Early morning,
The patrol tower, though called that, was just a small camp with a lookout about 3 storeys tall, hidden by the massive trees of Konoha. Squads were moving about as they headed to nearby villages just outside the Land of Fire.
Shimura Takao approached his students, "Already making friends?" Kudo and the rest came over. "We just wanted to learn more about patrol missions for when we become chunin," Ai answered. "Sensei, is the mission over?" Kudo asked as Takao wasn't showing any urge to leave.
"Not yet. The second part of your mission is escorting captured prisoners back to the Leaf. Just some bandits, nothing difficult." Takao gestured behind him; Naokane was leading a group of 10 bound in thick ropes as they trudged along.
"Takao, I will leave them in your hands." Naokane gave him a nod as he left; Kudo and his friends knew something was up; these clearly weren't common bandits.
"Alright, listen up. Transporting this many people will take us at least 2 days, and there are too many to cover tracks, so we will be exposed, so never let your guard down." Takao gave a stern look to the 10 prisoners, and they left for the village.
Their formation was still the kite, except expanded in the center to accommodate the prisoners.
The day marched on, and it soon became nighttime, and, in a forest, around a fire, 10 men were sitting, braving the cold on their backs while being watched by 3 kids. Through some questions, Kudo, Ai, and Enya were aware of who they were transporting: bandits with ties to minor households in small villages. Unlike the Daimyo of great villages, the daimyo of small villages were easy to assassinate and replaceable. As long as the minor village remained allied to the great village, there was little room for the great village to interfere, openly that is. The hidden village managed conflict between shinobi clans while the capital of the Land of Fire managed the politics around noble households; however, both were tied together in business alliances.
Clan hegemons like the Uchiha, Hyuga, and Sarutobi had plenty of alliances within and beyond the Land of Fire. Smaller clans and noble households struggled to float financially.
With bandits, you could destroy your rival's trade and line your own pockets, use force for favors, etc. If there is no evidence, who is guilty? That is why the Yamanaka of Konoha were feared and despised by spies and criminals alike; nothing is hidden from them, and they are excellent sensors, which makes escaping even less likely.
To a strong village, clans like the Uchiha and Senju are key, but to an economic powerhouse, the Yamanaka, Akamichi, and Nara are the best clans; their utility extends beyond the battlefield. Business, administration, etc, the 3 clans were integral to a village.
As for why escort prisoners, they had their uses outside moral areas.
Around the fire,
"Damn it! Hidekiyo Sou, that bastard I shouldn't have trusted him. I will kill that bastard." A thin man cursed; he looked like he hadn't eaten in a week, but it was just a ruse he and his friends used to infiltrate villages and plunder them. Many who thought him too weak had paid dearly for that misconception.
"Shut the fuck up. I don't need your sob story." Another man without a left arm growled; they knew what was coming and it wasn't pretty.
" Tatsuki the butcher. Hahaha, I didn't think you would get caught. I have heard of you, pretty nasty stuff. Ptooh." The thin man gave a furious glare, spitting afterwards.
"Why don't you all shut up? Pieces of trash!" Ai barked from up her tree, vigilant for ambushes.
"Nah, pretty lady, though not so lady given you lack certain assets. Why don't yo-Urghh!" "Thud." A kunai landed on the ground, and with a tug of a wire, Ai caught it. "You BITCH! Wait till I get free, I'm gonna enjoy you." Tatsuki the bitcher snarled, clutching his bleeding neck.
"Enya, if you will," Kudo spoke, drawing a sigh from Enya, who began his genjutsu, and the camp settled into eerie silence accompanied by burning twigs.
A few minutes later, "Kudo, you take first watch, and then Ai, I will take the last shift." Enya suggested, drawing nods from the two; he needed to recover his chakra. They might face an ambush soon given the 'importance' of their guests. Although they had soldier pills, the drawback was a heavy hit of lethargy for more than a day.
Time marched on, and eventually the creaking of birds and animals of the forest awoke the camp.
"Get up, mongrels, time to march to your deaths. Hopefully it is as gruesome as possible." Ai spat her black hair in a ponytail while Kudo and Enya scrubbed the camp and erased whatever was possible. Their sensei was in the shadows, and they would lead the return trip with Ai taking charge on this mission.
The group marched towards Konoha agonizingly slowly as the prisoners used every tactic in the book to delay the mission, something Ai had little patience for as some found themselves limping the journey.
Enya on Kudo's back suddenly woke up, "Movement! On our 12, 3, and 9 o'clock. 20-30 insurgents rushing at us." Just then, arrows streaked through the trees and struck the ground, missing Ai, who clutched her kunai. "Rapid elimination!" She barked as they got into a triangle formation. Enya made some hand seals. "Earth style: Quicksand." The ground around the prisoners felt like mush, and soon cries began as their feet sank into the ground. "Finally, earth style: Hardened ground." Their feet were clasped firmly, preventing escape and any interruption.
"Enya, incoming!" Kudo shouted, rushing ahead with a series of tree leaps. Shuriken were shot into the trees, arching and seeking their targets.
"Arghh!!" Screams of agony arose amidst bellowing roaring, "Archers! Shoot and move. Men rush ahead; we are feasting on the dogs of Konoha tonight." "HOOO!!" The men rushed into the small clearing.
With Enya to keep watch on the prisoners, Ai and Kudo advanced towards the enemies.
"Pooh!" "Pooh!" "Thud." Bodies fell as senbon streaked the air, tearing the air. "Clank!" Blades met as a masked figure's sneak attack failed; even with a grunt, his sword stopped dead. Soon his sword swung, but Kudo was already gone, traceless as he lunged from below, his flying kunai aimed at the neck while shuriken were shot at the bandits attempting an encirclement. "Arghh!" Screams rose all around as the fight intensified.
'Man, I could really use a hand-to-hand right now,' Kudo mused as he reverses gripped his kunai and charged in. The masked man threw away the cloak, revealing battered samurai armor.
"Die shinobi scum!!" The samurai charged.
While a group hidden advanced towards Enya at the back.