Chapter 9

o

"You'll catch a cold sleeping in a place like this," a soft voice whispered in Hinata's ear.

She woke with a start, her pale eyes round and confused as a pretty face slowly came into focus. At first, she couldn't remember why she was in the woods, but as sleep released its hold on her mind it quickly came back to her. She'd woken early and, after checking to make sure that Kurenai's bandages didn't need changing, had hurried to the woods so she could get in an hour or two of training before her teammates arrived. Apparently she'd been more tired from the night before than she'd realized.

Hinata looked up at the person kneeling next to her. For a moment, she thought the newcomer might be a girl, but something about her eyes and hands, as well as the moderately pronounced Adam's apple in the throat and the lack of any swell in the breasts led her to believe that for all her beauty, 'she' was probably a 'he.'

He was wearing a sleeveless pink yakata with a pretty spiral pattern on it and a thin, black band around his neck. His long, beautiful, black hair framed his face in a way that Hinata could only dream of getting hers to do and ran down almost to his waist in the back. He smiled kindly as he caught her eyes examining his features and they both blushed.

"T-thank you for waking me," Hinata said quickly as she rose to her feet and bowed politely.

The boy returned the bow. "You're welcome."

The two were quiet for a moment, Hinata unsure of what to say next and the boy apparently content to enjoy the quiet of the forest until she came up with something. Finally Hinata noticed the small basket resting in the leaves at the boy's feet and asked, "What are y-you picking?"

The boy lifted his basket and showed it to her. "There are plants in these woods which make good medicine," he explained. "A few are good for pain, but these just help fight infection and speed healing."

Hinata picked up one of the plants inside and inspected it carefully. "W-we have a similar plant in the woods near my home, but I've never seen this variety." If these plants were good for healing, she'd have to collect some and use them in her treatment of Kurenai.

"Are you a ninja?" the boy asked, glancing at the hitai-ate that she wore around her neck instead of on her forehead where it normally belonged.

"Y-yes," she admitted, "I'm from Konoha."

"How exciting. You must be very strong if they let you come so far from home."

Hinata blushed again and the small smile she'd been wearing since the conversation began fell away. "No, n-not really."

The boy also stopped smiling, "Forgive me, I didn't mean to…"

"N-no, it was not y-your fault… you have nothing to apologize for."

Again they were quiet for a moment and then the boy said, "I could use a little help collecting the plants… if you're not busy, would you like to help me?"

Hinata smiled at him. "Y-yes, I think I would like that."

ooo

The morning light helped jog Naruto's memory significantly – making the woods at least feel more familiar – and the rest (even if he hadn't been allowed to sleep) along with a bit of food left him feeling reenergized and only moderately terrified of what awaited him when he returned home… and what he might have to report when he got there. He removed another ration bar and bit into it. It was one of the most disgusting things he'd ever tasted, even worse than Sakura-chan's first and only attempt at cooking ramen shortly before her death, but it helped keep him energized and took the edge off his hunger.

After finishing his breakfast, he returned to the lake one more time and rechecked the blood stain that he'd found the night before. It wasn't quite as bad as he'd thought when he first saw it, but it was still pretty bad. There weren't any bodies though and that was something.

He searched the area for more clues about the battle that had taken place there, but found little. There were, however, several sets of heavy footprints leading back towards the village. Either Team Eight had walked away or someone had come and carried away the bodies…

Naruto frowned at the thought and then hurried off after the footprints. He wasn't going to find any more answers out here so he would have to go and see what he could find in the village.

He was still a short distance from Tazuna's village when he heard the sounds of soft laughter and movement among the bushes not far away. In an instant he was up in the nearest tree, hidden amongst the green leafs. Naruto peered down and scanned the area, his body tense and ready to leap into action should he be spotted by an enemy.

For a moment, he didn't hear or see anything, and then the most beautiful sound he'd heard in several days reached his ears.

"I-I think there is some more over here," Hinata's soft voice called as she stepped around a bush and knelt next to a patch of green plants.

Naruto nearly lost himself in his relief and jumped down to hug her, but before he did anything foolish, another person stepped into view. It was a beautiful girl that seemed strangely familiar. After a few seconds of staring at the newcomer Naruto's breath caught in his throat. She wasn't a girl.

He was Haku.

Naruto instantly recalled his own first (actually, second) meeting with Haku in these same woods all those years ago. For a moment he thought it strange that even with a different team and, presumably, a different spot for the tree climbing training, Haku still ended up meeting a Leaf-nin, but then he realized that this wasn't totally a chance meeting just as his probably wasn't in the original timeline. Haku might not have known anyone would be in these woods training, but a ninja of his skill level wouldn't have needed many clues to find an inexperienced genin. It was too bad Haku was an enemy; someone with his sort of talent would be a great asset anywhere.

Naruto's mind wandered back to the fight between his team and Haku on the bridge. Haku could probably have killed both of them if he'd tried hard enough, certainly he could have killed Sasuke, but he'd been too kind hearted to go through with it – instead hitting those spots that would leave Sasuke into a deathlike state but not do any lasting harm. Naruto still had vivid memories of the dread that had swept over him when he saw what appeared to be Sasuke's death and the relief he'd felt with they discovered that Haku hadn't actually killed his friend. The truth was, for all his prodigious talent, Haku had no real desire to be a ninja; he just wanted to be useful to Zabuza.

With that thought a plan slowly began to take shape in Naruto's mind while he watched the two unsuspecting ninja collecting plants and putting them into a basket.

ooo

Haku and the young girl who eventually told him her name was Hinata worked together for nearly an hour before he excused himself. She had clearly been trying hard to keep from revealing too much without seeming rude, but the questions she evaded told him almost as much as those she answered. During that time he was able to discern that her jounin was still injured – which made sense given the severity of the injury Zabuza had inflicted on her – but healing quickly. After bidding her farewell and telling her that he hoped to see her again, he began to make his way back towards Gato's forest hideout.

He had only taken a few steps out of the young woman's line of sight when he became aware of a shadow moving through the trees above him. He didn't bother looking up or attempting to reach for one of the senbon tucked into his clothing, such movements would only alert his stalker that he'd been spotted. Instead he continued along as he had been, enjoying the warm weather and the early morning smells of the forest that was still just waking up as he searched for more healing herbs.

The shadow followed him until he knelt to pick up one of the plants that he was searching for and then it dropped almost silently to the ground. Had Haku not noticed it earlier, he doubted he would have even heard the landing or sensed the man or woman approach.

"You can stop playing," a surprisingly youthful voice informed him, "I know you heard me."

Haku turned and found a young man with spiky blond hair sticking out over the same Leaf hitai-ate as the girl he'd just met – and probably not much older than her either – wearing a bright orange outfit that left Haku wondering how the boy had been able to hide at all amongst the trees. Naruto had positioned himself so that he was standing only a little more than an arm's length away, just far enough that Haku would have to take a half step to reach him.

He must have noticed Haku measure the distance between them because he flashed a cocky grin that – mostly because of the odd whisker-like marks on his cheeks – reminded Haku of a fox, and said, "Don't bother. You'd be dead before you even laid a finger on me."

Haku smiled placatingly and made an effort to appear totally relaxed even if nothing could be farther from the truth. "I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean."

"I told you that you could stop playing, I know exactly who you are, Haku, and who you work for."

Haku's smile faded instantly. "May I ask your name then?"

"Sorry," Naruto replied evenly, "I always kind of liked you, but I can't trust you and my name isn't important anyway. What is important is that I've got a message for Zabuza that I need you to deliver and… I'd like you to answer a question. After that we can walk away peacefully or we can try to kill each other. It's up to you."

Haku hadn't really expected to get a name and, though the temptation was there, he resisted asking how it was that the blond ninja knew him enough to apparently be slightly found of him. There were more important things to learn from him first. "What is your message?"

"Tell Zabuza that Gato is going to betray and kill him whether he takes out old man Tazuna or not. He isn't going to give you guys whatever it is that he promised he'd pay you."

Haku was careful not to look surprised at anything the boy said, but his blood boiled at the thought of that vile vermin Gato attempting to double-cross Zabuza… even though Zabuza had already planned a similar double-cross of Gato, "And your question?"

Naruto hesitated and bit his lip before asking, "Is there anyway I talk you into not following Zabuza if he goes to kill Tazuna?"

Haku was silent for a few seconds and then asked, "Do you have many people who are special to you?"

Naruto's eyes closed and he sighed sadly, bowing his head in defeat as he realized what Haku's question implied as an answer. "Yes," he admitted.

"Then perhaps you will not be able to understand how I feel," Haku told him with a small shrug. "There is a pain that is worse than anything anyone can know. Not having a dream, not being needed or even wanted, to live with no reason for life… there is no pain that can compare to being unneeded and unwanted. There was a time – a long time – where I knew that pain and nothing else. Then I met Zabuza-san. He took me in, he desired me even if it was only as a tool, and he gave me a reason to exist. Without him I would be dead – or worse – and for him and his dreams I would gladly die."

With the other boy's head bowed and his eyes apparently closed, Haku took a chance and inched forward until the blond was within reach, carefully making no noise. "If you're friends get in our way, we'll have no choice but to kill them."

Naruto's head came up. "If you try, I'll kill you." It wasn't spoken like a threat, Haku realized, it was simply a statement of fact. The boy wasn't pretending to be brave. He actually believed that he could kill both Zabuza and Haku.

Haku dipped his head in a small bow. "Then the next time we meet will probably be the last."

The blond sucked in a deep breath. "It doesn't have to be this way," he said in a voice that was almost pleading. "Just walk away from this job. I don't want to have to kill you."

"That is a decision for Zabuza to make, but I already know what he will say. I'm afraid it is our fate to do battle unless you and your friends choose to get out of our way."

"That won't happen either."

"In that case, I fear you and I are enemies." Haku's voice gave no hint of his intent and his muscles did not tense before the movement, so when his hand suddenly shot out, a senbon appearing in his fist like magic, and swiped at the blond it should have come as a complete surprise.

Naruto, however, either wasn't caught off guard the way Haku had hoped he would be or else was exceptionally fast. He took a single step back and arched his body away from the fist and the senbon it carried, just managing to dodge the attack. "That was dumb," he growled as he straightened, his eyes flashing angrily.

Haku started to take another step forward to press the attack before the blond had a chance to counterattack, but a hint of movement behind him and the sudden sharp edge of a kunai pressed against his throat stopped him in his tracks.

"I told you that you'd be dead before you even laid a finger on me," Naruto's voice whispered in his ear. "Don't try that again."

Haku stared at the boy in front of him in silence while he collected himself, the blade against his throat a constant reminder as to how close he'd come to dying. Finally he held up the hand with the senbon in it and dropped the needle to show that he had no desire to fight anymore. The ninja behind him, as well as the kunai he'd been holding, vanished in a puff of smoke.

"May I ask you something now?" Haku asked after a quick glance behind him confirmed that they were apparently alone again.

"What?"

"Why did I not see you when Zabuza-san fought your fellow Leaf ninja?"

The blond looked like he was considering lying for a moment, but then decided that there was no harm in being truthful. "I guess you could say that I was running a little late."

Haku digested this information for a moment and then asked, "Then someone on that team one of your precious people?"

"Yes," Naruto replied with a slow nod, "all of them are precious to me."

Haku smiled sadly and said, "Then I truly wish that things could be different, I don't want to take a special person from anyone… but it seems our fates are already set."

Naruto's eyes widened in alarm for a brief moment and then squeezed shut as if he were trying to will away the truth of the words. Haku took that moment to turn and walk away, but on the faint breeze he heard the whispered words, "Let's hope not…"

He glanced back over his shoulder just in time to see the blond bring his fingers together and disappear in a puff of smoke. Yet another shadow clone. That meant that even with his power at least divided by three, he'd still been fast enough to evade an untelegraphed attacked. The boy, whoever he was, was a dangerous enemy indeed. It was possible, though unlikely, that he might just be capable of doing what he'd claimed when he said he would kill both Haku and Zabuza.

ooo

Haku entered Zabuza's room quietly and set down his basket. His master sat at the edge of the bed on the other side of the room holding an apple and staring at it intently.

"How are you feeling today, Zabuza-san?" the boy asked as he began to grind some of the plants he had collected into a paste. He used only the plants that helped prevent infection, leaving those that aided in recovery for a tea he planned to brew a little later.

Zabuza's hand squeezed the apple, crushing it with only minimal effort.

"It looks like you are almost recovered," Haku observed as he finished his work and brought the paste over to Zabuza, gently massaging it into the wounds on the man's neck.

"Yes, we should go soon, Haku."

Haku nodded as he finished his task and then began to prepare the tea. "I met a strange boy today," he began as the water heated. "He knew who I was."

"Was he from Kirigakure?" Zabuza asked, instantly giving the conversation his full attention.

Haku considered it but then shook his head. "No, I don't think so."

"Then how did he know you?"

"I don't know, I didn't ask, but he wore the hitai-ate of Konohagakure. He said he had a message for you."

"What was it?"

Haku finished the tea, poured it into a small wooden cup, and handed it to Zabuza. "He said that we should not attack Tazuna-san and that Gato is planning to betray and kill us rather than give us what he promised."

Zabuza took the cup and sipped it slowly as he thought. "Did he tell you how he knew that?"

"No."

"If he's from the Leaf, I doubt we can trust him anyway, it's his job to protect the old man… Besides, we're going to kill Gato as soon as this job is over, regardless of whether or not he pays us. We'll take our pay and more before we leave this place."

Haku bit his lower lip nervously. "He defeated me. I tried to attack him when it became clear that he would be our enemy in the near future. He could have killed me, but didn't." Zabuza scowled at the news and Haku lowered his head in shame, but still asked, "Do we really need to attack them? This new one makes our situation more difficult. We could simply leave now…"

"Haku," Zabuza growled, "this isn't just for the money anymore. Being taken down by that little woman and those three brats was an insult I can't let go unanswered… if we don't finish this job, we'll have trouble getting more work when it becomes known that we were beaten by a bunch of nobodies." He took another sip of his tea and said, "Next time you fight this 'blond ninja' don't take him so lightly. If you use that ability from the beginning, no one can stop you."

Haku bobbed his head. He was doubtful of that, but he couldn't question Zabuza without appearing weak. "Yes, of course you're right. Forgive me."

Zabuza grinned into his tea and then drained the remainder. "Tomorrow we'll finish things here and then move on. A few more jobs like this one and we'll be close to realizing my goal. I won't back down now."

ooo

Naruto sighed as he watched Haku walk away. He'd gotten no less than he'd expected, but far less than he'd hoped for.

He brought his fingers together and created another clone to follow after the dark haired ninja. If nothing else, knowing where Zabuza and Haku were would make it that much easier to keep tabs on them. If worse came to worse, he could even try attacking them at their hideout rather than letting them get anywhere close to Team Eight.

He hoped he wouldn't need to. It would be much easier if they would just walk away or at least if Haku would. If he was allowed to change his fate, they deserved the same opportunity.

Naruto had left a clone watching over Hinata, so instead of going back to see her, he headed for town. A part of him wouldn't have minded watching her train, but her kinaki genkai made that dangerous. Even if he saw her start to activate it, he wouldn't be able to get out of her vision's range before she could spot him. A shadow clone, on the other hand, could just release itself and be gone.

As he moved through the trees on his way to town he couldn't help but think how odd it was that two different teams had been given this mission and both had ended up doing tree climbing training. Maybe it was fate, just like maybe it was fate that he and Haku would have to fight each other… or maybe it was simply because tree climbing was great training for young genin and both Kurenai and Kakashi knew it.

From the looks of three of the trees were Hinata and Haku had been picking herbs, Kiba and Shino had also survived the fight with Zabuza and were also doing the training, or had been, at least. He didn't know which tree belonged to whom, but none of them were near the top yet. A childish part of Naruto was happy to find that he and his teammates appeared to have mastered the training quicker than Team Eight was – if memory served, he and Sasuke would have been near the top by this point and Sakura would have already been done with the training. If the Kiba from the future was around, Naruto would have had great fun pointing this fact out. Of course if he was being fair he'd have to admit that it was possible that Team Eight had started their training later… but with Kiba, he'd probably have skipped fair and just enjoyed a good laugh at his friend's expense since Kiba would have done the same if the situation was reversed.

Since Hinata, Kiba, Shino, and Haku all seemed to be alive and well for the moment, it was probably Kurenai or Tazuna who had left all the blood on the grass and Naruto wanted to know which one it was. Team Eight should have gone back to Konoha if Tazuna had been killed, since the mission would technically have been over, and they definitely should have if Kurenai had been killed – never mind that they wouldn't have been doing tree climbing without her teaching them how to do it – so it wasn't a question of anyone being killed, but certainly someone had been hurt badly in the fight and chances were it wasn't Zabuza.

When his team had done this mission, Kakashi had realized that Zabuza would return and had set his team to training with a certain amount of urgency. However, from the looks of their training, Hinata, Shino, and Kiba weren't exactly pushing themselves as hard as three people who were worried about the imminent return of a man who had probably nearly killed them. This meant that they either still thought Zabuza was dead or had had a different experience at the lake that led them to believe that there wasn't an imminent threat. Kurenai was smart, but she was also a new jounin at this point in her life. It was possible that she didn't fully realize the danger her team was in. And if they didn't know what was coming, they and Tazuna wouldn't stand a chance.

It only took him a few minutes to reach the village and once he was there he found things were much easier to remember in the light, even if they still looked different from the way he remembered them. Seeing the town once again freshened his notoriously poor memory, if only slightly, and it wasn't long before he managed to figure out where Tazuna's house was.

The house was little more than a large shack compared to what it was later after it and every other home on the island had been given a facelift from the economic resurgence that accompanied the completion of the Great Naruto Bridge. The paint on the shingled house was spotty after years of peeling under the harsh seaside weather and there were several areas where the boards were cracked and falling apart. The roof looked like it had been patched a few times, but not by the expert hands of a master bridge builder… probably Inari's mother (whose name Naruto couldn't recall) or Inari himself had been forced to make the repairs while Tazuna was away from town or working on the bridge.

From the large branch of the tree on which he stood, Naruto could see little Inari sitting on the walkway that surrounded the house looking down into the water. The boy was barely a shadow of the strong man he'd become, the man who would be the leader of the village. From the reports Naruto had read after the incident, it had taken four Sound ninja to take him down even though he was only a fisherman, but right now he was just a little boy who looked a bit depressed and lonely.

It had occurred to Naruto previously that his life had impacted many people during his random missions and journeys, but it had never with such force until that moment as he stood there watching Inari. Because things were happening differently –his team not getting the mission to guard Tazuna, for instance – some people might never meet him, important people (or at least important to their little villages and friends) like Inari could end up being completely different without meeting him. He'd badgered Inari out of his depression, taking the little boy's crying and anger as personal insults, but he wouldn't be there to do that this time. Would Inari still become the person he had in the future or would he remain the pathetic little boy who'd given up hope that he looked like right now?

Those were questions he would have to worry about later. He didn't have a good excuse to go and speak to Inari at the moment and even if he did, he couldn't afford to risk getting caught. He turned his attention away from the little boy and watched the house for a long time trying to see some sort of sign that Kiba, Shino, or Kurenai was inside.

After almost an hour, his efforts were rewarded when Kiba stepped outside, Akamaru barking happily and running circles around his master's feet, and headed towards the woods where he would probably be meeting up with Hinata. Shino appeared a moment later with Tazuna and Kurenai who leaned heavily on a crutch and was looking worse than Naruto had ever seen her. Her hair was messy and even from the distance appeared greasy and dirty, her face was devoid of its usual makeup, and her skin was pale and sickly looking. Kurenai said something to the bug user and the bridge builder which caused Tazuna to complain and look annoyed while Shino nodded in understanding and then the two set off in the direction of the bridge.

Naruto created two more shadow clones and had one instantly release himself so that the clone watching over Hinata would know that Kiba seemed to be on his way. The remaining clone was left to watch the house while he followed after Tazuna since the bridge builder was the one who would be attacked at some point.

He followed Shino and Tazuna from the trees for as long as he could, but the village was built on a promontory so it wasn't long before the trees ended while the village continued a bit farther. At this point, he had no choice but to enter the village and continue to shadow them. It was dangerous for him to be seen in the village where his blond hair and orange clothing would stand out, but a simple jutsu removed that danger almost completely.

"Henge," he whispered as he brought his fingers together to form the proper seals.

Instantly he was tall and tan with broad shoulders and strong arms, his hair was black and a little longer though it retained its spikiness so as to look windswept – or at least he hoped it would look windswept – while his clothing became a dark shirt and dirty brown pants. It was the basic appearance of many of the fishermen he'd seen both since arriving on the coast in this timeline and in his original life. He hoped it would be nondescript enough that he could move about without calling attention to himself. In a small village like this one, chances were he'd be quickly identified as a newcomer to town, but so long as he wasn't questioned too vigorously and wasn't around Akamaru or Kiba his disguise would probably be enough.

He hurried out of the woods and made his way through the twisting turning paths of the village towards the incomplete Great Naruto Bridge… that, he supposed, wouldn't ever actually be the Great Naruto Bridge.

That was a pity. The simple truth of the matter was that there would probably never be a better name for a bridge.

ooo

"Thanks for coming with me," Sakura said quietly as she and Sasuke walked down the hall towards Naruto's apartment door. They'd finished their mission and training time with Kakashi earlier and – at Sakura's suggestion – were now on their way to pay a visit to their sick teammate. Sasuke hadn't talked to her much during their mission nor on the way to the apartment building, but he'd come and that was an improvement over the relationship they'd had up until this point. It appeared that Naruto had been right about backing off and just trying to be his friend. Sasuke seemed to tolerate her much more than he had when she tried to talk to him at the Academy.

"I didn't have anything else to do," Sasuke replied with a sigh, examining the halls' peeling wallpaper so he would have something to do besides look at her.

"You could have gone to the training grounds," Sakura pointed out.

"I'll go later, this won't take long anyway."

"Would you like some company?" She'd asked him several times in the last week if she could come with him, but he'd never agreed. She supposed that, just as she'd found it unlike that Naruto only wanted to have a meal as friends and was not secretly trying to make it into a date, Sasuke found it difficult to believe that she wanted to train with him as friends and nothing more. Still, he didn't seem irritated when he said 'no,' so if nothing else, at least she wasn't annoying him as much anymore.

Sasuke shook his head. "Sorry, I don't have time to look after you… to…day…" He stopped in his tracks as the color drained from his face, his eyes widening in shock and some other emotion that Sakura couldn't quite read.

"Sasuke-kun? Are you alright?" she asked, gently touching his shoulder.

Sasuke gave himself a little shake and took a deep breath. "I'm fine," he told her and then took another calming breath. "If you want, I'll help you with that jutsu we worked on yesterday."

Sakura stared at him in confusion, still stuck on the strange look on his face that had appeared and then vanished. She had no way of knowing that Sasuke had just quoted words straight out of the mouth of the one person he truly hated, but that didn't really matter once her brain registered the words he'd spoken.

"Really?!?" she asked in a voice that was nearly a squeal. Despite her efforts to just try to be a friend, old instincts died hard.

Sasuke treated her to something that could almost be called a smile, sort of a tiny turning up of the corners of his lips, and nodded his head once. "It's not a date," he said as they reached the right door.

"Of course not," Sakura agreed, "I just want to be strong enough to help you in anyway you need me to… I just want to be your friend."

Sasuke gave her a sharp look, but rather than respond he simply reached out and knocked on the door.

A tired and sickly looking Naruto answered the door almost immediately. "Hey," he croaked, stepping aside to let them through and revealing Kakashi leaning against the wall on the other side of the room, "looks like the gang's all here."

Naruto seemed to be a lot better than he had been on the morning he'd first been excused, but was still not his normal self. He looked exhausted, was sweating profusely, and made two trips to the bathroom where they could hear him retching.

Sakura was glad that she'd had a good sized lunch because she certainly wouldn't be in the mood for food after listening to Naruto try to puke.

With Naruto still so sick, Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi didn't stay long. As they left, Naruto told the jounin that he didn't think he'd be much better anytime soon and asked if he could just have the next couple of days off.

Kakashi shrugged in his typical nonchalant way and – in a voice that made Sakura think he was probably at least partly joking – said it was better than having Naruto screw up the missions by throwing up on their objectives. For the briefest of seconds, as the jounin turned around, Sakura thought she saw relief flood Naruto's face, but then it was gone as if it had never been there… or perhaps it was only relief that he would not have to be sick on a mission.

Sakura was sorry that Naruto was still sick, but at the same time didn't mind getting Sasuke all to herself for a few more days. Once her blond teammate was feeling better she vowed to thank him for his advice about Sasuke by treating him to bowl of Ichiraku ramen… maybe they could even get Sasuke to join them.

ooo

Naruto quickly discovered that his concerns about his disguise were unfounded. No one questioned him, no one looked twice at him – in fact, most people didn't look at him or speak in his presence at all. He'd almost forgotten how bad things were in the little village that Gato ruled over with an iron fist. The people were scared and their fear made them timid even when there was no danger. The thing that stood out about him wasn't his attire or his appearance, but that he didn't keep his head bowed and his eyes on the ground. Fortunately with everyone else avoiding eye contract, no one seemed to notice that he wasn't walking about like a defeated man.

Tazuna and Shino were easy enough to follow from a distance. Tazuna's grey hair was fairly distinct and the villagers respected him enough to step aside and let him pass. Shino, despite how quiet and almost forgettable he tended to be, also stood out from those around him with his poofy hair and non-fisherman clothing and the villagers also gave him a wide berth the moment they spotted the Leaf hitai-ate marking him as a ninja. The bug user walked calmly next to the bridge builder, neither turning his head to the right or left, with his hands at his sides, probably depositing some of his Kikaichu bugs to serve as sentries.

Naruto made sure to move into the small alleyways to help avoid being marked by any of the insects (and just to keep from having them crawling on him). He wasn't completely sure if the bugs would be able to detect the chakra he was using to disguise himself, but he wouldn't put it past them and didn't want to find out for sure by being discovered. This meant that he couldn't see Shino or Tazuna anymore, but that was hardly a problem since he knew where they were going. After a few minutes he worked his way back to the main street and from there it was only a short walk to the edge of both the village and the island.

The bridge was as beautiful and impressive as ever with its great stone supports rising out of the ocean and fog blocking the view of the other shore making it seem as if the bridge simply ran on forever. Naruto had always wondered, but never asked, how Tazuna had managed to get the materials to build the road across the sea when he was a fairly poor man living in an even poorer village. Regardless of where the supplies had come from, the bridge was amazing and Naruto was happy to see it standing once again.

"It's a fool's dream," a man whispered under his breath just loud enough for Naruto to overhear him. Naruto glanced over his shoulder to find an elderly-looking fisherman with a dark headband holding back his spiky grey hair. The man looked down the bridge and then his eyes fell to the ground as he shook his head. "It'll be the death of us all if Tazuna doesn't give it up."

Naruto turned back to the bridge. "If you're not going to bother living, why are you so afraid to die?" he growled. "At least old man Tazuna isn't a sniveling coward."

"Who are you to talk?" the old man snarled. "I don't see you doing anything to help him!" Naruto glanced at him once more and the fisherman took a step back, his eyes widening. "Do I know you?" he asked, the anger instantly gone from his voice.

"No," Naruto replied, "You've never seen me before and probably won't ever again. I'm just passing through."

"Well, I'd hurry up if I were you. This town isn't safe anymore."

Naruto shook his head and almost smiled. "You haven't seen anything yet."

The old man shrugged giving Naruto another odd look as if trying to place the face that the young ninja had invented for himself and then hurried on his way, not wanting to be seen near the bridge or talking with a stranger. Naruto spent part of the day watching out for trouble from a nearby roof and then wandered down to the end of the bridge by walking upside down underneath it so he could over hear what was happening. From the sounds of things, it seemed that Tazuna was having considerable difficulty keeping his workers from abandoning him.

The clone he'd left watching Hinata had released himself once she and Kiba had returned to the village and started towards the bridge to let him know that they were on their way. From the memories he'd received, it seemed that Hinata had begun making considerable headway when it came to the tree climbing, but had lost ground after Kiba arrived.

Naruto smiled at the memory of her barely managing half what she'd been able to do before just because of the added pressure of Kiba's presence. It was almost funny that someone with as much potential as her was struggling with something that she should have naturally been great at. Everything came back to confidence with Hinata, it seemed, but that was okay. Once he'd gotten her team through this mission, he would do what he could to build her up until she could stand on her own. She'd managed it in the future without him, how hard could it be for her to get there with his help?

As evening arrived, he followed Team Eight and Tazuna back into town until they arrived safely at Tazuna's house. While heading back to the forest so he could rest and relax for a few hours, he began to grow nervous. Zabuza would be returning soon, he was sure of it. It was hard to remember the exact timeframe from the time he'd had this mission, but he doubted Team Eight had more than two or three days before the missing-nin attacked again.

Haku would have already delivered the message about the double-cross to Zabuza, but Naruto doubted that would be enough to stop him. He probably should have just followed Haku back to the hideout and fought Zabuza there, but he'd wanted to at least allow the two of them the chance to walk away and save themselves. It would have been more reassuring if Haku had been a little more open to either switching sides or at least trying to talk Zabuza out of the fight, but there hadn't been much chance of that from the start. Haku would follow Zabuza to hell and back no matter what, he could remember that much of his time on the mission perfectly.

The way things stood now, Naruto only a couple of options available to him. He could go after Zabuza and Haku in their hideout or ambush them when they headed towards the bridge, though he wasn't totally sure he could beat both of them at the same time – one at a time wouldn't be too hard, but two at once would be difficult. He could also simply alert Kurenai about the danger – even if he wore a disguise, Kiba and Akamaru would be able to smell him through it or Hinata would simply be able to see through it – but it would be up to her to believe him after realizing who he was. He could also wait for the bridge battle and try to help Team Eight from a distance, hoping they were strong enough to survive without his direct assistance. Or he could directly assist them in the battle and completely prove that he wasn't who he was supposed to be.

There were dangers in all of his choices, both to himself and to his friends. Even as he settled in amongst the tree branches in a spot that gave him a decent view of Tazuna's house, he still had no idea what he was going to do. As usual, it seemed that he would have to make it up as he went along.

Fortunately he just had to stay awake a little longer, ten or fifteen hours at the most, after that he would know if Zabuza was going to attack the following day or not. He could handle that. He'd stayed awake for much longer as an adult. He would just have to get some extra sleep once he got back to Konoha to make up for it.

Naruto let his eyes drift up to the stars and blinked slowly, his eyelids seemed to seal together the moment they touched. With considerable effort, he forced them back open. He couldn't fall asleep, not yet! If he did… he couldn't remember what would happen if he did, but it wouldn't be good.

The next time he blinked, his eyes did not open. A twelve year old body just wasn't as capable of staving off sleep as an adult's.

ooo

Hinata rose early the next morning, as had been her custom since childhood, quickly dressed, and then hurried towards the front door to go continue her training before Kiba and Shino arrived so that they wouldn't see how slowly she was improving. Usually she was up while it was still dark out, but this morning the sun was already beginning to slowly rise from the sea on the horizon. Because she'd foolishly overslept, she wouldn't have as long to herself as normal, but every little bit helped.

"Hinata?" a soft voice called to her from behind.

The young kunoichi gasped and spun around to find Kurenai sitting in the semi-dark with a steaming cup of tea in her hand. The dark haired jounin was looking remarkably better than she had the last several days. Her hair was still wet from having been washed and even in the dim light Hinata could see that Kurenai was wearing makeup for the first time since her injury. Hinata walked over to the table and could smell a strange mixture of tea, saltwater, and shampoo coming from her sensei.

"You're up early," Kurenai noted.

"I, um, wanted to go work on the t-tree climbing."

Kurenai smiled, took another sip of her tea, and then shook her head. "I'd rather you stayed here for now. I'm going to go down to the bridge with Tazuna-san today and I want all three of you to come with me. Once we've taken a look around, I'll send two of you back to train while the other remains with me and then you'll rotate out as the day goes on."

Hinata was disappointed for a moment, but pushed the feeling away. It wasn't proper to disagree with her superiors or to feel disappointment that she would be training with one of her teammates. It did, however, mean that she probably wouldn't get as much done as she would have when she didn't have to worry about screwing up in front of people whose respect she wanted to earn. "O-okay."

Kurenai stood, leaning heavily on the crutch that had been resting against the back of her chair, reached out and put a hand on her student's shoulder and smiled. "You're becoming a very good kunoichi, Hinata. Don't think so hard about the tree climbing, just do it. You have excellent chakra control already. You just have to have the confidence to use it. Later today, I'll give you a few more pointers and we'll see if we can't get you all the way to the top."

Hinata nodded silently, not trusting herself to open her mouth. Her eyes unconsciously shifted to the crutch that was holding Kurenai up.

Kurenai chuckled and patted Hinata on the head affectionately as she stopped leaning on the crutch and set it aside. "Don't let the crutch fool you, I'm feeling a lot better. I don't even need it anymore. I'm only keeping it around so I won't have to do any heavy lifting for Tazuna-san today."

Hinata wasn't convinced, but she nodded anyway and went into the kitchen to make herself some tea and a small breakfast.

Kurenai smiled until Hinata's back was turned, but then winced and gently rubbed her side as she repositioned the crutch and sagged against it. "Damn," she muttered into her tea cup so that she wouldn't be overheard before slowly easing herself back into her chair.

ooo

Gato relaxed on a comfortable – and expensive – couch and smiled cruelly as he adjusted his dark glasses and then brought a walky-talky to his mouth. "Is the ambush ready yet?" he demanded.

There was an audible snort on the other end and then Zabuza's voice replied, "They'll be dead the moment they show up."

"I don't care about the ninja, the old man is the only one that matters. Do you understand me?"

The only answer Gato received was the loud thud of headset on the other side falling to the ground. Gato scowled and then tossed the walky-talky away. "Those two are getting on my nerves," he muttered to himself. For a moment he brooded silently and then he turned to his two ever-present bodyguards. "Waraji, Zori, I think it's time we took matters into our own hands."

The two men smirked almost gleefully. They were killers, both of them, and they hated not being allowed to use the swords strapped to their sides. Gato knew it and he knew how to use them, just as he knew how to use most everyone else. He simply had to wait for the right moment and then unleash them against enemies that they could handle – which meant they would never be sent against experienced ninja unless they were part of a large mob.

"Go to the bridge builder's house and bring a hostage… one is all you need. After that, meet me at the bridge. If Zabuza manages to keep up his end of the bargain, it will be time to rid ourselves of him and that brat. If he fails, it will be time to make sure the bridge builder is taken care of, no matter what."

Waraji and Zori nodded and hurried from the room, practically skipping with excitement now that they were finally allowed to do the one thing they truly loved.

Gato ignored them as they left, instead staring out the window and pressing his finger tips together as he licked his lips in anticipation. This was it. After today, the island would be his. Within a year he wouldn't just control the country's daimyo, he would be the daimyo!

ooo

Zabuza brought his foot down on the headset where he could still hear Gato's angry voice squawking at him and looked up at the unfinished end of the bridge from the small boat he and Haku were standing in. Rebar stuck out from the concrete like fingers stretching towards the distant shore, trying to reach its goal. A thin smile played across his lips beneath his mask, the bridge would fail in its quest, but he would not.

"Haku, let's enjoy ourselves."

"And Gato?" the boy asked as he too looked up. From the bridge, they could hear the few remaining workers greeting each other as they arrived.

"Whether he pays us or not, he'll be dead before sunset."

Haku lifted his mask to his face and secured it in place. "An excellent plan, Zabuza-san."

ooo

In the branches of a tree not far from Tazuna's house, Naruto was lost in a deep dreamless sleep, completely unaware of the events slowly unfolding beneath him.

o

o

A/N: Sorry about the delay here. I got distracted by some real life stuff – stupid school, who needs it? – and didn't have time to make the corrections that I needed to put in here. Hopefully the next chapter will be out before or at least by Friday. After that, I think I'll actually have to slow to the once a week updates that I've been meaning to do since the very beginning… and this time I really mean it!

…maybe…

So, the next chapter will finally have some action… lots of action. In fact, it's just about all action. Sorry it took a while, but short of just going, Naruto did nothing all day except spy on people and then fall asleep, then he woke up the next day and started fighting… I just couldn't leave out this second filler chapter. I tried, I really did, but while I could cut down on some parts, the majority of the scenes felt like they needed to remain for one reason or another (or else I just liked them and didn't want to cut them).