Prologue: Mission for the Sacred Fire Scrolls
"You know what you have to do, and I'm sure you are capable of leading this squad successfully. Right, Rin?" Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze stood before his former student. She was different now. Mush taller, but still had the same facial features she had when they had Team 7. Her cheeks painted with the same markings. Her hair still brown and bobbed. Yet, she looked different, so very different. There was no more spark she had in her eyes. No enthusiasm of heading off to a mission. Her eyes conveyed nothing but sadness and guilt. He knew what she was thinking right at that moment.
He walked over to the front of his desk, where she was, he placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, what happened years ago will not be repeated, I know that you will not let that happen again. Right?"
She was still expressionless. No response.
"Now stop worrying you cannot have anything distracting you from this important mission."
Still indifferent.
"You have to go now. Your squad's waiting at the gate." Minato smiled at her. The same smile he would give her and her teammates to motivate them before every mission.
"Yes, Hokage." She turned and was out the door.
She was out of the Hokage's building. She walked past the dark streets. There were barely any streetlights open. It was so peaceful, so quiet. The wind blew, and she heard the rustling of leaves. It lead her back to a memory of one windy afternoon when she was in Team 7.
It was a sunny afternoon, the wind blew, but not hard. Two Genins, and a Jounin stood with their sensei in front of three stumps.
"Now I suppose you know why you're all here right?"
"No," a boy with dark hair and goggles said, wiping dirt of his nose.
"It's because we're her to congratulate Kakashi on becoming a Jounin!" Rin replied happily.
"Right! Now, I know, that his rank is higher than yours now, but remember we're still Team 7, and we're all equal right?"
Rin, Obito and Kakashi nodded. Though Kakashi does not believe in that.
"So Kakashi, you know what you're gonna get now?"
The masked boy shook his head.
"Gifts of course! Here," Minato tossed his student a knife, "this is special because it responds to the amount of chakra you put into it. The more chakra you put into this, the harder it will strike your opponent."
The masked boy took the gift and said nothing.
"Uhm," it was Rin's turn. She was blushing hard, almost to the point of not giving her gift at all. But her sensei went behind and gave her a pat on the back whispering in her ear, "Go ahead." With that same smile he would always give.
She swallowed what he said and gave Kakashi her gift. A first aid kit. She bowed down the whole time; she dared not see his face. She dared not let him see her blush this way. Kakashi took the kit and said nothing again. Rin didn't really expect him to say anything, but it wouldn't hurt him to say a "thank you", would it?
"Hey Kakashi," Obito spoke, "why don't you say a thank you to Rin and Minato-sensei?"
The masked boy looked indifferently and emotionless at his goofy teammate. Why should he have to give thanks for things he didn't want?
"What's the point?" he answered the same look on his face.
Obito clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. How can anyone be this ungrateful? This cold? Obito's fist were turning white because of his clenching. This was Rin's signal to step in. Without any verbal signal from their sensei, Rin stood in front of Obito and held held his fists. They opened up on her palm.
"Calm down Obito," she started gently, "it's okay. Kakashi doesn't have to say it." Rin leaned in on Obito's ear and whispered, "he can tell us later." She stood back and grinned at him. This made Obito blush a lot.
"You're right," he said reddening, "but he better say it, or else I'd knock the living daylights out of him!"
"Yeah right," Kakashi smirked.
"What did you say?" Obito was about to charge at Kakashi, but his sensei stood in the way, "Now, Obito, let Kakashi off the hook this time. But next time, give him a punch that'll hurt for all of us okay?" he said jokingly.
The masked boy looked at his sensei. His sensei patted him on the head and messed up his hair, smiling the same smile.
Those were times lost in the past, Rin thought getting back to the present. She continued walking past the streets. No stalls were opened anymore. Everything was closed. Nobody in the streets. But who would be at midnight?
She reached the guard station near the gate. The same shinobis were still guarding the gates. They told her that her squad has been waiting for her, and wished her good luck as well. She reached into her side pocket; the one located on her right thigh, and took out her ANBU mask. She wore it and started walking towards them. She stopped in her tracks when something caught her attention.
"What do you want Kakashi?" she said to the man leaning on the wall of the guard station. In a blink he was next to her, facing the opposite direction.
"I would've been on this mission with you, but I have another one coming up," he said not facing her.
"So? I don't need you to protect me. I'm stronger now." She snapped not looking at him either.
"I promised that I would protect you with my life."
"Empty words to me. They don't mean a thing."
"They do to me."
She was taken back. This was something she would never hear from him. After all the years of distancing herself from him, she never thought that he could be capable of saying such a thing. Yet, though this feeling may be a shock, she showed no emotion, the same he would've if anybody told him the same thing.
"I have to go," she started walking to her squad. Not even taking a single glance back at her former teammate, who did the same.
"Before you go," he said, "be careful."
"Right." She kept on walking
She was with her squad now. Kakashi had gone.
"Now, everybody ready?" They nodded. "Good, let's go."
They immediately jumped off the ground and glided through the trees. It was a long way to Sunagakure, but this mission was important, and distance or tiredness was not an option. This mission was too important for such things. The fate of Konoha rested on the success of this mission.
It took them twelve hours of non-stop traveling to finally arrive at the surrounding area of Sunagakure. It was nothing but a waste land of sand. It was going to be hard to conceal themselves. Especially with the guards watching the whole from watchtowers located in their protective stone wall.
They moved swiftly, trying to avoid the spot light that circled the area. Using rocks as their shield and using the shadow the rocks casted as cloaks to conceal them. They moved quickly until they reached the front of the stone wall. It had no cracks that they could slip into. The only way in was by infiltration. They climbed the huge wall and entered in one of the windows. They stayed close to the wall, leaning their back against it and moving quietly as not to attract any unwanted interruptions. Rin headed them and gave them signals when it was clear to move. She spotted a lone guard heading to their corner. One of her teammates was with her; the other two were on the opposite corner waiting for her signal. Once the guard had reached the corner it would be the time to ambush. Just as the guard was about to turn, somebody called him from behind and thus, saving him from an ambush.
Rin signaled the other two to move ahead, she followed together with the other one. They ran through the halls trying to move as discretely as possible. Their main objective was to get the Sacred Fire Scrolls from the records room of the watchtower, which apparently was not far from where they were now.
They were finally there. One of them lowered himself to pick the lock. Once he had unlocked it, something was sprayed on his eyes, causing him to hit against the opposite wall and slide down from it. The teammate that Rin was with a while ago was a medic-nin, like she was. She ordered her to diagnose him and heal him as soon as possible. They cannot afford to attract attention. She tossed the medic-nin an antidote kit telling the nin to hurry. Rin and the other one went inside and rummaged through file cabinets until they stepped on something causing kunais to fly in every direction. Rin hid behind a metal safe while the other behind one of the cabinets. The kunais were sharp; it was only a matter of inches before it pierced the back of the safe where Rin leaned against.
She was relieved. She looked on the wall opposite to her and found some kind of compartment. She opened it and there were the scrolls. Mission success! Now time to get it back to Konoha. She stood up carefully, cautious not to set off any other trap. She crept to her teammate and asked if he was all right. His back was bleeding, the kunais pierced through the cabinet. She placed her hands against his back and, in a circular motion, emitted a green light and a warm feeling and started healing the wounds.
They both got up and walked out. The other two were still there. The medic-nin supporting the blinded one. Rin placed her foot on the ledge of the window, offering her arm for the support of her blinded teammate. He clung to her and with the medic-nin still. On three, they were to jump from the window, which was, at least, twenty feet from the ground, from what she estimated. This would be tricky. She told the medic-nin that she would just have to carry him on her back. Her blinded teammate, apparently embarrassed at this said that he can just hold on to them. Rin dismissed this and said to not be foolish. They lacked time and man power now that one of them is a liability. The blinded teammate went on her back and held on tight. Okay. One, two three! They were in the air for a few frozen minutes. Gravity began to pull them down hard towards the ground. They landed and gained composure.
"Can I get off now?" the blinded teammate said.
"Not yet, not until we reach the woods, we can't have them noticing anyone of us escaping." She replied smiling behind her shoulders.
"Rin-sama," the other one said, "I'll carry him instead."
"Thank you." The blinded teammate went off Rin's back and was lead to the back of the other. Once Rin was out of earshot, the other man commented.
"Let's see what the guys have to say about this back home," he smirked.
"Shut up." The blinded man said angry and still blushing.
Again, they crossed the sandy wasteland and headed into the forest. There, they rested beneath one of the trees. The scrolls safely in place in Rin's thigh pocket. She reflected on those starry nights she spent with Team 7. There were fights yes, but they always ended peacefully, because one of the bickering two would fall asleep from exhaustion. Not from the mission but from the bickering.
She heard rustling in the bushes. The others were ready to defend themselves in case it was anything important. She moved closer first, her hand ready to give a signal in case of anything. She crept closer and peered through. It was nothing but a rodent.
"False alarm she said," her attention on the rodent still. She turned around to see that her teammates were captured by three other nins. There were kunais edged on their throats, and Rin was surrounded. What was she to do?
"We've got you surrounded," one of the captors said. He held the medic-nin by twisting her arm behind her and a kunai to her throat. "Surrender the scrolls and we'll give them alive."
Rin's brain was processing twice its normal speed thinking of a solution, she was running out of time. She did not know what to do.
"Well?" the captor jeered, a malicious grin on his face.
Rin was speechless and couldn't do or say anything. This was similar to those times in team 7, where she couldn't do anything at all.
"All right? No answer?" The captor holding the medic-nin, edged the kunai deeper to her throat, Rin could see blood drop from her neck to her chest. "Okay, then." The captor slit the medic-nin's throat.
Rin was paralyzed to her spot and could not do anything but to just stand and watch. But, instead of the body falling to the ground, it lost its eyes, its mouth and its nose. They were black and empty. Then the body seems to have deflated. Some ghostly aura emitted from it that released a high pitched scream, this was not the medic-nin – it was a Sound Clone.
"Where's my medic-nin? Where's Yuki?" Rin said, now holding up a kunai against the Sound ninjas.
"Lying behind the bushes, that rustling a while ago, that was her."
You mean she's – you bastards!
One of the captors noticed that she moved her arm slightly showing her surprised expression even if her face was still covered with the ANBU mask.
"Don't worry, she's still alive barely. If you keep wasting your time you won't have any left to save her."
Rin was not thinking at all but acting on impulse. In a sweeping motion, she kicked those Sound Ninjas, but they were able to evade her leg by jumping over it. She took out kunais from her arsenal and threw them at the Sound Ninjas, it hit all of them, one got hit on the arm the other two were scratched on their faces. The one that got hit let go of the blinded man and the other that got scratched held on to Rin's other teammate. She hurriedly brought her blinded teammate to the bushes to stay with their medic-nin.
While she thought of more ways to save the other, she was not aware that somebody had crept up behind her. He twisted her arm behind her causing her kunai to point to her back and her captor held a crescent shaped blade against her neck. Her mask was dropped. Now, this is bad. No way out, outnumbered. This mission is a failure.
"Yamato, in case you get out of there, get Yuki and Tetsuya out of here! Run for it, I'll handle them!" Rin called out to her other masked teammate.
The Sound Ninjas could not help but laugh, who were they kidding? Escape? What a thought? They couldn't even defend themselves! How could they possibly escape?
They heard rustling leaves again. A shadow moved behind Yamato's captor. Rin's captor did not see it, but they felt the presence.
"Oh so you have another teammate, eh?" Rin's captor said, "Well then. Let's pay him a welcome shall we? You," he pointed to the nin to the right of Yamato's captor, "look behind the trees and see who it is."
Obediently, the nin did as he was told. He disappeared behind the trees and they could not hear anything but his footsteps on the grass. Then they heard the sound of kick. They heard for a while, it sounds someone's beating up another.
"Looks like your backup just got beat," Rin's captor laughed.
Then from the bushes, a body was thrown against a nearby tree. Rin's captor bent down next to the body without letting go of Rin. To his surprise, it was the ninja he sent to look for the backup. Rin felt his grip loosen. This was her chance. She got away and went for the other two, who apparently were staring at the body. She directed a round house kick for them before they could block it. She freed Yamato. As Yamato passed, Rin quickly slipped the scrolls in his thigh pocket. She returned to the two that she kicked and broke their necks with her elbow. She then turned to her captor who seemed to stunned and rooted on his spot. She cracked her knuckles, a shadow was cast on her eyes.
"You're next." She said as deadly and as twisted as she could. With those words, her captor ran to the bushes. She didn't turn around to call her back up; rather she just stayed with her back to him.
"Why did you come here?" she said looking down.
"I told you I had another mission. And that mission was to protect you. I asked the Hokage if –"
Rin faced him, but she still kept her gaze on the ground.
"Why do you have to keep doing this to me? Why do you have to keep moonlighting in everyone of my missions?! Why? Why is it so important that you have to keep protecting me eh, Kakashi?!"
Kakashi could see tears falling from her face to the ground.
"Because I promised Obito," he said flat out.
"Well," Rin managed to grin, though it was out spite rather than happiness, "I want you to make me a promise…"
"What?"
"Don't ever do this to me again. Don't ever follow me in my missions. And," she stopped, she looked at him now, her eyes overflowing with tears, "don't you ever get near me, I don't want you anywhere near me. You got that Kakashi?"
The masked man said nothing.
"Just go, I don't want or need your help."
He went ahead but stopped at her side, he faced the north, Rin faced south.
"But remember this, no matter what happens, I'll keep my promise to Obito. I'll find a way to keep you safe even if it kills me."
Rin said nothing. She looked down again, clenching her fists this time.
"I don't want you to treat me like I'm weak. I don't need your help," she said to him with as much finality as she could. "You go ahead, I'll catch up."
Kakashi went through the bushes, but Rin knew he was close by. She went through the bushes and gathered her team's remaining things, even if it wasn't necessary. As long as Kakashi was a thousand miles away after she's finished picking them up, she'd be okay with it.
She picked up the medic-nin's red forehead protector. As she searched the ground for more of their things, she hit a string.
She immediately jumped into a stance to defend herself. Not knowing what it might be, she got out a kunai just in case.
Then, from behind her, a big swinging knife was heading towards her, she jumped just in time. But, little did she know, that as soon as she jumped, she hit a net that prevented her from going any further up. The net fell on top of her and she stuck on the ground. The weights of the net were heavy. The only thing she could do to escape was to cut through the net. She did so, but little did she know that as soon as the net breaks, weapons of were heading towards her in every direction. Her eyes widened this was the end. She saw a figure in front of her. She gave an earsplitting scream.
Kakashi who apparently hasn't gotten out of the forest came to her aid. But when he came back, Rin's body was nowhere to be found. A big knife covered in blood had Rin's scent on it.
All that was left was a kunai and a forehead protector.
Both drenched in a puddle of deep red blood. Rin's blood.