I sent Aimi, along with the scrolls, back to the estate to stop Ayame and Tetsuo from coming over while I went after Shiromaru's scent, hoping to stop him from walking into a deadly trap.

I found him slouched over the roof of a factory in the industrial sector, his shoulders slouched and his tail low.

"Couldn't find him."

"It's good that you didn't."

"What do you mean?" He turned around to me.

'Ne.' His eyes widened. 'We gotta go. I'll explain on the way.'

I set a fast pace, away from Shiro's dead end, just in case. I didn't want any follow-ups. After explaining what we found in the abandoned house, he let out a relieved breath.

'And to think, I was worried about fucking up a major tracking assignment like that.'

Heh. 'You've done admirably so far. And if it really is Root, then it wouldn't be surprising that they know how to throw an Inuzuka's trail.'

'..Fair enough.'

We travelled in silence for a bit. 'Still. Didn't think you'd ever worry about messing something up on a mission.'

He clicked his tongue. 'You make it sound like I don't care about anything.'

'I mean, you do?'

'Ugh. Go to hell, will ya?'

I snickered. 'I'll put it on the itinerary.'

We reached the Hashiji estate, jumping over the gate and heading straight for inside when we noticed Aimi and Tsunade talking, of all people.

We gave each other a look and went over.

"...re you going with those reports?" Tsunade asked, her arms crossed and looming over Aimi.

"Giving them to Sensei. We just finished going through some, and decided that the information inside is too sensit—"

"Yeah okay great. Give it to me then. I'll be going through the information." Tetsuo was locked in-between them, head swivelling to the other when they spoke.

Aimi hesitated, protecting the scrolls in her arms with her body, slowly turning away from her. "But—"

"I'm still your superior, whether you like it or not." Tsunade asserted. "So you'll be handing over the scrolls and whatever else you dug up on your little walk outside the city. Now."

Aimi's eyes shifted. "I'm sure that Orochimaru-sensei—"

"Orochimaru is busy interrogating the hostages he took, and he'll be busy for a while longer after that." Tsunade frowned, not pleased. "Don't make me take them from you, child. Really." She stepped forward threateningly.

Alright, time to interrupt.

"Hey. What's going on here?" I made my presence known as I walked up to the house and into their line of sight.

"Ugh. The chief brat. Listen, we don't have time for this. Either you give me the scroll or you'll get slapped with an insubordination charge when we head back to Konoha. Your choice." Aimi didn't look any closer to giving up anything than before the possible consequences.

Mmm. What'll my approach be here... "Sorry about that. It's just that the information we discovered is likely to be labeled as highly classified. I don't think—"

"Brat, I'm a Sannin, with the highest medical clearance in the land, above the Hokage. I think I can handle a few Yugakure scrolls some kids dug up." She stretched out her hands to take it from Aimi, who, if she didn't want to get slapped into the next dimension, was standing completely still, allowing it to be taken from her.

"It has to do with ANBU. Our ANBU." That didn't cause her to stop. Instead, her hand blurred and all the scrolls Aimi had on her vanished from her person.

"Kid. What do you know about ANBU?" She opened one of the scrolls, looking through it, confused. There was nothing in there directly stating it had to do with the secret division, but the level of caution with information clearly alluded to it. My evidence, however, she wouldn't find in any scroll.

"If you were to heal Anko, maybe I'd tell you about it." Everyone's eyes flashed to me when I said that.

"Enough playing games, Inuzuka. Tell me what you think you know." Her eyes were hard.

I crossed my arms. "There is—"

Suddenly Orochimaru Shunshined in between all of us, chakra charged and ready. "We have a new mission objective. Several sources, including the hostages I interrogated, have corroborated the same thing." Hayama and Ayame burst into the house just then, having followed Orochimaru. "Someone sent out a message to whoever was financing this operation, and they will send military force to take out the mines. Permanently. We must stop them from doing so while unearthing the identities of their clientele."

Tsunade scoffed. "Isn't it obviously Cloud?"

Orochimaru ignored her, and summoned a large white snake. "Take Anko to Ryuuichi Cave. It is not safe here." It nodded, and slithered into the house, likely to find her.

"What do we do now, sensei?" Hayama asked.

"We prepare for combat. Take all of the gear and weapons you have brought on this mission that you believe will be useful. Tsunade, send a hawk to the border outpost requesting reinforcements. A squad, at the very least. Aimi, go inform Yaketsuku and his team of the situation. The time constraints for this mission require us to be ready to leave within five minutes. You will receive further instruction on what to do when we get there. Am I understood?"

""Hai, sensei!""

"Got it."

We all moved.

Ten minutes later we were out of the city. Eleven leaf-nin rushed through the paths and fields as fast as the genin could keep up with.

Twenty minutes later a hawk came for Tsunade, a tiny scroll tied to its leg. She handed Orochimaru the message, who nodded.

"The iron mines of the Land of Hot Water are a collection of tunnel entrances stretching twenty kilometers wide alongside a mountain, interspersed with small, non-navigable trees and the villages surrounding it. Therefore, it is not particularly defensible. Due to its importance to our supply lines in the war against Rock, we cannot afford to let even a single one be infiltrated. Do your best to prevent as much damage as you are capable of." He said, as he was reading.

"There are sixteen entrances in total. Some are more closely packed together than others and due to this, we will need to split our forces. The border outpost is sending two teams coming from Kusa's front lines that were added to bolster the outpost in case of invasion. Among them are team leaders Suzaku Nara and Sarutobi Rie. Both jounin."

Ayame gasped. Please don't let this one be a problem too…

"Due to our limited personnel, we will be splitting up our teams into smaller pairs, who will all communicate using Katsuyu." He side-eyed Tsunade at that, who didn't look at him. "She is able to telepathically communicate with any of her bodies, so she will be assigned to every one of us. You will receive your station and partner once we convene with the other two teams."

It was silent for a bit, as we all absorbed that information. It sounds like we were going in cold turkey. No information. No real battle plan. Just survive, I guess. Is this what ninja battles are like?

'I dearly hope not. It'll make getting through the war much harder.'

'Tell me about it.'

My team both made faces indicating mounting anxiety, just begging to erupt. Alright. Here we go.

Initiating Conversation…

"Tetsuo. You alright?" I asked quietly, pacing myself so I was running next to him.

"I think so… Just—we're going to be fighting our first real ninja force, and we don't know anything! And Orochimaru-sensei said that there would be villages next to the entrance, so we'd be putting civilians in danger again."

He's.. worried about his conscience? "Technically we're helping save them. Don't think the ninjas coming to attack us will care about collateral damage too much. Actually, the villagers would mostly be mine workers right? They might try to target them, even."

Tetsuo looked worried, then, but abruptly, his face flattened. "It's still us having put them in that position. Orochimaru didn't say anything about a guard already present, meaning they've been vulnerable for an attack that was bound to happen."

Well, if you put it that way. "You're right, of course. Although, all we can do now is help them survive. Just like we do with each other, right?" I tried smiling at him. He returned it, but his eyes didn't. At least, he didn't seem like a powder keg having almost burned through its rope anymore.

Next!

"So. Sarutobi Rie?"

"She's. Like. Amazing!"

I nodded. "Go on."

Ayame's eyes sparkled. "She's so good at like, everything! She can do all our clan jutsu super flawlessly! Even the hiden and stuff! Did you know she made jounin at seventeen?"

"No I did not know that."

"Right? And then she came to my part of the compound once and she saw me practicing my splits right?! And then she complimented me! No one does that!"

A… positive influence? In her clan? I might actually have to meet this Rie lady. "She must be really something."

"Yeah she is." Ayame held her fists close. "That's why I'm going to do my best to impress her on this mission! If she sees me doing well she might tell Hiroto-sama, and then I get even closer to my goal of getting Headship!"

"That's the spirit. Although, don't overdo it okay? I don't want to have to carry you back home."

"Oh I'm gonna go allll out! No one will be able to stop me! Especially not Yaketsuku!" Who was right next to us, definitely overhearing this conversation.

"And where would she be on the ranking then?"

She hummed, thinking. "Maybe second? Out of the nine of us?" Impressive. Although, putting it into perspective like that, Ayame really has her work cut out for her.

'So.'

'So!'

'...I mean—'

Shiro looked at me. 'No. Don't even bother.'

'We can figure it out!'

'And how are we supposed to do that?!'

'We're smart! And sensors to boot. If we get attacked we'll make them trail us to reinforcements.'

He just looked at me.

"Is everything alright, Arata-san?" Katsuyu asked from her position on my shoulder.

"Yes, everything is great, Katsuyu-sama."

"..You are concerned for your current position?" She asked, more like stated.

"Well…"

We drew the short end of the stick. The mines extend along a circle around a giant mountain, meaning all our forces are stretched. I'm at the outer end of the line of mines, at the last one. They deemed it not as likely to be attacked as the others, so it's just me and Shiro at the entrance.

Ayame, along with Yaketsuku and his team are close by guarding the next entrance over, so if anything were to happen they would rush to my aid. Tetsuo, as the best (non-Sannin) healer of all of us, was stationed with Suzaku Nara to cover them.

The reasoning was sound, in theory. This is the most defensible area by terrain. The entrance is small, opening up only to an office and a shed outside of it. There are trees here, not big ones so I could travel through the branches, but big enough to jump off the trunks, meaning we'd have home-field advantage. Not to mention the rocky, hilly offshoots from the mountain providing only one path through. Unless you could fly or travel underground anyway.

"I understand your anxiety, but I will be here to call for reinforcements, should you require it. You will not fight this battle alone." That's assuming the ambushing force would be small enough, or incompetent enough to not one-shot me on sight.

"Thanks, Katsuyu-sama." I said dryly.

"You are welcome." She did not catch that. "Although I wish it were under better circumstances, I am delighted to finally meet Tsunade-sama's new students in person."

I snorted. "How were Ayame and Tetsuo? I'm sure they were delightful."

"Yes. They were very exuberant in meeting me. I greatly enjoy their presence." She said entirely seriously.

I side-eyed her. This woman has not a sarcastic bone in her body. …Or bones at all. "Well. I'm glad you—"

I launched kunai at the shape twenty feet away from me.

It jumped, and poofed out of chakra smoke, running away. Oh no you don't!

We ran after him. "How many?" Katsuyu asked, her soft voice barely making herself heard over the pounding in my head. Why is that there?

Oh. I'm nervous. Great.

"Just the one! Shiro!"

"I know!" He transformed into me and we both launched into the Four Legs. A light version. Because we don't know how many enemies there are, we have to play it safe with the chakra expenditure.

"Do you need reinforcements?"

"It's not a jounin! As long as we catch him, we might not need it!" Although I would greatly prefer it.

"How sure are you that—Six have encountered enemy nin. Four have encountered enemy nin." Those are Orochimaru and Yaketsuku's teams. The next two closest to me. Lovely.

We were catching up to him now, getting closer. He seemed to realize, since he started looking over his shoulder at us worriedly as we zipped through the trees and rocks.

Short brown hair, blue eyes. Average build, brown vest, brown pants. Late teens, scar on his right hand. No hitai-ate or clan insignia. Chakra says chuunin.

Am I ready for that? Only one way to find out.

He rushed through the hand signs for the Lightning Clone jutsu, and produced two of them to fly towards us.

A distraction. One we can't touch. Luckily, clones are a lot more susceptible to genjutsu than the original.

""Bestial Illusion: Anxiety's Jaw."" Both Shiromaru and I took one each, and they immediately ran for the hills.

Shiro ran through a second set of hand signs while I caught up to the runner.

'Demonic Illusion: Mirage of the Oasis.'

I came at him with shuriken first, making him dodge left. Right into where Shiro hid a tree through the genjutsu. He smacked face first into the trunk, faltering him for long enough for me to move in.

I clawed through his hastily put up block, and blood splayed freely from the tears in his forearms. My claws felt like they were tearing fruit, barely feeling resistance.

I followed up with a kick, to which he raised a knee and then pushed out and away, outside my guard, but still in his. He was taller, much taller, and he was making use of it.

A kick came for my head, and I ducked down to dodge. Out from behind me Shiro jumped up into a push kick into his face.

"Aargh!"

The kick landed. Hard. Shiro flung with the recoil, landing himself next to me as the guy fell on the ground. He recovered quickly, but the injuries were piling up.

Now to finish him off.

"Bestial Illusion: Anxiety's Jaw." The jutsu caught, throwing his perception through a meat grinder of nerves.

"NO!" He reacted violently, throwing a kunai with—is that an explosive tag?!

"Dodge!"

We ducked out of the way, just in time for the explosion to rock behind our backs, throwing dirt and smoke everywhere. I hid behind a tree, anticipating another launch, Shiro having gone the opposite way.

A flare launched into the sky, yellow explosives flickering weakly through the daylight. Fuck.

At the same time, smoke bombs absolutely erupted through the mountainous forest, completely obscuring my view. Yup. This guy was a stealth type, not meant for mainline combat. It's why I was winning so far.

He had clamped down hard on his chakra, correctly guessing that I was a sensor, skulking through the trees and away from me. Unfortunately for him, I was an Inuzuka. That means that,

"I can smell you."

"Bestial Illusion: Doddering Haze." Shiro had set the genjutsu.

I moved in, Four Legs turned up to blistering speed and slashed through his throat. Little pieces of flesh moved along with my curved fingers as I tore through his larynx and trachea.

He wouldn't recover from that, even as he tried desperately to cling his hands to his windpipe, blood was still flowing out. He still couldn't breathe. I stood there, Four Legs turned off, watching him.

Would it be more humane to take his head off entirely? To stab him through the brain?

'Arata. We have to go. He launched a signal into the sky.' Shiromaru reminded me, already having turned back into his own form.

'...Right.' I looked over my shoulder. "Katsuyu-sama." She nodded, unbothered at the sight before her.

"All other teams are currently engaged in combat. Yaketsuku-san recommends you join their group in the fighting." That's worse than I thought. I'd have to abandon my post.

..Which I kinda already did.

"Alright, let's head out."

I made my way out of the smoke and towards Yaketsuku's team. But—

"Hey. Where's Minoru?" Four guys, all chuunin blocked my way. Tall. All older than Minoru, carrying very sharp-looking weapons.

I said nothing. Fuck.

I heard a gasp. "Look at the blood on his arm! But there's no way! You're one child!" The leftmost one said.

"He's clearly from a clan though. Look at his markings. Raiden! You're the smart one. Tell me which clan this is." The middle right one asked the rightmost one.

"That, mah friend, is an Inuzuka. You see the dog he's got with him? Yeah. These are tracker units, the lot of 'em'. Can sniff ya' out from miles away."

"So that's how he got Minoru huh." The leftmost one muttered.

"So what now, fellas? Gonna stand around and talk some more?" I asked.

"Oh it speak!" Leftmost exclaimed.

"'Course it can speak idiot." Right Center demeaned.

It. How nice.

"Listen. Friend." The rightmost one started. "We got a mine to blow up, just right behind ya'. And you'se is kinda in our way."

"Not to mention you killed our dear friend Minoru!" Left center said. "So this is kinda our notice that we're gonna kill you now. If you're okay with that."

They.. expected me to answer? This reeks of a distraction. Are they waiting for more personnel? Planting some sort of trap? I'm a sitting duck right now. If I move, they'll kill me. So what am I gonna do?

If I blast the Four Legs I could maybe outrun them, but I need charging time for that and they're not even two meters away from me. Shiro already revealed himself, so he can't set up a diversion. Katsuyu! She could beg for reinforcements! She's probably doing it right now!

I just gotta stall for time. "Listen. This is my first mission. Like, I mean, I'm sure you can tell. Just a child, so. I'm just out here trying to survive. Sorry about that Minoru guy. I was just trying to silence him, but then he sent up a flare so—"

"Hey hey! Back up. Are you like, trying to beg for your life right now?" Right Center asked. "Cause that's pretty pathetic dude."

"Yeah I mean I am. Cause, you know. I like living. So—" A chakra signature! It was brief, probably a slip up, but it felt familiar. Someone's coming to help! "You can just go on ahead to the entrance. I can point the way if you'd like? I mean—"

Leftmost, clearly the idiot of the group, perked up. "Yeah actually that would be great. We got super general instructions on where to go an—"

"Dude." Center right interrupted him. "We already got a team heading for the mine. Why do you think we're just standing here talking otherwise?"

Leftmost's eyes got big. "Ooooooh. That's smart!" Would facepalming be seen as an aggressive motion here? I'm tempted to risk it.

"Yeah. So that means that we can just kill you right now and then pack it up and go, really." Center left said. "The hassle-free option, you know?"

I smiled. I knew that smell. These people were not ready. "Yeah. Of course."

A white outline of a blur flashed through the clearing, landing on top of the leftmost's shoulders, bone protruding from their arms and into his skull. One down.

We immediately Body Flickered away from the scene, and I went through hand signs. All the shinobi in the area did the same. No one took the time to pause, instead choosing to hide and disperse. This would be a stealth battle. A true ninja's showdown.

Demonic Illusion: Chameleon Cloak.

Everyone's chakra was suppressed. No one was going to risk anything. I knew Aimi would be hiding under genjutsu too, but unlike our enemy ninja, who wisened up with scent masking, she chose to announce her position to me. We could better coordinate that way.

Even though I couldn't see where our opponents were, the Byakugan absolutely could. We'd be able to pick them off one by one.

I followed Aimi's scent. Shiromaru, under his presence erasing technique, went somewhere else. To where I obviously couldn't sense, but I knew he would have our backs either way.

Once I was reasonably sure I was standing next to her, I took out two kunai, one for each hand, and nodded. She… most likely started walking through the trees, and I was following her. One of the enemy nin, Right Center, slipped in his scent masking. He was about a hundred meters to our left in his last position. That was obviously a trap. These people were in their early twenties at least. Chuunin or no, to have survived that long you don't mess up a relatively simple technique like scent masking.

Aimi didn't head over there either, continuing to walk straight north. A little voice inside my head told me maybe they wouldn't bother fighting us and just head straight for the mines, but reason overcame it.

Just like we don't know anything about the invading force, they don't know anything about our numbers either. Aside from that we have a Sannin with us, which they likely sent a distraction squad after, they don't know Aimi's the only one who came to my aid. If they decide to make a break for it and try and storm the entrance, they think they'll probably get cornered and then surrounded.

Now, we just had to make sure we came out of this interaction alive. The last guy I killed was basically a scout, the weakest unit. These would be full-fledged ninja, a completely different challenge.

Aimi kept walking up the grassy mountain, all the way until we could see less trees, and more dirt and rock. They were taking us out of our terrain, into their advantage. Does that mean Earth Jutsu? Or would they be using the open sky for something?

She stopped next to a large rock, and whispered, in the smallest of voices, "I'll set a trap. Lure them in."

Now how would I go about that? Does that mean they're not here then? Would I have to seek—

Something sizzled the air. It was heading for us! "DU—"

Ninja Art: Acid Pouring

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

Wind blew us both out of our genjutsu, sending us down to the ground and away.

"Aaaah!" Aimi shrieked.

A clear liquid shot right behind us, heading to the ground and melting through it. We toppled to the ground next to the marks it left, still eating away and through the grass and rock below it.

Shiromaru jumped out in front of us, transformed, blocking a barrage of shuriken from impaling us with a kunai in each hand. "They spotted us! The rest are on their way!"

One guy. Center-left finished a series of hand signs, and the ground rumbled.

"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Jutsu!" Two giant, long shapes burst out of the earth, gaining form and polish into two identical dragons, sharp teeth displayed and bared towards us.

My body screamed through Four Legs, dodging immediately. I rolled with the change, skidding back into a fighting stance. The dragon crashed back into the earth where I stood, and then the ground started rumbling.

This thing—

It burst through and out of the ground, chasing me. I jumped away again and it turned in midair, coming for me again. Shuriken flew through the paths the two dragons created and I deflected them with my claws. The Four Legs was running strongly enough that they were big enough for that.

I saw Aimi rush at the enemy ninja, who launched an outcropping of rock straight at her approaching form.

It hit. Roughly.

Shit.

She flew with the impact, the stone making it's home in her torso and landed out of my sight.

The earth dragon came for me again, and I dodged. Tiny pebbles that came from loose from the crash threw themselves at my body, and I had to close my eyes to stop myself going blind.

'Did Aimi just go down?!' Shiromaru yelled inside my head.

'One of us is gonna need to check on her!' The enemy started through more hand signs, and the ground shook again.

'First, we're gonna need to take care of the dragons!'

'What if we made them crash into each other!?' I could feel more chakra signatures approaching. Not good. Not good!

'Sounds good! Sync up!'

I turned around and started running straight for Shiromaru, and he did the same. Two identical bodies raced towards each other, the dragons following them. Just as we got close enough to touch, we jumped, using each other's feet as a springboard to leap into the air. The dragons crashed into each other magnificently, chunks and splinters of rock scattering everywhere.

"We did it!" I shouted in joy. Maybe we could make it out of this battle alive!

Then the ground shook again, and opened up into a giant hole right where we would be landing, forming sharp spikes of earth on the ground. A deathtrap.

"Earth Style: Pitfall Technique!"

Shit!

I made eye contact with Shiromaru in mid-air. He nodded. It was now or never.

""Ninja Art of Beast Imitation: Fang Over Fang!""

We spun and rotated, catching air, and violently spinning the chakra the Four Legs was coursing through us. We were just fast enough to avoid getting impaled, skidding across the peaks and breaking them, back up into the air and straight into our enemy's path.

"Earth Style: Earth Cannon Jutsu!"

'That won't stop us.' With our combined might, we tore through the rock sent straight for us, and right into the enemy nin. He tried to escape, but just like with his dragons, we could alter our course.

We collided, and tore through him, his shredded body sent into the air.

The second collision did it for us, the rotation stopping, but the G-forces still sending us horizontally through the air.

We fell roughly on the floor, closer to the trees. My hip most definitely bruised.

'Still can't stick the landing.' I complained.

'We'll get em' next time. Incoming.'

"Dude! He got Kanbe too!"

"Ain't no time for talkin'! Get 'im 'fore he recovers!"

'Just one thing after another.'

Time to dodge.

A blade on a chain tried to make its way through my neck, but I rolled away, into a taijutsu stance.

'Genjutsu!' Shiro yelled. Something entered my system.

"Kai!" Something that wasn't right in front of me now is!

I just barely dodged another acid attack! trying to kill me.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Ink stains exploded into white smoke, a giant mountain goat, easily four meters tall, stomping towards us. Great.

'Shiro! Head for Aimi! I'll distract them!'

I'm going to need a lot of clones for this.

Ramsnaketiger "Clone jutsu!" I upped the chakra smoke as much as I could, at least twenty clones dispersing all around, hiding Shiromaru's path.

The giant goat was not deterred, stamping through clones with wild abandon. More genjutsu entered my system. I dodged on instinct.

"Kai!"

The blade of the kusarigama deflected off of my claws, the chain flying off and trying to entangle me, but I dodged again, out of the way and further away from our enemies.

Now what else can I do that's big and distracting? I have both of their attention now… what about the giant summon they just gifted me?

"Bestial Illusion: Emblematic Pride."

The goat went nuts, the ground underneath us rumbling as it tried to get to me. I ran straight at my enemies, barely skidding around the goat's hooves as it attempted to crush me underneath. I was running straight at them, just like the goat was.

I could see the panic in their eyes, and they started running too. Unfortunately for them, we were both faster. I turned up the Four Legs.

Hunt! It's time for the hunt!

"Inta' the trees! Inta' the trees!" Rightmost shouted. But that didn't do anything. The goat just stomped through the woods like it was grass. And it was catching up.

"Unsummon! Unsummon!"

White chakra smoke exploded through the forest, and I deactivated my Four Legs rapidly. Too rapidly.

I barely managed not to fall on my face, but rolled with the momentum. "Bestial Illusion: Doddering Haze."

The smoke cleared, but one of them still didn't see anything. A genjutsu weakness?

"There!" Rightmost shouted.

I fired up the Four Legs again, jumping into a kick right into his face. His reaction time barely warranted a block, and I could feel his left arm break. His body crashed to the ground.

That was enough for center-right to wake up again. Kusarigama flicked around the forest, heading straight for my face and I deflected and put some distance between us. Rightmost got up again.

"Ah that hurt!"

Two more chakra signatures entered the forest. Aimi and Shiro.

"Oh thank Kami you're okay!" Aimi said, some wiped off blood still on her chin. Her haori was completely dirtied and partly torn.

"I could say the same for you!"

"She blacked out from the force of the impact. Broke two ribs. One of them perforated her lung. Stabilized her, then woke her up to let the Shikotsumyaku do the rest." Shiro helpfully added.

She smiled at me, as if to say she was totally okay now. Let's hope so.

"So it's two versus three now, huh." Right Center said. Both him and Rightmost were squared up just like we were.

"Not great odds." Rightmost said. He was clutching his left arm. No hand signs for him anymore.

"Doubly so. You just entered the forest with a team of Leaf-nin." Aimi added.

It's not like we're in a great spot either. The clones and the ridiculous Four-Legs usage basically put my chakra at 10%. At best I could only do one more jutsu. Shiro's likely in a similar spot, having healed Aimi.

"We could still take ya'. You're a bunch of genin." Right Center said.

"I'm sure Kanbe thought so too." I taunted them.

Killing Intent flashed. The time for talk was over.

"Point." Aimi muttered, right before chaos erupted.

Shiro and I threw kunai and shuriken at the same time our enemies did. The forest quickly became a hazard of thrown weapons, sharp metals coming from every angle.

Aimi didn't care, dodging and ducking around it all as she charged straight for Right Center.

'Cover her! I'll set up!' I told Shiro.

His kusarigama flew, but she deflected it with her Gentle Fist. It came again from another side, but she did it again. Rightmost prepared to do something to intervene, but Shiro stopped him.

"Bestial Illusion: Anxiety's Jaw!" Rightmost seized up.

Right Center, realising too late that his weapon wouldn't work, made to run. He dodged her initial charge with a stroke of luck, but he wouldn't be getting the option again.

"Demonic Illusion: Mirage of the Oasis."

He thought he was dodging her, but nothing but a floating whisper of white flew past him. Instead, he rushed right into her.

A sharpened humerus bone entered his chest cavity, and pierced through his heart.

At the same time, white smoke erupted where Rightmost was, a winged creature with an enormous wingspan flew out of it. On top, Rightmost laid, looking down at us.

We caught up to Aimi, who laid Right Center's body down. She had stabbed him in the brain just in case as well. "Is he going for the mines?" I asked.

"It's the wrong direction for that. Probably just fled." Her Byakugan was still on.

"Let's hope so." I turned my shoulder. "Katsuyu-sama. Any news on that team they sent to my entrance?" I asked her. She was still resting on our shoulders, looking for all the world like absolutely nothing just happened.

"I notified Team Five and they have taken care of it." Sarutobi Rie's team. Oh thank Kami. Don't wanna think after that whole fight I botched my mission objective. "Everyone is converging towards team Four. There are still over two dozen enemies left. Do you both think you can continue fighting?"

To be honest, no. I have barely any chakra, the Oasis genjutsu having taken most of it. I could still walk and enhance my body with the meager amount I have left, but Four Legs was out of the question. I'd have to take a soldier pill to even keep up.

Shiro was already back to his normal form, giving up on transformation. There's no way he's heading into a fight like this.

"I'm ready. Arata?" I made eye contact with Aimi. She would be going out and fighting. I still have a job to do.

"Shiro."

"I know."

He erased his presence as best he could without chakra, vanishing into the woods. I took out some kunai when I couldn't sense or smell his presence anymore. One for each hand.

"Let's go."

So. This chapter's for all those people that keep saying Arata's weak. I don't really put in much effort to let him show off too much, but if the only ones outperforming him are literal prodigies... people are great at math. They'll figure it out lol.