Shimmering Fireflies

Double

Both of them approached cautiously, staying hidden in the tree they were in. Shino sent one of his beetles so it could search for another presence. As soon as it came back, the bug user let it enter his skin through the palm of his hand. This process always made Mizuiro a bit sensitive. She wondered if it hurt him.

"There is only three ninja." Shino told her. "They're ten meters away from here and they tied her to a tree. I could create a diversion while you get her out of here safely. Let's meet here after this."

He marked the tree with his kunai and Mizuiro agreed silently. When they finally approached their rendezvous point, they saw that the three abductors seemed to be rogue ninja from Konoha. They were mostly covered and were talking to each other. Only one of them sounded like a woman. Takihiro's cousin seemed unconscious.

Shino and Mizuiro made an eye contact, meaning they'd be ready for their plan. He jumped to another tree over the rogue ninja and ran through the forest, ending up their chatter. Two of them decided to go after him while the other stayed with their hostage.

Mizuiro sensed that the remaining ninja became wary. She never had to rescue someone before, and she had to make sure the stranger wouldn't be able to follow them after that. Thinking about almost everything that could possibly go wrong, she was very watchful herself. She took a deep breath, reaching for shurikens in her pocket. Her heartbeat got faster. She knew she would be quick enough to flee with Takihiro's cousin, but she had trouble imagining how she would keep the abductor from following them. She was hoping her running speed would be enough to discourage them.

Mizuiro quickly threw her shurikens on the tree the woman was tied to. Instead of cutting the ropes liked she had wished it would, there was a metallic clatter on the tree. She immediately knew something was wrong. She couldn't have missed a target so close to her. The forest around her started to look strange, her vision being troubled by random spots of lights. Before she could analyze what happened, she was already on the ground, only half conscious.

~

Shino made sure not to go too far from his friend. If he had to come back to help, he would be able to do it fast. Thinking about this, he immediately realized that the two ninja behind him disappeared. Shino stopped instantly, upset that he didn't see through their illusion jutsu right away. He turned around as quickly as possible, telling himself he should've seen it coming. He went back to the last place he'd seen the three rogue ninja, but he only saw his friend. He didn't felt any other distinctive chakra around them. What in the world was happening?

"What!?" Mizuiro exclaimed, visibly puzzled.

He never heard her being that loud. Apparently, she was even more confused than he was.

"Are you okay?" He asked calmly.

"Yes, of course", Mizuiro answered quickly. "I thought you were gone..."

"I was until they stopped following me. Have you seen any of them?"

"I didn't. This is very weird."

She smiled at him, looking a bit embarrassed.

Something was off, but he couldn't figure it out. Actually, almost everything seemed unusual. Seeing their proximity, he rapidly pinned her to the nearest tree. He restricted her arms with his, a swarm of bugs coming out of his pores, waiting for his signal.

"Who are you?" He asked seriously.

The young girl seemed terrified, her eyes widening at the sight of so many bugs.

"W-what do you mean!?" She answered fearfully.

The thought of his friend being frightened by his own actions made him feel guilty, but he brushed off this feeling immediately. He knew that wasn't her. He just had to confirm.