Kiyomi Sato-Hon - Little Alice

[Little Alice]

As he watched her eyes grow dark and her words get even more serious, Hayate remained quiet. Somebody was interested in him? Why? He was a nobody. Kiyomi's words were beginning to confuse him, but Hayate cleared his mind and simply listened to what she had to say. No good would come out of asking more questions, and Hayate was starting to get the idea that that was the point. Locking eyes with Kiyomi, his tone grew very serious. "You tell me that I am not safe around you Kiyomi-sama, but I would beg to differ. I trust you with my life, and I will do whatever it takes to earn that same level of trust. If that means getting my hands dirty, or following orders from someone I do not know, or can never see, then you can be confident knowing that I will do so without hesitation. I will do so because I trust you Kiyomi-sama. I already told you that I will follow you anywhere, and I meant every word of that. So for that purpose please understand that you have nothing to fear from me." Hayate hoped that she understood. He himself didn't understand fully why he had placed all of his trust in Kiyomi, or why he felt the way that he did. But he meant every last word. He would follow her to his death, even if following her was what led to it in the first place.

Though she was glad he placed so much faith in her, it did bothered her that he wasn't seeing what she tried to show him. But on the other side, she was glad that he was fully on supporting her. ''You stubborn fool.'' She said as she sighed. It would seem she had given up on explaining it to him. But he would find out in time that he would have to consider what path he was walking now. Though she knew better. There were only two paths he could go now. Either doing something that could him get killed. Or doing what she would tell him and just getting dragged into what would take over his life. In some way. ''Anyways, I do think we need to figure out where to sleep. I think I will just claim this couch...'' She said as she was starting to kick out her sandals. ''Remember, if you need chakra..''

Hayate cocked his head slightly to the side as he realized that his words had slightly frustrated Kiyomi. Before he could apologize however, she had already moved on. When she mentioned where they would sleep, Hayate quickly replied. "I can take the couch Kiyomi-sama. Please, you paid for all of this and you should get the more comfortable spot. Besides, I am used to sleeping in odd spots." He smiled slightly so that she would know he was joking about the odd spots, but he did indeed hope that she would take the bed. Hayate had a little too much honour to take the more comforable spot and leave his sensei on a couch, especially if his sensei was Kiyomi-sama... Not to mention Hayate wanted to try and avoid the creepy heart-shaped bed if possible.

Rising up from the couch, Kiyomi's hands went to the end of her shirt. ''Fine, we both then take the bed. It will look more convincing if they decide to do a wake up call or something. Or if they clean up our room and find that we used the couch as a bed.'' Kiyomi said as she started to pull up the shirt and revealed she had another underneath it. Sleeveless. Not looking in his direction or showing any regards to his presence, she also pulled out her pants and then moved to the bed. The shape and color were just wrong, but it was still a bed. Going under the sheath, she didn't go to sleep right away. Instead, she sat against the wall with her back and started to braid her hair.

Opening his mouth to protest, Hayate was quickly silenced as Kiyomi began preparing for bed. He turned away when he realized that she was changing, waiting until he heard the sound of her getting into the bed before finally turning back. Hayate gulped as he realized that he would have to do the same. Cursing himelf silently for not choosing a form that was wearing an undershirt, Hayate began pulling his shirt over his head. His face was coloured all shades of red as he blushed profusely, thankful for the brief time that the shirt covered his face before he took it off entirely and cast it aside. He realized that the gold from earlier was still resting on the surface of his skin, just above his hip bone, and Hayate quickly shifted it around behind his back. Approaching the bed awkwardly, Hayate wondered whether or not he should actually take off his trousers. Realizing that it was probably for the best just in case anyone did actually check on them, Hayate quickly peeled them off and hopped under the covers. He wasn't sure why he was so self conscious, and it wasn't like he was naked or anything, but Hayate had never before shared a bed with a female. He had a brief moment of relief as he was partially hidden under the covers, but then he realized that they were both under the covers...

Glancing nervously towards Kiyomi, who appeared to be braiding her hair as if everything was normal, Hayate sat up, awkwardly clasping his hands together. "So...uh...are we gonna set up a watch or something?" He asked.

''No.'' She answered. She was almost done. Only once she was almost done with braiding her hair, she glanced in his direction. Her eyebrows furrowed. ''You reek of fear. Stop being so damn nervous. Its annoying.'' She mumbled. Due her heightened senses, she could smell his fear better. And she was aware of when one could smell the fear of another, as a person would seperate a chemical reaction that would and could be picked up by anybody. In her case however, it didn't cause for a pity reaction. ''Its not like I am going to fight you... Unless.'' A wicked grin started to spread on her lips as she finished her braid and glanced in his direction. The eyes of Kiyomi narrowed in what would look as in delight as she kept grinning. ''That would be fun, wouldn't it, Lars-kuuuun?~''

Upon her mention of him reeking of fear, Hayate could not help the involuntary reaction of briefly sniffing himself. Quickly stopping himself, he looked back up at Kiyomi. As she began grinning his eyes started growing wider with shock. "Ummm..." Hayate began, not knowing what to say. "If uh... if that's what you want to do Kelly-chan?" He cursed himself for sounding like an idiot, but she had caught him completely off guard.

Suddenly Kiyomi started to laugh out loud as her cheeks turned red. ''Hahahahaha, that was so hilarious! Hahahahaha!'' She held her hands at her stomach as she rolled on her side and kept laughing. ''Your face! Your face! Hahahahahahah!'' Kiyomi managed to produce as she managed to turn around and get a hold of herself. Wiping away tear, her cheeks were still red due the laughing. ''Just joking around. Good night, okay? Sleep tight.'' Nodding, Kiyomi turned around with her back to Hayate. As she closed her eyes and pulled her legs up, she said one last thing, with an amused tone. 'Dont let the bed bugs bite.~''

Realizing that she was simply joking with him, Hayate's expression changed to one of a pout. He turned his head away, simply to hide the smile that was growing on it. Grumbling to himself Hayate kept his face in a pretend pout as Kiyomi turned to sleep. He almost broke out in a small laugh when she mentioned the bed bugs, and tried to hide it with a fake cough. Still sitting up, Hayate looked at Kiyomi as she laid there. "Goodnight Kiyomi-chan." He whispered, so quietly that he wasn't even sure if he'd said it or not.

Turning to his side as well, Hayate had his back to Kiyomi. He moved the gold from his back over to his arm, and then up his wrist to his right hand. Stretching it out between his right and left hand, Hayate made sure to remain silent, and kept his movements to a minimum. He did not want to wake Kiyomi. Staring at the metal between his hands he smiled. What he wanted to do was going to take a lot of chakra control, and he knew that was something that he needed to work on. Though he was quite skilled with manipulating metal, Hayate had never tried something this precise before. Furrowing his brow in concentration, he set to work. Hayate would not have to actually move at all to do what he was attempting, which worked in his favour, as it reduced the chance of alerting Kiyomi.

It took him several hours of intense concentration to finish, and once it was done Hayate looked it over with admiration. Not bad for a first time. He thought to himself. Collecting his creation in one hand, Hayate pretended he was simply shifting in his sleep and shoved it in between the mattress. Pulling his hand back he settled into a more comfortable position and fell into a deep sleep.

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The next morning.
The capital of the Sea Country.[/center\]

As the sun rose up and shed light into the room, Slowly, Kiyomi opened her right eye as she tried to wake up. There was something strange. But not something threatening.Moving a bit with her body, she tried to figure out what was bothering her. Then it started to dawn on her.

Somebody had his arm around her waist.

Both of Kiyomi's eyes shot open as she had a big hunch who's arm that was. The comfortable warmth was also then likely of that person. For several moments, Kiyomi laid still as a deer that knew that a predator was around. Then very slowly, she moved. Picking up the pillow, she moved it down her waist and as she moved away from Hayate, she used the pillow to make sure he wouldn't wake up. Finally with that done, she sat on her side of the bed and glanced at him. Shrugging the feeling off, she decided it was for the better to let him sleep a bit longer. Getting up, Kiyomi went to the mirror and started to release the braiding she had done earlier. All the while she started to think. Her transformation jutsu was something she could keep up for days. However.

Kiyomi shot another glance to Hayate. She couldn't make him do the jutsu as long as she could. That meant she would need to give him some chakra. Remembering how Hideki had felt after receiving some chakra of Matatabi, she hoped that Hayate could deal with it. But that wasn't the highest priority right now. Still dressed as how she had went to bed, Kiyomi went to the balcony and looked at the streets that were more or less quiet at this hour. But the sun rise was nice to watch never the less.

He had felt movement, but it was settled so quickly that Hayate's mind barely had time to process it happening. The dream he was having was a good one, a peaceful one. He felt comfortable knowing that he was snuggling up to - - His eyes opened with a start! A look of panic hit his face as he realized that he was cradled against something, or someone. As his eyes attempted to focus after a long sleep, he realized that he was snuggled up to Kiyomi's pillow. His addled morning brain tried to think about why the heck he had his arm wrapped around her pillow, before he even had chance to realize that she was gone from the bed. Sitting up quickly Hayate glanced around. He couldn't make anything out and so he rubbed his eyes, attempting to clear his vision. As his eyes regained focus he made out a figure on the balcony. Rising from the bed, Hayate made his way over to it. His mind was still half in the daze of post sleep, and he completely forgot that he was dressed only in his boxers as he approached the balcony. The growing light from the sunrise hit Hayate's eyes and he squinted briefly. Looking out he saw that it was indeed a lovely sunrise. "Beautiful." He said as he stepped out onto the balcony beside Kiyomi.

''Indeed. She said as she kept staring at it. For several moments she stayed quiet for glancing at him, ''But we should get dressed. Properly.'' With that said, she turned around and walked inside as she started to get herself dressed. Normally she would have taken a shower first, but knowing what they were going to do, she was sure that they could take one later. ''Are you hungry?'' She asked him as she was done with her pants and started to get her sandals on.

As she mentioned they should get dressed, Hayate realized with a sinking feeling that he was barely clothed. Blushing profusely he raced back to get dressed. Throwing on his pants first, Hayate leaned over to grab his shirt. His stomach let out a low rumble as he bent down to retrieve it and he stood back up, smiling and embarrassed. "I guess I am a little." He said with a small laugh. Hayate threw the shirt on quickly before realizing that he had it on backwards. Cursing his foolishness he quickly adjusted the shirt so it was facing the right way. The hours spent manipulating his chakra in a delicate manner had taken a fair bit out of him, and he realized that he was going to need a bit to eat in order to regain some of the lost energy.

Hearing the grumble as the answer, Kiyomi threw a raised eyebrow towards him and a smile. ''A little? I can even hear you while standing here.'' She said amused. Fully dressed, she then became a bit more serious. ''How is your chakra reserve going?'' She asked him, a bit worried. Even though she didn't want to sound worried. Still, it was something that was more important than food in her opinion. Already she slowly walked to the door as they would eat somewhere in the city.

The question about his chakra reserves made him think. He had fairly large reserves and he knew that he would still be good for quite awhile, but he also knew that the transformation jutsu was going to constantly drain him and if they encountered a serious combat, he might run a little low. "So far I am doing okay thank you. I have a decent amount left, though if we get into trouble I may go through it a little faster than normal." He answered honestly. As Kiyomi turned to walk to the door, Hayate quickly darted his hand between the mattress and retrieved the item he had put there the night before. Placing it into his pocket quickly he too headed to the door.

Waiting outside for him, Kiyomi closed the door when he had went outside. ''Come, we're going to eat first and then head to visit my uncle, Laars-kuuun!'' She said, returning to the act. It was also high on their priority list. If they could find their inside man, it would make the mission much easier as it would provide information on their target as well how they could keep avoiding to be spotted out from the mass. Stretching out a hand towards Hayate, Kiyomi kept on walking as well thinking on ahead.

Grabbing her hand without hesitation this time, Hayate smiled brightly. "Alright Kelly-chan! But this time you get to pick the restaurant!" He was eager to get some food in his belly, but he also understood the importance of moving ahead with the mission quickly. Hayate hoped that they wouldn't encounter any problems like the day before. Walking close beside Kiyomi, he looked around the city. It was still quite early and there weren't as many people on the streets yet.

''But Lars-kuuun!'' Kiyomi pouted in his direction before letting out a sigh. They were close on leaving the hotel and the act hadn't been up for a hour, but she was already starting to get sick of it. ''Fine! Lets find some nice place.'' She said as they came on the street. Because it was more quiet than it had been yesterday, due the early hour, Kiyomi could focus more on what was around them. So far, she could see clothing shops, gift shops and some stands. Though they were empty at this hour. Likely the owners would fill their stands once the streets would be more populated than they were now. Heading down the street with Hayate, Kiyomi started to think again about the planning. Actually paying no mind that they had passed two restaurants already.

Noticing that they had walked past two restaurants, Hayate's stomach decided to do the talking for him. Grumbling loudly, Hayate blushed. "Haha, sorry Kelly-chan! Apparently my stomach has decided that it wants to eat quickly." Looking around he spotted a nice looking restaurant ahead of them. "How about that one babe? It looks like a good spot!" His stomach rumbled in agreement with him and Hayate grinned.

Glancing at the building, Kiyomi was actually not interested in it at all. In none of it. But she had to keep up the act. A smile grew on her lips as she nodded several times. ''That one looks lovely. Come!'' Almost dragging Hayate behind her, Kiyomi opened the door and looked around. The servers had just prepared the restaurant to be open. With no other customers, she could drop the act a bit. ''Lets sit at the window, Lars-kun.'' Kiyomi suggested, waiting for him to lead her to the tables at the windows.

Hayate brought her over to a corner table that looked out into the streets and would also give them a view of the rest of the place, while having their backs to the wall. Reaching their table, Hayate let go of Kiyomi's hand and moved to pull the seat out for her. Smiling he would wait for her to sit before moving to his own chair and sitting down. "So, Kelly-chan. What time did your uncle want us to meet him again?"

Sitting down, she smiled at him and then thought about his question. Shrugging lightly, she leaned forward on the table. ''I am not sure. I do know he is likely at his shop or something. So we could just pay him a visit before we are going to do something nice.'' Kiyomi wanted to continue, but a server came to pick up their order. Asking them what they wanted to drink, Kiyomi ordered some cold water.

Opting for a fresh cup of orange juice, Hayate gave his order to the server and then picked up a menu, eyeing the food choices. When the server had left he peered over the menu at Kiyomi. "That sounds like a wonderful plan. I am interested in seeing some more of this beautiful city if we have time." He looked back at the menu. The prices were surprisingly inexpensive considering the style of place they were in and Hayate smiled. He would be able to silence his hungry stomach after all.

Also looking at the menu, from the back, she already lost her interest in it and gazed outside. The streets became a bit more populated, but still nothing like it had been when they had wandered around yesterday. After some moments, the server came back with their order and Kiyomi glanced in Hayate's direction to let him pick up something first. Actually, she wasn't that hungry at all.

Taking a large sip of his orange juice once it arrived, Hayate placed an order for the breakfast combo, which consisted of several eggs and a fair amount of meat. Placing the menu down, he smiled at Kiyomi. "What'll you have babe?" He asked. ''Whatever you have, sweetheart! Was her reply. In truth, Kiyomi didn't really had thought about it or was really moved to give it a thought. Still keeping up a smile, she waited for him to order something. With that doen, the server wrote it down and walkd away. Sighing, Kiyomi looked outside again. ''I do wonder.'' She mumbled looking outside again. ''This evening, I am going to continue your training.'' She told it on a soft and mumbling manner, so that only he could hear it.

Leaning in closer, Hayate made it look like he was simply getting close to his girlfriend. In reality, he simply wanted to speak privately. "I would like that... Are you okay? You seem a little pre-occupied this morning." He asked in a hushed tone. Taking another sip of his orange juice, Hayate glanced around, the restaurant was still mostly quiet and nobody appeared to be keeping an eye on them.

[Little Alice]

''I am fine. Its just some thoughts.'' She told him, patting one of his hands as she smiled. Looking outside of the window, Kiyomi started to think again. This time about something else than the mission. ''You know, its a bit strange. I always expect that something like this wouldn't be much of a trouble. To be traveling with you, but I have become more worried as we continue.'' She told him, sounding a bit worried and serious at the same time.

Gently, Hayate placed one of his hands on hers. She had looked away which prevented him from looking her in the eye, but that didn't stop him from speaking to her. "For what it's worth I have enjoyed this time with you. What has you worried?" He spoke gently, and he was more concerned for her than for what was going on around them.

''Nothing for now. Lars-kuuuun.~'' Kiyomi said, slowly looking back. She had heard somebody already walking towards them. The server came back with two plates as she gave the ordered meals to Hayate and Kiyomi. After wishing them a nice meal, Kiyomi started slowly on eating hers. After a bite, she took a sip of her water and leaned back in her seat. ''Also, we need to head to the pet shop. I have seen a very cute rabbit! He was sooooo adorable!''

As she quickly switched back into the act, Hayate's eyes filled with pain for a single moment. He hated how they had to do this, and he was left wondering what had Kiyomi so concerned. Quickly changing his expression to one of joy, Hayate smiled warmly at the food. "Holy crow! This could feed a horse! Or just one very hungry Lars!" He picked up his fork and began attacking the food, before looking up to reply to Kiyomi. Trying to swallow the food in his mouth before speaking, he failed, and ended up coughing as the food went down the wrong pipe. Grabbing a sip of his drink, he finally stopped coughing and grinned at Kiyomi. "Aw, are you sure you really want to look at another rabbit?? You already have three at home! Now if they have some puppies then I would most definitely be down!"

Almost Kiyomi had asked what kind of three rabbits he meant. She was talking about summoning Mister Usagi as she had formed a plan to give them some more time. But she managed to stay in her act. ''But Lars-kuun, I really think he could get along with the others. Besides,'' She giggled as she placed a hand in front of her mouth. ''I else always could try to see if I could find a cub. Like of a bear or something that dangerous.'' Kiyomi said, hoping he would catch on the hint.

Swallowing another mouthfull of the delicious breakfast, Hayate finally realized what Kiyomi was hinting at. Nodding emphatically he decided to completely finish swallowing this time before responding. "That sounds like fun Kelly-chan! I suppose we could take some time after we're done here." He smiled at her again, before diving back into his food with a fervour. He was eager to fill his belly with food, and so he didn't have to put on much of an act as he was eating.

Eating at a slower pace, Kiyomi managed to surpress her giggle when she looked at how Hayate ate. She wasn't bothered at all by it. They hadn't eaten anything at all before they had went to bed after all. Besides, he would need some energy if something would go wrong today. Or else for what she had in mind that they would have to do. And then the training that she had planned for him. Kiyomi wondered if she wasn't putting Hayate through too much, but she realized that she had also been put through such rigerious training when she desired to become stronger. Was she becoming like Hiron? That question made her actually smile for a moment before taking another bite of her food.

Finishing off his plate of food, Hayate washed it down with a refreshing chug of his orange juice. When he looked up he saw that Kiyomi was smiling, which in turn made him smile. He wasn't sure what had caused her to smile, but he was happy that for the first time today, her smile seemed genuine. Looking down at her plate, Hayate noticed that she was eating quite slowly. He still had his fork in his hand and he used it to point at a piece of ham on her plate. "Are you gonna finish that Kelly-chan?" He asked with a grin, hoping she would allow him to eat it.

Shoving the plate towards him, she shook her head lightly. ''You can have it, Lars-kun.'' She told him as she took another sip of her water. Holding the glass with both of her hands, Kiyomi looked outside as she waited for him to eat. Again, she slowly lost herself in her train of thoughts. Several times she did glanced at Hayate to see if he was nearly done, but she didn't made it look like she wanted him to hurry up. Taking another sip, she actually enjoyed how the time passed by without needing to worry that they could be attacked at any moment. A situation that would likely change very soon.

Hayate scarfed the rest of the food down relatively quickly. He was enjoying his time with Kiyomi, but he couldn't help that his stomach demanded nourishment. Swallowing the last bite, Hayate looked up sheepishly. "That was quite delicious. Thank you for sharing Kelly-chan!" He wiped his face off with a napkin and finished off his drink. A part of him was sad that they would have to leave the restaurant soon, but he was also a little excited to see what the rest of the day would hold in store.

''I love sharing things with you, Lars-kun!'' She said, finding it a bit too ironic. Pulling out her wallet, she laid some money on the table as she rose up from her seat and emptied her glass with the last sip. Putting the glas down, she waited till he was ready to go, waiting for him to walk with her out of the restaurant. Already Kiyomi had seen that the streets had became busier as people went either to work or such.

Rising from his seat, Hayate felt a pang of guilt that Kiyomi was paying yet again. He didn't like the fact that he couldn't cover everything himself, and vowed to fix that at some point. Stepping over to Kiyomi he offered her a hand, smiling warmly at her. "Well dear, shall we head out?" Taking his hand, she nodded as they went outside. The weather was like yesterday, quiet nice. For a moment, she wondered if it was just like Konohagakure. But that wasn't important. ''Come. Lets go to uncle before we head out again.'' She told him. Leading him, she seemed to be searching for something. Her head turned around to keep looking around as if she was lost. First they went up the street and then a bit down, before taking a turn around a corner. Only to then head back and take another turn. ''It should be here.'' She mumbled as they went on like that for a hour or such.

After finally a hour and a half, she stopped for a shop and smiled. ''This is it, Lars-kun.'' She said, as she went towards the shop in front of them. It was an old antic shop that had no customers at the moment. Opening the door and heading inside, Kiyomi released the hand of Hayate and seemed to drop her act as they were inside. An old man was sitting behind the counter, not looking up when the bell rang, clearly indicating that some people had entered his shop. ''The shadow strike in silence.'' Kiyomi suddenly said in a serious tone as she walked a bit further into the shop. However, she would keep Hayate a bit back, with lightly raising her hand, meaning that he shouldn''t interfere nor act.

Entering the strange shop, Hayate got the impression that it wasn't a fairly frequented place. When they stepped inside he looked around. There was a lot of old stuff, but nothing that really captured Hayate's attention. Kiyomi's signal told him to stay back and so Hayate stayed by the entrance. Simply watching as Kiyomi would interact with the shop keeper. He did keep an eye out for anyone approaching the store however, just in case they were to get interrupted.

The old man looked up as he nodded. ''I had anticipated you would arrive earlier. And alone.''[/i] The old man said as he stood up from his seat. He was actually quite short. With his hands on his back, he walked up to Kiyomi and frowned. ''So, what kept you younglings?''[/i] He asked, rather rudely as he stared at Kiyomi. Though not fazed, Kiyomi raised her chin as she replied back. ''The enemy managed to see through the plan I had with the boats. After landing, we were ambushed by several of them, but all but one are dead. Then we managed to sneak into the city and those who had spotted us are also put to rest. I-'' Suddenly a thud was heard. The man had pulled out a short staff and had tried to whack Kiyomi's head. But the latter had used her left fore arm to block it. It would look like her own hide had protected her from that, but her arm guard had taken care of that.

''Good good. Come.''[/i] He lowered his staff as he went to a door, behind the counter. ''You two have already wasted enough time already.''[/i] He muttered. Lowering her arm, Kiyomi frowned as she waited for a second. Without turning around, she beckoned Hayate to come with her and the old man. As the old man went to the door, he opened it and it would reveal a kind of store room that had no windows or anything that would let in fresh air. In the middle of the room, there was a table with several chairs near it.

As Hayate watched the old man attempt to hit Kiyomi with the staff he almost surged forwards, but she had asked him to stay back. Gritting his teeth, Hayate watched as Kiyomi blocked the attack with her arm. When the man lowered the staff, Hayate relaxed slightly. He followed Kiyomi when she gestured for him to come, arriving at the small, windowless room. Hayate waited for the old man and Kiyomi to enter the room before he would follow suit.

The old man sat down as he sighed. Sitting at the opposite of where the man sat, Kiyomi nodded at the door, meaning that Hayate should close it. Until the door was closed, the man stayed silent. But after it, he started to talk. ''So its finally time they sent some help to my region. I take it that you both are capable shinobi?''[/i] He asked them. As if it was her answer, Kiyomi's transformation jutsu dispersed. Sitting with her arms crossed, she nodded in his direction. ''I would like to believe so.'' She told him. Only for the old man to frown. ''Sorry, but its maybe me, but we down South aren't that familiar with the nin up the north. I hope you will introduce yourself as normal?''[/i]

It became several moments quiet before Kiyomi then answered. ''Kiyomi Sato-Hon. Jounin.'' She said. Then she gave a short glance in Hayate's direction to make it clear he should introduce him as well.

After closing the door, Hayate had moved over to sit beside Kiyomi. When she revealed herself to the man, Hayate almost sighed in relief. Dispersing his own transformation jutsu, Hayate spoke. Hayate Hyūzu. Genin." He felt a little awkward, knowing that his rank and name held no importance. He did not wish to make Kiyomi look bad either. After introducing himself, Hayate bowed his head very slightly to the old man. He had no idea what position this man held, and he knew that a little respect often went a fair ways.

Suddenly something whacked the back of Hayate's head. ''I thought I had taught you better.'' She mumbled. ''Bowing your head like that will get you killed one day, you know that?'' She told him, not entirely annoyed by it. However, the old man seemed to be annoyed. ''When I requested help to turn the tide here, I was expecting some proper help. Not a pair of young kids.''[/i] He mumbled. Having heard the words of the old man, Kiyomi frowned. ''I assure you that Dragon made it clear that we-...'' Suddenly both became quiet. The old man frowned as Kiyomi lost a bit of color on her face. ''Shit...''

Then it went fast. Before she could react, the old man had pulled up something from behind his chair. It was a crossbow and it was aimed at Hayate. Quickly, Kiyomi pushed Hayate backwards, causing him to trip backwards on his seat as the old man fired the crossbow. ''Hang on!'' She told the old man, who looked with an angry look at both in front of him.

Everything happened so fast. One moment Hayate was left wondering what Dragon Kiyomi could be talking about, and the next he was facing down a crossbow. Then, he was lying on his back on the floor, with the deadly bolt being fired past him, just missing. Rising to his feet, Hayate raised his hands cautiously. He had no idea what was going on here, and one wrong move could screw everything up. His eyes never moved from the old man's and he waited for a reaction.

The old man seemed to be anything to want to listen anymore. Kiyomi spoke again. ''Just wait. I have proof that I on your side.'' She said. Slowly turning around, she knew what risk she was taking. The crossbow wasn't loaded with another arrow yet, but with her back to the old man, she wasn't sure if he wouldn't use something else. There was a good reason why she wasn't threatening him back after all. With her back turned to the man, she slowly raised her shirt as she wasn't carrying her flak jacket. As she revealed some naked skin, she leaned forwards and then something black was revealed. Darker than what could be the night, there was a strange mark on her back. It seemed to calm down the old man, but he kept frowning. ''So you carry the Seal. But if its true then...''[/i] He tilted his head and a moment later, Kiyomi fell on her knees, gasping for air.

''It seems you're here on orders. However, he doesn't have the Seal. It seems I can't punish him. Why is that?''[/i] With Kiyomi in pain, the old man stared at Hayate, waiting for an answer. Though Kiyomi tried to answer, she found that the pain was making it almost impossible to react back, so she kept trying to sit still and hoping Hayate wouldn't do anything that could put him in danger.

Seeing Kiyomi drop to her knees, obviously in pain, Hayate leapt forwards, a kunai already in his hand. "What the hell are you doing to her?! Stop it now!" Hayate's voice was filled with cold rage, and the only think holding him back from driving a kunai through the old man's throat was the thought that maybe, just maybe, the man was testing them. And though it tore Hayate apart to see Kiyomi in pain, he did not wish to cause the mission to fail by letting his emotions take control of him. Struggling to bring his rage into check, Hayate reached out one hand, placing it on Kiyomi's shoulder, hoping to help in some way.

Hearing his words, Kiyomi wished to say that he should stand down and not worry too much about her. Though she could break out of the pain if she would use the chakra of Matatabi, she knew better. It would be wiser to just not trigger the hostility of the man in front of them. ''He seems to be in the unknown of what he is into. It has been a long time since I have heard that the order has recruited a genin.''[/i] Calmly the man sat down and examined Hayate, as was seen by his calm look. ''I will keep her like that cause I am her superior. What you see is something that you haven't been told, Hayate. But as I haven't been asked or ordered to recruit you, I will let her talk about it later. For now.''[/i] Another gasp was heard as Kiyomi felt that the pain vanished. Just like that. Panting, she clenched her hands into fists. Damning her own mistake, she tried to get up.

Gritting his teeth, Hayate reigned his temper in. He was wise enough to know that acting rash in this instance would only put his life, and Kiyomi's in danger. As the man mentioned recruitment and the strange order, Hayate wanted to ask a thousand questions. But again, he managed to keep his curiosity at bay. Staring back at the man with a cold expression, Hayate said nothing. Hearing Kiyomi trying to rise, Hayate turned his attention back to her. He offered her a hand, keeping an eye on the man in case he tried anything else. Hayate still held the kunai clenched tightly in his other hand, prepared in case of trouble.

Accepting his help, Kiyomi felt awful. She had wanted to keep some things secret to Hayate. He wasn't supposed to learn the information at this rate. But all in due time. Managing to sit down, she worried if Hayate would now become less inclined into accepting the path that was open to him. Else it would now surely be the path of his demise. ''But I reckon you're running out of time. So I will take it you're going to try to cut off the head of the snake?''[/i] The old man asked, sounding a bit amused at the end of his question.

''Y-Yes. We're ordered to do that. Though we haven't been given any detail regarding our intended target.'' Kiyomi managed to reply. Still feeling worried, she knew that she would talk later with Hayate about what he had been brought into. That would however be something of latter. Now it was important that they would get their briefing. ''So, do you have some information regarding our target?'' She asked.

''I have prepared a document for that. My agents are too spread out to offer any help and we aren't in the winning side here. So I advise to be very careful as I can't offer any kind of aid.''[/i] He told her as he stood up and seemed to search for something. Making use of the moment, Kiyomi shot a worried look in Hayate's direction. He had heard things, names and details that he wasn't allowed to hear. All because she had slipped something.

As the two began speaking again, Hayate took a seat once again. The kunai remained in his hand, a fact he was barely aware of. Hayate's expression was one of neutrality. He felt like he was hearing a lot of information that he was not intended to be privy to, but he knew better than to ask questions or comment out of turn. Hayate kept his eyes on the old man. He wanted to make sure that the man didn't try anything like he had used on Kiyomi again. If he did, Hayate wasn't sure he'd be able to keep his rage in check this time.

The conversation between Kiyomi and the old man piqued his interest for sure, but Hayate refused to let that show. He trusted that Kiyomi would inform him of anything he needed to know about later, and anything she didn't, well... It was probably information that he didn't need. He was surprised by the fact that he hadn't lost any trust in Kiyomi. Obviously the situation she had brought him into had put him at great risk, but instead of feeling betrayed, he felt... strangely honoured. She had clearly had enough faith in him that she thought he could handle himself, and Hayate had no intention of letting her down.

''Here. I can't afford to hand out more details as I have been keeping a low profile myself as you might have noticed.''[/i] The old man said as he placed the sealed document on the table and shoved towards them. ''I think its clear that this talk hasn't happened?''[/i] The man asked, frowning. Rising up from her seat, Kiyomi nodded as she took the docment and started to fold it. ''No. We're going.'' With that said, she used the transformation jutsu to look like Kelly again. Though she wasn't feeling that well, she managed to keep up on her act as she walked towards the door and then heading to the exit of the shop.

Hayate said nothing to the man. He simply nodded his head and stood after Kiyomi. Using his transformation jutsu as well, Hayate turned himself back into Lars, only putting the kunai away once he'd exited the sealed room. Walking a little faster to catch up with Kiyomi, Hayate said nothing at first. Once they'd exited the shop and entered the street he looked around. It was definitely busier now. Reaching out a hand, Hayate took hold of Kiyomi's. It wasn't an act this time, and he gave her hand a brief squeeze. Hayate wanted to reassure her. He could tell that she still wasn't at a hundred percent after that scumbag back in the shop had done whatever he had to her. Keeping close to Kiyomi, Hayate waited for her to make the next move.

Surprised, Kiyomi looked at Hayate. She felt still some strain at some muscles due the previous pain. His gesture however caused her to smile as she moved a bit closer to Hayate, to lean a bit on him. ''Sorry. I will explain some of it.. later. Promised.'' Making the promise on a hushed tone, she directed them back to the hotel. On their way, Kiyomi was looking like she was in thoughts and not as cheerful as she had been while putting on her act.

In response, Hayate simply stayed close to her, making sure that she was okay enough to move comfortably. He still had no idea what the man had done to her, but he could still see that it was affecting Kiyomi. They made it back to the hotel, managing to avoid people reasonably well. Neither Hayate or Kiyomi seemed to be in the mood to keep up the act with any effort. Passing through the lobby, they made their way back to their room. Opening the door, Hayate would allow Kiyomi to enter first before following suit and closing it behind them.

[Little Alice]

Once they were inside, Kiyomi let the transformation flow away. This time her lips curled down as she quickly shut down the curtains. Shivering, she still could feel the punishment of the old man. The fact he had been able to do it, meant that it was clear that she couldn't object to it. It would else been way worse. Struggling to head back to the bed to lay down, Kiyomi panted a bit as she placed her left hand on her stomach. It felt like it was twisted upside down.

Seeing her struggle, Hayate rushed to her side. Placing a hand on her shoulder, Hayate helped her get to the bed. "What did that bastard do to you?" He spoke quietly, the anger clear in his voice. He hadn't really been asking a question, knowing that it wasn't necessary. He was just giving voice to his anger. Staring at Kiyomi, Hayate allowed his transformation jutsu to slip away as well. He stared at her, the concern clear in his eyes. "You should rest."

Patting his shoulder, she let herself be guided to the bed and sighed once she laid down. ''No. We're not having time as a luxury. Listen.. come.'' She ordered him as she patted at the other side of the bed. Thinking of how she would tell the information, she already knew that it would be better if he would hear it from her. Besides, he trusted her. Right? He believed in her, didn't he? Why was she so scared then? Not knowing the answer, she waited till he was ready to listen.

Hayate hesitated. He knew that there wasn't much time for them to spend relaxing, but he was truly concerned that Kiyomi was pushing herself too much. Walking around to the other side of the bed, Hayate got in. He sat up beside Kiyomi, turning his body to face her. Looking into her eyes, Hayate noticed that she looked conflicted. "You do not have to explain anything to me Kiyomi-sama. My faith in you has not changed." He spoke softly, turning slightly so that he could draw the covers up and place them over Kiyomi, hoping it would at least make her a little more comfortable.

Hearing his words made her smile, briefly. Looking at the ceiling, she started to speak. ''He managed to hurt me cause I bear something. Its a seal that allows those who are higher ranked, to punish me. I am part of a secret organization that has been around for more than years. And now... you're going to be recruited into it. Or to be killed by it.'' Kiyomi said, rather cold and bluntly. Not pausing she continued, her eyes staring at the ceiling. ''I have little idea who are all in it, but its clear that its global. And those who we face too. Its all an underground war within the shinobi world. Worse is that its a war that I am not sure if we are winning it or losing.'' Kiyomi told him. ''Unlike some, I have volunteered myself to become part of it. Others, like you, were trained and groomed to become part of it. Slowly or steadily... else to be killed off."

Kiyomi's words caused some confusion within Hayate. He had been groomed? Slowly, Hayate allowed himself to truly think about it. While there was still a part of him that was confused over everything, he realized that at least some of it made sense. "So..." He began, "You're saying that you are a part of a group that nobody else knows about, and even those who are members don't know everyone involved, and you want me to be a part of it with you?" Hayate let himself trail off near the end. Slowly, a small smile formed on his lips. "Did you honestly ever think I would say no?"

Kiyomi would shot up if she had the energy for it. Instead, she looked just surprised. Her eyes widened by how he had reacted. ''Ha-Ha-Hayate, its not something to take lightly. Your whole life... Everything will change.'' She said. Trying to get a bit up, she gritted her teeth. She had to make it clear to him that it wasn't something to smile about. ''And some do. They do and try to kill us. Trying to get a grip on the world and shape it like they want it.'' She explained further, still trying to get up. ''I... want to protect you.'' She managed to whisper, falling on her back again and sighing.

Gently taking her hand, Hayate spoke. "Kiyomi-chan, I don't think you truly understand. I know that my life will change, and I know there are risks. But for the first time, the first time in my whole life, I have someone with whom I can be one hundred percent honest, and who can be entirely honest with me. You are asking me to join you in something that you cannot share with anyone... But you shared it with me Kiyomi-chan. You have let me into a part of your life that you have to keep secret from the world and that alone is worth any risk." He paused, wondering what to say. Trying to find the right words. "You don't have to protect me Kiyomi, not anymore. I..."

Before he could continue, a hand grabbed some of his shirt, pulling him down as another hand grabbed the back of his head. Closing her eyes, Kiyomi planted her lips against his. For a moment, she shivered as she kissed him. His words and the way he showed devotion for her meant truly something. Releasing him, she blushed as she looked the other way. ''I... I need some time.'' She whispered as she tried to get away from him.

Shocked into silence, Hayate barely even had time to react before returning the kiss. As they parted he blinked several times, trying to bring himself back to reality. "Of... of course..." Hayate was somewhat relieved that she had been the first to say it. He hadn't expected this, not at all. Not that it was unwanted... In fact it was quite the opposite. But...

Hayate turned as well, his face far redder than the bed they laid in. Glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, Hayate wanted to do something, anything to make things less awkward. But he feared that any action he took now would only make things more confusing.

The fact she couldn't get up easily made it worse. Her cheeks were blushing harder than they had been in quite some time. Once she sat up straight, she decided to tell him something. ''Its not your fault.'' She told him. Knowing it would sound odd, she managed to stand on her feet. The pain was ebbing away, so she could move better around now. Walking towards the door that led to the balcony, she weaved some handseals. A small cloud prevented sight off Kiyomi, as Kelly walked out of it. Opening the door, she closed it softly behind her. There was some breeze of wind as she entered the balcony. Her eyes stared at the busy streets below them. It was still day, but it would soon be that the sky would be colored purple and orange to mark that night was coming.

Sitting in the same position she had left him, Hayate's mind was wreaking havoc on him. She had kissed him... Falling back against the headboard, Hayate let his head slide back against the wall. She had kissed him... His gaze briefly traveled towards her as she transformed back into Kelly and walked out onto the balcony. She had kissed him... Shaking his head slowly, a dazed smile filled his still deeply flushed face.

A part of him had always hoped for this moment, but Hayate could not honestly say he had expected it, nor had he tried to make it happen. That moment... that moment had been heaven. Everything else in the world had faded away and Hayate, for the first time in his life, knew with one hundred percent certainty that it was right, it was perfect. But now... When she had left, Hayate had been briefly glad for the moment of peace so that he had a chance to recover his wits. But coming down from that high... It hurt. So many things raced through his head, and his heart was pounding harder and faster than it ever had.

Hayate had known for a long time how he truly felt about her. But he respected her, and cared about her too much to do something foolish that would jeopardize the friendship that they already had. He was terrified that this moment would change their friendship entirely. But then ~ A strange calm filled him. He didn't have to hide anymore, clearly she knew how he felt, she must. And the fact that she had kissed him meant that she had to have felt something too. Hayate looked back to the door that she had walked out of, wondering what to do. And then he made up his mind.

The door to the balcony opened as Lars, or at least Hayate transformed into Lars, stepped through. Closing the door quietly behind him, Hayate walked forwards. Standing close beside Kiyomi he paused for a moment, looking out over the city as the sun began its beautiful descent. "I know that right now we cannot be Kiyomi and Hayate... But perhaps we can just be Kelly and Lars. Perhaps we can forget about everything else for just one moment and simply enjoy this short time we have together... We can just be two people watching a beautiful sunset. No fears, no expectations, nothing... Just us and this moment." His voice was soft, delicate even. He spoke the words without looking at her, not wanting to spoil the moment. His hands stayed at his sides no matter how badly he wanted to reach out to her, to clasp her hand in his own. Staring straight forwards he would wait... until the end of time if he had to.

She didn't turn around to look at him while he spoke to her. Staring at the sunset, Kiyomi finally made a sound after some silence. A soft sigh. Turning around, leaning with her back to the railing, she looked at him with a neutral expression. ''Who said we can't be?'' She asked him back, her voice soft as if she didn't want anybody else than Hayate to hear her. ''Do you want to forget about it?'' Asking the question again, Kiyomi couldn't help but to look away. There was such an option, she knew. The ANBU had a technique to make a person forget something or to hide the memory away, meaning that they could forget about it. Though she couldn't bring it up right now. Clenching her right hand into a fist, Kiyomi wanted to say more, but it felt like her mouth didn't want to get open. Becoming silent again, she turned around to gaze at the sun going down again.

''I often have wondered. Since Kichiro's death, I,...'' She paused briefly. ''Since his death, I wondered if I would meet somebody like him again. Somebody that could make me feel both comfortable as not. That strange feeling, that however made me happy. When we first met, I didn't have that feeling with you. I closed that part when Kichiro died. Only until you went after me and tried to stop me. Stopping me cause you wanted me to stay at the Leaf.'' Kiyomi said. She still stared at the sunset as she began to talk again. ''I don't want anything to change, but there are going to be a lot of things that will change. This is just one of them.''

A small ray of hope sparked inside Hayate when she asked why they couldn't be. He turned to face her, staring into her piercing green eyes. "I would rather die than forget, Kiyomi-chan." He listened to her as she spoke of Kichiro, and of how Hayate had come after her when she had left. Her words brought him a small amount of pain, not by what she said, and not regarding him, but Hayate felt the pain of her loss as if it were his own. He had never felt the way he did for Kiyomi about anyone else before. He could only imagine what the pain, the loss of having that person torn away from you would feel like.

"If things are going to change Kiyomi-chan, then I would rather us change together." He stepped forwards, standing closer to her now. "When I first met you, you brought great joy into my life for the first time in a long time. Being with you... You always knew how to make even the worst of days better. You are the most important thing in this world to me Kiyomi-chan, and I would do anything to keep you safe, and to keep you in my life."

Sighing, she lowered her head as she then turned her face to glance at him. There was a little glint in her eyes as she talked back. ''Stop talking like you're proposing, you dumbwit.'' She rudely said back. But it was more like she couldn't return the words yet. It was a bit too soon. For now. ''We will talk later about it. Once I have settled my mind about it.'' Kiyomi said on a more politer manner as she turned around to walk to the door. ''I need to teach you something new after all. A technique.. ninjutsu.'' She kept adding the last parts quickly, muttering some curses afterwards as she opened the door.

A grin lit up his face as she called him a dumbwit. There was the girl he felt so strongly for. Nodding his head in response, he watched her walk to the door. A new technique huh? Hayate's curiosity managed to push his other feelings aside, at least for the moment. He couldn't help but smile as he heard her muttering under her breath. Following her to the door, Hayate would enter after her, closing the door behind him.

Once inside, she looked at him. ''First things first.'' Lightning crackled through the air as it was generated around her left index finger. Pricking the palm of her right hand, Kiyomi let the lightning vanish as she performed hand signals at a high speed, placing her right hand at the ground after ending the streak. Black lines crept over the floor before they would vanish and cause a smoke cloud to poof into excistence. ''What's up?'' A creature asked with two long ears and a carrot, holding it in his right mouth. Kiyomi looked at Mister Usagi and smiled. ''I have a task for you. I need you to transform as me and then run wild. Some will start to chase you, but no need to fight back. Let them sweat for a bit.'' Nodding that he had understood her orders, the rabbit placed his carrot at the corner of his mouth as he proceeded with weaving handsignals of his own.

Using the transformation jutsu, the rabbit looked just like Kiyomi did. ''Do I need to go now?'' He asked Kiyomi, to which the latter nodded only once. Walking past Hayate, the transformed rabbit opened the door and vanished. ''Close the door and come sit here.'' She told Hayate as she pointed at the floor where she had summoned Mister Usagi.

Doing as instructed, Hayate closed the door and moved to the spot she had indicated. Sitting, Hayate got himself into a comfortable position. "I didn't know you had a rabbit." He said with a slightly amused tone. He realized now what her mention of the rabbits in the pet store had been referring to. Feeling a little silly, Hayate decided that he would make sure to pay closer attention next time. Turning towards Kiyomi, he smiled. Hayate was certainly curious as to what this new ninjutsu was going to be, but he decided that asking questions was only going to delay the process. Best to simply wait and listen, and then ask questions if needed. And so he sat, a small grin on his face, with his head cocked slightly to the side.

Sitting in front of him, she looked rather seriously. But the faint glint in her eyes hadn't vanished. ''He has been my first summoning. I used him in many fights, but eventually he became more useful in scouting and recon missions. Certainly when I have Ger to battle at my side. But we're needing to focus. Okay, I already have showed you how the advanced chakra control training goes. But instead of moulding your chakra in a nature and moving it around, we will focus on something that can be compared with it. But is totally different.''[/font] With the curtains down, she let the transformation jutsu fade away. Sitting in her own clothes, Kiyomi slowly started to weave several handseals. Without her flak jacket, her shoulders were exposed as she wore her regular outfit. ''The handseals will come later. Look at my right shoulder.'' At her right shoulder, a black line started to appear. Within four seconds, there was almost a kanji present. At the fifth, the kanji was complete. It represented the kanji for Fox.

A blueish aura started to surround Kiyomi as she released the last handseal she had held for five seconds. ''This is the technique that every advanced member of the Guardians may learn. Its the ''Secret Ninja Art : Will of the Leaf Technique.'' Kiyomi told him. Pointing at the aura around her skin and clothes, she started to explain more. ''The chakra coating of the Tailed Beasts gave me an idea. The coat is to protect one against regular attacks. Such as slashes and stabs from weapons. Advanced users can even use it to survive an explosion from nearby. Though it will not keep you standing on the ground. It simply guards you against such damage.'' Kiyomi further explained.

Watching, his eyes wide with wonder, Hayate was impressed. Clearly this technique took a fair amount of chakra control in order to be able to keep a consistent coat of chakra overtop of one's body. "That... that is truly amazing Kiyomi-chan. Did you come up with it?" Hayate tried to imagine how much work it would take to develop such a technique. Allowing his transformation jutsu to fall away, Hayate slid his coat off and placed it on the floor beside him. He tried to mimic the position that Kiyomi had taken, readying himself. "So how do I start?"

''Yes. I came up with it. After all, I am more deadly at close ranged, but even with my speed and reflexes, I can't keep myself from getting hurt. So I figured that a technique like this could be of help.'' Kiyomi answered his first question, feeling a bit proud that he was impressed by the technique. But she managed to focus on passing it to him. That was more important, though her feelings were saying something else. Wondering if she would get it more often that she would have trouble focussing with Hayate around, Kiyomi continued. ''And start by breathing in.'' Kiyomi paused as she breathed in slowly herself. ''And out.'' She breathed out herself as she nodded. ''Keep doing that as you mould your chakra. Slowly, okay?'' She said, keeping watch over him.

Grinning slyly, Hayate replied, "I don't know. I think you're quite nice at close range actually." He let out a small laugh before rying to grow serious again. He wanted to learn, well, he wanted too many things at the moment, but he pushed training to the top of the priority list. Steadying himself, Hayate began doing as she said. Breathing in and out in slow deliberate breaths, he focused his energy, moulding his chakra as calmly as he could. After awhile he thought he could feel a slight change, nothing serious, but he was beginning to form a steady rhythym. Not wanting to ruin whatever progress he had made so far, Hayate closed his eyes, trying to focus his thoughts.

Her cheeks started to blush and she was close to sneer something in his direction. But she managed to keep herself focused on the training. With noticing that he was breathing in the way she had instructed him, she explained the next step. ''Good. Now, try to mould your chakra. Form the first handsignal and then proceed to the next when I say the name of the signal, okay?'' Kiyomi said, keeping an eye that he would remain calm and do as she said. If he would make a mistake however, she wouldn't help him out of the burning pain. It was also how she had learn to master the technique and training. ''Tiger.''

Nodding his head very slowly, so as not to throw off his rhythym, Hayate waited for the first seal. Moving as soon as the word left Kyomi's mouth, Hayate formed the Tiger seak, holding it until he heard the next in the order. ''Now the Ram handsignal.'' Kiyomi instructed. Once again Hayate's hands moved to form the next seal. He felt an odd sense of calm, almost like he was in a trance. His hands seemed to move of their own accord when Kiyomi spoke, and Hayate was alright with that. For a moment she however pondered on waiting to see how it would go. The chakra was likely being moulded already. ''Rat.'' Hayate almost managed to forget about everything and just focus entirely on the next seal. Almost. As his hands formed the Rat seal, his thoughts briefly flashed to Kiyomi, and he lost his concentration. It was only for a split second, but Hayate could feel the pain, the intense burning as his chakra started to slip out of his control. Reigning in his emotions, and his thoughts, Hayate gritted his teeth and focused. Slowly, very slowly, the pain began to fade, and he found himself in control once again. His hands still held the Rat seal, but Hayate was not certain if he could simply continue or if he would have to start over again.

''Lets pick up the pace. Monkey... Dragon..'' Kiyomi instructed. Her eyes narrowed slightly in delight and interest. She had picked up the fact that he had felt something else. The eyes of Kiyomi were focused on his face, to see if she could see any disturbance on it. And what kind of.

Forcing himself to remain calm and focused, Hayate formed the next two seals with greater speed. He could feel his mind wanting to wander, trying to distract him with other thoughts. Shaking it off, Hayate concentrated hard on forming the seals in the proper order. He did not want to let Kiyomi down. A smirk crept on Kiyomi's lips as she noticed the progression. ''Now, Dog and then Tiger again.'' She ordered him, waiting for him to proceed.

A single bead of sweat was gathering on his brow, as Hayate focused intensely. Dog. Tiger. His hands moved before he even had a chance to realize it. He felt odd at first, almost as if he were truly in tune with his body and his chakra. It felt good. The smirk grew on Kiyomi's lips as she crossed her arms and waited. So far, nothing happened but it would soon change. ''You know, I have been trained by Hiron-chan for as long as I can remember. You should ask what the motto is of his team, Hayate-...kun.'' Kiyomi said as she tilted her head a bit, her eyes narrowing more in delight. ''Never trust a smile.~''

Kiyomi's words broke through Hayate's confrontation. He was too far along to understand what she was saying, but he knew something was about to change fast. The chakra in his body would suddenly make a change. Instead of giving a good or soothing effect, it would seem like it turned into fire. Burning and hurting every cell of his body. Getting up, Kiyomi looked down on Hayate. Leaning forward, her smirk changed to a big grin. ''It hurts doesn't it? I think I have explained that this technique has been inspired by the chakra coats the Tailed Beasts provide... And they hurt much like this when you have no control.'' Kiyomi watched from that point silently for some time.

As the fire began to rage inside him, Hayate doubled over. His eyes remained closed as he tried to calm the raging pain. It wasn't working, he couldn't focus. He couldn't control it. Digging his hands into the ground, Hayate gritted his teeth against the pain. Focus! He shouted out inside his own head. It was easier said than done however, as the pain caused his mind to fray, throwing a thousand random thoughts every which way. This pain, it was unlike anything he had ever felt before, and Hayate felt tears welling up in his eyes. Suddenly, a single thought flashed through his mind. It was a single snippet out of thousands, but it drew Hayate towards it. If he could just focus on it, he might be able to - - Hayate began to cough, a hacking cough that caused more intense flashes of pain coursing throughout his body. He had a purpose now though, and his mind latched on to that single thought that had acted as a beacon. Focusing on that thought took every ounce of willpower that he had, and even then it felt like he were being ripped apart. As Hayate's focus on that single thought grew, he felt the pain lessen, ever so slightly. Gritting his teeth he forced himself to block everything out, the pain, the frustration, everything but that one thought remained. After what felt like hours, Hayate began to feel the pain receding. It wasn't gone completely, but he could feel it subsiding, until the point where it simply felt like a dull throb at the back of his mind. Releasing his grip on the floor, Hayate struggled to sit back. Opening his eyes he looked up at Kiyomi. His eyes were bloodshot, and despite the pain he'd endured, despite the humiliation, Hayate managed a tiny smile.

Her face was close to his, but still at some distance. The grin became less and turned into a little smile. ''Took you long. How did that feel?'' She asked him as she backed away and acted like he hadn't been in a great pain. Walking towards the bed, she made a little spin on her heels as she dropped her rear on it. Leaning forwards as she placed her hands on her legs, Kiyomi still held the little smile on her lips. ''It hurts doesn't it? Though I was very close of making you snap out. I have never seen a genin being able to tuck himself out. You would have been a fine jinchuriki.~''

Slowly, Hayate struggled to rise to his feet. He stumbled briefly, but regained his balance. Turning to face Kiyomi as she sat on the bed he was conflicted. But then... Hayate's smile grew. "I had some good inspiration." He said, his voice shaking slightly. So this is the pain she goes through with her beast. Hayate thought sadly. It truly was a monstrous feeling, but there was a small part of him that was glad in a way. Glad that he had been able to share in her pain a little. Even if it was for just a brief moment, and even if it was her that caused it in the first place. He stood in place, eyes locked on Kiyomi's. He was afraid that if he tried to move forwards his body would give out on him.

''Not that I am not interested to test your limits further, but I suggest you sit down again before you fall on your face.'' Kiyomi advised him without standing up or doing anything to help him. The glint in her eyes became brighter as she stared at him. ''And inspiration heh? Not the answer I had expect. I for one thought about survival at that moment, thus instinct.'' With that said, she seemed to ponder.

Taking the first shaky step forwards, Hayate relaxed a little as he realized that his body wasn't going to give out on him just yet. He approached the bed and flopped down on it. Laying still for a moment before finally raising himself into a sitting position. He turned to Kiyomi, still smiling. "I suppose you could have called it a thought about survival as well..." Turning away slightly he thought for a moment before turning back. "I guess my instincts are a little buggered..." Though the words sounded sad, Hayate said them in a way that made it clear he was joking.

Sighing, Kiyomi half closed her eyes as she looked at him. ''It was cute before, but now you're crossing the line of becoming creepy.'' She said bluntly. Shaking the goofing thoughts off, she became serious again. ''But now you have shown that you can overcome that burden, you should be able to master the basics once I have showned you the streak of handsignals that are required for the technique.'' Kiyomi explained. ''But you should rest a bit first. No need to push yourself now.''

Cocking his head slightly to one side, Hayate stared at her for a moment. "And how do I know that this time the handseals are going to be the right ones?" He asked. His tone wasn't accusing, but he had gotten the point of her earlier lesson. When she mentioned rest, Hayate thought about it for a moment. His body was still in pain, but he knew that they had limited time. And as long as Kiyomi didn't cause him to go through that same pain again, he was fairly certain that he could get the technique right. "I am okay without rest for the moment Kiyomi-chan. If it is alright with you I would rather get this technique right before taking time to relax."

''Heh?'' Kiyomi looked confused as Hayate would then feel something hard hitting his head. ''I told you to rest out or are you deaf?'' She asked on a more angrier tone. Scoffing, she folded her arms in front of her chest. ''Pushing your limit isn't going to help this time.'' Moving herself a bit backwards, thus more on the bed, she crossed her legs as she leaned backwards against the wall. ''You have just went and endured a horrible pain for some long moments. Pushing you to learn something like that won't be good if I would let you continue on. So rest, understood? Got it? Or need another whack?''

[Little Alice]

Blushing, Hayate lowered his head. "I am sorry Kiyomi-chan. I... I just did not wish to waste any more time." He shuffled back on the bed until he was resting on his side again. Turning to glance at her, Hayate hoped that she was not disappointed in him. Sitting against the wall, close to Kiyomi, Hayate leaned his head back. A small sigh escaped him as he closed his eyes, pondering.

Hearing his words, Kiyomi stayed quiet. Waiting till he also sat against the wall, she slowly moved. Placing her head against his shoulder, she stared at the end of the bed. ''You weren't.'' She told him, with a whisper. Leaning against him, she said nothing for some while. Slowly, she closed her eyes as well. ''What are you thinking off?'' Kiyomi asked him.

As he felt her head on his shoulder, he looked down at her briefly. She truly was beautiful. Closing his eyes once again, Hayate tried to find the right words. "You... you mean the world to me Kiyomi-chan. I just, I get worried sometimes... Worried that I will fail you, or do something to disappoint you. You are so strong Kiyomi. Strong in so many ways. And I know that I have a long way to go before I can ever hope to be as strong as you, but I want to get there as fast as I can. Because... because then I won't let you down, I won't fail you like before..." Hayate struggled to get the last words out. He could feel himself growing sad, and he hated himself for it.

Making a soft sound, Kiyomi then sighed. Opening only her left eye to look up, she had the disturbed look on her face again. ''I am starting to wonder how many times you're not thinking about me.'' She said, on a tone that made it clear she was disturbed by it or was faking it. Only then to smirk. ''But you shouldn't worry too much. You won't fail me as long as you do your best. That and I rather don't have you as strong as I am. Its easier to keep you under control if you're not.''~ Kiyomi said, giggling a bit.

As always, her words filled him with warmth. A smile touched Hayate's face and he looked back at her. "Oh, so that's why you get so much enjoyment out of watching me mess up your techniques?!" He asked jokingly, raising one eyebrow accusingly. When Kiyomi had first told him to rest, Hayate had been hesitant. Now, as they leaned against one another, he realized that rest could indeed be a very nice thing.

''Maybe. It something that could help you to understand one and another thing about the technique.'' Kiyomi answered back. Closing her eye again, she stayed silent. Her breathing became calmer as it stayed silent. ''We will move out at midnight. Get some sleep, Hayate.''

Hayate closed his eyes and settled comfortably into his position. Placing a soft kiss on the top of Kiyomi's head, he whispered, "Goodnight, Kiyomi-chan." Though he could still feel the dull pain burning inside him, Hayate felt more comfortable resting there with Kiyomi's head on his shoulder, then he ever had before. His breathing slowed to a crawl and slowly, Hayate sank into a comfortable sleep.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Night arrives.
The capital of the Sea Country.[/center\]

A pair of gloved hands shook Hayate's shoulder. He was laying on his side, sleeping. With the night having arrived, Kiyomi didn't want to waste this chance. The enemy wasn't aware of them being in the city or at least not where. Before she had decided to wake up Hayate, Kiyomi already had summoned Mister Usagi to get his briefing. With her plan, the enemy was seeking the other side of the city than where they actually were. ''Hey, wake up.'' Not using the transformation jutsu to look like Kelly, she was wearing her Hokage Apprentice outfit, together with her face mask, covering the lower part of her face. Her hair tied in a ponytail as usual, Kiyomi tried to shake him awake one more time.

Opening his eyes slowly, Hayate realized that he had fallen into a deeper sleep than he'd thought. Looking up he saw Kiyomi, already dressed for the mission. Shaking off his grogginess, Hayate sat up. "Is it time?" He looked around and spotted his jacket on the floor. Pulling the covers off of him, Hayate sat on the edge of the bed. He could feel himself starting become more awake. Stretching out his stiff muscles, Hayate turned back to look at Kiyomi.

''Its already time to strike. While you were asleep, I managed to cover some of the work myself. Such as finding out where our target is.'' Kiyomi replied as she sat down on the bed. Her eyes shined a glint as she kept staring at him. ''I think we can do this with one strike. Though, there is some information that we need to do this properly. Else we're going to make a run for it.'' She briefed him. ''And with a run, I mean running for our very lives. Cause if we don't end the target's life this night, then we're going to face every armed person on this island.''

Nodding his head, Hayate stood. Walking over to his jacket, he picked it up and threw it on. Turning around he walked back towards Kiyomi. "Well I guess this means you and I are just gonna have to make sure to get it right then huh?" He said, a small smile on his face. Pulling out his face mask from his inner pocket, Hayate put it on, covering the bottom half of his face from sight.

''Don't get cocky now. The mission isn't ranked, but if I had to rank it, it is easily an A ranked one.'' Kiyomi replied as she stood up from the bed. ''That means that you're going to be put on hold. Meaning that you don't perform any action without my approval. That still means you won't be using any of your clan's techniques or such until I give the green light for that. Okay?'' Kiyomi asked, looking very serious as she turned slowly towards to the door, that led to the balcony.

Nodding his head once again, Hayate walked up beside Kiyomi. "Understood." That this mission was A-ranked caused him to wonder if he would actually be good enough. Glancing to Kiyomi he shook off those doubts. Clearly she had chosen him for a reason. She must have had enough faith in his abilities to believe he would succeed, and so he had to believe that too. Turning back to the door, Hayate waited for them to move out.

Walking towards the door, she went to the hilt of the blade that was sheated in the scabbard, on her back. Before opening the door with her left hand, Kiyomi looked over her shoulder. ''Good. Stay close and stay cautious.'' She instructed him before opening the door. As soon as it was open, she walked towards the balcony and looked over at the city. The many lights reminded her of Konohagakure, when the city was being viewed on top of the Hokage mountain.

Readying himself, Hayate headed out on the balcony with Kiyomi. He would follow her lead. The lights down below caused him to briefly pause, enjoying the sight. It reminded him of home, and it had a certain beauty to it. "I am ready Sensei." Was all he said. With him saying he was ready, Kiyomi then focused chakra at her feet as she jumped off the balcony. Seeing a roof, she tried to land there. With a quick roll, to break the fall, she got on her feet and started to jog further. She was heading east as it seemed that their target would be there. With short and quick leaps towards other rooftops, she sometimes stopped as if she was waiting or on the look out for enemies nearby.

Leaping to follow her, Hayate did as instructed and kept close. He trusted her senses to alert them to any approaching enemies, but Hayate made sure that he also kept an eye out, just in case. The roofs of this city were thankfully aligned in such a way that it would be relatively easy for them to continue their entire journey without needing to move to another area. Unless of course they had to change directions.

After a hour and a half, she then made the signal that they should halt. They were close to the edge of the city. Looking from a flat roof in the direction that was more towards the coast, out of the city, Kiyomi mumbled something. ''We're going to operate in a different manner. I think we can use some eyes in the sky. Can you arrange that?'' Kiyomi asked through the communicator. Bending through her legs, she placed her left hand on her leg as she kept her gaze focused on the fields that showed no real details due the night.

Smiling behind his mask, Hayate quickly began forming the necessary handseals. Pulling out a kunai, he quickly sliced his palm and slammed it onto the roof. With a large poof of smoke, Kuromu appeared. Staring around, the dragon looked between Hayate and Kiyomi. "You summoned me boy?" Hayate nodded. "We need you to be a lookout for us. Do you think you can do that Kuromu?" The dragon snorted in response, a small stream of smoke spilling from his nostrils. Flexing out his now fairly large-sized wings, Kuromu offered a toothy grin. "It's about time you stopped doubting me boy." He said through their link, before taking off into the night sky. Kuromu's dark colouring would allow him to blend in quite well against the night sky.

Turning back to Kiyomi, Hayate spoke through the communicator. "How is that?"

''Good enough.'' She said back, her eyes still staring at the direction. Rising up, she briefly glanced at Hayate. ''I want you to move at my flank. Around twenty meters. Stay out of sight and make sure that you pin point the sentries with Kuromu. We will try to avoid contact as long as possible.'' Kiyomi instructed him as she then dropped herself of the building and started to head towards the fields of high grass.

With Kuromu circling high above, Hayate moved out at Kiyomi's flank. Keeping in mental contact with each other, Hayate managed to avoid any sentries that were between him and Kiyomi. As he moved further, he heard a low growl in the back of his head. "There are three ahead of the girl, fanned out. And two ahead of you, circling to your right."

"Thank you Kuromu. Keep watch in case things change. I will pass the information to Kiyomi." Staying in the shadows, Hayate took a look, trying to spot the two sentries on his right. As he concentrated, he thought he could make out one of them clearly. "There are three ahead of you Sensei. They are spread out but holding position." Hayate spoke through the communicator. He would wait for her orders, rushing would only bring trouble.

''Then we will kill them. Silently.'' Kiyomi replied back with a cold voice. She pulled out two kunai as she caught their smell. It seemed they were just standing stationary and weren't moving, as she had actually aniticipated. Flipping one of the kunai, to hold it in a reversed grip, she threw it to her left. The soft sound of a thud marked the death of the first of the three guards. ''Finish the one on the right!'' Ordering Hayate, Kiyomi charged the one in the middle. Due the tall grass, the man was overwhelmed when Kiyomi jumped out and landed against him. The moment he fell on his back with her on top, the kunai slashed and pierced his throat as Kiyomi pressed it in. Using her weight and speed, the man was dead before he realized it.

Using his Hiding Like a Mole technique, Hayate slid beneath the earth, rapidly making his way towards the target on the right. As he got to the man's position, he used his Double Suicide: Decapitation technique to pull the man beneath the earth up to his neck. Before the man would even have a chance to realize what had happened, Hayate had slit his throat with a drawn kunai. Wiping off the blood, Hayate quickly responded over the communicator. "Target down."

''Good. Now. We wait here. Can you instruct Kuromu to look for a villa. It shouldn't be a really big one, but towards the west of our current location.'' Kiyomi asked Hayate as she got up after cleaning the kunai. Storing the weapon back, she kept paying watch to the surroundings. It was clear she was cautious, more than normal. ''You okay, Hayate?'' Kiyomi suddenly asked, but not looking his direction.

He almost turned and looked at her in surprise as she asked how he was, but Hayate managed to resist the urge. "I am good so far Kiyomi-chan. You?" As he waited for a response, Hayate communicated with Kuromu, passing on the information about the villa. Kuromu soared off searching for their target before circling back. "Up ahead to the west. It is not too far, but there are a few more sentries between you and it."

Turning his head now, Hayate glanced at Kiyomi. "We have eyes on target. Not much further, but there is a little more resistance between us and our target."

Staying silent for a moment, as she considered their options, Kiyomi gave Hayate his orders. ''We're going to move in. Striking hard and fast, we both need to take care of the target before he has a chance to react. Truth be told, I rather not fight too long against him as the little intel I have tells me enough. A prolonged fight wouldn't be that great.'' Kiyomi told Hayate. There was more to it, but she didn't want to demoralise Hayate. It wouldn't serve any purpose to aid them after all. Waiting to see if he was still as wiling a before, Kiyomi pulled out her katana as she waited.

Withdrawing another kunai from his pouch, Hayate nodded. Realizing that she probably couldn't see his nod, Hayate quickly replied over the communicator. "Understood. Let's try and make this quick then shall we?" His voice had a slightly amused tone to it that he was using to disguise his apprehension. The fact that Kiyomi seemed to be unsure about their target caused Hayate to be a little nervous. However, he still had faith. Faith in her, faith in himself, and faith that together they could take on the world.

For a moment, Kiyomi wanted to order him back. They were going into a serpent's hole and he was still willing to go with her? Sighing, she felt a warm feeling as she thought about it. ''You're really one stubborn fool. Let's head out then.'' She said back as she would sneak towards the target's location. It would be soon in sight as the small villa wouldn't be likely easily hidden among the plain grass fields. Staying hidden in the tall gras, Kiyomi passed another order to Hayate. ''We break the current formation. I need you to be closer so that we can watch each others back better.'' She told him, waiting for him to follow her order as her eyes stared at the small villa. There was quite some distance between them and the villa, meaning that they would need to plan on how to further approach it.

Making his way towards Kiyomi's position, Hayate couldn't help but smile behind his mask. He had thought about adding a brief retort back to her, but instead he held it in. When he got to Kiyomi's side he spoke quietly. "Kuromu says that there are eight guards in total around the villa. They are spread out, but most still have sight on each other. That means if we take one down we will have to be careful that the others do not see us. What would you like to do?" Hayate could think of a few different ways to take out the guards, but he would follow Kiyomi's lead. Unless she asked for ideas, he would simply remain quiet and follow orders.

Looking up to the sky, she couldn't figure out where Kuromu was. ''He can spit fire right?'' She asked as she turned her head to look at Hayate. ''We both aren't experienced on sneaking or infiltration operations. So that means we need to distract them in order to infiltrate the place. If your dragon is willing to do that, we can at least hope to take our target by surprise. At the cost of a total ambush that I was aiming at.'' Kiyomi said as she returned her eyes back to stare at the building. They were very close on finishing the mission. Yet, not that close as she had hoped.

"He can indeed. And he keeps telling me that he's gotten much better at it." Hayate briefly thought to the dragon and how much he had grown during their time together. He knew Kuromu could do this. Whether or not the grumpy dragon would be eager to was a different story entirely. "I take it you want him to attack the guards on the other side of the villa in order to draw them in?" He asked Kiyomi, wanting to be certain before passing the information on to the dragon.

''Excatly. And else tell him its now the perfect time to show off.'' She responded back. Still holding her katana, Kiyomi kept staring at the building. A plan was being formed in her mind as she already was thinking of how they could try to end this mission. Without neither of them getting killed. ''Else I will create the distraction, though I want to preserve some chakra, just in case.'' She further added, waiting to hear what Kuromu would do.

Nodding his head, Hayate opened the mental link with Kuromu. "I need your help dragon. We need a distraction to get into this place." He could hear the sound of an amused snort at the back of his mind before Kuromu replied. "Of course you do boy. And what is it that you need this time? Hayate could tell that the dragon was already a little unwilling and so he tried a different tactic. "Well, I was telling Kiyomi-chan about how good you are at breathing fire now. She doesn't seem to believe me though. Maybe you could show her what you are really capable of?"

"She dares to doubt my skill?!" Hayate had to surpress a small chuckle as he could hear the wounded pride of Kuromu. If dragons were anything, it would be prideful. "Perhaps a little demonstration is in order." Kuromu growled through their link. Looking to the sky, Hayate could just briefly make out Kuromu as he dove towards the other side of the villa. Suddenly, a large jet of flame spewed forth out of the dragon's mouth and lit up the opposite side of the villa like daylight. From their position, Hayate could hear a few screams, followed by shouting. Turning his head to Kiyomi he whispered, "How is that?"

''Good enough. Come! We need to be fast.'' She ordered him as she darted forward. She still kept being cautious. As the fire warned the guards, hopefully they would all try to focus on putting out the flame as protecting the buidling against the sudden enemy that appeared out of the night sky. ''Can he keep their attention a bit longer?'' She asked over the communicator as they were almost nearby the villa. Now and then, Kiyomi thought she could spot the beast in the night sky, but she wasn't truly sure of it.

Kuromu heard the question in Hayate's mind before the boy even had a chance to ask it. Roaring loudly in response, the dragon used his wings to whip up a large wind, causing the fire to spread even further. "Thank you Kuromu-sama." Was all Hayate said through their link. His words were genuine, and they caused Kuromu to drop his grumpy demeanor a little. "You are welcome Hayate. Next time tell the girl not to doubt me."

Following close behing Kiyomi, Hayate stayed low to avoid being spotted. They were close to the villa now, but Hayate remained cautious, just in case the enemy had placed any traps.

Kiyomi raised her left fist in the air, a sign to stop and drop. Lowering herself, she noticed several guards running towards the sight where Kuromu was attacking the villa. ''Hayate... Are you sure?'' Kiyomi asked. Her grip around her katana tightened as she exerted more force over it. Still keeping an eye on the running guards, she was sure that the amount was more than enough to be a problem if they wouldn't be able to take out their target in time.

Dropping beside her, Hayate kept his eyes on the guards as they ran to confront the dragon. Hearing Kiyomi, he turned to face her. Reaching out one hand, he gently placed it on her shoulder. "I am with you Kiyomi-chan... Always." He used his free hand to pull out his staff. Not sure if he was ready for what was to come, Hayate was surprised that he could feel no doubt within himself. Staring at Kiyomi, hoping to reassure her, he felt strangely calm. Whatever ended up happening here, he was ready.

Nodding, she then rose up and ran at the building. One of the doors was open and she just ran inside. There was little light as the guards likely were more positioned outside than inside. Continue to run, she took some turns and kept looking around. ''Come on, he must be somewhere around here.'' Realizing the fault in her plan, Kiyomi spinned her blade once as she grabbed it in a reversed grip. ''Look out for any traps. We've come so far. I think you don't want to head back now, do you?'' She asked him, in a more joking manner regarding their situation.

Entering the building behind her, Hayate had hoped that there would be an easy path to follow to their target. But... things never quite worked out that way did they? Turning to Kiyomi as she spoke, he smiled once again. "Wouldn't dream of it." Hayate's eyes darted around, searching for traps, or any sign that their target was nearby. Hopefully they would reach him soon.

Walking around, she kept leading Hayate. Then it hit them both. A strong Killing Intent. For a second, Kiyomi was fazed by it and was trying to locate the source of it. But the halls were empty. ''Seems we're were found out.'' She mumbled, holding her katana already in a defensive stance. Still, there was nothing in the hall the posed as a threat or a source for the sudden Killing Intent. Where is he? Kiyomi thought silently, trying to forsee any surprise attacks.

Stopping in his tracks, Hayate felt the dark waves of the Killing Intent wash over him. Gripping his staff tighter, he gritted his teeth, forcing himself to focus. He had dealt with Killing Intent before, and he would not let this stop him. Hayate began to move slightly, not even aware that he was doing so. He moved himself into position so that he and Kiyomi were back to back. Keeping his eyes moving around the hall, Hayate wondered where the attack would come from.

Feeling Hayate's back against hers, she was glad that he had faced her killing intent many times before. Maybe it was a sign she should beat him up more, so he would continue to grow from that. ''Stay calm. He is likely testing us out.'' She whispered, trying to see if anything supicious was moving. The doors were closed and nothing had jumped out of the hall. She did sniffed out a weird smell, but it was all over the place, so she couldn't pin point it. Neither did she heard any sound that would give away the location.

Forcing himself to focus, Hayate slowed his breathing, calming himself a little. So far he could not detect anything, but he knew that did not make a difference at the moment. If their mysterious target was going to attack them, he would have to come from somewhere, and so far Kiyomi and Hayate were fairly well covered. A small part of Hayate wished that he knew a little more about who or what their target was, simply so that he would have an idea of what to expect. He shoved that idea aside however, it was pointless now.

[Little Alice]

''Little rats running into the trap.''[/i] A slissing voice said. Surprised, Kiyomi looked up and noticed a person at the ceiling. He was using chakra focused at his hands and feet to stick to the ceiling. Realizing that they were now the ones to be ambushed, the person threw something towards them. Quickly Kiyomi managed to push Hayate away from her and waht the person threw. An explosion was the result, shattering the walls around the place but wouldn't harm Hayate. Dropping to the ground, the man stepped into the light. His features showed a sly grin as his yellow eyes glared into Hayate's direction. Wearing a black tunic and pants, it made his sick pale skin make him appear like he was some kind of fresh corps. Or ghost. ''You're next, little rat.''[/i]

As he was thrown back by Kiyomi, Hayate barely managed to retain his balance. Turning he saw the reason why she had pushed him, as the explosion went off where he had just been standing. Raising his staff, Hayate watched as the creepy, pale man dropped from the ceiling. It seemed the man was focused on him at the moment. Hoping that Kiyomi was still alright, Hayate glared at the man. "We'll see about that." Was all he said as he brought his staff into a defensive stance. Hayate had no idea what this man was capable of, but he was about to find out.

The eyes of the man slitted as he leaned a bit forward. ''We'll indeed see.~''[/i] Forming handseals, the man spitted out a wave of water towards Hayate, trying to knock him backwards or at least keeping him in defense. ''You two were quite bold, I will hand you that. Trying to assassinate me in my own home. But it ends here.''[/i] The voice of the man kept slissing as he spoke towards Hayate.

As the water surged towards him, Hayate slammed his staff into the ground with enough force that it would hold him there, preventing the water from pushing him back. Looking back at the ugly man who seemed to resemble a serpent, Hayate spoke through gritted teeth. "You are right. It does end here." Pulling out a kunai, Hayate threw it towards the man's face, hoping to distract him for a moment.

Dodging the throw, the man grinned. Pulling out several shuriken, he threw them in Hayate's direction. Only a few of the shuriken were off aim, likely to fly past Hayate. As the smoke behind them both cleared out, Kiyomi was seen laying on the ground, clearly not awake and some blood forming around her waist.

That sight tore away Hayate's focus. It only took a split second, but it was enough for him to hesitate. Seeing the shuriken coming towards him too late, Hayate quickly whipped his staff around. He just managed to connect with a few of them, sending them off course, but he had been too slow to stop the two that hit him. One in the chest, and one in the thigh. Grimacing in pain, Hayate readied himself. Using the staff to knock the two shuriken off of him, he turned his hateful gaze on the man in front of him. "You are going to pay for that." He spat. Charging forwards, Hayate kept his staff spinning in front of him. His attack was meant to look like a straight ahead charge, but Hayate had a plan.

The sound of something being reeled back was heard as the man pulled his right hand back. The few shuriken that had passed Hayate, where being pulled back, aimed to hit Hayate in the back, around the shoulderblade area. ''Bold words boy, but nothing more than words.''[/i] The man hissed, sounding amused by the sight of the boy trying to charge and attack him. With the shuriken coming from behind, the man pulled out a kunai as he ran towards Hayate, intending to attack him from the front.

Smiling behind his mask, Hayate used the first technique that Lilia had ever taught him. As the shuriken were just about to hit him, he was just in front of the man. Instead of hitting him however, the shuriken hit -- his afterimage, as the real Hayate had dodged to the side in order to get around behind the man. The shuriken would now be heading straight for the creepy snake-like man as Hayate stood behind him, swinging his staff around in a vicious attack.

Surprised by the move, the man tried to turn around. Before getting hit by his own shuriken. Grunting, he managed to keep standing as he noticed Hayate coming at him again. Holding his kunai in a defensive stance, the man tried to distance himself with a few quick steps backward to not let the staf hit him hard or at all. Drips of blood fell to the ground, indicating that the man had been hit.

His attack missing, Hayate didn't pause, he simply used the momentum of the missed attack to spin his entire body. Hayate built up a bit of speed, spinning himself and launching a furious flurry of blows towards the man. He continued using the same technique as before, making some of his attacks simple afterimages, designed to make the man dodge into his actual attacks. Hayate's rage was evident. He had no idea how bad of a shape Kiyomi was in, and he wanted to end this as fast as possible so that he could make sure she was okay.

Though managing to deflect and parry many of the blows, the afterimages attacks kept driving the man back. However, there was no clear sign that he was truly being forced back. More or less that he was holding back and observing Hayate's movement. At the last attack with an afterimage, the man managed to dodge the attack. ''Got you now.''[/i] Trying to slash at Hayate's shoulder with the kunai, the man lashed out.

Seeing the attack coming at the last moment, Hayate realized that his rage was impairing him slightly. He managed to move to the side, just enough so that the kunai missed his shoulder and instead cut into his shirt. The blade sliced through his shirt with ease but didn't penetrate the mesh armour that Hayate was wearing underneath. Stepping in closer to the man, Hayate reached up with the staff, before suddenly lashing out with a fist, aiming for the man's nose.

Blocking the attack with catching it with his left hand, the man attempted to force Hayate into submission. Before Hayate's foe could try to plunge the kunai or swing it, he was forced to jump backwards. Skidding to a halt, he glanced at the person who had almost slashed with a katana. ''Are you alright?'' Kiyomi asked. There was only some cuts, but no sign of that she was wounded somewhere else. Glaring at their opponent, Kiyomi stayed in front of Hayate, holding the katana with only her right hand.

When he saw Kiyomi, Hayate's rage vanished, replaced with relief. Nodding as she asked if he was alright, he glanced at her briefly before looking back to their enemy. "I am. It is good to see you up." Hayate's voice still held a lot of concern, and he had to restrain himself from asking how she was. Gripping his staff tightly he allowed himself to calm slightly. They could finish this. Together.

''Sorry about that. I had to see how fast he was in order to try to end him in a blow. Seems he was holding back too much.'' Kiyomi responded. The man lowered himself, a grin spreading over his face. ''I need you to focus on somebody else. I don't like to be stabbed in the back.'' She said. This seemed to briefly surprise the man in front of them. ''You noticed? Quite the clever person. Lets see how you two are against us two.''[/i] At the end of the words of the man, something charged towards Hayate. Somebody was trying to slam him out of the way with a club.

Without hesitating, Hayate whipped around the instant she asked him to focus on somebody else. He saw the club heading towards him and ducked, raising his staff at an angle and pivoting at the same time to that the club would rebound off of the staff with significantly less force. He would continue his spin as soon as he knew that the club wasn't going to hit Kiyomi either.

Not even looking up, Kiyomi kept her gaze locked on the man that held the kunai. Without a warning, both of them charged at each other and started to fight, lashing with their weapons at each other. The man with the club, took a step back. It was the masked man from before. Swinging the club again, aiming to hit the head of Hayate, it was a feint. At the last moment, the masked man tried to change the angle and direct his hit towards the side of the genin.

Seeing the shinobi from before, Hayate smiled grimly. This was going to be fun. Stepping closer to the man, Hayate spun his staff rapidly. He was inside the man's reach now, and if he remembered anything from before it was that the man could become intangible at will. Hayate was counting on this as he stepped closer, swinging his staff around himself with speed. The man would be forced to make himself intangible or else the staff would hit him.

And he did made himself intangible. Stepping backwards, the masked man tried to become tangible so that he could attack Hayate again. ''Die!''[/i] The voice behind the mask said, trying to smash his club again at Hayate. Meanwhile, Kiyomi managed to drive her opponent more away from Hayate and the masked man. She wasn't able to overpower him with taijutsu and kenjutsu, but she held her ground for the time being.

[Little Alice]

Using the Secret Sword: Moon Shadow technique once again, it would look like the masked man was hitting Hayate until his club would pass through the afterimage. Hayate stood behind the masked man, swinging his staff towards the back of the man's head. At the very least he hoped that he would be able to stun the man. He wasn't going to let him get away a second time.

Caught by surprise, the masked man managed to turn himself into smoke just in the nick of time. Being driven back by the attack, he formed himself again after a little distance. Taking a stance again, the masked man seemed to think. Dropping the clob, he weaved a few handseals before he became smoke again. The smoke started to approach Hayate, attempting to get near him.

Hayate hesitated for a moment as the man turned fully into smoke. Then, he began to back up slowly. Spinning his staff in his hands, Hayate worked it into a speeding blur. With a glint in his eye, Hayate surged forwards, still spinning the staff furiously. He passed through the smoke, using the staff to disperse any smoke that came near him. He sprinted clear through to the other side and then turned once again to face the smoke.

The counter of Hayate worked as the smoke was driven backwards. Though he tried it several times, Hayate's counter kept the masked man from using his smoke to enter the body of Hayate. Forming himself again, the masked man chuckled. ''So. Now we're all alone.''[/i] Reaching to grab his club, no sight or sound were to be seen or heard from Kiyomi and the other enemy. Only some drips of blood in a trail that lead to the corner on where they had fought together.

"You do remember what happened last time we were alone don't you?" Hayate replied, grinning slightly behind his mask. Pulling out a kunai with an explosive tag, he hurled it quickly towards the man. Already Hayate was planning something else as he pulled something else out of his jacket. This was just starting to get interesting. Only that the man threw a shuriken to deflect the kunai of Hayate. Backing away, the masked man replied with a harsh tone. ''Don't mock me that easily. Fire Style : Great Fireball Technique!''[/i] After weaving several hand signals, the man spitted a fireball into the direction of Hayate.

As his kunai was knocked to the side and exploded harmlessly, Hayate cursed inwardly. Throwing the smoke bomb he had pulled from his jacket, Hayate quickly glanced around for a way to dodge the massive fireball. Looking down he smiled briefly. Dropping to a knee, Hayate quickly formed the necessary seals to erect a dome of earth that covered him from the attack. While he was covered in the dome, Hayate formed another set of seals and created a shadow clone. Keeping the shadow clone in the dome, Hayate slipped below the stone floor and moved through the earth towards the masked man.

As the fireball passed, Hayate's clone allowed the dome to recede briefly. "Missed me." He said tauntingly.

''For now, I have. But your technique won't work this time as you desire.''[/i] Swinging his club, the man walked with caution towards the clone of Hayate. The eyes behind the mask glared with anger towards the boy that was opposing him. Suddenly he charged the boy, swinging with the deadly club again to try to get a hit on the boy. Letting out a battle cry, the man swinged the club towards the head of the boy.

Dodging backwords, Hayate's clone slipped through the backside of the dome. It left a small barrier in between him and the smoke-man. As he passed through to the other side, Hayate placed several explosive tags on the dome in places that the man couldn't yet see. Throwing a flash bomb towards the man, Hayate flipped backwards to gain a little distance.

The flash bomb caused the man to stumble backwards as he seemed to rub his eyes. Dropping the club, he grunted as he tried to put up his usual defense as before. ''You miserable..''[/i] He muttered, trying to see clear once more.

As he rounded his flip, Hayate pulled out two kunai and threw them towards the masked man. He hoped that the flash bomb would have given him the distraction that he needed. Landing on his feet, Hayate pulled out another kunai, just in case. He needed to hurry this up. Glancing very quickly down the corridor that Kiyomi went down with the snake man, Hayate wondered how she was doing. Gritting his teeth to avoid the temptation of simply charging after her, Hayate turned his attention back to the masked man ahead of him. Time to see if his kunai had met their mark.

His vision was still not yet normal. Trying to react, the masked man took a step backwards. He did noticed that Hayate was charging again and with his vision being blurry, the masked man readied himself to turn the location that would be hit by Hayate's kunai to turn into smoke. Still unable to see details clearly, the masked man tried to capture Hayate by turning into smoke, but using a hand to grab one of his wrist and use his smoke technique to invade Hayate's body.

Seeing the man turn fully into smoke, Hayate's clone smiled grimly behind the mask. Throwing the third kunai, which had an explosive tag attached to it, he set of the explosive tags he had placed on the dome. If his plan succeeded, it would blow the smoke backwards with enough force to temporarily disperse it, giving Hayate some breathing room. He pulled another kunai from his jacket and then surged forwards. It was time to finish this.

As his plan worked, the man reformed himself again. ''Do you think something like that might work on me? I am a specialized jounin for a reason, brat.''[/i] The man sneered. He pulled out a kunai as he started towards Hayate, intending to finish it as well, raising the kunai in the air. ''You're fini-''[/i]

The real Hayate had risen from the ground silently. As the kunai had passed through the jounin's body, Hayate had grabbed it, spun it around and then rammed it into the man's throat. He had been waiting for the perfect opportunity. Leaning close to the man as he began choking on his own blood, Hayate twisted the blade slightly. "You never did learn what I told you when we met. Always keep an eye on your surroundings."

The man began twitching and collapsed to his knees. Hayate followed him down, still holding on to the knife. "For all your skill, and all your talk, you were still taken down by a genin. I just had to wait for the right opportunity to strike." Twisting the blade once again, Hayate waited until the man finally stopped moving before withdrawing the kunai. Wiping off the blood he stared at the man for a second longer. Then, turning around he glanced back down the hallway that Kiyomi had vanished around. Concern sparked through him and he sent his clone sprinting down the hall. The real Hayate slipped underneath the earth once again and sped towards her position. Hoping that she was alright.

When he would pass around the corner, he wouldn't see a sign of her. Instead, there was only more blood. Suddenly the ground started to shake. Only a second later, something crashed through the roof and through the floor. Sharp rocks flew around, whipping up dust as something flew out of the dust cloud. Rolling over the ground, Kiyomi managed to get on her feet as she looked over her shoulder. ''Annoying prick.'' She mumbled. Glancing a look in Hayate's direction, she noticed he wasn't wounded. She however had small cuts and her right arm was covered under blood. ''You took care of the other guy?'' She asked, throwing another worried glance in his direction.

Seeing Kiyomi, a feeling of relief flooded through Hayate. "He's down. For good this time." Running to her side he could see she was injured. "Are you alright?" The real Hayate came up through the floor as well and made his way over to her position. He remained cautious, still searching for any signs of danger. As a sign that she was okay, Kiyomi raised both her hands. She was dirty, but it seemed not wounded. ''I am fine. Don't fret over me. Come, we must get away.'' She told him, glancing in the direction of the hole. Some eerie sound was coming from it. Turning around, she grabbed Hayate's arm as she started to run. ''Come! Now!'' Holding on tight to his arm, she could swear that the hissing became worse.

The real Hayate ran with her, leaving his clone back to buy them some time. He sprinted forwards, wondering what was still inside that hole. Hoping that his clone would buy them at least enough time to gain some distance, Hayate turned briefly to look at Kiyomi, what had she been fighting?

She kept running, holding on, as the building started to shake. ''We need to get away from this place. Can you call upon your dragon to fly you away?'' She asked, trying to sound loud enough so he could hear her above the rumbling. Cracks in the wall started to show. Screams of fear from the outside reached them as they would keep on running. Thinking quickly, Hayate wondered if Kuromu would actually be able to carry his weight. The dragon had definitely grown, but he didn't yet know if he could carry a person. Suddenly realizing something, Hayate glanced back at Kiyomi. "I'm not leaving you here!" His mind racing, Hayate tried to think of a way to get them both out, he would not leave her behind.

The shaking became worse. Kiyomi smiled a little when he said his words, of not leaving her here. ''Hayate, calm down. Just arrange it. Trust me on this.'' She told him. Glancing over her shoulder, she noticed something approaching. It was a shadow that filled the area behind them. The clone of Hayate would poof now away, not able to register what actually had strike it down. ''Okay? Don't force me to get you out of here. Trust me, okay?'' She said, glancing in his direction, her hand still holding on to his arm.

Feeling his clone poof away, Hayate turned back. He couldn't make out what was coming towards them but he knew it was bad. Gritting his teeth as he turned back to Kiyomi, Hayate was torn. "Kuromu I need you." He called through the mental link, his eyes still locked with Kiyomi's. Finally, Hayate nodded his head. Turning back he could see the exit to villa ahead of them. It wasn't much further. "I trust you Kiyomi. Just... You'd better get out too, else I'll have to come back and get you myself."

Releasing him, she smiled. A genuine warm smile. ''We know I like a bit of danger. I will be back. Don't fret over me. Go!'' She made a gesture to the exit as her right hand pulled out a kunai. Lightning started to crackle in the air, running in small flashes around the drawn weapon. The hissing sound became worse as the shadow started to approach towards them. ''Hayate, just go!''

A sad smile touched his face as he turned to leave. Taking a step, Hayate faltered. "Get down boy!" The shout through their mental link caused Hayate to pause before realizing that it had come from Kuromu. Turning back to Kiyomi he managed to shout "Down!" Before diving forwards, attempting to bring her down with him.

Kuromu had beaten down the door at the entrance to the villa and was preparing a massive fireball. As he saw Hayate dive, Kuromu released the fireball, sending it streaming down the hallway towards the massive hissing thing.

Surprised, Kiyomi managed to make the lightning fade away as she heard and noticed Hayate nearby. Turning around, she was too late to step away when he brought her down. Hitting the floor with her back and Hayate on top of her, she noticed the flames soaring over them, intending to hurt the massive hissing thing. For a moment still surprised, Kiyomi cursed. ''No! Dammit. Listen when I tell you something! Run!'' She pushed him off her as she crawled up. The attack of Kuromu made the shadow falter a bit, the hissing becoming a sound like something was hurt. And then very pissed off. Instead of hissing, it was growling with a deep tone. ''Hayate, go! Or else I will...'' She didn't end her sentence, readying her kunai as she glared in his direction.

"Listen to the girl Hayate. She can take care of herself." Turning down the hall towards where Kuromu stood at the open doorway, Hayate spoke back through the link, his voice filled with anguish. "I can't leave her Kuromu... Not again..." For a moment Hayate simply laid where Kiyomi had pushed him. He saw her glare, and the kunai. Time seemed to slow for him as he tried to reach a decision. "You can and you will boy! Can you not see that she is trying to protect you as well!? She is more capable of doing this when you are not in the way. Now get out here Hayate, I will not ask again!"

Sending one last look at Kiyomi, Hayate nodded. Sinking below the earth he travelled towards Kuromu. The dragon stopped his fiery onslaught so that Kiyomi could once again stand. As Hayate rose from the earth, Kuromu lowered himself so that Hayate could climb on top of him. "Are you sure you can carry us both?" Hayate asked. In response the dragon simply took off, struggling at first, but quickly rising up and away from the villa. As they gained a bit of distance, Hayate looked back. Angry tears in his eyes.

The villa seemed to burst out of each other. The dark night however didn't fully revealed what made it burst out as something big and dark rose from it. The growling snare was heard in the empty sky night. The only other noticeable feature was something as a little flash of light, light blue flickering through the air.

Seeing the villa burst outwards, Hayate howled in anguish. Kuromu flew them even further away, and soon they could no longer even see the place that the villa once stood. Hayate buried his head into the dragon's back as they travelled. Unable to control his tears. Kuromu glanced back over his shoulder towards the young boy. "That girl is a strong one Hayate-kun. Have faith in her. She may still be out there." Still looking down, Hayate's voice was barely a whisper. "I shouldn't have left her Kuromu... I should have stayed."

Kuromu let out a long sigh. "You have a lot to learn boy." Was all he said, as they flew back towards the city. Setting down far beyond the walls, Hayate sent Kuromu away before continuing on his way.

It did not take him too long to sneak in, as he simply moved through the earth. Coming back up in an area where there was nobody present, Hayate made his way back to the hotel. It was far too late for him to enter in through the lobby without raising suspicion. And so, after transforming back into Lars, Hayate made his way across the rooftops towards their room. Entering from the balcony, he closed the door behind him before collapsing on the bed. Hayate did not even have time to change before he fell into a deep, restless sleep.

[Little Alice]

The next morning.
In the capital of the Sea country.

[/i][/b][/u]

''Had a nice sleep?''[/i] A voice asked, patting the shoulder of Hayate. The old man of before had a frown on his face, looking down on Hayate. Leaning on a walking stick, he was dressed in a similiar fashion as before. The tone however was more amused than serious or sarcasticly. ''Youths these days, spending all time lazying around. Get up, boy.''[/i] The man ticked with his walking stick against the bed. ''I haven't got all day.''[/i]

Feeling the patting, Hayate reacted as swiftly as his tired body allowed. Leaping to his feet, Hayate held a kunai out in front of him. As he saw who was in front of him, Hayate glared at the man, hatred written all over his face. "What are you doing here." He snarled, not lowering the kunai for a moment.

Clearly not impressed or caring about the hostility, the man sat down and shook his head. ''Calm down boy. Killing a shadow clone of mine won't get you any where. Now, the reason why I am here is simple.''[/i] The old man's frown faded away as he seemed to look more seriously. ''My agents told me about that the leader of the enemy on the island is moving. Where to, I am not sure. There is also a rumour of a fight having broke out. The people of this country have been lied to their entire lives and they will believe the next lie. But I suspect you know something, hmmm?''[/i]

"Might make me feel better..." Hayate mumbled under his breath as the man continued talking. Continuing to glare at the man Hayate paused, wondering how much he could actually tell the man. Finally, realizing that the man also might know something about Kiyomi, and whether or not she was okay, Hayate responded. "How am I supposed to trust you old man? You are the one in the first place who made it clear that I could trust no one." His words were cold, but Hayate didn't care. He would not do anything that could potentially risk endangering Kiyomi, if she was even out there still...

''Aah, so you do listen to me. But don't you realize? Maybe I wanted you to listen to me, to then act like a stubborn fool.''[/i] The tone started rather amused, but shifted to irritated. ''If I wanted to end your life, you would've been already cold and laying as food for the worms. Just tell what you know already so I can form a plan to end the trouble before we are all going to face it.''[/i] The man ordered, clearly annoyed with Hayate's attitude.

Finally, Hayate slowly lowered the kunai, just by a fraction. "Last night we attacked their villa. We took out all of the guards and went inside. From there we faced two opponents. One was the man from before, the jounin who could make himself turn into smoke. The other man, the leader, he ended up fighting with Kiyomi. I killed the jounin, and went back to help Kiyomi with her target. Something else attacked us however, and we were separated. That is all I know. Happy?" Frustration boiled inside Hayate. He wanted to do something, anything, and at this point he had no choice but to trust the monster in front of him.

Listening to the briefing of Hayate, the old man only hummed for a brief moment. ''So that means she isn't here? I can solve that easily. Problem is that its not the good place for that. Know what?''[/i] The man chuckled before looking in Hayate's direction. It seemed that the frustration made him chuckle, as if the man could sense the dislike Hayate held for him. ''Come at the store one hour before sun down. Take the time to calm down and recover a bit. If I am correct, I think you will need some rest, boy.''[/i]

"You expect me to trust you not to kill me when I get there?" He asked, his voice still carrying the same bitter tone as before. After a moment Hayate sighed and shook his head. "It doesn't matter anymore I suppose. I will be there old man. And you are going to help me find Kiyomi." Hayate's tone was no longer angry, it was strangely calm, as if he accepted whatever was going to happen.

''I will gain nothing with taking your life. You've been forced to become more of an ally than you are an enemy. Killing you would be thus a waste. That and I wouldn't want to be punished by 'him'.''[/i] The old man seemed a bit amused by Hayatés passive aggresiveness. He had noticed that the last line was more of a demand than a statement. ''As for finding her back, that would be very easy. I can even bring her back, right now. Though,''[[/i] He already raised an index finger, guessing that Hayate would likely demand that she would be brought back instantly. ''This isn't the place or the time to do so. Get some rest and meet me at the antic shop. I will be waiting for you.''[/i] With his last words, the man poofed away in a small smoke cloud.

Gritting his teeth to refrain from making any more demands, Hayate bit his tongue. When the man disappeared, Hayate stood in position for awhile longer. Finally, he sank to his knees. A mixture of relief and confusion flooded through him. The way the man had spoken could only mean that Kiyomi was alive. But... if she was alive, why wasn't she here with him? Pulling himself back onto the bed, Hayate laid his head against the pillow. Trying to remain awake proved to be his downfall. Before he knew it, Hayate had fallen into a deep sleep.

---

u]Later that day.
In the capital of the Sea Country.

[/u][/i][/b][/center]

Rolling over, Hayate opened his eyes. He could see a shaft of dim light coming in from underneath the door to the balcony. Hayate sat up, rubbing his eyes. It was about time for him to meet with the old man. Getting out of the bed, Hayate transformed himself into Lars once again. Making his way to the door he looked back, a painful memory striking him before he quietly closed the door.

After leaving the hotel, Hayate tried to remember the way to the antique shop. It took him longer than he would have liked to admit to find his way back, but eventually Hayate found himself staring into the small shop. Stepping up to the door, he hesitated briefly. Casting his fear aside, Hayate pulled the door open and stepped inside.

The old man was sitting behind the counter, reading a book. On the counter, there was a mug, from which steam came from. When the door went open and thus a bell rang, the old man briefly looked up from his book. ''You came. Good. Lock the door. I left the keys in it.''[/i] The man said as he closed his book and placed it down. Grabbing his walking stick, he rose from the chair and went towards the window, flipping a little sign to indicate he was closed. ''The others are here already. So come.''[/i] With that said, the old man turned around to walk to the storage room, where he had once talked with both Kiyomi and Hayate. The door was closed, but as soon as the man would open it, Hayate would see a group of people sitting at the table. Men and women, from all ages and judging by their clothes, professions. ''This one of the two that almost managed to kill the Serpent last night. He will tell you now how it went.''[/i] The old man announced as he nodded towards Hayate, signing that he should speak now.

After locking the door, Hayate had allowed the transformation jutsu to slip away. Following the old man into the back room, he hesitated as he noticed all of the people. The man had put him on the spot and Hayate blinked rapidly for a few moments. Glancing briefly towards the old man, he wondered what all he should tell. Finally, deciding that hesitation would only cause more problems, Hayate spoke. "My sensei and I attempted to slip inside a small villa on the outskirts of the city. We made it past the guards, silencing any opposition. Once we arrived inside we were attacked by the..." His eyes quickly darted to the old man again, wondering if his next word was appropriate, "Serpent... He had temporarily disabled my sensei and so I engaged with him, attempting to take him down. Before I had a chance, my sensei came back to the fight. It was then that we realized that the other man, the man made of smoke, was also in the villa. My sensei engaged with the Serpent, trying to draw him away from me. At that time I engaged the other man one on one. As we fought I realized that they had drawn my sensei and I away from each other. I managed to defeat my opponent and, after ensuring that he was dead this time, I made my way towards my sensei. When I arrived at her position, I found her slightly wounded. It was then that we were attacked by... something else. My assumption is that it was that man... the Serpent, but he was too powerful for us at the time. My sensei, she... she ordered me to run, to leave her. I tried to stay, but I was forced out of the building. As I left, the building exploded, and I lost sight of my sensei, and the target... That is all I know." Hayate's eyes had looked down ever since he mentioned that Kiyomi had told him to leave her. He wasn't able to meet anyone's eyes. They must think me a coward. He thought to himself, still angry.

It stayed quiet as the group seemed to take in the story that Hayate had told them. Sitting down, the old man placed a fist on the table. ''Though I am doubting this is the time, the Serpent hasn't shown himself for days. It was normal he would be in town at this day in the week. But some of you have told me, there is no sign of his chakra signature. This means that there is something that prevents him from going into public.''[/i] The old man finished. Leaning back in his seat, he pointed to a middle aged man. ''You told me that he hasn't shown himself at the town hall. Were there any others present?''[/i] As response to the question, the man just shook his head and remained quiet. ''Then I suggest that we do as planned. Its clear that the Serpent has trouble and we need to make a push to turn the tide. I want each and everybody ready for the coup. Inform your teams and ready yourselves. Now.''[/i]

The moment when the old man had finished, the group vanished away in smoke clouds, revealing they were shadow clones. Turning to Hayate, the old man had a worried expression. ''How well are you to head back into combat?''[/i]

Glancing up at the old man, Hayate stared him dead in the eye. "You needn't worry about me. I am ready whenever I am needed." In a sense he was not lying. Though he still felt weary, Hayate recovered quickly, and he knew that he was ready for whatever was about to come. Hesitating briefly, he finally decided to ask. "About Kiyomi... do you know anything?" His tone was polite this time, almost pleading with the man to reveal what he knew.

''I don't. The only thing we can do is to bring your friend and sensei over here. Though I suspect you have little idea what you're being dragged into, don't you?''[/i] Was the question. The old man's right hand went to a pocket where he took out a small senbon, placing it on the table as he waited for Hayate's answer. He was being serious, as there was no amused tone in his voice when he had asked Hayate the question.

Staring at the man once again, Hayate grew just as serious. "Regardless of whether or not I know what I have been brought into, I am here now. That is not going to change, and I will do whatever is asked of me." Though he did not like the old man, Hayate knew that working with him was the only way he was going to find out what happened to Kiyomi... The only way he was going to get her back. And if that's what it took to bring her back, then Hayate would work alongside the man without complaint.

[Little Alice]

It remained silent for a few moments, until the man picked up the senbon and pricked his left thumb. ''I wonder if you will, boy. I wonder about that/''[/i] Weaving several handsignals, he placed his left hand on the table. Instead of black lines, a black rose creeped out of the table. Picking the oddly looking flower up, black coloured chakra, darker than the night itself, started to form a sphere on the table. Stepping up, the man took a few steps from it as he patiently watched how cracks were running into the black sphere. As it started to vanish, the sound of somebody panting was heard. ''That took you long.'' Kiyomi's voice was heard as the sphere vanished. Small cuts were visible on arms and on her right leg, while her clothes were dirty of mud, blood and what seemed to be water. Her hair was a mess as she shook her head, trying to shrug something off.

He hadn't realized he had moved until he had already embraced her in a hug. Holding her for a moment, Hayate forgot about where they were. With sudden realization he opened his eyes and stepped back. Trying to control himself, Hayate forced himself to calm down. "Are... are you alright Kiyomi-sama?" His eyes never left hers, even after he had remembered where they were. For the moment, the man was of no concern to him.

''Don't fret over me, Hayate. I am alive, so don't get worried.'' She told him, not able to ressist smiling when he had hugged her. Moving her right hand up, she flexed her fingers several times, as if she wanted to check if she could move them normally. ''I am just a bit tired, but I managed to get away and stay under radar.'' She further told the two. The old man nodded. There was suddenly a silence, but both Kiyomi as the old man stared at each other. Then Kiyomi sighed as she turned and tried to stand on her own, getting of the table she had been sitting on. ''Hayate, we're going.''

He was relieved when she told him that she had managed to get away. Nodding his head, Hayate moved to help her as she attempted to stand. He could not simply watch her as she struggled. A part of him realized that showing how much he cared for her in front of this man was probably a terrible idea, but in that moment Hayate truly did not care. Looking at Kiyomi, he simply nodded. When she had stood, Hayate stayed next to her in order to support her. He would walk with her that way, until they reached the door.

With some of Hayate's support, she could move easier. Once they were near the door, Kiyomi sighed. ''I am doing okay. No need to worry about me.'' She said. Patting his shoulder, she straighten her back. A soft gasp escaped her, but she managed to stand up straight on her own. Weaving several hand signals, she turned herself into the appearance of Kelly again. ''We need to get to the town square. Soon, its all going down.'' She informed him with a weak voice.

Concern filled his face as Kiyomi straightened herself out. Quickly using the transformation jutsu to form the appearance of Lars again, Hayate moved closer to her. "You aren't in any condition to do this yourself Kiyomi-sama. Besides, we need to keep up appearances." Wrapping his arm around her, it would look as if they were simply a young couple cuddling as they walked, but it would allow Hayate to support her and keep her steady. Opening the door, Hayate led her through.

''My condition isn't important. I will be able to fight.'' She said, slightly annoyed. Her voice was hushed as she was aware that at the current moment at both sides, the agents and troops were mobilizing and taking their positions. It would just be time before the town would turn into a chaotic battlefield. Even though the streets were filled with people that seemed to enjoy the day, going to work or wandering around, Kiyomi could feel the rising tension. ''Listen, I find it sweet that you want me to be safe, but promise me one thing.'' One of her arms wrapped around his waist and her hand tightly grabbed some clothing. ''That when you need to choice, you don't pick me. Got that?'' She hissed softly.

Looking towards her Hayate wondered what to say. He did not want to lie to Kiyomi, but that was not something he would ever be able to promise her. Looking away, he decided not to answer, and instead changed the subject. "What is going down here? And how do we stop it?" He spoke quietly, pretending that he was simply sharing some private story with her. But Hayate's eyes scanned the streets, watching for anyone who looked like they were paying too much attention.

''Hayate, don't you dare. My life is one that can be replaced. Got that?'' She sqeeuzed harder, knowing she was hurting his side a bit. But she wanted to make sure he wouldn't mess up this mission. Knowing that he would be too stubborn to listen, she decided to hope that he would get the message. Even though something in the back of her head warned that he would still chose for her. Or was that her own feeling? Deciding to answer his questions, to distract herself, she mumbled the answers. ''We can't and won't. There is going to be a coup. And we'll be supporting the rebels.'' She told him. ''The part where we are needed is to finish the job. So again, killing the target has a higher value than anything else.''

"I don't believe that." Hayate whispered so quietly, he wasn't even sure he said it himself. Continuing on the path towards the town square, he pondered what she had said. If they were indeed helping the people to rebel then that must mean that their target was somehow the leader. Thinking for a moment, Hayate realized that he had no problem with this plan. "How do we know that our target is going to be there? And if he is, judging by the amount of devastation he caused last time, how are we going to avoid collateral damage?"

''Simple. He won't be able.'' Kiyomi answered. ''He wants the place in one piece. If we confront him here, he can't summon easily his beast. Unlike last time, we can fight him directly.'' Kiyomi explained. With reaching the square, she saw the crowd. People were gathering for some meeting as there was a stage. ''Listen, there will be a signal, but you won't be able to hear it. I will warn you. On my command, you will stay put. I will lure him into a trap. Only when I give the command, you will attack.'' Kiyomi explained. Moving closer to the crowd, it seemed she was looking around. Gently and rather subtly, Kiyomi pushed somebody aside. ''Hayate... Got it?''

Staring at her a moment before responding, Hayate's eyes were filled with concern. He did not like the sound of her being the bait. Not while she was in the condition that she was. Pushing the thought out of his head however, Hayate nodded. "Understood. Just... be careful." The tight grip of her hand would become less. Suddenly it became quiet as a few people would walk up the stage. The pale man was there, a worried expression on his face. Some people started to shout. The shouting caused the guards to move in, taking their positions. From their place, they barely could hear the words of the man that was their target. But it seemed he was trying to calm down the people. Kiyomi scoffed suddenly.

''He is trying to place our mistaked attack on another country. The fool.'' She muttered. Kiyomi started to look around. ''It is almost time. Remember, stay out of combat and tail us, but stay put. Its of high importance.'' Kiyomi told him, turning her head to stare at him. The usual bright green eyes were now darker as she had spoken with a serious tone.

"Am I to refrain from using my abilities still?" He asked, wondering if she still wanted him to restrict his clan skills. So far he had been surprised at how well he had done without them. He had expected himself to have to rely on them much sooner. Looking back at Kiyomi he met her eyes, and stopped for a moment. ''I rather want to be safe and say no. But in the chaos, it matters little. Do what you need to do. About the target and nobody else.'' Kiyomi answered. Then she seemed to be surprise. Looking back at the stage, it seemed something had been thrown. One of the people near their target sinked through his legs. By the sight of blood, the guards pulled out their weapons and raised them. As a response, the crowd suddenly started to shout. Like it was an angry animal that was about to charge.

Before Kiyomi could warn Hayate, the attack came out of nowhere. Several shuriken were thrown, taking down around two guards. Then it just went faster. Several civilians seemed to weave handsignals before spitting out small fireballs towards the stage. ''Remember.. Stay out of combat!'' Pushing herself from Hayate, she shot him a glance. People started to run, either to the combat or away from it. She let the transformation technique fade away, being visible for him for one second. The next one she seemed to have fade away in the crowd that was running away.

Damnit! Hayate cursed to himself. Looking from the crowds back to where Kiyomi was fading away, he made his decision. Moving so that he was at least partially out of the way of the crowds, Hayate made the necessary handseals and slipped below the earth. He could detect chakra signatures while he was underground, and he hoped it would help him to find Kiyomi. Unfortunately for him, the massive crowds of people running around made it nearly impossible to make out anything specific. Cursing again, Hayate moved in the direction he thought he had seen her going last. Maybe if he could at least get closer he would be able to detect her unique signature... Maybe...

Running, she was taking a slight turn. First she had used the crowd to disguise her movement. Her eyes were locked on her target. A man had appeared the pale man from behind, intending to stab him. Only to be impaled himself as the pale man had seen the attack coming. Pulling out a kunai, Kiyomi felt that her body was strained. Biting on her lower lip, she moved in. Her fast strike was however deflected. Cursing, Kiyomi quickly kicked herself back, making a back flip as she readied herself. The pale man send her an eerie look. ''This is perfect. Now you all will die together.''[/i] Not responding, she readied her kunai as her opponent charged at her. Parrying the attacks, she felt how the steel of his kunai grazed her shoulder. Being driven backwards, Kiyomi was trying to get his full attention. If her body wasn't only that strained, she could fight better. Still giving it her all, she managed to keep up with the man. Finally, she saw an opening. With a lightning fast strike, her kunai lashed out and ripped through his skin.

Cursing, the man's free hand went to his arm. The kunai had left a deep cut in his right forearm. Seeing she had made him angry, Kiyomi turned around and started to run. Panting, as she could feel her legs growing numb, she pushed herself to keep going. The fight at the town square had been spread all over the city. In the streets, the ''rebels'' started to charge the guard or what seemed each other. Managing to evade most fights, she looked over her shoulder. The pale man, that eerily reminded her of a snake, kept following her. Even worse, he was catching up with her. Deciding that she should try to confine him, Kiyomi ran into an alley. ''Hayate... Hayate!'' She muttered through her earphone communicator. But as she tried to get his attention, she tripped and fell on the ground. Her left leg felt numb. Not paying attention to the leg, she instantly turned around to see the man at the entrance of the alley. A wicked smile was presented on his face as he spinned his kunai. Licking his lips, he seemed to ready himself for an attack.

He was having no luck. There were just too many people. Suddenly, Hayate had an idea. Heading towards the stage in the middle, he hoped he would be able to catch Kiyomi there. She had said she was going to lure their target away, that must mean that she was going to try and face him. As Hayate made his way towards the stage he thought he felt something familiar heading past him, running the other way. He paused... Acting on instinct, Hayate turned and began to follow this new source. He could feel the vibrations calming down as it appeared they were heading towards an area without much people. As they cleared the crowds, Hayate realized that he had been right. He could now make out Kiyomi's chakra signature, but something was wrong. Hayate could feel a cold and very potent signature approaching her. Their target. Kiyomi was in trouble. Without hesitation, Hayate surged forwards and - -

Burst from the ground behind their target, his staff already swinging down towards the pale man.

It begins...
Music for the battle.

[/i]

Only to swing just through air. The man had ducked to dodge the attack. The kunai, in the man's right hand, was moving towards Hayate's stomach. Only to stop an inch. ''What the.''[/i] Something wrapped around the man's wrist prevented him to finish his attack. Pulling as hard as she could, Kiyomi managed to force the man to move his arm back. Though she wasn't able to run, she had managed to throw a shuriken with some wire, to make it wrap the wire around the man's wrist. Deciding that he should finish her first off, the man attempted to drive Hayate away as he was pulled a bit back with a high kick. Seeing the man's attack stop, Hayate noticed the wire. He quickly moved back, and stepped to the side to avoid the man's kick. Pivoting rapidly, Hayate spun the staff around in attempt to trip the man up.

Noticing that he was at a disadvantage as long as Kiyomi had the wire wrapped around his right wrist, the pale man barely managed to avoid Hayate's attack. Hissing, he managed to step to the side and seemed that he wanted to attack Hayate. Narrowing her eyes, Kiyomi was about to pull the wire again. But then it went wrong. Using the pull, he jumped backwards to distance himself from Hayate and closing faster in on Kiyomi, the man seemed to chuckle. ''Surprise.~''[/i]

Hearing his voice and seeing what he had done, Kiyomi tried to move out of harm's way. Letting the wire go, she managed to roll on her side to not get the man landing on her. Laying on her stomach, she attempted to crawl away as her other leg started to become numb as well. Wondering why it was that she couldn't move her legs, Kiyomi finally understood what was going on. ''Hayate, don-'' Before she could finish her sentence, the pale man had used the cut Kiyomi had made earlier to summon something. Smoke covered the alley as something started to hiss and breath heavily. ''Hayate!'' Out of the smoke, flew up into the air. A dark green wyvern looking creature soared through the sky with at the end of the tail, Kiyomi.

"NO!" Hayate shouted, realizing that they were too far for him to get to. Swiftly drawing a kunai, Hayate slit a small cut in his palm and thrust it to the earth. As the smoke cleared Kuromu filled the alleyway. "What is it this time boy? He asked. Not even taking time to reply, Hayate leapt onto his back. "They have Kiyomi. Go, now!" The dragon was tempted to make a comment but quickly realized just how concerned Hayate was. Taking off as quickly as he could, Kuromu rose above the rooftops in pursuit of the massive wyvern.

The creature was a ways off, but Kuromu was fast, and determined. It did not take them long to catch up to the wyvern, and Hayate could still see Kiyomi trapped in the thing's tail. "Closer Kuromu! We need to get closer!" Grumbling, the dragon complied, getting Hayate close enough that he could jump to the wyvern.

Leaping from Kuromu's back, Hayate landed on the massive creature, using chakra to retain his hold. Turning around, he glanced at Kiyomi, before turning his angry gaze to bear on the pale man. "Let's finish this." He spat. Calling out through the mental link that he shared with Kuromu, Hayate kept his attention on the man in front of him. "Kuromu, see if you can free Kiyomi so we can end this."

Turning around, the man glared back at Hayate. But the glare turned into a smirk. ''My my. You want to finish this? First, let me drop that garbage.''[/i] Though not hearing the words, Kiyomi fell how the tail that was wrapped around her started to loose. Her eyes widened as she realized that falling down wouldn't be a good idea. Already, her stomach began to feel strange. ''Darn it!'' Applying chakra to her hands, she grabbed the tail and managed to hold on. ''Hayate! Don't get stabbed!'' Kiyomi managed to shout, but he would likely hear it through the earphone communicator. Trying to not fall to her death, Kiyomi felt cold sweat starting to form on her forehead. She wasn't one for high heights, but this was too much.

''Don't get distracted now.''[/i] The man weaved several handseals as he spitted out a wave of water towards Hayate, planning likely to drive the boy away or making sure he wouldn't be able to aid Kiyomi. Realizing that he was out of his element, Hayate momentarily hesitated. Jamming his staff into the back of the wyvern, Hayate flipped up and landed on the top of the staff. He perched just above the wave, before dropping back down and pulling the staff out of the creatures back. Charging towards the man, Hayate whipped his staff around rapidly. He launched a flurry of blows towards the man, trying to force him off balance.

While Hayate kept the man distracted, Kuromu flew down below the wyvern, trying to get in close to Kiyomi. If he could get close enough he could catch the girl before she fell...

[Little Alice]

Dodging the attacks of the boy, it seemed that the pale man was not only faster but better in general close combat. Holding a kunai, the man hissed as he intended to strike at Hayate with fast and short strikes, throwing in feints to throw the boy off guard. Meanwhile, Kiyomi noticed Kuromu. That was when a plan was coming up in her mind. Letting her left hand go, she tried to grab something from her pouch. ''Move closer, Kuromu-san!?'' Kiyomi ordered. But as she shouted it, the wyvern growled as he would try to keep the smaller flying reptile away with attempting to bite him.

Cursing as he heard the wyvern moving, Kuromu dodged as best he could, tucking in his wings and allowing himself to plummet. The jaws of the wyvern narrowly avoided him as he dropped. Kuromu turned and launched a fireball towards the wyvern before re-opening his wings and coming in closer to Kiyomi.

Up above on the wyvern's back, Hayate was being forced back by the pale man's rapid attacks. It was very clear that the pale man was on a whole other level, and Hayate had to be careful not to let any of the man's blades hit him. He suspected they were poisoned. The man's similarities with that of a snake were many, and Hayate would have had to have been stupid to not assume that his attacks would contain some form of venom. Not to mention, Kiyomi's warning made it very clear to him that he needed to avoid getting struck.

Dodging a particularly vicious stroke towards his midsection, Hayate sprung backwards, bringing his staff around. It would give him the advantage of reach, as he could avoid the man's kunai from this range and still be able to attack. Keeping the man at bay for a moment, Hayate attempted to come up with a plan. Suddenly, an idea came to him. Now it was just a matter of timing...

The fire of Kuromu met the fire of the Wyvern. The larger beast turned around, clearly to face the dragon better as well keeping Kiyomi out of the dragon's reach. Kiyomi noticed how the poison was spreading. By now her stomach was feeling painful. Trying to focus on holding the wyvern's tail, she could feel her fear skyrocket. But turning into the Nibo wouldn't happen. Never would she turn into the Nibi with Hayate near her. Not that she couldn't trust or control Matatabi, but it was out of fear. Fear he would see the fearsome beast that she called mentor. The beast many saw her for. Tears started to form around the corners of her eyes. Trying to hold on, she wasn't sure for how long she would manage to keep up.

''This is getting a drag.''[/i] The pale man hissed. Throwing the kunai, he formed six handseals. The kunai started to multiply, becoming a dozen. The hail of poisoned kunai were now flying towards Hayate, each having the coat of poison that would numb the body of Hayate.

Kurmou cursed as the Wyvern's flame overtook his own. He was forced to dive out of the way once again, moving even further away from Kiyomi. Turning around, Kuromu kept his distance trying to figure out a way to get close enough to get the girl away from the Wyvern's clutches.

Meanwhile, on the back of the Wyvern, Hayate saw the incoming kunai. Raising his arms to cover his face, he allowed the kunai to hit him. Falling to his knees, Hayate dropped onto all fours. Unseen below his clothes he had a layer of his metal armour protecting him, they had stopped the kunai from piercing his skin but Hayate could still feel the pain as they struck him. So far his plan was working. Hayate pretended to pant for breath, making it look as if the poison was taking hold. If only he could draw the pale man towards him.

Slowly, Kiyomi's left hand moved away from the scales of the tail to her pouch. The pain become worse, but as long as she could move her arms, she could try to keep up fighting. Pulling out a tag, she slapped it against the scales. Looking around, she noticed that Kuromu was trying to get closer, but the wyvern able to keep him back. The larger repitle bared his fangs before spitting out a fireball towards Kuromu. ''Hayate-kuun!'' Kiyomi shouted, fearing for how he was doing.

''Aaw, this breaks my heart. But don't worry, you two will be joining each other in the next world.''[/i] Not coming closer, the pale man started to weave two handsignals as his eyes narrowed in delight, by the sight of Hayate being in pain. Slowly out of the sleeve of his right arm, three snakes started to crawl out of it, slithering towards Hayate. ''Give up.''[/i] One of the snakes suddenly charged towards Hayate, revealing the venomous fangs.

Suddenly, Hayate's hand whipped up, a kunai clutched in his fist. He had waited to catch the snake as it was just in front of him. As Hayate whipped his hand around the kunai sliced through the snake, cutting off its head. He looked up, rage in his eyes. Slowly rising to his feet, Hayate kept up the appearance of being wounded. "Kuromu, get ready." He spoke through their neural link. As Hayate had been on his knees, with his hands against the Wyvern's back, he had let some of his metal flow through underneath the creatures scales. He would soon be ready.

Surprised by the reaction of Hayate, the pale man seemed to grin afterwards. The other snakes didn't go after Hayate. Instead, they were slithering to somebody who was having already a handndful, literally. ''Pesky, but interesting.''[/i] The man mumbled, whipping out another kunai. Throwing it towards Hayate, the man seemed to proceed with another technique to create a dozen of kunai, out of the one he had thrown.

Seeing the snakes, as she thought she heard something hissing at her, Kiyomi wasn't happy to get such company. If she wasn't in that much pain, she could've driven them away. Looking down, she then sighed. ''I am going to regret this.'' She muttered, before letting go. It seemed like the world slowed down when she released the taie tail. Falling backwards, she couldn't help but to feel the need to claw at the tail again. Trying to grab it and hold on. To stay close to Hayate.

"Hayate! The dragon called out through the link. Not able to turn and look, Hayate once again covered his face, allowing the kunai to hit him again. "Save her damnit! I can take care of myself!" Hesitating for a split second, Kuromu dove below yet another fireball, making his way towards the falling Kiyomi. He would have to time this just right...

As the kunai struck Hayate, he was pushed back once again. Knocking the kunai from his body, Hayate struggled to retain his footing. Faking a collapse, Hayate landed on his hands and knees for the second time. Sliding more of his metal underneath the scales of the Wyvern, he now had a fair bit of the beast covered. Looking up to the pale man, Hayate grimaced. "Not man enough to finish me off are you?" He said, pretending to cough for a moment.

''No, but my snakes are.'' The snakes had came back, and started to crawl around Hayate's legs. Glancing at the dragon and Kiyomi falling, the pale man scoffed. ''Now, this is going to be interesting. Who of you will die and who will fall to death?''[/i] Forming a handseal, one of the snakes would open his mouth, revealing an explosive tag. The pale man was intending to use the blast of the explosion to knock Hayate of the wyvern's back.

Falling, Kiyomi noticed Kuromu. The pain around her stomach started to crawl slowly higher. As if she was needing to puke something that was burning. Realizing she had little choice, Kiyomi let in some of Matatabi's chakra in order to buy herself some more time. Stretching out her hand, she hoped the dragon could be in time. If Hayate would be left alone with that man.

Seeing the snakes around his legs, Hayate had to quickly change up his tactics. He had wanted to cover more of the Wyvern's back before doing this, but he had no choice. As he saw the snake open it's mouth, Hayate qhipped himself around, grabbing hold of the snake and hurling it towards the man. At the same time he covered his face and hands with metal, sealing the last of his exposed skin. Pulling out his staff, Hayate plunged it in between the scales on the back of the Wyvern. Focusing his chakra through the staff, Hayate began overcharging all of the metal that he had built up beneath the creature's scales. He had set it to explode within a brief time. Breaking off a chunk from his staff, Hayate looked up to see how the man would react to the snake that was thrown towards him.

Kuromu saw the girl reaching out and redoubled his speed, coming up from a dive he managed to get beneath her. Raising his wings to slow his speed, Kuromu attempted to catch Kiyomi on his back.

[Little Alice]

Falling on his back, Kiyomi let out a yelp. Panting, she could feel the dragon underneath her. ''Thanks..Kuromu-san.'' She managed to say. Flexing her fingers, she could see the wyvern that was soaring through higher skies. ''Can you try to drop me on off his wings? I have a plan..'' She asked Kuromu, rolling to lay on her stomach. Her eyes gained a glint in them as she tried to keep hold on Kuromu's scales.

The explosion caused the wyvern to hiss, clearly distressed by the sudden attack. The pale man had managed to create a defense of his own. With his water technique, he had formed a defense just in time. Looking at Hayate as the water vanished, the smirk wasn't present on the man's face. He had noticed that Hayate had covered his whole skin up in metal. ''That won't save you..''[/i] The pale man said, slowly taking a more of an agressive stance, readying to charge Hayate.

"You are welcome girl." The dragon spoke, his focus clearly on the effort of dodging the attacks of the Wyvern. Kuromu moved so that there was some distance between them and the massive creature. "So let me get this straight, we just got away from that ugly thing and now you want me to fly you back to it?" Letting out a loud snort, smoke poured from the dragon's nostrils. He clearly thought the girl was kidding. She had to be.

As the pale man readied himself to charge Hayate, the boy gave a humourless grin. "I have heard that before, and yet, I am still here." There was still some distance between himself and the pale man, and Hayate was going to need every advantage he could get if his plan was going to have any chance at success. Linking up with Kuromu, Hayate relayed a brief message. "Promise me you will get Kiyomi to safety Kuromu. I need you to stay as far away from here as you can." He hoped that for once the dragon would listen, he could not put Kiyomi in danger. If he were to fail here... Shaking the thought out of his head, Hayate glared at the man in front of him. Spinning his staff rapidly in his hand, Hayate surged forwards, charging towards his enemy.

Receiving Hayate's message, Kuromu grew worried. What was the crazy fool up to now? Turning his large head towards the wounded girl on his back, Kuromu spoke, his voice a quiet growl. "The boy wants me to take you away from here and I am half inclined to listen to him. I am well aware of how much he cares for you and I have no desire to be on the receiving end of his wrath if I put you in harm's way. However, I feel like he is about to do something rather foolish, so I need you to tell me something Kiyomi... Can you help him? Can you keep Hayate safe?" His tone was full of concern, and the dragon truly was torn. He could see that the girl was wounded, and thus he had no desire to put her in harm's way in a selfish attempt to keep Hayate safe. But Kuromu also knew just how skilled Kiyomi was, and if there was a chance she could get them both out of there then he had to take it.

''I have a crazy idea. Just try to get me closer.'' She managed to say back. The pain was starting to get really annoying. But it was nothing in comparison to what she had endured before. Clenching her hands into fists, she looked at the wyvern. ''First that ugly mongrol. I need you to get a bit closer. If he wants fire, he will get it!'' Slowly, Kiyomi was getting furious. She had been poisoned and was on the verge of being paralyzed. But as long as she could form seals, she would fight back. Already she was weaving several hand signals as she took a deep breath.

''Kukuku. I guess this is where it ends.''[/i] The man charged towards Hayate as well. From their previous exchange of blows, Hayate didn't had the upper hand. Pulling out two kunai, the pale man would attempt to overhwelm Hayate, trying to use his poisoned kunai to inflict it upon the genin. With fast and fericious strikes, the kunai's would try to keep Hayate from excuting any techniques.

The dragon thought about sighing, but instead simply nodded his large head. Heading back towards the massive wyvern, Kuromu was cautious, not wanting to be hit with any of those fireballs. "Be careful girl. If anything happens to you it'll be my head on the chopping block." With that, Kuromu continued his approach towards the beast. It wasn't far now...

Using his staff to deflect several of the vicious blows, Hayate also managed to create a few afterimages, throwing the pale man off. He knew that he was no match for the man in a direct fight like this however, and it would not be long before the man would gain the upper hand. Spinning his staff around rapidly, Hayate twirled, creating an afterimage in front of the man that made it look like he was about to attack, before the real Hayate launched his attack from behind.

Flying closer, Kiyomi brought her right hand to her mouth. Spitting out a big wave of blue fire, she intended to drive the wyvern back. The latter foolishly tried to counter the incoming blazing inferno with his own fire. Only to learn in the hard way that his fire wasn't a match for that of the Nibi's. Driven back, the wyvern hissed and briefly was pushed back. Due this the pale man stumbled. His balance became a bit off, which in a way saved him. He had not seen through the afterimages and if he wasn't stumbling, the attack of Hayate would have hit full force. Now the staff would only slam against a shoulder, driving the pale man back. Cursing softly, the pale man tried to throw one of his kunai as well trying to regain his balance.

''Quick, Kuromu, drop me on that annoying bastard. I just need to be a bit closer!'' Kiyomi ordered the dragon. She was aware she had nothing on him, but it was now or never. Weaving handsignals again, the pain was again slowly climbing up. If they wouldn't end this fight soon..

Kuromu complied, bringing Kiyomi in towards the wyvern's wings. They were so close now...

Spinning his staff to deflect the kunai, Hayate turned as he caught something out of the corner of his eye. "No damnit! Kuromu get her out of here! She is wounded! Please!" Hayate called out through the link, momentarily distracted by their appearance. He was pleading with the dragon, and Kuromu almost gave in... almost. But he had to look after Hayate first, and though the girl was injured, she still showed quite a fair amount of skill with her fire attack.

Turning back to face the pale man in front of him, Hayate realized that he had wasted his opportunity to strike. The man had regained his balance, and so Hayate charged him again. It wouldn't be long now before his plan kicked into effect. Hayate only hoped that he would be able to accomplish it before Kiyomi was brought into harm's way.

Closer, come on! Kiyomi squinted her eyes. Timing was important for her next move. While the pale man would engage again in a close ranged combat with Hayate, this time keeping his guard up in case Hayate would perform the troubling kenjutsu move, Kiyomi was gathering chakra. It was only more painful than before. The poison was still doing its vile work and Kiyomi could swear she was getting it cold. Pulling out two shuriken, Kiyomi started to infuse them with lightning chakra. Just a bit closer.

The dragon flew down as close as he dared. Any closer and he would be putting them all at risk. "This had better be a good enough height girl! I don't think I can get you any closer!" Kuromu hovered above the beast's back, hoping that Kiyomi would be able to do what she needed.

Barely keeping the pale man's attacks at bay, Hayate held his ground. He could feel the wind being pushed around as Kuromu's wings flapped up a gust not too far above them. Cursing to himself, he tried a new tactic to push the man back. Flowing his chakra into the staff, Hayate split it along the middle, and used the two seperate ends to launch a flurry of new attacks. He needed to drive the man backwards, away from Kiyomi.

Throwing the shuriken, Kiyomi started to cough. Her aim seemed off, but the shuriken would find their way to the man. Already the man had back a moment away to see what Hayate was trying. Just when he figured out how to drive the genin again backwards, the lightning crackling around the shuriken drove him back. Glaring at Kiyomi and Kuromu, the pale man threw a poisoned kunai towards the dragon. ''Pests.''[/i] He turned his head to look at Hayate again, this time about to weave handsignals.