Disclaimer: I have no claim on the content of the manga/anime, Naruto.
-What used to be the prologue enjoyed a scene transplant with the new chapter, Some fresh stuff here in it's place. Thanks for readin'!
Chapter One
1
There are many important truths in any genin's life: Kunai can never be too sharp, shuriken always get caught on one's pants, genjutsu are hard, and Anbu do not sing. There was a little leeway with the first two, and the third remained a source of endless frustration, but that last was a universal constant. The perfect soldier, was an Anbu.
Kurenai, for her part, was having difficulty reconciling reality with the man hanging above her head. "That's the last of them, Anbu-san." she said, offering him a cord of fuses.
Hanging with his knees hooked over rough bark, he tied off the previous batch and attached them to a seal with a flourish before taking hers in hand. He wasn't quite singing as he worked anymore, he'd been at it for too long, but at no point in the proceedings had he ceased to warble, whistle, or hum. Kurenai wasn't sure if he knew he was doing it anymore.
Shrugging, she left him to it and pretended to look around. Watching him from the corner of her eye, she couldn't help but wonder whether his levity was for her benefit or his own. She was going to die; nobody on the defense screen could really expect to survive, least of all a genin.
Despite her chances, it felt good to be with someone who wasn't quite so damned sober about it all. Her sensei hadn't even had the decency to smile when he'd tossed her a number that morning. Dead men walking took on a whole new meaning then.
The Anbu quieted for a moment and caught Kurenai's gaze, waving the cord at her. "This was good work genin, you managed the hard part this time." Anbu also weren't known for speaking praise. Kurenai looked away and croaked what she hoped was an affirmative. It was also nice to be treated as if what she did mattered. Her sensei hadn't ever made her blush, either.
Embarrassed, she clasped her hands behind her back and set about counting the explosive tags she could see from where she stood. There were plenty of trees, and only a handful were unmarked.
Kurenai tried not to grin when he picked up the tune again.
()
Something smelled distinctly like... When was it, a month ago, or was it more? He couldn't remember, his head was fuzzy. Hey, fuzzy, that was it! Fuzzy, fuzzy, fuz - No don't do that stop, stop, stop, stop, I'll - straight to -
Arashi cut an unimpressive figure, slumped as he was against a wooden post facing a deserted training field. The evening air prodded him into movement, but he ignored it, his knees hurt. He sniffed irritably and rubbed his nose with a knuckle. It was dusty, he didn't much care.
"Hokage-sama, is there a problem?"
He flinched, "Just thinking," she'd snuck up on him again. Only one of his own could manage that, they made him proud on occasion.
"Ah, I see," she didn't, as much as she liked the phrase. "Dinner is ready, if you're hungry?" Said so sweetly, it wasn't a question.
Arashi thumped the post with the back of his head and squeezed his eyes shut. "Eat without me, I'll be here for a while." He could do polite, he'd had lessons.
She padded to his side and prodded his shoulder, "I could bring some food out to you."
Arashi opened one eye to squint at her for a moment, catching her look. "No, there's no need to trouble yourself. Thank you." Eye firmly shut, he slumped further.
That effort got him to the count of three. "... What are you thinking about?"
Arashi snorted loudly, smirking. "Kushina."
"Oh. Um, I'm sorry, I'll..." she floundered.
He sighed, easily imagining the way her features must have drooped. "No, not what you're thinking."
She perked up again. "Ah?"
"We had a spirited discussion, that's all." Arashi said brightly, spoiling the effect by thumping the post again.
"I... I see." Here, a measured pause. There, another invitation: "Are you sure you don't want me to bring your dinner?"
Arashi awarded himself a proverbial cookie. "If I said y-"
()
Still swinging, Crow put a hand to his ear and thumbed a switch under his mask. Taking a moment to brush away some soot, he grimaced at the scent of burnt hair. Explosive tags were not without their dangers when being deployed in quantity.
"Crow, break." Surprise, embarrassment, muffled threats. "Crow reports sectors sixteen, seventeen, eighteen seeded, over," he drawled, delighting in the stream of abuse he was met with. Anbu captains in particular tended not to appreciate having their presence announced to everyone with a receiver in a five mile radius, and even the mildest of the lot were prone to lash out violently upon hearing a voice in their ear. From the sound of it, he'd nearly gotten at least three people stabbed. "You wound me, Owl, it's almost as if you don't want me around." His amusement was met with a scathing evaluation of his worth as a human being. Crow nodded absently when his orders followed. "Understood, Crow out."
Crow watched his genin pout as she studied the trees and smiled fondly. Owl had a distressing habit of handing him the cute, delicate problems to deal with. He knew the girl was worried, rightly so, and it had been left up to him to ensure that she stayed just off balance enough to keep from taking things too seriously. It had been done for him when he'd joined Anbu, and now his team's temporary pet genin was his problem.
Whistling sharply, Crow caught her attention and dropped to the forest floor, tucking into a roll to stand quite nearly unruffled. "I'm sure I'm fascinating, but I'd advise you to stare when I'm not looking." She squeaked, she actually squeaked! He grinned behind his mask at her red face, girls her age were so easy to tease. "Now, don't look like that, we've got our orders," he added sternly, making a show of flitting past a tree without a backward glance.
Kurenai was mortified, but she wasn't about to be left behind.
()
Arashi looked up as she sat beside him with a loaded tray in her hands. "Hello again."
The young woman grinned shyly and shifted the tray over their laps, bumping shoulders. "You didn't say anything about my dinner, did you?"
"No, I suppose I didn't." Arashi chuckled, accepting that he'd be eating no matter what he tried. She could be forceful in her own quiet way, sometimes. She never yelled at him anymore, at least. It was a habit that had taken a certain amount of encouragement for her to outgrow, the looks he'd gotten afterward had only helped his reputation.
She shifted, watching him pick apart his plate. "You look very lonely sometimes, you know."
Arashi got as far as opening his mouth before his eyes crossed. He took a bite instead, he'd been about to say something awkward.
She hadn't noticed, and snatched a mouthful as well before speaking. "You don't need to sit out here all alone."
Arashi shook his head and gestured at the field with his free hand, "People need their space, especially around a Hokage." He thought it would be unfair to point out that Hokages needed their space too, the food was good.
"We don't care about that!" she sounded offended.
Arashi gave her a dull look, "You might not want to, but they have to. It's the curse of the office."
She didn't quite snap at him, "Eat. It's the best cure for feeling sorry."
Arashi smiled and offered her a roll, "You're a wise woman."
A/N:
There and back again, we'll see what happens to them all a little later. The original scenes were a terrible block sitting where they were, so I called the headsman's perogative and relocated one of them to chapter seven.
