Hidden Conspiracy

Natsume slipped into the crowd and casually made her way to the duo. She eventually came up to them and placed her hand on Takeda's shoulder. Takeda jumped and slapped her hand away. He turned to meet the assailant only to see the familiar young girl before him. "You…"

"Granny, its been a while, how are you?" Natsume ignored him and turned to the elderly lady. She was very happy to see Natsume because it was clear who had caused her son's reputation to soar. Everyone was talking about the honorable and brave official of Kai prefecture. They all wanted to settle down and live under the protection of such a good man.

"I have been well. How are you my dear? Have you slept well? Have you eaten?" She looked at Natsume as if she was looking at her granddaughter. Seeing her expression, Takeda felt aggrieved since she never doted on him. As if reading his mind, his mother smacked him on the head. "What did I teach you? Aren't you going to thank your benefactor?"

Takeda grumbled but did as he was told. Natsume shrugged it off. She originally intended to just let them know she was leaving, but the old lady held her hands tightly and kept introducing her to the history of the Kai prefecture. Takeda followed behind like a third wheel.

"My father-in-law and husband built this place from nothing. Despite all the fighting, they managed to keep our home safe. I only wish my son does not have to struggle as much as they did." She sighed and became emotional. Hearing those words for the first time, Takeda naturally got swept up in the atmosphere.

"Mother, I promise whether its war or peace, our family's home will never be destroyed."

"What do you know, stinky boy?" Her mood went back to normal and Natsume couldn't help but giggle at the two's antics.

"Actually, a war is coming. You'll have to muster up troops and double the annual offering. Here's the official decree. Also, you're in charge of the refugees, if anything happens its your head."

Takeda and the elderly lady's mood turned solemn suddenly. She sighed and nodded in understanding, but Takeda was a bit more affected. He rolled open the scroll and read the contents. As he reached the end, he gripped the corner of the scroll in frustration.

"I have to head back to the government office. I must begin preparation work. Could you escort my mother to the residence?" Takeda knew Natsume had no reason to listen to his request, but he still felt upset when she shook her head.

"I'll come with you. Something isn't right about this situation. I'm afraid there will be a surprise for you at the office." Natsume's words made the two silent. Eventually, the elderly lady was the first to speak up.

"I will be fine by myself. Go, go." She shooed the two away and headed in the opposite direction of the government office. She knew the potential dangers of being a hostage, so she made herself scarce. Takeda grit his teeth. Once he couldn't see his mother anymore he turned and started walking.

On the way, Natsume described in detail everything that happened since she assumed his identity. They entered the outer courtyard, and the butler stopped them. "Do you have business with the Government Building?"

Takeda didn't say anything and just removed his mask and flipped the hood of his cloak. Seeing his master, the butler immediately bowed. "Master, I apologize for not recognizing you!"

"It's fine, things are complicated, so I disguised myself. I need to implement some changes immediately let's head inside." The butler nodded and walked them up to the main entrance. Once they got to the door of the office, Natsume detected chakra signatures on the ceiling. She stopped Takeda from continuing forward and pointed up and then showed four fingers. He gulped and nodded in understanding.

The butler opened the door and bowed at the side. Natsume entered first and was greeted with a flash bomb. She was already prepared and was able to cover her face in time to prevent being blinded. Seeing that it was not their target, the four shinobi hesitated for a split second. Natsume used this opportunity to counterattack. Her chakra was moulded instantly and with a single hand seal, four pillars of stone shot up toward the four shinobi hanging on the ceiling. Three of them managed to avoid the pillar, but one got his leg caught at the last moment, causing it to be impaled by hundreds of stone needles that shot out from the end of the pillar.

Her existence was easy to explain at this point. Takeda was almost kidnapped on the way back from the daimyo's castle. In order to protect himself, he put on a disguise and hired a mercenary from among the refugees. Many of the refugees from the border had seen Natsume, so it was a plausible explanation. Because of this, she was able to use most of her abilities.

The remaining shinobi attempted to get past Natsume to get their target, but a quick flick of her wrist a scroll appeared and unraveled. Hundreds of hidden weapons filled the space between her and the assailants. While they protected themselves in their own way, Natsume already drew her sword and locked onto a target. By the time he realized what was happening, his chest was already impaled. Natsume slapped a tag on his chest and kicked his body to the next target.

Seeing his comrade fly toward him, he unconsciously caught his lifeless body. However, the tag already went off by the time he noticed it. The room was a mess at this point, and there were only two severely injured and one able enemy left. Natsume expected the local warriors to arrive after the commotion, so she decided to end it quickly. The two simultaneously weaved hand seals and released their respective jutsu.

A rain of boulders flew from the enemy shinobi's mouth while Natsume spat out a glob of burning liquid. The boulders were quickly turned to ash as they were consumed by the orange ball, causing it to splash around the room, instantly vaporizing the wood floors and furniture. The man panicked and created an earthen dome to protect himself. However, this only served to trap him as the sticky fire attached itself to the dome completely and burned into it ferociously.

Moments later, there was nothing remaining of the shinobi. Natsume checked the other two and noticed they were hit by random splashes. Seeing the destruction she caused, Natsume sighed. The jutsu was very powerful, but it was only powerful. She felt that something was missing. Her control was very limited and there was no finesse. In a group battle, she could harm her allies easily. It seemed that the prominent lava release user from her inherited memories also had these problems.