Chapter 24: The Illusionary Medic

Suzumi was rather transfixed in fear as she saw the shinobi stood up once more, craning his neck slightly, and besides breathing slightly heavily, was rather fine. Very slowly, he started to walk towards her, calm and collected, confident that Suzumi would not give a challenge as worthy of Sora, who had been knocked out cold.

Suzumi tried to back away from him, but as she tried to get up while carrying Sora which was now dead weight, she slipped slightly in panic, and fell back upon the dirty forest floor, landing on her rear end. Panicking even further, she started to kick herself away from him, pulling Sora along, trying to put as much distance between herself and the man.

It was a rather pathetic attempt, for the shinobi merely performed a basic body flicker technique, and within a flash he was right behind her. One long arm shot out, and Suzumi gasped as he gripped her neck as tight as a vice, lifting her up as if she was made of paper. Suzumi struggled slightly as she felt her legs lift off from the floor.

" Your friend here did quite a number on me…I'm contemplating on whether to take her back in one piece," he replied, looking down at Sora, whom he had placed his foot upon her head, scowling at her. Suzumi struggled to free herself, but the vice that held her neck started to tighten hard the instant she started the attempt. " Don't try it, if you know what's good for you…" he threatened.

" Get…your…foot…off…my…friend!" Suzumi gasped.

The man merely laughed sarcastically, and to her horror, lifted his leg off Sora to kick her in the gut. Defenseless, Sora's body was flung towards the other side, her back slamming into a tree and hitting the ground, collapsing in a heap.

" So what? What are you going to do about it?" the man snarled.

Perhaps, just perhaps, if he had not done that, Suzumi might have just been a tad bit more compliant, but as soon as she saw Sora being kicked aside, something inside of he just snapped all of a sudden. The sudden fear she felt earlier was gone, her adrenaline now fueling her sudden, undetermined anger instead of her trembling terror. She didn't know how, or why she was doing it, but she decided, from now on, she would be giving him a world of hurt.

I cannot allow myself to be protected all the time…for once, I need to protect those that I hold dear to me in turn!

Suzumi took a quick breath, taking as much air as she possibly could into her mouth, and spat out a needle which she had kept hidden in her mouth quickly. The man spotted her action, and merely flicked his head aside to avoid the shot, but that attack was to merely serve as a distraction for Suzumi. She released one of her hands and procured a long, acupuncture needle in which she kept around her armband on her hand. With one deft flick, the needle had punctured a hole into his sinew, and the vice-like grip was released from her neck.

" Why you…!"

Suzumi took a step back and flung several small needles in his direction. The man merely raised his hands, crossing them in front of his face to avoid them hitting him in the face. Suzumi took this chance to pop a small, purple pill into her mouth. Chewing hard on it and mixing it with her chakra and air, she continued by spewing out a dark, sickly coloured purple gas from her mouth.

The shinobi leaped backwards, wary of the poison gas Suzumi had just shot out. Not only did it serve as a barrier by keeping him backwards, but it also served Suzumi as a smokescreen, as the thick, noxious gas blocked his view of her. By the time the gas had dispersed, Suzumi had already hid herself, along with Sora.

Let's do this! She thought, forming her seals as she looked at him from behind one of the tree trunks. Mirror Illusion: Mirror Image Clone Technique.

Several figures of Suzumi started to appear all around the place, all of them armed with acupuncture needles in their hands. The shinobi merely rushed forward towards the nearest Suzumi which he saw, running his arm at her gut. Predictably, his arm merely passed through her image, as if nothing was there.

Two of her clones threw their needles at him, hitting him on his shoulder and legs. He turned his attention towards the both of them, rushing towards the two of them, his arms swinging in a wild, wide arc, but he still only managed to reach thin air. The rest of them pulled their arms back, attempting another go at him, but he just managed to disappear just in time, leaping up into the trees.

A dull thud was heard, and he managed to leap off the branch he was standing on just before the explosive tag tied to a kunai went off. However, as he skidded aside while the blast went off, his nose picked up something in the air, something sweet and fragrant. It took him a while to register what it actually was, and when he did, the effects had already taken effect.

Suzumi could sense the poison power she had prepared was now disturbing his chakra system, and she felt she was ready for the second wave. She unzipped her pack and procured a small whistle, and clenching it between her teeth, blew slightly into it, producing a shrill sound. Upon hearing it, the man closed his ears, feeling a sound genjutsu coming up.

" Do you think genjutsu is a weak shinobi art?" Suzumi asked one day.

Both Makoto and Hibiki stopped in their tracks as the three of them walked down one of the main market streets and turned around to look at their newly acquired teammate to make up their four man team along with their jounin sensei. Suzumi still felt a little shy around the two guys: one who was blind, yet one of the best ninjutsu users in her class, and the other with a tenacious fighting ferocity that could rival a wild boar. Next to them, she felt coming up a little short.

They had just recently formed their team, and had a few introductions between themselves. Makoto was the quiet, serious guy, his blindness probably keeping him slightly quiet. Suzumi had known that since a few years ago, when he had lost his sight, and had always helped him every opportunity she got, along with Hibiki, but somehow, even when they were a team, they still felt so much like strangers to her.

" What brought this up?" Makoto asked, smiling slightly, as if she needed to be calmed down.

" Well…I just thought…hmm…" Suzumi muttered.

" What are you worried about? You had the top scores in genjutsu lessons during your entire course in the sand academy. That should count as something, no?" Hibiki asked, slinging his spear on his shoulder like he always did.

" It's just that compared to the rest of you, I just come up short…somehow…" Suzumi replied.

" That's preposterous," Hibiki replied.

" We all have flaws, Suzumi. No shinobi is perfect. That's why we work in a team, so that each of us can cover up for the others flaws. You are as good as any of us, and I want you to think of it that way," Makoto replied.

Suzumi didn't seem too convinced.

" Look, genjutsu isn't some sort of sissy-type shinobi art. Do you know why not many people use genjutsu? That's not because it sucks, but only a select number of talented shinobi can utilise," Makoto replied. " Since we are a team now, why don't you help us with your knowledge, eh?"

" What?" Suzumi asked.

" That's a good idea. Makoto and I suck in genjutsu. How about some pointers on how to defend against genjutsu?" Hibiki suggested, walking up vertically the wall of a shop to reach the rooftop. It was almost a habit of theirs, to walk and run along the rooftops of their buildings. After all, they could do it as shinobi, and it beats cutting through an extra 100 meters of distance to walk. Makoto followed quickly enough, and helped Suzumi upwards.

" Urm, pointers?" Suzumi asked.

" Yeah, come on, some pointers won't hurt," Hibiki said.

" Well, what about?" Suzumi asked.

" How about telling us how to defend against genjutsu? After all, we are probably not going to learn it anyway, we may as well learn how to defend ourselves against it in the future. So, how do you defend yourself against genjutsu anyway?" Makoto asked.

" ...Urm..."

" What? Did I say something wrong?" Makoto asked. Hibiki paused as well, wondering what as up.

" No, it's just I find it strange hearing you ask a question," Suzumi admitted.

" What? You assumed this punk knew everything there is about shinobi lore?" Hibiki chuckled.

" Hey, watch your language..." Suzumi said, scowling slightly.

" Hmm, yeah..alright...just don't kill me, alright?" Hibiki laughed out loud. Suzumi pouted slightly and Makoto could only smile and sigh at his friends attitude.

" Well, guess I'll be giving out genjutsu defense lessons 101," Suzumi said. " Well, I'm sure both of you know that genjutsu is a skill where we try to take over the enemy's senses, and to fool his senses into believing something false. This can be done by changing the environment, but the best way is to mess with his chakra system. It takes a considerable amount of skill to do this, but when properly executed, it works wonders."

" The best way to strike using genjutsu is to utilise it properly and knowing when to strike, especially when the enemy is most vulnerable. For example, if it was a sight genjutsu, what would you do first?" Suzumi asked.

" What do you mean?" Hibiki asked.

" If you see a shinobi preparing to hit you with genjutsu, and you, let's just say you just know it somehow..."

" You make me sound dumb..."

" ...What would you do first?" Suzumi asked.

" Hmm...not give a damn?" Makoto suggested.

" Well, no shit, cos you can't see!" Hibiki exclaimed, and the other two chuckled. " Hmm...avoid looking at him?"

" Exactly. But then again, you must be wary. After all, if he is trying to trick your senses, what is there not to say that he's not trying to trick you as well. It is a vulnerable mistake shinobi's make. You can't assume that he will hit you with a sight genjutsu, because if you think that way, your other senses will be compromised."

Bingo! Suzumi thought, jumping out from her hiding spot, her hands having formed the necessary seals for her jutsu. The shinobi looked up, only to fall for her genjutsu she cast as she clapped her hands together and exclaimed " Mirage Illusion Technique: Sand Disturbance Flower".

As soon as her feet hit the floor, a large wall of sand suddenly emerged from the ground, surrounding her body, floating around until she became ethereal. The shinobi looked confused for a second, not before feeling something hit him from the back. He swung backwards, only to feel thin air, while three senbon needles stuck through his back.

There was another wave of wind, and the rustling of sand flowing to his right, and he spun around to his right, only to feel another set of needles hit him by his side. Turning his head around, another set flew to his side, hitting his legs. Suzumi was doing well in concealing herself from him, hitting him while he can't spot her.

" Don't be to confident, punk!" he said, clapping his hands together, then closing his eyes for a second. All of a sudden, a second later, he crouched slightly, then fired himself towards a certain direction, his arms outstretched. He managed to smash into something, and as he slammed his hand upon a nearby tree, he managed to catch Suzumi by her neck, pinning her towards the tree.

" Sound, girl. I can track you using that," The shinobi replied, snarling at her.

Suzumi merely burst into a puff of smoke and the man found himself holding a piece of log against the tree.

Suzumi leaped down from behind him, landing perfectly by sitting herself on his shoulders. She flicked out another senbon and stabbed him hard on the base of his neck, missing by inches and hitting his shoulder instead since he was halfway in the process of throwing her off his shoulders, slamming his fists against her head and knocking her off. Suzumi gave a short groan of pain as she was knocked aside, while the shinobi pulled out the needle, which was dripping in his blood.

Angry now, he jumped at her, and Suzumi was unable to avoid it this time. She felt his hand grab her neck and pin her to the floor, while his free hand punched her hard in her gut. Suzumi started to cough out blood as he hit, the impact striking her hard and causing some internal bleeding. He raised his hand again, but Suzumi found the time to crush the pill she was holding in her hands, which emitted poisonous purple smoke once more. Again, the man was forced to back off to avoid getting poisoned.

Suzumi rolled herself towards the side, keeping her distance as the man started to circle around her, his footsteps moving around the perimeter of the poison gas cloud. Suzumi pulled out a set of senbon needles, only to see the man appear right next to her and slam his palm against her face. However, the man merely found his hand hitting against a log once more.

Needles stabbed him deep into his legs while he was occupied, coming out of nowhere. Turning around, he saw Suzumi some distance away, taking out another set of needles in her hands. The man dashed aside, the pain and the blood that was seeping out of his leg of little consequence. Suzumi winced as he managed to grab her neck and squeeze it tight, this time not an illusion anymore.

Not intending to go down without a fight, she grabbed two senbon needles and pierced them in-between the massive arm that held her down. The sharp edge sank deep into one side of his arm and came out from the sinewy point on the other side, but he didn't seem to feel any pain. Even as the blood continued to drip down all over Suzumi, covering her face in his blood, he didn't wince one single bit. His only reply was to pick her up like some rag doll and slam her hard on a tree.

Suzumi coughed out blood, feeling the taste of it in her mouth as she looked up at the man dizzily. She felt herself running low on breath and energy, and she barely had enough to hold his hand back slightly from breaking her neck. He was furious now, his eyes looking deep into hers. Suzumi tried to grab hold of the needles that she had stuck into his arm and twist them apart to deal some damage, but all that she managed was to make him grunt loudly.

" Hey, pick on someone your own size!" someone yelled loudly from above them. Both of them, the man and Suzumi, looked up towards the tree they were under, only to spot a figure standing above them.

" ...You!" Suzumi exclaimed, as the figure leaped off the tree a second later.