Madara's Son ( Rewrite)

chapter: 6 The Hidden Sand Village

Following our encounter with the three mysterious ninjas in the forest, we continued our journey to the Hidden Sand Village.

Two days had passed since we had begun our mission to deliver the scrolls entrusted to us by the Lord. As we traveled, we noticed sand dunes rising in the distance, their crests shimmering in the sunlight. Our gazes were drawn to the vast expanse of desert, which was beginning to spread out before us in all its majesty.

Ayumi and I exchanged glances, our eyes wide with awe. We had never seen a desert before.

"We must be getting close, right?" I exclaimed. "Finally, our mission will be finished." I breathed a sigh of relief.

Tobirama turned to me, his expression serious. "Sure," he said. "As long as we don't get ambushed in the desert."

"Stay on guard until we arrive at the Kazekage's headquarters," he added solemnly.

"Obviously," I muttered under my breath.

"You need to work on your attitude," Tobirama growled, his piercing gaze fixed on me.

I felt a shiver run down my spine. Why did I always seem to get into fights with him? We could agree on one thing one minute and disagree on the next. I clenched my fists involuntarily.

Then, as we reached the top of the sand dunes and the Hidden Sand Village came into view, we all stopped in our tracks.

"This is it!" Masako exclaimed triumphantly.

The breathtaking sight before us transfixed us for a moment. The village was a shimmering oasis in the vast desert, its golden domes and minarets gleaming in the sunlight.

I turned to look at my companions, and I saw the same awe reflected in their eyes.

Tobirama's eyes, surprisingly, spoke a different emotion. It was a departure from his usual deadpan expression or the eyes of a murderer.

A smile spread across my face at the sight. It was refreshing to see that he had other emotions besides those two.

I hadn't realized I'd been staring for too long until his eyes met mine. I quickly looked away, but when I glanced back, I saw that his expression had returned to its usual deadpan state. He continued to stare at me, though.

What was going on in his mind?

"We should hurry along so we can finally finish this," Ayumi said, raising her arms high in the air.

"Right!" we all responded in unison.

After about fifteen minutes of walking from the sand dunes, we finally arrived at the village entrance.

The towering entrance to the Hidden Sand Village loomed before us, its massive stairs of desert sand flanked by a pair of imposing gates.

As we approached, the guards stationed at the entrance sprang to attention, their weapons drawn.

"Halt!" one of the guards barked.

We froze in our tracks.

I glanced over my shoulder to see Tobirama's hand hovering over his kunai pouch. Masako placed a restraining hand on his arm.

"It's okay, Tobirama," she said, her voice calm and soothing. "They're ninjas from this village."

Tobirama's hand dropped from his kunai pouch as he recognized the Sand Village headbands on the guards. He lowered his arm, and Masako released her grip.

Tobirama turned to her and nodded, acknowledging her unspoken question.

"What brings you to our village?" the guard who had spoken to us asked.

"We have scrolls to deliver to your Kazekage," Tobirama replied, his expressionless face revealing nothing as he held up the scrolls.

One of the other guards stepped forward and whispered in the first guard's ear.

As the ninja whispered in the other's ear, their gazes darted back and forth between us. The first ninja's lips pursed slightly as he nodded. The second ninja stepped back.

"Enter," the first ninja gestured, his tone clipped.

We followed him through the entrance, which led into a dark passageway. As we emerged into the village, we were greeted by a dazzling sight. The streets were bustling with activity, and the air was filled with the aromas of delicious food and exotic spices.

"Wow!" Ayumi's eyes widened in wonder. She spun around, taking in the sights and sounds with childish glee.

"Can we please take a break to look around?" she asked, her voice pleading.

"No," Tobirama replied curtly. "We're not here for a vacation. We're on a mission."

Ayumi's expression fell. She sighed heavily and crossed her arms. "You're such a buzzkill."

"I agree," I muttered under my breath as we followed Tobirama toward Kazekage's headquarters.

Tobirama's expression was as deadpan as ever as he regarded me. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but then closed it again.

We had finally arrived at Kazekage's headquarters. The ninja who had been leading us stopped at the door, which stood like a giant vase, its smooth sandstone surface gleaming in the sunlight.

"I wonder what the Kazekage looks like," Ayumi whispered to me. "Do you think he'll be hot?" She nudged me playfully.

I rolled my eyes. "Stop fooling around," I said. "We're on a mission."

"Come on, Yuno, lighten up," she persisted. "What if he's your type?"

I ignored her and moved up behind the ninja guide.

He stopped abruptly in front of an office door, and I tripped over his heels. I fell forward, landing on top of him. He hit his head on the floor, but his helmet cushioned the blow. It fell off and landed with a clatter.

As I lay on top of the ninja guide, my gaze fell on his face. Without his helmet, he was even more attractive. His amber eyes sparkled with anger.

"Pay attention," he growled. His voice was deep and commanding.

My face flushed as I realized how close we were. I scrambled to get up, but he pushed me off. I staggered backward and bumped into Tobirama, who had just caught up to us.

Tobirama caught me by the waist, his hand resting on my hip for a brief moment. My heart pounded in my chest as I looked up at him. He quickly released me, his expression unreadable.

I landed on the ground with a thud.

"I'm sorry," I said sheepishly, rubbing my aching back.

"You should be," the ninja guide retorted, standing up and clutching his helmet.

Tobirama turned away, and Ayumi's eyes narrowed with fury.

"Maybe you should be more careful," she hissed quietly.

I took a deep breath and tried to remain calm. "It's okay, Ayumi," I said.

Even though I was just as angry as she was, I put on a brave face. I reached out and took her hand. She helped me to my feet.

I turned back to the sand ninja, forcing a smile on my face.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." I tried to keep my voice light, but my twitching eye betrayed my true feelings. I didn't want to erupt in rage like Ayumi was about to, but I also didn't appreciate being thrown off of him like that.

The ninja ignored me and the others as he knocked on the office door. From inside, we heard a voice commanding us to enter.