Disclaimer: I own nothing but the OC and whatever jutsu you do not recognise from the series.

Warnings: Same as before.

I have discovered that l absolutely LOVE writing battle scenes. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did writing them.

And thank you all for follows and faves. I have been hoping to get some more reviews from you lot, I do love hearing your opinions on my story, but alas few have done so.

*Sigh* I suppose I'll take what I can get, so without further ado here are some cupcakes, they are simply marvellous. Enjoy!

Chapter Six

I swiftly sneaked up a tree, keeping myself as low to the branch as possible, whilst I eyed my intended target carefully. My team and I have been given a new assignment. One that required the utmost stealth and seeing as I'm better in this area than the rest of my teammates, I will be the one that will capture the target.

My earpiece crackled as Kakashi's voice inquired over the microphone. "How far away is the target?"

"Five meters and closing. We're waiting on your signal." I whispered as quietly as possible being careful as to not give away our position. The others confirmed their positions and statuses and tensed in preparation of the impending attack.

"Alright. GO!"

And with that we spurred into action. I lept off of the branch with the agility of a cat and landed swiftly onto the target, grasping it firmly into my arms. The target, funnily enough, was cat himself. Tora to be exact, he was the pet of some Lady, whose name I don't care to remember, the nightmare of a cat was infamous for his numerous escapes from his owner's pampered, overbearing clutches. The feline yowled and screeched, frantic in his bites and scratches in an attempt to get free from my grasp. He managed to get in a few scratches, littering my unprotected arms with thin, red lines.

I winced as the wounds stung but successfully managed to not drop the cat. I held up the animal with the scruff of it's neck. Using my limited knowledge of pressure points and the like, I jabbed a chakra fueled finger into the base of the cat's neck, sending it into blissful sleep. (A/N: Just so you guys know. I have no knowledge of pressure point or anything like, I'm just going off imagination and common sense. So I apologise if any of this is wrong.) Now that our target was subdued and Kakashi was informed of the situation, it was time to head off back towards the Hokage Tower, where the assignments were held.

~0~

The room was empty save for the Hokage and the other Jounin there that helped with giving out the assignments, who were seated along the back of the room, with the Hokage in the middle.

I handed the sleeping Tora to the Lady and reassured her when she ask about the cat's state. "Don't worry he'll wake up in an hour or two, he's safe now in your hands." I added with an eye-smile. The woman smile joyfully with relief and happiness, bubbling a reply. "Oh thank you, deary! I was so worried about my Tora I could have died! Oh! Here's your reward for your efforts!" She shoved a wad of cash into my gloved hands.

My eyes lit up at the money. Whoah! This is quite a bit of money! I bowed and thanked the jolly woman gratefully. Turning back to my teammates, I stood next to the others and counted out the money so I could split it with the group. After successfully dividing the money so it was equal, I handed the cash to the others, who took the money gratefully.

After that, we turned our attention to the jounin at the tables, ready to be given our next task. The Hokage shuffled the list of assignments in his mottled hands and read out to us the list, his pipe bobbing as his lips moved, making the smoke dance as it floated up into the air in a soft stream of white.

"Now, the next assignment for Kakashi's team seven will be," The old man drawled as he ran his eyes across the paper. "Hmm. To baby-sit for the council of elders. To run errands to the neighbouring village, to help dig sweet potatoes-."

He was cut suddenly by a fed-up Naruto. "No way! No thank you! Boring!" He yelled as he crossed his arms to form and 'X'. "Give us something different to do. Something important! Something amazing!"

I rolled my eyes and sighed at Naruto's outburst. Typical. He does have a point though, I'm sick of looking after arrogant little brats who could barely even wipe their own noses. I have been putting up with it for the past few weeks, but there's only so much more I can take of the brat-sitting before I start to get fed-up with it. So a change of scenery would be greatly appreciated in my book.

Iruka stood and leaned over his abruptly, angry at Naruto's rudeness. "Don't be a fool, you're only a beginner! Everyone starts out doing grunt work. It's where you get experience, so you can work your way up to the bigger things."

"We've done tons of small stuff. Can't we get some action!" Naruto shouted before being cuffed by Kakashi-sensei. "Naruto, that's enough! Knock it off!" The teacher said firmly.

"Apparently Naruto needs an explanation of just what these duties are." The Hokage grumbled. I drifted off into my thoughts, as the man delved into a long explanation of things that I already understood and knew. I mentally groaned as my day-dreaming was pierced by Naruto's voice yet again.

'Stop interrupting my thoughts Naruto!' I whined as my ears trained back onto the situation, despite the fact that I wanted nothing to do with it.

"But it's not fair. There's more to me than the trouble-making screw-up the old man thinks I am!" Naruto exclaimed before turning his back to them, pouting. A short moment of silence passed before the Hokage spoke, a smirk playing on his lips. "Very well. Since you put it that way."

Huh? What's he agreeing to? A different mission? No way!

"I will permit you to attempt a C-Grade task, the protection of a certain individual."

A C-Grade! 'Now that's the type of change I'm talking about!' I thought triumphantly, standing up straighter with wide grin spread across my face. I wonder who we'll be protecting. Naruto must of thought the same thing because he excitedly inquired the Hokage.

"Compose yourself." Answered the Hokage. "I'll perform the introductions straight away. Please invite him in." As he finished the sentence, I eagerly turned my head towards the door, watching as it slid into the wall, the quiet scraping adding to the suspense. Our assignment was finally revealed to be an old man. It seems he was a bit drunk as well, seeing as he was nursing a bottle of sake and his cheeks were slightly flushed. I wrinkled my nose as the stench of alcohol and body odour reached my nose. Gross.

"What's goin' on here?" The man grunted as his eyes landed on us. He took gulp of his disgusting liquor, giving our group a sceptical look. "They look like a bunch of wet-nosed brats. Especially the midget. He's got the face of an imbecile. It's a joke right? You kids aren't really ninja are you?"

Giggling, Naruto looked between me and the others, trying to figure out who our associate was referring to. He finally settle to look at me. I raised my eyebrow as he said to me, "Heheheh! He's talking about you, Reicheru."

With my eyebrow still raised, I smirked and sniggered. The blonde obviously thought that since I was around the same height as him that I was the victim. But he's missing one small detail. "He implied that the imbecile was a boy, Naruto." I replied to the oblivious boy.

"Huh?" Naruto looked between our teammates again before realisation struck his face. He was the imbecile. "Grr! I'll kill him!" He growled, looking ready to maul the insulting man. Luckily though, Kakashi grabbed the angry genin before he could cause any considerable damage. "Wrong. No killing the old man you've been assigned to protect." Sensei scolded.

"I am Tazuna." The old man introduced himself. "A bridge builder of ultimate renown. Until I am back safe in my own country, where I'll be completing my next bridge, you'll all be expected to protect me. Even if it costs your lives!"

'What so dangerous that it'll cost our lives? This is a C-Grade mission, it has all of the mostly least dangerous tasks. And who in the world would come after a bridge builder anyway?' I wondered, as we trekked towards one of the village's massive gates. On the way there we stopped at our residences to pick up our stuff for the journey. I already had a bag packed for missions like this so I didn't take long, though I did pick up a very special something that I've been meaning to give to a certain someone.

Soon enough we were taking our first steps outside the village. Naruto bounced joyously, constantly whipping his head around to take in everything.

"What's got you so excited?" I asked Naruto, walking along beside Sasuke.

"This'll be the first time in my life I've ever been outside of the village!" The grinning boy answered, before bouncing off again.

"You're not the only one." I responded quietly to the now no longer listening team-mate, looking around the surrounding area. It feels nice to have all this wilderness around me, the fresh scent of pines, everything. It's awesome to say the least.

The old man Tazuna turned to the sheepish looking Kakashi. "Am I really expected to place my life in the hands of these two fools."

Sensei sighed. "Reicheru is a good ninja despite her lack of experience outside the walls and I'm an elite ninja, I'll be coming along too, so there's no need for concern." He placated, his gaze turning to me.

I flushed at my sensei's words, embarrassed. I don't get many compliments so I'm not used to them. Plus I could feel his eyes on me which didn't help matters, if anything it made me go even more red. But I've never blushed like this before and my heart isn't supposed to be beating this fast. Is there something wrong with me? What is this feeling?

I placed a hand over my heart in an attempt to slow it down, but it did nothing. Guess I'll just have to ignore it then, it's probably nothing anyway. I shoved my hands back into the pockets of my baggy pants and focused my attention on the road ahead, ignoring the argument happening behind me. God this is gonna be a long trip.

~0~

The morning hours fell into the afternoon with little mishaps, the tranquillity of the journey was soothing. The glistening sun peeking behind emerald leaves, shining warm patches onto my face and shoulders, forcing away my tiredness, boosting my strength and speed giving me a slight bounce in step.

However, the silence was not meant to last as Sakura's voice broke through.

"Um, Mr Tazuna?" She asked shyly, said man turned to look at the pre-pubescent girl in annoyance, his bottle swinging in his loose grasp. I glanced at them from my place behind Kakashi and Sasuke, waiting to hear what the fuss was about.

"What now?" He replied in his typical grumpy old man manner.

"You come from the Land of Waves, right?"

"What of it?"

Sakura turned to Kakashi-sensei. "Um. Master Kakashi, are there any ninja in that country too?" This question caught my attention. I was always curious about places outside of Konoha, having never been outside the walls before, it gave me more knowledge and awareness for future missions and trips.

"No. Not in the Land of Waves." Kakashi answered. "But, as a general rule, even with all the differences that exist in local customs and cultures. Most other lands have their own hidden village where a ninja clan resides. For most of the countries on this continent, the ninja villages serve as a military force. They protect their own people and handle the ongoing relations within neighbouring countries. Yet, the villages do not answer to the rulers of their native countries. Instead they are on equal footing with the government. In the case of very small island nations where an invasion would be difficult to mount, a ninja village is regarded as unnecessary. Among the various ninja villages, in particular, those located in the Lands of Konoha, Kiri, Kumo, Suna and Iwa are large and their strength is immense. Those are called the Five Great Lands of Shinobi. They are also the only places where the shinobi leader calls himself a kage or shadow. Those legendary leaders are known everywhere as the Five Shadows, the ultimate commanders of the tens of thousands of shinobi throughout the world."

I looked up at Kakashi with worried eyes. "Will we be encountering any foreign shinobi, sensei?" I asked him, Sakura nodded, she wanted to know as well. It was what she wanted to ask in the first place.

Kakashi cocked his head over his shoulder to look at me and chuckled. "There's nothing to worry about. Of course you won't, hahaha!" I felt a gentle pressure on my head as Kakashi reached a hand over to stroke my hair fondly, both of us oblivious to the angered glare Sasuke sent Kakashi's way.

What I did notice however was how Tazuna gained a slightly guilty and regretful look, raising my suspicions. I said nothing however as we continued on our way, though for some reason I couldn't help but get the feeling that something was about to happen.

Splash!

Everyone staggered in shock, as a monstrous, razored chain whipped out out of nowhere, two heavily clad ninja holding onto it with one on each end. They were Mist ninja judging by the distinguished markings on their headbands.

Kakashi choked a gasp. He was bound by the chain, the blades digging through his layer of clothing and into the skin. They looked sharp enough to slice clean through bone if yanked hard enough and he had no way of escaping!

I watched in complete and utter horror as Master Kakashi's body was massacred into several bloody pieces. Sakura and Naruto screamed in morbid shock and it looked like they had frozen up.

The Mist twins pounced and cackled in glee behind their next victim, Naruto.

Oh, Hell no!

Snapping out of my stupor, I acted quickly, dashing into the air I swiftly formed the hand-signs for my attack, grabbing my kunai before I did.

Launching forwards towards the enemies I yelled my jutsu with fury. "Hellfire Style: Fire Sickles Technique!" Flames with the skin melting temperature of Hell blazed and curved to form two large sickles.

A shuriken whizzed passed me and the two ninja, who, much to my advantage, dodged away. As a result the chain between them stretched, giving me more space to strike.

So with a harsh sweep I tangled the chain around my sickles and willed the fire to burn stronger.

Screeeech!

The metal of the chain weapon, blazed a burning red, my sickles cutting through the melting metal like butter. I smirked in triumph as finally with one last yank, the chain split.

The Mist-nin turned to me as they noticed that their weapon has lost a bit of weight. "Our chain!" They shouted in outrage, one growled and lurched forwards. "But that doesn't mean we can't kill you!" The man roared out, speeding towards me to attack, his clawed gauntlet pulled backwards to strike.

I dodged the man's claw and swept one sickles, hoping to get in a hit. Shing! Another screech sounded as my weapon sliced the curved metal claws. Since the metal was weak then that of the chain it went through a lot faster, how convenient.

However, I forgot about the other nin, seeing as I was distracted. The other angered shinobi lunged at me with his own set of claws, intending to shred my back into ribbons. Unfortunately for him though, Sasuke - who had thrown the previous shuriken - lept in to defend me, slamming a powerful kick down onto the Mist-nin's head.

Now back-to-back, Sasuke and I prepared for the next attack. But it seems that the Mist duo had a change of plans, though, as whizzed past us to the others, they were heading for Tazuna! Sakura barely managed to dodge the swipe from the un-declawed nin, flying backwards into Tazuna to keep him from harm.

I dashed in front of Sakura with Sasuke besides me. The duo once again pounced despite their disadvantages, it was obvious they had no intent of stopping until we were dead. But before they could land even a single blow, the two were subdued by the arms of…. Kakashi?!

My eyes lit up in wonder. 'He's alive!' I mentally shouted happily. Dispersing my sickles, I quickly looked to where Kakashi had 'died' and saw about several logs scattered across the ground. 'Of course, he used the Art of Transformation to dodge them! I should have known, Sensei's too smart to not use it.' I couldn't help but give a breathy laugh, relieved to see the my sensei was alive.

Said man had the two pesky ninja in a choke hold, just about letting the men breathe, they struggled in his grasp for a while before falling limp and let themselves be dragged, seeing that their attempts of escape were futile. He turned to collapsed Naruto, who had finally snapped out of his funk and said. "I'm sorry, Naruto. I should have moved to help you sooner, before you were injured. It never occurred to me that you would freeze up." His gazed switched to us. "Good job, Sasuke. And you, Reicheru, it was smart of you to use fire against metal, though I had no idea fire could be as strong as that, let alone cut through it. I'm impressed." He praised, I blushed once again at his words, I could feel his eyes wondering my form, checking for any injuries. His obsidian eyes darkened with concern as he glanced at my arm and said. "Their claws were poisoned. We have to clean that wound as soon as possible."

At that looked down and muttered a curse when I saw a fairly thick gash on my fore-arm. I knew how to get rid of the poison and its gonna hurt like Hell. But first I'm gonna need some help. I saw Sasuke standing next to me a way aways and called him over. He complied somewhat disgruntledly, I ignored his behaviour and requested for him to get some bandages and cloth. When he returned with the items, we sat down on floor and placed the bowl down with the cloth soaking inside, the bandages lying besides it. I snatched up a spare kunai from my pouch and winced at the thought of the impending pain.

"Sasuke," I grunted tensely, the Uchiha looked at me with a frown creasing his face, concern peeking out from under the usually cool mask and nodded to show that he was listening. "When I cut the wound, I'm gonna need you to make sure that the poison is all out. After that, clean it and bandage it. Can you do that?"

The boy nodded silently, preparing his equipment. With a shaking nod back, I carefully took the kunai to the open wound and pressed the blade into it. Yeeoowch! Pain flare up my my arm and I clutched desperately at Sasuke's knee, my right eye twitching madly through the pain. I felt a hand gently lift the hand grasping the kunai and led it away from the now deeper gash. I flopped my hand down and let the weapon clatter onto the ground in front of me.

Sasuke carefully mopped the blood off my arm. The red substance was stained a ghastly purplish-black, he made sure that the harmful fluid was cleared from the bloodstream before wrapping the guise around my arm hastily.

I gasped out a thank you, relieved that the procedure was over. I stood up slowly, the pain was starting to fade but the blood-loss was making me slightly woozy. I turned my attention to the others, it seems that during my healing that Naruto had undergone that same situation, albeit in a more violent way. The two Mist-nin were tied to a tree, both of them knocked-out.

And so with a sigh from me, we continued on our journey to the Land of Waves. Hopefully it won't last too much longer.

God bless you for reading and don't forget to review, follow or fave, whatever takes your fancy and I'll be seeing you fine people next chapter. Cheerio!