"What? How we gonna pay for anything here?" asked Naruto.
"We're not," said Jiraiya, studying the taller of the two mannequins that was displaying clothes.
"We're gonna steal?" asked Naruto.
"Henge," said Jiraiya, making the appropriate handseal. There was a puff of chakra smoke and he was abruptly wearing very different clothes. "Well, what do you think?"
"Those... are pretty weird clothes," said Naruto after looking over Jiraiya.
"I noticed variations on the same theme in three different storefronts," said Jiraiya, smoothing out his jacket. "We'll just go by a crowd and see if anyone comments. If they do, we know this isn't going to pass muster. Now you do it."
"Oiroke no jutsu!" BAMF!
"Uhm, no," said Jiraiya. "Not that looking over a well-stacked female form isn't enjoyable, but the objective is not to stand out or draw too much attention. So, while I thought I'd never say this to someone who at least looks like an attractive girl, put some clothes on."
Naruto dropped the technique. "I usually get more reaction from you."
"This is essentially a serious mission," admitted Jiraiya. "Entirely different mindset for that. If you haven't gotten to the point where you can do that - it'll be something else I have to pound into you during this training trip."
"Hey, orange kid!" yelled someone across the street. "Harajuku is that way!"
Naruto watched the youth laughing at his own joke and scowled. Jiraiya just made a thoughtful noise, then turned and began going in the indicated direction.
"Where we going, Pervy Sage?" asked Naruto.
"This 'Harajuku' sounds like as good a place to start as any," responded Jiraiya.
"Follow the crowds, move as they do," recited Naruto, remembered Naruto from a few minutes previously when they'd started crossing streets.
More and more people were being encountered as they went along, which made it more obvious.
The park they ended up going through was odd to Naruto's sensibilities. Hardly any grass and only a few trees, compared to what Naruto was used to. Most of the park was paved over.
"Did you see -"
"-poor girl-"
"-darn shame-"
"-don't get involved-"
Naruto wasn't sure what was going on with couples and small groups moving fast away from an area. He DID notice that Jiraiya changed his course slightly to go towards where these others seemed anxious to leave.
Naruto didn't notice it before Jiraiya. A girl sitting alone on a park bench, wearing an oversized shirt of some kind and looking about as sad and lonely as it was possible to get.
It was not even slightly a surprise to Naruto that Jiraiya homed in on her.
"Oh come on, Pervy Sage, we don't have-" Naruto ducked as Jiraiya nearly backhanded him.
"First lesson on infiltration/reconn missions," whispered Jiraiya. "Blend in. Second lesson: observe."
"Eh?" asked Naruto. "Wha?"
"Look at her, what can you tell right away?" asked Jiraiya.
Naruto blinked as he looked up at the sage and could tell he was still being dead-serious. The genin then looked over the girl, who seemed so self-absorbed she hadn't even glanced at them.
Slouched forward, skin barely covered by the shirt, enormous breasts, good figure. Sad. Very sad. Blood stains along the bottom of the shirt. Light brown hair. No makeup. Waitaminute. Blood?
"Miss, are you alright?" asked Jiraiya, kneeling before the woman.
"Broken. I'm a failure. Broken."
The girl's voice was nearly a whisper, but Naruto caught it and glanced up at Jiraiya. Then he took two steps back because this was the first time he'd seen THAT expression on Jiraiya's face.
The murderous wrathful expression was immediately replaced by another expression on Jiraiya's face. When he spoke it was softly as if approaching a skittish wild animal. "Is there a clinic or hospital nearby?"
"I can't," whispered the girl, her eyes coming up but not focussing on anything in particular. "I can't go back. I can't go anywhere. Failure. I'm a failure."
"NO WAY!" declared Naruto. "Don't say tha- HEY!" Naruto ducked another backhand.
"Keep your voice down, don't spook her," said Jiraiya, who then turned back towards the girl. "Get up."
"Eh?" asked the woman, finally focussing on Jiraiya.
"I don't know who did this to you, I don't know why," said Jiraiya. "The gallant Jiraiya is not about to abandon a young woman in her hour of need."
"Oh, pshaw," reacted Naruto.
This time the backhand connected, as it was absolutely not half-hearted or meant as a warning.
Jiraiya took the moments of no interruption to get the woman wearing her clothing in a somewhat less haphazard manner. "Are you cold?"
"Cold?" asked the woman, still sounding dazed and confused.
"Don't worry," said Jiraiya, not aware how much his next statement would change things. "I'll take care of you."
"Take care of me? But I'm broken," said the girl. Just a little bit more life was showing in her though.
"None of that now," chided Jiraiya gently. "I am Jiraiya, and I rarely go back on my word! This is Naruto, my apprentice. We'll find you a place or make one!"
"Eh?" asked Naruto, figuring Jiraiya was just after something dirty.
"Take care of me," said the girl. She nodded once.
"Do you have a name?" asked Jiraiya.
"Akitsu," said the woman, following the man.
Naruto had thought this a very bad idea and that the Pervy Sage was just being Pervy.
Now he wasn't so sure.
"Naruto. Be ready," said Jiraiya, not stopping as he continued to walk.
"Be ready?" asked Naruto. "Be ready for what?"
Fog began rolling in.
Naruto blinked at the sight as the fog thickened. It reminded him WAY too much of a fight on a bridge and Zabuza Momochi's techniques. Put that and his sensei's comment together and... "Oh."
"My Master desires that," said a woman walking out of the mists. "You will surrender it."
"She has a name," said Jiraiya, his body language looking completely relaxed.
"The Scrapped Number is of no value in the Sekirei Plan," said the woman. "Are you going to give her over?"
"Wait a minute!" Naruto had just reached the limits of his ability to stay still and quiet. "What's a 'Scraped Number' and a Sekhmetay Plan?"
"Idiot," said the woman, brandishing a scythe. "Go home to your mama and let the adults talk. Otherwise I may have to cut that flapping tongue off."
"What makes you think I can't use her in some manner, Sekirei Plan or not?" asked Jiraiya, still looking completely relaxed. His left hand flicked through a couple of quick stretches.
Naruto blinked, having caught that. Those were silent communication hand signs. Now if he could just remember what those meant.
"I am a Scrapped Number," said Akitsu. "I am broken."
"Well, I've got a number of talents," said Jiraiya. "Maybe I can do something about that."
"You can't wing a Scrapped Number!" said the scythe-wielder, scowling. "You can't use a Scrapped Number in any of the Sekirei battles. You can't be her Ashikabi."
"Yet your 'Master' wants her, therefore she has value to your Master as well," noted Jiraiya. "You still haven't said anything to convince me of your case. Perhaps one of your associates can argue more convincingly instead of surrounding us like that?"
Naruto blinked and started looking around in the mist.
"We have you outnumbered, and don't think we won't hesitate to hurt you to get..." began the woman with the scythe.
"Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!"
Fifty Naruto crossed their arms in front of them and glared out into the mist.
"Who's outnumbered?" asked one of the Naruto.
"You... you're not a Sekirei," said Yomi, the arrogance she'd displayed through the conversation replaced with confusion. "What are you?"
"A proud ninja of Konohagakure," said another Naruto.
"A 'ninja'?" asked the woman.
"Yomi," said a voice out in the fog. "It's not worth it. Let's go."
"I'll remember this," said Yomi, backing away and looking over the crowd. "You won't get away with this insult."
After he'd judged the crowd to have moved away enough, Jiraiya glanced at Naruto. "Naruto. Next time, when I'm interrogating someone for intel, DON'T go shooting off your mouth."
"What? Interrogation?" asked Naruto.
"Akitsu," said Jiraiya. "We're going somewhere warmer and we'll talk there. I want you to tell me everything you can about 'Sekirei', this 'Sekirei Plan', 'Ashikabi', and what exactly a 'Scrapped Number' is. Also, if you could tell me exactly what is 'broken' about you."
"Ah," said Akitsu, nodding. "Yes."
"You see, Naruto, if your opponent is feeling confident and chatty, they can release all sorts of details without even knowing it," said Jiraiya. "We might as well see what's going on before we go any further."
"And what's 'winged' mean," asked Naruto. "That isn't something pervy is it?"
Yomi (Number 43) rejoined the group, still scowling.
"What's a 'ninja'?" asked Taki, Number 65.
"A 'ninja' is a mythic figure, a shadow assassin who lives and dies in darkness," said Mutsu, Number 05.
"How did the little brat make dozens of himself?" asked Yomi. "Is that a 'shadow assassin' thing?"
"Yes, actually," said Mutsu. "The various films mainly depict three kinds of ninja. One is the assassin who stalks and kills people. One is a sort of spy that has a cover identity. Third is the so-called 'legendary ninja' sort that uses magic much as a wizard would in Western works."
"Well, assassin or not, he's not getting near my Ashikabi," declared Yomi.
"In a way this is even better," declared Hayato Mikogami as his flock gathered close as he made his way to his car. "Real ninja, though I suppose it could have been some sort of hologram or something else that MBI accomplished."
"They'll pay for the insult they've given you, Ashikabi-sama," declared Mitsuha, Number 38.
"We'll see," said Hayato, not sounding terribly concerned about it. "Certainly a 'legendary ninja' is likely to stir things up a bit. It could be quite amusing."
Jiraiya was very careful in collecting local funds. Which occurred during the three times he 'helped' some drunk and passed out man find shelter or get off the street.
"Now," said Jiraiya, producing a large wad of bills from the vest of his suit, "let's see if we can find somewhere still open that sells some tea, shall we?"
"AH!" declared Naruto. "Where?"
"Never you mind," said Jiraiya. "Akitsu-chan? Are you familiar with this area at all?"
Akitsu blinked at the familiarity, but then just slowly looked around. "No."
"Woman of few words, I see," said Jiraiya. "That's actually kind of nice for a change. Don't worry, I'll take care of you." He'd noticed her reacting to phrases like that, and therefore continued. A) He wasn't inclined to let a pretty woman stay in pain if he could do anything about it, and B) he was still in the dark about this world and society - and this woman might be able to answer some questions. In either case, if she felt friendly towards himself it would help matters along. So, nothing overt or particularly perverted, at least for the moment.
"Look out!" yelled a female voice.
Jiraiya blinked and turned, ascertaining if what he thought was going on was actually happening. Yes, there was a girl charging towards them at high speed. Yes, the girl in question was being pursued by two other girls. Yes, two of the three possessed truly magnificent bosoms.
CRASH! BAM!
Yes, the girl being pursued looked behind her at her pursuers and crashed directly into Naruto - the two of them going down in a heap.
"Ow!" said Naruto, quite predictably.
"You... I..." said the girl who'd landed on top of Naruto, realizing their faces were almost touching.
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow as the two pursuers came to a stop.
"Oh shit," said one of the two pursuers.
"Number 16, Toyotama," said one of the two, whirling a staff around in her hands.
The one who had cussed looked to Toyotama, frowning. "Why did you give your name and number?"
"My Ashikabi," said the girl straddling Naruto as she moved her head and kissed the prone ninja.
Light erupted from her back, forming wings which spread out and then faded away.
"Mfff!" responded Naruto, having absolutely no clue as to what was going on.
"Mmmm," responded the girl kissing him.
"That's why," said Toyotama. "She's winged. Now this is a Sekirei fight between winged Sekirei. You and me against her and... is that a Scrapped Number?"
"Yes," said Akitsu, her head drooping again.
"Well, it's two-on-one since she can't fight us," said Toyotama, brightening. "I like those odds."
Jiraiya filed that information. Kissing one of these girls, whom he could tell weren't quite human because of the feel of their chakra in the air, caused the now-obvious 'winging' process to occur. One who had kissed one of these women was considered an 'Ashikabi' apparently. Still too many gaps in his information though.
"Number 18, Ichiya," stated the other pursuer, taking a taijutsu stance.
Jiraiya pegged her as a kicker from the stance and muscular development. The other had more of a balanced physique.
The girl got up off of Naruto, taking a position between Naruto and the two girls.
Read the comments on this episode
(Posted Sat, 24 Nov 2012 19:45)
Questions? Problems? Suggestions?
Send a mail to addventure@bast-enterprises.de
or use the contact form.
らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
All other series and their characters are © by their respective creators or owners. No claims of ownership of these characters are implied by the authors of this Addventure, or should be inferred.
The Anime Addventure is a non-profit site.