A Growing Affection

Chapter 73: The Power of the Tailed Beasts

At three AM, the darkest part of the night, Temari, Kankuro, and  Shikamaru moved amongst the others, waking them. The rescue party had  found an indentation in the wall of the ravine, deep enough to almost  qualify as a cave. They covered the entrance with their chameleon tarps,  and took their rest before the assault. After they were all roused, the  shinobi took a few brief minutes to awaken and prepare.

"So  what's the plan?" Kiba asked openly, seemly resolved at last. They had  finished taking down the makeshift camp, and were ready to deploy.

"Team  Anko and the Sand Siblings will take the north path," Hinata told them,  "Team Yugao, Kaede, and Rock Lee will take the south path. Neji,  Tenten, Sakura, and I will take the middle path. Try to stay hidden as  long as you can. Remember, our goal is to rescue Naruto, not to fight  the Akatsuki."

Each shinobi indicated his or her understanding,  and they split up as ordered. Hinata's team darted down the middle  gully, sticking close to the wall despite the thick blanket of night.  After the first few minutes of cautious advancement, Neji suddenly broke  the silence.

"Hinata, may I ask how you determined these groups?" he asked in a controlled whisper.

"I  wanted to keep a certain balance," she replied just as quietly, "I made  sure each team had one of the four Jonin. And since Sakura, Ino, and  Shino are all fully qualified medical ninjas, I chose so that one of  them was part of each group. Finally, except for Lee, I kept the squads  together to preserve teamwork."

"Why did you send Lee with Sasame and the others?" Tenten joined the conversation with her own query.

"Because  I was worried about that team," Hinata admitted, "Even after the break,  Shino is somewhat tired from caring for the Bikochu. Kiba did not want  to be here in the first place. And Kaede is too much of a mystery, in  both her motives and her combat abilities. So I sent Lee to reinforce  them."

"Shh," Sakura silenced them, as the outline of the battlement became visible due to the torches on top.

Neji  used his conflicting emotions to keep his expression neutral. He was  impressed by Hinata's reasoning, but it also brought back memories of  the deliberation of the council, not three full days prior, and the  Council's underestimation of Hinata. The Jonin bottled his feelings, for  the sake of the task at hand. Tenten was watching him, recognizing her  lover's introspection.

The lights moved away, and the Leaf shinobi  slipped silently forward towards the barricade. When they reached the  base, they waited for the guards to move to the opposite side before  they began scaling the wall, spider style.

"What the heck are you doing, you stupid fuzzball?" Naruto shouted,  falling away from his counterpart's chakra wrapped fingers. He rolled to  his feet, and hopped back as Naruko closed in again. This time she kept  up with him, and the young man grabbed her hand, flipping the humanoid  projection over his shoulder. The demoness was both faster and more  flexible, and she twisted about in mid air, slamming her left heel into  the side of Naruto's head.

"I'm taking my chance, possibly my last  chance," she sneered as he stumbled away, "I have to kill you now,  before the Akatsuki do..."

The human shinobi took the stance of the Whipping Willows, and dodged the demon's next two attacks.

"Won't  you die too?" Naruto demanded, as she caught his counterattack, cutting  into his arm. He snatched his limb back, and tried to slip around her  next kick, but her greater speed allowed her to clip him anyway, nearly  knocking him down.

"Probably not," the Bijuu in human form smirked. She hopped back, and began to sign.

"After  all, I can destroy your mind and soul, but your body will live," she  explained, "In which case it becomes my body by inheritance. And if I'm  wrong..."