A/N: Please signify if you see any errors so I can fix it. thank you.
"Envy is ugly to those who do not bear the curse."
[ AOI SETSUNA ]
The curly haired Jinichi was still resting on Aoi's shoulder a calm expression on his face as his previously frantic breathing slowed into a steady rhythm.
She moves his body gently of her shoulder and places him gently on the rough bark. Slipping of her jacket, she rolled it up and placed his head on it, using it as a make-shift pillow.
Jinichi remained oblivious to the action and was still deep in his sleep.
Aoi turns to the still startled Kisuke who was still trying to process everything that had just happened. The boy's blonde hair dishelved as his brown eyes were still staring in disbelief.
"How's your nose?" She asked quietly.
Kisuke reflexively touched his nose and winced, pulling his hand back.
"Cracked but I'll manage."
Sigh.
"You're going to have to apologize to each other when he wakes up."
"What? There's no reason for me to do that, as far as I'm concerned, he attacked me for no reason."
"You should have just let him get some fresh air."
"And risk giving our location to enemy Genin or worse let him get ambushed?" Kisuke retorted.
" I understand that, but you could see that he wasn't in his right state of mind."
"….what are you talking about.?"
'Don't tell me…'
" Kisuke…when you saw him fall to his knees and scream what did you think?"
" That he must have gotten some information from the shadow clones he sent out to scout,"
Kisuke paused for a moment.
"Why are you asking me this?"
"Didn't you notice his expression."
"His expression?"
"He looked like he was having an episode."
A spark of understanding dawns on Kisuke's face, before a flicker of regret settles in his eyes.
"…I see.."
'Jinichi and I have known for a while that Kisuke has trouble noticing social cues, but I didn't believe it was to this extent.' Aoi thought to herself before she continued to speak.
"Sensei may have made you the leader due to your calm behaviour, but you still have a lot to learn about working with others. You have to take into account the emotions and opinions of others when making team decisions."
"Emotions have no role in a shinobis life."
Aoi snickered as she walked towards Kisuke and sat next to him.
" Heh.That couldn't be farther from the truth. Shinobi dull their emotions on missions to not let it affect them in completing their objectives, but it is because of these emotions that they are shinobi."
A confused expression grew on Kisuke's face.
" I don't understand..."
"Emotions guide our hearts, they let us know what we want and what we aspire for, they give birth to other things like resolve, essentially our ninja way; the thing we want to make reality and what pushes us as shinobi."
She paused for a moment, letting her words settle in his mind for a moment.
"I remember you saying that you wanted to join torture and information department, right?"
"Actually, it was tracking and inv-"
"Whatever! The point is, you need to be able to understand others' emotions to a certain extent, its an important skill in our line of work as shinobi. Do you understand?"
"I..I believe so."
Clap!
Aoi clapped her hands in satisfaction.
"Now, when he wakes up, it is important that we let him come to us, yes, he must come to us, we can not force him to tell us what happened no matter what."
Aoi then glances at the sleeping Jinichi.
"I only hope that whatever is bothering him doesn't change him."
She then turned back to face Kisuke.
"The two of you will apologize to each other when wakes up, am. I. clear?"
Aoi said, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"…U-understood.." Kisuke squeaked out.
'Heh. At least he knows how to be scared of a lady.'
"….."
"….."
'Awkward…'
"…I'll take the first watch…You should get some sleep Aoi. I'll wake you when its time to switch."
Kisuke walks toward the entrance of the tree and stands guard.
That was the best advice she'd heard all day.
[ JINICHI WATARU ]
[ DAY TWO, MORNING ]
Jinichi had woken up the next day to the sound of chirping birds and the faint sound of rustling beside him.
!!!
'SHIT! Are they okay!!??'
He got up abruptly, hand already reaching towards his ninja pouch. He looked around taking in the shape of his surroundings.
He was greeted with the all to familiar sight of tree bark and a single entrance that let a thin ray of sunlight to reach into the makeshift tree camp.
He shielded his face from the glare of the sun and looked to his side.
Only when he noticed a familiar figure did his mind begin to calm down.
He noticed Aoi who was on lookout duty near the entrance, she was crouched near the entrance, kunai in hand as her eyes continued to dart around, looking outside for any suspicious activity.
Jinichi then heard more rustling and turned to his side.
Beside him was Kisuke who was rifling through his ninja pouch, doing his early checks for his essential gear and the ensuring the safety of the scrolls.
Sensing his stare, Kisuke turned his attention towards Jinichi.
Kisuke's brown eyes meeting Jinichi's blue ones.
Jinichi's mouth opened and closed, failing to find the right words to say.
"Good morning." Kisuke said with an awkward smile.
"Y-yeah..m-morning.." Jinichi responded to the greeting stumbling on his words.
"....."
"...."
"I'm sor-"
"I want to ap-"
They both stopped.
Kisuke gestured towards Jinichi.
" Don't mind me, please continue."
"I want to apologize, to the both of you. I-I lost control of myself last night and put your lives at risk.
Jinichi paused for a moment, before getting on his knees and bowing. (Dogeza).
"Anger or no anger, I shouldn't have let my emotions get the better of me like that, and for that I'm sorry." His voice was trembling from guilt.
Kisuke opened his mouth to speak.
"I-"
Bam!
Aoi Kicked Jinichi from behind, causing his face to collide with the rough bark with a dull thud.
"Ack!"
Jinichi gets off the rough bark and glares at Aoi in mock anger, who was looking at him with a smug smile on her face.
"What the hell was that for Aoi!!??"
"What?? I was simply helping you bow deeper since you seem to love staying on the floor like a worm."
"Huhh?? Would you mind repeating that!!" Jinichi said as he began to roll up his sleeve to scuffle with Aoi.
"Pfft. Hehehehehe!!"
Aoi broke out into a full-blown laughter. Clutching her stomach as a wave of giggles came out uncontrollably, much to Jinichi and Kisuke's bewilderment. Eventually she calmed down as she wiped a stray tear from her eye.
"You're definitely feeling better now than you did yesterday, if you're so willing to bow for us like that,"
Jinichi averted his gaze when she said that, the guilt of his actions still weighing on him.
Thwack!
"OW!!"
"STOP MOPING!!"
Aoi said with a hiss as she swung her head back and headbutted him. The force of the blow forcing him down.
Thud!
Jinichi fell on the rough floor with little to no grace at all.
"If you feel guilty then simply work on your anger that's all!!"
"Here."
She said extending her hand out to him.
A confused expression dawned on his face, before it changed to a small smile.
'Nevertheless, she's right, I need to better control my emotions.'
"Never thought I'd see the day I'd agree with you, Aoi."
Jinichi said with a grin.
"Hmph! My opinions are always right you've just taken too long to see it from my side." Aoi retorts as she flicks her hair arrogantly, although there was a small smile on her face.
Turning her focus from Jinichi, she looked at the other boy of the group.
Sensing her glare Kisuke also began his own string of apologizes as Jinichi could only give him a sympathetic look.
…....
...….
.....
A few moments later, the team began to move.
Team thirteen jumped from tree branch to tree branch, traversing across the forest terrain at a steady pace.
Their destination never changing; the tower in the middle of the forest.
CRACK-CRAAAK!
SHATTER!
BOOM!
The sound of shattering wood and explosive wave, cut through the team's silent advance.
!!!!!
'WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT??!!'
Almost immediately Kisuke gestured to Aoi and Jinichi to take cover. Landing on a tree branch, Kisuke enhanced his legs and launched himself in the dense foliage, preferring to stay hidden in the trees.
Aoi and Jinichi were had already launched of their respective tree branches and hid in the surrounding bushes, some distance away from Kisuke's location.
Looking through the small gaps in the foliage, Jinichi spots a clearing and the source of the commotion. Near the end of the clearing there was a large tree; its bark was thick and full of life; its roots were sprouting out the earth as such a place would serve as a good hiding spot for both creatures and humans.
Sadly, in this case it seemed to have failed.
Naruto and Sasuke are unconscious, hidden under the bark of a tree. Blissfully unaware of the turmoil their teammate is going through.
The sight in the center of the clearing made Jinichi's blood run cold.
A few meters away, a female Sound-nin was holding a pink-haired girl hostage, viciously clutching Sakura by her locks and raising a kunai to her throat.
Her mind and body exhausted, her eyes hiding a lingering fear, but also a deep self-loathing.
Rock lee is incapacitated on the ground. Unable to move as he has to watch in weakness, as he watches his crush be held hostage.
They were surrounded by two other sound-nin, one covered in bandages and one that needs a wardrobe cleanse.
'Oh yeah…I forgot about these three,
what we're there names again?
Zaza?
Donsu?
Kia?
Although it's rough to just stand by and watch Sakura get beat up, I'm pretty sure team Asuma is somewhere near here so team 7 is going to be alright.' Jinichi thought to himself, resolving himself not to interfere.
'It's not that I don't want to help her, it's just I can't drag my teammates into another team's mess. No matter how I personally feel about the matter.'
Looking to the bush on his right, he saw Aoi debating whether or not she should intervene as the girl seemed to be fighting an internal battle on the matter.
A memory flashed in his mind as he remembered, the last thing Jinichi-two saw.
He remembered how it felt being held by Orochimaru, feet dangling in the air as he struggled to fight back.
Naruto jumping out of the bush to help him, his team-mates following behind him.
Team 7 staring in horror as they watched the clone get stabbed, believing that it was the original Jinichi.
He shook his head to focus as he then glanced towards the unconscious blonde spikey head sleeping so carelessly under tree roots. It moved towards the unconscious dark hair who seemed to be squirming.
Jinichi clenched his teeth in frustration.
'Why am I this bothered about this?!! I know she will be saved so why?!!'
Another memory flashed in his mind;
"Why did you help me?" Karin asked her voice breaking slightly.
"….Why does anyone need a reason to help anyone? I can decide whether to help or not. I'm not necessarily good or evil but even I can't stand by and watch someone get chowed on by a building sized snake. So, for my conscience and peace of mind I saved you because I would feel guilty for letting you die if I could have done something about it."
The memory ended as soon as it came in his mind. Jinichi released the breath he had been holding.
'Fine.'
'Inventory.'
His inventory scroll, appeared before him in a muted poof, opening it up, he placed his hand on a pair of familiar gourds. He strapped them to his waist and planned to move from his hiding spot.
Suddenly,
Tap!
From above a blueberry fell into the bush Jinichi was hiding in, causing him to look up.
Above in the trees was Kisuke who was shaking his head in a disapproving shake and gesturing for him to go around the commotion. Kisuke then threw another blueberry at Aoi's bush to get her attention.
"Zaku, kill that Sasuke guy in front of the female swine, let's teach her a lesson." The female sound-nin says while still holding Sakura hostage.
" That's a good idea." Zaku said while walking towards the unconscious sauske.
"No plea-"
"Did I ask you to speak swine!" The female sound-nin says her Kunai digging into Sakura's throat, a bead of crimson appearing. The gesture causing the pink haired girl to freeze in fear.
"If you had time to grow your hair out, you also had time to train! You can only blame his death on your misguided priorities." The female nin said with a sneer on her face, her gaze holding nothing but contempt.
'....'
During the whole debacle, Kisuke had managed to come down from his hiding spot and reached out towards Jinichi.
"Jinichi lets go." Kisuke whispered.
"…Just give me a few seconds Kisuke…" Jinichi whispered back.
Kisuke looked at his expression, and sighed.
"You have thirty seconds to do what you want, Aoi and I won't interfere, just don't make the situation worse for her." Kisuke said exasperated.
"You have my thanks." Jinichi said with a grin on his face, although his eyes were brimming with rage.
Slamming one hand to the floor, his metal dust seeped from his gourds into the ground.
Mixing with the dirt below and rapidly heading towards the sound trio.
'While that is happening, I can do this…'
His free hand stretched out, a faint feeling welling up inside him.
'80m'
The metal on their forehead protectors.
'60m
The metal weapons in their pouches.
'40m'
The metal guards, mesh armour they wear to protect their arms and legs.
'30m'
The raw metal minerals in the dirt below.
'20m'
All the metals in the clearing were laid bare to him.
'10m'
The things that one served as their blades and defense now served him.
'There!'
...
Kin Tsuchi was having a rather fun day, here she was holding a snot nosed brat hostage.
'This is what she gets, while people like me were out their putting their lives on the line when training. Brats like her were focusing on makeup and hair products!! And plus, her hair is prettier than mine!'
Sakura had reached for her ninja pouch and pulled out a kunai.
'She can't be that stupid, can she? Maybe all the hair products melted her brain.'
"You don't have the guts swine. You attack me, I'll slit your throat before you even pierce my jacket." Kin Tsuchi said cockily.
"Who said anything about attacking you?" Sakura
'Huh?'
Kin Tsuchi's hold on her kunai loosened for a brief second but that was all Sakura needed.
Screech!
Sakura's kunai clashed with Kin Tsuchi's own, a rain of sparks hitting her flesh causing her to wince in pain.
But she pushed through. The sound nin's kunai fell from her hand.
"Did you forget dumbass!!?? I'm still holding your hair!!" She said as she pulled Sakura's hair violently, causing the girl to yelp in pain.
Within a simple motion Sakura cut of her hair.
Shink!
Strands of pink locs fell to the ground.
'This crazy bitch!!'
Kin Tsuchi lunged towards her planning to pin the girl down.
Sprrt!!
Sprrt!!
Sprrt!
Crash!
Kin Tsuchi fell on the ground hard.
A sudden weight pinned her right leg to the dirt.
'H-how?!!'
She looked down at her right leg in horror. Her ninja pouch had been ripped to shreds, and her own shurikens had warped, elongating into thick metal spikes that drove through the fabric of her pants and deep into the earth like heavy stakes, locking her leg firmly in place. She pushed herself up, trying to wrench her leg free, but they wouldn't budge.
'W-what sort of jutsu is this??!!'
She shot a glare toward Sakura, only to find the pink-haired girl looking just as stunned as she was.
!!!!
She coughed as she found herself struggling to breathe.
'My mesh armour!! It's crushing me!'
Kin collapsed to the ground once more, clawing desperately at her chest. The metal wire links of her own under-armour were warping, tightening into a suffocating, vice-like grip that locked her torso rigid. Her breathing slowed to a desperate, shallow rattle as the armor pinned her arms flat against her sides.
'One down.'
"Kin Tsuchi!! What's wrong?!!" Zaku demanded as he began to rush towards Sakura to blast her away with a sonic blast.
At the same time, the ground beneath his feet completely gave way.
PRFFTTTT!!!
A massive surge of heavy metal dust swirled violently beneath Zaku, rapidly churning the solid dirt into a deep, shifting pit of quicksand. Zaku yelped as he sank up to his waist in a single second, the dense iron weight locking his lower body in place.
'Now for those hands...' Jinichi smirked from the shadows.
Before Zaku could aim his palms, the metal mesh lining his sleeves violently constricted. The wires wrapped around his wrists and forearms like tightening steel bands, pinning his arms flat against his stomach and forcibly redirecting his open air tubes away from Sakura.
The shock from the crushing pressure forced him to his knees inside the sinking pit, his breath catching in his throat.
Rumble
Dosu jumps away from his previous position.
PRFFTTTT!!!
Half a second later a surge of metal dust erupts from his previous position, forming a second, wider sinkhole that threatened to swallow him. The dust curves and begins to chase his landing zone.
'He's going to keep running at this rate.'
Looking at Dosu's gauntlet a mischievous idea comes to Jinichi's mind.
'No one is safe, ke, ke, ke!'
With a wave of his hand, the metal gauntlet on Dosu's arm morphed into liquid metal, slipping off his wrist and warping into heavy handcuffs before hardening.
"WHAT!!??"
But that brief distraction was all that was needed. The metal dust swirled violently around Dosu's legs, dragging him straight down into the churning earth.
As Dosu sank into the makeshift iron sandpit, the metal from his own forehead protector suddenly warped, extending downward like rigid steel straps that wrapped around his neck and shoulders, pinning his upper body entirely flat against the rim of the pit.
"GAHHHH!!!!!!!!"
Dosu roared in frustration and panic, completely immobilized in a crumpled heap.
With a sharp pull of his hand, Jinichi commanded the loose metal dust to separate from the dirt, streaming smoothly through the air and back into his gourds. Left behind were three utterly trapped Sound ninja, tightly bound by their own gear and wedged deep into the collapsed, heavy earth.
The silence in the clearing was deafening as Sakura and rock lee looked towards the immobilized sound-nin in bewilderment.
'And that makes three! My job here is done.'
"And with that, my debt is paid." Jinichi muttered as he left the bush in silence, leaving Kisuke to his thoughts before following behind him.
A/N: what do you guys think of the teams dynamic? what do you think of the chapter? I'd like to hear your thoughts.