The next morning, the team members all met outside the hotel. When everyone was ready to go, they set out of Konoha and continued towards the hide out which was not too far from Konoha. Once they were close by, Ryuu slowed the team down and moved out of sight from the path.
"Alright, Emi is going to tell us about the clans before we get into a battle with them." Ryuu announced and sat down with his legs crossed.
Tomi smirked. "How wonderful."
Emi sighed. "There are two members from the Yatari clan. This clan is genjutsu based. They typically use torture-like genjutsu that makes you lose your mind. They are not the best at ninjutsu and do not use taijutsu. They resort to a kunai dipped in poison if they have to." Emi explained.
The team members nodded, taking mental notes carefully.
"Any markings or whatever to indicate which are from the Yatari clan?" Akuso asked.
Emi nodded. "Green hair, and blue swirls on their arms."
They all nodded.
"Another member Ryuu said was present was one of the Kynji clan. This clan tries to master Fuinjutsu. Literally meaning sealing techniques... they can seal your chakra, people in general, and almost any object. Markings, no. Appearance unfortunately isn't defined. But they carry many scrolls." Emi explained.
"Kunikamiko clan..." Ryuu said absent mindedly, remembering the names the ANBU had shared with him.
Emi glanced at Ryuu before nodding. "Kunikamiko clan... There are three people here from this clan. These clan members possess an ocular ability that allows them to see your moves before you've even made them. They will be the biggest challenge. They also use ninjutsu and have no define traits."
"So, they can see what we're going to do and basically escape us." Murasaki clarified.
Emi nodded. "Not many people face this clan and survive. Because of their ocular abilites they see your chakra and figure out what your move will be. If anyone should face these people, it should be me. I don't possess chakra like you guys do."
Tomi's eyes widened as he looked to Ryuu then back to Emi. "B-But you just said-"
"I know, but I'm the only one who could face them..." Emi sighed.
Ryuu pursed his lips and turned his eyes to the sky. "I'll protect her." He murmured.
"Against three members who can see what you're going to do?" Akuso asked.
Ryuu nodded. "I refuse to be taken down by them." He said.
"That's not exactly something you can just say and do, Ryuu. It's not reality." Murasaki stated.
Miame sighed. "Emi will be fine. She's as fast as most of us. She's very skilled in taijutsu, I should know being her sensai."
Emi smiled gently. "I'm not weak, I can still fight."
"Yeah, but if you get hit, you're done, Emi." Kasha stated.
"I won't interrupt your fighting, Emi. I...I just want to protect you from gettig hit. If I pose them a problem, even if they can see what I'm doing, it'll be enough for you to slip in and end them." Ryuu said.
Emi shook her head. "Ryuu, you need to worry about the Enusi clan. They are water based completely."
Ryuu shrugged. "It doesn't matter, I can use something else against them." He murmured.
Emi sighed. "Well, there are another two from that clan...they use water based ninjutsu and shuriken. They have deep blue eyes generally..."
"And two unknown." Ryuu stated before standing up. "Remember to watch out for each other and to act as a team. It doesn't matter if you're fighting one or not, if a team member needs help, help. Rotating keeps the enemy at guess. Just be careful."
Emi nodded. "I'm going to stay back until I can figure out who the two unknown clan members are. Once I do, I will yell out to you guys. I will then move out to attack the Kunikamiko members."
Everyone nodded before sneaking back out to the path and towards the hideout. When they were closer, they spread out a little - Ryuu sticking close to Emi - as they made their way towards the giant hole in the ground.
When the ANBU explained exactly what their hideout entrance looked like - simply a big hole in the ground - he wasn't expecting this. They moved towards the edge and peered down. It looked like it went on and reached into a dark abyss. The team gave each other looks before Ryuu whispered, "Keep as quiet as you can. It migh echo."
"This hideout..." Emi murmured and glanced at Ryuu. "It speaks how cocky they are... expect traps..." She whispered.
Ryuu nodded and reached out to take Emi's hand. "I'll bring you down." He murmured.
Emi nodded and took his hand. Ryuu smiled softly and pulled her up onto his back before stepping over the edge. He concentrated his chakra to his feet as he began to descend down the holes' wall. The other followed closely behind.
"Anyone have any light?" Ryuu asked as they began to reach where light faded to darkness.
Miame made her hand glow a faint blue, lighting up the darkness a bit. "That better."
Ryuu smiled at her and allowed her to go ahead. "Be careful of any traps. Watch for any odd looking dark spots in the wall, little tiny holes, anything odd that might be dangerous."
Miame nodded as she slowly continued to move down the hole ahead of the others. As Miame continue her way down, she spotted a dark mark in the wall and moved around it, gestering for the others to move around it as well, suddenly, it latched out and grabbed her ankle. Emi's eyes widened. "Oh no.. Guys! That's the Kunimitsu clan! They can turn their bodies to tar!" Emi exclaimed. Ryuu narrowed his eyes before bringing his foot down onto the tar. Miame was able to pull her foot free and Ryuu began to run down the wall, the others following close behind. When he felt the air pressure change, he knew he was near the bottom and lifted his feet off the wall. Ten feet down, Ryuu landed on his feet and slipped Emi off his back.
The rest followed and landed on the ground, leaving two sets of footsteps on the wall. Ryuu moved his hands out and spun around in a circle, sending a burst of lightning bouncing back and forth up the hole. Ryuu turned to see one of the enemies lunging towards him and quickly brought his knee up into the woman's neck. She dropped to the ground motionless while the other was heading towards Tomi.
Tomi quickly pulled out his sword and brought it down on the man's shoulder. He cried out and quickly used his other hand to try and hit him with a kunai. "You, know, I think poison is cheating!" Tomi chuckled and quickly dodged before kicking the man in the ribs.
Akuso quickly reached out to grab the mans hair before throwing him face first into the concrete wall. He straightened his flak jacket before running his hand through his hair. "Well...that was interesting."
Ryuu pursed his lips as he looked between the man and woman. "Don't underestimate them." He murmured. "It seemed to easy for the Kazekage to deem this an S rank mission."
Emi cautiously bent down beside the woman, holding a kunai tightly in her hand as protection as she reached to touch the womans shoulder in order to flip her over. As Emi's hand was about to touch her, the woman quickly jerked and reached out to scratch Emi, at the same time Emi flinched and brough her kunai into the woman's neck before jumping back. "She's of the Dumio clan. They turn their hands to claws with their chakra and then dip them in poison." She murmurmed, looking at the female now gurgling in pain as blood poured from her throat.
Ryuu reached out to grab Emi's chin, pulling her to looking at him. "She scratched you." He murmured, examining her wound.
Emi lowered her eyes to the woman. "They carry antidotes in case they scratch themselves..."
Ryuu examined the wound one last time before moving to search the woman. He found a small jar in her pouch and held it out towards Emi. "Hurry." He mumbled.
Emi took the jar and quickly drank the liquid before looking over to the male that was still out. "Kill him before he comes to."
Akuso nodded and moved to kneel beside the man. He turned him over and reached down to grab his neck, pressing his fingers hard into his flesh. Before Akuso could do anything, the man suddenly turned to tar and disappeared. He quickly stood up and searched the area that was already starting to dim with the lightning bolt slowly fading.
A deep chuckle came from down a small opening before a loud squeaky noise echoed through the area. Ryuu narrowed his eyes and ran towards where the chuckle was coming from and found a door. He opened it and quickly braced himself as he moved through the litted hallway. No one was around.
Emi watched Ryuu for amoment before looking at Akuso. "He will flee and return at the worst time. Come with us, he will show up." She murmured and ran after Ryuu.
Akuso watched as Emi moved away before crossing his arms and chuckling lightly. Murasaki moved to stand bside Akuso and looked at him questioningly.
Akuso sighed and shook his head. "Those two are quite the team." He whispered.
Murasaki laughed lightly and nodded. "They did grow up together. It doesn't surprise me that they work well together."
Akuso nodded before following after the others. They walked down a brightly litted hallway that seemed a bit to fancy for a hideout of rogue ninja. Ryuu led the way, carefully making his way towards the door at the end of the hallway. Once he was only a few yards away, the door began to open and two people stepped out, moving to stand beside each other with their hands on their hips. They looked identical, either twins or clones. It was evident they were from the Yatari clan; green hair with blue swirls covering their arms, just as Emi had indicated.
Murasaki stepped forward and narrowed her eyes. "They've already started the genjutsu, beware." She whispered.
Emi gritted her teeth. "They do it separately... We wont be sharing the same torture..."
"We won't be sharing any torture." Murasaki stated before stepping back. "They're just an illusion." She said and glanced around herself. She groaned as her eyes drifted towards the two and she shook her head. "If I tell you to move, move." She whispered. "And keep as quiet as you can." She stepped aside and ducked slightly before turnign her head towards her team. She looked towards Tomi and waved her hand backwards. "They're fairly hard to see, but if you get caught by one, your torture starts." She gasped and quickly jumped forwards, before ducking down and moving to the side. She let out a silent breath and moved to press herself against the wall. "Get against the wall." She lipped to the others. They did and she said, and they all remained quiet.
After a few seconds, Murasaki moved from the wall, moving towards the two illusions while ducking the invisible masses of chakra spirit-like worms. The two Yatari's noticed Murasaki advancing and narrowed their eyes.
"You're good." The woman on the right stated.
Murasaki kept quiet, slowly making her way towards them.
The right turned to the left and shrugged. "One genjutsu user. This might be easier than we thought, sister."
The left nodded. "Don't underestimate her though. She's strong willed." The left stated.
The right nodded. "Well then, we'll meet you later. Thank you for your time." She said and the two faded away.
Murasaki reached out to grab the one girls arms, but her hand slipped through. She gritted her teeth and looked around, the spirits were still there in the hall with them, moving down towards the other end of the hall. She moved towards the door until she was out of the way of the spirits and pointed towards Emi, motioning her to move forward and keep low.
Emi nodded and moved forward, keeping low as she moved towards Murasaki. Murasaki carefully guided Emi through the mine field of spirits carefully. When her foot slide, causing a slight brushing sound, the spirit that was moving past her knee jerked slightly and quickly turned towards her foot.
"Emi! Watch out!" Murasaki shouted.
Ryuu's eyes widened and he quickly moved forwards towards Emi. Just as the spirit was about to touch Emi, Murasaki lunged forward and through herself into a group of spirits. All the others fade away as the five surrounding Murasaki consumed Murasaki's body and held her tightly. They began to fade into a very dark pale purple as they sunk their teeth deeply into Murasaki's flesh, causing her to scream out in pain.
Miame's eyes widened as she hesitated to step forward when Emi gripped her arm. "Don't. You'll get caught to.."
Miame gritted her teeth and lowered her head.
Ryuu had his arms around Emi as he watched Murasaki with horror. He gritted his teeth and held Emi closer. After a short while, the spirits left and Murasaki collapssed to the ground. Miame didn't hesiate to run to her side. She dropped to her knees and moved Murasaki onto her back, her eyes widening. "M-Murasaki..." Her body was covered in bitemarks that were gushing blood.
Murasaki let out a painful groan as she moved her hands to her stomach. "That..." She groaned again. "I wasn't...expecting." She rolled onto her side and bit the inside of her cheeks. She felt so immensely lightheaded. It felt as if her body was on fire.
"I-I thought you said they used genjutsu..." Kasha murmured to Emi.
Emi shook her head. "Th-That's... what I believed... unless..."
Murasaki let out a shaky breath and sucked in a deep breath of air. "I-it was genjutsu up until the point...t-they touched me." She groaned. "I-I've heard of t-this before." She screamed out and gripped her side harder. "I-it's genjutsu a-and ninjutsu partly mixed." She groaned again. "I-it's extremely difficult..."
Emi gritted her teeth. "I should have known that! I read that even though they use genjutsu and ninjutsu separately, they like to be tricky and figured out ways to manipulate it!" She clenched her fists, her only reason to be there was her knowledge, yet she couldn't even get all her facts straight.
Ruu reached out to ruffle Emi's hair. "It's fine, you know now." He whispered and smiled gently before returning his face to Murasaki.
After a few minutes, Murasaki finally sat up. She struggled to her feet with the help of Miame, her knee's shaking considerably. "I-it'll pass soon." She said and groaned.
Emi sighed she would dwell on her mistake later, right now they needed to move. "We need to keep moving..."
Murasaki nodded. Akuso moved to stand in front of her and pulled her up onto his back. "Let me nkow if you need anything." He murmured.
Murasaki nodded and moved her arms around his neck for support, although her grip was weak. "Thanks." She whispered.
Akuso nodded and followed as Ryuu opened the hall door and moved through it. He was caught off guard when someone tackled him to the ground. He gritted his teeth and moved his hand up to punch the person, but they only dodged.
Emi's eyes widened as she quickly ran towards the male who had tackled Ryuu but before she could reach them, the man wrapped his arm around Ryuu's neck and pulled him backwards down the hall.
Ryuu groaned and gripped his sleeve to pull the guys arm back, but he only tightened his grip.
"I'm guessing this is one of the Kunikamiko clan members?" Tomi asked as he ran up beside Emi.
Emi nodded. "These ones will have to be left to me..."
Ryuu tried to breath in, but he couldn't get enough air. He concentrated his chakra into his fist and tried to punch the guy in his side, but he quickly reached down to grabbed Ryuu's wrist. When Ryuu tried moving his other hand, the guy let go of his neck and moved to grab both of Ryuu's wrist before twisting his legs around Ryuu's and pinning him to the ground.
Ryuu's face was being pressed into the ground and he let out a loud groan, trying to move out from udner the mans blunt weight.
he man loked up towards the others and smirked. "Hey there, welcome to our hideout." He said. "My name is Kunikamiko Jumio, I'll be your host." His smirk widened.
Emi gritted her teeth. "Bastard."
Tomi sighed and stopped along side Emi. "So... you're the leader of it all?"
Jumio let out a hearty laugh. "No, no, no!" He said. "Here, we all are the leaders. No one is designated - it's too much of a prideful position." He chuckled. "Things like this happen..." He motioned down at Ryuu beneath himself. "The leader gets captured and now the team doesn't know what to do. What's the point in that?"
Ryuu let out a groan and tried wiggling beneath Jumio.
"Ah, ah, ah" Jumio said an shook his head. "You do that, and I'll slit your throat before you can even work up enough chakra."
Ryuu narrowed his eyes and allowed himself to relax slightly.
Emi gritted her teeth. "Who said no one knows what to do?" Emi then smirked and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Well, your focus is on saving your leader, is it not?" Jumio said and smirked. "If one leader dies, it doesn't matter here because there are others. Everyones a leader, so it doesn't matter if one dies. You've already killed one, and guess what - we're over it."
Emi shook her head and laughed. "Our focus isn't on saving our leader. Our focus is on killing you and your friends and the rest of us leaving here safely." Emi shrugged. "I already have a plan." She smirked and stuck out her tongue playfully.
Jumio smirked. "But if your leader says to do something, then it;s your responsibility to obey. If you don't, well, you're disobeying the leader above your leader - the Kazekage I presume from your headband - and you're putting you and your team in danger." He stated.
Emi laughed again. "Okay, one: I never listen to him. Two: the Kazekage knows me well, and three: I know what I'm doing." Emi smirked and glanced at Tomi who shrugged in return. "Just release him and save me from getting a headache..." Emi sighed.
Jumio smirked. "I'm sorry, little girl, we don't run that way here." He chuckled.
Emi groaned. "I hate when you people make me do this..." She said under her breath. Emi turned her eyes to Kasha and nodded.
Kasha stepped closer to Jumio and smirked, preparing her chakra for a ninjutsu. Emi knew that Jumio would see the jutsu and prepare himself, but she also knew that their eyes could only take in so much at a time. She was hoping that if everyone went to attack at once, it would give her the chance to slip in and use her taijutsu.
Jumio only smirked as he watched the shinobi in front of him. "Do you really think you can defeat me?" He asked and smirked, quickly moving back and dragging Ryuu back by his ankle.
Emi then glanced at Miame. Miame believed she had caught on and started to form hand seals of her own. The others soon followed suit. Emi smirked and waved slightly to Jumio before disappearing.
Jumio smirked and let out a small chuckle as two others appeared beside him, one male and one female. "Come on, little girl." Jumio said an chuckled again.
"She's not that little." Kasha smirked.
"You don't realize what you're dealing with." Tomi chuckled.
"Oh, don't think don't know. We think it's odd, but it'll pose us a challenge for once. It's hard to know what she's going to do since we can't even sense her chakra. She hardly has any, but you..." He nodded forwards and smirked.
The man and woman standing beside him smirked as they moved forwards.
"It's my pleasure." They said in unison.
Kasha narrowed her eyes at the three. She didn't think the other two showing up was part of Emi's plan. She just hoped Emi had another plan forming in her amazing mind.
The woman quickly advanced towards Kasha, forming a hand seal while the man headed towards Tomi.
Kasha gritted her teeth and quickly formed hand seals of her own.
Tomi brought his sword forward and narrowed his eyes. The man quickly ducked under the sword and brought the palms of his hands up towards Tomi's chest.
The woman smirked as she brought her foot down across her hands, causing her to break the jutsu.
Tomi gasped and quickly tried to jump back, Miame jumping in and attempting to land a hit on the man.
Kasha growled and quickly tried to fight back against the woman with taijutsu.
Akuso had moved to put Murasaki on the ground before moving to help Kasha. Just as the woman was going to bring her heel into Kasha's side, Akuso jumped in, grabbing her foot and swinging her around towards the wall. She caught herself and pushed back off the wall, making a few more handseals.
The man almost dodged Miame's hit, but she managed to get his leg. He quickly recovered before lunging at Miame with full force, toppling her to the ground.
Jumio slowly moved his eyes around, looking for Emi as he held on tightly to Ryuu. Ryuu gritted his teeth and quickly brought his foot hard down onto Jumio's. It allowed for a quick release from Jumio and Ryuu ducked under Jumio, sliding backwards. Jumio gritted his teeth and turned around to bring his fist down onto Ryuu shoulder. Ryuu didn't fight it and fell backwards to the ground before rolling over and moving to bring his foot up into Jumio's chest. He jumped backwards, only to take a hit from Emi who finally reapeared.
Emi had a kunai in each hand that she had dipped in poision and stabed the weapons into Jumio's back before quickly jumping back and into the shadows again.
Jumio winced and pulled the kunai's out of his back. He looked at the tips, smeared liquid all over them. His eyes lifted to Ryuu who was watching him carefully. He could feel the poison slowly spreading through his body and he only chuckled. "Oh, little, little girl." He murmured and glanced over his shoulder. She was gone. He turned back before whipping the kunai's at Ryuu.
Ryuu's eyes widened and he went to dodge the kunai's. He managed to dodged one, but the other plunged into his shoulder. He let out a gasp of pain before backing away.
Jumio chuckled and quickly moved forward towards Ryuu. He trie to escape, and tried to grab Jumio's wrist to use some kind of jutsu, but Jumio quickly pulled his wrist back and caught Ryuu's throat with his foot, pinning him to the ground.
Ryuu's eyes widened and he grabbed Jumio's leg, his hands glowing a light yellow. Jumio quickly brought his foot back before slamming it down into Ryuu's throat again, basically knocking Ryuu out. "Come out, chicky." Jumio said.
Emi bit her lip. She was hidden in the shadows and watched in horror as Jumio attacked Ryuu. She needed to get her antidote to Ryuu quickly. She could stay back and wait for Jumio to fall, but then it would be too late for Ryuu. She had no choice but to run in and hope she could time herself perfectly. Emi let out a shaky breath before jumping down and wrapping her legs around Jumio's neck, quickly plunging a kunai deep into his throat and pulling it through, wincing at the noise and feeling it left in her hands.
Jumio's blood poured over Emi's hands as he fell to the ground. She quickly jumped off of him and ran over to Ryuu, dropping down in front of him on her knees. He was barely conscious and his breathing was ragged. She quickly moved him onto his back and pulled out a small vile, putting it to his lips and tipping it forward. Emi waited a moment before moving back to her feet and looking over at the others who were having difficulty with the other enemies. She let out a shaky breath before disappearing into the shadows again.
The woman chuckled as she moved quickly towards Kasha, slamming her foot into her side before grabbing Akuso's wrist and moving to pin him to the ground. He quickly reached up to grab her throat when she brought her fists down onto his chest.
Emi let out another breath as she jumped down to try and attack the woman, however she found herself grabbed by the throat and thrown up against the wall. She gritted her teeth and tried to breathe as she looked at the male. Miame and Tomi were already down and out, unable to fight.
The man chuckled and leaned forward, moving his mouth near her ear. "Pathetic." He whispered and tightened his grip. He pulled back and smirked, moving his other hand back as he began to turn a dark red. Just before his fist collided with Emi's stomach, the man was tackled to the ground by Murasaki.
She winced in pain as the two rolled to the ground, she pinning him down. He winced at first before smirking. "You're still we-"
Before he could finished, she brought her forehead down, slamming it against his and knocking him out. Her head now pounded and she rolled over to the side, grabbing her head and pain and let out a few loud groans.
"E-Emi! E-end him now!" she screamed and brought her knee's to her chest as she tried to get her head to stop pounding.
Emi nodded and stumbled over to the man before bringing her kunai down into his throat, blood splashing against her face as she stood back up and looked over at the female. "We've only killed three of ten... at this right, we wont survive..." Emi frowned.
"A little help here!" Akuso shouted as he struggled beneath the woman's hold.
Emi's eyes widened and she quickly ran over to the woman. As the woman went to stop Emi, she ducked and brought her foot into the womans neck, causing her to release Akuso and narrow her eyes at Emi as she tried to keeping her breathing regular. Emi then smirked at the woman as she charged at her again, as the woman went to strike, Emi slid under her legs and swiftly brought her kunai and stabbed it in the womans back, quickly reaching her other hand up to grab the womans hair and pulled back as she used her foot to push the kunai deeper into the womans flesh.
The woman screamed out in pain as the kunai was plunged deeper into her body. Her body suddenly felt numb, so she thought of the only things she had left that she could do. She was falling, she quickly spun around aiming her head to slam it into Emi' 's eyes widened as she quickly tried to think of a way to escape the attack.
Just before their heads collided, the woman was tackled to the ground by Ryuu. He gritted his teeth and braced himself as he slide across the floor. His breathing was still ragged from the kick to the throat he recieved from Jumio.
It took Emi a moment to snap herself from her shock before she stumbled to her feet and ran after Ryuu. Emi quickly knelt down beside Ryuu and the woman before pulling a kunai across her throat. She panted slightly as she looked up at Ryuu. "Y-You okay?" She murmured.
Ryuu sucked in a sharp ragged breath and reached up to grab Emi's wrist. "E-Emi..y-you're hurt..." He winced and gritted his teeth. He hadn't been able to see anything Emi had done, so the blood covering her was quite the shock to him. A tear slipped from his eyes and he closed his eyes to push the tears back.
Emi reached out to touch his cheek and shook her head. "It's not my blood, Ryuu... I just stabbed all these people's throats. Don't worry about me." She smiled gently.
Ryuu opened his eyes again and struggled to sit up. He took her shirt into his hands and pulled her closer to examine her. "Y-you're perfectly fine?" He asked, his mouth parting slightly as he tried to regulate his breathing.
Emi frowned. "I'm the only one not hurt..." She looked away from him at the others. "I mean... I was helpful, and took them all out... but I'm still the only one not injured..."
Ryuu let out a breath of relief before turning to look at the others. They were injured, but all of them were alive. He turned back to Emi before pulling her into his arms tightly. "I'm so proud of you, Emi." He whispered and sucked in a sharp breath. "We would've died if it hadn't been for you." He murmured.
Emi frowned. "I feel like you're all babying me..."
"Why?" He asked and pulled back to wipe the blood from her face.
Emi shrugged and shook her head. "Only four are down. There are still six. We need to hurry..."
Ryuu shook his head. "Until we have a little more energy again, we're going to have to stay put and stand our ground here for a few." He said and looked at he others. "What's your status?" He asked.
Akuso groaned and rubbed his temple. "Took a good beating, but nothing too major."
Kasha ran her hand through her hair. "I'm alright... could use a few bandages though." She laughed.
Tomi stirred on the ground and looked around dazed.
"Tomi's alive, but he looks disoriented." Akuso announced. "Miame is out cold, and Murasaki is in a great deal of pain."
Ryuu groaned and moved backwards to leaned against the wall. "We'll wait a few." He murmured.
Kasha let out a breath before smiling at Emi. "You did really well, Emi."
Emi shrugged. "You guys did all the work.." She murmured.
Akuso scoffed and rolled his eyes. "You're the one who did all the work! We were useless agaisnt them!" Akuso said, almost flabbergasted. "The rest of us were fighting two against one, and we were still almost killed! You against three, and you're alive and well!"
Ryuu turned his eyes to Emi and looked at her blankly. "You really don't give yourself enough credit, Emi." He whispered.
Emi shrugged. "By the way, let me know if you get dizzy, Ryuu. I gave you an antidote, but I don't know if it was enough..." she murmured.
Ryuu raised a brow slowly before laughing lightly. "Babe, you make me dizzy."
Emi blushed brightly and turned to glare at him. "I'm being serious!"
Ryuu laughed. "I know...I know. Just thought I'd lightened the mood." He murmured.
Emi sighed and moved over to Miame, shaking her slightly. "Miame-sensai?"
Miame stirred slightly and opened her eyes. "E-Emi... y-y-"
"I'm fine..." Emi sighed and helped Miame sit up.
Miame looked around. "Th-They're all dead..."
"I'm glad Emi was here..." Akuso said and rubbed his head again. "You've taught her well, Miame." He said.
Miame looked from Akuso to Emi. "Y-you took them all out?"
Emi shrugged and looked to the ground. "I-I guess I did..."
Miame smiled slightly and pulled Emi into her arms. "I think you should've been a chunin long ago..."
Emi frowned and sighed. "Are you alright, Miame-sensai?"
Miame nodded. "I think I twisted my ankle... but besides that..."
Ryuu nodded. "We still have a good team." He murmured. "We're past the unfair part." He laughed slightly. "Just don't underestimate." He mumbled and slouched against the wall, closing his eyes.
Emi watched Ryuu carefully, making sure he didn't have any symptoms from her poison. "Are you alright, Ryuu?" She asked nervously.
Ryuu let out a moan before moving to lay on his side. Emi frowned and quickly moved to his side. "R-Ryuu..." She murmured and moved his face to look at her. "Look at me..." She murmured.
Ryuu slowly opened his eyes to look up at Emi. He smiled gently and moved his hand up to caress her cheek. "You know, if it weren't for the fact that I hadn't passed out yet, I'd think that I died and went to heaven." He whispered.
Emi narrowed her eyes. "Don't scare me...like that..." She murmured and frowned.
"...Sorry?" He mumbled. "I-it's just my shoulder..really hurts." He mumbled.
Emi glanced at his shoulder and frowned more. She moved his shirt slightly to look at it. "Kasha..."
Kasha moved to Emi's side and looked at the wound. She moved her hands over his shoulder as her hands glowed green. Once the wound was healed, Ryuu let out a sigh of relief and sat back up.
"T-thanks." He said and moved his arm around.
Kasha now moved over to Murasaki and started healing her wounds. "Sorry I didn't do this sooner..." She murmrued. "But it takes time and we didn't have time before..."
Murasaki nodded. "I-it's...fine." She stuttered.
Emi watched Kasha for a moment before looking to Ryuu. "You better now?" She murmured.
Ryuu nodded slightly. "Yes, thank you." He whispered and smiled softly at her.
Emi gave a weak smile in return before moving to sit against the wall, closing her eyes as she focused on the chakra around her, sensing some outside the room they were in. "The enemy is being generous..." She murmured. "They know we're healing and plan on giving us time..."
"Good." Ryuu mumbled and leaned his head back, closing his eyes as well. He reached down to entwine his fingers with hers before leaning over to put his head on her shoulder. "We'll need the time." He whispered.
She opened her eyes and looked down at Ryuu, frowning slightly. She felt so bad for everyone, they all took the hits they did for her. Murasaki when she was guiding Emi, Ryuu when the man was after her, Murasaki a second time for her, and then Ryuu a second time. She shook her head and leaned her head against Ryuu's as she kissed the top of his head, tightening her hand with his as she pushed back her sorrow and the tears wanting to escape her eyes.
Ryuu lifted his face slightly to kiss her cheek. "I love you." He murmured.
Emi forced a smile. "I-I love you too..." She whispered.
After ten minutes, Ryuu finally climbed to his feet, stumbling slightly at first. 'A-are we ready to go?" He asked.
Tomi nodded as he stumbled to his feet, Kasha helping him. Miame nodded and glanced at Murasaki. "Do you need help?" She asked.
"I-I got her." Akuso mumbled as he moved over and helped Murasaki up. Her head was still killing her, and her body still felt as if she was one giant bruise. He helped her up onto his back as they headed down the corridor to the next door.
Emi bit her lip as she sensed the chakra. "The rest are behind the door..." She whispered to Ryuu.
"All of them?" Ryuu asked. "Six?'
Emi frowned and nodded. "Yes..."
Ryuu nodded before turning his eyes up towards the roof. "You all go ahead." He murmured.
Tomi glanced at Ryuu. "What are you planning?"
"A surprise attack..." Ryuu replied. "Go ahead."
Emi bit her lip before looking up at Miame. Miame nodded to Ryuu and moved towards the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"They're coming." Tsuhimo declared.
"They shouldn't be too hard to take out." Aya stated.
Aya's sister, Saika, nodded in agreement. "We've discovered they only have one genjutsu user. Just stay out of our hair, and we could do all the work."
Tsunesada scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Stop being so prideful. You're not the only talented shinobi." He hissed.
Aya narrowed her eyes. "We would have them squirming on the ground." She hissed.
"Alright, shut up now." Misaki said and held her hands up. "They're at the door know." He murmured.
"Let's get this over and done with quickly." Tetsukane said and smirked slightly.
"Don't blame us if you get caught in our genjutsu." Aya and Saika mumbled.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Miame cautiously opened it and saw that it lead to a large outdoor clearing with six different people spread about.
"About time!" Tsunesada laughed and narrowed his eyes on Miame.
"You gave us the time we needed." Akuso stated.
Misaki smirked. "Doesn't mean you take it for granted."
"Why didn't you come for us, then?" Murasaki asked.
"We were being nice, we just didn't realize how long you would take." Misaki said.
"Then shut up." Akuso said and narrowed his eyes.
Tetsukane narrowed his eyes before running forwards at a very fast speed. The team members quickly dispersed, leaving Tetsukane chuckling, standing near the door. "Scared?" He asked.
Emi narrowed her eyes. Tomi kept his guard up - Tomi had always promised that if Ryuu wasn`t around he`d help protect Emi.
"We're not scared of you." Kasha hissed.
Saika frowned. "That's a shame. You should be."
"S-she's one of the ones who uses genjutsu." Murasaki said and then pointed to the girl beside her. "They are twins."
Aya smirked. "What if she's only my clone?"
"Why lie? It's quite useless." Emi stated. She could sense the two different chakras between the women.
Saika roleld her eyes. "Not like I'm her made up clone. We're talking as in scientists literally cloning Aya." Saika stated. "Idiot, think about it."
Emi rolled her eyes. "You're still different beings."
"But she was taken from me when I was two. So we're different beings, just the same." Aya smirked.
Emi sighed. "You're boring me."
Saika gritted her teeth and balled her hand into a fist. She went to reply to Emi when Aya placed her hand gently on Saika's shoulder. Saika breathed in deeply and stepped back before moving her bak against Aya's. "Konbain." They both said in unison.
In a matter of seconds, Saika slowly disappeared into Aya's body, and aya smirked before rolling her neck, cracking it in three places. "That's much better." She chuckled.
Emi narrowed her eyes and slipped out a kunai in each hand. She looked around before moving between Miame and Tomi, suddenly disappearing.
"Well, might as well get this show on the road." Tsunesada stated and glanced at Tsuhimo who nodded back. They both knelt down to place their hands on the ground before lifting them slowly. As their hands began to rise, water began to appear and cover the ground of the concealed field to about a foot.
"Ah...much better." Tsuhimo said and breathed in deeply. "I feel much better." He chuckled.
Miame narrowed her eyes. Kasha sighed. "I won't be very effective against these guys..."
"Do the best you can." Akuso mumbled.
Kasha nodded slowly and pulled her hands together to form a hand seal. She quickly thrusted her hands into the ground and the water around them lifted up and formed a wave, now heading towards the two. Miame quickly pulled her hands together and her hands lit up with fire. She aimed it at Kasha's wave and added heat until it was boiling hot.
The group of rogue looked at one another and before the wave hit, Tsunesada and Tsuhimo both brought their hands up, pulling a blanket of water over them as a barrier. The wave crashed down onto the barrier before moving to splash everywhere.
"Really?" Tetsukane asked and chuckled lightly. "Using other peoples resources for yourself? That's pathetic." He stated.
Kasha gritted her teeth. "I thought it was convinient..." She mumbled.
"Just try something else..." Tomi murmured.
"Like what? Water is all I got!" Kasha hissed.
Miame sighed. "I think we need Emi's brains..."
Once the others disappeared through the door, Ryuu had blasted his way into the roof and began sneaking around the heating vents. He moved along until he reached the highest he could find before moving out of the vents. He found himself up on a small track overlooking a large arena like field. He could spot the rogue and his team mates fairly close together, but nothing seemed to be happening at the moment. Water now covered the ground, but it must be very shallow since he could still see the grass beneath. He narrowed his eyes; he couldn't find Emi anywhere. And there were only five rogue that he could see, instead of the six Emi had said was there.
"Well, we'll be over here." Aya stated and begun to walk over to a nearby tree before sitting down.
Tsuhimo moved over to stand beside Aya, leaning against the tree. They nodded at one another as Aya moved to cross her legs and close her eyes. "Be quiet." Aya warned Tsuhimo who simply nodded.
Tsunesada glanced at his brother before his eyes drifted to Aya. He hated his brother being so close to her since he had been injrued greatly at one point due to her stupid genjutsu-ninjutsu mix. They claimed they had better control when they were combined, but he still didn't trust them. Finally, he turned his eyes back to the enemies. All Suna shinobi - he hated each and everyone of them.
"Go ahead, Tsunesada." Tetsukane whispered when he noticed his glares at the visitors.
Tsunesada nodded slightly before spreading his arms and falling back into the water. The water splashed up around him before he disappeared. Kasha's eyes widened. "Oh no..."
From Emi's hiding spot, she was trying to come up with a plan. If they could get their own allies out of the water, Ryuu could just strike down into the water, but it of course wouldn't be that easy. She figured Tomi would be best against the Yatari clones, she would be best against Misaki, the water brothers would be best against Ryuu and Tetsukane woud be best with Miame. The only problem was how would she get that information to the others without getting caught by the enemy..
"Look out!" Akuso shouted at Kasha. He would too late trying to get to Kasha before Tsunesada attacked.
Kasha quickly attempted to block the mans attack. She used the water around her to make a kunai of water and stabbed it into the mans side.
A chuckle came from Tsunesada as his body turned to water and he rose from the water ten feet away from Kasha. "No as easy as you think." He said and smirked.
Murasaki gasped. "Kasha! Hurry, move away!" She shouted.
Tsunesada smirked and crossed his arms, waiting for Kasha to fall.
Kasha gritted her teeth as she quickly tried to get away, but it was too late. Three spirits latched onto Kasha's body and bit in deeply as they wrappe theirselves around her. Tsunesada laughed and watched as Kasha fell to the ground, screaming in pain. The other spirits that were around faded as the spirits on Kasha turned a dark pale purple.
Murasaki gritted her teeth and barried her face into Akuso's back. She knew what was happening to her, she felt the pain herself. As the spirits teeth latches onto your body, it feels as if millions of razors are being sliced across your body. For what seems like forever, pain courses through your veins, as it brings to the surface the worst thing you have ever thought of and brings it to reality.
For Murasaki, her reality became that of having every single one of her body limbs torn off. She gritted her teeth more as she groaned in pain for Kasha.
Kasha cried out as she laid motionlessly in the water. Tomi gritted his teeth and let out a breath. "What now?" He hissed.
Tetsukane chuckled before moving towards Tomi. "You." He stated with an evil grin.
Misaki let out a cakling laugh as she ran towards Akuso and Murasaki. "And you!" She added.
"And you." Aya and Saika both mumbled in unison as they concentrated on all of them at once.
Emi's eyes widened as she watched the rogues and her allies. She needed to come up with a plan fast. She watched as the enemies started taking hits at everyone, at the same time they tried to dodge the spirits. Emi bit her lip, she had no choice but to show herself. She quickly jumped down and landed on top of Misaki, stabbing a kunai into the females shoulder as she quickly jumped back.
"Tomi, you need to take the clones! Ryuu will be best with the water brothers, and Miame, go after the tar-like guy! Leave this girl to me!" Emi ordered as she narrowed eyes at Misaki.
Tomi gulped. "Wh-Why me?"
"That sword is your key!" Emi stated as she dodged an attack.
Tomi sighed. "I hate your IQ, you know that!" He yelled before running off towards the clones.
Emi took a quick glance at Akuso. "Just try your best to remain uninjured."
Tsuhimo's eyes landed on Tomi who was advancing and glanced down at Aya. Last time he tried moving around her, somethign went wrong.
Aya's eyes tightened as she nodded slightly. "Go." She murmured.
When Tsuhimo didn't move, she continued. "I've got them under control within twenty feet." She whispered.
Tsuhimo sighed before moving to stand in front of her. When Tomi advanced, Tsuhimo quickly ducked and scooped water up, throwing it towards Tomi.
Tomi's eyes narrowed as he prepared for the water to shift into something. Just as he expected, the water changed into small shards of glass which embedded themselves deep into Tomi's flesh. Tomi gasped and wailed in pain. He reached to pull out a shard. "I-I thought you were w-water based!"
Tsuhimo chuckled. "I am." He stated. "But Tsunesada and I have trained a lot with new techniques. Believe it or not, we have forty years of experience under our belt." He chuckled.
"Ah... you look twenty..." Tomi murmured.
Tsuhimo laughed and waved him off. "Now, now. Flattery doesn't work in the face of death."
Tomi rolled his eyes. "Whatever." He hissed before running towards him again.
Tsuhimo chuckled before kicking up water at Tomi and charging him from behind the water as it turned into shards of glass. Tomi quickly dodged and growled - he was getting annoyed.
Ryuu watched from above as his team faught on. He gritted his teeth as he noticed that his team was getting beaten down. Kasha seemed to be out cold, Tomi couldn't land any good hits on Tsuesada, Emi was struggling to hrut Misaki while keeping away from her attacks, and the rest were slowly being beaten down.
He turned his eyes back to Emi and watched her for a few seconds as he reached up to grab his family crest. He thought back to the day he had given Emi hers and smiled softly. "I love you, Emi..." He whispered and moved to slip his shirt off. He placed his hand over his heart as he sent the strongest shock wave he could muster up to his heart. He moved quickly to the railing and jumped over it, running down the sid of the wall before pushing off of it towards Misaki. While she was distracted with Emi, he tackled her to the ground, gripping her by the throat before throwing her across the field.
He could feel the electricity beginning to make it's courses through his body, so he quickly moved to tetsukane and slammed his own body into his side, knocking him to the ground. He grabbed Tetsukane's arm and pulled him up, throwing him towards Tsuhimo, knocking him to the ground.
By this time, the electricity had made it's full course and Ryuu's eyes began to turned a dark black. Surfaces of his skin began to break as a yellow light emitted from the lines, making a lightning bolt across his chest. e turned his face towards Emi and frowned slightly.
Emi was on the ground, holding a head wound she had recived as she looked at Ryuu. She shook her head, knowing exactly what he was doing - sacrifice. "R-Ryuu, no!" she screamed, wincing at the pain in her head.
Ryuu gritted his teeth and turned his face up towards the ceiling of the enclosed field. "Tatsukami." Ryuu shouted. As soon as the words left his lips, the arena dimmed as light shot from Ryuu's chest. Lightning shot everywhere before coming together to make what looked like a dragon with dark black eyes. It roared as it shot towards the Rogue ninja, killing one at a time; ripping each one of them apart limb by limb with it's razor sharp teeth.
Emi stumbled to her feet. Miame quickly grabbed her. "Emi, don't!"
"H-He'll die if I don't!" Emi cried.
"You going to him will make no difference!" Miame shouted.
Emi ripped her arm from her sensai and ran to Ryuu. She quickly wrapped her arms around him from behind, his electrcity now running through her body. She gritted her teeth and tried not to scream as she hugged Ryuu as tight as she could.
"E-Emi!" Ryuu shouted, glancing over his shoulder. As much as he himself couldn't feel the pain of the electricty since it ran through the family, he knew it was causing her pain. "S-stop!"
"I-I can't lose you, you idiiot!" She screamed.
"You'll die!" He shouted and gritted his teeth. If he were to stop the sacrifice now, something bad would happen.
Emi shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Th-Then I will die with you..." She whispered.
Ryuu clenched his jaw and closed his eyes. Tears streamed down his face as the dragon carried on, destroying the rogue ninja. Finally, the dragon let out a loud, ear-piercing roar before slamming itself into Ryuu's chest, knocking both Ryuu and Emi to the ground.
Ryuu called out in pain as he gripped his chest. It felt as if his flesh was being seared, but he wasn't dead.
"E-Emi!" Ryuu struggled to rolled over. The water had disappeared, but the ground was still wet.
Emi shook her head and held on tighter. "Don't..." She murmured.
Ryuu cried out in pain again. "Emi!" He shouted.
Emi bit her lip as a scream slipped from her throat - the pain was almost too much for her to handle. As Ryuu went to try to roll over again, Ryuu passed out. Emi cried out as she bit her lip harder before the pain knocked her out as well.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Quick, get them stabilized." Tsunade stated, pointing towards the ones who were knocked out. She walked over to the ones who were still conscious, but severely injured. She began to heal their wounds while she glanced at Tomi. Other doctors were working diligently to pull the shards of glass from his flesh carefully without making too much more damage.
Something had went down, but not too much as known. The shinobi were randomly found in the morning at the Konoha gates. It couldn't have been that the injured ones carried the out-cold ones, they were too injured. It wa a mystery that even the injured ones couldn't understand.
It wasn't until almost an hour later when each one was stabalized. Tomi had all the glass taken out and his wounds healed; Miame was healed and her twisted ankle was tended to; Akuso had what looked like minor injuries, but turned out to be a lot more major. Murasaki was out cold again, and they tended to make her body more comfortable until it ws healed from the trauma. Kasha was in the same condition as Murasaki, except a little worse. And Emi and Ryuu were both knocked out. Both of them had their wounds healed, and Emi's head was wrapped up due to a head wound.
Those who were injured but were now healed were let out and given a place to stay until further noticed while the others remained in hospital beds. Later that night, Ryuu woke first. His eyes snapped open and he sat up quickly, looking around the dimly lit room. He breathing was deep, and his chest still felt like it was on fire. He moved from the bed, ripping the cords from his body and made his way to the door.
The light at first blinded him, so he shielded his eyes. "H-hey...a-anyone.." He called out.
Someone touched his arm gently, and her soft voice came as a lullaby to Ryuu despite the siatuation he came from.
"W-where's Emi?" He asked and groaned in pain.
"I need you to return to your room." She said softly, guiding him back to the room.
Ryuu shook his head and pulled his arm back. "I need to see Emi." He stated. His head was swimming and he couldn't stand straight.
"I'm sorry, I can-"
"I want to see Emi." He hissed and gripped the nurses shoulder.
She winced slightly, but then nodded. "Alright, but you have to keep quiet." She whispered.
Ryuu nodded and followed as the nurse guided him to another room. She pushed the door open and led him into the room where Emi and one other patient who Ryuu had no idea who it was, laid on hospital beds.
He quickly made his way to the bed and stumbled slightly when he reached it.
"E-Emi!" He breathed and caressed her cheek. The room was dim again, allowing Ryuu to open his eyes fully and see better. Her head was bandaged and her face had cuts all over it. "Emi.." A tear slipped from his eye and he leaned down to press his lips against hers. "Don't ever do that again!" He cried. "Never!"
The nurse put her hand gently on his arm and pulled him back slightly.
"S-stop..." Ryuu cried and moved his head to lean on her stomach. "Emi..." He whispered, placing his hand atop hers.
"She..." The nurse let out a long breath. "She's in a coma, Ryuu-san." She spoke gently.
Ryuu turned his eyes to the nurse and shook his head. "A-a coma?" He asked.
She nodded slightly. "She won't wake.." She whispered and frowned.
Ryuu's heart began to race and he stood up to look down at Emi. "N-no!" He said and shook her shoulder lightly. "S-she can't be!" He whispered, shaking his head.
The nurse frowned and pushed up a chair behind Ryuu. Ryuu sat and pulled the chair closer to Emi, taking her hand in his.
She rubbed his shoulder gently as she looked at Emi. "What exactly happened?" She asked.
Ryuu wiped his face and leaned his head against the bed as he continued to look at Emi. "S-she...she's..." He shut his eyes tightly. "She's so stupid!" He hissed and began to cry again. "I-it couldn't have went to her! It doesn't work like that! It shouldn't!" He shook his head and buried his face into the bed. "It was suppose to kill me! Not her!" He wiped his face again.
The nurse frowned. "S-she's not dead, Ryuu-san. She's in a coma." She whispered.
"And what's the chances?" He asked and turned his tear streaked face up to the nurse.
She frowned. "Not...very good." She whispered.
Ryuu nodded. "Exactly." He whispered and turned his face back to Emi. "Stupid!" He hissed and slammed his fist down on the chair's arm. "I hate you, Emi! Why did you do that?" He began to cry again.
Miame stood in the doorway frowning. "She saved your life, Ryuu..."
"For what, the cost of herself?" Ruu asked, shaking his head. "I didn't ask her to!"
"She will wake, Ryuu. I have no doubt of it. Emi is strong willed..." Miame said as she moved to the bedside.
"N-no!" Ryuu shouted and stood up to weakly push Miame away. "S-stay away." He cried.
Her face twisted in confusion. "Wh-What? Why? I wont do anything..." She looked at his tormented expression.
Ryuu only frowned and moved to Emi's bedside. He moved his hands to her face as he tried to shake her awake. "E-Emi...please..." He whispered and leaned down to kiss her again. "Please."
Miame frowned more as she looked to the doorway to see Tomi and Akuso standing there now.
"R-Ryuu..." Akuso said softly from the door.
Ryuu ignored him, trying to wake Emi.
Tomi frowned and made his way over to Ryuu, reaching out to touch his shoulder. Ryuu still ignored him.
"Emi!" He cried, moving to shake her shoulders. "Please! Just wake!" He leaned down to hug her. "You're alright..." He whisepred in her ear. "Just wake up."
Tomi gently placed his hands on Ryuu's shoulders and gently tried to pull him back. "R-Ryuu, leave her..."
Ryuu turned back to growl at Tomi. "Leave her?" He asked. "I'm not going to leave her!" He shouted.
"I-I just meant... y-you need rest, Ryuu..." Tomi murmured nervously.
Ryuu narrowed his eyes and shrugged from Tomi's grasp. "Fine." He stated and crawled onto the bed beside Emi, pulling her tightly against himself.
"Ah!...I-I can-" The nurse stopped when Ryuu glared daggers at her.
"Leave. Us. Now." He hissed.
Tomi frowned and looked up at Miame. Miame sighed and guided Tomi to the door.
"I suggest leaving him..." She murmured to the nurse.
When everyone left the room, Ryuu closed his eyes and buried his face into Emi's neck. "Please, Emi...just wake..." He cried softly, hugging her tightly.
Hours passed by and Ryuu was still asking Emi to wake. He brushed her bangs from her face, and massaged her cheek with his thumb.
"It's just a matter of time a few days ago, I saw you, you were fine, remembering what you said about the book you read. The one I got you the beginning of the end. Oh, how we'd talk for hours upon end. What I would give just to do it again. But you're lying there in this hospital bed, won't you open your eyes and let's talk once again..." Ryuu sang softly and rubbed her cheek a little more. He thought back to a few days ago when he walked into his room and noticed that she was reading the very first book he got her. He leaned forward to kiss her lips and leaned his forehead against hers. "If you fly away tonight, I want to tell you that I love you. I hope that you can hear me...I hope that you can feel me. If you fly away tonight..." He sniffled and moved his hand to wipe his tear. "I want to tell you that I'm sorry..."
Emi stirred slightly and groaned. "I-I didn't... know you could sing..." She whispered, her voice barely audiable.
Ryuu gasped and pulled back to look at Emi. Her eyes were partly open. "E-Emi...?" He breathed, turning her face to look at him. "A-are...are you..."
"Dead... no. In pain... very much so..." She winced and sighed.
"Emi!" Ryuu's face brightened and he pulled Emi into a tight embrace. More tears fell from his eyes and he began to kiss her face.
"R-Ryuu..." Emi murmured, wincing. "I-I hurt..." She groaned - as much as she was happy that he wasn't dead, or from what she believed. his constant kissing and moving her around hurt her a lot.
Ryuu gasped and pulled back. "I-I'm sorry." He breathed and touched her hand gently. "Emi...I'm so glad you're alive." He whispered, his voice cracking slightly.
Emi forced a weak smile. "I-I don't understand... h-how are we both alive?" She whispered.
Ryuu frowned. "Don't ever do that again..." He whispered. "You...were hurt very badly." He murmured. "You were in a coma..."
Emi's face twisted in confusion. "I-I was? ...How long was I out for?" She murmured, now looking around the room. "Where are we anyway?" She asked, suddenly feeling dumb for the first time in her life.
"Konoha hospital." He whispered and kissed her cheek. "And thankfully you weren't out long. We only arrived early this morning." He replied and moved to kiss her lips. "I-I..I thought I lost..." He voice trailed over and he pressed his lips harder to hers. "Don't ever do that again." He murmured agaist her lips.
She kissed back weakly before pulling back and searching his eyes. "I-I didn't want to lose you, Ryuu... I-I wouldn't be able t-to live on my own without you..."
He frowned. "I-I don't want to lose you either." He murmured and entwined his fingers gently with hers. "I don't know what I would do if I lost you." He whispered.
She smirked slightly and used her other hand to touch his cheek, wiping away some stray tears. "A-Apparently cry a lot." She smiled gently then frowned. "I-I'm sorry that I made you worry... I-I wasn't really thinking when I ran at you.. a-and I suppose that was a good thing in a way, because somehow, we're both alive..." She whispered.
Ryuu frowned and nodded. "I'm baffled that we're alive. That was suppose to kill me." He murmured. "Then I thought it had transferred to you and killed you." He frowned and caressed her cheek. "But that doesn't get you out of trouble, missy." He stated and frowned further.
Emi smirked. "You're in trouble too. Who did you think you were going off and using that stupid technique, huh? You were going to leave me just like that?"
"I promised your father I would ensure your survival." He whispered. "At the rate we were going, we'd all have died..."
Emi sighed and shook her head. "You're an idiot Ryuu... Don't you ever use that technique again, you understand me?"
"Don't you ever try to sacrifice yourself for me, then." He murmured.
She shrugged. "You started it."
Ryuu laughed lightly and kissed her softly again. "I love you so much."
She smiled gently. "I love you too, Ryuu." She then paused as her face twisted in panic. "My father... is never going to let me on a mission again..." She sighed.
Ryuu sighed. "I almost don't want you going on another mission." He laughed nervously.
She stared at him blankly. "You requested me on this mission."
Ryuu nodded. "I know..." He whispered. "But I still wouldn't want you going on another mission."
She smiled. "Too bad."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
"That's it! No more missions for you, I'm serious!" Ren stated as he looked over Emi's condition, and after hearing that she had been in a coma.
"B-But dad I-"
"No! I can't lose you Emi!" Ren exclaimed.
"B-But I killed off a lot!" Emi frowned.
"That's not the point." Ren stated.
"If it hadn't been for Emi, we would have all died." Ryuu stated.
"I don't care Ryuu. I knew this would happen!" Ren sighed.
The Kazkage cleared his throat from his desk, bringing Ren's attention to himself. "That is for me to decide." He stated.
Ren shook his head. "Not if Emi retires as a villager and not a shinobi."
"D-Dad, I'm not doing that..." Emi murmured.
"From the reports I've been given from Akuso, Emi was a great deal of help." The Kazekage stated. "He explained the entire mission to me with the additional paperwork on top, and I've come to my decision that nistead of retiring, Sakura Emi is going to be promoted.
Ryuu gapped slightly, along with Ren.
"Sakura, Emi, you are no longer a genin. You have been promoted to chunin with the work you have done on the mission. Your work was magnificient despite hardly having chakra. I'm glad to hear we have such loyal, hard-working shinobi here in Sunagakure. Keep up the training, and strive to become greater." He smiled and winked.
Emi's mouth was parted and she seemed stuck in a trance.
"R-really?' Ryuu asked.
The Kazekage nodded. "Of course."
Ryuu laughed before standing and picking Emi up in his arms, spinning her around in circles. When the Kazekage began to speak again, Ryuu stopped and they both looked at him.
"Akuso also told me about your bravery. You intercepted Ryuu's sacrifice to save his team, to save him, but it only caused the two of you to live instead of die. Your name will be written down in the book of hero's for giving your life willingly not knowing you would survive." He said.
Emi blushed brightly. "Th-That... i-isn't n-needed... s-sir..." She murmured.
The Kazekage laughed and waved her off. "You've been so modest all the years I've known you, Emi. Stop it. You deserve such a reward."
Her blush deepened as she bowed at the Kazekage. "Th-Thank you, sir..." She murmured.
The Kazekage nodded and turned to Ren. "I want to hear nothing about it. You should be proud of your daughter." He stated. "Now get."
Emi lifted her head and smiled at Ryuu and then her father. Ren let out a breath before smiling and pulling Emi into his arms and walking out the door with Ryuu.
"You're mother wont be any happier than I am..." He murmured to Emi.
Emi shrugged. "You both will get over it..."
"I'll just kidnap her." Ryuu said and winked at Ren.
Ren sighed. "If the Kazekage hadn't just ordered me to be happy, you wouldn't be allowed to see Emi for a month..."
"You wouldn't have done that." Ryuu said and frowned.
Ren smirked. "You think not?"
Ryuu laughed nervously and scratched his cheek. "You know neither of us could do it."
Ren shrugged. "Wouldn't be my problem."
"Dad... you know I'd win if I sweet-talked you." Emi smirked.
Ren groaned. "Both of you can be quiet now..."
"We love you, Rennie boy!" Ryuu said and batted his eyelashes.
Ren stared blankly at Ryuu. "I need to have a serious talk with Katashi..."
Ryuu laughed before wrapping his arm around Emi's shoulder. "Am I alright to take Emi on a date now as a thank you for saving my life?"
Ren sighed. "Are you going to give me an option?"
Ryuu smiled. "I did protect your daughter with my life..." He stated and turned to look at Emi blankly. "Until she almost killed herself."
Ren chuckled. "I believe you, Ryuu. Emi is just subborn..."
Emi smiled innocently. "I... I love you Daddy.."
"Oh... go away..." He murmrued and walked off ahead of the two.
"See yah, Rennie boy." Ryuu said and snickered.
Emi smiled at Ryuu. "You don't have to take me on a date, you know..."
"Do you have better plans?" He asked and raised a brow.
"W-Well.. n-no.." Emi murmured. "But I look like crap..."
"And I don't?" He laughed. "Let's go somewhere looking like crap together."
Emi smiled gently. "And where do you want to go then?"
Ryuu shrugged and entwined his fingers with hers. "A walk." He replied and smiled.