When she was in position, invisible and under all sorts of spells, Kakashi gave the signal. Yamato was the one who initiated the fight, attempting to impale them with his mokuton. The only reason she hadn't used the Somnus spell again was that they knew the exiles would flee at the slightest hint of a trap. Unlike the Iwa ninjas, for these renegades, abandoning their temporary base and escaping was the best plan. The last thing they wanted was to have to chase them across the southern Fire Country.
Yamato managed to eliminate one, the closest, with a stab to the neck using a branch freshly grown from the ground. He wounded another in the side, but the rest leaped into the air, evading his attack.
"They're attacking us!" one of them shouted, as if it wasn't obvious. "It's the Konoha shinobi!"
Kakashi entered the fight under the cover of his invisibility bracelet and chakra-concealing genjutsu, while Hayate and Yamato brandished their weapons and began battling the seven remaining ninjas. She, hidden like Kakashi, didn't hesitate to assist from afar. As one of them passed in front of her, trying to attack Yamato from behind, she cast a Petrificus Totalus spell that he couldn't dodge. He fell to the ground like dead weight but alive. Meanwhile, Kakashi silently eliminated two more without their noticing.
Seeing how they were being picked off one by one, the exiles used a concealment jutsu with mist to disappear. Only five were left alive—one immobilized at her feet and another badly injured somewhere nearby. With her aura spell, Seina quickly located their enemies. Luckily, since she hadn't used chakra, they didn't know where she was.
She rolled her eyes.
"Ventus Duo."
A hurricane-force gust of wind swept away the mist as if it were nothing, revealing the position of one of them before he could hide. Hayate, the closest, appeared behind him, clashing swords. Seina, noticing that the enemies had spread out in the clearing, waiting for the chance to ambush one of them, leapt from her tree with a chakra-charged fist. She struck the ground, releasing her chakra and shattering the clearing into small chunks, exposing their positions. She deactivated her invisibility bracelet, knowing they were already aware of her presence.
Hayate managed to finish off his opponent by impaling him through the torso, but Kakashi had to save him from an attack from behind. Seina stabbed the petrified ninja at her feet in the throat and vanished before they could throw her back with a water jutsu.
"Three left," said Yamato, stepping out of the tree he'd taken refuge in.
Suddenly, before she could blink, one of the ninjas was inches from her face, a kunai poised to stab her neck. Instinctively, she reacted with non-verbal magic before Yamato could even raise a branch between them to protect her.
"Confringo!"
"ARGH!" the ninja screamed as her spell hit him point-blank.
He was thrown back into the clearing, leaving a trail of blood and part of his face behind. Seina brushed off a piece of cheek that had landed on her vest. Heart pounding, she saw Kakashi and Hayate chasing down a ninja who had chosen to flee after watching his comrades fall one by one.
"This one bled out from his wounds," Yamato reported, looking at the ninja he'd attacked at the start, now dead from haemorrhaging. "Only the fleeing one remains."
"No. He's dead," Kakashi said, appearing in the clearing with the body slung over his shoulder. "He didn't get far."
They watched as the last remaining ninja, the one who'd nearly stabbed her, succumbed to his injuries seconds later. His face and neck were utterly destroyed—the right side of his face gone, including his cheek, eye, and even his teeth. His ear had been pulverized, and his neck barely held together by the musculature on the left side. It reminded her of the Akatsuki ninja she had injured in a similar way. She didn't know why, but whenever she was in danger, the first curse she thought of was always an explosive one.
"Damn…" Hayate said, looking at the carnage. Then he turned to her. "Are you okay?"
They all looked at her. She then realized why he was asking. She looked down at her vest, now covered in blood. When she touched her face, she saw her hand stained with her enemy's blood. She wiped it away with a spell, leaving her spotless once more.
"I'm fine. He didn't touch me."
They nodded, perhaps wondering if she was truly okay, and turned to cleaning the clearing of bodies, blood, and signs of the battle.
"We'll take the ones in the Bingo Book. We can dispose of the rest."
It didn't take long to clean up. Seina made the corpses vanish into nothing and erased the blood with another wave of her hand, while the others collected the scattered weapons, dismantled traps, and restored the clearing to its original state. Yamato even repaired the trees.
Afterward, they left to find a place to set up camp, where they could refresh themselves, have some food, and tend to their minor injuries. Seina healed them one by one, noting that they only had superficial wounds, scratches, and bruises. She headed to the kitchen to prepare snacks with Kakashi's help. Yamato and Hayate took the opportunity to wash their clothes, deliberately leaving the two of them alone.
"Are you okay?" Kakashi asked, watching her closely.
"Yes. Don't worry," she replied with a dark chuckle. "I've seen—and done—far worse. I won't get traumatized, if that's what you mean."
"Okay."
They worked in silence for a few minutes, preparing bowls of fruit and cereal. She knew this was probably the first time Kakashi had seen her kill someone so gruesomely, so she expected questions.
She recalled the first time she'd killed someone, almost unintentionally, with a Bombarda spell at close range. She'd never imagined her enemy would not only fly apart but also... break into pieces like a puzzle. That death had affected her deeply, especially since she hadn't known the spell would do that to someone at such a close distance. After all, witches and wizards didn't typically fight like muggles. But that man had tried to strangle her during an auror mission. When she broke free and put a few steps between them, Bombarda had been the first spell that came to mind. It had taken her weeks of therapy to recover.
"If you need anything, you know where to find me."
"I know," she said, patting his hand.
They had their snack inside the tent for the first time. When the adrenaline wore off and they finished eating, they returned to the mission. The rest of the day passed without much talk as they flew.
The last three days of the mission were identical to one another. Once they reached the southern tip of the Fire Country, ensuring no other bases were in their territory, the mission was deemed complete. Seina had used the journey to plant sealed stones in various zones from the air, so it hadn't been a waste of time. With the updated map, she could now track the locations of these stones and teleport with ease.
"Finally," she said as they packed up their bentos to return to Konoha.
"All that's left is to survey the coast, and then we're back in Konoha," Kakashi smiled at her.
The last flight was brief. Seina took in the sight of the ocean, a welcome change after days of endless forest and trees. At this point, she almost didn't want to go back.
"We're done, team. Let's head back to Konoha," Kakashi announced. "Seina?"
Without hesitation, she let them grab her arms, de-summoned the dragon mid-air, and molded her chakra. They reappeared near the village gates.
"Ah… It's good to see this road again."
"Here, Kakashi-senpai. The map."
Kakashi took the map from Hayate, along with the enchanted scroll Seina had used to encrypt the coordinates so only the Hokage could read them. They had only uncovered a handful of bases, but that was better than nothing.
"I'll report directly to Tsunade-sama. You're free to rest."
She made a gesture with her head in his direction, knowing he might want to accompany her despite his exhaustion. He went home without complaint. As she expected, there was no one home when she crossed the door. With less than ten days until the exam, they must have been training intensely every day. She wondered if they had missed them or were simply too busy to think about what they might be doing.
She went for a long bath. For a good hour, she soaked in the water after exfoliating her skin, combing her hair, applying a mask, and more. When she came out, she felt renewed. She had even done her manicure and pedicure.
"What did Tsunade-sama say during your chat?" she asked Kakashi, seeing that he had showered and was already in his pyjamas.
"She was surprised there weren't more bases in our territory."
Seina walked to the couch where he was sitting and writing his report, and ran her hand through his damp hair to dry it. Kakashi gave her a smile, lifting his head from the scroll. She let him write while she played with his loose hair, unadorned by his ninja headband.
"You're distracting me."
"Sorry," she said, suppressing a playful smile and stopping from touching his hair.
"You can distract me whenever you want," he replied, giving her a mischievous look.
Seina hugged him from behind, resting her head on his shoulder, and continued to toy with his hair, noticing how relaxed he was. When he finished, she leaned back on the couch, letting him embrace her and rest his head on her growing chest. Soon, she'd need new undergarments. Again.
"Do you remember when we first met?" she asked suddenly, reminiscing. "You tried to mess with us from the start. You even spied on us from that tree for hours."
"I didn't remember that. I should have guessed," he said with a chuckle as the memory came back. "You knew I was there, and yet you sat eating for hours without saying a word to me?"
She burst out laughing at him.
"I'm afraid so. At least Naruto and I knew."
"I remember how you bargained with Sasuke to avoid writing the mission reports."
They laughed over memories of their time as Team 7 until late into the night when Sasuke and Naruto returned. As soon as they saw them sitting on the couch laughing, they slumped into the armchairs surrounding the coffee table. They looked so exhausted that they didn't even greet them verbally.
"Where have you been?" Sasuke asked after a while.
"On a mission. How's your training?"
"Ugh," they groaned in unison.
"Yugao-sensei is really good at kenjutsu and combat, but she's so strict," Naruto complained. "She's teaching me to 'calm down and think.' Oh, and to 'be patient.' She won't let me train what I want, when I want."
"Good for you," Kakashi said without a hint of sympathy. "What you need is to be less chaotic and disorganized. And you, Sasuke?"
"…Anko is crazy, but she's good. The first day, she ambushed me with a snake she had hidden," Sasuke muttered with a tic in his eye. "I had to take an antidote. She's been helping me build resistance to different poisons. Apparently, she likes me because she gave me a summoning contract to sign."
Seina bit her tongue to keep from laughing. Someone as eccentric as Anko would be good for Sasuke, who needed to experience different things to break out of his monotony. That didn't change the fact that Anko's training methods were… questionable.
"With snakes?"
"Yeah. She told me not to try summoning the boss, but otherwise, I can use it whenever I want. I've… befriended a teenage snake named Aoda, so I think I'll summon him."
"Really?" she said, smiling at how excited he seemed to talk about his summoning partner. "That's great."
"Yeah. I'll introduce him to you tomorrow if you want."
"Wait a second! I need to show Seina-nee Gamakichi too!" Naruto exclaimed.
"Tough luck, Naruto. I asked her first," Sasuke said smugly.
"That's not fair!"
And that's how they started arguing again under Kakashi's exasperated gaze.
The next morning, Tuesday, she had her training session with the anbu, whom she hadn't seen in two weeks because of her missions. Since Yugao was training with Naruto, she wasn't there, so Kakashi replaced her.
"So? What's the plan for today?" she asked, seeing them all sitting and waiting.
"We're thinking of some type of training that benefits everyone," Yamato said, "but we're not sure what."
"I've got an idea," she said with a smile. "How about learning to fight without gravity?"
Ensui, Yamato, Seichi, and Kakashi looked at her blankly before exchanging increasingly intrigued glances. She took that as a positive response and cast an anti-gravity spell in the clearing where they fought every Tuesday. She heard the amused and surprised exclamations of the jonin/anbu as they floated into the air like they were in space.
"And now what?" Seichi asked, trying to paddle through the air like a dog.
"Now, this! Accio."
She summoned her clothing to close the gap with her opponent quickly. His surprise lasted half a second before he drew his katana to stab her, but missed. Seina dodged by using a spell to move out of his path at the last second.
"Carpe retractum."
Once they figured out how to move with jutsu, modulating their power to avoid destroying the trees they used to pivot, they began fighting her. Kakashi didn't even try using genjutsu but relied on his Sharingan to anticipate her taijutsu attacks. Ensui struggled the most, while Yamato cheated by using his mokuton to propel himself however he wanted.
Seina had a blast using all sorts of spells to paralyze them, disarm them, or turn their weapons into animals against them, disappearing and reappearing mid-air, and employing elemental enchantments. By the end of the training, she wasn't the only one panting in the clearing. Even Kakashi, the most used to fighting her, had to lean against a tree to catch his breath.
"I'm wiped out."
"I never imagined fighting without gravity would be this exhausting," Seichi complained.
"That's because we're not used to it," Ensui said. "I just realized another weakness I need to work on."
"Whatever you say…"
They got up to head home for lunch and a shower. Walking beside Kakashi, who had his hands in his pockets without his usual erotic book, she gradually regained feeling in her legs.
"By the way, Sasuke's birthday is on the 23rd, right?" Kakashi asked. Seina jumped at the question. "You forgot."
"Yes. Why do you ask?"
"For the gift, obviously. I wanted to know if you had any ideas, but seeing as you didn't even remember—" he laughed at her horrified expression. "Well, we've got time to think of something. You more than me, honestly. Next week, we've got another mission to Suna."
"When's the match day?"
"Wednesday. We'll probably be back in Konoha by Friday."
"You could buy him a yukata for the summer festival, so we all have new yukatas."
"Good idea," he mused aloud. "And you?"
"I think I've got an idea…" she said, somewhat distracted. "You wouldn't happen to know someone who does good portraits, would you?"
"I don't think so… I could ask Kurenai; she's always enjoyed painting, though I'm not sure if she knows any professionals personally."
"What about someone who knew Mikoto, Sasuke's mother, really well?"
"Sasuke's mother? I imagine you mean someone who's alive," she nodded. "Well, interestingly enough, Yoshino, Shikamaru's mother, was her friend, and I also know she used to frequent the Yamanaka flower shop. So, I imagine Inoichi and his wife were friends of hers. Oh, and Akemi Yamanaka, Inoichi's wife, was one of her genin teammates."
"Interesting…"
"What are you thinking?"
"You'll see. First, I want to see if it works."
She would give Sasuke a magical portrait of his mother. She would need someone to paint the portrait using paints charged with her magic and a rune-covered canvas that she would provide. After that, since she didn't know Mikoto and couldn't add part of her consciousness to the portrait, she would have to rely on people who had known her, including Sasuke. In fact, the person with the most memories of Mikoto was none other than Itachi, but how could she contact him to obtain those memories? Right now, it wasn't possible.
She blinked and returned to the present when she realized they were crossing the stone wall surrounding her home.
"You're back already?" he chuckled. "If I didn't know you only do this when you're with one of us, I'd say you need to get that checked."
"I know."
That evening, she listened to her brothers' training stories before going to bed.
The next day, Kakashi was sent on a solo mission. With nothing to do, she set out to find someone who could paint Mikoto's portrait. Someone in Konoha had to be able to do it since she knew the Hokage's tower had portraits of Hashirama Senju. Finally, feeling foolish, she used the locator spell.
"I could've done this from the start," she sighed inwardly.
The spell led her to a more affluent part of the central district. She observed a two-story building with large windows—it was some sort of gallery. She entered, greeted the well-dressed workers, and began looking at the paintings, all by different artists.
"May I help you with something?" A young civilian woman approached her with a smile.
"I'm looking for someone to commission a portrait."
"You're in luck! There's a portrait artist here right now, hanging his latest piece for the exhibit. Follow me, I'll introduce you."
Seina smiled, realizing her spell had worked. She observed the portrait of a grandmother with her grandson being hung on the wall while the presumed artist gave directions.
"A little to the right… and perfect!"
"Masaharu-san," the young woman softly called his attention. "I'd like to introduce someone to you."
The man in question, in his early thirties with dark hair, kind brown eyes, and a faint beard, turned around. He glanced at the young woman, then at Seina, with curiosity and interest. Maybe she should've worn normal clothes instead of her uniform?
"Seina-sama, this is Masaharu-san," said the woman. Seina avoided showing surprise at how the woman knew her name without her saying it, and at the respect shown despite not knowing her. "Masaharu-san is a portrait painter. A very good one! I'll leave you two to talk."
"A pleasure to meet you," Seina said with a slight bow.
"Are you interested in a portrait?" the painter asked with a smile.
"Yes. I want to gift someone a portrait of his late mother, but I need to set some conditions."
"Oh? What kind of conditions?"
"The paints and canvas you'll use to paint the portrait—I need to modify them first. You won't notice anything while painting, but I will."
"This is getting interesting. Can you tell me what effect it will have?"
"…"
Seina looked him straight in the eyes, debating how to proceed.
"Perhaps we should visit Tsunade-sama. She'll likely be interested in what I intend to do, and who knows, it could be quite beneficial for your business."
Masaharu raised an eyebrow, growing a bit more serious at the mention of the Hokage. Still, his clear interest and curiosity won out. Seina waited for him to finish hanging the portrait in the gallery and gather his things before they walked together to the Hokage's tower. Surprisingly, the painter didn't ask her anything about the portrait.
"What's it like being a ninja? I've always wondered, but we almost never interact with any of you."
"Any of us?" she asked, intrigued.
"Well, it's hard for civilians to understand how you can be ninjas. I can't even kill a rabbit for food!"
"Death is normal."
"I know," the painter frowned. "But it's hard to believe that children under ten can kill someone without… without remorse, without being traumatized."
"Do you have children? A wife?"
"I have a wife and a small son, he's three," he smiled.
"What would you do if someone tried to harm your son? Or if someone kidnapped him?"
"...I'd try to defend him. If someone kidnapped my son—I pray it never happens—I'd do anything to get him back alive."
"I knew someone like that. He hired me to rescue his child. Do you know what he told me to do with the kidnappers?" she asked, looking him in the eyes as they walked.
"I can imagine," he swallowed, visibly conflicted. "If I were that father… I don't think I could forgive them either, but I don't think I could kill them myself."
"That's why ninjas exist. To do what many people can't or won't do."
Silence fell between them as they arrived at the Hokage's office. The secretary let them in as soon as she saw Seina.
"Ah, Seina. Perfect timing. I was about to take a break."
"You've been taking breaks for two hours now…" Shizune murmured to herself.
"Tsunade-sama, this is Masaharu-san, a portrait painter. I've had an idea for Sasuke's birthday."
"A portrait?"
"Of his mother. My idea is for Masaharu-san to paint the portrait based on some photographs, but… with my help," she said pointedly. Her mentor raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the mention of her powers.
"And how would your… help affect the portrait?"
Seina leaned in close to the Hokage to whisper.
"The portrait would come to life and act according to the memories of those who knew her."
"What?" Tsunade-sama asked, astonished. She leaned in to look Seina in the eye. "Are you serious?"
Seina nodded.
"If I connected several portraits using my powers, I could even use them for spying," she whispered with a sly smile.
"Alright. I want to see the final result. I'm already getting some ideas."
She listened as Tsunade-sama and Masaharu worked out an agreement. They decided that he would paint Mikoto Uchiha's portrait using the modified materials provided by Seina. Afterward, Seina would contact the necessary individuals to bring it to life and show it to her mentor. If it turned out to be of interest to the Hokage, they would sign a contract making Masaharu the Hokage's official portraitist—provided the civilian was willing.
"You have until Seina's commissioned portrait is complete to decide," the Hokage told him.
"Understood," he replied, then turned to Seina. "Shall we go to my workshop to discuss?"
"Sure."