She's ten years old and has been in team Minato for a year when their sensei decides they can take on an escort mission. It's still weird to work with a literal child. Kakashi is only six even if he plays the adult. She never had to interact much with the young Hitsugaya so she's not sure how to deal with him. They're about to meet their client in one of the good inns near the Hokage Tower. In the main room, Obito trips over his own feet and knocks the waitress down. The food and drinks tumble all over the floor and it's a mess.
"Ah, I'm so sorry!"
The Uchiha boy apologizes profusely, and starts cleaning to help the woman. They've attracted a lot of attention and their client is quite skeptical when they meet him afterwards. He doesn't quite sneer at them but it's close. Well, Obito's clumsiness didn't help and Kakashi is tiny, so she can see what's bothering him. Minato-sensei works his charming boy magic and soon enough the man is at ease. He wants to be addressed as Takeda-dono and insist on the "dono" which she thinks is very arrogant but he's paying so she'll keep her mouth shut. Plus, he doesn't seem to mind her at all which is nice for once. After this mission, she'll have enough money to make the down payment for a small studio apartment so really, the guy can be as eccentric as he wants.
The mission parameters are simple. They have to escort Takeda-dono to the Land of Fire Capital which is west from Konoha. He's a wealthy merchant and has apparently an audience with the Fire Daimyo. She doesn't quite care about his life, but he seems to have taken a liking to her so she nods and tries to keep him happy. Minato-sensei also participates in the conversations but everytime Obito tries to interact with them, Takeda-dono ignores him.
It's pretty awful to be honest but at the same time, it's funny to see Obito trying to get his anger under control. Kakashi is ever the silent shinobi. The kid has to learn to open it up because clients can be chatty. Better they find them amicable and come back to pay for other missions to Konoha.
Wait, why is she invested in Konoha's economy? Eh, whatever. The man compliments her hair which is very weird but she offers him her thanks. They've grown and her ponytail reaches her shoulder blades now. She still has to find the right accessories to decorate it,though.
They depart from Konoha the next morning. Takeda-dono is mounted on a horse and they follow him, running at a sedate speed. The journey is pretty calm and they take a pause at midday to take a meal break for him. He opens one of his saddle bags and starts preparing himself a snack. Which… The man is wealthy and quite a bit arrogant. Shouldn't he have servants or something?
"Say, Takeda-dono," asks Yoruichi.
He smiles at her and nods to let her speak.
"Why don't you have an entourage with you?"
The merchant hands twitch even if his face stays pleasant. Minato-sensei definitely sees that as well and signs instructions behind the merchant's back. "Keep him talking." Kakashi eyes them with renewed interest.
"I mean, I respect you very much for being self-sufficient with your horse and food during this journey. However, surely a man of your position would be travelling with at least a few companions, right?"
Takeda-dono nods again, slower this time. "Yes. It usually would be the case. My followers stayed in Konoha. I let them have a little bit of rest before we start travelling for business after my audience with Toyotomi-sama."
Yoruichi can see Obito raising his eyebrows from there. The kid finds that weird as well and he's not very bright when it comes to searching for lies and deceit. It's very unusual to meet a political leader like the Daimyo without at least a couple of followers.
"Ah, you're so nice, Takeda-dono. You think of their health, that's admirable."
Obito mimics throwing up and Minato-sensei throws him a warning glance.
"Thank you, my dearest girl."
Ok, the dearest is not wanted. And she's definitely not his. Yoruichi sits beside him and continues her little charade.
"Do you plan on staying long in the capital?"
"I don't know yet. Why?"
"It's just…"
"What?"
"My team's mission ends after you're arrived there. Won't you feel lonely without anyone with you?"
It's disgustingly sweet and a lot more heavy handed than she can do but it seems to be working with him. The merchant offers her an onigiri which she takes with a false shy smile.
"I might. But it's not so bad, really. Hopefully, meeting with the Daimyo will result in an authorization to stay as a…"
He stops himself short, suddenly a bit pale. Minato-sensei signs to stop the questioning. Takeda-dono probably is very alone and is searching for the Daimyo's protection as a political refugee. She fakes excitement.
"Do you mean as a financial expert or even an adviser?"
Takeda-dono energetically agrees. Yup. Definitely hiding his true goal. They start the journey again after he finishes his meal and she keeps the friendly act during the rest of the day. At night, they make camp in a small clearing and don't make a fire to stay discreet. Takeda-dono doesn't complain and goes to sleep in his tent very early.
When they finally hear him snore, Minato-sensei asks them to meet a little bit away so the team can talk.
"Is it me, or is something very wrong?" asks Obito. "I mean, after what Yoruichi… It doesn't feel like a simple escort mission anymore."
"You're right," says Minato-sensei. "Kakashi, what did you get from their discussion?"
"Takeda-dono is most likely seeking political asylum from the Daimyo. Which means we might get company sooner or later."
Their sensei nods and turns to her. She will admit, the guy is a good teacher. He wants them to find the better solution by themselves before fine-tuning the details. She answers, "Probably a small shinobi team and not bandits as the parameters of the mission indicated."
"Yes. You three are right." Minato-sensei frowns. "We're deep into Fire territory so the small shinobi team will most likely be of higher level compared to you."
"We can take them," says Kakashi.
Eh, the kid wants a fight.
"You might be able to, yes," answers Minato-sensei. "However, we can't be certain. For all we know, Takeda-dono could be a target of importance. Better plan for the worst."
"What do we do, sensei?" asks Obito, his shoulders tight with tension.
"What do you think would be best?" asks their teacher.
Yoruichi will keep silent for now. Kakashi says, "If we're followed, they most likely will try to attack in the middle of the night. One of us should rest for three hours while the three others patrol around camp."
Obito nods and she's surprised he's not back talking. "Yoruichi is a good sensor even if she's not specialized in it. She could rest first and then be up for the rest of the night?"
"That's a good idea," answers their sensei. "However, only two of us will patrol around. Yoruichi, can you explain why?"
"The target is the client and not our team per say. On top of the one who's resting, there should be someone awake ready to protect Takeda-dono."
Minato-sensei nods, "Obito, you will help me create traps and when we're done, you'll swap with Kakashi. We'll patrol while you keep an eye on our client and Yoruichi. Alright?"
They do as they are ordered and she lays down on her bedroll.
Yoruichi jolts awake when she feels Minato-sensei's chakra flare. She's immediately on her feet which startles Obito.
She whispers. "Minato-sensei has engaged combat with someone."
She now feels Kakashi's and three others. Is it a trio? Not likely. They might have one that is very efficient in chakra concealment. She switches to her reiatsu and immediately feels a fourth shinobi coming straight at them.
"Be ready," she says as she approaches Takeda-dono's tent. "We have company."
"How many?" he asks
"Just one, contact in one minute."
She enters the tent, the merchant trusts her more than Obito and will do as she says. She shakes him awake.
"Wha..?"
"Takeda-dono, we're under attack. Please get up and follow my lead."
Thirty seconds later, they're out of the tent and she feels one of the stranger chakra disappear suddenly.
"Seems like one of your traps worked, Obito."
The boy has his goggles on and has taken a combat ready stance with a kunai in his right hand.
"At least, it'll be two on two against sensei and Kakashi."
He's not shaking but his voice is not as steady as it generally is. And well, he's a kid, of course he's afraid.
"They'll be alright," she says to comfort him somewhat. "Takeda-dono."
"Yes?"
"Be ready to do exactly as I say."
"Will you…"
"Am I clear?" Her voice is not the sweet one she used to charm him. He nods.
The ennemi-nin is in front of them, somewhere behind the tree line. She whispers his position to Obito and they wait.
Shuriken appears, going straight to Obito. He evades them easily enough by jumping aside. They hear him laugh then. The shinobi appears on top of a branch. He has a dark blue outfit but the important bit of information she can get of his appearance is his Mist protective headband. He starts talking highly of himself and… What? Like, really? The guy had the surprise on his side but he's dropped it because they're children? What an idiot.
"I have to say," he continues, "I wasn't expecting a couple of midgets protecting Takeda."
"What do you mean?" shouts Obito.
"What do I mean?" The man's smile reveals pointy teeth. "Oh, didn't your client tell you?"
He starts laughing and it seems so absurd to Yoruichi that he loses time like this. Eh, whatever. If he wants to have his villain monologue, he can be her guest. Kakashi's chakra is fluctuating against an enemy but Minato-sensei has just finished his own opponent. They'll be back soon enough.
"Takeda, here, is the dear friend of the Water Daimyo. We're just here to get him back to our country. His friend misses him dearly."
"Do you think us stupid?" asks Obito.
"Ah, well. It was worth a try!"
He's almost instantly on her teammate but Obito is used to faster opponents. His spars against Kakashi and Minato-sensei have taught him to take the least damage when he can't fully escape a blow. The kick sends him flying a few meters again.
"Takeda-dono, run to the horse and flee south!"
The man jumps into action and she gets between him and the Mist-nin that has turned towards them.
"Hey girly, you might want to step aside."
Obito's already charging him again, and when Takeda-dono is leaving the clearing, she joins Obito in the fight. He takes a couple of hard hits but they stand their ground.
"Tsch."
The shinobi has experience but they're a good team. Yoruichi has the taijutsu abilities to keep him occupied while Obito can retreat to support her with shurikenjutsu and some fire ninjutsu. They're lucky that this guy doesn't seem to have a lot on his repertoire. He's most likely specialized in discreet assassination and not full-fledge combat.
"You're annoying little ants," he says while drawing a short blade. Yoruichi takes a kunai from her leg pouch. She's not fast enough to fight him only with her taijutsu. That ticks her off. Eh, she'll have to train even more.
The fight doesn't change drastically in any way and that seems to bother the other ninja. She takes advantage of that. She pretends to drop her kunai accidentally to his feet and jumps aside.
"What now, girly?"
"Obito!" she shouts as she activates the paper seal she had glued to the kunai's handle before the mission.
Obito releases his best great fireball jutsu. The ennemy-nin tries to get out of the way but a cord materialises and traps his ankle long enough to keep him from fleeing. Yoruichi doesn't get any joy from his cries nor the smell of burnt flesh. He dies fast. She hates this world. It's not like fighting hollows, Arrancars or even other souls who disappear in dust or smoke.
"Awesome! Yoruichi, your new technique is so cool. We totally got his ass."
"Shut up," she says to Obito as he starts to preen.
"Yoruichi?"
Fuuinjutsu is very similar to Bakudo and at the same time, it's very different because it has power on the physical plane of existence. Her new technique is not entirely done. She has tried to recreate the fourth immobilisation technique Hainawa, but instead of strangling the target, it only has trapped their ankle. The crawling rope still lacks power and precision. She's not sure she wants to perfect it.
Yoruichi grits her teeth. "You should never be happy that someone died."
Minato-sensei and Kakashi arrive at that moment.
"She's right, Obito," says their teacher.
Obito deflates suddenly "Yes, sensei…"
The boy seems to understand and grabs his small pack silently. She can't be mad at him even if his behaviour has been terrible. Obito was probably coming back from the adrenaline high of combat. Kakashi isn't hurt much, only showing signs of tiredness, he has spent a lot of chakra. Minato-sensei asks her where Takeda-dono is.
"Alright, let's get him back. Diamond formation."
They find him a couple hours later, having run at great speed to minimize his time alone. The rest of the mission is quiet, and only two days later, they're back in Konoha. After their mission report, Minato-sensei asks them to go eat together before letting them go. He leads them to a ramen stand, the same she enjoys coming to sometimes. It's the only place she follows Kushina too. Ichiraku-san is a nice man and his wife is very funny but also very pregnant.
"I wanted to congratulate each of you," says Minato-sensei after they all have ordered something. "You did great even if the mission turned out to be a B-rank. The shinobi we fought were mostly jounins like myself."
"Sensei, what will happen to Takeda-dono?" asks Obito.
"It will depend on what he can offer our Daimyo. After that, I don't know."
The team is tired, they haven't slept much. When she is served her double chicken ramen, she takes the time to savour the broth. It's spicy and warm, just like she loves it.
"I decided to nominate your team to the next Chuunin exams," says Minato-sensei.