Tinta Scours For Recruitments

Tinta's eyes went wide as he bit into Sanyu's head.

"You are so lucky she's strong," Tinta breathed. "She was a gift from Orochimaru. She's the last piece of him I have." She clutched her red crystal tightly. "And, don't worry. I don't kill people unless they're evil or they try to kill me first."

As she said this, her voice got softer with each word, as her thoughts went to the day Orochimaru gave Sanyu to her. She then shook her head fiercely.

"I'm sorry, sir. I get distracted super easily." She forced a bright smile.

Despite the fact she had been bitten, Sanyu was very amused with her new friend, coiling herself around him multiple times. She then hissed something complicated, making Tinta giggle at her.

"I don't think he's that good at whispering, love," she told the serpent. She then turned to Zentsu in surprise. "You're only fifteen? Wow. You look much older than me. I'm nineteen."

When Zentsu placed the genjutsu on Sanyu, images of her time with Tinta flashed before them. From Orochimaru giving her to Tinta, to Tinta's countless battles, to the state she had fallen in since Tinta had died. But her most prominent image didn't include Tinta at all. It was a man with short black hair and dark eyes. He was wearing a mist headband and a cloak. And he whispered Tinta's name, despite the fact Tinta was no where to be seen. Sanyu's tail flicked fiercely at this image. Something about it clearly bothered her.

When Sanyu snapped out of it, Tinta turned to Zentsu, puzzled. "What did you do?" she asked Zentsu. "What did you do to her?"

Tinta nodded slowly. "I do. But I don't think the two of us will be enough. You seem strong enough, but I have a lot to get done and not enough time to do it."

She turned to the hideout and breathed out deeply through pursed lips. Again, images of Orochimaru flashed through her mind. And, this time, they actually made her sick. She fell to her knees again and gagged for a moment. She put her hand on her mouth quickly, feeling pathetic and ridiculous. She didn't want Zentsu to think poorly of her, but she also couldn't fight off the emotions she was feeling.

"I'm sorry," she breathed, forcing herself to stand. "I'm very weak right now. That's why I think we should find more help."

Tinta smile as he helped her back up. "Thank you, sir," she said softly, as Sanyu came back to her. "Oh, hello again, dear," she giggled. When Sanyu hissed something into her ear, her leafy eyes went hard. "Your genjutsu..." she said to Zentsu, "what exactly did you see?" She turned to him, eyes gleaming in curiosity.

It was clear from Tinta's expression that she didn't believe him. She turned to Sanyu again, who hissed something else at her as she shook her cream-colored head. Tinta sighed deeply. Sanyu was keeping something from her as well.

"Are you sure that's all?" she asked. "I mean, Sanyu wouldn't have freaked out over that. Only... a few individuals make her react that way."

Only Leon makes her react that way, she thought.

She giggled. "Of course I don't mind." She lifted her hand up to show him Sanyu. "Want to go with her? I think she's very fond of you."

She smiled softly, and Sanyu appeared to do the same, despite the fact that that was impossible.

Tinta was up against a tree looking at severl photographs when he returned. She had them laid out in front of her and was examening them as though they were speaking to her. She jumped when she saw Zentsu and her overly stuffed snake.

"What did you do to Sanyu?" she laughed. "Are you trying to make my darling obese?"

"Sanyu is a she," Tinta corrected, as he lifted up the picture of Ryuji, one of her best friends. She then turned to her stomach. She honestly had no idea when she last ate. "Gosh... days ago, I think. I've been so busy I lost track." She shook her head. "Sanyu usually reminds me, but I think she was more worried about me emotionally." She turned to the copperhead and smiled. "You forgot, too, darling. Who can I trust if not you?"

Tinta clutched it greedily with both hands and began to devour it. As soon as she smelt it, she realized how hungry she was.

"Well, the one you picked up is Ryuji," she told him. "He's my best friend. We've been best friends for as long as I can remember. But he never aspired to be a ninja. He's a dork." She giggled. And then she turned to the picture of Leon. "This kid... he's someone I used to be close to. Ryuji's brother. I... I don't know what to say about him." She shook her head fiercely. "He said some pretty awful things to me that I'll never forgive. But I want to forgive him so bad, because he was my world once." She sighed deeply.

Tinta slurped the last noodle, set down the ramen, and tilted her head. When he didn't say anything, she did as he wanted, moving closer. Though, she did it slowly, still not sure if she should trust him or not. She did have a problem with trusting too easily, and she got hurt a lot because of it, especially in the case of Orochimaru. But she couldn't help it. She wanted so bad to be able to renew her faith in humanity. It was just getting harder and harder every time she tried.

Tinta looked very confused for a moment, and then she shook her head and giggled, touching a pale hand to her forehead. She turned to him, and this time, she locked eyes with him completely, not moving them.

"Sir, that was very uneccesary." She giggled.