Because I Met You

Chapter 60: Mystery of the Stolen Ceramics Part 1

I sit down on the outdoor table, sipping a warm tea prepared in Ceramic village's signature teapot. Honestly, I've never been one to notice subtelties in food or drinks.

I notice a young man looking at me from the table next to mine. He's trying to be subtle, but it is a bit obvious. Glancing over, I notice he's wearing normal desert attire which consists of pants and a short sleeved shirt. Very basic. His face is not, though. He has a pale complexion with straight black hair that went down just under his face. His eyes were a striking yellow colour. He is quite handsome. He's getting up. He looks built, but he definitely doesn't move like a shinobi. Wait, why is he heading this way? He comes and sits down across from me and smiles. I raise an eyebrow since I really did not expect this.

"Hi, I was wondering... You're a ninja right?"

I put down my tea and look him in the eyes. Damn, he's even more handsome up close.

"And who is asking?"

Am I trying to hard to play it cool? Did I sound lame? Why do I even care?

"Oh sorry, my name is Ryota. I was wondering if you would be interested in helping me with something."

I guess that's about the only thing a stranger would approach a shinobi for: to ask a favor.

"What tells you that I am strong enough for what you need?"

I take a sip of my tea.

"Well, I thought I'd try my luck anyway and if you can't help, then at least I got to talk to beautiful girl like you."

He gives me a charming smile and my eye open wide from surprise. This guy is a playboy. Or at least he's acting like one. Maybe he'll give me the distraction I need from Sunagakure and its bullshit.

"Fine, tell me what you need me for and I'll tell you how much I charge."

Now it's his turn to be taken off guard. He regains his composure and clears his throat.

"Actually, it's about a family heirloom of mine that was stolen by some bandits last night. They came in and ransacked my home. They took it along with some other valuables, but the heirloom is the most important to retrieve."

"Does the heirloom have any specific value other than monetary?"

"No, it's actually just a very expensive, sought after ceramic plate set that was gifted to our family many years ago."

So at least I know the motive. It was just some petty thieves since they also took other valuables.

"I can't promise you anything, since I don't know a whole lot about tracking, but I'll do my best."

Ryota gives his most genuine smile yet and extends his hand. I take it and we shake hands.

"Here to our new partnership!"

I can't help but chuckle at his enthusiasm.

"And you have a very cute smile."

Here he goes again with his weird comments. I just don't know how to react to them. Looking closely at his features, he doesn't seem like he's any older than fifteen. So he's about two years older than me. At least it makes his comment not too creepy.

He finally starts leading me to his place. It is a humble abode, not much to say about it. Looking around, it definitely looks like it was ransacked. I guess it's good that he didn't tamper too much with the scene.

"Who knows that you have a valuable family heirloom?"

I ask him, since it is odd that someone would unknowingly target such a simple looking home. Whoever the thief was, they knew the heirloom was in here.

"I mean, it would be mostly my whole family, unless they talked about it to other people. I don't usually share that information with anyone when it's not necessary like it is with you."

Well if it's mostly the family that knows, then it might have been someone from his family.

"Anyone with recent financial issues in your family?"

"...Not that I know of, no... Do you think it's a member of the family who did this?"

"So far it's just a possibility. I'll have to look around fully first before drawing any conclusions about the theft."

I walk around, combing every inch of the house with my eyes and occasionally my hands. As I go through the broken ceramics and other miscellaneous items scattered everywhere, I notice some red pasty powder on the floor. Looking at all the ceramics around, none of them seem to be made out of anything red. I turn to Ryota and show him the red powder, now on my fingers.

"Do you recognize what that is?"

Right as he sees it, his eyes light up.

"Yeah! This is red clay. My uncle is the only one in town who specializes in it. It's been going out of style now though, so he doesn't get much business..."

He trails off, probably realizing what this means. Our strongest suspect is his uncle. Since his business hasn't been going well, he's probably in need of some money.

"Alright, tell me where your uncle lives and I'll figure out if he has your heirloom."

"I mean, I can show you."

"No, too risky. He knows you so he might get more careful if he sees you."

Ryota nods.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. So I'll count on you then? And oh, before that, how much will you charge?"

Oh yeah, that. I guess he took me seriously, which is nice I guess.

"Don't worry about it. It's turning out to be a fun distraction."

He laughs.

"A distraction? That's all I am now? At least call me a client!"

We laugh a little more and then he shows me how to get to his uncle's place. I head there, transforming myself into someone who looks like a local of the area as to not alert the uncle. Looking around carefully, it seems like he's not home at the moment. I go behind his house and go through the cracks in his window by dematerializing myself into gold dust. As I materialize on the other side, I start looking around.

After a while, with no results, I head the door being unlocked. He's back already? Maybe this might be my chance. If I hide and observe him, he might give away the location of the heirloom. I go out the same way I came in and then I open the third eye which materializes in my hand using some of the gold dust I carry around for emergencies. As I let my third eye materialize inside Ryota's uncle's home, I start observing him.

After a few hours of observing him, as I was about to give up, He starts looking around, as if to make sure that no one's watching him. He then moves his wardrobe, removes the carpet under and opens a latch in the floor. Jackpot! I don't follow him with my eye, in case he notices. I undo my jutsu and get out of there for now. I will look into that place when he leaves his home again. That might be tomorrow though. I'll go back to Ryota to report my findings.