**The Misty Battlefield**
Deep in the forest, an unnatural fog swirled—thick, suffocating, expanding like a living tide.
**Okamura Shin** perched on a high branch, squinting at the horizon. The mist there wasn't just dense; it was *wrong*, sharply demarcated from the natural haze.
*"Hiding in Mist Technique,"* he muttered. *"Kurumari-sensei's fighting someone."*
Beside him, **Yōma's** face darkened. As a top graduate of Kirigakure's academy, he prided himself on stealth—yet the scale of this jutsu dwarfed anything he could muster.
*"The enemy's strong."*
** Karin** tossed her pack aside, drawing a kunai. *"Kurumari-sensei's in trouble. We have to help."* She turned to Yōma. *"You know this technique best. What's its weakness?"*
*"Wind-style,"* Yōma replied instantly. *"Or… a bigger mist."* A realization struck him. *"Wait—this fog might not just be the enemy's. Kurumari-sensei could be adding to it."*
Karin's shoulders relaxed slightly. The **Hiding in Mist Technique** was a double-edged sword: it blinded foes but also equalized the battlefield. If both sides were shrouded, the advantage of *"silent killing"* vanished.
Nearby, **Hakuri** watched through her **Byakugan**, the fog meaningless to her all-seeing eyes. Three chakra signatures blazed like torches—
- **An elite jōnin** (swinging a *goddamn executioner's blade*).
- **A genin** (delicate, icy chakra).
- **Kurumari**, battered and fading.
*"Zabuza Momochi… and Haku."*
Her stomach twisted. Kurumari—a **special jōnin** at best—was barely holding on, using hit-and-run tactics to survive. But her chakra was nearly spent. Once the mist dissipated, she'd die.
*Should I help?*
Exposing her **Shikotsumyaku** or **Byakugan** would paint a target on her back. Yet—
*"Hakuri!"* Karin sprinted over, shoving a kunai into her hands. *"Stay here. If we don't come back… run."*
Before Hakuri could respond, the trio vanished into the fog.
Alone, she clenched the still-warm blade.
*The smart move is to leave.*
Westward lay **Port Hakugan**—freedom, anonymity. No more bloodshed.
But the kunai in her palm burned.
---
Kurumari gasped, her back against a tree. Blood seeped from her side, her right arm hanging limp. Across from her, **Zabuza** emerged like a specter, **Kubikiribōchō** gleaming.
*"Pathetic,"* he rumbled, hefting the cleaver.
The mist thinned. Kurumari's breath hitched—without cover, she was dead.
Zabuza struck.
Steel sang—
**CLANG!**
A volley of senbon deflected off the massive blade. Zabuza pivoted, just as **Shin's** fireball roared toward him.
**Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!**
The inferno swallowed Zabuza whole… or so it seemed.
In a blur, the demon reappeared, sword arcing toward Shin's neck—
**SCRREEE—!**
Yōma's scythe intercepted, sparks flying. *"Took you long enough!"* Shin yelled, hauling Kurumari up as Karin's glowing hands pressed to her wound.
*"Idiots—!"* Kurumari coughed. *"Why—?"*
*"Shut up and move!"*
Yōma's hands flashed. **"Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu!"**
Fresh mist erupted, swallowing Team 7 whole.
The game of cat and mouse began anew.
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