Chibi: I am not a happy camper at the given moment. SO MANY PEOPLE READ EACH CHAPTER, and yet…like, 5 people review. That makes me sad, and it is really pathetic when I start getting REALLY HAPPY just by one review. Are 15 really that hard for you? I have put up a poll, so please visit it NOW and come back and read AFTERWARDS so you don't forget. I am probably going to change the pairing from NeijTen to SuigetsuTenten and NejiKarin. Before half of y'all go EW! Karin? I hate that bitch! Take a moment to think. I changed your thoughts about Kin Tsuchi, and I intend on making you like Karin too. x3
Kisame sighed, stumbling across what, in his opinion, was the messiest goddamn battle of the century. Leader had given him specific instructions to be at this field exactly 12 hours ago…and…well…an S-Ranked Missing-Nin's memory isn't perfect!
"Geez Leader…where's the mutilated bodies?" He grumbled. He knew that it was part of his duty that if he missed a battle he was supposed to be at, he had to be the one man clean-up crew. His eyes widened as the trails of blood led to the corpses. His eyes particularly glued to a pair of Eternal Mangekyo Sharingans.
"Trouble Kisame?" The shark-boy whirled around at the sound of that voice, and his eyes widened at the sight before him.
Neji blinked at Jugo. Jugo blinked at Neji.
"I'm Hyuuga, Neji." Neji made his salutations to the taller-nin. "I am a wielder of a byakugon."
"Jugo…I can talk to birds, and I am mentally unstable. So don't get me mad…or I'll kill you." Jugo stated simply.
"Ah…I see." Neji gave a curt nod. "That's very…." He couldn't quite find words to explain his thoughts.
"It sucks." Jugo answered for him, rising, and walking away.
"You're Jugo-kun, ne?" Ino popped up before Jugo, a wide grin plastered on her bright and cheery face.
"Hai…" Jugo raised an eyebrow. "Can I help you?"
Ino nodded vigorously. "Hai! I hear you can talk to birds." She stated.
Jugo didn't quite see how she needed to talk to him for this. "And?" He twitched, the blonde girl dancing on his nerve.
"I just think that's really cool and all!" Ino complimented him, before waving and running off, she ran past Sasuke who was engaged in a conversation with Tenten.
"So I was thinking, we'd need to train to see if my blade really can absorb something as powerful as Chidori." Tenten babbled on. Sasuke blinked, surprised. Normally a girl would be flirting with him.
"Yeah…you should go ask Suigetsu about something like that…" Sasuke stated. "He knows a lot more about swords than I do…he's actually the one keeping my katana in mint condition…"
"Suigetsu-kun?" Tenten cocked her head to the side. "Earlier he asked me about his sword." She stated.
Sasuke snickered. "He was just playing with you. After we retrieved that from Zabuza's grave, he spent about two days polishing and sharpening that baby, giving me its statistical readings, weight, and everything. He's OBSESSED with Kisame's sword, Samehada."
Tenten frowned. "Oh…"
Karin flounced around Suna, Ino at her right side. "I really hated being the only girl on Taka." She groaned. "You were on a 3 man squad too, ne? Didn't you loathe being the only female?"
Ino nodded. "One of my team mates was…troublesome…the other one, Chouji, he was very nice and considerate. He's one of my friends I actually do miss." A wave of melancholy washed through her, as she remembered a time that she and Chouji had a ramen eating contest. He'd let her win, just because he knew it had gotten her to eat a lot, as she'd been on a ridiculous coffee and peanut diet a few days prior.
"Ino-san…I really don't want to burst your bubble…but…you're going to have to watch it out there…if Naruto is as serious as he sounds, he won't waste a second diminishing Konoha, and everyone in it…even if it means losing your friend." Karin set a hand on Ino's shoulder.
"Hai, I know…" Ino whispered.
A large festival was taking place in Konoha, the members of the SasuNaru Retreival Teams the center of attention.
"Hooray for the end of the Akatsuki!" A random villager cheered, dancing around and throwing sakura petals everywhere. The pink petals sprinkled the ground with amazing colors and wondrous scents.
"Three cheers for our Rokudaime!" Another cried.
Ino sat on the roof of Kazekage tower, knees to her chest, staring out at the city before her. She shook slightly shifting for a kunai, when a charka presence disturbed hers.
"Naruto-kun?" Ino whimpered, glancing back at Naruto. The way the sunset hit him was extraordinary, and Ino couldn't begin to explain his current beauty.
"Ino-san." Naruto sat down beside Ino. "You had a long day today…in Gaara's office…" He stated quietly.
"That was only 30 minutes." Ino stated flatly, causing a few laughs to be exchanged.
"You have a lot on your mind…" Naruto sighed, staring at her.
"How long did it take you to figure that out?" Ino whispered softly, her eyes softening.
"Karin told me." Naruto grinned slightly, only to receive a whack on the shoulder from the female blonde.
"Figures." Ino huffed, burying her face into her arms.
"Ino…she told me everything." Naruto removed her arms from her legs, and tilted her head with his fingers so that they were staring directly at each other. "She told me everything you told her." He whispered softly, his eyes softening to a look Ino had never seen the determined dobe wear.
"It was too much to take in at one time." Ino stated, unable to tear her azure eyes away from Naruto's matching ones.
"I know…I heard about…baa-chan…and your bloodline…" Naruto informed, stroking her cheek with his thumb.
"I know…" Ino didn't know this, but knew that's what someone would say when in her case.
"I talked to Sasuke…concerning Suigetsu…you two can leave in a day for the Village Hidden in the Mist. He knows it best, he was raised there. He can properly train you, and then you can accompany us back here…" Naruto offered her an exceptional deal.
"Naruto-kun…it's not that important…really." Ino tried to avert her gaze yet again, but couldn't bear to do so. Instead, she felt her eyes welling up with tears of gratitude.
"Hai…it is." Naruto insisted. "You're going." He grinned at her.
Ino felt very overwhelmed at the moment. Not at that fact, no…it was eighteen years of pain that came crashing down. Tears streamed down her face as she forced her to break the eye contact due to humiliation, and cried silent sobs.
"Ino?" Naruto whispered, trying to gain the girls attention. "Ino?" He set a hand on her shoulder. Ino turned towards him, and buried her face in his chest, letting out all the tears. Naruto, feeling slightly at unease, wrapped his arms around her, whispering words of comfort.
"My life…it's so horrible Naruto…" Ino sobbed. "Well…it was…until now…well not now now, but before Shinu…"
"Shh…" Naruto stroked her shortened hair, his face resting in the crook of her neck.
"S-Sakura-ch-chan…I was her friend, she w-wa-as m-my f-friend…she was h-honestly the only one I c-could trust." Ino spilled, crying onto Naruto's shoulder now. "T-Then her c-crush on Sa-Sasuke-k-kun developed, and sh-she was l-like a wh-whole di-different p-p-person." The blond girl desperately tried to control her stuttering. "I-I liked Sa-Sasuke-kun and I t-tried to keep it a se-secret. I didn't want to l-lose her f-friendship…but she f-found o-out. Sh-she left me…" The tears were endless, as Ino spilled her life issues to Naruto.
After explaining the past eighteen years to the blonde male, Ino finally managed to compose herself, feeling rather ashamed of her behavior. The puffiness of her eyes had reduced to a minimum, and her cheeks weren't nearly as blotchy as they had been a few minutes ago.
"Feeling better?" Naruto asked, staring at her, worried.
"Yeah…" Ino wiped the remainder of her tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry I…told you probably more about me than you'd ever want to know…" She glanced down.
"It's okay…I didn't really have a person like that when I needed one…and no person should have to go through that alone…" Naruto's eyes softened yet again as he stared into the blackness of the night. He was shocked when Ino pulled him into a hug.
"Thank you Naruto-kun." She whispered, the two swaying slightly in the hug.
"No problem." Naruto shrugged.
"No…it is a big problem…if the council members of Konoha could see you now…" Ino beamed. "Thank you again for the opportunity to go to Kiri with Suigetsu. It means a lot to me." She glanced away, blushing slightly. "See you tomorrow." She wore a small smile as she slid down the roof and into her room.
- THE NEXT MORNING-
"Naruto…Naruto….NARUTO." Neji waved a piece of toast in Naruto's face. Naruto was calmer than ever. In fact, Suigetsu had suggested that he had been abducted by aliens…or worse…Sakura…and been replaced with a cheesy doppelganger.
"Hm?" Naruto glanced over at Neji. "Hai?"
"Is the trip on? Am I going back to my hometown with Blondie tomorrow?" Suigetsu inquired.
"Oh…hai." Naruto nodded. "Hai." He stared out the window.
Jugo stared out the window as well, trying to find out what interested the dobe so much. "If you're checking out that blue jay…sorry…but she's got a mate…" He grinned at his joke.
"Not funny." Suigetsu stated flatly. "Was that even a joke?" He cleared up his dishes, and threw them into the sink. He then downed a bottle of water.
"Urusai Suigetsu." Sasuke instructed.
"What? Do you sense a disturbance in the force?" Suigetsu grinned, downing another bottle.
"Actually…hai…" Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Suigetsu. "Itachi. Is. Alive."
"Yes!" Tenten leaped out of bed, and into the bathroom to wash up.
"What's with her?" Karin yawned, sitting up and stretching. She grabbed for her glasses and brush.
"I have no idea." Ino yawned as well. "Hey Karin?" she asked.
"Hai, Ino-chan?" Karin asked, rolling her head over at the blonde.
"Why is one half your hair neat, and the other half messy?" Ino inquired, just out of thought. "You don't really have to answer…I was just wondering."
Karin shrugged. "It's a funny story…you see…since I'm the only girl…I'm 'minor' and so the guys act so superior. Every morning I'd get up early to wash up, and it takes me a while to brush all my hair since it's so thick and long. I'd only have enough time to brush one side…before they dragged me along…" She grinned sheepishly.
"Don't worry about that anymore." Ino promised, as Tenten bolted out of the bathroom. "Oi! Tennie-san…where's the fire?"
"I'm going to pick up my sword!" Tenten cried with glee, clapping her hands.
"Now?" Ino was taken aback. "Swords take weeks to make!" She exclaimed.
"The man I ordered from said he'd put all his guys into making this one. He's so fast and accurate!" Tenten squealed.
"You're going to wake up Neji, Jugo, Naruto, and Sasuke…" Karin yawned, stretching and rolling out of bed.
"What about Suigetsu-kun?" Tenten asked, blinking.
"Oh, I don't care if you wake him up…in fact…please do so…drag him along with you." Karin grinned diabolically.
Tenten laughed. "Okay…" She tied her hair up in two buns. Ino was about to protest. "Just for today?" Tenten clasped her hands together, and made puppy eyes. Ino yawned, waving a hand dismissively as a sign of acceptance. "Domo! See you later!" Tenten left via window.
"She's a hyper little thing…" Karin groaned, rubbing her eyes. "I'm still half asleep." She entered the bathroom with a bundle of clothing in hand, and sealed the door behind her. Ino heard the shower starting, and a few moments later, a scream accompanied the noise.
"You okay?" Ino shouted, making sure Karin could hear her.
"Ugh! She used all the hot water!" Karin shrieked in return.
Neji and Jugo sat at a small café, each enjoying a cup of hot tea.
"So why did you leave?" Jugo asked, slurping his tea.
"My current guardian, Hisashi Hyuuga, hates my guts, my team mate and my sensei are hardly tolerable, and our Godaime chose a girl with pink hair to follow as Rokudaime." Neji stated flatly.
"Wow…that almost makes Orochimaru-sama's labs seems…normal…" Jugo blinked, setting the cup down to take a bite of the rice he had ordered. "Just kidding. His labs are still fucked up."
"I haven't even been there and I agree with that notion." Neji shook his head in disappointment. He raised an eyebrow looking out the window as a quirky Tenten dragged along a smart-ass Suigetsu.
"Why did you have to bring me along?" Suigetsu whined in complaint.
"I brought you along, because Karin told me to, and because you're the only person who likes swords." Tenten muttered, jerking on Suigetsu's arm, forcing him to walk faster.
"Why would you listen to her?" Suigetsu stated, slowly throwing his head back in frustration.
"She's my friend." Tenten stated simply.
"No…I believe that would be barbie kunoichi back at the field." Suigetsu stated a-matter-of-factly. "Let's get a move on. We have to go pick up your sword now if we're ever going to have time to nag Sasuke to perform Chidori on it."
"Hai…it's a big butcher knife just like Kubikiri Hocho here." Tenten tapped Suigetsu's stolen sword.
"Then it's probably too heavy for a girl like you…" Suigetsu stretched, some of his shoulder joints popping.
"Nani?" Tenten's eyes darkened as she glowered at the male. "What are you implying?" She hissed, angered by his sexist comment.
"I don't know?" Suigetsu shook his head, a sad attempt to drop the matter. Luckily they had approached the blacksmiths.
"Tenten-san!" The pudgy blacksmiths man greeted the girl, a wide smile on his face. "We just finished the last procedure for your sword. It's a beauty! Even better than a sword I made for a different fellow…what was his name? Oh hai! Zabuza Momochi's Kubikiri Hocho!" He brought Tenten into a delightful hug.
Suigetsu's jaw dropped. Better than his sword? He couldn't help the urge to ask. "What other swords would you say it's better than?" He choked out, and ignored Tenten's glare drill into him.
"Just Zabuza's! This sword will be like a part of this wondrous young woman. It will electrocute anyone who tries to swing, stab, or use it that is not her person." The blacksmith beamed in pride. "It's one my finest work yet…though I don't get many custom orders…"
Suigetsu twitched, watching the grin on Tenten's face grow to an extreme. "Domo!" She cried, flinging her arms around the blacksmiths. "How much will that be?" She asked.
The blacksmith frowned. "I'm afraid it'll be quite pricy…" he stated in a solemn tone.
"That's fine!" Tenten beamed. "Send the bill to Kazekage-sama." She pulled out a note from Gaara stating to let Tenten gain possession of the sword, and that the bill, no matter how high, should be sent to him.
"Well then! Let's go on back and retrieve that work of art!" The blacksmith smiled, slipping the note into his pocket. He noticed Suigetsu. "Oh…I'll be right with you my boy." He held up a finger as he ushered Tenten into the back.
"It's better than Kubikiri Hocho for gods sake!" Suigestu narrowed his eyes at the door. "And it's all hers…" He twitched with envy.
Tenten soon came from the room, a large package wrapped in black leather in hand. She squealed, practically running up to Suigetsu. "The blacksmith calls it Kouatsu!" She was hopping up and down with excitement. Suigetsu's normally cocky attitude had been drained, having found out that the one sword that was better than his…belonged to an ally.
"High voltage…" Suigetsu repeated the name of the sword, in English. "It suits it…" he glanced away.
"Would you like to see it?" Tenten asked.
Eager to see the appearance of the sword, Suigetsu slowly nodded. "Hai."
Tenten removed the leather cloth, taking out the large strap to attach it to her person. She refused to open the leather cloth any further until Suigetsu agreed to help her set the belt on properly.
"Why do you need my help?" Suigetsu demanded.
"You seemed to have done a fine job on strapping Kubikiri Hocho on properly, but I have never done this before!" Tenten protested.
Suigetsu groaned. "Fine!" He snatched the belt from her fingers and stepped away, trying to figure out where the belt would stay put. He figured out where. "God Tenten…" He grumbled, placing the strap underneath her bust, and running the straps out to her back, trying to contain his hormones.
"What? Are you trying to tell me that in your, what, twenty-three years of age, you've never done this to a woman?" Tenten rolled her eyes, though she felt her pulse racing beneath her skin.
"Cool it, I'm only twenty, and for your information, I haven't." Suigetsu snapped. "I don't get turned on easily being in a group for six years with Karin, the walking slut. Especially not when I'm strapping belts to girls."
"Girl?" Tenten snapped. "How old do I look to you?" She glowered at Suigetsu as he continued to attach the belt.
"Sixteen." Suigetsu lied. Okay, so she looked around twenty to him, but he wasn't going to let her be all happy again. Annoying her was much more effective than annoying Karin, because she was cuter when she was mad, instead of puffing up like a blowfish.
Tenten's eyes widened and she looked like she was going to strangle Suigetsu at the moment. "I'm nineteen!" She cried in anger.
"All done." Suigetsu removed his arms from around Tenten. "Now let's see Kouatsu!" He hovered over the bundle.
Tenten sighed, and then she smirked, a devious thought coming to her mind. She blinked. "Could you get it for me?" She asked.
"Sure…whatever." Suigetsu threw off the leather, forgetting the words of the blacksmith that it would electrocute anyone who was not Tenten, and grabbed the sword.
JOLT!
Suigetsu cried out in pain as his hand smoked slightly, dropping the sword to the floor. Tenten smirked and picked up the sword, examining it. It was as long as Zambato, and looked like Zambato as well, with the large curve on the side of the blade. The handle was black, with golden bolts engraved. The blade itself was wonderful silver mica, with the mica sparkling in the sunlight. The collar, pommel, blade collar, and guard were all a bright scarlet.
Tenten attached the blade to her back, glancing at Suigetsu, who was glaring daggers at her.
"Hai?" Tenten asked, beginning to leave.
"That was a bitch move." Suigetsu grumbled.
"Sasuke-teme…why do you still think that Itachi is alive?" Naruto grumbled, playing with a kunai. Sasuke, Naruto, Jugo, Neji, Ino, and Karin were at the training grounds. Jugo and Neji were engaged in a light spar, while Karin and Ino practiced charka control.
"I know that he is alive. I don't know why I know, I just know." Sasuke replied. He saw an angry Suigetsu approaching, with a beaming Tenten. "Konichiwa Tenten-chan…let's see that new edition to your weapon family." Sasuke smirked, anxious to see the sword.
"Hai!" Tenten swung the sword around. "Don't touch it though, it'll electrocute you…Suigetsu-kun here learned that the hard way." She giggled, while Suigetsu glowered.
"Urusai." Suigetsu grumbled, leaning against a tree.
"Someone's jealous." Naruto smirked, pointing out the minor flaw in Suigetsu's current mood.
"No I'm not!" Suigetsu snapped defensively. "I mean, who cares if it's better than Kubikiri Hocho? Who cares?" Suigetsu's eye twitched. "Who cares?" he demanded.
Karin approached, hearing his little fit, and smirked, leaning her elbow on Tenten's shoulder. "Looks to me like you care." She grinned.
"Urusai." Suigetsu fumed.
Sasuke twitched a good five times. "Neji…activate your byakugon." He instructed.
The Hyuuga prodigy was not happy in the least about being bossed around by the Uchiha who was one year his junior, but activated his bloodline no less. His eyes widened.
"Uh oh…" Tenten took this as a sign of pure and utter bad news. "What's wrong Neji-kun?" She asked.
"Yes Neji-kun, why are you so shocked?" A cold and sinister voice asked. The teen shinobi snapped their heads in the direction of the voice. Standing on a branch was Uchiha, Itachi, Kisame, and…Deidara.
Chibi: WHOO! Fast update! I KNOW I had something important to say, but I forgot. I WANT TEN REVIEWS! That's the LEAST you can give me since I only got 2/3 of my 15 reviews. Uh…check out my poll, I'm probably gonna do SuiTen NejiKarin just for the heck of it, since I use NejiTen as some sidepairings for other stories, but I DEFINITELY WANT to hear peoples opinions. Dammit…I still don't remember. Um…if anyone wants a cool jutsu featured in here then PM me or leave a VERY DETAILED description in the review. I don't need to know the hand signs, but what to call it, which element it pertains to, who performs it, though that might differ depending on what I have planned, and what it does. For the note, in the last chapter, there was slight controversy to whether I had something against SasuNaru. I don't. I LOVE THAT YAOI PAIRING!x3 But I want Karin to slowly let go of her fangirly ways, so I had to make her NOT like yaoi. I'm also VERY SORRY if anyone feels Neji's slightly neglected. I'll make LOTSA time for him later on.
SPECIAL THANKS TO
Fireymaiden
The PhantomHokage
xTxNxLx
Inumiru
Freexflyer
Fatal_Attracti0n
Jffry48734
InoXSasukeSOS
Lydia-chan
