Whatever was in that dark cloud, it didn't react well to fire. Raidou shielded his face with one hand as heat and flame roared out, scorching the air and licking at his armour, flash-frying the poisoned air with a crack that set some of the bamboo alight. The enemy hammering at his sword arm leapt back with a curse. Raidou lunged after him, desperately trying to turn the moment to his advantage, and staggered badly as his grip on his chakra failed, dropping him almost knee-deep into clinging mud. Coughs ripped out of his chest, wrenched from his lungs. His head spun.

Genma had burned the poison away, but not soon enough. Raidou just hoped his partner's hard-earned immunities were keeping him safe. Then the enemy with the katana swung back and there was no more time for hope, or anything but a desperate block with an arm that moved far too slow--

The katana caught him with a nasty crack against the armoured guard of his wrist and smashed his sword from nerveless fingers. It hit the mud and sank, lost beneath the churned mess of broken bamboo and sloppy earth. Raidou jerked his head up just in time to catch a solid knee to the face, and heard his mask break. He landed on his back, twisted sideways to avoid the follow-up blow, and tried to haul himself back up. The mud clung to his limbs like ice-cold glue, pulling him down.

He couldn't see Genma.

"Son of a bitch," he rasped breathlessly, and forced himself upright. Caught his balance on a matt of tangled bamboo, blocked the downswing of that katana on his crossed forearms with a surge of pure adrenaline, and grabbed its owner before the bastard could dart away. Dull metal glinted--a breathing apperatus strapped over the ninja's face--as Raidou jerked him around, took a hammer-heavy blow against his shoulders, and snapped the man's neck. He threw the corpse aside, didn't have time to wince when it fell across Yukaho's mutilated body, and almost collapsed again when his muscles turned as weak as water.

There was no time for that. He had to find Genma.

Chakra lurched distantly as his clone died. The clearing was a dizzy mess of moving bodies and already-fallen ones, kicked brutally aside by ninja with more of those hissing breathing masks. Four that he could see, blurred through the broken eye-holes of his ANBU mask, and the clone's memory stuffed the knowledge of at least two more into his head.

Six. With a seventh already dead. And Genma was--

There, leaping aside as a ninja sliced at him with a splayed hand full of kunai. Raidou caught sight of him just as Genma ducked in close, fingers flashing through seals, and set the air on fire again. The enemy jerked back--and a hail of senbon peppered his shielded face, sinking deeply into wide open eyeballs. He screamed and fell, thrashing and clawing at himself.

Raidou almost caught his breath with relief--then lost it all on a warning shout as another ninja surged up behind his friend.

"Watch your back!"

He lunged forwards, stumbled, and knew he was going to be far too late.