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Disclaimer: Unsurprisingly, I own nothing. Naruto and Harry Potter belong to their respective creators.


Flashback: T minus 14 days: Britain

"Whoever organised the security here knows what they're doing. The detail is tighter than a steel drum."

The disappointing news cast a dampener on the camp. Toshi stared at Jiro. "Three days of watching and that's it?! I could have told you that before we came here!"

Jiro shrugged, and moved to the fire. Taking one of the rabbits, he bit into it carefully. It tasted bad. Genzo was a fine strategist, a cunning fighter and an experienced assassin, but his cooking was truly terrible. He continued to eat the rabbit, grimacing and gagging. Eventually, the taste overcame him, and he tossed the carcass into the woods. "I vote Genzo never cooks again. All in agreement?"

Toshi raised his hand immediately. Kakashi looked at the pair, then looked at the rabbits. Slowly, he raised his hand. Genzo stood up, hurt by the team's cruelty. "Listen hear, you whippersnappers! I'll have you know I have cooked for four princes, seven ministers and even a very beautiful and very picky princess, and they all found my food delicious!"

Kakashi smiled slightly. "Didn't one prince end up hospitalised with food poisoning?"

Genzo looked away, embarrassed. "Well... yes. But I did warn him not to drink any sake after my Special Squirrel Soup."

Toshi looked confused. "Special Squirrel Soup? What the hell is that?"

Genzo smiled. "Ah, young Toshi… Let me tell you about my Special Squirrel Soup…" Kakashi coughed. "Please don't. The rabbits are bad enough…" Jiro and Toshi burst out laughing.

Genzo muttered a few curses. Kakashi continued. "Jiro does bring up a good point, though. We haven't had any decent food in a while. We could easily go and forage in a civilian town. Who's in favour?"

Toshi's hand was up immediately, Jiro an instant later. Genzo nodded his approval. "Then it's settled. Toshi, you have two hours before your watch begins. Get to the town and bring back as much as you can carry."

Toshi leapt to his feet, and sprinted into the night, excited at the prospect of food that wasn't prepared by Genzo.

Jiro took a seat on a rock, withdrawing a small notebook. He tossed it to Kakashi without comment. Kakashi lifted his protector and opened his left eye. He skimmed through the notebook quickly, memorising the contents in a few moments, then passed it to Genzo, who nodded his thanks and read through it carefully. Kakashi closed his eye and replaced his head protector. He looked over at Jiro, who was rubbing his eyes. The strain's getting to him, he thought. I'll try and give him a break soon.

Jiro was one of the very few long-range specialists in Konoha. His clan were renowned for their vision. While they lacked the all-round sight of the Hyuugas, they could see accurately for a greater distance. This made him perfect for reconnaissance work. In battle, Jiro's eyesight was used to great effect with his archery skills. Using a chakra enhanced bow, a clan secret for years, Jiro could hit a pinhead at over a thousand meters. However, prolonged use of his telescopic vision drained him, and in the worst case could cause the eyes to deteriorate. Jiro was applying some protective eye drops. His routine done, he settled down to get some sleep.

They had made a lot of progress since leaving Upper Chorlesbury. Kakashi gave the team a full briefing on what he had seen with the aid of the Sharingan, and Genzo had supplemented this with a general tactical approach. Finding the location of the target had been more difficult, but Genzo had visited a few towns and made some enquiries. The mansion was five miles away from their campsite, and their target rested within. They had been observing the perimeter for three days. Jiro's notes on the schedule were fairly comprehensive. The next step was to attempt an infiltration of the mansion to get an idea of the interior. This was the riskiest part of the mission, the part on which success and failure truly depended. Genzo and Kakashi had been deliberating for most of the day, trying to decide who should take the task of entering the house.

Kakashi looked at his team members. "Everyone, get some rest. We'll need it."


The pub went silent as the two men walked in. The crowd took in their blue cloaks, their robes, their foreign features. Some men seemed apprehensive, assuming them to be Death Eaters; others welcomed the sight of newcomers. The two men walked over to the bar. In a quiet voice which split the silence like a knife, one of them said "We apologise for any disturbance, but my friend and I are tourists. We were wondering if we might have a drink here…"

The barman stared hard at the man. "Few years ago, wouldn't have been a problem. Now though… I'm sure you understand that times are bad now. Lot of folks round here don't like newcomers. Can't be sure who to trust."

The man nodded. "I give you my word that we are no threat. And as proof of our sincerity..." The man reached slowly into his robes and extracted a wand. He placed it on the table. His companion followed suit. The barman stared at the two wands, then at their owners. Shaking his head, he smiled ruefully. "You men can stay. And I apologise for the trouble. Here, first one's on the house."

He pulled them both a pint of local beer. The two men accepted, and drank it appreciatively. The pub returned to normal, the chatter resuming. The two men moved over to a table, and sat down. They were a strange pair. One was very tall, with dark hair and skin, the other was slim and pale with black hair. They sat in silence, sipping their beer. A few witches, notorious for their appetites, approached them. The men were polite enough, but gave no hint of interest in them. The witches left, disappointed.

Eventually, the slim man returned to the bar. The barman was polishing some pint glasses. "How can I help, young man?" The slim man looked around, checking that he wouldn't be overheard. "I was hoping to get some information," he whispered, "about a certain Mr Riddle." The barman stiffened. "How do you know that name?!" he muttered, furiously. The slim man looked him in the eye, and then took off the glove on his right hand. The barman looked down, and saw the ring. His face changed. Looking at the floor, he mumbled "I live to serve, master. What do you require?" The slim man asked a question. He listened carefully to the answer, then left. His companion followed.

When they reached the forest, they released the Henge. They had a lot of work to do.


It was four hours past sunset when the infiltration team left the camp, although team was a rather optimistic title. Jiro was too tired to accompany him, so Toshi was flying solo. He checked the map of the forest. Jiro had spent most of the first day mapping the area, and had devised a series of paths and markers to ease travel from the camp. Toshi was currently on route seven, one which was supposedly easy to navigate and lacking in obstacles. Knowing Jiro, he's probably set a few traps on it. Shaking his head at his companion's tendency to joke around, he turned left at a white stone next to a yew tree. Three clicks and closing. He maintained the chakra enhanced sprint for another two hundred metres, then he arrived at the red stone. He returned to normal speed, and focused on suppressing his chakra as much as possible. The first ward was a variation on a heat camera: it sounded an alarm if anything with a human sized magical signature went through it. Toshi forced himself to suppress all his energy, then slipped through. The ward extended for around five metres. Toshi walked it, every step agonising with the effort of holding in his chakra. Finally, he was through. He returned to his usual speed, making a right turn at an oak tree with an oddly low hanging branch. He looked at the map. From the tree, eight hundred metres to the second ward. He kept running. There! The telltale red stone was ahead, signalling another ward. This time, there was less to worry about. He approached the stone, and a face appeared in front of him.

"Password?" it said, in a voice like a nail dragging on stone.

"Noxferrox" Toshi replied. The face disappeared. Toshi stepped passed, and walked slowly. He saw the next marker. He stood on top of it, then turned thirty degrees right and began running. The last ward was a kilometre away. He passed the two hundred marker, then the four. He kept running. He passed the two hundred marker, then the four. He kept running. He passed the… What the fuck?!

He stopped. He slowed to a walk. He passed the green two hundred marker. He kept walking. He passed the brown four hundred marker. He kept walking. Then he saw it. The green marker. Genjutsu! He halted, closed his eyes, and began to focus. Sweat dripped from his forehead as he concentrated. Finally, he did it. Opening his eyes, he stepped forward. Two figures were waiting for him. Toshi whipped out his kodachi. The figures approached. He recognised them instantly.

Oh, shit. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!!

Toshi turned once, then stepped into his shadow. The two figures were unconcerned. The first attack was at the large one. He blocked it casually with his sword, then punched Toshi in the gut. Toshi disappeared again. This time he attacked the smaller figure. He thrust the kodachi at the man's groin. He didn't even see the counter. The kodachi went flying. Toshi slammed into a tree. The figures walked towards him.

Wheezing, Toshi stared up at them. "You won't get any fucking answers from me, you dirty bastards!"

A fist crashed into his jaw. "Keep a civil tongue, boy. Remember who your betters are."

Toshi spat in the man's face. A foot stamped on his shoulder. Toshi refused to cry out. "So, a tough guy? Let's see just how tough!" The big man grabbed Toshi's kodachi. His companion held up his hand. "Stop it, Kisame-san. We aren't here for this."

Kisame spat. "Fine. Let's just get this over with."

Itachi stared at the ninja below him. "Take us to your boss."

Toshi glared back. "No!"

Itachi shook his head slightly. "That wasn't a request. You will take me to your boss." Toshi stared into the sharingan eyes, watching them thicken.

Then everything went black.