By Silver Dragonfly
Chapter 4 : ominous
Amber eyes widened and narrowed before turning their dark slit pupils on the only other
living thing in the room. "You are sure of this Kabuto-kun?"
"Hai Orochimaru-sama. There is now way this information could be falsified. Besides
why else would Jiraiya take such a personal interest in the boy? So much so that he
allowed the boy to sign the toad summoning contract and taught the boy Rasengan –
you're old teammate is far too sentimental to teach the Yondaime's signature attack to
just anyone.
Orochimaru chuckled, his amber gaze returning to the scroll in his hands and his laughter
grew to a sinister laugh that echoed through the audience hall. 'Finally! Finally I will be
able to get revenge on that blond haired brat for taking what was rightfully mine…The
legacy of the fourth Hokage of Konoha would meet his end at a snake's jaws.'
Slate gray eyes watched as the owners lips curved into a smirk. The Snake would chase
after the Kyuubi, of that he was sure, and their plans would finally move forward no
longer hindered by the presence of the Kyuubi.
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Sasuke frowned as he watched his new lizard companion continue to explore their
traveling supplies. Not that Sasuke really cared at the moment, he was more concerned
and aggravated over the fact that his partner had not returned yet…It had been several
hours now since Neji had gone off to scout—and there had been no sign of the Hyuuga
since. He was in fact, about ready to pack up camp and go looking for his missing
partner.
He grumbled something incoherently and rose to his feet. "Stupid Hyuga."
"The same to you Uchiha."
Sasuke whirled, "Where the hell have you bee—n. Hyuga…"
"Training." Neji answered as he moved fully into the clearing and sat down, immediately
digging out the first aid kit and began dressing the various cuts and scrapes the covered
his skin, some of them looking rather deep.
Sasuke glowered at him. "We're in foreign territory and you decide to train!?"
Neji snorted. "Hardly. I wasn't exactly given a choice."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" Sasuke asked obviously unamused. It was at that
point that Yamori climbed out of the first aid supplies and looked up at Neji with a
curious expression. Neji's hand stopped just before he picked up the small lizard by
mistake.
"Uchiha… there is a lizard in the first aid supplies."
Sasuke moved forward and grabbed the lizard by the tail and then met Hyuga's stare with
his own, daring the Hyuga to question him further. Meanwhile the silvery green reptile
climbed up Sasuke's hand, arm and made a move to climb onto the raven haired boys
head. Sasuke pulled the lizard back down to his shoulder without breaking his glare.
"Uchiha—"
"Don't ask."
Neji's eyebrows arched up in curiosity. It was at that point that Oniyuri made her
appearance, her large white and black stripped form simply appearing in the clearing. She
ignored both teenagers, dropping the pair of rabbits she carried on the ground and then
turned to look at them both.
"I hope you don't expect me to do all the hunting Neji-kun."
It was Sasuke's turn to arch his eyebrows in question.
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Hinata watched Naruto as he talked with several members of his fox pack and couldn'thelp but smile. For the past week she and Naruto has been acting as security and general
keepers of the piece as the people of Wave country celebrated the success of their bridge
and the new prosperity they had gained since its completion, and it had been fun. All too
often missions that required a shinobi's skill were dangerous, deadly, and far from
enjoyable. However this time had been an exception. Not that it had been all fun and
play, they'd actually been very busy looking into several of the leads Tsunade had found
for them that could lead them to others who were bound to a Guardian.
A sudden shiver ran up her spine and Hinata turned to west, her eyes staring past the wall
and out towards the main land that was connected to Wave Country thanks to the Naruto
bridge. 'Something's coming… Kilin—could it be—'
"No. This is not the answer to your calling… this is dark... malicious. Be wary." The
Unicorn answered, the violet power that Hinata always felt fill her mind whenever in
close contact with the guardian faded away, an obvious sign that the guardian was
distracted with something on the astral plane.
"Hinata is something wrong?" Naruto asked as he moved closer to her, worry evident in
his blue eyes.
Hinata turned her gaze away from the west and smiled at him, "I'm not sure. There's
something coming."
No sooner had she spoken then Naruto let out a sharp bark and several kitsune suddenly
appeared. She watched as he gave them quick orders, some of the language he used she
could understand, other parts of it she couldn't. The summoned kitsune vanished as
suddenly as they came and Naruto turned to face her once more with a fox-like grin. "I
sent part of the pack out to survey the area and set up sentries. We'll know if anything
comes from that way."
Hinata smiled softly and nodded though the feeling of something dark and foreboding
still nipped at her senses.
"Relax Hinata-chan. With us here nothing will harm this village!" Naruto declared as he
sat down next to her and wrapped his arms around her in a reassuring hug.
Hinata gladly let herself be pulled into his embrace and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Hai. You always protect those you care for. I believe in you Naruto-kun."
Naruto blushed. "Ah-well—" he stammered as he tried to come up with a suitable
response, his mind distracted by her being huddled close to him.
Hinata giggled but didn't pull away, rather she let her muscles relax and settled further
into his embrace.
Naruto smiled and let it go as he relaxed as well.
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Tsunade sighed as she watched Lee and Sakura leave the Central Administration Tower
and head towards the village gate. With them on their way, those bound to Guardians
were out of her hands; a fact that both relieved and pained her. Since the first day she had
met Uzumaki Naruto she had been pulled into the myth, legend, and reality that were the
Guardians. Initially she had thought it some elaborate joke—but then the histories were
uncovered and the truth laid plain. From that point on she had been involved with the five
Genin who had been bound with Guardians on an almost constant daily basis—and
through that she found that Konoha was at the center of the age old war that was brewing.
For now though they five of them were out on their own, and with any luck would bring
back others with them. 'Naruto you better come back in one-piece.'
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Orochimaru's lips twisted up in a vicious smirk as he met the glare of the fox that he held
securely by the scruff as it growled and bared its fangs fully. "You know what Kabuto-
kun?"
The silver haired shinobi moved forward to stand just a pace behind the sannin. "Ah?"
"I really hate kitsunes." The amber eyes narrowed. "But on the other hand—they're so
much fun to kill."
With those words his fingers tightened around the kitsune's neck, the Snake's grin
spreading as his grip tightened further and further until there was an audible snap and
blood gushed down the white fur of the kitsune's stomach.