Chap 16: The Dark Akatsuki...

Kiyoka was training in the summoning jutsu with Nawaki, training in the forest on the Senju compound. Wearing black training clothing standing across from the man, she was entering into a contract both with dragons and with Katsuyu. In order to give her more of an offensive edge in a fight. She was wearing an orchid pink shortsleeve cropped shirt with a black skirt that stopped mid-thigh. Wearing mesh armor underneath the skirt as shorts, wearing a black/orchid pink jacket with detached sleeves over her shirt. Wearing her shuriken holster on her right thigh with her kunai pouch on her back waist. Her black hair in a half up bun on the right side of her head, wearing an orange flower at the base as decoration, her protector sitting around her forehead, the girl wearing black fingerless gloves on her hands. Nawaki was going through the jutsu signs with her, as well as working on collaborative ninjutsu with her dragon summoning. Mavis. A dragon with fandango pink scales, her hair going down her back was an ash blonde as well as the tuft at the end of her tail. Her ears were light pink wing shaped adornments. A somewhat calm dragon, with a love for the color… pink. A color that Kiyokaloved as well. The underside of her wings was lace pink, with black stripes over her body. At the moment, she wasn't big enough for Kiyokato fly, but they worked on ground maneuvers. Nawaki along with Zesilf grilling them and training them in the different maneuvers, his brown hair in a loose ponytail behind his head wearing a green longsleeve shirt with black pants, a sky blue poncho over his shoulders with a gold staff on his back, wearing black zori on his feet. 

Naruto head out on a trip with Jiraiya to focus on learning another big jutsu move, Jiraiya's own toad mouth trap. He'd been working on seals with Kushina but had mastered almost every seal from the Uzumaki clan, though Jiraiya was sure the boy was the child of prophecy he'd been looking for, watching him suppress the 9tail like he did on the last mission he went on only cemented the idea. The boy stood ready a backpack on his back for their short journey, wearing his blue-orange ninja outfit with shuriken holster on his right thigh and a kunai pouch on his back waist.

"All right pervy sage! This is going to be awesome!" Naruto said looking over towards the man who hummed in response. Minato had just taught him the rasengan, but they knew one of the akatsuki was Ozai Uchiha, Iroh's brother who'd defected from the clan. So in the event Naruto had to fight the man, they wanted him prepared and able to use one of Jiraiya's moves, the toad mouth trap. 

"Well obviously, I'm training you after all." Jiraiya said rubbing his head as he brought him in, the boy yelling in protest as he did so. Jiraiya's gizo was in a ponytail behind his head, the rest of his hair sitting around the faceplate on his face that held the kanji for oil on the front, the sideburns reaching his chin. Wearing a green kimono inspired uniform with matching pants, wearing red geta sandals with a tankstyle cloak with gold circles on the pecs, wearing fishnetting that peeked from his shins and forearms, where the skin was exposed. He wore hand guards on both of his hands as well, wearing his scroll on his back. They were to return in a week, the village still on high alert from the attack, Minato was worried but he knew that going with Jiraiya, Naruto would be fine. Kushina was worried about the inhibitions of Shinobi that Jiraiya never seemed to follow.

Their training was kicking off without a hitch, Naruto was learning to pool his chakra like for summoning but for more specific things. He's able to summon Gamakitchi and Gamabunta, all he needed to do was think about it more clearly to summon Jiraiya's toad mouth trap. This move was specifically used for defense, escape from it was impossible, it was by far one of the strongest moves in Jiraiya's arsenal, and as such, it was taking longer than normal to teach such a move to Naruto. He was slowly getting it though, it took a small amount of chakra but learning how to do so, would be a feat. They stopped for the night at an inn. The two sharing the room in said inn as they prepared to go all out with Naruto's training. 

"Treat the staff as an extension of your body, Hinami." Kansai said, walking Hinami through steps of fighting with a staff, just as the man himself did, Hinami was learning to use different weapons that she might find while on a mission, right now, she was training to use a bo-staff. Though she was currently… having some issues with it. Wearing training clothes as she stood in the Senju compound, standing across from Kansai, the man holding his staff, an aqua colored metal staff. Hinami planting her feet on the ground as she prepared to go again, before her feet were knocked from under her, by Kansai. Hinami grunting in frustration. Hinami's black hair was in two ponytails to keep it out of her face and out of the way of training with the staff. Wearing a training outfit, the black longsleeve shirt and black pants, wearing mesh armor underneath the pantlegs and sleeves, as well as the collar. Wearing her silver locket around her neck. Standing in one of the senju training grounds with Kansai, his white hair sat around his head, as he wore a blue ninja outfit with faux fur around the collar, trailing down his back partway, wearing his shuriken holster on his right thigh, with a kunai pouch on his back waist. Standing on the wood floor across from eachother, the wood walls of the room sitting all around them, with the light sitting overhead, windows on the outer wall let light from the sun into the room and illuminating the space. Which was large enough to spar and work with the spears without fear they'd run into the walls.

"I'm trying, but I just don't get how to apply the corrections." Hinami said in return, Kansai offering her a hand up and the man hummed in response, 

"You're treating the staff as a separate entity, not as an extension of your own limbs." Kansai said, correcting the stance the girl had. Having her strike out once more, 

"Here. you're shifting your center of gravity too much. You're stance is unstable here." Kansai said looking towards the girl. Correcting her stance once more with her strike, giving her a more powerful strike and a stronger stance. 

"Try again." He said and Hinami struck out again, Kansai hitting her feet with his own once more, Hinami jumping over the strike, and this time, she was more steady in her stance, stable. She brought the staff up to block Kansai's strikes, 

"Good." He commented and Hinami hummed in response, 

"You think… Geikan and Anita… they'd have made chunin by now, you think?" Hinami questioned and Kansai hummed in response, 

"Most likely, they were bright kids. They would be proud of you as well." Kansai said, placing a hand in her hair a moment and Hinami looked over, hesitant for a moment, before giving a grin, 

"I hope so, I only applied for the promotion for them after all." Hinami said in return, looking over and Kansai nodded in understanding. 

"Right, lets run through those drills once more." He said after a moment and Hinami looked forwards with determination 

"yes, you've almost got it." Jiraiya said a few days later as he walked back into the room in the inn the two were staying at, Naruto working on chakra refinement. a requirement for the toad mouth trap, the boy looked over at him with a grin. He'd gone off to… *cough* research. 

"Alright so, what's next?" he asked looking at the she with excitement, the man held his hands up a moment

"woah oh oh! hold on, I said you've almost got it, You're not quite there yet, kiddo. sorry." Jiraiya said in response, Naruto huffing in annoyance

"this is boring old man." Naruto said and Jiraiya hummed in response

"You could give up." He said in return

"What?! no way! I'll get this down pat! just wait!" Naruto said and Jiraiya hummed 'That was way too easy kid. really…' he thought looking as Naruto returned to his training. while doing so, a knock sounded from the door, Jiraiya answering such. 

"What are you three doing here?" Jiraiya said as he let Itachi, Sasuke, and Hinami into the room. Itachis hair was in a ponytail behind his head, falling onto his back, as he wore an anbu uniform, paired with his mask.

"They followed me." Itachi said blandly

"not true, Sasuke followed you, I followed Sasuke. besides I was assigned the same mission." Hinami said

"mission? what mission?" Naruto said

"Two of the akatsuki were spotted nearby, it's probably the same ones that put Kakashi sensei in the hospital. Ozai and Kisame." Hinami said in return, wearing her black hair in two braids with light blue ribbons at the base, a yellow strand going through the braid on the right side with a lilac purple strand going through the braid on the left side. Wearing the silver locket around her neck sitting clasped around her neck and hidden in the jacket holding a picture of team 4 on the right side with team 7 on the left side. Wearing a maroon-purple sleeveless cropped top zipped up her neck with a cropped sky blue jacket overtop, wearing black shorts with a skirt stopping mid thigh.Wearing her headband around her left thigh, her bangs falling over her face wearing black arm protectors on her forearms, wearing shinguards on her shins going over her black sandals,

"I see. so youre here as a backup? Minato really is too careful sometimes." Jiraiya said laughing, 

"No, he just knows you and Naruto together are too reckless Uncle." Hinami said 

"You dont have to be so mean about it." Naruto and Jiraiya said at the same time, looking over at her and Hinami hummed in response, 

"Lets come up with a plan of attack." Sasuke said, he wore a blue short-sleeve shirt with tan shorts, his shuriken holster on his right thigh, with his blue headband tied around his forehead. Wearing tan arm warmers on his forearms, and blue sandals on his feet. His black hair spiking behind his head. The five kneeling on the ground looking towards eachother

"Yes, let's start with background. We know from Asuma, Kurenai, Kakashi and Gais encounter with them that Kisame is a previous swordsmen gone rogue from the hidden mist. He's skilled in taijutsu and weilds a large sword on his back. His blade eats chakra, called the Samehada. not much is known about the blade itself, but he's a powerful water style user and a loudmouth who seems to do what his partner says." Hinami said looking at the group,

"Ozai Uchiha. once he was a well respected high ranking member of the Uchiha clan, but that changed when he burned his sons face, and tried to kill Fugaku and take the role as head of the clan for himself, since then he was to be killed but fled before his sentence was carried out. hes skilled in fire, wind and lightning style. not to mention his genjutsu is comparable to mine. he's skilled at mid range combat." Itachi said also looking over, 

"So that's why you came, Hinami? with your water style…" Naruto started

"using water style is too risky, Ill risk giving Kisame a source to pull from." Hinami said in return, and Jiraiya nodded in agreement

"I see…" Jiraiya said, catching on to what was happening. Before they could discuss further, a knock sounded at the door.

"Hinami." Sasuke said and the girl nodded, using her byakugan to look through the door, noting the two people standing there, before noting the sharingan a second too late, 

"Mhm." she hummed, nodding over before the door was burned down. 

"How perfect. We'll take the nine tailed brat now." Ozai said standing before them as the door fell to pieces, the wood clattering to the ground. his black hair flowed past his back, wearing the akatsuki robe on his front, his sharingan active in his eyes. behind him stood Kisame, who looked over. 

"I'd listen to the man. Samehada is feeling hungry." he said calmly, swinging it towards Naruto, as Jiraiya activated toad mouth trap, the walls and room becoming coated in a pink like coating, which emerged from the walls. The coating blocking Samehada from making contact with Naruto at all, preventing Kisame from pulling it free with one go.

"Ozai Uchiha. what luck, we'll be able to take you in right here." Jiraiya said, standing in a fighting stance, as did Itachi, Ozai tching as he noted the walls of the jutsu seemed to be alive, swelling and moving, Kisame's sword stuck to one of the floors as more made to climb up their legs.

"How infuriating. Kisame, we're retreating." Ozai announced and Kisame looked just as taken aback as the group in front of him did. 

"Alright." He said in return, though he sounded more confused than anything, Kisame pulling the samehada blade free before running after Ozai.

"There's no escape!" Jiraiya proclaimed, his hands on the ground as he moved and manipulated the stomach, Itachi going after them, the stomach expanding over the hall, coating all of the walls in pink goop, which Jiraiya had complete control over, trapping them inside with the akatsuki. Aiming to fight.

"This trap thing, are you sure?" Hinami said in return, looking at the trap, trying not to cringe as she noted they were indeed inside the stomach of a giant toad. The stomach moving and swelling to follow Jiraiya's commands. The walls were pink muscle, the fibers following Jiraiya's command that he used, to attempt to trap Ozai and Kisame. Despite the two trying to run off.

"You doubt me?" Jiraiya said, before crashing was heard down the hallway, Hinami placed a hand on her head, looking over towards Sasuke who was in a similar state. 'Numbskulls…' they thought, looking towards where the crash came from.

"I thought this was inpenetrable!" Itachi yelled over as Jiraiya ran up with the kids. Noting that there was a hole in the stomach, the wall broken, and black flames crowded where the entrance was. Jiraiya quickly released his toad mouth trap. The summer breeze blew through the open wall, able to overlook the lake and forest nearby, but the two Akatsuki were nowhere in sight. 

"The Amatarasu… never thought I'd see that… Right. Stand back." Jiraiya said as he pulled out a scroll, sealing the flames inside it. Frowning as he commented that escape from his trap should be impossible, but Ozai had used amatarasu, something Jiraiya hadn't seen for a long time.

"We need to return to the leaf, tell Uncle Minato what happened." Hinami said and the group nodded, after fixing the inn, thats exactly where they headed.

"Uncle Iroh, youre here too?" Naruto said as they made it back to the office with Hinami, Sasuke, Itachi, and Jiraiya. Finding that Iroh, a man with long black hair kept in a traditional japanese bun, paired with a dark green shirt with black pants, was already in the office when they were told to enter. Minato nodded and asked for their report, Jiraiya giving it.

"He fled as soon as he noticed uncle Jiraiya, though, using amatarasu. I wonder why that is…" Hinami said and Naruto cut in, 

"It's obviously because I'm a ninja with overwhelming talent." he said, 

"Not even close you idiot." Sasuke said from the side, 

"What'd you say." Naruto said, the two getting in their faces, Hinami walking behind them, chopping the top of both of their heads, knocking both of them to the ground, 

"It could be that they didn't want to deal with all of you, Ozai's always been a reckless person but he's also careful." Iroh commented and the others nodded

"Naruto, Sasuke, Iroh, you're dismissed. Itachi, Jiraiya, Hinami, please stay." Minato said and the group nodded, remaining, 

"I'll see what I can find out using my connection to the forests,." Hinami said as they were asked, to delve further into the Akatsuki and find more information if possible. If they were coming specifically for the 9tail, chances were they were also headed towards other tailed beasts, if they could figure out what they could be collecting them for, it'd be helpful. Hinami looking specifically into rituals and other things that would require the use of tailed beasts, since something told her they weren't after Naruto for his jokes or charisma.