The Path A Ninja Walks...
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Snake In The Grass
A/N: WARNING-The character known as Sage Amesawa uses a lot of profanity and colorful language as part of his "colorful" personality. Be prepared if you are sensitive to that. Please note it is not because I condone such manner of speech, and also the character does not mean to use it as a way to be harmful, it is just his personality.
Already the screams of the fallen were echoing through the forest. Blood curtling.
Enough to stop Saseme and her team in their tracks and seek refuge in the foliage.
"...Sounds like things really have begun..." said Sage.
"Y-Yeah..." Hana gulped.
The group pondered each focsuing on the Earth Scroll between them
"So...looks like the Heaven Scroll is our target." said Saseme.
"Yeah, but how do we even begin to get our hands on one?" asked Hana.
"Hmmm...good question." said Sage.
"If we travel out in the open like this we may as well paint targets on our backs." said Saseme,"That and it's a matter of who should hold it..." she blinked,"The person to carry it should be the one least expected." she stated."The one least likely to be targeted."
"Okay so how do we determine which one that is?" asked Hana.
Sage pondered for a while as the three gathered around their Earth Scroll trying to determine who would be the best scroll protector.
"Well...Saseme is a bad bitch..." Sage blinked,"So it's not like I'd worry about the scroll's safety in her care...but..." he sighed,"But she's also an Uchiha...which means she's more likely to be target number one due to her name alone." said Sage.
"There are two types of enemies out here." Saseme stated,"Those who are egotistical with pride and seeking honor." she muttered,"They search out stronger targets for the sake of the challenge."
"Then there are those who will attack who they deem as the weakest link, over all damaging the unit as a whole." said Sage.
"Well I think it's clear we can't give Saseme the scroll." Hana muttered,"She's most likely to be target number one."
"And I find it wise if we don't let Hana hold it either." said Saseme
"Are you calling me weak!?" Hana huffed.
"Not at all." Saseme blinked,"You're smart, and your skills in Genjutsu aren't bad...but You don't do well in close combat situations.
"Says she who over exherts herself into collapsing!" said Hana.
"That's exactly why I think Sage should take charge of the scroll." said Saseme.
"What? Me!?" Sage blinked,"Why!?"
"Because, on top of having better control in physical combat you also can hold your own even when you split into your 7 clones." Saseme explained,"Each of your clones as well as your physical body can stand on their own temporarily in a fight." she blinked,"On top of that, you can easily hide the scroll among one of them and split them up in an emergency situation."
"I see your point." Sage blinked,"Very well then." he said softly taking the scroll in his hand,"I'll hold onto the scroll for now."
Suddenly some shrubs began shaking not far from the gathered team.
"An Enemy!" Hana said as she quickly pulled a Kunai, battle ready.
"It could be someone who has a heaven scroll-" said Sage
In silence, Saseme immediatly threw shuriken into the bushes, but they seemed to have missed the target, as who ever it was began moving quickly.
"You won't escape!" said Saseme as she took off after it. She wrapped the handle of a Kunai with a paper bomb and took an all point shot-
"WAIT-" A famailiar voice from the bushes sounded but it was too late. The blade landed and the foliage around it was blown away. within the after math of smoke and dirt was an injured Sasuke Uchiha.
The girl gasped.
"Saseme, stop!" called Sage.
"Isn't that your brother!?" asked Hana.
Saseme was shocked. She couldn't escape what she had just committed. All at once images played back in her memory bank-
The blood.
The fire.
Each clan member falling.
She was crying.
Scared...
All she wanted was to feel safety in the presence of one familiar face...reaching for one person...
"S-Sa...su...ke..."
XXXXX
Hana had just finished wrapping up Sasuke's last wound. He was dirtied from the explosion of dirt when the paper bomb made impact.
"Geeze Saseme..." Hana muttered,"You almost exploded him." she blinked,"Would you really kill even your own brother to pass this exam?"
"Don't start." said Sage as he poked at a small fire that cooked a few fish that he had caught for his unit and an extra for the unexpected guest."
"Everyone is an enemy here, Hana." said Saseme,"That includes my brother..."
"Tender as always...aren't you, Saseme?" Sasuke chuckled.
A chill tickled her spine and she scooted back a bit further. Something didn't feel right about this...Sasuke.
She couldn't put her finger on it...
He had his face, and his voice. Perhaps it was just a twin thing but something just seemed to be off... way off.
"So cautious..." he snickered.
"What are you even doing here, Sasuke?" blinked Hana.
"Yeah, where's your unit?" asked Sage.
"I got separated from Sakura and Naruto..." he stated," We split up in search of enemies in the area who might have an Earth Scroll to go with our Heaven one."
Sage twitched.
Shit...WE have an Earth Scroll...!
He thought to himself.
Saseme twitched herself.
I knew it...
She blinked.
This is a trap!
"Relax, little Ember~" Sasuke chuckled as he watched his sister visibly cringe at the old nick name from long ago,"I'm not here to take your Earth Scroll..." he smiled as he sat up,"After all...we're family, right? I'll always take care of you-" Suddenly he was met with the point of a Kunai at his throat, and a soft gasp escaped him.
Wh-What is this!?
Sasuke thought to himself.
I...c-can't move...!
"I gotta hand it to her~" Hana chimed,"I don't like her but her skills of perception are top notch!" she grinned.
"But of course~" Sage beamed,"Saseme's eyes are sharp...leave it to an Uchiha~"
"Wh-What is this!?" Sasuke huffed. His body twitched as he tried to move. But he couldn't feel anything. He was numb.
"Saseme had her suspicions of you from the get go!" said Hana as she readied her blade,"She told me to sabotage a solavant into the medication of the bandages we used to wrap you up~" she smirked,"Personally I thought it was a bit harsh that she would be so willing to poison her own brother- but then something came to me." she blinked,"Saseme and Sasuke are twins..." she stated,"I figure, if anyone could know or recognize Sasuke better than we could- it would be his own twin sister!" she smirked.
"That's right!" Sage stated,"If Saseme sensed something was off with you, her own twin brother, then we knew something had to be wrong!"
"But we couldn't know for sure." said Hana,"After all. your trasformation of him is pretty spot on...you look just like him, and you even have his voice." she blinked,"That's probably why Saseme had me use a Paralysis solovant rather than a poison...just to be safe I guess." she scoffed,"So maybe she isn't as harsh as I pegged her to be...at least not ebough to kill her own brother..." Hana shrugged,"It really is too bad we couldn't discover this near perfect ruse from the beginning though..." said Hana as her green eyes narrowed and flashed with sharp intensity,"...I would have poisoned you in beat!"
"I don't know who you are..." Saseme said in a low growl,"but whoever you may be...you're certainly not Sasuke!" she hissed,"There's no way in hell you're my brother..." she blinked,"...So identify yourself!"
"Hmmm~" Sasuke smirked,"Oh? And how can you be so sure Saseme?" he snickered,"Little Ember~?"
Saseme whinced and threw a knife right by his face. Being unable to move out of the way a pained grunt sounded from him as a thin cut opened on his cheek and she readied another one.
"Sasuke, wouldn't hesitate." Saseme stated, "It doesn't matter if we're bretheren or not- Even if I am his little sister, if I had something he needed in a test like this, such as our Earth Scroll... he wouldn't hesitate to take it, or go down trying to." she grumbled,"My brother just isn't so soft hearted..." she smirked, "Even if he were gentle as such, we received our scrolls separately so I don't even know how he would know about it, let alone how you do." she blinked,"The fact remains, if I have it, and he needed it, he would take it, with no hesitation or remorse."
"My, that'd be awful cruel of me don't you think?" the Sasuke look-a-like chuckled,"You're my beloved twin after all~"
"Yeah? Well..." Saseme shrugged,"...Sasuke and I aren't exactly on the best of terms right now..." she scoffed," The days of him calling me 'Little Ember' died with the rest of our clan!"
Burned away along with everything else we ever were and used to be...
She huffed,"And he hasn't taken care of me for quite some time now...I'm here on my own merit, not his tender love and care~" she said sarcastically,"So I ask again...Who the hell are you!?" she growled,"If you cooperate, we might go easy on you..."
"Hmm...Heh heh heh heh...mmmmm~" the transformed imposter gave an ominous laugh as a long tongue slithered out from between his lips and lapped away the blood that dripped down his cheek,"My My...Aren't you such a smart little girl~?" he smirked as the transformation dissipated and the imposter's true form was brought to light.
"You're that grass Ninja from earlier!" Sage huffed as he backed a good distance, prepared to split himself if it was their scroll this woman was after-
"Relax, child~" she scoffed as she revealed her own Earth Scroll,"You have nothing I seek~."
"If that's the case then why have you come!?" asked Hana,"We both have Earth Scrolls so there's no need for a pointless battle..."
"Unless it's not the Earth Scroll she's after." said Saseme.
"Clever girl~" the woman smirked,"I suppose I wasn't entirely truthful about you having nothing I seek~" she said,"I would say a better point to make would be-the boy isn't the one carrying what I'm after~"
"Then...what ARE you after?" asked Hana.
The grass Shinobi smirked, and suddenly her body stretched directly toward Saseme, startled she threw her knife but it missed entirely so she needed to run.
"But the Solovant!" Hana called out.
"You think that weak mix of herbs will be enough to subdue me!?" the woman laughed, and suddenly she had Saseme's body constricted.
"Saseme!" Sage called out,"Let her go, you psycho bitch!" He tossed a paper bomb wrapped Kunai at the target but she only caught it and instantly returned it to him!"
"SHIT!" he cried out as he took a shielding cover with his body as it exploded upon impact.
"Sage!" Hana cried out and she leapt to break his fall.
The Grass Shinobi smirked and leered down at Saseme who shot glares at her in her struggle.
"Mm...such strong and willful eyes~" she chuckled,"Yes...That will, that fire...Those Uchiha eyes..."
Saseme gasped.
Uchiha Eyes!?
she blinked.
The woman smirked.
"I had heard there were two others that possessed the same eyes as Itachi...!"
"What do you know about Itachi!?" Saseme snapped.
"Oh...he and I are such dear old friends~"
Saseme scoffed.
"Somehow I doubt that..." she muttered.
"It seems the rumors however are true..." the woman smirked as she looked into Saseme's activated Sharingan,"You and the one called Sasuke really do share the same eyes!"
Could this woman be after The Sharingan!?
She laughed and slowly traced her tongue from Saseme's neck to her cheek. The girl in grasp visibly cringed discomfortingly and snapped at her like a dog. in an attampt to bite the tongue that touched her and had just barely escaped.
"Hahaha you sure are fiesty indeed!" she laughed,"Your chakra is great, your senses keen and your eyes are sharp...however..."She hummed, almost disappointed by her capture,"I'm afraid your physique just isn't quite cut for it..." she smirked and sent Saseme flying through the air.
"Dammit...!" Sage gruffed as he leapt to catch her.
"Wait, Sage! Your wounds!" called Hana.
"There's no time!" he huffed catching the startled girl in his arms.
"She's...so fast!" Saseme huffed, her Sharingan activated,"It's...inhuman!"
"So sweet~" the woman chuckled,"You have potential girl, there's no harm in keeping you on the back burner...for now..." she smirked,"But I feel an even better specimen awaits...!" and with that, The woman gifted the Genin with a parting paper bomb explosion as she made her escape into the smoke and fire.
"Saseme!" Sage called her name but she seemed lost in the ringing of her ears,"Saseme, are you okay!?"
She finally blinked back to reality, retracting her Sharingan and nodding as she tried to catch her breath.
"What was WITH that Psycho!?" Hana huffed.
"I don't know..." Saseme mumbled as she struggled to get to her feet, replaying the woman's parting words in her head.
"But I feel an even better specimen awaits~!"
An even better specimen...?
Saseme blinked.
I don't like the sound of that...
She gulped.
Could she have meant...
Saseme gasped.
"What!?" said Hana.
"What is it, Saseme?" asked Sage.
"I have to go!" Saseme dashed off in a hurry.
"But wait!" Hana called out,"Where are you going!?"
"Let's go, Hana!" said Sage.
"Seriously!?" Hana huffed,"You too!?"
"After what just happened...we'd be better off not being separated for the time being..." he said,"So wherever Saseme is going, We're gonna follow!"
Sasuke!
Saseme called desparately in her mind.
That woman...she's going after Sasuke!
To be Continued