The Path A Ninja Walks...

Chapter Thirty-Two

Sudden Interruption

A/N: WARNING-The character known as Sage Amesawa uses a lot of profanity and colorful language as part of his "colorful" personality. Be prepared if you are sensitive to that. Please note it is not because I condone such manner of speech, and also the character does not mean to use it as a way to be harmful, it is just his personality.

The Kunoichi of the grass stood tall and silent. Before her was a small puddle of splattered blood...in an empty spacem while two Kunai remained stuck in a hunched over tree and she smirked.

"Hmm..." she hummed softly to herself, "...So that's how it is..."

XXXXX

Saseme was curled into herself. A Trembling mess against the mast of a large high up tree. Her brother Sasuke hovered over her, blood dripping from his thigh where he stabbed a Kunai to move himself away.

Sakura sat before them...finally having come too from the illusion of her death.

"Oh, Sasuke..." she said softly. His twin lay exhausted and breathless, the use of her eyes having taken a lot from her. It was a desparate move he pulled...but a clever one, to stab a blade into his leg to move he and the girls with him to safety in the distant wooded area before the. He over came fear...with pain. As Prey, it seemed he wasn't so helpless after all. The two oher genin that were hidden around her had also come to and moved away as quickly as they could in search for their missing team mate. But it didn't matter to this woman...after all...she wasn't the least bit interested in them anyway.

Sasuke grunted as he removed the blade from his leg and panted heavily.

"That wound's deep!" Sakura gasped, "Will you be all right!?" Instantly he had covered her mouth with his hand having heard some movement in the distant...Luckily for them...they were allies.

"Saseme!" Hana cried out, with Sage in lead as he quickly leapt from limb to limb to their point of hiding as the female Uchiha struggled to sit up right.

"You crazy bitch!" Sage cried, tears in his eyes as in a swift motion he was before her, and she was in his arms, being held tightly with trembling shoulders as he sobbed, "I thought you were dead...!" he said to her, "We saw you die!"

"We were all dead!" said Hana.

"That...was an illusion." she said in a muffled voice against the mid-drift top of Sage's that her face was smooshed against.

"A powerful one at that..." said Hana, "This is definitely no ordinary Genin we're up against." she stated.

"I think you're right..." said Saseme as she looked to her panicked brother. He saved her life, but he was so fear stricken he wasn't even taking in his surroundings or his situation. His body was running on pure "flight" instinct...

"There's something much more deeper going on here-" she froze up as she began to notice Sakura struggling behind the entrapment of Sasuke's hand cupped over her mouth. A Shadow loomed over them, and her eyes widened as a giant snake some how silently made its way toward them. Sakura tore away his hand and cried out:

"Sasuke, watch out!"

"Huh?" With his sharingan active he took a glance and let out a gasp as the two of them split apart, and team Kokoua clung together, working to help move Saseme who was still in a weakened state.

"Unbelievable! I didn't even notice!" said Sasuke, "I'm LOSING it!" he gasped when he realized someone was missing, "SASEME!" he cried out.

"We got her, dude!" said Sage, calling up from another distant spot. He and Hana each had one side of Saseme supported between them, "I'd worry more about yourself!" he stated, "Looks like your little friend is coming again!"

"Ahhhh! NO!" Sasuke screamed out desparately, "STAY AWAY!" he cried as he threw an abundance of Shuriken at the snake who was trying to make him its next meal. It seemed to kill it dead. What a bloody mess.

Sasuke rested, hunched over with heavy panting in place of general breaths while Sage let out a long whistle.

"Wow." he said softly, "Guess your brother's afraid of snakes?"

"Hardly..." said Saseme, "My big brother's barely afraid of anything...especially not something like a snake." she blinked, "It's this enemy..." she said softly as she rested narrowed eyes upon him, "...She's what's got him so shaken up." she stated, "Like you said before..." she blinked, "This is no Genin we are up against.., GAAHAHH!" she let out a startled yelp as she noticed the corpse of the snake began moving and her brother Sasuke let out a sharp gasp, followed by Sakura's as well.

"...I sense your fear, and desparation..." an all too familiar voice began speaking from it, "It's only natural..." she stated as she began to rise from the snake body, "The prey must never let down its guard, not even for a moment, in the presence of its predator..." Her tongue slid out and waggled, as a snake's would and some ominous laughter soon followed it. For her body shot out and moved swiftly, stretching as a snake's would as well, slithering quickly toward her victims.

"MOVE!" Saseme cried out as she forcibly pushed back her team mates away from her, splitting from them and moved toward her brother while Sakura let out a harsh gasp. Sasuke's startled scream sounded and Saseme tried to move faster, however, all had stopped when a sudden barrage of weapons froze everyone in place...

To Be Continued