"Who, me?" Asuma skidded to an abrupt halt before he accidentally body-slammed Natsumi into a shrub. Half a breath away from a dark, dangerous glare doing its best to imprint you fucked up on the inside of his skull, he caught his breath, dragged a hand through rumpled hair, and grinned. "Well, sometimes. You were doing such a good job playing fearless leader, I didn't want to cramp your style."

And it was just a little bit fun to toss a stick in the path of all that high-strung control.

He tapped two fingers to his bare temple (he wasn't wearing the stupid, vision-restricting mask until he had to). "'Sides, you can't tell me a good ninja throws away the chance to think on her feet. It's good for your brain." He grinned wider, showing off every pleased-with-itself tooth. "At least I told you about the cliffs."

Except he really hadn't.