---

Sayuri looked at Kaito, as he asked for an explanation about her eyes at a later date. “The next time we see each other.” She said in response to his asking Yogensha’s permission to stay behind. She looked at him hard. She didn’t need the Byakugan to know that he’d have to be resourceful to survive. She placed a hand on his should and her fingers gripped him lightly. Her pale lavender eyes glared at him unwaveringly. If this was war they could not afford to lose a single soldier. It was his turn to make it up to Amegakure, and more importantly, Yogensha herself. As Sayuri, Yogensha and Koma took off from the hospital she was commanded to find the highest point in the village, so that Yogensha may feel winds not unlike their own back home.

“Byakugan.” The phrase showed her the entire landscape, as if it was a painting. She could inspect the canvas from any and every angle, almost simultaneously. “You’re right my lady, the forest is a war zone.” Sayuri noted, seeing a massive amount of chakra signatures in the small area. Taking her position as the leader of the group by immediately taking off in a sprint, knowing the others would have to keep up. The village had descended into chaos already, people were screaming, there was so much horror. As she climbed up onto a building and she scanned the leaf village she rotated, looking for a point that would eclipse all others.

“That will do, my lady, please follow me.” She said pinpointing her route between where they were and where they were headed. She saw conflict on the streets and as such she easily transitioned onto the rooftops. Her movement skills were some of the best in her village and it showed when muscle memory kicked in. But the young girl gasped when she saw the forest. She watched as nearly 4km of the forest was destroyed and its radius covered by sharks. It was just as they thought.

This was a full scale assault. While avoiding conflict and escorting Yogensha to the highest point in the village, her other tasks came into play. The first was the location of the Tsuchikage, and Iwagakure ninja. As she felt comfortable with her current course, her vision immediately focused on the observational tower. She could make out a few figures, but due to the explosion and the debris it was hard to see anything too specific. But there was a few figures flying on what looked to be a chakra-based creation. She could make out three distinct chakra signatures as they approached the foot of the mountain.

Immediately, she took off climbing up the stony citadel, while reporting her findings back to her leader as they reached the summit rather rapidly.

“My lady, there is a full assault occurring on the forest, as you can see from this vantage point it appears to be two techniques as the base of the assault. I cannot see that far, however I can tell you that there are at least fifteen, perhaps more people in that forest currently. The Tsuchikage is most likely at the observation tower as there are currently three Iwagakure ninja departing from there, the most probable outcome is that they received instructions already. This is the highest physical point one may reach in the hidden leaf. I apologize that it is one-hundred feet underneath your request.”

Sano and Havoc had made the most extravagant entrance. Both of the deadly shinobi using great zoning techniques. Shinra Tensi and Dai Bakusui Shōha were both dangerous moves on their own but together they were enough to nearly decimate the Forest of Death. In the distance, you could see the fires of Jaakuna's bombs going off, everything was going according to the plan set by Seijuro. As the water started to settle on the forest floor, Sebun decided to make his entrance but not without some flare. Sebun emerged from a black portal as he was coming from his personal forge, looking upon the glorious destruction Havok and Sano had created. After weaving several hand seals the blacksmith muttered the words "Armament's of the Heavens." Several smaller black portals formed as dozens of weapons appeared. With a smile stretching across his face, Sebun raised his left hand. The smile faded away as he dropped his hand. The weapons that were sitting still in the portals began to fly in every direction covering the forest in weapons. They had no targets so they flew every impacting the ground, creating many dust clouds. For ten seconds straight all you could hear was the weapons cleaving through trees and slamming into the ground.

---

---

---

Using Aito's preferred, and superior, method of transportation, Ayame was in flight with her friend when all of a sudden Ai appeared in a flutter of scattering paper and hugged her. Relief washed through her and she let out a breath, embracing her sister in return. “Oh thank goodness,” she whispered before they ended their embrace. There were some brief introductions and then Ai yelled something just as Ayame turned to see the huge waves of water, filled with sharks, that had begun to engulf the edges of one side of the forest.

Her eyes widened, and barrier rods were drawn before she was even fully aware of her own actions. In an instant she stabbed the rods into the back of the phoenix, not injuring it due to its nature, and erected a barrier. In that instant she created a triangular barrier that enclosed them. Three long seconds passed, the water and sharks almost striking them before the barrier's color suddenly shifted slightly.



The jutsu struck them, jostling them in flight, but glancing off of the barrier and traveling around them, enclosing them in water. Over the roar of the waves, Ayame yelled to Aito, “Fly up!”

The barrier would protect them and the phoenix from the water, but she wasn't sure if it would hold for terribly long against the continuous onslaught of water and deadly sharks. They needed to get above the mire and fast!

---

---

---

Making distance before the Forest of Death became enclosed by two individuals of at least S rank—by the look of their ninjutsu—Mare continued moving in powerful flashes of shunshin, which allowed him to arrive in the village rather quickly. From there he got on top of a building, found the collapsing hospital building, and then headed to it. Surveying from above he located his target.

Quietly and out of sight he descended to the streets, and then circled around to a side of the hospital that the man couldn't see. He checked his hood's position, making sure it was affixed properly, before he rounded the corner and approached. Shifting his focus he hurried over to Kaito's side, “Well, for someone who gave me a warning in the stadium, I must say you're rather roughed up yourself.”

A small grin peaked from his hood, “Perhaps I could assist with that. I am a medic after all.” He raised a hand and an orb formed, emitting a faint comforting glow, before he dismissed it.

Having seen the interaction with Yogensha, Amegakure's leader, he knew that the man had been tasked with protecting this hospital.

“Might be best to evacuate from this building. It's unstable because of the explosion.” The reality was he didn't want to stay here, and that even if the building wasn't unstable, he would have made it so to convince the shinobi.

He had seen his fight and while it had not ended as the shinobi would have liked, the figure had enjoyed watching the genjutsu expert struggle. Additionally, the man's techniques were interesting. They could be very useful, he figured.

A good leader takes a bigger picture, and break it down into easy to solve problems.
First... There was the obviously charging Usagi, who barreled right at Kurin. The wood shinobi sensed her immediatly, and then... He sensed another entry. Kurin only had enough time with this new distraction to jump to the side, avoiding Usagi's charge. It seemed he'd have to worry about her the most. That speed made her a greater threat than the others, as far as he was concerned. Mind you, being a bit on the bulkier side made it harder for him to even dream of keeping up in a fight without having to rely on pure brute strength. Something he doubted would work out.
Then the explosion. Pausing for a moment, Kurin looked into the distance, catching a plume of smoke in the distance. Well, if this whole thing wasn't going tits up, the explosion in the distance was just the cherry on the cake. And then, the devestation of the forest. Thankfully the massive shin-dig was outside the radius of the attack. Dust poured out, choking the group of shinobi while fighting had begun in pure unbridled earnest.

It took a moment for Kurin to stretch out his focus, covering the forest once more in his senses. And now at least 1/3rd of the forest wasn't there. Torn down, dead. And... WATER! There was another attack coming.
Slamming his hands together, Kurin called upon the roots and trees around him. In the area, the trees began to change, warping and adjusting to his whim. Interweaving, locking, merging together to create a dome. Wood Release: World of Trees Wall! The thick dome formed slowly in the area around the group, but just enough as water slammed against it all sides. The wood's interlocking method holding strong, as the timeless giants of the forest of death formed the base of this defense. The roof closed just in time, though a single sword did manage to hit the ground in the center before it fully closed up. The shinobi paused, knowing that a single burning tree was right outside, though hopefully extinguished by the water around him. If the other ninja had been smart, they may have realized the danger and joined Kurin in his dome.

"Well... It seems we're all going to have to be best friends for a bit." Kurin smiled sheepishly. "After all, the outside is currently all water, and we're obviously dealing with some kind of sword throwing thing." He added, walking over to the sword that sat in the middle of the dome. "For now, we should put aside the exam, and focus on protecting ourselves and others. Who here has a sensory technique? Your job is to look for survivors. Also, for the ones responsible for this. We need to know who we're dealing with." Already he was taking charge, which he should. This was his dome, and at the moment he was the only one without a scroll. It was more for the benefit of the stranger who came in unannounced.




WATER AGAIN!? At least, for Bumu it was obvious he was cursed. His ears picked up the rushing water soon after the devastating explosion,so he was climbing up a tree as fast as he could well before she could see the water. Reaching the top of the nearest tree, the fox sighed softly. Only to realize by looking up that his troubles weren't over. She caught the glint of the sword, and scurried about. Zipping under thick branches, relying mostly on his own small size to avoid the easy target bit of things. A sword skewered the branch above his head, sinking in deep, stopping less than an inch from the fox's skull. Shaking from head to toe, Bumu slowly crawled away from it, thankful at the very least that the assault only lasted a total of ten seconds. Though now he had his pick of swords. Turning back into a human, Bumu began by pulling a katana from the trunk of a tree, looking it over in curiosity. Well, the craftsmanship was impressive.
"Hey!? Anybody out there?" Bumu shouted, knowing well that they where under attack, and any help was desired.




The attack went off without a hitch. Primarily. Turning to look across Konoha, at the plumes of smoke that filled the sky. This was all on him. His heart raced in his chest, drumming out with a new intensity. He hadn't felt this way since the battle of Ameno Bridge. Oh, that was a glorious battle, but he didn't have time to focus on it. At least a hundred of his clones where running around, busy at work causing trouble. Some even dressed up in the traditional garb of Kirigakure. After all, this was a show, better keep the audience guessing.

-------------------------------
Konoha Hospital... @Odin

Ten of his clones landed on the roof across from the Amekage, several of which where cloaked in invisibility. So she could only see four of the ten. She didn't need to know how many she'd be fighting. All wearing the mark of Kirigakure somewhere on their body.
"I recommend you reconsider your actions." One said, taking a step closer. A mask on each of their faces. "This isn't your fight. Leave the village, return to your own homes. You have no stake in this battle. They are not your citizens. You don't need to die for them." As he spoke, two of the cloaked ninja moved in closer, landing on the roof, making sure to keep some distance so they wouldn't be spotted.
Two drew their blades, looking at the hospital, leaping down suddenly at the mass of people below. Swords swiping back and forth, aiming with unmatched cruelty to end some of the desperate injured. Should the Amekage focus an attack on the two ninja focusing on the crowd, the two cloaked shinobi on the roof with her would attack. Their goal was simply to get close, grab her, and drain her chakra. Any kind of hold would be more than enough for now. Their goal wasn't to kill her... Yet. If she struck back though, they where both more than capable of detonating themselves. A dangerous choice was ahead for Yogensha.

-------------------------------
Another Area...

This kind of trick relied on a lot of chakra. Jaakuna had a shocking amount himself, but even he knew he needed more. Any citizen or shinobi his clones managed to catch where fueling the invasion. Each one pinning their target to the ground, sucking chakra out of them to fuel the clone. It was a continuous effort, but it was going well. A majority of the villages more skilled chunnin where all involved in the jounin exams, wasting their time and leaving Konoha nearly defenseless. Those that dropped out where usually too tired to put up a fight as they where drained of their chakra.
"Commander, we have the market district under control." One clone said to another.
"Good, you're commander now, I'm going to make the report." The clone said, vanishing in a poof of smoke as this information returned to the former Jinchuriki of the Nine Tailed Fox.

-------------------------------
Forest of Death... @Syn

"Never expected to see something like that again in my life time." One of the masked shinobi said, landing by Havoc. "The reports are coming in. The plan is going well, just keep them distracted, but a few bodies won't be missed." He said, noticing some ninja who had been killed by Havoc's attack. Well, somebody had to be there to get crushed like a pancake. "Don't drop your guard, these kids are taking this exam for a reason. They're all exceptional." If Havoc could see Jaakuna's face under that mask he'd swear the reborn ninja was excited.

@Write @Odin @Reflection

There was uncertainty lingering within the back of Koma's mind as this woman who was helping her get out of the ruined hospital began to take action, claiming the building as part of Amegakures land for the time being so one of her protoge's would remain to defend it due to his inability to move far when someone could've likely carried him out. But she was in no position to be making critiques of how someone else handled this kind of situation.

They didn't get to go far before some of the masked shinobi that were attacking civilians confronted Yogensha and advised that she leave Konoha without making a fuss.
Reflexively Koma had already withdrawn her bow grip from a pouch as well as her last two smoke bombs in her other hand in preparation for fighting back, her lack of confidence in her own combat ability was the only thing holding her back from doing anything of actual note, especially when multiple enemies were brought into consideration.

It would be wrong to run off to find her Kage, all things considered, right? He wouldn't be impressed if she didn't try to hold her ground when standing alongside the leader of another village without being told to leave.

The young iwa-nin took a couple of glances towards Yogensha and her remaining companion, then towards the masked men, if they were going to get into a fight to protect the people being attacked she wanted to know if she wan't the only one getting into it. More-so when she knew that her chakra was still quite low at this point, meaning she didn't have many shots with her bow before she'd run out again.

"Instructions?" One word, so to not distract the ame-nin she stood along-side, addressed to Yogensha whilst a basic bow frame sparked to life from her bow-grip in case she needed to start firing.

---

Now dressed in her Amegakure garb, the air of grace and eloquence had made way for a self-assured but humble air. They were almost immediately en-route to the highest point, Sayuri proving once again that she was more or less the best person for the job of being her protege. But something, or rather someone, impeded on their ability to reach the Hokage's mountain. Rather than be abruptly stopped, she slowly came to a halt as the strangers landed around her, and without moving her body, pivoted her head on her neck to glance at the four around her. “You're right. This isn't my fight. At least, not here.” She smiled politely at the men, folding her hands on her back calmly. Although internally she was moving at the pace of a hundred thoughts a second, her eyes were calm, her face was calm. She could've been porcelain, if she'd not spoken.

“But I must inform you...” she calmly stated, and slowly inched backwards slightly, entering the mental 'line' that made up the border between Amegakure's newly annexed hospital, and Konohagakure. “That we are currently standing on territory that is directly under Amegakure's control - and therefore, my responsibility. Please vacate the area.” Her words were polite, yet strangely commanding. Her aura of peace made way for her commanding nature and desire to do as she believed in. Her yin was making way for her yang. There was no need to show off her hiden just yet, however. These guys could be dispatched easily without having to put forwards the top effort.

“Sayuri, whenever you're ready. You, girl,” she said for a lack of knowing Koma's name, and glanced backwards over her shoulder to Koma, “see to it that none of the innocents are harmed. As you may remember this is now Amegakure's territory, and I am hereby ordaining you temporarily as a member of Amegakure. The Amegakure shinobi code applies to you too, for now! Protect our land at all costs!” The girl was obviously weakened and not at full strength, so it would've been harsh to demand anything more than what she could give.

Once Sayuri made a move and activated her byakugan, surveying the area and taking actions against whatever she may have found - including Yogensha's own targets - it would be up to Koma to stop the two clones that were down in the streets, though at this point none of them would recognize these Kirigakure nin as clones, lest Sayuri opened her byakugan.

And when both Sayuri and Koma would begin their actions, so would Yogensha, in an attempt to attack in perfect unison and dispatch these clear enemies all at once - though they would know there were only four, at least until Sayuri used her byakugan. “Fūton: Shinkūgyoku!” She inhaled deeply and then blew out rapidly, shooting out these thin, needle-like batches of wind chakra that, if not evaded, could pierce the enemy body almost entirely. Even a standard defense, such as a sword block, would likely end up not being enough. It seemed the best course of action would be to evade - assuming these shinobi could even see the almost invisible wind chakra.

---

---

Hikaru couldn't help but wonder when exactly did shit start to go down as he managed to dodge yet another sword that randomly flied towards his position, the always present grin in his face twitching for a bit as he recapituled how he managed to get into such a dangerous situation.

If he had to guess when it all started to fall down, it would be by the end of yhe first test, for while he did manage to grab the scroll - at the cost of his shoes, unfortunately - he didn't manage to get a passing mark for all of his teammates, with Renji failing to resist the lightning that assaulted all of his teammates due to something he could only call as poor luck, as the two other members of the team escaped safely in despite of being seemingly less durable. If that wasn't enough to drastically reduce the odds of passing, even more followed to make Hikaru's life considerably harder as, while he was happily enrolling some bandages around his feet to use as a substitute for his lost shoes, the two other members of his team stealthily - or so it seemed for the highly distracted Hikaru - left his grasp, running away before he could even offer to carry their scrolls for them. How very rude.

The result of this series of events was, as one would expect, pretty prejudicial for the directionally challenged Hikaru, who, without any sensor technique or means to guide himself, instantly shrugged off the very thought of trying to hunt someone, making a simple decision that clearly denoted how very troublesome his day was going to be: Guess I'll just walk around until I find someone. And then came the explosion - something so terrifyingly flashy that Hikaru couldn't help but get emotional, wholeheartedly wishing to meet the person who caused such an amazing boom and... Well, probably kill him or her. He couldn't have some randoms stealing his thing and doing it better than him after all, shit like this isn't good for his reputation.

Unfortunately - or fortunately - for him, before he managed to find the person responsible for the explosion the water came, forcing him to take refuge in the top of a nearby tree - or trees, as he had to change trees quite a few times as the previous ones fell due to the violent impact of the water waves - just to face yet another trouble: God seemingly decided that shit was too easy for him and made it so that rain was made of weapons instead of water, making Hikaru resort to the desperate measure that was brandishing his umbrella like a club to deflect the weapons while cursing the heaven's internally, stopping just to answer a random yell that particularly tickled him off. "No, asshole, you're the last living human in this shitty world!" He rudely answered the stupid question, pretty satisfied by his reaction for a second before he noticed the obvious. Wait a sec, I just answered something..? Doesn't that mean... I finally found a freaking target! He couldn't help but immediately leap towards the direction of the voice, using the gradually falling trees as footholds as he made his way towards the first other participant he got a hold off after the rest of his team left him.

---

---

Before Kamui could even take his time to inspect the result of his attacks, something else immediately triggered the response of his sensor technique at maximum intensity, forcing him to retract his chains to prepare himself for the use of a different technique - something that he wouldn't be able to handle for long if he insisted in maintaining the chains active and drsining his chakra - barely having the time to grab the nearby Sakana and jump towards the top of a nearby tree before the waves came, mowing down their surroundings.

Before he could explain the situation to his teammate - that he decided to take with him as a safety measure, since he was the only one who had one of his seals in his body and thus the only one Kamui could handle even when his chakra was terrifyingly low - he was forced to once more jump as the tree started to fall, this time moving his free hand down to use the jutsu he had been saving, causing the rise of a curtain of smoke for a second before the form of a surprisingly big hawk arose from it, taking Kamui - and Sakana, if he agreed with being dragged around - to outside the area dangered by the water.

Even the swords that violently rained down towards the area were easily dodged by the bird, who could easily avoid most of the blades when guided by Kamui, who was now forced to use his sensory technique to its most as he desperately tried to calculate the safest route out of this hell. With some luck, Sakana would understand the situation quickly and decide against running away by himself - the ideal situation, for Kamui was pretty sure that they would still find it pretty difficult to escape even if they joined forces at an ideal state - otherwise... Well, he guessed he'd need to recruit some extra help amongst the not-so-safe options.

---

---

"What a bothersome thing." A lone hooded figure muttered as he walked amongst the defenseless citizens now devoid of most of their chakra - if not bodies devoid of any chakra at all - calmly moving as he indifferently disposed of any clone that passed by him with an unnatural ease, generally only taking a single, terrifyingly fast blow of his hands - strangely adorned with a claw shapped gauntlet - to force a clone to turn into smoke, a method that made him look somehow unemotional, aa he seemingly didn't even acnowledge the clones as opponents in despite of all the damage they caused to the village, merely systematically disposing of them without even trying to inquire anything as he continued to make his way towards the center of the village.

This scene quickly changed, though, as soon as the man seemingly caught a wind of something, instantly moving towards an specific clone - the one who just reported their clearing of the market district, that conveniently had his voice detected by the man's sensor technique and thus revealed his identity as the new commander, triggering the cloaked man into appearing in front of him and talking with someone other that himself for the first time since entering the village. " So you're the new commander, huh? Great. I was looking for someone who could deliever a message before I started to break all these fakes." The man talked slowly, emitting a the seemingly boundless killing intent that he managed to hide up to this moment, seemingly not interested in hearing any answer from the clone - merely guessing that it was a clone of the one responsible for all this mess and thus the most reasonable choice if he wanted to deliever a warning. "So do me a favor and vanish like a good fake to deliever a message to your main body: It's better to send someone who I can use to blow some steam while you can, otherwise I..." He stopped talking for a second to completely remove the hood that covered his face, revealing a messy white hair and a pair of purple eyes that gleamed dangerously as he finished delivering his message. "Arashi of the Hidden Grass, will wholeheartedly work to break this little play of yours."

---

As soon as Sayuri noticed Yogensha slowing down, Koma as well, her eyes were scanning the area around them. There were clones that had rapidly approached the three women. Sayuri stopped completely assuming a posture of peace and readiness. Both of her fists at her hips, feet shoulder-width apart. She took one deep breath in towards herself centering her body, her mind, and her soul. The clones spoke with Yogensha, she responded as the found herself at the border of newly minted Amegakure land. A tension hung in the air.

Sayuri and Yogensha had often trained in the circumstance of a hostage situation, even if Yogensha was being held hostage by a foreign body. You keep any thoughts that had to be communicated down to two words and moved to kill immediately.

“Sayuri whenever you’re ready.” As soon as the sound of the ‘r’ in ready had begun to be formed by Yogensha’s lips two kunai were in the hands of the protégé “Six invisible,” she said as the kunai had already been hurled towards two of the clones that were not revealing themselves and were on the same rooftop. A difficult shot to miss, even moreso given Yogensha’ technique of using her Jutsu in a slightly different direction, removing their window to dodge by that much more.

But it wasn’t enough for Amegakure land.

Sayuri took a breath that was a quick, sharp, inhalation and releasing her third-breath state. Her skin immediately turned a pinkish-red and her eyes seemed to sharpen. She had two minutes and thirty seconds before she was out of stamina and her lungs wouldn’t be able to support this level of activity. She did not lightly enter this state, but this was Amegakure land. With her enhanced speed she would wait for the two clones to dodge the kunai before appearing before them almost instantaneously with incredible speed.

Manpai Kita. The direction in which they both dodged would be filled with a shotgun like-Hakke Kūshō that threatened to rupture any organs they had, more likely dispersing the clones. They would not have an easy time dodging or even countering the girl as with the Byakugan and Daisan Kassei she was reading their every muscle and tenketsu. . Should they dodge both of those techniques, Yogensha had also provided a wind-based technique to shred their innards. The game of chess had begun.

Rook takes both pawns. Queen stands.
 

---

---

Āito stared at the girl who appeared out of a trail of paper. She looked so… She introduced herself as Ai but Āito seemed to just stare through her. Something felt incredibly off with the current situation. Like a bug that was in her ear. But she also said that the Tsuchikage told her to stay away and before curious, Aito was loyal.

She veered the Phoenix back towards the forest when it all erupted. "Ayame, Āito! Shark at 12 o'clock." In an instant, sharks were attack and a barrier was around them. She wanted to thank Ayame for her reaction speed, but it was clear that an aerial exit would no longer be possible until whoever was doing this had been stopped. She was commanded by Ayame to fly up, and she did so.

The water all around them was both horrifying and beautiful. With the barrier allowing them to travel through it something was to be said about its prospective beauty. But as the Phoenix emerged out of the water and the barrier could dissipate safely, should Ayame choose to allow it they scanned the horizon for their target. However it seemed there was a more pressing issue at hand. Half the forest had eben flattened, even if they were able to take out the man controlling this water, he could squash any flier's. Āito made a choice for the rest of the group. It was what had to be done. Āito had a fairly strong sense of where the target was based on the destruction around them.

“We have to kill him.” She said as the Phoenix dove in towards where they were going. But hints of whoever this woman was were starting to unravel. In the same sentence she introduced herself as Ai, she called Aito by name.

It could’ve been a coincidence, Ayame may have told her about Aito. But, it didn’t feel like coincidence. It felt like something was going on. There was an air of secrecy between the two. But it wouldn’t matter if Aito allowed either of them to die here. So as they came in for a landing about one hundred feet from their target, Aito noticed the entire forest had been flattened, absolutely devastated. She had the Phoenix fly closer to the ground so they could decide where they would land, or even if they should.

“Are you both ready to face this opponent? I’d be surprised with anything but an S-Ranking.”

---

The hungry beast was charging in, while the brains ruled the skies. Hime's pillars were not going to halt this mad bull in its massive momentum. With the mass of ice getting in her way, Rumia did not hesitate for one second. First, cannons on her back and right leg, all charged with chakra. Second, enhancement of that same leg with the Hollow Shell, successfully 'slowing' it but also enhancing it defensively, and more importantly, offensively. A rock hard limb, assisted by the momentum of her darting toward the fairy, and the jets firing a very swift but powerful burst of her trademark fighting style, Rumia would have herself a mighty kick.

Just as it would land, she would feel a slight thud echo through her ears. An explosion for another group? Maybe something fell nearby? No matter, the monster was colliding with the ice obstacle. Natural superhuman strength, enhanced by a mutation, and even moreso by an armor and chakra jets. One wouldn't need a PhD to know how this would turn out. The ice structure would shatter, with a few chunks hurled specifically toward Hime as Rumia terminated her kick. Some big, some small, but they were aggressively charging to her position. While certainly dangerous, they were a good distraction for the Shinrikyo to follow up with the remaining momentum for a deadly punch.

But all good things must come to an end, as another anomaly would occur. One far more conspicuous. This tingling sensation the Iwa nin would be distracted by prompted her to halt her assault completely, jets reversing the acquired velocity, so she could set herself on a nearby branch.

"Fuck."

The Almighty Push and Raining Sharks had been unleashed. One was a very big boom, and the other just manifested a gargantuan amount of chakra in the air like it was no one's business. Eyes upwards, the immediate threat were the sharks, while the Shinra Tensei had hit an area slightly farther away from them. But that wasn't all. A drizzle of weapons followed suit as well, all of these speeding down and proving to be quite hazardous.

Rumia had one thing in mind in this situation. Chakra jets flared suddenly as she'd immediately close distance between her and Kyoka's landing site. Tail still out, and now partially enhanced by her shell, she would be swift to mercilessly whip the summoned beings and the ethereal weapons. One could feel the brutality of her limb's counters by the sheer force of the air pressure released when connecting with both the organic and inorganic.

"... This ain't no rookie pussy-shit cuz. No sirree Bob."

It was time to actually be serious. The primal instincts of the monstrous Shinrikyo confirmed the truly threatening nature of the situation, and filled her with a different sort of adrenaline. One of anger, of hunger. Her visage would already be half tainted by her condition, left sclerae darkened and pupil entering a darker beige. Her tail swung a couple of times before pointing at the direction of the two 'outsiders' they were about to assault before this shitshow.

"Check the other one y'two. The big one's mine."

Her gaze was fixed at the direction of the remote shark that had conjured this absurd rain of living beings. He was by far the biggest source of chakra, and to Rumia's symbiosis, he would come off as an entire singularity of the thing among the world surrounding it. Little did she know, it would very much be the equivalent of chakra black hole.

"Y'comin', Kyoka? I ain't lettin' sum pigfucka piss all over m'shit 'n' wave around his dick like that."

She spoke of the enormous pool he boasted, via the unique tool he wielded. Sano was the biggest fish to her, no pun intended, and as such she'd beam for him. There wasn't anymore time to talk, Rumia charged in with cannons out to continuously feed her more speed to close the multiple kilometer gap between her and the shark man. Shinobi were naturally fast and could close big gaps in surprisingly short time. Rumia, however, was a human rocket. It would not be hard for Sano to notice her once she'd be in range to be relevant, but it wouldn't stop the near-jonin to be at a speed even he would have to consider serious.

"Munch on this, asshat."

One final bounce in the air, and her trademark appendages emerged. All six of them. The scowl on the lass reverted to a wide grin. The tentacle tips would be dilated, with a ball of pure, white energy forming right over them. The emitted a high pitched sound, one very conspicuous along with the bright lights. At this point, Rumia was up high, about 70 meters from Sano, well over the trees, and her cannons now taking aim toward the big monstrosity. The Shinrikyo cannon had been ready since she made her way there and would fire. A gargantuan beam of pure power fire right at the Shark-Nin, designed to obliterate him no matter what his intentions were. The attack was predictable, but very fast. One can only hope Kisame 2.0's bulk wouldn't hinder his dodging. That or samehada of course.

-

Sitting on his tree, Bumu decided he had to do something. He couldn't just sit here. Placing a hand on the tree, she let explosive tags slip down and blend into the bark. Most importantly, if one of these attackers spotted him first, it was best if he had something to fight back with. And then, from his perch, he spotted a shinobi of iwagakure. Oh shit! Where these the attackers. Standing up, he grabbed one of the swords that had fallen onto the tree, resting the blunt end onto her shoulder.
"Halt! This is the land of Konoha! Are you one of those responsible for the attack?" He growled, eyes focusing onto the enemy ninja. He was going to defend this tree to the best of his abilities, so he was ready to kick butt, despite his less than stellar work so far. "And please be honest."



-------------------------------
Konoha Hospital... @Odin@Write@GlitchyBugger
So... It seems they have a Byakugan user on their side. Not bad. Wonder how that happened. It was the eyes, fairly obvious. So it seemed like stealth was out, kinda. While she could see them, it seemed the rest of the bunch couldn't. So having only one shinobi with a sense of what they where doing was good enough. Just meant he had to split his focus a little.

First thing was first, the wind jutsu. The archer didn't seem to be attacking at the moment, so that made this a lot easier. Jaakuna's senses where superb, a gift from his extensive time with Kurama. The clones on the opposite building had the advantage in that they had extra range and thus room to move. Spying the handseals, and distortion of the wind, they moved.
The front visible two jumped back, twisting in the air and landing on all fours. One formed a series of handseals, while the other formed another.
"Katon: Haisekishō"
"Fūton: Taifūikka"
A cloud of smoke and ash poured out from the one on the right, erupting out and spreading along their rooftop. The second, using a wind jutsu, pushed the cloud of smoke. Spreading it out further, right onto the other rooftop. The choking ash would do a few great things. One of which was blind anybody that wasn't one of the fox ninja, since they could detect the intent of others. A pretty good start, since coughing alone would do a good job of distracting the kage and hyuuga. But, there was a catch. and only Sayuri would notice it. But after one jutsu each, the chakra the clones had been allocated dropped, leaving them with only enough on their own to go hand to hand. It seemed they might have a one jutsu limit each. Makes sense, they where spread thin.

The other four, all of which where invisible jumped to the sides. One of them landing poorly and taking a wind bullet through the chest. Drat. Each jumped onto the other roof, knowing they had to get into the fight. One drew a sword, chucking it through the smoke and ash at Sayuri. With any luck it's get her, doubtful. Another of the group targeted Koma, sword drawn. He turned visible, blade swiping through the ash right at the vulnerable iwagakure shinobi. That bow girl would be trouble. Better keep her from getting to the two attacking the crowd. A good enough start. The last of the three lunged through the smoke, aiming to tackle Yogensha, draining her chakra on the touch.

The initial two attacked from opposite sides, with one on the right and the other on the left. The one on the left had it easiest. Leaping through the barrage of bullets, lucky in that with such a wide spread it was rather easy. The kunai zipped over his head as he charged again, joining the other two in his attempt to grapple Yogensha. She stood out clearly, that strong will to fight him, aiming to grab her hand, more than enough to throw her off balance.
The one on the right, not so lucky. Like his cohort he manage to dodge the wind, what he didn't dodge was Sayuri. Not because she was faster than him, but because he was only just landing as she attacked. The force of her blow scattered the clone, destroying him in an instant. Lucky her. Just a few left.

Already the two who leapt towards the crowd where getting to work. Pinning down injured shinobi, sucking the chakra from their bodies. When attacked, they're kick or punch with a shocking amount of speed. Working tandem and doing their best to remain surrounded. After all, if they remained in the crowd, it'd be harder to attack them.

Oh, and one last thing. The ash currently surrounding the group is volatile. Any kind of spark or metal on metal would set it off. So... Good luck.

Current Count: 5 Visible, two on the opposite roof and two down below in the crowd. One is attacking Koma. / 3 invisible, one throwing at sword at Sayuri, and the other two aiming to subdue Yogensha.

-------------------------------
Konoha Market... @Spanner
Shoot! He should have seen this coming! The clone cursed under his breath as he stood up, eyes wide under his mask. It was clear the man had a good grip on his emotions, though the clones where in such a hectic crowd, one set of emotions could be easily dismissed at this point. His hands pressed together, knowing he wouldn't win this fight. But, he might as well deliver any message the man planned to send. But the clone paused. Eyes wide not in fear, but jovial delight. Arashi!? Of the Hidden Grass!? If the clone wasn't so shocked by who this was, he'd have been more... Well overjoyed! He took his hands apart, and raised a hand to the anbu mask covering his face.
"Arashi... Huh? Last time I heard that name or saw that face I could have sworn you where leaf." He spoke slowly, grip tightening on his mask. He pulled it aside slowly, till Arashi could see the eyes beneath. Narrowed, precise... Like a fox. "Disobeying your Sensei's orders, huh? Last I recall I ordered you to stay in the hidden grass and protect it, Tiger cub." That nickname was... Probably the last thing Arashi wanted to hear. A teasing jab from long ago from a man that the world believed dead.
For a moment, Arashi would be gifted seeing Jaakuna's face. Before he vanished in a puff of smoke. "Chase me little tiger! I can't wait to see how you've grown.

---

Yogensha held back when the ash appeared and took over them, and instinctively reached towards Koma, pulling her closer towards Yogensha. The girl hadn't moved yet - lucky break, perhaps, but it meant that the two shinobi on the ground hadn't been stopped yet. With Koma close and Sayuri having had enough training to instinctively know what to do, Yogensha simply bided her time, and waited. She was now aware there were invisible targets, which told her something about the abilities of the enemy, where as her so called trump card still remained hidden from him. And from the way the fight was looking, there would probably be no need to show off her trump card either. Although there was no doubt about this persons' mastery over the kage bunshin technique, it was clear that he was outplayed in this scenario purely on the basis o Sayuri's byakugan. That alone gave them the advantage that had already won them this fight entirely. “Locations?” she inquired quietly, which in the hubbub of the fight would easily be lost in the noises to all but Koma and Sayuri.

Whether the answer came or not, they would be set upon soon. Yogensha could not see as easily and if Sayuri had planned to warn her of the incoming, she would certainly be too late when she had her own problems to take care of.

Yogensha was caught, first by the one who tackled her and grabbed her by the waist. Although unexpected, she did not fall over backwards and managed to stay upright, feeling her chakra dissipating slowly. She reacted quickly and withdrew a kunai from the strap on her leg, and without a second thought jammed it into this persons' back. Poof, and then the clatter of the kunai as it fell onto the clay roof panes. This would be the first taste they'd get of Yogensha's chakra - and they'd know her chakra was powerful and plentiful enough. The second one came soon after, grabbing her by the wrist. With a simple motion, graceful enough although it was invisible to the spectators due to the smoke, she moved her body and pushed her fist into the air before sending it down onto the clones' head; although not without performing a jutsu first. “Kaze no Yaiba!” Between her index finger and thumb, a spinning blade of wind materialized out of thin air, literally, and she thrust it into the shinobi's neck. It'd have sliced it, were it not a clone. Instead it simply vanished, taking a little bit of her chakra with him again. Was it worth it? She did not know.

“Let's use this to our advantage,” Yogensha then alerted the other two nin with her. Although it was a daring plan, she pondered whether it would be worth it. A quick risk calculation indicated; yes, it would be. “Recruit!” she then added, indicating Koma, whose name she was still unaware of. “Place your foot in my hands and get ready to use that bow.” The purpose was still unknown, both to Jaakuna, Sayuri and Koma. But the plan was innovative and, thus, likely unexpected under the guise of the smoke. “Push!”

She moved her hands upwards and threw Koma into the air in a spiraling motion allowing her to scan the area. If she remembered her duty, she was to shoot the two shinobi throwing a hissy fit down in the streets. A reckless and somewhat unsure move - she had no idea how accurate Koma even was.. for all she knew, she'd be more likely to hit the civilians than the shinobi. But such a weapon was uncommon among shinobi, so anyone that wielded it must have had at least some skill with it. The odds seemed worth it, to her.

In that same spinning motion she summoned wind chakra into her right hand, and politely forwarded an order to Sayuri. How strange, that in a situation like this, she remained her façade of almost perfect composure, even when nobody could see her. “Sayuri, locations, if you have a moment.” As soon as she received some locations for the enemies, she quickly calculated where that had to be in her mind - it was quite a feat to maintain her awareness about the environment especially when your vision was blocked. Yet again, a testament to her quick mind, not her raw power. When she had their locations pin pointed - or thought she did - she threw her hand forward in an arc swinging right to left. “Jūha Shō!”

From her hand came forth an arcing wind, slicing through the smoke and heading straight towards the largest mass of enemy shinobi she could see. This all happened in the time that Koma was in the air above the smoke, and by the time Koma landed, Yogensha would already have her next order ready for Sayuri. These, however, were more cryptic and strange. “Rotate!” Sayuri would understand as the rigorous training the protege and Yogensha had undergone had created a strong synergetical bond. Koma and Jaakuna, however, would be left in the dark.. if they even heard over the clattering of combat all around them. Hopefully the 'rotate' she called for would offer them some solution to the smog. And, perhaps, keep them hidden inside of it while it lasted. Yogensha was, after all, a thinker first and a fighter second. She saw no reason to put herself, her protege and her new 'Amegakure recruit' into danger to fight an enemy that did not even dare show their real face.

Smart. But ultimately a waste of chakra as the clones disappeared with a single hit. It also proved her point that whoever was doing this was very, very capable - either that, or they had stupid amounts of chakra. It opened her mind - not to combat, but a potential partnership, should they ever care to show themselves at her residence in Amegakure in a more... respectful fashion.

---

Somewhat unexpected, they had been encased in a dome of wood and, truthfully, before Sakana had realized it he was taken away by Kamui. He didn't struggle, watching the ground disappear below him even when Kamui summoned a hawk and they flew away just in the nick of time before the dome was enclosed. Right on time as the waves of water swallowed it whole. There was barely any area left that wasn't water. They flew around for a while, even dodging flying swords as they rained down around them. “Well,” Sakana began, slowly standing up on the hawks back, and looking over the landscape. A good portion of the forest was flattened. Then another portion was covered in water. There were sharks all around, and then there was this rain of swords all over the place. “It seems the Sage doesn't favor us today, Kamui.”

An astute, but obvious observation. Despite this, evacuation did not cross Sakana's mind. He was bound by fate and that meant that he'd sing this one out where ever it took him.

In the distance he made out what appeared to be fire bursts - later he would discovered these were simply the characteristical jets used by Rumia - and found them to be a curious sight. “Kamui, go there,” he simply ordered, and as they'd draw closer, they'd quickly find the source of the flames. Rumia, Kyoka, and then Tashiro and Hime not far off. However, far more interestingly, there was some kind of fish-guy. Family? Could've been. Impossible to tell, from the distance they were flying at while still dodging swords left and right. “Put me down the-” His next order was cut off by a high pitched sound as a white ball seemed to slowly form in front of one of the shinobi - the one that had used jets to propel herself - before it sent out a giant beam of power.

“Fly lower,” the order simply continued, ignoring his previous order. Instead of simply putting himself down and dealing with this by spectating the spectacle, it seemed a more direct approach was required. As they flew at a more reasonable height, and directly overhead Sano, Sakana would free-fall off of the hawk. He'd expect Kamui to simply land somewhere more safe and use his supporting techniques to help.

During the freefall he performed handseals, with more than enough time to spare. Instead of opting to land directly on Sano and beat him - that seemed like a silly strategy - he pulled back slightly and then jerked his head forwards. “Suiton: Ja no Kuchi!” he yelled as he opened his mouth, spewing forth ridiculous quantities of water from just one man's body. It quickly took the form of a shark, similar to the technique the man had used himself. Although it was clearly a different technique, as the sharks' tail didn't form completely and instead remained connected to Sakana's mouth as he continued to spew water.

Rather than let the technique loose while in the air, he simply landed on top of it while feeding it water and holding the handseals. Augmenting chakra at his feed, all he had to do was ride the water down aiming it for Sano. Then, when he was about to collide, he released the attack and stopped feeding it water, while performing new handseals. Again he prepared his mouth and instead of water, he moved forwards and... “Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!” Instantly he spewed forth fire. Now, Sano would have two attacks that would follow up the giant powerful lazer Rumia had shot at him. Sakana merely had to jump off of the shark, landing somewhere close to where Rumia would land, a slight distance away.

And Sano.. he had to dodge a giant water shark coming at him followed by a giant fireball technique.

Meanwhile, Sakana curiously eyed his new 'companion' Rumia, spotting her blackened eye. Different pupils, though, but at least they shared the black sclerae. Perhaps there was more in common here, but Sakana simply estimated not. Wouldn't change the outcome of the fight, however.

As Kaba continued his trek towards the exit, he had begun to relax slightly. Somehow he had made considerable progress through the vast forest without encountering any other participants. The two scrolls he already possessed hung by his right hip, covered by a hand ready to defend them at any time. There was no way he was going to fail this phase after being fortunate enough to receive somewhat of a head start thanks to his former Iwagakure comrade.

Almost suddenly there was a shift in the air. Kaba's skin began to crawl as something clearly nefarious was about to rear it's head upon Konoha. Like clockwork, a series of loud explosions rang in Kaba's ear. Realizing the sounds came from the direction of the village, he scaled the nearest tree and focused his gaze towards Konoha. Kaba attempted to process the sudden destruction that befell his home village and parts of the forest, but he was quickly interrupted with more immediate chaos.

"Damn, water AGAIN??" Kaba shouted, clearly frustrated. After the first phase of the exams he didn't want to see another drop of water for at least a week, but there it was. As he cursed the sudden flood that began to overtake the forest, Kaba wondered if this was also apart of the exam to test their reaction to unforeseen events. His doubt was quickly erased as bloodcurdling screams rang in his ears. People were actually in trouble, and seemingly in pain. Why was this suddenly happening?

From his new perch, Kaba began scanning the area to locate where exactly the water was coming from, uncaring if he was noticed by a possible exam enemy that wanted his scrolls. It was clear the exam was just an afterthought. Kaba quickly deduced that the sudden onslaught of water was a technique being used by someone, as a large number of water sharks began to appear as well. Before he could even locate the culprit, his attention was stolen by a strange man he'd never seen before, who seemingly floated in the sky overlooking the area. The mysterious figure began to lower to the ground below and unexpectedly more destruction followed.

Kaba could see other trees and vegetation falling in the ancient forest, while the area had quickly turned into something of a natural disaster. At this moment a sense of trepidation flooded Kaba's body just like the water had flooded the forest. His pain from earlier had subsided due to the swift adrenaline that rushed through him all of a sudden. The tree that he temporarily used becam victim to the rushhing floods that swept the area and succumbed the gravity. Fortunately Kaba kept his balance while trying to figure out his next plan of action. But there was no time to even think because again the forest was targeted with another deadly assault. A myriad of weapons appeared from overhead and forcefully rained upon the forest. The sound of more trees falling, and even screams from unknown persons filled the air. Kaba was quick to defend himself with a simple barrier, and none of the deadly weapons reached him. As the assault subsided he almost wanted to panic, but quickly figured this situation would be a great time to prove himself to the village. He deserved to become a leader in Konoha.

Kaba began to make his move, happening upon one of the culprits suddenly, Sebun. Quickly, he concealed himself behind a fallen tree, seemingly clear of any immediate danger. He wondered if this was good luck or bad luck? He was able to locate one of the attackers, but clearly these new foes were extremely powerful. Kaba never wanted to doubt himself, but he wasn't sure if he'd be able to defeat one of them. The least he could do was try, it was his duty. He could only hope another ally appeared to level the playing field. From his new point of refuge, Kaba created a shadow clone that would suddenly dart 10 meters to his right and appear before the new foe so as not to reveal Kaba's current hiding spot. The clone quickly threw two kunai, fitted with explosive tags, at Sebun. Taking the culprit head on was not ideal for Kaba, so he would try and gather as much info on the stranger before attempting to formulate a plan to come out victorious.

Hime Yuki

@Pirouette @Savato @BladeSS4 @Syn

Hime valiantly guarded herself against the chunks of ice flung at her by Rumia's kick with her ice disc shield, grinning widely at the mutated shinobi before the situation suddenly took a turn for the bizarre. They didn't even get to start fighting properly before a sudden appearance of at least two hostile guys took the forest by surprise. Some kinda rush of water and sharks that Hime was entirely unconcerned with as she made another ice disc for herself to safely stand upon, even making one for Tashiro if he didn't have a way to get out of reach of the sharks and waves.

The other guy was a concern though, turning a large chunk of the forest into a crater with just force alone, and by the looks of things no one wanted to see to dealing with him. Just how the Yuki liked it, really, and had decided to handle the umbrella man before Rumia had even suggested it to her. "Waaaaaaaaaaaaay ahead of ya Rumi! Tash, you coming?" She didn't give him much time to respond as she suddenly darted off towards Havoc's location, wings beating a mile a minute and the bouncy Yuki taking a quick second mid-transit to place an ice tag on the soles of each of her shoes for... Some reason.

In however long it took to reach captain rain-check, Hime had prepared herself for a fresh battle, throwing down a tag right in front of her as she passed over a slanted rock and activating it to give her a ramp so she could fling herself up into the air. She didn't need to do it due to her ice disc technique, but it looked cool!

"Evil umbrella man! I Hime Yuki am here to kick your teeth in, full power fairy, chaaaaarge!" There was no need for the cry of "charge" as Hime announced her arrival, but again she did it because it seemed cool, especially whilst soaring towards him from above and had prepared her handseal for her ice bullets, intending to close the distance quickly and slam the bullets straight into his Havoc's face.

She had an emergency escape plan in case she couldn't get him with this first strike, as sometimes that was all that was needed to decide a battle.

Where had Tashiro gotten to?

---

@Write @Odin @Reflection

Koma could only briefly nod as she was "recruited" as a kunoichi of Amegakure by Yogensha for the time being, likely it was to help the woman in commanding her, and then promptly ordered to deal with the two visible clones that were wrecking havoc with the civilians and the wounded.

She didn't even get to take a step as some other clones on the roof began covering the area in an ashen smog, forcing her to hold her breath and find herself being pulled against Yogensha, either intentionally or unintentionally saving her from the blade of the clone that was attacking through the smog. For now all Koma could do was listen to Yogensha's instruction and place her fate, and her foot, in the woman's hands.

Before she realised it she was spiralling up and up into the air, it was a strange experience to be flung into the air without actual warning, but the kunoichi knew what to do now that she had an aerial advantage on her targets.

With practised motions she drew and fired two arrows down towards the two, one arrow slamming into the top of a clone's head and causing him to disappear in a puff of smoke and skimming the other as he actually picked up on her attack and managed to move just in time. It seemed her aim was still somewhat shaky since her battle with the sea creatures, but it was no issue for her, all she had to do was chase him down before he lost her in the crowd.

She still had a moment of time to attempt another shot, it wouldn't be wasted this time as the arrow plunged into his back whilst he was trying to gain some distance on them whilst flinging a shuriken up at the airborne kunoichi.
Another puff of smoke from a felled clone signified Koma's mission complete though she couldn't exactly dodge from mid-air she was able to block it with her arm so she wouldn't get hit square in the face with the deadly tool. At least the descent was easy, using a weakened immense breakthrough due to her low chakra, and catching herself just before she landed, even spreading some of the smog away from herself.

Based on how she felt right now, she probably only had a couple more arrows in her right now, hopefully it would be enough to remain somewhat useful in the conflict.

---

---

It didn't take even a second for Hikaru to regret his act of following the other voice, as he received an unimaginably stupid question as soon as he managed to find the source of the yelling voice: an androginous looking Konoha-nin (A male, if he had to guess) that demonstrated clear signs of being crazy, as he actually pulled a sword on Hikaru and asked some stupid question about him being one of the guys responsible for the attack in despite of the clear signs of struggle he demonstrated - a thought that, while reasonable under the current circumstances, deeply annoyed the Iwa Nin.

"Sure thing, dude. I'm clearly one of the responsibles for this attack." The Iwa nin looked utterly pissed as he talked, stopping just to slam his umbrella shapped weapon into yet another blade that got near him, deflecting it towards his right side. "That's why I've brought a fucking umbrella. To shield myself from my companions friendly weapon rain." He managed to finish barely holding his temper, stopping for a dozen or so seconds to catch a breath before he once more directed his words to the Konoha nin. "Now if you're done with the stupid questions, help me with getting out of this hellhole. I've got no freaking idea about where stupid village is and how should I get there."

---

---

Kamui couldn't help but flinch for a second, surprised to the point where he almost didn't manage to guide his hawk to dodge an incoming sword due to how Sakana's not only started giving orders but actually wanted them to go towards the guy with one of the largest chakra pools that Kamui had ever seem, seemingly attracted by a group of Iwa nins that came for the Jounin Exam - something that he would hardly consider as a good idea, for it was already more than clear for Kamui that the odds were completely against them and thus planned to just skip any battling and directly fly towards the village.

Something outside of the boy's planning though, as before he could answer to Sakana's order with a fairly healthy advice about how people should avoid munderous looking shark guys with monstrous levels of chakra, one of the Iwa nins started to attack the shark guy, clearly denoting that he wasn't their ally and thus somehow making the odds even - specially when considering that Kamui could detect yet another group of chunnin running to join the battle. In the end, he was forced to once more abide by Sakana's will and make his summon fly lower, giving the other ninja the perfect opportunity to join the fight and then continuing flying towards the south, ultimately deciding to land a few hundred meters away from the main fight, clearly planning to act as an observer unless he was forcefully inserted into the messy battle, as he dismissed his summon and concentrated in expecting the fighting through his sensory technique.

---

---

At first, Arashi truly just planned to chill around for a bit, taking the opportunity that was the jounin exam to visit his hometown for the first time in 20 years, see what had changed, eat a bit in his favourite restaurant if it atill existed and maybe offer some prayers to his troublesome teacher's grave for the first time since his death - basically an easygoing tourist trip under the guise of maintain the diplomatic relations between his village and Konohagakure, as if his presence wasn't already enough to assure that. No need to say that this made the fact that the first thing he faced after entering the Land of Fire was the desecrated grave of his teacher even worse.

As such, it wasn't surprising that the leader of the village hidden in the grass was already more than pissed when he arrived in his hometown, completely ignoring the need to present himself to the hokage and drinking himself to sleep in an attempt to drown away the urge he had to make a mess out of the village in his search for the guy who dared to mess with his teacher's grave instead. Imagine how happy he was in the following say then, as right after he left his room in a random inn - while still pissed and dealing with a hangover - to grab something to eat in the market district, what he found was a bunch of assholes wreaking havoc in the freaking village while the goddam hokage was away and even worse: they didn't even come in person, using freaking fragile shadow clones instead, completely taking away any satisfaction he could've felt from beating them.

As such, it wasn't that surprising that his immediate reaction after receiving an unexpectedly familiar answer from the first clone he managed to have a talk with - for he simply "broke" all the others accidentally before he managed to interrogate them or use them to send a message - was releasing an unnatural amount of killing intent, for it was basically assuming that they were the ones who stole his teacher's body. In the end, thought, it turned out that the situation was much worse that he thought, as before he could actually give voice to his rage the clone revealed something else - something that simply couldn't be faked that easily simply because he was the only one who knew about it besides Jaakuna himself: The clone not only had his teacher's face but, even more disturbingly, seemingly had his memories.

For a second, the village leader simply didn't know what to do, facing the empty spot left behind by the clone as he thought about the implications of what just happened. In the end, thought, he simply decided to take the easiest way out of this situation: he'd, as a good shinobi, shut down his emotions for now and do what he needed to do before investigating the situation - he'd, from now on, use his sensor technique to hunt and put down every single clone he could before trying to find Ginsho. After all, he was now responsible enough to know that securing the village was more important than blindly searching for answers - or so he convinced himself in despite of clearly moving away faster than he needed as he disposed of the clones around him, eager to finish what he had to do and track the one responsible for this terrifying mess.

The Forest of Death... @BladeX@ZeroXposure
Smart kid. He'd go far in life, as only a fool attacks somebody well above his level. But he was rather mistaken in the idea that he was fighting only foe. As there was a brief red blip of light from somewhere on the sides of the clearing. Next moment, Kaba would see a shinobi, dressed in fairly simple anbu garb. A fire seemed to be flickering off his body, though maybe a trick of the light. The two kunai where intercepted right out of the air, caught by the handles, one in each of the mysterious shinobi's hands. Both where tossed back before the tags had a chance to ignite. One sailed towards the clone, an obvious target. The other one though, was aimed into the forest. Specifically right to where Kaba was hiding. A perfect shot. A clear indicator that this mystery ninja may very well have other senses.

"Hey man, sorry to steal your lightning." The stranger chuckled, grinning from ear to ear. "But all the others are out doing cool stuff, and I'm starting to get jealous." He laughed, clearly being rather silly in the midst of all this. If Kaba was well read he may be one of the few to recognize the shinobi considering he wasn't wearing a mask. Jaakuna Aka, hero of the leaf had arrived just in time for some mysterious invasion. "Now, I'll leave this to you, but be careful. Kids these days have no respect for their betters."

------------------------------
Various places in Konoha... @Spanner

By now, news was spreading through the clones. A great deal of excitement spread through them, aware of the dangerous man now running amuck. Finishing their tasks as soon as they could, be it glorious explosive suicide, or drawing in more chakra before they where destroyed, it was clear fun was being had. All at Arashi's expense. Each one removed their masks, looking at the shinobi when they sensed his approach. Some nodded, knowing it had to be done. Others sat back, and repeated the same thing. "Long time no see." Till to a point where if he hadn't hardened his heart, Arashi's chest would be bleeding in sentiment.

Until finally, there was only one clone left in the market place. He stood silently, taking in all the motions and chaos around him. "You know... Tiger Cub... This isn't me." It was probably the only time Jaakuna or his clones would get to speak to somebody from the old world. "I thought I was the hero, you know? I thought this was my story..." He took a seat in the center of the market, on the edge of the fountain. "During the war, before the end... I was supposed to have a future. People always said 'You're going to be Hokage! You have my vote!' And then... I died. I've had years to fester on that. It's a gaping wound you know." A hand pressed to his chest. His fingers dug into his chest, tight and painful even for a clone. "So many I didn't get a chance to speak to. Apologizes I never gave... I was left in isolation for twenty years. With the man who caused all this misery... And when I return? I find out I'm being played like a fiddle. And that hate? It's coming up so much. I hate this village. I hate this sun. I can't feel anything but his simmering hate. Does that make me bad?"

He patted the seat next to him, inviting Arashi to speak. "You did good though. Honestly, you're doing a better job than some others. I heard Akeno died... First wife, remember? Blonde, lovely singing voice. Apparently she couldn't bare the loss of our only son and then myself. Did you attend the funeral? She liked you a lot." Jaakuna smiled for a moment, and then laughed softly as a memory crossed his mind. "Remember when she kept insisting you stay for dinner that one time?" It was a rather silly story really. They had been planning a family feast, getting the rest of Jaakuna's ever growing family together. Arashi had shown up mostly by accident, since he was there to get advice on his first date. At least, that's how Jaakuna was remembering it. "You know, she told me afterwards that she'd have handcuffed you to the table to force you to stay and eat with us if you tried to escape." Good times... Now long gone.




Bumu shrugged, easily stepping aside as a sword impaled the tree where she had been standing. Being a rather strange sort this felt more like drama than anything else. Overly cautious as he was, he had to admit the Iwa ninja did have a point. Though one could argue that was all part of the ploy! But... If he was going to get out, going in a group of two was better than a group of just himself.
"Ah, I'm just fucking with you." Bumu grinned from ear to ear. "Though lets be honest, it makes some sense. Because at the moment, the village is under attack. We're under attack. Somebody has to be the traitor." Fairly visibly to Hikaru, explosive tags began to crawl back up the tree, hiding themselves on Bumu's person. "Not like it's gonna be the Konoha ninja, you Iwa could be the bad guys here, but we'll point fingers later, okay?"

Turning his attention to the situation at hand, he seemed to watch the hawk in the distance, with some attention to the crater on the other side. "If we're going to be realistic, the two main exits have a guy on each of them. Simply because that's something I'd do if I attacked." Bumu jumped down to Hikaru's level, but he made fairly sure to be enough of a distance away that he'd react if the other ninja tried anything funny. "So, if we go east or west we could probably just jump the fence. Unless somebody is guarding the perimeter we'll be fine, what'cha think on that?" It was all rather obvious when you thought about it, but considering this was an invasion, who knew what else was waiting out there to fight. "I'll take lead, that cool with you?" Bumu said, jumping forward and heading east. Odds where they might run into some other shinobi along the way in need of help.
"By the way, my name is Bumu Aka, what's yours?" He inquired, landing on a branch and kicking off.

Things changed drastically, at first Tashiro was heading directly at the stone cousins the next he hears a huge explosion. Tashiro almost stumbled as he tried to turn towards the direction he thought he heard it come from. The village was under attack he had almost completely forgot about Rumia, Kyoka and Hime for a moment. At the moment he was trying to process the situation.

'Who was attacking? Why was the attack now? Where were the attackers? How many where there attacking? What exploded, was anyone hurt and who?' These questions running through Tashiro's mind before he was snapped back to where he was in the middle of the forest of death, in the middle of the jounin exams. He looks around and sees Rumia and Hime springing to action. Tashiro sees the water coming and he acted. Jumping up and bouncing off the trees trying to stay out of the rapid water path way. For the first time since entering the forest Tashiro cracked a smile. The village was under attack and yet Tashiro found right in the forest was the perfect situation. Tashiro's whole arsenal jutsus need water to use. Whoever this man attacking the chunin in the forest just provided Tashiro what he needed to be useful other than being a man with a sword.

He stops ontop of a tree looking up towards the man that Hime was going right after. She was going for the quick attack by the looks of it but Tashiro needed a bit of time. He grabs his sword with both hands and started to concentrate his chakra into the blade. The black blade glows with a blue aura as the chakra takes shape around the blade. Change in form or rather using the sword as an object to hold the form together. This was the easy part the next part was some what difficult. Using his chakra to gather water and pull it to the sword and running it across the blade at rapid speeds. Until the blade cannot hold anymore water and keep the swords shape turning it into a saw like saber with water running at high speeds

As Tashiro stands at the top of a tree he brings together the water slowly to his sword turning into a blade a water and building up in strength. Tashiro needed five minutes to form the water saw. Tashiro keeping his are eyes trained on Hime and this mystery man who is Havoc. As much as Tashiro wanted to do what the Hime was doing and jump into the battle himself. He needed time to build up chakra and to build up the jutsu to its full destructive capabilities. Tashiro hopes this delay wont have consequences for who her should she need his help in fighting the man with the umbrella.

@Syn @Yoshua171 @Write @Glitchybugger @BladeSS4

As the group arrived on a ink phoenix covered in a barrier, Ai gripped one of her tags, and nodded.

"I could say we're Jonin candidates, but to be honest, I don't really care. I now owe the Tsuchikage two favors. I want to repay them. These people are giving him trouble. I can at least repay one favor. The ninja rank really doesn't matter to me. We'll get by."

She smiled at the last part, while looking at the strange man with an umbrella. Dealing with people socially could wait til later. Right now they had one fight, one focus. Just take down the enemy. THAT Ai could work with.

"Well, what do we got? Sorry, Ayame, 2 years is such a long time, I don't know how much stronger you are. I'm a sealing specialist. I'm pretty fast, and like to plant tags on enemies. I have a few barriers, but they aren't exactly the strongest. Oh, and my chakra network is pretty much shot, if I'm out of seals, I'm out of a fight. Thankfully I've got quiet the arsenal. And, uh, Iwa-nin, I can see some ink based techniques."

Ai still watched as a.... fairy? charged the man with an umbrella. Ai cocked her head. It was interesting, and was like watching a train wreck, Ai just couldn't look away.

"Well... I guess we get to see what this man is capable of."


@Yoshua171
Kaito smirked at his orders. Claiming the hospital as part of Ame? How cheeky. Leaving him in charge of it? Even moreso. And, of course, his blade was shadow, it was the perfect job for him. He didn't really have to worry about her, if she had the job he'd have one day, naturally she was untouchable. A voice sprang up behind Kaito, though he didn't turn to it. That would give the impression he was surprised, and why show a weakness. He did, however, close his eyes, in order to open his ears.

"And what exactly makes you think the warning still doesn't apply? I am a shadow, without form. A little injury really doesn't inconvenience me. I'll keep my injury, it's a pride to remember shattering a Hyuga's arm. Hehehe. It was really quiet fun, I'm going to have to make it a regular sport."

Kaito opened his eyes, and glanced at the hospital. It really was about the collapse, that much was true. Still nurses and a few patients were scrambling out. There were a few brave souls going back in for more.

_"Idiots."

He finally turned to his new acquaintance.

"We're far enough away from the collapse. Unless you're not a fan of dust. Is there any particular reason you're out here? You don't seem to be exactly the social type. Sure, taunting a dragon when down seems in your character, but sadly, I am no dragon. I'd rather avoid an engagement either. "

---

Ah the sweet tones of misery, the invasion had been engaged full throttle and flocking of sheep scurried throughout the forest. Surprisingly enough the wannabe jonins were rather quick in creating defensive measures and going on the offensive rather quickly. The inferior insects seemed to swarm in a wave before the great white. Before he could survey the field a rather bold female ninja came flying towards him with appeared to be large porous features with destructive force. Suddenly a tantalizing beam of white light accompanied by a cacophony of sound stumbled behind the sight of it. Decisions, decisions, would he use samehada to swallow the beam? Would he just fuse with samehada and speed blitz the young kunoichi? Or would he simply dodge the ability with little to no effort. The latter seemed the safest right now until he figured out what the attributes behind the mysterious trashy girls abilities contained. This was the first time Sano had seen such an iconic duo, but then again he had been rotting in a prison cell for the most part even though it challenged him to focus his chakra to prevent him from dying.

The large ocean that had spewed from his mouth mixing with the water of the thousands sharks churned into a large body of water quickly rising in their homogenous solution. It was the perfect environment for Sano to use his abilities with less drawbacks. “Suika no Jutsu” in almost an instant Sano had liquefied like a bowl of soup into the water underneath him. With him disappearing and the violent waves at his disposal, the shark missed the massive beam of energy only to have the area he was standing in to be obliterated before the waves reformed around the scorched earth. Now the liquefying would have made him mostly invisible if it weren’t for samehada swimming along the water’s surface. Erupting out of the water fully fleshed the shark aimed his killing intent towards the modification girl. It would be enough to overpower a B rank ninja so the gamble would be fun to watch either way. But before he could lose himself in the battle with the redneck girl another fly seemed to make its buzzing entrance.

This time it was a boy who had a distinct scent, one that reminded Sano of himself. Perhaps this boy was of similar composition, a catfish of sorts. Regardless he rode in on what appeared to be a magnificent dragon in a never ending story like fashion before shooting a giant water shark followed by a concentration of fire. With a haughty grin, Sano thrusted samehada’s mouth into the water nullifying the head of the beast before running up the spout of water spewing from the boys mouth. Behind the water shark was a chaser of intense flames. “Hadoustuki” a highly pressurized burst of water formed sucking the moisture out of the air and the remains of the shark to rip through the monstrous flames. The two ninja were freefalling along with Sano, it was time. Deciding to go all in, Sano fused with his cursed sword giving him a surge of power and chakra. “Suirō Sameodori no Jutsu” his hands weaved gracefully while falling. Suddenly the excess water from Sakana and the framework laid down by Sano, converged all around him creating a massive dome of water trapping any of the ninja within his immediate vicinity. Falling was his best bet of catching the two ninja and other unaware.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------