My Brother's a Jinchūriki!

Chapter Thirteen- Fresh Blood for New Blood

The pit was a large, cavernous room with overhead lights hung from its massive vaulted ceiling. The walls were metal and stone— reinforced with one another for maximum strength. A thin layer of dirt had been spread over the floor to soften the impact and the room was full of the pungent aroma of sweat and blood.

The team descended the long flight of stairs down to the pit where Ayeka and Yuuta were already waiting. Natsumi shuddered, feeling an icy gaze boring into her, and she glanced over her shoulder and saw Jiro eyeing her from beneath his mask like a predator about to pounce.

"We do a lot of training here." Kiri explained quietly to ease the tension. "This place is ideal for practicing swordsmanship." She motioned to the Ninjato on Natsumi's back. "You'll be mastering it in no time and it will be an extension of your arm."

"If..." Natsumi swallowed and kept her voice low. "If I'm supposed to just be gathering information and doing reconnaissance, then why do I need a sword?"

Kiri blinked and then bit her lip, answering slowly. "Sweetie... you do understand that not every mission will be an in-and-out, right? There will be ambushes, traps, guards... situations you will have to fight your way out of. These won't be the same types of mission normal Genin your age will do... the people we go up against... they're lethal and they won't hesitate to kill you because you're young. In those cases, you'll fight to the death."

Natsumi's eyes widened and Sena shot Kiri a look.

"Hey!" She hissed. "You could have at least phrased that a little better!"

"Sorry..." Kiri sighed.

I'll... have to kill people? She swallowed. I guess... if it's really a life-or-death situation, I'll have no choice... but I'd rather just do my best not to get caught at all and have anyone get hurt.

The stepped off the final step and Natsumi blinked as a chill settled in her bones.

Right... I almost forgot about... this. She looked around and gently tapped her feet on the floor. This floor is too solid... I won't be able to go underground here. That's my best move... If I can't do that... I'm definitely going to die.

Quick, Natsumi, think! What else can I do? She bit her lip as the team assembled along the wall and Ayeka kept her hawklike gaze on Natsumi. I've got my clones, the substitution Jutsu, transformation, body flicker... but without my underground maneuver, there's no way I can beat any of them with just that!

"Team Yoru," Ayeka put her hands on her hips with a smirk. "We've got New Blood with us. It's time to see if she can really earn our place with us."

She paced slowly with her hands clasped behind her back. "This is a tradition passed down by our predecessors and the founders of Team Yoru. Blood of Senior members and New Bloods alike will mix on this very ground until we become one blood, one team, one family."

The Captain stopped her pacing and scanned her subordinates. "Masks on, Team Yoru."

Kiri sighed softly and reluctantly turned her mask from where it rested on the side of her head to cover her face and the others followed suit. Natsumi reached to turn her own mask when Ayeka suddenly appeared in front of her and gripped her wrist tightly.

"Not you, New Blood." She lifted Natsumi's mask off and held it out of reach, releasing her arm. "This mask is something you've got to earn. You have to prove that you're more than just a snotty redhead girl; you have to show us that you are Mina. Until then..."

She tossed Natsumi mask over her shoulder and it landed in the corner, creating a small puff of dust.

"Step into the pit, New Blood."