Escape [Sasuke Uchiha]

Chapter 51: Sasuke Retrieval Team

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So... the true reason why he insisted on accompanying me until I fell asleep was because he didn't want me to run into him while I take a walk and while he was running away from the village. And that necklace he gave me... is it a farewell gift?!

I gritted my teeth before I stared at Shikamaru with resoluteness gleaming brightly in my eyes, "I'm coming with you! I'll go change right now!"

Without waiting for their responses, I jumped back into the house and sprinted to my room, wasting no time to strip and put on my clothes unceremoniously. Foreseeing that this would be a rough journey, I decided to tie my hair up in a ponytail. I snatched my bow and my fully-loaded quiver of arrows and secured them on my back hastily. I was about to exit the room, thinking that I got everything I needed when a bright sparkle flickered from the corner of my eye.

I halted and darted a glance in the direction of my study table. There laid the necklace that once belonged to Sasuke's mother and the ointment which was bought for me by the same Uchiha. I eyed them for a while until I made my decision. I grasped the two tiny objects and tossed them into my hip pouch. I decided to bring them with me.

To be honest, I actually wanted to wear the necklace around my neck but I felt like such action would take quite a time to accomplish, plus there were people waiting for me, so I put it in the hip pouch.

Naruto, Neji, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, and I dashed to the giant main gate. As we made our ways there, I quietly thanked Neji for guiding the squad to my house so they could pick me up. It was odd to be on the same mission with the boy who I was paired up with in an arranged marriage, but I knew we didn't have to think much about it throughout this mission. I bet Neji thought the same thing, too.

The colossal gate of Konoha parted widely, giving us the splendid view of the thick forest in front of us. There we stood in our own different stances, looking all ready to commence the mission and Shikamaru spoke up, "Time's up. At least we have six people."

"Well then," declared Naruto with an enthusiastic grin, "Yoshi (Okay)! Everyone, follow me!"

The only response he got was a quick tweet of a bird. Shikamaru burst his bubble, "Oi. Listen, Naruto. I'm the squad leader, you know. It is troublesome, though."

Naruto threw a doubtful stare at the squad leader, "Will it really be alright to let you lead us? You don't seem very reliable."

I sweatdropped. I doubt you even more, Naruto.

A smirk curved Kiba's mouth as he remarked, "So why are you acting like you're the boss, Naruto? Still, I can't say I'm satisfied being ordered around by Shikamaru, who doesn't seem to be too excited about doing this."

Akamaru barked in agreement and Chouji added in, "But Shikamaru is a Chuunin now. We must follow his orders. It means that the village head has acknowledged that he is a capable leader."

I commented, "And Shikamaru is appointed as a Chuunin and our squad leader because of his great mind. I bet he has already made several useful strategies in his brain."

"Well, let's get down to it," said Neji, "Tell us your strategies and plans. According to what you said, it is highly probable that our enemies could ambush us."

Shikamaru replied, "For now, think of us as the pursuers since this is a rescue mission. In other words, it will be easy for the enemy to ambush us. So right now, I want a formation that can react immediately to an enemy attack. If you ignore my orders and go off on your own, we will all die!"

The rest of us remained quiet and the lazy genius began, "We'll move in a single line formation. The most important position of forward scouting will be you, Kiba. You walk Akamaru all the time, so you know the terrain of the Fire territory. Also, since you've got a good sense of smell, not only can you track Sasuke, you can also detect the booby traps by detecting the enemy's scent. The single line formation is weak against a frontal attack, but you have Akamaru to compensate for this, so it's more efficient having you up front."