Alright, well, looks like I'm a big fat liar. This chapter is much longer than the planned 5-6k words but I don't think any of you will complain. As a reminder to anyone who takes offense to this, I do not own any part of Okami or Naruto. See you at the bottom.

Ink Stained Leaves

Chapter 16

Agata Forest: Road to Agata - Part 1

.x0x.

Nobu was frustrated.

It was the end of the workday and everyone else had finished up their duties for the day and off eating dinner. So where was he? Still stuck on the road with at least another half hour of work before he could clock out. The reason for his prolonged suffering was complaining to his left.

"Man, the boss works us too hard, don't you think?"

Nobu gave the foolish man a hard glare. "No, he doesn't. The only reason we're still here is because you decided that lunch a good time to sneak a nap in while everyone else was on break! And then you overslept! You have no one to blame but yourself, Yori. And just so you know, I blame you too."

He angrily continued digging up dirt, clearing this stretch of land for the foundation of the road they were working on. Yori was the new guy and had already earned the title of the laziest man he has ever had the misfortune of working with and most of the other workers here felt the same. No one liked working with him and he was unlucky enough to draw the short straw for today. Even now, with dinner being served to everyone else and they were stuck here until their work was done, he was still indifferent to the work. For every five shovelfuls that Nobu managed to get out of the way, Yori only managed two. While Nobu focused on getting done as quickly as possible, Yori would stop to rest every minute or so. And he just wouldn't shut up.

"I'm just saying, we're being paid by the hour, right? We should totally milk that. I don't get why you guys are in a rush for everything." Yori said leaning lazily against his hoe.

A vein pulsed on Nobu's forehead. 'Ignore him. Just ignore him and get the work done and then go eat dinner. He'll be someone else's problem tomorrow.'

"Hey, did you hear that?"

"Yori, will you stop getting distracted and finish up, I'm hungry and agitated. I just want to be done with today."

"No, I'm serious. I heard something." Yori said as he raised his hoe defensively and looked out into the forest, which was starting to grow thick with the usual mist.

"Damn it, Yori. I am in no mood for this. Get back to work and stop worrying about noises you hear in the forest. It's probably just that damn bear again."

Yori gave Nobu a perplexed look. "There could a bear out there and you're going to keep working?"

"It's harmless, spends more time sleeping than anything else. Just don't leave anything that's round laying out, he'll take off with it."

"Why?'

"How the hell should I know? It just does. No one knows why. You get used to it." He kept shoveling.

Yori was still looking out into the trees. "Nah man. This doesn't sound like a bear. It's too quiet."

"Great. Now you're saying the forest isn't noisy enough. You want to stay out here all night, that's fine by me, but don't expect me to suffer out here with you."

"Just listen."

Rather than arguing with the man more, Nobu decided to humor him, if only to get him to shut up and get back to work. He stopped shoveling and listened.

The first things he heard were the rambunctious muffled cheers of the other workers off in the meal tent. They must've been up to the usual nightly things they did to keep themselves entertained. He drowned them out easily enough, the distance to the tent was a good way away; they were just that loud.

He then thought to drown out the usual noises of the forest but seemed to have a bit of trouble. It took him a couple of seconds to realize why. The usual sounds that he would've heard around this time of day, crickets, birds, toads, he couldn't hear any of it.

"I don't hear anything."

"Just listen."

More silence. Several seconds passed and still nothing could be heard. While the silence did unsettle Nobu, it wasn't enough to overcome his agitation with Yori. With a huff, he went back to work.

"Look, I'm tired. I'm hungry. I just want to be done. You want to stay out here and contemplate the sound of silence, be my guest." He shoveled a few piles worth expecting a response only to be met with nothing.

"Are you going to get back to wor…" he started when he turned to look at Yori, only to find that he was gone. He looked around but failed to see where the man went. He looked back to where he had been and saw that his hoe lay forgotten on the ground.

"Yori? Where the hell did you go? I swear, if you left me to finish up on my own, I will beat your ass."

Silence.

"Yori? Answer me you bastard!"

This time, he heard a crack of a breaking branch. He took a step forward only to pause. One of the first things they learned when working in a wooded area was to not enter the forest at night. This of course brought forth the very first rule they learned; never be without your partner. As much as he said that he would leave Yori behind, that was last the thing he would actually do. Another deep breath before he continued into the forest.

During the day, the forest was beautiful to look at. Ancient trees reaching high above the ground, the floor of the forest itself riddled with puddles and creeks. Bushes and the occasional patch of grass could be found, strange considering that the sunlight didn't penetrate the dense canopy above in most places. There was one spot he discovered the other day, where the leaves allowed a large shaft of light to touch the ground. It was breathtaking to witness and he kept its location to himself, not wanting the others to ruin it simply by sheer numbers.

Like any forest though, once night fell it became far more treacherous. Not that it really had any dangerous animals in it. No, what made it deadly were those small puddles and creeks. The forest floor was littered with them; one of the many reasons why they were building a road here. Years of erosion made them a hazard to walk around even during the daytime, at night it was pretty much a given that people should stay in areas that have been designated as safe. Nobu was careful to check his footing before allowing his full weight to settle with each step and would poke ahead with his shovel several times before committing.

'Freaking moron, should know better than to go into the woods at night. I swear, what would compel him to ignore protocol like this? I am so reporting him when we get back.'

"Yori!" he called. Again he was met with silence.

Silence. It was starting to get to him. He'd only been here a few weeks, but he had grown to like the gentle sounds the forest offered. He honestly believed that once this job was done he was going to have a hard time falling asleep once those sounds were gone. He actually felt that was going to be an issue tonight if it didn't pick back up. He wondered what caused the normally noisy creatures to remain quiet.

He was actually starting to worry. Much as he disliked Yori, he didn't hate him. Even though they had their differences, they were still compatriots and coworkers and, if only for today, partners. That meant everything to Nobu. If you couldn't trust your partner to watch your back, then you had no place here. Agata wasn't known for being a bandit hot spot, but it was still a wild place.

"Dammit, Yori!"

"What?"

"GAH!" Nobu shouted as his partner materialized out of nowhere. "Where the hell were you!"

"I told you, I heard something."

"So you run off without telling me? You know better than to run off without me, even worse that you went into the forest at night! I don't care what you thought you heard, you do not leave without your partner!"

Yori, in his aggravating apathetic attitude, shrugged off Nobu's fury.

"It's not that big of a deal. What's the problem?"

"The problem? The Problem! You're the problem! Your entire attitude is the problem. How you got hired onto this crew is beyond me. You broke at least three protocols with this little stunt, putting not only yourself in danger, but me as well. You never treat anything seriously and openly mock our procedures and rules. I will be reporting this to the boss, mark my words."

"What? Come on, Nobu. I need this job." Yori objected.

"We have no need for people like you. You're a danger to yourself and to others. I don't care what you need. I won't have you putting anyone else in danger."

Without another word, Nobu stomped back towards the camp, leaving Yori behind, stunned in stupefied silence.

"Nobu. Nobu!" Yori called but received no response. "Fine! Tell the boss! I didn't need this job anyway? Who wants to be out here with nothing to do and no women!"

He picked up a stone and launched it nowhere in particular.

He paced in place a bit, looking frustrated. After a few minutes passed, Yori managed to cool down a bit before he looked back towards camp, remorse passing over his features. With a heavy sigh, he started making his way back towards the rest.

Or… he tried to at least.

When he turned to go, he nearly fell flat on his face as his foot caught on something.

"Gah, what now?" he complained as he looked down to see what his foot was stuck in. "What the...?"

On the bottom of his foot was a white sticky substance. He reached for it with his hand before pausing. If it was stuck to his foot, then wouldn't his hand get stuck as well? He grabbed a nearby stick and tried to pry it off that way.

Now his foot was stuck with a stick.

"Great, just great. What even is this crap?" he complained as he stared at his foot in frustration. He wasn't about to risk grabbing it. Maybe a good kick?

He flailed his foot out several times to no avail. The substance remained strongly adhered to his foot. Getting even more frustrated, he began to kick even more violently and he felt resistance when he tried to pull away.

He was at that for a solid minute and only stopped when his breathing became rough. All that and the only thing he accomplished was attaching some of the forest floor to his foot. Various grasses, leaves, and twigs now accompanied the stick he had used earlier.

"Man, what the hell am I going to do?" he said to himself.

No way anyone would hear him at the camp if he called for help. The forest was thick enough to muffle anything outside the open work areas.

It was then that he felt some movement by his entangled foot. He looked down reluctantly, fearing seeing one of the forest's many creatures, possibly a snake. He found nothing, not even a hint of something living nearby.

His eyes still searching, he felt the movement again by his foot. He focused, trying to see what it was that was causing the motion. What he saw sent chills down his spine.

It was the stuff, it twitched and moved, almost as if it was being tugged on. It was a small tug at first, shortly followed by another. Now that he was paying attention, he saw that there was a line of debris stretching deeper into the forest. Another small tug and it hit him to what that meant. Something was on the other side. Before he could respond to that realization though, the string tugged again, only stronger this time. He felt as his blood ran cold and his breathing hitched. Just as he was about to try and free himself, another tug more violent than before, pulled his foot out from under him. He crashed to the ground hard enough that the wind was knocked out of his lungs.

Before he could regain his breath and try another attempt to free himself, the cord pulled taut and began to drag him across the forest floor. Tori could do little to fight against the pull as he was still trying to breathe. The world started to blur as his oxygen-starved mind strained under the stimulation it was under.

His foot hit water, shocking him out of his stupor as he forced his lungs to finally suck in some much needed air.

He stretched out his hand in a desperate attempt to grab something to prevent being pulled further. His gamble paid off as he managed to feel out a root and quickly grabbed it. His body jerked as the cord pulled his leg as he held on with everything he had.

"He- Help!" he shouted in the hopes that someone could hear him. He wasn't that far from the camp, but the forest was just too thick. Still, what else could he do? He had nothing to lose.

He felt his grip starting to weaken with each pull.

"Help…" he whimpered, his strength waning. He felt his fingers slipping one by one. "…please…"

His last words before his grip failed and he was dragged into the fog.

.xIx.

A small shadow darted through the trees and bushes as two larger shadows pursued it.

"Target is headed towards the location."

"Good, make sure to maintain your present course. Only deviate if target alters course."

"Copy that. We will maintain course." Sasuke said into his radio as he and his teammate slowed and halted behind some trees as their target stopped in a clearing. He looked over at Naruto who had set up behind a tree and gave him a nod. Naruto saw and gave his own nod in affirmation. He then put his hands together in a seal and conjured six clones into existence. Already having their orders, they spread out through the grove. Much like the original, they all were now hiding behind trees, peeking out and keeping something within view.

Sasuke turned his head back towards their target once he was sure Naruto and his clones were in position.

"We're in position. Ammako, are you ready?"

All he received for several seconds was static until he finally heard his female teammate respond. "… Yeah, I'm ready. Is this really the best way to utilize me? I mean I can…"

Issun cut her off though before she could mention more. "Negative, you're role is imperative to the success of this mission. Maintain position and await further orders."

Ammako grumbled over the radio but accepted her orders

"Alright, if everyone is ready, proceed with the mission and carry out the plan."

"Copy. Naruto, are you ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready."

"Okay, on my signal then." He looked out into the clearing, their target still loitering. He raised his hand a bit and watched. It didn't take long for the target to turn away. Once it did, Sasuke brought his hand down and sprinted out from his tree with Naruto and his clones moving in the same instant.

Their target, now aware of their presence, took off.

"Target is on the move," he said into his radio. "we're approaching Ammako's position."

The two boys herded the target forwards, Naruto's clones making sure it didn't stray too far from their designated path. It only took them a few minutes to reach the clearing where Ammako was set up. Once they were out of trees, the shadow they had been chasing was revealed to be Tora the cat, red bow and all.

Tora looked pretty desperate as she ran from the boys. She tried to feint left only to run into one of Naruto's clones, forcing her to run back into the clearing. Everywhere she looked there was one of those infernal orange-clad monstrosities. They just didn't smell right, all the more reason to stay away from them.

Sasuke watched as the cat ran from the clones, any time she tried to leave they would block her path, just as planned. This would be the fourth time now that they've had to chase her down and have become quite proficient at it. Tora had become wise to their method after the second time and had taken measures to avoid capture. Now they needed to be especially sneaky when it came to capturing her now. This now led to their current plan with Naruto's clones herding the cat to a very specific area.

Tora soon passed over a line in the ground marking her within range.

"She's there! Now Ammako!" Sasuke ordered into his radio.

Tora didn't get very far after the order when Ammako burst out of the ground with her arms wide open. Whatever desperation that Tora had been feeling soon vanished as she got all starry-eyed and leapt straight into Ammako's waiting arms where she began purring and nuzzling the girl. Ammako carefully brought Tora into a hug, holding onto to her while she finished pulling herself free from the hole she had been hiding in.

"Tora is secure. Capture successful." she said with a hint of annoyance in her voice as the boys marched up to her, careful to maintain a safe distance from the cat.

"Great work team. Meet back up at Hokage's Tower main entrance and we'll turn her in."

While Ammako appeared annoyed, Naruto was downright frustrated. "Man, when are they going to give us something other than these D-rank missions? This is getting old."

Tora mewled loudly as she snuggled against Ammako.

Naruto gave her a glare. "Getting real tired of seeing this cat every week." he said as the team moved out.

…

The team found their sensei waiting for them as they approached the tower. Ammako appeared more than a little annoyed when she saw him. This sour look on her face remained the entire time they were turning in their quest and only vanished momentarily as she handed the cat over to her owner.

"OH Tora! Mommy missed you sooo much! Why do you keep running off sweety? Don't you know how much you scare mommy when you do that?" Madame Shijimi said as she smothered Tora in affection, hugging her close. Tora struggled to push the woman away to no success.

Still holding the cat, Madame Shijimi went to the Mission desk and dropped a pouch of ryō down. "Thank you again, Hokage-sama. I just don't know what gets into her, it seems like every time I come here she runs off."

The Hokage bowed his head and chuckled a bit. "I'm sure we'll figure it out someday, Madam Shijimi. Until then, please enjoy the rest of your stay within the village. I hear that the hot springs just installed a new bathing area. Very modern."

"Ooo, how can I pass that up. Have a good day Hokage-sama."

And then she was gone. A few seconds after the door shut Ammako's façade melted away and she turned on her sensei.

"That is the last time you guys use me as bait! I am sick of just having to sit there and wait while you guys get to do all the work!" she told the older man.

"Hey, that little aura of yours is extremely helpful when it comes to any animal missions we get. I'd rather we put it to good use. Besides, we get paid well enough; isn't that right Iruka?" he asked as he grabbed his pay from the instructor.

"I'm afraid I have to agree with him, Ammako-san. That pacifying ability of yours is too useful to ignore." Iruka said as he finished writing through his reports.

Ammako wasn't going to give up though. "This is the fifth time we've had to track down Tora and the third time I've had to sit there and do nothing. I am sick of being treated like a cat toy!"

Hiruzen looked at the girl. "I understand that you may not appreciate this mission as much, Okami-san, but your team, because of you, has the highest success rate for catching Tora. Madame Shijimi personally requests for you anytime her cat escapes."

This time Naruto was the one to say something. "But now all we've been doing is finding every lost animal for the village! When are we going to go on a real mission?"

"I'm with the knucklehead; I don't want to be bait anymore. When are we going to go on a serious mission?"

Hiruzen gave the two a look. "Well, that all depends on when you're Jonin instructor feels that you're ready." He glanced over at Issun. "Well, do you think they're ready for something a little more deserving?"

Issun scratched the back of his head as he let out a sigh. "Honestly? I think they're good to go…" he started, both Naruto and Ammako letting out small cheers. "But… I just don't think we as a team are ready. I'm still adjusting to leading a squad. If we were to take on a C-rank, it'd have to be a pretty laid back one."

"Hmm…" Hiruzen looked over some of the mission requests. Nothing in regards to what Issun was requesting. "I'm sorry, Pon-san, there are currently no C-ranks that fit those criteria."

The two genin groaned.

Issun simply shrugged his shoulders in response. "Eh, was expecting something along those lines."

Hiruzen nodded as he looked through his pile of missions. He looked over at Iruka who was doing the same.

"I have some babysitting requests if you guys would prefer that over animal herding." The teacher said.

"Or perhaps you three would like to do the daily shopping for the elders over on third." Hiruzen said as he sifted through more requests.

Before more requests could be listed though, a commotion was suddenly heard coming from outside the room.

"Move aside lass! I have business here." A voice carried into the room.

"Sir, you can't go in there! The Hokage is busy right now."

"Nonsense, I am a paying customer, there's no reason not to see me."

"You have to make an appointment! You can't just barge into the mission room without an appointment!"

The door burst open as a man waltzed right into the room. Hiruzen quickly took in the man's appearance. Average height, late fifties, tanned skin, messy white hair and beard, workers clothes. A craftsman if he had to guess.

"Welcome sir, how can I help you?" Hiruzen greeted as the man marched up to the desk.

"You the Hokage?" he asked once he was there.

"I am. Now, who might you be?"

"Ah, my apologies, I am Naguri, Master Craftsman of Sei'an City." he said with his hands on his waist and his chest puffed out.

"Greetings, Naguri-san. What brings you to my village this day?"

Naguri looked around the room for a moment before answering. "I am here today because I have a job for your ninja. Assuming I can make the order without an appointment that is."

"I don't think that's necessary. I suppose we should go to my office to discuss things. Iruka, can you handle mission distribution for the next half hour?"

"Of course, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen got up from his seat and led Naguri to the door. He turned and looked at team seven before leaving the room. "Issun, take your team your team to lunch and come back in an hour. We may have something for you by then." He turned back to Naguri. "To my office please."

…

The two men soon found themselves in Hiruzen's office. Hiruzen took his seat and gestured for Naguri to sit as well.

"So Naguri-san, what can I do for you? It's an awful long way from Sei'an City to come here for a mission."

Naguri didn't seem all that surprised by the question. "That it is. But a master craftsman's work is in great demand and it is not always local. In this case, I have been tasked with building a road through Agata Forest."

"Agata Forest?" Hiruzen queried as he looked over at the map of the Elemental Nations on his wall. Agata forest was located in the Southwest corner of Hi no Kuni, just before the border to Kawa no Kuni. It was a fairly wild area, overgrown with vegetation and teeming with wildlife. Suppose someone eventually had to get it into their heads to build a road there.

"So I take it you want bodyguards for the trip there? That can easily be arranged…" he didn't get to finish.

"Bodyguards, yes; for the trip, no. As you may have noticed, your village is quite out of the way on my journey to Agata."

"I had yes. It would've been quicker to simply head there from the capital."

A nod. "Yes, well, I had business to attend to before I could leave Sei'an, so I sent my foreman and workers ahead to prepare and get done what they could before I arrived. I've been keeping in touch with them through letters and it seems that there has been a… problem, as it were." He paused in order to better form his thoughts. "My men are going missing. At first it was thought that it was merely deserters as the men who had gone missing were not the most reputable hires, extra men picked up along the way. But then some of my more senior workers started to vanish. These men I would trust to handle anything when I'm not around, them just taking off is an absurd idea to believe."

Hiruzen listened attentively; making sure he fully understood everything that was being told to him. Every now and then he would even jot down certain details as they pertained to the mission. "So you believe that they've been taken somehow?"

"What else could it be? I take the safety of my men very seriously, Hokage-sama. Them going missing is a failure on my part. I don't know if it's bandits or the local wild life, but I need it to stop and now. I am here to hire your ninja to do just that."

Hiruzen jotted down a few more details on his paper. "A four-man squad should cover it then. How sure are you that it is just bandits or animals? Any signs that other shinobi could be involved?"

Naguri shrugged his shoulders. "I can't say. I haven't been there yet. I promised my foreman that I would do everything I can to ensure that everyone remaining is kept safe and that I would see what I can do about tracking down those who've gone missing."

"So a team specialized in tracking. I do believe that I have the perfect team for this, though they'll be unavailable until next week at least, they're currently on a mission."

Naguri shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't wait that long. I need to get down there as soon as possible and can't dawdle."

"Well, I'm sorry Naguri-san, but all of my experienced teams are away at the moment. The one I mentioned is the only one that'll be back soon."

Naguri scratched his beard in thought. "Then who were those youngin's downstairs? That was a team yes? What can they do?"

It took Hiruzen a second to register who Naguri was talking about. "Team Six? That's a genin team; they haven't even left the village yet."

"Well from what I've heard, your village has some of the strongest ninja in the world. I have to assume that means that your genin are better trained than most. They should do just fine. I ask again, what can they do?"

Hiruzen sighed and rubbed his temples. A headstrong client was always tough to deal with. Granted, at least this one wasn't underestimating the capabilities of the genin just because they were children. "I do believe that their talents would be more than sufficient to act as bodyguards. They're not trained trackers, but I feel that they should be able to handle it."

Once again Naguri took to scratching his beard. "No, I don't think that will do at all. If they're going to be guarding my men, then that is what I want them to focus on. I would like to hire on a second team to do the tracking."

"Naguri-san, I must advise against that. A four-man team is more than enough to handle this. Besides that, the price of hiring two teams is not cheap."

Another head shake. "Price is no issue. And you said it yourself, this Team Six isn't trained to track and there's the possibility that this may be more than just bandits and wild animals. Would it really be so bad to have a second team around to handle that?"

Hiruzen thought for a moment. So long as there was sufficient cause, teams had worked together before. And it was technically two separate missions, one to guard and one to track. If it was more than a single team could handle, then at least the other would be in close proximity to provide back-up. That and the presence of an additional jonin would more than makeup for their inexperience. He pulled out his roster and went over it. One team in particular stood out.

"You make a compelling argument, Naguri-san. Very well, let's discuss the terms of your contract."

.xIIx.

It wasn't long before the details were hammered out and Hiruzen led Naguri back to the mission room.

"Hokage-sama, welcome back. How'd things go?" Iruka asked.

Hiruzen smiled as he showed Iruka the mission scroll. "I believe we've worked something out. Take a look."

Iruka glanced over the mission and frowned. "Isn't this a little advanced for a genin team?"

"It'll be fine. Keep some people safe and track down those who're missing. If anything does go wrong, there'll be two jonin to handle it. That's more than most missions have."

"If you say so, Hokage-sama."

Before they could speak any more on the matter, a familiar set of voices could be heard coming out the door.

"Why is it we have to eat there all the time? Do you have any idea how much sodium is in those noodles?"

"I think Oji-san mentioned it one time, but I don't remember what he said."

"Stop calling him Oji-san!"

"I tried, he insisted. Said I couldn't call both him and the old man, old man."

"Alright, calm down you two. Hopefully, Hokage-sama will have a mission for us. Now, look respectable."

The door then opened and Team Six walked in, the first two being Naruto and Ammako soon followed by Sasuke and Issun. It appeared that the former had been arguing again, though they managed to stay quiet about it for the time being.

Issun stepped forward and gave a quick bow. "So, anything for us?"

"I believe I do. However, the circumstances of this mission are… unusual."

"Hmm? How so?"

So Hiruzen explained it quietly enough so that only the jonin heard. Issun scratched his head after hearing the details. "That is a pretty unusual request, but I have to agree with the reasoning. Who's the other team though?"

"I've already sent word for them to meet me later. Should they agree to the mission, they'll meet you at the front gate tomorrow morning." He passed the jonin a more detailed mission briefing. "Take a few minutes to go over this with your team and decide if you're going to be participating."

"Based off what you just told me about the client, do we even have a choice?"

Hiruzen didn't answer and just gave the man a sympathetic smile.

Issun walked back to join his genin. They, of course, were anxious about the possibility of a mission.

"So? Do we have a mission? What is it?" Naruto asked.

"Will you calm down. Sensei will tell us, you don't have to get hyper about it." Ammako said though she too was mildly shaking in anticipation.

Sasuke was being Sasuke, hanging back and showing as little interest as possible, though him eyeballing the mission scroll spoke volumes to Issun's trained eye.

"We may, but that's all up to you guys." This response garnered a round of confused looks. "The details of this mission are a little… unique, to say the least. The client is asking for two squads to handle things. Not only that, but the details are a little unclear about what it is that we'll be dealing with exactly."

"Sensei, are those the kinds of things that are supposed to be known before a mission is accepted?" Ammako asked.

"Normally, yes. But this is one of those times where we have to deal with an unknown. A part of this mission is investigative, but that's not what we'll be doing. Should you guys accept this mission, we'll be on bodyguard duty. The second team will be handling the other half of things. This mission will also have us away for around two months, so take that into consideration before you decide."

In all honesty, Issun wasn't sure why he gave them a choice. It's wasn't like they took the time he gave them to think over things.

"YEAH! Finally a mission worthy of us!" Naruto shouted as he jumped for joy and raised a fist.

Ammako gave him an annoyed look, but it quickly vanished as she smiled. "I'm just glad that it's not another Tora mission. Anything to not be bait anymore."

Sasuke didn't verbally respond, though he did nod his head and held a self-satisfied smirk. Really that's all Issun needed to guess his response. He let out an exasperated sigh and turned back to Hiruzen.

"I guess we're in."

"Very well. Your team will meet up with the client and the other team at the main gate tomorrow morning. I suggest all of you use the time you have to make preparations and gather what you need."

…

Outside the tower, Naruto was finally able to let loose everything he'd been suppressing.

"Alright! A mission! Oh man, this is gonna be awesome!"

"Reel it in, Naruto. Don't let the excitement get to you, you'll likely keep yourself awake tonight. You need to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for tomorrow, so make sure you get plenty of rest. That goes for all of you." Issun instructed everyone. "Now, if you don't mind, I have some things to take care of."

Before he could wander off though, a voice called out, getting everyone's attention.

"Naruto-kun? Oh my, I haven't seen you in forever!"

Naruto didn't even get a chance to register who had spoken before he was caught up in a suffocating hug.

Jiggle.

"Wha…? Oy, let me go!" Naruto yelled as he struggled to free himself from the entrapping embrace.

"Awe, fine." A feminine voice said filled with disappointment.

Once Naruto stopped flailing around, the rest of Team Six got a good look at who had manhandled their teammate. Judging from her outfit, she was a shrine priestess, though her choice in clothing looked far from traditional, being far more revealing.

Sasuke was actually curious for once. He had been fairly positive he'd known about nearly everyone that Naruto knew. Not that he went to any effort to learn this; Naruto proudly boasted about the people in his life, from Sai to the old couple who ran a popular general store. This woman, however, he failed to mention so far. Judging from the look of embarrassment on his face, he guessed there was a reason for that.

"Geez, Nee-chan, I thought I asked you not to do that in public. It's embarrassing!" the blond whined.

The woman giggled as she gave the boy a head pat. "But I just can't help myself. You haven't been to the shrine in weeks." she pouted.

Jiggle.

"Because I've been busy! Being a ninja isn't easy you know."

It was at this point Sasuke noticed how quiet the other two were being. Glancing over, he wasn't quite prepared for what he found.

Ammako was flushed, her face bright red as she desperately dabbed her nose with a napkin. Sasuke thought he caught sight of red on the napkin and wondered what caused the girl's nose to bleed. Their sensei though… Sasuke wasn't sure what was going on there. The jonin had pulled a sketchbook from somewhere and was frantically scribbling away in it, his eye locked on the woman in front of them.

Rao appeared to notice the three of them for the first time. "Naruto, are these your teammates? Aren't you going to introduce me?"

Naruto had calmed down by now, though he still seemed reluctant to make introductions. "Guys, this is Rao, the priestess of the shrine over in the big park. Nee-chan, these are my teammates. The guy drawing is Issun-sensei. That's Sasuke brooding over there. And the one with the bloody nose is Ammako."

Rao seemed more than happy to meet them as she stepped up to them. "It is so nice to meet you guys; Naruto hasn't said anything about you at all. Though I guess he can be forgiven, I haven't been in town all that much. People are in need of spiritual guidance all over the place you know."

Sasuke merely gave a curt bow, already losing interest.

Ammako finished cleaning herself up and tried to be presentable.

"Greetings, Rao-san. It's nice to meet you." she said before looking away quickly, her cheeks still a little red.

Issun kept sketching. Rao tried to move towards him but he held up a hand to stop her. "Na ah, just a few… more… … Done." The sketchbook then vanished back to where ever it came from. In the same motion, Issun was next to Rao, her hand in his, their faces close to each other.

"I see that Naruto has done me a great disservice not introducing me to such a wondrous visage of beauty. What say we lose the kids and go enjoy ourselves?"

Much to Issun's surprise, she did not act how he expected. She gave him a confused blank stare for a few seconds before her smile returned. "I am unfamiliar with this greeting, is it from the eastern lands?"

Issun blinked. He had received many responses to his flirtations, mostly negative, but this was a new one. So surprised was he that it didn't register at first that she was out of his grasp.

"You all are certainly… interesting. I hope that you will look after Naruto-kun for me when I'm not around. The poor boy just can't seem to stay out of trouble."

She looked up into the sky taking note of the time and her smile turned to a slight frown. "Oh my, I really must be going. I've been out of town for too long, there must be so much to do at the shrine." She turned to Naruto. "Be sure to come see me soon, okay?"

"Uh… Nee-chan, about that… We just got a mission and we're going to be gone for a while." Naruto said apprehensively.

Rao's frown deepened and she actually looked a little hurt at the news. For all of a few seconds. "Then you really must bring your teammates by for dinner before you go then!"

Issun, now recovered, was the one to respond. "As good of an idea as that is, I'm afraid we must decline. We have a lot of stuff to prepare for before tomorrow and are going to need every minute. Once that's done, their guys have orders to rest up. Thank you for the invitation, but that's just how it is. Would you accept a rain check?"

The shrine priestess puffed her cheeks in annoyance at the news, though she once again got over it quickly. "I really should've expected this to happen. I just knew Naruto-kun becoming a ninja was going to take him away from me. If only I had been here when he took his test…" she trailed off before finishing.

"Fine, I'll accept your rain check." She once again caught Naruto up in a smothering hug, which he immediately fought against to no avail. "You make sure to come and see me once you get back, we'll plan a dinner. Now you stay safe out there and try to keep the mischief to a minimum."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now let go of me!"

She held on to him a few more seconds before letting go reluctantly. "Okay, I'll see you later then. Good luck on your mission."

A quick peck to his forehead and she went into the tower, leaving the boy red-faced.

"Gah, I wish she would stop doing that! Freakin embarrassing." he grumbled.

Issun sighed, annoyed with himself. You'd think after all these years he would be able to control himself better.

'That's what I get for playing a part for so long…'

"Alright guys, now that that's taken care of, we really need to prepare." He took out three slips of paper and handed them out. "Here's a list of things that you'll need for the trip. Remember to use your storage fans for the important stuff. Feel free to bring amenities but keep it light. We're going to be gone a while."

A round of nods.

"Alright, see you all in the morning."

.xIIIx.

Morning came to the village as it always did with the sun high in the sky with just enough clouds to be interesting; people going about their business happily and peacefully. Imagine how they must have felt when that peace was ruined as the town prankster ran through the crowd screaming.

"AAAHHHHH! Stupid clock!" Naruto cursed as he ran through the streets at breakneck speed. A more experienced ninja would have taken to the rooftops to avoid foot traffic, but Naruto was too focused on just getting to his destination on time. As it was, he was going to be late if he didn't hurry. He didn't particularly care about the people he nearly bowled over in his mad rush to not be late, gaining even more glares and irritated looks than normal; not that he noticed.

After what seemed like forever, he finally turned a corner and saw the final stretch of road that led to the village gates. He could already see the rest of his team there, idly awaiting him.

Another few seconds and he was there, surprisingly not winded. He thought back to all those classes with Onigiri-sensei and all those laps that the old man had made him run. As useful as it was now, he still could feel the memory of the pain in his sides from the experience.

"Naruto, how nice of you to join us. I was starting to wonder if we'd have to take off without you." Issun said nonchalantly as the blond slowed once he neared them. "I trust you got plenty of sleep, why else would you be late?"

"I-I'm not late." he breathed out, his throat a little raw.

Issun took a look at his stopwatch and noted that Naruto was right, but only by a few seconds. "Well, would you look at that."

Naruto didn't really care about his sensei's response, he was just glad that he wasn't late. Now that he wasn't rushing, he noticed that it wasn't just his team present. It didn't take him long to realize just who they were.

Though it may have been a bit since her last saw them, he still recognized the members of Team Seven.

Kiba was kneeling next to his ninken Akamaru up against the wall, whatever they were doing the dog seemed pleased as he yipped excitedly. Shino was doing… nothing really, just standing there next to the gate, still as a statue. Sasuke appeared to be in much the same state a little bit away. The two seemed to have come to some kind of silent agreement.

It was the last two that seemed to be the most excited about things. Ammako and Hinata were grouped up and chatting. Well, Ammako was chatting; Hinata seemed content to listen and smile. His arrival didn't go unnoticed as everyone turned as he walked up.

Kiba was of course the first one to speak up. "Well, look who decided to show up. Any later and I would've sworn you and sensei were related knucklehead."

"Eat it dog breath, my clock alarm didn't go off." Naruto grumbled to the Inuzuka as he went to the gate and slouched up against it. He heard someone walk up to him and turned to see that it was Shino.

"Greeting's Uzumaki-san, it has been quite some time. I am glad to see you in good health." The stoic boy greeted with a slight bow of his head.

"Oh, hey Shino. Uh… good to see you too. How've things been?"

"They have been… interesting. I did not think that we would be given such a mission this early on. It was quite a surprise to have been called to participate in it."

"Wait, you guys didn't have to ask for this? What the crap? We practically had to beg to be here!"

"I believe that there was another team that was preferred but were unavailable in the time frame the client wished to depart. Our team was selected as we were the only other team that fit the required criteria."

Naruto gave him a blank stare. "Anyone ever tell you that you use a lot of big words?"

"Many times."

The arrival of the rest of the group put a halt to the rest of the conversation. Kakashi walked up, his nose buried in his orange book, shortly followed by their client. The man was still wearing the same outfit he had been the day before, though he looked like he trimmed his beard a bit and gotten some rest.

"Yo." the silver-haired jonin greeted, never taking his eyes off his book.

Issun shot Kakashi an annoyed look, though it quickly vanished as he turned to the client.

"We were not properly introduced yesterday, Naguri-san. I am Pon Issun, jonin sensei to Team Six. These are my genin, Uchiha Sasuke, Okami Ammako, and Uzumaki Naruto. We'll be your bodyguards for the duration of this mission."

"Well, nice to meet ya. Look forward to your company." He turned to look at the other jonin. "Now who might you be then?"

"Hatake Kakashi, I lead Team Seven."

An awkward pause as he didn't continue speaking, prompting his own genin to speak.

"Aburame Shino, the pleasure is mine."

"Uh… Inuzuka Kiba." The boy greeted quickly followed by a small bark at his feet. "And this is Akamaru."

"I am Hyūga Hinata; it's nice to meet you Naguri-san." Hinata said as she bowed.

The carpenter gave everyone a once over with a scrutinizing eye, taking in every detail. It didn't take him long to finish and address them. "Well, it is nice to meet all of you. I will be under your care and I hope that you will extend to my men the same degree of protection."

"That's what you're paying for Naguri-san." Kakashi deadpanned, still reading his book. "Don't worry, we'll make sure no one else is taken and do everything we can to find your missing men."

Naguri gave him a nod. "Well alright then. I may be an old man, but even I have a schedule to keep. We have to meet up with a supply caravan just outside the capitol in three days. We'll be rendezvousing with some more of my men as well as one of my associates. He'll be taking over for me once the road is finished and we reach the other side of the forest. That should around the time my two months are up so no worries about extending. Hopefully everything will be sorted by then."

Naruto could barely contain his excitement. This was going to be the first time he got to travel outside the village properly. Sure he did some exploring outside the walls when he was younger, one time with some rather disastrous results, but this was different. This time he wasn't going to be hunted down by other ninja; Konoha or otherwise. This time he was out in the world with the skills he needed to kick some serious butt. This time…

Nothing was going to stop him. The next step on his journey to becoming Hokage and he was relishing everyone step of it.

.xIVx.

Zabuza was again found himself in the middle of nowhere with Haku by his side. The one upside he could find to this particular situation was that he was the one to name the meeting place this time. After the first meeting in those infuriating woods, he made it a point to meet somewhere of his own choosing. Not that he ever met up all that much with the man known as Waka, instead usually meeting with one of his underlings, the bald man or the mouthy girl.

This time seemed important, so Zabuza's primary employer requested a face to face. Zabuza glanced around at his current location, taking in all the details. Atop a plateau in Yama no Kuni, the view looked out over the former village of the country, ruined buildings and empty streets. The plateau itself was mostly rocky with some bare trees on the far edge. A lone patch of grass defied the barren landscape and grew as it pleased. The perfect meeting place.

'Never again.' Zabuza thought. He could still feel the sting from the tree branches that whacked him in the face.

"Zabuza-sama."

"I know."

He turned around and saw the small trio had arrived. The pink-clad man approached with his posse at his sides. The two men hadn't really changed in the years that Zabuza had known them, though the former Kiri nin took note that the girl had grown a few inches since the last time he saw her. It was Waka though that he kept an eye on. It had finally hit him a year ago as to why the pink wearing man raised every single one of Zabuza's alarms. The man, despite looking like he was in his late twenties, held himself like a decade old veteran. As for why that was, Zabuza didn't know and that set him on edge.

"Remember, not a word unless I tell you to speak."

Haku merely nodded in response, a sign that Zabuza's order was being followed. It wasn't long before the trio stopped a few meters away.

As usual, Waka was the first to break the silence. "Zabuza! Haku! How are my favorite mercenaries?"

The mercenary in question fought off a flinch, annoyed at how many familiar liberties the man took when addressing him or Haku. As usual though, Zabuza ignored the greeting and met Waka with a hard stare.

"… You never smile, do you? Not that anyone could tell with those bandages you always wear. But I suppose we should get to why I called for this meeting."

"You need something done. You always need something done." Zabuza deadpanned.

"Because you always deliver such good results, that's why I purchase your talents. But yes, you are correct. I do have a job I need to be done, a rather big job in fact."

Zabuza smirked under his bandages; those were the exact words he was hoping to hear.

Waka reached into his sleeves and took out a bag and a scroll. He tossed them both to Zabuza who caught them without taking his eyes off the man in pink. He held onto the bag, the jingle of coins could be heard and gave the scroll to Haku. The masked teen opened it and read through it.

"Well?"

"Job is in Tsuki no Kuni. He wants us to assault a particular vault in the royal treasury."

Zabuza couldn't help but grin a bit more. Things were going even better than expected as the cards were now in his hand.

"Sounds like a tough job." Zabuza uttered.

"One that I know the both of you are more than capable of handling." Waka said with a smile.

Zabuza tossed the coin bag in his hand once, noting the number of coins inside. "A job like this won't be cheap."

"You know I'm good for it."

Another toss of the bag and a bored look from the rogue nin before he tossed the coin bag back to Waka. For the first time that Zabuza had ever seen, the man actually looked surprised. Oh, he was going to relish this.

"Wha-? What is the meaning of this?" he questioned.

Zabuza could no longer hide his smirk anymore finally getting one over his employer. "Don't worry. I'll take the job, but I don't want your money this time."

Waka looked confused only adding to Zabuza's mirth. "So then what do you want?"

"Waka-sama, we should just get someone else. I don't like where this is going." the red-haired girl warned.

Waka managed to compose himself at her words. "No. I will hear him out. So if you're not accepting ryō, then what will you take?"

Zabuza chuckled, a menacing sound that he usually reserved for his enemies, but he felt it was appropriate for this moment. "I will give you my services for this job. In return, I want you and your lackey's talents in return."

A hard stare from Waka. "And what makes you think that we'll be able to help you? There's a reason I hire you instead of doing things myself."

Zabuza let his grin drop. Time to get serious. "I'm not stupid and I'm not blind. You're working towards something. All those jobs you've had me do are all towards a bigger purpose, no matter how random they may seem. I don't care what your end goal is and so long as I get paid I never will. I told you when we first met that I have my own goals. Thanks to your generous payments, I now have all the funding I need to enact those goals."

"You haven't answered my question."

"I've been putting that money to work. I have the supplies. I have men. Everything I've been working towards will soon be in place. What I need is a wild card, something that my enemies will never see coming. You are that wildcard. No one knows you or what you're capable of. You're strong, I've known it since the first time I met you. I can tell that you're even stronger now. I don't care if you bring your entourage, but if you want my help with this job, you will help me."

"And if I don't?"

"You find someone else to break into your vault, simple as that. The payment for this is you."

Waka was silent, his hand on his chin as he thought.

"Waka-sama, we just should go. We can find someone else." the girl said.

"Quiet Tayuya." hissed the bald man.

Waka sighed as he let his shoulders droop and actually opened his eyes more than he had ever before. Zabuza noted that his eyes were blue and while he couldn't be sure in the midday light, he could've sworn they had a slight glow. As soon as it happened, his eyes were back to the squint they usually were.

"Allow me and my associates to confer for a moment Zabuza-san." He turned and led his team away out of earshot.

Zabuza smirked once again. Never in all his dealings with this man had he ever held the upper hand. It felt good to finally assert some superiority.

…

"We don't have to deal with this. I say we cut this fuc-… guy loose and find someone else."

Tayuya wasn't happy with how things were going. The lack of respect that the mercenary showed towards her master was unforgivable and she would not stand for it.

Looking at the man she saw as her master, she saw that he was shaking his head.

"I can't trust anyone else to get this job done."

"If you accept you'll be putting yourself and everything we've been working for at risk. What if you get exposed?"

"She has a point sir. You haven't had to put yourself out there since Konoha and you were almost seen. I saw how you reacted to his request. You didn't foresee this."

Waka's frown deepened. "I know. But I can't choose someone else to get this done. They're the only ones who can accomplish this mission."

"But why? What can they do that no one else can?" Tayuya questioned.

"It's not what they can do." Waka muttered.

"Do we even know what he wants you for?"

"I think it's pretty obvious. Zabuza wants Waka to help him with his coup against the Mizukage. Honestly, I can't really blame him. With Waka on his side, his odds of success go up." Hayazo casually said.

Tayuya's jaw dropped a little at Hayazo's comment. "What? We can't go against one of the Kages."

"You're right. We can't" Waka agreed.

"See? We should just find someon-" her words froze as Waka turned and walked back towards Zabuza and his minion. She quickly followed with Hayazo slowly coming after.

"I accept." Waka said.

"What? But you said…" Tayuya started.

"I said that we can't. You two will be continuing your initial tasks. I will accept Zabuza's terms and grant him my services in return for his." He said, never breaking eye contact with the mercenary.

Zabuza's grin could easily be seen through his bandages, he clearly got what he wanted out of the deal.

"So now that we have that cleared up, I'm going to need details. Your scroll said nothing about a start time, only end date. Why?"

"The mission can be completed at any time so long as it's before the date specified."

"Interesting, why the large window? Also, the scroll failed to mention a target other than attacking the vault."

Waka didn't respond, a look of annoyance now forming on his features. "I should imagine that's obvious. The contents of the vault don't matter, only that it's assaulted. It's imperative that everything looks like a legitimate break-in."

"Hmm… That will take time. Guess I really will need that window. It's one thing to plan a heist; quite another to plan a heist that's meant to fail and still look authentic."

"If that's all, we'll be going now. I'll hold up my end of the deal as soon as you accomplish this task. Should you have any more questions, you know how to get in contact. Until we meet again, I have an appointment to keep."

With that, he motioned for his subordinates and they gathered around him. Just like always, there was a flash of soft light and then they were gone. Zabuza looked at the spot where they once were and saws the usual blackened glyphs and kanji of whatever strange fuinjutsu they used to disappear.

He really needed to find out how they did that; could prove useful. Though the nukenin had to admit though that he lacked the skill to utilize fuinjutsu, perhaps Haku would be willing to take up the art. Another time, they had things to do.

"Haku, gather our things. We're going to Sei-an City."

.xVx.

It was dark.

Not that it was nighttime or anything, it's just that the cave they were in didn't really offer all that much in lighting. Well, cave wasn't the right word. Ruins made for a far better word. It was true that much of the walls were now grown over with large roots, but some of the original walls could be seen behind all the foliage where the shadows weren't deep enough to hide them.

"Please!"

Honestly, it felt pretty cozy, she was glad that this is where she had ended up. Nice and far from anyone who would bother her.

"Don't do this!"

Maybe once she was done, she would stay here and relax. She may not have been ready to retire, but maybe she could make this place her vacation home. A safe place where she could retreat to when things got bothersome or if she just needed to unwind for a bit.

"I have a family! Please!"

It wasn't easy being as wanted as she was. She took a prominent spot in many villages bingo books; she was amazed that she went unnoticed as long as she had now. Maybe her pursuers got lazy? Or perhaps…

"ARRGH!"

…her benefactor saw fit to hinder the progress of anyone sent to track her. It made the most sense really. While they weren't directly involved with what she was doing here, she was still pretty important to their schemes as well; for the time being anyway. She really didn't like being on a leash, but she honored her debts and this was a big one. At least he wasn't interfering in her business, only asking for the leftovers when she was done. That was fine.

A gurgling noise managed to bring her back from where she was.

She looked down at the latest body to be made in front of her, a plain dagger sticking out of its chest. She watched as the blood leaked out and fell into the grooves that had been carved into the stone surface to channel it where she needs it to go. Utterly fascinated with the flow, she remained transfixed as the blood made its way to a shallow pool situated in front of its final destination.

That would be a dilapidated old gate archway covered with slips of paper with arcane glyphs and sigils written on them. The blood soon filled the pool and began to seep out the channels carved into the ground, surrounding the old structure. She held her breath, hoping that this would finally be it.

She felt a drop in temperature in the space and a brief burst of wind. And that was it. Nothing else happened. She let her shoulders sag down in disappointment, though not as much as the last time. The burst of wind had been new, so it was clear that she was getting closer. She turned and faced one of her subordinates who had been quietly awaiting orders from her.

"Bring me another one and hurry before this reaction goes away." she snapped with excitement in her eyes.

"Right away, my lady." Came a rough voice and then was gone.

She was back to looking at the gate, desperately trying to spot something else, anything. A smile touched her lips when she saw the faintest wisps of green smoke starting to develop and float around only to vanish after a few seconds.

"Soon. Very soon."

And scene!

Finally starting off the Agata Forest Arc. You guys have no idea how long I've been wanting to start this part of the story and I'm glad that we're here now. A couple things I would like to get out of the way. First, I will not be adhering to the Okami storyline chronologically. By that, I mean that I'll be taking parts from it and putting them in areas where they'll fit best. In this case, Agata fits the role of Wave incredibly well after some tweaking.

Second, it seems that I just am not able to adhere to a chapter being shorter than 10k, so it doesn't seem like I can output more than already am. Though I still want this Arc to come out as soon as I can get it, mostly because of the things that are going to play out in it. I just know you guys are going to love it.

Now to reviews!

Oki-wan - Just one of many game mechanics I plan on working into the story. I figured that the fan menu would make a decent storage item for the team, simply because it worked like that in the game. As for the stray beads... I have a rough idea, but nothing concrete yet. Odds are it won't come to fruition until Shippuden, so don't hold your breath. And yes, Kushi is here, though I can say that she's not really going to be a main part of the story. She'll be important to Kuni and his development, but not much else.

Wolf Guard Miestwin - Not going to lie, a lot of the early stuff in the early story is shaky at best. I started writing this story long before I dived deeply into research for it from the Naruto side of things. I am much more informed now, but my knowledge is still full of holes. Also, this is the first time I've tried my hand at storytelling, so I am more than a little rough at it. As for the Okami's powers, well, I still need to iron out a lot in regards to them, but I am at a better position than when I first started.

Omegalus - I've put a lot of thought into how these worlds work together, though everything originates from the Naruto side of things with Okami stuff overlapping it. I've got plans for days in regards to the Fox Rods and the Tube Foxes. So excited to actually show some of this stuff and I actually have a hard time not just spewing it out here in the notes. But I think it would be better for everyone if I keep my fingers shut.

Anyway, next chapter is going to be a bit of a road trip. Lots of new places and faces, and with a much larger group, so lots of characters working off of each other. So excited.

All that said, I do have a question for all of you. What is your opinion on Ammako? Mostly I'm curious how you guys see her and if that view is close to the character I've been trying to portray her as. Honestly she's been a tough one to write for as I'm trying to keep her close to her game counterpart as possible, but seeing as she's human, that just adds several layers of complexity to her that her god self didn't have.

Well, that's about all I can think of for the time being, so as always, Lostbasin out! Please Review!