Kuro awoke to the scent of herbs and fire. Her body trembled with the dull throb of exhaustion, and her eye—her only eye—blurred and then cleared. The sky above was still dark, pierced by the faintest pre-dawn glow. A hand was on her head: warm, steady.
"You're safe now," Kiba said softly.
Kuro shifted her weight, tested her legs. Pain flared through her chest, but she stood. Not firm, but defiant.
"You shouldn't be moving," Shino said from across the fire. "But we need you."
Kiba crouched beside her. "Can you lead us?"
Kuro sniffed the air once, then twice, and turned her head to the northeast.
Kurenai, leaning against a tree, straightened. "She knows where to go."
Within minutes, Team 8 was ready. Their footsteps vanished into the damp, whispering forest.
"What a great connection Kuro has with Hinata that she can catch Hinata's scent when Akamaru can't, those who kidnapped her hid their tracks well." Kiba commented watching Kuro sniffing the floor trying to guide them towards Hinata.
The hideout was built into a rise of stone wrapped in tangled roots and creeping moss. From the outside, it looked like an old storehouse lost to time. But Kuro led them with precision, slowing near a low ridge.
"They're inside," Kiba whispered.
Shino released his insects into the area.
A few minutes later Kurenai knelt. "Shino, perimeter?"
Shino concentrated and his insects reacted "Four inside. Three more in patrol nearby, moving slowly."
Kiba's hands tightened. "I can distract the guards. Draw them to the west ridge."
Shino adjusted his sleeves. "I'm sure that with these distractions I'll be able to deploy my insects without problems for greater effectiveness."
Kurenai nodded. "I will go inside. I'll disable the guards with Genjutsu the moment they break formation."
Kuro let out a low growl.
Kurenai placed her hand on the dog's head. "You stay with me. We'll finish this together."
<<<< o >>>>
Inside the hideout, Hinata stirred. Her body ached, but she could move. Michel's silver threads clung weakly to her limbs, offering support. She wasn't healed. But she was stable.
Takama still lay unconscious beside her.
Michel could see it with his soul vision. Takama was slowly fading away. More and more black lines were beginning to cover his soul. His soul was fractured, corroded by the poison; he was barely hanging on. It was clear that just being alive was a miracle. Even so, it was as if the vitality of his body was keeping his spirit tethered to the world of the living.
Hinata could somehow intuitively feel it too. She pressed her hand to his. Hoping that in the samurai's last moments he could feel that he was accompanied.
A door creaked.
The youngest of the ninjas entered, as young as Hinata but with eyes that reflected cruelty that the young woman still did not understand.
Ready to prove his worth, he quickly threw a liquid at Takama from a safe distance, which brought him back to consciousness, although not much more. And takes out a scalpel with a smile on his face.
"Last chance," he muttered to Takama. "You talk, or we start taking pieces."
She saw the scalpel first. Then the hand.
She didn't breathe. Not out of fear. But to listen—to herself.
Then she moved.
Hinata stood.
"I won't let you."
The boy raised an eyebrow. "You can barely stand. Stay still, I'll play with you later" his cruel smile grew at the thought
"I only need to stand long enough."
She reached for her quarterstaff, discarded and ignored by her captors—an insignificant weapon in their eyes. It had been left beneath a cloth in the corner. Her fingers trembled—but they held.
"Not yet," she told herself. "Just hold on. I can do this."
<<<< o >>>>
Outside, Kiba whistled, loud and sharp.
Two guards turned instantly, blades drawn.
Then Kurenai moved.
The forest twisted around them, trees blending and reforming. A world of red mist and reflection swallowed them whole. Their cries echoed, then faded.
Shino, behind the trees, released a stream of chakra bugs. They crawled silently upward, mapping the walls. And preparing at various points to ambush enemies and assist Kiba's attempts.
Kiba drew the remaining patrol away with wild howls and motion, vanishing into the mist with Akamaru beside him.
Kurenai stepped forward.
"I'm going in."
Kuro growled beside her, ready.
<<<< o >>>>
The boy lunged for Hinata.
She stepped sideways, letting her staff catch the motion. Wood met wrist with a crack.
He snarled. "Little freak—"
But then the room flickered.
Another Hinata appeared to his right.
Then another.
He struck one—His attack hit nothing, Hinata's illusion vanishing into nothingness..
Another moved.
He turned—but she wasn't there.
She was behind him.
She didn't speak, didn't call out. But deep within, her resolve surged—intent clear, focused. Michel felt it. 'Now.' The silver threads surged.
The boost gave her what he needed, strength and speed, but her precision—that was her incredible focus coming into play.
Her staff struck twice in quick succession, then a third time with finality. Chest. Knee. Chin.
He dropped.
Hinata fell to one knee, panting.
"It's not over", Michel thought, though his words never reached her. Still, he hoped that somehow—on some instinctual level—they might.
A second more mature ninja entered.
But before he could move, his eyes rolled back. He collapsed in place.
Kurenai stepped through the door.
"You've done well," she said.
Behind her, Shino emerged silently. Kiba and Akamaru followed moments later.
Kiba knelt beside Hinata. "You okay?"
Hinata nodded weakly.
Kurenai moved to Takama.
"He's alive," she said. "But barely."
Michel extended the silver threads again, reinforcing Hinata's spine and joints. He hoped that this would be enough to help her walk. Just a little longer.
Hinata stood, wobbled, but stayed upright.
Together, they left the hideout.
The mist rolled over the forest as they vanished into the dawn.
Michel could only sigh at the whole situation; he was truly exhausted. Now, she was safe. Maybe now he could get some rest.