The Mission

Leaning against the tree Naruko would wave her hand. "Well? How do you all think we should scout out the bandit camp? It's about two kilometers in front of us."

Her team would whisper amongst each other before reporting in, "I'll use my Super Beast Imitating Jutsu Naruko-sensei, and have rats go in and see what's going on." 

"Sounds like a plan, report back when you've done it, Sai." Closing her eyes Naruko would patiently wait.

-Sai-

Pulling out a scroll and his brush, he'd begin to draw while calmly explaining. "My jutsu lets me animate my Ink as long as I have a passion for it. I can use it for scouting, fighting, and eventually flight." His brush continued to draw across the scroll as he created rat after rat.

Sasuke's eyes focused in onto the scroll as he leaned forward, "Are there any limitations?"

Sai nodded slightly, "Chakra mainly, but also imagination, and you have to truly have a passion for what you're drawing. For example, I couldn't draw a squid or a fish because I simply don't have interest in them."

Sasuke would lose interest and lean against the tree closing his eyes. Taking a deep breath, Sai would move the brush away from the scroll. "Super Beast Imitating Drawing!" Dozens upon dozens of inky-black rats would leap out of the scroll before scurrying forward. "Alright, we should know more in a few minutes- what's wrong forehead?"

Sakura was presently looking pale as she took a step back. "I really don't like rats." Shaking her head she took a few more steps back from Sai who blinked confused. 'What's wrong with rats?' 

Looking confused for a moment he'd wave it off as another thing he didn't quite understand, and simply closed his eyes and focused on his Jutsu. About fifteen minutes later a few mice scurried back and hopped directly into the scroll, and Sai would begin to frown.

"Sensei I think they know we're coming, they have hostages."

Naruko-sensei sighed and pushed herself off the tree. "Alright team, form up. Sai, draw what the camp looks like, and where the hostages are."

'Let's see there's this tent here, and here... There's a campfire here, bedrolls here.' About forty seconds later there was a rough sketch of the camp, with an X marking where the hostages were. "Alright team, how do you think you should go about attacking the camp?"

Sai was silent, his mind processing how they should go about it, before Sakura spoke up, "Maybe we should try to negotiate?"

Naruko shook her head, "No. The second they know we're here for sure, they will be ready and make the job significantly harder on yourselves, and they'll never let us have their leverage."

Sasuke spoke up then, "Attack fast and hard. Rush towards the hostages."

Naruko-sensei hummed but didn't immediately deny the plan, "It's possible, but risky for the hostages. Besides, it's your first mission and this puts you on a time crunch, that can make you make mistakes."

'Then we can do a bit of that and a bit of this.' Sai spoke up, "Sensei. What if we do Sasuke's plan and Sakura's? You go to negotiate, while when they're distracted and getting ready, we rush in. I'll have some snakes sneak on further in towards the hostages and get them free."

A smile would form on her face, "Alright. Now that sounds like a plan."

-Naruko-

Strolling up to the camp with her hands in her pockets, Naruko would chuckle. 'I could deal with this in about 20 seconds with my eyes blindfolded, but this will be a good learning experience for them. Besides, Sakura needs to feel the blood coating her hands, and then, and only then can she decide - is she Shinobi?' 

With a little hum and pep in her step, she'd raise a hand in a wave, "Oy! Bandit-san, I'm here to talk to you about your lord and savior - not dying, if you give up the hostages you have."

The bandit she had appeared behind startled. "Who are... GAH! A shinobi." The man stumbled back reaching for his weapon, which she snagged out of his hands before wagging a finger. "No, no! I said I'm here to talk. Don't be reaching for your weapons now." Grabbing the mace in two hands, she'd snap it like a twig. "Now, how about we talk with your boss?"

The man continued to step backwards fear in his face. "BOSS! BOYS! WE GOT SHINOBI!"

Naruko shrugged. "Well, I guess that'll work?"

In the distance, an explosion occurred as a fireball appeared out of nowhere. "Oh, Sasuke... You were supposed to wait a bit more." Sighing, she'd opened up her Mind's Eye of Kagura, before freezing. 'Fuck.' She moved, pulling out her sword, and in the blink of an eye decapitating the dozen bandits that had been rushing from further into the camp, out of their tents, or had just been milling around. 'Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.' 

She leaped forward charging through the camp. 'Where the fuck did they come from?!? My team can't handle that!' All the while her blade twirled and hummed, reaping the lives of the Bandits around her.

In a yellow and green blur, she tore through the camp leaving a river of bodies behind, and mid-leap her sword began to slice through the air. "Get away from my student Ameyuri Ringo!"

Her blade clashed against the two blades of the red-haired woman, only barely stopping them from decapitating Sakura. Looking around for a brief moment a small sigh escaped her body. 'Good, none of them are dead. Sai can deal with those two Kiri Shinobi with Sasuke's help.' Her hand instinctively twitched blocking another blow with her sword.

"Oh? What's this? I didn't know Konohagakure had a swordsman with any level of skill." The words from the member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were mocking, yet there was a heaviness to her tone and frame. "Who are you? I don't recognize you at all."

Naruko would stare at Ameyuri before her blade began to hum as wind coated it. In response, Ameyuri's would begin to spark with lightning. "Tsubaki Yamanaka. Kindly prepare to die."

A chuckle left Ameyuri's lips as she lept backward. "I'm afraid it's you who has to prepare to die Konoha Shinobi." Chakra gathered inside Ameyuri as her blades sparked, and in response, the wind around Naruko's blade got less and less visible. 'While restricting myself so much this will be troublesome. Tch.' As if there was an unseen signal, at the same time they would both rush forward, once more clashing. 'The Kiba Blades truly are impressive! This level of wind isn't cutting through their lightning at all. In that case....' 

Alongside the wind on her blade, flames began to flicker around the edge as she poured more of her chakra into it. 'Let's see if you can keep up with this Wind & Fire Style: Chakra Flow.' 

As she rushed forward there was a hint of shock in Ameyuri's eyes, "A Jonin can't do that!" With a hiss of exertion, Ameyuri held her blades together in an X-shape barely managing to fend off the blow. "Fuck off!" With a snarl she brought up both of her blades in an instant to clash against Naruko, forcing her to stagger back. Leaping backward once more, Ameyuri began to go through handseals. "Kiba Technique: Heavenly Lightning!"

Lightning sparked once more across the Kiba Blades before they rushed towards Naruko. Except... as they passed through her, like a mirage she disappeared.

A small tired voice whispered out "Genjutsu: Mirage." In the next moment Sakura fell to the ground unconscious. In the brief moment that Ameyuri was trapped in the Genjutsu, Naruko blitzed forward and with one swift motion, managed to cut off the arm of Ameyuri who barely managed to dodge decapitation.

"Fuck! You fucking BRAT!" Ameyuri brought up her one remaining arm and with a singular Kiba blade lashed out, another bolt of lightning leaving the Kiba Blade and rushing towards Sakura. 'Fuck no!' 

Naruko would seemingly in a blur appear in front of Sakura blocking the blow, her speed immensely faster than previously shown when engaging with Ameyuri. But the moment she focused on her opponent again, she'd find her gone. 'Fuck. This mission has gone to hell. But...' 

A proud smile would appear on her face as she stared at the unconscious Sakura. 'Damn. She used it perfectly, even though she was scared.' With a chuckle, Naruko would look around, only to find Sai and Sasuke already done. Sai was walking with two Shinobi tied up in snakes being dragged behind him, and Sasuke had a splatter of blood on his face, and a pair of Three-Tomoe Sharingan spinning in his eyes.

"Sensei. I don't believe this is a C-Rank mission." Naruko couldn't help it - at the deadpan tone of Sai, she burst out laughing.