A New Mission

"No, it wasn't that simple." Asuma shook his head, confusion and lingering fear in his eyes.

"She got some strange power from somewhere. The moment I sensed something was wrong, it felt like countless invisible chains had bound my whole body. I couldn't move at all!"

"She seemed able to make objects float through the air, too. That's how she took my Chakra Blade."

By then, Aoba Yamashiro had fully come to. He struggled to sit up, his voice urgent.

"Asuma! We have to report this to Lord Hokage immediately! Uzuki Yugao abducted a Jonin, stole Gold Dust, and attacked the Sunagakure Investigation Team. She's seriously harmed the village's interests. That's tantamount to treason!"

But Asuma raised a hand to stop him.

He pushed himself to his feet and walked over to the pile of Gold Dust, silently retrieving his Chakra Blade and Ninja Tool Pouch from it.

His movements were slow but resolute.

"No, Aoba." Asuma turned, his gaze passing over every one of his comrades. "We can't report this yet."

He looked at Kakashi, earnestness and a hint of pleading in his eyes. "Kakashi, things haven't gone so far that we can't put them right."

"We still don't know exactly what happened to the Sunagakure Investigation Team, and the Gold Dust is here. It hasn't been lost. If we can bring Yugao back before things spiral completely out of control, we can explain everything to Lord Hokage together with her."

"Maybe... maybe we can still win her a chance. No matter what it costs, even if she's imprisoned for the rest of her life, at least she'll live."

He took a deep breath, his voice dropping. "If we report this now, village rules will leave Lord Hokage no choice. He'll have to declare her a rogue ninja immediately