[Shikas POV]
Escorting is a boring mission. I didn't feel this boredom the first time when I was travelling to the Land of Waves due to the nature of that mission and since I had team 8 with me.
However, now since I'm the only shinobi here escorting this small merchant caravan to the capital, the boredom has finally started to weigh on me.
The company was boring and the journey was long. Nothing to do so I just took out a Fuinjutsu scroll and started reading it after putting one of my dogs into the guard duty.
It was a three-day long journey, didn't have to be that long but since it was a merchant caravan one couldn't compare its speed to a normal shinobi jumping on top of the trees.
On the first day, we didn't face any issues, everything was fine and we left the general area of Konoha very safely.
It was the next day when we finally saw some action.
*WUff Wuff…
My concentration was broken exactly when I started to understand the complex equation in the Fuinjutsu scroll, or at least I wish to believe that as that way I can blame my lack of progress on the dogs.
Hearing the barks I knew that something wasn't right. Looking around I found that the caravan had already entered into a forest area.
Though there was a well-built road here but it still went through a forest, those people in the capital can't clear out an entire forest to build a road after all.
And that is the reason this area was the most unsafe.
From Bandits to enemy shinobi, anyone could hide here and no one would be wiser.
Hearing the barks it was easy to get that the dog got someone's scent.
Just as I was about to act, I noticed the ruffling and shuffle in the bushes.
The caravan was immediately stopped while 8 figures stood in front of the caravan.
'Okay, point notes, dogs might be able to find them but it's obvious that if they start barking then the other party also will get alert.' I berated myself for not ordering the dog to stay low upon finding someone nearby.
Now neither side had an element of surprise.
"Bring out everything valuable you have, be quick." That was a generic dialogue for a bandit.
I was still sitting inside the caravan, reading the scroll so they hadn't seen me yet. So maybe I still have an element of surprise in my hand.
Since I usually have one Clone dormant inside my shadow, I directly exchange position with the clone and the clone goes out to take my place while I travel through the shadows to see how many people are there and whether they have any shinobi with them or not.
"10 people in total, 8 are in front while two are hiding behind so that none can escape." It was pretty easy to see what they were going for since those two are hiding, separate from others then I rather handle them first.
On both sides of the road, one bandit was hiding ready to jump from his place to stop anyone who would want to run away. Neither realized that a shadow was creeping towards them right.
The next second the shadow morphed, biding them making them immobile. But that is not all, from shadow came creatures.
Before they could even shout for help, their throats were blocked and soon both lost their lives.
—-
"What's taking so long? Bring out all the valuable things which you have with you… quick." Shouted the man who looked like the boss of this bandit.
For the time being I label him as a leader. After my shadows was done taking care of those two hidden bandits, I went upfront under the shadow of my shadow clone.
"You, shinobi why are you not doing anything." the fat merchant came out with his hands up and whispered to me so that those bandits wouldn't hear him.
Clone remained silent, there was no reason to attract unusual attention towards him while I took care of these bandits.
It was a good thing, that before going out clone turned himself into a normal boy rather than a shinobi not to attract attention.
"But now that I think about it, do I even need to be this secretive to take them down like an assassin." I ponder, I'm already pretty strong thanks to Zabubza's skills and all this training.
But I guess this habit of playing assassin won't go away any time soon.
Smirking to myself I just formed a hand sign when I saw there was nothing extraordinary about this group.
No shinobi in hiding, no more hidden bandits for plan B and lastly I got all of them close in one place when they came closer to the caravan.
Soon shadow spread around the place, both clone and I worked together and used Shadow Possesion to strangle all the bandits.
"What… what's going on." Shouted the Bandit.
"Shinobi!… that brat is a ninja. Take him out, hurry." The leader shouted but it was already way too late. All of them were already captured by the shadow.
"Way too easy…"
—-
After I bound them to a tree, I finally came to the fat merchant as he seemed to want to ask something of me.
"You need something ?"
"Ah yeah, we're missing someone." He said though I could sense a hint of hesitancy or urgency in his tone, I couldn't say it for sure.
"Missing someone? Who," I looked around, I could see almost everyone there. No one was missing.
"That…it's a girl who was supposed to be in the cavern but maybe she ran away in all this ordeal." Replied the merchant.
"Girl ?" I can't help but ask since I didn't notice any girl in the cavern. There were only men.
Though the phase ran away sounded strange.
"She ran away… why ?" Though I have no idea where this fat man was hiding a girl but that has nothing to do with me.
"Are you an idiot, the girl got scared of the bandits and upon getting a chance she ran for it." He shouted, his logic did seem to be right but there was still something which was making me unsure.
"Okay, tell me how the girl looks, I'll find her." What else I could say at this point? He was paying for this escort mission, quite little for all this hassle he was putting me through but still can't leave a defenceless girl alone in this jungle.
"She's around 16 or 17. Haszel hairs and eyes." Replied the merchant to which I just nodded.
Making a clone I was ready to send him to find this girl when the fat man spoke again.
"One minute, you are not going yourself ?" Asked the fat merchant sweating a little, it was a little hot but he sweat a lot.
"Don't worry, my clone is very similar to me, he can find her…" I just offhandedly wanted to make the fat man assured but he then tossed a bag at me which surprised me.
I thought it was a bomb or at first, shinobi training makes you suspect even opening your wardrobe, who knows there is a bald man with a dagger ready waiting for you.
But then a very familiar jiggle of coin made me instinctively catch the pouch. This was a coin pouch no doubt about it.
"This…" I asked, not sure what the man was trying to pull here.
"For your extra effort. Make sure that you bring the girl back safely. And don't listen to that girl. She has a tendency to run away. Just bring her back." Said the merchant.
Now this was really suspicious.
I slowly jiggled the pouch and by the weight and sound, I could tell that it at least had more than 20,000 ryo.
50% of the original rewards just to find this girl.
"Bring her safe to us and there will be more…" As if he read my mind, he said.
And that was when I realized that this mission too is not as simple as it seems.
xxx
[Word Count: 1370]
Who do you think that girl is ? What the fat merchant hiding ?
[Shika's POV]
One could build up an instinct to predict when life has something in store for them. Life has screwed me enough times to know that this was one of those times.
When that merchant gave him money he could feel that something wasn't right. Say it is an instinct or just the way the entire thing was playing out.
First, he doesn't even notice that there is a girl travelling with them and then she runs away the first time she gets.
If that wasn't enough then it also turned out that the fat merchant gave him more money to bring her back.
So here I was, looking for the said girl but I couldn't find her anywhere. The thought that the merchant lied to me came into my mind but I could find no reason why would he do that.
To run away? Possibly but I still had my shadow clone keeping a watch on the caravan.
None of them were shinobi, so I doubt they could outrun a shinobi anyway so their running away sounds far-fetched.
So the real question is if the girl really do exist then where is she?
"Wuff..." And that was when I heard my dog started barking.
"You got her scent...?"
"Wuff..."
"Awesome, take me to her..." I smiled eager to find the girl and resume this mission.
Turns out that I was wrong. Even after going after her scent for another 10 minutes, I couldn't reach up to her. This was really strange.
"I'm I dealing with a Kunoichi here ?" I can't help but wonder.
Seeing that walking in a forest wasn't fast enough I decided to take the matters to the sky. Summoning Nue I directly went up to the sky and took the broader look around the area.
Took me some time but I finally found a figure running away.
"Okay, Kunoichi for sure..." I rolled my eyes, now this mission was getting borderline troublesome.
Part becuase this kunoiche wasn't from Konoha. I could say because no Konoha Shinobi will take the ground over jumping over the trees, our training does a way that we are inherently faster jumping on trees compared to on foot when in a forest.
A non-Konoha Kunoichi came out of a cavern which came from Konoha and was heading towards the capital.
It's pretty suspicious if I have to say anything.
I thought about it again and then finally decided.
---
"You brought her back." The fat Merchant called out as he ran towards me while I brought a girl who was bound by my ropes and her mouth sealed, trashing around, trying to escape.
"Yeah, good runner this one. Had to work extra hard to capture her. Keep sprouting something nonsense as you said." I said while looking at the girl who looked in her 16 or 17 glaring daggers at me.
"Good, here is your reward." The merchant smiled and tossed another 20,000 Ryo at me. With the earlier 20k Ryo, I now have almost double the price of this escort mission. Don't even have to pay tax on this money to the village since it's under a table deal.
However...
"I don't know, all that nonsense sounded legit. I might wanna take her back to the village for a little identification seeing what she was saying. Would you mind if I report her back to the village? Won't take much time..." I smiled while slowly tossing the money pouch in my hand like testing its weight.
The fat man at this glaring at me, looked like he was constipating.
"Here, keep your mouth shut about this." Ultimately the man took out another pouch from his ropes and tossed it at me. This time the weight felt almost twice as the last pouch. Around 30k Ryo If I make a generous estimate.
"About what ?" I asked and the man's glare intensified,
Just as he was about to say something most likely to reprimand me or argue about not spending more money. I said this cutting him off.
"There is nothing to talk about at all. Just help a helpless girl and bring her back." I shrugged and tossed the girl at the Merchant who too nodded. Understanding my underlying message that I had nothing to do with her.
And thus the journey continued.
---
Only after one more day that I realise that something was strange, though we were still moving towards the capital but we were taking the longer route. I kept my mouth shut making sure to be observant.
Soon the party stopped in a tavern near the capital of the land of Fire. There was no reason to stop when we were so close but they stopped nonetheless.
"We gonna stay here for some time." The fat merchant said, making everyone act swiftly while making me confused. Why stop outside the capital but not enter it?
"And you Shinobi, your work is done here. We can take it from here on." Said the man.
"Are you sure, though the capital is near but I was paid to escort you to the capital. You want me to stop here ?" I don't get why the man wanted to stay there but since he wanted to I didn't ask why.
"Yes. You have been a tremendous help, thank you." Said the man as he came closer and shook my hand before immediately letting it go and turning around like he no longer recognised my existence there.
This was sudden but since I was done here and the client no longer needed my service then it was my time to get going.
[POV END]
---
The merchant caravan stayed there without moving out for the entire day, nothing happened. Everything was uneventful.
Only the night that something happened.
"Boss there is no one there. We used the password but got no response ?" Said one of the men to the fat merchant.
" What's going on, are you sure you went to the right location ?" Asked the man as he grits his teeth together.
"Yes, there is no one there ?" Reponse the man with a helpless tone.
"Damn it..." The fat man roared out and snapped open the door. He went directly to the place where he kept the girl in bondage.
"Wake up you bitch, tell me who are you and what relationship you have with that man from the capital?" Shouted the merchant as he roughly grabbed onto the girl's neck.
The girl was jolted awake.
"What...? What are you talking about? I did nothing, ple...please let me go." The girl shuttered seeing the man holding her neck and tears started to appear in her eyes.
"Tsk, I'll sell you to the slave market if no one came to buy you after I went through all this trouble to get you from Konoha." Shouted the man with saliva flying out of his mouth.
The girl looked completely horrified. She wanted to break free but couldn't do anything.
Another day passed like this and the fat merchant now was getting anxious. He came back to the girl once again but this time it seemed that since he was getting this anxious and out of patience he had started to drink.
He was completely drunk.
"Bitch, where is the man who wanted you kidnapped? Tell me why he went so far as to offer so much money to kidnap you ?" He slurred as he entered the room where the girl was kept.
Quivering the girl stayed where she was, not moving from her place.
The man kept on cursing until he suddenly stopped, he looked at the girl with a side glance and kept his eyes on her.
His eyes roamed all over her body until he finally stood up and went up to her.
"Seems like I have no other option but to sell you to the slave market..." Same the man as he grabs onto the girl's face with a gleam in his eyes.
His thump sensually rubbed the girl's lips as the girl saw the man's pants start to bulge.
She had an idea what was coming.
"How about I take a look at the goods before that..." The man had a sinister grin on his face as he roughly grabbed the girl, by his movement it looked like he was about to tear open the clothes which she was wearing only for her hand to be stopped a few inches away.
"Alright, that's all I'm ready to take..."
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