I don't own Naruto, the series is the property of Masashi Kishimoto.

If there are any things that don't make sense to you, let me know, and I'll try to clear them up as I go along. Thank you for reading, and enjoy!

Oh, one more thing, PLEASE comment on my stories, it's the only way I'll improve and i need feedback to know how I'm doing Thank you all for reading this!

Zaku jumped off into the trees, muttering, "That was fun… I wonder how Jesen's doing."

The Five Point Saga

Chapter 4

History

Zaku finally caught up to Jesen. It seemed that Jesen had finished up quickly as well… Sasuke was lying on the branch in front of him, twitching.

Zaku looked from Jesen, to Sasuke, and back again. "Did you have to use that jutsu on him? I mean… seriously…"

Jesen shrugged and glanced at Sasuke's twitching form. "It was the only way to finish the fight quickly without killing him."

Zaku looked at him strangely. "Why on EARTH would YOU, of all people, want to leave HIM alive?!"

Jesen looked up. "Because I'm going to need him later."

Zaku sighed and rubbed his head. "Seriously… what is with you? You're either living in the past, or looking to the future, but never looking around at how this are at the moment. Why?"

Jesen jumped to a lower branch and retrieved his cloak. "Because this moment isn't any more special than any other one… I'll pass, just like all the other ones."

"So, enjoy it while you can! You won't get another chance!"

Jesen jumped up as looked Zaku in the eyes. "Look, this is the difference between us. I see everything at once, and prefer to look at how it was or how it will be… you prefer to see how it is. That's not going to change, no matter how many times you try to persuade me different. It's just who I am."

Zaku just snorted.

Jesen sighed and bent down. He pulled Sasuke's scabbard out of his belt and pulled Sasuke's sword out of the tree behind him. Zaku finally took a good look around the area. There were slash marks everywhere, with occasional burns where Sasuke had used a fireball. The fight must have been pretty intense… 'Maybe Jesen was right to end it quickly…' Zaku thought.

Jesen sheathed Sasuke's sword. Sasuke groaned, and tried to get up. Jesen glanced at him, and Sasuke commenced twitching again.

Zaku watched this. "You sure that's a good idea?"

Jesen shrugged. "I take the swords from all my defeated enemies… why would it be a bad idea?"

"Well, Sakura and Naruto probably wouldn't take it too well if you walked back with that…"

Jesen wasn't listening. He pulled out a scroll from his pouch and unrolled it. He drew a sign on an empty space and pressed his hand against it. POOF! The sword vanished, and a ring appeared around the sign on the scroll. "You forget… all my swords go in here…" Jesen murmured as he put the scroll away.

He stood up. "In any event, we had better hurry up. We don't want to keep her waiting…"

They headed off after the others.

--

The tiger stopped running. "We've arrived," he said.

"Wha… you call THIS a safe house??" Naruto yelled.

They were standing in a large clearing. In the exact center there was a pile of rocks, about 15 feet high.

The tiger ignored him. "I'll be back," he said, and vanished.

Kakashi sat down. "Well, might as well get comfortable… it could take a while." He pulled out Icha Icha Paradise and began reading.

Naruto sighed and laid down. "Don't mind me… I'm going to take a nap now…"

Sakura looked at Sora. "Um, you were Jesen's teammate, right?

Sora nodded. "Yeah, we go way back. Why?"

"Well… I was wondering… can you tell us a little about him?

Sora thought for a second. "Yeah, I guess I could… but, not everything… some things he'll have to tell you himself." She sat down. "Ok, well, when we were in the Academy together, he was always the best. He excelled at everything, but treated it as though it were nothing… like he had done it all before. That pissed Zaku off to no end, so I guess that's where their rivalry comes from. Still, you couldn't find a better set of friends… it was weird, I mean, they clearly were rivals but they were the best of friends; they didn't let rivalry get in their way.

"Anyways, when we graduated we were put together on the same team. We had some amazing adventures together… we were unstoppable. We worked together better than anyone else could… we could do missions as a three man team that no one else could do." She sighed. "After we became Chuunin, he… changed. I don't understand why, but he just sort of retreated into himself. He became a Jounin later that year, but… I don't know, he was like a different person.

Sora shook her head. "Anyways, when the Kyuubi attacked the village, he took it upon himself the defeat it, saying that HE had to be the one to defeat it, not the Fourth. It made no sense to us, but we didn't stop him." Sora closed her eyes. "He failed… and I think that failure still eats at him. I think he really wants to make it up to you, Naruto. He blames himself for all that has happened to you…" She opened her eyes. "Immediately after the Fourth sealed the Kyuubi, he left the village. We went with him, and we have been away from Kanoha ever since. I take it he found you, and decided to make it up to you, Naruto."

Sora sighed. "That's all I feel comfortable telling you myself… the rest is up to him."

Sakura nodded. "Ok, thank you. But, what about Zaku? He's from the Inuzuka clan, right? So, shouldn't he have a dog?"

Sora closed her eyes. "That's another thing I don't think I can tell you… but, lets just say that Zaku hasn't had it easy."

At that moment, the tiger reappeared. Kakashi looked up from his book. "Ah, good… are we moving off now?"

"No, not yet." A voice said from behind them. They all turned. There was a woman standing there. She had black hair, and was frowning at them.

"We have to wait for everyone… be patient." She sat down, still frowning.

"Wait… who are you?" Sakura asked.

"Someone who doesn't feel like talking right now." The woman replied.

"Um, is something wrong?" Sakura asked.

"He's late," she replied.

"Sorry about that." Jesen jumped down out of the tree above them, startling Naruto. "Hey… I was having a nice dream!" He yelled.

Jesen ignored him. "It took longer than expected. What can I do to make it up to you, my dear sister?"

"Wait... she's your sister?" Sakura asked.

"Yes. Everyone, meet my little sister, Kani."

TO BE CONTINUED…