Chapter 16, Part 1 – Team 11: D-Rank Mission #5… Predilections of the Future

Date: April 4th, 13 years following the Kyuubi's attack

Time: 8:15 AM

Takahashi yawned as he exited his bedroom, dressed for the day but not quite fully awake. His night had been spliced with bouts of waking up in cold sweats from the nightmares that came every now and again. The dreams were always frighteningly real, typically involving Takahashi as a young boy - not old enough to enter the Ninja Academy, but tantalizingly close - maybe one or two months away at best. The dreams were always from his viewpoint - never seeing himself from the outside like some dreams did. He didn't have the scar over his left eye yet; that much was visible from the occasional mirror that he'd see in the dream.

The nightmares never ran smoothly - there were breaks in the events that made the delusions of slumber even more annoying... Annoying because, if these were memories rather than mere nightmares, that meant he DID have memories from before the morning he woke up for the first time in the hospital. In other words, the past that he so desperately wanted was in his head and he just couldn't get to those memories.

The dreams always involved a man and a woman: both were very plain, although the woman had the same blonde hair as Takahashi and the man shared the same chestnut brown eyes as the child he was in the dream. There were enough physical similarities to suggest that they were supposed to be his parents, but the images carried no emotional warmth to back up such fantasies.

The dream ended - as it did every single time - with flashes of him running to the woman, who was wearing something that had been knocked out of position, allowing him to see half of her face. This caused him to break away from the man that had been walking with him - the one whose face he could never see because he was so tall - so he could run to her. The caretaker shouted for him to come back, but Takahashi REALLY wanted to show the woman the shiny, shiny item the man had given him.

The woman shouted a terse order to stop in a no-nonsense tone of voice that made the younger version of him come to a dead halt in his tracks, uncertain why she was mad at him. There was a scruffy man to her left and a masked ANBU ninja to the left of the scruffy man. The scruffy man's hands were bound in front of him and he looked like he'd been rode hard and put up wet. The woman adjusted the item that was out of place - which turned out to be an ANBU mask of her own - turned to the other, said a few words that he couldn't hear and then started approaching Takahashi.

As she walked forward, she made a gesture to the caregiver - who'd been coming up from behind Takahashi, causing him to back down. Before the woman was halfway to him, the scruffy man, eyes filled with desperation, whipped his elbow around to bash in the mask of the ANBU still standing with him. The world started to slow as the mask shattered and, for an instant, Takahashi thought that he saw the chestnut brown of the father/man's eyes, before he brought his hands up in a defensive gesture.

The scruffy man charged the woman, quickly catching up to her and pulling something that Takahashi couldn't see from the equipment pouch on her back before the woman even realized that the man had broken free. The scruffy man held his stolen prize up in his hands, shouting a demand of the woman. The woman shouted back in defiance as the ANBU with the shattered mask tackled the man from behind. The woman's mask slipped again and Takahashi could see a look of concerned horror on her face as she glanced down at the two fighting on the ground for a brief instant before she began running towards him.

She made it all of three steps before a bright yellow flash lit the very air on fire. The woman dove at Takahashi - clearly trying to protect him from the explosion. Just an instant before she caught him, a dozen fragments of blast-warped metal from a nearby construction scaffold struck her from behind like shurikens. A horrified gasp escaped her lips - maybe a name..? - as she slumped to her knees as she coughed up a small cloud of blood. Takahashi started to run towards her as another fragment - one larger than the boy's tiny fist flew over her shoulder and struck his temple in an explosion of white agony...

Which is where he woke up with lances of pain from the area of his long-healed injury; just like he did every single time he had the dream.

Takahashi opened the small refrigerator in his apartment pulling out the milk and the bento box that he'd prepared for himself. He had a small apartment all to himself; as in the case of Naruto Uzumaki, Takahashi had no known living family and, as such, was a ward of the Village - given a stipend to cover basic needs and moderate wants until such time that he could start working. Now that he was a full-fledged Genin, part of his income for services rendered was held to cover those expenses with the Village treasury covering any deficiencies.

He poured some of the milk into a shallow bowl for Kyouran to give him a treat when he returned. While young, the panther cub had long since learned how to hunt on his own for food. After leaving the rest for his partner, the young man opened the box and began to eat his previously prepared breakfast. Takahashi glanced at one of the windows of his apartment where he'd rigged a device that opened the window when Kyouran pushed against it. Sure enough, the small bar was extended, raising the window all of three inches - sufficiently high for Takahashi's black furred partner to slip under.

And thinking of partners...

Takahashi's gaze shifted to the living area where the diamond golem that Okito-sensei had spared at the Genin's request stood watching the television set silently. The TV was set to the kids' channel - shows designed to be educational for viewers too young to enter the Ninja Academy or attend the schools for civilians that were unable to manipulate chakra. The golem had been watching the channel for the last week straight at Takahashi's instruction. The Genin was hoping that shows designed to help teach young humans to learn communication skills might work on a creature that had the same level of brainpower.

'Let's give it a test...' Takahashi thought to himself as he closed the box up. Since it was a mission day, the remainder would be used for lunch. He walked up to the golem, which after a few days of deliberation, had been given the name Ryohan which meant "Comrade" in most of the Five Nations. "Good Morning, Ryohan. How are you today?"

The golem's head swiveled at the sound of Takahashi's voice. "O... Ohaaaa..." Ryohan's voice slurred as he tried to speak. "Ohayo, Taka-ka-ka-hashi-san. Ryohan is..." It paused. "At 75% power."

The Genin nodded. Okito-sensei said that he'd given Ryohan enough power for about a week or two of moderate operations. Since the golem was expanding its mental abilities rather than using its physical capabilities, it made sense that he would still be mostly full. "Are you enjoying the shows?"

Ryohan remained silent for an unusual length of time. "Error. Ryohan does not comprehend the question. Ryohan must remind Taka-ka-hashi-shi that Ryohan is not capable of experiencing human feelings."

'Well, he's talking better. Last week he was limited to single word responses, but I'll have to teach him how to talk about himself in something other than third person. It's kind of unnerving.' The Genin thought to himself.

"Prowr?" Kyouran called as he squeezed under the open window and, catching the scent of milk, ran to the saucer and quickly lapped it up. To most people, Kyouran's speech was the sound of any other feline. For Takahashi, who had spent years with Kyouran's pride, understood him as clearly as he understood any human.

The Genin looked at the clock on the wall. "Yeah, you're right Kyouran. We do need to head out or we'll be late to mustering." He turned back to Ryohan. "All right, Ryohan. I need to go to work; you can resume watching the shows." The golem made a stilted nod and turned his head back to where he could focus on the television. "Let's go, Kyouran..."

* * *

About an hour later, the Sandaime Hokage, who was sitting at the table in the mustering center reading a scroll while waiting for the next group of ninja to enter for their assignment, blinked as a black splotch obscured the writing. The Hokage smiled - it was a rare occasion that he was so focused on something that he didn't even sense someone approaching him. The old man reached out and began rubbing Kyouran's head with a self-bemused chuckle as the rest of Team 11 filtered in through the door.

Takahashi sighed uneasily when he saw his feline companion. "Kyouran, you're keeping Hokage-sama from doing his job; get down from there..."

Hokage Sarutobi chuckled at the Genin's well-meaning discomfort as he continued to pet the black panther cub. "There's no need to get upset, Takahashi. Kyouran and I go back quite a ways - his mother, Kyoubou, and I have been friends for years." The Genin's eyes widened slightly in surprise. "One of my children is the one who raised Kyoubou as a Neko-Nin from a cub some fifteen years ago. And while neither Kyoubou nor my child is an active ninja any more, I still find time on occasion to check up on her and the pride."

Kyouran let off a mew of surprise that was mimicked on Takahashi's face. "Neither of us was aware of that, Hokage-sama." Raiden Hata rolled his eyes at the diversion, but his sister, Motoko, let off a soft giggle of amusement.

Okito Tanaka nodded. "In fact, Sarutobi-sensei was there for every litter Kyoubou had during the seven years I worked as his assistant. I wouldn't be surprised if he kept that up during the four years I was out of the village on special assignment."

The Hokage smiled into Kyouran's golden eyes. "Yes, I did. I was there two years ago when you were born. In fact, I was the one that convinced your sire, Ryoushi, to allow me to bring you to Takahashi to be raised as a Ninja Cat as soon as you were weaned. He noticed, as I did, that you showed significantly more chakra generation potential than most of your siblings. While the old master of the forest is his own cat, he didn't mind the thought of one of his cubs being raised as a human - especially one that I vouched for."

"I knew that Ryoushi had a grudging respect for Iruka-sensei and Kiba Inuzaka's mom and sister; but I didn't know you had that much pull with him, Hokage-sama." Takahashi said, fundamentally impressed. "I know I sure as heck don't… Even if he tolerates my presence in the pride."

Sarutobi grinned. "I'm the one that rescued him from the trap that an illegal poacher caught him in so many years ago - that's how he lost his left eye and got those scars." He reached over and picked up his pipe, taking a deep draw of the mellow smelling tobacco. "He and I have been good friends ever since. In fact, whenever I'm traveling through the forest, he'll typically follow along with me in the off chance I get into a bit of a scrape."

"Takahashi's told us stories about the pride of panthers that he runs with on occasion," Motoko Hata said, clearly impressed. "I've heard that Ryoushi's got unusually high levels of chakra and can use it well - despite a lack of training as a ninja cat... I'd pity anyone that tried to deal with the two of you at the same time." She smiled at Kyouran. "Your sire's a pretty cool cat, you know that?"

Kyouran gave a meow/roar as he leapt onto her shoulder and began using his long black tail to bat at her nose playfully. This elicited a chuckle from the Hokage and Takahashi. "Be careful, Momo," Takahashi said. "I think you made him jealous."

"Okay, okay, Kyouran..." Motoko said with a sigh as she reached up behind his front legs to lift him off her shoulder. The panther's golden yellow eyes seemed to dig into Motoko's frustration at his playful attack on her. She smiled again. "You are just too cute to stay mad at, you know that? Besides, you don't need to be jealous - your papa may be cool, but he's not nearly as friendly as you are from what I hear." Kyouran seemed to mull that over for a moment and then licked the tip of her nose in equal parts apology and acceptance. His rough feline tongue caused Motoko to giggle slightly and rubbed her forehead against his before setting him on the ground.

Okito Tanaka coughed slightly in an effort to bring the focus back to why they were in the Mission Assignment room. "You had a job for us, Sarutobi-sensei?"

The Third Hokage smiled at his former bodyguard. "Focusing on the job, as always, I see..." He glanced at the disturbed papers on the desktop. "Ah, yes; here we are. The Hospital is beginning its preparations for the upcoming Exams and needs to expand its supply of curative herbs." He took a quick draw from his pipe. "The Exam Coordinators have received notices that 81 Genin from outside of Konoha will be participating and, as of the last tally, at least 50 Konoha shinobi will be enrolling; but that does not include the usual array of late entrants or any Genin that may be recommended from this year's graduating class. It's the largest number of examinees that have applied in the history of the exams."

"Which is going to include the three of us if we can swing the necessary assignments, right guys?!" Raiden chimed in, clearly excited at the prospect of participating in the competition.

Sarutobi-sensei smiled at Raiden's brashful exuberance. "Potentially, Raiden-san, potentially..." He adjusted his gaze to take in all four of the ninja. "In any event, your mission is to go to the Hospital's outpost clinic near the 44th Training Zone and check in Yuri Mao. Dr. Mao is already at the clinic and reviewing the supplies currently there against the anticipated quantities that will be required."

Raiden frowned; confused. "If this is the largest group ever going through the exam, how can you anticipate how much medicine you're going to need?"

The Hokage's eyes softened - a sign of sadness for the old man, but he tried to remain nonchalant about it. "Oh, we have records from the previous exams... Okito - you remember the figures, don't you?"

Tanaka-sensei nodded solemnly. "Very much so... Average fatalities between 10 and 15% of the participants… Environmental injuries, including poisoning, blood loss and contagion caused from non-human sources, about 18%. Combat injuries to at least 30% and assorted non-critical injuries inflicted on 37 to 42% of the participants."

Motoko's jaw weakened. "By the math, that means no one ever gets through the exam without at least a minor injury. And people DIE during it?"

Okito nodded. "At least 2/3rds of the exam pits the candidates against each other - half of that indirectly and the other half directly. As a result, injuries can happen – it's all part of being a ninja."

"It's no surprise." Takahashi said. "The 44th Training Zone is nicknamed the Forest of Death. Even if the place wasn't locked down 99% of the year, Ryoushi and the rest of Kyouran's pride deliberately avoid it. Kyoubou's told stories about the time she went into the Forest with her partner - it's the stuff of nightmares… Massive beasts, leeches the size of your head, and so forth…"

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. "That is precisely why we built an outpost clinic in the area - as a staging area for the Medic-nin that volunteer for duty during the Exam. In any event: you have your Mission. Good luck to you all."

"Arigato, Hokage-sama!" The Genin of Team 11 said in unison as they bowed respectfully.

* * *

It took the four member cell about thirty minutes to make their way to the clinic. Most of the training zones were away from the village proper - enclosed within the village walls but north of the Hokage Cliff; the demarcation line between the cultivated beauty of the village and the untamed wilderness that was spared for use in training ninja.

The clinic was a small white stone structure that had maybe two or three rooms, but lacked the soothing internal decor that was had at the main Hospital in the center of the village. The interior was dingy and had no small number of cobwebs, but that was to be expected since this particular facility was typically unmanned except for the four days every few years during the Chuunin exams.

"Geez... What a dump." Raiden said. "Are all the outpost clinics like this?" His twin sister responded by slapping her twin brother on the back of his head. "OW! What was that for?"

"The clinics are designed to be conveniently close to people so they don't have to go all the way to the hospital for minor injuries." She said tersely at her twin. "Some are also meant for those in the village who can't afford care by a Medical Ninja and have to rely on the more traditional methods of recovery. The village provides basic healthcare for a modest fee, but ninja healing is more expensive because there are limits to what each Medic-nin can do per day. Since we're ninja, we get that level of care for free, but you need to remember that more than 80% of the people in Konoha are civilians."

"That's right, Motoko." Okito said. "Since this location is going to be staffed primarily by Medic-nin, I was rather surprised by who is in charge here this time..."

"Oh? And why is that, Turtle Boy?" A woman's voice came from the entrance to the storeroom area. A young woman about Tanaka-sensei's age and wearing the white coat that was worn by the civilian doctors in Konoha had appeared in the doorframe. Motoko Hata noted that the lady could have passed for Miho Hyuuga-sensei's sister - save for the fact that her hair was a vibrant purple instead of black and was gifted with piercing violet eyes that were clearly trying to bore a hole into Okito-sensei's belly. "Is heading up a Medical Ninja operation too much for an ordinary civilian doctor like me?"

"Now that's not fair, Yu-chan. You know that there's NOTHING ordinary where you're concerned." Okito said with a smile as he opened up his folded arms. "No hug for an old friend?"

The white-coated woman kept up the pretense of being mad for a few more seconds before skip/running to her longtime friend and accepting the offered hug. "It's good to see you again, Oki-kun." She said as she kissed him on the cheek. Then she punched his shoulder twice with a surprising amount of force. "That's for not writing while you were gone OR coming to see me when you got home. Four years and you might as well have fallen off the face of the planet!"

"I'm sorry I didn't send you any letters, Yuri. I was on a special assignment in areas that require the utmost secrecy - I wasn't allowed contact with the outside to minimize the risk of exposing state secrets. And I've only been back in the village for about 8 weeks..."

Yuri Mao took a step back, her expression clearly cross as she slugged him again. "And you haven't called! My phone number hasn't changed in the last 4 years. It took filing a request to hire ninja service to get you to come and see me!"

Okito Tanaka grinned sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head with his left hand. "Well I had a lot to get caught up on... Between getting caught up on the last four years of what happened with the family while I was gone, making the improvements to the bakery's exterior, helping fill in at the bakery, picking my ninja team and getting them organized into something resembling a cohesive unit, I've been busy..."

"You're the one who did all that work?" Mao-sensei asked in surprise. "I had simply assumed your old man had hired it out - especially since they finished the work so fast. I mean it's like the store changed practically overnight."

Takahashi recalled what the Jonin had said while it had just been the two of them while the Hata twins had been unconscious - that he'd used his skills developed during his extended assignment to upgrade the defenses of the Bakery, but to do so without ruining the esthetics of the shop.

Tanaka-sensei shrugged. "Technically, I didn't do it alone, but I did need to do the work in the evening so as to not interfere with business. It took me about three nights and the help of a dozen of my golems. Do you like the new look?"

Yuri gave her old friend a thumbs up gesture. "You never were good at detailed artwork like Miho-san was, but you do have a knack for beautiful architecture."

Okito opened his mouth to respond, but he paused as he heard Kyouran meow behind him, followed by Takahashi voice saying - in a clearly surprised tone. "No. There's no WAY I'm translating that, buddy." The blond Genin's expression clearly matched his tone as both of the Hata twins and Yuri Mao, who saw it over Tanaka's shoulder, began to laugh at the other's discomfiture.

Tanaka turned to face the pair. "Translate what?"

Takahashi grimaced at his black-furred companion. "Way to get us in trouble, Kyouran…" The cat responded by simply waving its tail in the air. "Do I really have to say, Tanaka-sensei?"

Okito nodded as he made a negligent gesture. "I've been around the block a time or two, kiddo. Nothing your feline friend could say would come as a surprise."

The blond Genin bowed his head in defeat. "Okay... Just remember that it's the furball saying this - not me, okay?" He took a breath in an effort to shore up his self-confidence. "Kyouran said 'Would you apologize and kiss her already? You - and anyone who can hear - know you want to.'"

There was a brief moment of silence as everyone processed the translation.

It was Raiden Hata who lost his composure first. His hands came up to cover his mouth, but a snorting laughter quickly broke free as he slumped to the ground, overcome by mirth. His twin sister was a bit more compassionate, as was her wont - as a blush that was equally embarrassed and entranced broke out on her face with a shy smile. Takahashi was still mortified at Kyouran's behavior, so was ignoring the social faux pass.

Okito Tanaka felt his own cheeks color with embarrassment, but he remained stoically silent until he heard a giggle from behind him. He turned again, seeing Yuri with cheeks flushed as well. The regular doctor grinned at Tanaka, toying with her hair using a single finger flirtatiously. "It sounds like the cat's right on the money, Oki-kun."

Tanaka swallowed slightly to clear his throat. He and Yuri had been having a running hot-and-cold relationship for the better part of 10 years now, which was part of the reason he kept practicing those useless pickup lines with Miho Hyuuga. It was a backup in the event that Yuri ever decided that she'd had enough of him, he'd have to go back into the dating scene: hard enough for regular people, but far more complex when you were a Jonin since you were typically gone for long stretches at a time AND usually couldn't talk about your work with others even when you were around.

Okito coughed slightly. "Actually, Kyouran's a panther and he's only a year or two old. We'll have to pick up THAT line of discussion later, however. You hired ninja to do a medicinal herb run, correct?"

Mao-sensei nodded. "Right. Since we knew the Chuunin Exams were coming, the admin panel at the hospital had already started gathering up supplies fairly early on, but with the turn out we're now being told to expect, we're uncomfortably low on one herb in particular." She reached into her lab coat and pulled out a plant that resembled a budding rose, but was a dark greenish/brown and was almost as big as the woman's hand. She handed it over to Okito, who took a close look at it – giving a nod of recognition – before handing it to Raiden, who'd calmed down after the announcement that the briefing was about to start.

"That's a Dragon Heart plant. They grow underground until mature, at which point the tip of the core breaks through the surface to create runners that expand outwards - much like a strawberry plant - which then gets pollinated and remains dormant until buried by forest debris and so forth. It's very difficult to cultivate because once it begins its reproductive cycle, the core of the herb - which we need as an topical analgesic for burns and can be distilled into the base of a very strong sun block - loses most of its core compounds due to exposure to the air."

She sighed. "That means we need to find it after it surfaces, but before it sprouts tendrils. We also have to make sure not to overharvest - it takes nearly 3 years for a Dragon Heart to mature, so if we take too many, we might not have enough left for the next harvest. The herbal greenhouses have been harvested to the edge of the 'safe' margin, which means we're going to have to go after undomesticated herbs."

By now, the Dragon Heart herb had been passed over to Takahashi, who was holding it up for his own inspection while Kyouran sniffed it. "There's only two places in the village where Dragon Hearts still grow naturally - in the 44th Training Zone, in which such a search would be tantamount to committing suicide, and over in the 20th Training Zone. We need at a minimum 30 Dragon Hearts, but I'd prefer to have at least 50, so we have an emergency backup if needed."

"Normally, such a search would be done by a team of medically-trained Hyuuga - since with the Byakugan, they can search underground without disturbing the plants that aren't quite mature. However, the medical corps is being spread even thinner than normal, so the team is not available." She reached into the other pocket of her coat and handed it to Okito-sensei. "We do, however, have a map that lists the locations where the team cultivated six months ago AND shows the plants that they determined should be maturing around this time."

"Great, Yu-chan." Okito said as he accepted the map. "Between this and Kyouran's nose, we should be able to do this with a minimum of trouble."

Takahashi frowned. "I wouldn't be too sure about that, Okito-sensei... Ryoushi and his pride have staked out a sizable portion of the 20th as their territory. They don't mind ninja passing through or even training in their area - that's Kyoubou's influence - but I don't know if he'll permit us to harvest plants. Kyouran and I combined don't have enough pull with Ryoushi to change his mind if he chooses to deny us."

"With any luck," Yuri said as she walked over - having clearly lost her resolve to not play with Kyouran, "it won't come to that. This cute little guy's got the scent and there should be plenty in the open territory. But I have a feeling that since he seems to be really good at reading situations, maybe he'll be able to convince this Ryoushi with your help."

"Geez..." Raiden Hata snorted. "Why do women keep falling for that annoying furball?" Motoko glared at her brother, but Kyouran, who had rolled onto his back to accept a belly rub from Dr. Mao made a blissful, but somehow pointed meow. As he did so, Takahashi snorted in amusement. Raiden frowned. "What's the cat got to say that's so damn funny?"

Takahashi grinned. "He said, 'It's not my fault that I'm cute, Motoko's both smart and pretty, and you look like you were beaten about the head, neck and shoulders by the ugly stick a few hundred times.'"

Takahashi's translation of Kyouran's comments caused everyone - save for Raiden - to laugh. Raiden, however, swelled up with rage. "You little furball!" He shouted, taking a step forward - his hands clenching and relaxing in anticipation of snapping Kyouran's neck.

Before he could make a second step, however, Takahashi's Sansetsukon - the three-sectioned staff that he carried on his back - was in the blond Genin's hands. Kyouran's partner lashed out with the weapon, catching Raiden's neck with the short chain between two of the sections - like a walnut caught in a nutcracker. As Raiden reached for the poles pinning his throat, Takahashi stepped forward, putting leverage on the poles to start a choke hold on the other young man. He used the free section to loop under Raiden's right arm and up to put it into an arm bar hold.

Takahashi's normally friendly demeanor was replaced with a cold glare as he manipulated the sticks to put pressure on Raiden's arm and neck. "Now... That wasn't very friendly, Raiden." He said with a cool, friendly-yet-verging-on-homicidal overtone. "Might I remind you that Renjiku was dumb enough to actually hit Kyouran, which is what sparked my last rampage? And we're a long ways from Ino-chan to snap me out of it... So you probably don't want to continue doing what you were thinking of... right? After all, it would be a real shame if you missed the Chuunin exams because you were recovering from my snapping every bone in both your arms." He gave the Sansetsukon a squeeze for emphasis. "RIGHT?"

A stifled gasp for air came from his right. "Ta... Taka..." Motoko Hata wheezed. The blonde Genin glanced to the side as Yuri Mao cursed, running over to her. Motoko's face had taken on a reddish pallor and she was scratching with her left hand to try and pull aside something that wasn't there while her right hand hung limp. "Can't..." She gave a horrendous wheezing gasp. "Breathe..."

Horrified at the sight of his punishment of her brother affecting Hata-chan, Takahashi released his grip on the pole ends and released Raiden from the bind. The second he did so, Motoko and Raiden took a hacking breath as their windpipes were unblocked. The blonde young man glanced back and forth - uncertain whether to apologize to her for the pain he caused or to chastise him for considering inflicting injury on Kyouran. Unable to process the situation, Takahashi just turned and stormed out of the clinic, saying nothing and unable to look anyone in the eye. Kyouran gave Motoko a look of sad apology and Raiden a growl of ire before following his human partner.

Yuri Mao looked at Okito from her examination of Motoko's neck as red bruises - similar to the ones on Raiden's, but far less pronounced - appeared. "How the hell is that possible? I know chakra can do some pretty wild things, but I've never seen anything like this."

Okito shook his head. "I don't know. They're ninja twins - which are pretty darn rare - so we're in unknown territory. Even the ninja medics haven't figured out how they're able to feel each other's pain. But I've never seen this happen to them before."

"It... doesn't... very often." Motoko answered hoarsely. "Only when... Rai's injured... real bad."

"Will you be okay for the mission?" Okito asked. "Takahashi and I could do it alone if we need to."

Motoko smiled slightly. "Be fine in... a few seconds. Not the first... time this... happened to us. Don't even... blame Takahashi... Understandable - Kyouran only... family he has."

Tanaka-sensei shook his head. "You keep finding new ways to impress me with how kind a person you are, Motoko-chan; anyone else would be mad as hell." He looked at Raiden. "You okay, Raiden?"

Raiden coughed. "Yeah. I'll kick his... ass later... for this. Let me get a drink... water 'n I'll be fine."

Yuri walked over to the medical closet and came back. "Here." She handed a small box to both of the Hata twins. "Throat lozenges, they should help soothe the pain." Then she glanced at Okito. "You really have your work cut out for you with these two boys, Oki-kun… You're forgiven for not calling."

"Thanks, Yu-chan." He looked at his two Genin. "When you're ready, come over to the 20th training zone - we've got a mission to complete, after all. Takahashi and I will go on ahead so we can talk about this in private." The twins nodded at the Jonin as he turned and exited the clinic.

* * *

It took about an hour before Team 11 was reassembled over by the 20th training zone. Takahashi had apologized for his actions and the twins had accepted - they had known the blonde Genin all through the Academy, so they were well aware of his rage and impulse control issues that popped up whenever he was protecting someone important to him.

Between the map and Kyouran's sense of smell, Okito and Takahashi had managed to gather 15 Dragon Hearts at the prime of their growth.

Okito Tanaka smiled to himself while he allowed his students to lead the way. 'Well, despite that rather nasty blow up earlier, there seem to be no hard feelings. Still - that was rather shocking to see; neither Rook nor Knight had a nasty temper... It must be because of the head wound that left his scar all those years ago.'

He felt a tear well up in one of his eyes at the memory - which he quickly swept aside. If only he hadn't backed down when Rook had ordered him to; if he'd disregarded the order, he would have been close enough to be able to erect a barrier to protect both Takahashi and maybe his mother from the shrapnel. He might have even been able to protect Knight by encasing the prisoner, whose name Okito had never learned, in a diamond prison to contain the explosion instead.

'If... If... If...' The Jonin sighed. 'And if my grandmother had wheels, she'd be a wagon.'

A surprising loud call from Kyouran finally broke Okito Tanaka out of his rut of memories. Okito looked up. "What did he say, Takahashi?"

"Kyouran says that there's a rather significant source of the Dragon Heart scent to our West-Northwest." He gestured towards a rather thick stand of trees about half a kilometer away. "I don't recall anything like that on the map that Dr. Mao gave us."

Tanaka pulled out the map. Sure enough; the next group of Dragon Hearts that should be ripe for harvesting was another two kilometers to the east. If he hadn't been distracted, they probably would have missed this patch altogether. He looked over at the stand. "Looks like those trees are clustered too closely for us to get through from this direction. We'll loop around from the south and see if we can find an entrance. Raiden…" The flame haired young man perked up. "Kyouran and Takahashi have been leading up 'til now to find what we're looking for; since we know where to look, why don't you take point for the moment."

"Sweet!" Raiden crowed. "Follow me everyone!"

Motoko, however, paused. Keeping in mind the fact that they had been getting closer to the part of the forest that Kyouran's pride had claimed, she'd been pushing her chakra sensing ability to its limits to try and detect any concentrations in their area. Focusing in a specific direction typically allowed her to reach a bit further or to improve the quality of detection... And she sensed four fast-moving sources to the southwest - sources that she recognized.

"Ah... Sensei..." When no response came, Motoko blinked a few times to bring herself back to the here instead of there. She looked around only to see the retreating backs of her team. "Hey, you guys, wait for me!"

* * *

It took them about twenty minutes to pass through the thick underbrush surrounding the grove of thick trees that hid the Dragon Hearts that Kyouran had caught the scent of. They still hadn't found a way through the trees until Raiden paused. "What the hell?" He ran over to one of the thick trees. "Ah, shit; why the hell didn't I spot that earlier?"

The others looked at him with clueless expressions on their faces. "What are you talking about, Raiden?" Takahashi finally asked.

"This tree isn't a tree!" He said, reaching up to a seam in the trunk. His fists clenched and his unusually thick - given his age - muscles tensed as he pulled. As he did so, the tree broke open, revealing a number of bamboo poles lashed together and then surrounded by the carefully peeled bark of a tree. "It looks like someone found this patch and took steps to discourage anyone from coming in."

Okito Tanaka frowned as he stepped forward to examine the handiwork. "This might be one of HIS…" The Jonin cursed as he turned to his students, his face deadly serious. "I need all of you to back away… Carefully! Keep an eye out for any tripwires on the ground. After this long, there shouldn't be any, but be very, VERY careful."

"What's wrong, Sensei?" Motoko Hata asked, feeling the anxiety of her sensei as if it were her own.

"If I'm right, this might be a stockpile belonging to an S-class rogue-nin from Konoha. He was forced to flee the village decades ago, but the guy was an absolute genius - the Sasuke Uchiha of his day to give you a comparison you'll understand - albeit twisted in ways that scare the hell out of me to this day. He was also not one to leave anything unprotected if it had any value to him."

Motoko closed her eyes, focusing on the trees. "Well, I'm not sensing any chakra sources in that direction; so if it is booby-trapped, it's a physical one."

Okito nodded as he held out his hands - forming a diamond spear in his hands. The spear had an extremely fine point, which Tanaka pushed through the fake tree. Once it broke through the other side, the hilt of the spear changed to a reflective sheen, save for one section that the Jonin peered into. "It's not the Hokage's remote viewing technique, but it'll do."

Raiden frowned. "I know I'm not the smartest of people, but what is he doing?"

His twin paused for an instant, but a flash of insight quickly flared. "Oh! Refraction! The spear is transparent, except for the outer edges, which are capable of bouncing light back. Tanaka-sensei basically turned the spear into a periscope so he can check the other side for anything that might get triggered if we simply remove the fake tree."

"Right you are, Motoko-chan." Tanaka said as he looked up. As he did so, he paused when he looked at the kunoichi. Her hair was pulled back as it usually was, but there were dangling white ribbons framing her head. "Have you been wearing that ribbon in your hair all day, Motoko?"

She shook her head. "No, Sensei. I had my usual clasp in my hair when we went to the clinic. I took it off to straighten my hair before Raiden and I rejoined you, but it broke. Fortunately, I happened to have this ribbon and Mao-sensei helped me put it on."

"You didn't just HAPPEN to have it." Raiden teased his twin. "You've been carrying it with you everywhere you've gone since Inugami left it tied to your arm three days ago when you passed out."

"Raiden!" Motoko shouted at her younger brother as a flush crossed her cheeks.

Okito smiled slightly. "It just surprised me... That's the same way Miho-chan used to style her hair before it grew out to its current length." The comment caused Motoko's ire to vanish with a smile directed at the Jonin. "Well I'm not seeing a trap on the other side, so either this isn't HIS or it was and the defenses have just degraded over time. It should be safe enough to clear an entrance. Raiden - you want the honors?"

The combat-loving Genin grinned. "Gladly." The orange-haired young man swapped places with the Jonin and contemplated the barrier. "Looks like the best way to deal with this is going to be the old fashioned one..." He dropped into a stance, taking a deep breath. "Kiai!" He shouted as he began lashing out. With each swing, the Genin's forceful Taijutsu strikes cracked the inner layers of dried bamboo.

Once all the bamboo pylons were broken, he reached in and gave it a sharp tug that separated the fake tree from its base. He torqued his well-toned waist and hurled the barrier aside, landing with a resounding crash. "Easy as pie." Raiden said with a rake-hell grin. He glanced into the clearing. "Damn! We hit the mother lode!" The others dashed up to the opening that was large enough for one person to walk through at a time and peered within. It was a veritable garden of assorted medical herbs - including a sizable patch of Dragon Heart herbs.

Raiden glanced at Kyouran, who was perched on Takahashi's shoulder and reached out to rub the panther's head despite himself. "You done good, furball. When we get back to the village, I'm buying you a fish as big as you are." Kyouran gave off a purring mew. "What did he say?"

Takahashi smiled. "He said, 'I'll hold you to that promise.'"

Seeing the boys finally make up brought a smile to the faces of Motoko and Okito-sensei. The good humor was short lived when Motoko heard a high pitched buzz and sensed a wave of chakra from above and behind the group. Recognizing both from the incident a few weeks ago, she shouted. "Abunai! Everyone, look out!"

She then dived to one side as a glowing blue disk that was about as thick as a notebook and sized somewhere between a shuriken and a dinner plate descended in a downward spiral. The disc narrowly missed the three male members of Team 11 as it spun on an erratic course before crashing into the ground - carving a divot about four inches wide and three deep in the loam of the forest floor. The disk then faded away as if it had never been.

"Whoa!" A familiar voice shouted from overhead. "Hold your fire - there are people over here!"

"You've got to be kidding me!" Another familiar voice responded, one that caused Motoko's heart to flutter slightly. "We're three kilometers into the middle of nowhere!"

Raiden looked at his sister. "Was that..?"

She nodded. "I tried warning you guys earlier that I sensed some ninja over here, but you three weren't paying attention." She rolled over onto her feet and looked up. As she expected, Sho Inugami and Nakahito Haruno were up in the trees. She wasn't, however, expecting them to be standing on the trunks instead of the branches.

Sho Inugami surveyed the area. "Did I hit anyone?" His was the second voice.

"Damn it, Inugami!" Raiden shouted. "That was too damn close! I could have lost my arm!" Raiden looked up to spot the medical ninja, his jaw dropping when he saw the same thing his sister had. "The hell..?"

"Oh, hey, it's Team 11!" Nakahito shouted as Kimiko Itou and Miho Hyuuga appeared on the tree branch between the two male Genin. The other ninja team ran down the trunk to the ground and began offering helping hands to everyone. "What are you guys doing out here?"

"It's our mission day." Takahashi answered as Haruno helped the blonde Genin to his feet. "We've got to collect a bunch of Dragon Heart herbs for the Clinic over by the 44th Training Zone."

"Dragon Hearts?" Sho asked, sounding surprised. He glanced briefly at Motoko before he noticed the hole in the canopy. "Ah, damn it..." He walked over to the opening before turning on Raiden. "Why did you break the door? The entire tree front is designed to swing outwards!"

"Why do you assume I had anything to do with it?" Raiden said defensively.

Inugami pointed at Raiden's hands. "Your fists are slightly swollen and you have bamboo slivers in your hands from breaking the door."

"Oh..." Raiden looked at his hands, noticing the thin pieces of hard grass sticking out of his knuckles. "I was wondering why my hands were itching." He began to pull them out, leaving them oozing blood until he pulled out his first aid kit.

The medic-nin pulled on a notched piece of the "trunk", exposing a crack in the camouflage, but the large piece fell to the ground since it was no longer connected to anything to support its weight. He sighed, rubbing his head. "Dad's going to pitch a fit. It took him weeks to rig this camouflage. Thanks a lot, Raiden…"

Okito Tanaka looked at the white-clad young man. "You knew about this place?"

"Yes, Tanaka-sensei," Sho answered. "It's one of my family's medical supply stockpiles."

"One of..?" Miho Hyuuga asked her Genin in surprise. "Your family has others?"

Inugami arched an eyebrow. "This surprises you? We've got supply stations scattered throughout the training zones for use in the event of a catastrophic incident as a precaution against the main hospital storehouses begin exhausted, destroyed, or otherwise unavailable." He frowned, looking at the other team. "How'd you find this one? The visual camouflage is just part of the protection on it…"

"Kyouran smelled the Dragon Hearts." Motoko answered, smiling at the young man.

Sho nodded, but made no other acknowledgement of the kunoichi's presence before stepping into the clearing her brother had exposed. He was looking for something…

Feeling slighted, Motoko walked over to Kimiko Itou. "Hey, Kimi-chan?" She whispered. "Do you think Sho's mad at me about something? For the last few days I've been getting the feeling like he's trying to avoid me."

Kimiko sighed and shook her head; recalling the medic's confession to her the other day. "I'm not really sure what's going through Sho's mind at the moment, Motoko-chan."

She paused, remembering how Sho had said that he knew Motoko really liked him, but how he felt he wasn't worthy of a girl like her. He'd asked her to not let Motoko know he knew about her feelings for him so as to not cause Motoko undeserved grief. And yet his efforts to protect her feelings were hurting her…

'He might be a genius,' Kimiko thought to herself. 'But he knows jack about girls... He's trying to do right – what he THINKS is right – by Motoko-chan, but his methods are causing more grief than just being honest about his fears.' She signed to herself. 'I really don't get him at times; he's smart, he's kind - when it suits him, at least - and he's always willing to help a friend out... I know he's scared of whatever part of him protected him from that boar, but how can he consider himself unworthy of a nice girl like Motoko-chan?'

Kimiko looked at Motoko, smiling at her friend. "All I can suggest is that you just be your usual self, Motoko-chan. He'll probably go back to normal - or what passes for it with him - sooner or later. Besides, in all the years you've known him, has he ever said anything cross to you?" Motoko shook her head. "Then it's safe to assume that he's not mad at you. I've seen him mad before; he's not quiet about it when someone gets him irritated."

Motoko nodded, giving Kimiko's arm a squeeze. "Thanks, Kimi-chan."

Kimiko paused, noticing the ornament in the other kunoichi's hair. It looked like the ones Iruka had given Sho the day before. "Where'd you get that ribbon from, Motoko?"

"Sho-kun left it for me the other day." Hata answered. "I, um... I fainted while Sho was talking to me." She sighed in depression. "Again."

Itou patted the other kunoichi's shoulder. Motoko and Hinata were downright identical in that regard when it came to the young men they were interested in. "What happened?" She knew part of the story from Inugami's side, but she was curious about Hata's.

"During your guys' last mission, we ran into the Honorable Grandson of the Sandaime. He..." She blushed furiously. "He used Naruto-kun's Sexy Jutsu and knocked Rai out."

"Oh, my! Sho said Konohamaru did that to take out an older Genin… It was Raiden?!" Kimiko said with a blush as she remembered the conversation between Inugami and Sarutobi the other day. Motoko's blush deepened and she nodded. "That reminds me that I need to give Naruto a few dozen lumps on the head when he gets back from the Land of Waves for teaching that filthy technique to an eight year old."

She paused, remembering that her friend was hurting. "Sorry, Motoko... Go on; what happened next?"

"Well, Honorable Grandson was confused as to why Raiden fainted, but Sho-kun and I were still okay. And Sho..." The female half of the Hata twins blushed even harder at the memory. "While he was explaining things in a discrete way, he said he thought I was... pretty. And then he said he said - in a roundabout way - that he thought I was smart and had a nice spirit. Then..." She sighed, her head drooping dejectedly. "I woke up at home. I thought it was a dream, but I was still wearing my clothes and had this ribbon tied around my right arm."

"I see..." Kimiko said with a kind smile. "I can promise you it was real at least: Sho was given a bunch of ribbons by Iruka-sensei for the Hide and Seek mission on the 1st." Hata looked almost bubbly over the thought.

'That must have been what finally clued him in.' Itou thought to herself. 'I still can't believe he figured out Hinata liking Naruto and completely missed the fact that he had his own admirer.'

The Itou clan survivor smiled as she thought of something. "I've got an idea, Motoko... How about you do this: from now on, whenever Sho gives you something permanent - like that ribbon - you find ways to include it in all your outfits."

"Okay… I can do that… But why?" Hata asked, confused.

Kimiko smiled conspiratorially to the other kunoichi. "You know as well as I do that Sho's got a photographic memory; use it to your advantage."

The orange haired girl thought for a few seconds and then gave a tentative smile. "I get it... Because whenever he sees the item he gave me, he'll recall when he gave it to me and how he was feeling at the time. It would also show him how much I value the gifts he gives me, wouldn't it?"

Kimiko nodded. "You got it, girl. Between you, me, and Hinata-chan, you always were the first to pick up on things, Momo. You could probably give Sakura Haruno a run for her money if you felt like it."

Before Motoko Hata could respond to Kimiko's compliment, there was a loud creak as a different section of the tree line about five meters away from the hole that Raiden had made swung open on a hidden hinge. The disguised door was nearly four meters wide and clearly designed to grant access to a large number of people in a hurry.

"It looks like the scent neutralizing agent wore off earlier than anticipated." Sho Inugami said aloud as he reappeared. "It must have been that unseasonably heavy rain we've gotten in the last few months. My family and I were planning on checking all the storage units next month, but we'll need to do it sooner to make sure they're all intact."

The medic paused, glancing at Team 11. "You guys said you were after Dragon Hearts?"

Okito Tanaka nodded. "The 44th Training Zone clinic wants a surplus on hand for the Chuunin exams. They need at least 30 - we're about halfway there right now - but they'd like more if we can get them."

"I'll make you guys a trade, then." The medic offered. "Since the barrier protecting this supply dump has been compromised," He shot Raiden a remarkably foul look, causing the normally irascible Genin to shudder, in memory of Inugami's threat the other day. "I need to salvage what I can before the animals in the forest tear it apart for their own use. In exchange for your help, you guys can take all the ripe Dragon Hearts you can carry."

"Won't you get it trouble for giving away some of your family's emergency supplies, Sho-kun?" Motoko Hata asked.

Sho glanced at her again impassively. Then he shrugged with a sigh, seeing no way to avoid her question without making it obvious what he trying to do so. "I'd probably get in more trouble with my parents if I let the entire stash go to waste. We're also only talking about one of our mid-sized bunkers, mind you; the larger ones are closer to the backside of Hokage Cliff to allow us to keep tabs on them with a bit more frequency."

He smiled at her for the first time all day, waiving his left hand in a circle. "My family's been around what is now Konoha for centuries and used to be community leaders of one of the villages that formed the nucleus of the Hidden Leaf Village when the Shodai Hokage built Konoha some eighty years ago. The Hyuuga and Senju clans controlled most of the other villages absorbed while the Uchiha brought a sizable amount of military might, which is how they came to have the social standings they possessed in the current era."

A wry grin crossed his face. "Trust me - this is but a cup out of the barrel that we have squirreled away over the years." He pointed back to the main part of the city. "And it IS going to be used for what it was intended for - to serve the needs of the Village. The Chuunin exam is something the Village needs to have run as smoothly as possible; if only because of the political issues and not the human ones."

Nakahito Haruno glanced at his teammate. "I didn't know your family used to be rulers of an entire village."

Inugami shook his head. "We didn't RULE a village, Haruno… We were merely leaders in the community: my family has been seeing to the physical and spiritual well-being of the people in this region for centuries. We've mostly been doctors, but some were priests and priestesses for the assorted shrines that are scattered all over the place."

Okito Tanaka thought for a moment. Inugami was being very open at the moment; maybe he could wheedle some more information about his family who had always been a bit of a mystery to Tanaka. "Weren't some of your ancestors the founders of the Fire Temple to the north?"

Sho shrugged. "Not to my knowledge. The Fire Temple is a ninja monk shrine; my grandmother's great-grandfather - the last full-fledged monk in our family - trained there, but the Inugami have always more down to earth than to search for enlightenment." He frowned to himself. "But we might have - family history's always been important to me. We have family records that trace our lineage over all the way to the time that the Sage of Six Paths was supposed to have existed – maybe earlier since he's mostly legend the timeframe is unclear – but most of the specifics have been lost to time. And most of the records are suspect at best…"

The others looked surprised by his revelation that such a relatively unknown family could have such a long history, but they didn't ask questions… Mostly because they knew Sho would have said something if he were willing to.

The medic shook his head at their reactions as he gave Tanaka-sensei a wry grin that said, 'Well played, sir, but that's all you're getting out of me this time.'

"Anyways, do we have a deal? Between two teams it shouldn't take more than a half hour since this depot was at the end of its functional lifespan, now that I think about it…"

"Functional lifespan?" Nakahito and Raiden both asked in confusion.

"The nutrients that these medicinal herbs extract from the soil get depleted over time." Sho clarified. "We'd probably have to rotate out of this one come summer next year to give the earth time to recover. We'll just do it this year instead."

Okito Tanaka looked at Miho Hyuuga. "I'm willing to make a bit of a detour if it will speed up our mission. What brought the four of you out here?"

"Combined training exercises." Miho-sensei answered. "We were having a session to practice using the Wall Climbing jutsu when leaping between surfaces. About half a kilometer back I added a target practice exercise on top of it." She looked at Sho. "His technique lanced through the target and kept going, which surprised me a bit. The last time he used the jutsu, he had complete control over its movement."

The medic shrugged. "It was a stationary target, Miho-sensei. Since I wasn't expecting anyone to be out here, I made my Razor Wind 'throw-and-forget' to conserve chakra."

The Hyuuga kunoichi nodded acceptance. "Ah, valid point." She turned back to her former teammate. "Anyways, we needed a bit of a break before returning to the village, so I don't have any problems lending a hand. My team is at your disposal, Yaiba-kun."

Tanaka-sensei nodded. "Thank you, Bya-chan."

He looked at the other seven ninja. "We'll divide up between teams. Takahashi - you and Kyouran will be able to tell which of the Dragon Hearts are ripe by scent, so why don't you and Itou-san start working there." The blond and the kunoichi nodded.

"As Miho and I - and presumably Inugami-san here since he's a medic-nin - are well versed in the use of medicinal herbs, so we'll break into pairs and take a look at the other plants and salvage what we can. Motoko-chan and Miho-sensei, I'll have you two work together." His kunoichi had been looking up to the Hyuuga Jonin as an inspiration and pairing either Hata with Inugami would probably be a bad idea. "Sho and Nakahito, you two will pair up while Raiden works with me."

The assorted pairs nodded. "All right. Let's get to work."

* * *

It only took the two teams about fifteen minutes to do a thorough job of sorting through the assorted plants and bushes in the clearing. About 60% of the herb garden was ready for harvesting and resulted in adding another 16 Dragon Hearts to Team 11's collection - one over the minimum needed.

"It looks like we've got everything that's usable... Great job, everyone." Sho announced as he made one final pass around the depot as he picked up the satchel that the teams had loaded with the usable plants. His announcement caused a spontaneous cheer from his fellow Genin.

Okito-sensei smiled at Miho Hyuuga. "Well, Bya-chan, looks like I owe you and your team one."

The Jonin kunoichi nodded. "Looks like it, Yaiba-kun. It's nice to know our teams get along well with each other; not be at each other's throats like those ninja teams we ran into in Bunkawa that one time."

Tanaka smiled as he remembered the Bunkawa mission. "Yeah, well, those idiots were from the Hidden Grass village, but it was rather handy for us. Who knows; maybe our teams are meant to do something big together and Kami-sama is making sure there are no squeaky wheels." He paused. "Guess I need to show them the Wall Walking jutsu - your team is really ahead of mine if they're already doing so good at that."

Hyuuga-sensei shrugged. "I only taught it so early to keep the peace."

"Let me guess; Inugami's sandbagging caught Haruno by surprise and he couldn't handle being second banana."

"More or less..." She said with a bit of a smile. "But I'm starting to think that Sho's already hit his peak development as a ninja... Sure, he'll get more refined with experience, but I'd say he's already at least Chuunin capability; maybe even Tokubetsu Jonin. He just wasn't in any hurry to graduate the Academy or he'd probably be a Jonin by now; just like Kakashi-sempai was at roughly the same age."

"Yet another piece to the mystery that is Sho Inugami and his family." Okito mused. "It's one of the things that used to really frustrate me when I was working directly for the Hokage." Hyuuga looked at him quizzically. "Whenever either of the Doctors Inugami came to see Sarutobi-sensei, he would always dismiss me and the other guards and retreat into the soundproofed meeting room."

Miho's lips pursed slightly, the Hokage's bodyguards are supposed to be cleared for EVERYTHING: from the mundane to matters of state. "That's highly unusual..."

Tanaka nodded. "Apparently it was a standing order the Yondaime left on the books, though Sarutobi-sensei cannot guess why; he merely honors Minato's request." Miho smiled sadly at the memory of the fallen Fourth Hokage. "I guess that's one of the reasons that student of yours fascinates me... Just what the heck's so important that more light escapes a black hole than information comes from the Inugami family?"

"Well, they ARE in charge of the medical analysis of enemy combatants, so they are undoubtedly secretive until the Hokage classifies the knowledge for dissemination." Okito sighed in acknowledgement of his friend's point. "Based on how Sho does things, however, I'd say it comes down to just how much he trusts you as to how far he lets you in. The downside of living in a shell is that letting someone in can be really unnerving; even when you WANT them to come in."

She paused, considering Hata's hair decoration; recognizing its origin the same way Kimiko had. "Maybe that's why he's been snubbing Motoko today; he must have let her in further than he intended and it's got him scared for some reason."

"Yeah, I noticed that and was planning on asking you about it." Okito admitted. "But in any case; you guys have training to get back to and we have a mission to finish up."

Miho Hyuuga nodded. She clapped her hands together. "Team 13! We've got work to do. Let's mount up and head out." Haruno, Itou and Inugami all nodded before making one of the prodigious leaps that all ninja were trained to be capable of up to the branches they had first appeared from. Miho gave Tanaka a final smile before joining her students and leading them off to the south.

Okito turned to his own team. "All right, everyone. We've met the minimum that the client has asked for. Shall we call it a day or keep going?"

Raiden shook his head. "This isn't bad as far as missions go; I say we see what we can find in the remaining patches." He looked back up to where Team 13 had departed from. "You can start teaching us that tree walking technique while we go. I was #2 in Taijutsu in the Academy and I don't want to lose out to Haruno." Takahashi and Motoko both nodded agreement – though they had their own reasons.

Tanaka grinned. "Well, all right then; that's the spirit! We'll have to do things a bit differently… Hmm…"

"Different how, Tanaka-sensei?" Motoko asked.

"Well, the training normally involves you running up a single tree without your hands until you get used to creating friction with your chakra to make you cling to the surface. That won't work for us, since we'll be on the move." He snapped his fingers as he came to a conclusion. "This is what we'll do… We'll continue our hunt by travelling along the lowest level of branches we can find - leaping from branch to branch. As we jump, focus your chakra in your feet and try to stop yourself without using your hands. If you slip or fall, use the usual balance recovery techniques you learned in the Academy, okay?" The three humans and panther all nodded in understanding. "And when we finish checking the remaining harvest grounds, if you have enough chakra left, we'll try the normal practice method back home."

Okito pulled the map out. "Okay, the last two patches that Yu-chan recommended we check are about 3 kilometers east and then another click north. Let's do this carefully to avoid any injuries. Team 11, let's go!"

* * *

To be concluded