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Shiori sat quietly trembling as the cold metal of the kunai touched her warm soft flesh. She didnt even look as she felt him removing all of the weaponry she had been awarded for graduating. She had no intention of using them any time soon anyways. She shuddered a little as she was being patted down. She wasnt used to being touched by people outside her family and now this person was touching her all over. And her embarrassment towards her own body didnt make it any better for her. But still she didnt make any motions to resist. She even almost let out a giggle due to the constant touching. She was glad to have kept it in though lest he find it suspicious of her.

She slowly rose back up onto her clogged feet as he had instructed. Due to her weight and clogs her footsteps were heavy and loud. She was surprised they hadnt known she was there earlier. It was somewhat easy to hear her coming. Akimichi werent made for stealth. It seemed there were many things that Akimichi werent made for. This was not going as she had hoped. Actually it was going the exact opposite way she had hoped.

As she walked she saw another man come out from the diner that the first man was leading her two. He from his words and the sound in his voice the new man seemed irritated about something. But just what was going on? It seemed that she was already being questioned before she even had time to calm herself down. "N..No." She said hesitantly. "M-my village sent m-me here." She explained looking down to the Rain Village headband that lay just above her ample chest. Tied to her around her neck. "I wwas just supposed to ffind out wwhat was happening. I didnt want to ffight anyb-body." Shiori was still very shook up by this whole experience. This was her very first mission after all.

Soul relaxed a bit when he heard Sennyo walk out and through the doors to the house they were hiding.. he heard his voice desolate and alone.. Sai had been in that building with the new comer for some time now and worry slowly found its way into his mind. Nah ******** that Sai is fine.. that and Sorain can't be too far behind.. You know.. I find it slightly coincidental that everyone in this group's name starts with an S.. What the hell am I thinking about a thing like that at this time for?! Just then Sai walked out of the building. His command to gather them and go to the diner was clear to anyone who was near enough to hear it. Soul stood and walked down the half broken wooden stairs, nearly breaking through as he descended.. He had never been so thankful he was light because if even one board broke it would trigger one of the explosions within the building. Sai and the others weren't ******** around when they set up defenses for sure.

After regrouping with the rest at the diner Soul was prepared to hear the news.. surely Sai had found something out with that other intruder. There wasn't a sound of a struggle so there couldn't have been a fight, unless the intruder was that weak.. not likely. After a few minutes Sai filled them in on the events that were unraveling in front of them.. So a group was after them, and at the sound of it a rather large one at that. Alright.. traps.. traps.. What the hell could we set up that hasn't already been placed? We have bombs, trip wires, bindings, darts, along with countless other things.. Is Sai really going to make it so it was nearly impossible for us to walk around let alone an intruder?!

Between Sai's explanations a faint noise could be heard in Soul's ears. It was foot steps for sure, but what kind? The wielder had to be big.. was it an animal? If it was then it would be considered good food and no cause to worry.. surely a ninja wouldn't be so careless as to step so loudly.. When Sai had finished speaking his fears were realized.. it was a shinobi.s**t!! Are they here already? This makes no sense.. Sai just said they would be here within an hour or two and only a couple of minutes had passed. Soul watched as Sai signaled to be quiet just before taking off kunai in hand. Soul peeked up over the window and watched as they began the battle. The shinobi that had found its way into their happy little village was huge.. He hadn't expected a shinobi to be so big and be successful, and at the battle in front of him he could tell she must be a genin. As the battle came to a finish Sai had been crowned the obvious winner by granting her a moment of mercy. Soul awaited and watched as Sorain walked out to great them as well.. Keeping to their initial guidelines Soul walked not far from Sorrain.

"I may not be in much of a place to say anything here, but we are at a slight disadvantage if what that guy says is correct. A girl of her.. err.. stature could be of some use. If you were to decide we didn't want her tagging along we can't exactly just let her go because she was sent to scope us.. She knows we're here and could do exactly what yo u believed I would do. If we didn't want her I say keep her as a decoy or as a sacrifice. That's just what I'd suggest" Soul knew it wasn't much of his place to speak, but he wanted to be recognized in the group as more than that spiky haired kid. So now was his chance to speak up and say something at least slightly useful.

Novvus relaxed a bit after everyone had voiced that there was no going back and followed him into the Land of Frost, everyone except Kaji, that is. Hibiki and Kuro were now following the trail of footprints that the Aburame had made. The footprints alternated in wide gaps, which only indicated that the traitor had not let up his mad dash, even upon crossing the border. Kaji had landed in their midst and proclaimed that he would hunt down the traitor himself, covering himself in his electrified chakra cloak.
"Kaji! Wait- Oh what's the use! He never fricken listens!" Novvus shouted after the feral boy but to no avail. He was now long gone.

The dark-skinned boy let out a long sigh, which manifested itself as a cloud of vapor. He let it rise and disappear, watching its progress and gathering his thoughts simultaneously.
We're finally here, but now we are forced into a corner. Novvus slowed his pace so that he was traveling at a brisk walk. The deepening snow continued to crunch hollowly as he plowed a path with his legs. Lightning Country thinks we're invaders so our shortest way back has been blocked. Kaji left us one man down to go after the Aburame. Judging by the head start he had on us, that b*****d traitor must have reached the twins and their dwarf accomplice. If that's the case, they must have some info on us...

The cold was beginning to bite into Novvus' extremities. His fingers and toes were numb, and his nose and ears burned every time the wind blew. The dark-skinned boy looked up. The gibbous waxing moon was visible behind a thin sheet of clouds, giving it the appearance similar to that of an egg yolk that cooked behind a membrane of egg-white. He smiled, remembering that he was hungry and that the group needed shelter or they risked getting frostbite or other ailments. My abilities can no longer be kept secret for the sake of our survival... Novvus stopped and addressed his companions. "Guys, i'm going to need you to give me a couple of feet of space. Just move back until i tell you to stop." The dark-skinned boy measured the distance that the group went then called, "Alright, that's good enough!"

Novvus tilted his face skywards and raised his arms, palms facing up, in reverence to the moon. The semi-full disk was now reflected in his blue eyes.
"My alms to you, Bagouji du Sakatanoo; The Epitome of Virtue and Conqueror of Ignorance..." he whispered reverently. With that, Novvus twisted his body and brought his arms in closer to himself, generating inertia. He unleashed the pent-up energy with an outward thrust of his arms. A dome of wind whirled into existence around the dark-skinned boy, pushing the foot-and-a-half deep snow away from him. The snow began to pelt the area where the others would have been if they hadn't moved away. Novvus was now waving his arms above his head in great circles, which made the dome of rotating wind expand in diameter. Bringing his hands together as if in prayer caused the wind dome to dissipate. What was left was a large circle of exposed earth twenty feet across.

Next, Novvus extended his right arm and focused on the snow that now piled up several feet in all directions. The section to his right wavered, partially collapsed, then rose into the air. Using tai chi progressions, he maneuvered the column of snow, controlling it until it hovered over the center of the circle. Thrusting both arms toward the ground, Novvus caused the snow to compress into a spike of solid ice that drove itself into the ground. The dark-skinned boy looked at his handiwork with a smile. The top was flat, which turned the spike into a giant ice nail. That's not even half of what i want to do...

Repeating the tai chi progressions he had used earlier, Novvus fashioned three arches of solid ice that spanned from one end of the snow ring to the opposite end. If viewed from above, the formation would look like a six-slice pizza. The arches were fused to the central sail-spike at the top so that they were all connected, and the structure supported itself distributing the weight evenly. Next, Novvus summoned up all of his power and forced the snow at the sides to rise with a upward-pushing motion. As the snow got to the half-way point up the arches, the dark-skinned boy altered his arm movements so that he was now bringing them together in a way similar to a yoga stance. Once the snow met at the top, Novvus solidified it, causing him to be plunged into darkness. He ran at the base of a wall and dove through it, melting it into cold water as he went. A few seconds later he emerged outside. Turning around Novvus smiled at his creation.
"Now that's what i call an igloo!"

The structure could have been mistaken for a small hill. The snow had evened out again when he used it for making the roof. This whole process had taken Novvus about ten minutes due to the size, but it could now comfortably fit everyone in the group. He turned around and called to his comrades,
"Guys, it's done! I made us a place to keep warm until we are ready to strike! Just jump down this hole, and make yourselves at home!" shouted the dark-skinned boy pointing down into the hole he had made. Rummaging in his pack, he pulled out package of lightweight emergency firewood that would last until morning, flint and tinder. Holding the firewood under his arm, Novvus jumped into the slide that led into the igloo. Making his way blindly to the center of the igloo, he bumped his head on the central pillar. "Ouch!" he said, rubbing his injury with his free forearm. Novvus opened the package of firewood and lit it in a few seconds with the flint and tinder. A warm yellow light filled the space, casting a large shadow across the opposite side of the igloo. Novvus sat cross-legged a few feet away from the blaze, enjoying its warmth as he awaited the others to join him. Once they had, he would seal the entrance and hide them all from view.

While he waited, Novvus thought about all of the events that had taken place up to this point in time. He stared into the flickering yellow embers dreamily, drifting into a train of tumultuous thoughts.
First the Orasakai twins bomb the village and run off with their accomplice. Now we have to deal with a traitor who has mixed-up priorities. The dark-skinned boy massaged his temples with his left and right forefingers. The twins are our most dangerous targets, whereas the Aburame could be taken out by one or two of us. And even if we do succeed, our way back via Lightning Country was severed by that guy's betrayal, so if we go back in that direction we will have to do it as covertly as possible. Novvus sighed. This situation has gotten way out of hand. We haven't even formulated a plan! As much as i hate doing this, we are going to have to play this by fight by ear.

The dark-skinned boy inclined his head to the left and right, releasing some the air bubbles that had seeped into the joints of his neck bones. My grandfather taught me the values of using my fists to protect myself and others, and that is what i'll do. With these fists, declared Novvus mentally while clenching his fists, i will make those bastards pay for every life they took or ruined!

Kyuzaku took a deep breath of the Frost Country air through his gills. Low humidity, frigid temperature, spots of could water... snow... The fishy genin heard Hibiki and Kuro behind him. They found fresh tracks, made by the Aburame. They confidently said that they could track the scent of them. Kyu stared into the whirling drifts. Kaji tossed Hibiki's offer aside. He too could track these footprints by smell. The feral ninja wandered on all fours past Kyu into the snow. His hairy body charged with electricity gave him the appearance of a fierce dog. The ninja shook his head, I better stop him before he gets lost.

Kyu jogged off in the snow, using his arm to cover his face from the spinning whirls of ice-cold snow. He found the feral boy close to the edge of some woods, sniffing wildly and sparks flying off his body like a Tesla Coil. Kyuzaku walked up to him, and knelt down. Kyuzaku's hand rested on the boy's shoulder. Electricity arced to his hand, making it shiver and hurt like he's been pricked by hundreds of ice-cold needles. Kyu winced as the feeling traveled up his arm, but his hand finally connected with the boy's shoulder. Now that the electricity was't arcing, and the pain stopped and began to go away. Kyu spoke loudly over the roaring snow, "Come on bro, the Aburame can wait. We need to stay with the group for now!"

Kyu stood up, and shook out his numbed hand while looking into the trees. He saw a figure there, motionless, and waiting. Without even seeing any details, Kyuzaku could tell, It's him. He stared into the woods cautiously. He guessed that the Aburame was biding his time, perhaps until the time was right to strike, or until Kyu's team confronted him. For now, Kyu would ignore him. Kaji was a loaded gun, and predictably unpredictable. If he were to see the traitor, he'd likely get lost in the wintery woods trying to chase him down.

Kyu pried his eyes from the trees and looked down at his hand. Something about it felt wierd... He rubbed his thumb against his index finger. It was kind of gritty, and looked sort of grimy. Kyuzaku's neutral expression turned into disgust. Ugh... The snow pulled up some residue on his shoulder pads... What is this? Soot? He quickly rubbed his hand off on his pants, and rubbed his palm with his fingers again. He inspected his palm and the quickly melting snowflakes that touched it, then waved Kaji over as he began to walk back to the group, "Come on bro, lets go back to the group for now."

As he neared them, he heard crunching and cracking and sloshes like waves. As he got closer, a wave of snow flew up in front of him, causing him to fall backwards in surprise. The snow became dense pillars, plates and spikes, and put themselves together in a very neat dome. One by one the formed the dome, until Novvus jumped to the top, and announced that this miniature hill the built itself in front of him was in igloo.

Kyuzaku scratched his head. While Novvus continued his explanation, Kyu pondered the ability. That's odd... What kind of jutsu gives you full control of ice and snow I wonder... You know what, I think I've heard of this before... There used to be a clan that could control water and ice like it was an extension of their body. I believe they were called the Mizu Clan. If I remember right, the Demon of the Mist, Zabuza Momochi traveled with one when he became a Missing Nin. Kyu jumped up from the light fluffy stuff and dusted himself off of white flakes. With a powerful jump, he glided up onto the top of the hollow snow-hill, and jumped in through the top.

Novvus had already make a campfire in the center, and seemed to be waiting for the others. Kyu leaned up against a pillar lightly, Once everyone is here... I'll first do some 'recon', and take someone with me to speak with the Aburame. The fact that he's alone puts me at ease, slightly. If he's alone, that means that the twins probably didn't accept him into their ranks. Perhaps I can get him back in time to still use him in my plan. If not... I'll have to kill him. This mission doesn't need any further distractions if we can manage it.

Kyu raised his eyebrows and said friendlily, "So Novvus, what was that Jutsu you used outside? I can't say I've seen any others like it."

Sorain stood silently as Shiori fought with herself to find a decision. If she did decide to enter the diner, she would be deciding to cast away all alliance with her home country in exchange for the kinship of a group of rouge strangers whom she had just met. Sorain wondered for a moment what could possibly posses each of these new allies to betray their homes. Where they lives as tragic as theres? Where there truly others who where as bad off as they were? Sorain knew that contrary to what most people would think, simply being evil was not a good enough reason to become a Missing Nin. It simply was not logical, if someone were truely mean hearted and had a need to do bad, they would not choose to make it harder on themselves by becoming a Missing Nin. No, the life of a rouge ninja was a hard one, not the type of life a crooked or corrupt person would willingly submit themselves to. What Sorain had learned was, it was far more likely that a Missing Ninja had forsaken there homes because it did not provide them with the safety and kindness that they deserved. Maybe not everyone in this world needed to be purged. Maybe there still was some innocents that had more to them than what was seen on the surface. The notion was a little worrying to say the least. As his attention began to return back to the situation at hand, Sorain clinched his fist and yelled,"We dont have time to feed her the entire story. We need to head out there and attack them mother ******** head on. We need to go out there and put some of these ******** to rest, make an example out of them. Make em wanna think twice about coming after us."

[ Yay! I got a high rolling initiative!!!! Wonder how the rest of you will do... xd , Update if you wish too, just hurry up about it!]

Aizen could feel the air surrounding him becoming thickened. It was no doubt now or never if he were to attack, and thus his hands came together for what seemed like ages. His warm breath pushed into the winter wonderlands cold air as it became nothing more but hot fog. I can't believe I'm going to be doing this... but it should be fun indeed. With moments passing his hands formed several hand signs before releasing the final sign. to either side of him appeared forming water clones, clones in which consisted of physical substance. In all there were four, which made five including himself. He looked down upon his current followers and smirked with a light hearted grin just as another strand of hand signed followed. With these technique I should do just find in combating against all of their techniques.... whatever they have planned will just fumble to my power...I am after all the Aburame who's will is but his own. With his clones at hand and his abilities enhanced he was ready to do some harm. He knew if he'd run into anyone it'd surely be Hibiki and Kyu as they spotted him within the upper parts of the snowy hills just above the frozen forest. He was soon to jump down onto the slopes of the hill as his clones followed in a single filed line onward to those in which he had traveled with. He would have to face some of the group if not all so hiding would be relatively pointless due to them all having something or another against him. He spoke out with a intrigued voice as he neared his destination. "hmm this is going to be fun and exciting! I haven't had a real combat experience yet, and I'm so glad it'll be all of you against me! It makes it even less serious and more spontaneous, So please show Aizen Aburame a good time for He'll be sad if you don't!" finally ending in a third worded sentence tone. With me ever so cleverly fighting against them I'm hoping the brothers aren't stupid enough to butt in, as I've done this on a direct note in which to bide them time! Aizen waited for a response but was so eager to get into a fight of some sort he didn't really mind who it was. The fact of the matter would be he was looking for excitement to the fullest amount.

Soul was caught off guard by the reaction to his remarks by Sai. He had been treated as if he were more brother than comrade and more a part of the team than an outsider. This was the first time he felt as though he had earned his place. A smile found its way across his face and he suddenly felt as though he could trust his life to these people.

Soul walked into the diner only taking a quick glance back at the large set girl to see if she had decided to join them or not. When he saw her debating he automatically wondered what there was to debate upon. She had a place in her country.. even though it seemed they would use her as a questionable sacrifice, she still had a place where she belonged. More than likely she had a family. People who cared if she disappeared.. then again it's not like he could say the same for himself. Whether she joined or not didn't make any difference to him. If she joined that was one more number on their side and to him that sounded a lot better.

Soul sat down beside Sennyo and watched as Sai explained what they were going to do. When Sorain first expressed his feelings Soul flinched at Sai's initial reaction, but was shocked when he changed it and threw the glass across the room. When Sai came across and hugged both Sennyo and Soul he felt for the first time in his life like he was a part of a family.. and Soul was prepared to lay down his life for these people.. he would defend them till he had no more chakra and give more after that.

After the conversation was over and everyone was getting prepared Soul walked over to Shiori and smiled at her. "I'm sorry for my words earlier. I realize how they could have hurt you and I don't usually get like that.. I err.. saw you as an enemy at that time, but I'm glad you're here. Welcome. I mean at least now I'm not the new guy anymore haha. Soul held out his hand to shake hers while using the other to rub the back of his neck as he laughed.

(Sorry for the s**t post. Too many people distracting me, can't focus)

Sai smiled at how warm the group was greeting Shiori, but he knew it was all due to her having an actual true choice in whether or not she joined the group and went on with their plans. In fact, it was only her that had that choice while the other two were bound her by the lone fact that they faced death if they attempted to leave. But Sai simply shrugged his shoulders at the thought, it seemed unlikely to him that they would betray them at this point for whatever reason and if they were planning to, they would have their chance soon enough and there, Sai would know.

"Alright, alright. Walk and talk people, we can't waste this precious time." Sai said loudly, clapping his to gather everyone's attention before leading them out of the diner. "As I said, get your s**t ready and lets go. You two can discuss your involvement in this fight as we get there, mmk?" Sai stated more then asked as he himself took off towards the living quarters to gather up his own supplies.