Suna was a desert, a place full of sand and dust. A place with more poor slobs than there seemed to be grains of sand in the village and the words that insolent and more than just arrogant client of hers had uttered made Lamya think about why the hell she was even in such a derelict place at all.

She had the feeling that she was wandering, without a goal and that she had lost all the previous motivations she had once she had left Konoha. What was she doing and where was her path taking her?

As she wandered the barren, filthy streets of the slums, she could not help but think about everything that had transpired in her life. She had lost her parents, a cruel and vicious uncle that vanished, more than one hokage that she had served, having had complete rule over the konoha anbu and much, much more. She could remember the pain she had felt after being stripped of her power. She could remember the face of the one who took her right eye and the face of the one who had foolishly allowed her to regain the full brunt of her chakra again.

But as always the most recent events were engraved in her mind most freshly and most vividly compared to all the other things she'd experienced.

An impossibly arrogant boy, thinking a sharingan of low quality would transform him into a superpower. An obnoxious kid that refused to be hers despite all the temptations she had offered. However, it was then that it hit her, he had mentioned something about kings of the slums, thinking she was one of them and vowing to become the one true ruler of the slums.

Perhaps, if she wanted to, she could show this man what it meant if someone dared to oppose her and would refuse all that she would offer. Yes, Lamya become more and more certain with every step she made and every whiff of the slums' stench that crept up her nostrils. After all, she had to start somewhere, she had to gain a foothold at some place, for she did not intend to run for the remainder of her life. To sow the seeds of chaos, she first had to do the opposite and create order where there was none.

"Life is full of contradiction," She started to chuckle softly, standing still in front what looked like some sort of large saloon, her lips curling into an eerily gleeful grin. "Though I agreed not to hunt or attack you in the span of a year, that doesn't mean I won't be forcing you to face me anyway, Ryu Myugan."

She started laughing as she walked towards the entrance of the saloon and as she looked over the doors that acted as the saloon's entrance, Lamya noticed the place was packed with rough and tough looking men and women of all sorts of ages and natures. A simple chuckle escaped her lips as she pressed against the two doors and went inside. "The slums...no, Sunagakure will know what it means to be under the guiding force of an Orochi... of me."

526

Two blue hues looked over a folder with numerous papers in it. It was a strange way to store documents but the man reading over the papers began to like it more and more as time went on, using this form of paper storage instead of scrolls. What he currently was reading over was the dossier for two Uchiha that were supposed to be found somewhere here in the slums of Sunagakure no sato. No one had seen them since the initial morning they'd been spotted entering the sand dune slums and the man intended to change that. His right eye was navy blue, the left was ocean blue. The left eyebrow had a scar running from the middle of it down to the top of his cheekbone. The scar ran straight through the eyelid, as though it was cut through altogether. The man wore no indication of his allegiance to the village, and his clothing was all black. His shinobi netted shirt was replaced with a normal black long sleeve shirt, the fabric hugging his body to show his well kept physique. He wore black shinobi tights, black tabi, and black soft step sandals. The man's black hair was pushed back as if slicked with oil or gel and he had a patchy black beard upon his face, scruffy as though he hand't shaved in a week.

Upon hearing the doors open, his eyes traced up and over to note the female figure who strode in, an air of menace and confidence about her. The man silently thought about calling her over but shook his head and thought better of it. If things were meant to go on that way, then they would, but for now he would stick to reading over his dossiers and look for any clues he could have missed. With a wave of his hand, he called the barmaid over and spoke only one word, placing a pouch of ryo in her hand. "Firebrand." With that, she bustled away hurriedly to grab a bottle of whiskey that seemed to burn as if with an inner fire. When she returned to him and handed him the bottle and a glass he nodded in thanks and uncorked the bottle of whiskey, pouring himself a drink. His eyes flickered over to the woman to keep an eye on her for a moment, before going back to his work and downing the shot. There was definitely something in these files that he was missing, and if he could figure it out, he'd be one step closer to getting the answers he was after.

438

As she entered the saloon, her eyes wandered around the place for a bit, hoping to see if there was anyone in particular around that she knew or that immediately seemed to be a cut above the rest, but to her disappointment there was no such person with an appearance that would be out of place. There seemed to be not a single person who looked like they'd have that title of king or deva, quite a pity, given the fact it was the main reason for getting in this cesspool of filth and drunken idiots in the first place.

Lamya let out a deep sigh, followed by a soft chuckle and an eerie grin as she tilted her head backwards and combed through her jet black hair with her right hand, the strands of thick and smooth hair slipping effortlessly through her slender fingers.

Taking a step forward towards the counter, she placed her left elbow on it, leaning on the wooden boards out of which the counter's top was made and placed her chin upon her hand, all the while looking at the bartender. For just a split second, her eyes flashed towards the person paying a barmaid to bring him something and as her eyes followed the barmaid, Lamya noticed that all the maid was bringing with her was some bottle of liquor, nothing noteworthy at all.

Tapping with her finely manicured nails on the wooden boards, Lamya finally managed to draw the bartender's attention, who now finally approached her, asking what he could get for her.

This question made the kunoichi look up, straight into the man's eyes, after which she chuckled softly and rather deviously. "How about...something very strong to wash away this filthy air that managed to get in my mouth and perhaps some info on where I might find these so-called kings of the slums."

The bartender shrugged for a moment, opening a bottle of gin and pouring the liquid into a hazy, probably badly cleaned glass, shoving it towards her with a steely gaze on his face. "That'll be fifty."

Calmly, Lamya slid a few coins over the counter and added an extra coin to try and coerce the man into talking about her second question, the one that had bugged her for some time now and the one she most wanted to be answered. Alas, the bartender simply took the money, put it in his pockets and started cleaning the counter with a filthy rag. Drinking up her gin in a single swig, emptying the glass in a single go, the kunoichi started tapping with her fingers on the wooden board again, showing that she was becoming rather agitated. "Just so you know, my patience is limited. Answer my question, you boorish peasant or I'll squish that misshapen face of yours like an overripe apple between my fingers."

The bartender stopped whiping the counter and simply looked at the woman for a second, shrugging his shoulders again before continuing to 'clean' the counter. "Dunno what yer talking about, but I dun 'no where ye shuld be lookin' fer these kings of yers...urkh!!"

It didn't take a second. No, not even an instant, less time than batting one's eye, for Lamya to swiftly place her hand against the bartender's face and dig her nails into his skull, pulling him over the counter and lifting him up. "I just want to know where I can find these so-called kings of the slums and you're going to tell me, do you understand, you lowlife insect?!" She exclaimed the threat out loud, lifting the bartender up in the air, her nails digging deeper into his skin as his weight lost its support and as she pressed slightly harder upon his skull, the bartender started to squirm and cry out in pain."If no one answers my question...I could just as easily do Sunagakure a favor and end all of your miserable lives right here and now, so what will it be...Answer...my...question, you filth."

686/1212

The man watched the woman who sat at the counter and tapped her nails, quietly closing his folder. He was getting nowhere reading over information he'd read thirty or forty times. She was asking the man behind the bar a question and her body language barely translated that she was becoming agitated when she was given a drink with no answer to whatever she'd asked. With a move of his hand, the man reached under his chair to grab a small tanto that he'd hidden under there upon his entering of the saloon. With a swift movement he stood, pushing the weapon in the belt loop on the back left of his belt. He was going to leave and was picking up his dossier, making his way to leave the table when the woman had apparently stood and moved quick enough to grab the man about the skull, lifting him up. This was a sign of trouble and one that Syekren hadn't been expecting. He didn't move too quickly, but simply took his folder and his bottle of alcohol, sauntering calmly in the direction of the ruckus.

Those within the bar were already standing and reaching for whatever they could as weapons. Some had large knives, others had pool sticks or chair legs in their hands. Moving past those in his way, he'd calmly push his way through the gathering angry faces, shaking his head. he'd stop at the bar, setting his bottle and folder down, sitting upon the chair. With a fluid motion he reached over and grabbed the woman's used glass. With the glass in hand, he poured himself another shot and took the burning liquid in one go, looking over the glass and the bottle before setting both down. With a yawn, he looked over at those who had gathered around, shaking his head. He'd heard her the second time,
asking about some 'Kings' of the slums and threatening everyone's lives. It was quite the show,
if that was what she was going for. "You know, it's not exactly good manners to come into an establishment and threaten the lives of those who work or drink here. You're more likely to get information from a cactus than you are from these guys. If you want information on who runs the slums, you'd be better off finding the dealers in drugs or whores. They report to someone. As far as I know, this bar and a few others are owned by someone searching for them as well."

With a yawn, he poured himself another drink and took that as well. His eyes strayed up to the man who dangled helplessly in her grasp. She seemed to be a rather strong woman, someone that obviously wasn't normal by civilian standards. With the calm authority and strength she was showing, not to mention the speed, she was obviously a kunoichi of some strength. But to his knowledge, Sunagakure had no such Kunoichi and he was the closest thing to them having a ninja of the caliber. He was intrigued to say the least, but didn't have any real information that would assist her. "Though I wonder, old man. If you have any information you're not letting her in on? Or for that matter.. me. Since I've asked you about the people in this.." with that, he tapped upon the folder that held the dossiers that was on the counter. "This folder that contains dossiers on two people I'm in search of. They've been known to frequent this area and they could have ties to the people she's looking for, it just doesn't make sense that you'd have no information on them or the kings. Unless of course the Coyote, Ryu, is telling you to stay silent?"

His eyes took in the man's own gaze before looking back to the woman. The bar patrons were all up in arms and ready to run forward and attack, this was going to get bloody fast, and Syekren couldn't have such things happening if he wanted to stay under the radar. With a sigh, he stood once more, stretching a bit and looking around. His gaze turned back to his folder with the files and his hand came up to scratch his beard in though. "Well, I'd hate to stop any woman in having her fun, but I'd like to ask that you don't cause a scene too much more than you are here. I've got a few issues with the government running this place behind the Kazekage's back and should they learn of a ninja slaughtering a bunch of poor sods in a bar around this area, they're sure to send their lapdogs. It'll just be easier and less time consuming to not have to kill them." With that, he reached back and quietly pulled the tanto from the sheathe that housed it, twisting it around as he held it in front of his body. The blade of the weapon was blue as the sky, infused with raiton energy and shone brightly in the dimly lit saloon. It pulsated with energy and upon seeing it, a few of those up in arms grew disheartened. Some had seen the blade before, and knew what it could do and what he'd use it for.

913|1,351

It was quite amusing, to hear someone suddenly speak up about her conduct and as Lamya tried to see who was the person speaking up, it appeared to be the man of whom she had taken notice earlier, still seemingly unfazed by what she was doing. She wasn't exactly sure why he'd even try to berate her while she wasn't exactly hiding her physical capabilities in the slightest. So as she wondered wether the man was plainly stupid or stupidly courageous, it hit her like a ton of bricks that in the end, the only ones who could remain so calm in a situation like this had to be shinobi themselves or retired ones and since this man didn't exactly look old enough to be the retiring kind, she had the certainty that this was an active shinobi, though she wasn't sure if he was or wasn't strong enough to stop her, in the end that was a risk she had to take.

"So...this saloon's owned by Ryu Myugan as well," The kunoichi started to chuckle softly, seeing the hilarity in the awful coincidence that she'd be looking for answers in one of that arrogant man's establishments. Even so, he did mention he was looking for them and that meant he was likely the one having the most information on them, information on those he called his rivals, his enemies and his targets. "The Coyote? Well, that's a new name for me...seems he's got a new name ever since I implanted that weak and pathetic sharingan in that pretty face of his. Now than, since I won't be getting any information out of this pathetic excuse of a man, how about I show you lot how serious I am about what I desire to have?"

Lamya looked around her, noticing that most of the patrons had already drawn whatever weapons they had or just carried some makeshift weaponry such as broken bottles and the occasional leg of chairs and tables, this were after all, inhabitants of the so-called slums. How she would've loved to take a few of those people and see what she could make out of them, after all she did tell Ryu that she was capable of turning these weak...humans into something much more. "Sunagakure's higher ups would probably reconsider if they'd know what they were up against, but than again... neither do these filthy locals. Look at them, either soiling their clothes or trying to scare me with their pitiful numbers and their pathetic weaponry...which apparently also includes you."

She lifted the man even higher into the air and showed a rather eerie smirk, as if she had just decided what to do with her captured prey. "I think I know, I've actually never used this on a living person...let's see if it's as painless as they let us believe."

She gently touched the victim's chest with her free hand and made a slight pumping motion with her arm, effectively pumping an amount of chakra into the poor bartender's body. It resulted in the man letting out a single scream, before going completely silent and his body desintergrating before everyone's eyes, a jutsu only Anbu would know of: the body elimination technique. "Now than, since I guess I won't be getting much information out of any of you...you can choose between attacking me and being granted a certain death or... killing eachother and I'll spare the last one standing, all your choice."

606/1818

The man sighed and focused his chakra around his being. He would ready his technique without making a show of it to try and salvage the precarious situation he'd found himself in. To think, he merely wanted a day to relax and search for information. Why did the evil ones always find their way to him? At least, she seemed rather evil. People didn't usually come into the slums and cause trouble, threatening lives, unless they had some sort of evil motive. Whatever the case may be, he didn't want to bother with the details at this point in time. He was storing up a portion of his chakra in case he would need it, and wasn't able to talk his way out of the current turn of events. When she spoke of Ryu it came with a bit of venom in her voice. No doubt she knew him just as Syekren did. What she said next had his ears perk up a bit. 'Weak sharingan?' Could that be where the eye he'd lost that day had gone? So, Ryu had it implanted by this woman so that he could have his own leg up on the others about this place. Intriguing. Should Syekren be able to see Ryu again, he'd have to ask about that. Onto other things though..

The woman was obviously becoming increasingly annoyed and wanted to show the lot around them the seriousness of what she desired.  With a sigh, the man looked around at the bar, keeping his back to the woman. His eyes flashed red with their three tomoe for a moment before they faded back to their blue. Those that did see it got even more unnerved and a few made to leave the saloon for fear of their lives. "I do hope you don't count me among their numbers, I'm not here for them and they know it. I'm here of my own accord seeking my own answers.  I seek two specific people around this area and I have been meaning to question them about a few things for some time. My only concern is keeping the 'higher ups' as you called them, from discovering I yet live. They would not reconsider what they do for a moment if it meant seizing a power for themselves or driving a wedge further between the village and her leader. No, you seem to be right up their alley. The village itself has quite a few able bodied ninja. The elite of them follow the orders of the council to a tee. And that's why I try to stay away from them, a ninja holds more information than they realize."

His eyes turned back to the woman as she seemed to have decided on what she'd do to the man, pushing her palm to his chest. With a pump of the hand and unmistakable use of chakra, the man's body was disintegrated before Syekren's very eyes. It was the body destruction technique any ANBU was taught upon their induction into the secretive ranks. That would mean this woman had been an ANBU at some point, or possibly still was. That mad this all the more dangerous for Syekren if he didn't play his cards right. Being an ANBU himself, he could recognize the jutsu she used and knew that she would also have quite a few other powerful techniques to use if she so chose to. Without too much thought after she made her announcement, the man shook his head and waved those who had tried to retreat out the door. His body moved to the middle of the saloon, kicking tables away and grabbing two chairs. He sat one opposite of the other and pushed a smaller table between them. With that, he moved to the counted and grabbed his bottle of Firebrand, two glasses, and the dossiers. He set each of these on the table and sat in one chair, looking to the woman at the bar. With a movement of his hand, he stabbed his tanto into the table's wood and chuckled at the flinching of those that remained.

"I have another idea, if you'll indulge me. You say you implanted a sharingan into the skull of Ryu Myugan, which would mean what he'd stolen is now a bit harder to take back. But with how you spoke of it you seem to know quite a bit about the sharingan. I don't suppose you'd know how to track down a few Uchiha would you? If you'd like to come and sit with me, share a drink, I have a few questions I'd like to ask. Perhaps even a proposition. This is something I'd like an empty room for, however. So I'd ask everyone else to leave. If you can help me, I'll help you with what you need in any way I can. I am, after all, familiar with the ins and outs of this place." His eyes watched the woman, a hawk like intensity in them. He wanted to see if she'd take the bargain. He wasn't here to fight, but if the two of them could help each other, then it would be beneficial to keep her in good spirits.

896|2,247

"If this village had any shinobi worth mentioning...I would not be here," Lamya joked, waving her hands to the side to get rid of whatever drops of blood or leftover cells she had on them from the man she had just instantly disintegrated with the body elimination technique. Letting out a soft chuckle, the woman simply watched as the stranger made himself comfy and even managed to intimidate basically all of the men and women still wondering what to do, just by settling himself, taking some liquor and driving his tanto deep into the table at which he was sitting. "You're right though, a shinobi holds more value than most people realize...which is why I am keen on collecting samples from various kekkei genkai. Studying how they work and how they are maintained or even formed is a very amuzing past time after all."

Turning her head towards the men and women that were seemingly awaiting the verdict and rather confused on how the situation was going, Lamya let out a sigh and combed a few strands of her jet black hair out of her face, letting her fingers slide all over her scalp. "Could you all just leave? You're no longer entertaining...but not you, Barmaid, I want you to make some coffee, I really need something to brighten my day a bit, so go on, chop chop."

Completely ignoring the people she had firstly threatened and had now allowed the opportunity to flee and leave with their lives relatively unchanged and more importantly intact, Lamya settled down onto the free chair at the other end of the table the stranger had prepared, casually pointing at his tanto with a smile on her face. "I'd rather have you remove that...it's kind of sticking in the way and I don't think you want me to do it for you, isn't that right?"

Letting out a soft chuckle, she finally let out a sigh of relief when the trembling barmaid brought her a cup of strong smelling, black coffee and placed in front of her. Just motioning the woman to leave, Lamya could now fully focus on the man who had acted so surprisingly calm and collected during it all, which in turn made her just somewhat curious. "Saying I'd know as much as an Uchiha about the sharingan might be rather arrogant, though saying I know things that most of them do not know though, is not a lie. "

For a moment, she reflected on the other part of what the stranger had mentioned: a few questions, a proposition, it all sounded tempting, so Lamya closed her eyes, took a sip from her coffee, let out a yelp of pleasure and smiled at the man in front of her. "Well now, I'm all ears...my strange Anbu person."

479

The man quietly watched the woman for her reaction. It was true, his calm demeanor and proposal probably seemed outlandish to one who wanted to get information at any cost, but she eventually seemed to relent and told everyone to clear out, much to his pleasure. She had told the bar maiden to stay, which was an agreeable request, as what they would need more than just an empty room were drinks and food on hand. With a nod of thanks first to the woman, then to those who were leaving, the man quietly began to pour himself another shot. When the woman approached the table and sat herself comfortably in the chair across from where he sat, asking for a coffee, he raised his glass to her.  She asked that he remove his weapon from the table as it could be in the way, and that she was sure he wouldn't want her to do it for him. With a shrug, he took the drink in quickly and set the glass down, using one motion to sweep over the tanto's hilt, prying it from the wood. When it was free he flipped it around his hand as his arm pulled back, bringing it towards the sheathe on the back of his belt.

With a 'click' it slid into place and sat securely. His eyes scanned her face as she received her coffee, letting out her own sigh of relief, which took the man back a bit. He didn't expect something from her, but to be fair, with an unknown ninja one should not expect anything other than danger. Her words on the sharingan did not fall on deaf ears, as he didn't know all there was to know about the sharingan himself, save for the final levels would be rigorous for him to achieve. The next level being one that he would need to kill a close loved one or family member for, and the one after he would need to take the eyes of someone else who had reached that final form and implant them in his own skull. The abilities of these forms and how much more powerful they were suppose to be were not in his repertoire of information though, neither were any other secrets they may hold. It was for that reason he was hunting the two Uchiha in the dossiers, to learn what he could from them and kill them, then make his way back to Konohagakure no sato and find the old compound to search for clues.

That would not need to be spoken of, not yet.

She seemed to listen intently to his words and let out a yelp of pleasure, either from the coffee or his proposal, he could not tell. He smiled softly though, giving a disarming look to her. Should she really possess all the information that she was saying she was keen to, she would be quite the useful ally. It wasn't until she said she was all ears that she let out a bit of information he hadn't given her access to, his status as an ANBU. He didn't flinch, nor look surprised. A wry smile came across his lips and he chuckled whole heartedly. "You know, I didn't believe my mentor when he told me that we could sniff each other out like dogs. But I suppose any normal ninja seeing the body destruction technique so plainly in the open would have reacted with quite a bit of shock, no? But I suppose it isn't to be helped, I am Syekren. And who are you, my bloodthirsty ANBU companion? Or would that happen to be.. former ANBU? As I'm sure you'd know a village ANBU in another land killing the civilians is completely against the code of conduct and nearly grounds for a war. So I'd have to assume you no longer call yourself one of you 'former' kage's shadows."

With a chuckle once more, he'd fill his glass and take the drink in, thinking on the flavor and staring at the glass after he did so. The bars were getting better and remaking his favorite whiskey. Better, but not perfect. "As for my proposal, I'm looking for two Uchiha here in the slums on a bit of personal business. They're now being hunted by anyone looking for the bounty on their heads, but what I want from them most is their deaths and their information. I have reason to believe that these two are not in this sector of the slums, as I've come across Ryu myself and know that he controls these parts. Which means they would go for the parts in which these.. 'kings' you called them? Yes these kings would have them somewhere in hiding. That's what I believe and it's what my searching has turned up. For all the good it does me. Should we be able to work together to find them, I'm sure it would lead you to whatever you seek, and I'm sure Ryu would want to find those kings as well. That's just my though. It's mutually beneficial, oui?" It was a lot of talking for him on this part but he toughed it out and poured himself yet another drink. He had no fear of getting inebriated, not just yet, as his tolerance was quite high thanks to habitual drinking. He was, however, enjoying the company and the drink that came with it. He took the drink again, swallowing the glass contents whole, watching the shaking bar maiden who was quietly reaching for something behind the counter. Syekren shook his head plainly, staring into her eyes, and she hesitated, placing her hands back in front of her person. He didn't want the server of their drinks to die as well.


988|3,235

As the stranger seemed to oblige to her request and pulled the tanto out of the wooden table and silently slid it into its hilt, Lamya simply gave a soft smile and took another sip from her coffee. The fact that she had been interrupted in her game had long passed her mind as now she had been offered information and opportunities that could be more beneficial to her than just trying to find some shady figures in the filthy slums of a village of dust and sand.

"Those who serve the ANBU learn how to act, those who lead the ANBU learn how to react," It was a sly remark to why she was able to figure the stranger out, why she was able to see that his lack of reaction was already enough to be branded as either an active or inactive ANBU operative. Lamya, who had served AND eventually lead the entire Konoha ANBU forces before her...departure at unfavorable terms, wasn't alarmed by that ANBU status anyway. No matter if this one was active or not, she knew Sunagakure simply wasn't prepared nor equipped to handle her if she was going to be serious and even if they did have some remarkable shinobi among their ranks, there was no doubt that the old adagio: "The strongest survives" was without a doubt still in place.

Lamya knew Sunagakure had long been plagued by stagnation, dwindling numbers of capable shinobi and as a result: dwindling funds. With the Daimyo of the Land of Wind even going so far as to hire shinobi from Konoha rather than his own, there was no doubt a feeling of resentment to both konoha and the inept leadership of Sunagakure itself, no matter who the kazekage was, if they could not be a beacon of absolute power, there was also no beacon of hope for this poor, dillapitated village. "I do indeed no longer call myself a shadow of a kage, especially not when these so called kage drown in the very shadow that I cast upon them."

Another soft smile, another sip of her coffee and Lamya simply looked into Syekren's eyes with her own golden, snakelike eyes. "Well than, Syekren...You may call me Lamya."

It was funny though, that she still kept the codename she had been given when she had entered the Konoha ANBU, despite her belief that both the village and its operatives where beneath her, she just could not part with the one thing she actually found to be rather suiting to who she was: a snake.

"Hmm, looking for two Uchihas in Suna, how interesting..." For a moment, she closed her eyes and tilted her head backwards, letting the fingers of her right hand slip through her jet black hairs again, seemingly thinking about how coincidental it would be that there was not just someone with a sharingan in suna, but also at least two uchihas. Sure, after the ancient purge, there was a rumor that the uchihas had simply spread out and gotten dormant for a while, but a few years after the fourth great war they started to resurface again. "Personal business,
so I assume you are contemplating wether or not to hire me as either an enforcer or a possible asset in tracking down these two... Uchihas. That would be a likely possibility, but it does make me wonder what this...personal connection between you and these Uchihas might be."

Leaning forward all of a sudden, closing the distance between them a bit, she seemed rather keen on getting to know the answer to that question and even if she had her suspicions, she knew she'd only get to know the truth if the guy was willing to talk or if he showed him his true colors. She had meet enough Uchihas, some more intimately than others, to know when she was looking at one and though the color of Syekren's eyes was off, he had this typical vibe of arrogance and assertiveness to him as they did. Blood never lied after all. "Don't worry about Ryu, he's simply a minor toy to quell my boredom. However, I do detest the audacity of these people calling themselves kings,
so I thought it would be fun to just take them all out myself. However, looking for Uchihas is...well,
that's simply all the more fun. I just love seeing a proud Uchiha fall before me and realize how weak the sharingan truly is."

757

The way she had told him how she figured who he was had an interesting sound about it, but it wasn't something he would comment on. For the moment he was not the leader of the village's ANBU corps but that was in part to a few reasons of his own. Nonetheless, he had a few privileges that most in his rank and station did not for his strength. She herself did not call herself a shadow of the kage any longer, which meant that she was no longer an ANBU operative. Could be ex-ANBU and even further, she could then be a criminal. As far as Syekren knew, one could not just leave the ANBU Black Ops. Things were getting curious now, and he wanted to pull out his notepook and write a few things down during the conversation. He figured it would be rude but decided to take the chance and pulled a notebook a pen from his shirt's inside pocket. With a fluid stroke, the cap to his ball point pen was taken off and set on the table, while the miniature notepad was flipped open to an unused page. When he heard her name, he bag his pen strokes.



His eyes moved from the page to meet her own snake like slits and he smiled a bit. "As I'm sure you know, giving too much information for ninja, especially ninja of my and your former, vocation. Besides, I have only just met you and while I would normally be keen to share information with someone who could help me, the last time I did I found myself attacked by a woman who had a knack for using plants in her jutsu." His hand came to have a finger tip touch softly on the base of the scar on his left eye before he closed the notebook and put the cap back on the pen, shoving them into their place. When he had finished replacing his items, he clasped his hands together, interlacing their fingers and laid his hands upon the table. He leaned forward only a bit, continuing his smile.

It was sudden when she leaned forward as well, closing the distance between the two of them. His eyes stayed unwavering but his heartbeat sped up only slightly. It had been quite a few years since he'd had a woman so close to his face. It bothered him only for the fact he didn't know the woman and caught him a bit by surprise. He took a slight breath in, catching her fragrance before he sighed, and listened instead to her words, trying to distract himself. He did not want a repeat of what had happened with the last woman he'd spent time with. Then again, she became the Kazekage and then completely disappeared, so perhaps it wouldn't be exactly the same in this case. Unless this woman, this Lamya, wanted to have her way with the entire village too

He quietly chewed on her words, considering them and finding the bait in it before he spoke. Were he a bit hotheaded, he may have actually taken the bait she was laying down. If he didn't know any better, he'd say she knew exactly what he was at this point regardless of what  he told her. "I find Ryu Myugan useful as a partner if I wish to keep things civil in the slums. I am considering using his ties to these seedy places to help in my locating of the Uchiha as well. He knows enough about the slums that he should be able to tell me what I need to know. The sharingan he has is of no consequence, neither is the weakness or strength of any sharingan. The two I seek will need to die, and that is all I wish of it once I find them. I'm sure you know what you need to about me to agree to this, and if you don't know, you'll likely find out as we go. So, do we have an accord?" He reached his right hand out, the porcelain skin looking soft in the light though there was an obvious toughness to the palms.

738|3,973

"Plants in her Jutsu?" That single line intrigued Lamya quite a bit, since it meant that this guy had apparently gone up against what couldn't have been anything else than a senju and those were known for their fortitude and the work one had to put into it if they wanted to truly exterminate one of those. She herself had some first hand experience with a Senju herself, when she tried to prove herself against Senju Chisaki a long long time ago, which, to make a story short didn't exactly end in a win for her. "So you know trusting others isn't as easy nor always as useful as most of those idiots say, that's at the very least a good quality that keeps you alive where others usually die at the hands or by the actions of those they trust."

With a rather provocative smile, Lamya acknowledged his way of thinking, realizing that she herself simply never seemed to have any problems trusting others, surely not ever since she knew that there weren't many left who could pose a threat to her, even if she was turned with her back to them. This seemingly aloof man in front of her still held a few secrets she was keen on discovering, but for the time being she was more interested in the proposal he had made. Hunting Uchihas, especially those that were considered powerful, was a rather nice idea and most importantly it was certainly not a waste of time.

"So you want a few Uchiha dead and you consider Ryu a useful pawn to this end,
there's nothing wrong with that. After all, from this very moment, you' be nothing more than a pawn to grant me some amusement, so I guess I understand your reasoning perfectly," Looking at the stretched out hand, the snakelike girl smiled rather ominously and pressed her own hand onto Sye's and shook it gently. This was perfect, someone who seemed rather desillussioned with Suna and a Anbu to boot, if she had someone like him indebted to her, she could not imagine anything standing in her way of her dreams and desires. "A toast to an agreement that could end up helping out the both of us... Just make sure you don't end up dying, I wouldn't like to end up with a weak pawn in this game."

404

When here soft hand met his in the shake he nodded and shook her hand. She seemed rather confident i n everything working out for her and seemed to hold a few secrets of her own, given her intrigue to everything he had said. Still, there was nothing he could actually go on for now and they seemed to have a deal for what Syekren wanted to do. Now all he had to do was set everything else up, find where the two were hiding, and make his move. It was going to be a bit of a struggle to kill off his parents and then take the power he would gain from such an act, but with the people he was meeting behind him, he was sure that he would be able to make his move to strength that much easier in the long run. The woman before him seemed to think he was in fact a pawn of her own, and Syekren would not correct her on it, not just yet at least. When you were dealing with potentially dangerous allies, you never let them know what you have in reserve, you allow them to think they hold all the cards, which is what she thought.

She asked for a toast to their agreement that would help the both of them and asked him not to die. With a smirk he poured the two of them a shot of firebrand whiskey he'd had at the table raising his glass. Should she raise hers as well, he would clink the glasses together to show that he was in good spirits for the friendship they seemed to have at this moment. When he took his shoot down he stood,  tapping the dossiers upon the table, looking at the woman. "Should you need information, you'll find what you can in here. I'm sure you know just as well as I do how important information is. With that though, I must be going. I have important matters to attend before we actually get this show on the road. Should you need to get a hold of me, to the west of the hound's haven is a run down shack near a warehouse. That's where I have been staying in the meantime. Feel free to stop by and come in to say hello. I'm sure you'd have found it anyway." With that, the man waved and made his way out of the tavern, heading on to do the business he had agreed to in his meeting with Ryu.

432|4,405

EXIT

Trained Taijutsu A > S-Rank 4,000/4,000
432 discarded.

It was interesting to hear that it was some pretty dark deal and that this stranger who more or less openly showed himself to be an Anbu was the one to propose it to her. Sure, she knew how the darkness always seemed to loom over those who were part of such an organization. She knew it all too well, but for now she did not care. If this stranger wanted people dead, Uchiha people to be exact, than she was not just a good player to bet on, she was the best.

As he poured the two glasses, Lamya simply smiled softly, almost seductively as they raised their glasses in a toast. While she took a swig, she noticed the documents Syekren slid towards her across the table and her eyes slightly widened, surely this was the charm of being an Anbu: secrets were never safe from them, no matter how much you hid them with another, more experienced Anbu being the exception to the rule.

"I'll just kindly accept this gesture and read what you've got for me," The woman chuckled and drank the rest of the whiskey, letting out a deep sigh and trembling a bit, after all despite her appearances, she still sucked at holding her liquor. "When I'm certain to have all the pieces in place and enough information on the target, I will contact you at your place...don't keep me waiting though with your own affairs."

EXIT THREAD

247/3705

WC used for training in other thread