Author's Note: Sorry for the 1.5 year delay. Sort of. EVERYONE KNOWS THAT THE 1.5 YEAR TIMESKIP IS TOTALLY A THING. What? WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT DOESN'T WORK LIKE THAT?
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ix. Mind the Gap
Sasuke sat at the edge of the dock, his bare feet hanging just above the water's surface. He stared out into the forest rising up on the opposing shore. Under the fading light of the setting sun, the pine trees resembled a mass of black spires. For a while, he listened to nothing but the lake lapping gently against the nearby banks.
Suddenly he extended his foot, plunging it into the water below. With a loud sigh, he fell backwards onto his arms, tilting his head back to look up at the evening sky; the stars were beginning to come out. His foot tapped the lake's surface a few more times.
The sun slowly disappeared behind the western hills. The light went with it and darkness fell, but Sasuke remained.
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It was nighttime when Sakura was finally released from the hospital. She had ben subjected to numerous tests, despite her insistence that it was just Chakra exhaustion. Her sandals scraped against the dirt as she dragged her tired feet home. Kakashi trailed along a few steps behind her with one hand in his pocket and the other holding his trademark book to his face. Despite Sakura's strong protests, her teacher had been firm on walking her back.
"I can't let anything happen to my cutest student," he had said. However, years of experience had taught Sakura to read between Kakashi's lines: "You say you're from the future, but can't remember anything. You're either telling the truth or have finally cracked. Either way, it's a problem."
Whether the silver haired man was paying more attention to the book or actually keeping an eye on her, it was hard to tell. Sakura couldn't bring herself to care either, having fallen deep into the recesses of her own thoughts, rifling for clues to her past memories.
She hadn't been left with a completely blank slate. There were frames that ghosted across her memory like a warm breath against cool glass: a monster made of sand, Naruto's angry blue eyes, and Sasuke's face scarred in strange black patterns. Yet she couldn't make sense of them. They were meaningless images— residue from a swiftly fading dream.
Most frustratingly of all, she knew it was important to remember—she needed to remember, because there was one scene that stood out in her mind, as vivid and clear as any photograph. Sasuke stood before her while holding a beautiful katana in his hand and Sharingan eclipsing his eyes. His face was more angular—older—so she knew it was a glimpse from the future. She didn't know what it meant, but whenever she revisited the memory, her skin crawled and her stomach turned in a manner that reminded her of her first autopsy under Tsunade's supervision.
This was the nature of Sakura's internal struggle for most of the walk. So engrossed was she in her own thoughts that she didn't even resister walking past the main focus of her concern. That was, until Kakashi sensei called out in greeting, "Yo, Sasuke."
Sakura physically jumped as the name jolted her out of her reverie. She looked around, taking in her surroundings for the first time. Then she peered back behind her, and Sasuke inwardly condemned the astonishment that flashed across her face. For a ninja, Sakura could be unacceptably oblivious.
"Sasuke!" She said, more in surprise than greeting.
He turned his attention away from her and back to Kakashi. His chin dropped slightly to acknowledge his teacher. Without another word, he took a few steps past the older man, determined to get away from the two before they had any funny ideas, like making small talk.
"And where you headed off to this fine evening?" Kakashi asked without looking up from his book.
Sasuke stopped, but didn't turn around to face him. He first shrugged, and then decided a curt response would the fastest way to nip this conversation in the bud.
"Home."
"Ah, really? That's perfect. Why don't you walk Sakura back, then? She's on her way home too."
This time Sasuke did turn around to face him, looking highly unamused.
"Sensei!" Sakura objected.
'Yes, sensei,' Sasuke thought grimly to himself. What was he, some escort service? Then, in a tone that strained to sound civil, he said by way of an excuse, "I live in the opposite direction."
"Come now, Sasuke," Kakashi chided distractedly, his attention still fixated on the text in his hands, "is that how you treat your teammate after you put her in the hospital?"
Sasuke's attention immediately went to Sakura, who was having a sore time trying not to make eye contact.
"Wait, that's not—" Sakura began before Kakashi spoke over her.
"All right so it's settled then. I'll see the two of you tomorrow morning in front of the academy, 7 A.M. sharp. We'll head into the Hokage's office together for a new mission. I'll let Naruto know, so you don't need to bother stopping by his place." Kakashi said, and raised a hand half in salute and half to stop Sakura's protests. "Bye!" Not wanting to stick around any longer than necessary, he vanished, leaving in his wake a cloud of smoke and one rankled kunoichi.
"Sensei! Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura shouted at the dissipating smoke as if that would bring him back. She balled her hands into angry fists, but it wasn't long before a mighty wave of exhaustion washed over her. She quickly deflated her head in defeat and hung her head. She shifted her attention to her teammate. "Anyways, I can make it home just fine, so don't worry about it—Sasuke? "
Ignoring her quizzical expression, the Uchiha silently stalked past her, hands in his pocket and gaze fixed ahead. Sakura stood in place and watched him go. He was heading towards her house.
She bit the bottom of her lips. Of all the times Sasuke chose to be a gentleman, it was when she wanted his help the least. She wished Kakashi-sensei had given more time to sort out this Time-Travel-Memory-Loss issue alone.
"Hey, aren't you coming?" Sasuke called up from ahead.
Sakura picked out a note of irritation in his tone and her face scrunched up like she had smelled something foul. "Tch, it's not like I asked you to walk me back," she muttered darkly at his figure, but began to slowly make her way towards him to keep the peace.
Satisfied that she was following, Sasuke commanded, "Don't fall behind," before he turned around and continued on his way. Meanwhile, Sakura weighed the consequences of using that stupid clan symbol on his back as target practice.
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"This isn't good," Sasuke thought to himself, his black eyes darting from side to side. The black windows of unfamiliar shops and restaurants lined his vision. It was late, most businesses were closed, and the streets were empty. A streetlamp buzzed overhead.
He was lost.
It had occurred to him a while back that he didn't know Sakura's exact address, but his pride kept him moving stubbornly down unknown lanes and making turns at random corners. In situations like these it was all about confidence. Besides, Uchihas were known for their excellent senses of direction.
"Sasuke, we missed a turn," Sakura said behind him. A lot of turns, actually.
He stopped and looked over his shoulder. She had lessened the gap between them over the period of the walk. Amazingly, until this point, neither had uttered a single word to one another.
"Where?"
Sakura pointed behind her. "Six blocks that way."
"What! Why didn't you say something then?" he demanded crossly.
Sakura shrugged, too worn out to point out that he was the one who had taken the lead and forged ahead like a man on a mission.
"I thought you knew a short cut," she answered tiredly, offering an olive branch. It was growing late, and she was still an outpatient.
Sasuke must have realized this too. "You all right?"
Sakura waved off his question. "Fine, just fine. I can make it home from here, so you can leave. Thanks for taking me this far."
Sasuke examined her ragged face and made up his mind. "C'mon," he said and grabbed her upper arm. "Let's go."
"Ow! What? Hold on, let go, wait a minute—I said wait Sasuke!" Sakura dug her heels into the ground and tore her arm out of his grasp. She had a long day of getting her ass-kicked and memory wiped. The last thing she needed was to be manhandled like some damsel in distress.
Sasuke, however, seemed to see it differently. "What is wrong with you?"
Sakura's own patience was quickly unraveling. "What do you mean what's wrong with me? What's wrong with you? I said I could walk back alone but you're the one who keeps stubbornly insisting that I need a chaperone!"
"You're the one who's being stubborn. You can barely stand right now!"
"If this is your attempt at an apology, Sasuke, then stop. You didn't put me in the hospital. I just used up too much Chakra. And anyways, I can stand just fine. " Sakura hopped a few times to prove her point. "See? Fine."
They faced off for a long time, glares locked, and neither looking like they'd give in. To Sakura's surprise, it was Sasuke who broke his gaze first, his dark eyes sliding away as he shook his head in exasperation. His chest rose and fell in a silent sigh, and then his gaze found hers again. The anger had burned away, and his flat expression was as cold as unlit coal.
"For someone who's always going on about teamwork, you're pretty terrible at relying on others."
Sakura flinched back as if she'd just been slapped. She opened her mouth to respond. "That's…!" But the words wouldn't come and she was forced to close her mouth again. She dropped her gaze.
Without waiting for her to collect her thoughts, Sasuke brushed past her. "Night," he said stiffly.
Sakura didn't respond, keeping her eyes trained on the ground. She listened to his footsteps slowly grow farther and farther away. She kicked the ground half-heartedly, fists clenched as she fought to hold back the welling tears.
"Damn it," she said through gritted teeth. It seemed everything was going wrong today.
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The trees that grew deep in the Forest of Death were ancient and large. Their gnarled branches wove a thick canopy of leaves and moss that even sunlight had difficulty penetrating during the day. At night gossamers of moonlight weakly filtered through the top layers, but dense shadows suffocated most of the forest floor. It was a dangerous place for prey, but perfect hunting grounds for predators.
A pair of reptilian eyes glowed yellow in the gloom: a lone man. At his feet lay three corpses, still warm in death's embrace. He lifted his hand near his face, and a long, pink tongue slid out of his grinning mouth to lick the blood off his wrist.
"It would seem that Sasuke-kun really won't be joining us for the Chunin exams. How disappointing," he said softly, sounding more amused than disappointed.
His tongue ran hungrily over his lips, the corners of his mouth still pulled upward in a smile.
No matter. Everyone knew the hunt was never fun without the chase.
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The next morning Kakashi met up with his students at 10 A.M., and he was pleasantly surprised upon not receiving an earful for his tardiness. Pleasant surprise quickly turned to dismay when he fully assessed the situation. The reason his students weren't clamoring over his complete disregard for punctuality seemed to be due to the current "silent battle" that was being waged between two of his students.
A veteran of such battles in his own youth, he was privy to its telltale signs. What he hadn't expected, however, was to for Sakura and Sasuke to be the combatants.
Both had their arm crossed while pointedly looking in the opposite direction. Meanwhile Naruto, who had the misfortune of being caught in the crossfire, anxiously looked back and forth between his two teammates. The poor boy looked like he was about to explode in agitation.
"C'mon Sakura-chan, what's wrong?" He pleaded.
Sakura didn't look at him. "I told you, Naruto, nothing's wrong," she said stiffly.
"Whaddya mean nothings wrong?" Naruto said throwing his arms up in the air. "The two of you've just been this all morning! Damn it, and you Sasuke! At least say something, bastard!"
Neither of them deigned to respond. Naruto slapped a hand over his face, slowly dragging it down his features, the very picture of exasperation.
Kakashi rubbed the back of his head, for once sympathizing with his blonde student. He had hoped that sending Sasuke off with Sakura last night would give the two an opportunity to patch things up. However his little nudge-nudge-wink-wink seemed to have only exacerbated the situation.
"Morning," Kakashi chimed.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled his name like a hallelujah. "You're here!"
"I am," Kakashi agreed.
"You have to do something about these guys," Naruto continued, pointing frantically at his two teammates. "They've been acting constipated this whole morn—OW! Sorry Sakura-chan, I mean Sasuke's been acting constipated. Sakura-chan hasn't really said anything either."
Sakura rolled her eyes. "Morning, sensei. Let's go idiot," she said and grabbed Naruto by the arm, dragging him into the building along with her.
Kakashi looked over at his remaining student with a raised eyebrow. "Morning, Sasuke."
Instead of answering, Sasuke unfolded his arms and slid them into his pockets. He made his way into the building as well, the storm cloud over his head darker than usual.
Kakashi was left alone outside. He dug into his hip-pouch, fished out Icha-Icha, and cracked it open to his favorite bed scene. Nose already deep in his book, he sauntered in after his students.
It was going to be a long day.
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Sarutobi Hiruzen peered over his desk at Team Seven. The genin stared back with varying degrees of respect.
He had raised an eyebrow when it was reported that Kakashi's students hadn't entered the Chunin Exams. After all, the copycat ninja himself had clearly wanted his students to participate. The only reason for them to not enter would be if one member dropped out. The Hokage's eyes lingered on Sakura. She lowered her gaze slightly out of respect, but he did not sense any weakness. Curious. Perhaps she hadn't been the one.
"Hey old fart!" Naruto, the ever impudent brat, cut in. "Are you gonna give us the mission already, or what?"
"Naruto!" Sakura reprimanded.
"Whaaaat?" He wailed. "He's just been sitting there like that staring at us for the past minute! It's getting creepy! Wait! Holy crap, maybe he's dead! Someone check! Kakashi-sen—"
"No one's dead yet, Naruto," Kakashi reassured him with practiced patience.
The Third cleared his throat as if to prove his point. "Still as lively as ever, Naruto," he observed. "Well," he cleared his throat again. The medic in Sakura blamed the tobacco. "As I'm sure you are all aware, the Chunin exams have begun. The next few months will see an exponential increase in foreign traffic, and most of our resources will be directed towards domestic security." He produced a mission scroll and laid it on the desk. Everyone's attention was suddenly perked. The scroll was green and stamped with the letter "B."
"This means we're short on manpower for foreign missions. So," the Hokage paused.
"Sooooo," Naruto echoed, leaning forward excitedly as his blue eyes glimmered with anticipation.
"So," the Hokage repeated. "We are making exceptions and assigning low-leveled B-rank missions to some genin teams—"
He didn't have time to finish when Naruto let out a shout of joy, punching the air victoriously. "AWWWW YEAH!" Ignoring all decorum, he ran up to the Hokage's desk and slammed his hands down on the wood, bouncing up and down eagerly. "So what's the mission, gramps? You chose us 'cause I was so freaking awesome the last time right? Right—whoa!"
"Easy Naruto," Kakashi said, picking the boy up by the scruff of his jacket. Where was the squirt bottle when he needed it?
The Hokage offered up the scroll and Kakashi took it with his free hand, letting it fall open. He raised it to eye-level and skimmed the mission details while listening to the Third's overview.
"Your client is Murata Isamu-san."
"A merchant," Kakashi noted.
"Yes," The Hokage confirmed. "He makes most of his living transporting goods between the Fire Country's mainland and the Sun Isles. Lately, however, a large fleet of pirate ships has been plaguing the eastern waters. Murata-san has requested protection during his next venture, which is scheduled to set sail in three days time. You are to meet him at the port city of Amakusa on the day of departure. The rest of the details are, of course, in the scroll."
"Hmm. It takes about two and half days to get to Amakusa from here," Kakashi mused while placing a squirming Naruto back on the ground. "We'll leave today, then," he decided and turned his attention to his students. "Meet at the main gates in two hours. It looks like we'll be gone for a week at most, so pack accordingly. And no instant ramen this time, Naruto."
The boy scrunched his noise in displeasure. Thwarted.
While shepherding his students out of the office, the Hokage called out Kakashi's name. The jonin paused in the doorway, waving his students on ahead, and looked back. "Yes, Hokage-sama?"
Hiruzen slowly stroke his beard. "According to our intelligence, in general the pirates are a motley band of low leveled fighters, however." There seemed to always be a "however" lurking in these kinds of things, Kakashi thought. "There is thought to be a handful of elite fighters in the crew's upper ranks. We don't have much information on the leader, but it is suspected he is highly capable. There are rumors."
"Rumors?"
"Of Sanosuke no Ryujin."
Well, that could be a problem.
The Hokage's eyebrows furrowed and he gave Kakashi one of those looks that made anyone feel like they were back at the academy getting scolded. "Kakashi, I chose your genin team for this mission not only because of their performance in the Land of Waves, but also because you had nominated them for the Chunin exams."
"Don't let Naruto's idiocy fool you, they're strong, " Kakashi reassured him. "We'll be careful," he added to ease the old man's worries.
The professor nodded, though he didn't look happy. He had never liked giving these kinds of assignments to young genin. There was something inherently uncomfortable about sending children off into danger, possibly even their deaths.
After dismissing Kakashi, he sighed and reached for his pipe. However, if he kept up these thoughts, there would be no end to it. Right now, he had more pressing issues at hand, like preparing for the Kazekage's visit in a few weeks' time.
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A little past noon, Team 7 assembled as planned. Kakashi was only twenty minutes late—a rare occurrence.
Puffing his chest out, Naruto sauntered to the head of the pack. "Hehe Kakashi-sensei, don't worry, the almighty Me will take the lead today."
"Mhmm, that's nice, Naruto," Kakashi said distractedly, already having disappeared behind the cover of his book.
Naruto lunged forward, pointing towards the distance. "All right, Team 7! Let's head out!"
His teammates looked less than impress.
"What're you doing, dumb ass," Sasuke muttered as they all filed past him.
"Hey! Wait! What're you all doing?" Naruto whined, clearly put out. "I said I was taking the lead today—ack! Hold on! Wait for me guys!"
Sasuke and Sakura sighed at the same time. Surprised by the echo, they looked over at one another. Their eyes locked for a moment before their gazes flickered away in mutual annoyance: they were still fighting.
Kakashi, who caught the entire exchange from the corner of his eye, hoped this whole thing would blow over by the time they got to Amakusa. If not, he'd have to step in and actually do something about it. At the rate things were going, he might just have to handcuff the two and throw them in a pit of man-eating tigers. Nothing brought people together quite like a brush with death.
As the four made their way down the road, a small white snake with yellow eyes watched their progression from within the tall grass. Its forked tongue tasted the air a few times before it slithered soundlessly after them. Not even Kakashi could have noticed it.
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Author's other notes_
1. What? WHAT DO YOU MEAN NARUTO ENDED? FUCK THAT NOISE, I'M A FANFICTION WRITER! I DO WHAT I WANT.
2. What? This story is taking forever to update? I'M A FANFICTION WRITER! I DO WHAT I WA- *gets face slammed into desk*
3. *SITS SEIZA STYLE* I AM DEEPLY SORRY! SEPPUKU-! *face slammed into floor*
4. Gintama has been a terrible influence on me lately (You may take that as hint for upcoming stories)
5. On a more serious, less violent note…I'm back! Sort of. To the people who have been patient, thank you. Even though this story may sit in the drawer for long periods of time, I seem to always come back to brush off the dust. If it were up to me, I'd let its existence quietly float off into some dark corner of the Internet, but all the support and encouragement never fail to rekindle my enthusiasm.
6. Part of the reason this takes so long, is because I don't have a solid plot outlined. I mean, I have a beginning and an end but not much in between. Besides, even when I do try and outlining my chapters, the characters go off and do their own things and I'm left sitting there being all "WELL THANKS, ASSHOLES. WTF AM I SUPPOSED TO WITH THIS TEN PAGED OUTLINE?" And then everyone stares back indifferently and shrugs. RUDE. Except for you Naruto, you're perfect, sweetie *hugz*
7. Like seriously though. NO ONE EVER FOLLOWS THE SCRIPT. *angry author tantrum* THIS CHAPTER WAS SUPPOSED TO END WITH SASUKE COMING OVER TO SAKURA'S HOUSE FOR TEA *gross sobbing* WHY DO THEY HATE EACH OTHER SO MUCH? (I don't really know either.)
8. Please comment and review. It's the only thing keeping me going right now. I read (and sometimes reply to) everything. EVERYTHING.
