Solar Eclipse *Rewrite*

Chapter 13

"What did you do yesterday, Koinu?" Lee was swinging from a low branch.

She shrugged. "Not much. I don't think I'll be invited to see the Hyuga any time soon."

"Why?"

"Well... I may have cursed them. I don't know since Wolfie did most of the talking. You know, being a spirit means that she often had to use me to talk to people who don't have a connection. So anything I said then, I don't really remember."

"Did... She possesses you?"

"Sorta."

Choji swallowed whatever snacks he had in his mouth. "And you're okay with that?"

"It's not like she does it all the time. Besides, they were doing some pretty twisted stuff." The academy had let out a few hours ago and they had decided to wander around in the forest. "Enough of that though. We should play a game."

"Like?"

Naruto shrugged. "We can try tag. I've never played tag before."

"Okay. Let's play tag."

He giggled, pulling an exploding tag from his pocket. It was obvious that he had never played tag with others before. But his version was way more fun. It was like... Hunting? No, it reminded her of her favorite game to play. Predator/prey. Vessels of different types would come together and separate themselves into two groups: predators and prey. The prey group was always bigger, they would hide and run away from the predators. While the predators would use their survival skills to track down the prey. At the end of the game, if at least one prey stays unfound, the prey wins. If all prey is found, the predators win.

Naruto's version was a bit similar. It was free for all. Kuni, taijutsu, and anything could be used. "I'm in!" The tag in his hand exploded the moment it hit the ground. And chaos ensued. Shikamaru wasn't one to run, but he wasn't going to let himself get caught that easily. He ran into the trees, the shadows seeming to be drawn to him. Was that part of his clan jutsu? Choji popped a chakra pill into his mouth, and almost instantly his fist grew in mass. With a quick swing, he knocked over a few trees. Just enough to cover his tracks as he ran in the other direction. Lee took off, jumping from branch to branch, trying to keep as much distance between him and Naruto. "Aren't you going to run?"

Koinu shook her head. "Four prey, two predators. It'll be fair that way. Besides, if I was prey, we'd win for sure."

"Where did the predator/prey talk come from?"

"That's what we're playing right? Predator/prey?"

"That's an actual game? But no, we're playing tag."

"Back home, we played it all the time."

"Can you two stop chatting? I thought we were playing!" Sasuke called out from a tree somewhere.

"Right!" Koinu giggled. "Ready or not, here we came!" She jumped straight into the action, letting out a full belly cry. With Naruto close on her tail, they headed out into the forest. This was going to be fun!

"That was awesome!" Naruto declared as they sat around a small campfire. Their "little" game had ended with the prey winning. It took them hours to find Shikamaru. It turned out that something was wrong with his clan jutsu and he was absorbed into the shadows. It wasn't a fun experience. "How did you do that, Koko?"

It was her nickname, she quite liked it. It reminded her of the nickname her siblings had given her when she was younger. Momo. "What? Do what?"

"How did you float in the air like that?"