[center][img]https://txt-dynamic.static.1001fonts.net/txt/dHRmLjY2LjU4YjJlNC5UU0JQSUZJZ1NTQklJRWtnVkNCUC4w/bimbo-jve.regular.png[/img]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/8kWkWMy.png[/img]
[suB][RIGHT][color=696969][b]ON HIS WAY TOWARDS IZA, SQUAD 1, AND THE GOONS[/b][/color][/RIGHT][/suB][/center]
[indent][indent]Abandoned by his team in unfriendly territory – territory called the [i]Forest of the Death[/i] no less – should be something to feel scared about. Or, if not scared (because he was a fearless ninja of Konoha and only civilians felt fear) then at least rightfully, understandably apprehensive of the dangers. Around every tree there could be an enemy combatant. In every bush, an enemy combatant. Every fallen log? Enemy combatant. 

But the dangers that could lie ahead of him weren't what Mori was thinking about. In fact, he thought about nothing at all as he alighted to the top branches of the trees to minimize risk and maximize sight lines. He was as the leaf on the still pond: serene.

He had a job to do, and that was to make sure his teammates got to the finish line alive, but more importantly, with the scrolls. Since Karu had theirs he couldn't safeguard the one they started with. If he lost it, he lost it. And there was a greater than fifty percent chance he [i]would[/i] lose it, knowing the big dumb hero instinct in his friend overpowered any sliver of wisdom––

[i]Serene[/i], Mori interrupted, stamping down on the annoyance that bubbled up inside him like the fizz in a can of juice. There was no use in making unnecessary predictions, and he could only control the present. And right now, he could only watch and observe.

Down on the forest floor below, a party of three Suna-nin gathered by a fallen opponent, rifling through the unconscious-or-dead ninja's belongings. When they found a scroll, it was unfortunately the same colour as the one Karu held, and evidently the same one as their team's. For a moment, it looked as if the ninja was going to leave it there, but at the last second he passed it off to his teammate in the back, who stowed it away in a bag filled with blank scrolls and left behind an obvious decoy on the body.

Now there was an idea.

When the trio left, conversing in whispers too low to overhear (unlike [i]some people[/i] he knew) Mori dropped from the tree he was crouched in, swooped up the decoy and then scampered back into the safety of the canopy in one smooth motion. Beneath his fingers, the paper felt cheap and the seal was only the correct shade if one was colourblind, as if they had been hastily constructed from preexisting supplies. 

Nevertheless, he was sure some rube could be fooled by it. Once he slid it into his backpack, he began to move again. Maybe there was even space in it to hide an exploding tag – but that would have to wait until Team 3 was reunited.

Iza had flounced off far ahead of them in the opposite direction to their other teammate, and it was all Mori could do to keep up after his temporary detour. One tree at a time, careful and cautious, expecting an ambush around every corner. His connection to the Princess stretched with the added distance between himself and Karu.

When the trees began to thin out, He returned to the forest floor, following trampled twigs and footprints in the moss. One set of bootprints, then three more in varying sizes. There was no way to know for sure whether or not it was his teammate, but with an educated guess knowing what she was like, he was convinced enough to follow them further.

Drops of red in the undergrowth, and the quiet sounds of a scuffle ahead.

Mori doubled his pace.[/indent][/indent]