Disclaimer: If we all owned Naruto...man...the poor guy would be paired with every possible character...including himself possibly...good thing Naruto is not owned by me or the incredibly large group of fanfic writers..
Outbreak
Chapter Ten: We Must Live On
Sakura looked ahead to what she assumed to be the border of Earth country and Rain Country. It was quite a breathtaking sight; large, vast mountain peaks stretching on for miles and miles were all she could see. The sky had a few sparse clouds floated over the vast earthen formations.
"It's...beautiful..." she spoke softly as the group set up camp. The days were getting shorter, and the sun was currently on its descending course.
"Yeah, brings back memories, un." spoke the voice of Deidara, who had taken a moment to look at the mountains as well, "Kind of funny, but I sort of miss it."
Sakura turned to the blonde man, "I always heard that Earth Country is a barren wasteland, so I never expected this."
Deidara nodded, "Well, in all fairness, Earth Country is a bit of a wasteland; rain is sparse, and the soil is not very fertile. Only the hardiest of plants grow here, and growing crops is difficult. Most of the food we'll be eating here will be the wild game and anything from the local flora."
Deidara had given a brief explanation of what to expect when they reached the mountainous country. No one complained about the situation, well Shikamaru almost did, but Temari quieted him down shortly after. Needless to say, life would be tough for the group as they started getting adjusted to the land. They had another day of travel before they reached the hideout, and if the Inuzukas' hounds were right, the group had already passed by at least three potentially infected areas. They hadn't encountered any scents for about two hours though, so they decided to camp for the night by a cave.
Sakura began to feel lightheaded, and let out a groan. Deidara immediately turned to her, "Sakura, what's up? Do you need Naruto, un?"
Sakura gave a brief nod, "I haven't...fed in almost fourteen hours...I didn't want to slow down everyone or bother Naruto while we were traveling..." she began to crouch on the ground.
Deidara nodded, "Just hang tight, I'll go get him." the blonde haired man ran towards the camp to get the boy.
-ooOoo-
Naruto was helping cook some wild fowl that he and Kiba had found. Anko was adding some spices she had on her while Kiba and Hana were busy preparing some edible mushrooms and berries. It wasn't much, but it would suffice for the group of nineteen people. Currently, the people at camp were Deidara, Sakura, Naruto, Anko, Iruka, Hana, Kiba, Moegi, Asuma, Hanabi, Tenten, and Lee. Meanwhile, Kakashi, Asuma, Shikamaru, Temari, Shizune, Hinata, and Sasuke were about two minutes away from camp on scouting duty to see if there was any need to relocate.
"Naruto! Hey, Sakura needs you!" Naruto looked up from the fire to see Deidara calling him.
"Is she okay?" Naruto asked, getting up from his spot by the fire.
"I hope so...it's...well, it's time for you to feed her..." Deidara spoke quietly, and Naruto nodded before heading towards Sakura.
When the blonde Jinchuuriki arrived, he found Sakura kneeling with a small trail of saliva running from her mouth, "Sakura-chan! I'm here!"
Sakura looked up with her eyes fully dilated. She gave a small sigh of relief, "Oh...h-hey, Naruto...do you mind if I...?"
Naruto was already cradling her as he sat against a rock with her in his lap, "Sakura-chan, you know you don't need to ask me. I'm here for you, so don't worry about it."
She nodded weakly before moving her mouth to his neck and biting it gently with her fangs. She took in the fluid with a strange sense of joy and felt the hunger and dizziness begin to subside a little. She felt Naruto pull her a little closer, and slowly make circles in her back with his fingers. She gave out a soft moan as he briefly gave her a few kisses down her neck before letting her resume her feeding.
"Naruto..." she whispered as she continued her ritual. After about another two minutes, she slowly lifted her face to look at him. Naruto, much to his surprise, found it cute to see a small amount of his blood on her lips when she gave him a small smile.
Naruto smiled back before giving Sakura a serious look, "Sakura, why didn't you come to me sooner?"
She looked down with a guilty frown, "Well...we were traveling quite a ways, and I didn't want to slow us-"
"Sakura...you're not just part of a team now; we're a family...in a way. We stay together, and we can wait four or five minutes so you can get what you need," Naruto grabbed her hand gently and put it over his already healing puncture marks on his neck, "Remember what I said about your new need for blood; I will be the one to supply you with that need. I will give you that blood." Naruto finished with a cheerful grin.
Sakura sighed, and thought how she had ever been so lucky to score such a wonderful and loving man in her life, "Naruto, you don't know how much of a help you are to me. I'm not just talking about the blood either. You're a sweet and caring guy, and I couldn't ask anything more from you than what you've given me."
Naruto laughed, "Aw, I'm just doing what's right Sakura." he stared into her emerald, slit-like eyes, "You do mean alot to me to me though...and I'm glad you think that way about me."
Sakura nuzzled against his chest, "You know...you're alway real warm..." she closed her eyes, "You make a great blanket..." she slowly creeped a hand under his jacket and shirt, and hid a mischevious smile from the boy.
"Ah...um, S-Sakura-chan...uh..." poor Naruto was too flustered to form a complete sentence as the pink haired kunoichi slowly moved her hand up and down his pectorals. He was blushing a bright red now.
"Shhh...just relax...we'll head back in just a few minutes..." she began to plant kisses on his neck, and he shuddered at the touch.
The sound of snickering was heard, and the two ninja turned to see Kiba Inuzuka standing behind them holding back laughter. Sakura's face darkened, and she let out a growl as the Inuzuka laughed, "Hey, lovebirds...dinner's ready..."
"K-i-b-a," Sakura ground out, cracking her knuckles, and Kiba backed away a bit as Akamaru whimpered at the sudden killer intent being radiated from the pink haired girl.
"H-hey, don't go and get angry at me. Besides, you two are sharing watch with Gaara, Lee, Shizune, Tenten, Asuma, and Hanabi tonight. We don't really need eight people to continually watch over the camp, so you guys should be able to..." he left the sentence up in the air, and Sakura seemed to calm down.
"Well, I'm hungry, how about you, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked the girl, and she simply huffed out a breath before nodding and walking to camp. Naruto gave Kiba a look on the lines of 'you're lucky', and 'next time call out before you look for us'.
-ooOoo-
Dinner was for the most part decent. Aside from Moegi getting a stomach ache from the berries she ate, everyone was fine with the meal. Sakura did a quick treatment for the redhead and told her not to eat anything else tonight. As the sun set, everyone went into the cave except for the eight in charge of watch duty. It got a little colder as the sun descended, and eventually the only light was from the moon and stars and the dying embers of the fire.
"It sure is a beautiful night, don't you agree, Tenten?" Lee asked as the two sat over a small overhang that was near the cave.
"Yeah, I always liked the nightime when we were on missions." the weapon mistress replied. She had put on a light jacket to compensate for the cold. Luckily enough she had the foresight to pack a few extra things in her scrolls when she first heard about the infected approaching Suna those couple of days back. Naruto also brought some emergency rations in one of his scrolls, and Shizune brought her medical kits in one of her scrolls. Needless to say, though they were roughing it, they had all they needed.
"Tenten...how long do you think we will have to remain in hiding?" Lee asked quietly as the two sat down on the cold ground.
"No clue, Lee...but I know that Deidara said the hideout was almost undetectable to even the most talented of shinobi. We should be safe once we reach it..." Tenten answered with a shrug.
Lee nodded, and turned to look at the girl next to him. She had definitely grown in the past couple of years since they had first been made a team. He still remembered her being the girl with her hair tied into buns that was good at throwing weapons, but also had horrible endurance. In the past month she had improved her close combat skills and her strength, thanks in no small part to the boy next to her. In turn, Tenten had helped Lee only further increase his speed and dodging abilities by practicing her projectile throwing on him. The two had become close friends and were now a force to be reckoned with.
"Hey...Lee...?"
"Yes, Tenten?"
Tenten felt a small blush creep onto her face, "Um...I know that you're birthday's coming up in another month...and even though we're kind of at a constraint as far as shopping...is there anything you want for your birthday?"
Lee gave her a surprised look, "Well, now that you mention it, Tenten, I never actually thought about that. I never really had anyone besides you, Neji, and Gai-sensei to celebrate my birthday with..." Lee gave her a sad smile. She understood, being an orphan herself.
"Yeah...I was just wondering if you had anything you wanted for a present." she replied, feeling foolish all of the sudden about asking such things.
Lee seemed to notice her change of mood, "Tenten...I have always been happy with what I possess in my life. If anything...you could help me continue to become stronger, and improve yourself as well. That would be a great gift..." he paused to smile, "I also wish for us to always be there for each other..." he wanted to say something a bit different to her, but he figured it may come out wrong. He never was that smooth when it came to the opposite gender,at least he seemed to believe it that way. Sure, he would act all protective and brave around them, but he was in fact well aware of how foolish that was. At least, he had realized that being the case shortly after he tried to win over Sakura's affection back when they were still Genin. He was wiser now...he knew what not to do, just didn't know what to do...
Tenten smiled, "You sure that's all you want, Lee?" she giggled a bit upon seeing a light blush cross his face. She couldn't help but flirt with him, and loved how he stiffened when she placed a her hand on his.
"Um, y-yes, that would be fine, Tenten-chan." he didn't remove his hand from her, and the close proximity of her next to him was causing him to turn redder.
Tenten decided enough was enough. She may as well say it while she had the courage to, "Lee...I was wondering..." she looked down to the ground, "...what do you think about me...?"
Lee felt himself breaking into a sweat, "W-what do I think about you?" he repeated, and looked to see Tenten nod rather quickly. Now, Lee wasn't a genius, well he was a genius of hard work, but not a prodigy. He did, however, know when Tenten was troubled by something. He didn't need to have an IQ like Shikamaru in order to understand where this was going. Maybe this would work out for him after all, "I think you are a very proud kunoichi with a strong sense of duty. You are also intelligent, and have a very caring personality in my opinion. Regardless of how troubling your friends can be, you continue to look out for them." he paused for a moment to think of what to say next. Sometimes he wished that his mind had better ways of conveying words, but it was now or never he supposed, "You are also a very beautiful woman, and I believe that regardless of how many other charming women there are in this world, you stand out among them in your own way."
Tenten felt herself blush a bit, but she frowned too, "Please...Temari, Hinata, and Sakura are much more beautiful and talented than-"
"Nonsense!" Lee interrupted, a stubborn frown on his face, but it turned into a grin when he spoke again, "Tenten, you are the kindest girl I have ever meet. You always looked out for my well being when we were on missions, and while I do recall that you were a bit tough on me at times, in the end it always helped me. As for beauty, there are many things about you that are beautiful. For instance, you have charming brown eyes that express just how caring and kind of a girl you really are. Those dimples you have whenever you smile are so youthful too! You also have very womanly figure...I mean..." Lee mentally slapped his forehead. He blew it now, "I am sorry...I did not mean to say that...I hope I did not offend-" he was stopped when a single index finger met his lips. He looked at Tenten to see her grinning at him, dimples and all.
"Lee...it's okay. I don't mind the fact that you like my figure...I know you didn't mean in that way. However," she looked at him with an expression he wasn't quite sure he had seen her give him before, "Do you actually find me attractive in that way as well?"
Lee was wide-eyed; since when was Tenten so bold with her words? Part of him was panicking, he never had this kind of conversation with a girl, let alone Tenten. Another part though, wanted to declare it to the world, "Uh...well..." Lee felt his face heat up a bit, "Yes..."
Tenten smiled at the boy in green. He was indeed a true gentleman despite his many quirks and mannerisms, and she respected the fact that he wanted to show her respect and not overstep boundaries with her. However, a part of her wished he would. The past couple of weeks had Tenten seeing Lee differently. He was indeed a handsome young man. While his haircut was atrocious, and his outfit was a fashion nightmare, but she easily overlooked it. It was what made Lee who he was, she thought.
Her thoughts began to drift towards his well-scultped figure, but she quickly shook out those thoughts. She wouldn't deny that despite his outfit and outer appearance, he probably had a well toned body. Still, thoughts drifting in that direction for her may make her do things that she would later regret...for now. She instead wrapped an arm around him as she looked into his eyes, "Lee...?"
"Y-yes, Tenten?" he stuttered.
She kissed him on the cheek, though unlike the one she gave him before when they were in Suna, this one lasted a bit longer, "You really know how to treat a girl nicely. Keep it up, and I may end up falling for you." she was teasing him in a way; she had already been falling for him for almost a month now.
Lee laughed nervously, "Hahaha, well, I am only speaking the truth, Tenten. You are a beautiful kunoichi!"
Tenten hugged the boy and she felt him stiffen again. She giggled, "Lee, don't be so nervous around me. I'm just hugging you."
Lee nodded, and he felt Tenten lean her head against his chest. She wanted to stay like this, but then she remembered why they were out here. She sighed to herself; sometimes she wished that her sense of duty wasn't so strong.
"Well, I suppose we should go back to keeping watch, eh?" the brown haired girl asked. Lee nodded, and the two began to patrol the area. Tenten couldn't help but feel a grin spread on her face. She felt a little less hopeless being a survivor of an epidemic while she walked alongside Lee. She felt a hand enclose hers, and she looked to see that Lee was holding her hand as they walked. Tenten felt her heartbeat quicken a bit, and she gave Lee's hand a gentle squeeze. He smiled as they continued to walk around the area. They were not patrolling all that well; they wouldn't deny it.
"Thank you, Lee..." she spoke quietly as they continued with their 'watch'.
-ooOoo-
The horizon was starting to brighten when Gaara opened his eyes. He had gone into a state of mild unconciousness so he could get some rest while still maintaing some sort of connection with his surroundings. He gave an uncharacteristic yawn, and stood up. He was sure that everyone on watch had fallen asleep, so he figured he would wake them.
The former leader of Suna walked quielty through the rocky terrain, and came upon the sleeping forms of Hanabi and Shizune. Both were in their sleeping bags, and looked like they had been sleeping for maybe only a few hours.
"Shizune-san. Hanabi." Gaara said in a loud enough voice to stir the two kunoichi from their slumber. They both instinctively went for their weapons' pouch, but noticed Gaara standing their calmly.
"Oh, good morning, Gaara." Shizune said while covering a yawn with her hand. Hanabi stood up and did a few stretches to get her muscles moving, and after about a minute, she was done.
"Did anything happen last night?" Hanabi asked as she began to roll up her sleeping bag. Gaara shook his head, and she merely nodded as she continued to do so.
Shizune was packed up and gave another yawn, "I suppose I'll go wake up Naruto and Sakura." She then headed over to the eastern side of the cave where the two were located. When she arrived, she couldn't help but laugh quietly at the sight before her. There in the twin size sleeping bag was Sakura sleeping with her head nestled in the crook of Naruto's neck. The two had their arms wrapped around each other, and Shizune almost regretted having to wake up the two.
"Naruto...Sakura...wake up." Shizune said in a quiet voice. Sakura groaned a bit before nuzzling against Naruto a bit more, and in turn Naruto seemed to hold her a little tighter. Shizune couldn't hold back the laughter anymore, and went into a fit of giggling. Sakura opened one eye, and after blinking a few times, looked to see Shizune giving her a smile. Sakura immediately blushed, realizing the predicament she was in. She wasn't ashamed of sleeping in the same sleeping bag; the entire group knew the two were a couple now. It was just...embarassing.
"Morning, Shizune." came the quiet voice of Sakura, and she gave a blushing smile, "Sorry...we kind of got tired...and Naruto happens to make the world's best pillow." she said as she yawned, showing her slightly pointed canines.
Shizune nodded, "Make sure you two get back to the cave in time for breakfast. We'll be leaving in an hour." Sakura nodded as the older medic nin headed over to wake up Asuma. Sakura gently nudged Naruto, and he groaned as he seemed to roll over, pulling Sakura closer as well. She sighed, and pinched his cheek a bit. He frowned a bit, and opened his eyes.
His frown immediately turned into a smile, "Sakura-chan...is it morning already?" he asked, and she nodded, "I don't want to get up yet..." he admitted.
"That's fine. I need to feed anyway. Just relax for awhile." she said as she nipped his neck, and began to feed again.
"Sakura-chan..." Naruto said as he noticed his jacket was missing, "I don't recall taking off my jacket at all last night."
Sakura stopped momentarily, "Heheh, sorry, I got cold during the middle of the night, and I figured you wouldn't mind me borrowing it." Indeed, Naruto looked to see his black and orange jacket on her, "It's really comfortable." she finished, and then resumed her feeding.
Naruto smiled, and pulled Sakura even closer, "You know, orange looks good on you, Sakura-chan."
Sakura didn't stop feeding, but she did lift a finger to flick him in the forehead with her index finger. She didn't put any strength in it, deserving only a small "Ow!" from the blonde.
-ooOoo-
The group nineteen shinobi were now sitting eating some fruit that a few clones of Kakashi and Naruto had gathered, and the got water from a nearby spring. It wasn't a great meal, but they had to eat quickly. If they wanted to avoid any risk of being found or spotted when they reached the hideout, then they had to make it to the halfway point before sunset.
Hana was eating an apple when one her dogs began sniffing the air. Her other two soon followed, as did Akamaru. As if by instinct, Kiba and her did likewise. Hana smelled something, but she wasn't quite sure what it was. Kiba, however...
"...No way..." he got up, and looked to Akamaru, who barked. Everyone was quiet now, watching the two, "Are you sure, boy?" Akamaru gave another bark, and Kiba couldn't help but grin like a kid who heard that their birthday was coming early. He turned to Hinata, and laughed, "Hinata...you're not going to believe this!"
Everyone was interested in what the Inuzuka was talking about, "What is it, Kiba-kun?" asked the elder Hyuuga sister.
Kiba smiled wider, "I think Shino and Kurenai-sensei are nearby."
Silence...
"Wha-what?" Hinata said, and she felt herself trembling, "A-are you sure?" her face was forming into a hopeful smile, and Kiba nodded.
Asuma, on the other hand, had let the cigarette in his mouth fall out. He was not believing what was being said, "Kiba...where is the scent coming from?"
Kiba sniffed a bit, as did the other dogs and Hana. Hana, seemed to pinpoint it, however, "Southeast...no more than half a mile at most...I don't detect any scent of blood or other giveaways of them being infected either."
Asuma was standing up, and looked to Kiba and Hinata, "We should go get them."
Kakashi, being the ever-so-careful man, stood up and put a hand on his friend, "Hold up, we'll go as a group. This could be an ambush."
Asuma frowned at him, but nodded, "Right."
The others quickly gathered their weapons, and followed the dogs and the Inuzuka siblings towards who they hoped to be two more comrades.
-ooOoo-
Two figures jumped up a small ledge, and one of them paused to catch their breath. The other in turn stopped, "Kurenai-sensei...are you allright?"
Kurenai Yuuhi was breathing a little harder than a kunoichi her age should; then again, considering what she was carrying, it was understandable, "I'm okay, Shino...just need a minute..." she stood up and put a hand behind her back, showing the slight swelling in her stomach. Being a few months pregnant would do that to a woman, she thought. She wouldn't be able to keep up this rate of speed for no more than a few weeks before she would have to go at a casual pace. Usually pregnant kunoichi were allowed, at best, to continue duty for three months into pregnancy, after that, they were given maternal leave until at least two months after giving birth. Kurenai was just about four months into her preganancy, and she was lucky to be able to continue this pace. She had her student to thank for her being alive though. The Aburame boy had been with her since the Hidden Leaf was attacked, and had been by her side since then. Apparantly attacking infected hosts didn't affect his kikaichu beetles, so he was able to attack with relative ease should they ever get ambushed.
Shino was the sole heir to the Aburame clan now. His clan had been part of the main attack squad, seeing as their beetles were immune to infection for reasons unknown. Things went bad though after the first month, and the Aburame had been losing their already small clans members at a fast rate. An interesting fact about the Aburame was that if a member was dying, they could command their bugs to become part of another Aburame's collection of bugs. As a result, Shino had almost five times as many beetles with him now then when he had first helped defend the vilage. Since they fed on his chakra he could only endure so much depletion before it was harmful. He therefore carried the gourd his father once carried that served as a hive for the other beetles. He also still had his own hive case, and he was now carrying a large amount of weight on him. Still, he was carrying what remained of his clan...including his father.
Shino suddenly lifted a finger, and a small bug landed on it. He brought his hand to his hooded face, and Kurenai saw him raise his eyebrows behind his sunglasses, "You are certain of this?" he was talking to the beetle. The beetle seemed to move its antennae, and Shino nodded, "Good work. Call the others back, I'll send a new swarm out." the beetle flitted off, and after a few minutes, a vast cloud of beetles returned to him. He raised his hands and they crawled into his jacket. After they were all back, he uncorked his gourd, and a different swarm flew out. A few landed on him while more flew off in different directions.
Kurenai and Shino began walking again, "What's the news, Shino?"
Shino pushed his glasses up, "I do believe there are survivors from Konoha out here. My bugs have confirmed that they are not infected...and among them are Hinata and Kiba."
Kurenai's eyes lit up, "Seriously?" Shino nodded, and she went to her knees, feeling a weight fall off her shoulders. She never did find out what happened to her two students, and to hear this was some of the most wonderful news she had recieved from the quiet boy in almost two months.
"They are coming are way, so we should just stay here. No need for you to do more work than necessary, Kurenai-sensei." Shino added, and Kurenia sighed.
"Shino, I told you that I'm fi-"
"I'm sure you are, but I don't want Asuma to worry about you overexerting yourself...he is probably worried about you, seeing as you two were assigned to different parts of the village during the attack." Shino interrupted, and Kurenai stood up.
"Asuma's there too?" Shino nodded, and she grabbed a hold of the boy and hugged him. Shino was confused, since Kurenai was not one to show affection like that very often...at least not to her students. She was mumbling something around the lines of 'thank the heavens' or something like that. He let her do her thing; she was pregnant, and didn't want to be on the bad side of one of her mood swings.
"Shino, I think things are finally starting to look up for us." she said as she heard the distinct sound of dogs barking.
-ooOoo-
Asuma was running right beside Kiba when he noticed the two figures of Shino Aburame and Kurenai Yuuhi. He increased speed, and within in seconds was holding the genjutsu specialist within his arms, "Kurenai." he held her close, and was thanking whatever gods above for her being alive.
"Asuma, I thought you were-"
"I know, Kurenai...I couldn't find you, and didn't have the chance to look for you further without risking attack." Asuma said and he threw his cigarette to the ground. Shikamaru noticed this, and then noticed the slightly larger abdomen of his female companion. He put two and two together, and smiled. Asuma was going to be a father.
Kakashi walked up to the group, "Kurenai, Shino, it's good to see you two. How did you to manage to get this far?"
Kurenai and Shino related a bit on how they stayed in a village in Grass Country for about three weeks, and left when word got around of the infection spreading. They lived off of the land, and Shino kept a very close eye on Kurenai with his numerous beetles. Needless to say, they only encountered a small group of wandering infected, and Shino took care of them with relative ease.
Asuma walked up to the bug user, and extended his hand, "Shino...I owe you a lot. You kept Kurenai safe and stayed with her. I don't know how to repay you for her safety."
"No need to thank me, Asuma-sensei. It was merely what a shinobi should do for a former teacher." Shino took the mans hand and shook it briefly before putting it back in his pocket.
The group had told briefly of all that had happened in the months after Konoha fell to the infected, then they continued there movement northeast. Kurenai was tired, so Kiba had Akamaru carry her once they got going. The traveling was halted for a quick lunch and so Sakura could take care of herself with Naruto. Shino was a bit on guard when he found out about Sakura's condition, but he let it go after seeing how she didn't seem to have changed in behavior at all. Kurenai was not too worried either, seeing as she had been with the group the whole time.
Naruto also had to once again explain his predicament to Shino about how he was 'immune' to the infection. Shino was, much to his surprise, acceptant of this. He told Naruto that he still saw the blonde as a comrade, and that he would continue to show the same respect he always had to him. Kurenai simply nodded, having been aware of this information long before any of the younger generation did.
It was getting close to sunset when Deidara held up a hand, and the group stopped near the edge of a large mountain, "We're here." spoke the blonde haired man.
Hanabi and Hinata instinctively activated their Byakugan, and noticed several tags near a certain section of the large rock formation, "Are those...?"
Deidara nodded to Hanabi's question, "Sealing tags...prevents any chakra from being leaked out of the hideout...that way, we can't be detected." he went up to the rock, and did several handseal; ushi, uma, mi, ne, i, tori, inu, tori...
A click was heard, and the a section of the rock moved back and slid to the side, revealing a narrow corridor in the rock. Deidara took a quick look around, then nodded. He lead the group inside, and then turned back to the opening and yelled, "Kai!" the wall slid back in place, and the corridor was darkened again, aside from the sparse torch lighting the hall.
"I don't know if any of the other members are here, so be on your toes, un." the other twenty ninja nodded, and stepped down the hall quietly.
Soon they were in a large cavern, and several other halls could be seen in various parts of the open area, leading to different rooms and chambers. Deidara nodded, and looked around. He went to a wall, and clicked on a switch. A few lights flickered on, and the area became illuminated by the soft glow of the lighting.
"Where are we?" Tenten spoke, looking around the area with a look most of the younger shinobi had as well.
"This," Deidara said with open arms, refering to the chamber, "is base number seventeen. We used it quite a bit back when we first started out, but it's been used only twice in the last five years. Suprising too, since it's the biggest one we have. Thirty rooms within the six floors, three dojos, a courtyard south in a small open area that was the pit of the now inactive volcano, and a small spring too. We have electricity running through here, and running water too. Don't worry about showers being too cold; there's apparantly a hot spring under us as well. That's just a few of the things here."
Everyone was quite surprised by this, seeing as they had been living it rough for awhile now. The sound of a hot shower was quite appealing right now.
The group was about to follow Deidara when three small white blurs hit the ground before the group. Upon closer inspection, the group noticed the projectiles were shuriken made of...paper. Deidara snapped his head upwards to a balcony looking over the chamber only to see a woman wearing a simple outfit with a netshirt under it. She had remarkably blue hair, and a paper flower in her hair. She jumped down from the balcony, and upon closer inspection one could see she had a Hidden Rain hitai-ite around her neck with a slash running across it. Her lower lip also had a small piece of jewelry pierced through it. Her expression was blank, and her eyes narrowed when she looked at Deidara, "What are you doing here, Deidara? Akatsuki is no longer existent."
Deidara smiled in a somewhat cocky manner, "Konan-chan, it's been too long, un." this recieved a cut from a piece of paper that cut his cheek, "Hey, easy, un! We haven't been followed anyway. We needed a place to live, and this was our only choice within our range that was safe." Deidara rubbed the cut with a grunt of annoyance. She sure had a quick temper, despite her usual unexpressionless voice.
Konan took a good look among the group, and stopped as she looked at five members; Naruto, Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura. She then spoke calmly, "Kakashi Hatake; also known as Kakashi of the Sharingan Eye, and the Copycat Nin. Well known in all the Bingo Books, and an ex-ANBU captain. Sasuke Uchiha, sole clan member of the Uchiha that lived through the massacre discluding Itachi Uchiha. Possessor of the Sharingan, and a defector of the Leaf...and was training under Orochimaru from what I last heard. Sakura Haruno...the only shinobi to have killed one of our members of Akatsuki, Sasori of the Red Sands. A talented medic-nin that was trained under Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage." Konan's eyes seemed to flicker a bit as they settled on Naruto, and it sent a shiver down his spine, "Naruto...Uzumaki...container of the Nine-tailed Fox. Had been training under Jiraiya, the Toad Sannin for the past three years...considered to be a very dangerous enemy when angered, and has been able to obtain up to four tails of the Kyuubi while in battle."
Kakashi took a step forward, "So...are you saying that you're not going to let us stay?" To this, Konan simply shook her head.
"That would be unnecessary, as there is plenty of space here. I'm simply curious as to why Deidara is here. Besides, we aren't enemies anymore, since Akatsuki is no longer an organization." she turned around and headed down one of the larger corridors, "You all must be hungry. Come, there is plenty of food to eat in our dining chambers."
The group all took a look at her, then to Deidara, who shrugged, "She never was that mean of a woman. She kept to herself, but she did her part in the group as well."
Dinner was actually nice. They had a roasted pheasant, and several assortments of vegetables and fruit. Konan had been living alone for the past month, seeing as Amegakure was overrun with the infected now. When asked about the leader, she simply stated that she had thought him to be dead, and that she had left shortly after he dissapeared.
-ooOoo-
Naruto was sitting in the courtyard of the chambers now. The place was actually just a very deep crater with a large circumference as well. There were a few small shade loving plants in the area, and some grass that grew well in darkened areas. The moon was visible in the sky above, and the stars twinkled peacefully as he sat on the grass. Naruto brought a small lamp with him, and decided to open the scroll that Jiraiya had given him before he died...
Naruto,
If you're reading this, then it means one of two things; either one, I'm dead, or two, you stole it from me and I'm going to beat you up for doing so later. Either way, what I have written here is my last great work possilby: a scroll that holds everything I know and learned in my entire lifetime as a shinobi. Not only that, but it contains a few remnants your parents wanted to leave with you, including a photo album, and a letter from you father.
Now, before you go and read through all this at once, I want you to listen to what I'm about to say; don't read it all at once. I know you're tough, but reading so many personal things about the family you never knew may be too much for you. Take your time, and treasure it. Along with that, try and learn a few of the jutsu I invented. As for Fuuinjutsu...well, you may need Kakashi's help with that. I wrote them down, but unless you have some understanding of seals, learning my sealing techniques could prove to be difficult.
As for Kakashi, I talked to him about this scroll. He has an extra, just in case. It doesn't contain all the personal stuff that this one does, but it does hold most of the same information on techniques that are contained in this scroll as well as a lot of information on your heritage. Kakashi is, as of now, the only living person who met your father and knew him on a personal level. Talk to him when you can about your family; he will be happy to tell you anything he can. Now, don't go and blame Kakashi for not telling you sooner about this. He was in a way protecting you. Your father, Minato, had quite a large list of enemies, and if word got out that you were his son, I'm sure that Iwa would have sent several platoons to Konoha to kill you years ago.
Well, aside from your reading up on my jutsu and the items of your family, I want you to look into getting familiar with using the key that controls your seal on the Kyuubi. Regardless of how strong your will is, Naruto, the seal does weaken, and needs to be tweaked every so often. I have the instructions written near the end of this scroll.
Naruto, I want you to know that you have always been a student I have been proud to teach. You and your father have made my life as a shinobi worth while. My only regret was that I never got around to teaching you sooner in life, and getting to know you better as a family member. I hope you can find it in you to overlook this. Please remember, no matter what happens, you are a great and talented shinobi, with the potential to become greater than the Yondaime, your father. Live life as best as you can, my godson, and remember this; the Will of Fire burns brightest in those who protect those they care about. May you live your days to the fullest, Naruto.
-Jiraiya
P.S- I have the entire series of Icha Icha sealed inside both this scroll and Kakashi's. You may not want them now, but save them for the others and for the future possibly. Trust me, you'll thank me someday for it.
Naruto was feeling some tears prick his cheek, and he laughed, "Stupid Ero-sannin..." he looked to a seal on the scroll that had the label, 'album' next to it. Naruto applied some chakra to it, and a small red photo album popped into existence. Naruto opened it after rolling up the scroll, and smiled as he saw the first page contained a picture of Jiraiya with Sarutobi, Tsunade, and Orochimaru. Despite the fact that the Snake Sannin was in the picture, Naruto was happy to see the familiar faces of Tsunade, Jiraiya, and the Old Man. He then looked to see Jiraiya with his own team, and Naruto felt tears fall down his cheek as he looked to see his father in the picture. They really did look alike. He turned the page and saw a picture of his mother wearing a standard Chunin vest of a foreign color with a swirl on her forehead protector. It must have been a picture of her back in her home country, he thought. She had really beautiful red hair, and the way she was posing for the camera was something he felt a familiarity with. She was giving the camera a 'peace' symbol with her two fingers while grinning like there was no tomorrow. Naruto saw what Tsunade seemed to see Naruto have in common with his mother.
Half an hour later found Naruto sitting on the grass with a sad grin on his face as he looked at a picture of his mother and father holding each other while smiling at the camera. His dad had the same cheesy grin Naruto often gave, and his mother was smiling too while she had one hand resting on her large belly. She looked to be almost at the end of her pregnancy, Naruto noticed.
"Mom...Dad..." Naruto saw a few drops hit the picture, and he closed the book. He felt a cool wind hit him, and he shivered. His mood was a mixture between depression and joy; he finally got to see his family in photos...yet realized just how much he never had. Naruto was by no means a greedy boy...but he sometimes wished he could have seen his dad and mother, if only once.
Naruto was huddled in the middle of the grassy floor now, and felt a presence near him. He reached for a kunai, but then heard a voice that that brought his spirits up almost immediately, "Naruto...? What are you doing out here?"
"Oh...hey, Sakura-chan..." Naruto still had some sadness in his voice, and Sakura sensed his irregularity in mood almost immediately. She sat down next to him, and leaned on his shoulder, "You want to talk?"
Naruto smiled at her, and handed her the photo album, "Ero-sannin left it in a scroll for me. He said it holds pictures of my mother and father..."
Sakura slowly opened the pages, and flipped through them carefully. She immediately recognized the handsome face of the Yondaime Hokage along with a red haired woman who was very beautiful. Sakura suddenly stopped, and looked to Naruto. It all clicked into place at that moment.
"Oh...Naruto..." she said with a frown. She set down the book, and immediately embraced her boyfriend with a warm hug. She felt him silently heave in and out, and felt her neck become wet with tears, "Naruto...that explains a lot..." she wrapped around him tighter, and the two were eventually lying down in a warm embrace.
Naruto was teary eyed, and the scene was causing Sakura to tear up too. He had endured so much and now he finds out this? She put a hand on his cheek, softly brushing over his whisker marks. He let out a breath, "Ero-sannin and Baa-chan told me about them before they died."
Sakura smiled sadly, "Well, you come from a very honorable man...and that explains why you turned out to be such a sexy guy yourself." Naruto chuckled a bit as she moved closer and let him wrap around her, "Naruto...you really are special...and not because of the Kyuubi." she looked up at him, and a soft grin was on her lips, "You are by far the most caring , loving boy I have ever met. You never seem to run out of room in your heart for others, and are always able to take time out of your life for those you care about..." she leaned in closer, "...that's why I think I love you so much." she kissed him lightly on the lips, and he sighed as she pulled back.
"Sakura-chan...I-"
She stopped him by kissing him again, "Shh...not now. Right now, I want you to relax, okay? This time is for you to relax, and not worry about anything but that for now." she gave him one more brief peck on the lips, "I love you, and you mean the world to me. Just remember that..."
Naruto nodded with a tired yawn, and slowly fell asleep in Sakura's arms. She said nothing as he snored lightly. She pulled out a blanket she brought with her, and threw it over the two of them. Someone would wake them up. For now though, she was going to stay here with Naruto. She owed him at least that much, she thought as she slowly dozed off.
-ooOoo-
Kakashi stood at the entrance of the courtyard, smiling lightly under his mask at the sight of his two students holding each other as they slept. He would talk to Naruto tomorrow, he thought. As he turned to go back inside, he thought back to the day he first met Team Seven. So much had changed since that day...and yet...he wasn't saddened by that. Kakashi slept better than he had in weeks that night.
-ooOoo-
Two figures darted through the southern woods of Fire Country, shadows being their cover as they ran at speeds only known by shinobi of the highest calibre. They stopped briefly, and the taller of the two whispered to the shorter one.
"What's up, Itachi?" asked the shark-toothed man as he stood on the branch behind his companion. Kisame knew that Itachi wouldn't have stopped without any reason.
"We should rest here." Itachi spoke as he sat at the base where the branch met the tree itself. Kisame nodded, and took his own branch as well. Fire Country was littered with infected, they were not safe anywhere really, but at least in the trees they were more likely to be overlooked. Within minutes, the ex-Mist nin was asleep, taking what time he could to rest.
Itachi sat on the tree, eyes open as he stared into the moon's glow. His hood covered most of his face, giving only the brief flash of his red eyes when looked at. The two ex-Akatsuki members had ditched their old clothes for darker cloaks of black with hoods to conceal themselves. They had managed to survive the infection so far, and they didn't plan on being among the other group anytime soon.
Itachi blinked slowly as his hazy vision continued to cloud his perception of his surroundings. He couldn't afford to be taken by the infected...not when he had so much to accomplish, "I will find you...Sasuke...and when I do...my goal will be achieved." with that, the missing nin fell asleep.
-ooOoo-
The following morning, Shizune woke up and walked down to the dining chambers. Gaara was sitting there with an orange in his hand, and a peeling knife in the other. He turned to her and nodded, "Good morning, Shizune-san."
She bowed, "Gaara-sama, it's good to see you."
"Please," he said with a wave of his hand, "no need for formalities anymore. Gaara is fine with me." to this, Shizune merely nodded.
The two were soon sitting and talking about the extensiveness of the chambers. Gaara, while he did sleep now with his Bijuu no longer in him, was still a bit of an insomniac. Apparantly, according to his estimates, the chambers went on for almost a mile in every direction except upwards, since the mountain itself wasn't that high.
"Well, I must say that the rooms are quite comfortable." Shizune commented. Most of the group member slept within the first three floors. Each bedroom was actually able to hold up to four people or so. She wondered why an organization as aloof as Akatsuki had so many rooms. She put the question in the back of her mind for now, and made a mental note to ask Deidara later.
Soon the two were greeted by a very unattentive Iruka. He yawned and gave a very muffled "Morning." as he walked to the coffee maker that he apparantly knew the location off. He began brewing some coffee and sat down at the table. It seemed that he just couldn't break the habit of waking up early...he blamed it on being a teacher for so long.
Hana walked downstairs from the second floor in a loose fitting t-shirt and some sweatpants, and plopped down at the table next to Iruka. She gave a sniff, and turned to Iruka, "How much longer on the coffee?" she mumbled.
"Meh..." Iruka shrugged, and Hana merely went back to resting her head on her arms. Within ten minutes the coffee was ready. Iruka got up as shuffled over and grabbed a mug, then looked to Shizune, Gaara, and Hana, "You three want coffee?"
Shizune politely declined, Gaara shook his head, and Hana gave a weak nod as he grabbed a second mug from a cabinet where the glasses were. He pulled out some sugar and turned to Hana again,"Milk or sugar?"
"Milk will be fine." she yawned, and eventually the two were drinking their morning brew.
After the caffeine started flowing through him, Iruka turned to the others, "Man, I slept like a log last night." he cracked his neck a bit, and turned to to the giant pantry. He pulled out a box of some cereal that had granola or something in it, then went and got some milk. He soon was eating a bowl of cereal while Hana and Shizune were serving themselves as well.
"Yosh! It is another beautiful day outside!" came the voice of Lee as he entered the dining chambers. The others stopped doing what they were doing when the looked to see Lee was wearing a simple t-shirt and the pants portion of a jumpsuit that was a simple black color. Everyone continued to stare as Tenten walked in behind him, a little winded, but standing fine. Apparantly they had been outside running it seemed.
"How did you two get back inside?" Shizune asked as the two took a seat at the large table.
"I let them in." spoke a voice, and everyone turned to see Konan walk in. The room grew quiet again, and a thick tension was held in the air. Well, everyone but Tenten and Lee seemed tense.
"I thank you again for waiting for us to return so that we could be let back in, Konan-san." Lee said with a polite bow. Tenten gave one as well, and the blue haired woman merely nodded.
"It was no trouble. Just be sure to be careful out there; we can't risk anyone getting infected that knows the location of this place." the blue haired woman replied, and she walked over to the cabinet and pulled out a tea kettle and some tea packets as well.
A half hour later found the group talking amongst themselves, and Sasuke and Kakashi had joined the group too. It was around nine o' clock or so at the time.
"How much supplies do we have here?" Kakashi asked Konan.
"This place has could sustain about forty people for about six months or so...but we may need to make the occasional run to a nearby village, or go hunting and foraging every so often in due time. We have enough food...but I myself do not want to eat freeze dried vegetables and chicken for the next half a year." Konan replied as she took a sip of her third cup of tea.
"Well...then I guess we better have a team go and scout out the area for any possible sights and bring back supplies..." Kakashi said as he looked up from his book (that Jiraiya had conveniently sealed in a scroll for him).
-ooOoo-
Naruto blinked open his eyes, and felt the warmth of Sakura's body next to him. He smiled as she slept there quietly, once again glomping onto his frame as she slept. He moved a little, and she seemed to frown as he did so. She grumbled a bit, and held onto him a little tighter while mumbling something like, "He's my baka..." or something around those lines. Naruto gave up and simply ran a hand through her hair. She was so beautiful...he just couldn't get over it.
"Sakura..." he whispered, not really expecting her to move. However, her eyes fluttered open, and she gave the blone a sleepy smile of her own.
"Morning, Naruto." she nuzzled her face into his open jacket, and let out a content sigh. Man, she sure was affectionate in the morning.
"Hey, Sakura, let's go get something to eat." he suggested as he nudged her gently.
"Five more minutes." she mumbled, and Naruto nodded. She had him on a leash, he couldn't deny that.
After fifteen minutes more than she had asked for, Naruto and her walked to the dining chambers, only to be greeted by Kiba and Hinata. Hinata was drinking from the kettle that Konan had conveniently left on warm for her while Kiba was sitting with a plate of eggs and ham. Akamaru and Hana's three dogs were eating what appeared to be from a giant bowl that Hana or Kiba must have carried with them.
"Hey, they're awake!" Kiba grinned as Naruto and Sakura walked into the chamber. Hinata greeted Sakura and Naruto and after asking Sakura got a cup of tea ready for her. Naruto grabbed a bowl of some cereal and dug in.
"So, where is everyone?" Sakura asked after they had taken a seat.
Hinata answered, "I believe that Iruka, Kakashi, Sasuke, Konan, and Gaara went out to see if they could get some supplies from a nearby abandoned village. They left about twenty minutes ago, and would be back in about two hours or so."
Naruto nodded and noticed Kiba looking at him with a grin, "What?" the blonde asked between mouthfuls.
"So...where were you two last night?" his grin only widened at the mutual blush between Sakura and Naruto.
Hinata sighed at her boyfriend, "Kiba-kun, you are one to talk," she turned to Sakura, "if it makes you feel any better, the two of us shared a room last night as well." Kiba was quiet after that.
Naruto finished his meal and stretched, "Well, I'm going to go and do some training and get to know the place better." he made the ram seal, and five clones popped into existence, "Walk around the hideout and let me know all that you see within the hour." the clones all saluted, and went off in different directions to scan out the place.
"Hey, Naruto, I'll join you in your training. I've been needing to the blood pumping for awhile now." Kiba spoke, and Naruto nodded. Soon the two boys were off to the nearest dojos. That soon left the two kunoichi alone to themselves.
"Well, what do you say we join them, Hinata?" Sakura offered with a smile. The pale-eyed girl nodded happily, and the two went off in the same direction as the their boyfriends.
-ooOoo-
The group of five shinobi jumped up a few feet as they neared the hideout. Their pace was quicker than normal, and they kept looking behind every so often.
"We need to tell the others..." Sasuke spoke, recieving a nod from Kakashi.
"I still can't believe what I saw back there..." spoke Iruka as he looked forward. A silence soon followed.
"I was wondering how they would survive after they had killed or infected the remaining survivors..." spoke Sasuke again, and they picked up their pace. They had managed to gather some resources from a village...but they also saw some things that they weren't sure they wanted to see.
"We must hurry. They may not have spotted us...but the further we are away from them the better." Gaara added.
end of Chapter Ten- Hey there everyone. In case you didn't notice, this chapter's my longest one yet. I figured I would. Consider this the end of part 1 of Outbreak...yeah, I know I never specified that...but go ahead and shake your head and agree with me. Well, we now have twenty two survivors here. I wanted to have Konan in here because I wanted another female in here, and I wanted it to be someone from Akatsuki. Konan fits both categories, so there you go. The next chapter may be a while, but I figured this was worth the wait, right? Anyway, hope you enjoyed chapter ten, keep your eyes for chapter eleven! Let me know what you think of it so far, and I'll try and give you feedback! Well, until we meet again, later!