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While her sisters were descending upon the humans that were attacking their flock, one drone held back. Her attention was instead drawn to the side of battle, where a lone scourer was crawling unmolested over an odd mound of sand. Upon landing, the drone discovered that the mound was actually a half-shell, surrounding a red haired human. The drone watched as the scourer tried to walk to the edge of the shell, only to be thwarted as the shell grew in front of it.

The drone circled around the spectacle, catching a glimpse of the boy inside the shell. The human's eyes were unfocused, and his mouth hanging open. To the drone, he seemed completely unaware of the scourer trying to get at him.

"Sand?" The drone wondered out loud. "Moving on its own? Have they learned how to..." The drone experimentally reached out, only to have sand rush to form a barrier between her and the boy. "Shukaku," she muttered. "You'd teach your tricks to humans? We never would have thought you'd fall so low..."

The drone hissed an order to the scourer. It obediently dug its mandibles into the sand, easily swallowing a mouthful of it. The drone hissed again, unfettered her wings, and flew away. The scourer did the same, escaping unnoticed from the battlefield.

-

Kankurou ducked to the side as a clawed hand sliced through where his head had been a moment before. The drone's second hand lanced out, forcing Kankurou to dodge again. The boy promptly dodged another strike from the first hand, nearly loosing his footing in the process. As he reset himself, he saw the drone's second set of hands finishing a sequence of seals. "Not again..."

Kankurou leapt up just in time to avoid being skewered by chitin spikes that popped out of the ground. One of the last scourers rushed him in midair. Kankurou stiff-armed the insect, catching it by the side of its head and holding it at bay. With his free hand, he whipped a blade out of his side holster and cut the insect across the eyes. The insect spasmed and fell away.

Kankurou landed in a crouch. "If you insects think skewering Karasu is enough to put me down, you're wrong." Pulling out seven more blades, the Sand ninja let them fall and activated his chakra strings. Kankurou threw out his arms, and the blades splayed away from him. "Come get some, ya bug faced freaks!"

The drone that had just attacked him raised her arms defensively, and managed to deflect the first few attacks. But she ran out of arms before Kankurou ran out of blades, and was quickly cut to pieces.

"Aw, crap," Kankurou muttered as the drone reverted into bundles of straw. Not knowing where the impending counterstrike would come from, he pulled the blades back into a haphazard array around him.

But the blades were no shield against the fireball that struck Kankurou from behind. After being knocked off his feet, the Sand ninja covered his face and hit the ground rolling. Even before the fire was out, his instincts told him one of the drones was charging. Flicking his wrist, Kankurou sent four of the blades flying up from the ground.

The drone quickly pulled up short, and snatched one of the blades out of the air. Snapping the string attached to it, she flung it back at Kankurou.

The blade was again snatched from mid air, this time by Ino as she ricocheted across the landscape. After one last one-handed handspring, she finally came to a stop by digging into a rise in the dirt. Instantly, she flung the blade back to where it had came. "Right back at you, you--" Ino broke off, seeing her opponent. "Gaaah!"

Taking a step back, the drone neatly caught the blade. "Another one," she hissed in disgust. "They're like cockroaches."

"Looks who's talking!" Retorted Kankurou as he reeled in the seven blades still in his control.

Ino broke away from staring at the drone to glare at Kankurou. "Hey!" She exclaimed. "You're not Shikamaru!"

"I guess blonds aren't that dumb after all," Kankurou joked.

Ino scowled and pulled a blade out of her side holster. "We've got to work on Choji's combat reconnaissance..."

"Die, fleshbags!" Screamed the drone as she charged Kankurou. As she did, another drone flew up from behind her and dove towards Ino.

"Aaaah!" The girl exclaimed again. "They fly, too?"

"Yup," Kankurou muttered as he started swinging his blades at his attacker. "And watch out. They can do jutsus as--" The roar of a fireball cut Kankurou off mid sentence. "Oops. Too late..."

"It was too late the moment you were spotted," the drone threatened as she weaved between Kankurou's blades.

Kankurou didn't respond, turning his full attention to keeping the drone at bay. But despite his efforts, she continued to inch forward. As one blade ricocheted off her arm, she darted toward her prey. Kankurou whirled to the side to avoid her, loosing his footing in the process.

The drone was about to take advantage of Kankurou's fall when a slightly singed Ino caught up to her from behind. In mid air, the Leaf ninja caught the drone's head between her knees. Ino used the drone's neck to check her momentum, then tucked down and tumbled over. Ino landed in a crouch, throwing the drone over her in the process. Ino instantly leapt to the side as the drone that had been chasing her plowed into the ground she had just stood on. With a hiss, the second drone quickly turned to follow.

Still lying on his side, Kankurou saw his opening. The drone was using flight enhanced jumps chase after Ino, and using her wings forced her to lift the carapace that covered her back. Fully intent on chasing Ino, the drone had her back to Kankurou. The ninja flung all seven blades, striking his target just where he needed too. The drone screamed and violently closed her back carapace. Kankurou's charka strings were cut, but the blades were already inside the drone. The drone fell to the ground, spasming in the midst of her death throws.

Kankurou pushed himself up and smirked in triumph. As he did, the drone Ino had thrown sprung up behind him. Kankurou flung himself to the side, letting his chakra strings flutter wildly. The drone dove forward again, forcing Kankurou to continue falling back.

"Give it up, fleshbag! There's no one to help you this time!"

Kankurou slid to a stop. "Wanna bet?" The ninja clenched his fists and pulled back his arms, drawing his chakra strings tight. As he did, the drone was jerked back. Several chakra strings held her legs to the ground, while four others pulled each of her arms away from her body. Kankurou grinned. "I like puppets. But I can do webs just as easy."

The drone hissed and tugged at her restraints. But after a second she stopped. Straining herself, she tried to look behind her.

"This going to be sooooo sweet," Kankurou muttered to himself.

A second later, Choji barreled into the drone. Kankurou's chakra stings held, but the drone's joints did not. Her limbs snapped away as her body was crushed under the Meat Tank attack. After rolling for another twenty meters, Choji popped back to his normal form. Dizzy beyond belief, he immediately fell flat on his face.

Kankurou couldn't help but chuckle. "Not bad, fat-ass."

-

Temari let out a yell of exertion as she heaved her fan upwards. Her shockwave managed to blow back the fireball that had been shot at her, but it had been uncomfortably close. Sensing a change in the wind, she glanced to her left. Another fireball was already on its way. Temari belatedly dispersed the blast with a hard backswing. Even as she did, a third fireball came at her from above. Already overbalanced from her hasty parry of the second blast, Temari had no chance of deflecting the fireball. Falling to the side, she let go of her fan and handsprung away.

Upon landing, Temari looked up, trying to find her attacker.

"Too slow, human."

Chakra flowed into the ground beneath Temari. A fraction of a second later, a patch of chitin spikes sprang out of the dirt. But the fraction of the second was all Temari had needed to gather her own chakra. Using a variation of the balancing technique, she used her chakra to keep herself poised atop the ends of the rising spikes. As soon as the growth stopped, Temari exploded forward, skipping over the spikes and back where she had dropped her fan.

The Sand ninja neatly snatched up her fan and brought it up in a defensive stance. "Regekion sent her worst, didn't she?" Temari growled.

Enraged, the drone hissed vehemently.

Temari whirled on the sound, lashing out with her partially opened fan. The air in front of her wavered, a sure sign of disrupted genjutsu. Heeding Shikamaru's earlier advice about delivering crushing rather than deflectable blows, Temari closed her fan and lunged forward. Her blow struck true, dispelling the last of the genjutsu.

"Damned cow!" The drone spat as she lurched to the side. Her upper left arm was broken above the elbow, but her other arms were still usable. With mandibles open, she lunged back at Temari.

Temari quickly sidestepped the advance. Handling her fan as if it were a staff, she pulled it back, twirled it to change her grip, and then brought it down on the drone in a chopping blow. The drone took the hit on the shoulder and staggered back a step. Temari twirled her fan again and swung at the drone from the side. Reaching two good hands across her body, the drone blocked the blow. The drone spun forward, making sure to keep Temari's weapon pushed to the side as she did. But her offensive was brought to an abrupt halt as Temari managed to rear back and high kick the drone in the face.

The hit knocked the drone back. Temari fell away as well, having overbalanced herself to deliver the blow. But Temari was fundamentally unharmed by the exchange. The drone was rattled. Temari quickly rushed forward and clubbed the drone with an up-swing from her fan. The drone's neck snapped, and Temari delivered a chop to its face just for good measure.

"Too slow, yourself, insect" Temari spat. Looking up, Temari saw a winded Kankurou running up to her.

"Woah," her brother observed as he came up short. "That's something I couldn't have done."

Temari winced, tenderly rubbing the side of her thigh. "It wasn't something I could either. How many more?"

"Just one," Kankurou informed, pointing off to Temari's left.

Following her brother's gaze, Temari saw Shikamaru standing off against the drone he had wounded earlier.

"The other two Leafies are back that way," Kankurou continued, gesturing over his shoulder. "Gaara's still out of it, but he's not hurt. So, are we going to take out that wing-head?"

The twinge of concern Temari felt for Shikamaru quickly faded. "No," she muttered. "Not yet. Not until she knocks that kid down to size."

It took Kankurou a half second to realize what Temari had in mind, but then the boy laughed. "Heh. Payback time..."

-

Shikamaru deliberately stepped to the side, keeping his shoulder squared to his opponent. For her part, the drone faced Shikamaru head on. The human kept his hands in a defensive position, one outstretched ready to block, and the other by his side ready to strike. The drone held all four arms out to her side, poised to do anything and stretching the limits of her opponent's attention. Resolutely, Shikamaru kept his gaze on the drone's eyes. She stared back just as defiantly. Neither spoke.

The drone's right arm darted to the side in a feint. As the Shikamaru reacted, the drone shot forward, with her upper left arm poised to strike. The human took a step to his left to get out of range. But the drone twisted at the last moment, slashing at Shikamaru with her right arms. With unnatural calmness, Shikamaru pushed away with the foot he had just sidestepped with, and just barely dodged the drone's claws.

Shikamaru danced away as the drone's momentum carried her past him. The human spun, utilizing his own momentum to add force to a low sweep kicked aimed at the drone's knees. But the drone dodged easily, jumping over his kick and lashing out again. Shikamaru lost his balance as he dodged, and tumbled over the dirt.

The drone lunged forward, trying to overwhelm the human. Shikamaru managed to avoid being struck, but the constant dodging prevented him from countering, or even of regaining a steady footing.

"Damn it," Shikamaru sputtered as finally managed to roll to his feet.

"I win," the drone hissed, her wounded mouth causing her words to slur together.

"Blinking first doesn't mean I lost," Shikamaru countered. Shuffling backwards in a low defensive posture, he locked gazes with the drone. "Only that I've changed tactics."

The drone deliberately approached her opponent, prompting him to edge away further. "One only changes tactics when the one you're using don't work. It's an admission of defeat. You know I've taken your measure..."

Shikamaru smirked. "Or it could be that I've taken your measure, and I'm just doing this to psych you out."

Shikamaru darted forward, preventing the drone from doing the same. The human lashed out with an open fist, striking the drone in the wrist. The drone instinctively took a step back and returned the favor. Shikamaru deflected the first strike, and then pulled to the side to avoid the next one. By that point, the drone had regained the initiative, and started attacking with all four arms. Shikamaru was quickly reduced to merely dodging the blows, endlessly sidestepping and spinning away.

In short order, Shikamaru was panting hard. The drone then landed a glancing blow on his shoulder. The human was knocked back a step, then lamely kicked at the drone. The drone easily checked her momentum to avoided the hit. As she did, she took a swipe at the leg offending leg. Shikamaru was overbalanced and spun haphazardly away from the drone.

Seeing the opening, the drone sprang towards her opponent. As she did, Shikamaru violently dug his foot into the ground and spun to a stop. A three-quarter spin left him facing the drone, his own body close to the ground and legs ready to spring. Shikamaru feinted to the right, while with his left arm he reached behind his back to his waist holster.

The drone noticed the feint, and altered her step slightly to her right. Intent on hitting Shikamaru right as he leaned into his real attack, she launched herself at his left side.

Shikamaru hesitated for a fraction of a second, insuring the drone was fully committed to her attack. Then one foot stepped to his right. As he did, he pulled his empty left hand away from his back. The drone was unable to react in time and her lunge took her past Shikamaru's left side. But as she passed, the boy ducked under her outstretched arms and hooked his left arm around her left shoulder. Her momentum was checked, pulling her to the side. Shikamaru was pulled to the side as well, and added to his own momentum by leaping up across the drones back.

Turing nearly sideways, Shikamaru hooked his right arm around the back of the drone's neck. He released his left arm, letting his momentum carry him up and over the drone's right shoulder. As soon as he was clear, Shikamaru tucked over yanked down as hard as he could. The move focused all his momentum, pulling the drone down by her neck. Her head hit the rocky soil with an audible crack.

Winded, Shikamaru quickly rolled over the drone. With one motion, he pulled a blade out of his side holster and stuck it in the drone's forehead.

Shikamaru held the pose for a moment, breathing heavily. "I win," he finally heaved.

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The hilltop...

"This way!" Ino yelled as she shuffled forward. Though in a hurry, she kept her guard up and moved forward in a defensive stance. Just because she didn't see any more insects didn't mean there weren't any more around. Besides, Choji wasn't in much of a position to defend himself, so the job fell to her. "C'mon," she prompted again, looking back. "Shikamaru needs our--"

Ino cut herself off as a fan abruptly appeared in front of her.

"Wait," Temari casually commanded.

Ino glared at the Sand ninja, then glanced past the fan down the hill. At the base of the hill, Shikamaru was being driven back by a drone. Ino angrily returned her gaze to Temari. "Why! Can't you see he's in trouble? We've got her outnumbered," Ino declared, balling her fist. "Lets rush her!"

Choji, wheezing and still dizzy, caught up with Ino. Not particularly caring why she had stopped, he knelt down and tried to stop his head from spinning.

"Yeah," sarcastically droned Kankurou. "That'll work. With us falling over each other, all trying to hit her but not your friend..."

Temari closed her fan and pulled it back to her side. "We will help him," she said confidently, turning her attention back to the fight. "But only when there's an opening."

Ino scowled, but didn't try to move past the two ninjas. She did, however, pull a blade out of her side holster just to be ready.

Below, Shikamaru fell away from the drone, spinning to the ground in a heap. The drone wasted no time in charging after him.

Termari smirked, cracking open her fan. "Okay, get ready to..."

The two combatants moved like a blur, and then the drone was on the ground. Shikamaru rolled over her and stuck a blade in her head.

"...Wow," Temari finished, slightly mystified.

"Damn," Kankurou muttered. "So much for knocking him down a peg. Good thing he didn't fight like that in the exam."

Ino ignored the Sand ninjas. She knew how Shikamaru fought, and for him taijutsu was beyond a last resort. Concerned, Ino grabbed the just-recovered Choji and rushed to her teammate's side. "Shikamaru!" She called. "Shikamaru, are you all right?"

Still crouching next to the drone, Shikamaru abruptly looked back. He took in the scene in an instant, and scowled. "Ino," he ordered in a weary voice. "We need to make sure the area is clear. You and Choji do a perimeter sweep. Recon pattern D, version four. Go!"

Choji stopped short, looking slightly confused. "Plan D? That's not a re--"

Ino quickly turned and grabbed Choji by his scarf. "C'mon, you heard him, Choji. Recon pattern D." Ino said the last words through clenched teeth, and promptly dragged Choji away.

As Ino and Choji left, Shikamaru nodded to himself and turned his attention back to the fallen drone.

Kankurou watched the two Leaf ninjas scurry off. With one eyebrow raised, he turned his gaze back towards Temari. His sister nodded. Kankurou smiled and began confidently walking down the hill.

"Temari," hailed Shikamaru as the two Sand ninjas approached. He did not, however, turn to face them, keeping his gazed fixed on the dead drone. "You said you were tracking these things. What do know about them? What are they?"

"Demons," Temari curtly replied. "Part of Regekion's swarm. We've been tracking them for over a week."

"Demons?" Shikamaru skeptically repeated. "They seem pretty physical for that."

Temari's fan opened with a metallic chink.

"Yeah, but they're not all that's physical, Shi-kun..." Temari let her fan slowly graze the back of Shikamaru's collar. "The truce is over," she said with mock sweetness. "Don't try anything clever. I will hurt you if you do."

"So just keep your hands where they are," Kankurou finished.

Shikamaru remained motionless. "Checkmate," he quietly concluded.

Temari smiled, keeping her fan at Shikamaru's neck. "You can't always get the best of me..."

"So now it's your turn to answer questions, Leafy," said Kankurou in a vindictive tone. "You're a long way from Konoha. What are you doing out here?" Kankurou stepped forward as he continued spitting out questions. "And why are you three alone? Where's your commander."

Shikamaru remained quiet for a moment. "Kankurou, I believe it was... I want you to look very closely at something..."

Kankurou crossed his arms incredulously.

Temari whipped her arm to the side, hitting Kankurou right in the face with the flat of her fan. The boy was knocked off his feet, tumbling helplessly across the rocky ground.

"Eeeuuh!" Temari let out an undignified squeal of shock as she found herself once again unable to control her body.

Kankurou quickly stood back up, clutching his nose. "I don't know how you did that, punk, but now you're--"The Sand ninja was abruptly cut off as Ino drop kicked him in the back. He stumbled forward a few steps, regained his footing, and then stood motionless. Breathing heavily, he glared at Shikamaru, who still had yet to move a muscle. "How the hell did you do this?" He angrily demanded.

"Maybe," came Ino's condescendingly upbeat voice. "If you two actually paid attention, you would have already figured that out."

Kankurou scowled, struggling weakly against the Shadow Imitation. "What d'ya mean?"

Ino walked in front of Kankurou, then mockingly used the side of his hood to wipe some blood from his nose. "He said it right in front of you. Operation D, version four. He told us to create a di-version. You actually missed that?" Ino laughed and walked away. "Choji, I think you can drop the illusion now."

The air wavered, revealing a standing Shikamaru. He still had his back to the other ninjas, and was holding one arm away from his side. Two previously hidden shadows stretched from him to Temari and Kankurou.

"Like I said," Shikamaru quietly uttered, forcing Temari to toss aside her fan. "Checkmate." In a subtle gesture of triumph, the Chuunin tugged on the front collar of this flack jacket.

Forced to do the same, Temari squeaked indignantly.

Ino couldn't help but giggle.

Choji wearily rejoined his teammates. "Okay, we got them," he observed. "So what now?"

Kankurou growled. "Yeah. What now? We all know you can't hold us like this forever."

"I know," Shikamaru grimly answered. "But I don't have to. I just have to hold you there long enough for Ino to cut your throat."

Kankurou bared his teeth.

"Temari," Shikamaru continued, without changing tone at all. "You said you were tracking these demons. That sounds fascinating."

Temari gave a weak laugh. "Yeah, it is, really. Truce?"

"For now."

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