Chapter 3.8 – Unfamiliar Territory and Training Areas
Gai's Group:
Gai's SUPER RECONAISSANCE TEAM!!! is currently traveling through a forest toward the east. Why? Gai announced it himself to the team. The team sighs in exasperation. Right now, it is about Day 4 of the ANBU training for Naruto and gang, so it is Day 2 for the Gai expedition. They are traveling, when suddenly Gai tells them to stop. They do. The group asks what's up, and Gai tells them to sense ahead of them. They do. No one feels a thing, until Kiba announces that he can smell 3 people heading their way. Immediately, they get under onto the forest floor. They get on the forest floor and start to run when a group of sound nins ambush them and unleash a series of weapons that the group blocks. They get caught with a giant log that they can't avoid. The sound nins are triumphant, but when the log hits Gai's team, they vanish. The Sound Nins are stunned, and they release that a Kage Bunshin tricked them when Tenten, Neji, Akamaru, and Kiba knock them all out from behind. Gai appears with two of them over his shoulders and tells his team great job. Tenten looks at her sensei and tells him good job with the Kage Bunshin for the group. Kiba asks what they should do. Gai suggests that Neji seal their chakra openings and Tenten set up a series of traps to keep them from escaping and others getting to them. This is done, and ten minutes later the Sound Nins are in a metal cage and the group is at least 50 meters away from them. Tenten says that on all sides there are at least twenty different traps. Kiba is stunned at the progress that Neji and Tenten did. Gai tells his team good work. Tenten states that they didn't even use any of their equipment to set the traps, all of the weapons and tools belonged to the Sound Nins. Kiba is slightly said for not being able to do much, and Neji, noticing this, tells Kiba that he did a good job knocking them out with them and they do need him. Akamaru barks. Kiba shakes his head and gets over his depression with a laugh, asking he they should move on now. They all agree, and they jump up into the branches and continue on. As they travel, Neji states that he is surprised that the Sound is already starting to move into the Fire Country. Kiba states that it is probably because of Orochimaru. He has already lost his four elite and his attempt to get Sasuke has failed. Also, the Sound will probably want revenge for losing to the Leaf in the last war. Tenten asks what Orochimaru might be planning and with who. Gai answers that that is what they are going to find out. They travel on and by nightfall they reach the border between the Sound and Cloud Countries. They arrive in a small town and head into a back alley. Gai suggests they head for an inn, but before they enter, they remove any sign that they might from the Fire Country (headbands, marks, clothes). They take clothes out of their packs and throw them on over their own. The end result is interesting. Tenten looks like a boy in a cap, Neji, a suit wearing sunglasses-over-the-eyes gentleman, Kiba looks like a regular kid with a dog, having of taken off his jacket, and Gai looks like a serial killer with a trench coat over his green workout suit and a fedora hat on. The Genins sweat at Gai-sensei's disguise. Neji asks what is the point of disguises if Gai-sensei looks like a killer? Gai answers quietly that this is all he could get, so, he says, lets go get our rooms! They head into the inn, with Tenten wondering if all will be okay and Kiba thinking they are all dead. Gai gives the innkeeper a name, and the innkeeper gives them a room key. As they head to the stairs, Akamaru whimpers, and Kiba is shocked. On the stairs, Neji and Tenten ask Kiba what Akamaru was whimpering about. Kiba says he didn't notice at first, but the innkeeper has no scent, as if nobody was really there. The others are shocked at this news, and Neji asks if the enemy is already aware of them. Kiba says he is not sure, but lets be ready in case we are attacked. Gai, who paid no attention to the Genins, announces that they are at their room, and whistling, goes to unlock the door. The Genins get in a fighting stance, but drop it when they hear a familiar voice tell them they are late with a laugh. Gai laughs and answers that they ran into some trouble. The Genins look around Gai and see Kankuro and two Sound Chunnins, one girl and one guy. Kiba then asks Kankuro if that man at the front desk is Karasu. Kankuro asks how he knew. Kiba states that Karasu didn't smell. The Sand Shinobis laugh. Kankuro introduces the Chunnins. The guy is Hyde, and he has the ability of seeing far away. Kiba and Neji notice the guy's eyes, which almost look like a hawk's, though his eyes are also seem as if they are constantly laughing. The girl is Satari, and she has the ability to telepathically communicate with any creature including people. The Genins are impressed, yet Neji freaks out when he hears her voice in his head. He falls on the ground and clutches his head. The others are concerned about him, until he gets back up and laughs, saying that that is the weirdest thing he ever experienced. When he fell, however, his glasses fell off, revealing his eyes and stunning the Chunnins. Kankuro then explains that he is Hyuga, which they then understand why his eyes are white. Gai then introduces the rest, starting with himself by throwing off the coat, getting in the nice guy pose, and introduce himself as the prideful green beast of the leaf with a smile. This makes all the others sweat in exasperation. He moves on to Tenten, who takes off the clothes over her own and discards the cap, shocking the Sand Nins who swore out load that they thought she was a guy. This silently pisses Tenten off while Neji and Kiba silently laugh. He introduces Kiba next, who rips off his disguise, and then removes a genjutsu around him that changed his appearance, revealing his large white coat, clawed hands, and dog-like eyes. Akamaru barks, and Gai introduces him after an apology to Akamaru. The Chunnins look at him, wondering if he is anything like Gaara. Gai, finished with the introductions, pulls out a map and asks the Sand Shinobis if they have found out anything between the Cloud and the Sound. This snaps the Chunnins out of their thoughts, and Hyde answers that there has been some heavy mining at the border and the products are heading to both the Sound and Cloud villages, where they have no clue what is going on. Gai thanks them, saying that they'll start to lay a plan out to go scout out the outskirts of the villages. For now, he says, lets scout out the town for information. Tenten wonders if that is wise since this village is in Sound territory. Satari states that it is okay since this is a neutral town. Neji asks what she means by that. Kankuro states that this town sides neither with the Hidden Sound Village or Symphonia City, the government city of the Sound Country. Kiba says he heard of discord between the the city and the village that started when Orochimaru failed to destroy the Hidden Leaf Village. Hyde agrees, saying Orochimaru has not been able to launch any new attacks since his arms were damaged and the government of the Sound Country refused to support any ideas of Orochimaru. Recently, however, Orochimaru has been getting backing from somewhere within the Sky Country, and they need to try to find where. So, we need to start making plans to scout the land. They end up working late into the night and go to morning. By the middle of the night, a plan has been worked out. Neji and Hyde will head to the Northwestern border and scout out the area. Satari and Kiba will scout out the outskirts of the Hidden Sound village with the help of different animals. The rest will scout out the neutral cities for the same time. At the end, they agreed to meet back at the inn in this town. At sunrise, they move out…
Kurenai's Group:
It is day 2 for Kurenai's group, and they are heading north toward a city near the border with the Stone Country. As they head for there, they talk. Sakura wonders why the Sound Country hasn't tried anything yet. Kurenai explains that before Orochimaru came, the Sound Nation was disunified and always had civil wars between the cities for power. When Orochimaru came, a city known as Symphonia City had claimed power. He negotiated with them and they began to build the Hidden Sound Village in the Western Part of the Sound Nation, while Symphonia City consolidated itself on the coast in the East. Eventually, the Hidden Sound Village was complete, and Symphonia had secured permanent power as the seat of government for the Sound Nation. This was all about 13 years ago, said Kurenai. People in the Sound Country then viewed Orochimaru as a savior for unifying the country, and when they took a smaller country to the North on the Cloud country border 10 years ago, they really rallied around the Sannin who came to their country and their government, who gave the village all of its funds and clients while the village gave the government it's power. Shikamaru asks if this is still the case in the Sound Country. Not anymore, says Kurenai. With being handed defeat by the Leaf Country and especially after hearing the Best Genins in the Sound were needlessly sacrificed by Orochimaru, the situation in the Country is now tense. The Government has cut off most funding and clients to the Sound Village, and the Sound Village refuses to comply as defensive forces for the government. They still exchange communications and recognize the other, but they pretty much hate each other now, staying together only because both recognize the other as necessary. The Village was forced to admit that the Government must be there for order, and the Government was forced to admit that the Village is there for military protection. Besides that, however, they hate and spite each other. Sakura then asks that since they hate each other, is it still safe to go in the country. Kurenai says it is okay, since there is a zone of neutral cities that are part of the Sound Nation, but do not side with the government's view or the Hidden Sound Village's view. These villages act as a buffer between the two forces. Kurenai stops talking when she suddenly stops and the others follow suit. Kurenai tells them to look ahead of them. They look, and down in a valley they see the city. Kurenai then throws a pack at them and tells them to throw clothing in the pack on over their own. They do so and the end result is interesting. Shikamaru has his back hair down, giving him a punk look. His usual short black shirt is hidden under a large dark blue one. His long black shorts were replaced by baggy denim pants. He still had his sandals on, but the biggest difference was that he had a short knit cap over his head, completing the look. Sakura and Ino were both dressed up in clothes and hairstyles of martial artists. Kurenai was a shocker, however, since she changed her appearance to where she looked like Tenten. The Genins were impressed by this. Shikamaru then asked how come he looks like a punk. Kurenai then said it was for his first assignment. He must go to the dark alley area of the city and gather as much information as possible. She gives him a map and marks the area he needs to go. She also gives him a list of people, where they are, and what their codephrases are to memorize. She tells him not to lose that. In two hours, Kurenai goes on, head to the inn here, she says circling an area. Shikamaru sighs, but wishes the others luck, states he will do his best, and heads off. Kurenai then starts to explain the others assignment…
End of Chapter 3.8. In 3.9, Kurenai will tell of Sakura and Ino's Mission. And what about Kakashi's group? All that and more. See everyone next week.
Ugh. I am so overwhelmed with school it is sick so the chapter was cut short. I promise to make it up to everyone next time. The thing is I just got a wireless network set up throughout the house, and have been playing with it for a bit. Heh. Sorry. For anyone wondering on couples, the only ones so far are NarutoHinata and ShikamaruTemari. If anyone has any suggestion please let me know. No yaoi couples please. Thank you.