---

"I don't think I've been in a fight that bad for a long time. Damn myself; I almost hope the Lady Commander berates me for this one. I feel like such a fool; in the heat of battle, I'd let myself forget about the Hyuga clan and the Byakugan. At least I have the information about that unknown kekkei genkai." Nori was a mess after that fight. The side of his stomach felt like hell, though he didn't feel like he had suffered any permanent damage from the strike besides heavy bruising. He was thankful he didn't try to block it; he probably would have ended up with a broken arm, and to hell with the rest of the mission, and probably his excuse for a career. And then he'd almost gotten himself blown right-the-hell-up after escaping. Did one of them try to escape and trap them? It was a good thing he had brought those clones. The one in front of him had managed to trigger it, and it gave him the window needed to replace himself with the clone behind him.

So now he was down two clones, hurt in the side, and pretty irritated. He wasn't arrogant about his fighting skills though; the Hyuga just had the means to beat him, and he was outnumbered. Hopefully he'd managed to save that redhead. It didn't appear as though he'd been followed though, or if he had, they were taking their sweet time to stop him. A bad idea, as now he had gotten close enough to see the Lady Commander in the midst of a fight. Some kunoichi, some lightning bow. Her pet newt wasn't around for some reason, but it wasn't making much of a difference. The fight was going well in her favor.

He made himself off to the side of the building until the fight subsided, using the time to summon up a spare naginata. They weren't exactly easy to make, but he did keep a few extra for certain situations. It wasn't long until Seijo declared the fight with the girl over, asking Katsuko to step in for her. He was perhaps just as scary as the Lady Commander at times. As soon as the declaration was made though, considering Katsuko was coming in, he made his way out and sprinted towards her. "Lady Commander Tametomo! I have something to report from the back lines!"

---

Chieko smiled wolfishly as she stepped back from another fallen ninja. The poor idiot never stood a chance against the likes of her. She turned her head and looked around. Most of the Red Sages were in retreat. All except those at the main building. Chieko briefly toyed with the idea of going there, but decided not to. Expecially when she kept spotting red hair. Each time her stomach did a little flip-flop. But thankfully none of them were Noriko or Umary.

Umary was intelligent. She'd know better than to be here. Not in the middle of a battle. Noriko on the other hand was bound to be in the middle of it. Which was where Cheiko was not going to go. Decision made the young girl bounded off to find another ninja to fight, or to do something to stave off the perpetual boredom. Her two lightning clones followed her, they had taken a loss two fights ago.

Chieko paused as she spotted a group of fighters. One of them had peculiar looking clones. Very snazzy and he looked like fun. A corner of her mouth tilted upwards, the closest she ever came to smiling. She crouched down, ready to spring into the group when a redheaded shinobi turned.

Noriko.

Chieko's mouth went dry and the girl ducked behind a stall to hide herself from sight. That had been too close. Had she been noticed?

---

Umary swallowed thickly as a head appeared followed by a body. When the man fully emerged Umary raised the needled she had prepared and tossed them in his direction. Luck wasn't with her as he ducked down just as she threw. The needles sailed over his head harmlessly as the earth began to shake.

And shake.

Even with directing her chakra into her feet she found it impossible to keep her feet as the ground crumbled under her. As she lost her footing and began to fall she reached into her pouch and pulled out her poison smoke bomb and lobbed it in his direction with a mental prayer.

Then she hit the ground, hard. She curled up in a ball and concentrated on trying to mitigate the injuries she could already feel herself getting from falling stone off the ceiling. He was trying to bring the whole building down!

---

Noriko stemmed the tide of chakra and the fireball vanished. She shifted her sword as the ninja jumped over aforementioned fire ball. However he didn't engage, instead he fled. The redhead scanned the battle ground, quickly spotting another ninja, a Confederate she recognized, Tatsuya. Another Konoha ninja.

Noriko hadn't been surprised by the erratic behavior from what had turned out to be a clone. Everyone had heard about Tatsuya's rather eccentric behaviors back at home. The flash and bang wasn't appreciated and she made a mental note to punch the shinobi if he was still alive. After all he deserved it. Noriko surveyed the ground once more before turning back to the other shinobi and the civilians, her sword held downwards but still unsheathed. Most had fled only a small distance and were coming back to what they perceived as safety.

"Is anyone hurt?" Noriko asked as she looked the civilians over. Apart from looking terrified, they all appeared to be okay. True to her observations they all gave various kinds of assent from nodding their heads or vocalizing their words. Satisfied no one was going to die on her she turned to the shinobi who had aided her.

"What's your name?" Noriko asked also looking him over. He also looked intact. "Are you going to be okay here?" Her eyes were already scouting out the field, picking out new spots where she might be needed. Mainly her eyes were focused on the building under assault. Her lips pressed into a thin line. Fighting around the grounds was coming to a head. Reinforcements were on their way undoubtedly.

---

Tsugi had spent the good part of the next hour or so helping around the small-folk as much as he can, a task rather daunting for he knew very little of medicine other than the very basics of first aid. Many had burns and small cuts, others sported minor concussions and sprained limbs, but some unlucky few were hanging around death's front-yard, unsure if they should go knock. And to these few unfortunate souls he could do very little but offer a shoulder and a first-aid kit in assistance before actual medical ninjas arrived to pick up on his incompetence. Still he roamed around, his haze clones long been dismissed, seeking others. Honestly, this wasn't in his job description, technically it was as he was just a contract ninja, but for the few months he had been assigned posts gathering intelligence. For the sake of such, he had liberally applied his brand interrogation genjutsu on any Red Sage he was able to incapacitate, but they were small fry. They simply had vague accounts on masked recruiters telling them of a planned assult and distributing Red Arm bands all the while making sure the were ready. All information that were painfully obvious now.

Still patrolling the streets and his mind heavy with hypothesis and speculation on the attacks he still failed to notice the minuscule drain on his chakra as he sported around a Hyuga's form. All the while running atop the roofs of buildings he turned to spot some victorious looking Shinobi of the proud confederacy. His eyes brightened a bit knowing other loyal citizens were doing their part to assist the citizenry. He landed beside the 2 and gave a quiet smile and wave. He spoke in succinct, short, soft, but amicable sentences,

"Comrades. You do the Confederacy proud. For that you have my respect. The battle is nearly won," he noticed the Tall-Redhead female staring into the Direction of Central Command and continued "In short time the Central Compound will also be secure." He noticed the incapacitated Red Sages on the ground, he glared at the traitors and got to work tying their limbs and body with rope, afterwards mumbling "This will not take long." He was quick about it, this task being a common practice in his work. He awoke the traitors making sure they knew what situation they had themselves in, and placed a firm palm upon their foreheads and began the process of his Interrogation Jutsu. The traitors eyes slowly rolled to the back of their heads as Tsugi's will were enforced on their own, the Jutsu's main purpose was gathering information, but a side benefit of having to breakdown the mental barriers was that if too much force was applied, can leave the victim's mind scarred and battered making them too fearful and weak willed to have anymore traitorous thoughts. They struggled for a short bit, but Tsugi was well enough a master in these arts; they can scream and protest all they want, but traitors need to be broken.

@KenyeIsMyLife@Blue Demon

---

Masato took a deep breathe, though he had to resist the urge to close his eyes during the action, collecting his thoughts after what appeared to be a clone decided to jump into the fray. While he did appreciate the assistance he was upset by the fact that the boy had risked not only their safety but the safety of the civilians as well with the ball of lava that had been launched at their opponent. His discontentment with the situation likely would have been less severe if the jutsu had destroyed it’s intended target, but once everything calmed down it was clear that the enemy shinobi had replaced himself. Now not only did the clone use a fairly dangerous technique, but they also had no idea where their foe had ran off to. If he ever ran into the confederate shinobi whose clone had acted so recklessly he would have some choice words for him.

Focusing his mind back to the present concern, Masato flicked four fingers of his right hand as he spoke. ”Assassin, return to me and stand down.” While the last part may not have seemed necessary he had rarely used the Assassin in a live combat exercise and was unsure how specific his instructions needed to be, and he was unwilling to risk it continuing to be in an offensive state. Fortunately the construct obeyed his commands exactly, returning to his side at a rapid speed and sheathing it’s tanto before going into an inactive state. Breathing a momentary sigh of relief he began scanning the nearby buildings hoping to catch even a glimpse of their adversary. While doing so he couldn’t help but wish, not for the first time, that he had any skill as a sensor as it would make things so much easier.

His search was interrupted however by the approach of both the kunoichi that had aided him as well as the civilians, who it turned out had not made it that far and apparently believed that the safest place for them was with him and the red haired woman. After she finished with her questions Masato smiled slightly while bowing his head. ”I am Masato Saruwatari, thank you for your assistance. If you believe there is somewhere you are needed more then I will not ask you to stay. I have confidence in my Assassin, if our foe returns it will be able to keep him busy at the very least. Before you go though may I ask your name?”

Before he could get a response from his companion they were joined by yet another shinobi, this one however was one of theirs. Masato took in all of the information given to them by their new ally and gave him a slight head bow as well. ”This is welcome news, though I find it hard to believe that things will swing in our favor as easily as your words convey. We must remember that our adversaries are fighting for a cause that they would give their lives for. That kind of dedication cannot be underestimated.” With his piece said, and the other male turning his attention to the two men that had been dealt with earlier, Masato turned his focus back on the flame haired kunoichi.

---

Hamajo Confederate, Engaging Rebels

---

Akio cursed under her breath as her opponent escaped using Substitution jutsu. The white haired jounin didn't have much time to wonder about where she went, as the rebel leader had appeared above withheld fist drawn back to deliver a punch to her head. Not much for Taijutsu in the best of circumstances, Aiko quickly dodged away from the attack, just barely avoiding the hit by the skin of her teeth. And by the looks of the damage she did to the roof with the punch, it was quite the strike.

She didn't have time to rest, however, as she was soon faced with a hail of shurikens hurtling towards her as she backed away. Luckily, the building wasn't very large and this she fell over the side of the building, flipping over in the air until she landed on the ground below, reinforcing her legs with chakra to ensure they could withstand the force of the fall. She had barely caught the silverette's words, but she'd heard enough to get rather annoyed with this younger woman. While she was still hidden behind the building , she ran through a stream of hand seals before holding her hands out in front of her. Heat would soon gather and intensify between her outstretched appendages until she held a glowing sphere of raw heat and energy in her hands, the orange orb pulsating with barely contained power.

Now ready to engage, Akio would run out to engage the enemy once again, focusing on Seijo specifically. Her plan was to rush in and smash this orb right into the woman's back, but if anyone got in her way as she made her way forward, she'd be quick to hit then in her place, smacking the orb into them to release the devastating shockwave of heat and power, likely to send the culprit and anyone within the 5m blast radius flying away from her and surely leaving then with more than a slight burn to remember her by.

"Katon: Shatter Force!"

After launching the attack against Seijo or her underlings, Akio would maneuver attempt to maneuver her away around any who's been able to withstand the blast or defend against it, ultimately resulting to Substitution if need be with the leader herself, before running through another set of hand seals.

"Ration: Thunderbolt!"

She'd cry out as electricity gathered in her hands before shooting out to strike at evey Red Sage outside of the building with dozens of lightening bolts. After launching the attack, she'd be a little fatigued, the use if several jutsu tiring her a bit, but she'd be ready to react to whatever these rebels through at her next She also couldn't help but respond to Seijo earlier comment as well.

"Funny, you took the words right out of my mouth, Seijo. Though I must say, considering what I heard about your late-brother, I was expecting something . . . more. I wonder if you're even half the commander he was, though that didn't get him very far, did it?" She'd spit the woman's name out mockingly before turning to look over at Yakoul, who she had just noticed, an irritated expression spreading across her features as she sent a light glare their way. "Anytime you want to step in would be much appreciated, Yakoul _{Lazy psychotic cat bastard}" The last part she'd say under her voice, not particularly caring if Yakoul heard her muttering a or not as she prep for retaliation. This leader didn't seem to be the cool headed type to think things through, so maybe she could use that to her advantage to draw things out until Confederation reinforcements show up, or something of that manner that would let them capture/kill the so called "Lady Commander" of the Red Sages.

What a stupid title.

@Partisan

@j8cob

@Hatman1801

@Savato

[@Any other Red Sages in the area of this fight

---

So she is an Uchiha was the first thing Setsuko thought of before actually processing what Higoho had said.

Why I expected anything other than an arrogant answer is beyond me.

Setsuko looked towards the direction where the Hyuga had walked off to, and decided to follow to keep from letting him get what he seemed to want. As she follow him up the stairs she couldn't help but look at some of the fallen soldiers who had given their lives for the battle. At one point she had stopped to bend down, and close the eyes of one shinobi who looked to be around his 40's as well as another who looked much younger than the man before; a bit older than her from the looks of it.

"Rest." she murmured to herself as she stood back up to take a look at some of the other bodies. "All of you."

Setsuko turned away from the bodies that could make one go insane, and continued on to where Higoho would be. As she made it to the top she could see a few people that were fighting which overwhelmed her to an extent. "Wha-" she whispered as she tried to get a sense of what was going on, but had no idea who half of the people were. The first, and main one to catch her attention was a...cat? Human? "Who-" she whispered once again as she tried to comprehend what that thing was. At the same time she was trying to figure out what it was Setsuko felt a chill run up her spin simply because it looked like something she didn't want to mess with. Note to self: Look away, and pretend you never saw it. Maybe this'll be the only time you'll see that thing Setsuko, so look away. As she looked away her eyes then fell upon a red-haired individual who was closer to the building than they were, and figured she'd have to tell him that the fight needed to end soon though how she would do that was beyond her since he looked to be ready to join the fight. Setsuko sighed as she placed one hand on her hip, and muttered to herself. "Well, I do like fighting, but there's too many people in this one for me to enjoy it especially if I don't even know who is who."

"Higoho," she said as she looked away from the battlefield in front of them to look at the fellow Hyuga."I was told to tell the others that this fight needs to end quickly." she then nudged him with her fist on his left shoulder to get his attention. "Meaning we should assist them in what we can." No regrets. "After all, you're strong so do something with it instead of standing here like an idiot." Maybe just one regret.

The blue-haired girl let out a sigh of relief when Kanata confirmed that she could rescue Aneko. That was good. Mirai would have a very hard time living without her servant. She didn't know how to cook, clean, or manage time. She was surprisingly dependent on another person for someone who was pretty much an adult, though not just physically but also emotionally. Aneko was like a mother to her, or at least more of a mother than her own mother was. The wave of relief vanished when the demon mask clattered nearby. It was the one that the man who defeated her wore. It was creepy, even though the mask itself was silly and probably not actually scary to even children. And then for some reason Kanata decided to keep it, stowing it away. "Why are you..."

Then she felt the weight and pressure on her metal shoulder. A chilling and creepy presence had appeared behind the two girls. When Mirai actually looked back to see the source of the voice mocking them, she instantly recognized who it was. "Y-yakoul-sama," she let out. The strange, cat-like man(?) was one of the famous generals of the Confederation. It was his army that defeated Konohagakure and solidified the Confederation's status as the global power. It was a powerful creature, but this was the first time Mirai got to meet it in person. And something the history lessons never taught was that Yakoul was very creepy. "A s-speech? Why not just... beat them?"

It was a weak suggestion, but it was the only thing Mirai could think up on the spot. She wasn't good with people, let alone with bolstering morale like a general must have to be. There wasn't much advice she could give him, though she wasn't really aware that he didn't expect anything from her. Once he let go of her shoulder she felt the wave of anxiety leave with his hand. His presence was something terrifying, even if they were working together. Apparently Kanata was a lot more uppity once she was free of Yakoul's grip, vocalizing her offense to his remark about her lack of bust. I'm thankful I don't have to deal with being too small or too big, Mirai briefly thought to herself, but dispelled the thoughts as the mist was raised. It was time for action. Yakoul would fight, Mirai and Kanata would regroup with more loyal shinobi after rescuing Aneko, and they would beat the Red Sages back with the combined might of the Confederation's stationed troops. "Let's do this..."

---

Turns out he didn't need to find any tags. Or rather: Katsuko didn't have to find anything. Yuudai made his way into the building and was wreaking havoc quite nicely judging by the tremors. That barrier will come down any second at this rate. That sleazy bastard that killed Tarara is gonna get it. Even better the mist began to rise, allowing Katsuko to look back towards the entrance of the building and get a gauge of how the battlefield had changed since he could last see. Firstly, Seijo had engaged with a single Confederation kunoichi (she better not lose). Secondly, there was two girls and a cat-like person preparing some kind of attack against the Red Sages. Katsuko narrowed his eyes in their direction. "Yakoul..." He recognized the general well. He was from Konoha, he even fought when Yakoul invaded all those years ago. This evil, twisted creature was the one that brought Konoha to its knees. Now's our chance. I'll kill that bastard and then-

"Hey, Katsuko! If that girl tries to get at me again, show her how strong you are. Impress me." His enraged focus was broken and he looked over to the Lady Commander. The captain clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. Damn her. She's playing with me. She knows she can pick at my pride. Now I have no choice! With a groan of frustration, Katsuko made one large bound across the courtyard and slammed into the ground next to Seijo. "Doton: Doryuheki!" The incoming orb of heat and chakra that was aimed towards Seijo would find itself crashing into a large wall of earth that erupted from the ground in front of Katsuko. The resulting explosion shattered the wall and sent dust and debris flying a small distance, but both Katsuko and Seijo behind it were unscathed. "One day..." Katsuko muttered under his breath, standing upright from his previous position to search for the culprit of the attack.

He heard the crackle of electricity and looked up in time to see the bolts coming towards him and Seijo. My wall won't stop lightning attacks. Katsuko held his left arm out and leaped backwards from the destroyed earth wall. In this manner he was able to do two things: dodge the bolt aimed for him and use his arm to push Seijo away from the bolt that targeted her. He didn't put much force in his maneuver, so as to avoid knocking his boss over and instead just giving her a light shove forward as he moved backwards. "Alright then," he spoke up to Seijo, this time at an adequate volume. "Get your ass in the building then and help that kid."

"I'll handle all of these guys."

Katsuko stood and faced the general direction of Akio, Yakoul, Kanata, and Mirai. He stood between them and Seijo and took a fighting stance. He kept stretched his left arm towards them with his palm facing them, curling his fingers in slightly, as his right arm was tucked in close to his ribs and placed his hand in a similar pose but in front of his chest instead. His legs relaxed and took a wide stance with his left foot forward and his hips somewhat lower to the ground than most forms. His gaze became fierce as his eyes darted from Akio to Yakoul. "You people... really make me mad." He closed his eyes, only for a moment. "I won't let anyone get in Seijo's way. None of you can get past me." In retrospect, that sounded a bit corny, Katsuko. Oh well. When the red-haired jonin opened his eyes they were no longer their signature red. Instead the irises had turned golden and almost seemed to have a glow about them. But, for those who saw this change, they would instantly detect a sinking feeling in their gut. The inexperienced wouldn't recognize it, but the shinobi who were very familiar with their chakra would understand that it was being drained. They may also realize that the sensation goes away the moment they look away from his eyes, or at any rate they would hopefully figure that out in some fashion.

"Who wants to die first?"

---

Seijo stopped in her tracks, not looking back or sideways to see what had happened. She had heard footsteps approaching but not bothered to check for them - followed by the large boom caused by Katsuko, and the even larger boom caused by the technique hitting earth. Only then, when Katsuko had lowered the earthen wall and saw the lightning bolt, did she look back. She had heard the lightning cackle as well, not waiting for Katsuko to push her while she jumped slightly to the side at the last moment, dodging the lightning bolt. While she was going to enter the rubble before, and find the commander, she felt slightly annoyed by this white haired witch.

“Hai, you're right. Tarara was stronger than me. And Tarara is dead. But he wasn't killed by you - you'd wish that wouldn't you. Fact of the matter is, even if I'm not as strong as Tarara, he was still miles above you, and that means that I am, too.” After letting Akio know what she thought, she looked back at Nori, glancing at him shortly before looking back at Akio. “Alright, let me know while I end this girls life.” she'd answer him, moving both her hands slowly towards her back, where another of her pouches was located.

As her hands went into the pouch she used a clever trick that she'd picked up while practicing with Arima. Maybe that sucker wasn't so useless. Crossing her fingers, she performed a jutsu inside of the pouch, and then another. She then grabbed a hold of the 6 shuriken, of which two were shadow clones of her, which had been transformed into shuriken with the henge no jutsu. A relatively simple trick, really, but extremely useful. She threw the shuriken at the girl, meanwhile shouting out to Katsuko. “Katsuko, let's go.” indicating to him that he had to attack as well. Seijo had more important things than upholding honour right now, and was relying on Yudai to at least keep the commander in his eyes while she went to destroy this puny girl. Simultaneously she'd already started forming her handseals for the next technique, which would be meant to incapacitate Akio.

The shuriken approached rapidly, when two of the most outward ones would poof and suddenly appear as Seijo, racing towards Akio at a tremendous speed, fist extended towards Akio in unison. If the four remaining shuriken weren't enough to distract her, the two shadow clones were. And in case Akio simply attempted to dodge them, the Shadow Clones would simply follow her ofcourse and just try to continue hitting her. Yes, fighting can be that simple.

Atleast Seijo knew that her chakra reserves were still practically complete - she'd only used a few non intensive jutsu so far. As she finished her three handseal string of seals, she leaned back slightly and placed her hand on her mouth, palm facing towards the front, before leaning in and exhaling. As she exhaled, hundreds of spores flew from her palm, twisting her body to the right as she blew out to further spread the spores more and more towards Akio as well as in her path in case she was escaping. As the spores left the mouth, they were visible clearly, but the further they went, the less visible they became. As Seijo was satisfied she stood up straight again, looking over the field ahead of her. It would be practically impossible for Akio to avoid this technique completely at that point in time - skin contact would cause a painful burning sensation, and inhaling any spores at all would cause the airway to enlarge. Breathing was a necessary thing to life.. though the effects weren't quick enough to kill her within a day, or even a few days. Never the less, her breathing would become heavier and heavier until she would find herself unable to exert herself physically, likely forcing her to retreat if she even got that far. Though, given that she'd ordered Katsuko to also attack, she figured there wouldn't be much chance left for this cheeky brat.

Seijo would simply turn towards the rubble after that, before jumping off with high speed towards it, landing on some nearby rubble and standing directly near Yudai while scanning the rubble for any signs of that commander bastard. In a deep crevice she spotted a wounded shinobi - wounded? Looked more like an unconscious runt. - with red hair. But why was she laying in a ball like that? Eh. No matter. She pointed at Yudai quickly, not wanting to stick around for the Confederate reinforcements, before pointing at the girl. “Yudai! Take her prisoner, kill her, or do something with her. Let's not leave people laying around like that.” Her eyes would flash all over the rubble before spotting a dark figure trying to get away. He was bleeding, like a pig in a slaughterhouse. Seijo grinned before jumping off, landing on top of the man who replied with a loud OUMPH! She bent over and grabbed his collar, stepping off of him before lifting him up. The man was either knocked out, or simply didn't want to face Seijo. Regardless, she threw him down before biting her thumb and forming seals, summoning Neki the Newt again.

In a large pood the Newt appeared, visibly annoyed it'd been summoned again. But it was given no time to complain, simply being barked at with an order. “Neki, take him. I want to..” “Aaaaarima-san already captured a politician, Tomotameee-sama...” it bouldered, being met with a mph from Seijo as she pondered her options then. “Fine. Go home.” she said before releasing him from his duty. She once again reached over and grabbed the commander of the 11th corps, dragging him with her as she approached the compound center. Arriving on the scene, she dumped him down in front of everyone to see - and without a warning drew a kunai and dug it into his skull, before taking it out and digging it in again, deeper this time. Bone cracked as the skull was penetrated, giving the man no chance at survival.

Seijo sighed deeply, with a high pitched wind in it, as if she'd just been relieved of something she'd been wanting to do for a long, long time. She took a moment for herself, relying on the others to guard her as she stood by, looking over those that were around. “Right, Sages. Let's go.” It was quite a strange thing to do - they had achieved their goal, but there were still Confederate Shinobi around. Perhaps she wasn't frightened of them chasing her, or the Red Sages, or perhaps she was confident enough to think that they'd not attack her at least, and probably not the others either.

She quickly jumped off, heading towards the same area she had came from when they initiated the attack.

---

---

“Ah.” Higoho answered to Setsuko, slightly annoyed that she'd followed him, but not bothered enough to make it a point. Slowly he bent through his knees as he watched Katsuko tank a direct hit from Akio on his earthen shield. “No. The Red Sages have reached their goal - trying to stop them now would lead only to more deaths which we can't justify. They've destroyed the compound main building, and now they'll have the commander. Nobody will be fast enough to stop it.” he said whilst scanning the battlegrounds with his Byakugan. He looked into the rubble too, trying to discern who was trapped under it. Nobody important from what he could see.

“Besides, that guy there,” he said, pointing at Katsuko with his finger, before retracting it and standing up on his feet again, raising him about a head height above Setsuko. “He's fast enough to stop anyone from interfering with their commander whilst she goes looking for the commander.” His byakugan flashed slightly to the left, where Yakoul was. He looked closely at what the cat was doing, not scared of it like Setsuko was. “And that is Yakoul. It doesn't seem interested in stopping the Red Sages that much. And if that is what it's planning, I don't plan to interfere. I don't like the 11th corps anyway.” he'd say, turning away from the battle completely now and heading down the stairs again. “Have you never seen those 11th corps creeps stalking outside our clan compound at night? Perhaps they've even seen you shower. Who knows, with those creepy guys.” He put his hands behind his head as he walked down, satisfied with a days work. Perhaps he hadn't managed to stop the Red Sages, but that probably would've been impossible given the speed at which Seijo and Katsuko had reached the main compound. All in all, he'd defeated two shinobi in the mist, saved the Uchiha girl, let Setsuko know she was an idiot for being late.. that's a good day by anyone's book.

As he walked down the stairs he noticed.. himself? Standing in the distance? What the .. his mouth quickly turned downwards and his eyebrows turned inwards, showing his anger. His feet carried him much quicker than they had before, stepping quickly towards the boy that looked like him. “BASTARD! WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, PRETENDING TO BE ME?” he'd shout aggressively, preparing himself to attack. He seemed to be preparing himself for a vacuum palm, the same technique he had used earlier to deal with Mikoto, but something was different.

As he reached Tanji - the fake Higoho - he pushed his hand forwards, shouting loudly for all nearby to hear. “EIGHT TRIGRAMS MOUNTAIN CRUSHER!” before launching a large wave of chakra into the opponent. The technique he had performed was not at maximum capability, obviously, but Higoho was angry, so Tanji was bound to suffer the consequences.

---

The results proved better than expected. He managed to put many shinobi at bay, and the better - with a single technique. Sadly, he wasn't going to be let unharmed. A shuriken had lodged itself onto the back of his left arm, thankfully, not so deep to hinder his movements - but still painful. Stopping the earthquake, Yudai noticed something coming onto his direction - a poison bomb, together with many shuriken and kunai alike, apparently he caught every shinobi's attention with his little earthquake show, which had ceased by now.

"Doton, Doryūheki!

A sudden solid wall appared a few meters in front of Yudai, stopping every projectile. He redirected his attention behind them, right after, when a shinobi attacked him from behind with a kunai in his hand. Crap... The attack came pretty fast, but Yudai managed to save his life through the use of his signature technique. From his arms, an immense protective barrier of solid earth raised itself, stopping the shinobi and knocking him back, enough to give Yudai time to breath. Which he did, heavily. His chakra resources were being drained pretty fast with the many techniques he used, but Red Sages started to enter the area, finally - one of them taking on the one Confederate shinobi that had attacked Yudai.

Seijo, then, appeared. Beautiful as always, ordering him around AS ALWAYS. Not that was a problem, though. Yudai mentally nodded, but he just stood still for a few seconds, his eyes searching for the red-haired girl from before. Hm.

"She has already left." The boy formed a handseal, veeeery slowly sinking onto the ground. So, it was time to retreat - which Yudai was already doing. No point standing around. Quickly enough, the boy disappeared from sight, moving underneath the ground to leave this area before it was too late.

---

---

Kaori swiftly made her way through the battlefield. The majority of red sages began to flee, but there was one - a white-haired woman, that fought against a Confederation jounin in a building, until the latter leapt off it, onto the ground. Kaori arrived the scenary at that point, but kept a good distance. Something told her that she shouldn't meddle with their fight, those shinobi were on a whole different caliber than Kaori. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the Hyuga... attacking himself? Strange, but she just shrugged it off. Perhaps his arrogance was coupled up with a level if insecurity and self-hate, who knew.

Still, Kaori had enough time to see the commander getting a kunai straight into his skull. Twice. The sound was disgusting and the scenery wasn't any nicer; Kaori flinched, her eyes narrowing slightly. How could they get so far, was beyond her understanding.

Yakoul beamed at Tanaka like a child enthusiastically smiling over achieving something. It even blushed so much it was charmed by how she behaved, picturing her like those annoyingly loud minuscule poodles barking at and harassing a stoic mastiff that could very well just bite off its tongue. She had caught the feline in a good mood and in turn made it like her for some reason. Heck when she complied nonetheless, something an unpredictable tyrant like Yakoul just loved, it wouldn't help but be mesmerized by the impression she was giving.

"Fuck girl, s'cuse my motherfucking French but these Bijuu sized balls you have are more than what I've seen in any man these days."

It flicked her little nose before slowly, almost mechanically, turning its head to the shorter Mirai who questioned the need of a speech. Raising an eyebrow, to the cat it seemed like common sense, or lack of, to make a grandiose speech after such a tragic event to get people all rallied against the Red Sages. She didn't seem strong of will like Tanaka, which didn't matter, because that just made things all too good in an objectified perspective. Mirai would be the introvert and Tanaka the extrovert, blue and red. The coincidence made Yakoul feel like a lucky duck today, though the same couldn't be said about what would happen after. The animal simply patted the maimed shinobi's head before giving a first glance to their 'opponent'.

Burly guy, seems pretty young, and not the leader. To Yakoul he was already fodder who took himself way too seriously and that glaring trick, though having an intimidation factor, didn't do much when realizing the general was well beyond Katsuko's position in the foodchain. Yakoul stepped forward, the tip of its tail caressing Mirai's cheek gently before swiftly sliding over the flat chest of the hothead to get her even more riled up for the upcoming confrontation.

"Fuck me running, this guy's worse than that extremely gay lady that's suppos- Oh wait you're here."

Its attention was so thin that with just the call of its name its left ear perked and oriented itself to the sound in reaction. Yakoul took notice of Akio actually trying to confront something out of her league. It was funny, because her current state as an alcoholic was known among anyone with a brain, even Yakoul. Katsuko had already lost any form of credible presence to the Confederation's general.

"Akio, lesbo dyke cunt eater extraordinaire, the fuck do you think you're doing?"

Yakoul asked, biting down its jaw while moving its articulations to cause a loud crashing noise upon finishing its question. She asked for help, and it didn't really want to. Actually the cat didn't really want these rebels to completely fail, yet. Would suck to just end the game now, not that they would need its help, but it could refrain from making it harder and promote the risks. Then Seijo actually moved her asshole to finally do something about Akio. The spores released toward her could be smelled by the creature from its position, and while it couldn't guess what it'd do, the visible effects it would have on Akio's skin upon contact would make it start laughing while slapping its thigh in humor.

"Pahahahahaha! Oh shit fuck! Guess that burns more than the disgusting bullshit you drink to compensate pussy. Like fucking seriously, fighting the queen bitch? Are you perhaps ... Retarded?"

Scolding Akio, while crashing its jaw again in a bizarre fashion, it kept a solid eye on Katsuko who had the green light to handle Yakoul and the other confederation members around. At least it could see a bit more action, this time with some mad skills in the mix. Speaking of which, it didn't get to see from the two ladies behind it.

"Oi, ladies. Wanna try and handle this cunt while I try to rescue that chickenshit commander?"

It said whilst marching forward without even its guard up, practically walking up to Katsuko as if he were just some harmless ornament, attempting to just pass him so Yakoul could have a better glimpse as to what Seijo and possible some of her colleagues were doing. It almost felt inclined to save the commander at the last minute, even if it completely stole the feline's kill and left a really angry Tametomo on the loose. Though before it would nonchalantly cross paths with Katsuko, it would capture a really gritty and ugly sound. The echo of a crush being stabbed, and quite unfortunately sounded like it came from the leader given her last position.

Upon further inspection, the commander seemed to have indeed had his life taken rather quickly by Seijo. Puffing its cheeks, Yakoul wasn't too happy about this and would even voice it concern. The female commander made it clear for the public to see this death, and Yakoul wasn't anymore surprised by it than it was about its toast burning the other day.

"Uh-huh. For a vengeance that was pretty fucking anticlimactic, queen bitch. Like hell, if you break one of my bobble-heads I'd fucking rip you to shreds for weeks. The fuck are you thinking?! Ugh. Now I have to even the score somehow. Guess I'll go with ...~"

In the middle of a high tension moment where Katsuko could really just strike Yakoul whenever, the animal talked like nothing bad could happen. In a sense it expected the two girls to actually cover it, not that it would need too much assistance. Meanwhile, it simply pointed its index fingers upwards and swung her hand in a small circular motion as it seemed to be randomly choosing something to compensate what Seijo had just done. And out of the blue, the pointed peak of the claw ring wound point directly at Nori who had the misfortune to just want to help his leader.

"You?"

It asked in the most mundane yet sinister fashion possible. The creature's killing intent was pointed directly at Nori's soul, though everyone in the area could feel the cold lust for blood the beast emitted. Cracking its jaw for the third time, it grinned while the boy would understand why it was called the 'Overwhelming' Killing Intent. It didn't move for now, as it didn't actually announce whether it would actually even up the score now or simply make it a future vendetta in which Nori's days would be counted anyway, unless of course something else would catch Yakoul's attention. In other words, he'd have a high chance of survival, especially since Seijo ordered a retreat.

---

---

Sighing in relief, they didn't seem to be actively looking for him at this point, plus things in the compound seemed to go rather well for their leader. Keeping his head low, Arima scouted for possible allies he could fall back with, but many had either already retreated in the shadows or were gravely wounded and in broad daylight. But then, he'd notice her, Chieko. The girl that got his 'game' on a little more than usual, even though she clearly demonstrated her superiority in prowess, Arima always managed to make a better imagine of himself than she did. Nonetheless, he had a thing for her, and seeing her go back into action activated the honorable knight in him.

However, upon noticing how close she had gotten to certain enemies that couldn't see her from their angle unlike him, he'd have the realization of his life. The redhead's face, the reason why she gave this familiar feeling whenever he'd observer her. She'd probably be one of Chieko's siblings, which at first made the boy feel better, until he remembered that he actively tried to kill her. His heart sank and he prayed this wouldn't go viral, even if no one in the Red Sages actually helped him. Speaking of which, he'd likely be bitter and all high and mighty about it back at camp.

Jumping down from the roof he was hiding on, he'd attempt to make a small signal to the powerful young red sage by reflecting light off his boot on her eye, but before he could do it with any success, his cousin would finally make the announcement that they were to retreat. He couldn't see the scene she tried to display due to his attempts to stay hidden, but it meant that either she killed the commander or captured him. In any case, his heart raced as he tried to get Chieko's attention once more, reflecting the ray of light on her eye to annoy her.

"Psst. C'mon. We gotta ditch this place."

Arima whispered once he got her attention, standing right next to a darker alley they could use for a swift escape. His voice was lightly too weak for her to hear, hence why he'd articulate enough for her to be able to read his lips - because he totally removed his mask like an idiot to show off his scar. That and it was likely the best way to get around without being detected or using electronic communication which sometimes had its downsides with his choice of ninjutsu. He kept his eyes wide open, not wanting to hoard anymore glory in this wasted place.

---

To no surprise of anyone on the scene, the loud mouthed Sage fled as soon as he was overcome by the overwhelming odds stacked against him, using a substitution jutsu to slip away from the engagement, but not before spouting more reprehensible garbage at the group of shinobi. That arrogant little gnat had the audacity to taunt them on his retreat though, outright stating that his entire purpose was that of a distraction. There was some method to his madness after all. At least, that's what Zay forced himself to believe. No matter how hard he tried, the silver shinobi couldn't help but think poorly of Mikoto's behavior. Alas, the encounter was over, and in less than a minute, Zay's pool was free of trespassers. He briefly glanced at Tatsuya while sunk into the ground, before turning his attention to Higoho, who was headed towards the confederate compound in the distance, after essentially telling a newly arrived clans-mate to fuck off in a rather petulant tone. What a wretched shinobi. Really though, Zay hadn't been much help in the battle they'd just finished at all, but there wasn't much for him to do. He was much better at supporting against several shinobi at once, and with allies he was familiar with. It didn't really matter though. The battle was won, but what of the war? Zay slowly followed after Higoho, taking in the majority of his pool as he proceeded and retaining as much chakra as he could. As the pool shrunk, his pace picked up slightly, to match Higoho's, albeit from several yards behind.

Zay approached the compound without urgency, stopping at the base of the staircase leading upwards, and noticing the two Hyuga retreating back down the steps. He stood aside and sighed to himself, reabsorbing what little remained of his silver pool. Was the battle over? That couldn't be! What exactly happened up there? Before he could discern the outcome of this horrid battle, the irritable Hyuga boy stepped past him and shouted at the top of his lungs- “EIGHT TRIGRAMS MOUNTAIN CRUSHER!” Zay spun his head towards Higoho, who'd immediately engaged... Himself? Shocking, to say the least. Zay glanced at Setsuko briefly, conflicted on how to react to Higoho's tantrum. There wasn't much reason for him to interfere, and doing so would've been in poor judgement. Besides, anyone foolish enough to approach somebody they were currently disguised as probably deserved to be struck down for their own idiocy. It was probably just a low ranking Red sage shinobi, anyways.

---

Ninko had watched the battle go in amazement at how well the Red Sages had held up against the Confederation forces, this group was definitely a threat. Of course Ninko expected them to eventually call for a retreat since the confederate shinobi greatly outnumbered them in numbers and it seemed clear that winning the battle was probably not their intentions. With the call for the Red Sages to pull back from the battle, Ninko decided that it was time for him to follow them. He quickly headed the way they were headed and made sure to try and not draw attention to himself since he wanted to not have his cover blown by one of his allies.

His eyes were on the lookout for any of the Red Sages who were slow to make their escape and he spotted two of them close by an alleyway. He quickly and covertly made his way over towards them. Ninko wasn't sure how they would react to him, but he had made extra sure to not have any symbols or signs of the Confederation on him, and he was wearing a more civilian style cloak. This is crazy, I'm screwed if they don't believe me when I tell them that I wish to join the Red Sages, he thought to himself. Once he was only a few feet away from Arima who appeared to be trying to get the attention of another shinobi, Ninko spoke up, but he did so quietly.

"Hay, you'd better get out here fast, the Confederate forces will be swarming this whole area soon and they'll have us captured" he said to the Red Sage with a concerned voice. His words definitely had truth to them, after such a conflict the Confederate forces were sure to eventually all over this place to help repair the damage and interrogate any prisoners to get information about their enemies.

@Savato

---

"Kanata, where are you~?" Mikoto sang as he searched for his sister. "Come on out now. If you pissed someone off and are hiding, onii-chan can take care of it for you!"

Welp, no. No signs of Kanata anywhere. He had spotted her before during the festival, along with his mother, so he was sure that at least Kanata was here.

She would've helped their mother after saying 'You are a hag already, so just go hide!' and then come back to the battlefield to see what she could do. Sarcastic and an idiot, but she had a beautiful heart nonetheless, and she was smart enough to run when she knew something meant problems.

Mikoto knew she was all right. He was only searching for her to try and convince her again of joining the Red Sages and get himself a competent partner, and one he was experienced with. It was clear for him that the guy from before tried to help him, but it wasn't like with Kanata, who seemed to be able to read his mind. He needed someone watching his back and Kanata had always been perfect for the role.

Still, when he saw Lady Tametomo preparing to take her leave, Mikoto knew he had no more time to be standing around. The mission was complete, it seemed.

"Shame. It will have to wait for another day." He said to himself with a sigh.

Mikoto landed on top of the building, before he looked down and spotted a familiar redhead.

"Kanata... Well, I've no time already to-" And there was a cat-thing beside her. Why, it was Yakoul. Unlike his sister, Mikoto did recognize the man-cat... cat-man? Kanata always managed to make powerful friends like those, and on the other side there was... Katsuko.

Ha! If Kanata were by herself, she'd already be dead, what with Katsuko having a stick up his ass and whatnot. At least, that was the impression he got from the few times he had seen him.

Mikoto still got the opportunity to see Yakoul point at someone. He turned his gaze to the man in question and saw it was Nori, the guy that had helped him before (of course, Mikoto hadn't heard his name). Since Yakoul had his sights on him, Mikoto had already given him for dead. He decided to delay his retreat a bit and wait to see what happened to the guy.

He had helped him before, and Mikoto considered him a friend for that. If worst came to worst, he'd go help him. Escape, of course. He had no plans of dying today.

---

@Hatman1801

---

The Red Sage from before had decided to turn his attention back to Kanata and the others.

His golden eyes were incredibly intimidating, and Kanata could certainly feel her chakra being, kind of, sucked out. It was rather uncomfortable, but she was unsure of what to do to make it stop.

Close her eyes or avert them? Jump away from here? Splash something at his eyes?

She would try each of them in order.

She closed her eyes tightly to avoid looking at him and, unconsciously, also looked away. Funny, the feeling went away right after that. Was it some kind of dojutsu?

If so, then they would be in a pinch were it not for the fact that Yakoul was with them. It is hard to fight without looking at your opponent's eyes. They reveal a lot.

Just as she was to open them, though, she felt something moving against her chest. Her eyes jolted open only to see Yakoul fooling around.

"WHAT. THE. FUCKING. HELL." Kanata's eyes were filled with disbelief and anger.

It was messing with her. She knew it.

"WHEN WE ARE DONE WITH THIS YOU ARE GONNA BE SOOOOO FUCKED! I CAN THINK OF MORE THAN ONE WAY TO MAKE YOU FEEL SORRY YOU EVER MOCKED MY CHEST! FUCKING CAT, WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE A LITTLE POWER YOU THINK YOU CAN GO AROUND FONDLING PEOPLE'S CHESTS WITH YOUR TAIL?! SERIOUSLY! GO. FUCK. YOURSELF."

Letting her anger vent after that, Kanata started taking deep breaths. She had to calm herself, otherwise it wouldn't be a fight.

Kanata put her right hand forward, with two fingers lifted and then put her left hand close to her heart as guard. She also bent her knees some to run away should things get spiky and Yakoul was defeated. Perhaps the guy in front of them wasn't as much of a blockhead as he looked and could actually think of a way to get past Yakoul.

"I'll cover you from him. Something tells me the girl behind me and I are a good match anyway." Kanata said with a slight smile. They had to defend themselves, regardless. "By the by, the name's Kanata. If we are going to work together, then we need to at least know each other's names, and don't worry, we'll get your friend back."

Kanata tried to reassure Mirai and herself. She just hoped something else happened and they didn't have to fight such a strong looking guy.

---

@j8cob@Savato

---

Nori breathed a small sigh of relief as Lady Tametomo ended it. The commander of the 11th Corps was dead, and the Red Sages had given the Hamajo Confederation a blow that they couldn't brush off so easily. The retreat order was given, and he was more than ready to follow her out and give her his report along the way. He had kept towards the back while the tail end of the fighting occurred, Katsuko and Seijo handling the situation decisively.

Except now, he'd wished he had stayed on the streets, dealing with lesser Confederate shinobi, or even kept getting his ass kicked by Higoho. Because at the moment, he really, really didn't want to be the focus of attention of the enemy General, Yakoul. His gut twisted in an uncomfortable fashion, and the nausea was only made worse by the fact that his side was already bothersome after the Hyuga smacked him. For a moment, he thought the feline had placed him under a genjutsu.

What the hell is wrong? Why is it looking at me like that? Are they going to kill me to avenge the 11th corps commander? I hardly feel like I can move, or breathe...wait. Calm down, Nori. Nori gathered up his thoughts, and rationalized the situation. It was the best way he knew to handle stress, taking in a single, unsteady breath. I don't think I'm under a genjutsu. They aren't attacking me, simply focusing on me out of a crowd. If they do attack and kill me though, then I won't be able to pass on information to Lady Tametomo. The best thing to do right now is to just retreat alongside the rest of the Red Sages. The only control I have over them attacking me is by making myself stand out so they find it worth their time. So, time to just blend in and leave with the others.

Nori quickly turned from Yakoul and leaped after Seijo, who was hopefully willing to fight back if the feline general decided to pursue. He had done his best to suppress the fear of their Killing Intent, and moved on with his duties with a fervor. "Commander Tametomo, I encountered an unusual kekkei genkai during a fight near the back lines of our ranks. I'm not certain if this is a new clan that has allied with the Confederacy, or if it's simply unique to that individual, but by its nature, it could be a threat in the future. I'll explain details later, if you wish." Nori took a glance back, hoping that Yakoul wasn't about to charge after the two of them and turn that killing intent a reality. "There was also a Hyuga present at this festival surprisingly. I only encountered the one, but there could be more. They could track us."

---

He was finishing up gleaning information from the Red Sages as the battle soon drew to a close. Again, not much was gained from his cerebral intrusion, but it always made him smile knowing these traitors got their just deserts. He'd have to confer with the Intelligence Corps and corroborate notes but at least he can rest assured he did good toda-

“BASTARD! WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, PRETENDING TO BE ME?”

Tsugi's eyes went wide as the Hyuga sent a terrifying wave of energy at him, caught unawares and still having his hand on a traitor's forehead, Tsugi took the full brunt of the assault knocking the wind out of him as he skidded across the street, stopping only as his body hit a wall. He wasn't entirely sure what he did wrong, but as his mind went numb, so finally the transformation jutsu did break. As he saw the residual smoke waft away as his transformation dropped, he finally put two-and-two together. "Goddammit, I'm an idiot," he mumbled as he staggered back up unto his feet. No sooner as he did, he immediately regretted it, as the world began to spin under him forcing him to take a knee. The Hyuga was still visibly angry, and honestly he couldn't blame him. All ready on a knee, it made it all the more easier to bring his head, arms and knees to the ground in the ultimate sign of submission, "I'm friendly I swear! Its just a habit to keep transformations in the Intelligence Corp, pleasedonthurtmeohgoddammitidonwannadie." He waited for a response hoping to the Great God and Savior Kenye, that this Hyuga was the forgiving type. Worse come to worse, he prepped a Underground Projection jutsu, planning to slip under the ground to hopefully make a quick get away.

Naomi had no need to directly involve herself with combat. Even since the Flare signed the Red Sages to begin their assault, she stood behind and only picked off Confederate shinobi that had... well, let's say moved way too far from the center of the Harvest Event. The young woman wasn't wearing her usual attire, she was wearing a dark red cloak that reached her thighs and covered a good portion of her body, together with a crimson mask of a hare, with a red lightning in the center of it's eyes. Not pretty, but she decided to keep her identity hidden, opposed to the majority of the red sages who just began the assault with her faces showing to the whole world. For a good while, she was rather peacefully standing in her chosen place, simply overlooking the fight, analyzing the confederation's shinobis and her own allies. It was difficult pointing out who was winning at times; first, the Red Sages seemed to have a clear advantage, but it was only momentarily before the Confederation gathered their own forces and began defending themselves. Naomi moved closer, especially after an imbecile made the favor of putting up a mist that made impossible to see anything.

With a single handseal she used the Body Flicker Technique to move closer to the scene, while still somewhat safe (one could easily see her now, but mostly everyone was too distracted fighting). From here, she was able to spot: A Hyuga, with the Byakugan active, pummeling a poor Red Sage , an Uchiha, boldly charging onto combat to aid the Hyuga and a strange, white-haired boy that was using a technique Naomi had never seen before. The fight continued, and became quite intense, Naomi could tell. Eventually, the mist subsided and it was clear that the Red Sages fighting in there were retreating. Naomi followed a red-haired boy with her eyes, he looked girlish and showy, almost provoking in some manner. There was a civilian running, in the direction that Naomi currently was; a Red Sage followed him, slowly, but his pace eventually increased and it was clear that he was following the poor man. When he raised his arm with a Kunai in hand, a shuriken lodged itself straight into his arm. The man yelled in response and glanced up to see where it came from, all Naomi did was shake her head slowly from side to side, in a disapproving manner. She raised her left hand, an index finger pointing far at a Confederate shinobi who was clearly having an easy time defeating a red sage. The rebel understood the message and rushed to aid.

On the outskirts of the battlefield, the winds were blowing harshly, the streets were filled with terrified civilians, running from the scene of the battle that was taking place at the center of the Harvest event. It was a mess, truly. Standing on a balcony, a cigarette in his hand the young man known as Aroshima leaned over the railing, looking down. He could hear her snooze from inside, she was still asleep - good, it meant less awkward conversations. His tie blew in the wind, as he thought about this whole scenario. He was on the balcony of a woman who's name he wouldn't remember tomorrow, on the outskirts of a battlefield, truly, his life had spun out of control.

Attention was drawn to him when he heard screams from below, it wasn't the cries he had heard before - this was a 'help I'm getting attacked scream'. A shinobi in the confederate uniform was bullying an old man, the young man grunted, flicking the remnants of the tobacco out from the grasp of his fingers, watching as it sailed down to the ground. In the next moment, he moved, vaulting over the rail, he found himself in front of the uniformed soldier - he was a chunnin, like him. He probably knew his name, too, if he thought about it. They had probably met each other once or twice, maybe even had a mission together.

"Would you cut that shit out?" Aro asked, walking past him, his tie hanging over his right shoulder thanks to the strong gust of wind. The other man looked him dead in the eye, his hand still at the collar of the old man. "They were supporting rebel troops!" The man shouted, Aro nodded. "Cool. They're civilians. This is our village. Leave them be, there's you know, a fight going on over there, and you're on duty." The soldier grunted, and in the next moment was gone off to the battle.

Aro chuckled for himself, helping the old man up, getting mud on his jacket in the process. He shrugged, looking back over at the battlefield, deciding to get a better vantage point - he couldn't let anyone he cared about get hurt, after all, regardless of whatever side they were on. He climbed a rooftop in but a moment, using the body flicker technique to do so, peering out.

Green eyes scanned through the battlefield, slowly raising from the ground, onto the nearby buildings. There was a figure she knew, somewhat. Roughly. Very good - Aroshima, the son of the late Nami Uzumaki, or better put, Naomi's aunt and the woman who inspired Naomi's name. He was in a rooftop, apparently not siding with either the confederation or the red sages - what was he doing here, then? Naomi almost failed to care, but in the end, she was curious.

She adjusted her mask, she wasn't extremely close with her cousin, neither spent much time with him, but she remember that he was disciplined - and a very hardworking individual. He had points with her, due to that. Her attention was drawn back to the distance between the building he stood atop of, and the little mountain she, herself, was standing on. Not that long; she'd trace it quickly.

3,2 seconds, was all it took for the Uzumaki to appear a few meters behind the man, a kunai drawn in her hand. So, this was the time to check if all his hardwork had paid off, she at least wanted to startle him. A playful move, at most.

"Confederate scum, this will be your last breath." He would likely recognize her voice, but it was muffled behind the crimson mask.

The footsteps behind him made him begin to turn around, hand in his pocket where he kept his weapons. Turning completely, he saw the masked character move towards him, for but one moment, he considered taking action, but after taking a second to inspect the assailaint, he refrained - a manouver he was taught a long time ago. Standing still, his hand gripping his weapon inside of his pocket, he did not flinch as the kunai came towards his face, stopping but a few inches in front of his eye. "You're gonna poke out someone's eye." Aro spoke, his voice was tense, clearly - he had been a bit worried.

"Besides, you really should change your perfume. Could smell you from a mile away." he said, raising his hand from his pocket, lighter in hand, getting out another cigarette from the pocket in his jacket. "So, what do you know about this mess, Cus?" Aro spoke, looking out at the battle, the clashing of metal echoed.

She spun the kunai in hand, so the handle was pointing in his direction, instead of a threatening blade. Then, she lowered her arm and pocketed the kunai away, turning her gaze to the side.

"Two objetives. Capturing an alive figure of power - such as a politician and assassinating the commander." Her voice was cold, as usual, lacking any form of emotion. She was a bit disappointed, but she made a mental note to buy a different perfume as soon as this mess was done.

With a rather agile movement, she produced a kage bunshin, which stood next to her only a few moments before she made a vague gesture towards the main building, where the commander likely was. The clone rushed there. She'd then turn her attention back to her cousin, she was frowning at him behind the mask.

"Why do you insist with those cigarettes? They'll just shorten your life. It's not just because you've got Uzumaki's extended lifespan, that you should shorten it for something as futile as smoking."

He nodded his head, as if to thank her for not trying to cut his face off with the blade she had drawn. "I see. Sure it's in your best interest to share that sort of info with someone outside of the sages? I suppose we are family, after all." Aro noted, scoffing. She produced a clone, which scurried away towards the center of the battle. "Neat."

She had a tendency to point out his bad habits, and as usual, she questioned his smoking. He looked at her, with the glowing stick in his mouth. "What, it's not like I'll get cancer." He scoffed, it was a crude joke, really. One that he had punched someone else in the face for making. "Besides, they still my nerves. Speaking of which, you need any help?" Aro inquired.

The joke he made was bad. Pretty bad. But Naomi made no comments about it, only giving a very small shrug of her shoulders, barely noticeable in fact. "This information will become very clear after we complete these objectives. No reason in hiding them." She tilted her head to the left side, raising her hands in a questioning manner after he offered his help.

"Your help?" A pause. If he could look at her face, which gladly he couldn't, she was biting her lower lip while deliberating his question. Finally, she moved slightly closer and placed a firm palm on his shoulder, in a friendly manner. "Aroshima-kun, why don't you come with me? I'm not saying this as a recruiter would say to a possible recruit, but as your cousin. You are a capable shinobi and you work very hard for whatever you need, I don't want to see you being an expendable shinobi within the Confederation's ranks and neither another pointless nin without an objetive to trace." The grip on his shoulder became slightly tighter.

"Always so stoic." He scoffed, flashing a grin. She went on a spiel about how he shouldn't let himself be used by the Confederation, that he wouldn't let himself go down in history as just another man who did what he was told. But he wasn't really having that, neither side of it, really ."Truth be told. I'm not going to let myself be used by anyone. The Confederation is corrupt, everyone knows that, so I want to help." Aro spoke, exhaling the smoke while moving the cigarette away from his lips, aiming his face away from his cousin, to avoid her getting smoke on her.

Naomi removed her hand from his shoulder, clasping her hands together behind her. Her eyes widened slightly; her clone had just dismissed itself and instantly, she absorbed all the information it had gathered until now. Pleasant information, to say the least, but she didn't share it with Aroshima just yet, instead, she turned to him, her eyes questioning behind that mask. "So, how then, do you plan on helping?" A question was simple enough.

By now, the commander had been executed in public. The Red Sages were ordered to retreat, which many already did or were in the process of. Naomi feared a huge battle could erupt, as she could see a known member amongst the Red Sages getting himself ready to fight; Katsuko, and a general or something of the sort making.. it's first move. That cat-thing, Naomi never knew what it was, but it possessed power.

Aro could see her twitch a bit, as he assumed her shadow clone had just fed her necessary information, he wouldn't lie and say that he wasn't curious, because he was. But he also knew that he would be told in a matter of time, that was how things worked. Either by Naomi, or by someone else. Asked how to help, Aro was stunned for a second, he hadn't actually thought of that. He just assumed she needed something from him.
Grinning, he responded. "Not sure, wherever I can, really. I have a lot of contacts on both sides of the conflict. Just know, Naomi, I won't kill anyone." His words were warm originally, but when talking about taking someone's life, his voice grew colder than ice. He wasn't going to take the life of a friend - even if they happened to be on the wrong side of the conflict in this civil war in the making.

When he told her that he wouldn't kill anyone, Naomi's eyes closed, for only but a few seconds - but more than enough for him to notice. She recalled a scene from the back of her mind, but she was quick to shove those thoughts away. "Sometimes, killing is inevitable. But I pray that you won't ever encounter such situation." Well, her voice remained cold throughout this entire conversation. It has been this way since forever.

"Ah. The Red Sages are retreating, which means I have to, as well. Can't risk to loiter around for too long and get caught by the Confederation."

With that, the red-clad masked shinobi briefly stared at the man besides her, before she left. It looked as if she had simply teleported, but she had just moved at an immensively fast speed. Other red sages were also retreating, all at the same time; the order was clear, after all. The task was complete. Naomi just wondered what would be of her cousin, Aroshima. With that sort of 'life-rule' of never killing anyone... He would eventually end up killed, backstabbed by someone who's life he previously spared. It was just a matter of time.

A sigh.

She partly wished that he was following her and partly didn't. Oh well.

---

Higoho practically screaming startled her as she was trying to make out some of the people he had pointed out earlier. "What in the world..." she said to herself as she somewhat regretted turning her head to see why the fellow Hyuga had yelled what he did. Behind her was also a silver-haired man who had looked to her in confusion as to how he should react to the situation, and in all honesty she had no idea either since she had rarely seen Higoho get riled up over himself? Whatever the reason being she simply shook her head, and walked to close the distance between herself and the other individual to strike up a conversation on this. After all, she had to make sure she wasn't in some sort of dream because these events were strange in its own way. As she did she noticed that the Higoho double had turned back to the person they were by being thrown back by the Mountain Crusher technique. Luckily, he wasn't hurt, but for Higoho to use a technique like that meant that he was angry enough to be dumb enough to use it in the first place. Not only that, but the guy seemed to be an ally just by the way he had gotten on all fours to apologize. At least thats what she thought he was doing. Either that or begging for mercy.

"Hey," she said to the silver-haired guy to get his attention. "Between you and me, I've never seen him do that out of anger," Setsuko pointed to the fiasco that was going on. "So I'm as shocked as you are."

"Though I should also point out that it'd be a good idea to gain some distance from this place because I just got some information that Yakoul is fighting." she then pointed behind her. "If you don't know who that is then it'd be best to never know."

Not that she didn't know, but that was the first time she had actually seen the legendary General. Of course she heard things about his appearance from many people, but at some point their description of him got a little out of hand. She hoped it'd be her only time because the History books as well as the people forgot to mention that he had an animal fetish. At least, that's what she got from where she stood. It was obvious by the way he had dressed to look like some sort of cat, and that was horrifying in its own way. Just thinking about it made her shiver. "Seriously, you don't want to see that." she warned once more in case the silver-haired guy didn't believe her.

Things just kept getting worse and worse. Mirai knew Yakoul was a strong person, he could definitely take on either of the Red Sage leaders or perhaps even both, but he kept screwing around with the two girls instead. Meanwhile the barrier had come down and rebels were hunting down the general they were supposed to be protecting. She wanted to voice her complaint to Yakoul, but she kept her mouth shut out of fear. Kanata didn't seem to have the same inhibitions, but one person testing a homicidal psychopath was more than enough in Mirai's book. But it seemed that they wouldn't be able to stand on the sidelines as spectators any longer.

When Mirai looked over towards Katsuko again after he addressed them, she felt something was wrong. Something was wrong with his eyes and something was wrong with her body. Genjutsu? She quickly looked away, facing Kanata instead. The sinking feeling had vanished, but Mirai began to realize what happened. My chakra was just being used. I haven't even used any of it yet and I can feel that it isn't full anymore. Can he really take my chakra with just his eyes? How are we supposed to fight him now? Yakoul began moving forward now, which Mirai immediately noticed. How can the cat-man bear this? He's looking right at the guy. Is he insane? He'll lose before the fight even begins if his chakra is completely drained. Yet their fearless leader showed no signs of backing down. His erratic behavior was admirable, to a degree. Mirai found herself envious of his courage and confidence.

But they still had to fight. The Red Sage's Lady Commander just stole the life of the general they were supposed to protect. They were trying to retreat, to flee. They had simply come into the city in a storm of blood and steel and now wish to leave as if nothing happened? It made Mirai feel not only helpless but angry. She almost didn't even notice Kanata introduce herself but snapped back to reality just in time. "Mirai," she introduced. She went to shake hands, as would be polite to do so, but stopped herself midway. Her real hand was holding a sword and it was her prosthetic that had reached forward. She quietly abandoned the idea, withdrawing her metal arm and focusing her attention forward again. Rather than looking at Katsuko she instead focused her gaze at the ground in front of his feet, near Yakoul. "I can use shuriken to distract him so Yakoul can get an advantage. But they seem to be... not fighting. I don't know if launching the first attack is wise when we already lost a general and another is standing face-to-face with one of the rebels..." The blue-haired girl looked back to Kanata. "D-d-... do you have any ideas?" It felt awkward to rely on someone new. Usually it was Aneko that came up with plans for Mirai, but that wasn't an option right now. She would have to rely on her own ability... but mostly on Kanata's ability.

---

The red-haired man stood his ground after Seijo gave the command to attack. Unlike his boss, he didn't have any particular means for a ranged attack. And he wasn't about to jump into her attack to get a hit in on the silver-haired woman. At the same time, he wasn't going to leap towards Yakoul either. Could he defeat Yakoul? Yes. Could Yakoul defeat him? Also yes. He was confident and proud, but he wasn't about to throw caution into the wind. All he needed to do was keep Seijo alive and allow the Red Sages to complete their assassination. He wouldn't dance to the enemy's tune, they'd have to dance to his. But something began to bother Katsuko very quickly as events unfolded around him.

What is this guy? he wondered. Most people look away after being confronted with his Kekkei Genkai. It was natural, as nobody wanted to be drained of their chakra. The two girls looked away, for example. But Yakoul didn't. He stared right back. And that made Katsuko uncomfortable. He knows exactly what I'm doing and doesn't care. And his chakra... it isn't human. I've never felt anything like this before. It's almost... intoxicating. But at the same time it feels... bad. His serious expression changed into a clear frown as Yakoul began to approach. Only the man was walking forward at a casual pace. He is goading me to lose ground. There is no way he would think that I can't annihilate him if he gets careless, yet he's pretending to be careless. His body tensed up as Yakoul drew close. It was only when he was just out of striking distance that he stopped. I can't read this guy.

Katsuko remained silent as the Confederate general continued to spout vulgar nonsense. That was until he voiced that he would change his foe from Seijo to... some guy that Katsuko couldn't really remember the name of. It didn't matter who he selected, it was the gesture that was important. The meaning behind his action. He was playing around. "Oi," Katsuko finally spoke up, to get Yakoul's attention. "You're forgetting something very important: you aren't getting past me." Anyone spectating would feel the tension of two intimidating enemies facing each other down at an incredibly close range. "We have already won this battle. If you take another step forward it will be your last."

I have no idea if he will try or not. This man, I think it's a man, reveals nothing of his thoughts. Maybe he doesn't even think. If he moves I'll have no choice but to fight, but he'll expect... a kick. A punch would be too obvious, a kick would be deceptive enough. If I want to end him in one blow, before he can get a chance to fight back, I'll have to outsmart him before over-powering him. Katsuko's mind began racing. Normally he would never have to think so much about how to fight. It was always natural, an instinct. He would follow his own flow and defeat everything in his path. But this enemy was different. The way it talked, the way it walked, the way it thought, they all fought against his instincts. He felt that his natural fighting style would lead to failure with Yakoul. That this was an opponent who could exploit his weaknesses. A battle of strength was his domain, but he knew that he would enter a battle of wits if the crazy cat bastard didn't heed his threat. Worst-case scenario: I just have to bide some time for Seijo to escape. I can get away by myself easy enough if I can avoid being wounded. There is only one threat to me here and he's standing in front of me. Just out of reach... The young man shifted slightly, putting more of his weight on his supporting leg rather than his forward one. He prepared to dodge, in the instance that the cat-man or any of his allies would try to attack. He didn't know of Yakoul's abilities or style, but he hoped it went the other way as well. That would be the only way his plan could work.

---

Higoho gritted his teeth hard as he walked closer to Tanji, furling his hands up into fists. He approached steadily and when he reached the boy, swiftly grabbed the boys collar dragging him onto his feet. “Baka!” he yelled as he looked the guy in the eyes with his Byakugan, the veins on the side of his eyes still visible. “I should punch your face in for that.” he said. But from the corner of his eye - or rather, his vision, since the Byakugan was practically a 360 degree CCTV for Higoho - he noticed figures were moving. It seemed Seijo was on the move, followed by the weird water Genjutsu kid he'd fought earlier. Were they retreating?

It seemed like it. Some Red Sage shinobi went to pick up some wounded Red Sages to take home, or captured prisoners, and then quickly made their way away from the compound. He looked back at Tanji and spat, the saliva flying past Tanji onto the floor. “You're lucky that you're not interesting.” he said as he pushed his arm away and threw Tanji onto the floor, making him fall with his back to the wall. He turned back to face Setsuko and her companion, whom he hadn't met before. Atleast, Higoho didn't think so. He relaxed his muscles now and the veins next to his eyes calmed down, indicating that he'd stopped using the byakugan. “You said you're in the intelligence group?” he said to Tanji, expecting him to get up and join the small 'group' that they had formed with Setsuko and her red haired friend. “Do you happen to be in the 11th corps?”

He'd wait for an answer before turning to the group in general. “I'm gonna go see what is up at the compound. Feel free to stand around here some more like a bunch of idiots.” And with that said he headed out to the compound again, heading up the stairs he had just came down from, in order to see what had happened while he was gone.

---

Tanji had expected to get his shit kicked in when the Hyuga grabbed him by the collar, but upon noticing some more pressing circumstances had let Tanji keep his teeth.

“You're lucky that you're not interesting.” As the Hyuga pushed him back onto the ground as he hit a wall.


Tell me about it, I could have died,, thank god for this perpetual social invisibility, Tanji sighed in relief as he got up to dust himself off. Honestly seeing the Hyuga's eyes that up close was unsettling, downright frightening to say the least and fortunately for everyone around the Hyuga finally relaxed.


“You said you're in the intelligence group?” , Tanji looked around waiting for someone to respond, Cool, there's somebody else here from the intelligence corps.

“Do you happen to be in the 11th corps?” Ha, thats funny Tanji was currently attached to the 11th intelli- oh, he was talking to him.

"Yessir!" As he saluted into attention, not really sure why, the Hyuga wasn't his commanding officer. The Hyuga didn't acknowledge his response and turned to the group instead.

“I'm gonna go see what is up at the compound. Feel free to stand around here some more like a bunch of idiots,” and began heading up the stairs to the compound again. And so, Tanji stopped standing around like a bunch of idiot, sheepishly looked to his comrades around him and would elect to follow behind them if they so chose, or briskly walk to catch up with the Hyuga's shadow, if no one else wanted to.