Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
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The remnants of the beautiful and grand Shin Forest stood like dead stones in the midst of a large clearing. Only at this clearing did she confirm her worst fears, a shocking realization that she dreaded. The moonlight revealed her team, yards behind her and gaining. They were bent on killing her. Her friend and companion, a dark-breed leopard, moved with her near the forest grounds.
She thought fast. If only there was somebody who knew of her true innocence…Konoha…the fifth hokage. With new hope, the young woman moved faster in the direction of the fire country. Her pursuers fell behind, sensing the danger of the fire country.
Hatake Kakashi spotted somebody on the other side of Konoha gates approaching. As they neared, he saw it was a mysterious woman with a leopard by her side. She was stopped by the Konoha gate guards. Kakashi watched with curiosity.
She opened her mouth to speak. "I'm need to–"
"What is your name?" Barked the older guard. She didn't answer.
"I'm asking, what is your name, woman!" Shouted the guard.
She reached her hand into her cloak and pulled out a yellow scroll. Kakashi drew nearer. The guards took the scroll and opened it. Kakashi appeared beside them.
"Kakashi-san! Take a look at this! That rude woman there refused to give us her name and gave us this instead." The guard pointed his finger at the woman rather accusingly. Kakahi took the scroll. To his surprise it was an official pass of Tsunade's. He looked up at the woman.
Closer, she was actually a lot younger than he thought. Eighteen, nineteen, around Naruto's and Sakura's age. The girl said, "You must be Kakashi." He was taken aback. "My name is Tsuna."
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Tsuna was a mystery for everyone in the Hokage's office. She was a raw beauty with her long black hair and her intense green eyes. Taking off her black cloak she revealed a lean body fashioned in intriguing attire. She seemed to be wearing some sort of traditional kimono on her upper body, tucked into a tight piece of torso armor. Her black pants were tucked into black boots with a heel the length of a finger.
As she was sitting impatiently waiting for Tsunade to end an important meeting, her hand stroked her leopard as he lay leisurely on the sofa.
Suddenly, the meeting door opened and out came the Hokage. Tsunade stopped in her tracks when she saw Tsuna. Her emotions of relief, worry, and anger all came at once. She was speechless for a second, before closing in the strides between them and sending a bone-shattering fist in the direction of her visitor. Inches before delivering the blow, the fist changed direction and Tsunade's stronger hand came from below.
Tsuna caught the stronger fist, and without a second to waste, twisted it around Tsunade's back and anchoring the other arm as well. For a minute the office was silent with shock, until both women let go and broke into a warm embrace. Tears welled up in Tsunade's eyes as she whispered, "It's you. And you still remember the technique I taught you." Tsuna's tears rolled down her cheeks as she nodded. Tsunade smiled. "You're a big girl now." She noticed the black leopard and bent down. "Why, isn't this handsome Yusuke?" Tsunade looked up and said, "You've both grown. I've gotten old!" Then she laughed heartily. She turned and yelled, "Kakashi! Get over here!"
Kakashi smiled beneath his mask. "I believe we've already met a year ago. Say, Tsuna, you've grown taller. I didn't even recognize you at first."
She chuckled and then became serious. "Tsunade...the mission...they..."
Tsunade spoke up. "I've heard, Tsuna. But as long as there's me and the Kazekage, there will be no betrayal. I'll be assigning a few trusted Jounin to join us. The war is long before over."
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There was a war. It was not a nation's war, but an underground war. A new terror organization arose, called the Runesansu, which meant rebirth. Powerful rogue shinobi, including members of the Akatsuki, have joined forces. They kill mercilessly and their name quickly spread terror to villages. A handful of equally powerful shinobi from Konoha and Wind Nation's Suna have joined together to fight the Runesansu.
A year ago Tsuna was assigned to observe the Runesansu along with a group of skilled ANBU. For about a year they stayed on the Runesansu's track until her team betrayed her at a chance of joining the Runesansu. Tsuna had managed to escape before she entered the grasps of the Runesansu.
She knew she had to get stronger. It had been a while since she had some proper training. Tsuna decided to consult Tsunade about that, but it'll have to wait until after the meeting. There the new members in the mission will be introduced, and the next step in the plan will be revealed. She sighed and entered the grand meeting office.
It was filled with people. "Ah, Tsuna" Tsunade said. "Everyone, I'd like to introduce Nakini Tsuna, fighter of Hayashi Warrior clan. As I have briefly touched on earlier, she was the leader of the Runesansu observation mission." She paused, taking a look at the new members. "I assume you will all be acquainted well, as the new Jounin shinobi joining us and Tsuna share the same age. Let me introduce your other team members Kakashi sensei, Anko sensei, and Gai sensei." Each of them nodded in acknowledgement.
Tsunade said to the new members, "You must understand the importance and the crisis of this mission as I've explained to you earlier. You should be honored as the few who have been selected for a mission of this rank. Everybody, I'd like to introduce Hyuuga Neji who recently became ANBU leader, Nara Shikamaru as solver of all puzzles, Hyuuga Hinata with high skill in modified genjutsu, Haruno Sakura as my apprentice, Rock Lee as master of taijutsu, and Kyuubi-holder Uzimaki Naruto."
"Hey," piped Naruto. "Why is my name last? I'd also like to say that one day I shall be hok –"
Sakura kicked his leg.
Tsunade continued. "Well then, I'll explain our next mission. We'll be traveling to the hidden village of the Sand to meet with our other members in Suna. The Kazekage and his Jounin are going to train with us. Tomorrow morning five am sharp at the front gate. Dismissed."
The young Jounin approached Tsuna.
Naruto extended his hand, and so did the others.
"How come we've never seen you around before?" asked Lee.
"I don't live in Konoha."
"Oh, then what village were you from?"
"I don't belong to any village. I'm part of a warrior clan."
Sakura raised an eyebrow. "So you're a rogue ninja?"
Tsuna blinked. "I'm sorry, what was your name?"
"Haruno Sakura."
"Would you mind if called you Sakura?"
"Not at all."
"Alright then, Sakura, I heard from Tsunade you are very intelligent. Am I correct?" There was a menacing tone in her voice.
"Maybe so, but you aren't answering my question.", said Sakura, equally challenging back.
"My answer is that you have me confused. Certainly somebody with common knowledge would know that a rogue is an outcast shinobi on the run from officials. I am a fighter in a warrior clan. I really don't understand why someone as intelligent as you can forget what a rogue ninja is."
Sakura's cheeks flushed redder than her hair and her deep emerald eyes glared. She was welcomed with a pert smile and cool, pale green eyes.
Shikamaru let out a low whistle, a smile played on Hinata's lips, Naruto and Lee was stunned aghast and even Neji couldn't hold back a slight smile. These days Sakura had been a bitch to everybody because a week ago Tsunade and publicly announced that Sakura was becoming nearly as good as the Hokage herself. It was a pleasure to watch a speechless snob.
At this moment Tsunade entered. "Ah, good. All of you are here. I just wanted to remind you that as we travel on our trip tomorrow, we will be taking short breaks to spar and briefly train. There'll be even more training in Suna, so you'd better be prepared. However, this time your sparring will be different. You will all spar each other so you will each have six opponents. Understood?"
"Yes." Answered everybody.
Tsunade looked into the group of young, skilled fighters. "Be prepared. Because right now, we're fighting a dark war. And there's a fine line between winning and losing."
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"All set! We're on our way!"
The heavy gates heaved open and the group moved out. It was an excitement for many of the young Jounin, as they rarely leave the village. But for Tsuna, it was dreadful. Over a year of difficult observation, she witnessed the strengths of Runesansu. Their greatest weapon was infiltration.
They were knowledgeable, their power feeding on naivety. If they were being followed…or spied in Suna…or one of them is a traitor…she didn't even want to go there. The only thing she could do, Tsuna thought to herself, was to stay alert and keep a tab on everyone.
With Yusuke exploring ahead and out of the forest path, Tsuna soon fell in step with Neji, who was walking alone up ahead.
"Morning. Call me Tsuna." She said briskly.
"Hyuuga Neji."
"How's being ANBU leader?"
He smirked. "You would know, wouldn't you?"
"I can tell you that I didn't like it."
"Oh. How so?"
"There was a lot of stress. Everyone expected you to take care of fellow ANBU."
Neji nodded.
" And a lot of the time what happens is that some ANBU can be foolish, which makes the leader the fool. Wasn't exactly what I wanted to be."
"You're right," Neji said thoughtfully. "But they never work as a team."
Tsuna found in Neji something that she could trust. "Neji, when there's no team, there's no trust."
He turned his milky eyes onto her hers. For a moment they both understood what she had meant. Her ANBU team had betrayed her.
Tsuna looked up at the sky. "I was a bad leader. I need you to help me with this team, including the sand village members. I'm already trusting you."
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The first training session of the trip turned out disastrously. The skill of a Jounin fighting six other Jounin simply did not work out. Instead, Tsunade assigned training partners. Tsuna was paired with Anko. She found it a pleasure.
Anko had a dark humour and a knack for melodrama. Not bad for someone coming from Orochimaru's, thought Tsuna. Anko often hollered at Kakashi and took part in arguments between him and Gai for the fun of it.
As they sparred, Anko fought hard to keep up with her oppenent, which concerned. Tsuna. Runesansu members are strong, some stronger than herself. As a Jounin, Anko's skill level was high, but she needed to be stronger. If the other Jounin were like Anko...well...
Tsuna's worry was noticed by Shikamaru. Walking the sand dunes of the Wind Country, he decided to ask her.
"Something bothering you?", he said, interrupting her thoughts.
Tsuna smiled. "How do you know?"
"I'm not blind."
"So you're saying the others are blind?" She chuckled. "Give me a break, Shikamaru."
Shikamaru threw his hands in the air and laughed along. "Fine. Say what you want. But I'm curious. What are you worried about?"
"What am I worried about? Don't you worry? If we can win this war, if we can get through this –I mean there's a lot to worry! What if we're not strong enough? We need more power…but the more people, the bigger chance of leaking secrecy. And there's spies, traitors…" Her voice faded as she looked away.
"I thought you said if there was no trust there was no team."
She looked at him oddly. "You heard my conversation with Neji."
"Couldn't help but call you a hypocrite. You're telling us to trust each other, but you're not trusting us. Do you agree?"
"But if we don't stay alert there could be betrayal. What if –"
He cut her off. "No 'what ifs'. The Hokage and the Kazekage would only select people they trust for this mission." Shikamaru paused, wondering if he should say what he wanted to tell her. He decided he would.
"Tsuna, the reason your ANBU team fell apart was because nobody trusted each other. That was the reason I turned down a promotion to ANBU. This level of shinobi is trained and performed in solitude and independency. If we're going to discuss trust, then I suggest we talk about what's real."
There was a long silence before neither spoke. Tsuna spoke first. "You know, Shikamaru, you're quite remarkable."
He grimly laughed. "Ever heard of plain thinking?"
"I have a plan. Your thinking and my year's worth of Runesansu observations can lead us to the next step. What do you say? "
Shikamaru was very interested. "Not bad figuring that out. How are we going make this work?"
"I'll tell you all I've seen, you find the patterns. Sound good to you?"
"Perfect. We'll tell Tsunade when we arrive in Suna. Now…your observations?"
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The sunset on the golden dunes outside the village of Suna created a perfect setting for the hazy shadows of their welcomers. At the front stood the young Kazekage, his most trusted siblings at his sides, and a few other Jounin at the back. There were wagons ready to load luggage.
When the arrivers were at a near enough distance to talk, a fleet of sand rose high from the ground and entwined together to make an arch that the visitors passed through. Behind the Kazekage rose a high wall of sand. Magically, a diagram appeared etched into the sand. It was the symbol of the hidden sand village.
Tsuna was amazed, even more so when she saw that the tall and handsome red-haired young man was controlling the sand. The Kazekage. Subaku no Gaara. She's heard of the young ruler of Suna and of his past, but never has she seen him up close. Even Tsunade had to admit that the cold boy she saw at the Chunnin exams seven years ago had grown into a great ruler that welcomed them warmly.
The Hokage was the first to speak. She bowed her head slightly. "Kazekage-sama."
Gaara did the same. "Hokage-sama. Welcome to Suna."
Tsunade smiled. "Your orders, sir?"
"Hold on tight."
The leaf shinobi stayed puzzled until the ground below them shook and a massive mountain of sand moved at a breakneck speed carrying them around the outside of the high walls. Their bags were loaded into wagons and rolled into the village. When the sand mound finally stopped, the height depleted and soon the passengers were ground level. In front of them stood a small back gate to the village and standing there was Kankuro.
He chuckled. "Liked the ride?"
Anko laughed along. "Aren't you Kankuro? The one with the puppet?"
"That's me, all right."
The back gate let to the courtyard of the Kazekage's office. "We'll meet Gaara in his office along with the other members you are to meet. After that we'll get you all settled comfortably for the night. Your belongings are safely in your rooms." Before they reached the office, Kankuro turned around and stopped the group. He looked at everybody's familiar faces. "For those of you who forgot my name, I'm Subaku no Kankuro, Gaara's brother. By the way folks, he likes it when he's called Gaara –he doesn't want to seem old". Kankuro winked and opened the office door.
Inside, there was a special seat for both kages and a seat for each of the members. Other then Gaara, Temari and Kankuro, there were only three other sand shinobi. Leaf and Sand shinobi totaled together to seventeen people. Gaara spoke first.
"We'll start off with a brief introduction. Throughout your two months training in Suna, we'll all need to be acquainted with each other in order to work as a team. We are a small but strong group. We can't afford to fall apart. My name is Subaku No Gaara, Kazekage of Suna. Please call me Gaara."
"I am Tsunade, Hokage of leaf village"
"Subaku no Temari"
"Subaku no Kankuro"
"I am Baki, former sensei of the Subaku siblings."
"Zazura Omishi, medical nin." The man looked around middle-aged with kind brown eyes behind thick, large glasses. He had wrinkles that folded every time he smiled and hair neatly combed back.
"Natsumi Kana, medical nin", said an unusually pale girl near the age of the young Jounin.
Tsunade motioned for Kakashi to start off introductions of leaf shinobi.
Gaara held his hand to interrupt. "Please, Tsunade-sama, let me have the honor to introduce my new teammates. Kakashi Sensei." He gave a nod.
"Anko Sensei, Gai Sensei, Hyuuga Neji, Hyuuga Hinata. Rock Lee. Fully healed, Lee?" Lee was taken by surprise at Gaara's change of personality even though he knew of the Shukaku extraction, but was glad. "Y-yes, Gaara." Then he added, "Rematch?"
Humorously, Gaara replied, "Absolutely." Naruto was smiling. "Uzimaki Naruto. You were the one who taught me a big lesson." Naruto's heart warmed and he beamed. "Gaara…good to see you now"
"Nara Shikamaru", Temari spoke up with a smirk. Shikamaru managed a weak smile and a sigh.
Gaara continued. "Haruno Sakura…and…" His brow crinkled. "Nakini Tsuna?"
Tsuna was delighted he had somehow heard of her. "Correct", she answered with a charming smile. Gaara grinned. "You led the ANBU observation mission a year ago."
Her eyes twinkled and enticed him. "Correct again, Kazekage"
Gaara's interest sparked.
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Orochimaru's slithering voice echoed off the dark corridors of the underground Sound Nation. A long way west from the Wind country was the massive underground labyrinth of tunnels and dungeons. Sasuke's footsteps grew louder as they stopped in front of Orochimaru's lair. He entered.
"Orochimaru, I saw Itachi with the Runesansu." His voice was bitter. "You said I would be ready when I'm nineteen. And that's only months away."
The snake sannin waved his hand. "Calm down, Sasuke-kun. You'll have the chance...especially with the war looming ahead."
Kabuto sneered. "Those foolish shinobi think they can withstand, or even defeat Runesansu."
"Don't underestimate, Kabuto…I did so at the chunnin exams and it cost me. This chaotic feud can be of advantage to us…we'll be joining it."
"Which side will we take, Orochimaru-sama?"
"Take sides? No, no. The Sound is no little army. We're a side all to our own."
Kabuto was delighted. Unable to hold his excitement, he over-eagerly asked, "Orochimaru-sama, what are my orders?"
"Watch the Leaf and Sand nations, then report back. Don't reveal our plans."
"Understood." Kabuto left immediately. He was already looking forward to an encounter with Anko.
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