At the weapon shop 'the Kunai's Point', Anko led the way into the small shop.
"Hey, little Anko-chan." A booming voice from behind the counter stilled all movement in the shop. "You bring your playmates with you?"
"Not my playmates." Anko grinned, "They are my Team. Naruto and Fuu."
"Oh." the man shifted. "Him." He wiped his face. "Anyone asked, I gouged you and sold you substandard equipment."
Naruto grinned at the man, "You Dirty Cheat! That's twice what these are worth!" He pounded his fists lightly on the counter. Before digging out his sealing scroll and releasing the first and third seals. "Twenty-five short swords of mixed designs, two Naginata, and a tetsubo." He rerolled up the scroll. "What can I get in 'store credit' as opposed to cash?"
The man handled the swords, "Six are good steel, the rest need to be recast and forged." The Naginata were tested, "Okay… one is dull, and the other needs to be rebalanced." The tetsubo was inspected. "Damn, the best of the whole collection." he turned and hung the tetsubo on the wall. He turned to look at the two genin before him. "The Girl looks to be a Mantis Style user." A pair of tonfa blades were placed on the counter before her. "Chakra Metal, The Ninja who commissioned them died before he could pick them up." He glared at the 'one-eyed' genin with fox ears. "For you…" he set a 'sword' before the kit. The Blade was similar to that of a long Katana, but the hilt was just as long. "The Nagamaki. While not an easy weapon to wield, it offers its master reach, power, and leverage."
Naruto grinned as he took the weapon and sheath. He moved to the open area and unsheathed the blade. He tried dancing with it for a few minutes, before nodding. "I will have to 'seal' it to carry it, but it fits my basic style. Like Kakashi… but off." He resheathed the blade as he returned to the counter. As he reached Anko's side, he noticed something. The Tsuba was in the shape of a Clan Crest… the Crest that was on his back!
Fuu stepped into the open area and danced with her Tonfa blades. Her dance was as beautiful as it was deadly. She returned to the counter. 'Do you have sheaths for these babies?"
The Smith passed her a pair of leather sheaths on a shoulder rigging. "You can wear them under your arms or behind your shoulders." he leaned on the counter, "A word of advice Anko-chan. Uzuki Yugao could help them with their Kenjutsu."
"And She owes me for covering her buy-in in last week's game." Anko smiled. "Okay Kids, we are off to see Hokage-sama."
The Snake user led her two students off to the Tower.
KnK
Team Anko stood in the Mission room. Anko stood beside her friend Kurenia as Shino stepped forward to claim the mission scroll. They were looking for a high C low B mission that would allow for the addition of Team Anko to be their own squad. Shino and the chunin were talking in low voices. Shino because he is soft-spoken, the clerk was whispering.
A scroll was passed to Shino and he signed the recite. He returned to the group.
"Okay, Team." He nodded to both Jounin-sensei. "Main Gate one hour. We are escorting a caravan to first Suna and then to Ishi, where we pass them off to Iwa. Then we pick them up in Kusa three weeks later and bring them back here. We are looking at three months out. Does anyone have objections?"
"Are you going to be Team Leader for the full three months?" Naruto's ears perked up.
"Not unless I have to." the Bug user smirked. "I was thinking that we draw lots at each Village for the next Leader. Since there are five of us, that leaves four drawing at Suna, three at Ishi, and two at Kusa."
The genin exchanged glances, before nodding, and exiting the room. Naruto caught Anko's arm, pulling her to the side. Removing a large wad from an inside pocket, he peeled off five, one hundred ryu notes. "I need three full outfits but do not have the time to play games with the merchants. I am going to hit up the dry goods store and get three months of Ramen, Rice, and beans. I also need to pick some rice flour and soy sauce if you are going to be wanting your Dongo. Also needing sugar and cinnamon if Himi is going to want her treats as well." Naruto bounded off, leaving the two jonin behind.
Kurenia snorts and smirks at Anko, "He really knows how to get the most out of you, eh?"
"Shut it!" Anko playfully snarled at her friend, before heading off to pack and buy the items the Kit had requested.
KnK
The five 'Genin' had gathered at the Gate, waiting in the shade, while the traveling merchants lined up, getting ready to leave. There were four box wagons and an open wagon at the rear.
Anko rippled in with her body flicker jutsu, just as Kurenia sauntered up. Anko tossed three scrolls at the fox-eared boy.
Anko was wearing her body suit of mesh under her skirt and coat. Her legs from the knees down were wrapped, and her sandals showed her painted toes. Her outfit showed no weapons, tools of her trade, or anything other than a woman that is proud of her body out for a walk.
Kurenia was wearing her standard throne-wrap dress also with no visible equipment.
Shino was wearing shades of gray, including a knee-length coat with a high collar. A shoulder sling bag across his back and a kunai/shuriken pouch strapped to his right thigh.
Kiba too wore a sling pack, but he had a K/S pouch on each thigh and two pouches on the back of his belt. His gray shaggy parka was half zipped with the white head of his ken napping as he was snuggled.
Hinata was wearing her Temple Priestess in purple clothing, and on her shoulder sat her three-tailed Kin. Karuma lounged as only a Queen could.
Fu was wearing a body mesh suit under a green(non-flack) vest and a black skirt. Her tonfa blades hung from the shoulder harness that had a pack linked to it. A K/S pouch was strapped to each thigh, as she had a habit of twisting and warping her small weapons as she was having trouble controlling her strength all the time… but putting your kunai or shuriken through a wooden post over ten inches in diameter does wonders for the fight in thugs.
Naruto was playing Human while still sporting his mini-Kakashi look plus his orange sleeveless coat. He had taken to wearing two K/S pouches, just so he could pass one or two to Fu. His Nagamaki was carried behind his left shoulder, so that he could draw with his right hand. A Sling Pack hung from his right shoulder.
Shino nodded and headed over to Headman "Ready when you are."
The Headman nodded, then put his fingers to his mouth and blew a sharp whistle. "Mount up, We roll in thirty!"
Shino jumped to the top of the Headman's wagon. He touched the throat mike that both teams wore. "Role Call. Bug-Master Leading."
"Mutt running Right Flank" Kiba barked as he moved to the right of the lead wagon.
"Snake-Bitch riding Bitch." Anko 'body flickered to the last wagon where she made herself comfy.
"Foxy-Lady riding striker!" Hinata settled on the roof of the second wagon.
"Bloody Rose riding center" Kurenia took the center of the train.
"Demon-Legion running Left Flank." Naruto stood opposite Kiba.
"Lucky Bitch riding dummy." Fu sat on the second to last wagon.
Slowly the wagon train began to move. As with those who make it their lives work, the train picked up speed. They were moving faster than a walking pace, but not faster than a ninja could run.
KnK
Three hours out, they encountered their first sign of trouble.
A tree had fallen across the road.
The Trunk was twenty inches thick.
The Wagon Trains Head man whistled a different note than he did back at the Village Gate, and the wagons rumbled to a stop.
"BM to Flankers, pull back to train. Striker, give me a full scan. Dummy, I need you up here. Everyone else, heads on a swivel."
"No sign of anyone in the area, or they are very good at hiding," Hinata reported.
Kiba and Naruto dropped from the trees, as Fu jumped from the rear of the train to land lightly in front of the first wagon. Seeing the issue, she drew a Tonfa blade and channeled Wind chakra into the blade, and as Naruto sent a handful of clones to hold the 'log', she swiped down first on the right side of the road, then the left, leaving the ten clones holding the log. They then moved the log to the side of the road and dropped it.
The Wagon Trains Headman whistled the first note again. The horses leaned into their harnesses and the wagons begin to move.
Kureni, the Bloody Rose tapped her mike collar, "Mutt, Legion, mount up. Let's run tight."
The Legion was almost instantly beside Hinata.
Mutt frowned at them but climbed onto the wagon carrying Kurenia as it passed by him. Before he settled in, he took a deep sniff of the air…
Fuu snagged her chosen Wagon as it rambled past, and swung up into her seat.
KnK
That night, the wagon train pulled into the yard of an Inn, and the workers set about releasing the horses from their harnesses, the Headman with Kurenia went inside to see about rooms.
Shino took the time to pet each horse as they were released into the paddock.
Kurama demanded to be refreshed, so she could join Hinata in the Baths.
Hearing this, Kiba got a funny look on his face before his nose began to leak blood.
As dinner was served, the Headmaster insisted that the ninja join him and the merchants. Something about bonding and blending in…
KnK
The Next Morning, as the sun struggled over the trees, the Merchants had their horses brushed and tacked up as the Ninja stretched and ran through their personal Katas.
The Wagonmaster whistled the 30-second warning, and the Ninja were quick to mount up.
Shino tapped his mike, "Roll call. BM is leading."
"Mutt running close flank." Kiba took up a position beside the front wagon.
"SB riding Bitch." Anko 'body flickered' to the last wagon where she made herself comfy.
"FL riding striker!" Hinata settled on the roof of the second wagon.
"BR riding center" Kurenia took the center of the train.
"DL riding striker." Naruto sat beside Hinata.
"Lucky Bitch riding dummy." Fu sat on the second to last wagon.
And they were off…
KnK
Two hours out, A large rock blocked the road.
"FL, Give me a Scan," BM spoke into his mike as the wagonmaster whistled a full stop. "LB, I leave this to you."
Again Fuu 'Jumped' to the front of the train. As she was drawing her first Tonfa blade, Hinata yelled "Ambush!"
Fifty masked 'men' dropped from the trees over the road.
Four were holding Kusarigama, spinning the weighted end of the chain.
Twenty-five were wielding spears of a double-sided blade atop a pole.
Twenty were wielding swords of a mixed arrangement, and one guy, the biggest of the group, had a pudao, a dao variant of the nagamaki.
Naruto stood and jump-flipped to land before the leader of the squad. As he landed, thirty clones exploded into existence. "Uzumaki Naruto, the Demon Legion." He bowed his head to the big man, "I like your weapon. May I have your name and hers as well?" He drew his Nagamaki from her sheath on his back with his right hand. "May I introduce Supaishīna yorokobi[spicy delight]. I am told, it was forged for my Mother… a gift from my Father on the occasion of my birth. As both died that day, it is only proper that I take it up in her place." He took the Second Form, but his hands were spaced wider than if he was using a Katana.
Kiba tossed a food pill to Akamaru, who flickered reddish brown as he grew larger.
Hinata crouched on the roof of 'her' wagon, her eyes bulging as her bloodline was watching everything. Karuma crouched beside her in a 'Downward Dog' pose, her tails raised and fanned wide.
Anko 'body flickered' from her resting place, only to step out from behind two spear wielders with a sick grin on her face.
Kurenia closed her eyes and focused her chakra.
Fuu pulled her other bladed tonfa from under her arm, shirting her grip so that the long blade hung down from her fists. The blades shimmered as she focused her 'wind' chakra into her new blades.
The thirty clones drew their Nagamakis and took up the first form as if they were wielding a Katana.
Shino squatted on the roof of 'his' wagon. "Now, you fine upstanding lowlifes." his soft voice carrying over the battlefield. "You worked very hard moving that rock into the road. You planned a near-perfect ambush. Now I, as the Leader of this Ninja squad, will offer everyone here one chance to live. Throw down your weapons and run away. You have until the count of three before my forces attack… Three!"
"Kinjutsu: U~ōtāfōrusutoraiku![Ninja Sword Art: Waterfall Strike!]" The thirty clones roared, as they slashed downward…
"Kinjutsu:Raijinguīgurusutoraiku! [Ninja Sword Art: Raising Eagle Strike!] Naruto brought up the blade of his weapon as hard and fast as he could…
Kiba and Akumaru jumped the four chain-wielding thugs with a roar of "Jūjin Taijutsu Ōgi: Gatsūga! [Beast Human Secret Art: Fang Passing Fang]" Two twin horizontal tornados rushed the four men…
Anko released three kunai from each hand as she yelled out " Shurikenjutsu: Maruchishadoukunai [Shuriken Art: Multi Shadow Shuriken]" Ten of the closest thugs sprouted shiny bits of steel.
Kurenai watched in horror as her student/genin shredded the gathered army of thugs.
Hinata, kneeling on her wagon pointed into the trees above and behind her. "Archers, three!" The 'Fox Kin' poised by her side flicked its tails, each sending a small orb of flame at the three targets hiding in the leaves.
Fu Slashed through the stone with one blade while she gutted four blade-wielding men with the other.
Naruto shifted as the Pudao Sword swung down at him, while his blade rose, its sharp blade cutting through the Leader's clothes, gutting the beastly man from groin to clavicle, shearing through the bones of the guy's ribs and forearm. The right-hand subclavian artery parted and poured out the man's lifeblood. He was dead before he hit the ground.
The Clones each killed their target, but they each took lethal damage doing so.
Kiba and Akumaru likewise got their targets but ended up bound in the chains of the Kusarigamas.
Ten Goons just folded over as they bled out from the holes left when the bits of shiny steel faded and Anko began to melt into a pile of mud.
The four that were pointing their swords at Fu watched wide-eyed as first their blades then their neighbors parted as the blade passed through them with little to no resistance.
The Lone Surviving Spearman was shivering, but before he could turn and run… three burning archers fell from above and landed on him, breaking his neck.
Shino nodded. "Good work everyone. Legion, Clear the bodies from the road, loot the field, and help Kiba and Akumaru. Lucky, please finish clearing the road. Foxy, please see to Rose, I do not think she was ready to witness how ready we are to do our job. Wagon Master, make sure your people are not hurt, We will aid anyone that needs it."
A new Army of Orange one-eyed blonds stripped the bodies, dragging them into the bushes, and collecting every piece of metal or cloth that could be useful. Naruto had sheathed his mother's blade to collect the leader's. He found it to his liking. The Kusarigamas were also to his liking, as Kiba did not want them, but Shino took one.
The Bows and Arrows were lost to the flames when the bodies fell from above, as was the guy they landed on.
The only casualty among the teamsters was a youth that lost his breakfast.
Once the rock was cleared, the Bushin were finished with their tasks and dismissed, and everybody was back in their seats, except Kiba was riding beside Shino on the front wagon, and Hinata was sitting with Kurenia on the center wagon sipping tea with the Jonin and the Kin.
There were no further disruptions to the border of Fire Country. Often Shino would send Either Kiba to hunt rabbits or Naruto to just Hunt as they passed through the forests of the Land of Fire. Hinata cooked their offerings and stored the ant leftovers in scrolls up her sleeves.
The Land of Rivers was open flat stone plains with deep grooves cut by the eons of rushing rivers. Here the Ninjas were forced to fall back on their Rations.
By the time they hit the Land of Air, Everyone was thankful for the scrolls of meat up Hinata's sleeves.
They were met Half a day out from the wall of the Village Hidden in the Sand. Kankura was out running a training op with his Genin team. He and his sister were listed as Genin for the exams where they met Naruto to better infiltrate the Village Hidden in the Leaves.
[Flashback]
The Horses plodded along as everybody sought any form of shade. Kiba had even stripped off his jacket and Shino had opened his coat. Naruto surprised everybody by pulling seven woven bamboo Jingasa (Japanese flat-style hats) from one of his scrolls. Due to there being no Leaf symbol, they knew that the hats were salvaged.
Suddenly the air on the road many paces ahead of the train shimmered as a ninja in a black Neko romper stepped into their path. Three younger ninja were a step behind him.
"Wagon Master hold up." Shino's soft voice carried over the Comms "Legion, Lucky, look them over. Foxy, give me a scan. Snake, watch our ass. Mutt, at rest." The Wagon master gave the 'Full Stop' whistle.
Naruto jumped from his wagon to the lead to out in front of the horses, swinging the pudao up and across his shoulders. Fuu touched down just a pace behind, her thumbs hanging from her shoulder rigging.
Naruto grinned at seeing Kankuro. "Hey, Kabuki! Out walking your puppets?"
"Uzumaki, Who let you out of that soft and weak village?" Kankuro sneered before he hugged the blond.
Naruto returned the hug one-armed. "What are you doing out here?"
"Weekly patrol" the kitty-eared man hooked his thumbs through his pack holding three larger scrolls, "We were just about to head in. Come on, we will guide you in."
"Hey, Buggy." Naruto turned to look at Shino, "Mr. Dolly is offering to guide us in."
"We will take it." Shino stood his hands in his pockets. "Foxy, look out. Everybody back to your positions… Wagon Master, follow the Puppet User."
Again a sharp whistle cut through the air.
As the second Wagon rumbled by, Naruto swung up next to Hinata.
As the Fourth rumbled up, Fuu 'hopped' to the top, where she stood gazing over the sands.
[Flashback end]
As the great wall surrounding the Village loomed overhead, the Leaf Ninja and the wagon train breathed a sigh of relief…
They were Hidden in the Sand.
tbc