The Turning Point

Land of Snow Part 3

"Shadow clone jutsu!" Naruto said through gritted teeth as he maneuvered the rope into his mouth and created the necessary hand sign.

"Hn the dobe is going to get us caught" Sasuke muttered in Sakura's ear as they watched their blond teammate ascend up the rope and onto the blimp with the help of his clones. Sakura blushed a little at Sasuke's proximity which didn't go unnoticed by the Uchiha boy who smirked.

Sasuke and Sakura had concealed themselves on the outside of the blimp and were searching for a way in when they saw a rope with a kunai knife attach itself to a nearby railing. Sakura caught sight of her teammate and sighed inwardly. She didn't begrudge Naruto following them she knew he wouldn't have done well being left behind but keeping him quiet so they weren't discovered was another matter entirely.

Before Sakura could alert Naruto to where she and Sasuke were pressed up against the wall of the blimp, Naruto had punched his way through one of the glass panes and jumped inside determined to find Koyuki.

"There's our way in" Sakura whispered to Sasuke and both followed Naruto inside the broken window.

Boxes covered a dimly lit corridor which twisted and turned towards an elevator which Sakura saw Naruto get into before the doors shut and the elevator dropped down. Sasuke felt like slapping himself in the head, he knew Naruto was more inclined to charge head first into a situation without giving it any tactical thought but an elevator where anyone could walk in at any time and not knowing where it could end up seemed completely stupid. Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers and tried to comprehend the actions of his teammate.

"The elevator was a stupid move but Naruto's never been one for careful planning. Come on let's see if we can find some stairs or we'll lose him" Sakura said and moved quickly down the corridor with Sasuke in tow.

Looking to the left and right of the elevator Sakura spotted a small stairwell with the words 'Control Room' scratched on and a crudely drawn arrow pointing downward. Nudging Sasuke in the ribs Sakura pointed to the stairwell and motioned for him to be quiet as they moved to the right of the elevator.

A guard walked past and Sasuke all but shoved Sakura down into the stairwell to avoid being seen. Sakura hissed in pain as her tailbone connected with a hard concrete step but shook it off and stood up.

"Look over there I think that's how we can see the control room" Sakura said pointing at a dirty grate which had long slats able to see out into the room without being seen.

"Hn" Sasuke replied and Sakura walked over to it putting a hand to her mouth to remain quiet. Dropping to her knees she pushed her face forward against the grate so she could see out and motioned for Sasuke to do the same.

From their position Sasuke and Sakura could see Koyuki sitting opposite Doto on a plush lounge suite while guards busied themselves around them controlling the direction and travelling of the blimp. There still seemed to be no sign of Naruto.

"I am very glad to see you have the hex crystal with you Koyuki. After all I couldn't exactly access the Kazahana clan's treasure without it" Doto explained calmly.

"Treasure? What treasure?" Koyuki asked and Sasuke exchanged a glance with Sakura.

"Hn I thought that whole treasure thing was a legend"

"Apparently not" Sakura whispered and pressed her ear closer to the grate and straining to hear the conversation.

"Sosetsu must have hidden the clan's treasures somewhere so I searched for many years after I relieved your father of his duties. Deep within the Rainbow Glacier appears to be some sort of device which holds the hex crystal and unlocks the treasure" Doto said greedily.