Fear of the Unknown
The 2 ANBU, Sai & Yamato, traveled quickly as they searched for a sign of Tsachi's team. Sai flew using a bird he drew & his Super Beast Scroll jutsu while Yamato travelled through the trees. Sai sees something in a clearing a short distance away, a patch of pink & yellow moving slowly. He descends down, Yamato following suit. The ANBU shinobi had seen a lot in their time, both good & bad, but neither of them had seen anything like this before.
Choji & Anko travelled through the trees together, noticably closer than yesterday, not that anybody else knew. After several hours they managed to find Kakashi & Ino, who were searching for something. "Anko? Choji? What are you doing here?", Kakashi asks as they stand in front of him & Ino. Anko answers quickly, "Naruto Uzumaki disobeyed Lady Hokage's orders. It is believed he went with 1 of the 2 groups assigned to aid in the recovery of the missing Kage.". Kakashi sits down & stretches a bit before stating, "It's even worse than we thought then. We ran into 2 of the Akatsuki, Ino & I eliminated 1 of them. We haven't been able to find Asuma & Shikamaru yet.".
Choji's eyes go wide, hoping what the famed Copy Ninja is implying isn't true. Anko replies, "Our mission is to find Naruto, we cannot go outside the scope of that.", Kakashi's forehead furrows slightly in disappointment, thinking, "That's just like her, like it isn't bad enough. Why did Tsunade send her?". Anko stretches slightly herself before adding, "However, if we stumbled across the others in our search, it'd still be helpful.". Kakashi looks at her, slightly shocked at what she said. As Anko smiles at Choji, the 3 of them start to decide which way to go while Kakashi ponders curiously, "What made her change like that? Anko Mitarashi has always been known as a heartless, sadistic bitch. A female version of Ibiki Morino. What could have made her smile that way?".
"Kakashi-sensei? Hellooo, is anybody home?", Ino asks while trying to get his attention. His eyelids flutter for a moment before he answers, "Yeah. Sorry, just thinking about life. Let's go.". The 4 of them fan out, heading away from their home to find Naruto, Shikamaru & Asuma. Eventually, in the midst of the search, Choji finds Shikamaru. His friend is kneeling in front of a lifeless body, & the small enclosure is silent except for 1 small noise; a series of intermittent clicks. He walks over slowly, & at first he can't believe it. Choji thinks it's a trick, a trap, that some genjutsu has been used but the realization that it isn't sets in rather suddenly. As Shikamaru flicks the lighter over & over again, he fails to realize that anybody else is there.
The 2 students kneel before their sensei, neither crying nor speaking. Just silent reverance as it still sinks in that somebody so strong, someone who taught them so much, somebody that they thought would be there isn't there anymore. Time goes by, seconds turn into minutes, & minutes turn into hours. Later Ino finds them, & goes through much of the same things Choji did before resigning herself to what her teammates are doing. Even more time passes, the sun setting, the sky growing darker yet none of them budge. The 3 of them continue to look at Asuma, almost like they're waiting for him to wake up.
Kakashi appears awhile later, saying & doing nothing, just letting the 3 Chunin grieve while waiting for Anko to find them. When she finally does, she starts to mention not finding Naruto but stops as she hears the faint click of Asuma's lighter. Anko looks over & sees Ino, Shikamaru & Choji sitting beside Asuma; the small fire from the lighter casting just enough light to show that something is wrong. She looks back & Kakashi, & without a word from Anko he states, "They've been like that for hours, & in Shikamaru's case there's no telling how long.", a slight frown fades onto Anko's face as she comes to realize Asuma's fate, "So he's...", before she can finish Kakashi nods solemnly & answers, "Yes. Asuma is dead. As for how, or when, only Shikamaru will ever really know.".
The 2 ANBU stood in front of Sakura Haruno, whose green eyes have dulled & whose body is caked in blood, all the while she carries the limp body of Naruto Uzumaki. They look at her, her bright pink hair darkened, her clothes & skin stained red while dried up bits of blood can be seen stuck to her skin. They aren't sure if it's her own blood, Naruto's or whatever unfortunate opponent the 2 had but it doesn't matter to them. After the inital shock wears off, they go to help Sakura who violently kicks them away. "Don't you touch me. I'm going to protect Naruto. ME! NOT YOU! I'M GOING TO MAKE HIM BETTER, NOT YOU DAMMIT! NOBODY ELSE!", she screams wildly while holding back sobs. The 2 back away & Yamato inquires, "What about the others? There were 2 more with you correct?".
Sakura struggles to keep moving, but she manages to, albeit it slowly. Yamato grabs her & asks again, "What about the others?". Sakura's eyes go wide, & she hits Yamato with a big Chakra Enhanced elbow strike, sending him flying backwards into a tree. "I told you not to touch me dammit. I tried looking for Tsachi & Sasuke, I can't find them. Naruto will die though if I don't get him back to the village. He could die & it's all my fault! I have to help him! Don't try to stop me, don't slow me down because I WILL SAVE HIM!", she declares before continuing. She feels a hand tug on her, & turns around to find Sai holding her back. Before she can strike he lets go & steps back, & before Sakura can turn back around Sai states, "I can help. We can get home a lot faster if you let me.".
Sakura spits on the ground & retorts, "I don't need help! I don't want help! I'll do it all on my own, just like Naruto would!". Sai creates an Ink Clone, sandwiching Sakura before replying, "While you certainly are being as stubborn as Naruto, you aren't him Sakura. If you want him to stand a chance, you will need my help.". She clutches Naruto in her arms & says, "I love him. I'll never stop trying.".
Sacred Ruby Jutsu!
Sacred Art: Spirit Wing Jutsu!
She takes off into the sky, like a star shooting across the sky. A small smile forms on Sai's thin lips, & Yamato states, "She'll complete our mission for us, we need to find the others. She was partnered with Sasuke & Tsachi, right?". Sai stares off into the distance for a moment, before his partner snaps him back into reality, "I must say Sai, I've never seen you so emotional or sentimental before.", he replies with the same smile, "Yes, I think there is something about them. Not quite sure what it is though.". Yamato smiles & responds happily, "You care about them, that's why. We should get going though, we need to find them soon.".
Ninja Facts: Yamato/Tenzo
That's right, we've returned for more of that factual goodness & today is about Yamato! Given the codename "Tenzo" during his time in ANBU, nobody knows his real name. Shortly after his birth, he was abducted by Orochimaru & became a test subject in an experiment to replicate the skills of the 1st Hokage, Hashirama Senju. He ended up being the only known survivor. Yamato became a ninja & graduated the Academy at 6 years old, already ranked a Chunin. Several years later he joined the ANBU & would come to stand out not only with his abilities, but his performance record. He is currently partnered up with Sai, & in some situations, has taken over Team Kakashi, bringing Sai along with him.
Age: 26
Birthday: August 10th
Weight: 128.75 lbs
Height: 5'10" (approx.)
Rank: ANBU
Chakra Types: Earth, Water, Wood
Signature Jutsus: Chakra Suppression Jutsu, Water Style: Tearing Torrent, Wood Style Jutsus (there's a lot)
Reg. #: 010992
Mission Stats: 80 D-Rank, 176 C-Rank, 400 B-Rank, 305 A-Rank, 35 S-Rank
Random Points Of Interest
Yamato is an ancient name of Japan
Yamato's favorite food is walnuts, while he hates oily foods.
His hobby is reading about architecture.
Yamato is often referred to as "Captain Yamato", even though there is no ranking system in the ANBU.
Notable Quotes
(To Sakura) "It's not important whether the things you do are large or small, what's important...is the magnitude of the feelings you have for Naruto."
(To Team Kakashi) "I like being nice and friendly but I don't have any problems with ruling by fear either"
(To Naruto) "If you want to save Sasuke, then do it with your own power. If you want to see Sasuke again, then look at him through your own eyes, not the Nine-Tails'. If you want to protect Sakura, do it with your own strength, not the Nine-Tails'."
I hope you enjoyed this edition of Ninja Facts, if not then screw you! Lol later!