Okay, this chapter is about Mara for a change.

However, we have most of the Kagai come in at this point, so here's a list of who the characters belong to. All of these people are excellent roleplayers from the site Shinobi: Living Legends. There is a link to this site on my profile.

Sarutobi Mara – Me

Tansen Kentou and Morino Taizen – Hokage

Itsukawa Nodoka – Kazekage

The overall plot belongs to Hokage.

------

A tall woman clambered up the rock face of the mountain, her arms straining as she pulled herself up, and reached for her next handhold. A large glass jug tied to her back was reflecting light patterns onto the sharp basalt rock face. Sweat coursed down the length of her face, and onto her neck, despite the fact that it was still an hour to noon. A gust of wind made her pull herself tight to the rock, and cling for dear life. She looked upward nervously, and then gave a sigh of relief when she saw that she was only another five inches from the top ledge. Gripping the hard stone with her fingers, she pulled her chin over, and then strained to pull the rest of herself up. She jumped and twisted slightly, so that she landed sitting down on the edge. Her legs had been tied together with bandages so that she could not use them on the climb.

Itsukawa Nodoka carefully unwrapped the bandages. For a long while, she just sat there, a foot away from this perilous ledge, drinking in the sights around her. Only a few feet away was a small circular pool into which a thin water fall poured making a rushing noise that made it seem much larger than it really was. A little stream wandered across the plateau to a hole in the ground by the far wall where it disappeared. A small glade of windswept, crisp mountain grass grew around the pool, and a few gnarled, wind beaten Roan trees stood huddled together in a spot where they were sheltered from the wind, but a sufficient amount of light reached them.

Nodoka untied the huge glass jug from her back, and got up on shaky feet. She walked slowly over to the pool, wincing as the circulation returned to her battered limbs. She filled her jug in the spring and set it aside. The Kagai member went into a series of stretches to help her recover. The muscles in her arms burned as she pulled them back. When she reached forward to touch her outstretched toes, her shoulders felt the sharp pull. Her expression stayed the same, and her breath even, and she never faltered, intent on the task at hand.

Clapping came from behind Nodoka, "Congrats! You finally did, what I did years ago, except I used only one arm then..."

A big man with a massive sword across his back emerged from a shaded area of the rocks,

He laughed, "You truly are pathetic, aren't you? Being unable to train, unable to fight, I wonder why you're even here. Taizen-sama must be slipping." He said sarcastically.

"So, when are you actually going to prove you belong here, Nodoka? You may be two years my senior, but you'd never know it with the weakness you show."

Nodoka plasted a very realistic hurt look on her face as she turned to face the big oaf, also making sure to adjust her posture so that her shoulders slumped and her breath came in ragged gulps. She took a few steps back as if shrinking away from Kentou. She stopped, and raised her head with false determination, and after keeping up the struggle between being hurt and hurting back she reverted to her usual self. She clapped, and let sarcasm take its usual monopoly over her face.

"Well done Kentou, I don't think I spotted any grammar mistakes in all that. You should be proud, especially since you used such difficult expressions." She smiled with faux sweetness, and took a confident stride toward the tall intimidating man.

The larger Kagai smirked.

"Who needs grammar when you have my strength? Besides, you shouldn't be talking back to me, I could crush you, so leave it." The smirk evaporated from his face as her sarcasm finally sunk in. He reached for his sword and then stopped himself. Taizen had forbidden the Kagai to fight among themselves.

Tansen Kentou clenched his fist in anger, "If Taizen-sama hadn't ordered me not to kill any of the idiots in this team, I would've slaughtered you in an instant. Besides, you're weak; you don't belong in the Kagai. You don't have the strength. You're only pulling this team down."

He walked past Nodoka, towards the ledge, and gazed out at the never-ending landscape. The peacefulness of the land, he whispered to himself, though Nodoka could most likely hear, "Disgusting. This peacefulness, one day... I will destroy it. Crush it with my power, and then marvel at the chaos of the land. And decorate it with the crimson color I desire."

Nodoka rolled her eyes, and inspected her nails as he spoke to her. She didn't even flinch when his hand reached for his sword. She stretched lazily as he made his spiel about crushing and whatnot. She made her way across the ledge, and back to her jug, letting a sly smile creep onto her face as she turned back to her rival. She seemed to be trying to think of something "appropriate" to say.

"It is evident that you will not be able to comprehend this advanced verbilage, but I will make an endeavor to get through your cranium, and compel you to comprehend that it is an unfeasibility for you to surpass me in anything." Her voice was cocky, meant to provoke the larger Kagai.

The other ninja thought for a minute, beginning to hold his fingers up to count. Suddenly, he got angry. A small vein appeared at the top of his head, under his cloth headband. He clenched his fist, and gritted his teeth, glaring at her.

"I don't know what the heck you just said, all I know is that you was making fun of me. If you want keep living, I tell you to stop now." Kentou said with an ominous ring in his voice.

------

Don't these morons have anything better to do? Of course, not like I'm one to talk, sitting here watching them. Behind a small peak of rock that stood about fifteen feet away from the arguers, the youngest member of Kagai sat on a ledge. It would have been at about at Kentou's head level, had there been any ground on that side for the idiot to stand on. Sarutobi Mara's dark brown eyes were closed, but she could hear every word that the pair threw at each other. Silently, she made a bet to herself. When it comes down to a fight between those two, Nodoka will win, but not without injury. The ghost of a small smile hovered about her lips. Humans were frustrating to work with, but they could be entertaining if one watched long enough from the sidelines.

Ordinarily, Mara would have shunned such an idle pastime, but it was in the daylight hours, and she had decided to gather some knowledge on her compatriots. Despite having lived outside of the shinobi villages for almost three years, she mostly only knew the other Kagai members by reputation. As she listened to Kentou's grammatically incorrect sentences, she decided that if she had to work with him on an assignment, she would leave him behind, no matter how angry he or his precious Taizen-sama got at her.

Speak of the devil. She thought wryly. Morino Taizen was even now attempting to sneak up on her. His breathing, though light, gave him away.

"So, who do you think will make it out with less scars, Kentou or Nodoka?" Taizen whispered happily as he came alongside her.

Mara did not open her eyes. There had been no point in seeing who it was, even before he gave himself away by speaking. Taizen was the only ninja she had ever met who could come so close to perfect stealth. He was the main reason she had joined Kagai in the first place, the one person who "was not quite as featherbrained as most". Coming from Mara, that was high praise indeed.

"Kentou would die," She said with her usual lack of elaborate words. "But Nodoka is overconfident. She would come away scarred."

Taizen's presence was abrupt but not unexpected. Even if he was no longer leader, he was still the founder, and the one most involved in the actions of Kagai's eclectic grouping of members. So, I'm not the only one watching.

The older man chuckled, his usual happy smile upon his face, with his eyes closed, or so it seemed.

"I assume you've never seen Kentou fight, I admit, when I found him, he wasn't the brightest, nor is he now, but his strength is legendary. He's a front line fighter, only because he can't use his brain in the back lines. I think this could be an interesting fight, though it may have to be stopped before they kill each other." The second-in-command had a calm, steady voice that easily got on other people's nerves. "May I take a seat, my lady?"

Mara did not deign to reply to Taizen's first comment. It was true she had never seen Kentou in a real fight, but she stood by her original assessment. Her hypothesis was backed by her observations, but she did not put much stock in what Nodoka said. However, if she was half as smart as she pretended to be, she could probably figure out a way to negate Kentou's physical advantage. Either way, Mara hoped to be there when things came to a head.

In response to her companion's question, Mara opened her eyes to stare coldly at him. He had been joking, knowing that she did not accept company if there was a choice. Although it was her "leisure" time, she still wore the light, slim throwing blades that were her weapon of choice. Briefly, she spared a thought to wonder how easy it would have been to eliminate the two arguing ninja on the other side of the rock. But there would be no point in doing that, especially not now. Taizen would probably interfere, if his whispered conversation had not alerted Kentou and Nodoka to the watcher's presence already.

Sometimes she wondered what she looked like through others' eyes. She supposed she looked young, but it had been awhile since she had actually looked at herself in a mirror. She felt detached from the regular sense of time, as if she was an observer apart from the rest of the world. What did she look like to the Kagai? Perhaps a runaway. What about Konoha? What tales did they tell about why she left? There would be rumors and debates about it, doubtless. That was how the Konohians always were. But she had a good reason for leaving, and ending up where she was. Perhaps one day she would tell them.

Taizen stood there for a while until he no longer wanted to put up with Mara's stoic glare. He sighed, then brushed the collar of his coat, and began to walk away. He harnessed his chakra and began walking up the mountain.

Before he was out of sight, he turned his head slightly and told Mara, "It's obvious you don't want me here, so I'll leave. But... if they do get out of hand, Make sure Kentou doesn't kill himself in a frenzy, and Nodoka doesn't hurt Kentou's feeble mind too much."

Taizen took a few more steps up, then turned slightly, once more, "Oh, and it wouldn't hurt to get to know some of the other Kagai members. You're gonna get paired up with one of them sooner or later, you might as well find one thing you like now, and focus on that, rather than the things you hate. Besides, it wouldn't hurt to open up a bit; you've been very much a loner since you came here. It's not healthy, but then again, it's not my call. Just don't go mad, living in your own mind." He finished speaking with a smile, and a bit or sarcasm.

The ninja disappeared into a puff of smoke, gone to adventure by himself, leaving her to watch the pointless duel. Mara listened to Taizen's short lecture of advice as she had all the other lectures she had been given. She would remember it, and probably quote it back at Taizen when he was least expecting it, but it was very unlikely she would actually take any of it to heart. As Taizen left, a normal sarcastic person would probably have said, "You might as well stay. The damage has already been done." But the fact was, Mara didn't want him to stay. And strangely enough, there wasn't a sarcastic bone in her body. Such comments, she felt, were unnecessary.

Even if things did come to a head between Kentou and Nodoka, she wasn't about to jump in and ask them nicely to stop. One fool was hard to explain things to, but two or more fools did not make the situation any better. Besides, they would probably both be out for her blood if she interfered. People with rivalries like theirs would just keep on going until one of them acknowledged the other as superior. And if that didn't happen, one of them would have to die. Sad but true. That was how the world was made.

As for partners, who knew what pairs Niirosan Saru would try to put them in? She didn't envy the leader's job. If even one pair was incompatible, the Kagai could end up several members short. Heaven help them if she got stuck with Kentou. That would be a disaster and a half. Hopefully, Saru would have enough sense not to put Nodoka and Kentou together. Even if they didn't kill each other, they'd be too busy insulting each other to get anything done.

Nodoka smiled, obviously getting the reaction she was hoping for. Her concentration was not on her rival. She had been listening to the listeners.

"I honestly don't know what Taizen was thinking when he chose you to join the Kagai. How should I put this? You have no strategy. Absolutely none, I wouldn't be surprised if a Genin could beat you."

It was one of Nodoka's more forward insults. The woman went into a fighting stance, closing her mind for reason known only to her. Quickly, Kentou threw four kunai at her.

"You believe a Genin could defeat me!? Then I wonder what could beat you, you poor excuse for a ninja!"

He grabbed some more kunai and shuriken and fired them at her, then with a swift movement, he kicked off the ground, and lunged at her, sword in hand.

Mara sighed and put one hand on her forehead. Terrific. Absolutely terrific. They were at it now. The question was, would they have enough sense to stop, or was she going to have to stop them? Problem was, she wasn't good at stopping people without killing them. Throwing knives were used to maim and to kill, not to injure. Of course, it would probably take more than a mere injury to stop those two from going at it. They both want this fight. Nodoka was trying to provoke Kentou into even as he was trying to provoke her. No wonder it started, really.

Since Nodoka at least was probably aware she was there, Mara stood up on the ledge she had chosen for a seat and looked over the top of the rock pillar at the two contestants. She crossed her arms on top of the hard, brown stone, dark eyes gazing coldly at her two fellow Kagai members as they went at it. Some of the kunai went past Nodoka and struck the rock, mere inches from her hand, but she didn't flinch. It was a simple skill to know whether or not a weapon would hit its target, especially for someone like Mara, who specialized in throwing weapons.

I suppose I'll have to stop them if they actually manage to get to the point where one of them will die. What a pain.

Nodoka had no trouble with the throwing weapons. She dodged easily, also using the metal plates on her arms to deflect them. The muscles in her legs bunched, and she leaped, right over Kentou's blade. A backwards leap brought her into a crouch on a rocky outcrop. She waited here for her opponent's next move. Her copper orange braids settled onto her back, and for a moment her right eye was uncovered, due to a breeze that blew her bangs to the side. It was milky white almost all over, with a barely visible jade iris, and where the spark of human intelligence usually was, there was only the dull sheen of life. Her silver earring swung for a moment. She was yet again perfectly still. Only the constant rise and fall of her chest gave away the fact that she was still alive. The large sword stabbed into the ground but that didn't stop Kentou. He pulled it out swiftly, and was already making his second attack. He swung his sword a second time, hoping to chop off Nodoka's head.

The sound of clattering metal rang in the air. A small body held the large sword away from Nodoka with two crossed katana.

"Stop wasting time you two!" Kanashii practically yelled at the two more experienced ninja that he separated, trembling slightly from the force of Kentou's blade.

"Niirosan has called a meeting, if you guys want to kick the life out of each other, do it another time."

His blue eyes moved back to Nodoka and then to Kentou, letting his small katana fall from its position, back to his side.

Kanashii began sliding his blades back into there holders. Pausing briefly to inspected the large, inhuman, dents on their sides, realizing if they were hit with anything more them that, they would've snapped and he wouldn't be standing were has was right then. Frowning unhappily he began to walk off, toward the meeting room.

Kentou looked absolutely dumbfounded, but he stopped anyway. He brought the sword up, and placed it over his right shoulder.

"You're lucky Kanashii saved you, I wouldn't have held back. You're lucky to be alive. Next time you wont be so lucky." He practically growled.

Nodoka, on the other hand, had been ready to blast Kentou with chakra. She just barely put out the sparks in time to avoid hitting her would-be rescuer. Kentou turned and placed the sword in the sheath, he began walking to the meeting room. He was in a foul mood now, but Mara was actually rather relieved that she didn't have to come between the two idiots. It was probably better if someone with a higher regard for the lives of the contestants stopped them. I suppose I'm required to attend the meeting too. This was a bad time for a meeting, with tensions running so high, but there was nothing they could do about it now. Mara turned and jumped down to a lower ledge from where she stood, then down again, headed towards the meeting room.