"Uh... little sister, are you talking to me?"
The rain fell in a light drizzle. Mari Kurisō, holding her umbrella, looked at the girl huddled under the eaves with a beaming smile, bending down to ask. Her tone was gentle and warm, showing none of the aggressiveness she had displayed toward the Anbu.
If the guards at the gate could see her now, they would surely complain about this heartless "pretty-face worshipper" and the superficiality of the world.
"Yes. Hello, big sister. My name is Hinami," the girl replied. "I heard they're catching spies and that there's a ban on leaving. I can't see, so I didn't know if the ban had been lifted yet."
As she mentioned her eyes, the girl's crisp voice dipped low, as if she were ashamed of her disability. Mari looked at the blindfold covering the girl's delicate face with pity, her attitude becoming even softer.
"The ban hasn't been lifted yet. It might be a few more days..."
"...I see. Thank you, sister."
After a polite thank you, the girl lowered her head.
Drip, drop.
The rain intensified. Water from the eaves began to pour down like a small waterfall, soaking the girl's silver-grey hair into wet strands. Her small body shrank further back under the ledge, trying to avoid the downpour.
"Hinami... it's raining. Why don't you go home?" Mari asked, unable to help herself.
"My home is outside the village." The girl's voice grew even more somber.
Mari fell silent, watching the lonely, blind girl huddled in a ball. If she lived outside the village, then the blockade had effectively made her homeless. Understanding why the girl was waiting here, Mari felt a heavy weight in her chest.
Memories of her own childhood, where her family had been killed, flashed before her eyes. If her brother hadn't protected her, she might have ended up just like this—lost and alone. In that moment, Mari felt a profound surge of empathy for Hinami.
"Don't be afraid, little Hinami. Where is your home? Big sister will take you back, okay?"
"Re... Really?" The girl looked up, a look of joyful surprise blooming on her face.
Mari smiled back, infected by the girl's happiness.
"But... the village ban..." Hinami said, her worry resurfacing.
"It's okay. Big sister is a Jonin of the Mist. The ban doesn't apply to me." To maintain her heroic image, Mari's vanity drove her to hide her status as an Anbu "insider."
"A Jonin! Father said Jonin are the most powerful ninjas. Big sister, you're amazing!" the girl exclaimed in awe.
Mari's lips curled up uncontrollably. Growing up under her brother's wing, she was always just "Shun Kurisō's sister." The girl's genuine praise hit exactly the right spot, lifting the mood that had been soured by her brother's disappearance.
"I'm not that amazing. So, where is your home? I'll take you there now."
"Thank you, big sister. My home is in Tanzaku Quarters, in the Land of Fire."
The girl spoke with an air of innocence. Behind her blindfold, as she watched the curve of Mari's smile slowly vanish, Hinami's own expression remained perfectly naive.
The rain was now a torrential downpour, a curtain of water drowning Kirigakure. Two figures—one tall, one small—stood under the eaves, staring at each other.
"So you're saying you're from the Land of Fire, you followed your father here for business, he went missing, and now you want to post a mission to go home and find your family?"
Hinami nodded, having added several layers of detail to her cover story.
"Then why didn't you ask the Mist ninja to help find your missing father?" Mari asked, having caught a potential flaw in the logic.
"The cash father left me isn't much. If the Mist ninjas can't find him quickly, I'll starve to death in the village."
The logic held up. Mari rubbed her chin, lost in thought.
Meanwhile, Hinami silently activated her Byakugan. Beneath the cloth, her pale eyes scrutinized the brown-haired woman.
Inventory: 7 kunai hidden at the hip and thigh, one sealing scroll, 1,230 Ryo in the lining of her clothes, 5 explosive tags on the small of her back, 20 senbon, and 4 shuriken in her tool pouch.
Stats: Chakra level is roughly Jonin-tier. Musculoskeletal strength is average. Unknown purple powder hidden under the nail of her right index finger.
Assessment: Not a taijutsu specialist. If she stays at range, I flee. If I get close, I can end it in a second.
Hinami had been staking out this street for three days. She knew the common people couldn't break the blockade, but a ninja could. She believed the rule of law always bows to the person with the power to break it.
She had waited for someone like this. Even if she didn't know the woman's name, the way the Anbu bowed to her proved she was someone special. Hinami hoped for help, but she was prepared to kill the woman, take her form, and use the Byakugan to interrogate her "physically" if necessary.
As Mari thought, the pupils within Hinami's milky eyes turned a faint ash-grey. Hidden within her wide sleeves, her fingertips began to wriggle, the white of bone beginning to peek through.
"Little Hinami, can I see your hand?"
The bone spurs retracted instantly. Hinami clenched her hands into fists, her heart racing. Does she know? Did I slip up? She forced herself to stay calm and obediently held out her left hand.
Mari grabbed it. The hand was soft and supple, like a work of art with no calluses from weapons training. Mari checked it thoroughly. It wasn't a Transformation Jutsu.
But Mari still felt something was off. The missing Mizukage, the missing Commander, the missing subordinates... her guard was at an all-time high. The timing of this girl was too perfect. Just after she left the Anbu base, she finds a "helpless blind girl" who just happens to need a way through the blockade she happens to be able to bypass?
And the girl's story... it was perfect, which is exactly how a well-crafted lie sounds.
My brother is one of the strongest in the world. Whoever made him vanish must be clever. Is someone trying to trick me? To keep me busy so I don't go looking for him?
"Little Hinami, I said I was a Jonin, right?"
"Yes, big sister is amazing."
"Then you probably don't know what kind of ninja I am." Mari gripped Hinami's wrist, which felt fragile enough to snap. Her blue eyes locked onto the girl, a terrifying killing intent suddenly flooding the space. "Big sister is a Sensory Ninja. And the chakra fluctuation coming from your body... it's blinding!"