AN:

Thank You FireheartNinja for reviewing and putting this story on your alert list!

Sorry for the lateness, I had an Ethics project due tomorrow...

But enough excuses! I hope this is satisfactory.

Reviews=Inspiration+Improvements=A (possibly) better story

Thank You for the support!

Legolas felt jumpy. His bright blue eyes scanned the landscape, looking for any sign of the Uruk-hai. The elf was incredibly uneasy, it felt as if someone was watching them. Up ahead, Minato was beside Aragorn, who was lying his head against the ground. Kakashi was perched upon a rock, as was Rin. Aragorn slowly life his head.

"Their pace has quickened," the ranger said, troubled. "They must have caught our scent,"

"They are about twelve miles from here," added Minato. "I suggest that we hurry,"

Both men started off, along with Kakashi. Legolas jumped when Hoshi darted past him. Rin stayed where she was.

Legolas turned around to see Gimli making his way along the rocks. Obito was nearby, looking faintly amused.

"Come along, Gimli!" he called urgently. The elf felt a nagging urge to run, which wasn't born from their hunt. His keen ears caught the slow dwarf's grumblings.

"Three days of persuit, with little rest and norishment. With no sign of our quarry but what bare rock can tell!"

"Hoshi has seen them," Obito added politely.

"Ah! But what has he done about it?" Gimli growled. " That boy must have his reasons, which I care not to know,"

The axe-whilder had expressed a sentiment that had been common amoung the Three Hunters. The shinobi boasted of being able to cross hundreds of miles of any terrain within a day. Minato was often praised by Hoshi as being the fastest shinobi in their world. So why haven't they rescued Merry and Pippin?

"Two Hobbits are free,

The Ents will go to war.

The great eye shall see,

That Isengard will fall."

Legolas nearly tripped when he heard Hoshi chant another strange poem. The boy did have a reason. But like Gimli, the blonde elf was not keen on knowing just what that reason was.

Aragorn decided that he rather liked this "chocolate". He had never felt more alert or energized before in his long life. Besides, it had a good, if not a bit bitter, taste. Aragorn's sharp grey eyes scanned the rocky ground, looking for tracks. The man couldn't help but feel a bit of pride when Minato complimented his tracking skills. The shinobi were accomplished trackers themselves, rarely missing anything. But as they entered a sort of gully, the strangers eyes seemed to have missed something.

Aragorn crouched down to pick up a pin in the shape of a mallorn leaf, which Kakashi and Minato seemed to have missed.

"Not lightly do the leaves of Lothlorien fall," he murmured at the same time as Hoshi. Legolas gave the both of them an odd look, which soon changed to a hopeful one.

"They may yet be alive," he said, as the ranger stood up, preparing to run.

*"They are alive,"* Hoshi grumbled, looking irritated. Aragorn chose to ignore the boy's unintelligble mutterings.

"They are less than a day ahead of us," he stated, feeling hopeful.

Behind him, Gimli tumbled down the hill, groaning. Legolas turned around to the sturdy dwarf.

"Come, Gimli!" he called. "We are gaining on them!"

"I am wasted on cross country!" The red-head complained. "We dwarves are natural sprinters! Put me down, laddie, I am not infirm!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Aragorn saw Obito team up with Hoshi to carry the dwarf along.

The Dunedain couldn't help but smile at the sight of proud Gimli being carried by two children. But there were more serious things to concentrate on. Running up the crest of the rock, Aragorn was rewarded with a spectacular view, one that Kakashi, Minato and Rin were admiring.

"What is this land?" asked Kakashi. "The air is filled with malice, as if the land is against our cause,"

Worry was in all three of their eyes. Obito and Hoshi then strode up, placing a protesting Gimli down. Obito became visibly paler.

"Hoshi," he hissed. "You never mention a land that is covered in genjutsu,"

The boy looked confused. "That is because there is none. You are looking upon Rohan, home of the Horselords,"

Legolas ran further ahead, looking out into the distance.

"There is clearly a master of genjutsu here," said Kakashi, and agitatied look in his eyes.

Aragorn ignored the shinobi's conversation and turned toward the elf.

"Legolas," he called. "What do your elf eyes see?"

The blonde lended forward, straining his eyes.

"The Uruks head northeast," he responded calmly. Then realization hit the elf like a ton of bricks.

"They're taking the hobbits to Isengard!" he cried.

Aragorn was stunned. It was so obvious, how could he not have seen it?

The currently quarreling shinobi stopped speaking for a second.

"What did he say?" they all said.

"Isengard, the fortress of Saruman, the white wizard. He is Sauron's ally," explained Hoshi.

Minato had a frusterated look on his face.

"Just brilliant. Now the bloody eye of more-doors has death wizard as an ally. This is near hopeless,"

Aragorn was surprised by the sunny man's pessamism and his lack of knowledge of the Traitor.

"No one told you of the Istari Saruman?" he asked as they began running again.

The yellow-haired man shook his head. "Why should Hoshi tell me every little detail? It is not as if he controls a country, eh, Hoshi?"

The lanky child blushed scarlet. "Your knowledge would make no difference, Sensei. You could slaughter half his army, so that is not a problem,"

Rin shook her head. "It would make a difference, Hoshi-kun. We could go kill him and be done with one enormous problem,"

The child's grey eyes turned steely. "It is a problem that will fix itself out in the end most beautifully if we act at the right moment. That moment is not now,"

Aragorn couldn't help but feel a bit of unease at Hoshi's expression. The boy clearly knew more about the current events than he did, and was manipulating them to his advantage. But to lose Hoshi's allegiance was to lose the shinobi's allegiance. And Aragorn desperately did not want that to happen.

For once, there were no stops as the eight people ran through the dark. Kakashi was beginning to feel drained. While the stars were forgivingly bright, they simply painted things in smudges of black and lighter black. So it was not so surprising when his teammates began stumbling.

Thud

"Fu-!" snarled Obito. Kakashi managed to make out a black smudge hopping around, cluching it's foot. Before he could even deingh to snicker at his unfortunate teammate, he slammed his left foot against a rock.

"Son of a-!" he hissed. Rin and Sensei didn't seem to be having any trouble with the stones at all, which frusterated the Hatake. Neither did any of the Three Hunters. But he couldn't see Hoshi anywhere. Hobbling over to Obito, he asked:

"Do you know where Hoshi is?" he asked.

The black smudge with dark orange goggles displayed a grin of grey teeth.

"He twisted his ankle somewhere near the small stream. Minato-sensei is carrying him,"

Kakashi turned his dark eyes to the super-large smudge a few feet away from them. He would have assumed that Hoshi was asleep if not for his singing.

"Anata ga saikin taiken shita

Shiawase wa ittai nandesu ka?

Megumaresugite ite

Omoidasenai kamo!"

Kakashi was slightly surprised to hear both Rin and Sensei singing along. Obito was also humming.

"Ima koko ni iru koto

Iki wo shite iru koto

Tada soredake no koto ga

Kiseki dato kidzuku,"

"Excuse me," Kakashi jumped, luckily over a pesky rock. It was Aragorn, the scary-old eyes gave him away. Heck, the thousand-year old elf had more youth in his eyes than the ranger.

"What is that song about?" he asked.

Kakashi was a bit surprised. "Oh, I think it's about being grateful for what you have, and keeping an eye on the things most precious to you, because they can disappear in an instant,"

"Ah," Aragorn still seemed to be slightly confused.

"Michika ni aru mono

Tsune ni ki wo tsuketeinai to

Amari ni chikasugite

Miushinatte shimaisou,"

Everything was silent once again, until a whispery voice sang out.

"You know the closer you get to something

The tougher it is to see it

And I'll never take it for granted

Let's go,"*

All the shinobi stopped at once. Kakashi's heart was beating at a million miles an hour.

"That was not any of us," whispered Rin, terror in her voice. "And nobody in Middle Earth knows this song,"

"More specifically, only two people even know that stanza," growled Kakashi. "And I think I know which one is here,"

Hoshi snorted at the irate Hatake. "We will wait 'till sunrise to figure out who had the guts to follow us. Come, the Three Hunters have long since left us,"

Reluctantly, Kakashi followed his teammates, an odd feeling eating at him.

"F-!"

He really needed closed-toe sandels.

*Naruto Shippuden Opening 4: Closer.