Samui's POV (Cloud Camp - Land of Iron)
Samui was led by A's secretary, Mabui, to the Raikage's tent. She had known her leader would call for her soon, especially with what he would see as a failure by her teammates. Samui was hesitant, unsure she could defeat Naruto Uzumaki, yet she knew A would demand it. Samui knew failure wasn't something A tolerated. He usually punished such severely, but Samui was cool with that. She had suffered much before. She just hoped the punishment wouldn't fall on Atsui.
Mabui had been the secretary for A for years and, by all metrics, was the perfect fit for such a position. Patient for the chaotic and often loud and violent scene that was the Raikage's life, kind and charming to ensure she didn't suffer A's wrath, strong enough to be helpful, and compliant to a fault. All traits A valued in those beneath him. Samui wasn't fond of A, but Mabui was a woman she had always respected. Mabui had been one of the few to take pity on her after her family's fall and often offered advice and lessons. She had grabbed Samui by the wrist and wordlessly led her away from the main camp. Samui knew to listen to the woman and trusted her to inform her of what was happening. Maybe not to keep a secret, but she was cool despite that.
"Raikage-sama wishes to discuss the performance of Team Bee in the exams so far, your upcoming match with Naruto Uzumaki, and a new order to follow." Mabui lectured as they marched through the camp, primarily empty due to the fair soon to be held.
"Cool," Samui replied blandly. Samui liked Mabui but knew better than to trust the woman entirely. She reported to A regarding anything of note. Even when it came to her friends. Mabui had cemented her spot in A's inner circle by selling out her husband's conspiracy against the Raikage. Samui had no doubt she would not be entirely safe either.
Mabui stopped their trek and walked into a random tent. Samui followed, confused. As she entered, she saw Mabui whispering to a Jounin before the man nodded and left, activating a sound seal to ensure privacy on his way out.
Before Samui could process this, Mabui turned with a serious face as she stared at Samui. "You have always been one of A's favorite kunoichi; he chose you to lead his brother's unit, spared your brother for his treason, and now confers with you during the Chunin Exams." Mabui listed.
Samui frowned at the topic; something about this felt dangerous. Mabui almost seemed desperate to make Samui understand. "Your point? Being vague is only cool in casual conversation." Mabui smiled sadly at this.
"My point is that success differs for us as a Kunoichi," Mabui explained. "How we achieve it, what it means, how others perceive it. We are similar to shinobi in strength yet have a flair for more… unique situations. We tend to be more social, subtle, and successful regarding the more cerebral aspects of being ninja. A will ask you to do something you may not want to do. Something that many substantial kunoichi are asked to do. I warn you to consider what it means to what he says and what it means to refuse it. The problem may seem unsolvable, but when that time comes, you'll discover the true strength of a woman. Adaptability."
Samui frowned at the conversation. Mabui was all over the place? What did she mean? "What exactly is he going to ask me to do? Why are you saying all of this?"
Mabui smiled melodramatically at this. "Because I had a similar moment to this one. I had no one to offer me advice and no time to consider my choice… I made a choice… a choice and regretted it every day since. Consider. Everything. Carefully." She lectured before deactivating the jutsu and marching out of the tent without a word.
Samui was frozen by the odd conversation and the intense feelings Mabui had radiated. Were things truly ever going to be cool? But as she always had done, Samui swallowed her anxiety and feelings and marched forward, having to speedwalk to catch up to Mabui. The woman seemed locked into her own world, and Samui didn't bother pulling her from it.
The rest of their trek was uneventful and silent. Both women locked into their minds as they traveled but soon arrived at the large tent created for the Raikage. As they did at each camp, Samurai and Anbu held a loose perimeter around the tent to ensure the Kage were kept safe. Two Anbu marched forward and briefly discussed their presence with Mabui. After a short whispered conversation, Mabui locked eyes with Samui and nodded her into the Raikage's tent, though she noticeably stayed behind.
Samui entered, head bowed and respectfully silent as she emerged into the tent. In lieu of a standard setup, the room was full of weights, weapons, and booze. A was currently doing one-handed push-ups, using the other hand to hold onto a glass of sake. Samui, familiar with the odd A, was silent as he worked. She waited patiently as the man worked out, knowing that interrupting him would not be taken well.
A was someone Samui held both great contempt and respect for. On one hand, the man was the reason Samui was alone. He had killed her father and mother and only spared her brother for her loyalty. Yet A also was the man who had made her home the superpower it was. He was a man Samui could never imagine being defeated or usurped. A simply was too mighty, crafty, connected, a true Raikage in every sense. Samui loved her village and, as such, begrudgingly accepted A.
Two main contributing factors made A such an effective leader. One was his indomitable strength; even among the other Kage, A was known for his absurd physicality and power ninjutsu. The other was the utter loyalty he commanded from his men. Samui was not indeed that unique of a case; he was known for his harsh treatment of anything he deemed "traitorous."
Likely having known she was there from the start, pushed himself up with his arms. Impressive using mere arm strength to go from prone to standing. At first, he did not acknowledge Samui as he toweled off access sweat and sat on a couch facing the fire. A offered Samui no seat, nor did she go to sit. He guzzled down the still-held glass of sake with a weary sigh before acknowledging her.
"Samui, I am happy you did not keep me waiting. Did Mabui brief you on the meeting? I told her not to, but the woman gets ideas in her head." He likely was asking such to punish Mabui if she had.
Samui responded quickly, which was a key to getting through a conversation with A smoothly. "No, she explained you wished to see me and asked my opinion on the likely victor of the exams." Samui felt a tiny sliver of fear within her as she lied. While loyal to her home, she knew being such did not mean she must be faithful to A. Besides, it would be uncool to rat out Mabui, who had stuck her neck out for Samui.
"Hmmm." A openly considered her words. "You know better than to lie to me, I suppose. Anyway, I first wanted to discuss your team's exam performance."
Samui flinched. While she may have defeated Ino, she represented her home well. Her teammates could have done better. Karui failed the second test, and Omoi in the third. Samui doubted such impressed the harsh and judgeful A.
"This performance is nothing short of disastrous." A said with contempt; his anger led to him leaking a small amount of killing intent. "Karui did not even make it to finals; she will be on probation for the next year and going through the training such demands. She's lucky I don't demote her."
"She was placed, unfortunately, with our team. She surely would've made it further." Samui excused. She was desperate to defend her teammates.
"Yet you and Omoi were fine!" A snapped. "We of the Cloud are not weak; we cannot afford such a thing now. Karui will go through emergency training as you did before. Then, she will serve on probation; if she fails, she will be punished as expected. Omoi will be going through the same. While he performed better than that weakling Karui, his fight was embarrassing. For that, he will be on probation and face the same hellish emergency training Karui will."
"Raikage-sama, please, I barely survived such; they may not be so fortunate." Samui reasoned. "I will save our reputation."
"Ha! You face the jinchuriki of the Leaf next; the boy hasn't been truly slowed down yet and hasn't bothered to use his beast. We both know you cannot hope to beat him." A coldly responded.
Samui felt anger swell but expertly buried such. Despite the bold lack of faith A had shown her, her expression did not shift. Samui doubted she could defeat Naruto, but hearing her leader say such made her furious. She had served A as well as any Genin and survived the hellish "emergency training" given to shinobi A felt needed. And as a proud kunoichi of the Cloud. Yet A had already assumed she would fail.
An aware of the inner turmoil of Samui but uncaring continued. "These exams are a bust for us. Yet, I see a path for profit all the same. Better yet, I see a use for you, Samui; you can aid our homeland in a way few could."
Samui kneeled respectfully; as conflicted as she was, listening to A was something she was used to. "I will serve as I always have Raikage-sama."
"Heh, I knew you would, Samui, I knew you would. Firstly, while you cannot beat Uzumaki in straight combat, you can affect him in other ways." A explained.
"Sir?"
"From what I saw, you have become somewhat close to Naruto Uzumaki, haven't you?" A asked with a smirk; he pulled another bottle of sake from behind the couch, filled it, and chugged another glass.
Samui's mind raced; she maintained her outward calm using all her willpower, but terror ran through her. A had used her for missions many times before, but rarely did it contain someone she considered a friend. Samui briefly entertained lying to A. But her loyalty and logic stopped such. He asked, but he likely already knew the answer. He was testing her loyalty. Samui did not wish to bring A's attention to Naruto, but she had no choice.
"Yes." She answered simply. Despite the single word, it felt like a drastic betrayal.
A laughed from his gut at the announcement. "Excellent!"
"Sir?" Samui asked, confused. Some of the dread was leaving her body. Somehow, he was happy. "Excellent?"
"Of course, see, the Exams have nothing left to offer the Cloud, but that doesn't mean we can't find a benefit to our time here. See, as I'm sure you know, jinchuriki are not beloved by the average person. They contain beasts that dwarf even the Five Kage in power, able to unleash it upon any great emotional stress or death. Truly a walking, talking, terrifying timebombs. As such, they are usually socially exiled, often living short and tragic lives. But in our great land, such is different. We recognize jinchuriki as the powerful weapons they are and treat them as such. Both Bee and Yugito are treated fairly well by citizens and given respect by their peers. As were their predecessors and all jinchuriki of the Cloud." A explained.
"Of course, sir, we've always recognized such, but what does that have to do with Naruto and me?" Samui asked.
"Everything, see Naruto Uzumaki is a rather unique case. These exams show the Leaf foolishly attempted to keep his jinchuriki status a secret. In an attempt to calm the foolish citizen that lives there, the Leaf convinced the Nine-Tails had died or disappeared. And somehow, for a while, it worked! Naruto Uzumaki has lived a relatively normal life." A chuckled cruelly at this. "But now that the truth has been exposed, Naruto Uzumaki faces the burden all jinchuriki carry. Our spy has been working hard to get us this information. A perfect time for a third party to get involved. See, I want you to convince Naruto Uzumaki to abandon the Leaf and join the Cloud instead."
Samui was stunned by the order. Naruto quickly became someone she admired and reminded her of her brother in all the best ways. Having him come home would be… enjoyable. But Naruto would never do so. "I… am cool with the order, of course, sir. But I fear Naruto Uzumaki is not the man to betray his friends."
"Oh, that is to be certain; those foolish Leaf fools are always led by their foolish hearts. Something I, and by proxy you, can easily take advantage of. Your mission is simple: convince him to do so. What is the method? By any means necessary, you know how I feel about failure. Seduce and bed him, befriend him and gain his trust, learn a secret, and blackmail him. The method matters little as long as he does so. He'll join us to get the love and attention he doubtlessly craves. We'll gain a powerful new soldier for our home, and he'll thank us for it!" A explained with a smug smile.
Samui was now close to cracking; it took more control than she knew she had to not respond impulsively. Instead, she tried to figure things out. Some way to convince the Raikage to avoid this path. Samui respected and admired Naruto; she wouldn't lead him on merely to trick and seduce him? Indeed, A did not expect her to honestly do such. She wasn't that kind of woman! Samui's mind settled on an excuse, and with calmness she did not feel, she cautiously began her counter. "Surely, such would not be wise. The Leaf would not sit idly by while we take their jinchuriki." Surely, A would see the logic and change his mind-
"Normally, you would be right. Every village, regardless of their distaste for jinchuriki, recognizes them as the useful political tools they are. Any village that holds one wields a power comparable to any of the five Kage. There could be war taking such a thing, not to mention the potential for the other nations to get involved. No, the ramifications for such would make taking a jinchuriki foolish… Unless, of course, we could hide the fact we've taken such." A explained with a cruel smile. "My men say there are reports of the Leaf losing several Genin. They're trying to keep such information on the hush, but I have spies within the samurai and Leaf. This will provide us with the perfect distraction to win over Naruto Uzumaki without the other villages knowing. By the time it is discovered, the Cloud will simply be too strong to contest. With the power of three jinchuriki, we will rise above the other four "great nations."" A ranted with a relaxed smile.
"Sir, I'm…" Samui started as fear stopped her. As much as she liked Naruto, could she genuinely afford to say no? Atsui would've done so, and Naruto likely as well. But maybe this could work out for the best… No! She would keep her cool and reject this order. "Uncomfortable with this order. I do not wish to deceive Naruto, nor am I comfortable with seducing him. I will, of course, attempt to convince him, but-"
"It matters little." A snapped back. "I don't care if it makes you uncomfortable; you are a kunoichi, one of my kunoichi. I don't care if you force him, bed him, or become his best friend and convince him. You will convince him to return with us." He demanded as he stood and loomed over Samui.
"It's uncool to manipulate others," Samui stated boldly. She looked as if she was bored even as the massive A stood before her. In truth, she was terrified, but thinking of Naruto and Atsui made her feel brave.
"Perhaps you forget your place. Kunoichi of the Cloud are merely tools, as are all who serve under me; they can kill just as the men and convince enemy men to do their whim. Your beauty and power are a tool for me to use when I see fit. You will do so as all the others have done before you. Get used to it; a beauty like yourself has more than one use, after all… Unless, of course, you wish to see Atsui die…" A threatened darkly.
Samui outwardly flinched as her control snapped.
She couldn't let Atsui die…
She couldn't.
Samui's face didn't change, but tears streamed from both eyes.
"I see you understand now. You must've momentarily forgotten your place. I will forgo your punishment. I assume we understand each other?" A asked, killing intent, flooding the room and causing Samui to drop to her knees.
"Y-yes," Samui answered with great effort.
"YES WHAT?!" A asked as his intent grew even more powerful. Samui dropped prone at this.
"Y-es Rai-Raikage-sama." Samui whispered, voice shaky.
"Good." A answered as he marched back and collapsed onto the couch again. As he faced Samui, he watched her climb back to her feet. "Make sure to dress up nicely for the fair. Use those looks of yours to bag me another useful weapon. It's for his own good anyway."
Samui exited the tent and marched back to her own tent in the camp. She was glad Omoi and Karui were at it already; they deserved to have fun before attending Emergency training. She had to meet with them and pursue her new mission. Besides, A might be right. Maybe it was the best for Naruto…
Samui wasn't sure if she believed it but pretended to.
Had to keep her calm.