The years passed quickly. The ninja known as Kazuhiko Rukawa soon became good friends with Uchiha Sasuke, who was now at genin level. The two graduated into Team seven with Naruto and Sakura. That was one more than the normal group. This was how Umino Iruka explained it, "Since the number of you who passed was thiry seven, there had to be a team with four people. Why team seven? It was a random pick, and several senseis. Including the hokage, felt that we needed at least two top students to balance out the deadlast Naruto in the team."
The real reason, however, was because the board of new jounin agreed that the bond and teamwork between Rukawa and Sasuke was phenomenal, and the two of them executed moves which even Kakashi had not seen when Itachi and Kenji were activated. Also, Kakashi pointed out that Naruto had to be on the team because Rukawa and Sasuke did not seem to hate the blondie as much as the others. The Hokage felt that putting Sakura on the team would antagonize Sasuke and Naruto sadistically, and that the lovey-dovey kunoichi had to set her priorities straight.
So, Team seven waited patiently with increasing agitation for their new mentor. Sasuke was sitting, resting his chin on one hand as he talked to Rukawa, who was on the table. Sakura and Naruto were squabling with crap when a ninja walked in, sidestepping a duster that had fallen from the sky. Sasuke turned around and asked, "Why the heck is it you?"
Itachi ignored his brother, and picked up the eraser duster, a sinister expression on his face. "Ninja lesson one. Don't irritate your mentor, especially not with a duster. After all, I could order you to do ten missions a day."
As he spat the last word, Itachi's hand flew back, the duster nailing the wall three-quarters through. By this time, Naruto and Sakura's knees were jelly, their minds racing with excuses.
"Then again, I am your jounin instructor, Uchiha Itachi. Let's get on with the introductions. Your likes, your dislikes, dreams, and stuffs. You, Uzumaki, can start."
By this time, Naruto's eyes had fired up into a shiny cerulean blue. He popped onto the desk and proclaimed, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto! I like ramen, expecially Miso ramen, and especially, especially ramen from Ichiraku Ramen, more so if its Miso ramen! I dislike waiting for my cup ramen to heat up. My dream is to become the hokage one day, and make everyone acknowledge me!"
Itachi leaned back, his face kept passive. So that's how it is with you, Naruto? Hmmm… Haruno Sakura. A girl obsessed with my brother with a dislike for Naruto who has a crush on her. Shit. I really need to set her priorities straight.
Then it came to Rukawa, who leaned back almost nonchalantly. Sakura giggled a bit. "I am Kazuhiko Rukawa. I like, and I dislike. I have ambitions and dreams. Yeah. That's about it."
Itachi pointed at Sasuke, who said seriously, "I have few likes, plenty of dislikes, and I have an ambition to revive my clan…"
Same as I have. No surprises there.
"And to surpass my brother," Sasuke said to Itachi. Even with Naruto's dim witted brain and Sakura's muddled intelligence quantity, they saw immediately that even though they loved each other, their sensei would not be biased towards his younger brother. Suddenly, Itachi snickered evilly and answered Naruto's angry question, "This is gonna really freak you kids out. We'll be having a survival training program tomorrow. It's more of a test. The passing average each year is pretty damn low. Only three teams or less pass each year. Be at the tenth training field by tomorrow at five. And don't eat your breakfast. You might puke."
Itachi continued to cackle madly as he disappeared in a puff of devil red smoke, which he had dropped a haze ball to release it. It had its instant effects of creepiness.
Sasuke slammed his bowl once he had finished furiously wolfing down its contents. Frustrations had welled up inside once Itachi had stepped into the classroom. Now, he was merely a brother, not a ninja, who had gonce through the limits of anger management. He had the right to be angry.
So, he furiously shouted at his brother who coldly scrutinised him behind his bowl, "Dammit! How come you are our sensei? Aren't you suppose to take the role of an ANBU commander after that Yunami-Hayute solo mission?"
"No, ototo, if that's what that pig headed Anko has been trying to tell you. That was merely a mission to confirm that I was mature enough to handle the responsibility of becoming a jounin. I've been considering it for some time, and Konoha needs more jounin ninjas anyway. I can be reactivated anytime. Me being in your team was a total coincidence, really. Its just that Asuma wanted to undertake my three-woman team, pervert style."
Sasuke sweat dropped as he quickly washed his bowl and returned to his room in embaressment. Behind his door, Sasuke heard his brother shout after him, "And I'll know if you ate breakfast, prick head!"
The next morning, Sasuke woke to find his alarm clock lagging by fifteen minutes. Dashing into his brother's and Rukawa's room, he found that both were gone. Dammit! Itachi's really serious about this survival test. Even Rukawa's worried for a bit! Changing out of his pyjamas, Sasuke grabbed his weapon's holster before running for Traonong Field Ten.
Team Seven met in front of a large granite stone piece. Naruto was awake and screaming about his fanatical desires, Sakura was half asleep, and Sasuke was awake and watching on high alert. Rukawa? He was sitting on one of the upright logs, twirling a kunai.
Thirty minutes later, Itachi walked onto the training ground. The moon was still a bright cresent hanging onto the sky, its coat of darkness forcing the rays of pink sunlight away. Itachi set the alarm clock in his hand for ten a.m., and said, "Morning. The rules are… no rules. All you have to get are these three bells and come at me with killing intent, by ten. If not… we'll get to that later. Sayonara, and good luck. With that, the bunshin/ messenger disappeared with a poof of smoke. Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto turned to leave eagerly, but Rukawa called out for them to follow him into a hollow thirty metres away in a forest of dense shrub.
Naruto, as usual, was loud and surprising. "What the- "
Sasuke clamped his hand on the idiot's mouth, nodding at Rukawa. He did not know what was Rukawa's plan, but he trusted it fully. Obviously, getting the bells would be a pass. Maybe Rukawa wanted to knock the other two out so that both of them could get the bells without interference. Sakura's hands were two her heart, swooning over Sasuke's coolness. Sasuke hushed her, and she hushed in total hushable hushiness. Sasuke was her hush-hush husher now. She would hushily obey his hush.
Rukawa drew a rough map of the training field with the kunai he had toyed with earlier on. Marking the place of where they were, he drew breath and spoke, "There are three bells, so only three of us can pass. But, that is just a decoy for the real thing. Shut up, Naruto. You'll only lead Itachi sensei to us. Sakura, you can stop your girliness, we need those bells. The real objective is teamwork. As long as we fight in tandem and get all the bells, we will pass. If my presumption was wrong, we would still have impressed sensei, gotten the bells, and I would willingly go through another year of boringness with Umino-san. This is the plan."
Itachi was searching the training field chuunin style, in circles slowly closing in on the group. Amazingly, they had evaded him. He had been sure that Uzumaki would have come after him immediately. Suddenly, a grand fireball rushed at him, and Itachi leapt away. So it was Sasuke? Suddenly, a wave of kunai was hurled at his unbalanced body, and Itachi was forced to twist away. Feeling a hand clasp onto his arm, Itachi swung back and punched the kage bunshin. Two other Narutos landed onto of him, covering him with a net weighed down by ball bearings. Itachi made a hand seal.
Rukawa dashed forward, hurling a kunai at the net, freeing the real Naruto where Itachi had replaced his team mate. Leaping back, he and Sasuke engaged Itachi in fast taijutsu combat in combinations that they had practiced almost every day. Kicking Sasuke away, Itachi evaded Rukawa's steal for the bells and retreated five back flips, attacking Sakura this time. Knowing that she would disappear into a log, Itachi turned to the right and hurled a shurken at her, and the bunshin faded away as the shuriken zipped through it. Itachi looked up and hurled three shurken at the descending girl. Turned away to fend of seven Narutos, before catching Sakura's collar with one hand before dissipating the last Naruto doppelganger into the real Naruto, who coughed a wad of blood as Itachi struck him in three places before Sasuke covered the boy with a Housenka Katon Jutsu.
"Pressure blast!" Itachi formed a couple of hand seals before doing away with the fire. To his surprise, kunai tied to explosive tags were hidden in the small fire balls! Before he could leap away, kage bunshins of Naruto and Rukawa pulled him down, chibi vs. giant style. The tags exploded, and Team Seven landed a safe distance away, the four of them posted at four different corners.
Sakura pulled out a kunai, panting heavily, sweat dripping down her chin even though the temperature was cool blue. This was the first time she had done any cool combos with anybody utilising so mayn moves! Her eyelids batted beads of sweat, and she lifted her hand to flick them away, lowering her armed hand. A mistake. In a flash, a blow was handed to her gut, before a hand chopped onto the back of her neck. The last thing she heard till she plummeted to the ground soundlessly was Itachi whispering, "Ninja lesson two. Never let your guard down."
Naruto looked desperately into the haze of thick smoke, hoping Itachi sensei wasn't dead yet. That scary sadist frightened him. Would he ever eat ramen after this? His stomach growled at the thought. His breakfast! He wished that he had hecked sensei's words away and eaten at least an apple. Hearing footsteps behind him, Naruto whirled around. No one was there. Turning back, Naruto saw the shadow of Itachi's face before he felt fingers jammed into his butt. Before he passed out from the pain as he flew into the air, he could still hear the jounin whispering, "Ninja lesson three. Konoha's most powerful taijutsu techinique to any male being: Thousand Years of Pain."
Sasuke was on high alert when Itachi suddenly came at him. Blocking his brother's kick, Itachi's defensive hand suddenly turned around and grabbed Sasuke's leg, before the other prodded a nerve to numb it. Surprised, Sasuke lifted his hands to block the oncoming blow when his brother's elbow jammed into his stomach, pain exploding in a white light before his eyes. Before his eye lids failed to lift anymore, Sasuke saw the disappointment in his brother's eyes. In shame, Sasuke knew that he would never forget that gaze. "Ninja lesson four. In the ninja world, you have two choices. Live free or die."
By the time Sasuke landed heavily on the ground, the smoke residue from the explosion had cleared. Tendrils of pink light barely poked through the blanket of darkness. Itachi turned to face the true opponent. In turn, Rukawa faced his sensei. Team seven had failed his plan. As the captain, he had failed to protect his team mates. It was odd. Rukawa never experienced being in a team before. Now, he was in his own territory. It was a solo mission. Take out the keeper and steal the targets. A large cloud blurred past, shading out the gap of pink light and plunging them into moonlit darkness.
Itachi could smell the strong scent of death again. From the books of his research, Itachi knew that Rukawa had two selves, schizophrenic. One was Aikawa Kazuya broken by Shisui, the other was Kazuhiko Rukawa that he had brought up. Now, he was dealing with Kazuya, bound mentally by Rukawa. A leaf blew past, and based purely on battle instinct, Itachi leapt away from it. True enough, Kazuya had pierced it with a senbon, and on the needle was a small explosion tag attached. Flipping out two long bladed kunai for each hand, Itachi blocked Kazuya's attack, before attacking with the other kunai, aiming for the boy's right shoulder. Kazuya twisted, his foot lashing out. Itachi jerked his kunai before jumping away, pulling a shuriken and hurling it at the kunai. Still in the air, the kunai was powered by the hit from the shuriken, which spun back at Itachi. Kazuya tore the oncoming kunai with his hand from the air, wincing as Itachi cut him with the shuriken. Then, Kazuya disappeared into a form of water. Itachi barely looked as he deflected a blow to his back, and he spun around, his left hand already positioned before his mouth. "Katon! Ryuuka no jutsu!"
The tight beam of fire left his mouth, the was captured by a sphere of water. The Mizu bunshin! The fire soon extinguished, and Itachi held his breath as the fire had used all of the oxygen. Kazuya stood before him, behind the revolving ball of water. His eyes did not gleam with life, his face expressionless. It was a genjutsu! But how to get out of it? Itachi closed his eyes, then opened them again. The Sharingan! The dojutsu soon dispersed the genjutsu. Kazuya took ten steps back, looking as if he was innocently stepping back. But Kazuya never left openings. Itachi, through his Sharingan, saw short needles and inch long flick out of his hand. What was he planning.
"Uchiha Itachi. My genjutsu does not extend to just my eyes." Suddenly, the boy had faded away, and around Itachi was eight coloumns of ten tiny needles embedded onto the ground. Then the needles faded away, and in its place was a glowing yellow line. Itachi was mesmerized by it, the streaks sliding back and forth. Suddenly, the streaks leapt at him, causing everything else to blank out. Itachi desperately evaded the oncoming flashes. This is genjutsu! I need to sense his breath! His presence! But where? I can't keep this up for much longer. Concentrate! Expand your chakra area.
Itachi calmed down, and expanded his radius of chakra, blasting the streaks in a flurry of lit chakra, fire pulsating through the rings. Itachi woke, and saw himself stuck by a senbon in a core nerve. Rukawa was back, holding up three bells. Naruto and Sasuke were supporting Sakura. "We've passed, sensei."
Itachi drew breath as Sasuke pulled out the needle. "Fine, all four of you passed. Though it was all because of Rukawa. Without him, you would have gone your separate ways, seeing the lack of one bell as a hindrance instead of the key to this test. Naruto, you would have come out to me. Sakura, you would have been bedridden at the sight of my ototo. Sasuke, you of all people, should have realised the whole point of this test, instead you saw the other two as weights, instead of pawns on your chessboards. Only Rukawa managed to see the answer, and he managed to band the three of you together. It was a brilliant plan, but the three of you were out of action, and Rukawa had to cover up for you. If this was a real mission, Rukawa would have returned alone, and I would have received a letter telling me that my ototo had died in action… All in all, the plan was pretty well executed.Today's meeting is over."
Shamefacedly, Sasuke hung his head as his brother walked away. He hated the disappointment in Itachi's voice, and the controlled calm hurt him. It would have been better if Aniki had shouted angrily at him, and his remarks stung. Clenching his teeth, Sasuke raised his head, gathering his dignity. He would never let Itachi down, never again.
Itachi collected the brown folder Miura had left on his cluttered desk. He yawned. He wasn't much good at administration anyway. Undoing the twine, he slipped out the stack of papers and signed them. In two weeks, they had already done thirty-seven D-ranked missions and booked the old Cadet Corp training arenas eight times for nine hour intervals. Inking his pen, Itachi scrawled on the last sheet of paper.
"Team Seven has made remarkable progress under my tutorship. They are now confident in chakra molding, and have cleared the modules for walking on walls and water. Their stealth has improved significantly, even though Haruno's and Uzumaki's are still mediocre. Their teamwork has improved."
Chuckling, Itachi slid the stack of papers back into the folder, tied it, and dropped it into Miura's pigeon hole as he exited the office. Warm, pink sunlight was strewn across the stone cobbled street, baby blue mixing with tureens of fluffy clouds. Hawks flew above, in the sky, cawing with dignity and strength, their large wings needed to elevate their muscle-bound bodies. Though merely a flash to the common mortal, Itachi espied jounins and ANBU members dashing to various meeting places. Chuckling, Itachi walked back home, knowing that he would see two sweat drenched figures sparring on the Uchiha district.
Rukawa released the deadlock on Sasuke as he saw Itachi move in. The younger brother had been left like that for every spar over the past thirteen days, still unable to evade that certain attack.
Rukawa had agreed to perfect Sasuke's taijutsu, seeing that ninjutsu and genjutsu would kill him, by using the same kill-move on Sasuke until he knew how to counteract it. Of course, Rukawa did not use the same method of attack, but he used the same end move. So far, this was the third move, and it was one of the basic moves Rukawa had mastered during the early stages of his training. The more Rukawa sparred with Sasuke and Itachi, the more he realised how brutally insane Shisui was as a sensei, and the more he realised how efficient he was as a ninja tool.
Sasuke wiped the sweat on his face with his sleeve, his torso bruised and aching where Rukawa had gutted it. Thanking Rukawa, he turned to Itachi, asking, "Aniki, when are we getting real missions? Like escorting? Protection? Anything? So far the most exciting thing has been nabbing that fat cat, and that was only exciting because it scratched more whiskers into Naruto's face."
Finally. Someone voices their opinions. Heck, even he, Uchiha Itachi, was impatient with the missions of late. Finally. His smile twitching up a notch, he replied, "I'll ask the hokage tomorrow. Come in for dinner. I bought ramen."
"Man. Naruto's really growing off you, isn't he? I mean, we've been eating ramen for lunch ever since we started missions," Sasuke grumbled as he followed a chuckling Rukawa into their house.
As the smell of miso wafted throughout the room, the three ninjas were soon engaged in a conversation.
"Sakura needs to set her priorities straight. Every time I see her, she's bickering with Ino, smelling flowers, or brushing her hair. She's too woozed up with Sasuke. You should see the look on her face when you hush her, Sasuke. Once, I asked her what was wrong, and she dreamily told me how you became some hush-hush hushier which she would hushily obey to her hushiest potential. Oh man. Her eyes were heart-shaped."
"Aw, dam. Rukawa, that really stinks. Then again, she's getting better at our team strategies. I don't think she's self training at all. Her level is still the same where Itachi leaves us at."
"I'll take that into mind, Sasuke. What do you make of Naruto? Rukawa?"
Rukawa slurped in a noodle and replied, "His stealth is very low, and his actions are based on his feelings, not responsibility. Secondly, he pampers Sakura and hates Sasuke. Rivalry should only go so far for a team to function well. His chakra control is horrible, and I think it's got something to do with this seal I saw on his stomach. Naruto needs to learn the basics of being a ninja."
Sasuke nodded his head vigorously. "Naruto does drive me nuts. I agree with everything Rukawa said. Other than that, he is the hole for any mission that any enemy would take advantage of. As team mates, we should cover him. But it's not efficient."
Itachi sighed through his nose. Naruto was the biggest glitch in the team, and Sakura should have been dumped somewhere else. Luckily Rukawa and Sasuke made up for their lousiness. He then picked up his bowl and threw it into the waste bin, and headed straight for his room. Time to sleep.
Behind him, two boys shook their heads, before copying Itachi. Rukawa hopped into the bunk above Sasuke's and threw the blanket over his body, snuggling into his pillow. Sasuke drew the thick, heavy curtains across the window, before falling into his own cot.
The following day, Rukawa swung down from his bed to the floor, called up Sasuke, and they got ready for the day, before joining Itachi in a simple breakfast of packet soba noodles with canned unagi.
They met at the Hokage tower, Naruto and Sakura keen for different reasons. Sakura jumped at the sight of Sasuke, while Naruto jumped at the prospect of an exciting mission. Sasuke rolled his eyes. When would the two ever learn basic intelligence. Nevertheless, he silently stepped into the building, and into the Hokage's administrative office moments later.
The hokage was holding out a D-classified mission when Naruto had an outburst of rage, demanding a more challenging task. The hokage then patiently explained, as if reciting, a long speech of genin-ness. After the long and boring talk, which lasted twenty minutes, Itachi stepped out of his sleep and said, "Hokage-sama, I believe that my team is ready for a C-ranked mission. They have completed their tasks and trainings effeciently, more than other teams, including Maito Gai. I request for a C-classified."
The hokage gave another twenty minute-speech and gave him a scroll. "You will escort our target to Wave country, and will protect him until he finishs building his bridge."
As if on cue, a drunkard burst through the door, the genin manning the door bouncing off his meaty chest. A gourd of cheap wine swung from his neck, and his teeth were different shades of grays and yellows. Even Itachi wrinkled his nose. That was their client?
"Hokage-sama, I've been waiting for the flies to crawl out of my hair. Dammit. I need to return to my work!"
The patient puff from Sarutobi's algum pipe disappeared into the old man's face. He waved his hand dramitically at Team Seven and replied, "This is your protection. Genin leveled ninjas competent to protect you from the gangsters you mentioned in your petition. Their instructor, Uchiha Itachi, is more than capable to defend you."
The old man took a swig off his gourd and retorted, "Well, I hope their as competent as you say, Hokage. After all, the bandits I face could be challenging for these brats. My, even their teacher looks as if you picked him off the street! Isn't there a higher ranking team?"
Uchiha Itachi stepped in coldly, "I would punch you, but then, that's not my job. You called for a C-ranked mission, which is dealt with by genins. It's just a bunch of thugs, isn't it?"
The man took a swig and waved Itachi away, "Whatever kid. Just do your job."
Itachi's eyes narrowed at the old man. You're hiding something.
"Saskue, Rukawa, Naruto, and Sakura. Gather your things. We leave in ten."
Without a word, the four disappeared. Sarutobi nodded in approval. Even Uzumaki was taking his proffesion a little more seriously. The genius Uchiha Itachi could do wonders.
Sakura screamed as Itachi was suddenly ripped to shreds by two chains. They had only been talking! Sasuke spun around, and acknoledged the nod his brother had given him. Leaping into the air after the two ninjas, he hurled two shuriken at them. Raising their metal hands as a defense, Sasuke crashed his leg onto them before kicking one head, and decking the other. Disappearing into water globs, Sasuke landed on the ground, to see Rukawa spearing one with a short sword, in the thigh. The other charged at Tazuna, who was defended quickly by Sakura. Naruto was hurled into a tree, as he was blocking the ninja's way. Sakura's eyes hardened as the masked ninja threw his long chain at her.
Sasuke threw a kunai into the hook at the end of the chain, and it spun the chain into a chain, half dragging the ninja into it. Instinctively, the ninja disodged his arm from his weapon, and flipped into Sasuke, striking him across the face. Flying into the air, Sasuke smirked when his bunshin exploded, throwing the masked shinobi into the tree. In a flash, a thin wire had bound the two attackers to the tree, Itachi holding the string.
Taking a look at the deep gash in Naruto's hand, Itachi nodded to Rukawa, who sheathed the knife. "Rukawa. Interrogate these people for me. Sakura, Tazuna-san. Come. Naruto is hurt."
A slightly flustered Tazuna was accompanied by Sakura, and the foursome went to another part of the clearing, Sakura helping to bandage Naruto's hand. Naruto winced each time her soft hands tightened around his wrist. Itachi shook his head, "Sakura. The Demon Brothers dipped their claws into poison. You should have let the blood flow. Undo the wrap and extract the poison. Kunoichis are the most sucessful of medic nins. Without such basic knowledge of medicine, how can the team be effective?"
Reddening, Sakura gingerly tore the bandage away, then unhooked a clawed senbon from her belt. Naruto winced more now that a metal stick was worming in his wound. Tazuna watched in deep fascination as a dark green liquid oozed out with maroon blood.
"Sasuke, let me handle this interrogation. Please," Rukawa added after Sasuke was about to protest. Nodding, Sasuke stepped back. Rukawa stood infront of the Brothers, his face calm. When he spoke, it was passive, and yet dangerous. Was this the Kazuya Itachi had warned him about?
"Demon Brothers, of the Hidden Mist. Exiles ever since you became followers of Momochi Zabuzza. Your skills are rudimentary. There has been no rain for the past two months. The puddle on the dry ground had tints of unnatural gray; it is a cloudless afternoon. What is your purpose? Who hired you?"
They only sniggered and sneered behind their masks. Then the one with spikier hair spoke. "What do you think you're gonna do, kid? Piss in front of us?"
Kazuya remianed motionless. "What is your purpose? Who hired you?"
The other Brother sneered, "You're only a boy? What rank? Genin?"
"What is your purpose? Who hired you?"
But they only sniggered. Kazuya tried another tack, "I am only Genin, but defeated two chuunin who have been said to be master assasins. I could see no such skill in our brief contact. What is your purpose? Who hired you?"
Their swaggering expressions turned cold, "Don't talk like that to us, boy? We'll kill you."
"Bound by wires and injured. How pratical. What is your purpose? Who hired you?"
The second Demon Brother looked at Sasuke, then back at Rukawa, his eyes laughing. "Who is that? Your brother? A close friend? Heh. What's your name? Rukawa, isn't it? Well, we're gonna take that kid and torture him inches from death, till he hates you with every fibre he has left. Then, we're gonna make you come, powerless, and beat you in front of him. His hate will seep away after a few weeks, and soon his screams for you will be in desperation. Then we'll kill you in front of him, when he's finally mental. How's that?"
Sasuke stepped forward, but that brother was suddenly tied to another tree. Rukawa's kunai was out, and he was whacking the ninja using the ring at the end, drawing blood and gasps of pain. Finally, Rukawa ripped the mask off, crushing it beneath his boot. Tearing out anything covering the man's right hand, Rukawa slammed it into the tree, making splinters pierce the guys hand. Rukawa used the ring to snap the excess leaking out, using the hand as the fulcrum. The Brother screamed in pain. Pushing each bloody finger back into the tree with his own fingers, Rukawa flipped the kunai over and began piercing the tiny gaps between their fingers with inhumane speed, never batting an eyelid. The Brother looked on, horrified, and he pleaded, "Stop it! I'll say anything! Stop it!"
Rukawa tore the worthless shinobi out of his bounds, dug the kunai into the Brother's elbow, and dislodged the arm, from elbow and from shoulder. "Say it!"
Sasuke felt the hairs on his arm stiffen as the pinned Demon Brother cackled, the muscles in his mouth stretching audibly as if scars scabbed his face. His voice was cold, almost maniacal. "You're gonna regret this, Leaf nin. You may have got through us easily, but you'll never get past Zabuzza or his gang. That's for sure. Who hired Zabuzza? A powerful magnate even a dope like you should know. Gatou of the Gatou Corporation. Trade merchant. He hires thousands of thugs. There's no way you'll beat all of them."
Rukawa finally sliced off the man's muscled hand, rendering him to a screaming blob of flesh. The Demon Brother watched as Rukawa grind his severed hand beneath his boot. "You should have realised that the information you gave was quite educational, dimwit. And you should have known I would never have spared your life. As for Zabuzza, he's nothing compared to my powers. As for you, bye."
Sasuke had known that Rukawa majored in quick interrogation, and had perfected all forms of persuasion. He himself had researched on such things. Sasuke had thought that interrogation was performed through the heart. He had been on the verge of breaking the mist nin's neck when they had insulted Itachi. But Rukawa had remained calm, in a deadly sort of way. Were ninjas beasts? Rukawa certainly was one. A cunning beast. Itachi's after word proved Sasuke wrong.
Surveying the damage now slumped on the floor, Itachi nodded to Rukawa, a sure sign of approvement. He said, "Very well done. In this aqquaintance, Sasuke has improved the most. Sakura has performed averagely. Rukawa has executed his mission as efficient as usual. Naruto. I did not expect you to freeze up like that."
Naruto screwed up his face. How was he supposed to know what to do? He whined, "Iruka sensei only trains us the basics. You're supposed to be the one who actually teaches us the real thing. What have you done?"
Itachi folded his arms and replied, "Now you're pushing the blame to me? I've already run you people through a couple of combos that will last you long enough against a jounin or a chuunin. As for real life experiences, that's where the training programmes and these missions come in. You're usually slacking and stuff, which is why even Sakura, who is a total bimbo, has improved more than you, the future hokage. Get a life."
Naruto crossed his arms and looked away. "No."
Itachi spun around. "Shit. Nevermind him. Let's continue. Naruto, follow, take the rear point and keep the look out. To jog your memory, it's the Red Dog defense."
"What a jerk," Sakura shook her head at Naruto. No wonder the others hated him. He was nothing but a-
"Coward," Sasuke said, turning his back on Naruto. Possibly the most hurtful thing for Naruto was to see Rukawa turn away too. Clenching his fist, Naruto punched it to the ground. The wound on his back hand reopened and bled, soaking the bandages. Swearing silently to himself, he took his oath. By this pain, I swear I'll never back away again!
Tazuna glanced back at the bleeding kid, his eyes filled with pity. He could never understand the ninjas. Much less their mentor, Uchiha Itachi.
In the trees, scent hidden by the gore left by the Demon Brothers, chakra concealed by Naruto's excessive chakra residue radiation, a kunoichi looked hungrily at Rukawa, silent and unmoving. She loved the way the boy had dealt with the prissy brothers Zabuzza had sent. Sure, she liked Zabuzza, but she didn't have to respect his ass like Haku did. The other boy, Naruto, was the perfect bait. She hid in the trees until the moon rose, then left her place. Her brain had already formulated the plan.
Meanwhile, before the moon had come out from the clouds, Tazuna and his bodyguards were sitting on the boat, driven by Balchi. The motor was off and he used paddles as they crossed the bridge. Rukawa listened as Itachi got some truth out of Zabuzza. In reality, his senses were on the alert. When he had done the finger stab thing, he had felt this sudden surge of passion, it had been female, and Sakura did not have the death factor. It had been some one else. It had to be a proffesional, seeing that he could not detect the intruder.
Finally, the boat rode out of the thick mist into a sunny village devoid of human life. Rukawa found this so funny, that he almost laughed. As they docked, Itachi motioned for Rukawa to stay put. "Protect Balchi. After what Tazuna said, he's in great danger. Come to Tazuna's later. You should be able to find us."
So Rukawa sat silently on the boat as Balchi coasted to the south dock without event. The sea smelt stale, as if the mist had blocked off life, just as the clean but abandoned-looking village was. Rukawa stepped off onto the dock, thanked Balchi, then set off in pursuit of his team. Lingering any longer could result in fights.
While Rukawa was protecting Balchi, Naruto had returned to his usual idiot self.
Seeing that Itachi had those shifty eyes, Sasuke moved to take point. But Naruto apparently thought idiotically. And proved himself a genius, nearly killing a whiteshoe rabbit, a creature that turns white in the winter. Itachi's soldier sense was on high time. Obviously a kawarimi. A glint of sunlight caught his eye. No where his level then. All the same, he decided to play dumb. "Duck!"
His following move wasn't. All of them had ducked. Cutting though the air, Itachi recognised the blade as Zabuzza's. Catching the spinning handle, Itachi used the momentum to swing it around and hurl it back at Zabuzza. The blade cut through five trees before it embedded deep into the tree. Zabazza, half naked wearing guerilla style pants with half his head wrapped in bandagges, the demon looked down at the small inklings. His eyes narrowed as he recognzed the fifth individual. He was rated more stars than Hatake Kakashi, who had nearly killed him in one mission. Uchiha Itachi. One of the two Uchihas who had survived the tragic clan. Best to keep the cards in. But then the older Uchiha had his hands shoved into his pockets. "Momochi Zabuzza."
He had lost his whole arsenal of cards. Zabuzza shivered as a hint of the Sharingan bored into his eyes when Itachi had flashed it at him for a second. In that second, Zabuzza finally saw why his Bingo book had described the dangerous shinobi in front of him withsuch detail. The three commas whirled as the locked into his movements. What plans he had made earlier on were immediately disrupted. A wave of fear passed through him. He felt a block of cold touch the nape of his neck. Haku's signal or warning. But how could he escape with Itachi locked in on him? So, he said, "So, you know me. And I know you. During the time of the seven Swordsmen, we kept this bingo book, in that book was you. I would have been comissioned to assasinate you. Well, it's just time for me to fufill that unspoken order, Uchiha Itachi. Your Sharingan is pretty impressive, but does not match up with my sword. Plus, I have more powers that you can possibly imagine. Hand Tazuna over, or your subordinates will die."
Itachi merely shoved his hands even deeper into his pockets. Zabuzza was relying on speech. "Please don't threaten me with your baseless wiles, Zabuzza-san. They irk me…"
Itachi leapt ten feet into the air, level with Zabuzza, who had hurled himself forward in anger. His magnificent sword was in front of him, aimed at burrowing Itachi's unprotected chest. Itachi powered up his chakra blade and added, "And so does your saw."
Itachi landed on the ground perfectly, ignoring the fact that he had cut through a Mizu Bunshin, and wasted a large store of chakra. Zabuzza was standing on the water, his hands forming the ram seal. He noted the weighted air and the overwhelming mist.
Sasuke froze as he felt the two jounins dare each other with their killing intent. Beside him, Naruto and Sakura started to shake. Tazuna was clasped in their swatiska formation. What would Rukawa do?
It just would not come to him. All the trainings he had done earlier on now seemed useless.
"Sasuke. I never let my comrades die in front of me," Itachi said. Sasuke relaxed, only to feel a sinister presence cut off his connection to Tazuna.
"Is that so? How amusing." Zabuzza swung his blade, cutting the bodies of Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. Before he could reach Tazuna, though, Zabuzza;s blade cracked. "What the-!"
Unarmed, Zabuzza saw the three genins close in on him. He defeated them in six swipes. Sasuke ducked and stabbed Zabuzza in the stomach and shoulder, before being pulverized into a tree. Naruto dished out a kick to Zabuzza's back before landing thirty feet away, unconcious and the side of his bleeding. Sakura fared the worst, grazing Zabuzza in the cheek with a kunai before Zabuzza kicked her point blank and knocked her over, pining her to a tree with five shuriken.
Itachi gazed coldly as Zabuzza turned to face him. Then they engaged in combat. Zabuzza had left his broken sword on the ground, and they slowly inched onto the river and beyond. Both of them were tiring, and Itachi finally managed to do a roundhouse kick to the kunai embedded in Zabuzza's torso. Zabuzza nearly passed out from the pain as the dagger ripped through the flesh and through his back, mercifully missing organs and bones. Landing on the water, face down, Zabuzza did a few seals. Ram. Snake. Rat. Tiger. Snake. Ox.
Zabuzza jumped up, and threw two curved daggers, which caught the wind and spun, travelling through the air with lots of friction. Merely a distraction. Itachi leapt back and ducked. A swift sound was heard, and Itachi had no choice but to leap up, the daggers lodging into his right arm. He screamed as the muscles on his left calf tore loose. Zabuzza's blade came to a halt in front of the man himself. The two pieces was bound by ropes of heavy water, Itachi's blood rolling off it into the water. The crimson tendrils dyeing the water at Zabuzza's feet red. Zabuzza released his spell, and swung his blade. The broken attachment flew off, to the ground far away. Advancing with the damaged sword in his fist, Zabuzza inches slowly towards Itachi, with arrogance and pain, blood leaking from the hole in his stomach. He had only fourteen minutes now before he would bleed to death. Itachi, most of his body submerged in the water now that his left leg was paralysed, smirked before his head was severed.
Boom.
The Itachi bunshin exploded, sending Zabuzza into a waterfall and under it, pumelling the shinobi's water with gallons of rushing water. The shinobi's body soon floated up, face down, metres away from the bloom of the the waterfall. Pulling out the two kunai in his arm, Itachi grimaced when he saw the poison on it. He had done a bunshin when he had heard the rush of Zabuzza's blade. The poison on the kunais was one that would force him to lose concentration. Zabuzza would then be able to capture him and torture him for whatever purpose. If the man lived for so long. By now, the injured Team Seven had raced across the water to Itachi.
Sasuke clutched his stomach and said, "This piece of shit is useless."
Itachi nodded and drew a kunai. One blow and Zabuzza would be a bloated corpse by tomorrow.
Five needles zipped into Zabuzza's vital points. The chakra that had kept the unconcious Zabuzza up had vanished, so the intruder hoisted the large man up before he could sink.
"Please forgive my intrusion, konoha nins. I have been waiting for the opportunity to kill this man for months, and you helped me make that opening. I thank you for that. Now, I would like to dispose of his body. Please step back. I wish to summon the animals that will savage his body."
Itachi stepped back, and the rest of Team Seven followed. Standard procedure. Itachi watched as the short ninja did his seals. The shinobi was young, probably fifteen. But already a hunter-nin. Impressive. The handseals he made were complex. Itachi read the last few seals before he started forward. Those were not seals of disposal! He could almost see the acomplice smirk behind the mask before they disappeared. Behind him, Sasuke frowned in anger, and said, "I see now. Those were similar to the Mizumaru seals of disposal, but were not. Instead, that was Mizumaru seals of multiple escape to be perfomed by and individual but to teleport a majority."
Itachi knew all this already, but he knew Sasuke was doing this for the benefit of Naruto and Sakura. "Theres not much more we can do. Sasuke, take the point, Naruto, keep the lookout at the back. Sakura, cover Tazuna at the front. Zabuzza and his lackey are not likely to return, so I'll do a scout around the area, just in case they're still here."
"That's not likely," Sasuke grumbled. "You just want to slack."
Rukawa walked along the boardwalk, not liking his position at all. Perhaps he was just paranoid, but the choppy sea waves and the hollowed sound of his footsteps could muffle an assasin's coming. The perfect coverage that even he would have taken advantage of. Rukawa was careful to place his left hand over his weapons pouch when the crack of thunder came. This wasn't possible. Balchi had told him that it had rained heavily just before they came. The sun came and cleared the puddles up pretty soon. Even so, a thunderstorm so abrupt was not to be.
When he heard footsteps peppering the boardwalk in quick staccatos, Rukawa dropped step. The only thing was, the attack came from below. Even though the masked kunoichi had missed her target, she still managed to grip the boards and twist around hard, sending her spiked boots into the boy.
Rukawa leapt, but a fraction too late. One poisoned claw nicked his ankle, its agent immediately working to slow the boy down. Rukawa hardly managed to block the kunoichi's oncoming blow, and had to roll with the fierce kick to his head.
Upon instinct as he was thrown into the waves, Rukawa took out a senbon and nicked at his wound, letting the blood flow freely. The poison was not able to go any further, so Rukawa had to make do with a clumsy footing. The kunoichi smirked as they engaged in a high speed battle. She definitely had enviable agility, but Rukawa was faster. He ducked under her kick and slammed into her chest, breaking at least a rib and tearing three breast tendons. She coughed a globule of blood.
Rukawa grinned. She was done. Heatedly, she flailed at Rukawa. The classic mistake of the Mist nins. Rukawa easily grabbed her forearm and twisted it sharply so that it dislocated. As she wound up for a kick, Rukawa merely slapped it away and stabbed her in the side, before whirling in for the kill.
That was when the glint of thin metal caught his eye. He reversed course almost immediately. The five senbons flew out of range, two making contact with the kunoichi. Another masked shinobi had appeared in front of the kunoichi. Rukawa started forward again, snarling. Another worthless being.
Then a jag of lightning caught the boards, halting Rukawa as the yellow fire danced into view. Most people would have been blinded, but not one who controlled the Rai elements. As soon as the yellow flash had disappeared into flames, Rukawa leapt over it at the prepared ninjas. The shinobi danced with him, senbon and kunai clashing in red sparks. No matter how inventive and speedy he was, Rukawa could hardly stab the boy dead on, only managing scrapes and cuts on his opponent. This was a fresh one. So far, only Itachi and Shisui had managed to avoid his greatest attacks in such a proffesional manner.
Thick plunges of rainwater pummelled on Rukawa, and he coud only guess that the other ninja was controlling the weather with such an odd bloodlimit. This certainly was not her greatest potential.
Rukawa calmed down, smoothing into his battle with the other shinobi. He heard his heartbeat flash with each major attack, and Rukawa soon learned to adjust his body to defense mode during these heavy beats, and attacked swiftly when the onslaught faltered momentarily. Eventually, he had two solid hits on the other shinobi. The latter had manage one stab and a deep gash. Unfortunately for Rukawa, he had not poisoned his weapons, unlike his opponent, who had coated his needles with a slowing agent. His mind became cloudy and the colours brightened. Within one minute he would lose conciousness.
The masked shinobi started forward unsteadily, blood erupting from his shoulder and side. Blood trickled evenly from other gashes, and his head ached from where his target had clubbed him twice with the butt of his ringed kunai. He could see the konoha genin falter, clutching his right arm and dropping to his knees. He saw shock there. Apparently the ninja was either on his first battle, or he had never been in such a hitch after all his battles.
Haku unhooked a bundle of strong twine before he felt darkness creeping into the edges of his vision. Take the konoha nin captive and he was liable to faint right there, leading to the capture of both her and he by either the konoha if he woke up earlier, or if his comrades came. He, Haku, would have no purpose to Zabuzza if that happened. The second option was to flee with her right then, but let the konoha nin escape capture and interrogation.
Haku looked longingly at Rukawa, then took up the kunoichi beside him and did a complicated series of hand seals. Rukawa watched blearily as they escaped. Forcing his will to overcome the numbness and pain, Rukawa stood and limped his way for Tazuna's stilt house.
He was less than halfway through the cool woods when he saw the faint outline of Itachi, before his vision seared white and he collapsed into Itachi's vest. Sinking to the ground, Rukawa longed to faint from the poison, and he finally did.
"I've never seen you so beaten since Itachi found you," Sasuke stated to Rukawa. Sakura had gone with Tsunami to pick wild herbs as a salve for the team's various wounds. Naruto nodded seriously and piped up, "Zabuzza was pretty good, though his weaseled friend was slightly better. Now there are three of them, and the weasly friend is obviously much, much better than the demon Zabuzza. What do we do if we meet up with them again?"
Rukawa half agreed, most of his mind on the shinobi he had fought with. The shinobi had been fifteen years old, travelled with a whiteshoe rabbit from the faint scent, and had a bloodlimit, no doubt. His chakra level was pretty high. Somewhere near Itachi's level. In other words, his too. The kunoichi was twenty seven, from her height the same as one of the two women in the seven swordsmen of the Mists organization. The classic reaper sword was off her back, though Rukawa was sure that it was Yuuki Takakuta, because of her bloodlimit. That Yuuki Takakuta he had fought with had been a clone, he was sure.
But why hadn't the real user capture him when her fellow shinobi couldn't? Unless she was somewhere else, even if not far off. Suddenly it all clicked into place. Yuuki Takakuta was also known as the basic medic of the Seven Swordsmen. She had to have been tending Zabuzza. Seeing that her clone was down, she had sent the masked shinobi to cover up. But then, she could have just created another clone. So that was the real her… Oh heck. They covered it too well. I don't know what to think.
Even if he had let himself been taken, what of it? He would either be tortured or killed, either way a dead end. It was unlikely that he would learn anything of infiltration-classified importance for they were professionals. So, Rukawa dismissed the guilt of going freely. Why would he have guilt in the first place, Rukawa asked himself. Then he remembered, the fight would have been useless in Shisui's eyes. No wonder he felt half as guilty as he was. Shit. He cursed silently. I'm not Shisui's dog anymore, so don't be such an idot, Rukawa. He turned to Sasuke and punched his shoulder playfully. "Baka. It's my first official mission. Of course this would be your first time seeing me beaten badly. I'm only genin, remember?"
Sasuke was confused, but only for a fraction of a second. He immediately retorted. "Dobe. Shut it."
Rukawa smirked.
Sakura returned with Tsunami, both of them had a cloth pouch strapped to their waists, filled with herbs and leaves. They stopped behind the wooden cabin and put their bags into the floor. Tsunami and Sakura went into the cabin and they collected pots and water, Sakura bringing a grind stone. Returning to their herbs, both of them pulled out the plants and dumped them into the stone bowls, before using the grinders to beat the leaves to pulp. Tsunami fanned the slow fire where two pots were placed atop the makeshift stove. The familiar whistle of boiling water ensued after fifteen minutes, and Sakura scraped the thick green paste into the pots. At sundown, they returned home with small jars in their hands, filled with medical herbary.
Sakura had noted that the woman beside her was nervous, but she saw how Tsunami eyed her occasionally with swift distaste. She learnt later why the bridge builder's daughter disliked ninjas during dinner.
Rukawa and Itachi sat together, both bandaged. Sasuke and Naruto were opposite them, plasters stuck to their bruises and cuts. Tazuna was sitting at the top of the table. Tsunami and Sakura returned, plates of vegetable and fish lining the table. Tazuna picked up his chopsticks and wolfed a leaf down with the rice in his bowl. Respectfully, Team Seven and the others joined in. Tazuna took a piece of broiled grouper. "It's not much compared with your meals in Konoha, but this is the best we can give. Hope you can appreciate it for all the scrawny brats you are."
"Of course, Tazuna-san," Rukawa smirked as he poured black sauce onto his plain rice. Tazuna huffed an continued with his meal.
Naruto and Sasuke were dead tired. Even though it was late afternoon, Itachi had dragged both of them out after speaking to Rukawa into the forest. He made them run twenty laps around the village and push ups and pull ups till they dropped. When they cooled down by hurling shuriken at a moving log, Itachi made them hop speedily up and down the tallest trees using chakra a hundred times. When they had neared their limit, Itachi successfully exhausted their reserves by making them dodge rocks that he threw at them. That explained the numerous plasters covering over their bodies like wallpaper.
Still, Naruto was laughing and joking about. Itachi noted that Inari, who had screamed at them earlier, looked irritated. You've got it wrong… dobe. You're nothing compared to Naruto. But I'll give you that you are our charge, a small boy who has been pampered.
Seeing Naruto's content and bloated face, Inari was angered. He was angered that people like Naruto should protect them, they who had experienced no pain to protect those so desolate! At the thought of his father, he started to cry, tears of shame, of lonliness, and anger. And the infuriating worm had the gall to note his tears, to ask, "What's up?"
Tears now poured as if squeezed from a sponge. He stood up and screamed, "Why do you try so hard. No matter how hard you train, you'll never be strong enough to beat Gatou! No matter how nicely you cream your danged words, no matter how much effort you put in, it's all futile! The weak can never beat the strong!"
Sasuke looked away, annoyed. Stupid brat. Naruto has become stronger with Aniki. He has found companions by trying hard. No matter how I deny it on the outside, he won me over. He has Aniki, Rukawa, Sakura, Iruka, Sarutobi, and me. So shut up brat. You can't even stand up again?
Inari gulped in his tears and continued, ranting, "The very sight of you annoys me! You don't even know this country, and yet you like showing off so damn much!
"And you don't understand me! I'm not like you, someone who has never experienced hardship, one who's always laughing like a jackass!"
Now Sasuke wanted to deck the guy. You hit a wrong nerve, dobe.
Naruto flinched, in an irate sort of way. He kept his voice controlled but dangerous. "So you think that you can play lead actor in the tragic drama. And cry like a baby? Grow up!
"It's bastards like you who should just cry all day, you stupid cry baby!"
With that, Naruto got from his table and left the room.
"Naruto, you've gone too far!" Sasuke put a hand on hers and shook his head.
Itachi thought for a moment. "So, Tazuna san. What happened?"
Sakura nodded and piped up. "Yes, Tazuna-san, please tell us. Has it to do with that photograph?"
Tazuna nodded gravely. Tsunami left the room, and he told the life story of Wave country's fallen hero.
Itachi nodded and left the house. He found Inari sitting at the edge of the corridor, hugging his knees and staring into the dark sea. Itachi took a seat beside the little boy.
"Don't take Naruto's words to hard. He isn't that good with words, that guy. Tazuna-san has told us about your father. Naruto was like you. He grew up without a father.
"Actually, he has never seen his parents, and has never had a single friend. His past was much more tragic than yours, believe me. But I've never seen him in pain, suffering, or giving up. I've never seen him shed a tear. He has never grumbled about what's he's gone through.
"He's fought for the acceptance of the people around him, to acknoledge his very existence. For this dream, he would die…
"He has stopped crying. So, he knows what it means to be strong, just like your father. Naruto understands you more than all of us. So, he couldn't just leave you alone."
With that, Itachi got up and went to his room. Sasuke was leaning on the wall beside the door in the room. "That was kind of you, Aniki."
"I actually wanted to punch him. But Naruto wouldn't want that."
Sakura lifted the cooled pots from the counter, pondering what Naruto had said. The boy had not come back, possibly training. She went to their room. Itachi and Rukawa was waiting in their futons. Sakura blushed as they took off their shirts to reveal their well-built bodies. Looking at Itachi and realising how weird it would be for her to touch an older man, she hid her red face behind the her pink hair and gave him an open pot. Sasuke sighed and went over, helping his brother undress the bandages.
Sakura timidly unwrapped Rukawa's shoulder. The bandage stretched from his right shoulder to his left waist so that it would hold, and wrapped around his stomach to cover his injured side. She timidly took the white cloth off, saying sorry hurriedly each time her fingers brushed his skin.
I know I should be faithful to Sasuke, but his skin is so smooth, but his muscles are so hard, his body is so lean! Hell yeah, Sakura, brush his abs a bit more!
Shut up, Sakura, that's perverse! Sakura cursed to Inner Sakura. Finally, both shinobis had their wounds to tingle in the cold wind. Sakura regained composure after a while, and picked up her black jar, her hand taking out a bit of black salve. Cold night air shifted across the room. Rukawa's hand lashed out, gripping her arm like a vice. "The salve has been poisoned with Hroubus root."
Itachi sniffed the jar and nodded. He looked at Sakura casually, his head tilted to one side. The green eyed girl looked at the jar in shock. "But we did not put that plant in! I don't even know what Hroubus is! Tsunami couldn't have, the seal is still intact!"
Rukawa put a hand firmly on her shoulder and smiled, calming her down. "Never mind. Maybe it got caught in the herbs you were picking. Hroubus wilts easily for its stalk is weak. It gets uprooted easily."
Sakura nodded, relieved, and went out to dispose of the pots. Rukawa and Itachi started to redress their wound with new bandages. Sasuke helped to wind the long gauze around Rukawa's body. He tied the bandage firmly then said. "Hroubus root is hard to pull from the ground."
"Indeed. Zabuzza couldn't have, neither could been Yuuki Takakuta. Both of them can't move. It's that masked hunter-nin," Rukawa stated. Sasuke questioned, "But it could be another ninja."
Itachi shook his head and answered, "No. The ninja would have captured Rukawa. There are only three of them."
Sasuke laid on his futon. "Three to worry about. Mandekuso."
The week rolled by smoothly. In two days, Rukawa joined in on their training, sparring with Itachi. Sasuke and Sakura swam laps in the ocean and ran for miles, honing their ninjutsu and taijutsu against each other. Naruto was far behind, scaling the trees and perfecting his kunai hurling on falling leaves. The team took turns guarding Tazuna. On Friday, Sakura followed Tazuna to buy food. She was shocked to see many shops closed and desolated, neon lights punctured and boards torn from the walls. The little shops that were open sold almost nothing, leaking pots or broken pans. There was only one small restaurant, selling cold soup, the meat almost raw and most of it fatty, adorned with a rotten leaf. They stepped into the market place. The shelves were nearly empty, the food scarce. There were four tied leaves, their stalks blackened. A tiny cabbage was rammed in a corner with a few soft tomatoes. Eight packets of two salted fish line one whole shelf, spaced out, as if the owner was trying to brighten the outlook on his near empty shop. Tazuna picked out three packets and one vegetable.
Sakura was inspecting a few beans when she felt a shrivelled hand carres her exposed thigh. Perv alert!
She whirled around and decked the old man, tossing out three rotting teeth from his garbled mouth. He flew many feet into the air and sailed the row of shophouses. Sakura heard a yell and a splash far, far away. Tazuna looked back from his grocery. Hmm. Thought I heard something.
Sakura told Tazuna about the pervert, then learnt that the adult had tried to cut loose her purse. "Well, that was a bad miss."
A tug came to her skirt. Another perverse pick pocket? Angrily, she whirled around to see a dirty thin child looking hopefully at her, both hands cupped out. Smiling, Sakura took the only two energy bars from her sling bag and placed them in the two tiny hands. She smiled as the child's face lit up in delight before disappearing.
Tazuna tugged her to keep walking. Sakura saw the tiny children sitting on mats, empty containers in front of them. Men shuffled along the streets, signs hung over their backs saying "Will do any paying job". Women wore skimpy clothes, old make up covering their scrawny faces, hoping that some man with money would have enough testosterone for their aneroxic bodies.
"Has Gatou affected Wave Country so much?"
Tazuna led her to the construction site, nodding gravely. "(Like duh, if not I wouldn't be building a bridge.) Yes. Wave country has become his dumping site for excess goods. Whatever we profit from he takes, and he controls our supplies carefully so that we will not revolt. Currently, our spies say that his plan is to become the daiymo of this country, and fill it with his own samurai and shinobis who will do his every bidding. This way, he earns money and gains protection."
Sakura tugged at her bag. "What's the whole point?"
"If he creates an army big and powerful enough, he'll be able to expand his trade to the other countries and gain favour. He hopes to gain control of the entire community. As you know, our post-nin community keeps itself from the outside world."
"Yes, I've never seen the outside world, but it's supposed to be very dangerous. My history sensei said that the greatest hokages have place powerful seals so that none may infiltrate our land."
"Indeed. But it is said that Gatou has seen the outside world, and he thinks it extremely profitable. If he gains control of the post-ninja community, he'll be able to expand his trade and open up our land as world's largest theme park."
"He's a sadistic bastard!" Sakura exclaimed, horrified. "Gatou has to be stopped."
Gatou nodded and hefted a length of timber. "(Like duh, if not I wouldn't be building a bridge.) Of course."
On the eigth day, Itachi had regained full strength. "Finally. Zabuzza and his hunchies should be okay about now. We should guard Tazuna-san as a team. Sayonara, Tsunami san, Inari-kun."
"Woohoo!" Naruto shouted, leaping into the air. "Finally a good day's mission work!"
"Aniki, we'll be getting a higher pay for this, right?"
"Yea. We've been up against S-ranked criminals, and a big sadistic magnate we have to assasinate now. But mostly because we're putting up with Naruto."
Author's Note: A lot of brief differences in character compared to the canon. Naruto isn't such a loud person because I don't think that ninjas, even Naruto, would act that way.
Team Seven is a lot more powerful because they are, one, ninjas, and two, coached by Itachi. I think that the Team Seven in the canon had next to zero progress if it hadn't been for the fact that Sasuke and Naruto self trained, and that they had mission experience. But Itachi trained them as a team, so their progress was pretty quick.
Haku, Zabuzza, and the Mist kunoichi might not have seemed as powerful, but there are several reasons. One of them is that Team Seven limits them, since genins are still skilled even if they have the lowest rank, and secondly… my fight scenes isn't great.
