I forgot to post this lmao
Still working on later chapters, and tbh this little filler isn't the best. I just wanted something to show the shitty teamwork team 7 currently has, as well as how Kakashi isn't completely oblivious. I'm having a little bit of writer's block for this story rn, but hopefully I'll post the next chapter either by the end of this week, or sometime next week.
"This is Cherry Blossom. I'm in position,"
"What about you, Hawk?"
"I'm here,"
"And Fox?"
Naruto winced as the ear bud crackled in his ear. Even at the lowest volume setting, the stupid device was loud enough to cause his sensitive ears mild discomfort.
"Here," he replied, resisting the urge to rearrange the irritating ear piece.
"Alright, on the count of three…one…two…," Kakashi whispered. "Three."
Naruto leapt toward the object of the retrieval mission he and his team were on: Tora the Cat. Said cat sped away as the three Genin ran after it, hot on its tail. Their ambush plan had failed, just like it had the first couple of attempts. Now they were left to just chase after the cat and hope for the best. Maybe even plan yet another ambush.
"Naruto, Sakura. We're splitting up," Sasuke said, leaving his teammates without waiting for an answer. Same tactic as last time…
So impatient, Kyuubi grumbled. Naruto silently agreed.
Sakura did the same shortly after, leaving Naruto to sigh and looked ahead toward the cat he was chasing. It hadn't been too long of a chase, only forty minutes had passed since the start of the mission, but he was already tired of this and wished the cat would just give up on trying to get away from them. One way or another, they would eventually capture it.
Naruto growled in annoyance, speeding up. Hopefully the cat would also speed up and quickly run right into his teammates' waiting hands. Unfortunately for him, the cat suddenly made a U-turn and began to sprint toward him. Startled, he was unable to move fast enough to swat the cat away as it leapt up and sunk its claws into his chest.
A strangled snarl left the boy's throat as he tore the cat off of him. The cat dangled limply in his grip as he glared darkly at it. Its ears were now flat against its head, pupils dilated and tail close to its body. He could easily snap its neck if he just –
Twigs snapped behind him and Naruto quickly schooled his face back into a casual expression before turning around. How could I be thinking of something like that?! He screamed at himself, all of his irritation draining away in favor of self-loathing.
The blond saw both his sensei and team walking toward him. A sigh of relief escaped him as he realized they hadn't seen his lapse in stability. He thought he caught Kakashi giving him a strange glance, but it was gone before he could really think about it.
"Good job, team," the man praised, and Naruto saw him briefly stare at the still cowering cat in the blonde's hand.
Sakura, however, glared at Naruto. "You were supposed to chase it toward us!"
"I tried. It turned around and tried to attack me," Naruto replied, though Sakura's expression didn't change much. He wouldn't admit it, but it hurt that neither she nor Sasuke even considered him to be a decent teammate, no matter how much effort he put forth. Their prejudice toward him was hard to dissolve, he found.
Kakashi interrupted the group, saying that it was time for them to return the cat. As they walked, Naruto realized that the sounds of scuttling animals that had filled the forest earlier were strangely absent. He felt it to be fitting.
