ch 19

Konoha

It was an odd smell, ammonia and fur together. It assaulted the senses. Shikamaru shrugged it off and looked back at Kiba. His face smiled, his voice was steady and sure as he spoke to his friend in his recovery bed in the Inuzuka clan grounds.

"I'm very glad you are healing Kiba." Shikamaru said elatedly. "Your bravery in the war against Iwagakure will be noticed I'm sure." He grasped Kiba's hand in a firm shake and let go, beaming.

Kiba was not the brightest of the rookie nine, but neither was he a fool. Shikamaru was not the overly joyous type, nor was he about to congratulate anyone for that battle. He glanced down at the piece of string he felt in his hand. The string that Shikamaru had slipped there. The string was exceedingly thin, impossible to see from any distance away.

Kiba felt a chakra pulse coming from the string, and realized it was Shikamaru. Old Ninja code. Shikamaru was sending pulses in numeric sequences. Kiba grasped the idea. Shikamaru didn't want anyone to hear what he really had to say.

He frowned. But that would mean that Shikamaru didn't trust the safety of the clan buildings, or maybe the clan itself. His clan.

Their teachers had spent the better part of a month training them in this code. A useful technique. Kiba hadn't really wanted to pay attention, but his mother had beaten some sense into him. This could one day save his life.

He focused on the pulses Shikamaru was sending.

"So when do you think you'll be back on your feet?" Shikamaru said out loud. Kiba felt for the pulses. Danzo…almost…killed…Asuma.

Kiba didn't move, afraid to betray what was going on. He cleared his throat after a few seconds. "Umm…any day now. I feel fine, but my mother won't release me just yet." Kiba tried really hard to remember the right codes and sent his own chakra up the string.

What…do…we…do…now?

Shikamaru smiled in relief. He wasn't sure Kiba would pick up on the Chakra pulses.

"That's good, that's very good. When she does release you we need to get back to training. Since I'm a chunnin now I want your nose available for any missions I need you for."

I won't leave him to rot in the dungeons until Danzo decides to kill him.

Kiba took a few seconds to decipher what Shikamaru had said then nodded. He didn't even bother sending the Chakra pulses in reply.

"Of course. I'll be ready."

Ino snuck a glance across the courtyard. The anbu guarding this side entrance to the Konoha dungeons stood alert. She kept strolling, making sure not to seem too stiff or interested in his presence. Ever since Shikamaru had spoken to them about training harder she had been practicing. Her new technique was still not up to where she thought it was perfected, but hopefully it would be up to the task that had been assigned to her.

Her clan specialized in mind reading and manipulation. They did however require one of two things; either physical contact or eye contact. She decided against the physical contact as that might be picked up on a lot easier.

The scarf around her neck fluttered in the wind, she knew her blonde hair would also be blowing a bit. Ino was well aware that she was growing into a pretty woman. It was time to see if that male guard would notice. She allowed her scarf to blow off her neck and she reached up to catch it. Her line of sight crossed the guards whose eyes had immediately latched onto her movement, and lingered there.

She smiled at him as her eyes met his…and struck.

Softly.

Quickly.

In a second it was over and she was out. He smiled back at her through his mask and looked away, again on alert guarding the entrance.

She kept walking, holding a tight grimace on her face. It was a bit of a strain. In this technique she didn't go looking for a specific memory, she took all of the surface memories. Every single one, in one single swipe. Ino went into a tea shop and sat down, closing her eyes. She wordlessly waved away the waitress and signaled for some tea. She felt the pressure as the jumble of memories burned her mind. She sifted through them as fast as she could, knowing that she could only hold onto this much for so long.

There. She thought, looking at one particular scene. Found him.

Ino bolted from the table and raced for the bathroom. She barely made it there before she threw up. The effort of that jutsu was still a lot for her to handle.

Hinata stood in the courtyard, facing her father. He looked sternly down at her. "You what?" he asked gruffly.

"I want to learn it," she repeated, standing steadfast. Seeing her friends hurt, the massacre of the war, the cruelty of Danzo had changed something inside Hinata. Suddenly disappointing her father seemed like such a small thing.

"The style you wish to learn is beyond you." Hiashi said, not unkindly yet firmly. "You cannot even best your smaller sister in a fight."

Hinata exclaimed in exasperation. "She is my younger sister! And she looks like mother. I…I cannot strike her." She shook her head and looked down at her hands. "We have to do something. There is no one to save us from this world but ourselves and those we trust. Everyone else is getting stronger, I need to as well." She looked up at her father, directly in his eyes.

He didn't see a single sign of weakness nor a hint of the tears he was sure she'd be shedding. Despite himself he let a small smile slip out. He had always wanted Hinata to be stronger. When her mother died he had lost so much, and both she and Hanabi looked so much like her. Hiashi had not known how to raise daughters. Hanabi took to his style of parenting very well, but Hinata…had always been softer.

Now he saw strength, and strength Hiashi could work with.

He shifted his legs apart and raised one hand palm upwards towards her. "Then come daughter, and show me what you know."

Hinata looked at him and felt a slight bit of shock. Her father was acknowledging her. Part of her wanted to exclaim in joy… but now was not the time. She faced him squarely, determined to show him how far she had come.

She burst forward, her speed momentarily catching Hiashi off guard. Her straight arm palm thrust at his midsection was easily blocked, his hands sweeping down. Her arm bent at the elbow though and her elbow became an attack on his blocking arm, catching it a glancing blow. Hiashi turned and struck out himself. His fingers jabbed outwards, aiming for her inner arm.

HInata opened her arms wider and dodged the jab. She punched with her right hand only to have Hiashi block with his left, twisting around her forearm. He withdrew then punched with both hands. He blocked from the inside, parrying them outwards with both of his hands. She kicked with her left leg and he raised his leg, bringing his knee level and blocking the kick. She swept her right arm in a roundhouse punch, which he avoided by stepping back, but she paused after missing and brought her fist back in a backhand, stepping in.

Hiashi kicked forward straight, but Hinata blocked his kick with her foot. He punched forward but Hinata copying one of his moves parried it from the inside. She dropped her arms to her waist and turned, moving her body into his. Hiashi could barely withhold the feeling of shock as Hinata penetrated his defenses. True he was not going all out on her, but nonetheless it was a skillful maneuver.

Hinata bent at the waist, backwards, her right hand coming up and over her face towards his neck in a thrust that would incapacitate a lesser opponent. Hiashi too bent backwards to avoid it, grasping her shirt and heaving her over his twisting body in a throw.

In mid air, Hinata twisted her body and held on tightly to her father's arm. With another twist she brought her feet together under his arm towards his ribcage. It was inventive, it was impromptu. Hinata smiled for the briefest of moments. It was Naruto.

Hiashi grunted as Hinata's kick connected. She did not use enough force to crack anything but he felt it nonetheless. It was a move that you did not learn in their open palm style, but it worked so he would not begrudge her that.

He brought his left hand across and closed off her right leg chakra points. Hinata grunted a little bit in pain as she broke free of his grasp and fell to the ground, still managing to land on her feet.

Hiashi saw her take the ready stance again, ignoring the pain she had to be feeling in that leg. He lowered his guard, and nodded at Hinata, with the smallest hint of a smile.

Hinata wanted to scream in happiness. Her father accepted her, approved of her.

Hiashi cleared his throat. "The first thing you need to know about the Twin Lion Step Style is that it is a savage dance…"

Shino gathered his necessities in his sack and left it on his bed. He would not be taking it now, but when he did return he did not expect to have the time to then pack. He prided himself on his clinical ability to plan ahead. He could admit however, very clinically, that Shikamaru was the best tactician he had ever met.

The plan would work.

The plan for after the plan would work as well.

The plan after that though, was where the trouble would begin.

Middle of the Ocean, 7 days west of the Crescent Moon Kingdom

Lee was crazy.

That had to be it, Hiroka told herself for the hundredth time that week. His latest form of training was swimming after their ship. Not only was it an insane thing to do in the middle of the ocean, but they were moving at thirty knots, so it was insane that he could keep up! Not only that, but he had stripped down to just a shorts so she could see the weights attached to his legs and arms. The boy needed professional help.

Calamity, Sakura and herself leaned against the back railing of the stern of their ship, watching Lee's figure swim the chop behind them. It was getting on in the evening and he'd been at it for an hour.

They were just about to call out to him and let him know it was time to come in when a cry went up from the crow's nest.

"Ship on the horizon! Starboard!"

The girls walked over to the right side of the boat and saw the spec on the horizon. It was getting larger so it seemed to be headed in their direction.

Lee joined them after a minute, drying off with his towel. "What's going on?" he asked, breathing heavily from the exertion.

"There's a ship." Hiroka began, only to be interrupted by Calamity.

"Frell! That's a pirate ship!" she exclaimed.

"What?" The others asked in unison. Calamity's eyesight was magnificent so they did not doubt her. Seconds later the same cry came from the crow's nest again.

"Pirates!"

The crew was a blur as it moved to speed up the ship to twice what it was before. The wind whipped at the girls as the ship sped ahead trying to outrun the intercept path of the pirates. For some reason though it didn't seem to work, within minutes it was clear the pirate ship had changed course and not only would intercept them, but was gaining speed even faster than this luxury liner was able to attain.

The Prince and his son were suddenly on the deck.

"What's going on?" he asked frantically. Ikaro clutched looked at Calamity expectantly.

"Pirates your highness, they're gaining fast." Kakashi said calmly as he approached. "I suggest you get below. We will deal with it." The prince nodded and left to go below. Calamity looked at Ikaro and touched her bow. The boy understood and clutched his own bow and the arrows the two of them had made together. He would protect his dad.

Within minutes the pirate ship was close enough that they could make out the state of it. Shockingly the ship seemed to be already destroyed. It had a huge hole in one side, the sails were in tatters, one of its masts was broken. It was a wreck.

The crew nervously poured as much power into their steam engine as they could, but the ship still gained on them.

As the ship pulled up alongside, they could finally see the crew of that dilapidated ship. Pirates in various forms of decomposition were animatedly gathering their weapons. Swords and pistols were unsheathed and unholy groans and howls echoed over the sea to the crew of the Prince's liner.

Kakashi stood stunned. A ship of the undead!

"Calamity, take a few out let's see what happens." Kakashi asked of her.

With a shudder Calamity notched several arrows to her bow. "With pleasure." A sharp twang and three arrows found their targets. Three bodies were thrown backwards from the force of the impact. The other pirates didn't seem fazed in the least. With good reason it seems as the three hit pirates got to their feet and didn't even both to pull the arrows out, just stood there, waiting for the ships to get close enough to board.

Hiroka shivered. "What are they?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Reanimated corpses. I've seen jutsu that can do this. The only way to kill them is to remove the head or destroy the brains. An arrow won't do the job Calamity, you need to completely destroy the brain. We must not let them board, when they are close enough, start your attacks."

Sakura fixed her steely gaze on the ship as it approached. She heard a click and saw Lee gently remove his weights from his legs and his wrists, and lay them on the deck. He saw her look at him and he spoke as he looked back across the water.

"Gai-sensei once told me only to remove the weights if in the battle my life or someone else's life I wished to protect depended on it. But I've seen war. In every battle a life hangs in the balance." He cracked his knuckles and his neck. The ship was within fifteen feet of them.

"Let's show these guys the fires of our youth!" Lee cried out as he sprung from the railings and flipping in the air, landed on the Pirate ship. As he landed a pirate shot a pistol at him. Lee bent at the waist and twisted to the side. The bullet took out a pirate behind him. Lee sped in and with a solid punch to the chin, sent the undead pirate flying backwards.

A light whistle alerted Lee to the danger and he ducked low as a blade sliced the air above him. He back flipped and struck with his foot the top of the pirate who had swung the swords head, crushing the top of his skull. The pirate fell in a heap and didn't move. Lee, satisfied that this method would kill them, continued to attack.

Sakura and Hiroka landed on the deck. Sakura was a blur of fists, her first punch atomizing a zombie pirate's head. Hiroka twisted and snaked her scarf towards another, sending chakra pulses down it, to wrap it around the neck of a pirate. With a switch of her stance and a twist of her body, she pulled and snapped the neck. Knowing she needed to do more than that though, she heaved harder and crushed the neck completed, and pulled the head off the shoulders, ripping the decomposing skin and tendons.

The head rolled and Hiroka pulled her scarf in for another attack.

A pirate slashed at Sakura, forcing her to dodge, left, right, then left again. The undead sailor pressed her, kept pushing and slicing the air with his sword as she dodged. Frustrated the pirate pulled out his pistol and fired point blank. Sakura didn't have time to move as the slug hit her in the side and passed right through, impacting the rotten wooden cabin behind her.

The pirate leaned in, his foul breath close to Sakura. "Where is the nine times cursed one?" His eerie voice demanded. "His scent is on you."

Sakura reach up and jabbed her fingers under his chin, penetrating the soft flesh there and pulling hard, ripped his lower jaw out.

Her other fist cocked back and destroyed the pirate's head. She clutched her side quickly applied a local numbing jutsu. It would not fix the damage, but she wouldn't feel it for a few minutes. It had passed clean through and was far enough to her side that she wasn't worried about it.

Back on the Prince's ship, the crew members and the Princes' entourage stood watching. Several members of the entourage looked anxiously on as the girls and Lee battled the undead pirates. Kakashi noticed them and looked for a few seconds before smirking behind his mask. He turned his attention back to the pirate ship.

"The girls are doing a good job, Lee as well. But there are too many pirates. We need to destroy the ship completely." Kakashi said out loud to no one in particular. Calamity looked at him for a second then grinned. She pulled out her arrows and started attaching exploding tags to the tips. She didn't have the chakra control to set these off, but she could place them and then maybe… she looked at Kakashi questioningly and he looked back, nodding.

She began firing the arrows into the hull of the ship, at equal distances, five feet apart. Thud. Thud. They lined the bottom hull of the ship.

Lee got sliced by a lucky pirate, his arm bleeding. He swiveled and crushed the pirates face with the heel of his boot.

Hiroka cried angrily out as a sword punched a hole in her scarf. A hail of pistol fire aimed at her, but she flipped and jumped high into the air, dodging well.

Kakashi saw what was going on and shouted at one of the Prince's entourage. "Go get them!"

Calamity was confused as to why Kakashi would tell civilians to enter the battle, but watched wide eyed as five normal looking men jumped the distance to the pirate ship. One guy ran to where Sakura was. She saw him coming and looked perplexed for a second. But in a flash he was by her side, and within a blink they appeared back on the ship.

Lee as well was grabbed by one of the entourage and in a blink of an eye they were back on the ship. Hiroka was able to jump back over on her own, landing next to Sakura who was bleeding. Kakashi whistled hard and the three entourage members left on the pirate ship grinned and waved back. One of them dove over the railing and released a pulse of weak chakra. He dispersed into a cloud of smoke, but had sacrificed his chakra to light all the exploding tags.

"What the hell!" Hiroka exclaimed.

"Shadow clones!" Sakura cried out. "Naruto?"

The two remaining clones on the ship let go their Henge and resumed the appearance of Naruto, replete in his white suit.

"The Nine times cursed one." All the Pirates said in unison. "Our master searches for you. We will take you to our master."

Naruto grinned back at them. "Fat chance zombie pirates. Ninjas win every time."

With a chakra push of wind, the two Narutos pushed the Prince's ship away from the Pirate ship. The exertion caused both to puff into clouds of smoke, seconds before the Pirate ship exploded into nothing but splinters and tattered rags. Bodies were flung into the sky and into the ocean. Nothing remained of the ship.

Sakura turned to the entourage member who had Hiraishin'd her to the Prince's ship. "Naruto!"

He looked at her sheepishly. "You've got red on you."

To the East of Sunagakure

Naruto awoke with a start. The memories of the battle on the pirate ship came flooding into him. He smiled as he realized that the girls had fought better than he thought they would, and vowed to not underestimate them again. He looked around and realized they were in a dark cavern. Lit torches surrounded them and some distance away Nagi and Senjii were talking heatedly with Kankuro and the Suna-nin.

Naruto struggled to his feet and walked over. "What's going on guys?"

They stopped talking and looked over at him. "Naruto!" Senjii exclaimed happily. "Glad you're alright."

Kankuro nodded. Naruto continued to surprise him. That display of power earlier had been impressive.

"So where are we?" Naruto asked looking around. The cavern they were in seemed to be manmade. Ornate pillars stretched up to the ceiling. The walls seemed to be alive with carvings and paintings.

"Well the storm punched a hole in the ceiling of this place, so we climbed in. It seems to be a main hall. An entryway into the tomb of the three kings." Kankuro replied.

"Excellent!" Naruto said. "So let's go get those swords for you Senjii!" He strode forward only to be grabbed back by Nagi.

"No Naruto!" He said, gripping Naruto's arm tightly "Its booby trapped. There are warnings all over the walls about entering the chamber."

Naruto shrugged. "I'll send in some shadow clones and we'll see what the traps are." He made the hand signals for his favorite Jutsu only for…nothing…

Nothing happened.

"Hey what's going on?" He asked perplexed.

Senjii nodded. "Yea, all of us. I can't feel any Chi. Nagi can't use his abilities. Kankuro said he can't create chakra strings for his puppets. In this chamber there seems to be some method to suppress Chakra."

Naruto scowled. "So what are we going to do?"

The Spirit Wolf clan members came over with notes between them, having been studying the wall drawings. "We think we have all the clues to enter the chamber." Ravi said.

Rasheed nodded. "Yes, there are three tests. One each devised for each of the three Kings."

"First show your respect to the Royal King. Secondly follow in the footsteps of the avenging son. Thirdly you must stay true and uphold the honor of the assassin."

Naruto stared at them. "OK…so what does that mean?"

The Spirit Wolf brothers looked at each other and shrugged. "I don't know. Guess we'll find out."

Kankuro growled. "We will send in one of my men to check it out." He waved over one of the Suna-nin, wearing his dust colored coat over a dark red shirt.

"Go take a look. Carefully." Kankuro ordered the ninja. The ninja nodded and entered what was a long dark tunnel. The torch seemed to make little to no impact on the darkness of the tunnel. After a few seconds, Naruto and the others could only make out the barest flicker of the light. A whistle of air and the light fell to the ground. Moments later the head of the Suna-nin rolled to the feet of Kankuro who looked at it in shock.

Naruto swore. "OK that didn't work. We are not sending in any more people until we can figure out those clues!"

Kankuro looked over at him with regret and surprise on his face. "We're Suna-nin. We do not back down."

Naruto was upset at the unnecessary death. "No one is backing down, but even I don't rush into a trap."

Remembering how he used to be on his first mission, he sheepishly grinned and rubbed the back of his neck as he admitted, "Uh, anymore."

Nagi looked thoughtful. "His head is severed clean. Means a blade took it off. So the first trap is one or several blades."

"In the darkness it would be impossible to see those coming, and the corridor only allows for one person at a time." Naruto said thoughtfully.

"I can do it." Senjii said calmly.

"No Senjii, wait. We can figure out another way." Naruto said.

"Hey, they don't call me the Dark Blade for nothing Naruto. Remember my Kumite match?" he replied. "Besides this whole hunt was my idea, and I'm the one who wants the swords, so the risk should be mine."

Naruto did remember that match. He had fought blindfolded and won against a very skilled opponent. With a sigh Naruto nodded. "If you lose your head I promise you I will stick it in a men's room toilet when we get home for all of eternity."

Nagi grinned at Senjii. "Ten silver says you get injured."

Senjii laughed. "Taken!"

He entered the corridor without a torch. Walking slowly, Senjii closed his eyes. He couldn't see anyway and didn't want anything to distract from his other senses. He took step after step. Feeling the stone floor turn a little slippery. The blood from the unfortunate Suna-nin was seeping down the corridor. Senji knew he should be OK up until he reached the actual body.

As his feet found the body he heard a slight whistle. Senjii bent backwards at the waist, feeling a long sharp blade cut the air above him. He straightened up, hearing now machinery moving as the blade came around again. This time he dove forward. He felt another blade coming up from the right, designed to cut a person in two. He rolled and came to a stop when he hit something hard. The blades stopped. Senjii opened his eyes. The darkness of the corridor was behind him but the small room at the end of the corridor he could barely see in. Looking at what he was leaning against, he realized it was a statue of a King sitting on a throne.

"Hmph," he whispered to himself. "Show your respect huh? Wanted us to bow and kneel to you before we enter? Way to command respect your highness."

He stood up, seeing in the dim light a small room to the left that had gears and housed what looked like the blades. He went into the room and with a heave pulled one of the cogs out. He went back outside.

"Hey guys, it's clear! Come on in!" He shouted to his friends.

Naruto and the crew entered the tunnel, making their way past the trap. The Suna-nin grabbed their friend and wrapped the body in his cloak. The gently laid him down to the side of the little chamber they were in. Kankuro looked up at the statue of the king. "He looks just like my father," he remarked. "Stern, cruel."

Naruto put his hand on his shoulder and looked to the Spirit Wolf brothers in the dim light. They nodded back and raised their torches. Beyond the statue was anther tunnel.

"Follow the footsteps of the avenging son."

Senjii sighed and entered the tunnel again, noticing this one was a lot shorter. "Umm…guys? Can you come up here?"

They all entered the tunnel and came out into the chamber that Senjii was in. It was a large room with large square stone tiles. At the far end they spied a statue of a ninja, spear in one arm, body leaning to one side, hand out in a beckoning signal.

"All kind of alarms are going off in my head right now." Senjii said. "This is very dangerous."

Nagi looked carefully at the runes on the floor. "These are martial art markings," he said. "Names of positions. Riding horse. Crane with one wing." He looked up at the statue. "This is a test of your Taijutsu skills. We need to do just the right moves in just the right sequence in order to get past this one."

Naruto frowned. "I'm not a Taijutsu expert."

Senjii shrugged, "Neither am I."

The Spirit Wolf Clan brothers said, "We are, but we work in tandem. I doubt the trap will allow two people to pass."

Kankuro shook his head. "I am a puppet master. My hand to hand combat is rudimentary."

Nagi sighed. "I am probably our best shot here. My style is Capoeira but maybe I can adapt it slightly to pass this test." He stepped up to what he thought was the starting block. He stared at the blocks around him for a few minutes, in dead silence. Everyone watched him nervously.

Nagi brought his hands to his side and twisted his back leg back in a basic Capoeira move, then in a twirl he was off. He landed in spread stance, saying quietly the title on the blocks. "The tiger hugs its head." His left hand in a fist over his head, his right arm palm backwards across his chest.

He swung his leg forward, shifted his weight to it and somersaulted to the next set of stones. Two small darts flew up from stones dangerously close to Nagi, surprising everyone. He landed on another stone, on one leg, the other up across his thigh, his arms back and front in a gripping position. "Hegemon king pours his drink."

"Careful Nagi!" Kankuro shouted out. "I can smell the poison in the darts from here. One graze and you'll be dead in thirty seconds."

Nagi let a drop of sweat fall. "Thanks."

Senjii barked out. "This is a chance to win back your ten silver!"

Nagi grinned and looked around at the stones. If this were his Taijutsu form, he just went from a defensive stance to a multi use attack and defense one. The next logical step would be an attack, then a counter block, then an attack, then a defense. He spied the closest attack step and moved towards that stone. He swept his legs underneath himself and sprang forward onto one hand, palm springing across to an overhead kick, then spinning around and around and landing in a grasshopper stance.

He was halfway across the room.

Naruto watched quietly and anxiously as one of his best friends risked everything on a martial art style he wasn't familiar with. Although he did look natural while doing it.

Nagi flipped again, landing on his left leg. Then it happened. There was a creak and a spike fell from the ceiling, aimed right for the tile he was on. Nagi spied it and lunged onto another tile. Another spike fell. Apparantly the test was meant to be done faster, Nagi thought then inwardly summoning up his courage, he moved completely on instinct. He danced his Capoeira, using his moves, flips and attack stances as he moved from tile to tile.

He heard a click beneath one of his steps and he dodged just in time to avoid darts being shot out of the stone. Another ominous click and the floor erupted in a swarm of darts. Nagi twisted and flipped, moving as fast as he could. There were gaps in the attack, gaps where he would be unharmed, he moved, danced, turned and flipped his way through the openings. Finally, he landed on the far side of the room, collapsing to his knees.

"Nagi!" Naruto shouted, about to run out after his friend.

Nagi raised his hand, "Wait! I'm alright. Just need to catch my breath."

He stood up slowly, breathing in deep. That was close!

He saw a lever by the statue and pulled on it. The statue shifted slightly to the right and the floor resonated with a click. He picked up a rock and skipped it across the floor. No darts rose up.

"OK looks safe now." Nagi said motioning them over. They cautiously walked over to him, spying a door behind the statue.

They cautiously opened it and entered the next room. In the room stood a pedestal with two swords. Surrounding the room was many piles of gold, jewelry and coins, rare stones and statues. The wealth of an ancient kingdom all in this room.

All eyes though were on the pedestal in the middle of the room, for next to it stood a ghost of a man.

"Nuga dangsin-eun." The eerie voice echoed in the cavern, the ghost pointing at Senjii. They looked at each other curiously. Kankuro cleared his throat. "It's an old language. As royalty I was taught it, but it's not used anymore. He asked 'who are you?'."

Senjii cleared his throat. "I am Senjii. These are my friends. I have come for Gan Jiang and Mo Ye."

Before Kankaru could translate the ghostly figure laughed eerily. "Gan Jian? Mo Ye? Wae dangsin-i geudeul-eulhaeyahabnikka?"

"He asked 'why should you have them?'." Kankuro chimed in afterwards.

"Yeah," Senjii nodded. "I figured he said something like that. I will use them to kill demons and protect my friends."

Kankuro translated for the ghost who looked at him sharply.

"Kal-eulneun huisaeng-e uihae mandeul-eojyeossseubnida. dangsin-i geudeul-e daehae han chinguui huisaenghaeyahabnida." He whispered in the gloomy cavern.

"You must sacrifice, kill, one of us to get the swords." Kankuro said incredulously. "…and yes I think he's serious."

Senjii stared at the ghost before him. "I will not."

The ghost did not wait for Kankaru's translation. "Geuleom dangsin-eun jug-eul geos-ida."

"Then you will die." Kankuro said. The room began to shake and rocks began to fall. "We need to get out of here!" He and the Suna-nin went back through into the other room. The two Spirit Wolf brothers followed suit, with their pants looking suspiciously stuffed with gold and treasures.

"Not without those swords." Senjii said stubbornly. He approached the ghost defiantly. The ghost wore what looked like ancient battle armor and pulled his own sword out. Senjii drew his swords, walking closer, repeating the last hint. "Uphold the honor of the assassin. Uphold the honor of the assassin. Uphold the honor of the assassin."

As he took a step up to meet the ghost, he thought back to the story of the three kings, what the assassin had done for a boy he had just met on a journey. He had sacrificed everything. With a start, Senjii knew what he had to do.

He stopped in his tracks, prayed that he was right, and plunged his swords into his stomach.

"Senjii!" Naruto screamed rushing forward. An impenetrable but invisible barrier sprung up between Naruto, Nagi and Senjii, keeping his friends away while the ghost stepped in front of Senjii.

The ghost sheathed his sword and pulled Senjii's sword out of his body. Touching the wound, he looked kindly at the fallen warrior.

"Dangsin-i nal yeong-gwang-ibnida. dangsin-eun gachigaissda." The wound closed up and Senjii coughed. The ghost stood up and motioned for the swords. They appeared in his hands and he bowed to Senjii.

Senjii stood and grasped the swords, feeling the power within them. He bowed back to the ghost who smiled and dissipated. The trembling in the room stopped. A statue that looked exactly like the ghost on the far side of the room shifted slightly, showing a stairwell that led up.

"Guys!" Senjii turned and grinned. "I did it!"

Naruto and Nagi ran over and gripped his shoulders, grinning. They then looked at each other and decked him, knocking him on his ass.

"Don't you ever do something so stupid again!" Naruto shouted at Senjii.

"Fool!" Nagi chimed in.

They helped a shaken Senjii to his feet then hugged him. They turned to see the vast treasure around them.

"Fifty percent for Suna, twenty five percent for the Spirit Wolf Clan. Leaves twenty five percent for us." Nagi said.

Naruto nodded. "This should help our village out a lot as we're new." Senjii grinned, clutching his new swords, staring at the ornate markings that ran the length of the blades. They practically sang to him, happy to have a new owner.

Konoha

Shikamaru looked at his friends. Shino, Kiba, Ino, Chouji, Hinata. He breathed in deep. As of now there was no going back.

"You know what to do. Hinata, Ino, thank you for what you're doing, and what you will be doing. Your part is more dangerous than ours will be." Shikamaru said gratefully.

Hinata and Ino nodded. They all fell silent.

"Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate." Shikamaru said quietly. "We are Ninja of the Leaf. We will not be seen, we will not be heard. We are in control of our own destiny."

They left the room, heading for their positions.

The guard for the Konoha dungeon settled in, he had just taken over for his compatriot. It was midnight and there was no moon tonight. He shrugged and stretched. Another boring night of guard duty.

He bent down to pick up his backpack and found himself unable to stop. His head crashed directly into the ground, rendering him unconscious.

Shikamaru released the shadow hold on the man. He nodded to Shino who without breaking cover let his bugs swarm the lock, forcing it to click open. The bugs disappeared, finding their way in the darkness back to Shino.

Hinata came in over the radios they had on their heads. "The door is open, I can see inside now. Four chakra signatures between you and Asuma. One on this floor, three below, clustered together."

"Thanks mama bear." Kiba said, snickering lightly. Code names were necessary but he couldn't help himself, despite the situation.

Kiba and Chouji stayed outside while Ino, Shino and Shikamaru entered the Dungeon. They went down the corridor slowly.

"Around the corner." Hinata's voice came in over the earpiece.

Shikamaru snaked his shadow around the corner, grabbing the man. He made the man run into the wall, hard. He passed out immediately.

The three of them walked around the corner, over the man. They spied the stairwell, and descended.

"There's a desk, one sitting, two standing around to a side. One is smoking." Hinata said.

Ino pulled on an ANBU mask, allowing only her eyes to be seen. Pulling the cloak around her and the hood up, she walked around the corridor. She approached the guards without them making much note of her presence. After all, she was ANBU, they were ANBU, and this was deep within a high security prison.

Shino's bugs grabbed the one on the right, Shikamaru's shadow the one on the left. Ino caught the eyes of the one sitting down and she slipped into his mind, wiping it. It was a nasty trick, one that she had been taught to never use except in battle. By accident any member of her clan could wipe someone's mind. But they were more geared towards information gathering. The man lolled back in his chair, drooling, nothing more than a vegetable now.

Shikamaru has his guard muffle the other guards screams with his hand, while the bugs drained his chakra rendering him unconscious. Then he forced him to knock himself out with a staff. It took two hits, his head was hard.

Ino grabbed the keys from the belt of the guard sitting at his desk and tossed them to Shikamaru. He caught them mid stride and went straight for Asuma's cell. He opened it to see his sensei on the floor propped weakly against a wall. Bruises and matted blood adorned his face.

Shikamaru cursed and walked over, grabbing one arm and lifting Asuma to his feet bodily. Asuma looked at Shikamaru through his swollen eyes and grunted. As they walked out, Asuma pointed at the cell door opposite. "A-Anko."

Shikamaru adjusted his plan slightly, which he always allowed for, and nodded to Ino to open Anko's cell. She however was in no better condition. She was unclothed, spreadeagled, suspended in the air upside down with her arms bound by chains to the near side of the room, and her legs to the far side of the room. Her back was adorned with welts and cuts, blood dripping freely down onto the floor. Puddles of it had congealed.

Ino bit back her curse and motioned Shino over. He too seemed shaken, but he directed his bugs to eat through her chains. They swarmed the chains around her ankles and wrists. Ino positioned herself to catch Anko and did when the bugs succeeded.

Anko was not conscious at all.

Ino put her on her back and bent forward, pumping chakra to her legs to carry the weight. With a nod to Shikamaru they raced as fast as they could out of the Dungeon.

Once outside, they felt the cold night air hit them with a blast. Chouji and Kiba nodded at them and took point as they raced down the street, heading for the west gate. It took a full minute.

As they approached Chouji saw the normal two guards on that gate standing in the middle of the road facing away from them. Looking for danger from the outside not from within. Silently he transformed into his meat tank and began to roll. Kiba performed a Gatsuga on Chouji from behind, sending him flying at impossible speeds towards the guards.

They never saw it coming. He impacted them with so much force that they were unconscious before they hit the ground. All of this was done with only the sound of flesh hitting flesh. Not a scream not a shout went up. Nothing to raise an alarm.

"Ino, trade Anko to Shino." Shikamaru ordered. "Thanks for your help, now get back home and remember you know nothing. When you are questioned, and you will be, you were asleep. Fix your memories."

Ino nodded. Of course with her sensei broken out of jail and her teammates missing, she will be questioned. But her father would not allow her to be held without proof, he did have some clout on the council, and once she cleaned up her memories of tonight a little bit, there would be nothing to link her.

Hinata likewise removed her headset and walked calmly back home. As far as anyone knew, the heiress was fast asleep in her room. And that was what the Hyuuga clan would attest to.

Shikamaru watched Ino leave and then nodded to the others.

"Let's get to the Forest of Death as fast as we can. We have until morning, maybe, before the escape is discovered. I want us well hidden before that. There are a few old underground bunkers we will be staying in. My family does the care-taking for those grounds and no one else but my father and I know that they are there."

With one last heave of Asuma onto his back, Shikamaru took off, with Shino carrying Anko, Chouji and Kiba following. Naruto's Army had officially gone rogue.