Secrets of Silence - Fireproof

by purplelotusgirl7

ATLA and BTS Save Me webtoon crossover. A new form of airbending, hidden from the public, was practiced by ninjas. Our main characters were part of a ninja clan, secretly trained at a school for people with disabilities. This story will focus on them, how they helped the world and Team Avatar. Not despite their disabilities, but with them.

3. Chapter 3

Notes: Ninjutsu in this story means the realistic version of the word (stealth, camouflage, espionage, assasination, scouting, sabotage) and not the more supernatural meaning that it has in the anime Naruto. Naruto in this fic does not have albinism despite his blond hair, just to be clear; I don't want someone with albinism to be the villain because that happens too many times already. Sasuke and Levi have different skin than in their anime, this is done for a specific reason and it has NOT something to do with them being villains. It has to do with where they came from, which will be explored later. Just want to quickly point out that Katara, Sokka and Guru Pathik for example all are on the good side with brown skin. The fic will also feature 'new' brown skinned characters who are also on the good side (Romi, Siku/Gray and Major. Taehyung is mixed with Water Tribe). Wanted that off my chest as I was worried about that.

Someone talks a lot and gets ignored but their dynamic is like really close friends and they know their boundaries.

chapter warnings: mocking short height (as well as tall? idk not really I think? but just in case)

? ﾝﾄﾆ ? ?

Namjoon looked up at the new house he would be living in. He smiled, finally the beginning of his dream started to form.

He got tapped on his shoulder, and turned around, still smiling. His face froze in his expression when he was suddenly faced with the handsomeness that was Big Brat. His symmetrical features, thick eyebrows and pillow lips were even more beautiful in broad daylight. The winter sun lit up his tawny colored skin, giving it a warm glow, and made his black hair shine like an onyx reflecting light.

"Hey, there, nice to meet you!" Big Brat signed. "I'm Seokjin, and you?"

"Namjoon," he signed, still slightly out of it.

They walked inside the house and put down their luggage in the living room.

"I read up on the name 'Levi'," Seokjin began. "Did you know it's a name from a culture most people have never heard of and no sightings or ruins have been found? There is evidence they existed though, but it's unknown who exactly they were or are, if they still live, and where they live or lived."

Namjoon widened his eyes. "Oh that's interesting! I didn't know. Do you think Levi knows that culture?"

"I don't think we get to ask him, seeing as we're supposed to get away from him, but if we get the chance, I'll ask."

Namjoon couldn't help chuckle while imagining how that would go. He imagined how confused Levi would be if someone he fought with asked him that.

It probably wasn't a laughing matter though, seeing as Major warned them. He feared Levi would kill them before they'd even get a word out.

"Hello there! I'm Hoseok!" A man, formerly introduced as Sunshine, waved and stepped through the threshold. A small Shih Tzu dog tripped with him. After Hoseok took off its vest and gave a command, the dog knew it was free of its service duties and it started to investigate the smells in the room.

Namjoon and Seokjin each introduced themselves as well. Namjoon petted the dog after it walked towards him, and after asking Hoseok for permission.

"Did you know the name 'Levi' is from a mysterious culture we know little to nothing about?" Seokjin immediately asked after Hoseok had put his things down.

"Huh?" he intelligently replied.

"I meant-"

"Oh sorry, I got the message. I was just processing." He chuckled. "I mean - no? But good to know." He smiled a little uncertain. Was he supposed to know this?

"Do you know the name of this culture?" Namjoon asked, always one to be interested in learning.

"Sadly no, but I did find the name is believed to mean 'beyond', 'other side' or 'across'. Or actually, that's how the Earth Kingdom translated it. But weird indeed that the name itself is unknown."

"Well, from what I gathered this Levi is definitely from the 'other side'. Hopefully we won't meet him," Hoseok signed and walked towards the couch, still using his cane in case someone caught him through the window. He couldn't say he knew the layout of the house already after all. The other two members sat next to him to use tactile signs if necessary.

"Do you use tactile signs in public?" Namjoon asked Hoseok telepathically, just in case.

"Only if the floor isn't made of earth or if my chi is blocked so I can't bend. I always tell people I'm a strange kind of earthbender who can only use seismic sense but not like- break rocks or anything," Hoseok replied. "I always say it has to do with my personality and mindset and that I'm fine with the way things are. I don't need to move or break rocks."

Namjoon nodded. "Alright, so for future reference: do you use hand-over-hand with our local sign language? Or something else?"

"Hand-over-hand, yes!"

"Alright, thanks!"

Seokjin, who had received the conversation through telepathy as well, nodded too. Then, he decided to go back to the previous topic. "Wait, how do we know? We didn't get enough information about Levi? Just that we had to abandon the mission." Seokjin frowned. "He could be one of ours."

"Wouldn't we be told that instead, then?" Namjoon replied.

Hoseok frowned. "Did you both not read the description they gave us, yet? It's very clear that we, especially as a beginning team, should stay away," he signed.

Before Namjoon or Seokjin could answer, the door flew open and Claw and Cat stepped through. Cat was almost invisible behind his luggage, being a little too small to be carrying it like that.

The reason he still did became clear after he pulled even more luggage from behind him.

"Tae, the next time I'm definitely not going to carry this and you'll have to beg someone else," he verbalized because his hands were occupied. Seokjin interpreted for Namjoon and Hoseok.

"Oh no! I can't leave things behind! What if I'll need it?"

Cat groaned in relief after putting the bag down. "You probably won't, seeing as you put in lots of useless stuff."

Claw gasped. "My stuff isn't useless!" he signed while bringing in just as much or maybe even more luggage as Cat had carried. He carried it on his back, so he could sign. It was very important that Cat understood everything Claw signed; he had lots of things to convey.

Suddenly Claw let out a squeal. "Is that a dog I'm sensing? Can I pet it? What's the name? And the pronouns?"

Hoseok barked out a laugh. "Yeah sure, go ahead! His name is Mickey."

"Aw, so cute! Is he your service dog?" Claw cooed and started petting Mickey.

"He is indeed!"

Cat stepped forward on the stone floor. "Hi, everyone, I'm Yoongi," he signed, shyly looking everyone in the eye for a bit, even if they couldn't see him. And in one case he looked at a blindfold but he looked anyway, knowing Sunshine could sense his movements. But soon he looked away, shyness overtaking him and not being able to hold eye-contact for long. After Claw, actually Taehyung, and the others introduced themselves as well, Namjoon started to make tea. They only had to wait for Seagull and Mochi, now.

"Hey Yoongi and Taehyung, did you guys know the name 'Levi' is from a culture we barely know anything about and whether they still live somewhere?"

Namjoon groaned from the kitchen. "Are you going to ask everyone?" He signed after turning around so people could see his hands.

"Yes! I'm curious," Seokjin smiled. "I'm an academic, of course I want to know more! And I want to know if they live somewhere, secretly," he signed excitedly.

"You know, if people live somewhere secretly, usually they don't want to be found," Yoongi added.

"That makes the search even more challenging then!" Seokjin answered.

"I meant more in the sense that they want to be left alone."

Seokjin thought a bit. "You have a point, there. I don't want to impose myself on anyone." He sagged a bit in his chair and sighed. "I'm still curious though." He closed his eyes for a few seconds but then opened them. "Oh well, I'll get over it." He went to sit straight as a rod again and focused his attention to the vibrations in the ground. "Seems like Seagull arrived."

Everyone's head turned into the direction of the door. A few seconds later, it opened and revealed Seagull. He noticeably became shy after seeing everyone had turned their head towards him. "Hi, I'm Jungkook," he signed. Immediately after, the tea kettle began to whistle. Namjoon, who was occupied with being impressed by Seokjin for recognizing someone through seismic sense; someone they just met yesterday, cleared his head and hurried to get the kettle off the fire.

Again, everyone introduced themselves and Seokjin repeated his question.

"I thought you would get over it?" Yoongi laughed.

"About not finding them, yes. Publicly available information is something else," Seokjin defended. Jungkook had a confused look on his face, so Yoongi took the liberty to explain. Jungkook also didn't know the name.

"Wait, Yoongi and Taehyung, you haven't given your answer yet, did you know?"

Taehyung shook his head while Yoongi nodded.

"Thought so," Seokjin sighed. "Well, then, I'll just- wait, you- yes?" He whipped his head in Yoongi's direction. "Why didn't you let me know earlier?"

"I couldn't really find a pause in the conversation," he smiled and clarified: "I like taking the path of least resistance."

A flash of realization hit Seokjin. "You're a soundbender, right? Those words are part of airbending philosophy, right?" He asked telepathically, just in case someone was spying. He sent it to everyone in the room.

Yoongi nodded, a little surprised at his knowledge; airbending knowledge was kept very secret, even within the school. "How did you know?"

"I know lots of things people in power don't want me to know," Seokjin replied.

"You mean you like sticking your nose in places it doesn't belong?" Yoongi teased, a smile on his lips, but still making it look as if he was smiling to himself.

"I stick my nose into places people think it doesn't belong," Seokjin replied. "Thankfully a friend of mine thinks differently. They're like an owl from that Hachi Pota story, carrying and sharing knowledge."

"A friend?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

"Now, you're sticking your nose in a place it doesn't belong," Seokjin sent, the emotion he sent with it teasing.

Yoongi had to suppress rolling his eyes. "You're the one who mentioned your friend."

"I just gave a little hint," Seokjin replied, his lips curved. Yoongi furrowed his eyebrows.

"Guys, stop it with the telepathy now, it's not supposed to be for general talks," Namjoon added.

Then, the door burst open again, revealing Mochi. "Hello everyone! I'm Jimin, did you read Levi is like five feet (152cm)? Quite small, but so dangerous. If he weren't our enemy I'd ask him to teach me. I mean, I'm not really small myself but people keep underestimating me," he rambled, his hands moving at a rapid pace.

"Yeah, I'm sure people think you're harmless," Taehyung signed.

Jimin halted in his steps. He was conflicted whether he should take that as a compliment for his fighting skills, or if Taehyung meant something else. Probably something else, knowing the waterbender was afraid of him.

"People do, actually, but I'm glad you see my strength," Jimin signed, knowing Taehyung probably didn't mean it that way.

The rest could feel the tension in the room thicken, so Seokjin decided to break it. "I know a girl from my neighbourhood who's very small but fearsome too. The 'Blind Bandit', she calls herself. Lovely girl." He then decided this was the moment to ask his favorite question of the day: "Did you know the name 'Levi' is from a culture we barely know anything about?"

Collective groans could be heard by Jimin. He furrowed his eyebrows while he watched how a tall man - Wood - he remembered, poured tea for everyone. "Uhm, no? But wow, I saw that he levitates and like, flies through the air? How does he do that? You'd almost think he was an airbender but his bending is unknown."

"You're saying that Levi levitates?" Seokjin verbalized, slightly altering the pronunciation of the word. He laughed a bit before adding: "I'm sorry. It was a play on words that only works with vocal language." He hated to leave people out, but he just couldn't resist the temptation of saying it.

Jimin was the only one who couldn't keep in his chuckle. Taehyung just groaned. Namjoon decided to introduce himself to Jimin then, the rest followed.

"Alright, for the ones who didn't get it I have one too, don't want to leave you out," Seokjin signed. "We will all be performers, right? Alright, here it goes: I'll never understand why hearing people say 'school, school, school' at the end of a performance, when they should be saying 'tree, tree, tree'," Seokjin laughed.

And again, collective groans filled the room, Namjoon even sighed; the joke wasn't even that accurate. The sign for 'tree' kind of made the same motion as the one for 'applause', but was made with only one arm moving, whereas the sign for 'applause' was made with two. The sign for 'school' was a sign that resembled hearing people's moving hands when they applauded.

Jimin was the only one with a smile on his face. He thought Seokjin's laugh was actually funnier than the joke itself though. It reminded him of the sound that was produced when people wiped their windows really hard. It really brightened up the room, in his opinion. He was thankful for it.

"Alright, one more because I can't resist. Sorry, this one is phonetic again. You know I'm an earthbender, right? Wait- I haven't told you yet I think... Anyways; I'm an earthbender. Here it goes: what did the shy pebble wish for?" Seokjin asked. Nobody answered, so he decided to just say it himself. "That it was a little boulder." He laughed again.

This time both Jimin and Taehyung face-palmed themselves. Namjoon however, being an earthbender too, couldn't repress a chuckle. He was able to lip-read the words from Seokjin, and caught the double meaning that way. Jungkook could as well, but he merely rolled his eyes at the joke.

"Right, um, back to Levi, did you guys know? Did you read the description?" Jimin signed.

Hoseok straightened up. "Yes, I read it too. Seriously, you guys should read the descriptions; it's scary. Like, I thought the secrets were already out of the world."

"Says the one keeping a secret himself," Seokjin signed and laughed, referring to Hoseok being a soundbender.

"Secrets will always be in the world," Seokjin added, but he grabbed his paper afterward. "I planned on reading it yesterday, but packing took a bit too much time; my day was packed." He winked at Namjoon who was able to catch the wordplay, even though it was said in sign language. "I just realized I didn't even out the jokes. Do you want to know another sign language jo-"

"Seokjin, go read the description please," Namjoon verbalized while putting his hand on Seokjin's shoulder. He had an urge to put them over Seokjin's hands instead - suddenly wanting to touch them - but knew it was rude to grab them. It was the equivalent of verbally communicating people putting their hands over someone's mouth to prevent them from speaking. Hand-over-hand tactile sign language was different, though. In that case, the receiver loosely placed their hands over the back of the hands of someone who was making the signs. Hoseok stated earlier that he prefers that when the floor is not made of earth.

Seokjin tensed a bit at Namjoon suddenly touching his shoulder, but quickly focused again. "Alright." He picked up the paper, put it on the table in front of him and let his fingers do the work.

The following descriptions and paintings will portray four human beings known to be working for or allied with the Fire Nation. Clan names are unknown. We will use the word 'Shinobi' to group them together. It has been discovered that a Clan Lord united multiple clans as one to fight for or alongside the Fire Nation. Clan name unknown. Information here is according to our spies and survivors. New information will be shared.

Name or codename: Levi

Pronouns: He/him

Age: Assumed to be mid twenties

Appearance:

Height: Approx 5ft (152cm)

General: Strongly defined muscles but still lean.

Voice: Medium-to-low pitched; tends to be higher when in disguise.

Hair: Black, cheekbone-length, parted on his right side, straight, undercut at the back

Skin: Rich Brown

Eyes: Gray

Abilities:

Element of bending unknown. Seems to levitate, fly and spin around at high speed. It is unknown what techniques are used. Seems to be able to pull people's legs at long distances. Limit of range unknown.

Martial arts, specifics unknown, evasion and circular movements are prominent

Chi-blocking

Ninjutsu

Dual sword-wielding

Tactical thinking

Weaknesses: Open fields without buildings or trees.

Weapons:

Shinobi Katana (ninja sword, like a Katana (Japanese samurai sword) or shorter)

Daisho set (Katana paired with a Wakizashi (shorter Japanese samurai sword))

Tanto (short Japanese sword, slightly longer than a dagger)

Kunai (throwing knife)

Extra information:

Always be on your guard around someone who fits his appearance. Always be on your guard for weapons, even if you managed to disarm him; he hides a lot of weapons. Holds his right sword backhanded sometimes, so the sword faces backwards. He'll come at you from an unusual angle with circular movement. Makes efforts to hide himself and blend in environments. Is encountered the most out of the four. Has killed and/or captured the most people out of the four.

Seokjin frowned. Why did the clan only tell them about this now? And what was the reason they specifically wrote that Levi makes efforts to hide and blend in? Wasn't that already part of Ninjutsu?

He decided to let his questions rest for another time and started reading again.

Name or codename: Mikasa

Pronouns: She/her

Age: Assumed to be early twenties

Appearance:

Height: Approx. 5'7ft (175cm)

General: Strongly defined muscles, but lean. Feminine chest.

Voice: Clear. High-pitched

Hair: Black, straight, chin-length, bangs

Skin: Light

Eyes: Light Gray

Abilities: Same as Levi, slightly less fast and strong. She is stronger than she looks.

Telepathy intervention

Weaknesses: Open fields without buildings or trees.

Trash Talking; telepathically as well as verbally. She's shown improvement on the second weakness

Weapons:

Daisho set, usually when posing as a guard

Shinobi Katana

Tanto

Kunai

Extra information:

She is able to understand and listen in to our telepathy. It is unknown how she does it. She's less encountered than Levi. Works less like an assassin; more often found guarding or retrieving information. Makes an effort to hide as well.

Name or codename: Naruto

Pronouns: He/him

Age: Assumed to be mid twenties

Appearance:

Height: Approx 6ft (183cm)

General: Broad shoulders and chest, big muscles

Voice: Extremely low-pitched

Hair: Wheat crop colored; cause unknown. Short, parted in the middle

Facial hair: Goatee

Hachimaki (Japanese headband): Indigo cloth. Silver plate and symbol: a spiral that can be found in each of the four element's ancient symbols. On the left, the spiral has a triangle added. The symbol on the whole slightly resembles a leaf.

Skin: Light

Eyes: Golden

Abilities and Weapons:

Seokjin frowned when he noticed the two words next to each other instead of two seperate lists. It was different from the other two descriptions. He frowned even more after reading the next words.

Unknown. No survivors to brief us. We have enough information to strongly assume he was the culprit and then managed to gain appearance descriptions.

"Shit," Seokjin mumbled.

Extra information:

Rarely encountered. Do NOT investigate or engage him. He makes no effort to hide, presumably because he has nothing to fear. Most recognizable by his hair color and hachimaki.

Seokjin touched his chin. So the reason there was specifically written that Levi and Mikasa hide, was to perhaps stress the fact that this Naruto didn't? To drive home the danger that this shinobi posed?

He read further.

Name or codename: Sasuke

Pronouns: He/him

Age: Assumed to be mid twenties

Appearance:

Height: Approx 6ft (183cm)

General: Strongly defined muscles, but lean

Voice: Low-pitched

Hair: Black, chin-length, straight

Hachimaki (Japanese headband): Same as Naruto

Skin: Rich Brown

Eyes: Dark Brown - almost Black - Red when extremely angry

Abilities and Weapons:

Unknown. No survivors to brief us. Same situation as with Naruto.

Extra information:

Even more rarely encountered than Naruto. Do NOT investigate or engage him either. Makes no effort to hide either. Most recognizable by his headband. There's been one informant to give a note of red eyes when Sasuke showed signs of fury.

"Alright, so Jimin, why would you want Levi to teach you? These people sound like a nightmare to come across," Seokjin shuddered. "I think I prefer fighting the Fire Lord himself, as long as I have earth to bend. At least then I somewhat know what I'm up against."

Jimin frowned. "I didn't mean that. I meant if he weren't our enemy."

"Still…," he looked down. "I kinda feel like we're never going to get out of this war with these people wandering around working for the Fire Nation."

"I thought that too, at first," Yoongi signed. "Then, I started to wonder about the reason we so rarely come across them. The army of the Earth Kingdom has no knowledge of them - or the contacts of the Pink Lotus Clan in the army are lying - and our clan rarely encounters the most dangerous ones. There has to be a reason that prevents them from going out much. Besides, if you'd place yourself in the Fire Lord's shoes, wouldn't you use their abilities as much as possible if they're so effective? As far as we know, he hasn't. So, either the Fire Lord has little use of them, or they are not under his command. In both cases, we stand a chance. Our clan has to figure out their objective, to see if we can get them to go against the Fire Nation, and what prevents them from going out often. Perhaps their weakness lies there. The key as well as the problem is gaining information."

"Thank you for your input Yoongi, I agree with you. I'm sure the clan has a kind of plan in mind, and shared this paper with us to make sure we're aware and can walk away from a fight we'll lose; not to discourage us," Namjoon signed. "I want to apologize for not having read this paper yesterday. Several incidents prevented me. As the leader, I will be more on top of things in the future."

"Oh, don't worry. It was very short notice and we're not preparing for a mission yet," Seokjin reassured him. The others nodded. "I hope the incidents weren't serious," Seokjin added afterwards.

"Thank you. One was, the other wasn't. I had a good time with a friend of mine who had to perform their songs, but on the way there, another friend and I were attacked. A knife grazed him. Thankfully it wasn't poisoned, but we haven't been able to find the attacker. My friend let me know he was expecting someone to attack him and I told him to let me know when he was safe at home. He didn't want me to come to his house. I hadn't heard from him yesterday, and I couldn't focus on anything. Thankfully, I've received a message this morning that he's safe." He paused for a bit. "I was wondering if we could go to Lord Grim as soon as we're all done here?"

"Yes, sure! Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Seokjin stood up, the rest followed quickly, showing their sympathy.

Taehyung downed the rest of his tea. He also waterbent the rest of the tea from the teapot so he could drink on the way; no wasting tea.

"I'll go, don't worry, but why do we need to see Lord Grim so soon? Is he related to your friend?" Jimin signed.

Namjoon shook his head. He hesitated for a second, but then decided to proceed; he trusted his team. "I have strong suspicions that my friend is Lord Grim."

This brought forth nods of understanding. Lord Grim was often thought of as a combination of a master in tactics, as well as a combat master rivaled by only a few. It would make sense for him to be on the Shinobi's radar, even though rumor had it he had declined in performance. Rumor had it that that was the reason he chose a new codename. He was previously known as 'One Autumn Leaf'.

"I believe your friend is doing alright," Jimin smiled at Namjoon. "He told you he's safe, right?"

"He did, but he's always saying he's fine even when he's not. I'm a bit worried because I received his message so late."

Jimin laid a hand on Namjoon's shoulders to give him a squeeze of comfort. He had to raise his arm quite a bit to do it.

? ﾝﾄﾆ ? ?

The team quickly made their way to one of the shopping centres in the middle ring of Ba Sing Se. Hoseok brought Mickey and his white cane with red stripes with him, which indicated that he was deaf-blind. He could walk around safely without both, but the general public wasn't allowed to know. He told most people he was an earthbender, just not a greatly skilled one. He said that he could sense close surroundings and sign language most of the time when the earth was solid, but sometimes the floor wasn't made of earth or it was too squishy like sand. Besides, because of too many things happening, he got overwhelmed sometimes and prefered the cane and his dog. That last one was the truth, but referred actually to soundbending.

He got over his guilt of deceiving people years ago. It wasn't like he was lying about his disability; he had to keep his soundbending secret out of safety. Especially his soundbending, with him being able to sense air. He wasn't the Avatar who was at least a hundred years old, but he didn't think the Fire Nation would listen if they found out about his ability. Besides, the Fire Nation wasn't kind to any kind of bender.

Taehyung fed everyone a bit of the tea on the way. It was cold though. Jimin thought of heating it up, but then remembered he was in public, and with Taehyung.

Lord Grim was stationed a few buildings away from the shop 'Su Tech'. Jimin suddenly remembered the friend of Zi You and how he suspected that it was Lord Grim. He quickened his pace to walk next to Namjoon.

"Yesterday, I came across a girl who goes by the name Zi You, she needed help going home and told me to bring her to Su Tech. I had a strong feeling a friend of hers is your friend," he signed, deliberately not using the name Lord Grim in case someone who wasn't supposed to know obtained the information.

"Zi You?" Namjoon's face brightened up at the name. Then, immediately it dimmed with worry. "She lost her way home? Where did she go?"

"She was in the lower ring, I forgot the name of the street."

Namjoon's face clouded over. "The only reason she goes there is to see her fa-"

Suddenly he grunted at the impact of a small body slamming against his. He looked down, smiling at the girl embracing him.

"Hey, Zi You, so you saw me. Have you seen Ye Xiu already?"

"I have, he's in the shop, he broke his arm!" she said, speaking clearly.

"He what?" Namjoon started running, the rest followed him.

When Namjoon entered the shop, he saw Ye Xiu with his arm in an earth crust to keep it from moving. His red scarf functioned as a sling. His amber eyes lit up and he smiled innocently at Namjoon. He waved with his good hand which held a pipe for smoking purposes. After he lowered his hand he casually rested it on his pink umbrella. Namjoon breathed in deeply. His hands still moved too quickly to convey calmness, though.

"If you knew someone was attacking you, why'd you even go to your house? Now look at you!"

"Relax, it's just a broken arm," Ye Xiu waved him off, speaking clearly to make sure Namjoon could read his lips better. Sign language was too difficult at the moment.

"It's not just a broken arm, you know you're more vulnerable, now, right?"

Jimin swore if Namjoon were a firebender, he would see the smoke curling out of his nostrils.

Ye Xiu's eyes flickered cheekily. "Aw now, don't underestimate me, Joon."

Namjoon couldn't hear his tone of voice, but the glint in his eyes made him back off on the topic. He knew Ye Xiu would do whatever he deemed was worth doing anyway. He mumbled a "glad you're safe," afterwards. Ye Xiu smiled in return.

"Hello everyone! Are you friends with Namjoon? Will you introduce us?" He addressed the rest of the team, who were standing awkwardly in the shop, and then nudged Namjoon gently. Seokjin quickly interpreted in case the deaf members didn't understand. Yoongi, who stood next to him, smiled slightly at him and mumbled his thanks. Seokjin gave a thumbs up.

"Yes, sorry," Namjoon quickly signed and introduced everyone.

"You guys want tea? I'm sorry I probably won't remember all your names and pronouns today. I'm a little distracted, but I'll do my best," Ye Xiu said and smiled apologetically. The team members quickly reassured him it's fine.

"Ah, no Ye Xiu, we just had tea, sit down and don't move your arm," Namjoon started.

"Alright, alright," Ye Xiu replied. "So what's the plan for you guys today, were you forced by Namjoon to come see his poor friend?"

Namjoon started the movement to teasingly jab him in the ribs, but quickly remembered that wasn't a good idea. He didn't know where else he was hurt.

"We're actually here to see the person who lives a few houses further, you were just a stopping point."

"Ah, is that so?" Ye Xiu grinned. "Well, there's a house that's been brought to ruin last night, so I hope that's not the house you're looking for?"

Namjoon told him the address, while feeling sudden anxiety at the ruined house being Ye Xiu's.

"Yes, that's that house. I got the owner in the backroom here for tea, you want to come along and see him there?"

Namjoon nodded and stood up after Ye Xiu, the rest followed as well.

Ye Xiu led them to a spacious basement, to Jungkook's displeasure.

After they all sat down at comfortable cushions, Ye Xiu smiled. "I'm Lord Grim, how can I help you?"

Namjoon's eyes widened as his suspicions were confirmed. "We would like to do a weapon check-up for our first missions. We just got placed together yesterday, and Ye-, uh, Lord Grim, what the- you mean your house is gone?"

"Yes, the midget probably didn't like the interior; too small for the shelves. Don't worry I got a place to sleep," he smiled cheerfully.

Jimin raised his brows at the word 'midget', not to mention Ye Xiu's cheerful smile despite the seriousness of his situation. He formed a link. "Did Levi attack you yesterday?" He asked.

"Yep, I'm not going to go into more details. It's being handled. Now, a weapon check-up?"

"Yes," Namjoon answered.

"Alright, Dancing Rain and Troubling Rain will be here soon, we can do that then. In the meantime, do you have any questions about the paper you got or in general?"

"I have a question," Jimin signed. Ye Xiu nodded for him to continue. "I was wondering why we only know about the four people on the paper now. Why not earlier?"

Ye Xiu smiled a little ruefully. "What was the effect on you reading about them?"

"Discouraging."

"Yes, many feel that. I think the leaders decided to not want to discourage people too soon. First, teach them what they can do, then warn them about what mightiness might await in the future. I say might because the chances that beginning teams encounter these people are very small. They usually focus on taking out people that become too troublesome for them."

"So, you have become too troublesome, then?" Namjoon asked, worry shining in his eyes.

Ye Xiu smiled mischievously, but gave no answer.

"But," Jimin signed. "Now, we have less knowledge about how to defend ourselves against Levi and Mikasa, for example."

"Both fight similarly like regular swordsmen, but with more speed and from unusual angles. It's not very different from a bender who decides to suddenly come from above or boost their own speed by making the earth move their body, for example. The problem is the speed and the circling movements. Frankly speaking, no ninja comes close to their speed in combat, so we literally can't prepare you for that, other than telling you to hone your reflexes and instincts. We already tell you and let you practice that. But don't worry too much. You need very bad luck to encounter and fight them. But if you have to fight, beware of Levi having knives, daggers and what not even when you disarm him. He also holds them differently than a regular swordsman. I swear that midget has daggers everywhere."

Jimin nodded, his face grim. "Well, then, I'll apologize in advance to the team: I got very bad luck," he signed.

Being born in the wrong nation was the start, already, Taehyung thought, and he immediately felt bad for it.

A knock in a familiar pattern was made on the door. It was a rhythm used in songs the Pink Lotus Clan used for communication.

Ye Xiu stood up and opened the door. Two brown haired persons appeared. One of them looked close to bursting for some reason and the other immediately went for a hug with Ye Xiu once the door was closed. They playfully swatted him on the head afterwards, having to stand on their toes. The other danced around him until they could hug him too.

"How dare you break your arm," the smallest of them laughed. "Now, we have to do more weapon check-ups too." They turned towards the rest of the group and started signing after confirming whether everyone sensed it. "I'm Dancing Rain, I go by she and her pronouns. I'm a weapon engineer, smith assistant, merchant, etc.," she signed, smiling friendly.

Before the other person could start, Ye Xiu raised his hand. "You got one minute," he said, a serious look in his eyes. The person raised their brows as if they couldn't believe it. Ye Xiu gave a nod.

Then, as it became clear it was a starting signal, a waterfall of words filled the air. The person was very capable of using their voice and sign language correctly at the same time. If the hearing members weren't trying too hard to keep up, they would've found the time to be impressed. Both languages had different grammar and sentence structures which made it even more difficult.

"I'm Troubling Rain, I go by he and him pronouns. I'm the smith and assist in engineering, sometimes. I'm also a merchant. Dancing Rain and I work together. I'm also a Blade Master; literally give me any kind of blade and I know how to handle it-" Dancing Rain poked him in the ribs, but he seemingly ignored it and just jumped to a different topic. "Now Lord Grim, what the fuck, one minute isn't enough! Why the fuck is your arm broken? Did you get lazy? Not keeping up with your practice and letting the enemy get the better of you, huh, huh? No wait, I get it! You broke it because you were scared to fight me! You won't get out of the sparring match, you shameless bastard. You're not getting out of this one, you hear me? I know you chickened out last time, but we had a deal! And why do you have a pipe in your hand? I thought you stopped smoking! If you start again I'm gonna cut this thing to pieces and stuff your mouth full of grass plumes." This kept on going for one minute, while he barely took time to breathe.

Ye Xiu just sat there, his chin tucked on his hand all while he counted in his head. After one minute he held up his hand again and Troubling Rain clamped his mouth shut.

The team sat there stunned while Dancing Rain chuckled quietly to herself.

"Alright, that's Troubling Rain for you," Ye Xiu said, smiling a little. "To answer quickly: it's broken 'cause Levi broke it. No you don't get more answers to that. I'm just going to ignore all that, but don't forget our track record. And yes I stopped smoking, I just needed something in my mouth. There's no need for the grass plumes, and lastly: stop cursing. Alright, to the team, so not to you Troubling Rain: are there any more questions?"

The team members shaked their heads, still a little stunned.

"I have a question!" Troubling Rain said and signed. Ye Xiu ignored him though and motioned for the team to get up and follow him. Troubling Rain rushed to walk beside Ye Xiu, walking backwards so the team could see his hands. "Why a pipe? Isn't that too much of a temptation? Why not grass plumes or a stick or my di-"

Dancing Rain clasped her hand over his mouth. "That's enough with the vulgarities."

Troubling Rain nodded and continued. "Where is Levi now? I want to beat his ass-" Dancing Rain sighed - "for breaking your arm. First, I thought you did the same thing where you tried to prevent someone from falling down some stairs and ended up falling down them yourself and broke your arm. Seriously you need to take care of yourself and stay away from that dude!"

Ye Xiu chuckled. "Oh yes, the stairs." Then, he clapped his hand on Troubling Rain's shoulder. "I appreciate it, but no need to worry. We're locating him right now and this arm will heal soon."

Then, a smirk appeared. "You sure you can beat him, though? For the record, Levi's and mine track record is like 50/50, whereas ours is in my favor."

"Bastard! It's because of your weapon! My skills aren't weaker than yours!"

"What about his weapon?" Seokjin asked. He, Jimin and Taehyung had been taking turns in interpreting Ye Xiu's part of the conversation.

"He's cheating!" Troubling Rain accused. "His weapon is multifunctional so you can't predict any of his moves. Just face me with a spear like you used to and fight me like an honorable man you sneaky bastard!"

"Sounds to me like he's just creating advantages wherever possible," Namjoon signed while smiling. Ye Xiu motioned in agreement. "See? He gets it!"

"But, how is it multifunctional?" Jimin asked. "The umbrella seems so thin and ordinary."

"Umbrella? Nobody said-" Taehyung started.

"Oh it was a rumor, sorry I assumed-"

"Well, it's true, actually," Troubling Rain answered. "You have to give them a demonstration! I want to see their faces! Do the color change! And especially when you do that thing where it moves on its-"

Ye Xiu gave him a stern look and Troubling Rian clamped his mouth shut again. "Sorry, almost revealed it!"

"Be careful! Also you just want to fight again," Dancing Rain signed while laughing. "Besides, his arm is broken," she reminded him.

"He can still fight!"

"But he should rest," Dancing Rain said, stressing the word while looking Troubling Rain in the eyes. She signed shortly after.

Ye Xiu sighed. "I'm not going to give a demonstration. They need to do a weapon check-up and then we have to do our own stuff. So, let's go!"

"Is it because your precious friend is here and you want to be at full power to show off?" Troubling Rain teased, referring to Namjoon.

Ye Xiu's eyes slit towards the sly grin on Troubling Rain's face. He saw through his attempt at baiting him to show Namjoon his skills were still fine, thank you. He would've taken the bait years ago, he thought. He was surprised that Troubling Rain managed to recognize Namjoon from the little bits of description he managed to get. "I see you're as opportunistic as always, glad to know you're still you. But no. No demonstration. We've arrived so do your job, young man!"

Troubling Rain grumbled and guided the team towards a spacious underground training room. It was void of people and lit up by green and turquoise crystals too. It lit up the different equipment used to assist in training.

"Alright, first we'll inspect your weapons 'dry' so to speak, just in our hands. Then afterwards, you'll perform maneuvers to check if the weapon does and sounds as is expected. A basic warm up, will do," Dancing Rain instructed. This weapon check-up was only for beginning teams, to send them into the world with a check-up done by experts. Ninjas were taught to care for their weapons and recognize manquements, but just for the beginning team, this was an extra precaution.

The team members all unsheathed their weapons. Every individually graduated ninja carried a Ninjato or another sword of their choosing and a Tanto. Most hid Kunai as well, depending on their aiming skills. Some also carried a bow and arrows, usually making it look like it was for hunting purposes. Hoseok was one of the ninjas who carried a bow and Kunai.

Taehyung also hid Kunai under his clothes. Usually when traveling, ninjas carried farming and merchant tools. They could very well function as weapons too. Shuriken (throwing stars), usually thought to be ninja and shinobi weapons, were actually carried by Fire Nation soldiers instead.

After the weapons were checked dry, Hoseok and Taehyung made themselves ready to throw their knives to the training boards in the room.

Hoseok had a challenging smile on his face. "Want to bet on who's got the best aim?"

Taehyung raised a brow. "Are you sure you're up for defeat today?"

Hoseok chuckled. "We'll see about that." He had a thought of telling the waterbender he sure sounded like a firebender with that burn, but he stopped himself.

They both threw, using the air and the water in the air around them to sense their environment. Both hit bullseye. They smiled and got ready for another one. The other members all placed their bets, the winning prize being choosing a bedroom in their temporary house first. Seokjin also joked about the irony of the best throwers in the team being two blind members and wondered why he didn't have that talent, despite being blind too.

Ye Xiu chuckled at the lively sight. Suddenly, the fight from last night invaded his memories.

Umbrella and sword clashed harshly.

Ye Xiu towered over Levi, but Levi's strength was remarkable. They tested each other like that for a few seconds, until Levi suddenly swerved to the left. It was too fast to be a jump, but Ye Xiu had no time to consider what technique could've been used. He immediately turned around, feeling murderous intent from his back, to block the next strike.

"Never thought you'd attack me in broad daylight like that, growing impatient? At least you're still growing that."

"We both know that wasn't me. Lower your head, you freaking titan," Levi replied back.

Oh? So he was in a talking mood. He chuckled. If Levi thought he was a titan he hadn't met his friends yet, and thank the spirits for that.

Levi drew back again and started circling Ye Xiu rapidly. When Ye Xiu least expected, he would jab and feint, slowly moving them both closer to the wall. Then, faster than Ye Xiu could evade or block, multiple knives stuck out of his clothes, pinning him against the wall.

Shit, Ye Xiu thought, did Levi increase his speed? Normally, he could at least open his shield to block or dodge. What happened?

Levi smirked slightly and, there really was no other word for it, flew forward. He jammed his knee against Ye Xiu's arm which held the umbrella. The impact was so forceful it broke.

Ye Xiu cried out, he couldn't help himself. Out of reflex he still managed to bring his leg upward, kicking Levi on his way back and sending him to the ground. The pain was intense, but Ye Xiu still tried to rip his clothes free from the knives while keeping an eye on Levi's whereabouts. When he succeeded, he saw Levi literally bringing the house down upon him. All he could do was run through the open door to evade the wood. He watched as his house tumbled down. Only the rock kept standing.

Yep, definitely not his best fight.

After he ran through the door, a back-up sent by the leaders arrived, but Levi was gone. He really should've waited for back-up, he thought with a pang of regret. However, he didn't realize Levi got even faster and he wanted to avoid anyone else getting hurt. How did Levi even bring down a whole house that fast? Did he weaken it while waiting for Ye Xiu? What was his intention? If he was that fast now, and his intention was to kill, Ye Xiu would be dead by now.

The smirk came to his mind. Levi rarely showed something even resembling a smile. Was he happy he got to break Ye Xiu's arm? Could it be payback for that time Ye Xiu severely hurt his arm? Was he that petty?

He looked at Namjoon. Did he give them false hope? Did he make their situation worse by trying to reassure them? If Levi had gotten ever faster...what about the others?

He swiped a hand through his hair. The situation wasn't looking good and he had so many questions. It might be wrong of him, but some part of him hoped Namjoon's team wouldn't become skilled enough to get on the Shinobi's radar.

He'd rather see them grow musically, but he knew Namjoon gave his best in everything he did, so he had no doubt he and his team would grow into a fearsome opponent.

Suddenly, he heard cheers. The guy with a blindfold on had won the bet. Ye Xiu saw he landed all the knives in the right places.

Impressive.

Yoongi landed his hand on Taehyung's shoulder, showing his support. Of course he had placed his bet on him. Taehyung had managed to throw almost all his knives right, and he was satisfied with the result. Now, he at least hoped he had some choice in his bedroom.

While Hoseok tested his bow and arrows under the watchful eye of Dancing Rain, the rest teamed up in pairs to test their swords. Before that, a dome of earth was created around them, to make sure the sounds of swords clashing didn't hinder Dancing Rain listening to Hoseok's bow. Then, each of the members performed their sword forms individually, being observed by Troubling Rain and Ye Xiu. After that, they got ready to spar.

Jimin's lips turned into an excited smile when he caught Jungkook's eyes. Jungkook rolled his eyes, but smiled too. Jimin had been his sparring partner for a while during training. A friendly rivalry bloomed between them.

They re-adjusted their swords in hand and took a stance. Jungkook felt eyes on him, their presence suddenly burning. The desire to impress took over him, despite this being only for a weapon check-up.

He cleared his mind, and readied his body for the starting signal. Every nerve was alert, but not tensely so.

When the signal came, Jimin barely had time to parry Jungkook's first strike. A grunt left his mouth, he didn't expect Jungkook to come on that strong for this. Lesson learned: never expect something; just be ready. He did notice Jungkook didn't go for what could be a fatal strike.

When the first strike happened, every person in the dome held their breath for a second. Jungkook was fast. Jimin was, too, seeing as he parried that. Ye Xiu felt delighted seeing that talent, but felt a stone sinking in his stomach as well. There went his guilty hope of them never getting on the Shinobi's radar. He hoped their skills to stay hidden were even better than their aim and sword fighting.

After Jungkook drew back, Jimin took his chance to lunge forward. They went back and forth like this for a while, Jungkook slowly not coming on as strong, almost as if reminding himself this wasn't training or an actual fight.

"Alright, thank you," Troubling Rain signed. "Sounds and looks good. I didn't really want to interrupt, but keep in mind this is a weapon check-up. If you go all out, we'd have to check again, afterward. Who's next?" he chuckled. Jungkook flushed.

Yoongi and Taehyung readied themselves in the middle. Taehyung carried twin broadswords. He preferred using two halves of one weapon, similar to the push-and-pull aspects of waterbending.

Their sparring looked more like the warm-up they were asked to do. Everyone could see both had practiced often with each other; a certain ease and synchronization flowed through every movement. After that, it was Seokjin and Namjoon's turn. Seokjin couldn't help but make the check-up a little more exciting by using earthbending under Namjoon's feet to imbalance him. Namjoon saw this coming, however, and quickly reacted by returning the favor. He grinned widely when Seokjin lost his footing.

Ye Xiu smiled. He remembered his days when starting out in a team. The eagerness to start and testing tricks during friendly sparring with new people. If only it could always stay that friendly and innocent, and members actually stayed alive. No- no thinking of that now, he quickly told himself.

? ﾝﾄﾆ ? ?

"Zuko."

"Yes?"

"I have a question."

"Fire away."

"Why do you show Ye Xiu's perspective a lot here?"

Zuko pauses for a bit. Then, he signs: "I kinda want to show how you guys were pretty innocent to what lies ahead. His perspective is that of an experienced ninja, retired from the duties of his team, and yours is that of… a- a baby?"

Hoseok screeches. "Did you just compare me to a baby? I like it when you call me baby but-"

Zuko splutters, his hands moving awkwardly. "No- not like that - I mean, you guys were so hopeful it hurts. I wanted to show Ye Xiu feeling like a parent who is happy their child is born into the world, but dreads it at the same time because the world is cruel."

"Oh."

"Yes."

"Like you with Izumi? That's actually really sweet. You really think he thought that?"

"To me, it was pretty clear."

"Oh."

Zuko holds Hoseok's hand lightly for a few seconds, not repressing him from signing.

"Can I go on, now?"

Hoseok looks up. "Hm? O, yes, sure!"

? ﾝﾄﾆ ? ?

After Namjoon and Seokjin were done too, the earthbenders put down the dome and joined Hoseok and Dancing Rain, who were waiting for them.

Hoseok had already performed his individual sword maneuvers and Jimin decided to team up with him for the next check-up.

Every weapon turned out alright, and Dancing Rain and Troubling Rain were very pleased to see them take good care of their weapons.

"Well, then, let's go back! Anyone care for some tea? You didn't get tea earlier," Ye Xiu asked.

"Is there a food shop here too?" Hoseok asked in return.

"Yeah, sure, I'll show you."

Ye Xiu guided him out of the shop, Seokjin and Jungkook joined too. He explained the way to the shop.

Suddenly, he and Seokjin heard a loud voice yelling. Jungkook and Hoseok both sensed it too.

A second later, Seokjin felt his instincts flare-up and reflexively put up an earth wall in the opposite direction of the voice. An arrow rocketed off.

"Down!" Ye Xiu sent telepathically at the same time as Seokjin brought up the wall, while he opened his umbrella.

Hoseok and Jungkook threw themselves to the ground and rolled away, while Seokjin ducked behind the wall. It was big enough for the four of them, but the others weren't aware he pulled it up. He himself was even surprised at how fast he did it. Even though he was good at blocking, this might be record time.

"Help!" The voice screamed again.

"You three help that kid, I'll see if I can close in," Ye Xiu sent while running, using his soundbending to identify the location of the running archer.

"Got it," Seokjin replied. He motioned for the others to hide behind the wall too, just in case. Then, he bent the earthwall and the earth under them to move to where the voice came from.

They found a red haired teenager, looking to be around fifteen years old, hanging on to a high tree as if their life depended on it. Thankfully they were short, so they didn't have to have a lot of strength to hang on.

"We'll help you, don't worry, just hang on!" Jungkook yelled and turned to Seokjin, who was already in the process of bending the earth in such a way that the teengager could safely slide down. With instructions of Jungkook he adjusted the earth so that it was directly under the teenager.

They let go of the branch and slid down with a yelp.

After they hit the ground safely, they gasped: "Oh, thank the spirits you were there."

Jungkook could read their lips, but Hoseok left the conversation to the other two. He trusted they would explain later.

Seokjin quickly interpreted, just in case, and smiled. "I'm happy we were here too. May I ask what were you doing in that tree so high in the first place?"

"I was playing a game with friends, and one of them earthbent me into the tree." The kid turned their head around. "They left to find help. At first he tried to bend like you just did, but his skill isn't that high."

"So he got you in the tree, but wasn't able to get you out of it?" Seokjin quirked a brow.

"Seokjin, let go; the bending of undertrained people is often unpredictable. I'm sure it wasn't his fault," Jungkook added. "Panic makes it hard to bend too."

At this, Seokjin schooled his features. "True. Well, then, find your friends and hopefully they learn from this."

The teen smiled, rivaling Hoseok's sunshine, and thanked them once again. Then, they ran away.

Seokjin couldn't help but feel a bit unsettled.

? ﾝﾄﾆ ? ?