-Beta- By Gandalf the Grey-Edelwiess
-AN- This is AR I believe. It completely ignores the capture of Gaara and the extraction of the Shukaku. This is right after the attempted retrieval of Sasuke and Yamato and Sai are introduced. It does not follow the storyline after that though.
This story is about a year and a half old, so please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors or plot holes you find, as I'm doing my best to revamp it and any and all criticism is appreciated. Otherwise, enjoy.
The boy walked through the gate of Konoha, wondering what this new place would bring. His master had sent him here for a reason. Why, he still didn't know. He walked past the guards without so much as a sideways glance. They didn't stop him, even when they saw the headband of an opposite village, no doubt having been informed by their Hokage beforehand. He headed for the tall, red tower that looked as if it housed someone important, and hopefully, the one woman who could give him answers.
Tsunade cursed her luck. This child was to enter her village and live there until the day he died, and he didn't even know it. This village would be receiving a new resident, and as if that weren't bad enough, she hadn't a single team with an empty space to fill. Imagine, the one time she were to win a bet with another person; it is with the Kazekage over who would rank first in the chunin exams. And just as the woman truly believed her luck was beginning to change, she learned that the prize was nothing more than a special jonin that the foreign leader kept around as a bodyguard for some unknown reason. Just as she had always suspected, the second her luck seemed to have been taking an upward turn, something bad would happen, and this proved to be just that. Why would the damned Kazekage give up this supposed gem? Tsunade was positive that there must be something wrong with the soon-to-be new arrival, but what? Before she could venture into all the disfigurations and weaknesses that he could possibly possess, her thoughts were interrupted by the creek of the heavy oak door.
"L-lady Tsunade?" She was quite confused as to why she seemed to frighten the rather small teen; she had always known she was intimidating, but they'd never even met before.
"Enter!" He jumped at the sound, but entered the room, allowing her to get a full view of him. It was instantly obvious as to why Gaara, who was known to appreciate more than just a woman's company, would keep the boy around. He had black hair that grew long enough to lightly touch his eyelids, his body was that of medium build but he was still slim, and his alabaster skin complimented his deep grey eyes.
"Ma'am… Why exactly is it that I'm here?" he asked, shooting her a quizzical glance.
"Well, your master, Gaara has sent you to Konoha to live here," she replied coolly.
"But, why, milady?" Tsunade was at a loss for words at this. There was no doubt that the boy wouldn't respond well to the answer she would give.
"Uh., Well you see…" He stared at her blankly, still waiting for her answer. She decided the best thing to do would be to lie through her teeth. "He has sent you here to relieve us. We have a shortage of ninja, and you are going to stay here for as long as it takes, to help with missions," she added in a rush. She inwardly sighed in relief as he seemed to have found the answer given to be satisfactory. It was strange that she would lie to spare the boy's feelings. She chalked it up to a soft spot she had for children.
"Where will I be staying, milady?" He was definitely polite, obviously well trained by the man he once served.
"I've made arrangements for you to stay in an apartment here in the village. I have also assigned you a guide to help you get the feel of things." Just as she finished speaking, she slammed her fist down onto a button on the desk, making the boy jump once again. She gave him an apologetic look before she heard the buzz and the familiar voice.
"Yes, Lady Tsunade?"
"Sakura, please show our guest, uh… What's your name?" He looked at her for a second, realizing that he had never properly introduced himself.
"I am Hiruto from the Village Hidden in the Sand, at your service milady," he said rather eloquently as he planted himself onto the ground on one knee, and bowed his head to her. Oh yes, he was definitely trained well by the young Kazekage, who she now was positive kept young Hiruto around for far more than to just be a simple bodyguard.
"Yes. Please show our guest, Hiruto around the village, and show him his living quarters as well."
"Yes, Lady Tsunade," she replied as the speaker went silent and the door quickly opened.
"Go on now," she said as she motioned for the boy to follow the pink haired girl. He bowed to her once before quickly moving towards the door in complete silence. "Oh! I almost forgot! Take this, Sakura; he needs a few things to start out!" She tossed the girl a stack of bills. Sakura's hand shot out to catch them; she then simply nodded at the woman in understanding before leading the boy out.
"How old are you Hiruto?" Sakura asked, attempting to start a conversation yet again.
No response came from behind the pinkette.
"What brings you here?" She tried once more, knowing all too well that this conversation would end just like the others.
Still no response from the boy.
"Are you going to speak to me or are you going to continue ignoring me?" The girl huffed, obviously annoyed at the silence.
Still no response. That was enough to set her off. Sakura had been pointing out the best places to eat, all the important shops and buildings, and other such important information, for the past half hour and each thing she said was met with silence.
"Now listen up!" she shouted as she stopped and turned to face him. "I am attempting to help you and possibly get to know you here, and for the last thirty minutes, you haven't said a word to me!"
"I-I-I" But the poor boy wasn't allowed to finish.
"I have been busting my tail and have gone out of my way to show you certain places that you would've never been able to find on your own! I could quiz you on anything and even if you did manage to find the voice to answer, it wouldn't be right because you haven't been listening!"
He suddenly regained his confidence and defiantly began riddling off facts from Sakura's tour, "Ichiraku has the best ramen in the village. You've been working with Lady Tsunade for about four years now. Iruka-sensei was your teacher back in the academy. Your team number is seven, it is lead by Kakashi-sensei, but is currently being headed by Yamato-sensei. Your team currently consists of yourself, Naruto, and Sai. And whenever you accidentally bring up the name Sasuke, you go silent for approximately seven seconds before you change the subject. Would that be fairly accurate?" She gaped at him for a few seconds. Had he really gotten all that from her simply talking about the village and herself?
"I- I didn't."
"Think I was paying attention? Well you were sadly mistaken."
I'm sorry, but why didn't you answer me?"
"I don't know you," he stated bluntly. "And I'm not supposed to talk to strangers," he added with a teasing glint in his eyes that made Sakura crack a smile against her will.
"Well I'm Sakura. Now you know me, so start answering some of my questions," she replied, still slightly annoyed by his games. She silently prayed that he wouldn't turn out to be another Naruto.
After hours of talking, teasing, shopping, and a fairly expensive lunch, the last stop on the two's list was at Hiruto's apartment. He entered the small room that was his den and was surprised to find the luggage that he had left at the Hokage's office was already stacked neatly in the center of the floor.
"I can help you unpack," Sakura offered as she set down the bags.
"S-sure…" Sakura glanced at the strangely entranced Hiruto and grew worried as she followed his blank stare towards the top bag. Ignoring the strange feeling in her gut, she grabbed the duffle bag that the boy had been staring at and unzipped it. She instantly noticed a picture framed in beautiful silver, of Hiruto and the red haired Kazekage. Sakura held it up closer to view the rare smile on Gaara's lips, when the boy seemingly broke from his trance and lunged for the frame.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to," she stuttered as he grabbed it out of her hand, less in anger, and more in pure desire to hold it.
"It's fine. Um, I think I've got this. You can just go," he said nonchalantly as he stared down at the photograph. Sakura simply nodded and showed herself out. It was now completely obvious what was going on. Even though it was still quite surprising to Sakura, there was no doubt in her mind that the boy had feelings for his old master, whether they had been previously expressed or not was something she would need to find out.
Hiruto awoke with a start. The loud knocks on his door quickly became evident as they grew louder and more frequent.
"Hiruto! Wake up!" He couldn't help but smile at the familiar voice, his first friend in Konoha. He opened the door to find Sakura charging in his direction, knocking him to the ground.
"What in the hell? You sure are eager to see me." Hiruto smirked up at her.
"Shut up! I was trying to get your attention," she said with a flush as she pushed herself off of the winded boy.
"By breaking down my door?" he asked as she lifted him off of the ground. She motioned for him to sit on the couch that occupied the main part of the room and he happily obliged.
"I came here because Lady Tsunade has a dilemma that concerns you," Sakura started, furrowing her brow as she spoke.
"And?"
"There are actually a few things that you will have to go through. You will have to renounce your loyalty to Suna, and swear your allegiance to Konoha." He jumped a little at this, but she looked him in the eye, warning him to stay quiet, and continued, "You will also be asked to select a team to join, considering that there are no free spaces at the moment. There are a total of three teams that you will be able to choose from. They will be at Lady Hokage's office at two in the afternoon. That is where you will swear allegiance and join a team. It is my duty to make sure that you are there, even if I have to take you kicking and screaming," she added, raising her voice a little to make sure he heard her and understood the severity of it all. He simply nodded, thinking it through in his head. His master must have known of this beforehand.
"Okay. Let's go!" He replied with a wide smile on his face. He figured if Konoha had this type of ceremony then he could do the same in Suna when the whole ordeal was over. He glanced at the clock. It was noon already, he would have to hurry up with lunch and get to the Hokage's office as soon as possible.
Sakura winced at his feigned excitement. He was a terrible actor. It was obvious that he was torn by this new decision, he would have to give up the last part of him that clung to his home; he would have to give up his allegiance to Suna.
The process was long and boring. Multiple yawns were heard throughout the small group of people that crowded the office. As the ceremony neared an end, Hiruto was asked something he wasn't quite comfortable with.
"Do you swear to protect Konoha throughout all times of war?"
"Yes."
"Do you swear to fight on the side of Konoha throughout all warfare, with no hesitation to kill to protect your fellow citizens of Konoha?"
"Yes."
"Do you swear to fight against the ninja of your former homeland?"
Hiruto hesitated, and the whole room seemed to awake. Tsunade repeated the question, and was once again met with silence. She was now angry at the boy's unknowing disrespect of her village.
Sakura rushed up to him and whispered in his ear, "Gaara knew about this. We are allies and he won't attack us. Just answer." With that, she backed away.
"Yes."
"Very good. Now you will have to choose a group out of the three in front of you." Hiruto turned his gaze to them. The first team consisted of a large boy that was eating out of a bag of chips at the time, an arrogant looking blonde, a brunette that was currently asleep, and a large man with a lit cigarette in his mouth. Not wanting to become a part of the group, he switched his view to that of a mysterious boy with black sunglasses, another scruffy looking boy with a dog, a small pale girl with feauterless white eyes, and a tall woman that looked at Hiruto sympathetically. Hiruto was about to give in and choose them when he noticed a man and his student; both had short black hair and were wearing a green jump suit. A girl with her brown hair pulled up into two buns stood silently beside her master and peer. It was obvious to him that the best choice would be the team led by the tall, beautiful, women until a pair of ivory eyes that were identical to that of the shy girl's, caught his. He looked over the lithe figure of the boy and instantly, without adding much thought to it, stated ,"That one."
Noticing the direction that Hiruto was staring in, Tsunade nodded, grunted, and began filing the paperwork necessary..
"Okay then. Sakura, please take Hiruto back to his apartment now."
"Yes, Lady Tsunade!" The two stood there for a short while as the people slowly filed out, chatting about things ranging from him, to where to go to eat. They were about to take their leave when Neji walked past them out the door, glaring at the boy for a second before leaving.
"Why'd you choose Team Gai? I was positive that you were going to choose Kurenai and her team."
"I… They looked like a well trained team is all."
"They are one of the best in the village. But I have a feeling that isn't the only reason you chose them, is it?" she stated as she smiled at him slyly.
"W-what? I haven't the slightest clue what you are talking about," he stuttered out his reply a bit too quickly. What did she know? Sakura stared at him long and hard, loving the way she could make him sweat.
"We all saw the way you stared at Neji. I'm suprised you didn't ask for him giftwrapped and delivered straight to your room." He blushed at this. She apparently knew more about him than he had originally thought, but if it had been that obvious, the others must have seen. He was instantly mortified. He held his face in his hands as Sakura smirked at him lightly.
"Is that why he was glaring at me?"
"Well, I'm pretty sure he just wasn't happy to have to meet another person, he's a bit anti-social," The two stopped at Hiruto's door, and exchanged smiles.
"Would you like to come in?"