Chatper 15: Selection

The morning light beamed in on the office of Naruto Uzumaki. He sat at his desk writing and signing papers, until a call reached his ears; "Lord Hokage! I have an urgent matter to discuss with you!"

Kiba Inuzuka had fallen backwards through the door to the Hokage's office as Shino Aburame pushed past. Shino's face was mostly hidden, beneath hood, collar, and sunglasses. On his back was a gourd, and escaping from the opening of the gourd were many insects, anxiously scrapping around.

Naruto rose from his chair to meet Shino, "What is the matter?"

Kiba had finally got back on his feet as the distressed Shino took Naruto by the shoulders, "My daughter has been assassinated."

Naruto's eyes shot open. Kiyomi Aburame… dead… after that talk with Sasuke… no, it must be coincidence… but if it isn't…

"Kiba, send a messenger to the house of Anko Hatake, Kurenai Yuhi, and Rock Lee. I need for every member of those families to report to my office immediately," Naruto began to tap his fingers on his desk as his thoughts raced. Could we have been overheard? Is this the work of the Akatsuki?

"What about my daughter?" Shino began to shake Naruto, and the Hokage smacked the Aburame clan leader's hands away.

"Get a hold of yourself! Kiba!" the Hokage called out as Kiba started to leave. "I want you to send Ino Nara and Hanabi Sarutobi to the house of Aburame to begin investigating the body. I want Sakura Uchiha to come to my office as well." Sakura, Ino, and Hanabi were all medical shinobi at this time.

Naruto sat back in his chair and waited for the parties to show.

-

The door burst open as Rock Lee, and his adopted son, Brock, flew in, crying out, "Dynamic Entry!" as they did. Everyone else gave them disapproving looks. Most of the others had already arrived.

Naruto looked around. Anko and Obito were not there yet. He looked over to Kurenai Yuhi, in her red robe and wrappings, a concerned look on her face. Asuma Sarutobi Jr. shook back his long, black hair. Under his red eyes were also signs of recent conflict, and he still gripped the trench knives he inherited from his father. Sakura Uchiha held her hands over Asuma's arms, which carried a few puncture marks on each arm. The medical ninja was applying her jutsu to the wounded shinobi.

Brock Lee, who supported the same bowl hair cut and eyebrows as his adoptive father, broke the silence, "What happened to you, Asuma?"

"I was attacked by something in my sleep," Asuma began. "I felt a stabbing pain in my arms, and I woke up to fight back my assailant… but he or she disappeared before I could see or do anything…"

"His wound's wouldn't stop bleeding on their own," Kurenai continued. "I managed to bandage him up well enough to stop it. This morning, we took of the bandages to check his wounds and they started bleeding again."

Sakura dropped her hands to her sides. She looked very youthful for her age, in a soft pink robe. She nodded, "The wounds are closed now, though you should probably take it easy on…"

The door burst open again. Obito Hatake rushed in, alone.

"I was on a mission last night, and I came home to find my mother dead! What the hell is going on?"

Naruto bit his lip. This is no coincidence… "Sakura, please go to the house of Anko Hatake and examine the body…" With a nod, Sakura turned to leave, but Obito ran forward, grabbing Naruto by the collar of his coat.

"This is bullshit! You're supposed to protect this village! What the hell were you doing last night?!"

Naruto lowered his head, "Obito Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi Jr., and Brock Lee. I have selected you to be members of an anti-Akatsuki team. I spoke of this last night to someone, and I'm afraid I was overheard. Kiyomi Aburame was also considered as a member of this team, but she was killed last night… We will resolve this attack… but for now, I must ask the three of you to prepare to journey the world on a mission to put an end to the new Akatsuki, before it gains too much power."

The door opened again, one final time. Ino Nara walked in first, in her purple dress. Her long blonde hair flowed behind her. Hanabi Sarutobi followed, her white robes flowing with her movement. Her pale eyes seemed to stare through the Hokage. Shortly behind them was Kiba and his large friend, the dog Akamaru, who made no noise.

Kiba began, "In addition to what I was told to do, I sent shinobi to check on the status of the other Kage who were to leave the village this morning," Naruto's heart stopped. I almost forgot! But Kiba continued, "They all made it out of the village alive. We should get word from them within a week."

"We examined the body of Kiyomi Aburame, and the cause of death appears to be blood lost," Ino began. "Most interestingly, it appears the wounds came from an animal bite, rather than a weapon or jutsu wound. From what we gather, we have reason to believe that the animal, or animals, as there were two bite marks on the neck, were reptiles or a single reptile."

Naruto's heart sank. Reptile…

Next Chapter: Hologram