh and elbowed him with a wiggling eyebrow. "She's cool." She whispered and then leaned around him. "Tenten, you are one cool girl."
The kunoichi laughed along and Cole rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. If you two keep that up there'll be no healing for either of you." That did not shut them up, but Tenten's curiosity was stirred.
"Speaking of, couldn't you have healed yourself back at the inn? A little cut is of course entirely different from your eyes, but it should be possible, no?"
Attention from all sides directed itself at Cole once again, but this time he didn't even need to lie.
"Actually, I got this talent very recently. A few days after my eyes... mutated? That got better anyway. Doesn't hurt anymore for one, and two, they look cool, wouldn't you say so?" What happened to his eyes was a fascinating change, but like all new things the novelty petered out and soon it was just another part of his new mundanity - it helped that they felt normal as ever.
"Shesh!" Yuya whistled. "Look at him bragging. Got some weird eyes and now he thinks he's Mr. Handsome." She shook her head dramatically.
Cole leaned closer to a giggling Tenten and whispered. "She's just jealous God gave me these gorgeous eyes but couldn't give her another inch up top, nor the humor to go with it." He deftly dodged Yuya's punches.
Companionable banter ensued and traveling became that much easier.
Although he had cleared the air between him and Tenten, he hadn't yet spoken to Naruto, and he was indecisive if he should. The boys parents were a prickly topic and that Naruto hadn't spoken against him accompanying them, showed no lack of emotional maturity. Naruto was forged to be a bitter child, but he prevailed against the odds. Cole didn't hurry, one way or another he'd talk with Naruto, and hopefully under better circumstances.
Night came and the air grew colder. Whereas the day was a muggy mess that left persperation flush with one's skin and slogged clothes with sweat and moisture, the moonlit dark was frigid. Any wetness that hadn't vaporized in the afternoon took with it some heat and soon they all had to huddle closer to whatever firepit was crackling away.
People were nodding off left and right while Guy and Kakashi kept up their 'solemn vigil'. Cole was reading a little booklet about customs and traditions in Konohagakure. It was always interesting to him how places like the Valley of the End or the myth surrounding Mount Myōboku were considered tourist attractions in an almost purely commercial manner. Sightseeing was just as popular among the well-off ninjas and ordinary folk as it was on earth. There was something so calming and comforting in knowing that some things, albeit financial greed in this case, won't change, no matter in which world you are.
Cole put the booklet aside and yawned, sleeping would be nice, but another urge spurred him on. Tiredly he crawled out of their packed tent circle, with a roll of tissues in his hands. When reading about fantastic adventures and month-long journeys most stories forget to mention one crucial detail. People had to deal with their unsavory business from time to time, and there was nothing quite as awkward as knowing that other people knew exactly what you just did. The problem was compounded when you had to find a brush in eyesight of everyone, because assassins were lurking about. To keep everyone's dignity intact they weren't assigned pairs so that one could watch over the other, not yet at least.
Choosing the right spot was an art of its own, though it did allow him to appreciate the scenic forest. Treetops cast in silver by the fullmoon overhead, reflected by shallows and pools that glowed with the celestial light; a tired band of wanderers easing up around the campfires and the melodic song of nature abound. He was never one to enjoy camping all too much, the sheer abundance of creepy-crawlies and scarcity of people that would want to camp in the first place made it quite difficult. But right now, with a good read and good company, it was agreeable with his city-dweller sensibilities.
He pulled in the sensations once again, drowning out the phantom stares that watched him water the flowers. 'Beautiful moon, placid lakes, roaring campfire; beautiful moon, placid lakes, roaring campfire, with half a dozen people that are watching me piss; beautiful moon, placid lakes... lakes?'
The thought thundered in his mind and Cole's eyes raced across the ground. Ahead of him was a still pool of water, free of any ripples and any breeze, undisturbed and quietly mirroring the skyward moon. A second puddle was to his right, a mirror-image of the first one.
Blood pumped through his head, his heartbeat drummed against his ears. With measured, tiny steps he walked back, a scream already waiting on his lips. He breathed deeply, supressed his nerves and invoked Aeon, Repose and channeled a Lay on Hands. He exhaled and with it came his warning. "Atta-!"
The words barely left his throat when his voice suddenly failed him, a harsh groan all he could muster. Cole heard the sound of rustling steel only after the blood and the heat exploded from his neck. Hair thin links of metal brushed past him with just the faintest whisper.
(Cliffhanger chapter. Uh-oh! This one is for all the real ones out there that wanted to see Cole's idiocy get punished. I ain't forgetting nobody! Kidding aside, my guy didn't take into acount that the assassins would change up tactics with a bigger group.
Hope you like the chapter, if you spot a mistake just point it out. Cheers.)
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