Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine. It and all its characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Saving Faith

Chapter One: Missing In Action

Uzuki Yuugao knew when she was beaten.

It was the reason she was still alive, the reason she'd been chosen for this mission. She'd already delayed her departure by a week because she'd been so sure she was on the brink of a new discovery. Those seven days had paid off, but they acted as a double-edged sword; now, if she fell here, the mission died with her.

They'd sent eight Jounin after her, and while she'd been prepared for their attack, so had they. Their assault was launched in broad daylight, her first indication that something was dreadfully wrong. Either their shinobi were poorly trained, or cocky as hell. After four months in the Kusa no Kuni she'd seen enough to dismiss the first, and if they were arrogant, it was for good reason. Living with the shadow of Hi no Kuni and its Konoha looming over their southeastern border had not taught them nothing.

In a matter of moments she knew the reason for their boldness. These Jounin knew her jutsu, anticipated her attacks, had memorized her fighting style.

She'd been betrayed.

Now, after only a handful of minutes, her ANBU mask had fluttered to the ground when its string was cut along with her cheek and a lock of her hair. Her right arm hung useless at her side, sanguine trailing down her gloved fingertips to stain the ground. She'd almost reached the border, but here in this field, her blood was spilling to quench the thirst of the grassland's namesake.

Her katana caught the sunlight, reflected it from one of the enemy's forehead protectors. She'd dispatched four of them by what would seem mere accident, but that left half on their feet, alert, like vultures circling her and waiting to pick her bones clean before she'd even lost her life. There was only one trick left up her sleeve, a desperate hope that whoever told them about her did so based on what was in a book, and not by fighting by her side.

Mikazuki no Mai.

It nearly depleted all of her chakra reserves, but it served its purpose. Three fell swiftly with the summoned swords still in their hearts, the fourth with his throat slit twice. She couldn't give him a clean death. It pained her, but it couldn't be helped. Her left arm, no matter her years of training, was still a weakness compared to her right.

When she was sure they weren't getting back up, she stooped to retrieve her mask, sheathed her katana, and nearly buckled under her own weight when she tried to rise. The razor-keen blades of grass they had conjured had left her riddled with cuts and the loss of blood was beginning to take its toll. She needed to get away and quickly.

Dark lashes were shut as she remained crouched there, gauging her strength, her energy, before with the same determination that had kept her alive all these years, she was off, what chakra she could spare propelling her across the border, to what she hoped would be relative safety.

There was a rocky outcropping a few paces past that indistinguishable line; it was for this she aimed. If she could tuck herself out of sight, everything would be fine. Time wasn't on her side. Its passing meant someone would look for the eight Jounin, and upon finding them dead, would hunt her down to complete their goal.

Betrayal.

Someone's infidelity had led to this, yet in her last moments, as darkness crowded her vision and tunneled it on that single rocky ledge she sought, she wasn't thinking about the traitor's identity. Her thoughts had drifted far beyond, back beyond, into the shadow of memory that claimed her when she slumped to feel the heat of the stone against her already seared back. To the man who saved her life.

Hayate...

His laughter was infectious. The first time she heard it she couldn't appreciate it; he'd caught her at the training grounds, hanging when her long hair got tangled on a branch.

"Need some help, hebo?"

She'd responded with nothing more than a blank stare, drowning out his laughter with the thunk of her kunai slicing through ebony-violet tresses as it found a home in the branch, freeing her to fall gracefully to her feet below. It was embarrassing to be caught in the situation as it was, and by a rival no less.

Gekkou Hayate was a member of another Genin team, and both his sensei and hers had entered their teams in the Chuunin exam beginning in two days. He was competition, and annoying competition at that.

A smirk was all she received for her escape, and a smooth, "Good thing because I wouldn't have helped you anyway. Your own fault for wearing your hair so long." He was incredibly infuriating, especially when he continued on his way with more of that laughter reaching her ears as he went.

But she managed to keep her cool. She always managed to keep her cool. All she spared him was a calm, almost tranquil look, and a small, knowing smile that barely touched one corner of her mouth. It's the same smile he got when their names were drawn to face each other in the final round of the exam.

"Maybe you'll learn something, hebo. Like how to avoid getting caught in trees," was what she got.

At thirteen, he was a year older, a year more experienced. It would be a surprise if she won the match, which meant she was all the more determined to do just that. Her sensei had been shocked by her newfound tenacity, worried when she pushed herself again and again. But she wouldn't be beaten, not by that aggravating boy.

When all was said and done, she couldn't much remember what happened during the match. She woke up afterward in the hospital, with the worst headache she could have ever imagined and a stinging pain on her chest from the blow that had broken her clavicle. Officially it was a draw, as the final blow dealt by both left each unconscious on the field. Yet others claim Hayate's cough in the midst of his oblivion made him the victor, others claimed the opposite, that because she had twitched it meant she was out cold only after him.

It didn't matter in the end since both of them were promoted to Chuunin, and it was him who told her. He'd come in some sort of peace, it seemed, with a small package hidden behind his back. At least, he was trying to hide it, but he lacked the subtlety necessary with one palm swathed in bandages and a limp in his gait.

As always, upon his entrance he was given nothing more than a cool stare. No smile this time.

"Congrats on us both making Chuunin. Brought you something." With that same lack of subtlety, the gift was practically shoved in her face where she rested propped against pillows in her hospital bed.

She took it without a word, moving to settle it on the table nearby until his expression stopped her. At her dismissal, it had almost turned crestfallen. Just almost, not quite. After all, he was a shinobi who'd learned to mask most of his feelings, and only as another shinobi could she sense the shift in his demeanor at all.

With hesitation lacing her movements, she pulled the package back to her lap, deft fingers plucking the single thread that bound the paper around the box within. Removing the lid, there on a bed of soft cotton lay a simple but elegant comb, like the ones she'd seen her mother wear with her favorite kimono. It was for special occasions, even if it was plain.

For the first time, he was given a glimpse of puzzlement on her face, asking him why without vocalizing the question. In return, she finally saw why so many of the other girls seemed to like this usually annoying boy so much.

"Keep your hair long," he said, with a very charming smile. It came naturally to him, this charm, but apparently he reserved it for special occasions, just like the comb now in her hands.

The moment was ruined when he reached over to ruffle her hair, adding his obligatory, "Hebo." And even though he was laughing when he left, glancing back to the gift he'd brought and remembering that smile on his face, it was the beginning of her appreciation for that sound.

She only heard his laughter now in her dreams.

"Tsunade-sama, I—"

"Don't tell me not to worry, Shizune. Nearly six days have passed since the appointed time. She's never late."

Shizune couldn't argue. Her medical work and assistance of the Fifth Hokage left little time for her to cross paths with the ANBU Uzuki Yuugao, much less embark on missions on the same team. She didn't recall the last time the woman had been in the hospital either, but she had read her file, and had heard the talk of her. No, she wasn't one to be late..if she could help it.

But she tried again. "Tsunade-sama, worrying is not good for—"

A strong fist aided a teacup across the room to shatter into pieces, the remnants of its contents painting a trail along the wall. "I'm Godaime Hokage, damn it. I don't need to be coddled! The last thing I need is to be losing one of my shinobi at a time like this. Unh…"

Shizune was already at her side as she slumped back into her chair, the younger woman's able fingers catching the barely wrinkled ones of her mentor and friend. "Tsunade-sama, this will take its toll if you do not stop," is the calm, truthful reply to the outburst, offered as another cup of tea is poured and placed before her.

Even Tsunade could not stop the effects of time forever.

"I cannot leave her. She becomes a liability if I do. The very last thing I need is for this mission to fail. I've summoned the best suited Jounin, but he's late."

Unlike the missing shinobi that caused this episode, Hatake Kakashi was always late.

Now was no exception, and at least twenty more minutes passed before a tap on the door preceded his sandaled feet coming into the room. That one lazy eye took in the female pair with a crinkle at its corner; if Shizune didn't know any better she'd think he was fighting a yawn behind his mask. As it was, he wasted no words, either figuring he'd already wasted enough time, or having the sense to know exactly why he'd been called. No one ever really knew what was going on inside that head.

"Uzuki Yuugao took a reconnaissance mission into Kusa no Kuni and was supposed to return by this route almost six days ago. You're to find her and bring her back." A map is shoved across the desk toward him, the Hokage's fingertip marking the path mentioned. When she's satisfied that he's looked, though with that half-lidded stare of his it was hard to tell how earnestly he'd observed, she adds, "Shizune will be accompanying you."

Surprisingly enough, the only protest came from the medic herself.

"I'm not about to leave you, Tsunade-sama. You've been working too—"

All she was given were two blank, unyielding stares in return for her attempted refusal. It was enough to quiet her, even if it didn't settle her spirit. In the end, she couldn't help but ask why she had to go when Kakashi could clearly handle such a task on his own.

"Because there's only one reason Yuugao-san would have not returned," came Kakashi's voice, low and steady and untouched by the fabric of his mask.

He didn't need to say the reason. They all knew it.

She didn't return because she couldn't.

They left just before dawn and traveled silently for a day, following the route on the map. There was no conversation, no small talk between them. The only three words exchanged came when the next night fell.

"Sleep?"

"No."

"Neither."

It was as the moon hung full in the sky overhead that they crossed the border into Kusa no Kuni. Like that indistinguishable line separating the two countries came the subtle realization that they were in potentially hostile territory, and though both of them still chose not to say a word, almost out of necessity now, they each had one hand twitching a bit closer to the holsters on their thigh. They weren't ordered to engage the enemy, but by the nearly tangible tension in the air, it was clear they suspected there were indeed enemies lurking in the grass country.

Their suspicions were confirmed when they stumbled upon the battlescene. It was hard to miss it with the coppery stench of blood filling the air and the moonlight gleaming off of one fallen Grass Jounin's kunai. Kakashi scouted the perimeter while Shizune found the center of the fray, easily marked by the four bodies pointing inward to face it.

"Over here."

With another outward glance he crossed to where she was crouched, his visible eye unblinking until she lofted her find.

A single lock of sable hair, gleaming violet in the moonlight.

Instantly he was transported back, to his first mission as her captain on the ANBU squad. He, like most everyone in her career, had told her to pin up her hair, or she would inevitably pay for it. Reckless vanity wouldn't lose him a member of his team. Nothing would, if he could help it.

She'd met the request with nothing more than that usual quiet, small smile of hers. It was the expression she always seemed to wear when that mask was pulled away.

"No enemy has ever touched my hair, Kakashi-sempai."

Seeing that lock suspended to blow in the breeze that rustled through the field meant she was in danger. Real danger. And quite possibly…

He wouldn't allow himself that thought.

Shizune didn't ask him why he had that look in his eye, or why his grasp was almost rough when he took the hair in his own. She didn't mention that there was too much blood spilt on the ground to tell whether anyone could have survived the loss of it. She didn't point out the obvious, that though the fight was relatively recent, at least a few hours had passed—enough time for it to mean good or bad.

While she didn't say all those things, his dogs were summoned and his voice came for only the second time since they started their mission in the form of a nearly chilling command.

"Find her."

Fin.

A/N: Thanks in advance for reading. I'm new to this whole genre, so if you have any comments or suggestions, I'd be honored. I'll be including a short glossary of sorts after each chapter when appropriate to help explain the Japanese terms I use; if anyone has an idea that might work better than that, let me know. Here goes.

Kusa no Kuni: Land of Grass, home to the hidden village Kusagakure.

Hi no Kuni: Land of Fire, home to the hidden village Konohagakure, or Konoha for short which means Village hidden in the Leaves. This is where most of the main characters in Naruto hail from.

Mikazuki no Mai: Literally, Dance of the Crescent Moon. Gekkou Hayate's signature ninjutsu, where the user conjures three Kage Bunshin (or shadow doppelgangers) which mimic the user's sword patterns to confuse the enemy and attack.

Hebo: Clumsy person, greenhorn, novice, etc.

Also, I've adopted the practice of writing their last names first, as it would be in the Japanese tradition. I've also used name suffixes like -san and -sama. Each holds significance, but rather than explain them here, Wikipedia has an excellent article on "Japanese titles" if you'd like to better understand. The rest of the terminology I would assume is common knowledge for Naruto fans, but if anything else needs to be explained, please let me know for next time.

Thank you again for reading, and I hope you enjoy. The next chapter should be up shortly.