The Ultimate Weapon (Naruto Fanfic)

33-Unmerry Christmas

The snow that had been falling all week continued the trend as it drifted lazily to the ground. The thick crunch of boots in snow could be heard everywhere, an undertone to the frequent laughter of children as they threw snow at eachother. Occasionally a shriek would be let out as friends took the opportunity to dump some of the cold white powder down each other's shirt. Aoi ignored this as he continued to walk through the village, drawing closer to the large red building to which he had been summoned.

With a brief knock, Aoi heard a faint 'come in' from the other side of the door that led to the mission office. Needing no further provocation, the blue haired boy entered the room. Eyes darting to the side, Aoi took in who he assumed would be on his team for the mission before his gaze returned to the row of mission attendents before him. Seeing that Aoi had entered, the man in the middle, jonin by protocol, sifted through a few papers before finding the one he needed.

"Now that you're all here, I would like to get started explaining the mission." Everyone nodded at the jonin's words. "In a small village two day's travel from here, it appears that the village elder has recieved a letter threatening attack. It was left unsigned, but they suspect it to be a thieves guild. Your mission is to capture the thieves or, if you are unable to locate them before the attack, protect the item it is they intend to steal. More details will be given by the leader of the village when you arrive there." The man folded the papers, holding them out for Aoi to take. "You should be back by the end of next week should the mission go as planned."

Taking the outstretched papers from the man's hand, Aoi turned to face his teammates for the mission. They smiled at him faintly in recognition, but it was clear that all three of them weren't happy about the current circumstances

Thinking nothing of it, Aoi started out the door. Noticing this, the other three followed after him, pulling scarves tighter as they stepped outside. When they had caught up with him, Aoi began to speak. Without uttering a word, the other three knew he was team leader for the mission, as he was the only chunin in the group.

"We will leave in an hour. Meet at the gates by then so we can leave." Aoi turned back to see their faces still looking slightly depressed. "Is something wrong?" he tilted his head to the side, not understanding why the had a look like that on their faces.

Karoi looked up, brought from her reverie by his words. "Ah, no... It's just..."

"This sucks!" Kodomo finally shouted, stomping his foot much like a five-year-old would. "Why do we have a mission on Christmas!?"

"Saying that won't make the mission disappear. Besides, maybe we can celebrate Christmas in their village once if we hurry." Ryo looked over calmly, unfazed by Kodomo's angry aura. "Let's go get ready for the mission." Kaori sighed slightly before all three walked off.

Aoi looked after them for a few moments before he tilted his head to the side. A question mark practically appeared over his head as one could sense his confusion. "What's Christmas?" He thought about it for a few moments before shrugging. If he needed to know, he eventually would. Continuing down the street, he headed to his apartment to get ready.

A sudden force slammed into him from the side, and Aoi took a small step to balance himself from the sudden weight. Looking down at the object clinging to his arm, Aoi saw the bright orange hair of Jinhai through the coating of white it held locked in its clutches. Jinhai met his gaze, a cheeky smile plastered on his face.

"Aoi-sensei, I haven't seen you since the academy let out for break!" He released Aoi's arm, but his smile didn't faulter. "Can you come play with me? I'm building a snowman right now."

"I have a mission that I must get ready for." Aoi stated, shooting down Jinhai's request.

Something seemed to occur to Jinhai as he looked at Aoi. "Aren't you cold?" Aoi tilted his head to the side slightly, not understanding entirely. He was wearing what he usually did, and though not warm he didn't feel anything more than an uncomfortable chill on his face, neck and arms. The latter only because Aoi now tied his hair back in a simple rat tail, while leaving only a section of his hair to cover his tattooed eye.