Wandering Heathens

Mission: Political Prisoner

Shinjo lay on his bed with his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling and thinking about the latest turn of events. After Pein had dismissed them they had spent time getting to know the members who were at the base. Ryuu had been his usual idiotic self and flirted shamelessly with the women who had all rebuffed him. He closed his eyes and focused; he could hear his partner's snores through the wall if he concentrated hard enough. Shinjo sighed, thinking about how they had met and the promises they had made to each other when they had claimed their freedom.

A knock at his door brought him back to reality and he got off his bed and walked over, opening the door to see Hida. "You've got a shit mission and you're paired with the moron crew: Deidara and Sasori. So hurry the fuck up!" She finished and walked next door to wake Ryuu. "I'll wake him" he said and she nodded, leaving him to his task.

He turned to the door and noticed the seal on it. Frowning, he fed chakra into the seal and the door unlocked. Shinjo stepped into the dark room and saw Ryuu sleeping on his stomach with drool stringing from his mouth to his pillow. "Disgusting" he muttered as he threw Ryuu's books at him. "OW! What the shit?!" Ryuu yelped as a book bounced off his head. "We have a mission. Get up" was all he said. "Why can't you wake me like normal person?! You know, NOT throwing shit at me?!" He yelled to an empty room. "Dick" he muttered as he slipped on his pants, robes and his shoes before grabbing his pouch.

Sasori was showing Shinjo where the mission was to take place on a map while Deidara moulded her clay with her hand mouths. "Morning" Ryuu said to her sleepily. "Go away, hm!" She replied. He had a hurt look on his face and approached Shinjo who handed him a cup of coffee and filled him in. "Political prisoner? On the outskirts of Kumogakure? Are you insane?! The Raikage will kill us!" Ryuu protested. "We have a plan to break in. We'll fill you in on the way" Shinjo said, rolling up the map and handing it back to Sasori and the two began walking out of the hideout.

The sun was feebly trying to shine through the clouds and Ryuu yawned and stretched. He stopped midway as Deidara's clay bird caught his eye. "Are we flying?!" He asked excitedly. "Yes" Sasori replied, hopping on the bird. "Do we have to take him, yeah?" Deidara pouted as Shinjo helped Ryuu onto the bird. "Yes!" Shinjo and Sasori both yelled at her. With a final "Hm!" Deidara launched the bird into the air.

Hours passed as the passengers occupied themselves with last minute plan changes. "We're agreed?" Shinjo asked, looking at the faces that surrounded him. "Easy, un!", "Yes" and "Sure!" answered him. The prison came into view and they all got a look at the fortified stronghold. "Why do we need to rescue this person?" Ryuu asked while wrapping paper bombs around senbons. "Pein needs her free to create chaos in other parts of the country. Think of it as a continual diversion" Sasori explained. "Right" he nodded. "Don't worry, hm. Danna and I can save your ass if you get into trouble, yeah" Deidara stated confidently. "I await my rescue by a fair maiden" Ryuu responded and Deidara scowled at him. "Enough. We're here" Shinjo said as he stood up on the bird.

Deidara moulded small clay bird bombs and released them. Once they were the right altitude to cause maximum damage she closed her eyes, raised her spar sign and yelled "KATSU!" She cackled as her bombs went off, sending guard patrols flying to their deaths from the ramparts and they landed on the roof. Shinjo and Ryuu hopped down and into a smoking crater, falling through the floors until they landed.

"Go find her. We'll keep the guards busy!" Sasori called to them before disappearing with Deidara. "Right" Shinjo said as he drew his sword. "What cell is she in?" Ryuu asked. "In the solitary confinement wing. Follow me!" Shinjo ordered as he ran down the catwalk that separated the upper floors from the lower ones in the wing they were in.

"Intruders! Halt!" Prison guards yelled at them as they rounded a corner. Ryuu pulled Shinjo to cover as lightning crackled by them, inches from Shinjo's face. "Cover me!" Shinjo barked as he left cover and ran at the guards. Senbons lodged into the walls near the guards. "Kaen!" and they ignited, causing concussive blows that stunned the guards. Shinjo advanced on them in their dazed state and mercilessly cut them down. "Conserve your chakra. There's got to be more" Shinjo said to Ryuu as the latter ran by him and down the catwalk, Shinjo following him. "We don't have much time! Pick up the pace!" He said as he set guards on fire, threw senbons into their bodies to paralyze them and used fire clones to distract them as they ran from wing to wing.

"Cell 626! Fucking finally!" Shinjo said as he launched a vortex of wind at the guards chasing them. Using the butt of his sword he broke the lock and wrenched open the door. "She finally sent someone" came a woman's voice, the figure slowly standing to her feet and stepping into the light. She had black spiked hair, black pants and top but her most distinctive feature was her sharp teeth that showed when she grinned wickedly. "Zabuza?" Shinjo asked. She nodded and stepped out of her cell. "Let's go!" Ryuu yelled as he threw the last of his senbons. "I'm out!" "Take her and go. I'll hold them off!" Shinjo said as he pushed them down the corridor. "KINJUTSU ART: WIND CLOAK!" He roared as a shield of fast moving black wind wrapped around his body. Zabuza looked in awe at the power Shinjo unleashed and Ryuu pulled her down the hallway, past the bodies, up the catwalk and up through the hole in the roof they had used to enter the prison.

Shinjo quickly followed, decapitating guards with the wind, eviscerating some with his sword and smirking when their weapons, jutsus and physical attacks were rebuffed by the black chakra. "Who the hell are you?!" A guard choked out as Shinjo's fingers slowly crushed his trachea. "The Akatsuki" he replied and savagely wrenched the man's trachea from his throat. "OI! Get a move on!" Ryuu yelled from the edge of the hole. Shinjo cancelled his cloak and leaped up onto the roof, landing gracefully. Sasori pulled them onto the bird using his chakra strings and Deidara launched the bird off the roof, letting its wings catch an updraft to soar away.

"It's good to see you Zabuza-chan" Sasori said. Zabuza stretched and smiled as the sun and wind hit her skin. "Good to see you too" she replied. Shinjo sat next to her and the two began trading information and updating their intel. Ryuu sat behind Deidara, pulling her into a hug and murmuring "I missed you Dei! I could've died!" "I wish you did, un!" She retorted trying to get out of his grip. "Ssshhh. Relax. Let me enjoy this" he said, nodding off with his head on her shoulder. "Danna! Get this moron off of me!" She shouted. Sasori smiled at her discomfort. "No" she said and Deidara had to suppress her rage and not blow him up. Shinjo had made it clear to them that Ryuu was not to be harmed.