(I don't own pic)

"A recon mission?"

"That is correct,"

I stood before the Seventh Hokage and his advisor as I was handed my next mission. Advisor Shikamaru handed me a scroll, on it all the details I'd need to complete this task.

"We have been tracking a particular gang for a while, they are called the Byakuya Gang, Noble thieves is what they claim to be..." Lord Seventh explained.

"Our scouts have located their current target, we want to send you in hopes you can identify them, and if possible, neutralize them, before they can hit any more villages." The Hokage added.

"I understand sir," I nodded, placing the scroll in one of my equipment pouches.

"Am I to carry out this mission on my own?" I asked.

"No, Ukai Uchiha will be accompanying you," Advisor Shikamaru told me.

A surprised expression crossed my face for a second before changing into one of confusion.

"M-may I ask why you chose him?" I questioned.

I didn't have anything against the Uchiha, he was quite the personality... strong, talented, a little bit of a sharp tongue but I guess that gave him his own type of flare.

"We thought Ukai's particular set of skills would be a good match for a mission like this, however, we can't send him out alone... and seeing as how you have the best grasp of his limits and abilities we thought you would be the best suited to accompany him." Lord Hokage explained.

'Ah... so he wasn't my back up... I was his...' I thought.

"Of course," I nodded before bowing at the two, exiting the office and heading home to pack for my mission.

Lord Seventh had told me Ukai would be waiting by the village gates when I was ready to go, and something... in the very back of my mind told me he wasn't one that liked to wait... so I packed my go-bag and headed out.

True to the Hokage's word, when I arrived at the gates, I could see the tall figure of Ukai leaning against a tree just outside the gates. He had his ANBU uniform on and his mask tied to his belt, he was playing with a shuriken, twisting it between his fingers as you would a coin.

"Are you ready to go?" I called out when I was in front of him, watching his head shoot up to lock eyes with me.

"Are you...?" He asked, his voice rumbling like he needed to clear his throat.

'Oh, good lord...' I discreetly took a deep breath and clenched my jaw shut but nodded.

"Then let's go," I watched the Uchiha pull his mask up and onto his face, watching me do the same before he disappeared, -(I don't know what its called, it's like teleporting and it's awesome but I have no idea how to write it)- and reappeared in a tree further into the forest.

I cracked my neck to the side before following after him.

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"So this is the village Lord Hokage said the Byakuya Gang was currently targeting?" I asked Ukai.

The taller ninja nodded at me, keeping his eyes on the busy streets.

"Come on," He called before jumping out of the tree.

"Hey!" I whisper shouted.

"We are on recon we can't draw attention to ourselves!" I lecture him as I run up behind him.

"Relax," He turned to face me and pulled my cloak hood off my head.

"Stay still," He added, pulling the band from my hair, undoing my ponytail.

"What are you doing?" I kept my head still but looked up at him through my eyelashes.

"We need to blend in, try, and look as unsuspicious as possible." Ukai tied the top half of my hair and pulled pieces to hang over my face, taking my mask and tieing it around my belt.

He untied my katana straps and pulled the sword toward him, tying it to his waist along with his. I then watched as he pulled his long hair back and tied it low, shaking it out slightly so it sat comfortably on his shoulders before he locked his eyes with mine once again.

"Now just act natural and try and follow my lead," He said quickly before taking my hand and leading me onto the street.

I kept my head low but my eyes on alert, darting them back and forth every few seconds over all the faces that passed us.

"Excuse me, young man?" I heard a lady's voice ring behind us.

"Yes?" Ukai turned to her.

"You look familiar to me... pray what is your name, sir?" The old lady asked.

"I wouldn't happen to be Uk~" I blinked as I watched the lady pause, her expression going from curious to blank before she bowed.

"My apologies, I was mistaken..." She said before walking away.

'What was that about?' I thought to myself before I felt Ukai's hand twitch in mine.

When I looked up at his face, I saw his Sharingan was activated, staring intensely at the old woman walking away from us.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I move my free hand to hold his forearm as I squeeze his hand slightly, trying to get his attention.

"It's nothing..." He brushes me off and turns, pulling me along as we continue walking.

'That interaction didn't sound like 'nothing'... does that old woman know Ukai?... Does he know her?...' I keep my head forward but stole sneak peeks at the Uchiha out of the corners of my eyes.

"Heads up, 11 o'clock over by the rug stall..." Ukai's deep voice called to me softly, his head not moving but his body tensing.

I looked over discreetly and saw a tall tan man with white spike hair. He had a case in his hand and a short kid with red hair standing next to him. At first, I didn't understand why Ukai thought they were someone to watch out for, but I finally understood when I realized the kid was watching us with eagle eyes, seeming to catch onto us not belonging here.

"Wrap your arm around my waist and smile..." Ukai whispered.

'WHAT!?!?' I bit my tongue but did as he asked, smiling up at him before leaning my head onto his upper arm, not being able to reach his shoulder.

I looked up at him and saw his Sharingan was once again active, his eyes looking to the left as he watched the kid. He let out a breath and turned his attention back to the street in front of us and I took that as a sign the kid had deviated his attention from us.

"Are we compromised?" I asked, pulling my head off him and looking to my right, over the little stream next to the street.

"I don't think so..." Ukai answered, pulling me to the left into an alley, pinning me between his body and the wall.

'WOAH... OK! CLOSE... VERY VERY CLOSE...' I screamed to myself in thought and I slowly looked up at his face.

His eyes were focused, looking around the corner, back at the duo, his head tilting in thought.

'That was so intense...' I blushed and looked down, closing my eyes.