"Go." is the only command Remi uttered. She dropped off of the hornet as the clones above her all cried out, "Wild Water Wave!" Five massive waves of water came crashing as one tidal wave across a large section of the forest. She watched the tidal wave stretch out to create a large "Lake" area, dozens upon dozens of shinoni were trapped or outright crushed by the weight of the water.

Remi landed a few seconds after the water did, almost as if she were a feather. Her looked around at the fallen trees and bodies that were suspended in the chakra created water. The jonin made another handsign and said, "Lightning Release Armor." Lightning chakra sparked around her before it engulfed her body with lightning.

Unfortunately for the shinoni stuck in the water, her lightning electrified the water due to her feet's contact with the water. Bodies began to float to the top of the water ominously, even as her clones followed her to the ground. Remi looked from clone to clone before she smirked, and released their holds on the water. The electrified water rushed through the forests like a raging river, engulfing more and more mercenaries. One by one, her clones disappeared as did the water, until she stood alone on dry land, surrounded by bodies. "Alright. Now the fun begins, yes?" she asked before she dashed off to blindside another group of mercenaries with her nintaijutsu.

As Ryozan pensively walked through the streets, he couldn't help but overhear a bit of an interesting conversation, seeing as everything was eerily quiet. A woman was warning a boy to stay inside, but the way she spoke... she knew something. What's more, Ryozan knew that woman, or at least he knew of her. She was Furenji Matsuka, a well-known Jounin called the "beastmaster." He hadn't had the opportunity to work with her just yet, but he figured that since he was now a Jounin, he would be meeting her eventually. Now would be as good a time as any to introduce himself, and perhaps manage to get a little hint as to what was apparently about to happen. He tucked the Imperial scroll into one of his pockets, though the seal was still visible to anyone with astute eyes; perhaps this was a subconscious way of asking for advice, since an open discussion about joining the Empire wasn't exactly the safest thing to talk about.

Ryozan took a seat at the ramen stand, leaving an empty chair between Matsuka and himself, and ordered a small bowl. He wasn't very hungry, but it would look ridiculous if he sat down at a stand without ordering anything. He doubted that Matsuka would recognize a new Jounin like himself, so he figured it would be up to him to break the ice. "This has been some strange weather, hasn't it senpai?" he said in a calm, even voice. He looked over at the woman to see her reaction, unsure if he ought to offer her a handshake or not. Introductions were always rather awkward for him.

~A few hours ago~

It was the early morning. By early morning, it was sooooo ungodly early that it was near impossible to find the sun or the moon at this hour. The cool air felt really nice and the sky seemed mostly clear at the hour and the village of Konohagakure was almost completely silent. There were three of them together, waiting just outside the village gates. There was a man, older with long blond hair and dim green eyes. He was a ninja, by the headband and the clothes. The man's name was Inori Yamanaka and he was formerly a part of a pretty big and popular clan or something. Not that any of that really mattered too much anymore, but he thought pretty highly of himself. The other man with them was a bit younger, late 20s, and he was really tall. He was also a ninja, though lacked the headband that titled him, and wore simpler clothes. He was quiet, only talking when necessary, and had this bloodthirsty air about him. Perhaps it was how deeply he stared or the deep, sleepless bags under his eyes or, just maybe, it was the bloodsplatter stains on his clothes here and there. His name was Durian. Weird name, but he wasn’t exactly from these lands, or so most figured. The only female of the group stood out a little more from the other two. Her name was Shuya, though the other two simply referred to her as 'Crashwhite'.

She was a lot younger than the other two with short white hair, pale blue eyes, with a slim, yet athletic frame and more humanly casual clothes than the other two. Unlike the other two, she wasn't trained to kill and wasn't as dedicated to the current task at hand. Some would think of her as the usual "arms-for-hire" mercenary, though she honestly didn't have much of a choice in the matter of being here. For some strange reason, in order to get food you have to do this awful thing known as "work" and this "work" entailed a 12 hour night watch for terrorists.

"Almost there," A exasperated sigh flooded her mouth as she wiped some non-existent sweat from her brow, "I can't wait to eat!" Almost flowing with her words her stomach grumbled loud enough for the other two to hear.

“And you were so energetic at the start of the shift...Where’d all that enthusiasm go?” Inori asked, crossing his arms as he watched the young girl complain.

A habitual smile spread on Shuya’s face, “I’m always enthusiastic! But!” She said, a rush of bubbly optimism that quickly drowned into a depressed relient, “I’m so hungry I can’t think!” She hung her arms, slouching, as if she were about to fall to the ground right then and there. Inori chuckled and opened his mouth to say more, but he was interrupted by a presence that appeared.

The body flicker technique always amazed Shuya. It was so quick and mystical, yet sometimes followed a comical cloud or dazzling swirl of wind that made it seem pretty or cute. This guy loved to use the technique. In fact, he almost always did it. As if walking were an outrageous idea!

He was tall, broad, muscular and tan. He had one dark brown eye and one strangely green one, pretty weird. He had a bleach blond hair and favored a large broadsword on his back. He was from Kumogakure, but was completely faithful to the Empire, so Shuya heard. He has a deep voice, strong grip, and has almost no patience or sense of humor. His name was Taraki Shendo and he is the man they refer to as Captain.

“End brief! End brief!” Shuya chanted, throwing up her arms happily as if she were about to be rewarded by an adult for doing all her chores.

“Crashwhite, you won’t be receiving the End Brief just yet,” He responded, curtly. He even paused, as if the reason for it was obvious.

Shuya looked to her current partners and realized they weren’t going to ask why, which was slightly frustrating! So, being as starved and tired as she was, her stomach won over her patience and, a little sassy, she offered a “Why the heck not!?” In response, which made Inori grin again.

“Your job as Night Watch is to watch for anything that happens during the night. I believe we have a possible infiltrator. You three are going to retrace the perimeter then proceed with Tactical Code D within the village. Support any soldiers you find that are in need of any assistance, as you are required as the preliminary security task force,” He said, not asked, to which Inori was the only one to acknowedge with a nod.

Shuya was stunned...For a moment, she just stood there with her mouth agape. When that bastard Taraki vanished in a puff she whimpered, realizing that this was going to be the longest shift of her young life.

“B-but, I’m just so hungry,” She cried, sounding as if she were close to tears.
“Well, at least it won’t finish too boring. Besides, its a few more hours you’ll be paid, Crashwhite,” Inori emphatized, even offering a slight pat on the shoulder.

“I don’t want money! I want a meat!” She said, shaking her head.
“‘A meat’?” Inori asked, chuckling.
“I mean, what are the chances of even finding some rebels this close to the village? Rebels wouldn’t do that. I think he just hates us. We probably aren’t going to do anything but walk around for the next couple hours.” Complaining, she just didn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. When would they be free? When she passed out from lack of sleep!?

Durian just walked off without a word. He was rude like that. Shuya took it as a hint that, at this moment, she had no choice but to man up and prepare for the next shift.

“I promise you, nothing is even going to happen. He’s going to have us running around doing absolutely nothing!”

“Well then, I hope that is the case. It would mean all is well.”
“Yeah, except my stomach being filled with yummie foodies,”

~Currently~

In an instant, a hefty explosion crashed into the foodstand. It was the very place Katsu, Matsuka, and Ryozan stopped to take a bite. It was a hefty, chakra filled fire-based attack that devoured his familiar little ramen stand. Naturally, two highly skilled ninja would have been able to get out just in time, or not depending, however the fire attack was any low level attack. It was powerful enough to continue on, passed the stand, and dive into a nearby building setting it aflame.

A young girl with pearly white hair ran in, running along the side of a building with great speed before jumping and, with a twirly twist, landed gracefully on her feet.

“You missed~” She would boast, sweetly.
She was facing the fiery devastation that the fire wrought at coming straight at her. Due to the heat and the remaining fire it was difficult to see what was beyond the burning rubble of the former ramen stand. However, a shadow silhouette could be slightly made out within the flames. That form threw it’s hand, tossing out 3 shuriken. A glint of ninja wire could be seen attached to them as they flew ever onwards.

The silverhaird girl effortlessly dodged them and, when she did, they caught fire. The shuriken at the end of the wire became birds, somewhat similar in form to a small, rounded finch. They trailed after her and, as they came in close, she had to fall back to escape them. She was quick, talentedly so, and agile. Never once did they seem close to catching her.

A tall man with an all black sword in hand leapt off a building to the far left and, slashing that weapon once, sent a crescent slash in the directly of the oncoming weapons and severed the technique by splitting the wire. The flames died out. From behind the shadowy figure a pair of water bullets whizzed through the air, forcing him to leap forward to evade them.

The man, cloaked in a warm and beaten robe, was inbetween three forces. One was clearly a Yamanaka as he jumped after the man. He was slightly wet, which was a hint that he shot the water bullet. The other man, tall and with a few bloody cuts, held his sword ever ready to cut down the man a few yards ahead of him. Then there was the white hair girl. Of the three, she was the only one smiling.

The man in the middle smacked his lips.
He was low on chakra, exhausted, and now he was cornered. He had no choice but to do everything he could to escape before additional help came in. The man threw off his cloak to show off typical ninja attire. He wore the headband of his country, Konohagakure, proudly and had a twin pair of short swords at his sides. He as a rebel. An independant rebel at that. He wasn’t one that unionized or strategized with a whole group. He had a grudge to settle and a mission to accomplish. It was possible he was just acting out on his own, but there was also the possibility that he was acting on orders to go through a solo mission for the rest of the Rebels and made the mistake of being caught.

Katsu Uchiha would most certainly recognize this man. This man was also an Uchiha. Likely, the ninja was apart of Katsu’s childhood and, like Katsu, also hated the Empire. This man had spoken to Katsu on many occasions and most of them were kind, encouraging words. However, just like all the others, this man was one of the many Uchiha that chunned Katsu when he returned from “that” mission that long age ago. The man’s name, which Katsu would most certainly know, was Fuuki Uchiha.

This man, an Uchiha with a mind similar to Katsu, was about to be gunned down by Empire sympathizers, captured and most likely tortured. If he was lucky, his eyes would be slowly gouged out and used as a trophy weapon for at the Empiresses discretion. Would Katsu allow that? Would allow this man to be defeated like this, despite how his heart burns with the all impressive Uchiha pride and the resolute will of fire? Then again, this man had decided to forsake Katsu just like most of the other Uchiha. Why should he deserve any help or even any consideration? Would it be so bad to just watch this Rebel suffer for his decisions, be captured by these three Empire subordinates, just as the man watched Katsu suffer alone after the death of his master? It was only fair...Or was it?

The choice was Katsu and he didn’t have hardly any time to ponder the repercussions of either action.

The Yamanaka formed the characteristic handsigns of their clans signature technique.
The tall man with the black sword readied himself to attack the moment Fuuki let his guard down. He’d take care of any ninjutsu or haphazard escape attempts swiftly.

Then...There was the white haired girl.
“I’m going to do this nice and quick so I can eat! You owe me Dinner, Breakfast and Lunch now, Mister!” The girl said, the happiest grin on her face. Shuya couldn’t help but be excited! There was going to be food! Lots of food! So much food! She as going to eat until her stomach tore, go to the hospital to have it repaired, then start all over again! She didn’t have any heartfelt regrets about what she was going to do. She was going to painfully knock this man out, let him be arrested, then stuff her face with all the wonderful things that her tongue would taste! Oh the amazingness that she was going to be involved in!

The girl rushed forward. She was quick, taking a sprinters charge, and would be at that man in moments. Even if he could take her, the other two would be sure to end this match quickly. Such was the plan and the point behind the formation.

There would be no escape for him. He was through.
Now...Would Katsu watch this man lose here and now or would his own pride as an Uchiha cause him to take a stance, openly, against the Empire?

"Not really," Matsuka commented, still eating her food. Unlike some shinobi, she had no issues memorizing things like name lists. She recognized the boy after a few seconds, but showed no sign of it. She also noticed the Imperial seal sticking out of his pocket, but he didn't seem like part of the empire.

"I would put that away if I were you," She said, waving her hand generally at his pocket. "There are some unfriendly types around these parts who want to stick a blade in the Empire's side, and don't really care how it is they do it." Again she rested her hand on one of her scrolls, as if she expected to have to use them at any moment. Both of the ninjas seated by her would of course recognize the scrolls as more than just paper.

The boy nodded at the jōnin with the same innocent smile then turned back to his food.
Katsu slurped his dish, eating like a pig. He finished it quickly and let out his breath in satisfaction. The boy looked down at his dish and smiled. He called over the owner of the shop, waving.
"Thanks for the dinner, sir," he said. "How much is it?"
"16 Ryō," the old man answered. Katsu pulled out a couple of coins, counting the money, putting the coins down on the counter one by one.
"10... 11... 12..."
His face turned bright red when the coins in his hand were all on the counter. "I... Er..." He searched himself, trying to find something. After a few moments, he gave up and looked down in defeat. "I seem to be short a couple of coins... Is there anything I can do to make up for the money?"
The old man gave Katsu a skeptical look. He ran his hand through the coins, counting them. Pausing for a moment, he looked up to the boy again. "Bring the money next time you're here," the man warned him and swiped the coins off the table.
Katsu smiled widely and nodded. "Right! Sorry," he said cheerfully and walked out, waving back. He walked on the streets, his eyes glowing bright red, scanning the area.

A a screaming man flew through the air before he was impaled on a tree root. The crackle of lightning intensified before another man fell from her grip, a hole in his chest. She idly scratched at her neck and didn't look at Killak as he landed with a loud "Thump".

The hornet dropped the head of a mercenary at her feet before her shook of the nine or so, impaled ninja on his stinger. His antennae swirled in the air rapidly, "So we are done here then." Killak's head bobbed. "Good. Let's move on then, I want to be done by dinner."

She hopped onto the Drone with a grin. The drone took off, body low to the ground as he zipped to the mass of enemies. "You take a break. Let Odiah know she next." she said as she began to make handsigns again. The hornet nodded then disappeared, which left Remi flying through the air until she landed...on someone's back.

The mercenary slid, face down on the ground. Using her still blooded palm, she touches the man's back, "Summoning Technique, Odiah." The startled group of mercenaries could only watch as a three foot long hornet appeared from the body of their comrade and stare them down.

"Hornet Art: Summoning Copy Technique." the hornet said in a low, faintly feminine but dark voice. In the hornet's place was a perfect double of her mistress, also cloaked in the Lightning Armor. The two looked at each other and smirked. "Shall we?"

"Yes." Remi replied before they both became a blur.

Ryozan stared straight ahead as Matsuka commented on his scroll. Based on how she spoke, she certainly did not seem to be a supporter of the empire; out of the corner of his eye he saw her hands hovering near her summoning scrolls, ready to call out some kind of formidable beast if he did prove to be a threat. At the same time, her words did not seem hostile. If she believed he was with the empire and wanted harm to come to him, she simply would have let one of those "unfriendly" people do him in. Was she hovering between the two sides like him, or was her warning one of legitimate mercy? Perhaps some further conversation would reveal where her feelings sat.

"You assume that I am alone and that I wish to stay safe," Ryozan said just as his bowl of ramen arrived. "It is difficult to people when they are hiding, but their presence becomes clear when they are attacking." He broke his chopsticks apart and began stirring his food, waiting for it to cool down. "Logically, if somebody wanted to find a particular group of people, the best method would be to provoke them to attack." His ramen now cool, he calmly raised some noodles to his mouth and quietly slurped up a small bite. "Then again, if those were my motives, I certainly would not be discussing them with you." He hoped that his speech didn't come across as threatening. He was just so bad at making small talk that he often defaulted to discussing tactics, but given the tension of the situation, perhaps it wasn't the best choice.

Tetsujin, Iyana

Her eyes fiery and focused, Iyana observed the empress, waiting to be dismissed. As she did so she noticed the others who had come to fight in the name of the Empire's ruler. Gritting her teeth silently, Iyana did her best to keep her composure, she didn't want the empress knowing how much she disliked taking orders. After a minute or so, the insufferable bitch finally spoke,declaring that they were to ambush the enemy troops. Simply nodding, Iyana turned away from her and dashed straight off of the cliff, weaving handseals as she did so, but waiting for a few moments to gauge the distance. Once she had, she initiated her signature technique, In'ei kabaa(阴影カバー 'Shade covering'). Her chakra pushed from the various openings on her body and covered the entirety of her form. As it did so the chakra coalesced over her back and then formed into a rather complex pair of bat-like wings.

The wings angled, as did her body, and then unfolded to catch the wind as she dropped. A drop that quickly ceased as the wings held her aloft and allowed her to glide over the forest. On the way there, she noticed the other flier, the Jinchuuriki of the Eight Tails, her name was Remi. The girl used hornets, which was made obvious by the massive insect that she sat stride. Sneering slightly, Iyana glanced down, noticing how near she had come to the point she wished to drop off to, and then began readying herself. First she placed her right hand just over her left, waiting for the right moment to initiate her assault. Then, seeing her comrades dip into the woods and begin the attack, Iyana dropped down, letting the wings fold halfway so that she would dip and dive right through the trees, slamming right into a man, her body flipping slightly so her feet impacted his chest.

The landing balanced her out, allowing her to take a step forwards and draw her katana from what would appear as thin air, though in actuality it was from the seal on her left hand. Her chakra had already been pushed into the blade even before it was pulled from the seal, where it slashed through one man, and then impaled another through the chest.

She had landed amidst a large clusterfuck of shinobi, and she was glad she had. Otherwise, this wouldn't even begin to be a challenge. As if to cut off her train of thought, three of the shinobi around her sprang into action. One was too slow, a chakra-forged arm slamming into his chest and then producing spikes straight into his heart and lungs, ceasing his life in moments.

The other two were however more lucky, at least for the immediate moment, as one finished his handseals, sending a fireball her way, and the other infused his blade with lightning and charged straight for her.

During this time Iyana did not stand still, instead she spun and swiped her arm, sending off two whirling chakra disks crossed in an X to slice the fireball into fourths. The fireball, frighteningly, did not stop the disks and so they continued on, coming into view for the shinobi who quickly dodged to the side and threw three kunai. Katana wielder struck at Iyana with his blade, coming from behind, but she kept with her spinning momentum and slammed her blade, now having high speed vibrations heightening its cutting prowess, causing the man's own weapon to chip and crack slightly even as it was pushed aside. At this point Iyana's chakra cloak had already formed back around her entire body, thickening on the outer portions and becoming rigid enough to block weaker strikes, such as kunai. "You call yourselves experienced shinobi?!" She called out even as she jumped into the tree tops, concealing her chakra signature, and simultaneously dodging several jutsu and projectile weapons.

Refocusing, the fireball shinobi sent moulded his chakra even as two chakra arms extended down from the trees, picked him up, and flung him into three of his comrades who had been orchestrating a collaboration technique of some sort. Laughing, Iyana lunged onto someone's chest, slamming someone with her chakra tail and tearing into the person's chest who she had landed upon. However, she stayed still only long enough for her presence to be registered, after which point she had jumped off the chest of her adversary and dashed between two nin, both who attempted attacks too late to catch her even as her tail brushed agains them, sending electrical shocks through their bodies. She had infused lightning chakra into the cloak for a moment to stun them as she passed.

Taking advantage of their state she covered their mouths with her chakra claws, stopping them from breathing by using Fu shintō-sei no ryōiki(不浸透性の領域 'Impermeable field') She then used their bodies to block a lightning and fire technique from two other shinobi, after which she spun and threw them into random adversaries, not really caring where they landed. A smirk laid on her features, Iyana dashed back into the crowd, dodging blow after blow to reach her many targets and eliminate them with impunity.

Damn it was good to be her in those moments. She loved combat, especially now that she was shacked by the empire. After all, it was the only place she could truly let loose.

Izari couldn't deny that a part of him felt satisfaction with the killing of the enemy nin and mercenaries the savage ways he had done and he was willing to use his more powerful techniques to kill his enemies. He had twelve tentacles wrap their coils around a dozen of his foes' necks and with one spinning motion of his body, Izari made the tentacles snap each of the shinobi's necks and successfully killed them. He wanted to up the body count and got in the middle of at least two hundred shinobi. He was now going to use his more deadly attacks and Izari smiled.

"Impaling Tentacles!" he shouted and then several dozen smaller tentacles shot forth from his body with an extremely sharp edge on each end of a tentacles. The tentacles went out in any direction where there was a shinobi and each tentacle impaled a ninja through the chest, piercing the heart directly. The shinobi gave screams of agony as they died in a very painful way and he kept going with his deadly attacks.

" Earth Tentacle Spear!" and with those words, his tentacles became harder than stone and he had them slam and bash his opponents about with savage fury. He didn't let his tentacles have all of the fun, Izari grasped both of his sickles in his hands and he began move about a incredibly fast speeds, slashing at any foe that came within distance of his Kama. Pretty soon, he was standing in the blood of countless enemies brutally killed by his Tentacles of Horror and his Kama. Izari looked towards the others to see how they were fairing in these kinds of battle. He was very impressed with Remi's great power, and then he noticed that Iyana had joined the battle. Izari remembered briefly but he did know that she was rather defiant and he hoped that she would keep that side of her personality only to herself, Izari could only guess what the punishment was for insulting the Empress. He hoped that they weren't having too much trouble dealing with the enemy otherwise he would have to help them.

Darkness. There was nothing but darkness surrounding Heihachi as he was deep in meditation. Exhaling slowly the darkness would chip away like the rust of an aged metal. With each inhale; colors bursted into his head. The smell of rubble and destruction was fresh in his nostrils. Heihachi was old enough to be anyone’s grandfather and had been one of the few to have luckily survived through the countless wars faced by the Shinobi world. Was it luck? Heihachi was never one to believe in luck or chance he believe in absolutes. It was no gift to have survived that long in the shift of powers, he had lost more friends than he could count. However, even with the tyrannical rule of the Empress since her rise, the villages had been at its most peaceful despite the daily crimes and murders. The world was a dark place, and the tension between the rebellion and the Empire was slowly making its way to the cusp of breaking. While Heihachi was no saint he did not settle himself to serving the tyrant nor the side that was dubbed the “winning” side. Heihachi was bred from underdogs and hard work that is where he would die. Not on his knees, but on his feet.

It was time to leave his training ground. Heihachi had a dangerously ominous feeling that war would break out soon. The feeling loomed over him like a dark cloud above his head. If the rebellion were to fight back, it would be a slaughter. While they had very powerful ninja, the empire was in control with the possession of the Bijuu. However the rebels did possess the strongest Bijuu of them all, yet the nine tails was locked inside of a very young girl. Still naive to the world. Regardless Heihachi would protect all of which needed help. The weak will always stay weak, but that is what makes them strong. They are looked over and yet will do anything to win, enough to surprise the resistance. With one strong exhale, Heihachi opened his eyes and sucked in the world around him before kicking himself up onto both legs. His next assignment was to find his young senju disciple, Arano. He was the exact opposite in terms of power to Heihachi, but it allowed for better training and learning experiences for each other. Heihachi was still infinitely stronger due to his experience and expertise in his field.

What did bother Heihachi was the fact that the Empire had coveted a young Senju who was separated from her people/clan. If he had one mission to accomplish after living through this war, it was to rescue that one girl. Heihachi descended from the hills of Konohagakure until he eventually found himself in the heart of Konohagakure. Heihachi was famous amongst elders and even the youngsters. He was quite the legend due to his age. He walked past a few ramen shops wondering if he would encounter anyone he knew, while he was in search of Arano. Still unsteady with the aura surrounding him, Heihachi continued with his senses heightened.

Konohagakure

Why do we desire power? What in its embrace do we find so intoxicating..? Is this lust born from our need to feel in control of ourselves, of our lives? Are we not crossing the line in a most obvious manner when we then attempt to control the lives of another, when we ourselves long for the control of our own.....? I think the answer is quite obvious.

Seijuro Kizaru Nandate, lurking atop a tall building in Konoha facing the sun, thought of the image of the Empress as she had first appeared to him. He had longed for the day that the two should meet face to face. He was no rebel, a snake of his own path, though was no stranger to using those he needed to strengthen his cause, especially those of similar status. For Seijuro knew that a snake was a snake, and you never trust a serpent. Though this didn't stop him from taking a more extroverted approach to his predicament.

His mind jerked back into reality from the dreamy balcony in his soul. His pondering of his disposition ended as the eerie silence of the town finally got to him. He turned his head back to face the village and took note of the lack of people meandering about town. He fully turned his body now, and walked across the rooftop to the opposite side and perched himself at its edge. With few people left in town, Seijuro carefully examined each civilian walking out and about. A familiar face made his way through the market, past several ramen shops.

Only a shadow could be seen as the snake quickly darted down the wall of the building and into the shadows of the alleys of Konoha. Lurking around corners and nimbly moving about town as stealthily as possible, Seijuro eventually turned a corner and came out of an alley next to a ramen stand, walking past an old man whom Seijuro recognized as Heihachi Senju of the rebellion. "Come with me, Senju.." The Snake hissed as he darted into another alleyway, his cloak dancing in the breeze as he cocked his head to the right, glancing back to see if the old man's hearing hadn't escaped him yet.

White noise...glorious background music. That was all the jinchuriki could hear amongst the screams as she moved from one mercenary to the next. She stood still when she felt her clone jump, hands in the snake hand seal. The hornet clone jumped off of her shoulders into a tuck while the original held down a large mass of the mercenaries with her paralyzing lightning chakra. The clone held up the tiger hand sign and they both called out in unison, "Coming of the Lightning Fire Pheonix!"

The clone released a massive wave off fire, igniting an explosion in the vicinity and incinerating those caught in the four meter blast zone. Along the fringes, others still suffered burns up to two meters away due to the release of heat. The hornet landed lightly on her summoner's shoulders, still in her "Remi" form.

"I'm getting bored." Remi said to her friend. The hornet laughed a little bit and sat on her shoulder, balance perfectly kept.

"Let us finish this then, yes? Show them why the Mitarashi name should be feared." Remi hummed but nodded once in acceptance. The two sped of, Remi on the ground and Odiah in the trees.

The young jonin made two hand signs with one hand while Odiah unraveled a scroll. Two sets of strung senbon were dropped to Remi, who caught them in her free hand. She held one between her pinky and ring finger while she threw one in the middle of a crowded clearing, rife with another mass of enemies. She then shifted the other and threw it towards the front of the group. At the same time, Odiah threw her senbon at a man towards the back of the group as well as next to Remi's in the middle on the opposite side. Remi and Odiah then pulled them together to create a crossing box of wire. Remi anchored hers in a tree, creating a conducting link at she twisted the wires around each other. A few of the soldiers tried to warn their comrades of the senbon while others started to look for the assailants. Remi circled around in time for her Hornet summon as she finished her preparations.

"Dragon Fire Technique!" Odiah called from her position in the trees. A brilliant jet of fire followed a line of wire before it split into two. The massive, bright orange-red attack engulfed a good half of the men in the clearing and seemed to jump from body to body. Once it hit the middle a few seconds later, the fire raced along Remi's senbon anchored wire. The horrified front of the army pocket could only stare down their own demise in the form of two more jets of fire on either side of them. The back half had turned to run from the flames, only to be funneled by another two lines planted by the clone.

"False Darkness." Were the last words that they'd heard. Remi preformed the jutsu she'd prepared and charged earlier. A large spear of lightning formed in front of her open mouth before she released it. The spear split into 8 smaller, but still large spears and lanced through the crowd. It was nothing short of a masscre as the smell of burning, burnt, and smoldering bodies and cloth rose from the clearing. Remi took in a deep breath as her hornet clone dropped next to her, she'd since moved from her perch to stay out of firing range.

"You ok?" the human cloaked hornet asked.

"Smells bad. Is our assistance required elsewhere?" she asked.

"Rest for a bit. I'll go check." the hornet said before she released her clone self. Now as a full Hornet, she flew over the burning remains to check the rest of the battlefield. Remi sat down to take a break small rest. Her mind was tapped due to the creativity these last three or so mass engagements required. Within her mind, Gyuuki was calming her to keep her from freaking out.

Continuing his path there was nothing extremely alarming as he passed through the town. Everyone was surprisingly calm in his presence, whether that was their façade or they simply felt safer with him around. Whatever the case was he continued on with his friendly smiles and waves as onlookers passed him. He hadn’t met up with any of the other ninja and his pursuit for Arano seemed to be lost on him. That boy was quicker than the ages that passed Heihachi. With such a low attention span and constantly buzzing around like a storm, it was a wonder why he hadn’t found him yet. If Arano knew his Sensei was looking for him, he would feel his domineering presence soon. They had a weird sage connection. Regardless of that Heihachi did begin to feel something odd as his skin began to feel quite slimy.

Coming up on an alley adjacent to a Ramen shop, Heihachi felt an eerie presence. That presence was only accompanied by a faint whisper that most no one could hear. Despite his age, Heihachi wasn’t losing much yet, hell even had a full head of hair. ”Come with me, Senju..” he heard in a hiss. There was no snake sage that Heihachi could recall of, but this person was definitely akin to the attributes that a snake defined. Heihachi looked around to make sure his presence wasn’t being watched. And so as reluctantly as possible, the old man followed nimbly behind the young snake. “What is it you want from me?” asked the sage running with his arms wrapped around his back.

Konohagakure

That was all it took, the Senju heard his call and followed as planned. Once looking back to check that Heihachi adequately sensed him Seijuro took off, his movements becoming somewhat of a blur as he darted from alley to alley, turning around corners as fast as a snake winding through the jungle. He slowed down and sped up in an erratic pattern, making it a game of cat and mouse.. but who was the cat and who was the mouse..?

After making many turns and twists, Seijuro did not bother to even look to see if Heihachi was still on his trail. If he was anything like the legends spoke of him, there was no need for a petty game to test his skills. The snake stood next to a rusty door, kicking the bottom of the door to manage it open. He casually walked into a spatious, vacant warehouse along the southern end of Konoha. It was very dusty and there was a faint scent of iron in the air. No one had used this building in years it seemed, and the front door was locked. The only way in or out was through the back door heading to the alley, which normally would have been locked tight if it had been for a certain someone...

"I know who you are, Senju.." Seijuro began after waiting for Heihachi to enter. He would whip around, his eyes meeting the Senju's with ferocity. Silence fell upon the musky warehouse, he allowed Heihachi to voice his concerns toward the situation for a moment, albeit Seijuro was using this time to analyze the Sage and his appearance. It was not often one got to meet a true legend in these circumstances.

Whatever he had caught himself in, Heihachi knew he would be able to at the least ensure his survival. He was constantly knocking at deaths door. What most people didn’t notice, is the pinnacle physical health Heihachi possessed. Since he had baggy and loose fitting clothes for mobility combat, it covered the lean and cut muscle he had underneath. Upon taking off his clothes you would be able to see every curvature and muscle the human body could possibly contain, stacking on top of each other. Not only his muscles would captivate, but more so the cuts and scars that riddled his body like a pattern. He possessed scars on top of old scars that rose off his skin. His body was just as rigid as his attitude. At one point Heihachi considered marking his arms with the amount of blood he had on his hands, but the amount of scars would be too much for the surface area of his skin.

The sly snake turned to look at Heihachi once more before slithering through the village like a serpent through a thicket of grass. Luckily for Heihachi he was able to keep up with the youngster and all the adventure he was creating. Like the movement of a jellyfish, Heihachi would reach the next surface and kick off with the elegance of a jellyfish floating through water. Jellyfish were exotic yet deadly, that’s what made them so intriguing. Unfortunately the same couldn’t be said about Heihachi, with the years behind him, he had lost a majority of his beauty and attractiveness. Yet he was still as irritating as a jellyfish sting. Finally after the long arduous trip they took through back alleys he had never been through, they arrived at an abandoned mill of sorts. The door the Snake stopped at was covered in rust and fragile from the years of wear and tear. The snake had legs, and one jetted out to kick open the rusted door, followed by walking inside.

Now walking into an unknown location was rather stupid especially for the fact he followed a snake in the grass. Heihachi sharpened his sense as he began gathering natural energy since he didn’t have to move much. His nerves became elated as his jellyfish senses had taken over his body. Heihachi grunted and waked in just as casual as the snake. Carefully evaluating his environment, Heihachi paid equally close attention to the young shinobi. ”I know who you are Senju” Heihachi cocked one of his gray furrowed brows upwards in attention. “It seems a lot of people “Know” me. What makes you any different? What do you want with an old man anyways? I have nothing to offer or any form of repayment.” Heihachi’s eyes then caught those of Seijuro’s that bore such tenacity. He matched his gaze with his deep and worn eyes. A faint smile almost washed over his face, but not yet.

Matsuka watched the boy from the corner of her eye. Her fingers twitched over the scroll, but she didn't move to open it. "Of course. If you were trying to lure people out of hiding, you would have chosen a more open location than inside a ramen stand. In an enclosed location like this, it would be a simple matter for someone to kill you without alerting whatever back up you might have."

She studied his face, trying to find some clue as to his allegiance. He certainly didn't seem Empire, but he could be a spy. She had to be careful what she said for now, at least until tomorrow.

Konoha had become barren; nearly devoid of life and happiness under the rule of the Empire, even some of Konoha’s happier individuals had found it difficult to maintain smiles after so long. The occupation was met with minor complications over time. While every clan more or less had the ability to contain themselves, individual members had often been unable to contain their displeasure for the Empire and fights had ensued on a small scale for the past six months. Some of the more unruly and vocal had been subject to one of the Empire’s strongest individuals, Nikuya, and beaten into submission. She was very vocal and proud as a shinobi, and always brought the enemy to their knees. Were it not for an outright revolt by the comrades of those she harmed, she might’ve killed those people. Luckily, Kaede Hyuga had always been there to heal their wounds. The wounded pride they carried was a different story.

Walking through the calm streets of Konoha, the village was casual. People walked about on business and were mindful of the patrolling Imperial soldiers, yet ultimately kept composure and minded their own business. Laughs were here and there, good friends were still able to see one another, and children were still thrilled with the prospect of being treated for good behavior. No matter how it looked, none of it felt truly natural anymore. For the sake of the children, parents had to try to remain happy about things as they were so they weren’t bothered. Kaede could see how things really were beneath this façade they had to put on. All seemed well and good until a soldier had passed by them.

Escorting her to the Uchiha compound were a pair of middle-aged men from her own clan, both happened to be of the Branch family. Try as she might to assure them that there was no need for an escort, her family had insisted that this be done, especially considering what tonight meant. The stories of the Leaf’s Guardian Angel had lessened in time, all for the sake of protecting her identity. With her technique’s scope of healing making her a skilled part of her generation, the Empire could benefit from holding her. She was one of the advantages the Rebels had in secret, and she was one of the reasons why the fighting was able to continue for so long before the Empire had eventually gone out. She kept the men and women up as their enemies went down, and with her aid to the other medic-nin she had seen an advancement in the ninja world. She had kept low and under the radar, as was the order of the Rebel leader in the Land of Fire Kenji Uchiha himself. From what was going around in hushed whispers among the most trusted of his subordinates, tonight was the night that at last Konoha would see itself freed.

Guarding the compound were two Uchiha who greeted her politely.

“Lady Kaede.”
“A pleasure, Lady Kaede.”

She felt she’d never get used to such a title. Blushing and smiling to herself, Kaede bowed her head as she passed by in thanks for their greeting. Whatever pride or prejudice the clans that helped found Konoha had, it was all erased thanks to a common enemy. If she would thank the Empire for anything, it was that they brought her people together. Hyuga were proud and elegant as a clan, Kaede would admit that it sometimes held them back in the past. As the heir to the Main family, she hoped that once this was all over the Hyuga would see their comrades in a better light.

The compound was quiet, and a majority of the Uchiha she expected to see were in a hurry. Traveling in groups of three, Kaede passed by multiple members of other clans: Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Aburame, and others were in a hustle to get word around and quickly. By the time both she and her escort had arrived outside of the main estate of the Uchiha Clan’s acting leader and Hokage, Kenji Uchiha was surrounded by two dozen individuals both with clan’s and without. The dark-haired man held a commanding presence about him, and ever since he had regretfully failed in stopping the Empress together with the Mizukage he had abandoned his cloak that denoted him as the 4th Hokage of the Hidden Leaf. As of now, he held a common jounin outfit, although his headband was currently missing from his attire. In short time his eyes had come across her, and that focused stare filled to the brim with tactical intensity softened.

“Lady Kaede, it’s good to see you. Are you looking for Natsumi?”

“Yes, actually,” Kaede looked around shortly. “Is Makoto around?”

Kenji looked over his shoulder at a couple of his fellow clan members who shrugged their shoulders. His attention returned to her.

“Last we’ve heard she’s been in her home all day …something about a breakthrough with her Kekkei Genkai. She wouldn’t let anyone in to see her, but she promised she was alright. Natsumi’s inside for you. Are you prepared?”

“More than prepared. Thank you for your concern.” Kaede bowed her head low, and allowed her two escorts to join the group convening with the 4th. Kenji Uchiha, even in Konoha’s darkest hour, had held strong in the face of impossible odds. The Empress had, as Kaede saw it, underestimated the strength of the Will of Fire within the Hidden Leaf and it appeared it would cost her dearly. Everything was leading up to something big, and Konoha’s revolt would be only the start.

Leaving the briefing to the Hokage, Kaede quietly entered the Uchiha estate and looked around. The 4th’s wife didn’t appear to be present, nor did she immediately see much sign of Natsumi, but shuffling in the back rooms had drawn Kaede closer inside.

“Natsumi? Hello?”

~-~

“Tonight’s the night.” An ANBU-masked shinobi of the Hidden Leaf uttered in near disbelief as he joined alongside a comrade of similar status and attire. Together the two had returned from a lengthy journey to Kirigakure in preparation of the upcoming revolt against the Empire’s occupation, and had reached the desired window on return. It was a shame that they had to sneak back into their own village given that travel was extremely prohibited, but this uneasy peace had made the Empire much too lazy to keep track of the comings and goings of Konoha’s finest elite shinobi unit. Though these two were exhausted, the man that had led them skillfully through patrols across the Land of Fire and gotten them past multiple garrisons didn’t appear to be winded whatsoever. In fact, the man seemed proud to return knowing that this village, his village, would soon be freed.

Takeo Watanabe, mentor and father-in-law of the 4th Hokage and Grandfather of the Nine-Tails of the Hidden Leaf, didn’t appear as winded or weary as his two subordinates. He shared their negative feelings on having to sneak around to reenter Konoha, but if all went well that was going to change tonight in not just one village, but two. This had taken weeks on weeks of careful planning and agreement among the various villages. Kumo, Iwa, and Suna were not happy to know that they would need to endure just a little longer, but they had reluctantly put their faith in the 4th Hokage’s strategy, and the son of the 5th Mizukage who acted as a temporary leader within the village, holding his father’s intellect and careful nature.

“A lot of care and consideration went into this strategy, so we can’t afford to lose. We won’t lose.” Takeo looked over his shoulder towards the two ANBU that had accompanied him. Upon his stare they had seemed to straighten up further, respecting his abilities as a shinobi and a leader.

“I understand you’re tired …get some rest if you must, but you know where you’ll need to be when the time comes. Dismissed.”

“Sir!”
“Sir!”

And like that, the pair had scattered off, either to report to the 4th during his quick overview of the plan ahead or eat a meal that didn’t consist of rations. Alone he stood atop the monument to the Hokage of the past and present that helped keep Konoha strong, particularly Hashirama Senju’s head. From above he could see various individuals traveling; common villagers were still about, but among the typical patrols of Imperial soldiers came several groups of various shinobi walking about to their individual holdings. They were taking care not to appear too suspicious in spite of what was going to go down tonight, and that implied they knew the weight of what was to come. Kenji, his former student and son-in-law, had truly grown up since his genin days.

Silently making his way down the mountain via the steps that led up to it, Takeo wasn’t interested in showboating with a disrespectful slide down the faces of predecessors far greater than himself. The urge to see his child and grandchild was heavy in his heart, but one last walk through the village wouldn’t have hurt. Passing a flower shop and through various clan compounds, his return was met with hushed enthusiasm of various members of the rebellion in secret. From Aburame to Yamanaka, Takeo had told them what his amused stare should’ve done already: Tonight was the night. Several minutes of casual walking with a relaxed arm resting on his sword, he had seen a small gathering of shinobi at one of the ramen stands, particularly Ichiraku’s. It was a modest stand, but Teuchi and his daughter had given good honest work to make a living filling the stomachs of others.

Parting the curtains leading within, Teuchi had given Takeo an immediate hearty greeting.

“Well, if it isn’t the Commander!”

Holding up a hand in modesty, Takeo shook his head. Despite what fame his skills and age have brought him, being referred to as ‘Commander’ still felt strange to him despite leadership roles he had taken over the years. Hell, it took him a few months to get used to ‘sensei’ back when his first and last team, Squad Six, was active.

“It’s Takeo to you Teuchi. How’s your daughter?”

“Ayame? Oh, she’s doing swell, we both are. Truth be told business has been a little slow today, but you’ve more than made up for it!” Teuchi leaned over the counter and moved his left hand over his mouth. Takeo knew what was coming.

“Have you reconsidered marrying Ayame? You know she has a small crush on you, and—“

“Dad,” Ayame popped her head out of the back room where Teuchi had kept most of his supplies for running. Although she had admired Takeo as a shinobi and as a man, she wasn’t sure about the idea of marriage, and her father always made sure to tease her about it. “I don’t think Mr. Watanabe came here to hear you try to pitch me to him!” a blush was bright on the girls face regardless.

“What, I would never!” Teuchi recovered, leaning back and laughing and Takeo had joined in. If he didn’t know any better, it was as if these two had no idea where he had been. They did good work. “Now, what can I get you?”

“Eh, surprise me …nothing too filling.”

“Coming right up!”

Takeo nodded and glanced towards the only other pair within this stand. A woman he had recognized as a member of the opposing faction to the Empire, and a man who was unaffiliated with anyone whatsoever. Konohagakure’s network of information had never run dry even after the Empire had taken a hold of it, and Takeo made it a habit to get to remember the face of just about everyone who was and wasn’t in this fight. He looked to Matsuka, and grinned at her, not hiding his amusement at the current situation regardless of what they were talking about prior.

“Matsuka, I didn’t take you for a cougar. He barely looks like he’s half your age.”

Heihachi followed as Seijuro expected, and in the moment it took Heihachi to enter Sage Mode Seijuro made a single one-handed seal and awaited the Sage's entry. He was either very foolish or very confident in himself. Once the old man locked eyes with Seijuro, his eyebrows narrowed and a sly smirk crept across his face. His eyes bounced up and down the Sage, and back to his eyes. The legends were true, he was a man built like a house from the ground up but had the elegance of water. The way he carried himself... yes, this reaffirmed Seijuro's choice to seek him out. However, he wasn't sold on the old man just yet...

CRACK! Seijuro disappeared from his spot in an instant leaving cracks in the ground in his wake, a white-cloaked blur rocketing at the Jellyfish Sage with murderous intent. The hand seal Seijuro used prior would cause Heihachi to react a fraction of a second later later to his movements, as the moment Heihachi walked into the warehouse his focus was on Seijuro, their eyes had met, allowing his Magen: Shiyoutenshindo to take effect. When paired with the speed of his Shinsoku it made it so only the Shinobi with true analytical skill and optimal reaction timing could dodge.

By the time Seijuro was upon the Sage his Ozorou no Tantou had been summoned to his hands, each of them coming across Seijuro's body in an X-shaped attac on Heihachi's torso. His eyes remained locked on Heihachi's, even in the midst of an attack he was gazing into the thoughts of his prey. But why was Seijuro doing this? Attacking a high-ranking rebel was serious and he was spelling out his own death if he was really about to cause a scene in the middle of Konoha even if it was in some abandoned warehouse. Yet Seijuro attacked without hesitation or explanation. It was all part of his plan, after all.

It was morning…or afternoon. Taho wasn’t sure, he was sure that he was awake now though. At least as sure as one can be about anything in this uncertain and nebulous world filled with illusion and false truths incapable of being recognized as such due to the limitations of an individual’s perception. Sure the sun was up, but was the sun something that was out in the morning, or was it something that came out at night? What even was the sun, and why did people assume that just because it came up in the morning and set in the evening that it would do so again. Past performance is no guarantee of future results… not that Taho remembered the past.

Yawning the youth raised his one hand up and stretched. He was in a strange room, one he did not recognize. It was not a terribly interesting room, just a room with walls and a floor and some random furnishings. Was it his room, or someone else’s room? Well it didn’t matter either way; all that did matter was that he was here now, and that he was going to leave the room. There were clothes on the floor.

He had not been sleeping on a bed, but rather on the thatch floor of the apartment. His body itched from the floor. There was no blanket or pillow, although as he looked around he noticed a lot of trash on the ground. Cans, cups, and there was even a goat and a dog lying down in the corner of the room. Ignoring the trash and animals he picked up his pants with his one hand and started to dress himself. The process was a bit awkward, at least when one considered what it was like to dress oneself with two hands, but he found himself getting dressed in a simple outfit without terrible difficulty.

His clothes, much like the room, were not interesting. He wore a white t-shirt made from cotton and a pair of blue jeans with black tennis shoes. The clothes were clean, and he was unsure that they were even his, but they fit nice enough. There was nothing in the pockets of the pants, and there were no pouches or anything special where he could hold stuff even if he did have something. It was a very different outfit than a ninja would wear.

Deciding that he didn’t want to be here anymore, wherever this place was, Taho trudged through the garbage until he reached the door. Stepping out he made his way into a hall. There was a door on one end of the hall and some stairs leading upwards on the other end. Several other doors lined the walls of the hallway, each possessing a number. As Taho headed towards the door at the end of the hallway he heard and smelled a great many things that he was uninterested in, food and conversation that he would never get to take part in. Making his way out of the doorway he stepped out into a warm and bright day.

It was almost blinding, but after a few moments his eyes adjusted and he could see the village that lay outside of the apartment. Konohana spread out in the open sun was…well, It was a village. Even though he didn’t remember seeing this sight he wasn’t too terribly interested in it. There was a nice breeze that blew as he came outside, he liked that, and for a moment he stood in that breeze and let it caress his face and blow through his hair. With that the memories of the apartment and what he had been doing were gone.

His stomach growled and Taho realized he was hungry. He reached into his pocket to grab his wallet, but nothing was there. That was troublesome, he should have a wallet, he was supposed to keep that on him. Maybe he had just lost it, but he couldn’t recall where he had been today. Well he would come up with something when he reached that one place that had the good food, where was it again? Well wandering around aimlessly had probably worked out for him in the past, so why presumably change now.

Taking off Taho turned down this alleyway and that one confusedly. He went this way and that way and this way again quickly forgetting which way he had started and from where he had come. Not that it really bothered him; all he cared about at the moment was getting some food. In his mind his current location and his inability to eat were divorced so completely that they had nothing to do with one another.

Ryozan nodded at Matsuka's retort about a ramen stand being a bad place to set up an ambush. She was clearly well-versed in the art of war, and was definitely worthy of her rank of jounin, but Ryozan was beginning to enjoy this hypothetical duel too much to just let it rest at that. Besides, now he had the feeling that she was pretty firmly opposed to the Empire, if not an outright rebel. Why would a supporter's fingers need to be a mere flick away from opening a summoning scroll just from being in the presence of one holding an imperial document? It revealed hostility toward the empire, and was far from a submissive posture to take. She certainly fit the demeanor of a rebel. Still, Ryozan decided to continue with the hypothetical scenario: "You are assuming of course that said backup is not in said ramen stand." That didn't come out right; it didn't sound nearly as ominous in his head. Fortunately a quirky old man arrived to diffuse some of the tension.

Ryozan recognized the man as Takeo Watanabe, a highly distinguished shinobi in Konohagakure, as well as other parts of the world; the leaf symbol carved into his shoulder guard made his identity unmistakable. What surprised the young jounin, though, was that such a distinguished figure would make such a lewd comment. "With all due respect sir, you are mistaken," he said, not at all flustered since it was pretty obvious that he was just trying to tease his friend... his friend. The gears were turning now. If Matsuka was allied with the rebels, and Takeo was her friend, it was likely that he would be a rebel as well... or at least unhappy to see someone with an imperial scroll. Was he one of those who would be happy to put a blade in his side? Being surrounded by elite jounin was a bit more than he had bargained for; perhaps now was the time to take Matsuka's advice and tuck the scroll away... No. It was too late for that now. A shinobi like Takeo would easily see such a reckless move. Doing nothing with the scroll would be the least suspicious thing he could do now. Well, that and taking another bite of ramen.