Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. Gimpy and Sora are mine… hehe
Summary: Takes place four years after the rescue for Sasuke. Of course he gets rescued. Everyone is at least Chuunin and Anbu rank/training. Naruto is sent to the future with a jutsu mess up… Created by Kabuto and Orochimaru.
Rating: PG-13 to R. And soon to be rated M for later chapters, but I will get to that eventually.
Pairings: Hinata/Naruto, Sasuke/Sakura…. More pairings to come! Everyone will be a little OC… Sorry.
' ' Are inner thoughts
" " Spoken
Bold is Kyuubi speaking
Jays: I know Neji's father is dead, I couldn't remember how to spell Hinata's father's name. Hehe Thanks for the review.
ShinobiFighter101: Thanks for the review, I have decided to delete the story from and just post the Lemons in my profile. So look for them. (It's not taking the new additions well)
Madnarutofan: Hmm, I don't know. Read and find out! 3
Again thanks for all your reviews it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! Hyuu XD
Chapter 6: Ambush! Orochimaru's Palace Awaits!
"Ahhh! Oomph!"
Rubbing his head, Naruto looked around to look for the person responsible for kicking him out of bed. Finding no one, he sat up on his knees and leaned onto his bed for support. Spotting a familiar tuff of red fur, the blonde shinobi poked it twice to see if he could get a reaction out of his pet. All he heard was a low growling sound. Naruto's brow rose and proceeded to poke his fox. 'Lets see how he likes it.' He thought to himself while snickering quietly.
"Oi, Gimpy." Nothing could be heard.
"Poke, poke." After the second poke, he heard a "poof!" One minute there was a fox and now there was none. Naruto's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. 'Kage Bunshin! What the hell?' Little did he know Gimpy was under the bed ready to make his attack?
Naruto's brow rose as he heard a low growl being emitted from underneath his bed. "Yip!" The fox came bounding out from under the bed and pounced on top of his Master licking his face.
"You little shit! How can you perform Kage Bunshin?" Asked a laughing Naruto. Gimpy showed his canines in an attempt to smile and winked at his Master. "Alright, keep your secrets." Smirking as he said.
Pushing himself to his feet, Naruto walked towards the bathroom to do his daily routine. Gimpy trotted out of the bedroom and into the kitchen looking for something to eat. Leaping onto the counter he began searching through the collective trash Naruto left from last night's dinner. Sniffing at the cup of Ramen's contents, Gimpy gave a snort. 'How can he eat that noodle slop?' Rummaging on top of the counter was doing him no good. He stretched up to the cabinets and pawed at the door so it would open. Sticking his head inside all he found was more instant ramen. Gimpy sweat dropped. Tail swishing left and right, he sat on his hind legs and sighed. 'What I wouldn't give for a nice steak or a rabbit.' His mouth visibly watered.
'An animal that can actually perform a Jounin level jutsu? That's absurd! Maybe I can talk to Kiba about this? He works with Akamaru a lot.' Turning off the water, he stepped out of the shower and walked towards the mirror with a towel tied securely around his waist. Taking his right hand, he wiped away the mirror and stared at his own reflection. Naruto brought his left hand up to finger the necklace Tsunade-baba gave him. 'The first Hokage's legacy.' He mentally repeated to himself. He thought about the bet he and the old hag made, Naruto secured his Hokage status by a bet. He half smiled to himself thinking of Tsunade-baba's weakness. Taking a comb he attempted to tame his wild blond locks instead he just ruffled them about so they would stick up.
Gimpy walked in from the kitchen and pawed at the bathroom door so he could squeeze through to see what his Master was doing. Seeing Naruto attempt to do something with his hair and brush his teeth at the same time was quite amusing. He leapt on to the counter knocking stuff over he yipped. "Oi Gimpy, what are you doing in here?" The red kit cocked his head sideways and showed his canines. Naruto watched his pet with both brows rose and a confused expression on his face. 'I guess this how Kiba and Akamaru communicate?' Shrugging off his thoughts he put on his deodorant. Gimpy's ears twitched and is tail swayed back and forth watching his Master groom him.
Hearing someone knocking on his front door, Gimpy perked his ears and barked. "Yeah, yeah I'm coming!" Putting down his comb and leaving the toothbrush in his mouth he ran from his bathroom to the front door scantily clad in a towel with Gimpy in tow. Unlocking the door, he turned the knob and pulled the door wide open with his little kit at his feet looking at his visitor expectantly.
There stood his favorite lazy Chuunin looking bored as ever and to his side was Hinata and Ino. Both girls were slightly flushed staring at the towel bearing shinobi. Blinking rapidly Naruto looked at all three ninjas, "What are you doing here?" Keeping one had on the towel and the other hand behind his head. Shikamaru sighed heavily keeping his hand in his pockets, "What do you think?"
A vein popped on the blonde goddess's head. "Baka! Go put some clothes on!" Ino smacked him on his head. Letting go of his towel to hold his aching head his towel dipped lower showing off his well-defined hipbone and the start of something good. Hinata was watching her friend beat up her potential boyfriend then saw the towel dip lower. She blushed a shade redder and started to get a small nosebleed. Naruto looked up and noticed Hinata's blush, "Huh? Hinata, are you alright?" Shikamaru rolled his eyes and pushed Naruto inside shutting the door behind him leaving the rest of the team outside. "Moron. Didn't you see the girls' faces?" Rubbing his head Naruto furrowed his brow, "No." Gimpy snorted. "Naruto, your towel almost fell off giving them a free show." Raising one brow as he said this. "Poor Hinata got a nosebleed." A faint blush could be seen on his nose.
"Anyway, why are you here so early Shikamaru?" Pulling his hands out of his pockets he put his arms behind his head and leaned against the wall, "Change of plans, we are leaving as soon as you get your ass in gear. It's a day and half's journey anyway, so for the love of crackers please put some clothes on so we can get this over with. Troublesome." Naruto shrugged and walked into his room to begin packing. Ino and Hinata opened the front door slowly both looking around for the half naked Naruto. Gimpy jumped onto Shikamaru and attacked his hair tie. The mischievous little fox pulled it out and ran into Naruto's bedroom. Ino and Hinata watched the display, then sweat dropped when they saw Shikamaru. He was still standing in same place he'd been looking bored as ever. As his wild black locks fell into place and over his face Ino blushed. 'He should wear his hair down more often.'
"Is the coast clear, Shikamaru?" Ino asked in a quiet voice. Looking from the bedroom door to Ino the shadow manipulator nodded to her. Breathing a sigh of relief, she sat down on Naruto's couch and pulled her feet on his coffee table. Hinata was fidgeting with her jacket that wasn't zipped up.
"I'll be right out guys!" Hollered Naruto.
Gimpy came trotting out and nudged Shikamaru's leg letting go of his hair tie that he stole. Shikamaru leaned down and picked it up smirking at Naruto's pet. Upon hearing shuffling, the blonde shinobi emerged from his room. He was wearing his usual shirt and hiti-ate with his Chuunin vest, instead of wearing the usual khaki; he opted for blue jeans that were 2 sizes too big. Traded his shinobi sandals for running shoes. His shirt was half tucked in the front and a spiked belt adorned his waistline. His backpack was strapped on with his new jacket on his forearm. It was weighted down. Hinata looked up at his whiskered face and gave him a small smile. Naruto glanced towards Hinata's direction, smiling warmly; he walked over to her and gave her a small hug. He whispered into her ear, "I'm sorry but I'll make it up to you when we come back home." Nodding silently he let her go and turned towards the leader of the group. Noticing his hair tie was missing Naruto gave Shikamaru a confused look. The lazy Chuunin pointed toward his pet and grunted. Gimpy sat on the floor between Shikamaru and Ino, tail twitching excitedly. Naruto nodded to Gimpy then he leapt onto his Master's shoulder ready to go.
"Everyone ready to move out?" Asked the blonde shinobi? All 3 ninjas gave their nod of approval. Ushering the rest of his friends out of his house he locked the door behind them. None of them were really in a hurry to get to Orochimaru's castle because they all knew the dangers that awaited them. Ino was especially nervous, she only heard rumors of his terrible power. She would be the one to infiltrate his palace. But one thing that eased her mind was Shikamaru and Naruto. Ino knew that she could count on her friends the most to be there if anything bad happened. Naruto had more raw power than most elite Jounins and Shikamaru was a genius strategist. Hinata was an excellent Medic Nin, so she was in good hands.
Walking through the village's bustling shops and open-air markets they could see the people going about their daily routines. Delicious aromas wafted into their noses. Smiling faces all over the place. This is what Naruto protected with his life, his village, and one day he would become its future leader. He mentally smiled.
Making their way to the Northern gate, they saw 3 Chuunin guards conversing quietly. Upon arriving at the gate the Chuunin guards gave a nod in their direction while they formed a circle waiting upon further instruction from their leader. Shikamaru spoke of a formation he wanted to proceed in. A four point formation he being the first point; Ino to the back left Naruto to the back right and Hinata at the back guard. Double-checking their supplies they set off in the direction of the Rice Country where the newly established Hidden Village of the Sound lies.
Soaring through the air you could hear the occasional pitter of feet hitting the next available branch. Gimpy jumped down on the branch next to his Master keeping in step with him, as he needed to stretch his legs for a little bit. "Oi, Naruto." Glancing to his side he looked at his little kit flying through the air. "What is it?" Shikamaru craned his head to look behind him, "Do you think he can sense others like Akamaru?" Naruto shrugged, "I'm sure he can sense everything but I can't exactly communicate with him like Kiba could with his dog." Hinata looked back and forth between the male shinobi. 'If only they knew.' Gimpy snickered inwardly. "Maybe you should look into it?" Naruto nodded and made another mental note, if he ever got the time.
After four hours of skimming the treetops the landscape was starting clear into farmlands for the rice crops. Naruto took notice of all the straw hats in the distance as they were slowly closing in on them. He knew they had a long way to go before they reach Orochimaru's palace. Just thinking about that Snake bastard made him shake with such fury even Gimpy caught on to his vibes.
"Lets rest a bit before heading into the Rice Country, there we can get a room." Said a boy who plays with his shadow. All three grunted in agreement. Stopping all on opposite branches they fell to the ground with a light thud. Shikamaru immediately went into sitting position with his arms around his head leaning on an old oak tree. Staring skyward he began to mentally process just what this mission would include. And what would happen if he failed them as a team leader. Going over the twenty something different scenarios in his head, his team had a 52 chance of succeeding given the outside interferences. But he believed in all of his or her abilities rest assured no one would screw up, namely a fox-like shinobi who had an affinity for Ramen. Shikamaru sighed outwardly as he tried to cloud watch but was having a difficult time concentrating.
Everyone had a lot on his or her minds. Ino was very nervous as this mission depended heavily on her family's jutsu. Hinata was worried about Naruto. Naruto wanted to kill the Snake Sannin and Shikamaru would rather abort the mission than risk his teammate's lives. What a fine group of shinobi. Either way they would pull themselves together and get the job done. Naruto sat down next to Shikamaru letting his fox pounce on to his lap making a nice ball so he could take his nap. Shikamaru opened one eye and peered over his teammate's shoulder to see what he was doing. The blonde shinobi reached into his kunai holster to pull one out to sharpen. Raising one brow, Shikamaru turned sideways so he was leaning against the tree watching Naruto work. "Those look pretty sharp already." He stopped sharpening them to look to his right; "If I see that fucker I'll make it a point to stab him in the eye." As the shadow boy's brows rose he gave his friend a smirk.
Shikamaru patted his shoulder, "I'll hold him down for you." Naruto gave his signature foxy grin and went back to sharpening his kunai.
Hinata sat on a rotted out log and pulled her pack into her lap. She pulled out something smelly that made Gimpy's nose and ears twitch. Pulling his head out of Naruto's lap he bounded off running towards Hinata's position ready to pounce on whatever she had in her hand. Smiling warmly she welcomed the red kit with open arms petting him gently. Hinata opened her hand and gave him some liverwurst. She usually fed it to Akamaru but since he wasn't on the mission, she might as well give it to the little fox. Naruto stopped for the second time to watch his fox greedily eat up the fowl smelling meat. He gazed over at the black-haired kunoichi and inwardly sighed. He could still feel her on his lips. Shaken from his thoughts he barely heard Shikamaru tell the group it was time to move out. Putting his weapons into their respective casings he pulled himself to his feet and walked towards Hinata. Gimpy loved all the attention she lavished onto him. Coming to a halt, he opened his arms to his fox and signaling it was time to go. Gimpy yipped to him and bounced onto his owner's shoulder. Extending his hand towards her, he pulled her up as well. Both of them hooked their fingers together as they walked side by side for the next few hours.
Ino glanced back at the couple a few times before nudging her lazy teammate in the ribs. Shikamaru mustered the dirtiest look possible but it came out more disappointing then dirty look. She signaled him to look behind them. The shadow boy looked over his shoulder and cocked on eyebrow. Then turned his head to look at the slight blush on Ino's face, he shrugged. Ino poked his ribs harder and furrowed her brow when he looked at her again. Throwing her hands up in the air, she sighed heavily and got back in formation. Nearing the edge of the forest, Shikamaru halted his group readying himself to give a lecture. 'Troublesome.'
"Alright guys, since the Rice Country is a poor and an economical wasteland. We don't want to intimidate or impose on these poor people. We're going to have to ditch the hiti-ate's when we are in and around the towns." Naruto folded his arms in front of his chest and nodded silently while the girls were taking theirs off and concealing them in their packs. Shikamaru untied his from his right bicep, leaving Naruto the last to take his off. Gimpy whimpered when he saw Naruto take his off but he consoled his critter by rubbing his ears. Naruto slipped on his jacket as it was getting a little chilly he took his place beside Hinata and started to walk through the rice fields. "Isn't it beautiful, Naruto-kun?" Naruto looked down to the Hyuuga heiress and nodded. "Lets go through the next two towns before we stop for the night." Stated the lazy Chuunin. The villages were small in size compared to Konoha, but peaceful and elegant in its own aspects. Children could be seen playing in and around the houses, dogs barking playfully. Gimpy took the time to get inside his Master's jacket to conceal his presence. The team of shinobi didn't know how the common folk would react to a domesticated fox.
With a nod from Shikamaru, Hinata went through a series of seals to activate her Byuukagan to scan the perimeter of the town for enemy ninja. Upon scanning, she deactivated her bloodline limit and gave the approval nod back to their team leader. Passing through the first two towns they came upon the third one it was quite larger than the previous ones. People were lined on the streets selling their goods wholesale and what looked like a small festival was beginning. Cherry blossoms littered the streets as a calm wind blew past the team of shinobi. "I wonder what kind of festival this is?" Ino thought out loud. The village people were all dressed up in their brightest yukata's and kimono's. "Lets find the nearest Inn so I can get some sleep." Shikamaru slouched his posture with his hands in his pockets. He began to walk off in the direction to the nearest lodging with Ino in tow. Hinata looked up to Naruto, "Are you hungry?" His smile brightened and nodded enthusiastically. He grabbed her small delicate hand and began to run off in the direction of the nearest restaurant. The blonde shinobi mentally went over the choices he had of food establishments. He wanted Ramen badly, but he decided against it, thinking Hinata probably didn't want any. So he decided on an Italian eatery. He'd heard rumors of the foreign exotic food from Chouji. Slowing down, he came to an abrupt stop outside of the eatery and waited for Hinata to catch her breath. A red furry tail poked out of Naruto's shirt along with a pair of ears and a nose. Gimpy could smell the veal cutlets the restaurant was making. The fox container smiled widely at his fox's antics while Hinata giggled amusedly. He opened the door letting Hinata go in first and was immediately seated by the hostess.
"I need two rooms both with separate bathrooms." Shikamaru watched Ino make the reservations at a fairly decent hotel. 'One room for the guys the other room for the girls. I wish I could share a room with Ino. Knowing her I'll get pounded and called a pervert. I hate sharing a room with Naruto he snores so loud.' "Here's your key Shika, lets check them out." 'Only my Mother calls me Shika.' He grumbled inwardly. All you could hear was the pounding of Ino's boots running upstairs while a lazy Shikamaru was following not too closely behind her.
"Ah, Rooms 121 and 122. Lets see how they look." Sliding in her cardkey, she turned the knob and opened the door widely taking in the sight. "Its very nice, how's yours Shika?" Shikamaru fumbled with his cardkey and halfway opened his room glancing over it, "I'm sure it's the same as yours, Ino." Ino walked over to him and shoved the door open walking inside. She skipped to the closest double bed and sprawled on it sighing heavily. The shadow manipulator walked into his room quietly closing the door. Turning on his heel he strolled over to the now occupied bed and sat next to Ino's head laying back as well. Folding his arms under his head, he pulled his hair tie out to let it spill onto the pillow as his eyelids slowly slid shut. Ino scooted more onto the bed and laid next to her teammate and soon fell asleep.
After stopping at the front desk Naruto and Hinata got word of their two teammates rooms. As they were walking upstairs quietly conversing they both stopped at their perspective rooms. "I wonder which ones which?" Hinata asked. Naruto shrugged and tried a cardkey that was his room essentially. Sliding it in he heard the click alerting him that is unlocked. He turned the knob and opened the door quietly to find his two friends both sleeping in the same bed comfortably. Hinata blushed faintly and covered her mouth. Naruto scratched his head and raised one brow. Gimpy cocked his head to the side and laid his ears back. Just as silently as he opened the door, he closed it.
"There's two double beds in each room, so I guess we can share the other. I really don't want Ino's wrath rained upon me if I wake her up." Hinata nodded. Following Naruto, they both entered the other room and each picked out their bed. Gimpy leapt off his Master's shoulders and onto one of the soft pillows and he began to get comfortable. The blonde shinobi shucked off his shoes at the door, walking swiftly to the knight stand he grabbed the remote and immediately started to flip through the channels. He fell onto his back with one arm craned behind his head; Gimpy scooted closer to the warmth he gave off. Hinata took off her boots and jacket then proceeded to walk over to the other side of Naruto's bed and crawled onto it. Naruto's eyebrows rose at her gesture, 'she is getting brave', he thought mentally. She crawled over to Naruto and laid her head in the crook of his arm and watched T.V. with him until they both fell asleep.
Morning came all too quickly for the group of shinobi. Ino was the first to awake, she found herself asleep on her side with a warm body against her back in the spooning position. A manly arm was draped over her waist and soft breathing against her neck. She tried to remember what happened yesterday then it hit her, she crawled into bed with Shikamaru. Blushing profusely she chanced rolling over on her other side to get a good look at the sleeping shinobi. Very easily she rolled as she came face to face with her childhood friend. Shikamaru had his Chuunin vest off and to the side; his hair was draped across the pillow and had a serene expression on his face. Ino smiled as she brought her hand up to his face and gently caressed his cheek. As she touched his face he tightened his grip on her waist brining her closer to his face. Her eyes went wide as panic spread across her face. Relaxing in his grip she extended her arm and wrapped it around his neck in hopes of waking him up. She'd love to see his expression at what he woke up too. Blearily he cracked one eye open as he saw a hazy image and something warm and soft in his grip. Blinking rapidly Ino came into focus. The corners of his mouth twitched as a brow rose. Ino smiled serenely at the shadow wielder, "Good morning, Shika." Shikamaru gave her a crooked smile and pulled her flush against his body, "Good morning to you too, Ino." He kissed her softly on the lips. It was nothing deep just a chaste kiss.
"Ehem."
Freezing in place both shinobi opened one eye and craned their head to the door. Naruto stood there with his arms folded against his chest with Hinata standing beside him. "Yip!" Gimpy poked his head out of his Master's hoodie. "Don't we need to head out or something?" The Kyuubi container asked? Loosening his grip on the blonde-haired kunoichi, he sat up rubbing his eyes yawning loudly. "Yeah, give me a minute." Naruto and Hinata left the room to give the other 2 times to collect themselves. Ino stretched out on the bed and jumped off. Walking over to the door she put on her boots and looked up at Shika who was still sitting on the bed with his eyes closed in an attempt to go back to sleep. Ino furrowed her brow and moved into an offensive crouch. She looked as if she was about to pounce on her prey. Shikamaru cracked one eye to see what his teammate was up to. As soon as he saw her lunge at him, he leaned the opposite direction to see her almost fly past him. A pair of rough hands shot out and caught her around her waist bringing her sitting into his lap. My, my what a predicament our young Ino has gotten herself in. "Ino, you're too obvious." She blushed two shades redder and scrambled out of his lap. Shikamaru could only smirk at her actions, 'its in the bag.'
Meeting in the hotel lobby everyone assembled all packed and ready to go. Shikamaru slowly came down the stairs yawning loudly with one hand in his pocket. "Alright, lets get this troublesome thing over with." Everyone nodded. Filing out of the hotel and on to the countryside where it was rumored that Orochimaru's palace lies.
Now that they were out of the last town, the group sprinted off in a dead run. Since there were no trees to they had to settle for the main roads and trails. After six hours of straight sprinting, it was starting to get dark. That's when Shikamaru raised his hand in a signal for the group to halt. Falling to their knees, the girls were breathing heavily while Naruto just stood there looking expectantly at his leader. 'He has too much stamina for his own good.' Thought Shikamaru. Naruto was running with his loaded weights but it seemed they didn't even hinder him in the least. Gimpy perked his head out of his Master's jacket to look around. The little kit began shaking violently and whimpering. His ears were laid back as he tried to nuzzle Naruto's neck. The blonde-haired shinobi turned his attention towards his pet. "Hey guys, I think we're close. Gimpy is picking up some bad vibes." Gimpy whimpered again.
Signaling everyone to crouch around him Shikamaru began his instructions, "I hear it's a little east of here, lets scout the area to see if we see and Sound Nin. Naruto, can you make a Kage Bunshin and disguise yourself as someone else?" Naruto nodded but his face brightened, "You know Gimpy can perform Kage Bunshin." Everyone's brow rose with a look of surprise etched on his or her faces. Ino exclaimed, "He's just an animal! No way he could!" Naruto smirked and reached into his jacket to pull out a red ball of fur, "Watch this." The group of shinobi looked on. The fox container poked his pet, "Oi, Gimpy. Show these people you can perform that jutsu." Gimpy looked up at his Master and showed his canines. A few seconds later, they heard a poof. Two perfectly identical foxes sat side-by-side looking at the group. Everyone's eyes went wide with disbelief, Ino rubbed her eyes and blinked. "That's an amazing fox, Naruto." The whisker-faced shinobi smiled widely and nodded. "Alright change of plan, have Gimpy go scout ahead for us." The fox's tail twitched and scampered off into the direction of the dreaded palace.
Gimpy bounded into the scarcely abundant trees trying to hide himself. As he was leaping from branch to branch, he sensed the presence of enemy shinobi. Crouching low he took a look at all the Sound Nin that were assembled outside the underground palace. With a snort he turned around and ran towards his Master's group. Upon arrival he leapt onto his Master and looked at him with big cute eyes. "I think there are some Sound Nin outside the walls, if we get close enough Ino can possess one of them." Shikamaru took all the information in and began to map out a good enough strategy that would be the most effective in gathering their information.
"Alright", pointing to Naruto and Gimpy, "you two will accompany Ino near the fortress," pointing to Hinata, "you and I will remain here if anything goes wrong." "Take these," taking out small radio earpieces, "report if anything goes wrong." Naruto and Ino both nodded. Hinata watched as her potential boyfriend got up to leave she began to get nervous, 'what is this foreboding feeling?' Pinching the bridge of his nose Shikamaru sighed heavily, 'I hope everything goes well.'
Feeling the cool breeze on their faces, Ino, Naruto and Gimpy were flying through the air towards the fortress. Ino was sweating bullets while Naruto had a blank expression on his face. He was ready to kill that Snake bastard. Naruto pushed the transmitter into his ear and spoke, "Five meters and closing. Over." Stopping on a low branch the allied party crouched low and peered over to the restless Sound Nin.
"Can you create a distraction so I can get into one of those Nins?" Asked a nervous Ino. Naruto nodded and gave Gimpy the signal. The little fox concentrated on making another clone. "Poof!" The clone jumped down onto the ground and ran towards the nearest bush to hide. A large burly Nin was seen pacing in front of tree 4 yards from the fox. Gimpy started the distraction by shaking the bushes to get the guys attention. The Sound Nin looked over to the bush and gave a confused look as he proceeded to walk over to it. Ino began her sequence of seals and whispered softly, "Shintenshin no Jutsu." As soon as she activated her jutsu she began to fall over limply until Naruto caught her. More rustling was heard in the bushes as the guard began to investigate he heard a "poof." Realizing it was a trap the guard almost successfully yelled out to the others alarming them until Ino's jutsu hit him full force. Static could be heard on Shikamaru's end as Naruto's voice came in clear, "She's in." The shadow manipulator breathed out a sigh of relief and Hinata relaxed.
"Oi, Hiro! What's with all the noise?" Asked the other guard. Naruto jumped down on the ground silently as he stashed Ino's body in a safe place. He began stalking quietly towards the Nin whom Ino possessed. He executed a number of seals quickly and teleported behind the other guard. Laying a deathblow behind his neck, the other Nin crumbled to the ground. Ino grimaced as she helped Naruto drag his body behind a bush where Gimpy's clone occupied once before. Thinking to himself, 'this is way too easy, something is up.' Naruto transformed into the now dead guard and proceeded to escort Ino inside the building.
Once inside the gate, Ino and Naruto began their trek to the palace. Before they could take another step, another Sound Nin appeared before the two. He looked from one to the other, rearing both his fists back; he punched both Leaf shinobi's in the gut knocking them out. Naruto's jutsu dispelled as he slumped to the ground unconscious. Smirking at the two intruders the Sound Nin radioed for backup.
Orochimaru smiled widely, "the fox has come to play. Kabuto, its time."