After an insult-filled journey of two days, they approached the village being harassed by a pack of thieves.
"This reminds me of our first mission," Atusko said, looking around at the lush landscape covered in small streams and creeks. Everything was green, and even the air was filled with water.
"Maybe a bit more moist," Gisuke grumbled as he shook out his shirt, damp from the humidity.
Yukina didn't say anything, but Atusko saw the tightening of her lips. "Gisuke, can you sense anything?"
"No, why?" Atusko nodded towards Yukina, and he frowned. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Yukina said finally. "I just don't like it here. I'm not sure why."
"Is it water on flames or someone's ambushing us?"
Yukina slowly pulled out her tanto, eyes narrowed and locked on the thick undergrowth. "The two aren't mutually exclusive."
Atsuko looked at Gisuke. He'd stopped in the middle of the dirt path, eyes closed, hands held in a concentration position. Suddenly his eyes flicked open.
"You could sense that?" He gave Yukina a surprised look.
Yukina didn't answer, her keen eyes scanning the forest. Atsuko saw her fingers tighten on her tanto, and almost felt the chakra flowing around the blade, able to become fire in an instant.
Atsuko had no idea what they were sensing. She knew that not everyone had chakra-sensing abilities, but it just reminded her of how far apart she was from her teammates. She collected chakra in the palms of her hands and kept an eye on both Gisuke and Yukina in case she had to protect one of them.
For several tense moments, they stood completely still, listening to the rustling of the leaves, the wind through the branches. It seemed completely normal.
Gisuke began to relax and Yukina lowered her tanto.
"Whatever it is is gone," Gisuke said for Atsuko's sake. She nodded, trying to hide her frustration.
"Could you tell anything about it?" she asked.
"Not really," Yukina said, sheathing her blade. "But we've learned to err on the side of caution."
"Well, we are ninjas and we are on our way to take care of some outlaws, it seems natural," Atsuko said. "But that's something we'll probably need to work on if both of you can sense things I can't. If I'm in a protection mode, I need to know as much as you do."
Yukina nodded thoughtfully.
"A code? Some sound signals?" offered Gisuke.
"Body language tells me something's up, but some kind of signal would be nice."
Yukina flashed her a grin. "Let's come up with something along the way. We shouldn't have far to go before we reach the village that requested the help."
=/=
Several hours passed with no more incidents, but everyone walked quietly, listening and making no sound. They walked on the main path, which made Atsuko feel unprotected and vulnerable.
Gisuke slowed down to walk next to Atsuko. "So you're not able to sense any chakra?"
"Not yet, anyways." She pursed her lips. "Do you think it's something I could develop?"
"With experience I'm sure you'll be able to sense large powerful sources of chakra, but you likely won't be able to sense ninja. I can only do it when I'm concentrating. I'm not sure about Yukina." His eyes glanced up at the red-haired figure walking a ways in front of them.
"She seems to be kind of a genius, so I'm not surprised," Atsuko said. "It just means I have to work harder to keep up with you guys."
"Don't worry about it," Gisuke said with a grin. "Let's see if we can come up with something to help you out."
With the warm breeze promising a beautiful day, Atusko and Gisuke found some sounds and visual cues they could use in all situations. Adjusting a pack, flicking hair, blinking a certain way. It turned into a game as they thought up weird signals.
"If I sneeze into my hand and then hold it up for everyone to see, then that means there's someone following us."
"If I say 'I could really go for some berries right now' that means attack the nearest enemy."
"If I fall onto my knees and question the meaning of life, that means we're being attacked!" shouted Yukina over her shoulder.
They traded quips until they ran out of funny signals and fell back into silence. Shadows shortened and then lengthened again. Atsuko's stomach growled, but knowing she was on a mission with her teammates trumped her hunger and the pangs went away.
Their destination was a village on the outskirts of the Land of Fire plagued by thieves. From what Atsuko had heard, "thieves" was an understatement. Several months before, the thieves had entered the village, established a presence, and quickly but sneakily took over all aspects. Their wheat crop, the village's main source of income, was completely taken over, the profits filling the pockets of the thieves, leaving the villagers hungry and poor. Any attempt to overthrow the thieves meant facing armed guards. The villagers became little more than slaves, unable to leave the village or seek other employment. They devoted everything to the thieves in exchange for their lives. News had only make it to Konoha because a child had managed to slip through and run barefoot all the way to the village with every coin the villagers had left to pay for help.
Walking down the middle of the path, casually looking around, in the back of her mind Atsuko was scanning for signs of enemies, looking for cover, observing the wind direction in case they had to fight. This was important and Atsuko made sure she didn't miss anything. It was an important mission, not only to prove Team Shirakumo's ability as ninja, but to show the strength of Konoha and save a village.
"Have you thought of a strategy?" she asked Yukina after a while. Gisuke perked up.
"A little bit. I mean, if the thieves are so ingrained in the village, it's going to be hard to get at them without hurting the villagers. Their only protection is surrounding themselves with innocents. We'll have to be quick and precise."
"Like luring them out?"
She shook her head. "They know what they're doing will attract attention eventually. They'll know to leave at least a few behind to take hostages."
"Infiltration?"
"Difficult. It's essentially a closed village. They'd notice immediately if someone new entered. I'm thinking surveillance. Gather information and then come up with a plan. I have to see what they're like before making a rash decision."
Atsuko shared a glance with Gisuke. "You? A rash decision? Whatever do you mean?" he intoned musically.
"Shut up, Glasses. People's lives are at stake."
Uncharacteristic calm colored her voice. Gisuke shut his mouth.
"Before we reach the village let's split up and scout around. I want to get a sense of their defenses," Yukina said.
"Got it," Atsuko and Gisuke said at the same time.
By evening, Yukina indicated with a slight movement of her hand that they were close. Immediately they split up, leaping into the trees. Atsuko primed herself, letting her muscles tighten just enough. Like a spring, but not too tight. She pushed her senses to their maximum, listening, watching.
Jumping from branch to branch, she scanned the ground intently. If she let the thieves see her, they'd know shinobi were nearby. Taking care to be absolutely silent, she crossed the trees until she caught sight of a thatch roof between the leaves. Coming to a halt, she leaned on the tree, trying to orient herself to the layout of the village.
The edge of the village seemed to be about twenty meters away. Sharpened wood spikes surrounded the perimeter. A shinobi could get over it easily, and it looked like some of the huts were close enough that there might be some gaps they could hide in.
Inside she saw no movement. If it wasn't for dim lamplight from some of the more distant huts, she'd have considered the village abandoned. Keeping still, she watched carefully. Soon she saw slight movement. A patrol.
Clinging to the tree, she observed the moment pass between the huts. The back of her neck tingled and she froze as a pair of dumpy-dressed men passed beneath her tree, passing a bottle of alcohol back and forth. How had they gotten so close? Were they trained better than they ever expected, or was she so intent on doing a good job she missed something important that could have ruined the entire mission?
Her heart beat in her chest so loud they would have heard it had they been sober. They were long gone before she could pry her white-knuckled fingers off the tree.
She had to get moving. Shaking her head, she remembered that she was a capable shinobi who had made genin. She could do this. She had an excellent team that she worked well with and an excellent education. If she remembered her training, they would complete their mission.
Her heart slowed back to a normal beat and she moved on, pushing closer to the village, careful to watch for other patrols.
Making a pass around the edge of the village, keeping a keen eye and ear out for more patrols, Atsuko saw more movement ahead and stopped. Approaching cautiously, she landed on the branch next to Gisuke and Yukina. With a silent nod, they jumped back, running silent until they were far from the village.
"The main entrance is constantly guarded," Gisuke said as they set up camp. "They drank heavily, but never left their post. One had to pee and he waited until he got a replacement."
Yukina started the fire. Atsuko reported what she'd seen as she set out her blanket.
"I figured getting in would be difficult," Yukina said. "Did you get a count?"
"I saw about five," Gisuke said.
"Four," Atsuko said.
"I saw at least ten in the village wandering around. I expect at least three times that lounging about in the huts." Her jaw was set in a hard line. "Lure them out or sneak in?"
"Sneaking in makes more sense to me," Atsuko said. "Luring them out without knowing exactly what's going on inside the village with unknown enemies is risky. Maybe as a last resort or after better surveillance.
"I agree," Gisuke said. "But let's mix the ideas. If one of us sneaks in to gather as much information as possible, then if we need to lure them out or try to weasel our way in, it will be with fresh faces that they won't recognize."
A shiver ran up Atsuko's back. Surveillance to her was preferable to acting and pretending, although both were skills she needed to have. But by speaking of a backup meant the first plan would have failed. Getting caught by such ruthless thieves sat in her stomach like an uncooked potato.
"That's what I was thinking. I can be the one to sneak in."
Atsuko and Gisuke frowned at Yukina. "You need to be in the luring group. You're too strong to lose so early in the game," Atsuko said. "I think it should be Gisuke."
"I am very good at dodging," he said, raising an eyebrow.
Yukina sighed. "All right, that makes sense. Let's give them some time to bed down for the night then Gisuke, you sneak in. We'll be on opposite sides of the village in case you need cover to escape."
He nodded. Atsuko was pleased with the plan, glad she'd been able to contribute. With her shield and chakra-sucking ability, she wasn't the strongest member to be doing that kind of work. Yukina probably wouldn't have been a bad choice, but she'd rather rely on Yukina later. Her sense of confidence was comforting and Atsuko always felt safe around her. If things went horribly wrong, Yukina would be the one to save them.
Atsuko volunteered to take the first watch, too nervous to sleep. Gisuke fell asleep immediately, which Atsuko had learned was how he operated all the time. Her mind wandered too much for that.
She let the fire die down to a deep orange glow. She pulled the rag from around her neck and grasped it in her hand, going through the motions of trying to wet it with her chakra.
"What are you thinking about?" Yukina asked. Curled up in her blanket, Atsuko hadn't realized she was awake.
"Apart from nerves? Thinking about all how far I still have to go."
"Go for what?"
"Training. I'm still trying to get my element to show itself. Here you've been practicing with fire for over a year and I'm just now learning how to do it."
"You feel unprepared? Atsuko, we've been on plenty of missions and you've done fine."
"I know, but 'fine' isn't what I want. You're a natural leader and have these cool abilities. Gisuke is a medical ninja, has genjutsu, and is really good about supporting us. I guess I'm just wanting more."
Yukina sat up, the bed having made a mess of her already messy red hair. "That's good, in a way. It's never good for a shinobi to feel they've learned all they can." She nodded to Atsuko's hands. "Your element water?"
"Yeah. Genma's having me bring it out in stages. So far it has stage fright."
Yukina snorted. "I had the opposite problem. I couldn't stop the fire. I had to learn to keep it from exploding out all the time."
Laughing, Atsuko said, "I absolutely believe that."
"Just remember that everyone is different. Your path is unique — no one has ever had to do what you have to do. Embrace your path, and don't give up. Sure, your Water will be an excellent addition to our team and I can't wait to blast it with fireballs, but you have your chakra shield and your absorption ability that I've never seen before. It's totally unique and it's really cool how you've developed it with us. Maybe getting your Water to come when called is going to be difficult, but you'll probably rock the rest of whatever Genma has planned for you. I mean, you graduated the Academy in, like, record time."
"Not record." The corner of Atsuko's mouth twitched. "But thanks."
"Mmm," Yukina grunted sleepily. "Now shut up so I can sleep."
Running her fingers through the rag in her palm, Atsuko's muscles relaxed and she closed her eyes. She remembered the feeling of the rain after training with Genma, the drops on her face, the cool water soaking through her clothes. Feeling the water with every sense, she opened her eyes and looked down at the rag.
It felt damp.