Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I make any work off of this writing for fun. Sue if you must. I have nothing worth taking.
Recompense. A word signifying the righting of some wrong, either real or imagined. A word denoting action. A word whose meaning would find new depths in Naruto.
It all started with a simple, yet profound, question at a most inopportune moment.
Team 7 trudged along the southern road at an agonizing pace. For a civilian, the pace was perfect for lengthy journeys, fast enough to cover a decent amount of distance but slow enough that one didn't tire too quickly (eliminating the need for frequent stops). Unfortunately for the ninja (who were practically bred and trained for speed and stealth), their current mission required them to escort and protect one Tazuna, the quite drunk bridge builder from Nami no Kuni. Despite the frequent grumblings (some of which went to the effect of 'Even that damn cat was better than this' or 'How I miss that cat! It had the decency to run fast enough to give meagre homage to our skills.'), they kept to the pace set by their client – if only because every time they tried to carry him, he screamed "RAPE!" loud enough to attract every bandit (living and dead) within 10 kilometers.
The slow pace also had the unfortunate consequence of boring one hyperactive blond. Normally his cure for boredom entailed some sort of reve... I mean, prank on the villagers, but since he couldn't exactly sneak ahead to set up a prank without being caught, he decided to talk instead. Again, normally such a decision would have the effect of trying to carry a drunk Tazuna (10 km worth of bandits) as Naruto seemed to possess no volume control; this time however, Naruto decided to broach a subject that was both serious and highly uncomfortable.
Therefore, he slacked his pace enough to fall in beside Kakashi (how it killed him to slow even further) and queried in a voice akin to a stage whisper, "Kakashi-sensei, do you hate me?"
Kakashi was so gobsmacked by the very idea that one of his students (who he had passed, it must be noted) would doubt that Kakashi didn't hate them enough to ask that he completely failed to notice the approach, and passing, of a mud puddle. 'The rest,' they say, 'is history.'
Author's Notes: They'll get longer, eventually, I'm sure. This just seemed like the best place to end this first one.
Anyway, please read and review. Comments and criticisms are always welcome. Who knows? You might even give me a good idea. If that occurs, you will get a mention in an author's note.