Daybreak | Kakashi Hatake

8

When Mare entered, she noticed how tense Mei looked. She wasn't her usual cheery self, instead her head was bent over the desk while she stressed over a pile of papers. Mare waited for Mei to look up. After a few silent minutes, she asked, "You wanted to speak with me, Godaime?"

Mei raised her eyes and gave Mare a blank look before taking in a long drawn out breath and putting on a fake smile. Mare immediately knew something was off; she could feel the weight of the air in the room. Her stomach grew hot and she quickly wondered if there had been word of Ezume. Had her brother finally been found? More importantly, was he alive?

Her throat burned to ask; however, she remained silent for the Mizukage to address her. Mei laid her hands flat on the desk and tapped her fingers as she said solemnly, "Have a seat. It's been bad news on top of bad news all week."

"Oh?" Mare replied with interest as she took her place in front of Mei.

She continued, her tapping growing slower as she pushed away her auburn hair and sighed, "The Hokage is dead. Killed by Orochimaru, the Sannin."

"That's terrible to hear."

Mei twisted her mouth before letting her shoulders drop. "On top of that, four of our hunter-nin have been killed."

Mare raised her brows in surprise and asked, "By whom?"

The Mizukage looked out the window, ignoring her question with a pause and then answering with a firm sign, "Kisame Hoshigaki and Itachi Uchiha."

"I see." Mare dropped her eyes to her feet. "And the status of the two?"

"Unknown, officially. Alive, presumably."

Silence settled between the two as they maintained their vacant gazes. After a moment, the Mizukage handed a thick envelope to Mare, who received it with a careful eye. She glanced down at the paper and asked, "You want me to do this?"

Mei nodded, "You wield one of the only Seven Swords left in Kirigakure's possession; therefore, I believe you're the only one with a chance at capturing him."

She lingered over the photo of the shark-like man, feeling a bit of apprehension. She raised her eyes to her friend and commented softly, "You have too much faith in me, Godaime."

"You've proven yourself time after time, Mare," Mei replied as her face brightened a bit. "My faith in you is by no means baseless. If you flip to the next page, the rest of the mission will be explained."

She let a lopsided smile pull on her mouth before she nodded slowly and dropped her eyes back to the assignment details to continue reading. She took in each word of her assignment, a hefty job that required not only hunting down the most fearsome of the Seven Swordsmen, but also managing Itachi Uchiha, one of the most deadly men in the shinobi world. Her work was cut out for her; however, she wore the same uneven smile as she shuffled the papers and thanked the Mizukage for the opportunity to bring Kisame to justice.

Mei nodded with a pleasant grin before adding, "To learn as much as you can about Itachi and keep yourself safe, you'll be working closely with the Leaf jonin."

Mare's brow furrowed, but before she could protest, Mei interjected, "I know this isn't exactly ideal for you, but I think it will be imperative that you cooperate with Konohagakure." After she finished speaking, she gave Mare a measured look, conveying that this wasn't up for debate.

Sitting up straighter in her chair, she graciously bowed her head as she agreed, "I understand, Godaime."

"When you get to the Leaf, ask Godaime Hokage for Sasuke Uchiha. He's the lone survivor of the massacre, as well as Itachi's younger brother. Speak with him and Kakashi Hatake about the Uchiha's visual prowess."

Mare nodded and then they drifted off into small talk for a moment before Mei had to leave for a meeting. As the women parted, Mare spoke in a flat whisper, "I meant to ask earlier if there had been any news on Ezume."

A brief flicker of pain crossed Mei's face as she sadly smiled and shook her head, "Nothing yet, Mare. You'll be the first to know." Her smile brightened up after and she gave Mare a kiss on the cheek. The girl tried to shy away from Mei's physical affection; however, she was too slow and cringed a bit from the ruby lipstick left on her skin.

"Mei..." Mare complained, wiping the makeup off.

The Mizukage laughed airily as she waved her hand and called back, "See you soon, Mare! Be safe on your trip to the Leaf Village!"

"Yeah, yeah," Mare muttered before raising her voice so her retreating friend could hear, "I'll see you next time."

Later that week, Mare found herself back on the familiar path to Konohagakure. She took her time, searching the lands she crossed through for any crumb of Ezume. On the rare occasion that she found someone who recognized him from her photo, they would say that they hadn't seen him in months, even years, and that he was a wanderer good at avoiding being found.

Each day dampened Mare's mood. She needed an answer from him. Why did he leave her, especially after they lost Jiro? How could he abandon his little sister, his only living blood? She trudged on, however, never letting the constant failure cloud her determination to find her brother.

Whenever she reached the gates, she was greeted by Genma, who was wearing a broad grin as he flicked his senbon up at her and called out with a wink, "Hey, girl."

"Oh my god," Mare muttered under her breath quickly before replying with a chuckle, "Long time no see."

"You're smiling," he casually laughed, "that's already an improvement from the last time you saw me. We may become friends after all, Mare."

Mare couldn't help but like the guy. He was charming and friendly, and while he was mostly flirting with her for laughs, his humor made her feel welcomed in the village. She fixed her lips smugly and asked with a shrug, "Who said we weren't friends already, Genma?"

He laughed and shook his head as he opened the gate for her. He called out as she walked past him, "Don't forget about that drink you promised my friends and I! They'd be upset to miss out on meeting you!"

Mare peeked over her shoulder and smiled lazily as she waved her hand, "I have a feeling you won't let me forget." She heard his warm laugh as she entered the village. The main road was busy again today, villagers bustling about their daily life. She headed straight for the Hokage's office in order to meet with the new leader.

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