By the time they got Rokusuke ran off too, they saw a bunch of people working on a mine, the hid behind some rocks up in the mountain. 

" That must be the place, huh?" Aceso asked. " The Katambi Gold Mine."

" You know, instead of just rescuing Rokusuke and Karashi, I say we finish off this Kurosuki gang once and for all," Naruto stated.

" Let's not get carried away, Naruto," Neji advised.

" OK, so what's the plan then, genius?" Naruto asked as he looked back at Neji.

" Remember what Gai-sensei said," Lee brought up as he pulled out his notebook and pencil. " That worries me."

" What about it?" Aceso asked.

" That the boss of the gang might be one of the Seven Ninja Swordsman of the Mist?" Naruto asked. " If you ask me, that just makes it more interesting."

" I don't know, we can't really be sure that Gai-sensei was right about that anyway," Tenten said.

" What are you talking about?" Lee demanded angrily. " Gai-sensei is always right."

" First things first, we need to investigate," Neji urged.

" Well, let's go!" Naruto declared. They watched people walk in and out carrying rocks, they didn't seem to be stopping anytime soon. " Is that stuff gold? Doesn't look like much?"

" The gold is just a part of the ore," Lee informed. " It must be melted and refined, and the mercury and impurities are removed.

" Sounds like a lot of work," Naruto huffed.

" Don't worry," Neji assured. " You don't understand it." They saw an old man fall and drop all the rocks he was carrying.

  " Ugh! Poor guy," Naruto sympathized as the watchers began to circle around him. " That does it! Now I'm mad!"

" Relax, Naruto," Neji ordered, " We're going to finish our reconnaissance before we make a move."

" Ya, hold your horses," Aceso agreed.

" Neji's right," Tenten added.

" Great idea," Naruto grunted as he looked back at them. " Let's just sit here and watch him drive that old man into the ground."

" Right," Lee breathed as he stood up. " You just leave this to me."

" Lee!" Tenten breathed as Lee jumped down. " What are you doing?" Lee was down below, he punched someone into the stomach harshly and took out two more.

" Way to go, Lee!" Naruto cheered as Lee looked up at them with a smile and waved. They all jumped down.

" Are you crazy?" the old man asked once they all landed. " Dear heaven, what have you done?"

" Here, you must be thirsty," Aceso offered as she held out her water bottle. The old man smacked it out of her hand.

" Hey!" Naruto exclaimed. " What's that all about?"

" You've got to do to me, just what you did to them," the old man insisted. " Hurry! Beat me! Hit me! Knock me to the ground!"

" You feeling OK?" Aceso asked as she tilted her head in concern.

" If you won't, then I'll do it myself," the old man insisted before he started to punch himself in the face.

" No, stop that!" Lee insisted as he grabbed the old man's hands.

" What the heck's wrong with you?" Naruto asked.

" Don't you see?" the old man cried out. " If I'm not injured, they'll think I was behind it, and that means they'll give me a funeral." Someone hit the gong, they looked to see someone banging on it.

" That gong, what does it mean?" Aceso asked.

" Is it some kind of alarm?" Tenten asked.

" No," the old man answered. " It's summoning everyone to a funeral."

" A funeral?" Neji asked.

" That's right," the old man confirmed. " If any of us displeases Raiga, the leader of the clan, then as punishment, he arranges a funeral, in which the guilty person is buried alive."

" He what? Buries them alive?" Tenten questioned in disbelief. " That's the worst thing I've heard!"

" Then Raiga gets very sad. He bows his head and weeps over the coffin as if he's lost a dear friend," the old man explained.

" Sounds like we're dealing with a real nutjob here," Naruto huffed.

" That gong? Whose funeral are they ringing it for?" Aceso asked.

" It can't be yours, can it, old man?" Neji asked.

" No," the old man breathed uneasily. " I heard they caught Rokusuke this morning. It must be his."

" Rokusuke?" Naruto asked as he put a foot forward. They took off in a hurry, they ran to where the gravesite was held and hid behind some of the graves. " OK, what are we waiting for? Let's save this guy. What do you say, Neji?"

" All right," Neji agreed. " Byakugan!...It's alright. He's still alive. We'll draw the guards away, and then get him out."

" Ok, Aceso breathed. " We hit him fast, and we hit him hard."

" All right," Lee agreed as Tenten nodded. " Time to begin." Naruto threw a bunch of smoke bombs, and the moment they hit the ground by the Kuroski gang's feet, smoke rose up. They ran forward as the gang prepared to fight them.

" Tenten! Take care of those two on the right," Neji ordered.

" I got 'em!" Tenten nodded as she took out a staff, she jabbed one guy, and another in the stomach. They all then took on their own people. Aceso did her Jutsu and the rope tied around two people, she swung them around and undid the Jutsu, and sent them flying 200 feet away.

" Watch out!" Neji warned as Naruto got rid of some. " Three more are coming ." They appeared from out of a tree and underground, they easily took care of them.

" Don't forget that handsome devil, Rock Lee of the Leaf," Lee warned as he kicked someone. " I've found the last one." He was hiding behind a gravestone. 

" No! No!" the guy cried out as Lee charged him. He stopped himself from punching the guy in the face and the guy fell down and his hood came off.

" Is it really you?" Lee asked.

" What is it?" Naruto asked as they all ran over. " Who is this guy?"

" He is--this Karashi," Lee answered.

" He's the one Grandma Sanasho told us about?" Tenten asked.

" This guy's Karashi?" Aceso asked. He folded his arms and pouted, looking away.

" Karashi, is it true what Grandma Sansho said?" Lee asked. " You chose to join the Kurosuki clan?"

" Well, so what if I did?" Karashi asked. " What of it?"

" What of it?" Naruto exclaimed angrily. 

" Sure I did," Karashi snapped as he finally looked at them. " The leader is a great man. He took the entire gold mine back from those evil men, and he liberated this whole village."

" How can you do this to her?" Naruto demanded. " That poor old woman worries about you all day long while she stands there cooking that curry. You ungrateful little-"

" Wait, Naruto," Lee said as he got in front of him. " Perhaps it would be better if I handle it. Karashi, that was more than just a delicious curry you used to make. It literally saved my life. You have a gift. You would give that up to join these people, who do not even care about human life? How can you?"

" What did I ever get for sweating over that stupid pot all day?" Karashi pouted. " Nothing. Joining the Kurosuki, I became part of something bigger. Something powerful and feared. I'm important now. Not some nobody stuck in the kitchen in the kitchen of stinky curry shop."

" I've had it with this guy," Naruto growled. " He's never going to listen to reason! " He arched his arm and then Lee slammed his fist into Karashi's face, sending him back. " Huh?"

" Lee," Aceso breathed.

" Karashi. Not only did you bring me back from the brink of death with your burry, but you taught me a lesson I have never forgotten," Lee brought up. " You taught me that if you put your heart and soul into something, anything can happen. You can change the world. I learned that even someone like me could accomplish great things if I tried hard enough. That was your gift. You say you want to be more powerful and respected? You were a better man than. Turn back, Karashi. You must turn away from this path you have taken. Be the man you once were." Karashi got on his hands and knees as Lee stood before him.

" You're right," Karashi agreed. " I've been a fool. Forgive me." He bowed his head.

" Good," Naruto breathed.

" Glad to have you back on board," Aceso said. There was a banging, and they all jumped.

" Help!" Rokusuke cried out. " Please, someone get me out of here! It's dark!"

" Oh, man!" Naruto exclaimed. " It's Rokusuke. The poor guy, we forgot all about him!" They hurried over and freed the man from the coffin. He sat up gasping for air.

" It's--it's you," Rokusuke stuttered as he looked up at Naruto.

" That's right," Naruto confirmed.

" Sorry to keep you waiting," Aceso apologized.

" Forgive me," Roksuke apologized. " But when I thought of my friend buried alive, I had to try to help. I couldn't just stand by and do nothing."

" Yeah, I know exactly how you feel," Naruto breathed.

" Neji," Tenten breathed. " What is it?" He was staring up a cliff intensely. 

" What is this feeling?" Neji gasped. " This sudden sense of danger?"

" What's wrong, Neji?" Aceso asked as they ran over to him.

" What is it?" Naruto demanded.

" We're being watched," Neji reported. " I think it's Raiga."

" Where?" Naruto asked.

" From the top of that cliff," Neji answered.

" Good," Naruto breathed. " Let's go get him."

" Karashi, you stay here and look after Rokusuke," Lee ordered.

" All right," Karashi breathed before they rook off towards the danger. They jumped up to the cliff to see what danger awaited them. 

" Wait there's no one here," Neji noted once they got to the top.

" Are you sure about that?" Aceso asked as it began to get misty.

" What's going on?" Naruto asked as he looked down.

" An impenetrable mist," Neji noted. Lee took out his notes and flipped through them.

" Here it is," Lee said as he stopped on a page. " The Hidden Mist Jutsu is the trademark of the Mist Village ninja."

" The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist," Tenten said. " Guy-sensei was right."

" Fine," Naruto grumbled. " I just wish I could see something."

" Neji, try employing your Byakugan," Lee suggested. 

" Don't you think I've been trying?" Neji asked. " No use. I can't see a thing."

" Incredible," Aceso breathed.

" So, even the all-seeing Byakugan is blind in this mist?" Lee remarked. " This Jutsu is very powerful."

" You really can't see anything?" Aceso asked as she tilted her head.

" I've never heard of any Jutsu stronger than the Byakugan," Neji answered in frustration. Moments later lighting appeared, it shot towards the sky, sparking all over. 

" Now what's going on?" Naruto asked as they looked up at the lightning. Then the lighting shot down towards them, hitting the ground, rocks flew everywhere.