Thank you Lucas Bane, Big Bad Bunny, Skyzerk, Pikpixie03, Soldier of Kyuubi and Greatness Alone for your bios they will be put to use!

Lead and Snowflakes Arc

Episode 3: "Advancing into the Snowy Mountains"

"Do it now, command your familiar to crush the gun powder!" The snow ninja persisted.

I thought if I could summon an Earth clone to appear and stab him from behind, but no he would cut the old man's throat before then. I figured if I distracted him with an explosion to the right but no he would see through that. "STOP STALLING!" The man screamed. I clapped my hands together just as I was going to summon an Earth Clone.

Suddenly a two kunai like darts planted themselves into the snow ninja's neck on his left side, his neck was like an aerosol can that sprayed red paint. His eyes were wide and dead and the old man Orca completely froze, the sound of penetrating flesh had gotten to him and I think that he thought he was dead.

The snow ninja's grip loosened and he fell over like a cold stone leaving the old man to tremble in fear. The lanterns light stretched but so far around the sight but approaching from the darkness of the tall grass was a Konoha shinobi. This shinobi had fair, almost pale skin with spiky red hair poking upward like a dancing flame.

He donned a maroon colored t-shirt with black pants complete with white medical tape wrapped around both his thighs. A beige cloak complete with a hood that had his ninja plate embedded into it.

"Looks like I showed up just in time." He said with a half smile.

I held up two fingers and canceled Orama's summon. He was a Konoha ninja but one I hadn't seen before and I didn't sense any hostile intent from him. I approached Orca and placed a palm on his shoulder, snapping him out of the fright he was entrapped in. After a few shakes he got himself together and once again donned the caravan.

"Who're you?" I asked the shinobi after making sure my client was safe.

He held up a scroll showing the Fifth's seal on it and I relaxed completely now. "I was given orders to lend a hand with this transport."

"Oh really? Well that's just super." I said nonchalantly I pointed behind me. "Watch the rear. I don't wanna take any chances, anything so much as moves out of place I want you all over it."

Before moving he raised a palm. "Sorry have we moved past the part where we introduce ourselves?" He chuckled a bit. He seemed like those annoying optimistic types.

"Hayabusa, Ryuzo Hayabusa." I introduced myself. "Jonin ranked."

"Oh nice, my name is Monogatari Oboro. Let's do our best on this mission, Ryuzo-san." He said phasing out leaving behind naught but a jet of wind. He appeared landing on the top of the last caravan cart with his body cloaked behind his beige cape with hood up.

Having an extra set of eyes gave me a slight feeling of relief and he really pulled through taking out that snow ninja just now. I wondered what his ranking was, he seemed too skilled to be a Genin. Those kunai throwing skills were pretty good, the blades struck him in the neck directly in the man's pressure points.

"Thanks for coming through for me back there boys. Now I feel doubly safe heh heh." The old man Orca continued as he whipped the reins to continue on our journey.

As we crossed the plains to the north we were beginning to happen upon the snowy lands of the north, the trees and land up here were covered in a white icing of snow. As we traveled the dancing snowflakes became more and more detailed. I kept my body temperature leveled using my chakra as I was sure Oboro did behind us. The old man Orca pulled from his leather sack beside him a scarf and a cloak to cover his body.

As he slipped on his thick snow gloves he began a conversation again. "So, Oboro-kun. You from the same village as Zo-chan here?" The old man asked.

"Yeah." He responded, his voice carried from the back of the rattling carts.

"I see. You seem a little young to be a ninja, how old are you..." Orca asked and that's when I planted an ear out for the conversation. Even I wondered Oboro's age, he wasn't a child. He had a mature face but not mature enough to be an adult, he looked like a teen.

"I'm 19, sir." He replied respectfully.

The old man nodded. "Ahahaha...just a year older than Yukino. Do you have any family at all?"

Yukino must have been the name of Orca's grand daughter. When I waited for Oboro's reply I found myself left hanging, he didn't exactly answer. He was quiet which broke habit out of his normally respective tone. His family must be a touchy subject. We traveled all night and into the early dawn.

It was a bit exhausting but I was used to long journeys.

We were moving more north into the snowy lands of Yuki. We traveled around the mountain as Orca instructed, he knew the layout of the land and knew where NOT to go and where Yukigakure's territories were. Which led us along the mountain path to a long bridge seemingly made of ice.

I held a fist up to stop Orca once again. My eyes shifted left and right checking out the bridge. It was made mostly of manmade gates and railings but the bridge itself was of ice. Bridges weren't good places to travel over especially if you were a ninja, they leave you open for assault and it also leaves us at a territorial disadvantage.

"A bridge huh?" Oboro phased in just beside me. He also knew of our vice with bridges, he was a ninja after all. "What do you wanna do?"

What led me to believe Oboro was a ninja of lesser rank was because he followed orders easily and he was quick to ask me what to do in this situation. Jonin are arrogant bastards who believe they can solve every problem and only rely on teamwork if it's absolutely necessary. ANBU black ops are cold and silent, they don't take orders or give them. They only act, which is why I hate them.

"Since it's only two of us we can't split up. We'll send out clones to scout around. Limit them to two each...one to check the surrounding land and the other to check the undercarriage of the bridge." I ordered and with that at the same time we placed our fingers up in the signature cross handseal. "Kage Bushin no Jutsu." We chanted at the same time.

Appearing from puffs of smoke was two clones of myself and two clones of Oboro. They knew there orders, they split up phasing out like four

blurs into the distance.

We both stood there to wait at the foot of the bridge while Orca and the cart remained a few feet behind us. "By the way...Ryuzo-san. It's a pleasure working with you."

"Hm?" I raised an eyebrow.

"You've completed 53 missions of all kinds of class rankings. C-B-A and even afew S ranks. I did my research before coming out here, I wanted to know exactly who I'd be working with. A habit if you can forgive it." Oboro turned to me with a half smile.

"Whatever." I shrugged. I liked my wrap sheet so I didn't really care if anyone did a background check. Despite all the missions I do though I've never been recognized for any of it. I feel like a freaking ANBU sometimes.

Suddenly...POOF! POOF! POOF! POOF!

My mind filled with the images of my clone, he was ambushed my ninja in white snowy samurai like armor. Following that an explosion erupted from the bridge and exploding from a glacier of ice was a massively tall and bulky ninja with long sky blue hair and pale skin with white eyebrows. He wore what looked to be a gas mask over his mouth and had thick armor covering his chest.

"I will eliminate all traitors to our land!" He roared with white steam filtering from his mask.

"This guy looks like he wants to play." I said holding up two fingers. "Oboro, watch over Orca and the caravan."

"Ryuzo-san, I'm sure you already know but this guy isn't alone. Our clones were ambushed we may have to find another way around." Oboro said clapping his hands together. "Raiton Bushin no Jutsu!" Oboro formed four lightning elemental infused clones which completely surrounded the caravan.

My immediate attention was focused on this large ninja in front of us. He looked skilled and if we tried running it would only make things worse. The cargo we were hauling wasn't exactly something that can easily elude someone especially a ninja. "So what's yer name big guy?" I asked while performing handseals.

"I am Aoshin. Step away from the elder, konoha shinobi." He narrowed his eyes and lowered his stance. This guy had the body size of an ape under all that armor he wore. More steam expelled from his mask.

"Well my name is Ryuzo. Let's be friends." I said sadistically with a grin behind my mask.

Somehow it pissed him off with that he held up his large arms and ejecting from his oversized gauntlets were needles of ice. "Doton: Doryuheiki no Jutsu" I slapped my palm on the ground and shooting up just in front of me from beneath the snow was a wall of stone. Now was our time to escape.

My Shadow Clone before he was Ambushed:

"I found a path around the ice bridge and out of the Snow Ninjas path. I placed a summon scroll here for transport. They'll probably be on their way to the bridge so once my real self distracts them long enough, he can teleport everyone to the scroll and bypass the entire conflict."

I spun around and dashed to the caravan. "Oboro, get on the caravan now!" I said pulling one of the summoning scrolls from my right thigh then tossing it under the carriage, it rolled open with the seal pointing upward to the carriage. I leaped on the middle cart and began performing handseals. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" I said and with that...POOF! We were gone.

POOOF!

With that the caravan, me, Oboro and Orca had appeared on the otherside of the bridge a few miles up the mountain path. "Whoa, that was awesome!" Oboro looked up at me. "I didn't know you could use Kuchiyose for that."

"What just damn happened!?" Orca's eyes were wide. "You crazy ninja and your crazy magic!"

I hopped down and grabbed a scroll from under the caravan. "Yeah, the summoning jutsu is just a teleportation device that transports animals from one place to another. It can be used with all kinds of things like ninja tools and even other people. So long as they bare the identical seal that is." I said shoving the scroll back onto the loop around my right thigh. "Summoning jutsu is what I specialize in."

"So cool." Oboro punched into his palm.

"We can't dally for long gents, those assholes won't be duped for long. We have to keep moving forward." I said. With that we started on our way again. "Orca, how much longer til we make it to your encampment?"

"Not long now. We're almost there even."

"Good." I said. "This mission is almost over."

"I don't think so!" Shooting up from the snow along the mountain path was another shinobi in white armor, he had a long silver haired ponytail with pale skin. He dashed at me with a kunai made of ice and I held up my right palm as a defense and he stabbed it right through.

"Gerh..." I grunted in pain seeing the blade of ice just inches from touching my nose.

Blood was splattered on my face and freezing temperature of the kunai was slowly eating away at my flesh and numbing my palm. I quickly reached into the pouch on my lower back drawing a kunai and trying to stab the ninja in the neck but he grabbed my forearm then twisted both of my arms while leaping and shoving his knee into my jaw with a spinning combo.

I went slamming into the snow beside the path. "Oboro!" I yelled.

"On it!" He phased in just in front of the snow ninja to face off with him but the young ninja was no match. He struck at the snow ninja with lighnting elemental chakra enfused in his fists but the snow ninja was too skilled in taijutsu. He worked Oboro over with a series of hard grapples that turned Oboro force against him almost like judo.

"This guy's a jonin!" I drew four shuriken from my tools pouch and tossed it at him but it was no use. He phased out and appeared on top of the caravan.

He completed a handseal. "Hyoton: Rouga Nadare no Jutsu"

Exploding down the mountain path was a pack of wolves leading a massive avalanche behind it, it was running directly down from the mountain path towards the caravan. "WHAAAAAAAAA!" Orca screamed.

"I'll deal with this you go get em!" Oboro said facing the avalanche.

I nodded to him quickly then phased out appearing in the air over this mysterious ninja. "So you're the konoha ninja that duped my baby brother Aoishin. My name is Aoiryuu..." He said in a calm relaxed voice. "We don't get many opposing ninja from other countries in this area so forgive me if I'm a little over joyed at your company."

Author's Note: An unstoppable Jonin has appeared! And seems like Ryuzo can't dupe him like he duped his younger brother. Can Oboro stop the avalanche jutsu? Can Aoiryuu be defeated? Find out next update!