I'd like to get some reviews back on my work before I keep going. I'd hate to post up a story and have no one like or read it, you know? So, all constructive comments are welcome. Please no flames.

Naruto and all of the characters, text, and plot information belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and Tv Tokyo.

Chapter Two – Missing Children

When I woke the next morning, it was seven forty-five. I'd over slept by thirty minutes. I rose from my bed in a hurry, barely taking the time to throw the covers back onto the bed neatly. Then, I dressed quickly in my usual gray-green tank top. It stopped just bellow my belly button, and in the center there was a wedge cut out that showed off my belly button. I yanked on my short black shorts, which stopped before my mid-thigh. Through the belt loop on my right side, I tugged a red belt, fastening it so that the far end of the belt rested halfway down my shorts on the left side. I tucked my long, fingerless gloves into my free belt loops. I'd put them on later. I scooped my hitai-ate and tied it onto my forehead as I left my room. I pulled my shoes on and then I was rushing into the kitchen, where I quickly ate an orange, two slices of toast, and a small bowl of cereal. I checked the clock swiftly, and I saw that it was now eight o' one. I had a few minutes, so I pulled the gloves onto my arms, fastening them into place just under my shoulders. I grabbed my wallet from the shorts I'd thrown into my hamper the night before and tucked it into my backpack. Then, I attached my kunai holster to my shorts and grabbed the poisoned holster and placed it next to the first one. Sure, it looked weird, but hey, it was worth it. I then grabbed the backpack and slung it over one shoulder and then picked up my apples and walked out the door without looking back, only pausing to lock the door behind me.

I was quick in descending the stairs, but I was instantly pulled into the traffic of people going to work or looking to shop early. I fought my way to a wall, where I slung myself up onto the roof and made my way along. I couldn't be late; if I wasn't there fifteen minutes early along with everyone else, Gai-sensei would go insane and give us a lecture on being youthful. Then, when we returned from our mission, he'd make us run extra laps for about a week. Being "late" was frowned upon by everyone on the team, especially when they had to endure the punishment with you. So, I made my way, ignoring the odd looks I received from those below me. It wasn't too long before I was stepping inside the Hokage's building, and a secretary silently pointed to the stairs. I smiled and then rushed up them, having glanced at her clock. I had approximately two minutes to arrive. I made it with thirty seconds to spare, and my teammates all – excluding Neji, who almost never showed emotion – shot me relieved looks. Once those thirty seconds had passed, Gai-sensei arrived in the room with a puff of smoke and a brilliant smile. He beamed at us all and congratulated our youthfulness. Then, he announced to the Hokage that we were all present, who beckoned us into his office. We filed in, Neji first and myself last, and stood at attention before his desk.

"Today I am assigning you a B-rank mission." Sarutobi told us, as if we didn't know. "You will be escorting six children. This group of children has ages ranging from approximately seven years of age to thirteen. They were kidnapped from their homes in different villages in Country of Fire, and are all missed in their homes. It is your job to keep these children from the kidnappers – for we could not catch them all, sadly – and return them to their homes. Are there any questions?" We shook our heads silently. "Very good. Three live in the village of Otafukugai, One in Tanzukugai, and Two in Border Town. They will announce their villages to you once they have entered this room. Now," Sarutobi said. "Please bring the children in." He called. The door opened, and children were ushered in by a woman. One boy, the youngest it seemed, clung to the woman, looking around with wide eyes. "These are the children you are to escort."

There were four girls and two boys in all. The eldest was a boy named Akira, and he was fourteen. The girls were Kana, eleven, Chou who was ten, Aiko, also ten, and Masumi, who was nine. The youngest was seven year old boy called Ryu. We were allowed to pick our charges. Lee was with Chou, Neji picked Akira, and Tenten decided to defend Aiko. I was left with a choice of two, as Gai was going to primarily defend Kana. The one I did not choose would be defended equally by us – well, all of them would be, but we were the primary defense for them. I picked Ryu, and he looked alarmed. Masumi looked slightly crestfallen, but Tenten laid a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. I approached Ryu slowly, smiling gently as I reached a hand out towards him. He glanced up at the woman he clung to, and she nodded. Then, tentatively, he took my hand and walked towards me. I smiled down at him, and he returned the smile.

"Very well then. You have met your charges and taken necessary actions to help better defend them. Bring them safely home, then return here." We knew a dismissal when we heard one. We bowed to the Hokage, and then led the children out. It took the better part of ten minutes to get all of us to the gate. In the end, we'd taken the roof route, carrying our charges with us. Ryu clung to me, and would not let me set him down until we were back on the ground. The others were mildly alarmed at first, but calmed once they saw how easy it was walking along up here. We then ascended with them, and passed through the gate with no problem. Each one of the kids we were protecting was very wary of the forest around us, even though all of us – excluding Neji, once again – told them it would be just fine and to calm down. We tried to get them to loosen up by questioning them, finding out where each lived. Ryu and Chou lived in the Border Town. Masumi was of Tanzukugai. The other three, Akira, Kana, and Aiko lived in Otafukugai. As the hours passed and we chatted, seeming calm, the others managed to relax. Ryu even was calm, though we of Team Gai were always on guard, paying attention to the forest around us more than the children within our protective borders. Gai was at the front, Neji the back. Tenten was to the west, Lee the east, and I was in the middle with the children. The children that were specifically chosen walked closer to their guardian than me, but Masumi stuck close to me as we walked.

Neji was using his Byakugan; one glance behind me verified that. The rest of us were alert for any enemies that might possibly be coming to attack, but we were almost positive that none would get past Neji's' watchful eyes. It was many hours until sundown, but we were already far from Konoha. We didn't expect an attack for another couple of days, when we were extremely far from Konoha. However, a noise from Neji made us think differently.

"Five people travelling with a cart are straight ahead." He called to us, and though I knew he would keep vigilant on the area around us, I couldn't help but stay hyperaware of the forest around me. We knew of the cart, so why worry about it. We would eventually reach it, and reach it we did. First, they were nothing more than a cloud of dust, then slowly the dots became people and a cart. They looked fit, but so did any farmer or traveler. We moved to the side of the road to let them by. They nodded at us in thanks. Once they'd passed us, we moved back onto the road. Neji kept his pale orbs on their retreating figures. Even after they were out of my sight, he stared on. After some time, he stopped gazing at the distance, only glancing back to keep tabs every so often. There was nothing else worth noting that happened today.

We found a clearing just off the side of the road an hour before sunset. By then all the children, including the shy Ryu, were complaining of exhaustion. Gai-sensei, Neji, and I stayed in the clearing with them while Tenten and Lee searched for water and food. The only reason why I wasn't sent was because Ryu had attached himself to my hand and would not let go for anything. I sat next to him in the group of children, and soon my teammates returned so we could have fire and water. The gloom of the night washed over the forest, and the children scooted closer to the food, munching on food that had been provided to them. Each of us had brought something, me with the energy bars, Tenten brought these bars that could be put in water and made into a soup. Lee and Gai-sensei both brought dehydrated foods and Neji had preserved meat. It wasn't much variety, but it was better than nothing, right? While they were eating, Gai-sensei stood, and my teammates and I all turned our heads towards him instantly.

"We are now in camp, my youthful students!" He exclaimed. "Tonight we will begin the nightshifts. There will be five, one for each of us. The times of the watch will always be the same, and will be as such: first shift is from nine to eleven, second will last from eleven to one, third is one to three, fourth will be three to five, and the fifth will be from five to seven. Each night we will change shifts. Tonight, our order of watch will be Neji, followed by Tenten, myself, Maia, and then Lee. You will ensure no one attacks us while we sleep and that the children are all safe in their beds. If there is to be an enemy, you are to sound the alarm immediately. Any questions?"

"No, Gai-sensei!" We replied dutifully. I began eating one of my bars, passing one wordlessly to Tenten. Her bars were not as tasty in their solid form as they were in soup, and I'd only eat one dry if the situation was dire – and the situation would have to be pretty damn dire at that. By the time we were done eating, the kids were falling asleep. Ryu was still clinging to my hand, even in sleep. I laid down where I was, using my pack as a pillow – carefully of course. It seemed too short a time before Gai-sensei was waking me up. His usual loud, booming voice was quiet as he whispered to me.

"It's your watch, Maia. Remember, Lee is next." I nodded, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I tried to get up, but I felt an unusual weight pulling me down. I looked to see that Ryu had moved in his sleep, clinging to me. He was a very possessive child. Just what I needed, but I'd picked him so I'd have to suffer with the consequences. I sighed softly and detached his arms from my body and rose, stretching my muscles. I left my pack where it was, since I was pretty sure Ryu could not damage any of the items within. Then, I went to the water pail, where I pulled a dipper of water out. I sipped it and replaced it, then took my post. I chose to sit in a tree overlooking the clearing, and did my best to look like I was asleep with my eyes open. At one point, the bushes rustled and I glanced towards it, alarmed, but it was nothing more than a rodent of some kind. It scurried away into the darkness, and I was alone. The watch was a long two hours, but I got through it and woke Lee before gratefully lying back down against my pack next to Ryu. I was awakened by Gai-sensei's bellow, rolling onto my stomach and standing quickly, glancing around. He had that affect on people. There weren't any problems, he was just waking us up, but there had been plenty a time that that same voice had woken us in an emergency. The other children were staring about themselves with bleary eyes and we got ready for a new day. After eating and changing into a new set of clothes, we moved on.

This day, and the day after were much the same. We passed by many travelers, we saw many animals, such as deer and squirrels. There was a lot of dust and the sky was clear. It wasn't until the third day, when we were still three days from the first drop point, that we had any problems. The day started as normal. We woke, ate, changed, and moved out. Hours passed, we got into the same pattern as always, staying alert, but without as much feeling into it. When Neji hissed softly, we all – well, the four of us that were on his team, since the kids didn't hear it – stiffened and were on red alert.

"One left, two right, and two behind. Coming in fast." We had no place that was easily defensible, so, we pulled the children in the middle of us, but there were gaps between each of us, for there were more children than there were squad members. Ryu and Masumi whimpered softly, but that was the only noise from them. The rest of us were preparing for the inevitable battle. I pulled a paralysis kunai out while Tenten pulled out a fistful of shuriken and two exploding kunai. Neji, Gai-sensei, and Lee each got into their own tai-jutsu fighting stances. I glanced around, wary. From where I stood and where Neji reported they were, two should be coming my way. I slid another paralysis kunai out, along with a couple shuriken. And, as we waited for, the tree ahead of me to the right began to move slightly, as well as the bushes before me, and I knew there was someone there, for the rustling was unnatural. Too bad we couldn't find a cave or something; it would have made fighting easier. Now, we all had to make sure no one got past us, and if they made it that far, that they didn't get out with a child. Then, it all happened fast.

Three kunai were in the air, in my sight. One towards me, two angled to go past me. I deflected two of them with a shuriken each and then blocked the one flying at me with a kunai, throwing a shuriken towards where I'd seen at least one of them come from. A shinobi leaped out of the bushes, dodging the weapon, straight towards me. I held my kunai at the ready, hoping to graze him at the very least. It only took one scratch below the skin to do damage, to make the poison work. I heard noises behind me, children squealing in terror, but I had to let that slip away, to concentrate on the matter at hand. He threw a punch at me, which I deflected. I attempted to pull his legs out from under him with my own, but ended up falling myself. The man made to leap over me at the children – the closest being my own charge, Ryu – but I grabbed his foot and pulled him to the ground. I lashed out with my kunai, and I met cloth. Before I could reach the skin, he'd pulled away, dancing away from my deadly weapon. I rose, glancing around. I made sure there were six children, uncaring if my comrades were alright or not, because I knew they were doing just fine. Each of them would have their own battle; there was five shinobi in all, right? So, we were fine.

The man tried to catch me off guard, but I wasn't having any of that. He threw a handful of shuriken at me. I couldn't dodge, they'd hit the children. So, I pulled out a second kunai and deflected four. One embedded itself in my right shoulder, and two in my left arm that I'd lifted to defend myself. I winced, but I had no time to yank them out, for he was rushing me. I barely blocked his kunai reaching for my throat, and even then it almost broke through, that was how much force he'd used. I stabbed at him with my other kunai, and he dodged, making the pressure on his kunai uneven. I used that to push it away, slashing at his face. It was then that I found out a new fact. There weren't five enemies.

There were six. The only reason I'd even noticed was because as I shoved the man away, a woman had been jumping past in the trees. That wasn't good; no one was on guard for her. The children were in danger, and I was in no position to stop her, I was having a bit of trouble with my current opponent.

"There's a sixth woman in the trees!" I called out, pitching my voice to rise above the clang of steel against steel, the grunts of the fighters, and the whimpers of the children. The man before me lunged as I yelled, and knocked me down. My arm with the paralysis poison was pinned down, but he'd missed my other arm. His weight pressed the shuriken deeper into my flesh, causing me to cry out in pain. The man grinned at my anguish and pressed harder. I saw his kunai winking in the light above me; he was going to end it. Well, that's what he thought. I reversed my blade so that the point was pointing towards the sky. Before he could realize what I was doing or attack me, I hit him in the back of the head with some power. His eyes rolled back into his head and his full body weight collapsed upon me, his arm falling limply to his side, harmless. I pushed him off me and glanced around, pulling the shuriken out of my arm. Neji had finished off his already and was helping Tenten with hers. Gai and Lee were fighting their own. I only saw two on the ground. Where was the sixth? I looked at the children, and counted. One, two, three, four, five… where was Chou? I glanced around wildly. She was missing, taken.

"Lee! Where's Chou?" I called. He glanced towards me, and I could tell that he hadn't been able to save her – he hadn't even known she was gone. "I'm on it." I yelled out. I tapped my ear as I pulled out a headset. Gai-sensei had handed them out at the beginning of the mission, one for each of the team members .They were set to channel three and could extend for many miles. He nodded once, and took a kick to the gut for his trouble. I turned away as he did, and I glanced about again, a little calmer. I checked the ground – we were on a dirt road after all. There, I found a path of heavier footsteps, footsteps that showed the person was carrying something a bit heavier than usual. It led to the trees, and I followed it. Then, there were faint marks around me of a person passing. Broken twigs, leaves scattered, dirt trails, and impressions on bark. I followed these quickly, only stopping whenever the trail was hard to spot, but I figured it out by scanning the whole area, finding where the trail picked back up. I heard a noise over the radio – someone else was tapping into the channel.

"Keep going straight, Maia. She's dead ahead." Neji's voice filled my ear, and I smiled slightly. He always knew exactly what was needed. "Thanks." There was no reply, and I didn't need one. I continued straight as he'd told me, moving quicker now, knowing that I had a backseat driver to help me out. Every so often he'd whisper a new direction, a turn that the person had taken. I did ask, as I was running, what had happened back in the clearing. He gave the all clear. The children were shook up by Chou's disappearance, but the enemies were taken care of. All that was left was the one I was pursuing. I wondered aloud why no one else was on the radio and why no one was following me. He just told me that everyone knew I could handle it, that all I needed was his extra help. Well, good to know they trusted me. I picked up the pace; he told me that they were no more than about thirty yards ahead. The woman thought she'd shaken us, stole one of our children. He warned me to slow, that it was just ahead. I needed to use stealth and creep up on her, to use surprise to my advantage. I nodded and slowed, moving silently. She would never know what hit her.

"Well, little one," I heard her voice before I reached the clearing. "You'll fetch a good price, you will. Hey, hey, none of that. Don't want to ruin your precious face with tears, do we?" No, of course not I thought to myself. After all, all you're doing is stealing her from her family and life to sell to a person she'd never met, and probably would never like to meet anyway. I was above the clearing now, and I could see that Chou was crying softly while the woman looked upon her new charge with glee and malice. What a horrid woman. I silently pulled a paralysis poisoned kunai out as I maneuvered behind her. Then, with no further ado, I pushed off the branch straight at the woman. The leaves rattled softly, as if pushed by a wind, and that was all she needed. The woman leapt over Chou to face the tree that I'd just jumped from. I landed where she'd just been standing. Chou's eyes widened, but I ignored her. I had no time to focus on her.

"Chou, go sit over by those trees please. That's a good girl." I said, gesturing to the side with one hand. Chou obeyed without any arguments, and instead of standing, she crawled over, so that if anything flew across the clearing she'd not get hit. What a smart girl she was. I'd tell her that later. No time now, the woman was picking something out of her holster with a grin. I pulled a second kunai out, one of the sleeping poisons. I didn't want to kill her, even if my conscience would let me kill her in front of Chou. I'd just incapacitate her and get out of there. She threw two kunai of her own at me, and I dodged easily. I tried looking slow and tired as I did it, a weakling that she could easily overthrow. Her eyes betrayed her silent glee as she saw how slow I was. After all, I was just a genin. Fighting off her comrade must have tired me quite a bit, right? Wrong, but she couldn't know that. The woman darted towards me quickly, pulling out a third kunai. I blocked with one of my kunai – the paralysis one, I noted vaguely. I stabbed out with my sleep poisoned one, which she of course dodged. I slid my kunai that was deflecting hers to compensate for the weight change, when an idea hit me.

I slid the kunai more, and sliced her fingers as I pulled away. She glared at me, but figured they were a minor wound inflicted by a young opponent. I probably thought that a wound like that would be pretty painful because I was young and such, of course. Well, it wasn't going to be painful. Actually… it would be quite numb, no pain at all. She obviously didn't notice that her wounds had no feeling after a second. It was funny. It would take time for the poison to spread, but I didn't want to hit her with the sleeping poison as well. I didn't know what would happen if the two intermixed. So, I threw it at a tree and pulled a second paralysis one out. I stabbed out at her with it as she came at me again. She dodged and I feinted at her with my right kunai. She dodged as I expected and I slashed at her arm. She took the blow, but not without giving me a pretty good gash in my left arm. It started below the elbow and stopped about two inches below my wrist. I pressed my kunai against the wound and was pleased to feel it begin to numb. I'd stick myself with the cure in a moment. She was going to be getting pretty slow here in a second. Wait, I take that back. She was already staring at her hand and arm, wondering why she could no longer use them. Now she couldn't use her other arm if I was right. The kunai dropped, proving my point. I slid my pack off my back and opened it, keeping one eye on her. Then, I pulled all the clothes out and dumped them next to the bag.

I stopped there to throw my kunai at her while she was distracted. It clipped her – my aim was off. The poison was affecting me faster than I'd expected. Still, it had drawn blood, which was all I cared about. Her leg would be useless in a moment. I knelt next to my bag now, feeling through it without looking. I pulled my protective case out and set it on the clothes before opening it. I then scanned the bottles quickly. My whole left arm was useless now, I needed to work quickly. The woman screeched at me and tried to run at me, but fell over as her leg proved to be unable to move. It would have been funnier if I had the time to laugh. I found the cure and pulled the cork out with my teeth. I then carefully poured a very small amount on my arm and then drank a portion of what was left. I then held the glass between my knees and pressed the cork back in carefully. Once I was sure it was wedged properly, I looked up at the woman, who'd I'd tuned out. She was still on the ground. I quickly replaced the items into my bag and closed it one handedly. My arm was still numb, slowly becoming pins and needles. It was faster if you injected the whole cure into your bloodstream, but I didn't have a needle to do so. This would have to do. I slung it on my back, taking an extra second to get my other arm into the strap.

"It was so nice meeting you." I told the woman. I glanced over at Chou and saw that my sleeping kunai had hit the tree about a foot above her. Oops. I grabbed that and my other kunai that I'd thrown before putting my three kunai back into my pack. I'd clean and re-poison them later.

"Chou lets go." I told her, gesturing with my right hand. I'd carry her when my other arm was reliable, but for now she'd have to walk. We made our way through the trees. I knew Neji could see me, so I didn't bother reporting in over the microphone. I kept it silent, in case there were more nut jobs in the forest that I needed to know about. About a minute of walking passed before I could lift the girl safely. Then we were traveling faster. She closed her eyes and buried her face in my chest. I assumed she was afraid I'd run into a tree or something. Nice of her.

"Good job back there." I told her, trying to distract her from her fears. "You listened and didn't complain or anything. Make sure you always do that, alright?" I told her. She nodded, and when she looked up I saw that she was crying again. "Come on, what's the matter?" I asked, some impatience showing in my voice.

"I-I just w-was so afraid that n-no one would save me. I didn't t-th-think anyone would be able t-t-to find me, b-but you did. I-I'm just s-so happy." I sighed. Of course she was so happy. After all, she'd been taken about a mile away from where we originated by some psychopath that wanted to sell her to some child molester. Well, I didn't know that last bit for a fact, but it was very likely. Who wouldn't be scared that she wouldn't be saved a second time? I gave her a smile that I hoped was reassuring.

"Don't worry, Chou. You'll make it home with us." It was then that I remembered that my arm was bleeding profusely, as I stumbled on a branch, my vision blurring slightly. I instantly let us drop, and Chou screamed shrilly, afraid that we were about to die. I slowed our descent by landing on some branches, but once we were on the ground, I set her down gently and sat down. Her clothes had my blood on them, which had slowed the bleeding some. I was breathing heavily now.

"Neji, send me backup, please." I murmured into the radio, trying to shrug the backpack off.

"What's the matter?" He demanded instantly.

"Blood loss. There's no way I can carry her back, and if something decides to attack I'm not so sure how well it'll turn out." I told him.

"Alright, Lee's incoming." I nodded as I heard a third radio connect into the channel. I immediately tuned out the conversation that began over the channel; I had other things to do.

"Okay." I turned my attention to Chou, who stared at me with horror. Let me rephrase that, she stared at my arm in horror. Well, it was bleeding pretty badly. I pressed my right hand against the wound, slowing the bleeding minutely. "Chou, open my bag and find me a roll of bandages in my bag." When she didn't move, I glared at her. "Chou! Stop staring and get a move on please. I'm slowly dying as we speak." That knocked some sense into her, and she stumbled over to my bag, where she opened it. Then, she pulled out some of the shirts and undergarments, setting them aside gently. Below those were bandages, which she pulled out and offered to me. I accepted them with my bloody right hand, which she shied away from the instant she could. I sighed.

"Pull a kunai out of my holster in there. Make sure you don't touch the blade, only the handle. Be sure that you only grab a kunai that has a blue or yellow cloth tied to the end. Stay away from the green ones." I didn't need to accidentally stab myself with the deadly poison, and if she cut herself on one of the ones I'd told her to grab, it would be pretty harmless. If she stuck herself with the other one, I doubted my ability to save her. So, I unraveled the bandages and quickly wrapped them around my wound, wrapping it tightly to put enough pressure to slow the bleeding until we got back to the others, where I could get somebody to help me clean and wrap it properly. Chou passed me a kunai with a knot of yellow silk attached to it, which I used to cut the bandage. I hoped that none of the poison passed on to the bandage, because I'd be in a pretty bad state if it did. Then, I tucked it underneath the bandage, securing it for now. Lee came into the clearing at about that time.

"You okay, Maia?" He asked. There was a slight look of concern on his face. I nodded slightly as I went to repack my bags quickly with my right hand again. After a moment of thought, I ate one of the soldier pills I had before placing it back into my pack. Once everything was secure, I tried to pull the bag onto my back, but I found it was more difficult when I could feel my wound. Lee helped me out, and once I was ready, he lifted Chou. Then, we were off again. My pace was a lot slower than usual, seeing how my body was affected by the blood loss. However, it was faster than it should have been, because of the pill I'd eaten. It took us about ten minutes to reach camp, all in all, but it was the longest ten minutes I had ever endured.

Woo, cliff hanger. They're fun, and I use them often. I'd like to get a few reviews from you guys before I continue posting my stories. Alright? Thanks. - .Eyes