"It's been peaceful so far," Yugao commented when morning came.
"Don't count on that to last." Tenzo was just coming back from the river Rei had directed him to in order to wash up. "We've been travelling across farmland and forests. The city will be a whole different scenario."
Yugao laughed out loud. "You say that like you're not the youngest Shinobi here. Other than the foreigner."
Rei knew she probably looked like she'd been fighting off a week-long cold, but she smiled. She'd embarrassed herself last night, breaking down and crying all over the most famous Shinobi she'd ever met, and he hadn't spoken to her yet this morning. It was for the best.
Her heart pounded from the exertion of running, but also from anticipation as they drew nearer to Inaho Village. By late morning, the trees thinned, houses began appearing, and the dirt paths they'd been loosely following stretched into bona fide roads. Before they passed someone, Rei made sure to stow away her flak jacket and headband that would identify her as a Mist Shinobi. Yugao and Tenzo did the same, and when Rei raised a questioning eyebrow, Tenzo said, "Word travels fast. If it gets back to the village that this is where we went, they'll be here before we can blink."
"Maybe not that fast," Kakashi said. Rei glanced at him, then had to look a little longer. He was clearly very good at the Transformation technique. He'd managed to turn into a completely different person, sporting shaggy brown hair, loose civilian clothing, and pale violet eyes. He still wore his mask, but Rei supposed he wasn't the only person with one, so it wouldn't be a dead giveaway who he was.
They slowed their pace to a walk, and Rei pushed her chakra out as far as it would reach, searching for familiar flavors. Where are you? Where are you?
Hundreds upon hundreds of chakras tickled the edge of her consciousness, blues, greens, and purples. Where…where…
"Slow down," Yugao muttered, reaching out with lightning speed to snag Rei's wrist. "We're about to start passing people, and you look like a toddler trying to get away from us."
Rei didn't bother to respond. She kept her eyes on the road, sidestepping horse-drawn carts and waving genially at passersby, but her mind was trained on one thing and one thing only: feeling for Utakata and Koichi.
"Hope there aren't any other Sensory types nearby," Tenzo said quietly. His fingers kept twitching just slightly towards his pocket, where he held his scroll.
"Why not?" Rei asked, only half-listening for his reply.
"Because if they're Shinobi, they'll recognize us. Even if they don't know exactly who we are, they'll notice that we've trained with chakra. And they'll definitely feel you reaching around like that."
With a breath, Rei drew her senses back into her body and held them tightly. "I didn't think about that."
"Don't worry about it too much," Kakashi said. He smiled through his mask, and Rei saw a touch of crimson peek through the false violet of his left eye for a moment. "We know all about evading detection, right?" He looked pointedly between Yugao and Tenzo, who both nodded a little sheepishly.
"Yes, senpai," they said in quiet unison.
As they continued forward and Rei struggled to keep her chakra from racing ahead, she let the Leaf Shinobi teach her how to conceal her chakra. "You've got to keep enough of it moving visibly through your networks so that you blend in with civilians," Tenzo explained. "But any excess will definitely be noticed by Sensory types. You know the difference between a Shinobi and a civilian; how would you mimic someone who's never activated their network?"
This technique was much more difficult to master than talking to trees had been, Rei mused. She still wasn't very good at it when they passed the sign that declared they were entering Inaho Village. It was bustling: people came and went on their way easily. Shops lined most streets, and kiosks were set on each corner. They strode past inns and restaurants and at least two bath houses, and Rei wanted badly to follow her nose to a roadside stand selling something fried.
"Did they say where to meet?" Yugao asked no one in particular, allowing herself to be tugged aside by a saleswoman, who held a sparkling yellow blouse out for inspection.
"Nothing specific," Tenzo answered.
"Well, we do have some Sensory specialists among us," Kakashi commented, and nodded his permission to Rei. She exhaled gratefully, internally exhausted from trying to hide her chakra. Her vision exploded, colors becoming brighter and more potent, and before she stopped to try and make sense of them all, movement overhead caught her attention.
A bubble.
Her breath rushed from her chest, and she darted away from the stall. She waved frantically up at the chakra-tinged sphere, afraid her face might split with the force of her smile. People all around were looking at her like she was a lunatic, and she probably was, but she didn't care. "Come find me," she whispered.
Yugao extracted herself as gracefully as possible from the saleswoman. "Anything?"
"Oh, yes," Rei breathed, still staring up at the sky. The bubble was drifting lazily on the breeze, but it had a purpose. He'd see her soon. She looked at her temporary squad with steel eyes. "We need to stay right here. This is where they'll find me."
"In the middle of the street? No." Yugao glanced around quickly. "I need food. Something better than undersalted soup, senpai. Full offense intended."
"It doesn't feel like a very genuine honorific when you're insulting me," Kakashi said, following her down the road. Rei lost sight of the bubble behind a rooftop, and only then allowed Tenzo to shepherd her back to the group.
She allowed them to buy her a meal that she barely tasted, and she got up while they were all still eating and stood by the restaurant's door, probing the area with chakra. Utakata had to have received the bubble by now. They had to be on their way.
Several minutes later, Kakashi joined her. She didn't have to ask what he was doing when she felt the chakra in his left eye intensify. They did not speak; they just kept watch as soft snowflakes once again began to fall.
"Shinobi on the right," Kakashi said lowly, lowering his chakra presence almost instinctually, and Rei turned to survey the newcomer. She didn't recognize the muted chakra signature, and he was too far away to see clearly, but Rei took a few steps towards him anyway. He was tall and wearing a long grey coat, shoulders hunched against the cold. Most of the shopkeepers had retreated back into their buildings with the onset of the snow, so the man walked alone. Then a big black dog was loping beside him.
Rei exhaled and almost forgot to inhale again. "Leo!" she shouted, much too loud for where they were. "Leo, come to me, boy!" The dog left the man's side and galloped straight to her, bowling her straight over onto the ground. She crashed into the snow, cackling with relief as the dog licked her face and pawed at her chest. She hugged him desperately, burying her face in his thick fur.
Kakashi and Niko Sensei reached her at the same time. They were apprehensive of each other, but each of them took one of Rei's arms and helped her back to her feet. Leo bounced around excitedly, sniffing Kakashi and deciding he was a friend, and Rei threw her arms around her sensei's neck, laughing with wild abandon when he picked her up off the ground and spun her around once. "I thought you'd died!" she almost cried. "But you're here! You came for me!"
"Didn't I tell you that we take care of our own?" He set her back on her feet, surveyed her appearance for a moment, and just chuckled when she couldn't resist hugging him again. Yugao and Tenzo had joined them by then, and Tenzo seemed to be taking great care to stay as far away from Leo as he could.
"You've gotten so tall," Niko Sensei said. "And you're safe." He turned to the Leaf Shinobi and offered his hand in thanks. "I can't begin to thank you all for what you've done for us."
Kakashi brushed it off. "No thanks required. But we would very much appreciate meeting with you in a more private location. We have a lot to discuss."
Rei tilted her head, confused. They weren't leaving?
"We have some rooms at the Lunar Traveler."
"Good. Let's get going."
They walked the streets together, and Rei looked up at her sensei. She was taller than his shoulder now. "Who all came with you?"
He hesitated, then brushed a lock of black hair from his eyes. "Pretty much everyone who was left."
