#yugao

🌹

“Which one of you is going to tell us where the Sarutobi kid is?”

For a moment, they were all frozen in silence. 

And then—

“It’s me.”

It was all Yugao could do not to whirl around in open-mouthed disbelief to stare at her companion who had just spoken.

“Sarutobi Sukea. That’s me.”

One of the opponents turned to another. “I thought the kid’s name was Asuma, not Sukea?”

“Asuma left the Village months ago. I’m his cousin, Sukea.”

All of the blades pushed closer in.

“...Alrighty then.”

Next moment, the leader of the group had pushed past Yugao and jabbed Sukea in the bicep with a huge syringe filled with some strange purple substance, the point stabbing straight through Sukea’s thick green coat. Sukea made a slight choking noise, staggered for a moment, then collapsed in a boneless heap on the ground.

Shiiiit…

“Now,” said their leader, staring at Yugao and Kurenai as he stepped over Sukea on the ground and raised the syringe again. “Which one of you lovely ladies is going to deliver the ransom message to the Hokage for me, and which one of you is going to be our second hostage?”

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When Yugao woke up, her head was throbbing, and her wrists and ankles were tied tightly to a metal chair. 

Immediately, her senses went on high alert. There was someone right behind her, their scent vaguely familiar and their breathing coming in and out in the same extra-slow manner that her own was, but she couldn’t tell who—

“You’re awake, huh…? That’s good.”

Oh, shit, she remembered as she lolled her head to one side as far as it would go only to catch a glimpse of a slumped-over head of thick brown curls, and a loose, high-necked, dark blue shirt. His purple scarf and a green coat had been thrown on the floor in the corner. No sign of the camera that had hung from his neck. 

It was Genma’s friend Sukea, the phobia-less photographer from the lobby of the movie theatre. A glance over her shoulder informed her that he was tied up the same way she was.

Shit. He’s just a civilian, he has no part in whatever this is —

They were in an unused storage room of some random shitty apartment, a basement-level one by the looks of it, with one small window that she was pretty sure she could just barely squeeze herself through if she needed to. If she were untied, that was. And if she were able to move like normal. Her head was still groggy from the paralytic. Her limbs were currently unresponsive.

She reached out for her chakra, glad to find it wasn’t sealed away. Chakra-sealing was a delicate operation that required a good deal of the sealer, so it was a relief to know their kidnappers didn’t seem to be that skilled. Or else they just didn’t think it was worth the effort, since after all, the paralytic in her system made it impossible to gather and mold chakra anyway. She wouldn’t be able to use any jutsu or really do much of anything else until it wore off.

The next question he asked was a bit surprising. “Did you happen to see if they used the same syringe on you that they did on me?”

“They did,” she nodded. “And it was intended for Asuma, who’s quite a bit taller and broader than either of us. So even at half-dose—”

“It’s most likely strong enough to put us out of commission for some time, but not strong enough to take us out completely” she felt him nod. “That means we just have to wait a little for the paralytic to wear off, then we can find a way out. If you start to feel your strength returning, don’t let them know. Better if we keep that to ourselves. Can you move your fingers or toes at all yet?”

She tried. “A little bit. And you?”

“Not at all. But I can speak, so…”

Grimly, Yugao nodded. “Any idea where we are?”

“I’m certain we’re still in Konoha,” said her companion a lot more confidently and calmly than she’d been expecting. “Most likely on the south side of town, going by the smell.”

“How could you possibly know what part of town we’re in based on smell,” she demanded, only barely resisting the urge to roll her eyes.