Karuto Clan Estate: The Carnival of Illusion

A couple of minutes after leaving the office building, Yukiko—along with her bodyguard, Taichi—stood in front of the gates of the Karuto Clan Estate. It was a little ironic that the kunoichi had been all over Hyouga, and she had yet to visit this circus—and when she finally does show up here, it was because of a mission. Yukiko would have to remember to come back for fun some time after her task is complete.

The snow had begun to fall lightly as soon as the jounin arrive at the gates. The gates were still shut, but if she were to look through the bars, the carneys were buzzing about, getting ready for tonight’s show. After seeing this, Yukiko turned to Taichi, the snow crunching below her feet ever so slightly as she moved.

”Huh… It’s still closed.” she told the bodyguard as she crossed her arms. ”I guess we’ll just have to come back later then.”

Of course, they could just sneak through the gates now to search for the missing scroll, but Yukiko found it easier if they entered while the carnival was open. With the workers busy doing their job, and with hundreds of villagers strolling about, it would be much less difficult to sneak around without getting caught.

Just as the young jounin turned to leave, she was interrupted by another woman’s voice coming from the gates. She simply turned her head to look before answering.

”Oh, I have realized that after arriving here.” Yukiko stated with a slight smile appearing between her rosy cheeks. She shifted so she was fully facing the woman.

”I guess I got a little excited and came here a little too early. I’ve never actually been to a circus before.”

In her mind, Yukiko was glaring at Taichi at his last and unnecessary comment. It was true that she was not very excited about the circus, but the man did not have to blurt it out in front of one of the employees! The jounin would have to see to it that Taichi will be tormented after the mission was over with.

Despite the slight anger, the young lady kept a straight face and smiled the same way the woman was smiling at her.

”Oh, as much as I would like to, I would not want to impose.” Yukiko replied politely. A breeze blew over them, carrying flakes of snow that stuck to the girl’s face. She simply brushed them off as she pulled the hood of her silk cloak over her head. The fur lining of the garment kept her completely warm and cozy.

Although Yukiko would have prefered to come back later, she agreed to stay anyway since doing so would not make much of a difference to the mission.

"Thank you, miss. You are very kind." said the Aido jounin as the woman turned to lead them into the estate. Yukiko waved at Taichi, motioning him to come along as she followed the circus employee herself.

Even though the guest were no arriving yet, the estate appeared to be much more lively than anything in the entire village. Many small but colorful tents were planted into the snow all around her, and there were dozens of strange looking and tackily dressed people just strolling about or getting ready for the show. Yukiko looked ahead to see where they were going, and realized they were headed straight toward the largest tent located right in the middle of the area. She then turned to the woman she and Taichi were following, who seemed awfully cheerful as she appeared to be half-skipping her way to their destination.

"May I ask what makes tonight's show so special?" the jounin asked just so there was something to talk about on the way.

After having a little meal at the restaurant with the daughter of the ring master, Haruka suddenly felt the need to come back to the estate right away--even if there was plenty of time before the carnival gates actually open. Someone she wanted to meet had just arrived a few minutes ago, and the psychic wanted to encounter him before he would decide to leave his current path.

Getting in and around the estate had proved to be slightly difficult for the blind woman at times. The gates were usually locked, so it would often take her a minute or two to find the keyhole and unlock it. Getting around the estate would actually be a lot easier as long as she paid attention. All she would have to do is watch out for any heavy objects being moved, or animals who are dancing around.

Haruka would eventually arrive to her fortune telling tent, and in front of it, she could sense a man standing. Perfect. She had arrived just in time to greet her new costumer, or victim for a better term. She had seen him coming, and saw that she would be able to make a huge profit from him if she plays her cards right.

A grin spread across the psychic's face before moving closer to the male. She decided to give him a freebie.

"The tent is actually a lot warmer than it appears." she told the man as she approached him from behind. "The sky is bitter as it always is, making the frosted beings suffer from its cold nature. A swordsman will surely fall ill from it."

The woman appeared slightly disappointed with the man's reply, but that would not stop her. She was determined to make some money off of him.

"You choose to not heed my warning?" Haruka said as she crossed her arms. She then sighed and walked past Taichi, over to the entrance of her tent. Coincidentally, the wind had decided to pick up as the snowflakes appeared to fall slightly faster. This was very fortunate for the psychic.

"Hmm... Very well then. We shall meet..." Her words trailed off suddenly as if she were trying to find a right way to correct herself. After a short moment, she completely shrugged to herself and continued. "Well... Farewell..."

With her voice sounding as if she saw the man's death coming soon, she entered her tent with a hidden grin on her face, leaving Taichi out in the cold.

"A rare item, you say?" Yukiko said as she sounded interested. The said item the woman had spoken of could be the scroll she was supposed to retrieve. However, she was not too sure yet. She would have to get a little more information before any plan of action.

Just to see if her bodyguard had the same thoughts, or if he was paying any attention at all, the jounin turned her head to where she expected him to be following. Of course, Taichi had suddenly disappeared on her. By now, Yukiko had gotten very used to the man vanishing like that. Whether or not her father had anything to do with his many disappearances, the girl knew that the guard would wander back to her eventually. For now, she continued to follow the woman into the large tent.

"I must admit, this exciting treasure you are speaking of heightens my curiousity a bit."