The two days of rest passed far too quickly for Hinata to enjoy. By the third day, she, along with the rest of Team 8 was looking over a rather large building a ways off from Leaf Village. Kiba couldn't help but be surprised at the sheer scale and seeming luxury it presented.

"Wow. Who owns that place?"

"According to the intelligence we've gathered, a Lord Jian, who had the building built from scratch recently. He might be working with the group that stole the scroll. Hinata?"

Sitting down, and using her Byakugan, she began to observe the area.

"Five guards on the outside. There are several people inside, two are talking right now. It looks like..."

"What?"

"You remember the man from the other day? He's having a drink with a bearded man in one of the larger rooms. Their dress is unusual."

"Unusual?" asked Yuhi.

"A very long robe. It looks like it's made of...silk."

"Who has robes of silk?" asked Kiba. "That's stupid."

"Don't know anyone who wears silk," added Shino.

"That's because," answered Yuhi, "silk is too expensive here to make clothes out of. This man must either be rich, or know somewhere that he can get it cheap."

*********************************************************

"Lord Jian, please. As much as I enjoy Ming tea, I realize that you didn't call me here so we could share a drink and chat idily about the weather."

"The direct approach. I'm sure the other Suns wholeheardetly approve, Lan Dao-sheng."

"That is not your concern!"

"No, it isn't. The stuggles of Wu stay in Wu, and we are no longer there."

"So I see. So, why was I called?"

"The ninjas from the Leaf Village have returned. It seems that the scroll they found wasn't theirs."

"I thought they'd be happy with an A-level forbidden scroll from another village. With our luck, it's probably been incinerated"

Jian shook his head. "The archivers of this land are rather...short sighted in their approach. It's comical, actually."

"Then they are unaware of your true intentions?"

"No. If they were aware, I doubt we'd be dealing with a simple genin cell. I trust you can finish them off this time?"

"I was surprised by one of the genin using the giga no justu, but by now she most likely believes it to be a useless artifact. Disposing of them shall not be difficult."

"What makes you say that?"

"Any warrior of Wu, especially one belonging to a clan such as the Suns of the Dark Sky, would be humiliated to lose to ninja of the hidden villages."

"Then get going. Those genin aren't going to kill themselves, and my clients will be here for the auction in a few short hours."

*******************************************************

"Do you know what they're saying Hinata?" asked Shino. Hinata shook her head.

"I can see them talk, but it doesn't look suspicious."

"What about the scroll?"

"The second floor. There's several guards, and lots of other scrolls."

"Well, only thing we can do now is move in. The auction is going to begin soon, and we can't let reinforcements arrive."

The other ninjas began preparing a plan as Hinata looked on at the mansion. It looked heavily fortified from here, but if she was right, the giga no justu could solve this problem easily. All she would have to do is walk right up, rip the house from its foundations and take the mansion, scrolls and all, back to Leaf Village. Then the archiver could pick the scroll out himself. The guards would be ants compared to her...