The weather was the worst, with heavy rain pouring down the village. Despite the unfavourable condition, the Yamamura mine workers slaved away. Gold, silver, iron... All sorts of metal used by the country came from Yamamura, making their village one of the most prosperous around. They were far from the richest though, and as such, the miners were still forced to work day in and day out no matter the weather. The miners gathered the materials, and the traders made the trecherous hike down the mountain. That was where the Tetsume clan of ninjas came along.

"Shiori, are you sure you're prepared for this?" Ren Tetsume, the leader of the Tetsume clan and Shiori's father, asked, a concerned look marring his usually cold face. The huge warrior cared for very little except for his family and village, and his youngest child was his most beloved. To see her take up her very first mission as a ninja was something that truly horrified him. He'd worked hard to make sure that this event wouldn't happen for years, but he couldn't truly postpone it, especially when it was Shiori herself who wanted it.

Shiori, dressed in her Tetsume clothing, shot her fist to the air, a bright smile adorning her face. "I have never been as certain of anything in my life before. Allow me the opportunity to show you what I am capable of."

Seiji, the oldest of her brothers, patted the short girl's head affectionately, earning him an irritated growl from Shiori. Seiji ignored it and continued to say to their father, "Shiori has trained for years. She can handle a simple mission."

Ren, despite still deeming that situation awry, had no choice but to sigh. He knew he couldn't deny his daughter of something as this. No, he couldn't coddle his daughter. That would only drive her away and he didn't want that. "Very well," he grumbled.

A sharp and excited squeal filled the room next as Shiori jumped towards her father, engulfing the huge man in a hug. "Oh, great thanks, father!" she exclaimed, pure joy coating her features. Hee childish actions earned her affectionate smiles from the rest of her family. Their little Shiori was taking her first steps into becoming just like them. Shiori waved her goodbye to her father and brothers before heading out to find the man she was meant to protect.

The man was a middle aged trader who frequented the villages in the east. He was an abrasive and harsh man, someone Shiori used to avoid a lot whenever he was in the village, but for the sake of her very first mission, she had to bury her discomfort. She sucked in a deep breath, and greeted her charge. "Mr. Takada, shall we head out?"

Takada offered her a few choice curses before shouldering his bag filled with the materials he would sell. He took up his cane and headed out, leaving Shiori in his wake. With a sigh, Shiori followed, double checking her equipment all the while. She already had a bad feeling about her first mission.

Masaaki perched atop the steep cliff overlooking the the ambush spot. His light brown cloak camouflaging him perfectly with the rocky background, and keeping out any unwanted moisture. He surveyed the traps he had set. Just some basic caltrops on the road and some simple wires. Nothing too complicated on their first ambush, just enough to stop the horses in their tracks. He hadn't even bothered to hide them. In fact he made them quite obvious to one looking out for such things. He didn't want the horses to get caught in them. How would he transport the metal back to his village then? He had specifically picked this ambush spot because it was the narrowest point in the treacherous mountain path, so that the cart could not safely turn around. If they spotted the traps in the path they would have to stop, and then he would strike.

Seeing everything was set he crept silently back to his small camp hidden in the trees Going over everything in his head again put him at ease, at least for a while longer, and his thoughts drifted elsewhere. He wondered how his apprentices were doing. If training was going fine on their own. He hoped they weren't too mad he did not bring them with him, but the village needed metal and two kids would really only slow him down. Noboru would be. He'd insist that he was ready. Hell he wouldn't be surprised if he had to be tied down. He chuckled a bit to himself as he poured himself a cup of tea and sat down to wait for the merchant.

They were leagues away from the mountain-top village. Shiori couldn't even see the foreboding clouds that made their permanent home atop her home. A chill of dread and loneliness crept up her spine at being so far away from home for the first time. But she was a shinobi now, and if she wanted to continue down this path then she would have to endure a lot more. She'd have to endure a lot more than a bad-mouthing merchant, a rickety old wagon, rugged mountain roads, and the threat of ambushes. One day soon, she would have to join the war waged for so long by her family.

The horse slowed to a stop, shaking Shiori away from her thoughts. She stood up and peeked over Takada to see that they would have to traverse a mountain path. The path was incredibly narrow, not unlike the paths towards Yamamura. Those paths had been set there to be used for ambushes, and a tug in Shiori's gut informed her that an enemy might have just thought the same thing about this path. "Mr. Takada, we must venture with caution." Takada muttered a curse about having a stupid ninja escort him, but made the horse walk slowly nonetheless. Shiori, for her part, had a kunai out.

After a half an hour ride, Shiori saw them. She harshly whispered for Takada to stop, pointing towards the numerous traps set out to hinder their passage. The horse whinnied to a stop, his hoof an inch away from a wire. Shiori's gut had been right. She maneuvered herself to stand between whatever adversity was to befall them and the man she was ordered to protect. She took on a defensive stance, eyes watching her surroundings like a hawk. She was prepared to tap in to her supply of chakra and make use of the ninjutsus she was trained to master. She just needed to see her opponent.

After finishing his tea Masaaki laid out his tools. Four kunai. Check. he thought checking to make sure each was sharp before putting them in their slots on his belt. ten arrows he checked each one to make sure they were sharp and balanced before sliding them into his quiver. wakasashi. he ran it over his wet stone a few times before running his finger along the length of the blade. Seeming satisfied he slid it into its sheath at his side. Seeing everything was in order he strung his shortbow and crept back towards the cliff.

His heart skipped a beat as he saw the cart approaching, and he quickly ducked behind a bush. Damn he wasn't expecting someone quite so soon. He notched an arrow in his bow and watched. The ninja escort had spotted the traps, and put herself between him and the merchant. She was looking around warily trying to spot him. Just one? he thought. He had traps in the surrounding woods just in case another ninja was thinking of ambushing him here, but it still made him nervous. If he missed with this first shot he could reveal his position. If it was just this one ninja he could just ambush her when she came after him, but if there was another that could be a problem. He reached out with his chakra feeling the nearby vibrations in the air. Nothing. He let out a quiet sigh of relief, it was by no means a fool proof method of detection but it did put his mind at ease a bit. Feeling his confidence return he took s deep breath and slowly pulled back his bow, aiming for the other ninjas chest. He almost felt bad for her for a moment but quickly pushed those thoughts away. He let the arrow fly.

She didn't know what took over her, but Shiori caught the arrow with one hand a mere inch from it piercing through her chest. Perhaps it was her inner Tetsume showing itself, but she certainly hadn't done it on purpose. She gripped the kunai and threw it in the direction that the arrow had come from. She wasn't sure if it hit, but she didn't have time to wait. She urged Takada to hide as she went after the ninja who ambushed them. If that ninja had friends that would come after Takada when she left, then that meant Shiori would fail in her mission. But something told her that there was only one out there and if she didn't go after that person, then she'd be allowing him to attack them more. And Shiori had always been a person who trusted in her gut. She jumped from the cart and used her chakra to propel herself upward. In mid-air, she drew another kunai.

She landed near the first kunai she threw and saw that it had landed on a tree, missing its target. She took it out and went for a more offensive stance. "Reveal yourself," she demanded.

Masaaki jumped as the kunai landed into the tree next to him. She hadn't spotted him had she? That was much too close for his liking. He quickly hung his cloak on a nearby branch, it could serve as a good distraction and it would only get in the way if he got into a fight in the forrest like this, and crept quickly off into the forrest.

Moments later the other ninja landed a few feet from where he had been standing before. Masaaki froze. Had she really been able to pinpoint his location based off of the one arrow? That was impossible right? He let out a quiet sigh of relief as he heard her shout "Reveal yourself". Just blind luck then? He took a moment to peek out and give a quick glance at his opponent. She was a small woman, wearing the usual garb of the Tetsume clan, and her eyes were a striking shade of blue. They sent chills down his spine for a moment, before he collected himself and crept off looking for an ideal spot to attack. He positioned himself behind one of his traps, a tripwire hidden in the brush, when triggered it should release a sharpened branch at about knee level, notched another arrow and drew back his bow aiming to kill. A sliver of doubt slipped into his mind seconds before he released the arrow causing it to fly a few inches to the side of her head.

Masaaki jumped as the kunai landed into the tree next to him. She hadn't spotted him had she? That was much too close for his liking. He quickly hung his cloak on a nearby branch, it could serve as a good distraction and it would only get in the way if he got into a fight in the forrest like this, and crept quickly off into the forrest.

Moments later the other ninja landed a few feet from where he had been standing before. Masaaki froze. Had she really been able to pinpoint his location based off of the one arrow? That was impossible right? He let out a quiet sigh of relief as he heard her shout "Reveal yourself". Just blind luck then? He took a moment to peek out and give a quick glance at his opponent. She was a small woman, wearing the usual garb of the Tetsume clan, and her eyes were a striking shade of blue. They sent chills down his spine for a moment, before he collected himself and crept off looking for an ideal spot to attack. He positioned himself behind one of his traps, a tripwire hidden in the brush, when triggered it should release a sharpened branch at about knee level, notched another arrow and drew back his bow aiming to kill. A sliver of doubt slipped into his mind seconds before he released the arrow causing it to fly a few inches to the side of her head.

A tiny strand of blonde hair fluttered to the ground, as Shiori released another kunai in the direction she guessed the archer was. That was close. Too close. She wasn't going to take another chance with her opponent. Whoever he was, he meant to kill her and it was only luck that had saved her from an early demise. If she died, the trader would suffer a similar state. She could not have that. The time to be on the defensive had passed. She reached to her back, pulling out a short sword from its sheath. She gripped it in her hand and sprinted towards the direction of her opponent, using her chakra to speed up her approach.

She finally saw him, a man with dark hair and equally dark eyes. Shiori blinked, giving her opponent a once over. He was the image of a shinobi, so unlike an amateur like her. Having such a seemingly skilled opponent during her very first mission didn't seem fair at all, even for a child of Ren Tetsume. Still, she couldn't let him continue on with his nefarious plots, whatever they were. She moved forward, the blade of her sword meeting the skin of the man's neck. "Identify yourself," she ordered, applying more pressure to the blade but careful enough not to break skin.

Damn it! Why had he not killed her while he had the chance? He had killed plenty of ninjas before. What made this one different? He cursed himself again, he could never afford to make a mistake like that. It was a lesson he had been drilling into his own students for the past year, and now he goes and does this?

Masaaki forced his thoughts away. The girl was coming at him fast! He barely had time to draw his own sword in time to press it to her stomach before she had hers at his throat. There was a moment of silence between them before she ordered Masaaki to identify himself. He racked his thoughts quickly for some way to get an advantage. Then a sly grin spread across his face. "So you fell for it huh?" doing his best to keep his voice condescending. "I guess I was wrong. I told him I didn't think you were stupid enough to leave the merchant unguarded." Masaaki waited for a reaction. A sliver of doubt perhaps or even glancing back towards the merchant. Once there was an opening then he would strike!

Shiro tensed as his words settled into her mind. He was right, she'd been foolish enough to leave Takada unguarded. And with her being in a stalemate with a ninja, he'd be a sitting target for the man's allies. How could she have allowed it to happen? She schooled her features to reveal none of her inner turmoil as she gathered all the chakra she had left. If she could just manage to jump back before the man plunged his sword into her stomach, there was a chance that she could run back to Takada's side and attempt to protect him. He was her mission. Protecting him was her job, not going after a shinobi that meant to kill them.

She felt her feet brimming with the energy of her chakra. She could make it. She needed to make it.

She jumped back and found herself in a relatively safe distance from the man without a scratch on her person. She didn't have the time to check on the man's actions. One second wasted meant one second that Takada could be closer to his grave. No, Shiori couldn't let that happen. Using the next burst of her chakra, she slithered through the same path she'd taken before and ran as fast as she could back towards Takada. She found his carriage, horse and materials still intact, but the man was nowhere to be seen. Tapping into all of her senses, she quickly found him, hiding behind some bushes. Breathing a sigh of relief at his well-being, she used the last of her remaining chakra to attempt a jutsu she'd seen her brothers do countless times before. It was to summon a stone golem to aid them in battle. She needed one to guard Takada.

With her last but of chakra gone, Shiori gazed at her creation. It was a scrawny creature, looking more fit to be in a freakshow than in any business of protecting, but it would do. It had to, because Shiori's body was exhausted. She'd been stupid enough to fall for the man's trap and waste her energy, but it seemed like the thing that needed to be done. She gripped her short sword again. The man was obviouly fibbing. He was alone.

Putting her faith on the failed golem she'd created, she ran a distance away from Takada. "Enough games. What is it that you seek?" she called out.

Masaaki crept quickly gathered up his bow and collected his arrow and his cloak. His bluff had bought him the advantage again. He moved silently along the cliff before peering down to assess the situation. It seemed the girl had managed to create a golem of some sort. It was a bit misshapen, but still a dangerous threat. He really had no efficient way to damage it, so his only option would be to avoid it and go directly for her or the merchant. It would throw another kink into the plan, but she must have used up much of her chakra making this thing, and she would be worn out from running back and forth so much. It was time for him to go on the offensive again.

Masaaki closed his eyes and concentrated gathering up his chakra and using it to condense some of the extra water in the air, causing the rain to pour down even harder. He concentrated harder forcing some of his senses through some of the raindrops he created. It was a work in progress and it was incredibly disorienting, there was the golem, the girl? where was the merchant? He focused harder, taking a deep breath and steadying his mind. There! In the bushes. He thought. Or maybe he was in the cart? He really needed to work on this jutsu more. He opened his eyes rubbing his head slowly trying to regain his senses as quickly as possible. Take out the ninja first then he could worry about the merchant. he thought quickly formulating a plan in his head.

"Alright girl!" he shouted using the rain to cover the direction his voice was coming from, "Enough games. Throw down your weapons and hand over the cart and I'll leave the two of you unharmed. You're in no position to fight me right now" He doubted she would surrender but he had made himself sound condescending on purpose. He was hoping to provoke her into making a mistake.