+- Naruto: The Hidden Curse -+ ---[Starts!]

[Shadow Djinn]

Shiro - Team 12 Genin
--

A scream pierced Shiro's ears as he trooped down the pathway to home. He paused in his merry stride, frowning as the scream died down. A thorough inspection of the street provided no results, though he noticed traces of light in a two story house.

Ears picking up ragged panting from the room, he easily clambered up to the window, propping it open and tumbling inside. A grin formed when he realized he was staring at Iokawa Hiro, sprawled on the ground, a weight in one of his distraught hands.

"Need a hand there?" The cheerful Genin queried.

Hiro growled, but weakly said, "Please."

Shiro attempted to lift the weight, only managing to slightly before letting it drop again, luckily away from Hiro's hands. His teammate rose, muttering a weak, "Thanks."

But when he looked up, Shiro was already gone.

-

Sunrise

"Training time," Shiro muttered aloud as he clambered out of his dismal lodgings. His sheathed dagger was strapped to his belt this time, and he intended to use it today.

He gazed about him, and he noted various Genin from the Ninja Academy that he had trained with. A desire to socialize rose, but he frowned and stifled it, one of his hands resting on the pommel of his dagger.

-

A jet black kunai thudded into the target, just sheer centimeters from the crimson bulls-eye.

"Ah, damn." Yagyu Shiro frowned. Several other kunai were already in the wooden target, none in the bullseye. He unsheathed his dagger -- a jagged, bladed tool that the Genin preferred to throw instead of melee fights. His eyes closed shut, and he felt the calm hissing of the wind...

And his eyes opened, with renewed confidence, the blade of his dagger now hissing with a coat of razor air. He hurtled it forward with a ha!, grinning as it neared the bullseye...

Then an ash black throwing knife slammed into the projectile, sending it twirling away and embedding itself in the ground. A figure emerged from the bushes -- someone Shiro wasn't too happy about seeing.

"You'll have to do better then that," he growled.

"Ah, Asuma-sensei..." Shiro greeted, attempting to banish his frown. "What a surprise, preacher of hard work."

This elicted a chuckle. "It seems my lecture did you good. A genin now, eh?"

Shiro glanced at his hitai-ate headband, strapped careless to a muscled arm.

"Indeed," he responded.

"But it seems you still have a ways to go," the black-haired sensei noted, indicating the bullseye board.

"That dagger would've hit the center if you hadn't interfered," Shiro complained.

"You sure about that?" Asuma raised an eyebrow.

"Yes," the Genin protested.

And suddenly Asuma was beside him, one of his own throwing knives in his hand. He shoved Shiro aside nonchalantly, imitating the position the Genin had adapted, and sent it hurtling forward.

It whistled through the air, and collided with the board, a thud reverberating throughout the air.

"So I was wrong," Shiro twitched.

"Keep practicing," Asuma chuckled.

And then he was gone.

-
Hope I got Hiro's personality right, he was said to be friendly, so...

[Heald]

Inakamo Yakusha

[ Naruto's Daily Life – Original Soundtrack I ]

The training went down well, but so did the food. While Inakamo was not as big a food fanatic as Naruto, he did enjoy Chiyoko's cooking especially. He helped himself to a big serving of rice with fish wrapped in seaweed. Naruto didn't seem too impressed with his choice of food, but Inakamo laughed at him.
"Uncultured brat...this is simple, tasty, healthy and gives me the energy I need to perform my tricks!"
Naruto humphed at him and carried on devouring his ramen. He then turned back to Inakamo and asked,
"Do you still keep that goofy mask on while you eat? Doesn't that make it hard?"
Inakamo stopped eating and looked at Naruto. The atmosphere became cold all of a sudden. While Naruto didn't realise it, Chiyoko and Onitoge noticed that nothing really stopped Inakamo so suddenly. Inakamo frowned and said,
"I never take this mask off. No questions."
Naruto blinked and continued eating, mumbling through his food to himself,
"I still think it's goofy."
Chiyoko attempted to lighten the atmosphere and offered to cook more food, although only Naruto took up this offer.

Inakamo finished off his food and stood up.
"It is getting pretty late and I've got plans tomorrow," he said. Chiyoko however stopped him by asking,
"Oh please stay Inakamo! Have some tea!"
Onitoge looked at Inakamo and Inakamo could see in his eyes that he wanted him to stay, if only to provide a counter to Naruto. Inakamo smiled and sat down.
"I guess one tea won't hurt."

It, of course, became more than one as Naruto continued to be obnoxious and Inakamo repeatedly gave comebacks, if only to annoy Naruto. It became quite late and Inakamo then decided it was time to go. Onitoge left before him and Naruto decided to leave, having suffered Inakamo's caustic attitude long enough. Inakamo turned to Chiyoko and smiled.
"Thanks for the food - it'll be nice to have a decent chef on those long missions away from home on the team."
She giggled and bowed her head. Inakamo gave a slight bow of his own and decided to leave through the window and straight into the trees.

[ Evening – Original Soundtrack I ]

He landed outside his home. Unlike the other students, he didn't live in the main hub of Konohagakure but with his foster father in the woods outside, as his father worked as a carpenter, and thus was able to cut down his own trees for the wood. His foster father, Rachi, was outside making a fire with the wood chippings from the day's work. He saw that Inakamo still had his headband around his belt and smiled.
"Looks like you're still a ninja then!"
Inakamo smiled.
"Yep! A true Genin!"
Rachi put his hand on Inakamo's head and laughed.
"That's my boy! So who is your sensei then?"
"Hara-Sensei! He seems very...crazy!"
Rachi laughed and commented,
"Sounds like your kind of sensei! Anyway, it's late son, and you look exhausted. Up to bed."
Inakamo nodded and headed upstairs as soon as he got into the house.

He changed into his sleeping clothes, although he kept his mask on. He looked at the kanji that has been imprinted on his right arm since he was an infant - it read Yakusha, which, apart from his birth mother's dying breath, was the only link he had to any sort of recognition. Only he and Rachi have any idea this mark is on his arm, and he keeps his sleeve covering his arm to protect this. He put his head on his pillow and fell into a deep sleep.

His dreams took him seven years into the past, when a travelling circus came to Konohagakure. He remembers the carnival that took place the last night that they were staying distinctly - it was for this reason he has a fixation with carnivals, noise, bright lights and why he began training to be a ninja in the first place. Many of the perfomers were ninja who retired from military action and now used their jutsu for show. There were ninja from every village, each displaying a fabulous display of seemingly magic powers. Inakamo's bright orange eyes sparkled at these sights. They were not classed as Missing-nin and thus were not tracked down by Hunter-nin as they only used simple jutsu that looked impressive but were in fact relatively harmless, plus they usually consisted of ninja who were of no value to their villages anyway. As such, they wore clay masks to hide their identities, so no one could tell what village they were from anyway.

There was one more reason why he remembered this event. In fact, the carnival was only half the reason why he was who he is today.

The morning after, Inakamo snuck out of the house early to grab a quick swim in the river in the woods outside his house. He was enjoying himself, splashing around trying to catch fish and scaring ducks when he heard a voice.
"Rats, I was hoping if I got here early enough I'd be able to sneak a quick bath, but some kid beat me to it."
Inakamo turned around and saw a man was standing there. He was no local, that was for sure. Inakamo swam up to him and saw he had a clown mask on his belt.
"Hey mister! I saw you in the carnival yesterday!"
The man smirked.
"My, you're perceptive for a little squirt!" he commented. He turned to go when Inakamo asked,
"Oh come on mister! Show me a trick!"
The man stopped.
"Trick? I perform feats, not tricks!" and with that he turned around and launched a carnival ball at Inakamo, forcing him to dive back into the water. The man laughed and when Inakamo surfaced, he commented,
"You've got pretty good eyes to perform such a quick dodge. You a ninja?"
Inakamo got out of the water and quickly got changed to cover his arm. He shook his head.
"I guess you're training to be though, right?"
Inakamo nodded.
"My foster father just got me into the academy, although I'm not any good yet."
The man recalled his carnival ball and began spinning it around his head with his chakra strings.
"So I bet you couldn't do that, huh?"
Inakamo didn't really hear him; he was too in awe at this fabulous toy. The man was clearly enjoying showing off.
"Here, let me show you how to control the carnival ball."
Inakamo's eyes lit up as he heard this tempting offer. He was, however, skeptical, especially as he didn't have great chakra control, let alone be able to perform a jutsu.
"I don't have the chakra control Mister. It won't work."
The man nodded.
"Listen - this is more than a toy; it's a great ninja weapon, and the Chakra Strings Jutsu needed to use it properly is a great test of chakra control. Practice everyday and you'll be a fantastic ninja in no time."
Inakamo was giddy with excitement.

The man taught him the hand signs and the basics of it and then handed over the scroll for the ball.
"Keep this one as a souvenir - I got plenty more."
Inakamo was holding onto the ball like his life depending on it - it was the best gift ever! He was having a hard time holding on it, seeing as it was pretty much as big as he was. The man chuckled and then said,
"Oh yeah, that ball can be modified. Some of my other balls have booby traps and explosives in them, but that's my practice ball - all it has is a secret compartment."
The man told him the password and then as Inakamo began to inspect the ball once more, he looked up and the man had simply vanished.

[ Nine Tail Demon Fox – Original Soundtrack I ]

Inakamo completely forgot about his swim and instead began practicing the Chakra Strings Jutsu. Soon, his chakra was depleted and he had barely managed to the basics of it. Finished for the day, he went to collect the carnival ball when he decided to try out the secret compartment to put his wet towel in. As he did open it, he found that there was half a clown mask inside. He picked it up and immediately put it over the right side of his face. It was then that his right eye began to burn violently, along with the mark on his right arm. He took his hand away but the mask was stuck to his face. He took off his shirt and submerged his body into the water. As he took his head out, the burning getting worse, he looked at his reflection and saw that not only was the kanji on his arm glowing red, but a new symbol on the mask, not visible before was now glowing red too, reading 'Inashi'. Although the pain was unbearable, he could feel his chakra reserves filling up afresh.

He grabbed the mask and began forcefully pulling it from his face, eventually having to tap into his new chakra to give him the strength to rip it away. As he did, a torrent of blood shot out from the area around his eye into the river, and as it did, it evaporated as it hit the water. He sat gasping at the side of the river, and saw that the same symbol 'Inashi' had now been burned onto his face. The pain quickly subsided and he put the mask back on to see what would happen - nothing. The symbol that had appeared on the mask had also gone. He decided to keep the mask on to hide his scar from others and he made a beeline for home.

Inakamo woke up - it was only three in the morning, but dreaming about the event had made his marks start burning again, although not as bad as the first time he first acquired the mark. He went to the bathroom and grabbed a drink of water. He looked in the mirror and took off the mask, revealing the mark. It was darker and fainter than it was when it was first burned onto his face. However, the same thing that happens whenever he takes off the mask began to occur - it began to glow and burn, his chakra began to feel energised and, most disturbingly of all, he could hear whispers and the screams of a woman and the maniacal laugh of a man in his head. He quickly replaced the mask, which seems to numb this effect. He sighed and went back to bed, hoping he had had enough nightmares for one night.

[Outlaw JT]

Onitoge
~~~~~~~~~

Onitoge had slept well. Many nights he tossed and turned in his sleep but last night had been unusually restful. It was a new day, his body felt refreshed, and for the first time in a long time there was absolutely nothing he had to do today. It'd been a while since he could just do whatever he wanted. Which, of course, was a problem for Onitoge because he didn't know what he wanted.

He started the days by snagging some leftover ramen from the fridge. He used a minor fire jutsu to heat it up and then plopped down on the small couch before consuming his food and three swift bites. It wasn't a very large portion and after Chiyoko's cooking wasn't very tasty either.

Next he had to decide what to do today. Obviously there would be training! It was really nice training with his team so he thought he might like to do that again. Besides, it would be beneficial to further get them ready for whatever missions lay in store for them. He didn't want to pressure them or interfere with whatever plans they had for today, though. Maybe save that for midafternoon or so then.

In a flash Onitoge was showered, dressed, and out the door. First order of business was inviting Chiyoko and Inakamo to train again. It was before dawn so he was fairly certain neither of them were up yet. He first went to Chiyoko's because it was closer. He hand wrote a little note 'I was thinking maybe we could train again as a team if ya know you wanted to or something at the same spot I showed you yesterday at around 3:30 maybe so i'll be there if maybe you wanted to join me. Have a pleasant day. -Onitoge' before closing his eyes and producing one of his ivory kunai from under his cloak. He tied the note around the kunai and launched it through her open window to stick quietly out from the tabletop they had eaten at last night. He was sure she'd see it before going anywhere.

It took him a short bit to get to Inakamo's. Once there the sun was just starting to rise on the horizon. He wrote another note identical to the one he did for Chiyoko and repeated the process of tieing it to a kunai and launching it through an open window. This one hit the fridge door because he wasn't sure where else he could put it that Inakamo would see.

His invitations having been sent, he had the daunting task of figuring out what else to do today. It was many, many hours before the time of his invitation. Ultimately he narrowed it down to three options. Speak with Hara-sensei about his concerns, train with Kakashi-sensei if he wasn't busy with his new team (Naruto was certainly a handful that might require a lot of his time), or play some shogi with Shikamaru. He couldn't really decide what he wanted to do more. His solution, randomly look for all three and whomever he found first would hopefully provide the answer.


ooc: yeah, yeah..... it's filler, I know. I just wanted to get him up and about on the next day too.

[Bulbasaur4]

Okami, Chiyoko

[Sakura Season - Naruto OST III]

Chiyoko’s eyes slowly opened and blinked a few times, as she stared up at the ceiling. A few rays of sunshine spilled into her room from the window, notifying her that it was time to get ready for the day. Almost instantly, Chiyoko sat up and rubbed her eyes while releasing a small yawn.
Getting to her feet, soon Chiyoko was dressed in her usual attire and had whipped herself up a small breakfast. Just as she knelt down about to eat, she heard a knock on the door. Confusion settled in her mind as she headed towards the door and opened it. There, standing in front of her… once again, was Naruto. Chiyoko instantly smiled and laughed openly, shaking her head at the blonde-haired Genin.
“Are you just going to eat with me every time I cook in here?” She asked, as Naruto smiled brightly.
“Well… it is handy that we live in the same complex!” He boasted, looking over and seeing Chiyoko’s food on the table.
“You certainly aren’t modest…” Chiyoko said with a giggle, motioning him in and shutting the door. “But that’s okay, modesty is good in some places but not here!” She said with a cheer, instantly grabbing a bowl and handing it to Naruto. Chopsticks soon followed, and the two of them began to eat.
“How is your team?” Naruto asked, tilting his head to the side.
“My team is wonderful. I believe we’ll all get along really well…” Chiyoko said, blushing a bit with the thought of how wonderful the day had been yesterday. Absently, she began to wonder what they were going to do upon this day-
“Hey, someone threw a kunai!” Naruto said, grabbing the kunai with the note attached. Grabbing it from Naruto, Chiyoko opened up the letter and read Onitoge’s note. She then smiled and placed it upon the table.
“That was just a note from Onitoge-chan… asking to train later today.” She said before taking a bite, as Naruto nodded.
“Do you think that maybe we could train sometime!? Sasuke and Sakura don’t… well, they aren’t as nice to train with some times.” Naruto said, his voice lowering for a minute as Chiyoko nodded. She felt bad for Naruto a bit- so many of the other students seemed to treat him as if he were an idiot or an outcast. Chiyoko really didn’t understand why at all.
“Sure! Perhaps when I have a break from a mission!”
“Okay!” Naruto enthusiastically replied and the two of them soon after finished breakfast. Waving goodbye to Naruto, Chiyoko stood outside her doorway.

“So… I have early afternoon to do whatever I’d like.” Chiyoko thought for a moment, glancing about the area. She could do several things… such as collect some cooking ingredients, try to talk with others to improve friendly relations or she could simply explore in the village. Yet, a burning sensation suddenly cracked through her mind to give Chiyoko and idea.

“I could train a bit…” Chiyoko thought, figuring some solitude time wouldn’t be a bad idea. She swiftly went into the forest near her home and found a nice clearing in the shadows. Sitting down, she sat her bag of things a ways from herself and folded her legs beneath her. Letting her hands fall down upon her legs, she closed her eyes and began to meditate. She had no idea how she came upon to realize the weird oddity within herself- some sort of power that she could draw upon. She figured she was tapping into a deeper part of her chakra- like chakra control, except she worked on releasing and harnessing the chakra. Or in her training cases, just feeling and acknowledging its existence. It took a great deal of concentration… but that was something she was good at.
“Okami, Chiyoko… eh?” The unknown Ninja had said, staring down at her with a smirk upon his face. “You seem to have a natural talent for figuring out several different types of Ninjutsu… how odd…” he trailed off. “I figured you would only have specialized in that other type…”

Those words came back to Chiyoko like a haunting message. She realized now that the familiar figure back in the Academy- Yukiso, Kakashi Yukiso was the man she had met the day before who said that to her. She wondered what he meant…that other type.

Chiyoko continued to concentrate, until she suddenly felt a rush of a wave wash over her. Opening her eyes, she felt as if her back was on fire. Her arms were covered in a green-tainted chakra, causing Chiyoko to let out a yelp of surprise. As soon as she did that, her concentration was broken and the chakra slowly vanished. She had seen that chakra once before… but never with so much intensity.

“I must be improving!” She said with glee, standing up shakily. She outstretched her hand upon a tree for support, grabbing her bag and slinging it around her shoulder. Blinking for a few moments, Chiyoko glanced about the clearance- feeling as if something had been watching her. However, she shrugged it off and soon went off to the river.

She had been meditating for quite some time, and she was quite hungry after releasing such a thing. Using her water jutsu, Chiyoko began forming small blobs of water around fish that she concentrated upon… causing them to rise upwards from the river and hold steady- just in time for Chiyoko to spear them with a small eating stick. After gathering a bunch of fish, Chiyoko dashed between her house and a nice clearing area along side one of the roads. Soon she had her grill out with several tons of ingredients… and she began to cook madly. It was a great way for her to relax- and the contest between Takumi had revived her spirits.

“I will be better than him!” She thought gleefully, as a few wondrous smells of fish and other tasty foods entered the air. In no time however, soon Neji, Raizen and Tenten showed up. They looked roughed up a bit- as if they had been training. Chiyoko then looked down at how much she cooked and realized that she had cooked way too much.

“I can’t eat all of this…” She thought sheepishly, looking to the three Genin. They happily agreed to help her finish it down, and soon most of the food was gone. The three left, leaving Chiyoko to see that there was still a lot of food left.

“Aiii! I can’t waste food!” Chiyoko said, realizing the time was drawing near to train with Inakamo and Onitoge. However, just as she said that it seemed that two Ninja appeared in a poof of smoke.

[Rock Lee's Theme - Naruto OST III]
“Ah… such youthful exuberance!” A loud, boisterous voice rang out. Blinking for a few moments, Chiyoko saw Gai and Rock Lee, standing before her in dramatic poses. Gai stood in the background as Lee and him posed in dramatic, mirroring stances. Both of them smiled brightly at Chiyoko, as Rock Lee stepped forward and very animatedly spoke.
“We have been training hard all day!” Rock Lee proclaimed, “We are extremely hungry and will gladly eat this food for you!” He continued, giving Chiyoko a thumbs up as his grin seemed to gleam perfectly in the light. Chiyoko opened her mouth to speak, but Gai interupted.
“With harsh training comes a good appetite!” Gai exclaimed, which seemed to get Rock Lee pumped up.
“Of course Gai-sensei!” Rock Lee pumped his fists into the air.
Chiyoko laughed out loud at the two in a cheerful manner, pointing at the food.
“Please help yourselves!”
“Thank you Chiyoko-chan!” Rock Lee exclaimed, as the two dug in.

I really do love it here in Konoha… there is something different about the people’s smiles here then back at home. Chiyoko thought, leaning on the table against her hand as she watched to two Taijutsu Ninja eat as if they hadn’t ever seen food before.

Everything was put back after the eating buffet in the afternoon, and Chiyoko wiped her forehead as she placed the dishes back in her sink. Looking outside, she realized it was time and she playfully leapt out her window. Swiftly running, she soon came to the spot that the three of her teammates were supposed to meet. She saw that Inakamo and Onitoge were already there.
“Gomen! I had to carry some supplies back to my room…” She explained, reaching them and giving them a bright smile. “I’m excited to train with you two again today!”

[Mystic_clown]

Selekis Restun - The Silent One
---------------------------------------------
Selekis sat quietly at the table, taking small bites out of his breakfast. His 'father', sat across him, not even looking up at his adopted son. Selekis shot a small glare in his direction before continueing to eat. They barely acknowledge their presence. They try to have as little contact with him as possible.

They didn't trust him. They were afraid of him. Everyone was. To them, he was nothing but a lost demon child found wandering around outside the village.

He had grown to despise these people for it. He often wondered if he may have been better off still wandering around in the unknown.

He quietly pushed his bowl away, a gesture for "I'm done". His 'parents barely looked up, siply nodded a he rose from the table and left the room. He mentally cursed this village.

--------------~*~--------------

The white haired boy sat on an old stump just outside the village. His eyes ocused on the text in his hand. It was a standard textbook on Genjutsu, Selekis' specialty. He was never one for fighting, instead letting his illusions confuse and mentally cripple his enemies and using superior tactics instead of brute force.

His ears perked up when he heard voices coming from the bushes behind him.

"Is that him?"

"Yeah."

"He's a bit scrawnier then I expected."

"Let's not do this ok. You heard of what he can do."

"He doesn't look so tough."

"Look at his eyes! Those aren't normal!"

Selekis turned, glaring as three boys stepped out of the bushes. One looked afraid while the other two showed a bit of arrogence.

"So, you're the famous devil kid huh?" the first one said sarcastically. Selekis' eyes narrowed.

"You don't look so tough," the second said as the first two strolled up to him. The third wisely kept his distance.

"You look like a little girl to me," the first laughed. Selekis glared as he pulled his notepad out and scribbled something down. He handed it to the first boy.

Leave. Me. Alone.

The boy just laughed.

"O'h, I'm sorry," he mocked, "I can't seem to read. What did you want us to do?"

Selekis snarled. These idiots just weren't going to leave.

"Aww, look we're making him angry," the second laughed.

"Seriously guys," the third spoke up, "let's just go. What if he calls out that, that demon. The first two just laughed.

"Go ahead demon boy. Sic you're little demon on us!"

Selekis' glare harshened as the area seemed to go a bit darker. They wanted a demon, they were going to get one. The boy stopped laughing when an omnious growl filled the air. The began to back away as a large, dark form began to appear behind Selekis.

A loud, inhuman roar echoed throughout the area, followed briefly by three horrorfied shrieks of terror.

A few moments later and Selekis was sitting alone, calmly reading his book as if nothing happened.

[Heald]

Inakamo Yakusha

[ I Said I'm Naruto - Naruto OST I ]

Inakamo slept in longer than usual due to his awakening in the middle of the night. He finally awoke around 10 in the morning. He walked downstairs and saw a note on the table. He picked it up and it read,

Son,

I've gone out to cut some more wood. This note came for you. See you later.

-Dad

He nodded and read the note, which told him about a prospective training session later in the day. He made a mental note to remember to go and he grabbed a quick bite of leftover ramen before heading out to the river to do some personal training of his own.

It was well known that Inakamo's main method in battle was his Carnival Ball plus his other tools. However, Iruka-sensei had told him something very important in the weeks preceding his graduation. His words echoed in his head,
Inakamo, you are a talented ninja, and your unique use of your ninja tools, while somewhat bizarre, have proven to be effective in your practice sessions. But bear this in mind - no ninja has ever been successful relying on just one jutsu, and in your case if your ball is rendered out of action, you're a sitting duck. Your reliance on ninja tools in battle is a huge weakness and you are no taijutsu or genjutsu specialist. Try at least improving your repertoire of ninjutsu. It could save your life one day.

He had, in fact, been experimenting with Earth-style jutsu, for which he had an unexplainable attraction to and an equally unexplainable adeptness for. It had been a few weeks but he had finally got the basics of one he had never shown anyone before.
"Earth-style! Ground Hunter Jutsu!"
He thrust his left hand into the ground and it shot down into the ground. He then looked around and saw a small stone near the river. He concentrated and his hand shot up by the stone. He smiled and grabbed the stone, then skimmed it across the river. He pulled his hand from the ground. He looked at his hand and nodded.
"This jutsu gives me a good element of surprise."
He began thinking as he let his chakra restore to him. He wasn't built for close combat, instead specialising in long range attacks, and the ability to throw one's fists across the ground indeed would become a useful ability, especially if combined with an aerial assault in the form of his Carnival Ball. In fact, that gave him an idea.

He set up a scarecrow he used for training and summoned his Carnival Ball. He plunged his left hand into the ground again and performed the Burrowing Jutsu, allowing his hand to resurface and grab the scarecrow. Now the tough part - he utilised the Chakra strings in his right hand and launched his Carnival Ball at the scarecrow at full speed.

An explosion of straw flew into the air as the Carnival Ball ripped through the scarecrow, leaving only the stick it was wrapped around held tightly in his hand. He pulled his hand down and when he brought his hand out of the hole, the stick was still in his hand. He spun the stick in his hand a few times before throwing it into the air and using his chakra strings lodging it into a tree.

He ended his practice to go join Onitoge and Chiyoko at the training clearing. He'd be sure to show them his now honed jutsu.

[Prof. Jb Wolf]

Inuzuka Hige
~Matsuri Medley~

The boat ride to the village was relatively uneventful, except for perhaps for a small bout of seasickness on Hige's part. He had never gotten use to boats or maybe it was because he feared being near large bodies of water around Kukai. Though perhaps a bit paranoid, everytime he neared the railing he swore he saw an evil smirk light up the debate-loving kunoichi's face.

The Genin had heard stories of Kirigakure, of its deadly nin and bloody practices within its borders. The ever present mists that gave the village its name gave the area a strong sense of foreboding and dannger - as if the mists themselves would drag them into their dark depths. So to say they were shocked to find Kirigakure lit up like a Christmas tree and filled with a cheerful atmosphere was a bit of an understatement. Their guide soon explained that this year's Tanabata festival also coincided with one one of the few times of the year that the skies were clear, marking it as a doubly joyous occasion.

Team 14 was soon put to work. Hige and Ginmaru wove through the rooftops, stringing up lanterns and decorations. Kukai put her familial skills to work creating signs and charms for the villagers. She and her sensei made for frighteningly effective motivators - those who found themselves laying about were subjected to the bittersweet guilt of Miharu-sensei or the razor sharp tongue of the Shoudou Clan woman. As for Haru, the quiet nin helped in designing and placement, his signature Genjutsu aiding decorators in bringing their visions to life.

=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=

Hige gritted his teeth as he labored to hold up one end of a rather large wooden sign that proclaimed a 'special all you can eat buffet' for the festival. Ginmaru was at the other end, having been Jujin Bunshined into an exact copy of his master, and just as strained as he held up his half of the burden. The two were at the mercy of Kukai as she directed where the sign was to go. The Inuzuka boy wondered idly if she was intentionally torturing him as this was their last job before the wild boy and his partner got a break.

"To the left Inuzuka Hige-san! The left! Is it really so difficult to move a piece of wood in the right direction?"

"WHY DON'T YOU UP COME HERE AND DO IT THEN!?"

"I'm shocked Inuzuka Hige-san." The Shodou girl smirked up at the struggling Genin. "Was it not you this very morning who said to 'leave the heavy lifting to us men'? Are you so weak-willed as to go back on your word? Honestly Inuzuka Hige-san I thought you had more pr-"

Her words had the desired effect, igniting a fire within Hige. "That's not what I meant and you know that!" His gripped tightened on the sign as he moved it, all the while growling back at his teammate. "How's that!"

"Just a little to the right no-"

"OH YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!"

As the two continued to banter back and forth, Haru was helping some of the younger villagers write wishes on sheets of paper to be hung on the bamboo. One of child, fingers stained with ink, tugged on his shirt lightly. "Ne, ne, Haru-ni? Why are Inu-nii and Shodou-nee always fightin'?"

The Genin writer thought about it for a moment before answering. "Kukai-san and Hige-san...disagree with each other...a lot."

"Do they hate each other?"

"Not at all...in fact," Haru said holding up his left hand and sticking out his pinky finger.* "You could say they're like this."

"OI HARU-TEME!" Hige's roar of anger surprised Haru so that he leapt a foot in the air. "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSE TO MEAN!?"

From his vantage point on the roof, Hige had seen Haru hold up his pinky while his keen ears caught the last bit of his conversation. Unfortunately, Shodou Kukai did not. "INUZUKA HIGE-SAN! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU NOT TO BULLY HARU-KUN!"

"Bu-bu-but he's talking behind our backs!"

"Haru-kun would never do something like that! It's just not in his nature!"

"THAT'S WHAT HE WANTS YOU TO THINK!"

"Now Inuzuka Hige-san, just because your angry at me does not mean you should take it out on poor Haru-kun! If you are feeling frustrated over your inability to finish your task in a manner that would satisfy me, then please vent them on me rather than an innocent bystander. "

As Hige worked up for an angry retort, Haru quickly returned his attention to his charges just smiling at the thought of his teammates.

*In Japan, if you hold up your pinky while referring to two people, it means they're in a relationship.
If Haru or Kukai were OOC, I blame my sleep addled brain and Box's forcing me to wear a maid costume....

[*Duke*]

Before Masato could do anything the wall of water above them all came crashing down, drenching everything except for the kunai in their hands. Despair seemed to settle in the back of Masato’s mind as he came to the conclusion that perhaps the exercise itself was pointless. Just as he was about to see if there were any other great ideas from Raizen, Ushi suddenly exploded in front of them. At first Masato thought that this might have been an attempt at a substation jutsu but after realizing that it was now raining Ushi parts, it became frighteningly apartment that something was going terribly wrong. He just stared at Raizen who seemed to be flabbergasted at the moment, while stared at the scattered pieces of his former comrade he began to mumble a string of words un-becoming of a ninja.

After a few seconds Yukiso appeared with a very much alive Ushi on top of his shoulders. Masato felt a little weak at seeing the two together which in a few minutes was about to turn into blood filled rage but was calmed when Ushi spoke: “I EXPLODED.”
“Sorry about that…well not really…but the look on your faces….” Masato seemed to drift off as he realized that what he saw was an illusion again, Genjutsu had allowed him to be fooled again into believe a false reality. If he was ever going to hope to be a powerful enough ninja to avenge his parents he was going to have to learn to break free of such a powerful jutsu. He was brought back by hearing an audible twitch and saw Ushi move closer towards Raizen. “What is it with those two?” Masato asked as a wave of embarrassment seemed to hit him when looking at his two eccentric teammates.

“Anyways, you failed in washing your kunai, luckily for you that wasn’t the real test anyway The test was to see if you could form into a team and rely on each other for your tasks. One of the most important things in being a Ninja is relying on your teammates. They come first and you have to work with them if you want to get any mission done. So you pass.<Musical montage: Naruto OST: Victory> Good job!” Yukiso immediately gave them a thumb up, his eye seeming gleam as the sun hit it as his eye gleamed. A sigh of relief washed over Masato as Yukiso continued “…Masato your hard work and out-of-the-box thinking will come in handy…Until then, you have the rest of the day off.” With the large expanse of time during the entire mission Masato soon asked:
“Umm… but hasn’t like… weeks passed? Or was that an illusion too?” As if expecting the obvious to hit him from the sky, Yukiso gave another thumb up. “Yep, illusion. Really only a half an hour went by.” Masato groaned more out loud then he intended and as he watched Raizen groan as well, Ushi just seemed to become a giggle fest for some unknown reason, and with that their sensei disappeared into a cloud of thick smoke.

Looking around everyone seemed to be going their separate ways from the forest clearing, Ushi playfully trailing off with Raizen, giving an exhausted “Goodbye,” as they headed back into town. Masato decided to wait around in the forest for a little while, ringing out his clothes and then moving a little bit deeper into the other side of the forest, keeping as far away from the river as possible for the time being. <Musical montage: Naruto OST: Morning> There he found his usual spot for his after hour exercises. Considering that in reality his first mission had only been half an hour, he physically still had a little left in him to exercise a little bit into his program. He started out with a hundred push ups, seventy five sit ups and eighty jumping jacks. After chasing a nearby squirrel for his speed training, Masato started his agility training by leaping onto a nearby branch and then another as he tried practicing his in air catches. After a few minutes he stopped, feeling a little bit disorientated he started his last bit of training. With the silence of the woods around him Masato sat quietly, slowly trying to slow the steady rhythm of his heart. Feeling as one with the woods he could feel the sun on top of him, the wind blow through his hair and the ground stay steady beneath him. And that was when Masato’s stomach broke him from his meditation. Realizing that he had skipped lunch, he decided that training was over for now.

<Music: Afternoon of Konoha>

Walking into a nearby convince store Masato bought some Onigiri and tea and headed for the nearest rooftop and enjoyed watching the people move from building to building. He was almost scared there, afraid he might not have passed his mission, for everything about it seemed far out of his league, if it hadn’t been for Ushi and Raizen there would have been no way for Masato to find a way to break free of the Genjutsu and was glad that he was part of their team. As he took a final sip of his tea, Masato was struck on the head with a broom.

<Music: It’s the training!>

“You lousy no good ninja students and your constantly boinging from roof top to roof top! This isn’t a forest, I actually live underneath where you’ve been sitting, I was trying to take an afternoon nap when I heard something land on my roof, now stay off my roof!” and with that the old woman swung the broom at Masato again who ducked just in time as he quickly apologized and landed back onto the street below and began his walk back home.

“Well today was an interesting day, tomorrow since I have the day off I think I might want to ask Saruwatari sensei if he can help me hone my Taijutsu skills…” The moment he uttered that out loud Masato shivered…as if some unseen force was about to make him regret even thinking about that…

[Emotional Faun Chiko-sai]

I don't care, I seriously need to write something relatively sane after... well, you all know what after so... up goes this filler whether PJBW is posting in the immediate future or not. xD;;

Shodou Kukai/Team 14/F
45. 明日があるさ*
--------------------

Like the proverbial Ominous Wind of Doom, Shodou Kukai drifted into the threshold of the family shophouse. Hakuin, an overly enthusiastic part-timer whom Kukai wished was her brother so there would be no succession issue to worry about, was minding shop; her mother and grandmother were probably at the back. He saluted Kukai vigorously as she slouched past the counter towards the narrow set of stairs crouched comfortably in the far corner of the room. She'd parted ways with Haru at the garden, since he'd declined her offer of walking home together - she didn't mind, the boy was growing a visible backbone.

Usually, Kukai liked sunny afternoons. Lunch had been free, too. She'd gotten hold of some good gossip. And official ninjahood had to count for something.

Positive thinking wasn't working.

Maybe it was PMS.

She was going to have a bath. And a good long think.

*

Shodou Ryokan, who adhered strictly to the nine-to-five office hours rule at the Hokage's office and was, indeed, one of its firmest advocates, shuffled into the doorway of the shophouse at a quarter past five. He noted that someone was in the bathroom, figured that they'd be out in at the most thirty minutes and began drawing idly on a spare scrap of rice paper.

A veritable masterpiece later (he'd managed to render the entire skyscape of Konohagakure in a most fetching scrawl of epic proportions, each window, lamppost and conceivable structure captured in breathtaking photorealism) Ryokan decided it was time enough, and rapped discreetly on the door of the bathroom with the knuckles of his right hand. "Little sister, you're going to turn into a human prune if you don't get out of the bath water within the next hour or so. If you're actually planning to get out, that is."

A muffled voice answered from behind the door. "I can't remember the last time you called me little sister."

Ryokan sighed inwardly, and tugged on a stray strand of auburn hair. "Is it PMS?"

"No. I counted."

"Okay then, boy trouble."

There was a splash, and then nothing. Ah, thought Ryokan. "...You could say that."

"Inuzuka?"

A bubbly, muted sort of thump as the soap hit the door. Ryokan shuddered involuntarily as he thought of his very favourite lily-scented soap bar, maligned in such a brutal way by his sister... he'd be lucky if it hadn't already broken in half... he could smell it, he could feel its pain, the shrieks as the cold, hard tiles battered its fragile, slippery body...

He said, very cautiously: "I take that as a yes."

"I admit that it's trouble, and it IS trouble with a boy, and the boy in question does indeed belong to the Inuzuka family, but it does not involve any kind of puerile, romantic, 'puppy love' relationship and/or crush that you may be implying in that oh-so-smug tone of yours."

"Also, little sister, I could make my point that you are being rather too defensive for it not to be." Ryokan could fight when he wanted to. And he wanted his bathroom time. And his lily-scented soap intact. It was a tough call. "However, I am now deciding to take your word for it, since you are, in general, truthful."

"In normal circumstances, I do not resort to such crude methods of procuring silence from another, but. ...Shut up, Ryokan."

"You know it's almost six?"

"So what if it's almost six?"

"I want to take a bath before Mother and Granny storm the toilet in all their paper-fiber-and-ink-covered glory, and you're in the bathroom, and you're using my best bar of floral soap that I had to save up for a month to buy."

"Oh, fine."

Kukai, wrapped in an outsize towel, was halfway to her room when her brother called out the only useful piece of advice he'd given to her for the past thirteen years.

"There's always tomorrow!" Then a slam, and the sound of running water. And the awful sound of Ryokan singing. Apparently, it was part of a song.

She muttered, "Yeah, and you'd be the best person to talk to about boy trouble," and slammed her own door in response.

*

The following dawn, Kukai woke up with a revelation.

She was going to apologize to Inuzuka Hige. Not because she wanted to start off on the right path to becoming a great ninja, or because she.. liked him (perish the thought!), or because she acknowledged that she did, in fact, possess a washboard for a chest that rendered her unfit for marriage. It would make her feel better and less like that time of the month and it would stave off awkwardness for the next time they met each other, which promised to be soon and often.

Most importantly, it was the right thing to do.

Kukai smiled to herself in the mirror, and maybe it wasn't a very nice smile. Certainly nowhere near the guileless mirth of Ayame-san's.

Well, that was okay.

Kukai didn't think she was a very nice person, anyway.
------------------------
* "There's always tomorrow" - by the Ulfuls
...and yes, I don't know how she does it, but Kukai can pronounce the "/" in "and/or".

[Mystic_clown]

Selekis
---------------------------
Selekis had to admit, while Inakamo looked like a deranged lunatic, he had some interesting abilities.

His ball shot out towards the genin at high speed. Unfortunately, the enemy saw it coming, leaping over it with ease, causing the ball to slam harmlessly into a wall, kicking up a lot of dust.

Of course, Selekis was going to use this to his advantage. He stepped back into the shadows as the sky grew darker, his eyes almost as if they were glowing.

The genin was almost about to launch an attack when an omnious growling came from behind him.

As the dust cleared, it launched itself at him.

It's body was long, like a serpants, as you couldn't even see the other ends of it. It's head was covered in a horifying, demonic mask, and had some small bits of rather maccabre-ish armour on it's elbows and large, sharp claws. Part of it's body was covered with bloody bandages, but everything else gave the impression that the beast was skinless.

It howled with an inhuman shriek as it swung a claw at him.

The Genin managed to dodge it, but the fear was apparent in his eyes. He was not going to fight this thing!

He jumped up to higher ground, trying to avoid it, but the beast pursued. He threw explosive seals at it, hoping to destroy it, but with an almost insane speed the beast avoided them, coming ever closer.

He ran as fast as he can to get away of it. He knew however that he'd have to stay and fight.

He spun around, firing a sonic blast at it, only to find it hit nothing but air.

The beast was gone.

"What the...?" The genin muttered to himself, before noticing the kunai being thrown at him from behind.

He dove to the side, just managing to avoid them, although getting a scratch on one arm from one of them.

He breathed a small sigh of relief, just as Inakamo's carnival ball struck the wall just to the right of him. Although the ball missed him, it w enough to set him off balance.

Out of sight, Selekis smirked. How he missed sing his nightmare beast to terrify others. He melted back into the shadows, moving to a new vantage point and to prepare.