Hi everyone! This is a really old fic that I'm re-writing. I don't know if it will get traction, but I worked hard on it when I first wrote the story, so I thought I should at least post it. Trigger warning for those sensitive to topics about rape and blood. (They are mentioned, but not discussed in detail.)

It was the middle of the night when a loud shriek sounded throughout the streets of Sunagakure. The culprit of the sound lay naked, spreadeagled on the cold timber floors of her apartment, her lifeless eyes staring at the ceiling, her throat slit from end to end.

Sunagakure's ANBU were quick to arrive at the scene. The sight that greeted them was shocking, even with their training and skills. The girl lying on the ground—not even eighteen—was covered in blood, the crimson liquid already starting to harden around her body. That wasn't unusual for the team of specialists though, but what did shock them was that the girl's fingers had been cut off. And it wasn't a clean cut either—it was as if her fingers had been sawed off with a very blunt weapon.

"Disgusting," One of the young ANBU shinobi stated, his face scrunching up in distaste behind his mask.

"The poor girl, I wonder who would have done this to her." The ANBU captain pondered quietly as he walked over to the body, watching as the girl's blood glistened in the moonlight.

"Whoever did it is one sick freak." Spat another ANBU member.

"Captain..." The sandy haired ANBU said softly, raising his hand in the air hesitantly. At the age of twenty-one, he was the youngest in the squad.

The captain sighed. "What is it, Naoko? And what have I told you about raising your hand?"

"Right. Sorry captain." Naoko answered, his hidden gaze flickering to the floor, cringing at the sight of the bloodied girl. He snapped his eyes back to his captain so he wouldn't have to look at her.

"Look, Naoko, I know you're new to these missions, but you have to learn to grow up. You're going to see plenty of this kind of stuff while being an ANBU member." The captain stated, shaking his head at the sight of his youngest member shifting from foot to foot awkwardly.

"I-I know captain, sorry. It's just, I think I know who did this."

This piqued the captain's curiosity and he raised an eyebrow at his subordinate, even though no one could see the gesture. "Well, out with it then." He ordered sternly.

Naoko froze as all eyes fell on him and he twitched nervously, a subconscious habit of his. "W-Well, I don't know his real name, but he has made quite a name for himself in the Bingo Book. They call him the 'Night Demon'." Naoko pulled out his copy of the Bingo Book and fingered through the pages until he reached the desired one. Shuffling awkwardly towards his captain, he pointed to the page as he read the words. "'The Night Demon'is a ruthless killer. He moves from town to town and village to village, transforming his appearance, so it is not known what his true identity really is'." Naoko looked up at his captain, his face paling beneath the mask. "This is the worst bit, captain. 'The Night Demon's victims consist of young females, ranging from ten to nineteen years of age. He rapes them before slitting their throats and draining them of their blood. After they are dead, the Night Demon saws off their fingers. It is not known what he uses to do this since no weapon has found that matches the inflicted wounds.'"

The captain turned away, his forefinger curling around his chin as he pondered over this new information. "Yes, I do believe I have heard of this killer before. He is one of the deadliest S-ranked criminals around."

"And one of the stealthiest. It is rumoured that he is travelling to all of the major villages of the country, killing innocent girls as he goes." Naoko said.

"And how do people know this if they do not know his identity?" The captain asked.

"Because reports have been made from three of the five major villages that at least two or more females have been killed in this exact fashion. And, if I'm correct, isn't this the second victim with these same injuries in our village?"

"Yes, yes that is correct..." The captain turned again and started pacing the room. "Hmm, if he is travelling to all of the major villages of the country, where would he be headed next?"

"Konoha cap'n," A female voice spoke up. "It's the only village that the reports haven't come from. We believe that Konoha is his next target."

The captain turned to the lone female of his ANBU squad, eyeing her. She was special to him—like a daughter. It couldn't be seen now, but her lilac coloured eyes enhanced the beauty of her features. Her long white hair was currently tied in a bun on top of her head, only a few stray strands coming undone to bob against her mask lightly. When she took it out, however, it fell to her waist in waves.

"Kazuko, you know of this criminal too?" The captain asked.

"Yes captain. It's… personal." The twenty-four year old ANBU kunoichi replied, a little hesitantly.

The captain gave the female ANBU a concerned glance. He valued her as a shinobi and he trusted her with his life, so hearing that she had a personal vendetta against the Night Demon frightened him.

After a moment of silence, the captain looked around at his squad, assessing the situation while a plan formed in his mind. "Alright team, so the killer is heading to Konohagakure next, and being as that we are allied with the village, it is our duty to warn them about the oncoming danger. I will split you up and we will travel in two teams, searching the area for any suspicious activity before he can reach his destination."

Naoko cleared his throat nervously and raised his hand again. "Uh captain, we have another idea." He stated, indicating Kazuko who stood to attention beside him.

The captain turned towards them, raising an eyebrow. Any idea from Kazuko had to be a good idea. "Alright, I'm listening."

.

.

.

The duo walked silently along the path, the hot sun beating down on them. They wore casual clothes, a simple red and white kimono for the female and a short sleeved black shirt and faded jeans for the male. Their Suna ANBU masks had long been discarded from their attire, hidden somewhere in their clothing.

"So, how did you convince the captain into doing this?" The male asked, still stunned from the heated conversation that ensued the night before.

The young woman let her lips curve upwards ever so slightly, showing her amusement. "Captain Yasuo can't say no to me. He loves me like a daughter, and I'm all he's got."

Naoko raised an eyebrow at his partner. "Exactly; you're all he has. I truly thought he would have flat out refused the proposal."

"Ah, but Naoko, I can be very persuasive."

He chuckled, shaking his head. "Very true. I don't know how I forgot."

The duo became silent again as they continued to walk towards Konohagakure, their feet making nary a sound on the soft ground beneath them. Around them, the trees swayed in the wind and small animals could be seen scuttling around behind the bushes, eager to get to their destinations before a predator came along. The young couple rounded a corner and their destination came into view, looming large and intimidating, even from a distance.

"Before we reach the village, let's go through our story again." Naoko said, resting his hands behind his head lazily as he walked.

"We're newlyweds and Konoha is our honeymoon destination." The female kunoichi explained emotionlessly, the backstory already memorized in her head. "Only the Hokage knows that we are undercover shinobi, but to everyone else, we are just a normal, married couple."

Naoko nodded his head, soaking in the information for the third time. "Right, and once we get settled, the Hokage will inform an ANBU squad in the village that there are two Suna ANBU that will be working with them to catch the Night Demon. But they aren't to know our real identities—only Lord Hokage is subject to that information."

"Exactly."

The couple reached Konoha's large gates and Naoko grinned cheekily at his comrade. "You ready for this, sweetie?" He asked, his eyes twinkling in amusement.

Kazuko frowned at her partner. "I don't think I'm ever going to get used to you calling me that."

Naoko laughed and pointed to his ring finger, a wedding band now secured snugly against the skin. "You'll have to. Don't forget that we're hitched now." He laughed again at the look Kazuko gave him before turning back to face the massive village gates. He sobered, a deep sigh leaving his lips as he steeled himself for the job ahead. "Well, I guess it's time. The mission is a go."

.

.

.

Darkness consumed the small apartment. It was their first night in Konoha and, depending on how long their mission took, the apartment may be their new home for a long time.

The couple sat in silence while they ate at the dining table, the only noise that of the bustling streets outside. It was seven, and while it was already dark, most of the village was still happily active. The two undercover shinobi had made their way straight to the Third Hokage after arriving at Konohagakure where they filled him in on their mission. They were to meet up with their assigned ANBU squad every night in order to flush him out.

"Well, I'm going to hit the sack. We have a big day starting tomorrow, mapping out the village to find the best vantage points to track the Night Demon." Naoko stated, stretching as he stood up from the table with a yawn. "Goodnight, Kazuko."

Naoko nodded in response, giving a slight wave to tell him she had heard. "I'm going to clean my weapons first."

Chuckling, Naoko shook his head. "You've always been obsessed with cleanliness. Don't scrub at them too hard and try to get to bed early. We have a meeting with the Konoha ANBU squad tomorrow night to think of a strategy to bring this guy down, so you'll need as much rest as you can get."

"Relax, I'm a big girl." She sighed, shooing him away with her hand. Naoko just shrugged and made his way to his bedroom, more than ready for bed after their long journey.

.

.

.

"Do you have the map with you, Kazuko? You did get it from the dining bench, right?" Naoko asked, looking over at her expectantly the next morning as they walked along the streets of Konoha.

"I've got it, don't stress." Kazuko sighed in reply. He had always been a worrywart.

"Do you think we should introduce ourselves to the ninja in the village, so we get a feel for which shinobi we'll have to look out for?" Naoko's hands were linked together leisurely behind his back as he strolled along, humming occasionally under his breath.

Kazuko shot him a look, trying not to let herself get too irritated. "We're supposed to be honeymooning in the village; the shinobi will get suspicious if we introduce ourselves to them." She reminded him.

"Right, so true. But if we bump into one accidentally, it'll be good to start a friendly conversation with them, don't you think?" Naoko grinned mischievously and Kazuko almost groaned out loud. No doubt by the end of their mission, he would have cozied up to just about every ninja in the village if she didn't keep a close eye on him.

Kazuko raised an annoyed eyebrow at her partner, trying to psych him out. "I don't do 'friendly conversations'. You of all people should know that." She said dryly.

"Of course, how could I forget?" Naoko chuckled lightly. "Do you think we should have fake names while we stay here? Just in case we do run into someone and they ask who we are."

Kazuko turned her head straight again, her keen eyes scanning the area for anything out of the ordinary. "That's a good idea. We have to keep our ANBU identity a secret, so we shouldn't use our real names while playing at civilians."

"Yeah. So, I was thinking Hiromasa for me, as it means wise." Naoko wiggled his eyebrows and his white-haired comrade rolled her eyes in response. "And I think… Airi for you."

Kazuko cocked a brow, unimpressed. "Beloved jasmine?"

Naoko just grinned in response. "You got it. You do love jasmines after all."

"Thank you." Kazuko replied humorlessly, refusing to look at her friend's teasing smile. The two of them had known each other since childhood, before Kazuko's parents died in a horrific mission when she was seven and her sister was… Kazuko shivered and shook her head, ridding those awful memories from her mind. It isn't the time to get sentimental, she scolded herself.

"Alrighty, now to get down to business. Let's take a look at that map you have of the village." Naoko exclaimed, clapping his hands enthusiastically. Kazuko passed her partner the map and they studied it as they walked, memorizing the streets and alleyways as they went.

.

.

.

After spending most of the morning walking around the village, the couple stopped at a park bench for a break. Kazuko smoothed the creases from her outfit as she sat down, clicking her heels together softly while she waited for her partner to finish his observations.

"Okay," He declared, standing up to stretch. He handed Kazuko the map and let out a loud yawn. "What we know of the Night Demon is this: He only kills his victims at night, that's a given. His victims are all female ranging from ten to nineteen. He cuts off their fingers with a blunt weapon. And judging by the pictures we saw of previous victims before we left for Konoha, he is into girls that aren't shinobi, probably because he knows they can't fight back."

"So?" Kazuko dragged the word out, not sure why he was reiterating information they already knew.

"So, I say when we split up with the Konoha ANBU squad to flush him out. If we can get him cornered, it'll be easy to catch him."

"Do you think he would be cornered that easily? He'll be able to sense our chakra and will stay hidden." Kazuko countered.

"Well, yes but… Uh…" Naoko stammered, scratching the back of his head. "Good point."

"I know."

"And you're modest too, great." Naoko drawled, rolling his eyes playfully.

Someone behind the duo coughed politely to get their attention and they turned around, facing the newcomers.

"Hey. You must be the couple Lord Hokage was telling us Jounin about, ne?" A dark-haired shinobi asked, a cigarette perched casually between his fingers. His partner had silver, spiky hair, his hitai-ate covering his left eye while a piece of cloth concealed the bottom half of his face.

"T-the Hokage told you about us?" Naoko asked shakily, his calm, cool self draining almost immediately. Kazuko resisted the urge to slap him upside the head and tell him to 'buck up'.

"Yeah, he said that you guys are here on your honeymoon and told us to help you out in any way we can. Congrats, by the way." The smoking ninja said, smiling kindly at the two sand shinobi.

Naoko let out the small breath he had been holding. "Oh, right. Thanks. I guess we should be going, don't you think, sweetie?" He suggested as he turned to his female companion. Kazuko just shrugged her shoulders. She noticed the masked Jounin's visible eyebrow rise slightly at her wordless reply. "Sweetie…?" Naoko urged gently.

"I guess." She answered finally, turning away to leave. She heard Naoko laugh nervously and he farewelled the ninja before falling in step with his female companion.

"Wait up," The smoker called, and Kazuko felt her 'husband' tense beside her. "If you'll be staying here a while, we should at least know each other's names, right? I'm Asuma Sarutobi and this here is Kakashi Hatake."

"Sorry," Naoko bowed in apology. "I'm Hiromasa and this is my wife, Airi."

Asuma looked at the fake couple and took a puff of his smoke, letting it out before asking, "You do have last names, don't you?"

"Ah, my apologies again. Niigata. Hiromasa and Airi Niigata." Naoko was rattled—he had never been very good at undercover work. He much preferred the anonymity that ANBU masks gave him.

"It's very nice to meet you Hiromasa, Airi. We hope you enjoy your stay, and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask one of the Jounin in the village." Another smile from the smoker, while the silver haired Jounin remained silent, watching the conversation with a shrewd eye.

"We thank you for your kindness. We should be going now." Before Kazuko turned around to leave, she saw Kakashi quirk his eyebrow again. She narrowed her eyes at the Jounin slightly before deciding to drop it. No point asking him what his problem was. She didn't want to get into trouble, especially when their mission had barely begun.

After saying farewell once again, the Sunagakure couple made their way back to their apartment silently. Once there, they would make a strategy to capture the S-ranked criminal before resting and meeting up with the Konohagakure ANBU squad for their first night on the job.

Please let me know what you think. I've got the story half written (I did once have it completed, but I lost the story and had to write it again from memory) so I will try and update periodically.