It was just after midnight when the two teams arrived at the borders of the village. Stopping to check the activity in the area, Naruto found himself pondering at the number of warehouses that stuck out like sore thumbs everywhere, and noted the slightly pungent smell that filtered through the trees.

"What did you say this village is named?" he asked.

"Sake," replied Sakura. "They're a major supplier of sake in the region. It's also a huge trading ground for suppliers."

"Oh... well that explains it."

"Yupp, and it also explains why shishou would postpone our original mission to save the village that produces her favorite drink."

"Hehehe... I see."

"Come on," said Kakashi. "We need to get to our client's house. He should be up waiting for us."

The two teams moved silently around the edge of the village until they came upon a canal. Halting for a drunk man who was picking his way through the bottom of it to pass, they quietly crossed over and went for another half mile before coming to a much wealthier part of the village.

"I believe this is the one," said Kakashi when they pulled up to a walled compound with a small red tag hanging from its rim. "The client's quarters should be just on the other side."

After scaling the wall, the teams found themselves in a beautifully landscaped rock garden complete with a stream and choi-filled pond. The sudden sight of them alerted a man who sat on the porch that wrapped around the home, and he stood up to signal them over to him.

"Hajimemashite," said the man with a bow. "I am Wataru. Please come in. My employer is waiting for you."

Turning around, the man grabbed the edge of the shouji door and slipped it open.

"If there's anything you need, please do not hesitate to ask me," he said politely as he let them pass.

"Ah! You're here! I was beginning to doze off!"

Sakura peeked around Kakashi's tall being to see that the squeaky voice came from an elderly man with a tiny beard and mustache. Just like his voice, his physique was quite small as he sat upon the floor next to a table with documents strewn across the top. The air about him seemed friendly and warm, and his beady eyes shined with excitement at the new company.

"I was reading for a bit but my eyes aren't very strong anymore. They tend to ween out after about five minutes or so. I'm Mamoru, by the way. Thank you for coming all the way out here."

"Tsunade-sama sends her thanks. She is still reminiscing about the last jar of sake you sent to her," Kakashi bowed.

"That was a good one, wasn't it? Well, have a seat! Please! Get comfortable as I have a few things to go over with you. After today, I am afraid our contact will be limited... So! Let's see what I've got here..."

Everyone sat and watched as Mamoru thumbed very slowly like the old man he was through the stack of papers in front of him. Pulling out two sheets, he nodded his head before handing them over to Kakashi.

"These are the addresses for the places your people will be working. Fortunately, my grandsons have taken it upon themselves to become my eyes and ears into the Yakuza world. Though they haven't joined, they are bartenders at these locations and will call for help should any of you need it. It wasn't the occupation I would have chosen for them, but in the end they have good intentions and brave hearts. Luckily nobody really knows they're related to me. Was a bit of an absentee grandfather, I'm afraid..."

Sakura looked at the regret in the old man's eyes and felt for him. She could see by the wrinkles on his face that he was once a very driven young politician and that family seemed to have been neglected. In the older years of his life, he must have come to realize just how much he had missed out.

"So, tell me how you want to proceed," Mamoru said as he leaned against the table.

Kakashi nodded and waited a moment before choosing his words carefully.

"Well, we have two teams that will separate and take up positions on either side of the village. Even though we have people working the bars, I've chosen to split each team into two units so that we have one group in the night life and another to walk the day. This way, the person working the bar can be watched over while the other unit is free to investigate the other areas of the village. My team will stay at the same inn, with Sai and Naruto rooming together while I stay with Sakura-chan. This way we shall also seem unrelated to each other should anything happen."

"Sounds like an efficient plan," Mamoru laughed. "I see Tsunade-sama has keen shinobi at her dispense!"

"She sure does," smiled Kakashi. "Well, I'll be the one reporting directly to you so you don't have to worry about anyone being seen around your home. If you'll excuse us, we should go and check into the inn before we get spotted by too many people. We'll change into civilian clothes before we do."

Everyone stood up and walked into a separate room to change. From what Sakura could hear from her side, Naruto wasn't too keen on the idea of staying with just Sai alone, and his irritation slowly became more and more evident as they were about to proceed back to the meeting room. Sakura smacked Naruto on his back to get him to shut up before throwing her pack back onto her shoulder. It was one thing for him to act this way in front of people they knew, but it was unacceptable to do it in front of a client.

"Oh, one more thing," said Kakashi to Mamoru as they were about to leave. "We were attacked by Yakuza and shinobi on the way here. Someone knew we were coming."

"That is bad news indeed..." said Mamoru. "I only told the village's counsel of your coming, and that only consists of five others. Now, if they've told any of their friends, I couldn't tell you..."

"Well, from here on out I ask that you please refrain from letting them know of our presence in the village. Domo arigatou gozaimashita."

As they left through the way they came, Wataru once again bowed before signaling to Kakashi for a private audience.

"Sir," began Wataru. "I know that you are commissioned to do this job, but please, take care when you are visiting Mamoru. If word got out of his dealings with you, he and his family would most certainly be in danger. Please use the utmost discretion."

"Not to worry," assured Kakashi. "I will not report anything unless it is absolutely detrimental to the mission. If you need to contact us, just leave a message at the inn and I'll have someone checking for them every day."

Wataru watched as the two teams scaled the compound's wall with such ease. As he waited to hear the last sounds of them disappear, he worriedly took up his post again and waited patiently for the outcome.


"Why can't I stay with Sakura-chan!" Naruto whined as the teams made their way back into the woods.

"Dream on, Naruto..." Sakura whispered. "It ain't gonna happen."

"Well, why can't we stay together? Sasuke's team isn't splitting rooms!"

"My team will do the same on the other side," interrupted Sasuke. "Karin will stay with Suigetsu, and I will stay with Juugo."

"What!" yelled Karin. "How come I have to stay with this slob!"

"Because I have to watch over Juugo. Besides, you can stay outside and make sure that any unwanted trouble can be stopped before it hits Suigetsu at the front doors of the bar. You'll have to be the one to keep his temper in check and anticipate the dangers."

"Uuuuugh!"

The whole group seemed to be disturbed deeply by the time they finally parted ways, and as Kakashi nodded to Sasuke in a final farewell, they set this final place in the woods as their rendezvous point for updates every two days. They agreed that no one would make a move unless the other knew about it, that way they could coordinate their players on the other side.

"After this point on, there must be no public communication between the team's units, not even a head nod," warned Kakashi. "At least if one unit is discovered, the other can take over. Understood?"

Everyone nodded in agreement and turned to part ways, and as Sasuke made himself last, he took one look back for a glimpse at Sakura's pink hair disappearing into the darkness. All he could feel in that moment alone, was worry. Something in his gut told him that she was about to be taken away from him forever.


"This is it," said Kakashi as they pulled up to a small sign that stuck out from a gray building. If you had blinked, you would have missed the tiny curtained entrance.

"'Everlasting Romance?'..." Naruto read the sign out loud. "Hey... Wait a minute! This is a love motel!"

"Yeah... It was the only place that had an opening on this side of town."

"Unh-uh! You're not staying with Sakura-chan here!"

"Look, Naruto," said Sakura as she suddenly stepped between him and Kakashi. "I don't like this just as much as you do, but right now, it just doesn't matter what I think. If you do your job right, the sooner we can all get out of here. Got it?"

Naruto couldn't argue with that. He knew that if he wanted the situation to change then he was going to have grit his teeth and get it done. Still, that never stopped him from whining about it through the whole way like all the other times.

"Don't worry Naruto, I'll help you get through this rough time," Sai said with a smile.

"Shut up, Sai..."

"Hai, hai... let's get going please," Kakashi pushed on. "Sakura and I will go in first, then you two check in five minutes later."

Kakashi put his hand on Sakura's back and pushed her towards the front door first. Naruto grimaced at the sight as he knew that Kakashi just didn't want to be the one to get the keys from the front desk. If there was anything more embarrassing than grabbing the keys at the front desk of a love motel, however, it was having to walk in with someone like Sai by your side to do it too.

"Konbon wa!" Sakura smiled at the woman behind the desk. "We have a reservation for Sakura, I think?"

"Ah, yes, I was beginning to wonder about your reservation. It's already quite late," said the woman as she took out a set of keys. "My name is Saori. There's already a set of fresh towels prepared. If you need anything else, just ask me or any of the staff and we'll be happy to help you. Your room is upstairs, 3B."

"Arigatou gozaimashita."

Sakura bowed and followed Kakashi who walked silently ahead of her up the stairs. With his hands in his pockets, Kakashi could feel Saori's eyes on them until the bottoms of their feet disappeared out of view. Though nothing ever bothered him, it felt as if he was doing something naughty in the presence of an old woman, and even though Saori must have seen this kind of sight countless times, it still didn't help the feeling of guilt as he finally reached the third floor.

Sakura fumbled nervously with the keys until finally pushing the door open. The sudden sight of having only one bed in the room made her stomach flip, but she didn't say anything until the door was locked behind them.

"Just one bed?" she asked.

"Gomen, but this is a love motel. It wouldn't make much sense with two."

"I guess..."

"You can stay with Naruto, if you want."

Sakura immediately took off her boots and threw her bag onto a chair without complaint before moving to the window to peek out the curtains. Looking below, she found that Naruto was still whining to Sai as they finally made their way into the building. Sakura shook her head and turned around to find a most unsettling sight.

Kakashi was standing over by the bed with his back to Sakura as he began to untie the knot of his kimono wrap. Sakura looked away for a tiny second but then turned back once she saw the tight black sleeveless undershirt that connected to Kakashi's mask. The muscles on his exposed shoulders were accentuated in every movement. There had to have been no fat percentage on his body whatsoever, and Sakura quickly turned back around in guilt at having looked at her sensei in such a way.

I'm going to have to sleep next to that! Sakura gulped. Oh my God... What if I fart in my sleep!

"Everything okay?" Kakashi asked when he saw the tension in Sakura's shoulders. "Are they still fighting out there?"

"Ahem! Yeah... they're walking in now."

The sudden footsteps and voices outside were recognizable and it obviously was Naruto and Sai's. Kakashi looked over at Sakura in curiosity as clearly they couldn't just be walking in right now. Furrowing his brow, he strode over to her side to peek out the window as well.

"Is there something else out there that you see?" he asked, his bare shoulder brushing up against her arm.

"No... just observing what shops are nearby. I'm kind of hungry but nothing's open."

Sakura quickly stepped back from the window and away from Kakashi's touch. Grabbing her pack off the chair, she quickly slipped into the bathroom and shut the door to release a much needed sigh of relief. She then placed the pack onto the counter before leaning against it with her hands. Shutting her eyes, she tried not to be so nervous.

Sakura could count the number of times she had slept in bed with a man on one hand, and the thought of sleeping next to an especially hot one made her stomach turn. In fact, she had never really come into contact with another male counterpart, even when she slept outdoors next to Sasuke and Naruto. In all those years that they had gone from town to town, they had always slept on tatami floors and were spaced decently away from one another. However, this was a love motel, and there was no need for such a thing. Sakura reached over to open her pack and suddenly realized a very important detail.

Shoot!

Knowing that it was summer, Sakura had packed shorts and a thinly strapped top with a picture of an angry teapot on it. Pulling the items out of her bag, it was the only sleepwear that she had brought as they were strapped on carrying much. Typically Sakura didn't like sleeping with her bra but due to the circumstances, it was necessary.

Sakura took off her utility pouch and began stripping off her garments. As she thought more and more about what was coming, her movements stiffened and she ended up catching her foot on her shorts as she tried to put them on, stumbling forward and knocking her head on the wall.

*knock!*knock!*

"Sakura? Are you okay?" she heard Kakashi ask from the other side of the door.

"I'm fine! Just dropped my bag!"

Quickly brushing her teeth and straightening her hair up, she took a deep breath before stepping out to find Kakashi sitting on the chair holding his toothbrush.

"My turn," he said as he quickly got up and passed her to get into the bathroom.

Sakura quickly made to take advantage of the moment by dropping her things near the side of the bed that was closest to the door and slipped under the sheets to hide herself from Kakashi's view. Pulling the blanket up to her eyes, she shuffled beneath the sheets and curled into a ball so that her limbs were tucked safely away from the other half of the bed.

The sudden opening of the bathroom door startled Sakura as Kakashi then shut the lights off. As she tightened herself into a tinier ball, she suddenly saw a shadow move to stand over her and she looked up to find Kakashi standing on her side of the bed.

"Can you sleep that side?" he asked.

"Mmm..." Sakura nodded as she switched over to the other side. "Is something wrong?"

Kakashi grabbed the sheets and separated them so that Sakura and he each had one of their own. As they began to position themselves for sleep, Kakashi took a deep sigh and put his hands behind his head.

"It's just something my mother told me..." he finally answered.

"Hmm? What did she say?"

Kakashi ruffled his hair and pushed it back out of his face.

"Ah... it's nothing. Get your beauty rest, you're going to need it."

Sakura looked over through the dark at Kakashi. She could feel the sadness coming from him as he shut his eyes. Recalling the few occasions in which the subject of his past came up, he had always been quick to dodge or ignore any inquiries on the subject. It was like he didn't want to remember anything, and she didn't want to push him to. Sakura pulled the blanket up to cover her lips and shut her eyes, and as her heart dwelled upon what kind of a past Kakashi had, her thoughts melted into a subconcious stream that softened her shoulders and relaxed her hands.