Thank you so much to the kind readers who've commented on this fanfic. Believe me, if it weren't for your encouragement, I might not have posted this next chapter. Someone told me recently that fanfics featuring Mary-Sues (characters who are not in the original manga/anime) are lame – thereby insinuating that my story is lame because Sake is a character of my own creation. (laughs sheepishly) Actually, the person was a bit more direct than that and maybe that's why the majority of Naruto fans are hesitant to read this story. Naturally, everyone is entitled to his/her own opinions but truthfully, I don't know of any other way to portray the hidden aspects of Kakashi's character; he really does need someone to play off of or else I might as well just make a list describing all his attributes and post that. Now that would really be lame. The current set of characters introduced by the Naruto mangaka just wasn't sufficient enough, I thought – hence enter Sake. Anyway, back to my original point: I know good writers are supposed to write for the pure pleasure of writing itself and while there is truth in that, it's doubly pleasurable to have an audience other than myself. So please know that your comments are much appreciated!

The Woman from Sound

By chrryfiona

Chapter 3: Engaging in a Battle of Wits

Consciousness was highly overrated, Sake thought when she opened her eyes, her abdominal muscles screaming at her as she raised herself to a sitting position. A helpful hand pulled the pillow from underneath her and placed it behind her back.

"Ah, thanks. It was getting a bit painful there without any support." She leaned onto the pillow and looked up at the person beside her. She had to tilt her head quite a bit because the man was somewhat tall. Lean though, and not very bulky but if she remembered correctly, his was a solidly muscular body because he was the one-eyed person who had caught her when Yuuhi had kneed her in the face. Reminded of that injury, Sake raised a hand to her jaw and winced. She opened her mouth to ask for a mirror but was preempted.

"Trust me. You don't want to look at yourself right now." The man said, lowering himself onto the chair conveniently placed next to the bed. "Kurenai did a really good job on the right side of your face. Though Kaori tells me you're healing at an extremely rapid pace because in only a matter of two days, your bruise has gone from purple to yellowish-green. Unusual, wouldn't you say? Though perhaps not as unusual as a woman from Sound coming to Leaf to offer help."

"Kaori?"

"The nurse."

"Oh. Which reminds me - don't you think it's rude to interrogate a sick patient? Especially when you haven't even the decency to introduce yourself?"

"Pardon me. Recent events have made me remiss in my manners. Hatake Kakashi, at your service. But you already knew that, didn't you?"

Sake looked at him squarely and asked with her best poker face, "Now what makes you say that?"

Kakashi sat up, all laziness aside. "Please don't insult my intelligence. I still have yet to determine the sincerity behind your offer but I refuse to believe a Hunter-Nin squad leader would come into Leaf's territory without prior preparation."

There were few moments in Sake's life in which she was rendered speechless with fear but this was one of them. If Kakashi knew she was a Hunter-Nin, what else did he know about her? So much was riding on the secrets she kept, not to mention her own life, and she still had to determine whether this man could be trusted with her knowledge. And if he knew who she really was, does that mean other people did as well?

"How did you …"

"Your techniques gave you away. The taijutsu you performed on Kurenai's neck, for one. Your ability to accurately pick out her carotid artery while the two of you were moving was uncanny. Your knowledge of human anatomy is just not in the training of ordinary ninjas. I also noticed you were able to channel Chakra to help in your healing process. That you were capable of doing it while unconscious suggests that you've been trained to do so. And for a very long time." He paused here for emphasis. "Your fighting abilities far surpass that of a medic and when I put all the pieces together, the only logical conclusion I could come up with was that you are a Hunter-Nin squad leader."

Sake had been aware of Copycat Kakashi's intelligence. A man who was rumored to have duplicated over 1000 ninjutsus must have the quickness of mind to have learned all those techniques in the short seconds of a fight. The fact that Kakashi wasn't born from the Uchiha clan and so didn't acquire the Sharingan genetically meant that the "red eye" to which he owed his fame of Copycat Ninja could only do so much. Despite knowing all this, Sake was still caught off guard at how astute the man was.

It was true that ordinary ninjas cared very little about knowledge of the anatomy. They were more concerned with improving their jutsu; it did not matter where they specifically hurt a man or how they killed him as long as they took their opponent down. Medics, of course, needed to know the human body because that was crucial in their line of work. Most people, however, tended to forget the fact that Hunter-Nins trained with medics for two years. The reason was simple: Hunter-Nins just are not known as healers. Yet because they not only have to retrieve missing ninjas but also remove and destroy certain key organs, their training was a curious mixture of fighter and healer. Clearly, Hatake Kakashi was not "most people" and he had not forgotten anything.

Sake unclenched her fists from underneath the sheets. Relief rolled through her, taking away tension but much needed strength as well. Kakashi only figured out her background through observation and deduction. He didn't – couldn't – know everything else; her secret was still safe. "As fun as this has been, I think we should stop playing the game of 'who's the smarter one between us.' I was told the heir to the White Flash was the man I needed for my task and I'm glad my sources weren't wrong."

Kakashi remained silent but his quirked eyebrow spoke for him.

"Before I tell you why I really came here, I want to know what's happened to the men I brought with me."

"They're unharmed. They're not imprisoned but their moves are being watched. They probably know this already so for the most part, they've remained in Elder Jin's house. Smart men."

"They should be or I wouldn't have chosen them to be a part of my team. I brought them here because I knew Leaf was short on manpower and I'm about to deplete even more of your resources." Sake reached for the glass of water next to her bedside. She could tell the worst of her injuries were gone but her body still ached. She was also very dehydrated because just sitting up for a few minutes was making her lightheaded.

Kakashi grabbed the pitcher and refilled the glass which she had quickly emptied. He warned her though. "Slowly. You don't want to make yourself sick. Your stomach hasn't had anything in it for a couple of days."

Sake nodded in acknowledgment. "What do you know about the increasing number of ninjas missing from the villages?" She asked, noting his surprised reaction carefully.

He explained, "Leaf has lost so many men since the Orochimaru attack. We're recalling all of our ninjas to make sure we have accurate numbers of everyone who's still alive."

"Hmm… it's possible you might find fewer men returning than expected. The targets given to the Hunter-Nins seemed to have doubled recently. And it's not just from Sound. I've heard Mist and Sand have been facing the same problem."

"Are there any common elements connecting those missing?"

"Nothing overt. They come from all backgrounds. Married, single, male, female, some chuunins, some juunins. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason behind their disappearance. If they were killed, the Hunter-Nins would find their bodies but they've …" She shrugged helplessly. "They've disappeared without a trace."

"That would suggest that whoever took them wants them alive."

Sake nodded in agreement. "The question then is who and why. Interestingly enough, the numbers seemed to have spiked after the Third Hokage defeated Orochimaru."

Kakashi grew silent, his thoughts sifting through endless possibilities, yet always returning to one that was too horrifying to contemplate but undeniably the most probable. When in doubt, always assume the worst scenario and you're rarely wrong. "You think that Orochimaru is trying to find a new host now that his arms have been rendered paralyzed."

"I do. Call me a pessimist but I'm sure it's an unwritten law of the universe that the worst possible situation one can think of is that which is most likely to occur. Judging from what we know of Orochimaru's character and ambitions, it is highly doubtful that he would take any defeat lying down. He's changed bodies before; there is nothing to suggest that he won't do the same again."

The one-eyed man was startled at how similar this woman's thoughts ran with his own. Genma was probably the only other ninja who was as cynical. In fact, Kakashi and the ninja who never went anywhere without a straw in his mouth were often teased for being so alike in their way of thinking and demeanor that they might as well have been born brothers.

"He probably won't settle for anything but the strongest host though the fact that the ninjas who've gone missing are randomly picked suggests that he must be desperate," continued Sake.

"Unless it's his backup plan in case he can't attain his true target." Kakashi hypothesized, thinking out loud.

"Interesting. I hadn't looked at it from that angle before but you could be right. Apparently the rumors about Sharingan Kakashi have not been exaggerated."

He shrugged. "That still doesn't explain why you're here. I don't know where those missing ninjas are."

"No," the woman from Sound agreed. "But there is someone here who might and I need you to convince her to help me."

"Her?" Kakashi's eye widened as he realized to whom Sake was referring. "Mitarashi Anko."

"Indeed. The woman who once fought beside Orochimaru's side and who still carries his seal on her body."