She had known her fate since childhood. A Jinchuriki had never lived for herself; she existed as a weapon of her village. But she had never imagined that one day she would be treated as a tribute and sent to someone she had never met.
"Yugito."
A familiar voice sounded behind her. Yugito turned and saw Darui, a Jonin from Kumogakure.
"Darui-senpai." Yugito nodded in greeting.
Darui came to stand beside her and looked at the scorched ground. "Your control over the Two-Tails has improved again."
"What good does that do?" Yugito said with a bitter smile. "No matter how strong I get, I'm still just someone else's spoils of war."
Darui fell silent for a moment, then spoke. "Yugito, what would you do if I told you there was a chance you wouldn't have to go to the Leaf?"
Yugito turned sharply, surprise flashing in her eyes. "What do you mean?"
"Someone plans to snatch you during the escort." Darui lowered his voice. "The Raikage's thinking is that we can 'cooperate.'"
"Cooperate?" Yugito frowned. "Wouldn't that be disobeying the Divine Court's orders?"
"Disobeying?" Darui sneered. "Since when does Kumogakure have to bow to an outsider? Even the Hokage has no right to order us to hand over a Jinchuriki!"
Yugito fell into thought. She certainly didn't want to be sent to the Leaf and become one of Uchiha Jin's collectibles. But she also understood how serious the consequences would be if she went along with this.
"That Uchiha Jin..."
"He's strong, sure, but he's still just one man." Darui cut her off. "Besides, Nagato, who has the Rinnegan, is the mastermind behind this operation. Even if Uchiha Jin wants revenge, he'll have to get past Nagato first."
Yugito thought it over for a long time, then finally nodded. "I