After leaving Yajirushi Village, they followed the trail back to the signs. "We're supposed ta find him inside all that?" Kurama asked as they arrived at the edge of the large forest. "Think yer nose's good enough?"
Naru smirked. "I can already sense his house," she said, repeatedly sucking in deep breaths as if she'd been running. "The varnished wood smells differently, making it insanely easy to track down."
"Lead the way then, sweetheart."
"You said you'd stop—"
"We ain't in public now, are we?" Kurama chuckled at Naru's expression and raised his hands in defeat. "Arite, arite, I'll stop."
"You better," Naru muttered and started walking towards the trees.
She tried to keep her focus on her target, but she'd never been inside such a lush forest before. On her island, all the trees were frozen the whole year around, but here, there were tall trees with leaves in every existing shade of green, bushes with berries, and the moss underneath her feet was squishy with the morning damp.
After a few minutes of walking, Naru's nostrils were suddenly filled with an incredibly strong smell. She cursed loudly and clamped her hands over her nose, feeling her eyes fill with water.
"What's the matter, sw—cap'n?" Kurama asked and leaned forward to look at her face.
"T-there's a hideous smell coming from that direction," Naru hissed and nodded towards a small glade hidden behind a couple of big, strong trees. "That's gotta be where he lives. The smell is to keep away unwanted animals."
"Really?" Kurama inhaled deeply and chuckled. "I can't smell a thing..."
"Good for you," Naru growled through her fingers. "I feel like puking."
"Endure," Kurama jingled and walked ahead of her. "Maybe the smell's weaker at his place."
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
"Dunno what yer talkin' 'bout..."
Naru blinked rapidly to get rid of the tears in her eyes. Still muttering under her breath, she squeezed her nostrils together with her fingers and followed after Kurama. "Gonna have to track him down now," she said. "I'm not inhaling this scent again."
"Ah, well, I'm sure he'll find us before we get lost," Kurama said casually. "If he's a hunter, his hearin' should be good enough ta have heard yer exclaim just now."
"Fantastic, let's just sit here and wa—"
Her sentence was cut off when a knife was buried into the ground between her feet. Surprised, she stared at the dagger for a few seconds before tipping her head back and eyeing the nearest tree. "Did you miss me on purpose?" she asked loudly.
The young man from before slid down from the lowest branch and landed neatly before her. "What the hell do you want?" he growled and bent down to pick up his weapon.
Naru smiled coldly. "Nice to meet you too, Sasuke," she said.
Said man flinched and instantly straightened his back. "How do you know my name?" he asked and rolled the knife around in his hand. "Who are you?" he added.
Naru simply raised an eyebrow and waited for Sasuke to recognize her. It wasn't long before realization hit him. "You're the one from before..." he said slowly.
"I am," Naru said and nodded. "And I think you owe me an apology."
"Why the hell should I apologize to you?" he spat out, his black eyes almost shining in rage. The knife in his hand was instantly lifted and pointed at Naru's chest. "You bumped into me, so you're the one at fault here!"
"I'm not talking about that, idiot," Naru sighed. "From the way you treated your grandmother, I think you should apologize for acting like such a bastard in public."
A deep scowl appeared on Sasuke's face. "You should learn your place," he snarled before dashing forward and swinging the knife, aiming for Naru's neck.
Naru simply grinned, and just as the dagger was about to touch her skin, Kurama unsheathed Kusanagi and stepped forth, using the blunt side of the blade to crush the knife. The power of the blow made Sasuke stumbled backwards, and he crouched down to keep from falling over.
"Huh, this works perfectly," Kurama said gleefully and swung the katana around a few times before pointing it at Sasuke. "I think ya need ta take it easy."
"That's..." Sasuke's eyes widened at the sight of the sword. "That's the old lady's... why the hell do you have that?" he demanded, obviously agitated.
"Stole it."
"What the—"
"No, we didn't!" Naru smacked the back of Kurama's head and none too gently pushed him to the side, where he stood cackling at his own joke. "We didn't steal it," she said. "That's just his sense of humor."
"Then how come he's holding the sword that belongs to the old lady?" Sasuke asked darkly.
Naru observed him for a moment. "She gave it to us," she said.
Pure shock danced over Sasuke's face. "Why would she..."
"It was a bargain," Naru said. "We got the sword in return for coming here to help you with... whatever it is you need help with."
Sasuke stared at her for ten long seconds before the scowl appeared on his face again. "I don't need your help," he growled.
"Maybe not, but we need to help you."
"Piss off," Sasuke snapped and turned his back on them both, disappearing into the depths of the forest.
They stood still until the sound of his footsteps faded. "That went well," Naru sighed. She tentatively let go of her nose and winced at the smell. "Got any ideas on how to convince him?" she asked and watched as Kurama slid his katana back into its holder.
"No clue," he said. "That guy clearly doesn't want our help, so can't we just—"
"No." Naru started walking in the same direction Sasuke had. "We promised we'd help him, and help him we will," she said. "Even if we have to do so forcibly."
Kurama stared after her for a few seconds, unmoving. Then a chuckle rolled through his teeth and he shook his head. "Yer a weird pirate, sweetheart," he mumbled before following her.