A Subtle Shift

14| The Hunt

Sasuke stepped up from behind Naruto to inspect the map once the man was gone, and Isamu finally snapped out of his empathetic look to get serious again.

"Isa-nii, Isa-nii!" Kasaru cried, hopping up and down beside him on the ground. "We need to get 'Kari before more stupid old geezers hurt her!"

Isamu directed his attention to her before crouching down quickly, resting a hand on either one of her shoulders. "Meaning they've already hurt her?" He was getting angrier by the second once again, and Naruto had to quickly take a deep breath so he wouldn't lose his cool once more.

"Yeah!" Kasaru confirmed, nodding vigorously. "Real bad, believe it! She had so many cuts and bruises! But they didn't do anything to me!"

Probably to fool us into thinking the twins were safe so we'd be more willing to offer ourselves up. Naruto sunk his canines into his cheek as he bit back an angry growl. Right. Of course. God forbid they be safe around me. We need to find this hideout and save her. As for Yuto... I'm hoping he can hold his own for a little while longer. Akira is our priority.

Sasuke glared at the forest around them before finally taking the map from Naruto's hands. "Great. Let's go. We don't have time to waste." Isamu scooped up Kasaru as their frantic trek began.

———

"The hunt starts in an hour," Lady Tsunade said, leaning forward on her desk in her office as the 9 shinobi faced her with calculating gazes. "This plan will be built off of the assumption we can track Naruto using the connection his Tailed Beast has with Gaara-sama's Tailed Beast."

Theoretically, that was their best option, Shikamaru felt. There was virtually no other way to find the hideout, and frankly, any attempts at doing so would leave them all disappointed. If there was something Orochimaru was great at, it was concealing his presence.

Aside from Shikamaru, there were 8 other shinobi. Kiba and Hinata, mostly for the tracking skills that'd be greatly needed, Yamato and Kakashi because of their sheer strength and intelligence alone, Sai, Tenten, and Neji as their man backup squad, and finally Gaara-sama. Him and his Tailed Beast that was their only sure lead to finding Naruto and the others. This was an urgent mission, and the former-Sannin-now-Hokage made that very apparent. Her brows were pinched together, her lips were pursed, and her eyes were narrowed to a significant amount.

"So, how will this work, huh?" Kiba asked, walking forward to peer at the map displayed on the Hokage's desk. The others stepped forward and mimicked his movements.

Tsunade nodded. She flipped the map over so it was right-side-up to the shinobi and placed a singular slim finger on where Konoha was marked to be. "I'll dispatch you guys from here. You'll be separated into three squads. First one will consist of Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Neji. We'll call you the Infiltration Squad. With Shikamaru's Shadow Possession, Kakashi's skill, and Neji's Byakugan, I think you three will clash perfectly." She continued a moment later. "Second squad will be called the Tracking Squad. It will consist of Kiba, Hinata, and Gaara-sama. Finally, our Offense and Defense Squad will consist of Yamato, Sai, and Tenten. Sai and Tenten, you both specialize in offense, whereas Yamato, defense. That will serve us well. Now, Shikamaru, care to explain the plan?"

The Nara boy nodded before reaching out and sliding the map closer. "So, here's what's going to happen. First we are going to dispatch the Tracking squad, under the assumption Gaara's connection with Naruto will come in handy, of course, and they're going to be in charge of locating the hideout."

"Easier said than done," Kiba snorted. Shikamaru continued a beat later.

"Once they do, the Infiltration Squad comes into the picture." He dragged his finger across the map. "I will stop as many enemies as possible with my Shadow Possession, allowing room for Captain Yamato to immobilize the ones that I missed, and giving Neji the chance to scour out the route with the least amount of inconveniences for our Offense and Defense Squad to get in. Neji will also be able to hit all of our enemies' chakra points, rendering them useless. While the Infiltration Squad is handling the enemy, the ODS and the Tracking Squad will collaborate and continue forth. Once they do slip through, the main goal is to find Naruto, Sasuke, and Isamu. The girls come next. Remember, we can't let Orochimaru get a new vessel. From what we know, it's only a matter of time before he switches."