First encounter, A and Mizako 1/4

"Mizako!"

There was no mistaking the irate intent boiling under this call, echoing against the buildings on the street and she winced at hearing it.

"Yosh, what did you do this time?"

"I have no idea, Gaï."

Hearing her name called out that way, the young kunoichi had stopped dead in her tracks, visibly weighing her options. She was, more than anything, trying to determine what she could have done to elicit such audible anger from Kushina. She hadn't broken anything in weeks, hadn't burned the last meal even if the rice had been oddly clumped and too hard to chew despites her best efforts. Her room had been more or less clean, her laundry under control. What had she done? What could she have done this time, or forgotten to do? She was raking her memory, rooted on the spot, only aware of the heat of the sun hammering on her sweat dampened hair and the weight of the towel wrapped around her neck. She couldn't figure out the reason her stepsister sounded so mad.

"You know, the longer you wait, the worse it will be."

"I know. I should go now." She blotted her still flushed face and smiled at the boy, a few years older that her and clad in vivid green. "Thanks for helping me with my training, Gaï."

"Always a pleasure, Mizako. You're making amazing progresses lately, your brother must be really proud of you."

He smiled at her, reaching out to tug at a braid, laughing when she swatted his hand.

"Stop doing that, Gaï. I'm not a child anymore."

The harsh words were betrayed but her tone and smile, matching his own in warmth and sincerity as she waved a last time before going away to face Kushina's wrath.

Gai looked at the small silhouette disappearing rapidly in the street, absent mindely moping his brow. She was right. She wasn't a child anymore, even if she still barely reached his upper chest. Sweet little Mizako had grown up since he had first met her.
They had met through his friendship with Minato's apprentice Kakashi and she had been trailing in his wake even since she had started the Academy. A few years older than her, he had been amused and flattered that the Hokage little sister should show him such worship and had seen her grow up to be a very talented chunin, coming up second place on the last year's ranking. She was physically weak and would certainly always be despites her training but her speed and precision were already proving a challenge, even for him.
Shaking his head, he aimed back for the training fields. There was still enough light that he could run a few laps before calling it a night. He still had his weights somewhere, it would do him good.



As cautiously as if she entered a booby trapped field, Mizako stepped in the sparkling clean kitchen of her brother's house. She had taken great care to discard her training gear in the hallway and to brush her clothes for dust even before entering, knowing very well what she would risk shall she soil the house her step sister kept meticulously clean.

"Kushina? Is there a problem?"

"Did you eat my ice cream?"

"Excuse me?"

The red haired kunoichi was a  terror inspiring sight as she stepped until she was nose to nose with Mizako. She wasn't that much taller that her but her anger was making her appear more impressive, her presence filling the room. The Junchiruuki of Konoha was pissed and it was perceptible in the waves of chakra that emanated from her, making her gorgeous red dance to an invisible wind.

"Did you eat my coconut ice cream, Mizako?"

"No! No I didn't! I don't even like coconut!"

Blue eyes bored into grey ones, seeking the truth for half a second, before Kushina stepped back, rubbing the back of her head with a lopsided, awkward smile.

"Yes, you're right. You don't even like coconut. I'm sorry it slipped my mind for a minute. It's just that I was sure I still had some and since I saw you came over to mooch off the fridge..."

"I had forgotten to buy groceries and I was too hungry, besides Minato had told me I could have a go at the leftovers from yesterday. You cook so much better than me."

This attempt at coaxing her stepsister didn't go unnoticed and Kushina grinned.

"Let's strike a deal. Go buy me some and I treat you to ramen tonight."

"With sliced duck?"

"Yes."

"And mushrooms?"

"Yes."

"And could you add some leeks and  maybe.."

"Yes, yes, whatever you want!"

"Yay!"

Mizako bolted out without a backward glance, leaving a still smiling Kushina alone in the kitchen. The young woman went to the fridge and started to pull out the food for the dinner. Her step sister lived just next door from them and she knew very well why. Before her husband's parents passed away, they had made him promise to always care for his little sister and he took this oath to heart, even going something a little bit too far. She snorted as she started to slice the vegetables. To be honest, it wasn't even sometimes. He was so overprotective he hadn't even realised that Mizako had grown up and entered adolescence. She knew that he was the one behind the fact that she seldom could go on missions and always rather innocuous ones, mostly carrying messages and such. If it hadn't been for her influence, the poor girl would certainly never have seen the outside of the village anyway.



"This sly old fox is devising something"

"Onoki is always up to something."

"Yes, but this is so weird. He has requested us to send an envoy and mentioned the possibility an alliance of all things."

"An alliance with Iwa is a tempting thought."

"Our sources also tell us he did the same proposal to all villages. It will be a rush to whoever will be able to go there first to claim such a prize."

"If it is really a prize. Knowing him, it could be a trap."

Minato rubbed his hand over his tired eyes, blinking to escape the view of the pile of reports on his desk. In front of him the village elders were seating in a half circle, waiting for his final word on the matter. As soon as the bird had landed, carrying the missive, they had been gone in a flurry of speculations and wondering and it had been hours ago. He leaned back on his chair and gave a little start as he heard the sharp rasp on the windowpane behind him.

"Mizako! I already told you not to disturb me!" He had opened the window and felt the fresh wind of the evening brush his face, bringing instant relief from the stuffy air of his office.

"Say that to your wife who sent me here because you're late."

"Tell her that an important matter require my attention and I will be home as soon as I can."

"Will do, but don't except me to leave you much to eat if you're going to take too long!"

She let herself fall lightly from the balcony and ran back swift and silent from where she had come from. Minato closed the window behind her, taking one last deep breath of the refreshing night air before turning to face again the elders; He didn't miss the speculative look several exchanged and understood at once.

"No."

"But sending your sister although she is but a chunin yet, would be a great political move, showing you're taking his offer in consideration seriously enough."

"If it's another of his scheme, I won't risk her."

"We weren't planning on asking you to send her alone, Yondaime Hokage but you have to consider this idea."

They were right, of course they were right. They knew it and they knew he knew it. They had already asked him several time to start to use Mizako as the symbol she was more than who she was: the sister of the Hokage and one of the most promising shinobis of her generation. Sending her there would add extra clout to any suggestion of alliance that may be done and even the old man from Iwa would have to recognise this.
As much as he cared for his sister, he knew deep down that keep on sheltering her as he was doing would end up deserving her more than anything else. He was loathing to admit it, but it was the truth.

"I will think about it."

"Don't think too long. I strongly think it will be a first come, first serve proposal. She wouldn't even lead the negotiations, just be here as a token of good faith."

"Or a hostage if it turns sour."

None of the elders commented on his last sentence, letting him stew the idea quietly. The Yellow Flash of Konoha didn't take long to reach his decision anyway.

"I will tell her about it tonight so she can get ready and depart tomorrow."

"And we will choose a team to go with her."

The elders bowed respectfully before exiting his office and he steeped outside too, his feet following the path to his home. The night had already fallen and the streets were quiet, all the opposite of the joyous cacophony that welcomed him when he entered his house.

"About time, bro!"

"You're late, love, is everything all right?"

Kushina, his beloved Kushina, had noted the slight frown of worry he hadn't been able to hide at hearing and seeing his sister. The idea that had looked so reasonable, understandable a few minutes ago was now a deep worrying one gnawing at his insides.

"Yes, everything is fine. Don't worry."

He waited to be seated, the two women floundering around him to serve him before they sat too, to talk.

"Mizako, I have decided to send you on a special mission."

She gave an eye roll at that, so used to what he called missions that were making her the prey to some stingy jokes from her comrades.

"Let me guess, I have to go help someone with the library, or account for the cots in the city kindergarten, or , hmm, let me think..."

"I'm sending you on a diplomatic mission to Iwa."

That sentence, uttered in a flat, low voice, silenced her more than anything else could have done, leaving Mizako mouth agape. In front of him, Kushina was looked almost as stunned, eyes jumping from the brother to the sister.
Since she kept silent he resumed talking, fastidiously preparing his bowl as if he was merely commenting on the weather.

"We need to send someone representative and you were the best choice. Of course, you will only be there as an emissary, I don't ask you to lead or even participate in any negotiations. It was time you go out in the world anyway. You will leave tomorrow morning with a team."

Only then did he lift his head to face her, smiling, savouring the utter stupefaction on her face.

"So, what do you say?"

He pulled back just in time to save his bowl as she cannoned into him, gibbering her joy in scrambled bit of sentences and random words. He held her  briefly before pushing her gently away, awaiting for the storm to abate.

"Now go pack your stuff, get ready, and get some sleep."

"I won't disappoint you, brother, I promise."

"I know you won't."

"Mizako, I'm going to help you pack if you want." Kushina followed her step sister, casting a brief glance at her husband above her shoulder. As happy as she was that he finally was willing to admit that Mizako wasn't a child anymore, she was wondering about the mission and would question him thoroughly later.

"You will want to travel light, Mizako. Iwa isn't cold in this season."

"Did you already go there?"

"Yes a few times and once with your brother. We strayed off the main path and bathed under a cascade, not that far inside the country, that was hiding a nice little cavern and.."

"I don't want to hear another word! That's my brother!" Mizako rammed her fingers in her ears, humming loudly while Kushina chuckled. Soon, very soon she would have to have a conversation with the young woman in front of her about some things of life even if she guessed she wasn't that ignorant: Mizako was still so small and slender she looked younger than she was but she was sixteen already. There were things her mother wasn't here anymore to teach her, things she would need to know, things that were best explained by an adult than by hearsay and teenager discussions.

Gently she pulled at Mizako's hands who let her do, embracing her with a small sigh.

"I can't believe he has finally accepted to let me go on a mission, isn't it amazing, Kushina?"

"It's fantastic indeed. Just remember what they taught you at the Academy and everything will be alright."

Kushina left the still giddy with elation young woman in her apartments as she came back to her house next door. Minato had finished eating, washed and rinsed his dishes and from the noise, was now taking a shower upstairs. He would surely not mind some company. She smiled. Talk could wait, sometimes.



Mizako had barely slept that night, tossing and turning in her bed, too excited to rest, an excitation that kept even in the morning, making her almost dance on the stop as she waited at the village gates for the others that would travel with her. The two shinobis that showed up, a Hyuga of the second branch and an Aburame, face hidden behind the thick cowl all his clan members wore, were unknown to her and she felt a faint flutter of disappointment. She had hoped maybe one of her friends or maybe even Gaï would have been picked to go with her. She nevertheless saluted them courtly, giving a little start when one of them did use a title she had never heard before.

"Mizako hime."

Princess? Why the hell was he calling her like that?

"Mizako will do, you know."

"You are heir to the Namikaze line, sister to the Hokage. You shall get used to your title." the tiniest thread of reproachfulness was visible in the pearly white eyes of the Hyuga man that had spoken.

"I would rather wait to grown up enough to be able to wield it." She grinned at the self deprecating statement, a smile that disappeared fast as none of them answered to it.

She turned one last time to look at her village, and went.


They travelled fast. She wasn't really used to it but she was a fast learner and soon the atmosphere between the two seasoned shinobis and her eased considerably. Fusashi, the Aburame man, and Yosei, the Hyuga were agreeable companions who didn't seem to mind too much having the task to accompany her. Yosei was even willing to impart what he knew of Iwa and its leaders past and present to Mizako whose curiosity was boundless. She had very rapidly understood her role there would only to be present, her presence here being a token of good faith from Konoha. A tad humiliating to be shown up like some prize pet? Surely, but as Yosei told her in his rich mellow voice,  her bonds to the Hokage were what would be useful to the country there and it would be a shame to neglect it. She had agreed, reluctantly at first, but has seen the truth of his words. She wasn't yet a seasoned enough kunoichi to be useful in any other way. She was fast, almost as much as her brother, she possessed too the huge chakra reserves that were the specificity of the Namikaze and she was precise but she was also still one of the weakest physically of her promotion and she knew she sorely lacked experience.

They crossed the gates to the land of Earth and immediately they could felt the change in atmosphere. The civilians were eyeing them suspiciously as they travelled and the whole country setting had evolved to something Mizako discovered for the first time.

They were travelling along one of the main road when they encountered their first ninjas, a delegation sent from Suna. The Sand country was an ally of Konoha and the meeting was courteous if a tad cautious, each one reluctant to share too much information despites the alliance. Yet they found themselves travelling together as they came closer to the hidden village of the stone, the path narrowing between high cliffs and antique looking forests, the trees so high it looked as if the sun never reached the ground. The sky was grey and murky above them, adding to the depressing surroundings and making the two groups edgy. She couldn't believe this was the place Kushina had described her, this little paradisiac shelter she claimed to have found near was surely well hidden.

Mizako hadn't even time to yelp as Fusashi cannoned into her, sending her asides and away from the road and the first jutsu detonated next to them. Pandemonium exploded around them in a blink, as ninjas from various countries started to search for enemies that were still invisible, and turning unto each others, mutually accusing each others of treason. A gigantic gout of lave surged between them, swallowing one of the Suna shinobis so fast he didn't even had time to scream.

"Run, Mizako, run!"

Yosei bellowed his order with such authority that Mizako found herself bolting forward without even realising it, ducking and dodging through the thorny underbrush. Behind her, some more red hot lava was erupting, setting the dry wood of the ancient forest in fire in roaring blazes.

She ran straight forward, intent on putting as much distance as possible between her and the attackers but it had been a well planned attack and the fires were already burning fiercely, making impossible for her to stop and hard to know where she was. Several times she had to back track as she found herself trapped by the flames, finding it harder and harder to breathe in the now smoke filled air. She knew she had to find that river, and find it fast: water was her only chance of survival.

She saw the silhouette lands a few metres from her, not even noticing her in the swirls of smoke and cinders: the man had wrapped a bit of fabric around his lower face and looked as lost as she was. He started again in a direction she knew was hopeless and she took her decision in a blink.

She screamed above the roar of flames but he didn't seem to have heard her so she did the next best thing, throwing a kunai just next to his head, embedding it in the already smouldering bark of a nearby tree to attract his attention.

"Not there! It's already blocked!"

She coughed a little after her sentence, she had wasted too much air trying to be heard. She didn't wait to see if he would listen to her and bolted forward in what she hoped was the direction of the river. Fast, fast, she ran, jumping above the small flames, bouncing back from the trunks until she saw it, a jagged zig zag in front of her, catching a few glimpses of light.

Mizako felt more than heard the dull thud on the ground next to her as she caught a glimpse of a white and black outfit bearing the mark of Suna. The river was partly hidden in a narrow gorge and she angled sharply to reach it, looking for what her stepsister had evocated as the ninja followed her, trailing blood from a wound he sported on the thigh. She saw farther on the same tall silhouette as earlier but didn't signal for him as she barrelled down the gorge, using her chakra to run atop the water and avoid leaving a trail. She was lucky enough that the cascade wasn't too far and she breathed in relief as she saw it, jumping through the flow without hesitation, rapidly followed by the wounded man.

Behind the falling water she did allow herself to catch her breath before turning to the other man, keeping a careful distance nevertheless. He was using a bit of fabric torn from his sleeve to try and staunch the flow of blood and had apparently dismissed her as soon as he has had a look at her. She was used to it and it irked her to no end but she also knew it could be useful so she decided to play it along, making her voice even higher and frailer than usual.

"Do you think they are still after us?"

"Don't know about the us, but I'm pretty sure they won't look there. How did you known about this place?"

"Someone told me about it."

She didn't make a move to come nearer and even bolted backwards with a small scream as a big silhouette appeared briefly on the other side of the wall of water before coming through it. It was the unknown ninja from earlier, the one she had spoken too and she saw the brief flash of recognition in his eyes just before he turned to the other man who had instantly crouched in a fighting stance and spoke in a voice thick with anger.

"I should have guessed Kumo shinobis would dare everything to earn more power!"

"Suna is much more used to betrayal than us." The newcomer voice was a low growl of menace as miniatures thunderbolts started to zigzag around him, grounding on the wet stone.

"I don't think any of us led this attack."

Mizako regretted speaking as soon as she had for the two men attention was now fully directed toward her.

"I mean...I... What I mean is..." and now she was stuttering, fantastic. She could see the men were already forgetting her again, too intent on destroying each others. Positioned as she was, she saw the move behind the water a fraction of second before them. Coils of sharpened chain sprouted forward like whips and twisted around the Suna man, tearing him in shreds in great geysers of blood and gore that splattered everywhere from ground to ceiling. The tall Kumo man had already jumped in her direction and she felt a huge hand swipe her off her feet as he turned and hide behind a pile of fallen rocks. He was pressing her against the rough stones and as she stirred, trying to move, he clamped his other hand across her mouth, his thumb digging under her jaw to have her look at him. He was so big he had to kneel and was still in that position maybe a couple inches taller than her.

"Silence!" Even if he only mouthed it, she had no troubles feeling the rage and authority behind the word and she stood still instantly, trying to hear what was happening behind them.


"Told you I had seen someone enter here."

The voice had an odd echoing liquid quality, reverberating around them against the water slicked wall.

"Well those ninjas from Suna had it coming anyway. Call out the others and tell them we cleaned our area."

"I will even do better. This spot just there.." The voices were fading away but it wasn't Mizako main problem anymore. The hard calloused hand was still pressing harshly against her face to silence her but the man was so big he wasn't only muting her but also totally stopping her from taking a breath. She tried to no avail to push his hand away but it was as is she tried to bend a steel bar and panic started to rise, a panic that turned to cheer terror as she heard a squelchy meaty sound and something fell off the ceiling unto her shoulder, something sticky and warm that slowly slided under her shirt.

A could feel the kid struggle under him to set free but her pitiful attempts were only distracting him so he squeezed a little bit more, hoping she would get the message as he kept on listening for their attackers. He had seen the Suna man follow the child and given how she had reacted toward him too, had guessed she knew more than them about it and firmly intended to extract the truth from her. He wasn't worried about his team mates. Even if they had been separated during the attack, the superiority of Kumo was doubtless. A was listening to the barely perceptible voices of the men that were now outside the cavern, their words made inaudible above the sounds of water cascading and was utterly indifferent to the blood and other things that were dripping from the ceiling, all that remained of the luckless Suna shinobi. At least it had proved the girl right, none of them had been behind this and this thought made him lower his head to look at her. Her pale skin was now purplish, her eyes wide and panicky. She was struggling against him in disordered moves, visibly suffocating: she was so small the hand he had clamped above her mouth to stop her from revealing they were here had also blocked her nose, preventing her from taking in much needed air. What were those stupid Konoha ninjas thinking anyway to send a kid in such a mess?

When she felt his hand slide down enough for her to take a great, gasping breath, she had to close her eyes in relief. She had been on the verge of passing out, red and black dots already swimming in front of her eyes, unable to break his hold on her by the merest inch. His strength was phenomenal, she had never been witness to anything like this and she saw his narrowed by disgust dark eyes bore down on her as two big tears she couldn't stop welled in her eyes and rolled on her cheeks.

"If you make a noise, if you scream. I break your neck myself."

She nodded frantically, she would have agreed to anything if he would only let her go, release this merciless grasp on her and allow her to get rid of whatever was slowly sliding against the skin of her chest through the neck of her vest.

As soon as he released her she reached for the shred of whatever had been stuck against her skin, smearing her with still warm, sticky blood and other fluids, tossing it on the floor as she tried very hard not to gag. He was looking down at her with unmasked contempt, a hulk of a man that could surely break her like a twig. She was between him and a huge boulder, her back turned toward the entry of the cavern where the Suna nin had met his demise and they stood like this for what seemed to her like an eternity but was in fact mere minutes.

They were setting camp just outside the waterfall! A had to restrain a growl of anger as he realised this. Had those been simple shinobis from the Mist he would have dispatched them all without breaking a sweat but he had recognised the attack on the Suna man for what it was: among their attackers was one of the Seven Swordsmen and that changed a lot of things. Luckily none of them seemed concerned by what was behind the waterfall now that they thought they had dispatched the threat so it should at least give him some time. He glanced down again at that child in front of him. He had silenced her so she wouldn't reveal their position but what would he do with her now? He rose to his feet and looked down at her: even if he was used to be bigger than his comrades, she really was tiny and looked terribly young, her clear eyes still full of fear looking at him but at least she wasn't snivelling or even crying.

"Who the hell are you?"

Even if her lowered carefully his voice, it was still a hostile grumble and she looked at him for a few seconds before answering.

"I'm Mi.. Mizako Maito." A deeply ingrained instinct had made her falter as she was about to say her name, to reveal her parentage with the hokage. Better keep careful around such a man, especially given where he was from.
"What are you doing here?"
"I was sent to carry a message to the Kage of the Stone village."
A snorted at hearing this. Those Leaf nins were really even worse than his father had told him.
"Trust those geniuses in Konoha to send a child do a grown up job."
"I'm not a child, I'm 16!"
She snapped, maybe a tad louder than she had intended as he was already discarding her presence, assessing their surroundings.

"Really? You look what, barely 12? I could stuff you in my pocket and carry you around..."
His absent minded comment coupled with the condescension in her voice whipped her up, two spots of bright red colouring her cheeks.
"The child did save your overgrown butt earlier so shut up, will you?"

Fast, so fast he was holding her again, the same faint sparks coursing along his skin, tingling her when they made contact with her body.

"As I saved yours just earlier so that makes us even."

She nodded, cowed and it seemed to appease him enough to let her go. They couldn't go out, not with the enemy so near and in unknown numbers, they were trapped here together for the time being.

"Who are you?"

"I'm A."

She waited a little but he didn't seem ready to elaborate so she pushed further.

"A, just A? Like the letter? I mean, were you short on other letters that day cause it looks like it was the only thing you were short of.."

This time she was ready when he made his lunge and even if he was fast, so fast, almost as fast as her brother, his fingers only closed on thin air as she dodged him, disappearing farther down the depth of the cavern. So much for trying to alleviate the atmosphere but at least he didn't try to follow her up.

She had dodged him. She had managed to dodge him. The revelation stunned A as he looked at her disappear in the shadows. He could count on the fingers of one hand the persons able to be as fast as he was, and except for his father when he used his lightning technique, never he had encountered someone able to dodge him but this little nothing of a girl had that capacity?
As fast as she had gone she was back again, shivering a little in her stained, drenched clothes.

"There is a draft."

"What?"

"I said there is a draft, back there."

She had spoken low but clear, careful despites the sound of falling water that would shield them. She hadn't gone very far before losing all visibility but she was sure about the flutter of air she had felt on her face. This meant only one thing: somewhere in the darkness, there was an escape route. She could have gone alone but she had come back for him despites her qualms, hesitation that were still obviously visible on her face as he stared at her.

"Why do you tell me?"

"Together we have more chances. Outside is the real enemy for now. You and I don't have to become friends but I think that united we stand stronger."

"Kumo and Konoha never were allies."

"I know. My brother told me many times to never trust a Kumo shinobi farther than I could throw him and now that I see one of you I understand his words better, I think."

Looking down at her and hearing those candid words uttered with simplicity he couldn't restrain a short snort of laughter, briefly imagining this slip of girlhood try to lift him up to throw him away. She was holding her small hand out and looking at him square in the eyes, her chin pointed up in determination. He grabbed those slender fingers in his own massive fist and shook it. A truce, at least time to find if there really was an exit there or even only time their attackers to desert the spot. He would still have time to join his comrades in Iwa and if she did manage to go all the way to there, well the chances for her to make a petition that would be taken seriously by Onoki were null, the old man believed in strength and pugnacity and she visibly had none of those.

Mizako nodded as he gripped her hand gently in his own, visibly careful not to hurt her: given his strength he could surely grind her bones to dust without breaking a sweat, just pressing down would do the trick. She had never seen someone both as tall and as large. Ho, there were tall people in Konoha but no one she had ever encountered had such bulk, a silhouette that would have made him appear brutish if he didn't move with the focused, elegant grace of the predator: in addition to this phenomenal physique she had seen a sample of his speed and had been stunned, the man was as fast as she was. He would be a great ally to have, even if it was a short timed truce: she had no illusion on the fact it would be a free for all once they would manage to reach the village.

"Lead the way." His voice sounded a tad less gruff and she complied, stepping again in the growing darkness. After a few metres, it was pitch black and she heard him swear as he bumped his head on the jagged stones above them.

"I can make light but I am afraid they might see it still. There seems to be a bend a few steps on our right, wait." She reached back for him, hand outstretched in the darkness, and managed to grab a fold of cloth. "There, I got you. I will lead you a little then I will make some light."

Step by step, feeling now her way it the obscurity, she followed the path carved in the stone until she judged they were far enough and lifted her hand palm up, focusing her chakra like her senseï had taught her. The key to this was balance: she had a good control on her fire chakra but despites her efforts her control over her wind chakra was way weaker while it was the key to everything.

"No fire can live without air...." she muttered absent mindely her teacher's favourite sentence as above her palm, a small flame rose and wavered, gradually turning from a deep orange to a light, luminous yellow. This warmth in the darkness made her smile and she turned to A and stopped when she saw where her hand had gripped the fabric. An uneven blushed flushed on her cheeks and she stepped back, turning her head asides, mortified. Of course, she should have thought that given the height difference... She totally missed his smirk as she twisted on her heels, her hand held in front of her to light up their path.

He hadn't commented when he had felt that small paw of her grab blindly at the fabric of his pants, tugging him along innocently. Her face when she had realised it had been priceless and he smiled even wider as he followed her, having to bow pretty low at some points while she mostly walked normally, her braids swaying along her back. The shadow cast by her flame was lining her silhouette, slender frame and barely there hips, all the opposite of the tall, curvy and busty kunoichi that were a throng in his village. They walked for two hours, deeper and deeper in the heart of the mountains, following this elusive breeze of fresh air that was making them hope for a way out.

When she saw the first glow in front of her, she had to stop to be sure but yes, there was indeed a faint light visible in front of them. She gave a short, jubilant exclamation and accelerated, beaming in happiness. They had done it, they had found a way out!

"Ho."

The spectacle was magnificent. At their feet, for A had joined her, a small under earth lake was shining with a light of his own, illuminating a small cave whose ceiling towered above their head. In the luminescent waters, small forms were zipping, leaving reminiscent strokes of light on their retinas.

"It's so beautiful."

A didn't answer at this comment, so typically feminine and useless it had no worth.
Instead he shrugged off his vest and twisted it, sending a splatter of soot and blood stained water on the rocky ground of the cave before stepping in the clear lake to clean up a little. He too had been splattered when the Suna ninja had been killed and even if he wouldn't have voiced it aloud, it felt good to get rid of the grime and filth of the last events.

Mizako had turned her back to him as soon as she had seen him start to take his vest off and was still keeping her gaze averted, feeling her cheeks blush a burning crimson. She could hear him splashing around and it reminded her sharply how filthy too she was, of the stains that were spreading on her shirt. Maybe once he was done she could ask him to go a little bit farther so she could get clean.

"Bashful much, hu? Afraid your little friends in Konoha couldn't compare?"

He teased her, because it was so easy, because he wanted to see her react. He stepped in a deeper part of the lake, dunking his head several times under the water and groaning his appreciation. The stone walls echoed with every rustle, every breath, every lapping of water on the shores of the lake, conferring an even deeper otherworldly feel to the location.

When she heard him step out of the water, she waited a little bit more before turning to face him. He hadn't put his vest back on and his tanned skin looked like ebony in the faint lights of the room. Now that she could really take the time to detail him, he was even more impressive, towering a good seven feet if it wasn't more above her under five feet own height.

"Would you mind turning so I can clean up a bit too?"

"As if there would be something interesting to look at on you, midget."

He did jeer, but he did turn his back on the lake, allowing her the same semblance of privacy she had given him and she wasted no time in using it, stripping off her vest and her shirt while casting glances at him but he kept his back resolutely turned to her. She winced when she saw the state of her clothes and had to refrain a heave as she fished one more piece of gristly, unidentifiable meat from her sport bra. The item was soaked in blood, filthy with it and the idea of putting back on made her shudder. It wasn't as if she needed this much anyway. Her mesh shirt hadn't fared much better but this at least could be cleaned easily and she dunked it several time in the water, noting the way the small transparent, glowing fishes swarmed where the water was tinted deepest pink. She scrubbed her vest too and still eyeing A, splashed water on her chest and face. She didn't dare more anyway and quickly put her shirt back on, stuffing her bra in her back pouch before rising on her feet again and coming closer to A.

"Thanks. I'm done."

She eyed the other side of the cavern. One was going up, the other slightly down, a small rivulet of water from the lake snaking on the stones. She focused and activated her flame jutsu again. She was happy she had trained so hard lately, her stamina was much better and she would be able to keep on several more hours if nothing happened. She looked at the two ways, then at A, waiting for his opinion.

"Down and following the water, midget."

"Stop calling me like this. Do I go around calling you an ox?"

"No because doing so would be a big mistake, bite size."

"I'm not afraid of you, you big brute!"

Her flames had risen as she faced him, changing hue to a yellow so pale it was almost white, casting a light strong enough for A to catch the sight of two small nipples plastered against a soaked mesh shirt. Her breasts were small, barely an A cup, but perfectly formed and visible through the wet fabric. She had told him she wasn't a child and he had realised it now. Dainty, doll like, delicate, yes, so small in front of him, but a child she was not. The sudden wave of lust at this sight left him rooted on the spot as she stepped back, looking suddenly worried at his expression, the shadows moving around her and hiding her again. This woman child, so unlike any girl he had crossed path with couldn't attract him, could she?

"Listen, A..."

"No, you listen. I will call you whatever I damn want and you won't say another word on that subject. Left and down. If we follow the path of water we will certainly found an exit. Lead the way."

Mizako had to fight very hard a sudden mad urge to make a face at him but complied, perfectly aware of what was at stake. She would certainly be able to go back on her steps but then would be facing the troops from Kiri, and that was only if he didn't catch her before. She had a strong feeling this was the kind of man that would hold grudges.