Disclaimer: Of course I don't own anything
Pairing: Minato x Kushina
No Flames please
Note: Urk, I put this entire survival thing into one chapter... Nineteen pages? Yah... Could have been better, but meh. Also, there are bound to be spelling errors possibly. Rereading all nineteen pages looking for errors? nah.
Reviews please? lol Thank you for reviews/alerts/favs and so on
Drifting Blossom Chapter Nine
Night was approaching and Kushina was muttering to herself as she held a sumi brush in one hand and an ink well in the other. It was light enough for her to swiftly create scrawling seals upon the surrounding area that Hizashi had deemed hidden enough from anyone that passed by.
"Kushina-san, what are you doing?" Shibi finally questioned as Hizashi eyed the forest around them, Byakugan activated and watching the area. Kushina hummed as she registered Shibi talking, but she kept writing.
"I'm placing security seals around the place. If someone gets too close, they will glow blue, low enough that it shouldn't give away our position right away." Her tongue stuck out between her lips before she finally swiped one last symbol upon the tree she was standing in front of.
"Though, it will release a caterwaul, should someone actually succeed in getting too close to us…"
Shibi's eyebrow lifted as he looked at the seal.
Hizashi finally tilted his head to indicate that he was addressing his team. He could see them, to the left of his turned back. Shibi had his Kikaichū moving through his system and Kushina, she caused Hizashi to pause for a second.
The girl had a massive amount of chakra. It didn't help that a red pathway of chakra ran right next to her regular coils. He briefly wondered if it had to do with the Uzumaki Clan. It was not his place to ask in the end.
"And how will that work when we need to separate and gather food and firewood?" he questioned while stiffening at the flickering chakra not too, too far away. He frowned before glancing back at his two teammates.
There happened to be two Anbu on the edges of his Kekkei Genkai. They probably thought he didn't have that far of a range yet. It was well known that younger Hyūga's couldn't see as far as those that had far more years of training their eyes.
"There…are two chakra signatures, unmoving but obviously watching…"
Kushina's brush ceased its movement for a second before it continued on with another security seal that she recalled. There was nothing she could say. Would her team learn that she was the Kyuubi holder later on? She didn't want to keep it from them, not if she needed to use his chakra in an emergency.
"It's probably just to make sure we actually don't kill ourselves…" Kushina finally grumbled, causing Shibi to sigh and Hizashi to shake his head. "Anyways, I need both of you to swipe your blood over the seal. It'll nullify your chakra signature and remain unaffected when you do need to leave the area. My blood is already included in the ink."
Both were hesitant. They were a new team. They did not trust each other as of yet. Even though they came from the same village, they didn't know how to work together to support and help each other at their weak points.
It was something that had Kushina pausing. It honestly surprised her that they were so weary of each other and awkward.
"Look, it's not going to kill you. This seal is a single layer that is simply a lock and key. Chakra that is not already in it when it's activated, will cause the lock to reject the foreign chakra and glow." She mulled it over for a second before adding, "Or screech…"
Shibi's eyebrow rose even higher in wonder. They were clueless on seal work.
Hizashi finally sighed. "This will be hard to take in… I've only heard of how Fūinjutsu is an art of its own and having only seen sealing scrolls, I know nothing about it…"
"I believe we have a lot to learn about each other…" Shibi concluded for all of them.
"No secrets then?" she questioned, looking at each of them.
Hizashi shook his head. "No, we need to know each other as friends do. We need to build trust and figure out who needs to be covered in certain areas."
Kushina found a smile coming across her face as they both bit their thumbs and swiped it across the seal. With one last swipe, Kushina had it activated.
They would learn how to accommodate each other as they spent more time with one another.
Oooo
After setting up camp, Hizashi concluded that it would be best to scout the area that they would be infiltrating. With his Byakugan and Shibi's Kikaichū, they'd be able to get a rough idea of the layout that they would be working with.
Coming upon a village surrounded by high walls, Kushina could only stare at it for a second before scaling the wall with ease, noticing that Shibi and Hizashi had as well. It would appear that they had already been taught how to use chakra to stick to surfaces. It relieved her though, knowing that they would be able to use this to their advantage.
The village in question, was large. Spread out and had many patrolling groups about.
They were seemingly festive. It must have been what Rei-sensei had planned for them, for there was a group playing music and others indulging in food and dancing.
That was towards the center of town, the sound traveling to them and the lights and laughter reaching their ears.
Hizashi also confirmed what they were doing.
"There are quite a few patrolling groups crossing each other's paths before veering off onto different routes…" Hizashi whispered. Shibi held out his hand, a small gourd on his back opening and allowing Kikaichū to spread out.
"The other teams are on the move as well." Shibi murmured. "We might as well take it slow and use stealth to our advantage."
Kushina though, felt like she was unable to do anything for her group. Now she understood why Hinata, Kiba, and Shino had been placed together. They made an amazing team.
The village though, had many buildings ranging from small ones to bigger ones, the main building being huge and towering. It almost looked like a Lord would live in there.
Hizashi paused in his search, stiffening as his head whipped around and stared in one direction.
"Patrol for this side of the wall is about to cross us." He whispered and Kushina was already moving with her team. A silent leap and they all landed on one of the small buildings, each one of them lowering themselves to the ground and hiding from view.
Shuffling and then murmurs reached Kushina's sensitive ears and she peered around a corner, taking in the group.
Chuunin. They weren't recently promoted by the way they moved. They had earned their place. This team though, had a Genin with them. Probably a formation Rei-sensei told them to follow? She wasn't sure.
How much information did Rei-sensei give them? They would probably never know.
The team continued on, none even looking in their direction.
Once out of sight and hearing distance, Hizashi and Shibi came out and they were moving once again.
They would need to delve further into stealth tactics after this. It might be good to work as a team on that one in general.
Stopping behind another building, they peered around the edges, Hizashi scanning the area in further detail to make sure they were not noticed.
"We should pull back for tonight." Kushina murmured.
"That would be best." Shibi agreed. "We do not want to exhaust ourselves when we just started."
With a rough layout within the Hyūga's mind and Shibi's Kikaichū crawling around the town, they were on their way.
Once back at camp, Kushina was in charge of gathering food. She was quick and, even with packed rations, real food was all too tempting. Fish was soon being cooked and the team already agreed to have Kushina as first watch, Shibi second, and Hizashi third.
After a meal and settling down, Kushina hunkered down in a tree and let the hours for her watch go by.
Oooo
The sun was still down, but Hizashi was positive that something was stalking around the edges of Kushina's seal.
He couldn't spot the intruder, but every so often, that seal would give a faint blip of blue before it was gone.
So, they were testing the range of the seal.
It was quite far, like a large dome shape around them. He wasn't positive how Kushina understood seals, but he accepted that it was her skill.
The seal turned a solid low glowing blue and Hizashi's Byakugan flared to life, searching but not finding.
Instantly he lurched from his place in the tree and landed between his teammates, quickly rousing them and pointing towards the glowing seal.
Kushina was up in seconds, eyes scanning the area and getting ready to use her chakra chains to protect her team.
They waited with anticipation for at least a couple of minutes before the seal finally died down and returned to a neutral state. Kushina clenched her hands into fists as she eyed her seal. Nothing felt wrong with it. Did the person back off?
No.
'Remember the weak points!' Kushina shouted within her mind and instantly she darted forward and tackled Hizashi and Shibi, pulling them up into the trees.
Nothing happened in the end, but Kushina knew that they would have to be careful from here on out. The reason the seal was able to caterwaul was because the seal itself did not penetrate the ground. It was set up so it created a dome that detected foreign chakra, but not a complete circle.
"Kushina-san, what is it?" Shibi whispered, Kikaichū buzzing in the air.
Hizashi was scanning in all directions, just in case they needed to move quickly.
"It might not look like it, but all seals do have a weak point, no matter how small and insignificant." She admitted. They could know, but never an enemy. This would be the first and last time she even mentioned it to them.
"That being?" Shibi pressed on, looking at the seal before eyes darting around, not that they could tell with his shades on.
"This seal creates a dome, one that settles on top of the ground. It does not penetrate the dirt it is resting on. With Rei-sensei being a Doton user, we'd be in trouble."
Even if the seal did start up its yowling, it might be too late if their Sensei had already located and targeted one of them.
"Hizashi-san, do you see anything?" Kushina then directed her attention towards her teammate and when he finally shook his head, Kushina relaxed somewhat in relief.
"When do you think she might attack or possibly set a trap?" she finally mumbled, tugging at her low pony tail. It was odd, having her hair pulled back, but it was practical. Hizashi shifted and Shibi stood from his crouched position, Kikaichū swarming the area and keeping an eye out for danger.
"Knowing Rei-Sensei, I'd say by tonight…" Hizashi murmured, shuddering at the image of Rei-Sensei grinning at them.
The rest of the day had the entire team constantly fidgeting, eyes darting to moving shadows and being weary of the ground. They didn't want to fail this mission.
"Do you think it would be best to henge and gather information during the day?" Hizashi finally spoke up, looking at the clouds floating by in his boredom. Kushina, who had been sprawled out on a thick tree branch waved her hand.
"I'm up for it."
"We will accomplish more than waiting for night to fall." Shibi agreed and gathering their supplies, the group headed out.
Oooo
Kushina found herself henged as a young Genin girl with short light green hair and hazel eyes. Her outfit happened to be simple Shinobi shorts and a tank top over a fishnet shirt. From what she had seen from the girls attitude, she was shy and easily submissive. A girl that would blend into the background even with her looks.
The girl followed orders easily enough and Kushina had instantly targeted the girl. Kushina had slapped a Lethargy Seal onto the girl before she could even react and her legs gave out on her, eyes rolling into the back of her head.
She would remain sleeping until Kushina removed the seal.
Blending in was pretty easy from there. She simply slipped into the girls place after a supposed use of the restroom and had been following her Chuunin group around for most of the day with little to no problems.
The patrol route they ran brought them close to the main square, where Kushina found herself looking at dressed up people that were happily enjoying whatever Rei-Sensei had set up for them.
An arm suddenly swung over her shoulder and Kushina started, her heart pounding and head whipping around to look at the person that touched her. Kushina's hand, which was hidden by her side was already starting to glow green before she released it.
"How about we get something to eat Amane-chan, my treat?" he questioned, a pleading smile on his face and his arm slightly tightened around her shoulders. The signs were clear that he had been rejected before. If she were anybody else, Kushina wouldn't have even recognized it.
Being around Ino and her family no matter how little the time she spent there, had given her a bit of incite on reading people. Plus, having been under Tsunade's tutelage, she had needed to learn how to read patients for theirs and her own safety.
"Ah, stop badgering her Fumito-kun!" his teammate complained eyeing Kushina as she put her head down in a submissive gesture. "You've been asking her since before we even graduated the academy!"
"Wasn't she a bit young then?" the female Chuunin scrunched up her face, looking at Kushina's henged form. "I mean… she is only twelve now and we've graduated-"
"Hey! That's none of your business Honoka-san!" Fumito complained, glaring at his teammate. "Amane-chan, please!" Fumito then suddenly turned on Kushina and she felt all their eyes fall onto her henged form.
'Get their eyes off of you! Too much attention! Distract them!' her mind was screaming. There had to be one slight slipup of her henge and she was done for.
"Ah…ah….I guess one date wouldn't hurt…" she finally agreed, her face flushed and her submissive nature making it seem acceptable. Though, it wouldn't hurt. All the food vendors were around the main square. That meant more information as they rested.
"I can't believe…" Honoka began, her eyes wide in wonder as she continued to stare at the girl. It made Kushina nervous.
"She was bound to give in anyways!" Fumito suddenly bragged, a smug smirk on his face as he pulled Kushina into his side. The girl might have been the submissive type, one that was shy and followed orders, but now she had to give the girl credit for avoiding this guy for as long as she seemed to have avoided him.
Lunch was filled with small talk from the Chuunin teammates, Giichi being their other male teammate. Kushina though, was paying attention to the talking groups passing by and the vendors.
It wasn't until she heard a group of bragging Genin talking about how they were going to take out Konoha's Hospital and Academy that she found a smug smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
This was a start, but it was something.
They would have to come back once more to make sure those were the actual targets than just a random Genin trying to sound cool. False information wasn't what she was looking for.
"I need to use the restroom…" Kushina breathed, her voice soft. Honoka rolled her eyes and waved her hand at Amane, telling the girl to just go. Obviously the girl was jealous of the younger, quieter girl.
With that, Kushina was up and heading for the girl currently under a Lethargy Seal.
She was just on the outskirts of the town when another patrolling group came upon her, their eyes narrowing. Kushina froze and cursed. She had already been spotted.
"Which group are you from?" An older Chuunin questioned, pausing at least a good couple of feet away. Kushina pursed her lips.
"Fumito's group." She responded and the Chuunin's lips thinned.
Obviously that was not what they were looking for.
Instantly the group of Chuunin and their single Genin jumped back. It was the wavering earth that caught Kushina's eye and then copies of the entire team appeared.
"Shit!" she spat, instantly spinning on her feet and launching herself onto the rooftops. The entire team instantly pursued.
Kushina may be strong. She may have been training for years and had experience from another life, but this was not what she needed. They were a sabotage group, not a front line group. Too much attention drawn towards them and it was over.
Kushina swung over a roof and latched onto the gutter, throwing herself down and onto the porch that it had. The cover gave her a second before the first person appeared. With a lurch, chakra chains burst from her palms and flew through the air.
They snagged the persons ankle and instantly surged up the body, tightening like a constricting snake.
With barely a second thought, Kushina's chains tightened and shredded the entire clone from existence.
She was on the move as soon as the clone had been dealt with.
Sticking low to the ground with two Chuunin and one Genin on her tail, Kushina wished that she had the ability to create Kage Bunshin. Another corner and Kushina found a swarm of Kikaichū suddenly surrounding her and surging onward, towards her pursuers.
Shibi appeared around the corner and with so many Kikaichū buzzing around, it hindered the sight of the group behind them.
Dispelling the henge, Kushina was already following Shibi, who only nodded in acknowledgment. Hizashi then came into sight when they rounded the corner.
"Two Chuunin on your tail, we set an ambush." And he spun on his heel, searching the area.
"Attack them from the rooftops, Shibi-san, Hizashi-san, I'll keep them from escaping and be the bait." Kushina instantly stated and they were already jumping for the roofs.
Kushina came to a stop and turned on her heel, watching as the two pursuing Chuunin came to a halt before her.
Silence permeated the air before they lurched forward. At the same time, Shibi and Hizashi were already descending down upon them.
Golden chains erupted around Kushina and two created a frontal barrier while the rest flew around the small area, a translucent barrier forming around them. Nothing could leave nor get in.
Hizashi's Byakugan was already activated and with the Clan's well-known stance, he struck. The clone took a couple of damaging blows before it fell, bursting into dust.
Shibi's use of Kikaichū was also filed away in the back of Kushina's mind. He used them very well, swarming the enemy and simply devouring their chakra until they were empty.
When nothing else seemed to attack, Hizashi and Shibi turned towards Kushina, eyes falling onto the chains coming from behind her. A simple nod was all that was needed before they were all moving again, Kushina's chains dissolving. They needed to get out of the village before they attracted anymore attention.
Oooo
"How exactly did you gain their attention?" Hizashi questioned, leaning against a large trunk that was on the ground in the middle of their camp. Shibi sat next to Hizashi on the log, fiddling with his glasses and tugging at his exposed skin. Having a hive inside your body made it sensitive to the light.
"Apparently the name of your teammates does not help. They probably go by numbers or names." Kushina frowned, frustrated at herself for having not figured that out. "Though, on the other hand, I was able to figure out that they are targeting the Hospital and Academy."
"Not proven correct yet, but we will confirm this." Shibi murmured. "I have come across a house that seems to be the main place where the teams report in. A headquarters of sorts." He mused and Kushina sighed in relief. They were bound to have some information on the layout of the village.
Hizashi furrowed his brows before sighing. "I heard that tonight they were going to have a gathering in the town square. Festive or not, we should proceed with caution and quickly gather the layout plans before going to the gathering."
The team settled into a heavy silence.
"Chakra chains…" Hizashi finally couldn't help but break it. His eyes lit up with interest. Kushina shifted and waved her hand in his direction from her sprawled out form on the ground.
"They are of the Uzumaki Clan. The chains create barriers and are more or less unbreakable." Was her short response.
Shibi shifted and hummed in response. "They are more than that. My Kikaichū, the ones outside and inside the barrier you created, could not enter nor exit said barrier."
Kushina grinned from her spot. "A perfect way of making sure your enemies don't get away."
Hizashi covered a laugh with a cough and tugged at his hair that was pulled back.
Oooo
It was easy to infiltrate the headquarters, but Kushina still felt weary. Shibi had already sent Kikaichū in to make sure it was safe and Hizashi had already scanned the building and surrounding area, but she still felt off.
Once inside the building, they separated and, as she crept down a hallway, Kushina found herself shivering as a cold feeling washed over her.
The hall seemed endless and dark. It was like a maw opening and swallowing her whole as she stood there, staring at it.
"You are currently in a looping Genjutsu, brat."
Kushina started and instantly placed her hand up, breaking the illusion. She blinked and the hall lightened and immediately shortened. Kushina found her mouth going dry as she finally registered that someone had spoken to her.
'You…you can speak… through the seal?' she mentally questioned, her eyes widening and her mouth dropping open in utter bewilderment. Not once had the Kyuubi even contacted her to inform her of this ability.
A snort and the Kyuubi was already speaking. "Why should I have informed a brat like you that communication is possible without you meditating?"
Kushina felt her temper rise, but she bit down on her tongue as she continued forward with her eyes peeled.
'Didn't you find it at least somewhat important to inform me?' she mentally questioned, a scowl forming on her face.
"Not at all. I would have only bothered if you were in a dire situation, but seeing that you have given me a bit more…room to move, I thought this would suffice." He grumbled, and Kushina got the impression that he was not too happy about admitting that they could freely communicate.
Kyuubi fell silent, settling in his open space and Kushina was left to keep searching this side of the building. It was the second time that she ran into a Genjutsu that Kushina realized that she was obviously being watched.
Her breath hitched slightly before it evened out, her mind already going through the possibilities that something was wrong.
Footsteps were echoing from behind Kushina and she whirled around, a kunai in her hand, ready to fight off any attacker.
"Kushina-san!"
It was Hizashi.
She relaxed her stance and nodded towards him as he came to a halt before her.
"I've found documents that look like the ones we're searching for." He stated, his voice lowered. He then gestured for Kushina to follow him and as she fell in step behind him, Kushina couldn't help but stare at his back for a couple of seconds, brows furrowed.
Why would Hizashi come searching for her only? Where was Shibi? Was he already waiting for them where Hizashi was leading them?
'Kyuubi?' she found herself seeking out his thoughts, internally hoping that he would at least not leave her in the dark.
The Kyuubi grunted and cut the link after a simple word slipped over the connection. "Imposter."
She didn't question how the Kyuubi knew, she didn't mull over the fact that he could be lying to her. No, Kushina was willing to risk everything to trust the Kyuubi so she could gain his friendship and trust.
With those thoughts, she found herself a step further with the Fox.
The kunai that she still held onto suddenly became heavy and Kushina clenched her hands around it before surging forward, slamming the kunai into the Hyūga's back.
For a second, Kushina really thought that the Kyuubi had lied, that he had made her kill her teammate, but when dirt fell around her small frame, relief filled her. She was right to have trusted him and she was pleased that she was making progress with him.
Now, to find the real Hizashi.
Shibi wasn't hard to locate, they had already decided that each one would get a section of the building and search it. Shibi was towards the south, on the third floor.
Kushina came to a stop a couple of feet from him. Chakra chains flew from her back and hovered in the air as the two of them seemed to stare one another down.
Kikaichū suddenly surged from Shibi's sleeves and they both relaxed. Having an ability that others could not replicate was a pleasant thing to have.
"Someone came to me as Hizashi. I took care of the imposter. On the other hand, I've ran into two Genjutsu so far." Kushina murmured as they walked down the halls, eyes searching for traps that could be set up for them to trip.
"I've ran into three traps and disabled one of them before I could trip it. The other two were well hidden and only threw projectiles. I have not come across an imposter yet." He replied and as the two moved down towards the area Hizashi was supposed to look, Kushina couldn't help but worry.
Opening doors and silently closing them when they realized that they were empty, Kushina found herself stiffening when Hizashi suddenly appeared around one of the corners. Shibi stiffened as well before his Kikaichū surged towards Hizashi with a loud buzzing sound.
"Kushina-san, that's not Hizashi-san. My Kikaichū have been around him long enough to have tasted his chakra."
Chains erupted around Kushina and shot down the outskirts of the hall, slamming into the walls behind Hizashi's imposter.
A kunai ripped through the air and Kushina leaned to the side at the last second, her sensitive ears picking it up. A sharp pain flared from her cheek and warm, iron smelling liquid slid down her face. Shibi spun around and fell into a protective stance, the hallway making it impossible to move to their full capabilities.
Before Shibi stood an imposter of Kushina. She was grinning, eyes narrowed and holding another kunai at the ready. Even though she was small compared to the two boys, they knew not to underestimate the girl.
Kushina had them trapped in the hallway, unable to get past her chains. As she stared down Hizashi though, Kushina realized that she would have to use something that she truly hadn't in quite a while.
Her chakra enhanced strength.
With her chains keeping things out and in, there was no possible way that they would destroy the walls.
As Shibi fought with Kushina's clone, the redhead turned towards Hizashi, who sneered at her. With a frown marring her bloody face, she then launched herself at him, fist already pulled back.
Hizashi leapt back at the last second and a thundering boom filled the corridor as Kushina's fist impacted the barrier covered ground.
The clones instantly became weary and Kushina's own clone dodged around Shibi and appeared next to Hizashi to give him support.
"Kushina-san?" Shibi questioned as he came to stand beside her. Kushina stood from her position, cracking her fist as she grinned at the clones.
She felt…alive.
Like she had finally found herself once again.
"Let's do this, Shibi-san." She told him, the smile on her face causing him to pause for a mere second before he slightly nodded his head.
Kushina leapt, meeting her own clone this time, and as a chakra enhanced punched flew at her own face, Kushina sent her own fist slamming into the hand. Chakra flared around them and the impact of chakra being released caused a thundering sound before both girls were sent flying in the opposite direction. Kushina caught herself, twisting in mid air and sending chakra to her feet as she landed on the barrier coated wall.
Shibi was struggling with the close combat of Hizashi, but even if he used the normal Hyūga stance, the clone did not possess the Byakugan. At least that was a relief.
Surging chakra into her legs, Kushina sent herself hurtling at the clone, who stumbled in shock at her move. As the two girls collided, Kushina's hand wrapped around the girls wrist, chakra flaring before a scrawling seal appeared and snaked itself into a spiral on the back of her clones hand. Launching back, Kushina finally let her thudding heart calm a bit as she activated the seal.
The explosion that rocked the hall sent smoke, wisps of fire, and billowing dirt throughout the area. The Kushina clone no longer in existence.
Turning around, Kushina found Shibi finally taking down Hizashi and with a brief once over, she cut her chakra chains and quickly ran down the hall from where Hizashi's clone had appeared from.
Shibi had been the one to locate Hizashi, tied up and knocked out. Basic medical chakra ran through her hands and Kushina quickly healed some of the wounds Hizashi obviously had received from struggling.
A spike of medical chakra to awaken him and both teammates were relieved that Hizashi was alright.
"We should pull back and go to the gathering… We've already dealt with Genjutsu, Traps, and clones… who knows what else we will come across…" Kushina murmured. Hizashi rubbed at his head, his temples throbbing in pain from being struck in the back of the head so hard.
"Come on." Kushina murmured, both Shibi and Kushina helping Hizashi up. Stumbling over his own feet, the Hyūga grunted in annoyance before just limping between them.
"Your cheek…" the Hyūga finally broke the oppressing silence as they ducked outside the building and into a dark alleyway. Kushina frowned and rubbed at her bloody cheek, scratching the blood off but revealing smooth skin underneath it, not a single scratch left behind.
Both stared at her and Kushina shifted.
"Uzumaki's have a very fast healing rate… some of us even have the ability to heal any wound with just introducing their chakra to your system…" she supplied, unable to ponder over how fast the wound did heal.
"Shibi, please go to the gathering and see if you can find out anything." Hizashi suddenly said before gesturing for Kushina to help him. "We'll head back to camp. With Kushina's chakra chains, it'll be protected."
Kushina was about to argue, but then she clamped her mouth shut. She could see where Hizashi was coming from. With her around, she could keep the camp secure so they didn't have to fight in their weakened state.
"How will you know…" and Kushina was already grasping his hand, a seal spreading across Shibi's palm. It was shaped like a crescent moon, but when meeting in the middle, it curled up and into a spiraled tail. They were mirrors of each other.
"It's a tracking seal. Only the person that places the seal on the target can use the tracking seal."
Shibi flexed his hand, a curious look forming on his usually blank face. He hadn't felt anything but a tingle as the seal was placed. Kushina smiled and then helped Hizashi up.
"We'll be waiting for you, Shibi-san." She murmured before they separated.
Oooo
Shibi crept along the buildings, his Kikaichū spread out and sending subtle signals his way. Apparently everyone was really at the gathering. Leaping onto a roof close to the gathering, Shibi leaned over the arch and stopped as his eyes landed upon the gathering.
Kikaichū told him that the other two groups were about the area as well, unable to keep their curiosity at bay.
It was like a festival, all of them partying, but at the same time, Shibi could spot large crates of weapons being opened and some distributed before being taken away.
One of the Sabotage teams split, following after the small group that had the weapons crate.
An older man finally stepped forward and Shibi paused. The man had graying long hair and a long beard. He stood with an air of confidence and was dressed in golden colored robes accented in reds and purples. This had to be their leader.
"The destruction of Konoha is going to begin soon!" he cried out and the shouts of excitement filled the night air.
Rei-Sensei really did go all out on this event.
Shibi shook his head. That woman was something else.
"We target the Hospital, Hokage tower, and the Intelligence department! After that, we suppress them and take over the village!"
Another roar and Shibi was already moving stealthily along the rooftops, moving about to see if he can spot anything else that needed to be noted.
Apparently the Academy wasn't going to be one of the main focuses as of yet.
A signal from one of his Kikaichū had Shibi suddenly retreating, lurching from his place and into the shadows of another building. Just as he melded with the shadows, a group of Chuunin and their Genin suddenly appeared, searching the area with frowns on their faces.
Once they moved on, Shibi was already heading back towards his teammates and camp.
Oooo
Relaying the information to his team, Shibi then sat down, exhaustion quickly pulling him into a deep sleep.
Hizashi was already sleeping and Kushina finally settled down, her exhausted state causing her eyes to droop but seeing that she had first watch, she kept shifting to keep herself awake.
It felt like forever before she was finally waking up Hizashi for his shift. Shibi was the last one this time, seeing that he had stayed behind for more information.
She quickly drifted into a deep sleep, her thoughts briefly wondering what happened to Amane, seeing that she had been found out before she had released the girl.
Oooo
Kushina woke with a start, Shibi leaning over her with an eyebrow raised as he pulled back, holding out a stick with a cooked fish on the other end. Kushina's stomach growled loudly and she realized just how hungry she was.
None of them ate after they came back.
Hizashi was going through his pack before sighing as he put everything back, a bag of what appeared to be Jerky in one hand. He passed out some pieces to the group and as they filled their stomachs, Kushina pondered on what they were going to do to get those layouts.
They had to be in that building. It was heavily set against Infiltration, if what happened last night was any indication.
"We need to go back to that building…"
Hizashi sighed and rubbed his neck. "I remember a room that I was unable to check. It actually had a seal on it if I'm not mistaken…" he murmured, a frown upon his face.
They fell into silence as they looked at the fire that sat before them, crackling and licking at the branches hungrily.
"Tonight we will head back." Shibi murmured. "Though, I believe a new camping area is up for suggestion. Rain clouds are coming in." he then pointed towards the dreary sky and Kushina groaned as she glared up at the sky. Sure, she was learning Doton ninjutsu, but even with tons of chakra, she was finding Jutsu in general a smidge difficult.
A simple Doton jutsu to create a small shelter would have been best if she actually knew one.
Packing up camp was pretty easy, but covering their tracks was another thing. The fire pit was covered, a surge of chakra had the earth covering the pit without a hitch. It was basic things that she had learned a second time in the academy, something that just didn't stick the first time around.
Footprints were covered and anything disturbed had been fixed.
When they leapt into the trees, the clearing looked like it had been untouched. Even the seals Kushina had placed were gone.
Their next camp was a thick brush area that was hollowed out inside. The weaving of the brush would help keep the rain out. It was like a natural shelter.
Once they set everything up, Kushina went about placing the seals about the area. It started to rain a bit after they had arrived and as the team sat about, Kushina wondered what they would be doing next.
Hizashi sighed before shifting. "We have tonight to get the layouts. Tomorrow, we'll search for said buildings later in the day and then set up the destruction for those buildings. Once we've cleared it with the other teams, we'll destroy them."
Shibi and Kushina simply nodded. It was the best they could do right now.
Oooo
The halls were dark and Hizashi gestured for Shibi and Kushina to follow, eyes searching for any ambushes or traps.
It had taken them quite a while to get to this building once again, seeing that patrolling groups had upped their security.
Apparently one of the other Sabotage groups had encountered an alert seal and had made a quick retreat, but not without alerting the town that there were possibly intruders.
They entered the room easily and, spreading out to search through drawers, they soon found information on the layout of the town. Making sure that it contained the information that they needed, they quickly retreated, leaving the room looking like nothing was touched.
Retreating back to their camp, Hizashi lit a small fire and they spread out the layouts, a frown marring their faces as they looked over it.
"Provisions building needs to go." Kushina stated, pointing towards the one that served food. Hizashi marked it and then continued on.
"Training grounds. Is there a dojo?" Hizashi confirmed Kushina's question, marking the building off.
"Command center, which is the place we stole these from."
"What about outposts? There are sections of the town that are built for look-outs." Shibi murmured, having had come pretty close to being seen at one point when they infiltrated the village during the day.
Hizashi kept marking buildings as they went.
"The Main building. Team Twelve was only put in charge of documents and gathering information on the leader." Hizashi interrupted the two whispering possible buildings.
When they were finally done with their list, they had a total of nine buildings to destroy. Two were labeled as provisions, a single dojo, Command center, and the Main building. Then there were four outposts.
"Let's rest, we'll be scouting the areas tomorrow." Shibi stated, getting up and moving over to his sleeping area. Hizashi rolled up the documents and placed them safely inside his bag before heading to bed.
Kushina settled down for another first watch.
Oooo
Scouting the buildings out had been quite easy, dodging around groups and making sure they had the correct building in the first place.
The only thing that didn't really need to be searched out was the outposts, Main building, and Command center.
Once they had everything confirmed, they settled down in an empty room that looked untouched. They would wait until nightfall.
An explosion went off close to evening, the sun still shining, but low in the sky.
Hizashi leapt to his feet, Byakugan scanning the surrounding area as Shibi and Kushina crouched on the ground, ready for anything.
"Team Four has taken out their building…" Hizashi stated, a frown suddenly marring his face. "We need to pull back!"
They were out of the room and bounding over rooftops as fast as they could go. The destruction of the weapons building had drawn all the attention, but the amount of teams that were going to be crawling all over the town for the next couple of hours was not something they wanted to deal with.
Kushina sighed as they watched from the forest as the fire engulfed the building.
Hours seemed to pass by slowly before Hizashi deemed it calm enough to head back in, refusing to turn off his Byakugan so they could avoid teams.
It took a while to get to the buildings, but after Kushina scrawled a large seal on top of each rooftop and two on each side of the buildings, they continued on. For the outposts, Kushina put the large seals at the base, to take out the entire structure.
Once they were all set, Hizashi was already searching out the two teams that were camping in the woods around the village.
Team Twelve was weary of them, but once Team Eleven had proven it was them, they confirmed that they were all set.
Team Four had been cautious about their group and after a bit they finally told them that they were finished.
With a nod, the group left, heading back towards town.
Kushina stood in one of the taller trees, her eyes scanning the lit up town before she placed her hands in the correct seal. With a burst of chakra, she could feel each of her seals kick on and the timer running low.
The following explosions were deafening and blinding. They were large and took out what was needed, leaving nothing to salvage. They couldn't leave anything for them to keep going. The thing was, Team Eleven was not expecting a large wave of Chuunin and Genin to launch themselves over the walls and spread out into the forest.
"That…isn't good…" Shibi managed to cringe and Hizashi quickly gestured for them to remain silent.
"We need a plan to defend ourselves." Hizashi whispered and Kushina was already on it. Golden chakra chains wrapped around her team in a domelike shape and they were moving.
The thing about her chains was that they could be solid if she wished them to be. But other than that, they passed through objects so they wouldn't get caught on things.
"We go back to our camp and defend it until there are no more attacks. Rei-sensei probably has this entire thing planned out."
Their base was already compromised when they finally landed in the clearing. The seal that Kushina had put up was wailing loudly throughout the air and she couldn't help but scowl at the clones that were waiting for them.
"How are we…"Shibi began but Kushina had already leapt into the air, chakra filling her clenched fist and Chakra chains arching around her.
As some clones scattered out of her path, Kushina landed on the ground and slammed her fist into the dirt.
The earth shook and rock exploded around her, fissures splitting the ground and startling everyone in the area. Hizashi followed closely behind, already attacking with his Gentle fist. Clones burst into dirt and many were pulverized with an impact of Kushina's limbs.
Shibi already had his Kikaichū attacking, staying at a distance and commanding his swarm.
It took seconds for the attack to be over, but that didn't stop the team from falling into a close formation to protect one another.
Silence engulfed them for a bit before Hizashi made an odd sound in the back of his throat.
"Destroying the ground in a single hit?"
Shibi shifted, amusement clearly written in his form.
Kushina sniffed, arms crossing over her chest as she looked up at her two teammates. "I'm small, so of course I'm going to be underestimated. A mistake on their part." She grumbled, toeing the ground.
"Tomorrow is our last day, but from the looks of it, we'll be battling any group that comes across us for the rest of the night." Shibi stated, gathering his pack and checking it. Hizashi did the exact same thing while Kushina adjusted her own that had not left her.
The perks of having sealing at your disposal.
Oooo
They were tired, absolutely filthy, and in need of a really good bath.
The sun was high in the sky and they've already fought off quite a handful of groups. Even with Kushina's large chakra supply and Uzumaki stamina, she was still in a child's body.
Kushina's stomach growled and she moaned, hand coming up to clench her stomach. "I'm hungry and we've been fighting for the past six hours…"
Shibi was very low on chakra, his Kikaichū buzzing in weariness. Hizashi was nursing a headache from overusing the Byakugan.
"Are we done yet?" She questioned, staring up at the sunny sky, dirt caking her body.
"We have accomplished our tasks and have defended each other from attacks. I do believe we need a rest." Shibi managed to get out. It was obvious that he couldn't fight another attack off with his Kikaichū. Sharing chakra with a hive was deadly as well.
If he was to overuse his chakra, his Kikaichū would probably end up hurting him, even if they didn't mean to.
It was the figure seeping out of the ground that had all of them staggering to a fighting stance.
Rei-Sensei grinned at them, eyeing their beaten up form before placing her hands on her hips.
"Looks like you have survived Team Eleven! Did my clones give you a hard time? I do hope you had fun this week!" she stated and the trio could only look at one another.
"Alright, enough of that!" Rei-Sensei stated, gesturing for them to follow. "You've passed Survival week!"
The trio staggered and sighed in relief. Kushina couldn't wait to get home and go to bed.
"But first, you have to report to me and tell me everything about the mission."
Kushina hoped that Rei-Sensei would stay at the academy to teach the next group and not end up being an actual Sensei to their group.
Note: I'm just putting it out there, I read mostly the manga only. I've seen bits and pieces of the Anime (sister watches it) but I believe I've found a Sensei. (who I think, is only in the Anime?) But he's an open book that I can use. Give me basic information and its a free for all
Seals: Yes, they are mine. I've written down some possible seals as I go. Please give credit and inform me if you wish to use them. (Some may have already been used but I, myself, have not read anything so far with seal work. So if anything looks similar it was not intentional.
Lethargy Seal: Puts a target to Sleep- Removal of seal is needed to wake up.
Tracking Seal: Tracks whoever it's placed on. Only the person who placed the seal can track it.
Alarm Seal: Creates a Caterwaul for emergencies or glows a soft blue for approaching enemies.
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