Previously:
"Naru duck!", I shout as a threw a kunai and pin the ninja's sleeve at the wall. Then, Guy sensei came and fell on the wall, smashing it and creating a hole, big enough to go through.
"Guy sensei!" Sakura and I said in relief.
"Now I will restate your mission. Once you have heard it, escape through that hole" Kakashi sensei said and pointed at the hole, Guy sensei had just created. "Chase after Sasuke, join up with him and stop him! Then, take him to a safe location!"
"What happened to Sasuke?" Naru asked.
"I will explain as we go!" Sakura said, grabbed Naruto from the collar of his jacket and along with Packun ran through the hole.
"Come on Shikamaru, no time for you to be lazy", I said as I pushed him through the hole and then run to catch up with the others.
Akuma's POV:
We were running through the roads of Konoha that were either empty or with a fight going on. Thank Kami, we had not fallen on any enemy as we had been following Packun who was leading us through the faster and safest way. Also, as sensei had said, a 4-man team is not so noticeable and it was easier to pass through them without being spotted. All this time we had been running, Sakura and I were explaining to Naruto what had happened. Finally, we left the village after a while and we continued our way into the forest, jumping from tree branch to tree branch.
"I got it! Therefore, that is what has been going on! Sasuke is too anxious!" Naruto said and forced me to leave out a sigh.
"So! Why am I assigned to this? It is a fucking chore", Shikamaru complained.
"Oh stop complaining and do something useful in your life Shikamaru. Like you and Naru said, Gaara is not an average genin and who knows what will happen to Sasuke if we do not reach him on time. So, shut up and keep moving!" I said and I noticed that everyone was watching me with wide eyes. "What is it?"
"Nothing just… wow Akuma, I did not know you could be so bossy"
"Forgive me Naru for caring about my comrade and want to prevent him from having his name written on the KIA stone"
"Akuma is right; our mission is not an A-rank for nothing. It is very important and we have to complete it with success" Sakura said.
"Hey, you guys! Pick up the pace" Packun called from the front.
"Huh? What is it?" Sakura asked.
"We have people on our tail"
"Great, just great" I muttered under my breath.
I was anxious and worried about Sasuke, wanting nothing more than to bring him back safely. Whatever Gaara could do or the monster he was containing, wouldn't stay that for long. What was worse, was the fact that it was all calm and I had hoped that we would be able to do this mission in peace but apparently, some higher power didn't want that.
"From behind, two squads with eight… no, nine men are chasing us!"
"Hey, hey, already? Man, you have to be kidding me" Shikamaru complained, once again but I mentally agreed with him at that moment.
"Don't think that they have a fix on our true proposition yet"
"Geez! They are probably all beyond the chunin level… if they catch up with us, we are done" Shikamaru said.
"Shit! Well, if that is the case then, shall we ambush them?" Naru suggested.
"We'd have an advantage if we were to ambush them. Even if they are twice the number, as long as we surprise them…"Shikamaru said but stopped as he started rethinking his idea. "Man, I thought we would be able to pull it off, but I guess not then"
"What? How come?" Naru asked.
"You guys just do not get it"
"Then explain it to us, oh Master tactician" I sarcastically said.
He left out a sigh. "Okay, listen up! Sure, an ambush is a basic tactic that is very favourable to the user but two necessary conditions must be met. First, those who flee must move without making any noise and discover the enemy. Second, quickly locate and conceal themselves in a place and position where you can take the enemy off guard and ensure you cause the maximum damage to them. Only when both of these conditions are met without a doubt, will the ambush become effective. Well, the first is not so hard to clear as long as we have Packun's nose. And even with the second condition, it may seem at first glance that we would be able to secure the best position to surprise them since this is our home and we are quite familiar with the geography. However, this plan won't work against the followers of a shinobi who was native to Konoha, because they are probably ninja, who have mastered the art of hunting. They will be hunter, who will have been taught the geography of this land and practised mock combat for this battle. Even with that, the ambush will still be advantageous to us but there are too many undecided factors involved. To begin with, the enemy's ninja squad that has been organized for this plan, whereas we have an idiot, a kunoichi with no special ability, a dog, an average kunoichi with a little talent at taijutsu *I glare at him* and the best guy at running away, me"
"Wow, Shikamaru. You think a lot. So, what are we doing then?" I asked.
"Its simple battle tactics you know. It is how to come up with the best plan after fully grasping the combat ability available in a given situation and so, after that analysis, there is only one thing we can do"
"One thing?" Sakura questioned.
"We need to create a diversion that looks as if we were going to ambush them. One of us will have to remain behind and delay by making an ambush"
"Like a decoy?"
"That's right. If they are stalled, they will not be able to locate the remaining four. If we do this, we will be able to lose the trackers but the one who stays behind will possibly die"
"Ok! I get it, I will be-"
"No Naru! I will be the one"
"But Akuma!"
"Listen to Sakura, as Shikamaru said, I am the best in taijutsu here and with my fans I will be able to stall them. Also, you know very that if someone can escape a death situation, is me"
"Wait, I did not finish! It is only logical that I am the decoy"
"But Shikamaru-"
"It is okay Akuma. You are right about that you said and you are somehow a good decoy, but I am more suitable. As you said, your skills are going to be needed further while my skills are only for decoy" Shikamaru said, grabbed a branch and stopped. We did the same, a few branches in front of him. "The shadow possession jutsu was originally a jutsu for decoys you know. Well, I will catch up with you people later. So hurry up and go!"
"You better survive this Shikamaru and… good luck" I said and gave him a small smile before we continue our way towards Sasuke.
