Chapter I – In Which Kakashi Leaves
"Hokage-sama, here are the papers you requested," Nara Shikaku bowed respectfully once to Tsunade and a second time to the Mizukage sitting opposite the huge mahogany desk.
"Arigatou, Nara-san," Tsunade inclined her head slightly before turning to the matter at hand. "Would Mizukage-sama like to have a look as well?"
The Mizukage had barely nodded when her aide reached out for the document, skimming through it quickly but efficiently, Shikaku had no doubt. This was it, the contract that had taken months to finalize. Every detail had been gone over as closely as possible by both the Konoha and Kiri's paperwork department – assuring that all details were as clear as possible and that no party would try to take advantage of this friendly trial treaty.
The aide nodded once to the Mizukage who said, "Everything seems to be in order." And Shikaku let out a sigh of relief. This was not the first time a meeting such as this had been held but someone had always found some loophole in the document and it was back to the drawing board from there. Well, Shikaku supposed there really was something to be said about third times being the charm.
"I trust your jounin list is ready, Hokage-sama?" The Mizukage raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow.
"Of course, as is yours, I believe."
Right on cue, Shikaku and the aide exchanged the documents containing the names of the five jounin who had volunteered for the program. Shikaku hoped his face revealed nothing but the usual bland mixture of politeness and boredom as he handed over the lives of five of Konoha's most able ninja to Kiri.
?!-!?-?!-!?
Sakura couldn't think… no, this couldn't be happening…. It had to be a rumor, it just had to be.
Yes, that's it. It was all just village gossip, probably bred at the bath house as a product of some bored Kunoichi's imagination. Weren't they saying just last week that Anko was shagging Iruka-sensei? And Sakura knew for a fact that Iruka-sensei was as gay as they come.
Sakura tried to slow her pace to a jog. It wouldn't do to attract this much attention from people on the streets. No, all she really had to do was find him, ask him if— no, tell him about the stupid rumors she'd heard and then they'll both laugh about it. Yes, and who knows, they might even go for a drink afterwards…
Oh crap!
"Ow, Sakura-chan, where's the fire?"
"Kakashi's apartment, do you know where it is, Izumo-san?"
"It's in the same building as Genma and Shizune-san's, on the fourth floor but—"
"Thanks!" and with that, Sakura was already gone, leaving a very puzzled Izumo in her wake. "
?!-!?-?!-!?
He supposed he should be feeling sad about leaving Konoha. After all, it was his home. But then again, Kakashi had accepted the mission willingly. So perhaps that was the reason why he didn't feel any remorse – not for the village anyway.
But that was a path he didn't let his mind wander down. No… best to keep those particular feelings at bay. Perhaps a term in the miserable, wet lands of Mist would do him good. It certainly ought to clear his head of a certain pink-haired kunoichi who seemed to have become a regular in his dreams these days.
If Kakashi tried to pinpoint it exactly – and he had, countless times – he couldn't tell when it was exactly that Sakura had stopped being a kid, his pupil, and started being an equal. It had certainly not been that way when she had been made chunin. His opinion of her as a kunoichi had changed a very long time ago for the better but the Copy Ninja was honestly perplexed as to when she'd stopped being his student and became a friend. He'd not even realized when she stopped calling him sensei – only that she had started using his name alone. And that he rather liked the sound of it coming from her pink, moist lips.
However, he did remember the moment when he realized he felt a lot more for her than he should – with crystal clarity no less. It was exactly two months ago as he watched her from the stands while she fought in the last round of the jounin exams. She was up against a particularly vicious shinobi from Grass and there had been no pretenses from the start. Her opponent had meant to kill her or die trying.
At that moment, it took everything the silver haired jounin had to restrain himself from jumping off the stands to defend the girl who was clearly going to lose her life within the next few minutes. Her left calf was badly mangled and her skin was covered in cuts ranging from minor to fatal. He had wanted to do something, anything, to not lose another person who was important to him. But in the end, he couldn't. All he could do was have faith in his Sakura and her training. Even though she was unable to move and was almost completely out of chakra, he had hoped – willed – that she'd come out of it as the victor.
And she had. Even now, it brought a smile to his face to recall how his former student had been feinting. How, as the Grass nin neared her to add insult to injury and finish her off at close range with nothing but a kunai, the ground around their feet exploded into smithereens. The fight had ended with a badly hurt Sakura and the cleaning crew picking off whatever was left of that bastard from the field to be shipped back to his family.
"Oh look, someone finally decided to show up." Ibiki's sarcastic bark jolted him out of his reverie. No matter, Kakashi was only fifteen minutes late, a new record for him. Why, he was almost on time. He must be getting old.
?!-!?-?!-!?
"Kotetsu-san, where's Kakashi?" Sakura halted to a stop as she neared the gates, a sinking feeling already starting at the pit of her stomach – a feeling she had forcefully swallowed down when she found Kakashi's apartment locked and bolted.
"Sakura-chan! Oh, they left about an hour ago. They were supposed to leave earlier but Hatake-san was late as usual and… Sakura-chan?! What's wrong?"
No, no, no, dammit, she was not going to cry. Not here, not in front of Izumo. Not on the street where anyone could bear witness to it. Then why were these stupid tears leaking out of her eyes?
For someone who had so much command over bodily functions, she sure as hell didn't know how to keep a few stupid tears away.
She could see genuine concern on Kotetsu's face and she didn't blame him. He and Izumo were almost like brothers to her. They had been with her since she was a genin, they had watched her grow, had been cheering the loudest when she cleared her chunin exams and were practically crying as she was being taken to the hospital after making jounin. They had seen Sakura happy, hurt, overworked alongside themselves until Tsunade's tough rule, studying up in the library at ungodly hours before a surgery. But they had never seen her like this, crying in the middle of the street as though her heart had literally broken in two.
Dimly, she was aware of Kotetsu's tall frame beside her and his arms encircling her in a hug. And for that moment, she was especially grateful that at least someone was going to stick around.
?!-!?-?!-!?
"Shizune! Is she here?"
"Yes, Hokage-sama, I'll send her in now."
The young medic entered the office she'd been to countless times before. However, this time was different. A knot was slowly forming in her stomach, telling her something bad was going to happen.
"Good morning, Lady Tsunade."
"Yes, yes, skip the formalities, girl." The Godaime waved her hands in the air but instead of relaxing the medic, it only made the knot in her stomach tighten.
She nodded respectfully, waiting for the Hokage to continue.
"Now, I could start by telling you about our recent treaty with Mist and how we're going through a – what do you call it? – a 'Ninja Exchange' program of sorts, but I have a feeling you already know of it?'
Oh no, this was going to be bad… really bad. Trying not to sound sick, she said "The information is supposed to be confidential, Hokage-sama."
"Not anymore. Or did you think that anyone wouldn't notice five Kiri nin walking around Konoha and carrying out missions alongside us for the next three months, girl? The information was only confidential until our men left so no one could interfere with their decision to leave Konoha. The same rules apply to the Mist nin who are coming over here." The blonde clarified. "And in any case, since when have things like privacy and confidentiality stopped you from gossiping, Yamanaka?"
Ino had the good grace to blush. It was times like these when she was extremely grateful half her face was hidden by her hair.
"Anyway, as I'm sure you know, our men left yesterday and the shinobi from Mist are expected to be here by noon. However, we need someone—"
"Hokage-sama, please, I don't want to go to Kiri!" Ino tried to quell the panic in her chest. She had known they would need a Konoha medic in Kiri. Hell, she was the one who had it figured out when the contract was still being drawn and the clause about each village respecting the other's secrets was being refined. According to the papers, no ninja from Konoha was obliged to go through close examination by Kiri's forces and vice-versa. Kiri had its own bloodline limit secrets to protect and just living in each other's country would be enough of a security breach to each military village. The treaty was to foster trust and camaraderie between the two opposing nations but that didn't mean either party playing the game was dense.
Shikamaru – whining as always – had been the one to tell Ino about the stupidity of the whole thing. It was Ino who had pointed out the possibility – or probability – of a ninja getting hurt and therefore, forced to be examined by the Kiri medics which had led to the insertion of yet another clause within the ever growing contract. Of course, since Ino was not supposed to know about it, she had let Shikamaru take the credit for thinking it up and it had been easy enough for him to mention this to Shikaku who – being Head Jounin - was in charge of overseeing the project.
"What are you talking about, you stupid girl?"
"I know we need a medic in Kiri… And, well, no one's been assigned yet… I'm sorry, Lady Tsunade. But I really don't want to go."
"Yamanaka, is it not your duty as a kunoichi to go wherever the village assigns you?"
"But ma'am, I– "
"Enough! If it were in my hands, you would be the one going, especially given your attitude. As it is, the assigned medic already left this morning and should be arriving in Kiri just after our own men."
Even through the shame she was feeling, Ino couldn't help but be relieved. She would not have to leave Konoha, she would be right here, at home.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama," the blonde chunin tried to sound as apologetic as she could.
"And so am I. I must say I never expected this of you, Yamanaka. I had called you in earlier to let you know that you would be covering half of Sakura's shifts at the hospital alongside your own but in light of your behavior; you're to spend all your free time covering her shifts. I was going to have Shizune and Aya take care of the rest of the empty slots but they have plenty of other things to do. Besides, since you're going to be in Konoha, the least you can do is work the graveyard shift five times a week."
"Yes… Tsunade-sama."
"Well then, you can start right now."
"But Tsunade-sama, why does Sakura need to be covered for? I mean is she…?" the young medic almost quelled under the glare the Hokage was giving her.
"Yamanaka, it's people like you who give blondes a bad name. Did I not just tell you that the Konoha medic left for Kiri this morning?"
"Y-yes, Hokage-sama…" and with a hasty bow, Ino fled the office.