Chapter 12: Leverage and Lingering Glances
A flicker of genuine confusion crossed Samui's composed features. Her blue eyes narrowed slightly. What was Yotsuki Takumi talking about? How could she possibly be the cause of a rift between him and Kumogakure? What had she done?
"This isn't the place for this conversation," Takumi stated, his voice low.
Compelled by his cryptic warning, Samui suppressed her questions and led him to a secluded private room on the second floor, away from the main dining area and prying ears. The door slid shut, leaving the two of them in tense silence.
"Takumi," Samui began, her voice now layered with a newfound wariness. "Explain yourself." She had heard the stories about the Uchiha—their extreme emotions, their twisted perceptions. Had this boy already been infected by that clan's infamous mindset?
"I heard everything you said on the third floor that day," Takumi dropped the bombshell with a casualness that was utterly disarming.
Samui's pupils contracted. "...What?"
She had watched him leave with her own eyes. The conversation with D had taken place in a secure room, well out of earshot. Could a single-tomoe Sharingan possibly grant such incredible sensory perception? She stared at the boy in front of her, reassessing him. He was just an Academy student, a lucky foundling who had awakened a prized bloodline. Wasn't he?
Takumi didn't elaborate. Instead, he simply raised an eyebrow and silently mouthed a series of words, his lips forming the shapes with perfect clarity.
It was exactly what she had said to D: "Yotsuki Takumi... I do not believe he has any real intention of returning to Kumo."
"So what?" Samui recovered, a defensive edge to her tone. "It was a casual observation."
"Your 'casual observation' cuts deep," Takumi countered, his voice taking on a theatrical note of hurt. "I was genuinely considering a return to my homeland, only to discover such doubt festering behind my back. It makes me question my place. If my own people don't trust me, what hope do I have? It reflects poorly on both the Uchiha's hospitality and Kumogakure's sincerity."
Samui's face paled. His logic was a masterpiece of absurdity, a mountain constructed from the tiniest of molehills. But no matter how flimsy the construction, the foundation was real. She had said those words. Intent was irrelevant. Perception was everything.
Some truths were feather-light until they were weighed, at which point they could crush a thousand pounds.
If her superiors in Kumo learned that her loose tongue—even in private—had potentially jeopardized the recruitment of an Uchiha, the consequences would be severe. If it were only her career on the line, she might have risked it. But she had a younger brother, Omoi. His future would be tarnished by her failure. He was all the family she had left.
"After all, I was born in the Land of Lightning," Takumi continued, his tone now laced with a feigned, wounded pride. "You are here to win me over, yet you harbor such distrust. If I were to return, would whispers of me being a Konoha plant follow me everywhere? How could I ever feel secure? I do hope Lord D won't be too disappointed. He seemed so very confident I would come around."
He let the words hang in the air, a subtle threat wrapped in a victim's narrative. He was leveraging the one thing he knew she valued above the mission: her family.
The room fell into a thick, heavy silence. Several heartbeats passed.
"...What do you want?" Samui finally asked, her voice tight as she bit her lower lip.
A slow, satisfied smile finally touched Takumi's lips. There it is.
"My demands are modest," he said, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I want another ninjutsu scroll. Something to train and fortify the body. A D-rank technique will suffice for now."
His gaze was unwavering. Samui was a full head taller, forcing him to look up at her. The overhead light cast her shadow over him, shrouding his expression in a faint darkness.
"...A D-rank?" A flicker of relief passed through Samui's azure eyes. She uncrossed her arms, a gesture that subtly emphasized her generous bustline. It was just a D-rank jutsu. If Takumi had negotiated harder that first day, D likely would have offered more. These were techniques given to genin. They wouldn't raise any alarms. Many clan-born children learned far more from their families. The Academy's E-rank curriculum was primarily for civilians.
"Fine," Samui agreed.
She pulled back the cuff of her long glove, revealing a bandaged wrist. Beneath the wrappings were several miniature storage scrolls. With a soft poof of smoke, she unsealed one and retrieved a light-yellow scroll, tossing it to him.
"It's a Lightning Release ninjutsu that stimulates muscle tissue. It's called 'Lightning Release: Iron Fortress'."
Takumi didn't open it immediately, instead tucking it securely into his jacket. His eyes, however, remained on Samui. Her features were exotically beautiful, with a high nose and sharp cheekbones. Her figure was undeniably alluring, from her full bust to her powerful, shapely thighs. A faint, clean scent of soap and something uniquely feminine emanated from her.
As he looked at her, a faint, peculiar chakra stirred deep within his brain, a subtle, instinctual reaction.
The awakening of the Uchiha's power was not solely tied to pain. It was about intense emotional stimulation, a shock to the psyche that made the brain tremble and secrete a unique form of chakra. It required a powerful emotional fluctuation. Even the Mangekyo Sharingan didn't always require the death of a loved one. For Sasuke, it was the shattering truth about his brother's sacrifices. For Sarada, it was the profound isolation of being doubted by everyone, including her own father.
For Takumi, the catalyst didn't have to be "pain" or "loss." The intense appreciation of "beauty," the raw, visceral reaction to a form as striking as Samui's, could also serve as a powerful emotional trigger.
Perhaps his lingering, undisguised appraisal was too obvious. Samui's brow furrowed in mild distaste.
"Is this not sufficient to demonstrate Kumogakure's sincerity?" she said, her voice cooling. "When you return to us, mastering A-rank, even S-rank techniques will be within your reach."
"Thank you, Miss Samui," Takumi replied, his tone deceptively calm as he finally averted his gaze. "It seems Kumogakure's sincerity is... tangible."
He left the second half of the sentence unspoken: Tangible enough for today.
A single D-rank ninjutsu was merely an appetizer. He had chosen a Nintaijutsu—a body-enhancing technique—to accelerate his physical development as quickly as possible. For now, D-rank was his ceiling; attempting anything higher would be a waste of precious time and energy. But his appetite was far from sated.
(End of Chapter)