Chapter 3: Katami
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Disclaimer: yadda yadda yadda I OWN EVERYTHING...or at least I would if I had all the money in the world.
But since I don't lets just keep on with the assumption that I own hardly anything at all, and that one of the
things I don't own is Naruto. However I do own a really crappy car.
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Tsunade stood near the memorial stone, eyes glazen as she read over each and every name, a tear falling each time she read the name of someone she'd known. There were so many. Far too many.
Prominant among those were Sarutobi-sensei, Dan, her dear little brother, and the two newest additions, Genma and Iruka.
Truth be told, it was the latter of the pair's death that had seen a huge drop in the moral of Konoha.
Iruka, the youthful and ever smiling chounin. Iruka who'd befriended every student he taught. Iruka who'd held the hearts of every kunoichi in the academy and had continued on being the object of teacher-crush for students well on into genin and chounin ranks.
Iruka who'd fallen in love with Shizune.
Iruka who'd been Naruto's first and fastest friend.
The Godiame Hokage let her head fall forwards, pigtails clinging to her back as she stood silently in the rain, fists clenched.
Damn Orochimaru!
Damn Atakutsi!
Damn Uchiha!
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One Year Prior
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"Hokage-sama!" Genma burst into the council meeting, sweat dripping down his face as he ran to her side. "We're being attacked!"
The sudden uproar of councilors doing what they did best - argue - drowned out Tsunade's voice until she put her fist through the ornate, solid oak desk infront of her and sent her best 'Shut up now before this happens to your skull' glare to the others in the room.
"Now," she said a little breathlessly, still enraged at the councilors, to the terrified jounin before her. "who is it and what is our status?"
"It looks like Cloud and Stone nin attacking the south, east, and west gates." Genma held out a messy scrap of paper, written in scrawling code. "ANBU squad Iwa spotted them early, but were overpowered by enemy ANBU teams, one managed to make it back with this message."
Shizune stepped forwards and took the paper, eyes widening and she read.
"What does it say?" One of the counsilors asked in a demanding voice, but was silenced by a look from Tsunade.
"Iwa reports three mixed batallions of Cloud and Stone nin, as well as what appears to be a small unit of Samaurai and another of civillian soldiers." Tsunade's apprentice read outloud.
The room was near sickeningly silent. Genma was hopping from foot to foot from the tension and Tsunade waved a hand at him. "Give the order to evacuate the civillians to the bunkers." She said in dismissal and the Jounin disappeared in a poof of smoke.
"Councilors I suggest you get to the bunkers right away with your families." She turned her back on them in dismissal and faced Shizune, taking the paper away from her assistant. "Send out whatever message birds we can to our allies and recall all teams to Konoha."
The young woman nodded with a quick "Hai" and sprinted out of the room, lingering council members getting out of her way as she charged through. Tsunade watched her leave briefly before turning to look out her window. Already she could spot the signs of combat, smoke rising and the blurs of movement as countless shinobis raced across the rooftops to join the fight and defend their city.
Before leaving for the hospital where she would, undoubtedly, be needed, the Fifth Hokage of Konoha looked down at the note written in Rock Lee's handwritting. Genma had said that Iwa was overpowered and only one made it back... did that mean Iwa, Konoha's secondmost elite ANBU team was gone?
The paper crumpled in her clenched fist as she cursed the day she ever took this job.
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Yes, I know, its short, but its 3 am and I have a class at 7 so suck it up and wait for the next chapter... ;)
R&R and continue with the suggestions.
Ta,
Kana