She who can sing but not listen.

Chapter 8

Training was difficult but fruitful. I hadn't had much time to see anyone but I made sure to eat ramen with Naruto (sometimes the rest of Team 7 would tag along) and to spar with Hinata at least once a fortnight. Anko had been training me in how to spy and go undercover, saying that this made sense for me because my Deafness would make people underestimate me so it would be easier for me to appear weak and gain their trust. This meant she was putting me through intense flexibility training and working on my adaptability and intuition. I was exhausted but felt so much stronger as she was training me in areas I had neglected previously. Instead of focusing purely on technique, she had me gain physical strength to back it up and the increase in my flexibility allowed me to try moves I previously could never have done.

A few months had passed of this intense training and Anko told me that the Hokage wished to see me. I knocked on his office door, nervous of what fate awaited me. The door opened and the Hokage gestured for me to enter. Bowing in respect, I enquired as to why he had requested my presence.

H- "I have heard that you are progressing well. Anko speaks highly of you."

M- "Anko is a brilliant mentor."

H- "In light of your progress and the trust Anko has grown to have in you, I have decided to assign you your first mission as a ninja of Konoha. In a town a few miles away there has been an alarming number of young girls around your age. Given your background, I'm positive you will be able to identify and either detain or kill the ringleader, depending on what the situation calls for."

He handed me a scroll with the details of my mission. I accepted it and left to pack.

Knowing that in order to be successful I would need to appear like a weak civilian, I went shopping and found a plain black dress. It was light enough I would be able to sense vibrations still and loose enough I would be able to fight. I remained barefoot as that wouldn't damage the look I was going for and I put a simple headband in my hair. I looked in the mirror and though I was satisfied it gave the air of weakness I desired, I despised the girl I saw. The girl seemed so alien, so innocent. She was someone I hadn't seen in a long, long time.

When I reached the woods, I summoned my wolf (Kuro) to give me a lift to the outskirts of the village. Luckily, it was a village I had never been to before so it was unlikely anyone would recognise me. Just to be safe, however, I wrapped some bandages around my neck to try and draw people's eyes away from my face. I thanked Kuro and let her leave before trekking the remaining 1.5 miles into town. Once I arrived, I strolled around. Trying to look lost was easy seeing as I'd never been here before and had literally no destination in mind. After around an hour, I approached a man who had been watching him.

(M=Me, H=Him)

M- "Sorry to bother you sir, but do you know where an inn is? I've never been here before but need to rest."

H- "Rest eh? You travellin' somewhere miss?"

M- "Yes sir. I was told a rumour of someone who can cure any ailment and I'm trying to find them."

H- "Never mind an inn child, you can stay the night with me for free. Now tell me about this ailment you're trying to find a cure for."

I explained to him that I was Deaf and pretended not to notice his face light up when he found out this and had me agree to stay with him for the night. We reached a massive house and a few people shot me concerned looks as he guided me inside, making me hopeful that I had somehow already found the person behind these disappearances. This was only confirmed after we entered the house and he slammed me into a cage.