Four months of training, mock battles and rigorous preparation. Led by Ginkiba, hundreds of Stone and Rain shinobi head south in the Land of Rain to relieve an ambushed platoon. The sounds of clashing steel, screams of fighting and dying get louder and louder. Ryuko's heart races in his chest and a cold feeling washes over him. He grips his scabbarded katana to the point where his knuckles turn white. He looks around. Comrades by his side, in front and in back. He steels his nerves as the fighting gets louder. A metallic smell hits him, then the sour and uniquely disgusting smells of blood and vomit hit like a rampaging steed. He brushes it off and pushes on. They greet the battlefield.

The deafening roar of waves of shinobi stabbing and hacking at one another, the screeching of blades crashing into each other and breaking through armor and bone alike. The bloody and gruesome tug of war played by the lines of shinobi, broken down into skirmishes, the victors moving to assist their allies. When one man fell, another always took his place to finish the fight. Ryuko surveys the corpse littered cityscape, hoping to find some instruction in the chaos.

"Get your shit together!" He turns to see a Stone shinobi, armed and ready to kill, running past him and into the madness. He follows, throwing away the scabbard and picks a target. A Leaf shinobi, ready to plunge his blade into a fallen ally. Ryuko plunges the katana into his back and yanks it back out in one swift movement. The fallen soldier grimaces and screams and Ryuko freezes at the sight of the sword that landed in his arm. "Shit, shit! I'm sorry! I-"

He's knocked to the ground, the air forced out of his lungs and scrambles to his feet. He faces his sensei wielding an ōdachi painted with blood, guts and viscera. Her face and arms are equally gory and her eyes are terrifyingly unrecognizable. She puts a hand on his shoulder. "Gather yourself and fight."

Ryuko nods rapidly, nervously and she runs back into the grinder. He joins the mass of bodies, trying to break through the nigh impenetrable human wall as his heart beats hard as he inhales the sour air, breathing in sulfur as body after body fall like dominoes. Finally able to even see the fighting, he lifts his blade and stabs away at anyone unlucky enough to stumble or fall. Never for even a second did he stay still, eyes darting from ground to enemy, ground to enemy. He screams as a blade cuts into his shoulder, sending a sharp searing through his body. He thrusts his blade into the bastard's chest, yanks it back out, raises his arms and cuts through the enemy's neck like it was made of butter. Every pound of pressure pushes deeper, bursting open blood vessels like a shattering flower vase, disgustingly cracking as it pushes through the spine. The body falls backwards and he stares at it, watching it squirt blood from a fresh stump, the entire head twisted into an agonized grimace. His ears ring, his face goes numb and a cold dread freezes him like a snake's venom was flowing through his veins. He tightens his grip on the handle, pressing his fingers against the gaps of the red wrapping, his hands, arms, face and dark brown vest almost blending in color like some horrific camouflage. At some point his lungs stopped working but his body kept fighting and refused to stop. Soon enough, the battle was over. The dead are counted and prepared to be sent home, the injured sent off for medical care. Ryuko stands in the field of corpses, overwhelmed by the sudden quiet. Some of the bodies are riddled with arrows shot from every angle. Shinobi venture into the crimson swamp, taking the scattered weapons and headbands; symbols of their victory. Ryuko looks down, his own blade firmly planted into a body wearing a green vest. The forehead protector is dark blue, drenched in blood but the metal plate engraved with the enemy's symbol is mostly untouched. He takes it and weighs the thing in his hands against the life he took. He takes six more. They march back to their headquarters, greeted by the smell of barbecue and starting up some lively conversation. His comrades, allies, even friends are gathered around and laugh away their troubles. He joins them, still clutching that bloody headband.

"Ey." He turns to see a shinobi bearing Rain's symbol young but older than himself. "You did good out there." He hands him a small cup of some clear liquid, raising his own. "To victory." He smiles, makes a face as he knocks back the fiery drink and laughs along to some untold joke.

In a one room hospital, the injured rest on rows of raised beds, separated by light colored dividers decorated with flowers, attempting to bring some happiness to the drab environment. A chorus of pained groans echoes through the place, occasionally joined by a pained scream or yelp. Tsubaki herself is among them, sleeping off a deep wound in her left leg, sewn up and covered in bandages. Her vest sits next to the cot, uniform replaced by a light blue shirt and shorts and a small bit of painkiller coursing through her system. She's shaken awake by a smiling blonde with hair over his eyes. "Hey, sleepy."

"Tanpoooo." She slurs, smiling in return. "What are you doing here?"

"I snuck in." He sits next to her. "What happened to your leg?" He gasps for dramatic effect. "You get stabbed?"

She nods slowly.

"Ah, that sucks. I blew up some stuff. They didn't let me on a bird or anything but I did get to see 'em. Akahane let me throw bombs though so that was pretty cool. And guess what?" She blinks at him, still smiling. "I used those firecrackers you got me. Thanks for those."

"...welcome."

He sighs. "Talking with you like this sucks. You know where Mejiro or Ryuko are?"

"Ryuko's with his mooooom, momma's boy."

"Heh. Don't let him hear you say that, might end up throwing a fit."

She doesn't respond, having fallen asleep. Hearing someone approach, he weaves a jutsu and sinks into the ground. "I swear I heard someone." A doctor remarks.

Akatatsu watches as Ryuko leaves the festivity and joins him outside the building just as it begins to rain. "You fought well, Ryuko. You should be proud." She looks over to him clutching that bloody headband. "How many?"

"I don't know."

She sighs. "You fought well. Hone your skills further and perhaps that will encourage the enemy to listen."

He looks down at the metal plate. "Yes, sensei."

The morning sun rises over the skyline and Tsubaki wakes to the commotion of the hospital. With the medicine having run its course, she gets out of bed, putting pressure on her injured leg and walks around, partially limping as she greets the patients. Most of them, she doesn't know but recognizes, having fought alongside them in yesterday's battle. She stops at a bed inhabited by a boy around her age with short brown hair. "Hey."

His voice is quiet but confident. "Hey."

"Not many kids here." She walks over, sitting in a nearby chair. "Don't really have anyone to talk to. Tsubaki. Tsubaki Tomiko."

"Kota. Kota Shibuya."

"Well it's nice to meet you. What uh, what brings you to this wonderful place?"

He chuckles, lifting up his shirt to a bandaged abdomen. "Mostly this. I got cut right across my stomach. Still hurts a bit but that medicine is some powerful stuff."

"Yeah, it left me loopy for a few hours. Hell, I could barely think straight."

There's a beat of silence that Kota breaks. "Hey, um. I know we just met and all and this might be a bit of a weird ask."

"You'll never know if you stay quiet."

"I have to get some vaccinations, can you, can you hold my hand? I'm afraid of needles."

"Sure, why not." She smiles and sits next to him.

The doctor arrives and Kota cringes at the sight of the syringe. He closes his eyes and wriggles away from the doctor's attempts to inject him. Tsubaki holds his hand with both of hers. "Look at me." She says. He looks at her, terrified. "I used to be scared of getting shots but my cousin Tora taught this trick. Inhale." He takes a deep breath. "Count to four. Exhale." He breathes out and smiles as the doctor leaves a pair of bandages on his arm. "See, that wasn't so bad."

"Thanks. I, uh don't think I could've done that without you."

"Ah, it's nothing. Tanpo's got the same issue."

"Who is Tanpo?"

"He's a friend of mine. Short, blonde, hair over his eyes, tends to get into places he doesn't belong. Kinda reckless."

"He sounds…exotic?"

"Exotic?" She snickers.

"Eccentric, I mean." He laughs along. "He sounds colorful."

"Yeah, he can be a lot, especially when around explosives."

"Like fireworks?"

"Not exactly."

In the Land of Grass, the sky thunders with a massive explosion. A wooden replica of a giant hawk flies out of the cloud of black smoke. Tanpopo, wearing a bright orange jacket, looks back at the fireball, laughing maniacally. "Take that you Leaf assholes! Ahahahahahahaha!!"

Sitting on the head is Akahane, shoulder length red hair flapping in the wind and Rain village headband covering her right eye. Despite the cold, she wears a black tank top and pants. "Tanpo! Take a seat before you fall off." He takes a seat next to her and is immediately given a noogie. "Haha, ya crazy bastard, I love ya!"

"Is that all the targets for today?"

"Seems like it. Don't have anything on the list." Thunk "Nevermind."

Kentaro's muffled voice sounds off from inside the machine. "We got trouble down here."

"I figured." Akahane stands. "They just don't learn. Blondie! Kentaro! Fly this bird back to the nest! You got one chance, kid! If you fuck up, you're payin for it!" She then jumps off and Tanpo takes control, watching as she lands with a fiery explosion, sending a torrent of lava in all directions and setting the forest ablaze. A smile glued to his face, he flies back to the Rain village, gives a mission report to Ginkiba and Akatatsu and heads off to find Ryuko.