Seeing the gates of Sogengakure, Fuu's eyes began to water. She knew that she wanted nothing more than to get away from this place and what it meant for her, but she also knew that this would mean the death of a lot of innocent people.
Even if many of the villagers in Taki had abused her when she was younger, she couldn't bring herself to abandon those that had treated her normally.
The wedding was set to be in three days. Three days to try to figure something out.
The only information she had about this whole thing was that she was to marry Marube Hiatsu, the leader of this village and the date of the wedding.
Her escort was a team of highly trained jonin, who knew more about the whole thing, even though they wouldn't tell her anything. The council had made sure to have a team from Sogengakure with her that harbored no sympathy with the jinchuriki, so as to not have a chance that she would be able to flee. She was under surveillance every minute of the trip.
"I don't know if I can get through this." Fuu whispered, as she followed the leading shinobi, who apparently knew where they had to go.
"It will be alright. I know, you can get through this." Chomei had been her only companion on this trip. The bijuu had been trying to cheer up the girl, although in the circumstances that had proven to be an impossible task. It wasn't even possible to get a smile out of her.
Without anyone stopping them, they walked up to a large house. Two guards stood next to the entrance. They took a look at the small group and opened the door, not saying a word. It didn't seem natural to the girl how no one spoke to her or her guards.
She was led through the halls, trying to memorize the way. Without much success she found herself being pushed into a room, the door closing behind her.
It took her a moment to notice that she was alone. Looking around she grew even more worried. She was standing in a bedroom, a large bed in front of her, a drawer on the right wall, the door out behind her and what seemed like a small bathroom to her left. The walls were white and other than the red carpet there were no decorations in the room.
Carefully stepping around the room she found a note on the cushions.
'Hello my beautiful bride,
I hope that your journey went well. The house you are in is mine, well ours in a few days. I will not join you until our wedding, but after that we will be living in this house. Of course you are more than welcome to explore the house, however if you want to get to know the village, I will have to insist on guards, since there are many that do not particularly like me or what I stand for.
I am looking forward to our big day.
Love,
Marube Hiatsu'
"At least he won't be here for another three days, so one less thing to worry about." Fuu thought, scoffing at the idea.
"Let's see the positives in this whole thing; you are not confined to this room or even the house, so we could have better chances to escape than we thought." Chomei reasoned.
"Yes you're right. Let's find something to eat and then we can walk around the village to find a plan." Fuu replied in her thoughts, walking towards the door.
The house was unsurprising, white blank walls everywhere. The only thing that was furnished at all was the kitchen and even there, there was only a big pantry and a few drawers along with a table and chair set. She was happy to find that there was food stocked as well, so she grabbed an apple before making her way to the front door.
The guards next to the door said nothing as she stepped outside. It was still unnerving but she tried to ignore it for now, as she made her way towards the street. The two shinobi followed her quietly a few steps behind, but close enough to react to anything.
"The team that brought you here is shadowing us as well." Chomei informed her, as she went through the streets.
The village seemed to be quite busy these days, the streets were packed, there were merchants and shinobi everywhere. Most of the traveling stalls were advertising weapons and survival equipment, some even called themselves 'War Supply Stores'. It was clear that the entire economy of this place was geared towards a war happening soon.
"I don't think that he just used the threat of war to get me. I think this man wants to start a war regardless of what Shibuki would have decided to do." Fuu thought, a knot forming in her stomach.
"It sure does look like it. There is no way that he could retain his power if he were to simply send all the shinobi and merchants on their way." Chomei agreed.
"So basically me coming here was a useless try to avoid bloodshed." The green haired girl stated, a frown forming on her face.
"The only problem is, we know about the uselessness but we can't leave this place." The bijuu replied, the frown on Fuu's face deepening.
Eventually the girl got to a place that was not as packed as the main streets. There were still people but only a few and there were no shops set up.
Walking through a field of grass she passed a pair of masked rogues, one red-haired and the other brunette, walking in the opposite direction, holding hands. She didn't think much of it, sitting down on a bench at the edge of the field.
Closing her eyes Fuu tried to concentrate on her breathing, trying to stop her thoughts from racing. Her mind was running from one escape idea to the next without giving each even a second to be thought through.
"What if we...." Chomei started to formulate an idea of her own when she suddenly stopped. Fuu knew that her friend would tell her what was going on so she waited, anxious to know what had happened.
"I can sense Kurama." The bijuu said. It took all of Fuu's willpower to not jump up and look around for the blonde hair of Naruto when she heard that.
"What do you mean? Where? Can you talk to him?" The questions shot out of Fuu, still desperately trying to not alert her guards.
"I can sense his chakra signature. It is very weak, as if it is being suppressed. It's weird, I could have sworn that there was nothing and then there it was, as weak as it is, it is obvious for someone that knows it, it can't be a coincidence. He knows you are here. I don't know where, the signature is too weak for directions." Chomei answered, as Fuu smiled slightly, knowing that Naruto and his bijuu would surely try to make contact with her.
Relaxing herself again, she concentrated, closing her eyes and slowing her breathing down.
When Fuu got back to her room after the sun had already set, she found another note. At first she was eager to read it, thinking that it might be from Naruto, but it wasn't.
'Hello Fuu,
I just wanted to wish you a good night. There is a party planned the day after tomorrow, it is a celebration for the arrival of summer. If you want, you can go to it, it would be a good chance to get to know the people. I won't be attending since I am occupied with the preparations of our big day, but I hope that you will have fun.
Love,
Marube Hiatsu'
She had been in a good mood when she had entered the room, but the thought of being 'allowed' to go to a celebration did not sit right with her. Fuu knew that if she should not go, then the man would most likely find out and be disappointed or even angry at her. She needed to avoid that, if she wanted to escape. So her plan was clear, however it would also be a good time for Naruto to talk to her, since it would mean that she was surrounded by people, giving him a good chance to approach her.
"He will find a way." Chomei reassured her, as she laid down on the bed.
The celebration wasn't a big affair, the big hall where the village meetings were held had been rearranged to make a big floor for people to stand around and talk, a part of the hall had been converted into a small buffet area with tables to eat and a band was playing in a corner. Fuu instantly felt uncomfortable, the outdoors was more her domain. The many people in the small space didn't make it any better for her. She had decided to wear nothing special, especially since the clothes she had found in the closet were not her size, so she was in her usual attire, which still left a fair bit of skin exposed, attracting many glances and stares from the predominantly male crowd when she walked by.
Deciding to get something to eat first the jinchuriki made her way through the crowd, towards the back of the hall, where the buffet had been set up.
There was a line before the buffet, which was to be expected since it was around noon. Taking a plate, Fuu waited as she looked over the different meals that had been prepared.
Deciding on a simple steak, she loaded her plate, choosing some fries and beans as sides, before walking towards the tables, looking for a free space. Finding an empty table, she smiled to herself and put her plate down.
"I can feel his chakra again." Chomei announced as Fuu was eating, causing her to nearly choke. She awkwardly coughed into a napkin, before looking around the room, not seeing anyone that looked like Naruto.
"I can't see him." She thought, taking another bite of her steak.
"I can't pinpoint his location. It is as if he is purposefully trying to disrupt his signature." The bijuu sounded annoyed.
"He will find us." Fuu said, having confidence in the blonde.
"I hope he does."
Putting her plate into the used dishes container, Fuu smiled. You could say anything you want about the village or the methods of its leadership, but the food was delicious. Walking away, she again scanned the room, to see if she could find Naruto in the crowd.
It was almost too late when she noticed the brunette walking up to her. She turned to give the masked woman a bit of space to squeeze by her. However the rogue took a step towards her, making sure that she bumped into the jinchuuriki. Fuu was about to yell at the woman, when she saw the woman wink at her through the eye holes in her mask. Confused, the girl stood there, as the hawk masked shinobi disappeared into the crowd.
"Didn't you walk past her two days ago? Right before I felt Kurama's chakra?" Chomei asked, as Fuu looked around, trying to find the mask or hair again.
"I think you are right." Fuu said, as she discreetly checked her pockets. Sure enough there was a small note in her hip pocket.
"Seven,
meet me in the toilets, go to the furthest back stall and knock twice on the wall.
Nine."
Fuu smiled slightly as she put the note away again. Maybe Naruto would be able to figure out a way for her to get out of here.