Hey, guys! I'm pleased to be back to writing another GaaSaku story for you and hopefully, I'll be making more sometime in the future!
Anyways, please read review! :)
It was 10:00 am in the morning where the leaf squad was currently traveling over the sea on the way to their destination. They were all segregated in different spots of the huge boat. Some of the teammates were leaning against the deck railing, sightseeing the mesmerizing view of the blue, aquatic ocean. The others were sitting on top of the barrels, chatting amongst themselves.
"Whoo! This is definitely going to be the best trip ever!" Kiba cheered out loud with enthusiasm. His well-grown dog, Akamaru, barked in agreement.
"Yeah! I couldn't agree more on that!" Lee pumped his fists up in the air.
"It sure seems so nice out here. The food here does taste good," Choji mumbled while he was munching on the chips hungrily.
"There's no waiter or waitresses around who serves a bag of salty potato chips. You brought those stuff along with you, remember?" Ino rolled her eyes at him in annoyance.
"Anyway, guys. We should arrive at exactly 12:00 noon. We'll miss our lunchtime," Shino reminded.
"Right. A few of us have to catch some fishes while one of us have to start lighting a bonfire," Shikamaru said thoughtfully and asked. "Any volunteers?"
"Wait. But where's Naruto and Sakura?" Lee asked blankly.
"What are they discussing about?" Tenten wondered curiously.
"I don't know," Ino shrugged with a frown.
Hinata stared off into space and thought. "Naruto..."
On the other hand, the two close friends were leaning against the wooden railing while enjoying the fresh, breezy air hitting across their faces.
"This is so nice," Sakura sighed in relief.
"Yeah. I never expect that our squad would agree to have a vacation together," Naruto said smiling warmly at the view of the sea and continued on. "It just sucks that Sasuke is not here to spend time with us. I miss the good old days."
"Me too," the pink-haired kunoichi replied softly as her eyes were glistening in sadness at the thought of him.
"Do you remember the time when the three of us were trying to uncover Kakashi's real hidden face?" The blonde-haired ninja asked chuckling.
"Oh, gosh. That really ticked me off a little because even if he tries to remove it, he still has another mask covered on," the pink-haired kunoichi started giggling.
"So classic," Naruto shook his head with a smirk on his face.
"Well, I can't say that our first test on getting the two bells from sensei is definitely a smooth challenge," Sakura stated with her lips curled up.
"You passed out from thinking that Sasuke's head was disintegrated from the ground," the blonde-haired ninja laughed hysterically.
The pink-haired kunoichi nudged her elbow towards his playfully and said, trying to stifle a laughter. "Shut up."
"You know, it's true," Naruto said chuckling and tries to avoid her little punches away from him.
"Having fun, kids?" A familiar voice spoke out near the distance.
Both of them glanced over their shoulders to see who it is.
"Shikamaru," the pink-haired kunoichi called out gladly and asked. "What is it? Is everyone alright?"
"Yeah. We've made a few suggestions to see who would like to volunteer to catch some fishes," he noted as he rubbed his hair at the back of his head.
"I'll do it," Naruto exclaimed with a nod.
"Alright, then. What about you, Sakura?" Shikamaru asked when he glanced at her direction.
"I'll cook food with the girls," the pink-haired kunoichi replied with a smile.
"Good. Now, that's settled. Let's get fishing," the leader smirked as they started to walk back to meet up with the rest of the group.
Later on, they gathered themselves in a circle while they were eating grilled seafood with white rice hungrily. One of them decided to speak out gladly.
"Hmmm. Man, these are definitely the best," Kiba grinned as well as Akamaru barking in response.
"Yeah. Sakura, you really do have amazing cooking skills," Lee said cheerily as his eyes burned with passion and continued on. "A natural, gifted one, I must say."
"Can you make more?" Choji asked desperately.
"Awww, guys. Come on, the girls also helped too," the pink-haired kunoichi laughed nervously with a grin.
"Yeah. Don't neglect us like that, boys," Ino huffed as she rolled her eyes at them.
"Sheesh. And to think that we are not a very good cook, you guys should be ashamed of yourselves," Tenten pouted with a sigh.
"We are not underestimating you. Of course, we will compliment you one by one. You all have a different set of skills when it comes to cooking, so don't take this the harsh way," Shikamaru pointed out as he chuckled slightly.
"Exactly," Choji nodded in agreement.
"Hey, Naruto. Once we get to the island, you and I can go sparring. One on one. How about that?" Kiba asked excitingly.
The blonde-haired ninja finished chewing the fish, then he swallows it and answered with an encouraging smile. "Sure. That would be great. Man, I miss training with you guys when we were kids. Now, I want to see how we can all fight later."
"Yup. I'm certain that one of us will win," Kiba said chuckling proudly.
"If you say so. Wait until you see my new Rasengan technique," Naruto flexed his right muscle arm with confidence, much to the others' cheering.
"Huh. Well, I also developed a new ninjutsu," Kiba pointed out with his eyes closed.
"Pfft. No, you haven't. It's usually the same old ones you use," Tenten rolled her eyes in annoyance and started giggling with the other girls.
Kiba blushed in embarrassment and defended himself, saying. "I swear I have not. Trust me, you'll see when Naruto and I begin our fight."
"Anyway, do you guys know what kind of island we're heading to?" Choji asked curiously.
"Tsunade told me that it's mostly called an Aquatic Fantasia. There are not many monsters, beasts, or forest creatures lurking around the area. However, this does not mean that we are having a lot of extra fun. We must guard ourselves securely from any danger at all times," Shikamaru informed the group sternly and continued on. "If there's any unusual stuff or magic spells being cast on one of our teammates, report to me immediately. Other than that, if you are capable of handling it yourselves in. Then, please listen carefully to my instructions."
Everyone in the circle was looking at their jounin leader more focused. They were waiting for him to tell them what they need in case of harm's way.
About half an hour, they had arrived at the island when the boat stopped near the wooden deck. They began to carry their backpacks and other camping equipment on their shoulders as they walked down the borders of the ship. A few of the young shinobi decided to jump down instead and glanced over the front view of the island.
"Ahh. We've finally made it. If Guy-sensei was here, he and I will absolutely enjoy working out and improve our abilities," Lee noted as he raised both of his arms up.
"Hm. I agree, which reminds me... We can run and practice climbing the trees with our feet only," Naruto nodded in agreement with a wide grin.
"Using too much chakra is not always a good idea when there may be a hidden enemy at a place like this," Neji stated with his arms crossed.
"He's right, you know," Tenten sighed and puts her hands on her hip. "We have to stay as a group. But Shikamaru might instruct all of us to be in a group of four."
"He'll tell us on the way to the camping area, so I suppose we should all get going," Shino said, pushing his sunglasses up towards the bridge of his nose.
"Whoever reaches the spot wins," Naruto declared out loud.
"Got it!" Lee followed along as they both were running fast as quickly as possible, leaving the others in surprise.
"Jeez. Don't tell me those two are the resemblance of Guy-sensei and Kakashi-sensei," Ino muttered in annoyance.
"You bet," Sakura said chuckling in amusement at the sight of the two hyperactive ninjas. "What do you know? It's a vacation after all, but I guess we really need to keep an eye on them."
"Right. Hey, umm. Do you know if there is a washroom I can use?" Hinata asked shyly.
"Why? What's wrong?" Sakura asked blankly.
"Well, you know. It's my time of the month," Hinata whispered quietly.
"Ahh... Don't worry, I got you. I'll give you the pads later," Ino patted her lightly with a grin.
"Pads? What are those?" Kiba asked curiously behind them.
The girls had their eyes wide open in shock as they turned over their backs to look at him.
"Hey! Don't you dare make a joke about that or I'll transfer your mind somewhere else," Ino argued heatedly.
"Yo. Chill! I was only asking. But I guess you don't need to tell me, then if it's a girly stuff, I assume," Kiba said rolling his eyes carelessly and walks ahead of them, whereas Akamaru catches up along with him.
During the afternoon, the leaf squad stopped by the camping site area and began to set up their tents and prepare the protective barriers around them, which automatically alarms them if there was any sign of enemies coming to attack them.
"Alright, so we're good?" Shikamaru asked smirking.
"Yeah," everyone replied in unison.
"What's the schedule for today?" Ino chirped in a question.
"We will be doing warm-up exercises for thirty minutes and play volleyball down at the beach. It is only a few blocks away, but it is still closest to us. Aside from that, we are still training and practicing our skills to improve ourselves as a shinobi. That's what Lady Tsunade had informed me about. Don't forget or else, she'll give you extra beats of her fists," Shikamaru concluded smirking at them in amusement.
"Haha. Better watch out, boys," Tenten commented and stuck her tongue out in a silly way.
"Pfft. Us? I beg your pardon, but she can also give you bitch slaps on the face as well," Kiba snorted until one of a medium metal spike balls almost hit him on the side. "Whoa! Calm down, I was only kidding."
"Ugh," Tenten rolled her eyes carelessly.
"Wait, so we are mostly just training here on this island? I thought this was a vacation for a second. Sheesh. I did not expect so much from this," Ino said sighing in disappointment.
"As I said, we can still play sports or go around to explore new areas that we don't know here," Shikamaru reminded carefully.
"Hey, why don't we vote for two options: those in favor of playing volley ball, raise your hand," Naruto interrogated as bumped up his fist in the air confidently.
"Me!" Choji, Ino, Tenten declared out loud with excitement.
"I guess it's not so bad to enjoy a sport. Although, I'll join since there are only three people," Shino said thoughtfully.
"Okay. And those in favor of practical training, raise your hand," the blonde-haired ninja asked grinning.
"Me!" Sakura, Kiba, Lee, and Hinata declared out loud.
"Hm. That's a pretty even for all," Shikamaru nodded impressively and continued on with a smile. "So I guess this means Naruto, Neji, and I will be in charge of this whole place."
"Yup. You betcha!" The blonde-haired ninja chuckled in contentment.
"Ah, wow. For some reason, you really have grown," Sakura noticed as she stared at her best friend dearly.
"Yeah, Naruto. You really did go through some stuff with the old man, Jiraiya. Aww, man, you're so lucky though. Even you, Sakura. Practice sparring with Lady Tsunade," Tenten frowned, yet managed to smile at the same time.
"Well, we both have those similar qualities and I don't know how. But really, I guess they found the kind of people that reflects them entirely," Sakura explained.
"Hmm. Agreed," Tenten nodded with a warm smile.
"Alright, then. Now, what are we waiting for? Be prepared and let's go," Shikamaru noted as he and his two teammates were heading out in separation to ensure the island's safety.
"Okay, see you guys later!" Ino waved a gesture at them.
"Yeah, don't break a leg," Tenten called out, which made Neji smile at her.
"Later, Shikamaru!" Choji made a peace sign at him.
"We'll be back around evening. So save us some lunch, will ya?" The blonde-haired ninja said grinning at them.
The pink-haired kunoichi was looking at Naruto and said. "Please, be careful on the way out."
"Of course, Sakura. Don't worry," he replied back with reassurance and the three ninjas soon left the scene.
"Okay, everyone. Let's head to the beach," Sakura informed happily.
"Yeah!" The boys and girls screamed joyfully in unison.
They are looking forward to the day they will spend time their time together and this was their moment. Although, one thing they didn't know is that some people are watching them very closely.
"I did not know how big group they are, hmm. Guess I better prepare my clay art bombs now, yeah," one of the Akatsuki members ranted with a curt nod.
"Shhh! Hey, lower your voice down, Deidara or else, they will hear us. You can't create explosions at this point," the white Zetsu hissed quietly in a warning.
"But come on, they are out in the open, hmm," he stated thoughtfully.
"Ah... Guys, did you even listen to what I've said before? Stick to the plan and quit bickering. Remember, Sakura is our main target and we need to wait and act fast. Got it?" The mysterious girl said sternly.
"Yes, ma'am," the two of her allies replied back.
"Okay, good. I may not be part of the Akatsuki. But since the leader considered me, I may as well do something for the organization," she explained with a sigh.
"And that is what?" The white Zetsu asked curiously with a grin.
"Hm. You'll find out once we capture her," the mysterious girl said chuckling wickedly at the sight of the pink-haired kunoichi and her friends and continued on. "And then... erase her entire existence that nobody will ever remember a single thing about her."
With that said, the three of them suddenly vanished in a flash without leaving any traces behind. Nobody can see them nor hear them from a far distance.
Meanwhile, Naruto stood in the middle of the forest and began to summon a toad immediately, which appeared in a small puff of smoke in front of him.
"Hey, what's up?" The toad greeted with his lips curled upward.
Naruto squinted his eyes in annoyance and cried out in frustration. "Ahhh! Not you, again. I was going to summon Gamabunta about the current situation."
"Gee. Thanks, Naruto. Well, he's not available right now, so don't complain. I'm here to help and tell me all about it," the toad questioned.
"Listen, Shikamaru told me that there may be something strange about this island. It's impossible that there are no enemies hiding, don't you think?" The blonde-haired ninja speculated.
"Definitely. Looks like you guys are investigating and searching for clues. Where are the others? Sakura?" The toad asked blankly.
"She's with them, apparently. She's practicing her training," the blonde-haired ninja answered with a smile.
"Ah. I see. So what do you need help on, exactly?" The toad asked.
"Okay, but we can walk around, making sure everything is safe. It totally gives me a different feeling about this. I can't even explain it," Naruto said wondering. Then, they began to patrol around the area that they were in.
On the other side of the forest, Neji was standing with his eyes closed and exclaimed in mind. "Byakugan!"
His white eyes popped open with tiny little veins around the lids as he was roaming deeply into the trees, but could not find any person. However, his gut instincts were telling him contrarily.
"That's strange. Why can't I see someone, but can feel them? What's going on?" He questioned in suspicion.
Somewhere along the beach shore, the messenger hawk came across the sky and flew towards where Shikamaru is spotted.
He lends out his arm as the hawk rested upon him and pulled out the message scroll from its clutch, then reads:
"To the Leaf squad,
We've just discovered that the island is not a good place for you to wander around. But since you guys already arrived, I will give you two days. So I advise each and every one of you to get out of there as soon as possible. Apparently, you may not clearly see that there are a few enemies hiding there for some reason. They're three of them on the loose. There is a danger coming in your way if you decided to stay more than two or three days. Be careful on the way out.
From Your 5th Hokage, Lady Tsunade"
"Damn. This is bad," Shikamaru muttered firmly and kept the scroll in his pocket. He ran back to go find Naruto and Neji as soon as possible.
Shino and the others had been playing volleyball in the beach, whereas Sakura and the rest of the group were practicing their training.
One of them was serving the ball and passing it to each other until one of the teams score higher than the other one.
"Awww, darn it. You guys are better at this, eh. I'm hungry," Choji pouted with a sad expression.
"Oh, come on, Choji. Lighten up. Don't give up on this. We'll win against them," Ino glanced at her right, smirking.
"Are you sure about that? Because the game is going to be over soon," Tenten said giggling.
"Huh? No. This is only the first round. Don't think highly of yourself, Tenten. You may not like on who I'm about to spike on," Ino smirked nastily.
"Really? Excuse you, But I've been well trained with sports and it's not like you are so expert at it if you haven't been working most of the days at the Flower Shop," Tenten remarked.
"Like you would know what I'm doing with my life," Ino said sarcastically.
"Ladies, if you don't start, then Choji and I might as well give up playing," Shino stated.
Ino and Tenten looked at him and replied back. "Right."
"Okay, I'll start," Ino said as she was aiming towards them at the slightest angle correctly.
Kiba yawned tiredly and was sitting and resting down on the sand with Akamaru. "That seems fun. I might as well join them later. Too exhausted right now."
"You should at least not use too much chakra," Hinata said.
"If you are resting, I'll continue to do my workout routine. I'll complete my 300 push-ups," Lee stated with enthusiasm.
"How is that even possible?" Kiba asked in disbelief.
"Guy-sensei has trained me a lot. He encourages me to push over the limits and go beyond," Lee said as he was doing push-ups.
"But you'll pass out. It's too risky and Sakura will not be happy about it," Hinata pointed out in concern.
"Don't worry, I promise her that I wouldn't overdo it," Lee recalled back as he watches admiringly her practice her physical combats.
Kiba was looking at them in curiosity and started to tease him. "Ooh. You are so in love with her."
"Quiet! She might hear you!"Lee shushed him when his cheeks tinged in pink.
Hinata was giggling with her hand in amusement at the silliness between Kiba and Lee. She couldn't help but smile genuinely at the boys and looked at Sakura in thought. "You're so lucky that there are a few people who are looking up to you, especially Naruto. He notices you everything about you. I'm jealous of you, you know."
"Heads up!" Ino called out loud.
"Huh," Hinata turned around to see what was happening until the volleyball hit her on the head. She squealed in shock and rubbed her head comfortingly.
Kiba caught the ball in surprise and decided to make a decision. Akamaru, on the other hand, was only resting on the sand, panting his tongue out.
"Oh sorry, Hinata!" Ino apologized and asked worriedly. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied with a reassuring smile.
"Hey, Ino. Can I join with you, guys? I'm starting to feel a little energized now," Kiba asked as he jogged up towards them and hand in the volleyball to her.
"Yeah, but we need another team member, so it'll be three against three," she instructed with her fingers.
"I see. In that case, I'll try," Lee said grinning as his teeth sparkled like a bright light.
"Alrighty, let's do it!" Kiba shouted.
"Okay, it's on," Ino declared with a smile. The teams began the second round as Kiba was the first one to serve the ball inthe right direction against the others.
Hinata sighed and looked at the sky peacefully as always. She drew her attention away from them and continued to focus more on her training by meditating first before she releases her blue chakra.
The flames began to appear on both of her hands intensely as she started fighting physically in combat.
Sakura also had her hands clasped together, unleashing green chakra as a way to improve her healing skills. She has her eyes closed for a moment to concentrate as her power began to expand and her aura was beginning to change into a shade of bright green, amplifying her surroundings, much to everyone's startlement.
"Woohoo! Way to go, Sakura!" Lee cheered on.
"Hm. Never fails to amaze me," Ino said smiling at her doing the progress work in her training.
Suddenly, the pink-haired kunoichi opened her eyes in disturbance when an anonymous force was shaking uncontrollably inside her body. Then, she slowly collapsed down as her head lay on the sand. A small blood drip down from her mouth and coughed with her eyes closed.
Everyone was shocked as they witnessed what had happened to her and some of them cried out her name in panic. "SAKURA!"
Naruto, Neji, and Shikamaru arrived at the scene and their eyes widened at the sight of Sakura's unconscious state where the group was gathered around the circle.
"Sakura!" The blonde-haired ninja was running toward her and found Hinata checking her pulses. "What happened? Is she okay?!"
"I don't know. She quickly passed out for no reason," Hinata answered sadly.
"Guys, listen up. I need your attention. Hinata, do what you can to wake Sakura up. I will tell you and I need you to follow my instructions," Shikamaru said sternly with his hands on his hips and continued on. "Recently, I've come across to read the message from Lady Tsunade. She told me that this place is not good and we need to leave off this island before three days. I know this sucks because this place is called Aquatic Fantasia, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it's a safe vacation to lay out here. We can only stay for only two days. That's all. We don't know what kind of enemies we might be facing. All that I know is that those enemies are from the Akatsuki."
Naruto and the others were stunned to hear the news and they knew what was coming for them.
"I knew it!" Kiba pointed out.
"But what are they planning? What do they want?" The blonde-haired ninja asked suspiciously and continued on. "Who are they targeting?"
"We do not know for sure. One thing I know is that after the Kazekage kidnapping incident, it is most likely that they may be chasing after you or someone else in this group," Shikamaru analyzed at the possibilities that may occur sometime.
"Hm... That is strange. I did have a bad feeling about it when I could never see any sudden traces or signs around the forest. They are definitely in hiding as of now," Neji said correctly.
"Damn. So that means what, they're going to kill us?" Choji guessed firmly.
"Well, I kind of figured that this is going to happen. However, what about Sakura? She just lost consciousness," Lee said worriedly when he glanced at her way while Hinata was taking care of her.
"What's going on? Are they targeting me next?" The blonde-haired ninja questioned himself in mind.
Naruto and the rest of the group were looking at her and began to wonder what on earth did actually happened. They have no specific evidence, except Lady Tsunade and the councilors.
TO BE CONTINUED...