Hello, I'mma back baby! Here's another chapter, I hope you all enjoy!

• • • • • •

Kuroko grunted and squinted his closed eyes. The sun was not friendly to his tired eyes, and they weren't even open yet. He turned on his side to get away from the blinding light, his stiff muscles protesting with the movement.

He really should have put that scroll down when he looked at his bedside clock, but no. He chose to read more, to the end of it, and lost track of time.

"Mmn," Kuroko frowned and decided that it was about time to get up. His stomach felt like it was digesting itself, and now that he was done with the Akimichi's food plan, he was able to have breakfast in the house. That didn't mean he was able to escape the medication though. Kuroko still had to take the muscle stiffening stuff for the remainder of the month.

He established a routine in the mornings to help with the discomfort the medication caused him. As soon as he would get up, he would go through stretches for twenty minutes.

Kuroko has fallen down the stairs one too many times from the stiffness, about five times in total, and Yoshino decided that it was about time to fix the problem.

Kuroko heard footsteps going up the stairs, and they stopped in front of his door. "C-come in," Kuroko said without pause as he reached to his foot and turned his torso to face the ceiling.

The door opened with a rusted squeak and Shikaku stood in the doorframe, smiling with amusement. "It seems the roles have been reversed. Shikamaru was up and out of the house at seven, it's now ten and you're just getting up."

"K-Kuro-sensei said that today is a rest day." Though he would still do some Ninjutsu training and maybe visit the library. He wanted to look into Genjutsu since he seemed to have a knack for it. Kuroko yawned, and this time maybe he'll be reasonable with reading into the night.

"Would you mind playing a shogi game with me?"

Kuroko shook his head, "I don't mind, I-I would be glad to. I just need to finish my stretches."

"There's no need to hurry, Kuroko," Shikaku quirked a smile as the boy slowed down his pace. He shifted his weight to his other side and stroked his goatee, "What did Arata want with your mask?"

Kuroko put his chest to the floor while in his split, "H-he said that he would l-look at the Fuinjutsu on it." Maybe he should look into that too. He's only used the special branch of Ninjutsu with storage scrolls.

"Oh?" Shikaku was intrigued, other than the Hokage and Jiraiya, Arata was the only other proficient Fuinjutsu user in Konoha. Kakashi was also proficient, but only is certain areas of the art, and thus harder to call upon when needed. Back when Arata was in Anbu, the man had a squad that he and Jiraiya personally taught and it became Konoha's first true Fuinjutsu barrier squad.

Sadly, Arata was the only one left fit for shinobi duty.

Shikaku waved to Kuroko as he turned around, "I'll be waiting for you downstairs when you're ready."

• • • • • •

Kuroko frowned thoughtfully and scratched behind his ear. Shikaku was up to something in this game, he thought. The man was playing exactly like Shikamaru. "Hmm?" He glanced at the door when he heard Yoshino's footsteps outside of it, they were distinct, light and smooth.

"Good afternoon Dear, Kuroko," she smiled and came in with a tray that had two cups on it with a pink viscous liquid in them. "I was cleaning out the fridge and made some fruit smoothies."

"Oh? What's the occasion?" Shikaku raised an eyebrow, It's a little cold for that, isn't it? Looking out of the window, to his amusement, it had started snowing. Ah, irony at its finest.

"We had that fruit frozen for a month, it was bound to go bad sooner or later," she placed the tray on the floor beside the shogi board. "Kuroko-kun also hasn't had breakfast yet."

"T-thank you Yoshino-san!" Kuroko smiled and picked up the chilled glass. A shiver went down his spine and his hair stood on end. Shikaku followed suit, not just to appease his wife, but also because Kuroko seemed to like it with how its ears flicked happily. That meant the fruit had not gone bad. Kuroko didn't have a huge sweet tooth, but he did like a lot of fruit. Melon was his favourite.

"Well, I'm going out on the town with the girls, take care of the house!" Yoshino put on her coat and shoes, and just before sliding the door shut, she shouted, "And don't forget to feed the deer, Dear!"

Kuroko almost spit out his drink and started giggling, "I-I think you can feed yourself, right?"

Shikaku palmed his face and sighed, though the smile betrayed his action. He would expect that kind of joke from Shikamaru. "Now, where were we?" With his attention brought back to the board, Kuroko moved a rook. Though from the boy biting his lips and the light giggling, Shikaku could still see that he was reeling from his own joke.

An hour later, Kuroko was faced with a conundrum. It was either take a victory by sacrificing a piece, or delay it and take out a pawn that opened another opportunity. Kuroko frowned, eyes narrowing at the hard decision.

This isn't just a shogi game anymore. He's trying to see what I would do out in the field.

Shikaku stretched his back and kept an eye on the boy hunched over the board. His ears pressed flat against his head and his tail slowly wafted back and forth deep in thought. Shikaku smirked, tough decision, eh Kuroko? He wanted to know what kind of decisions the boy would choose to make through their game. He purposely played like Shikamaru in the beginning to bring out his regular thought process and, occasionally, he would set up a more advanced ploy that Shikamaru wouldn't do.

If he played his regular play style all the way through, Kuroko would be utterly dominated. This was just a game to test the waters.

Shikamaru had told him that Kuroko didn't really like playing games back to back either, preferring to go do other things and coming back to another one with a fresh eye.

Arata also asked him to evaluate his decision-making skills to see if he was as ready as Arata thought.

Kuroko made his move.

To his surprise, it wasn't one of the options he thought he would take. Kuroko moved a bishop to cover where his general was vulnerable to a set up while it also cornered a promoted lance of his.

Kuroko jolted in fright when there was a loud thump from the entryway. "Tou-san!" Shikamaru called from the foyer, and Kuroko's ears perked up at the voice, "I need some assistance."

Kuroko bowed his head to Shikaku and got up from his spot. "W-what's wrong Shika?" he asked as he trotted down the hallway.

Shikamaru groaned, "I can't move." Kuroko blinked owlishly. Shikamaru was sprawled on the floor of the entryway. "And here I thought Azuma-sensei was a laid-back Sensei."

Kuroko smiled, if he was complaining, then he was fine, "I-I'll help you."

Shikamaru felt a tug on his feet and saw that Kuroko was taking off his boots for him. He didn't have the energy to move. Even if he did, his muscles would scream at him for the effort. Next was his gloves, then his hat.

"D-did he really run you that hard?" Kuroko asked as he knelt by his side, unzipping his coat.

"Do you call fifty laps around a training field a cooldown?" He saw Kuroko shake his head with a smile at the sarcasm, "Then yes."

Kuroko laughed, "Did Azuma-sensei say you w-were ready, then?" He tugged on the sleeves and manhandled Shikamaru's arm to get it out of the jacket. As Shikamaru responded, Kuroko leaned over him and did the same to his other arm.

"I dunno, he said to wait until the end of the week," he sighed heavily as Kuroko tugged the coat out from under him. "That means we have to do the same thing for a week."

"I-It'll be alright soon," Kuroko patted Shikamaru's head and giggled at the glorious look he got in return. "Those are snow pants, right?"

"Yeah, Kaa-san refused to let me leave the house without them."

Kuroko didn't even blink as it was typical of her to fuss that much, if she didn't, then there was something wrong. "M-maybe we should go get some thermal pants for training? T-then she won't force the snow pants on us."

"Great idea. Then Ino won't laugh at my 'marshmallow thighs'."

Kuroko laughed, and Shikaku, who had been observing the whole thing, had to cover his mouth to stop his laughter. Inoichi's girl sure has a sharp tongue.

"N-need help getting those off too?" Kuroko offered even though it made him uncomfortable.

"Seeing that I can't move, yes."

Kuroko's lips pressed a thin line as he nervously put his hands on the waistband of the pants. He gave a tug and gratefully, they came off without a fuss. He had an image in mind that he would pull off his actual pants as well. Thankfully it didn't happen.

"Now I just need help up."

"O-okay." Kuroko reached down and grabbed Shikamaru's hand, trying to pull him up so he could sling his arm over his shoulder. Just as he accomplished the task, he took a step forward and slipped, his fluffy socks betraying him once again.

Shikamaru didn't fight the fall, he couldn't actually, and grunted as he landed on top of Kuroko. He laughed.

"S-s-shika!" Kuroko tried to push himself up, but with Shikamaru's weight on top of him, he couldn't.

"I can't move, remember?" Kuroko whined and huffed in frustration. Shikamaru laughed harder.

Shikaku chose this time to come out, "Alright Shikamaru, enough torturing the poor boy."

"Alright, alright," Shikamaru smirked, his arms protesting as he pushed himself up to a sitting position with much difficulty.

Kuroko got up and looked from Shikaku to Shikamaru, "You mean… you c-could move this whole time?"

"With difficulty, but yeah."

Kuroko frowned, his brow furrowing, and he pointedly looked away from him with a little huff. He got up and returned to the room where he and Shikaku were playing shogi.

Shikamaru blinked, eyes following Kuroko before looking to his father, "Did I make him angry?"

Sighing, Shikaku shook his head at his son.

"What?"

• • • • • •

Shikamaru frowned when Kuroko ignored him. He gave Kuroko his space at first, but as nothing was changing, he decided to approach him after dinner.

"Kuro." Shikamaru sighed when Kuroko continued to lay on the ground in his room, the only indication that he was heard through a halt in his tails movement before he flipped to the next page in his book. He scratched the back of his head, "I'm sorry if I took the joke too far."

This time Kuroko's ears perked up a little and he turned to give a response, "I-I thought you really needed t-the help."

"I did, but… I admit I took it too far. So, uh, want to go get those thermal pants?"

Kuroko thought for a moment, "O-okay."

• • • • • •

"Good job Kuroko," Arata knelt down and pat his head. He just had Kuroko spar with him until he was thoroughly spent and the boy was on the ground recovering from the exercise. "You did much better this time around. You have good battle sense, but your physicality needs work."

"Y-yes Kuro-sensei," Kuroko panted and regained his breath, I… I need better stamina. His muscles were shaky from the exertion and he was soaking wet from both the sweat and the slush. It had warmed up quite suddenly and most of the snow melted, causing some flooding issues in the village—Yoshino did tell him that it would warm up, he just didn't think it would be like this. "Um, h-how is the mask research g-going?"

Kuronuma hummed in thought. Looking Kuroko over for a good moment, he grinned, "You'll see at the end of the week."

"Oh… okay."

Kuronuma was disappointed at the lack of a reaction. Shaking his head, he sighed. He's too… compliant. He clapped his hands together, "O-kay, recap time. We went over your Ninjutsu. Your use of chakra strings has improved by leaps and bounds— though I would try to expand upon that."

Kuroko had been experimenting more with chakra strings in his spare time. He found that he can send chakra through wire and control it just like a chakra string. I-I'll try working more with it!

"Your use of Hiding Mole is getting there, though you'll need to get more accustomed to holding your breath if you want to use it to its full potential."

Kuroko nodded, "U-um… is this a parent Jutsu to Headhunter?"

"Partially. It's not directly related to the Jutsu as it was created with no connection to each other. I recommend improving Hiding Mole as you can perform the Headhunter with it—anyways, back to topic," Arata chided lightly. They didn't have all day and it was starting to get late. "As for Genjutsu you should add some more to your repertoire. You've got a solid grasp on the few you know, going so far as customizing and manipulating them to your needs. The shadows to the illusionary clones are a nice touch, and makes it near impossible to notice that it's not solid without actually making contact." Arata shrugged, "I have a solid grasp on the field, but I know someone who can be a better teacher than me, so I'll get you in contact with them sooner or later."

Kuroko nodded. He wasn't sure what he wanted to specialize in yet so he was going in each direction, a jack of all trades. "A-alright Kuro-sensei."

"Now it's starting to get late. Go home kiddo—and don't forget to stretch and do control exercises before bed."

As Kuroko got up, he shivered and sneezed.

"Take a bath!" Arata advised before vanishing.

• • • • • •

Shikamaru rested a hand on his cheek. He sighed and looked over the temperature result again, "Kuro," his eyes moved down to look at him all swathed in blankets with a cooling pack on his forehead, "are you an idiot?"

Kuroko frowned and looked away, "H-how was I supposed to know that I-I was going to get sick?"

"Not that. Getting sick isn't the problem," he leaned forward and prodded Kuroko's cheek with the thermometer, receiving a high-pitched annoyed whine in return, "it's trying to hide it, moron."

Yoshino entered the room and slid the door closed with her foot, hands occupied with a tray of porridge and a glass of water. "You scared me like a ghost fainting like that!" She knelt down and helped him sit up, propping him up with pillows. "Next time you're not feeling well, you will let us know," Yoshino scolded with a thinly veiled threat. "Thankfully Shikaku was able to catch you before you hit the ground."

"Hmm…" Shikamaru smirked humorously, Kuroko didn't like that look in his eye, "thinking back, I seem to recall you going through the academy exam even though you had a fever." The scared look he got was glorious as his mothers contorted in shock.

"Kuroko!" The woman shrieked.

Kuroko flinched and pulled up the blankets to cover his face in an attempt to escape the situation. It only served to fuel her.

"Don't you hide from me mister! Shikamaru, this isn't funny! Now, next time this happens I'm putting you on deer duty for a month, you hear me?"

"C-crystal!"

"Good. Now eat this, Shikamaru, help him please," and with that, she left the room. She still had cleaning to do.

"T-traitor."

Shikamaru just smiled slyly and held up the spoon full of porridge for him.

There was an indignant high-pitched squeak, "I-I can feed myself!"

• • • • • •

Arata, after learning that Kuroko had gotten sick, let the boy recover in peace and hunkered down on deciphering and recreating the seal on Kuroko's mask. It only took a couple days for the boy to get back to full strength and currently they were seated in a restaurant waiting for Team 10.

Kuroko waited patiently, un-phased by the late team. Arata, however, was jerking his leg up and down in impatience.

An annoyed orange gaze flickered to the side, "You're late." Shikamaru, Ino and Chouji flinched in fright from the man's intimidating glare. "I would expect that from Kakashi, not you Azuma."

Azuma scratched his beard, "Sorry, we got held up." He glanced at Ino and frowned. The girl had gotten into a heated argument with her father about how she was dressing. Ino won, but Inoichi was going to be bitter about it for a good while.

That meant he had some blackmail material.

Shikamaru shrugged and slid into the booth, "Ino ranted at her father."

"He was being stupid."

"Ey," Azuma flicked her forehead, "he was being protective." She scoffed and turned, breaking away from the conversation.

Chouji slid in beside Shikamaru who was followed by Ino. Azuma sat down at the only spot left, leaving Kuroko sandwiched between him and Arata.

"S-so we were going t-to talk about the mission Kuro-sensei?"

Arata put his hand on Kuroko's head and the boy flinched away from the contact, "Yes my student. Let's order first."

Shikamaru narrowed his eyes at Kuroko's Sensei. He's trying to reel us in, I don't have a good feeling. Frowning, he looked at the menu as Chouji listed off all the items he wanted.

Arata noticed the look from the Nara and smirked, Ah, he's a different kind of sharp than Kuroko, they would do well in a squad together.

"And you?" The waitress asked Kuroko, but he wasn't paying attention, looking absently into his menu. "Sir?"

Azuma nudged Kuroko's side and he shot up, "Y-yes?!"

"What do you want Kuro?"

"A-ah, I… I would like the… um…" Kuroko frantically looked through the seafood section, "T-the fried catfish on rice p-please."

The lady took down his order and moved along.

Shikamaru snorted and covered his mouth, "Isn't that cannibalism?"

"Sh-Shikamaru!"

The high-pitched squawk of distress only made him and Arata laugh. Kuroko pouted and refused to look at Shikamaru until they got their food. The other members of the group were confused, unsure of what was so funny.

Once everyone was a good way through their meals, the two Jounin got down to business. Arata raised a privacy seal so those outside the range would only be able to hear murmuring and be unable to read their lips.

"Alright, so the C-rank that I chose for you guys is an infiltration guard mission with a smidgen of honey-pot." Arata received a dark look from Azuma from his blunt description, but shrugged his shoulders, "What?" He wasn't the type to sugar-coat things.

Azuma huffed and scratched his beard, "Well, to make things sound better the one I chose is a simple escort mission."

"Oh, like the escort mission will be simple," Arata said skeptically and raised an eyebrow.

"We're doing two C-ranks then?" Chouji asked, "This is getting confusing."

"It'll be even more confusing when the rank of it goes up—don't interrupt me Azuma." Arata's glare honed in on the man, "We both know from experience that a team's first escort mission always goes to shit."

"I-is that why you w-wanted to make sure we w-were ready for it?" Kuroko inquired, he had been curious to why his Sensei was monitoring his progress so closely. Arata nodded his head.

"We were supposed to let them down gently Arata, that's why we came here."

Chouji finished the last of his meat skewer and nodded, "Yeah, Tou-san said that it's easier to get a point across over dinner."

Ino stifled a smile and laughed, "I think that's more for relationships, Chouji."

"W-we're getting distracted." Kuroko tried to get them back to the missions debrief. "What d-do we need to pack for?"

• • • • • •

Shikamaru groaned as he started to pack his supplies. "These missions are going to be a pain." He was low key looking forward to the mission as it would be his first one out of the walls, but then again that meant they were out of the safety of Konoha. He just wanted it to be an easygoing set of missions.

Something that was not going to happen judging by the conversation the two Jounin had at the restaurant.

There was a knock at the door and Shikamaru was brought out of his thoughts.

"Shikamaru, are you packed yet? I hear you have a mission!" Yoshino didn't even wait for a response before she entered. It was apparently expected of the woman because Shikamaru didn't even flinch when the door was barged open.

"Yeah, two actually. Azuma-sensei picked one and Kuroko's Sensei chose one too." He sighed and rubbed his temples lethargically, "That means twice the work."

Yoshino set a hand on her son's head affectionately and ruffled his hair, making him squirm. She leaned over, putting her hand on his shoulder and looked at him directly in the eyes, "Yes, but that also means twice the pay, too."

"True."

Shikamaru surveyed all the stuff on his bed and wondered how he should organize it. If he asked Yoshino she would turn it into a lecture or lesson, and thus he decided against it. He blinked, thinking of an alternative, "Kaa-san, is Kuroko back yet?"

"He's down in the kitchen making tea—or was," she retracted her statement as she heard a floorboard creak on the stairs. "He's coming up now." Turning on her heel, she exited Shikamaru's bedroom. "Remember to pack extra tighty-whities."

"Kaa-san!"

Yoshino smiled to herself, It's nice to get him riled up on occasion. He takes to much after his father. She was about to go down the stairs, but waited as Kuroko was almost at the top, the staircase being too narrow for more than one person to use in tandem.

Taking a deep breath, Kuroko hoped that it would help ease his frustrations. He knew going back there would be bad, but against all better judgement he chose to go back anyways. Attempting to shake the dark thoughts away, he made his way upstairs, eyes downcast. The boy jumped in surprise when he saw Yoshino right in front of him. Making his best effort to give a good, passable smile, Kuroko nodded in greeting and moved passed. Entering his room, he paused in his stride, acknowledging his mission bag, but walked passed it. He fell onto his bed and smothered his face into his pillow, trying to escape from reality.

"Kuro?" Shikamaru asked as walked into his room and immediately noticed him on his bed. "…Are you alright?"

Kuroko groaned into his pillow in an attempt at venting.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, "I take that as a no." Kuroko's tail stood on end and he heard muffled words, "What?"

Lifting his head, Kuroko propped himself up on his elbows and repeated with a frown, "What do you want, Shika?"

Eyebrows raising up in surprise, Shikamaru wondered what made Kuroko so irritated, He didn't even stutter. He tucked it to the back of his head to think on later. "Have you packed yet?"

"Partially."

"Come help me. We'll be gone for a few weeks and I need help with sealing things in scrolls."

"Oh. O-okay." Kuroko felt a little embarrassed. Shikamaru was a genius and he felt that he wouldn't be able to live up to it. He got up from his bed and straightened out his clothes, "L-lets go see then."

Sealing scrolls were odd in a sense. Within the seals, there could be different compartments each directed to an area depending on how it's entered. Kuroko had to stop and think for a good minute on how to explain it since it had become second nature to him over the years.

"So you seal things in categories and in order."

"Y-yes. After you finish sealing one category of things, you enter a short burst of chakra to start a new category." Kuroko nodded, that sounded about right. "The whole scroll's capacity stays the same throughout, s-so you still have to take that into account."

Shikamaru pondered for a moment. "Can I have a demonstration?"

Since Shikamaru already had his clothes organized on his bed, Kuroko used those. Taking a scroll from the little pile that was there, he unfurled it and set things up. Taking a pile of shirts first, they were the closest, Kuroko placed them into a big pile on top of the sealing array. With a small burst of chakra all of the shirts disappeared into the scroll.

"All your shirts are in. S-so now I need to make another category." Kuroko placed his hand in the middle of the seal pattern and made a hand seal with his other to help concentrate chakra. With another burst of chakra, Kuroko knew that another category had been made. "The amount of chakra needed to open the new category is much smaller. A-any more than necessary and it will try to seal something in that isn't there."

With a gesture from Kuroko, Shikamaru moved to try it himself. He didn't get it the first try, but with some further explanation he was able to do it properly.

"Ah, I see now. Thank you, Kuro."

Kuroko flushed and smiled bashfully, "A-ah, no p-problem! I-I'll go finish packing my things then." Closing the door behind himself, Kuroko sighed. He needed to distract himself and packing was the best thing he could do at the moment.

There was more pep in his step than when he first got back, and Shikamaru felt that like it was a little victory.

Having all his clothes packed already, he needed to get his weaponry organized. Earlier in the day before he went to visit his mother, he stopped by Higurashi Weapons to pick up his new harness. When he did, he got new weapon pouches as his were old and worn down. The largest of them was long and rectangular and it rested on his lower back, going around like a belt that would also secure to his harness. There was also a new kunai holster that Kajiya made and Kuroko was offered to test it out at a discount. It was larger than most holsters since it had more storage space.

He made sure that his knives were in good shape as he had been training with them a lot over the week. The harness felt more comfortable as he wore it around after getting it, so he was sure that it wouldn't feel odd during the mission.

Kuroko jumped from his spot when there was a knock at his door. "Get to bed mister! It's getting late!"

"O-okay!"

Puttering around to put away the last of his things, he changed into his pyjamas and laid in his bed. With a sigh, he turned to his side and forced himself to think of nothing, and with the sweet embrace of sleep, he wouldn't be allowed to think.

But while asleep, the mind was able to conjure up terrible things.

• • • • • •

Walking to the village gates, Kuroko noticed Shikamaru visibly gulp when Ino's eyes honed in on them. The two boys immediately got hounded on by Ino.

"You two are the last to arrive! Look, the client is literally right behind you!" She crossed her arms and huffed, "Geeze."

Azuma snuffed out the last of his cigarette, "Now, now. They're still on time Ino."

Behind them, a carriage came to a stop. Kuroko tensed, the horses unnerving him. A man with long, black hair up in a bun stepped out, donned in a semi-formal kimono.

Arata bowed lowly, "Good morning Sugawara-sama. We will be your chaperones for the duration of this mission."

"Good morning," the man bowed in return. "Please, call me Suga. It's easier to say and we will certainly be getting to know each other here. So, let's not be so formal, shall we?"

"Of course, Suga-sama."

After their brief introduction, the Jounin gave the Genin a rundown on what formations and type of sign language that would be used for the duration of their missions. Once finished, the crew departed. At first, there was excitement brimming in team ten, but it slowly dwindled down as they travelled.

"Ah, this is tiring. We have to jog to keep up with the carriage, and we have to do it for a week."

"Be thankful, this would take a full week and a half if we were going civilian pace." Kuronuma chided the complaining Yamanaka.

"Isn't the distance to Nami no Kuni the same though? It would take a week to get there too." Chouji asked. He recalled the distance from a story his father told him about an escort mission to Nami no Kuni.

"The road to Nami no Kuni is straightforward. The roads to the Yu no Kuni, however, aren't as direct. We have to go through Otafuki Gai before getting onto a main road there."

"Oh."

"Well, at least the weather is normal now. I mean, we had flooding since it melted so quickly, but there's no more snow." Ino seemed to be the main conversation starter out of the whole group as she kept going for another hour before she got tired.

Since they left early enough in the morning the party reached Otafuki Gai before nightfall. A hotel was arranged for the night and the next morning they departed once the sun had risen above the horizon. The town was large, and while it looked welcoming, there were a lot of eyes on the carriage as they travelled through. Kuroko made sure to stand up straight as he walked ahead of the others. Kuronuma had told him that with his mask he would look the most intimidating out of the Genin, and therefore he took up the front of the formation. Once they passed the city limits, Kuroko signalled to Ino and Shikamaru who were behind him—suspicious, be on guard.

Half-an-hour down the road, they turned a left down a narrower path, just large enough for the two-horse carriage with a little berth of space for the accompanying party.

He heard it before he saw anything.

"Formation seven!" Kuroko shouted as multiple assailants appeared out of the foliage.

Ino shrieked, startled. Looking behind her, she saw Kuronuma and Azuma collapsed on the ground, two people standing behind them with hoods and bandana's covering their faces.

"A-Azuma-sensei!"

• • • • • •

I gotta say, I'm not that proud of this one. I'm bad with action scenes and just couldn't figure out how to end it.

Next chapter will be much more exciting, hopefully. I have some things plan that I'm excited to write about. :D

See you in the next chapter!