2- Konoha's Beautiful Green Beast to the Rescue!

Gai watched with pride as his team quickly dispatched the thieves that had tried to attack their ward, a man who was good friends with the Fire country's Feudal Lord. He hadn't even needed to move from his client's side. Tenten launched three kunai with her usual deadly accuracy, pinning one of the attackers to a tree by the sleeves of his shirt. Neji had knocked a second down; injuring him with a sharp attack that had been just too fast for the untrained man to combat. The third tumbled to the floor after being struck by Lee's 'Konoha whirlwind'. They made a good team, despite the less than friendly rivalry between Neji and Lee.

All in all, their client seemed very happy with the result. They were nearly at their destination, and this was the only major incident they had had. As the three incapacitated robbers complained heartily, Neji and Lee tied them up so that they didn't attack again as soon as they moved on.

"Good work!" Their client exclaimed, clapping them. Lee and Tenten smiled, but Neji remained stone-faced as usual. He seemed to always view these missions as below him. Perhaps they were, but Neji's attitude could be more than a little annoying, especially as his cutting remarks always bit deeply into Lee. Lee had worked so hard over the past year that he was barely even comparable to the almost useless boy he had been when he started his life as a Genin. Yet Neji barely even recognised that Lee was becoming stronger. Every time Lee made some progress, Neji would always come right back with his constant gibing; 'a dropout is a dropout.'

The five of them once more continued on their way. Gai had initially thought the mission strange, as they were escorting their client into a country that had its own hidden village and its own ninja. However, now that they were in the country of Flame, he could see some evidence of recent battles. Evidently the hidden village of Smoke was having some difficulties.

"Neji," said Gai. The silver-eyed Genin looked round at his Jounin Sensei with an unreadable expression on his face. Neji occasionally looked at him with barely concealed contempt and disrespect, but Gai did not care. He didn't have to prove himself to his Genin, only to himself. "Use your Byakugan to scan the surrounding areas," he said. Neji nodded and closed his eyes, joining his hands in a seal.

"Byakugan!" he said, and the vein-like appearance surrounded the Genin's eyes as he looked around him. Lee looked around to see what had alerted his Sensei to the possibility of more trouble and saw a Kunai lodged in a tree, and disturbed ground in a clearing just off the road that suggested recent ninja activity. His heart swelled with pride that his Sensei had spotted those signs so quickly.

"Neji? What is it?" said Gai. Neji was squinting into the forest, seeing something which ordinary eyes could not see.

"A group of ninja, from various villages," Neji said. "They are camping in the forest."

"Are they anywhere near our destination?" Gai asked, frowning at his Genin. Neji shook his head.

"They are well away from the road. We should be able to avoid them, as long as we keep an eye on their location," Neji replied, looking back at Gai again. Gai nodded.

"Then please do so," the Jounin requested. "I don't like the feel of this country. Something is happening here."

---

Genma had gone ahead of the group as a scout, while the other five rested by a stream, drinking the cool sweet water and catching their breath. Sharino was explaining how the trouble in their village had started.

"The first attack was on a team of four Chuunin who were on their way back from a mission. They were ambushed by five of the Missing-Nin without any provocation. Two of the Chuunin were severely injured. All of them were lucky to escape.

"After that, the attacks came frequently. Almost every mission we sent out was attacked by a group of them. Sometimes the attackers were mere Genin and were easily defeated, but many resulted in our ninja being badly hurt. A few have been killed, including my brother." Sharino paused, staring sadly into the stream for a moment, before continuing.

"The most recent case was an escort mission. They made it to their destination and we received word that Kenshin, one of the strongest ninja in our village, was returning. When he didn't come back, a team, including myself, was sent out to find out what had happened to him. We found him hanging from a tree. He had been tortured before he died." They all looked sombre as they listened to Sharino's tale. Naruto looked shocked, his blue eyes wide with compassion as he listened in silence.

"Why did they torture him?" Sasuke asked, his voice gentle. Sakura looked a little shocked by the question, but Sharino didn't seem to mind.

"We are not certain, but we believe they are looking for something that the village of Smoke possesses," she told them.

"Do you know what it is?" Kakashi asked. Sharino shook her head sadly.

"We do not know of anything that we have that would warrant an attack of this level. If we did, then maybe we would not be in the trouble we are in."

At that moment Genma returned. "The path ahead seems clear, but there are some signs of recent activity in the area. We should proceed with caution," he said. Kakashi nodded.

"Yeah."

Standing, they put their packs on and continued quickly on their way through the forest.

---

Gai and his team reached their destination with no further trouble, though Neji kept a wary eye on the camping ninja. Soon, paid and rested after their client treated them to a good meal at the village's best restaurant, they started on their way back to Konoha.

They hadn't gotten very far when one of Neji's glances around them discovered someone coming their way.

"It's a single ninja, with a cat of some kind," he said. "But he's heading directly toward us." Alarmed, Gai had them hide in the bushes by the roadside until they could ascertain this ninja's intentions.

A minute or two later, the ninja appeared on the road in front of where they were hiding. He looked around for a moment and was about to head off again when the cat made a move towards the bushes where they were hiding. Knowing that he had been found, Gai signalled to his team and they jumped out to surround the newcomer, while Tenten jumped up into a tree so that she would have a better view of her target if she had to attack.

The newcomer dropped to his knees, raising his hands to either side of him to show he was not a threat.

"I am an ally of Konoha," he said. Gai looked for a forehead protector, but the ninja did not seem to be wearing one. Then Lee pointed to the cat.

"The cat is wearing the forehead protector as a collar. It is not a village I recognise," he said. Gai looked at it.

"The village of Smoke," he said. "Neji?" Neji's eyes returned to normal and he nodded.

"His eyes show he is telling the truth," the Hyuuga replied. Gai nodded and looked over the newcomer. He had a short sword in a scabbard at his belt and an armoured shoulder protector, although his other shoulder was bare, with the symbol for 'cat' tattooed on it. He also wore a blue belt around his waist, and elbow-length black gloves. His hair was long and red, part hanging loose and part sticking up, surrounding his head like a halo of flame. His eyes were yellow and cat like, though a mask of bandages covered most of the rest of his face.

"I am Nekozaki Nekoya, from the Hidden Village of Smoke. You are the aid sent from Konoha, aren't you? Where is Sharino?" Gai frowned.

"Sharino? We were here on an escort mission. Who is Sharino?" Lee said. Nekoya looked confused for a moment and looked at his cat. The cat looked at him, mewing. Nekoya nodded and looked back at Gai.

"I am sorry. It seems I got over-excited when I heard that there were Konoha ninja nearby. Sharino is from my village, she was sent to Konoha to find help. Our village is under attack."

"The ninja we saw in the forest," Neji said. Nekoya looked at the white-eyed boy curiously and nodded.

"Gai-sensei! If these are Konoha's allies, could we not help?" Lee said, enthusiastic as always.

"We should return to Konoha, to consult the Hokage…" Gai started.

"Sharino was sent to find Hatake Kakashi… she should be returning very soon," Nekoya said. At the mention of Kakashi, Gai's frown changed into a bright grin.

"If Kakashi is coming, then I will help also. It would not do to run away in the face of my eternal rival!" he said. Neji and Tenten rolled their eyes silently, but Lee at once followed his Sensei's jumping around with excitement.

In one of his typically dramatic poses, Gai pointed in the direction that Nekoya had come.

"To the Hidden Smoke!" He said. Lee jumped up straight and saluted.

"Roger!" he shouted. Neji looked at them both as though they were dirt under his shoe.