As they sprinted through the forest, the clouds and sun above shifted eastward, their light barely piercing the dense canopy. The Konoha shinobi flickered past like shadows.
Mai, positioned in the middle of the formation, moved through patches of light and shadow. Her mind replayed the recent battle.
'So that's Akatsuki...'
The black robes with red clouds pattern… She tried to picture Logan in that outfit but realized she'd never seen him wear anything like it.
Her gaze shifted to Kakashi at the front. She had healed his wounds herself, 'The two sword slashes had been dangerously close to fatal. That Missing-nin named Sasuke showed no mercy when he attacked. Could such a cold-blooded person really be a former student of Team 7?'
The encounter had left a deep impression on her. A few meters ahead, Naruto seemed to be saying something to Kakashi, fragments of an apology drifting back.
Mai's foot landed a little too hard on the next tree trunk. What gnawed at her more than anything was Akatsuki's escape. Like Naruto, she was frustrated they hadn't caught their targets. But unlike him, she knew the truth, which is why she had hesitated.
When overwhelming chakra and killing intent had clashed, she had 'obeyed orders' and stayed back, convincing herself it was the right call.
Her sharp senses had become a hindrance. Feeling the danger so vividly had sapped her courage. The scent of grass, the faint tremble of kunai in her pouch… Mai slapped her cheeks lightly and exhaled deeply.
She had reflexively scolded Naruto for his thoughtless words earlier, and while it seemed justified to others, she knew she couldn't let it happen again. Wearing a Ninja's gear, armed and prepared, she had to do better.
Being the team's support wasn't an excuse. Their mission was to capture Sasuke, but that didn't mean they couldn't also pursue Akatsuki. Mai still wanted to reach that distant figure in her heart.
"Mai, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Sakura's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
"N-No, it's nothing, Sakura-nee..." Mai shook her head, cheeks warming at the concern, especially during such a tense moment.
Though they hadn't caught their targets, Sasuke's escape route was clear, giving the team a definite direction instead of searching blindly.
Tracking the trail took time, and their speed hadn't increased much, but trampled grass, broken branches, and occasional bloodstains confirmed they were on the right path. Things were looking up.
Suddenly, Mai's expression changed. She focused on the blond figure in orange and black ahead, his Chakra signature had multiplied.
'That could only mean...'
"Found him!"
Naruto shouted excitedly.
Naruto's excited shout drew everyone's attention. Sakura leaped to his side, "What is it? Did your shadow clones find something?"
About ten minutes earlier, Naruto had split off a swarm of shadow clones to aid the search. This kind of luxurious method can only be done by Naruto, who has a huge amount of Chakra.
"Two of them got dispelled." Naruto announced, voice rising as the team gathered around, "A little west of here, it's Sasuke! And he's got two or three people with him."
"Naruto's new batch of clones didn't last long, so they must be close." Kakashi analyzed, landing on a branch before pivoting sharply, "There is no time to waste. Let's move!"
The team adjusted course, their pace quickening.
"Damn that Sasuke, he didn't even say anything when he saw my clones… just blasted them with Chidori!" Naruto grumbled, rubbing his temple as the memories flooded back.
"He didn't say anything... So what did you say?" Sakura asked.
"I just yelled 'Sasuke'."
"…"
Mai listened carefully, not missing a detail, "There were two clones, right? What about the other one?"
"Ah, that one..."
Naruto hesitated, an uncharacteristically sheepish look crossing his face, "Well... it tripped and fell."
Thud.
The mental image was so absurd that Kiba, riding atop Akamaru, nearly tumbled off his branch.
"Did that clone at least hear anything useful?" Mai was speechless but continued to ask.
Naruto was stunned for a moment, then gave her a look as if realizing something obvious, and complained, "Oh. Uh... no. That clone was too busy yelling. Totally useless."
There were so many complaints that she didn't know where to start. Mai stayed silent for a moment before deciding to focus on her own task, expanding her sensory range.
"The clone is you, dumbass! You're the real idiot here!" Kiba yelled, clutching Akamaru's fur. He's voicing what everyone was thinking.
"Three years of training, and he hasn't changed at all..."
"All he ever thinks about is Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke..."
Because of Naruto, his classmates who graduated from the same generation held a criticism meeting.
Kakashi pretended to focus ahead, maintaining his usual stoic demeanor, 'See? My inner monologues these past few chapters weren't wrong!'
…
The brief moment of levity lightened the mood, but soon, the team refocused. Deep in the forest, enemies were surely waiting.
They weren't wrong. About fifteen minutes later, as they raced forward, they encountered their first real obstacle.
"Someone's waiting ahead... Just one," Mai warned.
The team halted before a tangle of ancient roots. About twenty meters away, a lone figure stood atop a massive tree root.
Kakashi studied the newcomer. He's not Sasuke, but another member of Akatsuki.
The distinctive clothing was familiar to Konoha and the others. After a tense silence, Yamato murmured, "This person wasn't in the intel Kabuto gave us."
During their earlier search, Naruto's team had run into Kabuto, who had flaunted his new 'upgrade', with part of his body transformed into white snake scales, before tossing them a dossier on Akatsuki and vanishing. The whole encounter had been so pretentious that Mai had nearly dozed off rereading the intel later.
"He's here."
Unnoticed by the others, Mai clenched her fist tightly. As Kakashi began questioning the enemy, her hand had already reached for the cold metal of her kunai.
'That strange mask, the same uniform...' Mai's gaze sharpened, her usual softness replaced by cold focus.
'If I want to get closer, I have to act.'
Just like training, results came from effort. This time, she wouldn't let the chance slip away.
…
"Hello there, friends of Konoha! I'm the new member of Akatsuki… you can call me 'Tobi'!"
The newcomer's carefree tone, utterly oblivious to the tension, paired with exaggerated gestures that bordered on comical, silently grated on the nerves of the Konoha's team.
But for now, everyone held back.
Behind the mask, Obito's expression remained blank as his gaze swept over the nine people of varying strength before finally settling on Kakashi's face.
'Oh, you are here too.'
He felt no real concern toward the elite Ninja below him. The only reason he had bothered to intercept them was to ensure they didn't interfere with the inevitable clash between Itachi and Sasuke.
Just another tedious but necessary task.
Not everyone could push him to the brink like Logan did, and Obito reminded himself to put on a good show, 'It wouldn't take long to wrap this up.'