When Waves Meet the Sand

Stretching out her back with a ‘POP’, Kumiko sighed in relief as her muscles loosened.

Gathering the finished paperwork, she walked out of her little office and headed for the Hokage’s, ready to hand in her assignment and go train with her new team.

Opening the door with her back, the young Waterbender smiled in greeting.

“Konichiwa, otousan. I’m done.”

Looking up from the scroll he was reading, Sarutobi smiled in return, beckoning his daughter over.

“That’s good. I was hoping to speak with you about something.”

Curious now, Kumiko put down her load on the desk and faced her father expectantly.

“I received a scroll this morning from a small village asking for aid. It seems that they are being harassed by thieves, and the continued pilfering threatens their continued survival.” Sarutobi explained, rolling up said scroll carefully. “Now that you have a capable team, I believe you are ready for your first C-ranked mission.”

“…Really?” Kumiko replied, stunned.

She had only ever gone on D-ranked missions around the village, with or without her new teammates, because, with the Hokage as the official squad leader, leaving the village had never been an option.

“I will be assigning a Jonin to your squad as temporary team leader.” Sarutobi informed her, smiling at the growing excitement in her brightening blue eyes. “I’ll have someone chosen by later today.”

“Thank you, otousan!” Kumiko shouted, jumping to hug her adopted father over the desk in her excitement. “Thank you-Thank you-Thank you!”

Chuckling softly, Sarutobi pat her on the back, allowing her to slide back off his desk on the other side.

“You’re welcome, musume. Now go and find your team. I’m sure they’ll want to know about their new mission.”

Nodding enthusiastically, the young girl raced out of the Hokage’s office, sped up by a subconscious burst of air that nearly sent his paperwork flying.

Amused, Sarutobi picked up another scroll, smiling.

He knew that, one day, Kumiko would make a great Avatar.

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Genma sighed inwardly, cursing his bad luck.

As one of the only free Jonin, not having a Genin team or previous assignment, he was now in charge of the Hokage’s daughter and her team on an out-of-village mission.

Though the thought of traveling was enticing, he was not looking forward to babysitting three Genin.

“Are you sure they’re ready, Hokage-sama?” Genma wondered, hoping to dissuade him.

“Do you doubt my daughter?”

Here, the Jonin hesitated.

Though he did have some reservations, saying so would be an insult both to his Hokage’s family and teaching.

But from what he remembered, Kumiko was a tiny little thing, barely able to hold a kunai.

How was she supposed to survive out there?

Seeing his indecision, Sarutobi smiled kindly.

“You haven’t seen Kumiko for quite a few years, Genma. She may surprise you.”

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The village gates loomed overhead, a watchful giant, and Kumiko looked past it at the forest beyond.

It had been so long since she had been outside those walls…

Adjusting the reins on Fubuki’s shoulders, she pat the shaggy white neck when the canine huffed in mild discomfort.

Kana leaned back against the stone wall, arms crossed and frown firmly in place, while Meg sat in the shade, silently reading.

Securing their packs to her Polar Bear Dog’s saddle, the Waterbender looked up, checking for their temporary Jonin supervisor.

Not seeing anyone walking up the path towards them, she sighed.

‘Well, we did get here early…’ Kumiko reasoned, glancing up to see the sun travel slowly towards noon above them.

Technically, the group was supposed to head out at eleven, but since the girls were early risers (with the unhappy exception of Kana), they had gotten to the gate by nine o’clock instead.

Fubuki whined, plopping down in exaggerated upset over her load, and Kumiko rolled her eyes.

“Stop being such a baby. You’ve done worse.”

The Polar Bear Dog looked pointedly at her, and the Waterbender sighed again.

“I’m not going to keep thanking you for that. That doesn’t mean I’m not grateful.”

Another huff, and the canine looked away.

“Drama queen…” Kumiko muttered playfully, scratching behind the closest ear.

After a few moments, Fubuki allowed her leg to start thumping and a pleased growl to rumble from her chest.

Amused despite herself at the scene, Kana’s frown fell and a smirk began to pull at her mouth instead.

Not lifting her head, Megumi hid her own small smile in the pages of her book.

“Someone’s comin’.” Kana informed them, hands in her pockets as she pushed off the wall.

Closing her tome with a ‘SNAP’, Megumi stood and slid it into her pack as Fubuki hefted herself up.

Excited, Kumiko turned to see just who was coming down the road, and smiled as she recognized him.

Pausing a few yards away, Genma looked over his charges, senbon held carefully between his teeth.

They were certainly not the loud, bright, rash bunch he had expected after seeing the newest batch of Genin from the Academy.

Instead, before him were three competent kunoichi, ready for orders.

Rolling the senbon in his mouth thoughtfully, Genma decided that this might not be so bad after all.

“Chiyo-sama.” He greeted, stopping beside the young Waterbender and her pet. “Are you ready to go?”

All three nodded, and he motioned for them to follow him out of the gate.

Immediately, all three fell into formation. Kumiko and Megumi took up positions on both sides of Fubuki, guarding her from any surprise attacks, while Kana took up the rear in case of pursuit.

Eying them approvingly, Genma found his diagnosis brightening.

Perhaps they would survive after all.

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As the terrain grew more rocky and unsure, cliffs and sheer drops growing dangerously in number at every turn, Genma knew they were close.

The little village that had called for their help, Shinkiro no Mura, was known for its masonry and illusive location, as well as suffering the greatest losses in the last Shinobi War.

Leading Fubuki over the treacherous incline of loose gravel and stone, Kumiko paused, a sense of unease filling her.

Noticing this, the Polar Bear Dog lifted her head and sniffed the air, wary.

Genma hesitated as something brushed against the edges of his senses, and Megumi froze in adjusting her scabbard.

Kana moved first, bringing up a rock wall to block a massive barrage of kunai and shuriken.

Galvanized into action, Kumiko uncapped all four of her water pouches, bringing the water around to wash away a second attack from the other side.

Allowing the weapons to fall harmlessly on the rocks, she took a stance, the water hanging around her shoulders like a snake, as two rogue shinobi dropped down from the trees.

Their slashed headbands gave away their homeland; Sunagakure, the desert village in the Land of Wind.

“Put the water down, little girl.” The larger, a heavily-muscled man, ordered with a chuckle. “You might hurt yourself.”

Blue eyes narrowed, and Kumiko stood her ground as Fubuki bristled, fangs bared in a snarl.

“No.”

The other, a slim wisp of a boy, sneered in response and pulled out heavily-bladed whips.

“Your funeral.”

One of the deadly weapons swung for her head, and Kumiko realized that every sharp edge was coated in a sheen of poison.

Jumping back to avoid even the slightest of nicks, Kumiko twisted to avoid a flurry of kunai.

Using the momentum of her spin, she sent a strong wave towards her enemies, knocking the largest off his feet and into a tree.

With a slow breath and the slightest tensing of her fingers, the water froze into ice, pinning him there.

There was no time to feel proud of herself; the other shinobi, enraged, was on the attack and intent on causing damage.

Fluidly dodging, Kumiko spared only a glance for her team.

Kana seemed perfectly fine facing off against three ninja, all of which were Earth-Style kunoichi, and was holding her own with relative ease.

Megumi, facing two shinobi, also seemed to have the upper hand, considering she had not needed to resort to Firebending yet.

The only Jonin among the enemy was a giant of a man, who had chosen to face off with Genma using devastating Fire-Style jutsu.

Sliding around another strike, forced to duck low to avoid getting cut, Kumiko pulled water out of the nearby trees to block the second whips’ swing.

Freezing a good chunk the size of her fist on the tip, the Waterbender sent her own whip out, catching the small boy on the shoulder.

Something cracked, and Kumiko froze, memories rushing to the surface and dragging the sounds of dying screams with them.

Her moment of distraction was a moment too long.

The first whip, still weighed down by the ice stuck to the end, wrapped once around her chest, catching on her shoulder and hip with poisonous hooks.

Wincing in pain, Kumiko tried to hold her ground, but the sudden jerk was too powerful and she was thrown into the air.

Already the poison was taking effect, her vision blurring to the point she could not tell the ground from the sky.

It took a moment for Kumiko to realize that she was falling over a cliff instead of hitting the ground.

Fubuki’s howl jolted her into clarity just before she hit the water, swallowing her as a scream tore through the air.

“KUMIKO!”

The blackness was a blessing after that.