Dusk settled over the desert landscape as Kiri ducked behind a rock formation. Three kunai marked the spot where she had previously stood. She grimaced as she moved behind another rock, this one with an overhang. The pain ebbed and flowed all over her body as she started forming seals.

"Shadow hide no jutsu."

Steadying to her breathing to silence, Kiri carefully watched and listened. Three cloud ninja came into view, one of them standing right in front of Kiri.

"She's disappeared," one of them said in aggravation. He kicked a rock to the side.

"She couldn't have gone far," the other hissed. "She's been too badly wounded."

"Don't worry men," the one in front of Kiri said. "We will find her and we will fulfill our objective." He fingered his katana, then added, "And make her pay for our wounds as well."
The other two grinned evilly.
"Let's go!"

"Hai!" (Yes!)

Kiri breathed a sigh of relief only to pay for it a split second later as pain shot through her side. Darkness claimed her sight as the pain engulfed her senses.

Kankuro kicked a rock aimlessly as he, Temari, and Gaara investigated the area north of their village. At the moment, Gaara was out of earshot so Kankuro took this opportunity to voice something to Temari.

"Why are we out again?"

"You know why, we received a report that cloud ninja were seen here last night."

"I know that but why are "we" out here?"
Temari sighed and looked at her brother.
"Ok, never mind, dumb question." Kankuro knew the answer. Every once in a while Gaara would get stir crazy and then the three of them would take a mission regardless of how insignificant it was. The fact that, even though he no longer had Shukaku in him, he was still a chronic insomniac likely didn't help any. Kankuro was then broken out of his thought by the sound of his brother Kazekage calling him and Temari from the other side of the rocks they were standing next too.

Gaara sensed the use of chakra underneath the rock over hang but when he said, "Dispel," nothing happened. He then felt his sibling's chakras behind him.

"What is it, brother?" Kankuro said.

"I don't know." He then stretched out his hand and sand flowed to the spot under the rock. The outline of a person began to take shape but before it was complete, Gaara sensed a change in the figure's chakra and drew the sand back.

Kiri's eyes fluttered open and the blurry image of sand withdrawing filled her vision. Instinctively, she ceased the shadow hide jutsu and quickly moved from her place under the rock. As her vision continued to clear, she glanced to the left and saw three sand shinobi. "Please don't hurt me. Please don't..." She cried out as fresh hot pain scorched her side. Dizziness and loss of blood caused Kiri to collapse to the ground, unconscious again.

"Who is she?" Kankuro said.

"Whoever she is, she's lost a lot of blood," Temari noted. Blood stained the sand where the girl had lain and more now flowed from the wound in her side.

"Let's take her back to the village," Gaara said as he picked her up.

Temari and Kankuro looked at their brother, the responded, "Hai." (Yes)