Missing Niins

Disclaimer: I don't own the manga/anime Naruto. It is the property of Masashi Kishimoto.

Also, I do not own the concept of moving through the forest unseen. That belongs partially to Kishimoto and partially to John Flanagan, who writes the novel series entitled Ranger`s Apprentice. (Which is a really good series, by the way. You should read it once you finish my story)

Sorry it's so short. I'll try to make the chapters longer in the future, although they may take a while. You have been warned.

If my character is a Mary-Sue, please give me a couple pointers that will help me make her un-Sue. I really can't tell. If I cannot un-Sue her, then I will discontinue this story and that is that. (Unless more than a few people say that they want me to keep writing, even if she is a Sue) Also, I am fully aware that my grammar and spelling may be bad. Feel free t o help me. Enjoy!

Missing Niins: Chapter One

Iwagakure was a bustling centre of activity. Even in the early morning, namely around 5 am, this hidden village was already waking up. Vendors on the street opened their shops, waving to friends and chatting amiably. The Mission Registration was also up and running, the Tsuchikage giving out and receiving mission reports. The Academy wasn't open yet, but several Chunin teachers were already at their desks, preparing the lesson plans for today.

Now we must move our view, not to a house in this lovely little village, as you, dear reader probably thought we would, but to a certain part of the forest outside the defensive walls. We come to a very large tree, one with branches protruding from all over its trunk instead of simply at the top. If we are able to get to the top of said tree, (avoiding all of the many traps set for the unsuspecting victim) then we would see the following sight.

At the top of this tree, supported by a few thick branches, was a small platform ringing the tree trunk. It was made of beams of wood bearing a stamp proclaiming them to be property of the Iwagakure Lumber Company. On it, there was a small, portable cooking stove and two brown sacks, one containing many eating utensils and a canteen of water, and the second containing a few books, a headband, a hair brush and elastics, and a few toiletries. The most interesting thing we would find on this platform would have to be, not the pile of ninja weaponry nestled close to the trunk of the tree, but the black-haired girl sleeping peacefully just a foot away from that pile. This girl's name was Deisuke, and her day would begin as our story starts. Right........Now.

Deisuke

My internal alarm goes off.

I can hear it. A buzzing in the back of my brain. Man, that's loud!

As I sit up, my body still fully asleep, I feel as if I'm in a trance, moving with mind power alone. To test that out, my befuddled brain attempts to levitate my body above my sleeping bag.

I then realize that I need to be out of my sleeping bag to levitate above it. Man. If I saw me right now, I'd ask myself what I was smoking.

That sounded weird...

By the time that I'm disentangled from my sleeping bag, which seems to have a habit of trying to strangle me in the night, the cool morning air has effectively woken me from my half-asleep state, bringing up enough of my intelligence so that I can crawl over to my "personal belongings" sack. A small smirk creeps onto my face as it does every morning at the irony. Everything that I own besides my weapons is stolen.

I grab my "personal belongings" bag, roll up my sleeping bag, and rummage around in the second brown sack. I pull out a canteen of water, pour some into a small pot and then stuff the canteen in my bag as well. I turn on my portable stove and place the pot on the single burner. Then I slide on a pair of supple leather boots, sling my "personal" sack over my shoulder and start to climb down my tree.

Even though I'm a ninja, I don't simply jump down. That would trigger a trap, and getting caught in one of my own traps wouldn't be a good thing. I take my time, and soon reach the bottom, coming across a small stream. I refill my canteen and take a good swig to rinse out the morning taste from my mouth. I pull out a toothbrush and thoroughly brush my teeth, spitting into the stream. I use the water as a sort of mirror, and see that my hair is a total mess. My hairbrush is soon out and combing through my below-shoulder-length hair, making sure that my bangs, which are as long as the rest of my hair, cover my right eye. As I pull the rest of my hair into a high ponytail, I reflect on why I put it up like this.

I nearly snap my elastic.

I shake my head. There'll be time to think about that later, I tell myself. I pull out my headband from my bag. My hitai-ate. I trace the two rocks engraved in it. Then the deep slash from left to right cutting those rocks in half. I sigh, secure it under my bangs, and stand up. My whole body is now reflected in the stream. I like to think I look nice, but not pretty. My body has curves in the right places, but they're not that defined. My camouflage tank top hugs my chest, ending slightly overtop of standard black ninja pants. Instead of ninja sandals, I wear my leather boots. My bangs fall over my hitai-ate, obscuring my right eye and leaving the other electric blue orb visible.

I look so much like him.

Grabbing my belongings, I climb back up into my tree. Setting my sack down, I notice that my water has boiled. A mug, a container of sugar, a small container of milk, and a jug of the drink of life make their appearance. Spooning the exact amount of coffee into the mug, I pour in some water, some sugar, and a tiny bit of milk before chugging half of my black drink. The moment the ebony liquid passes my lips, I sigh contentedly. I slump back against my tree and finish off that cup and another as well. Coffee is truly the drink of life.

After I am woken up considerably, I clean away my coffee-making supplies and start to strap on my weapons.

The first things to go on to my person are two shuriken and kunai holsters that I strap to my thighs. Next comes a belt with five visible sheaths and one hidden one that is strapped around my waist. Into the longest one slides my katana, a thin piece of hardened steel that I made myself, along with all my other weapons. It is about two and a half feet long and is one of my favourite blades. Into two of the four remaining sheaths I slide sister knives, each half a foot long, with serrated edges. Then come two speciality knives. One that is curved like a boomerang that serves a similar purpose, and another like a drill. The boomerang one can hone in on an enemy's chakra signature, no matter in which direction you throw it, and will wrench itself free and come back to you when you call it. The drill is mainly for causing pain. I like to twist it into the enemy's flesh and then pull it directly out.

Does that sound a bit sadistic to you?

'Cause I'm not sadistic.

...

...

...

I'm not!

Anyway. I strap on a holster that is a bit like a backpack. It has straps that wrap around my arms, and then one long strap that goes around my back to tie under my bust. There are four sheaths on this apparatus, two on my sides and two that poke out just behind my head, pointing toward each other. As I fasten my camouflage cloak around my shoulders, I make sure that they are reachable through that holes that I cut specifically for this purpose. When I reach for them, it looks like I'm scratching the back of my head sheepishly. I snort. Sheepish? Me? No way. I button up my camouflage cloak. The buttons go down to just below my belt, giving me easy access to my weapons, but providing some level of concealment at the same time.

After checking that all is as it should be in my forest home, I look up at the sky. It's around 5:30 as far as I can see. Smiling to myself at meeting the deadline I set every morning, I decide that it is time for some breakfast. I climb quickly down my tree and look at my reflection in the stream. I nod in approval at my new look. Much better than the girl who climbed down from my tree a while ago. Now I look like a ninja. Albeit a missing one.

I turn on my heel and walk in the direction of the snares I set the night before. As soon as I get outside seeing distance of my tree, the forest calms me and I slip into "Camo Mode" as I like to call it. To any casual observer, I have vanished almost completely into the trees and undergrowth, slinking along and moving with the natural rhythms of nature.

My first snare has been lucky and a squirrel is soon secured to my belt with a piece of string from a pocket in my pants. The weight of the squirrel seems to hold a promise of luck in my future, and I smile as I slink of to the next snare, thinking, "I'll be eating well today!"