Naruto : The System Files

Chapter no.129 Rice Country

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Half an hour later, the two teams were gathered in front of gate seven. Team Ku, consisting of Hawk, Crane, Snake, and Lizard, would be under Tiger's command. Naruto breathed deeply in hope of appeasing his still frayed nerves but to no avail. He had written his testament, giving his few nothings to Konohamaru and it had been difficult not to empty the content of his stomach.

Tiger threw a sweeping glance at the assembled ninjas and when he spoke, his voice was vibrating with a rare kind of authority.

"We are shinobi and we do our duty, in the name of the Will of Fire. Let's move out, Vic formation behind Dog. Dog, I want good speed."

In a rush of wind, the eight ninjas started running, working their muscles hard, trickling a tiny but constant amount of chakra to strengthen and heal them. For civilians, it was a full three-days journey or so between Konoha and the small village of Ohira Gai and they had twenty-four hours to travel this distance before tracking would become overly difficult.

They would make it in ten.

Tiger really was a slave driver.

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Naruto swayed on his feet, the lack of oxygen accessing his brain making the ground dance, and squashed the urge to just empty the content of his stomach inside his mask. Instead, he folded around the waist, his hands on his knees, panting for air. The blond blinked rapidly to clear his eyes from the beads of sweat trickling into them. He had a momentary grateful thought for Tiger and Cat who had convinced him to cut his hair. Had he still had his shaggy, long curls, no doubt he would have been drowning in his own sweat by now.

The balaclava was not that open and the helmet weighed heavily on his head after the insane marathon he had just completed.

They had run ten hours straight, without break, at a pace he considered barbaric, and it was not something he wanted to do ever again. Too bad he was in ANBU and that would be expected of him. Maybe he would be able to say no.

Three weeks ago, he had hit the lower speed requirement for an ANBU endurance run and, thanks to his very good stamina, he was able to maintain this speed for days if necessary. But today, Dog had imposed a pace he was not yet trained for and Naruto had needed to actively use chakra to sustain himself. A lot of chakra. The natural, subconscious trickle that was usually enough had not been and he had actually spent more than he was comfortable parting with.

However, his capacity to follow and finish the travel of the day was the proof he was becoming stronger and stronger. Naruto was not without pride at the accomplishment but the feeling was not enough to ease the burning sensation of his lungs trying to give up on him while his heart was decidedly hesitating between quitting now or immediately.

It did not help that the seven other ANBU with him showed no easily visible sign of being winded if not for their powerful, noisy yet forcefully regulated, breathing.

"Keep walking Maru," advised Cat to the blond in-between deep breaths. "It will help regulate your heart beat faster and better."

And indeed, Naruto could see that all his fellow ninjas were walking in large circles to abate their frenzied heart and relax their muscles. Observing them further as he started walking, he could see their muscles trembling and cramping, and their breaths were more gasping than he had thought at first. The blond frowned; he still needed to work on his discipline if he was still so openly displaying weakness like he was. The others were just as exhausted but they simply did not allow it to be easily seen.

"Don't forget to stretch either." The woman added after a second of thought. The blond simply nodded. Cat's words sounded wise and Naruto knew the benefits of stretching after a rough effort.

While the blond desperately fought to return his body to its normal rhythm, Tiger was already meeting with the leader of the regular forces already deployed. It took the man a few minutes to get a report he was satisfied with and when he returned, the blond could stand without the impression his heart was trying to jump outside his chest.

"We need to go immediately. The trail isn't fresh anymore. The northern wind is still strong and it has been pushing rainclouds from the Frost Sea down to here. Thirty minutes to freshen up and we depart." Tiger ordered sternly. "Maru, do not allow yourself to get cold, keep walking, and drink a lot. The rendezvous point is the northern gate. Dismissed."

There were seven silent nods and the two ANBU teams separated, Naruto dutifully followed Cat and Tiger while Dog took the three hounds with her, already intent on finding any kind of trail she could.

A quick trip to the toilets, a ration bar, and a ridiculous amount of water later, and all eight ANBU had gathered once again at the northern gate, standing at the ready, some lightly jumping in place to keep their muscles hot.

"Found something Dog?" Tiger asked tersely.

"The scents are old but I got it. I'm quite sure they are not waiting for us."

"Good, same formation, Dog you go as fast as you can without losing the track but fifteen clicks max. Go."

Naruto swallowed a groan of misery and prayed the Flame he would be able to hold on. The half an hour break had done wonders but even he was not eternal.

It took the two ANBU teams another hour to reach the border with Rice Country. The spec-ops followed a scent that did not bother leaving the road, a road that quickly changed into a sort of trail until it morphed into nothing more than a forest path. All eight ANBU stopped at once when Tiger ordered them to with an abruptly raised fist. On the side, disappearing under the undergrowth, was a rough slab of stone indicating the border between the two countries.

After motioned toward her for her attention, Tiger signed something to Dog in a flash. Enemies?

The teenager simply shook her head no and the man relaxed minutely.

"Welcome to Rice Country ladies and gentlemen." Tiger drawled in a mirthless whisper. "We will continue to follow the trail until night falls, then we take a break. Questions?"

"Priority?"

"Stealth.

"Contact handling?"

"Unseen and observation. We switch to destroy if contact is identified as our objective, on my orders only. Silent communication starting now. Be on guard."

All nodded and the eight soldiers resumed their run yet this time, all were nearly completely silent if a bit slower. No twigs snapped under their feet, no bush was displaced by their sleeves, and it was as if eight ghosts had organized an otherworldly procession in the slowly deeming light of the late afternoon.