Book 1

Awakening

Chapter 11 – Therein Lies the Mist

A/N: Hello again!

So, business first:

I've received the results of the poll, and I'm glad to see that you guys are at least curious about the idea. So next time, at the bottom of the page, I'll be implementing it in the simplest of the listed formats; then following that week, I'll post another poll where you can leave your feedback and tell me if you'd like me to keep it up, improve it or trash it. Thanks.

Now, on to life...

It's been a long 3 months, between just starting this new job and trying to make (debatably) the nicest chapter of TWE thus far for you guys, I've had a lot of thinking to do. But nevertheless, here I am trying to stay true to my word. I suppose I should warn you that the next 2-3 chapters are a tad dialogue heavy, but they're all interesting regardless and I'm sure those of you who are fans of thought-provoking conversation will favor them to the more action-packed variety.

Finally, some responses:

I'm a bit sad that I don't see some of the older faces, but as I mentioned last chapter that's to be expected seeing as I left you all high and dry for so long. I've been in touch with a few of you, so if you get a chance please pay me a visit!

That aside though, I'm glad that everyone seemed to really like Chapter 10. It'd been half-written since I went on my impromptu hiatus, and it took a heave and a half to put finger to key in writing that damn thing. I swear—you think starting something is hard? Try restarting something you've been staring at for 7 months!

Gabriel's Trumpet: I didn't give you a shout-out last time around in public, but this time I will. It's honestly thanks to your little review that I turned around mid-step and decided to continue writing this. Everyone who enjoys this story has something to thank you for—no matter to what degree. I appreciate it, I'm sure other's appreciate it; and hell, I'd venture to say that you do too! Everyone, see what one person's voice can do?

Rose Tiger: Even though the site formats it that way, this is only chapter 11. The cover page doesn't count!

Whateverdontcare: First of all, thank you, again. I know I've already talked to you quite a bit, but there're a couple things I did want to address publicly that you brought up: Firstly, I mentioned that you misinterpreted a few things in reading—this is another big reason I want you guys to leave reviews, so that I can help you understand the story better and perhaps assuage any disgruntled feelings you may have towards the story or myself as a result of such misinterpretation. To that, I can confirm that Kakashi isn't ignoring any of his students at all, and that our two main-main characters are far from useless! ; and secondly, I don't follow the manga much at all anymore (I haven't since around chapter 625-630)—yes, I am aware of things that go on, but I don't pay attention to it any longer, I've lost the taste for it—so fear not, as nothing in this story will become like that. And furthermore, Naruto will not by a long-shot be restricted in value to Kurama; he'll in fact begin to grow exponentially at one point, along a logical path of progression becoming most powerful... just wait a few years and see (though I can say you'll see the growth obviously starting in about 20 chapters in terms of ability).

Lastly, before I sign out here let me just remind everyone that I really appreciate feedback. Anything you feel, wonder about, desire, enjoy, hate—just let me know in a review, or if it's too complex and you'd like a personal discussion, just PM me. I'm open to interaction if people are truly interested. Reviews are what us artists feed on!

NOW, please enjoy Chapter 11...

The unwavering hum of the night was suddenly fractured by the jarring bang of exploding earth that shot out from the epicenter of the slow-burning campfire...

And it now lay in ruin—the path, the surrounding forest, and the no longer identifiable camp grounds that had been inhabited by the two men—Kakashi and Tazuna—just moments ago. This tragic scene wasn't easily observable though, as an engorged plume of smoke engulfed to a point, and breathing in the color of the surrounding landscape forged a pyre that drove into the night sky; a signal now stood erected to consecrate the destructed remains.

Off in the near distance, two people stood; they stood rattled—one paced, one bided crutching on a characteristic twitch of his fingers—but keen. While the two seemed separately occupied, their line of sight was marked evenly vectorial; following that razor-thin line, you'd meet their eyes, steeled with determination.

"Sasuke, what the hell are we waiting for?!" Naruto yelled. He took two heavy steps forward, throwing the leverage against Sasuke's shoulder with a stiff push.

Sasuke grunted on contact, but soon switched to a snarl when he found himself stumbling. "Nothing, idiot," he said, curtly.

"Then why don't we go!" Naruto shot back; "you see the smoke, don't you?!"

Sasuke said nothing for a moment. He kept moving back and forth, to and fro, trying to let the pacing soothe his nerves; currently he couldn't decide whether he was most excited or pissed off… no, he definitely hated the blonde harpy that stood next to him—he glanced over, running once more over the shadowed details of the boy's sharp eyes—but… "Grahh," he growled, kicking at the dirt.

Naruto coughed, and loudly heaved before gagging on the residue in the air. "There's frickin' blast powder all in the air, Sasuke. And what about Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto now glared, focusing pointedly on the cheek masqueraded by the Uchiha-raven hair. Despite himself, Naruto couldn't help but twinge a bit in jealousy at his teammate's acclimation to the night… and its chaos.

"Fine," Sasuke said; "we'll go." He stopped his pacing and looked to where he expected to see the moon, quickly whipping his head up. Unfortunately, the darkness met it first, and concealed the burgundy glow that the explosion began to impose on the light.

"Wake Hinata." He motioned with one hand towards the scrunched up sleeping bag to the left-most angle of their triangular sleeping configuration, using the other hand to inspect his weapon pouch. "Kakashi can take care of himself," he added, followed by a low-key sigh.

As Naruto headed towards his good friend to wake her a thought occurred to him, causing him to turn. "What are you talking about Sasuke? This is our mission, too, ya' know."

Sasuke, not turning to face him, simply shook his head. "No, it's not…," he smiled to himself, continuing, "and it's definitely not yours."

"What is that supposed to—" Naruto started, nearly throwing himself to the ground with his aggressive turn.

"I'll tell you!" Sasuke quickly snapped to cut him off.

Inhaling deeply, he tilted his head to face him over his tensed shoulder; his angle now gave his eye a menacing red tint. "I don't care about your recent success, or the fact that Kakashi has chosen in his 'mystical wisdom,'"—he rolled his eyes, as he spoke with a loll—"to praise your dimly sharpening mishaps."

He now turned to face him fully, gripping a kunai in his left hand with enough force to coax a whine out of the metal as it grated between his fingers. "You are a failure, and you'll always be a failure. Do you really believe that just because you're around us that you're somehow qualified to fight in the same league as us—"

"Hey!" Naruto shouted, now bearing his own fist, "What the hell are you on about, Sasuke?! I've done just as much for the team as you: like yesterday when I—"

"—Shut up, moron!" Sasuke spat. "Why do you think I stepped out of formation yesterday?—Any guesses why, for example, even a joke like Tazuna made fun of you, you dinky orange lollipop.—It's because you're a complete, and total embarrassment as a ninja, to ninja and citizens alike. This mission is not at all what it was supposed to be… so for the mean time, until we—the actual members of 'Team 7'—can figure out a reasonable plan of action, keep your idiocy out of our business."

Sasuke stepped back. With a flick of his wrist, he flung the kunai to a mere centimeter from Naruto's foot, lacerating the base of his sandal. "Now wake Hinata, while I go and find Kakashi. If you think you can handle it, bring my teammate with you afterwards." Giving not an inch, he headed off with high-speed leap, dashing towards the explosion site, his departure kicking up a cloud of dust to shroud what he left behind.

Naruto stood, staring, his eyes raw. He knew not how, nor why his heart refused to beat its usually cheery sonata of life. He aridly stood, watching… it felt like he was waiting for a command. Anything to invalidate the current situation. Still hunched, his fist still clenched, the kunai still there, stealing his thoughts.

Unaware of how much time he'd already wasted, he reasoned to follow his order. What else, he thought. 'Maybe…,' was the only thought he managed to keep circulating. He turned absentmindedly, dropping to a knee, and gently shook at Hinata's sleeping bag. "Hinata," he whispered, "we have to go… c'mon."

At first she jumped, a reflex to the touch of her crush, but quickly remembered what she was doing, and stiffened herself, before slowly emerging from the cocoon of fabric and propping herself up on a hand. "W-What's wrong, Naruto-kun?" she asked.

He hesitated. His eyes shifted to hers for a moment, but quickly darted away, seeking inspiration from the stars. "…Nothing. There was an explosion… Kakashi-sensei might need help." In doing this, he failed to notice the tell-tale rings circling his counterpart's own eyes.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed. "Quickly, let's go," she urged, gripping his shoulder for support.

Lingering in his daze for another moment, he finally then decided to move. "Y-Yeah."

After they secured their belongings, they both quickly dashed off, and they exchanged no more than courtesies.

In a nook of what remained of the forest contained within the devastating blast's radius, Kakashi sat pressed into the singed hollow of the most durable tree he could find, heart racing from the shock of what had happened mere moments ago. Looking down he frowned at the alcohol-scented lug that lay slumped against his chest. 'That was far too close…,' he thought, as he peeked his head out from his hiding place, trying to survey the damage as he squinted at the toxic fumes.

Now that he was satisfied with his reasonable level of security, and privacy, he swiftly stood up staying flesh against the tree before stepping over the man who now fell with a thud, head landing against the dirt with mouth hanging wide open. Kakashi could have sworn that he witnessed a small beetle crawl in through the man's gaping trap and out through a nostril all in a matter of seconds, but he dismissed the thought, snorting a laugh at the possibility half-heartedly. 'There are certainly more important things to consider now…'

Kneeling down, he reached back into his backpack and withdrew a rope, with which he began to secure the suspect, first making a point to frisk for any concealed weaponry… 'I won't do anything to him now… the drug I slipped him clearly took effect, so he should be out for at least a day; once my team arrives, we'll decide how to proceed. I'm not sure what they're up for, but in any event I promised to protect them….' He absentmindedly went about tying the prisoner up, and as he did he couldn't stop his gaze from finding its way back to the massive crater that was once their camp, now decorated with several chunks of splintered wood and nothing more.

Kakashi observed Tazuna probing the lit piece of kindling at this jacket. Occupied for not more than a second, he soon realized what was going on and his smile quickly faded.

'Shit,' he thought.

In time with the ignition of the first shred of the vest, Kakashi leapt forward, smashing his hand (with a quickly uncovered pill in hand) against Tazuna's face, succeeding in knocking him out, whilst simultaneously drugging him. Letting his other hand act almost on tension alone, it whisked through the signs necessary to form a Kawarimi technique.

He used the hand that had administered the mock-concussion to then grab, and yank Tazuna's soon-to-explode body forward across and over the quivering flame of their camp-pit; trapping his limp form in a secure elbow-grip, he incited his jutsu and instantly vanished.

In an instant he appeared in the nearby tree-cover to the left of their set-up, exchanging Tazuna's body with a large boulder. Without thinking he then exchanged himself with the log he had been seated on, transporting Tazuna and himself back to the site, then instantly exchanged the tree-cover to the opposite side with that singular log to form a make-shift barricade against the shrapnel.

Holding his breath, he ducked against the singular remaining birch and waited for the explosion.

…

His vision quickly restored itself as he shook his head. He looked back down through the silver hair that had made its way past his headband, eyeing the captive bridge-builder with scrutiny, just as he pulled the last knot tight. Kakashi stood, lifting the bundled man with one arm and bringing him over his shoulder, he resourcefully used the lace from his under-armor to fasten the bundle to his back. As he took one last look back into the forest, he winced, then stepped out into the fray to seek his students.

A few moments after stepping out into the barren clearing, now indubitably free from all indigenous life, Kakashi spotted Sasuke, landing soundlessly among all of the charred rubble.

After he arrived, the two eyed each other. They spoke at once.

"Where are the others?"/"What happened?" they said.

"Coming… most likely," Sasuke said, coating the statement with a deliberate tinge of irritation.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, nudging the cloth of his headband just so; he flexed his hand, before adjusting his shoulders and, in turn, the man strapped firmly to his back.

With a casual gesture of his eyes towards his cargo, Kakashi remarked, "Our client… most likely."

They returned to observing each other.

However, before long the silent exchange was interrupted by Naruto and Hinata both dashing forth, flanking Sasuke on either side as they slid to a rough stop.

Naruto spared a glance towards his sensei first, acknowledging his safety, before uncontrollably darting his peripheral sight to Sasuke's stolid expression, jaw clenched.

"There," Sasuke said, "now we can go."

Kakashi knelt down to get a closer look at the aftermath. "Definitely bakuhatsu-fuda," he remarked. He ran his hand jaggedly over the ruin around their feet, then raising it to his eye to study the texture. "…And at least 50 of them," he added.

Hinata interjected, "Do you think h-he was trying to… k-kill you, sensei?"

Kakashi paused, inhaling deeply; with a sigh, he rubbed his fingers together to rid them of the soot. "No… I think he was trying to kill himself."

The ears of his students perked at this.

"—It's just a theory," he continued, "but I don't want to discuss it now. I can assure you that at this moment we, as a squad, are the target of something. Our priority, regardless of what we decide to do, should be covering our tracks."

"Wouldn't it be better if they thought we were dead?" Sasuke mentioned. "After all, he was clearly trying to do damage... You should know that we have a better chance of assassinating them if w—"

"—Enough, Sasuke," Kakashi stopped him, waving his hand before himself. "…We'll decide how to proceed after we get out of this general area… We're heading…," he said, stopping to signal the rest of the message. 'East-Forward-20-KM-Discuss-While-Move,' he signed, nodding; 'Go,' he concluded with the ubiquitous open-palm.

At the order, they all breathed in carefully, and took off into the trees.

After they had gone, Kakashi stood, looking over the expanse they had covered. 'It's better if I spend the chakra now… it could save us later.' Kakashi lifted his headband, once again exposing his other eye. 'If my prediction is even a near-shot… they will see exactly what they want to, whomever they are.'

With a hefty pull, Kakashi clasped his hands together, flexing his Sharingan. "Sharingan," he further intoned, straining the chakra pathways that fed into the eye, he could feel the air around him crackling as it began to slowly change shape.

"Hi Genjutsu: Dōwa," he breathed laboriously. Summoning most of his energy, he let chakra pour from the core of his network, seeping out into the Earth until it reached to form a concentric lasso of energy, nearly 10 kilometers in radius. "Ha," he finished, sealing the technique. He dropped to a single knee, breathing ragged, sharp breaths.

All around him, a pseudo-psychedelic chakra sphere warbled, searching for any victims excluded from Kakashi's fantasy imagery.

Breathing a final deep inhale, Kakashi pushed himself to stand, despite the slight weakness he initially felt. "That should do it," he sighed; looking up he admired his nearly undetectable handiwork. 'The fairytale psychosphere should be undetectable… and it should last us for at least a few days.' For a brief moment, he was beside himself with pride, a grin began to edge its way into the contour of his mask.

"Kurenai, you're never going to believe this," he grinned, readjusting his headband.

With a final circumspect survey, he bounded off after his students, hoping he could catch them quickly enough in his worn state.

Motioning for a minute, I moved meticulously monitoring every minute the magnitude of the moment; maugre the menacing melancholy of the mediocre more. Pacing for a minute, I mulled over my martyrdom. 'What a fool I am, meandering like this. He'll be most displeased…Hahahaha'

It took only seconds for me to scale the building, as I clenched my primary leg muscles and catapulted myself up, I twisted slightly bending my wrists to the proper angle and then roughly clapped against the wall; securing myself, then, with chakra I gripped and pushed forward and down, launching myself vertically in a clean whisper, and mounted the tower with a u-turn somersault, slamming my fist into the ground for landing stabilization.

'Perfect.' It was sure beautiful knowing myself. I wanted to shout, but I was mute—whatever. This cost was so simple! All I had to do was this, and I'd get perfect freedom. 'So what if its only for this one assignment… after you, lord—I know you can hear this—death is welcome; but who KNEW you'd be so fucking generous.'

My laughs were stifled by my lack of vocalization mechanisms, but I did not care in the slightest. I roared with laughter, even if it had to all stay bottled in my mind.

I looked down, surveying the land that extended out along the coastal harbor, encloistered by an unfriendly fog. 'So beeee it,' I thought, unperturbed.

Quickly I jumped up in the air, kicking off of a rusted smokestack and vaulting myself over the opposite edge of the large building. I fell cooly, smelling the air as I went to be sure that the target I had wanted from earlier was still beneath me. A smile graced my crusted lips, taking on a neat sheen, what with all the moisture in the dense air.

I readied a fingernail, aiming it seventy degrees below me, quickly to feel the small spurt of blood pluck up against my wee finger from the scalp I had serenely pierced. Arching my back from the uncomfortable single-fingered stand I made upon the baldy's head, I whirled myself about, settling gently down behind him.

'There, there, it'll now settle into the bloodstream,' I thought at him. He ought to know that I'd fulfilled it; more was less, now. A spark in the air encircling my ear alerted me to them. Now they approached! 'Whiskers ahoy!' I smiled, patting my new envoy on the shoulder and quickly dissipating into the thick, treacherous mist.

At the spark, a kunai whistled overhead, nearly striking the bald old man.

"Sir?" A man whispered, walking up beside him; "It isn't safe to be outside at this time of night…"

"It isn't," he replied.

A metal clang rang out into the night, reverberating against the array of springboard particles dotting the air.

…

"Gah!" The sound hung in the air of the room of dusk. Amid papers and articles of all kind, only a single, dim light flickered, locking the air of mystery with sparkled cinders.

He jumped back against his seat, sweating. "Some of them are so… risky." Despite the admonishment, he smirked, licking his pale lips voraciously.

They quickly jumped, dashed and kicked their way through the forest, making only the slightest sounds in their high-speed travel. They moved with the three Genin leading the "arrowhead" formation, and Kakashi trailing with Tazuna in unbeknownst tow.

Through the leaves of the canopy's crux, I observed them. I noted the team arrangement. 'Typical Konoha squadron of new recruits. Three Genin present, with a single Jōnin present: orange, beige, blue and Hatake Kakashi—just as I was told.'

I sat stationary, having already derived a system for entrapping them. Over the course of the next several kilometers I had arranged an intricate system. There was certainly no escape; taking advantage of the wintry weather I had absolute autonomy allowed for my Hyōton surveillance.

Therefore, here I sat, encircled by my gallery of mirrors. "They should reach me in a few minutes…," I mused. Smiling, I raised up a half-seal, focusing the chakra that I had transitively spread out over the great expanse of the forest bordering Nami no Kuni. Constant focus was necessary to maintain the amplified, and specified hearing employed through this adaptation of Suiton: Ryūshi-ka Hibiki. I listened… waiting as I observed.

Over a branch Naruto leapt, launching himself with his hands he curled his knees against his chest to get a better upward thrust, only so that he could swing from the high-rising branch and swing forward even further.

To his right, his teammates made similar bounds, all of them moving forward equally.

"So," Kakashi continued, "we'll continue until we complete our mission, is that fair?"

"Yes, sensei," Hinata responded, trying her best to divide the focus she needed to maintain her Byakugan.

The other two Genin merely nodded, both lost in thought.

"Alright then," he finished; in unison, they all stopped just following Kakashi's abrupt landing.

Up in his encapsulation, the Team 7's pursuer sat, dynamically taking in the conversation, as it was slowly shaping into his ideal.

"I'll take the lead, and you stand behind," said Hatake.

"Right!" the group pledged in unison.

He quickly drew a senbon needle from his sleeve, and passively—albeit purposefully—spiked it into one of his mirrors, marking their destination's screen-set. 'Hmm… they'll be here any second.'

Not letting an instant go to waste, he trained his vision on his current-most mirror.

A second passed. He hesitated. 'Could my timing have been off…? There—'

Then shock struck his face, beneath his stolid mask, as he jolted his head towards the nag in his peripheral vision. There they were. All of his targets. In the instant that it took for him to assess the situation, they had since moved on. "Genjutsu!" he hissed.

Rampant in haste, he quickly withdrew a handful of tools from his weapon case. 'It's likely a sensory-encompassing one, too. Kakashi and his special eye, no doubt. Master will be terribly disappointed in my inability…' Plugging his nose, shutting his mouth to localize his tastes, grabbing his sash and retying it over his eyes, and furthermore sealing his ears over, then finally reaching his hand out, he willed one of his mirrors to shatter, forcing it with chakra to slash into his arms. The boy winced, gritting his teeth through the pain, but all at once having disrupted his senses, and relocalized his chakra network, he was able to restore normality.

'Now, I have no choice but to pursue them manually,' he decided. Decidedly, he vanished in a flurry of wind.

She moved swiftly, having since dropped to the lowland of the forest, she skated along the slippery moss. The Hyūga girl stopped, and shivered; breathing in carefully, she spoke into her headset, "K-Kakashi-sensei, have you noticed the temperature contrast?"

There was a short delay over the relay, as if something had stumped the Jōnin. "Yes, I have, Hinata. The air is unusually humid… while the environment shows signs of obeying Winter…," he came.

"Yes, I—"

"You're right. Stay alert, and do your best not to let them know… this is an ambush after all, hmm?" The way Kakashi assured her, she felt like she could hear him smiling over the intercom system, static and all.

The incoming signal sounded, bringing Naruto into the conversation, "I'm in position, Hinata-chan, sensei."

"Good," Kakashi said.

Moments later, the headset whined again. "Me as well," came Sasuke's hushed breath; "Try to delay them, Hinata, I'll help you soon—"

"Do not break formation, Sasuke," Kakashi warned; "this is a far more dangerous situation than yesterday."

"I'm aware."

Hinata stood in the denser part of the tree-scape. In a way, it was almost like a rugged sort of clearing. She observed her surroundings, pausing for just a moment to check her progress. "Byakugan," she whispered, holding a hand close to her heart.

She scanned the area quickly, seeing nothing of concern. Though, in the sweep of the trees, she noticed an unusual amount of chakra flowing through them, pooling down—for the most part—near their bases. 'I've never seen this much energy coming from a tree before…,' she thought, automatically beginning to slowly tread towards one of the spectacles. Reaching it, she knelt down, staring into the location of the densest chakra inset; "Ice…?" she spoke, breathing out a cold, distilled breath.

It was then that it happened. Though very narrow, the chakra glaring her enhanced vision managed to create a projected shadow of energy, strong enough to reveal the senbon needle that now flew directly towards her neck. 'Ah!'

First whispering quickly into her headset, she then acted almost purely on reflex. She forcefully kicked the tree's base at a sideways angle, using the reciprocal force combined with her slick under-footing to spin at a rapid speed. Her hand moved fluidly through the air, seeming to dodge even the slightest obstruction of a falling pine needle; splitting the frosty atmosphere, she darted her fingers, meeting the needle head on and snapping it in two with the force of her repercussive chakra pulse.

Now turned, she settled into an aggressive Jyūken stance. And she was met.

From the trees an aquamarine blur flashed towards her, heading her off with a kick that she expertly ducked beneath, leaning backwards on the balls of her feet. She quickly adjust, leaning back further and rolling into the flip, she settled, with only her jacket ruffled. Not more than a meter away from her now stood her assailant: Apparently a ninja, they stood not 10 centimeters taller than she, and he wore a cold-weather adapted traditional blue-green kimono. Around their waist a thick beige sash secured the kimono, and provided holster to the two weapon cases that marked his sides. The most distinguishing feature was the (what she identified as) Anbu mask that he donned, bearing three waved slashes as a symbol—Kirigakure.

Even though she felt as unsure about the battle as she did nervous, she knew that she had to follow through. With that to comfort her, she settled firmly into her stance, and eyed for their further movement.

Time, they did not waste. The attack brandished three senbon readily in one hand, wielding them in a claw-like fashion he darted forward with astonishing speed. Faking Hinata out with the claws, he managed to trick her arm out for a basic strike, which he promptly disallowed with a lifted knee to her vulnerable elbow; now ducking low, he pressed the senbon systematically into her left lower calf muscle.

Hinata cringed in agony, as the precision had activated nerves never before exposed to such incursion. A quick breath escaped, which her attacker took advantage of. They dropped their elbow against her same foot, then swept her with a decisive swipe of their arm that now lay entrenched in several millimeters of snow and moss.

As she fell, Hinata quickly took advantage of her compromised situation. She went with the fall, once again flipping she now caught herself with her hands, and rapidly brought her legs against the tree; using the force brace herself she then kicked off, launching over the ducked attacker. Midair, she turned and delivered a swift strike to a chakra point near the liver, and followed through by using the hand already in contact to grip and turn herself over once more, landing her squarely on her feet.

It was not long before the ninja began to rise, but by the time they did, Hinata had already prepared herself.

She stood, right leg fully outstretched and left leg bracing the stance—her one arm formed a crescent parallel with her right leg, while the other supported a firm, upraised palm.

"Hakke: Jyūroku Sho!"she exclaimed. Mentally mapping the diagram, she lunged forward, making fast contact with her target:

"Nisho!" she began, making a quick jab with two fingers into the chest, followed by another to the diagonal opposite.

She quickly proceeded, pushing forward with renewed force. But unbeknownst to her, her opponent was emulating her every movement…

"Yonsho!" she blasted, delivering four quick strikes, each dotting the primary extremity channels.

A drop of blood trickled down her own arm, dotting the under-sleeve of her worn beige jacket.

"Hassho!" she shouted. This time she rotated, gliding through her stance she pushed forward; with practiced precision, she crossed her two hands over, smashing into both edges of the body, returning with a fast flurry aimed at the central chakra core.

Her breathing began to get heavier.

"Now!" she finished; "Jyūroku Sho."

She whipped around now, jabbing vigorously until she had doubled her previous assault. Finishing with a last jab directly to the solar plexus, she slid back, resigning her form. Hinata's breathing had now become unignorable. She gasped, 'W-What's going on…'; 'I've never b-been this tired… —' she thought between breaths '—before….'

Hinata dropped her hands to her sides, eyeing her opponent who now stood pressed into the wood of the splintering tree, snow dusting their seemingly limp frame.

'At least…—'

Her thoughts were interrupted as the ninja inhaled once, before pushing themselves out of the uncomfortable wooden crib and casually removing a previously undetected senbon from their neck.

They shook their head, taking a step forward.

Hinata's eyes widened, before she fell to her knees, gasping.

Looking down on her, the ninja observed the senbon littering her back with a concealed satisfaction. He reached down, removing the headset from around her ear, and crushing it in his incongruently smooth hand.

Only meters away from Hinata's reported location, Sasuke leapt, not expecting Naruto, who now held Tazuna, to show up until afterward. He headed towards her at a concentrated speed, determined to fulfill the mission at hand.

Crack

The sound buzzed along his jawline, originating from the headset. He hastened his step.

Jutsu Library:

Suiton: Ryūshi-ka Hibiki — Water Style: Granulated Sound — This technique was originally developed for reconnaissance missions in the land of water, used in large bodies of water to form a sort of pseudo-sonar that could only be interpreted by the user. It works, simply put, by creating hard-bodied chakra soundboards out of particle clusters within water, relaying that to amplify hearing.

Hi Genjutsu: Dōwa— Hidden Genjutsu: Fairy Tale — This is a powerful genjutsu originally developed by (now) Konoha's ancient Kurama clan, during the Warring states period, long before assimilation. The technique plays to the internal desires of any victims not entered in the user's "dreamscape" as exempt. The technique requires an incredible level of chakra control, in all facets of use, and demands powerful imagination to support its illusory framework. In its use here, it required an incredible amount of chakra to forge a "living aura" that perpetuated the genjutsu, affecting the entire covered radius in the chakra bubble—though it wasn't actively monitored per se, it did have great effect over its area of effect. The Sharingan was needed by Kakashi to concentrate it.

**I will be providing this for uncommon techniques, or techniques that I create myself. Please refer to it if any of the techniques confuse you, and enjoy the courtesy explanations, free of charge!

A/N: Hello all. I am first of all so sorry that this took so long. I want to promise you that it won't happen again… but… yeah. Lets just say that the next chapter should be up before October, alright? At least you know I'm committed, right?

But, besides that, how was it? I actually decided to trim this chapter a little bit to add suspense; it will carry over into the next chapter! And, speaking of which, I'll cut this short and leave you with that little title:

Next Time: Chapter 12 — The Morality of Façades