He is trying to kill us.
There was no other explanation as to why we were running around the OUTSIDE of the village at six in the morning.
Fifteen times around the village.
As a warm-up!
By the twelfth time around, I knew Baki-sensei was lying when he said he would go easy on us.
I collapsed on the hard sand of the Intel training grounds. I couldn't get enough breath into my lungs to make any breath actually count. I was sweaty and had sand stuck to my legs because of the sweat. I am going to ignore how most of the sand is there because I just fell onto the sand. However none of that was the point!
"Drink some water and stretch out!" Baki barked.
I groaned as I picked myself off the ground and staggered over to my water. My legs hurt from yesterday. They are dying after this warm up. I am convinced Ameno will have to amputate them before the day is done, especially if this continues.
My water was wet.
It was cold!
I would have sighed with relief if I could. I could feel the cold water, cool my sweaty body down and the water just fill all of the cells that were dehydrated because of the sweat.
I glanced at Hideo and Amagi and felt marginally better that they were in the same condition as I was.
"Stretch!"
I took one last gulp of water, set my canteen down and bend over to start my stretches. Hideo and Amagi were bent over too, the three of us doing the same stretches.
After a few minutes of stretches, my breathing had gotten back to something more normal.
"Academy katas, five through ten!" Baki yelled from the other side of the training field.
I groaned, but assumed the starting position of kata five. Around the mid point of eighth kata, I could hear Amagi muttering to himself. It was too low for me to catch more than a few phrases at a time.
"Stupid ass…. Easy like hell…. Bastard!"
I glanced over in Baki's direction and saw him give an evil smile. I groaned, this was not going to be good.
"Shut up, Amagi!" I hissed, "He can hear you!"
"What?" Amagi asked, looking over towards Baki and his evil smile. "Shit!"
"If I have to do more laps, I'm going to kill you," I hissed again.
"Sorry," Amagi whispered as we continued to the last kata.
Hideo, mostly keeping his voice down, "Would you two shut up! We will get in trouble and we are all going to pay for it!"
"Yes, Hideo," I said as we finished up the kata.
"You have a choice," Baki called, "We can either work on dodging or you can run some more."
Well that wasn't even a choice, of course I am choosing dodging. I don't want to run anymore!
And he knew it! Baki-sensei knew what we would choose, because his grin just got wider.
I look over at Hideo then over to Amagi. Both were wearing identical looks of horror. "Well I'm not saying it," I told them, "Hideo should do it."
Amagi nodded his head very fast.
"Why me?" Hideo asked.
"You are the oldest," I offer.
"You are our leader," Amagi added.
Hideo sighed, "Those answers suck."
"Yeah, well so do our choices," Amagi replied.
"Fine," Hideo sighed then raised his voice, "Let's work on dodging, Baki-sensei."
"Excellent," Baki said, "Follow me." He then turned and walked into the desert.
Hideo sighed and took off after our sensei. Amagi was right behind them. I looked longingly at my water canteen for a moment, before jogging after my teammates.
Baki stopped in front of three large sand pillars. They stood about one and a half meters tall and about half a meter square. The pillars were arranged in a triangle, with enough space between each pillar that a person could stand next to one pillar with arms out to the side without touching another pillar.
"Jump up, one person per pillar," Baki ordered.
I walked over to the pillar on the far left, Hideo took the pillar in the middle and Amagi took the final pillar on the right. We all jumped up.
My feet started to sink into the pillar as soon as they touched. Sending chakra to my feet and picking it up, I was able to stabilize myself, sort of. I wasn't sinking as quickly at least.
"Put chakra into your feet, like walking up the wall," I called out to my teammates.
Within a minute, we were all standing on top of the sand pillar, although calling it a pillar was being generous. It really was just a square of sand that was being held up somehow, but wasn't hard at all. Just loose sand standing upright in a pillar formation.
"Very good," Baki said.
Oh crap! I forgot about him. Then I remembered, we were here to dodge.
"Don't fall off the pillar. Only one person per pillar. Don't get hit," Baki's voice called out. "Break the rules, you all run sprint drills around the village."
"Don't..ah!" I screamed and ducked. Out of nowhere a kunai came flying at my head!
"A shinobi must be quiet, Tsukio!" Baki chided as he threw three more kunai at us.
Ducking, jumping, dodging from side to side while on a one half meter square, moving pillar that is one and a half meters tall is a lot harder than it looks. Trying not to fall down while throwing yourself out of the way of two sharp weapons, even harder. Doing all of that on a surface that is not stable at all, and the only thing keeping you from sinking into the sand is chakra on your feet. Well let's just say that it is near impossible. But never let it be said that my teammates and I were afraid of a challenge.
"Tsukio! Jump!" a voice yelled. I had a split second to look at the empty pillar where Hideo was supposed to be, registered that Amagi was the one yelling at me before I dove onto Hideo's pillar.
Landing on my hands and knees, I focus chakra into the points that are touching the sand to stabilize myself. I glance over and see Amagi teetering on the edge of my old pillar.
"Shit!" I pushed my body up so I was kneeling and flew through my hand signs as fast as I could. I pointed my hands at Amagi and used the air currents to force his body away from the edge of the pillar.
"Fireball jutsu!" Hideo called out.
I glanced over and saw a fireball bloom between Amagi and my pillar, partially covering us from Baki's view.
"Thanks," I call out before moving to stand up. I looked over and saw Amagi was standing firmly on his feet. I took a deep breath and readied for another round of dodging sharp objects being thrown at me. I hadn't finished my breath when I was again throwing myself around on the small pillar.
My world grew smaller and smaller focusing on staying on top of a sand pillar and not getting hit by the kunai being thrown around.
Dodge.
Duck.
Jump to a new pillar.
Repeat.
When one of us got too close to falling off our pillar, we would have to switch and the first person who was stable would throw out some sort of distraction so the other two could stabilize. This continued for years. My arms were weak. My legs could not make another jump. My stomach hurt from having to keep me stable.
No, I would not be the reason we failed!
"Very good," Baki called out. Kunai held in his hands, but down at his sides. "Come down and stretch."
I glanced at my teammates, Hideo shrugged and Amagi just waved his hand in a 'I'll follow you' motion. I nod and together we jump off the sand pillars, only to have them melt into the surrounding sand.
We walk over to Baki and start some more stretches.
"You all did very well. I was surprised to see you three working together to ensure that no one failed. Your use of jutsu, to save your teammates and as a distraction was good. You will need to work on your techniques, but you all have a good base for building more teamwork. I can even see you three having a combination jutsu attack."
I perk up at that, a jutsu combination attack was something we learned about in the academy. In other villages, like the Hidden Leaf village there were whole families, no clans, that worked together to make a combination jutsu. There was one they taught us, it involved three different families, no clans, and they have worked together for generations. I couldn't remember the name of them, but it was something people feared.
"Follow me," Baki called out. He walked back towards the training ground. Once we were there, he continued, "Drink lots of water, take a shower, get changed and meet me outside the locker room in twenty minutes. I will have your missions ready for you."
"Yes, sensei," we called out, grabbing our water canteens and rushing to the locker room.
Exactly nineteen minutes later, we were standing outside the locker room where Baki was waiting for us.
"Good. Now today you have two missions. They both involve painting, the first is the water tower and the second is to paint the main aqueduct. Which did you want to do first?"
"Do we have to paint the whole water tower?" I asked.
"Just the legs of the tower, the aqueduct stretches from the oasis all the way to the water treatment building." Baki answered.
"I think we should start with the tower," Hideo suggested.
"Why?" Amagi asked.
"The aqueduct goes from the oasis to the water treatment building, which means it goes down, so we could end this assignment on the ground instead of in the air."
I nod, "Good enough reason to start at the tower for me."
"Tower it is," Amagi agreed.
"Good, now for your extra training, you three will have to change your eye color. Nothing drastic, but something different than your own."
"Henge our eyes?" I asked.
"Eyes are one of the more difficult henges to perfect and maintain. Not only do you have to transform the color of your eyes, but you must remember that eyes never remain static in color. They change depending on your mood. So, you can't just change the color and be done with it. You must remember that if you are angry, your eyes will darken. If you are sleepy, you will need some extra veins in your eyes to make them look bloodshot. For now, I just want you to focus on changing the color. Keep it a static change for now. Because of the color changes that happen naturally with your eyes, you can't just put a different color over your current eye color and forget about it."
I nod, not really understanding, but convinced that I will eventually. I guess this means I will be spending more time looking at people's eyes. Henges are so much trouble, especially if you want to get them right. At least with hair you just had to worry about color and making sure you got every single strand of hair.
I focused my chakra and performed the hand signs before placing my hands over my eyes. The icy blue of my eyes bleed into a warm golden brown. I could feel the slight drain on my chakra, letting me know that I had completed the henge.
"For long term missions, contacts will be a better option especially if you can convincingly portray that you need the contacts to see. However this exercise will ensure that you can in fact hold a small henge for a considerable time. This will also help your chakra reserves to expand," Baki said as the boys finished their henges.
Amagi's brown eyes were suddenly black, which was very unnerving, while Hideo's eyes were a brilliant blue, like the summer sky. I noticed the boys were staring at me, staring at each other.
"Strange," Amagi said.
"Agreed," Hideo replied.
"Ready to go?" I asked, not feeling the need to say anything else.
"Let's go," Baki agreed and we walked out the building towards the water tower.
When we arrived at the water tower, there was a group of genin who milling around like sheep, while a smaller group of Jōnin were pointing at something, then pointing to the water tower.
"What do you think is going on?" I asked Hideo and Amagi.
Baki gave us a look that screamed "behave!" And walked over to the group of Jōnin.
"Does he think we are going to get into trouble?" I asked, offended that our sensei had obviously decided that we were a team of trouble makers.
"Well look who crawled out of the sand," a high pitch voice called out.
"You have got to be kidding me!" I muttered before plastering a smile on my face. "As I live and breathe, is that Saya? I thought you were with the puppet corps?" my voice saccharine sweet as I turned to face the one person I could happily never see again.
"I am!" Saya yelled, her high-pitched voice getting higher as she yelled at me. "However, I need to complete D-rank missions with a team so I can become a chūnin. You remember my teammates, don't you Tsukio?"
"Your team?" I asked, scared of the answer. No scratch that I was terrified that Saya was on a genin team with two other people. Was she going to corrupt them or was she going to destroy them?
"My teammates," Saya purred, "Sana and Mamushi. It is a shame that you couldn't be put on a team with your friends."
Before I could say anything, Baki walked back over to us, "There are currently four other teams who will be painting the water tower with us. Suna is expecting a group of shinobi from Konoha and Lord Kazekage wants the village to look its best."
"What does that mean?" I asked.
"It means that the Jōnin will supervise the work, but no one will be given the completed mission report unless everyone finishes."
I sighed, "So if one team is doing most of the work, then this will take four times as long?"
"Pretty much," Hideo said.
"So how did you want to do this?" Amagi asked.
"Since there are four teams, the Jōnin have decided that each team should get a leg of the water tower. I want the three of you to divide the work evenly between the three of you. As one of you finishes feel free to help the other two, or you can get started on painting the aqueduct. So long as both missions are completed before dinner tonight, I will be satisfied."
"Yes, Baki-sensei," I said.
Baki nodded and walked back to the base of the water tower, setting out paint cans and paint brushes.
"How did you want to do this?" I asked Hideo.
Hideo studies the water tower, "It looks like there are three sets of braces on the legs, we could each paint a section of bracing. We can store the paint cans where the braces and the tower legs meet."
"The question is, how do we get to the top," Amagi interrupted.
"How did we get to the top of the Kage house yesterday?" Hideo fired back.
Amagi groaned.
I sighed.
"So, we divide up by the braces, we need to get all four sides of the legs, we have to do a good job and none of us get paid until every team has finished their part of the tower? Did I get it right?" I asked.
"Yep," Hideo said, "That sums it up. By the way, who were you talking to earlier?"
I sigh, this time full of frustration, "Her whole team and I were in the same Academy class. She is from an old shinobi family and would constantly pick on me and my friends because most of us came from a civilian family. She believes she is better than everyone because she is from an old family. Her team is full of people who like to be cruel, just because they can."
"Is she going to be a problem?" Amagi asked.
"I don't know, it depends on how much she wants to complete this mission. However, just to be on the safe side, I suggest we keep an eye on her and her team and try to keep apart from them."
Hideo nodded, "Did you want to take the middle section then?"
"Why the middle?"
"It will be easier for both Amagi and I to keep an eye on you to make sure she leaves you alone. Also you will be in the air, which should make it harder for her to talk to you."
I smile grateful, "Thank you, I would love to take the middle."
Amagi put his hand on my shoulder, "You are our teammate. Besides, if you drop out, then we don't get to participate in the chūnin exams."
I laugh, only partially sure he is joking. "Still, I appreciate it. If you get hungry, or thirsty, let me know, I have lots of canteens sealed and some snacks sealed away for us. I figured we would be hungry with this mission."
"Our goal is to be finished way before lunch, with the water tower?" Hideo asked.
"I think that is a good goal. So once one person is finished help the other two?" I asked.
"At least at first, we will see how it works when we get closer to the end," Amagi turned to face me, "Remember the mission, Tsukio. Remember our goal. Do not get distracted by the petty nature of that girl."
I nod, "Yes, Amagi."
Hideo smirked, "I'll take the top part, that way if you start to get drawn in, I will just drop paint on you."
My mouth falls open as I gasp, "You wouldn't!"
Hideo doesn't answer, but his lips are turned up in a downright evil smile.
"You know, you should stop hanging out in Interrogation as much, that smile could be a weapon," I complain as we walk to the leg Baki has set up for us.
"You have your plan?" Baki asked once we were standing next to him.
"Yes, sensei," we chorused.
"Good, now get started."
I picked up one of the cans of paint and tucked a paint brush into my belt. "Ready Hideo?" I asked, eager to get this mission completed so we can move onto the next piece.
"Oh before you three go, if you are going to pass out because of chakra exhaustion, I know you three used a lot this morning and it sounds like you will be using more for this mission. Drop the henge on your eyes, the last thing we need is for you to pass out because of chakra exhaustion and leave the team down one person to finish the missions," Baki paused before giving us a hard stare, "Understood?"
"Yes, Baki-sensei!" the three of us replied.
"Now go and paint this water tower."
I nodded and turned to watch Hideo start walking up the tower. He just put his foot flat against the leg and started walking up. I was just thinking of climbing, using the braces, but there was no way in hell I was going to let him show me up.
"Show off," Amagi muttered next to me.
"Agreed," I made sure my grip on the paint can was firm and concentrated chakra into my feet, "But we aren't going to let him show us up are we?"
Amagi grinned, "Hell no!"
I grinned at Amagi as I walked up the side of the water tower. Wedging the paint can into the small space between the leg of the tower and the cross brace, I pop the lid and quickly start painting. Thankfully we are in the shadow of the water tower for now, which helps keep the sun from burning us.
I listen to the bickering from the other teams with half an ear. Mostly I am concentrating on getting my part of the tower done so I can move onto the aqueduct. And I still must get some time to go and meet Isamu at the civilian school.
Despite popular belief, the buildings in Suna were not all made from dirt and mud bricks. Most were, because it is a very practical way to build the houses, it was a natural barrier to the heat and harsh winds that were the prominent weather features of the region. The water tower for example was made of metal for strength and the actual water reservoir was covered in a thin layer of mud and straw mixture that is dried on. This allows the mud mixture to help regulate the temperature inside the reservoir. Most of the important government buildings were reinforced with some metal and Interrogation is definitely reinforced.
The water tower had four legs that held the reservoir forty-three meters above the ground. Each leg had three cross braces to reinforce the strength of the whole structure. These legs and cross braces were made of metal, which meant as the day progressed, they were going to get hotter and hotter. Along the northernmost leg, there was a ladder that allowed access to the reservoir part of the tower. There was a small door along the north side to allow access to the inside of the reservoir which was emptied a few times a year so the reservoir could be cleaned and repaired if needed.
In the center of the reservoir, one on top and one on the bottom, were two pipes, one pipe, the one on top brought water in from the water treatment building and the other would distribute the water to the main aqueduct that fed the water to each section of the village. The water treatment building had two main sources of water, the first is the oasis that Suna was built near, the second was the infrequent rains we would get. When it did rain, huge pools would catch the rain, there was a complicated structure of pipes that would funnel water into the pools after a rain. What rain wasn't caught by the pipes would end up in the oasis anyway.
Painting my section of the leg was not that complicated, the most complicated piece was when I had to move around the wet paint to get the opposite side of the leg. Hideo and I were using chakra to stick our feet to the metal that was just thicker than our feet. The other genin teams were complaining and making this out to be a huge big deal. I was trying really hard not to roll my eyes, but really, how hard is it to paint just about fifteen meters? Yes, it is a pain, yes it is uncomfortable, but it needed to get done, it was the mission. Not to mention Lord Kazekage wanted it done!
"Water!" Baki's bark broke into my thoughts.
Automatically I reach for my canteen, my hands grabbing only air. I blink and look at the spot where my canteen is supposed to be. I look around for my canteen but I didn't find it.
"Tsukio? Do you still have your scroll?" Hideo asked from above me.
I look up at him, as I reach for my belt. My fingers find the scroll and I smile, "I do. Want some water?"
"Please," He says, wiping the sweat off his forehead.
"Okay," I make sure the paint can and paintbrush is secure, then I take a deep breath and jump down to the ground.
"Hi Amagi," I say as I near him.
"Hey Tsukio, giving us some water?"
"Do you want some?" I counter.
"Please," came the muffled reply as Amagi used his arm to wipe the sweat from his face.
"Hideo, come down and get some water, like Baki-sensei said," I called up to the top of our leg. I quickly set the scroll down and unsealed the water canteens I had there. Hideo jumped down on the other side of me and I passed a canteen to each of my teammates before drinking a gulp from my canteen. I pulled my forehead protector off and wiped the sweat from my face.
"How close are you to being finished?" Hideo asked?
"I have one more coat on each side before I do the cross braces," Amagi answered.
I groaned, "I finished my first coat and while that was drying in started on the front of cross braces."
"I have one coat on the cross braces to do and a little bit of touch up on the leg."
"Why are you so far ahead?" I asked.
Hideo gave me that smile adults give to kids when they are explaining something simple, "I currently am alone at the top of the tower, so I am not having to work around other people."
"Really?" I asked, glancing around. For the first time I noticed that all of the other teams are taking a water break in the shadow of the water tower. "Oh yeah, did you guys want a snack or something?"
"I could use a snack," Amagi said.
I unrolled my scroll some more and found what I was looking for, a quick swipe of my thumb filled with chakra and three bags popped out of the seal. "Chips okay with you?"
Amagi smiled, "Food is food. Give it here."
"Chips are not very healthy," Hideo admonished, while accepting the bag I held out to him.
I shrug, "The way I figure it, we are using a lot of calories just painting in the sun and I would rather have the calories from chips and be full until our next break, than be hungry because I didn't have enough calories."
"Listen to the girl, Hideo," Amagi laughed, "My roommate tells me that girls know all about calories because they are constantly trying to not have them."
Not even thinking about it, I take a handful of sand and throw it at Amagi, "Shut up! Does it look like I am trying to avoid calories?"
Amagi laughs and ducks out of the way, Hideo just shakes his head at the two of us.
Amagi and I seem to have developed a less hostile relationship, or at least one where he is not constantly trying to act better than me. Maybe he has decided that I am worth something, or maybe our shared goal is helping him get over this dislike of me.
"You should listen to your teammate, civilian. I mean you do look like you could lose a few pounds. No one wants to be teamed up with a fat girl who will slow them down," a hated, high pitched voice called out from behind me.
Amagi and Hideo's heads snap towards me. For a moment I had forgotten that the bitch Saya was also part of the teams painting. She had been so quiet, or at least I have been ignoring her the whole time. I watch as Amagi and Hideo stare at me, waiting to see what I will do next.
I paste a grin on my face and turn my head to look over at Saya, who has her doll out and is fixing her doll's hair. I deliberately make my voice cloy because I know it irritates her, "What you see isn't fat, Saya, this," I pointed to my upper body, specifically my chest, "is what happens when you stop being a little girl and you get an adult woman's body. Don't worry, you will get there soon, I'm sure."
Hideo choked on his mouthful of chips.
Amagi was wrecked by a sudden coughing fit.
Baki-sensei watched from the side, between where we sat and where Saya and her team were. I could be wrong, but I will swear that I saw his lips twitch.
"You bitch!" Saya shouted, her face turning bright red, I could almost see the steam coming out of her ears and the fire out of her eyes. With a flick of her wrist her doll started to run across the distance that separated us.
I swiftly moved to my feet, ready to meet the attack head on, although what I thought a small doll, no, the small puppet, would do, I have no idea. Call it instinct.
Amagi and Hideo stood up with me, slightly behind me but close enough our shoulders would touch if I leaned back a bit.
"Hold!" Baki barked, looking straight at me.
My hands fell back to my side, waiting for him to tell me what to do. I could hear the swooshing noise of Amagi and Hideo also dropping their hands. Meanwhile Saya's doll had also stopped moving and her team moved to stand slightly in front of her.
"Tsukio, Hideo, Amagi, your water break is over. Finish here, we have more that needs to be done."
I shoot a glare over to Saya and her team before saluting Baki-sensei, sealing my canteen back into my scroll, tying my forehead protector onto my belt and climbing back up to my spot on the water tower. I picked up the brush and started painting. Using the repetitive motion of the paint to sooth me.
Hideo hung down and helped me with the taller parts of the cross braces and gave me an encouraging smile. "You didn't start it, although you could have kept your mouth closed. I will admit it was funny the way her face turned red. Now all of the boys will be looking at her chest and compare it to yours or one of the other girls."
I shrug it off, "I don't care. You and Amagi don't treat me like a fragile flower like most guys at the Academy did, once I started to develop. As long as you keep doing that, I don't care what other people think."
"You might care once they start staring at your chest and not your face," Hideo cautioned.
"If they are looking at my chest, then they won't be noticing if my eyes are changing color the way they are supposed to, or they won't notice when you or Amagi slit their throats.," I reasoned.
Amagi, hearing that last part laughed, "Well she isn't wrong there, Hideo."
I roll my eyes, "Are you done, Hideo?"
Hideo nodded.
"Do you think you could help me with the top part of my section, not just the brace? That way I can finish my part faster," I asked.
"Sure," Hideo said and continued to paint.
With Hideo's help I was able to quickly finish my part. Hideo and I jumped down and went to help Amagi, who was having more trouble, simply because people kept getting in his way and he had to do more ducking and moving around the structure.
"Tsukio, I want you to go over and start on the aqueduct," Hideo murmured, glancing over at the area where Saya's team was. They were currently working on their second coat of paint. "I will stay behind and help Amagi and to make sure that no one messes with our paint job. Once we are released, we will come and get you and we will have lunch."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course," Amagi chimed in, "I am almost finished here. And it doesn't take two of us to make sure the other teams behave. One of us will come and help you before too much longer."
"Okay then," I say slowly. I put my paint brush down and walked over to Baki-sensei.
"Hideo is going to help Amagi finish up and I am going to start on the aqueduct," I report, standing with my back straight and my head held high.
"Is your portion of the mission complete?" Baki asked.
"Yes, Baki-sensei. Amagi only has a little left to complete, and there is not enough space for me to help. Therefore it was agreed that in order to complete both missions within the given timeframe, I should be the one to start working on the aqueduct."
Baki nodded, "Alright, I will accompany you to where you will start and make sure you have everything you need."
"Thank you, Baki-sensei."
Baki and I walked over to the boys, Baki quickly informed them of where he was going, but that he would be back. I used the time to unseal the rest of the water and a small bento filled with snacks and set them next to the boys.
"Here is more water and more snacks for you guys. Don't forget to share, Amagi."
"Do you have water for yourself?" Hideo asked.
"I have one canteen, I can fill it up while we walk."
"Okay, remember, lunch when we meet up again," Amagi said.
"I remember, Mother made bentos for all of us today."
"Tsukio! Let's go," Baki called from the street.
"Coming, sensei!" I called back as I ran to catch up to him. Giving one last look to my teammates from over my shoulder I made sure they were doing good, I hurried forward.
Baki led me further down the road to the water treatment building. He walked over to the biggest pipe and nodded to me. "Stay here while I find someone who can give us specific instructions."
"Yes, sensei."
I looked around for a place to fill my canteen, and not seeing one, I decided to wait on drinking the rest of my canteen.
Baki came back a few minutes later with more paint cans and more paint brushes. "The aqueduct has already been primed, so all you have to do is give the aqueduct one coat of paint. I would suggest that you do a single section of pipe all the way around then move onto the next section."
I nodded.
"Here," Baki held out a large sealed container, "Fill your canteen in this and have the boys do that when they get here. I am going to go and check on them."
"Yes, Baki-sensei," I unscrewed my canteen and opened the container, then I filled my canteen. I watched Baki turn around and walk back the way we came.
"Oh and Tsukio?" Baki called out.
"Yes, sensei?"
"Good job cutting Saya down, however next time, don't endanger the mission."
I perk up at his praise, but my happiness is cut short when he reminds me of the first shinobi rule. The mission always comes first.
"Yes, sensei," I say, looking up to see him walk away. I finished filling my canteen, recapped the container and took a sip of water. Looking over at the aqueduct, I picked up the paint brush and started to paint.
Stopping every section of pipe, I took a sip of water. After a while, I am not sure how much time passed, but I was able to paint the nine- and one-half section of the pipe before Hideo and Amagi came to join me.
"Everything went well?" I asked, putting my paint brush down and stretching my back.
"As well as can be expected," Hideo replied, "The tower is painted, and the teams were given the clearance to be done for the day. That Saya person was not happy that you left, and she tried to mess up the cross braces that you painted. However after we reminded her that all of us completing the mission is dependent on all of the tower being correct, she stopped."
Amagi grinned, "What Hideo means is that he threatened to burn her little puppet if she continued to throw dirt at the wet paint on the cross braces. Then Baki-sensei returned and told us that our part was good and we should help one of the other teams. If we could do that, he would recommend that we get a higher portion of the mission pay."
I laughed, "And did you?"
Hideo chuckled, "Of course we did. We basically finished the top portions of the tower, because most of the teams couldn't even use chakra to stay up there."
"Good for you guys," I bend down, pull out my scroll and unseal three bento boxes. "Lunch is served," I say, moving into the shade of a nearby building. I brought the container of water with me, "We can fill up the rest of the canteens after we eat, but if you need some more water, fill up with this."
We all sat in the shade and ate our lunch quietly.
"Tsukio, your henge is faded," Hideo pointed out while I was about half way through my bento.
"Oh," I reply and put more chakra into the henge on my eyes. "Do you think it is strange that no one has said anything about our eye color yet?"
"I don't," Amagi said, "most people don't pay that much attention to the color of the eyes, unless they need to know it for some reason. Besides, other than that fresh genin group, I didn't know anyone who was on that mission, so why would they think my eye color is wrong."
"Good point," I said.
Hideo glanced at the sun, "What time does your brother get out of school?"
"In four hours," I told him.
Hideo nods, "Then we don't have much time to get this done. We need to hurry."
"Baki-sensei said we only need to do one coat of paint. I was able to do ten before you arrived. I am sure we can finish this definitely before dinner, before Isamu gets out of school, if we hurry," I said.
"Then let's get started then." Amagi said, filling two canteens with water and setting them over on the side. "We can just keep moving the water down in the shade of the buildings, that way we don't have to worry about it getting too hot."
"Okay," I agree as I walk back to finish painting the section I was working on before we stopped for lunch.
We worked in silence for a while, just the normal sounds of the village, breaking the silence. I allowed my thoughts to wonder as we moved forward, each of us taking a section of pipe, painting it and moving to the next available section. It was tiring, to stand and move then do lots of bending to get the underside of the pipe. As we moved away from the water treatment building, the pipe began to get lower and lower to the ground. Making us have to bend closer and closer to the ground, to the point where we were kneeling on the hot sand to get to the parts we needed to paint.
Finally we reached the end of the above ground portions of the aqueduct. Hideo and I helped Amagi to paint the final section.
"Now what do we do?" Amagi asked.
I glance up at the sun, I have a little bit of time. "We could go back to the water treatment building and ask if our job was satisfactory."
Hideo nods, "We can also ask if Baki-sensei left any instructions for us when we are finished."
We walked along the aqueduct, my feet dragging a little. The heat was finally getting to me, as was the fact that I was in the sun the whole day. I was tired, between the early start, the difficult training session and the two missions, all I wanted to do was sleep. I let Hideo do the talking when we arrived at the building.
"We have reached the end of the above ground part of the aqueduct," Hideo reported to the person at the front desk.
"Oh, really? Already? I was sure that would take you at least another day," the woman said.
We just stared at her.
"Oh, let me give you your completed mission scroll," she pulled the red scroll out from a drawer in her desk. "Your sensei said to give you this when you were finished and to tell you to get something cold before you go to your brother's school. After you do that, you are to come to Kage tower and turn your mission in. I will meet you there," she read from a piece of paper attached to the outside of the scroll she handed Hideo.
My eyes widened at the message, Baki-sensei knew about my promise to meet my brother?
Hideo nodded, "Thank you," he turned and with a hand on each of our shoulders, he moved Amagi and I out the door. "You heard Baki-sensei, first we need to get something cold, any suggestions?"
"Shaved ice?" Amagi suggested.
"Tsukio?"
Shaved ice sounds good," I respond.
"What is with the face?" Amagi asked as we walked down to the shaved ice stand.
"What face?" I asked.
Amagi pointed at me, "That face!"
"I think what Amagi is asking, is what is bothering you?" Hideo clarified.
"Oh, I'm just surprised that Baki-sensei knew about me needing to meet with my brother today."
Amagi laughed, "This is Baki-sensei we are talking about, the sensei for the Sand Siblings and current advisor to Lord Hokage. I think he knows everything."
Hideo snickered, "Well not everything, but it shouldn't be a surprise that Baki-sensei knew. You were talking about it today after all."
I shrug, "I guess you're right, but it is still a little strange."
"We are shinobi, it is our job to figure out the things that people hide," Amagi offered.
"Okay, okay," I walk a little faster to the shaved ice stand.
We place our orders, I make sure to get one for Isamu and Takashi.
"What?" I asked at Hideo's raised eyebrow, "My brothers love shaved ice, it will be a nice treat for them." I asked the man behind the counter for a small box to carry all three in. He smiled at me and placed all five shaved ices into a cooling container.
Shaved ice in hand, the three of us walked down to the civilian school. It didn't take us long, so we stood next to the fence and took out our shaved ice and started to eat it.
"Mmm," Amagi moaned, "Shaved ice is so good!"
"Especially after a hot day doing missions in the sun," Hideo agreed.
I pause with my spoon halfway to my mouth, "Do you think we can drop the henge on our eyes now?"
Hideo also paused, "The mission is not technically over, but your brother will deficiently notice if your eyes are brown and not blue."
"Well I wouldn't risk it, you can just tell your brother that you are doing some training, which is true," Amagi offered.
I nod, letting the green tea flavored ice melt on my tongue, "I agree, besides this should only be a quick stop then we will go to Kage tower and our missions will be complete. Four missions down, sixteen more to go."
"Thank Kami for that!" Amagi replied. "I am ready to get some hard training done!"
I gasp, looking at him in shock, "What do you mean hard training? Are you saying that what we did this morning wasn't hard?"
Amagi rubbed the back of his neck, "Well it wasn't easy, but I would say that it could have been harder."
"Of course it could have been! Baki-senei said that he was taking it easy on us, or did you forget?!" I couldn't help but ask.
"Yeah, well," Amagi blushed a little, "I am just saying, physical stuff is hard, but I want something more challenging. I want to learn more spy techniques, more jutsus to be able to grab information, or even just ways to interrogate someone."
Hideo nodded, "While I agree with wanting to progress in more than just physical readiness, we did agree that we would focus on D-rank missions and getting our physical selves into shape, before we move onto more complicated things. We also will be spending one day at Intel or Interrogation each week to start learning. These things take time."
"Yeah, well, I am just ready to move on, that is all I'm saying."
The bell rang and the doors flew open a few seconds later. School was out. I stood up and looked around for either of my brothers. I saw Takashi first, he was talking to a boy with black hair, Takashi's hands were moving quickly and enthusiastically, so it must have been a good story.
Isamu arrived not even a minute later, his head down and he was shuffling his feet. I took one step towards him, when a kid with dark blond hair came running up behind him and shoved my little brother!
I dropped my shaved ice and raced over, pushing every bit of speed I could. I caught my brother just before he hit the ground.
"Tsukio!" Isamu cried out when he saw who had him, "You came!"
"Of course I came, silly little brother," I knew I was giving my brother a very soft smile, the one I reserved for him. "Sensei was nice enough to let me come and see you between missions." I could feel the smile drop as I looked up at the blond who was standing behind my brother, his mouth open in shock. "And who might you be?" My voice was slightly warmer than the shaved ice I had been eating prior.
Takashi answered for the boy, "That is Shin, he lives at the end of our street."
"Really? So since we are neighbors, I can safely assume that you running into my brother was just an accident, that you just were not looking at where you were going? Am I safe to assume that?"
A dark chuckle comes from behind me, I glance at it quickly and see the Amagi and Hideo following me and watching my back. Hideo's face was a blank mask, while Amagi's face was pinched, his eyes were narrowed as he stared at Shin. Amagi was the one who gave the dark and scary chuckle.
Shin looked from me, to the two boys standing behind me and back at Isamu, "An accident, of course. I wasn't looking where I was going."
I feel my lips lift in a smile that had too many teeth showing to really be called a smile and nodded, "Very good. I would hate for something to happen to my brother, especially while I am out on missions, protecting the village."
Isamu picked this moment to pipe in, "Maybe one of your missions will be to protect Shin's father's caravan. He deals with artists and their pottery goods."
I look over at Shin and see that he has gotten slightly paler, "I could, but you know I have no control over which missions I'm assigned so it will be up to fate if I end up watching a caravan or two." I stared at Shin, hoping I wouldn't have to threaten a child, especially since that threat would be an empty one, since I was not going to forget the first rule. As I watched Shin get even paler, I decided that I didn't need to threaten him, so I gently moved Isamu back to his feet and got on my feet.
"I have to go, but I brought you guys some shaved ice to eat on the way home. Don't tell Mother though. I don't want to get into trouble because you two ruined your dinner."
Isamu's face lit up, "Will you be home for dinner?"
"I don't know, it depends on if I'm given another mission or if sensei needs us to work on something."
Isamu's smile fell just a fraction, "Okay, being a ninja is hard work."
I ruffled his hair, "Anything is hard work if you wish to be the best." I turn to Takashi who is holding the box of shaved ice, "I'll see you two later. Go straight home, since I already brought you your treat."
Takashi smiled and leaned against me briefly, the closest I would get to a hug because we were in public, "Yes, Tsukio. I hope the rest of your day goes well."
"Me too, little brother, me too." I told him as the group of us walked out of the school's yard. I then watched as my brothers headed towards home, only then did I walk towards Kage tower.
"Think that kid is going to pick on your brothers again?" Amagi asked.
"I have no idea, but with the unspoken threat of us guarding his father's caravan, it could be enough to keep him in line."
"Or it could be enough for him to tell his dad of the unspoken threat and his dad uses a different hidden village for his protection needs." Hideo said.
"True, but the threat was unspoken, so it isn't like Shin could prove anything," I said.
Hideo nodded, "Let's go turn these missions in."
We walked quickly to Kage tower, after looking around the mission room and not seeing our sensei, we quickly got in line to turn our mission in. After handing it over to the chūnin behind the desk and we were given our pay slips, we walked out of the mission room.
"Do we look for him?" I asked.
"Where would we start?" Amagi countered.
I look around, not seeing anyone, I shrug, "Well we could see if one of the secretaries on the other floors have seen sensei."
"Baki-sensei said he would meet us here," Hideo pointed out.
"So you want to wait here for him?" I asked.
"Well not really, I want to take a shower and get all of this paint off of me, but I also don't want to screw this up."
"Well how about we only ask the secretaries on the second and third floor, if we see any, then we can come right back," I offered. "That way we don't have to wonder too far and Baki-sensei will be able to find us if he shows up while we are upstairs."
Hideo didn't look convinced.
"I'll take the full blame for not being right here when he shows up," I offered.
A huge sigh came from Hideo, but he didn't say anything else when I started to move towards the stairs.
The first secretary didn't have a clue, the second said she saw Baki-sensei going to the Kage's office.
"Did we want to go upstairs?" I asked.
Tsukio!" A voice called from behind the two boys I was talking to. I leaned over and saw Matsuri standing in the hallway behind us. "What are you doing?"
"Looking for Baki-sensei, he said to meet him at Kage tower, but he didn't say where in the tower," I answered.
Matsuri grinned, "Well he was in Gaara-sensei's office just a moment ago, did you want me to run up and see where he wants to meet you all?"
"If it isn't inconvenient for you," Hideo answered.
"No problem, I'll be back in a second," and Matsuri ran up the stairs. Less than five minutes later, she returned, "You can meet him upstairs, he is just helping Gaara-sensei with some paperwork."
"Thanks Matsuri!" I said as my teammates and I moved towards the stairs.
At Lord Kazekage's office, we found the door open and no one at the desk. Amagi shoved me towards the open door, which is how I ended up going into the Kage's office head first with my arms flailing around me like a windmill.
I shot a glare over my shoulder to the grinning madly Amagi, then I stood straight up and looked around the room.
I gulped.
I was the center of attention by three sets of eyes. One black, one teal and one green. I summon a smile and wave, "Hi Baki-sensei. We have finished our missions like you said and are here as requested."
Behind me I can hear the rustle of clothing as Hideo and Amagi walk to stand next to me.
"Very good," Baki said, walking out from behind the desk. "You may drop your henges."
I heard the sigh of relief from Amagi. I managed to stifle mine, I was running dangerously low on chakra at this point.
"Amagi, Hideo you have the rest of the day to move into your new quarters, the chūnin at the main desk will have your new room assignments for you. Just clear out your rooms, a group of genin have already been assigned to clean your rooms. As for the three man rooms, there are currently none available, but there should be one in about six months. Tsukio, you have six months to do whatever it is you need to do, in order to move into that room when it becomes available."
I bow, "Yes, sensei."
The boys also bow, "Yes, sensei."
"Good, you are dismissed for the rest of the evening. We will meet at the same place, same time tomorrow."
"Yes, sensei," we chorused before turning around and walking away.
"Are you sure they are the right team for the job? They are young," Temari's voice could be heard behind us.
"They will be perfect. Baki has the rest of the month to get them in shape, besides it is only escort duty when you are not available. Or since you and that Nara kid will be doing most of the work, they can show the others around," Lord Kazekage replied in his monotone voice.
"Don't worry, Lady Temari, my team will be ready for this mission. They are ready for it now, because of Tsukio's experience with the different merchants and dignitaries her father comes into contact with. This time will ensure they build a foundation of trust and will be able to follow Tsukio's lead if needed." Baki-sensei said.
"Tsukio!" hissed Hideo. I looked over and only then noticed that I stopped walking and hurried across the floor to where my teammates were standing.
We walked down the stairs, "Do you want or need my help moving?" I asked.
Hideo shook his head, "I don't have that much stuff to move, since the furniture normally stays in the room."
"I could use the help," Amagi said, "I don't have a good bag to put my stuff in."
Hideo frowned, "You need a backpack or something to take with us when we are out of the village."
"I know, and I'm going to buy one, I just need a couple more missions to be able to afford a new one."
I smile, "Well when you go looking for one, bring me with you, I can get you a good deal. For now, let's get your stuff moved. Besides this way I can see where you two are and come find you."
We made our way to the barracks, stopping briefly at the main desk to get their new room assignments.
"Third floor, last door on the left, before you get to the back stairwell."
The three of us walked up the stairs to the third floor and then down the hall. Hideo slaps a piece of paper on the door, a pulse of chakra and then the door opens.
"We will have to add our chakra to the locks," Hideo said as he walked through the door.
I grinned at his back as I followed.
"Look at this!" Amagi whispered as he walked in the room.
We walked into the main room. On the left is the living room, with two couches, a television on a small bookshelf, and a small coffee table. To the right was the kitchen with a small table and four chairs. Straight in front of us was a small hallway that led to a bathroom and the two bedrooms. Hideo and Amagi walked straight to the bedrooms, to claim the room they wanted, while I explored the kitchen. There were some basic pots, pans and two plastic sets of dishes. Two full sets of silverware and a small pile of mismatched chopsticks were in one of the drawers.
"So I get the first room if you want the second," Hideo was saying as the two came back to the front of the room.
"You will need some more cooking things and some other dishes. Also food," I tell them.
"Let's just start getting our stuff up here," Amagi said.
I walked to the door, "Lead the way, Amagi." I pull out the scroll that held our lunch and the canteens, "We can put some of your stuff into this scroll which will make it easier to move, Amagi," I glanced over at Hideo, "I can easily bring you the scroll to help out if you want the extra room."
"Let's see how it looks after you are done with Amagi, I have most of my stuff already packed up in boxes and bags."
"Okay," I give Hideo a big smile and walk out the door, "Let's get started!"
I followed as Amagi walked to the stairs and went down one floor. He opened a door in the middle and we walked in. I paused as soon as I walked in. The room was clean, but there was a smell coming from the other room that made me want to gag.
Amagi looked over at me, "Breath through your mouth, in short breaths."
I stare at him, "Is that your roommate?"
Amagi nodded.
"Lets get your stuff out of here now!" We walked to the right and Amagi's room looked like a wind storm had come through.
"Are you kidding me?!" he snarled.
"What happened?"
Amagi turned to glare at the closed door, "It would appear that my roommate was looking for something and thought I might have it."
I turn to look at the closed door, "Does your roommate do this often?"
Amagi nodded.
I pull my scroll out and unroll the whole thing. I then pull out a small brush and a bottle of ink, "You just have clothes in here, right?"
"I do."
"Good," I concentrate on getting the seal right, I don't want to seal his clothes and not be able to get them out.
Amagi started to fold his clothes and make a neat pile of them. I glance up from my sealing and frown, Amagi doesn't have a lot of clothes, it looks like he has four shirts, four sets of pants, one pair of sandals and a full set of mesh armor.
"There," I say, moving my brush away from the paper, "It should dry in a moment. Do you have anything in the kitchen that you want to take with you?"
"Where are you going?" a low aggressive voice asked from the kitchen area.
Amagi paled, just a little bit. So I stood up and turned around. I wanted to be on my feet if we were about to fight.
In front of me was a boy who had an orange stripe across the bridge of his nose, long light brown hair with two bangs falling over his forehead protector. He was wearing a yellow scarf a black shirt with gray triangles and light colored shorts
I give the boy a smile, "Hi, I'm Amagi's teammate and because of that, we are moving into a different set of rooms."
The boy stared at me, his dark colored eyes narrowing slightly.
"So Amagi, you have a little girl as your teammate?"
I could feel myself bristling with anger, I was tired of being insulted, I was called fat, I was called childish, my baby brother was being bullied and now Amagi's roommate, whom Amagi does not like and might fear a little, just called me a little girl!
I glanced at Amagi over my shoulder, he shook his head slightly, I wasn't sure if that meant not to get into a fight, or just to keep quiet. Well the first was an option for now, however, I was not going to keep quiet! Amagi should know this by now, I mean he did see me in action twice today.
So I paste a shy smile on my face, "Well I don't know about the little part, but I am a girl. And yes, I am Amagi's teammate."
Amagi's roommate glared at Amagi, "So you thought it was okay for you to move out without even telling me?"
"Well since we were just told less than an hour ago that the rooms were available, I would say Amagi didn't have the chance too," I replied cheekily. "However, now that you are here, you can help us pack up this scroll."
The roommate's gaze turns towards the blank scroll at my feet, "What do you have there?"
I shrug, "A scroll, what does it look like?"
I could hear Amagi's quickly in drawn breath, but I ignored him as I waited for his roommate to say something. I could feel my blood start to pump, my breath quicken a little as I prepared myself for a fight. After all I had to deal with today, I could really use a good old fashion fight.
"I think I want it," the roommate replied, taking a step towards me.
I took a step towards him, more to the point, I took a step and stood in front of my scroll, "You can get your own," I replied.
"I don't want a different one, I want that one."
"Well this one is mine, so you have to get your own," I responded, keeping my tone matter of fact.
The roommate took another step forward, "Not if I take it."
I shrugged, trying to look like I didn't care, but he is bigger than I am by at least half a foot, and I know he outweighs me by at least fifty pounds, this was not going to be an easy fight, that is for sure.
Amagi stepped right behind me and spoke with the smallest of whispers, "You don't want to fight him, Tsukio, let's just get out of here."
I nod, turning my head slightly to look at him, but also keeping his soon to be ex roommate in view, "Put your stuff on the scroll and I can seal it if you want me to."
I feel more than see, Amagi nod his head. I hear the swish of clothing as he moves away from me and I hear him pick up his other clothes. I kept an eye on his roommate, as he watched Amagi place his stuff on the scroll. Amagi tapped my leg and I took a step back, over the pile of clothes on the scroll. This time I bit my thumb, smeared some blood on the scroll and pushed with my chakra to activate it.
I was suddenly grateful that I created that seal to be blood activated and not just chakra. I watched as the pile of clothes, armor and sandals disappeared into the scroll and the seal completed itself.
I rolled the scroll up, tucked it into my belt and looked over at Amagi, "Do you have anything in the kitchen that is yours and you want to take with you?"
Amagi shook his head quickly.
"Let's go then," I took a step towards the door with Amagi right next to me.
The roommate held his hand out, "Where do you think you are going?"
I looked at him, "To our new room, I thought you understood that. Did my words confuse you?"
I watched as his eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched, "Why does Amagi get a new room? Is he unhappy with his current room?"
I shrug, "Our sensei put our team into a team room and told us we had until curfew tonight to move in. If you have a problem with it, you should take it up with our sensei."
"And who is your sensei?" he sneered.
I grinned as Hideo appeared in the door behind the roommate, "Hideo! Did you come to help us too?" I asked, making sure to pitch my voice to be higher than normal, trying to sound younger than I really was. It is also the voice I use when I really want Father to do something, or when I am trying to get out of having to do something a random adult wants me to do.
Hideo looked around the room, I could see the small frown starting to form between his eyebrows, "I did," he said slowly.
"Great!" I cried out.
The roommate looks over and his whole body straightens up and his shoulders go back, "Hideo, huh, are you part of Amagi's team?"
Hideo nodded, "Yes, Sajin, I am."
Sajin, nice to have a name with the face.
"Come on you two, we don't have long before curfew, and I still need to go and get some groceries," Hideo called out.
Amagi and I quickly walked around Sajin and Hideo.
"Great! I need to pick up a few things for dinner and breakfast anyway," I said excitedly.
The three of us walked out the door and down the hall. I walked between Amagi, in the front, and Hideo taking up the rear.
"Is he following us?" I asked.
"He is. Amagi is he a friend?" Hideo asked.
"No," came the short reply.
"Then let's head down my old apartment, we can leave through the window and sneak up to our new place," Hideo said.
"Sounds good. If needs be I can make lots of noise to distract him from your leaving," I offered.
"You have my stuff though," Amagi said.
We walked down to Hideo's room and walked in.
"I will need to use my blood to unseal it, I wasn't sure if you wanted Sajin to know that you could use a sealing scroll," I glance at the door, "If you want, I can give you the scroll and then I'll go out and make noise, say you two are making me go shopping because 'girls have to cook' or something like that while you two go out the window, or something."
Hideo nods, "Are you sure you want to get involved? Sajin is not a person you want as an enemy."
Amagi nods his head quickly.
"I'm not worried, besides, he sees me as nothing but a little girl. I don't think he knows my name. If he tries to follow me back to your new rooms, he will be upset because I am about to go on a crazy long shopping trip. Not only to get you guys some food, but also to see if I have some things in storage that you two could use."
Amagi frowned, "We don't want your charity."
I wave away his concern, "I didn't say I was actually going to get those things, but only that I was going to look like I was doing it," I pause for a moment, trying to figure out how to ask about the whole food shopping thing, "Why don't you two give me a list of things you need to have for tonight and tomorrow morning, so it looks like I am actually doing something."
"Good idea," Hideo said.
I felt a zip of happiness shoot through my body when Amagi nodded as well.
"How about some takeout for dinner and something easy for breakfast?" Amagi suggested.
I wrinkled my forehead as I tried to come up with an easy breakfast, "How well do you two cook?"
"I cook okay," Hideo replied.
"I cook okay too," Amagi agreed.
I nod, "Then rice with egg and some chicken?"
"If you get extra takeout chicken then we can just use that," Amagi said.
I nod again, "Is there a spending limit?"
Hideo reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of bills, "This should cover most, if not all of it. Just bring me the receipt and I will cover the rest."
Amagi frowned, "What that doesn't cover, I'll pay for. We are both going to eat it, so we should both pay for it."
Hideo shrugged in response.
"Okay, I will be loud enough that it should cover any noises you make."
I walk out the door after handing Amagi the scroll with his stuff in it. I found Sajin standing in front of me. "Hi, Sajin. Can I help you with something?"
Sajin sneered, "What are you doing?"
"The boys are making me go and buy some food while they do boy stuff. Apparently, since I'm the girl, I have to do the shopping and cooking," I roll my eyes, keeping my voice high pitched and loud.
"So you don't have your fancy scrolls anymore?"
I tilt my head, "What do you mean, fancy scrolls?"
"The scroll that you hide all of Amagi's stuff in."
"Oh that scroll, no I don't have it any more, I gave it to Amagi. You know since it is his stuff." Oh gag me, this talking like I was a stupid genin was going to kill me long before Sajin gets a chance to. "But anyway, I have to go so I don't get into trouble and miss curfew."
I moved to the left to walk around Sajin.
Sajin moved to block me.
I moved to the right of the hallway.
Sajin moved to block me again.
I started to move to the left and when Sajin moved to block me again, I twisted in a tight circle and moved around him. Then I started to run as fast as I could, out of the building with Sajin on my heels, I dodged around people and headed towards the civilian market area. I darted into the first grocery store that I came across, that I knew the owners of and ducked behind the counter.
"Tsukio? What are you doing?"
Panting I answer, "I am playing a game of ninja," lying through my teeth, keeping my voice as low as I can, "I am just going to catch my breath for a minute and then I'll be on my way."
The older woman behind the counter smiled indulgently at me, "Of course dear, just stay there and I'll watch out for you."
I looked down to hide my grin, I knew she would help me.
After about five minutes, I stood up, picked up a few things to help the boys get settled in their room, making sure to spend well below what Hideo gave me and walked to the nearest takeout place. Turned out to be a tempura stand, so I got lots of vegetables, chicken and some dipping sauce to go with it. I was able to walk back to the barracks with no problems and I walked straight up to my teammates' new room. Hideo opened the door and after a quick look around, he let me in.
I put the food on the counter, unsealed Amagi's stuff from the scroll and I helped the two boys move the furniture around until they had it the way they wanted it. I joined them for dinner, then I went home. I took a shower and fell into bed. I was officially tired. As I fell asleep it occurred to me that I didn't even talk to Mother about me moving into the barracks.
AN: Tada! Our team is now working towards their goals! I'm so excited to be at this part. Now we get to experience all the different missions they have to complete.
Welcome to all the new readers! I hope you enjoy my little story world. Please let me know what you think.
