Team 8

Chapter 13: The Forest of Death

Naruto flew backwards, his ears ringing from the heavy blow. Arching his back he managed to get his hands and feet in front of him before he smacked into a tree-trunk with stunning force. Bits of bark shot into the air and he barely managed to concentrate enough chakra to stick his hands and feet to the wood before he fell. That freaky grass genin was strong.

He shook his head to clear it, scanning the clearing for his teammates and allies. They'd only been traveling an hour before things started to get hairy. They'd avoided one team by using some forest leeches as a distraction, and were circling around to ambush them when Shino's colonies sensed the pheromones of a single kikai bug approaching at high speed.

His super-sneaky teammate planted his kikai on all the other participants, but they should have been together in groups of three. Whether a lone competitor was a threat or an opportunity, they decided to see who it was.

Whatever it was that they had expected to see, it hadn't been Kiba being chased by a giant snake.

OoOoO

Shino could see that the Inuzuka was clearly winded, and the snake was gaining on him. As the monstrous reptile reared up to strike, Naruto came in from the side, tackling Kiba out of the way. Unfortunately, Akamaru went flying from the sudden change in momentum. But Hinata was a heartbeat behind, and caught the tumbling canine with little more than a startled yelp. The snake, angry at being robbed of its meal, turned to pursue them, but that mistake proved fatal.

Shino dropped out of the trees above the snake, his arms trailing behind him. His hands flexed and a long baton of dull black metal shot out of each sleeve of his jacket. He caught the ends with the sureness of intensive practice and there was a distinct click as narrow, slightly curved blades folded out of each baton. They locked at a right angle to what were now the shafts of the modified kamas, the razor sharp metal pointing downward. With his arms above his plummeting body, they resembled scythe-like wings. Shino's sandals landed on the back of the snake's head, but before it could even register his presence, the blades continued their trajectory, curving into tight arcs as he straightened, his arms snapping downward.

The blades buried themselves in the snake's eyes, ramming deep into the creature's brain. The carcass slammed down, skidding on the ground. Shino extracted his weapons with a sharp jerk, cleaning the blades on the grass before folding them up again. By this time, his teammates had circled back into the clearing with their 'prisoner' – though by this time Kiba had reclaimed his dog.

But not before it had licked Hinata's face several times, to her visible embarrassment.

Naruto let out a low whistle before speaking. "Is that what Misato-sama was teaching you?" he asked, clearly impressed.

Shino nodded as he slid the hafts of his weapons into his sleeves again. With an audible click, the spring-loaded holders locked them into place.

"You have the coolest parents," Naruto muttered as Kiba got his breath back and began to explain. He'd been separated from the rest of Team Seven by some freaky wind attack, only to find himself on some monster snake's dinner menu. As he talked, he began to lead him back to where he'd been attacked.

As they approached the clearing where Team Seven had been separated, Akamaru began to bark and Shino started scanning the greenery around them. "Something is wrong," the boy murmured, "my colonies are sensing a large amount of chakra being expended up ahead."

"Akamaru senses it too," Kiba added as he patted the puppy that was now burrowing down into his jacket.

"Up above," Hinata whispered, her Byakugan gleaming with the bits of late afternoon sun that filtered down past the leaves.