Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the related characters, I just am borrowing them for my own delusions.
Chapter 14
"Bored now." Naruto said as he twisted the Iwa-nin's neck around with minimal effort.
"You and Anko have short attention spans." Kin hissed as she pickpocketed the bodies of the Iwa ninja they'd just fought.
Gaara surrounded by sand as it flowed back into his gourd gave the puddle that had been his opponent a disappointed look. The gear was blood soaked from his attack, the flesh being liquefied under the pressure.
"Another Earth Scroll." Naruto said finding the scroll in his opponents belongings.
"Head for the tower?" he asked.
"We haven't encountered the Uchiha." Kin said.
Naruto shook his head. "With Natas and his freaks here, it would be a bad idea to remain as exposed."
They had encountered a Grass team two minutes in and got the Heaven Scroll. They'd been searching the last hour for the Uchiha, but came up empty.
"And we haven't seen the others either." Kin said.
"Gaara?" Naruto asked seeing his red headed friend pulling out the map.
"Kankuro and his team are coming from the far north. Haku's team is coming from west." He said pointing at the locations on the map.
"Good thing we all carry sand vials." Kin muttered.
Gaara nodded and pointed at the map. "The Uchiha's team would be coming from this way."
"That's too far out of our way. Best bet would be Kankuro and Kabuto with Dosu getting to him."
The three Oto nin's studied the map. "We're not far from Haku and Temari." Naruto began and Kin chuckled. "Wonder if Ryu's alive or being dragged."
"Ryu's got skills Kin-chan, he just hates putting in the effort." Naruto said.
"If my sister has to she will beat him the whole way to the tower to motivate him." Gaara said.
"Yeah, especially if she wants to impress Naruto-kun." Kin muttered.
Naruto pretended to play deaf as he looked at the map. "Natas's team should be in that area near Sasuke…while I don't relish the idea of him getting the Sharingan, we're not close enough and with Scorpion and Sub-Zero backing him…"
The wave of killing intent from the distance stopped him. "That came from Near Haku and Temari's location." Naruto said, and not wasting time leapt to the tree and put on speed. Kin and Gaara right behind him, the three sharing the thought of "Please be alright."
XX
"Get back you bastards!" Temari yelled using her fan to create a wind cyclone to send the kunai back at the trio of Suna nin.
Just my luck, we run into Suna nins and they have a grudge and orders from my father to kill me, Kankuro and Gaara. Bastard. The blond wind user snarled.
Haku was entertaining the other two while Ryu was dealing with one of the forests inhabitants in the form of a pair of tigers.
She used her fan to send the kunai back at the Suna nin. She blinked when a hand appeared in the nin's chest. Seconds later the Suna nin was ripped apart. Standing there was a ninja in gear similar to the one's that Naruto had warned them about, but its markings were different and in blood red.
"Cyrax you fool." Another voice said and Temari saw a man with a half metal face plate. "We're supposed to join up with the others."
"Shut up Kano." The one identified as Cyrax intoned in a cold emotionless voice. "Finish off the Suna fools or give them to Jade."
The one called Kano snorted, his lone eye focusing on Temari. "Well, hello pretty-pretty."
Temari leapt back to a higher tree, her eyes taking in the two men. "What do you want? Your not part of the exam."
Kano chuckled. "Your right sweetness, we're not. But we can't let you inform the authorities now, can we?"
Ryu below finished off the tigers with a spinning uppercut. Haku was with her against these two and she knew there was another one out there somewhere.
Not good. If they're here with the ones Naruto said to avoid, this is going to get uglier than Kankuro seen coming out of a shower with his puppet. Temari thought.
"How about we saw nothing and you leave us and our teams alone?" She tried to negotiate.
"Negative." Cyrax intoned. "No witnesses."
"But we wouldn't have witnessed nothing if you didn't involve yourselves in our fight."
"Ain't she something. Sounds like one of them lawyer types." Kano said.
Haku not wasting more time launched a series of needles at Kano. He flashed his killing intent as he smacked them out of the air, it was oppressive, and deadly.
So dark, so rich with murder… Haku and Temari both thought.
"Sorry loves, but business is business. We'll make it quick." Kano said drawing a large knife. He licked the blade. "Scream for me." He said before leaping.
XX
Naruto and his team arrived as Kano was straddling Temari and had his knife in a reverse grip and was about to plunge it down.
One moment Naruto was there the next he was kicking Kano off the blond fan user.
"Who the hell are you?" Kano demanded.
"Naruto, and you were attacking someone precious to me."
"Naruto-kun, LOOK OUT!"
He dove aside and Cyrax missed him with a chakra net that hit a tree and began to dissolve.
"Great, another of Natas freak squads."
Kano paused and Cyrix looked at him.
"So you're the Naruto bloke we're to avoid." Kano said. "You're told to avoid me?"
"Yeah. The boss says if we engage you, we are to back off immediately." He looked at Temari. "Looks like you'll owe me a scream later pretty-pretty."
"Come near her again and I will kill you." Naruto growled.
Kano smirked and shivered theatrically. "Oooh. So scared mate. Just be glad I honor my contracts." He turned towards his partner. "Let's go. We need to hook up with Jade and get to the Uchiha."
The two shushined away. Naruto helped Temari up as Haku landed next to them. "You both okay?"
"Yeah. The one called Kano is quick, he seemed to shimmer as he moved." Temari said.
Ryu climbed up the tree and sighed. "Are we done? Can we go to the tower now?"
Haku nodded. "We've got our scrolls, we were just trying to find the Uchiha."
Naruto nodded. "Gaara has sand eyes on the other teams. We know where he is, but Natas's team is nearby, and kaa-san wants us to avoid them, so the mission will have to wait."
"Unless this Natas gets to him first." Temari said as Gaara and Kin joined them. "So what are we going to do?" Ryu asked.
"Head towards the tower, but we'll hold off entering for now. I want to see if we can slow down any of the other teams." Naruto decided. "If we're lucky we might get the Uchiha that way."
"That close to the tower?" Kin asked.
Naruto shrugged. "In this phase of the exam we can kill up until they reach the tower."
Haku and Temari nodded. Gaara looked at the Suna nin that littered the ground. Temari explained.
"Seems father needs a lesson in family bonding." Gaara said coldly.
"We'll deal with him soon enough. Uncle Orochi won't like that he tried this either."
"We can deal with…" Temari began hotly, but Naruto cut her off. "I'm sure you can Temari-chan. But you are Oto-nin's now. That is constituted as breaking the contract your father the Kazekage made with Uncle Orochi when he traded three ninja for you." He looked at the others. "Well, let's go. Gaara, the map."
The sand user pulled out the map and using his sand made markers. "We're here. The Konoha Genin are here, here, here and the Uchiha's team is here in what we've been told is Dark Territory do to the size of the insects and other beasts there. It is also under a permanent veil of darkness."
"Natas and his freaks throw off the plans, and its best if we avoid them. Natas is easily Sannin level, and Scorpion and Sub-Zero are near Jonin level."
Ryu snorted. "Near yours or Gaara's level then."
"While we're strong we aren't going to show our abilities here. We're in enemy territory."
"Konoha's our enemy?" Ryu asked in surprise and the others groaned. "Don't you ever listen during briefings?" Kin asked.
"Did you say something?" Ryu fired back only to get a triple smack across the back of his head from the three women in the group.
"As I was saying. Kankuro and his team are coming from the north, and will have to cross the tower to come towards us and the Uchiha."
"And they aren't aware of the added freaks." Haku said.
"Unless they have another team other than the one we just saw, then we'll assume no." Naruto confirmed.
"Well, its settled. We'll set traps along this route and hope for the best." Temari said as she grabbed her large fan.
"Move out." Naruto ordered and they took to the trees.
XX
Anko looked at the message she'd just gotten from Haku and shuddered. She hurried over and pulled Tsunade aside.
"We've got more trouble Kaa-san." She said lowly. "Natas has another team in the forest, independent of the exam."
"Damn it."
"Naruto's ordered the mission to change in the field. He's ordered your team and mine to set up a trap for the Uchiha, but it seems like Natas is after him as well."
"Shit." Tsunade said.
"Naruto's told the team to not engage the freaks or Natas, and if it looks like they got the Uchiha, they'll enter the tower and abandon the target."
Tsunade was relieved to hear that.
"So they got the scrolls?"
Anko smirked. "Haku said Naruto's team had their scroll two minutes in."
Tsunade smiled "That's my boy."
Anko smiled. "That's my little brother."
"Should we tell Ero-pop?" Anko asked.
"Nah. I think he's off peeping on the bathhouses again. We'll let him know later."
"What about Uncle O?"
Tsunade smiled. "He's with the Hokage. Wouldn't be right to disturb him."
"You just want to hold onto this and gloat later."
"Damn right." Tsunade said. "But we can let Kimimaro know."
"I'll go find Bones." Anko shushined away and Tsunade saw the Konoha Jonin were still talking about their students.
Be careful Naruto. Be damn careful.
AN: The tower, a scuffle and a mother's rage, all in the next episode of Little Sannin.