Spoiler:

A duo was sent in retaliation to a stolen scroll, very important and keen intelligence only the village should hold. Neither of this younger shinobi had interacted prior, but this immediate expedition forced them to couple in cooperation. This wasn't something that could be debated or further negotiated. As explained if this scroll was to fall into enemy hands it could jeopardize various lives or compromise the village as a whole. The Chuunin leapt through the trees outside of the village, one after the other and continued pursuit to find the group. They'd been informed of basic details of their team: two chuunin, four genin and a Special Jounin. The lesser ranks were all close range for the most part and Daichi certainly could take advantage of that. His idea would be to strike the weaker ranks first, but the idea was to locate the scroll first off.

In this case it'd be wisest to place it on the strongest, but they'd be assumed to be the target. Who could have it? The winds brushed passed the Uzumaki as he trailed forward through the dense leaves. The village had a lot of faith in him surely, but his curiosities simply lie on the Special Jounin who was leading this recovery. The sole objective was to secure the scroll and kill all those who had it. Plain and simple. Could they really mercilessly wipe out a mini-squadron? Believe it.

With each leap he thought, but soon had to blurt out his questions. "Who might have it? I doubt they'll place it on the leader, it's too suspected." he spoke analytically as his eyes traced the green forestry that surrounded them. He didn't mean to impede on anything but his natural talent would be to improvise; a shinobi way. They'd be arriving at the dense forest in a short moment but enough time for a discussion for planning. This was the first mission the Chuunin had ran in years, this doubt loomed in his head but he refused to listen to it. There was a fire inside that he needed to beat all odds.


WC: 352/2500

Shippo and Tsume were on a mission, a very vital mission. They had to recover intelligence that had been stolen from the village. This was the bread and butter of any shinobi village; the art of stealing information to benefit one’s own village. They had been summoned up as immediately as it was possible to summon up a squad. They were put with an Uzumaki of all things, but apparently this Uzumaki was a chunin and so there was no point in worrying if this shinobi was ready to help him out. The squad they were facing was fairly large as squads went, and in fact it seemed more like two squads working together. Four genin, two chunin, and a special Jounin. The genin wouldn’t be much of a problem, but the chunin and the special Jounin would be much more of a hassle. Shippo and Tsume had only started to really give an honest effort at mastering Ninjutsu, and it would be fairly hard for them to go toe to toe with a ninjutsu master. He well knew the genin with their Taijutsu would be more to his style, he could go toe to toe with any of them and come out on top, of that he was certain. The chuunin with their Katana were likely very good with Kenjutsu, that would be trickier, but he felt certain he and Tsume could take them out without injuring themselves too severely.

The problem however was that this chuunin they were partnered with was an unknown. They hadn’t worked together before, so he would have to improvise around the other shinobi. With this plan of action, he felt confident that he could focus on the more important matter at hand. This of course being which of the shinobi had the scroll. It would be easy to search the corpses of dead men, but the hardest part would be to know which one to locate and keep from trying to run off. Even so this was not much of a worry and they would only need to kill them before anyone could run away.

As they landed Shippo and Tsume glanced over at Zewo with a raised brow “why would that matter? They all have to die, and we won’t let even one of them escape. However, even if you doubt it, do not let that decide you. The reason clichés, and obvious tactics are such is because they work. Think of what we have here, a leader of a team like this wouldn’t trust the important information that they have gone through so much trouble to obtain to anyone but the best. This would mean the Jounin. If this information is really worth all the trouble to send so large a force and steal, then they would protect it with the most powerful shinobi they have. Likely these shinobi were all picked because they were the best of their classifications. Still, they are likely only to be used as cannon fodder or to slow us down. Even so, you are right to worry about them trying to pull a fast one. That’s very good thinking.” He shot ahead rapidly “Still, we won’t let a single one of these vile thieves get away. I know this forest better than anyone. I’ve lived in this forest for months at a time. The terrain advantage is ours without a doubt. Be ready for anything, and don’t show mercy.” He said growling as his nose started to twitch along with Tsume’s leading them in the right direction.

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They carried themselves to their soon to be entrance of the dense forestry. There were more cluster of trees developed in this region then closer to the villages walls. Despite his own lack of being on duty he personally knew the forests pretty well too. Nothing in his knowledge had him living in the forest at months at a time, but his history in these regions were fairly in depth. His ears picked up the rationality of his superior but also took note on the compliment. At least Daichi knew he was headed in the right direction when it came to tactics. Despite his rationality it was the safest choice to eliminate them all as quickly as possible.

"I'll follow your lead and hopefully pursue an opening, or otherwise grant you a defense if need be. I can improvise fairly well..." the Chuunin mentioned being the support in this case. His abilities weren't very versatile yet, but he'd practiced using his Uzumaki methods as to seal various things. More so he'd be skilled in Ninjutsu in the sense of being a very surprise oriented person. It wasn't his style to go high hill methods, showing all his tactic and be straight forward. Instead the Uzumaki found himself holding more analogy to his methods. His moves would be used to either increase upon the assault of his superior or otherwise grant a safe passage.

As they started to work into the true dense-ness of these woods...they'd spot the group. In this case it was four younger looking shinobi, plus what appeared to be a late teen or man in early twenties in the center. //Odd...where are the two others?// his mind trailed off as his eyes quickly paced side to side; scanning. It was a very basic tactic in the military but used to stay basically aware of surroundings. It was a split second of decisions that would deduct how they'd attack, but it was safe to assume the two others were in the trees with them. The Uzumaki wasn't your average thinker but liked to pick apart decisions of his opponent. Either way they'd be a close range assault if they do strike. The Special Jounin was the only one who used ninjutsu of the deadly kind.

In his mind he'd likely want to emphasize his abilities of a shinobi, but he'd be able to use his newer attacks to his advantage. In his case he'd believe he'd be able to strike down a good portion with his idea, but he'd follow suit as necessary. Sometimes it was important to work well with your team despite you disagreeing with a choice or action. This form of agreeing to disagree is actually what saves more lives!

WC: 807/2500

The “entrance” to the forest or at least the one that Shippo wanted to take was just a gap in the trees that were easy enough to pass through. They well knew that they could get through the foliage which was the plan overall it would offer them the best chance of surprise and concealment. Shippo and Tsume landed on the next perch stopping dead and looking back to his partner.

He nodded his head in approval “That’s a good plan. I do not want us to forget that we are a team, and we will only succeed as a team. I am going to rely on you to do your part. We can take out the group out working out way up hopefully. Also, remember that we are not to spare anyone. Don’t throw your life away though.” He warned as he started to work his muscles loose, so he would be ready for the fight. He wanted to continue on the tree branch trail, and he would do just that. He wasn’t about to lose the high ground nor would he allow himself to release the element of surprise.

Shippo and Tsume were first alerted to the group by the scent. They were lucky to be downwind of the group and they were ready to halt dead. They stopped and looked around quickly seeing that two of their prey were not anywhere to be seen. This was not good news, it meant that they were already having to play catch up with these thieves. He gave a soft sigh and pointed to the group to show that he saw them as well, but there wasn’t much else that he could do. There weren’t any other scents that he and Tsume could pick up at this moment in time, and he would have to be on a heightened state of alert. He made several hand gestures to show that he would take out at least two of the genin, he could take out more if needed. Yet, right now he and Tsume were sniffing around the best they could. They were downwind from the group below them and their scents were plenty, but he wasn’t sure what it would benefit them. However, he decided to give them a right scare. He looked to Tsume and nodded his head.

Tsume lifted his head back and with nearly perfect mimicry he howled as a wolf howls filling the air with the sounds. This in turn caused the actual wolves who inhabited the forest to howl in return. Soon the whole of the air was filled with the music of wolves and it gave Shippo and Tsume the cover they needed. They leapt to another branch that was nearly on top of the group who were likely starting to look out for wolves that were ‘surely’ coming to get them.

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The Uzumaki was more or less looking out for an opening away from the older looking shinobi planted in the center. With assistance the cascading sounds of the wolves were throwing off their attention, and the opening presented itself. Daichi leapt from the trees in a fierce rush, utilizing his frail agile body and moving closer. There wasn't much sound given off due to his sound being shrouded by that of the wild beasts. The Chuunin used the foliage to his benefit, diving down and inhaling sharply to gather his initial strike. His movements often carried out in a combination, trickery and otherwise abrupt changes to help turn the tide.

The moment he crept close enough he was noticed by one Genin, shouting to the two others who Daichi was aiming for but it was certainly too late. A fierce wind left the boys lips as he was practically going to slam into the ground. The windy force itself kept the Uzumaki afloat, but released a devastating windy sphere of turbulence. The strike connected directly with two of the Genin on the end flank of the group, leaving only the senior shinobi to block the winds and skid backwards into the other two Genin. Daichi landed in a softened sound of his feet connecting with the ground. Immediately leading the two Chuunin in the trees to abruptly launch out, swords withdrawn and heading directly for Daichi. In his mind he had a back up plan, but he knew it'd get out of hand quick without support.

In this case he took a baiting role whilst putting in damage. This gave his opponent the element of surprise, drew out the hidden elements of his opponent and now gave Shippo the opportunity to take advantage of the enemy.

"They took the bait!" the Chuunin thought to himself in glee. His confidence was clear in his mind, actions and the way he was handling everything. Despite his long overdue training he was clearly catching up! The element of surprise came in two fierce oppositions, one being hidden among the trees with the beasts and the Uzumaki himself who swore he'd make a dent in this world. A very startling determined look set over Daichi's expression as he faced danger. The sense of fear loomed in him but he didn't want to ever succumb to it's effects. Instead he took a more direct approach and proved that very fear wrong each time. What power has it over a man when he can outdo it?

The chakra inside the Uzumaki boiled to be used, burned and recharged. Only grow was on this path that he chased! The battle would commence for some time but he was optimistic it was only a small stepping stone!


WC:  1,266/2500

The plan had worked perfectly and now Shippo waited to see what was going to happen. He was very impressed that the Uzumaki would be so reckless and so determined. He went towards the group without hesitation. While he made his move Shippo and Tsume made theirs. Tsume and him quickly performed the beast mimicry “Man beast clone” With Tsume now in the form of Shippo they were ready to fight.

He saw the moment when the two Chuunin had begun to make their move. Smirking he licked his lips and drew his giant shuriken. The man who was with the genin was clearly the special Jounin, and he was sure that they would have to have combat at some point. However, it seemed clear that he had to deal with the chuunin before he could bother dealing with anything else. So, that is what he would do. As soon as they launched their attack he threw his giant shuriken towards one of the standing Genin before he and Tsume leapt out of the tree.

The chuunin that were coming towards the Uzumaki had their backs towards the incoming pair, and it was clear that they were going to be struck. Tsume and Shippo began to spin in the air. This was the signature Taijutsu of the Inuzka “Fang passing Fang”. The pair of cyclones spun rapidly in the air and focused on one target. They would do much more damage if they could focus on one of the targets. He selected the one that looked to be lagging behind and the pair of them slammed into their target. A cry of pain filled the air as he was sandwiched between the two cyclones being ripped into with the ferocity that they could both muster. The trio dropped to the ground Tsume and Shippo landing on all fours ready to strike. Which they didn’t wait to do. The Chuunin slowly rose to his feet only to be attacked by the pair of them yet again. Tsume even while in the guise of Shippo used his claws to strike at the chunin’s chest, while Shippo went for his head and neck. They slashed through their intended targets as the younger shinobi was far too weak to hold up. Shippo’s claws found the chunin’s throat and cut as deeply into it as he was able to. This of course, caused the blood to pour out of the victim.

The cries of pain had caused the chuunin that was left to hit the ground and turn to face the new foe. This of course, meant that he was distracted from the Uzumaki which would give him the briefest of openings. However, the genin were not distracted and they rushed forward to try and help their comrade. They rushed towards Shippo and Tsume, but he smirked and inhaled as deeply as he could. As soon as he filled as much of his throat as he could with chakra he waited. When two of the genin were less than five meters from him he turned and exhaled the chakra as hard and fast as he was able. The Genin were so close that the fire barely had time to leave Shippo’s lips and take on the form of a Chinese dragon head. They were so close together and so close to Shippo that both of the genin were caught up in the flames. They screamed as they were burned with intense second degree burns and even some third-degree burns. They dropped to the ground and Shippo closed in. However, he was struck by a water bullet that caused him to be knocked back five meters. Looking towards the Jounin who was spitting out several more bullets he dropped onto all fours and dodged the bullets as best he could.

No sooner had the Jounin quit firing the water bullets than Tsume had rushed in and using his claws and flames he quickly dispatched the two downed genin. Ripping their throats out as bloodily and wickedly as he could which only caused him to take on a gory and wicked looking appearance. This caused the other two genin to stop dead in their tracks clearly scared by what was being seen. Shippo smirked as he licked his lips looking to the Jounin who was standing there ready to attack now. He looked to Tsume and nodded his head “Time to go partner!” He and Shippo jumped towards each other and then began to roll rapidly towards the Jounin. Soon enough the pair looked like a couple of buzz saw blades. They went spinning towards the Jounin who quickly began to attack. He held out one hand and a torrent of water shot out towards the pair. It was enough to force them to veer off course and it was only then that Shippo decided on another target. He led and Tsume followed they quickly changed target to another of the genin. This one started to try and attack with a punch, but it was useless. The two slashed into him and began to tear him up just like they did the chuunin from earlier however, this time the slashes and cuts were all vertical. The jutsu stopped and Shippo drew his kunai stabbing down into the genin’s neck to end his life cutting as deeply as the weapon would allow. Now it was down to one genin, one Jounin, and one chuunin. Shippo and Tsume focused on the Jounin getting ready to battle in earnest.

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