Ignis Bellator
By Mexicano27
Chapter 11: Konohamaru's Crush
When Team 7 got back to Konoha, everything turned into a huge mess, and it all landed right into Kakashi's lap. Deciding that the well-being of his team took priority over everything else, he took them over to the hospital to get checked out. It didn't take long for things to deteriorate from there.
The medics looked at Naruto first, and almost immediately declared him fit and ready for duty. Just by looking at him, you wouldn't be able to tell he had been injured with a poisoned weapon in the face. He had no scar, or even a single scab. Kakashi sent him home, and he sped off without taking a look back, eager to do whatever the hell it was he did around the village.
Hinata went next. Kakashi told the medics that she had been put into a temporary death state almost a week before, and they seemed to get into a tizzy over it, fussing over her and checking every single pressure point on her body. Apparently unsatisfied with not finding anything wrong with her, she was sent into a back room with a female medic-nin, where she would most likely have to strip and be thoroughly examined. After almost half an hour she was grudgingly released, also declared perfectly healthy. Kakashi sent her home, too, and she left without complaint.
Sakura went next, and the medics looked at her stomach wound. It was healing fine, probably faster than normal thanks to Sakura's ninjutsu. And that was the problem. When they found out that Kakashi had taught her medical ninjutsu, they hit the roof, calling him insane and irresponsible and threatening to report him. Kakashi took all of it in stride; as long as Sakura was okay, that was all that mattered. And she was okay. But the medics weren't finished with them yet. They forced Sakura to promise that she wouldn't use her jutsu unsupervised ever again, on herself or anyone else. They told her that she ought to go to the hospital every day for some tutoring until she was certified, which she promptly agreed to. Kakashi was forced to sit there and agree with everything they said, lest he be detained even longer. Finally, after what felt like several hours, they were both released. Sakura headed home, and Kakashi made his way to Hokage Tower.
He was given an immediate audience with Sarutobi, who was still trying to figure out just what the hell had happened in the Land of Waves. Kakashi had to explain the story from the very beginning: the encounter with two Mist Chunin, the two battles with Zabuza, the injuries sustained by his Genin, and most importantly, the emergence of the demon fox.
Sarutobi took the news concerning the fox surprisingly well. He was intimately familiar with the seals the Fourth had used, and so he knew the nature of the fox's chakra.
"If anything, it's a relief," said Sarutobi, puffing out a thick cloud of smoke. "Before, we couldn't be entirely certain what would happen if Naruto was pushed so far. The demon might well have been able to break free for all we knew. That's one reason the poor boy was persecuted, among others. The demon might have broken out without any sort of warning, or at least that's what the villagers thought. But now we know better. The fox is imprisoned within Naruto for good. Of course, theoretically, if Naruto were to willingly allow enough of the fox's chakra to seep through, the seal would weaken enough to allow the demon to escape. But I doubt that the boy would do such a thing, especially since it would result in his own death."
"A strange thing happened while we were in the Land of Waves, Lord Hokage," said Kakashi.
"Stranger than what already happened?" asked Sarutobi, smiling. Kakashi, however, was not feeling very charitable.
"Yes. Hinata Hyuga described a very strange dream to me."
Sarutobi snorted. "She's going through puberty, Kakashi, you can't possibly take her dreams seriously!" It seemed incredibly funny to the Hokage, but Kakashi had his doubts about that excuse.
"This is different," he insisted. "She dreamed about the nine-tailed fox, without having prior knowledge of the creature." Sarutobi stopped laughing.
"How can you be sure that she hadn't heard someone else talking about it?" he asked seriously.
"She told me herself, and I don't see any reason for her to lie about that."
"Many children already know about the demon fox as it is, Kakashi," he said, sighing. He unconsciously adjusted his headdress. "Some parents tell their children about the disaster and chaos it caused, while others would just as soon pretend it never existed. I know a few people who credit the loss of so many shinobi and the Fourth Hokage to some mysterious unnamed war, to prevent any questions in the future that they would prefer were left unanswered. It is perfectly fine to talk about the fox if you wish, but the decree strictly prohibits to mention that Naruto is the container. Some villagers, unfortunately, see the decree as a rough guideline, and blatantly call the boy foul names such as 'demon' and 'kyuubi.'" He sighed again.
"And the girl?"
"Does she know that her teammate is the container?"
"No."
"Then it is nothing to worry about. She obviously heard about the fox from somewhere, and she was curious about it. Answer any questions about it she asks you… just so long as you don't reveal that single vital piece of information, of course."
"Yes, Lord Hokage," complied Kakashi. Something seemed a bit fishier than the Hokage thought it was, but he kept that opinion to himself.
"And speaking of the girl, did you find out what happened to your two Mist friends after they were retrieved?"
"No, I sort of forgot about them. I just figured you stuck them into prison."
Sarutobi blew out a cloud of smoke before continuing. "One of them is dead," he said simply. "He was dead before we could carry him back to Konoha. By all appearances, he was killed by a Byakugan user."
"What? But I felt his pulse on site, he was fine!"
"Well, he didn't stay fine. It turns out you've got a couple of killer kunoichis on your team, Kakashi."
"I… I don't think I should tell her. I don't think that she'd react to it very well."
"Do whatever you like," said the Third, waving a hand in dismissal. "She's your problem, not mine."
"Er, right." Kakashi bowed his head, and turned to leave.
"Ah, wait, I forgot to tell you," said Sarutobi suddenly. Kakashi turned around. "Your C rank mission has been upgraded to an A rank."
"But the mission has already been completed. That's irrelevant."
"Yes, but you haven't been paid yet, nor has it been placed on record. I think Naruto will quite pleased when he finds out that he officially has one A rank mission under his belt, not to mention the… considerably increased payout."
Kakashi actually grinned. "You're right, Lord Hokage," he agreed. "I don't think he'll mind that at all."
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Hinata walked down the strange valley. It was shaped like an enormous crater, and was filled with water. She had never seen it before. There was a large waterfall off in the distance, adding water to the basin, and two enormous statues faced each other on either side of it. She was walking on the water. She knew that it was possible for ninjas to walk on water, but she hadn't learned how to do it yet. Nevertheless, she was walking on it as easy as if it were solid ground. A deep feeling of dread began to gather in the pit of her stomach, but she continued walking forward, towards the waterfall. In some far off corner of her mind, she knew that this was a dream, but it felt incredibly real.
As she approached the base of one of the statues, she suddenly saw two people. They were both on the shore. One of them was crumpled to the ground, and struggling to stand. The other stood in front of the first, arms crossed. Hinata couldn't see what gender they were, but she automatically assumed both were male. They seemed faceless, instead being represented and identifiable by colors. The one on the ground was a bright red-orange, while the one standing was purple.
"Why do you continue to fight, fool?" said Purple as she drew nearer.
"Because… I'm bringing you back with me…" groaned Orange. He slowly, agonizingly, rose up to his full height.
"You're pathetic," scoffed Purple. "You have proven yourself useless and incompetent. You've only made it this far because you had friends to help you. But now that you have no one to hold your hand, you won't make it any further."
"I'm taking you back with me… Even if you make me break every bone in your body!" Orange sounded infuriated. Purple laughed.
"You expect me to feel frightened by your empty threats?" Purple asked mockingly. "You've thrown everything you have at me. You have grown, certainly. But I'm not the same person you used to know. I'm now more powerful than you can imagine. You have thrown all of your best skills and abilities at me, and they're useless. This battle is over."
"You're wrong," said Orange. The agony was absent from his voice now, instead filled with what sounded like confidence. He slammed his hands together in concentration, as if concentrating his chakra. Suddenly, he grew a brighter shade of orange, and he became engulfed in flames. Purple looked stunned, and took a step back from Orange.
"This battle isn't over," continued Orange. "In fact, now it can truly begin!"
Hinata woke up as suddenly and abruptly as if someone had slapped her face. It was morning now, a few days after Team 7 had returned from the Land of Waves.
What kind of dream had she just had? What was that strange valley? And who were those two ninjas? She had never had this dream before. It hadn't left her terrified, as her other dream had, but it certainly left her wanting to know more. Add that to the fact that she wasn't even close to completely figuring out her first dream, and she was one confused girl.
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"Hey Boss, wake up!" someone yelled in Naruto's face. He fell out his bed, landing on the ground with a thump. Who the hell…? He looked up to see Konohamaru standing in front of him, arms crossed. "Naruto Uzumaki," he said, pointing down at him, "I officially appoint you as the leader of the Konohamaru Ninja Squad!"
"The… what?" asked Naruto, confused. What the hell was he babbling about?
"The Konohamaru Ninja Squad!" repeated the boy. "The most elite team in the Hidden Leaf Village!"
"If you say so," said Naruto. He yawned and groggily stood up. "Why are you here, anyway?"
"I have a mission for you, Boss!"
"Really? What kind of mission?"
"To find the crimson four-leaf clover!"
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Naruto got out of his pajamas and dressed himself as Konohamaru started eating some breakfast. He then slipped on his headband and tied the knot in the back, holding it in place. Grinning, he started flexing and posing in front of his mirror. "So, how many members do you have in your ninja squad?"
"Umm… me and you," answered Konohamaru from the kitchen.
"What?!" He was the leader of nothing? He ran to the kitchen, angry at being fooled. "You should have told me it was just a little game!" he shouted in Konohamaru's face.
"This isn't just some game!" he said adamantly. "An extremely important, A rank mission needs to be completed!"
"Oh, that's right… you said something about finding the crimson four-leaf clover… Why are you looking for something like that, anyway?"
Konohamaru looked down at his plate, the hint of a blush on his cheeks. "Well, you see… There's this girl at the Ninja Academy that caught my attention. Her name is Kaede Yoshino. She's really pretty and has a great personality and, well, you get the idea. But… I found out that she's moving away today, this very afternoon! I overheard her and her friends talking yesterday, and I found out that the thing she desires most before she leaves is the crimson four-leaf clover, which only resides in the forbidden zone, Akagahara."
"Konohamaru, you like that girl, don't you?" Konohamaru's face had turned very red. "So, you want to make that girl's wish come true, huh?"
"Yes!" said Konohamaru. He got down on his knees before Naruto. "You're the only one who can help me with this! Please!" he begged. Naruto walked over to Konohamaru and kneeled next to him.
"So it's a real mission?"
"Yes!"
"Okay," said Naruto, standing up. "I'll do it!"
"Thank you!" cried Konohamaru, running up to Naruto and hugging him. The two then hurried out and headed for Akagahara.
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"Why is Kakashi-sensei so late!" yelled Sakura. He was always late! Why did he do this to them? Did he enjoy it or something? They were told to wait in the same place, over and over again. On the small bridge over the stream running through Konoha. But Kakashi never showed up! She turned to Hinata, looking for some support and agreement. But Hinata was acting rather peculiar this morning, staring at the ground and pushing her index fingers together nervously. "What's up with you, huh?"
Hinata whipped her head up in surprise. "Um, nothing," she responded quickly, sounding embarrassed. "I was just thinking, was all."
"Well whatever it was, you were thinking about it pretty hard!" said Sakura. Hinata was a great teammate and friend, but sometimes…
A flash of orange caught her eye as Naruto came running up the bridge, his little friend Konohamaru beside him.
"Good morning, ladies!" he called out cheerfully, waving. He stopped in the middle of the bridge next to both of his teammates, and started jogging in place. Konohamaru followed the lead of his 'Boss,' red in the face and panting as he pumped his short legs up and down.
"I need to go to Akagahara for a special mission!" he continued excitedly. "I'll try to get back before Kakashi-sensei shows up. If I don't cover for me, will ya? Take care!" He took off running again.
"Take care!" Konohamaru repeated, and ran alongside his mentor. The two were soon out of sight.
"A special mission?" asked Sakura, confused.
"Akagahara?" asked Hinata, shocked. "But that's the forbidden zone!"
Sakura sighed inwardly. Knowing how much Hinata worried about Naruto along with the blonde's tendency to do incredibly dangerous and stupid things, the kunoichi was going to die from a heart attack before she turned forty.
Kakashi decided to arrive at that precise moment, appearing on one of the beams over the bridge, Makeout Paradise in hand.
"Sorry, guys," he said. "I got held up by an old lady who needed some directions."
"Liar!" Sakura yelled angrily, pointing up at him. Naruto was usually down there with her, yelling at Kakashi as well. He must have noticed this, and hopped off the beam to stand before Sakura.
"Where's Naruto at?"
"He mentioned something about a special mission," said Sakura, rubbing her chin.
"A special mission?" asked Kakashi. "I didn't hear anything about that."
"Yeah. He said he was going to Akagahara."
"Akagahara?" asked Kakashi, his visible eye wide in shock. However, he quickly went back to his normal expression and crossed his arms, leaning forward. "If that's the case… Then Naruto's going to die for sure." Sakura grimaced, and Hinata gasped. It looked like she would be getting her heart attack a bit earlier than forty, after all.
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"By order of the Hokage, all ninja are banned from entering this area. FORBIDDEN." That's what the sign on the chain-link fence read.
"So this is Akagahara," said Naruto, grinning. "Cool!" He and Konohamaru leaped onto the top of the fence, careful to not get cut by the barbed wire.
"There it is!" said Konohamaru excitedly, pointing to a field of red at the foot of a small mountain. "If we go there, we should be able to find a crimson four-leaf clover."
"Well, it looks easy enough," said Naruto confidently. He hopped off the fence… and fell into a giant hole concealed in the ground. Sharpened bamboo sticks lay at the bottom, ready to pierce anyone who was foolish enough to fall into the trap. Naruto quickly latched onto the edges of the pit with all four of his limbs, slowly sliding to a stop. Konohamaru peeked down from above.
"There's a bunch of traps here," he called down. "This is where they staged the Chunin Exam at least once!"
"Why couldn't you have told me that before!" yelled back Naruto angrily. He had heard about the Chunin Exam. It was how Genin were promoted in rank, and Chunin were allowed to receive much more dangerous missions. It was also one step closer to becoming Hokage. The Exam was supposed to be incredibly difficult and deadly… But how else would they be able to weed out losers like Sasuke?
Naruto concentrated his chakra to the appropriate body parts, and leaped out of the pit. "Come on," he called out to Konohamaru. "We've no time to lose!" He started running in the direction of the red field. Almost immediately, he set off a tripwire, which triggered a bunch of rusty kunais to be shot at him from a concealed location in a nearby tree. They headed straight for him, but he simply jumped into the overhanging branch of a tree right above him… Setting off another kunai trap, making him jump once again to avoid another bunch of kunais, red with rust from age. He continued jumping from tree branch to tree branch, setting off one kunai trap after another. At least Konohamaru, who was trailing behind him, wasn't in as much danger anymore.
After several hours of going around in circles, desperate to avoid setting off more traps, the two made it out of the forest and into a small clearing. Glad at having finally escaped the forest, they went in a blind sprint towards the field, unwittingly plowing straight through a minefield. Explosions took place all around them, as they frantically ran left and right to avoid getting blown to pieces.
"We're gonna die!" screamed Konohamaru. "Why don't you try thinking things through before you run intro a death trap, huh?!"
"It was your stupid idea to come here!" Naruto yelled back furiously. The exploding mines rocked the earth, and the deafening booms made him feel slightly hard of hearing. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he cried out, creating a dozen clones. He wasn't really sure if they would come in handy, but maybe they could hit a mine that he would otherwise have activated. The clones fanned out, and the ensuing explosions made it feel like the world was blowing up.
Naruto and Konohamaru were catapulted into the air by a particularly violent blast.
"Idiot!" yelled Konohamaru. "What's the point in causing more explosions?!"
"It seemed like a good idea!" Naruto yelled back. The two sailed through the air before landing with a thud in the crimson field. They both landed on their faces, and were left dazed for a minute before they got to their feet. A white statue rested in the middle
"We made it!" Naruto exclaimed happily. "There must be thousands of crimson clovers here, all we have to do is find one with four leaves!"
"It must be a miracle of love!" Konohamaru said passionately, tears streaming down his face.
The duo began to frantically search through the red field, looking for a four-leafed clover. They looked at every single clover, knowing how easy it would be to miss one with four leaves. Konohamaru began getting desperate, ripping out clumps of clover and tossing them into the air.
"It's hopeless!" he wailed. "At this rate, even if we find one, we probably won't make it out in time to see Kaede before she leaves!" He flopped onto his back and stared up at the sky, imagining Kaede's face.
"You idiot!" said Naruto angrily, looking down at him. "Stop being such a baby!"
Konohamaru got up into a sitting position. "But, Naruto…"
"Never give up! Ever!" Naruto said.
"But… What should we do?"
"Look for it! Look for it as hard as we can! We can worry about the consequences some other time. But you'll never get Kaede her clover if you just sit here crying!"
Konohamaru grinned. "Okay," he said, nodding his head. They continued looking for it, desperately combing through every inch of the field. Konohamaru eventually made his way to the white statue, and looked into the square opening on the bottom. Inside was the four-leaf clover he'd been searching for. "I found it!"
"What?!" said Naruto. "You found it?!" He ran over to Konohamaru, who was trying to grab the clover but couldn't quite reach.
"I can't reach it!" he said in dismay. His fingers were incredibly close, only a few inches away from the stem.
Naruto walked over to the side of the statue and pushed on it, trying to get it to tip over so that Konohamaru could reach the clover. The statue was very heavy, and it was taking a lot of effort just to get it to move at all.
"I can almost reach it…" Konohamaru said in a strained voice, trying with all his might to be able to reach just a little bit farther. Naruto pushed against the statue with every ounce of his strength, baring his teeth as he felt his arms throb in protest.
Just a little more… he thought to himself.
Konohamaru finally wrapped his fingers around the stem of the clover and ripped it out of the ground. "I got it!" he cried out in triumph, holding the precious clover in the air.
"You did it!" said Naruto, relieved. He let go of the statue, and it fell to the ground. "Huh?" He looked down at it curiously, and Konohamaru did the same. With a fearsome grinding noise, dozens of wooden puppets with glowing blue eyes suddenly climbed out of the ground, tearing up the field of clovers. They surrounded Naruto and Konohamaru, forming a circle around the two.
"What are these things?!" Naruto cried out.
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Kakashi, Sakura, and Hinata stood at the foot of the fence guarding Akagahara.
"Ah, this sure brings back memories," said Kakashi, grinning. The two Genin looked up at him. "I took the Chunin Exam here," he explained. More precisely, he took the second stage here, but that wasn't important. He pulled out a pair of binoculars and surveyed the field. "It looks pretty wasted," he commented. "It looks like Naruto set off all the traps. And all of the puppets have been activated, too. Replacing the statue should deactivate them, though…" He removed the binoculars from his face and looked down at the Genin. "But I guess this will be good training for you two."
"What?" asked Sakura. He didn't mean…?
"Here's your new mission," Kakashi said, raising a finger. "You two must go rescue Naruto and Konohamaru!"
"Well, I guess it will help make us stronger…" murmured Hinata, looking up at he fence. "And Naruto could be in serious danger, too…" Sakura silently agreed. They couldn't just stand by and do nothing, and it would be good training.
The two Genin leaped over the fence and set off for the red field, as Kakashi stayed behind to watch.
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The puppets slowly closed in on Naruto and Konohamaru. Naruto looked around, trying to find a gap, but there was none. Konohamaru trembled beside him.
"Konohamaru, I'll take care of them," Naruto said. "Run away when you get the chance."
"But you can't fight them all by yourself!" said Konohamaru, looking up at him. One of the puppets suddenly charged Naruto, attempting to slash him with one of its sword-like arms. Naruto blocked the attack with a kunai.
"Just go!" he yelled. "Don't you want to see Kaede?" He pushed the puppet's sword-arm down and kicked it in the face, sending it flying backwards. Two more charged him, and he quickly punched one in the face and kicked the other in the chest, sending both of them flying through the air.
"Naruto… Why are you risking your life for something like this?"
Another puppet tried to stab Naruto, and he had to block again with his kunai. "You told me that this was an important mission!" he responded. "And a ninja always completes the mission!" He punched the attacking puppet in the chest, throwing it back. "And I swear that I won't let you get hurt!" he cried out passionately. A bunch of puppets suddenly charged him from behind. Before he could react, he suddenly heard what sounded like a war cry, and Sakura descended on the puppets feet first. She took them out with a single kick, and wooden limbs went flying in multiple directions. She leaped again so that she was standing next to him and Konohamaru.
"Sakura?!" he asked, bewildered. "How did you get here so fast?"
"You already set off every single trap on the way here!" Sakura answered impatiently. Naruto felt himself blush with embarrassment. Hinata joined them, forming a complete protective circle around Konohamaru. All of the Genin had kunais out, ready to fend off the puppets.
"Naruto!" said Hinata urgently. "Someone needs to push the statue back up, it's the only way to get rid of these puppets!"
"If we have to fight all of these puppets, we're gonna get ourselves killed!" Sakura added.
"Did you here that, Konohamaru?" Naruto asked, turning to his friend. "Put that statue back up!"
"Is that a mission?" Konohamaru asked.
"What?" asked Naruto, confused.
"Is it a mission, Boss?" repeated Konohamaru, grinning.
"Yeah, it's a mission!" said Naruto, catching on. "Get it done!"
"You got it, Boss!" said Konohamaru. He ran to the white statue and grabbed it by the edge, trying to lift it up. The surrounding wooden puppets moved in, their fearsome limbs waving around in the air.
The three Genin punched and kicked at every puppet that drew near. Naruto's best efforts looked dismal compared to his teammate's, though. Sakura, from time to time, would punch a puppet with enough force to turn its chest into sawdust, and Hinata was using her Gentle Fist Style very effectively, hands fluidly striking in every direction and knocking down a puppet with the slightest tap.
Konohamaru lifted up the statue enough to push his back against it, and he continued his efforts to lift it. His feet were leaving scuff marks against the field, trying to push off from it so many times. He ground his teeth in frustration, and sweat began to gather on his forehead. He had to put the statue back, before it was too late! He drew in a deep breath and tried again to push off the ground.
The fight dragged longer and longer, with the Genin getting more exhausted with each passing minute. The puppets just kept coming. Naruto lost count of how many he'd taken down, and the useless puppets lay on the ground in piles.
Even Hinata and Sakura, who were good at conserving their chakra, were beginning to show signs of fatigue. Sakura could no longer punch straight through a puppet by now, and Hinata's attacks were getting slower and slower.
We can't give up… thought Naruto. He dodged an incoming sword swipe from a puppet and then punched it in the face. I can't let my friends down again… He desperately reached for energy reserves deep within himself, determined to not give up the fight.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he yelled, creating as many clones as he possibly could. The clones were more numerous than he had summoned in a long time, maybe fifty or more. He had created them, but he was now completely exhausted. The shadow clones continued fighting ferociously, having inherited their creator's drive and determination.
Sakura and Hinata were given a brief time to take a breather before they had to fight again. Eventually, though, all of the shadow clones were destroyed in a puff of smoke, and the puppets began to close in once more. The three Genin prepared themselves as the puppets got closer and closer. How much longer could they keep this up? The puppets charged, and Naruto tensed himself. However, just before they got near enough to attack, their blue eyes stopped glowing, and they all collapsed to the ground in mangled heaps.
Naruto turned back to look at Konohamaru. He was resting against the side of the upright white statue, looking exhausted. "I did it," the little boy panted.
The three Genin sighed in relief. Without warning, one of the puppets suddenly reared its head and shot a rusty kunai straight at Naruto. He looked at it in shock, unprepared to move out of the way. He was spared the trouble by Kakashi, who suddenly appeared in time to snatch it out of the air.
The three blew out another sigh of relief. "Good job," Kakashi told them, tossing the kunai to the ground. "Mission accomplished." He walked up to them.
"You could have helped, you know!" said Sakura angrily, to which the Jonin merely shrugged. Naruto laughed out loud, relieved at still being alive.
"Do you have it?" he asked turning to Konohamaru.
"Yep. Look!" He proudly held it up in the air for all to see. Even as he held it up, one of the four leaves fell to the ground, causing both him and Naruto to scream.
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It was in the late afternoon, just before Kaede was to leave. Team 7 was standing at the gates of Konoha, watching Konohamaru present the four-leaf clover to Kaede.
"I brought you this," Konohamaru said to his crush, handing her the crimson four-leaf clover. They had managed to glue the fallen leaf back on before they got back, but it was a sloppy job. "You can make a wish with it now."
Kaede, a girl around Konhamaru's age with dark blue hair and shining green eyes, took it from him. "Konohamaru, you got this for me?" She looked at it and smiled, then pressed it to her chest and closed her eyes to make a wish.
"Will that really grant a wish?" asked Sakura.
"I'm not sure," responded Kakashi. "Back in my day, Genin would go into Akagahara with dreams of becoming the best ninjas in Konoha. Eventually, returning with a crimson four-leaf clover became synonymous with having your dreams come true."
"So… It doesn't work?" Naruto asked disappointedly. His shoulders slumped and he sighed. "We worked so hard, too…"
Kakashi laughed. "Yeah, but it served a purpose. Now, you three all know how important teamwork is. If just one of you had been out there, you would have lost. But since Sakura was there to save you Naruto, you didn't. And since Hinata was able to reach out and take down any puppets you missed, none of them got Konohamaru. And since Naruto used his Shadow Clone Jutsu, he was able to give all of you some time to rest and prepare yourselves, saving you from exhaustion. The simple truth is, if a single one of you were missing, the whole team would fall apart at the seams. It's something I've been telling you about since the first day we've met, and now you can see that I'm right."
Naruto understood exactly what his sensei was talking about, and nodded his head. Maybe, besides helping Konohamaru, he had learned something important today, too. When he reflected on their past mission in the Land of Waves, he realized that teamwork had saved all of them. He and Hinata against Haku… Sakura throwing that shuriken to help them… It all made sense.
"Kaede, it's time to go!" called a woman's voice. Kaede looked down sadly, and Konohamaru began to cry.
"Ah! It didn't work like it was supposed to!" He grabbed at the goggles on his head. "It must have been that stupid leaf!"
"No, Konohamaru," said Kaede, grinning. "I got my wish."
"Huh?"
"Because, if I have this, it will be like always having a part of you to have with me," she said, blushing. Konohamaru began to blush as well. "Thank you Konohamaru," said Kaede, and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "Bye…" She began to walk away to where her parents were waiting. Konohamaru was left standing there, as if in a daze. Kaede's carriage began to rattle down the dirt path away from Konoha, and he stared at it as it left.
Naruto grinned. Now, Konohamaru would have to give Naruto credit for getting him his first kiss, too.
"Oh, and I almost forgot to tell you three," said Kakashi.
"Huh?" said the Genin in unison, looking up at him.
"The Land of Waves was upgraded to an A rank mission by the Hokage. So, not only can you three rightfully brag about that, but the money you guys'll get has tripled."
"Yes!" said Naruto, ecstatic. "Now even the Third Hokage knows that I'll take his place someday! And I get to eat three times as much ramen, too!"
Hinata giggled, while Sakura just sighed and rolled her eyes. Naruto, however, did the math in his head and suddenly realized just how much money he had got. He realized that he should do a bit more than just spend it on himself. Kakashi had a point, after all. He'd be nowhere without his teammates.
He turned his gaze on Sakura and Hinata. I wonder…
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The next day, Hinata was walking back towards her estate when she suddenly heard her name being called out. Curious, she turned around, and saw Naruto running as fast as he could to catch up with her. He was holding something in his hand, and the sun's light glinted off of it. "Hinata, wait up!" he called again.
She felt herself blushing. Naruto had actually come all this way just to find her? What was that in his hand? She felt rooted to the spot, and patiently waited for Naruto to catch up with her.
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Sakura got up from her bed and yawned. Her arms and legs were still very sore from fighting those puppets. However, everytime the pain felt unbearable she just concentrated on all the money she'd received and what she'd spend it on. She could buy some more clothes, and replace her torn shirt. She smiled at the thought of that. She dressed and brushed her teeth, then helped herself to some breakfast. She was learning to take her time in the morning now, since Kakashi never showed up when he said he would.
Eventually, she made it out the front door, but was stopped by a large, flat package in the way. It was wrapped in brown wrapping paper, the type you got at the post office. If it was on her doorstep, then it was probably for her mother. She picked it up and brought it into the kitchen. She laid it on top of the counter, and got ready to leave again. However, the white tag on it suddenly caught her eye, standing out against the brown paper.
For Sakura, it read. From your secret admirer.
She sighed when she read it. The sloppy handwriting could only have come from one person she knew. When will he learn to give up? However, she decided to open it up anyway, tearing off the brown paper. She gasped when she saw what it was.
It was a beautiful painting of a cherry blossom. Just by looking at it she could tell it must have cost a fortune. Naruto must have blown at least half of his pay on buying it. That was something awfully generous, especially for him…
As if she were being controlled by somebody else, she walked back to her room to hang it up. She moved some of the useless posters taking up space on her walls, trying to find a place to put it. Eventually, she decided on placing it on the free space right above her bed. She stepped back and looked at it, satisfied.
This was highly unusual for her. She would never, never, have put something that Naruto had given her in such a personal spot. She had never suspected she would, either. But something seemed different about this. He had selflessly spent a bunch of money (money he could have used to buy ramen) to get her something so beautiful. On top of that, he didn't even want to take credit for it, writing down "Your secret admirer" instead of his name.
If anyone came to her house and asked about it, she would just say that she had bought it herself. If anyone found out that it was a gift from Naruto, it would be embarrassing.
She left her house after hanging up the painting, and made her way over to the bridge. She got there before Naruto and Hinata, and was left waiting there. She wondered what she should say to him. Should she thank him? Or should she pretend that she didn't know it was from him? He hadn't signed his name, after all. She was still trying to decide what to say when Naruto and Hinata both came up towards the bridge together from the opposite way she had come. They appeared to be deep in conversation, with Hinata keeping her gaze on the ground and Naruto waving his hands in the air frantically. Something on Hinata's chest was shining, reflecting the sun's light. As they got closer, Sakura could see that it was a necklace. It was round and made of copper. There was a swirl pattern inside of the circle. It was an artistic image of the sun.
So, he got something for her too…
They got onto the bridge and walked close enough for Sakura to hear what they were saying.
"… It was seriously an accident," Naruto was saying, sounding worried, as if Hinata were accusing him of a crime. "You know I didn't mean it, right?"
"Yes, Naruto, it's okay…" sad Hinata, sounding sad. They abruptly stopped talking when they reached Sakura, as if it was a secret she wasn't in on. To Sakura's puzzlement, Naruto didn't even look at her once. She had been expecting him to try and see how she had reacted to his gift, but he was acting as if he had completely forgotten about it, and her.
"Umm, that's a very pretty necklace, Hinata," Sakura said. "Where did you get it?"
Hinata blushed. "Naruto got it for me," she said quietly. She didn't look at either her or Naruto, choosing instead to concentrate on the little stream flowing underneath the bridge. She took the necklace and dropped it under her collar, as if she didn't want it to be seen, and no more questions would be asked about it. Naruto wasn't looking at either of his teammates, and was rubbing his hands on his jacket nervously.
"Naruto… thanks for the painting," Sakura said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "I… I really like it." Naruto spared her a glance.
"Uh, sure Sakura," he said. He then looked away from her again, and continued rubbing his hands.
What's up with him? Thought Sakura curiously. This wasn't how Naruto normally acted. And Hinata wasn't really acting very normal, either.
Almost two hours later, Kakashi showed up, Makeout Paradise flipped open in his hands.
"Sorry, you three," he said, waving. "I got held up on the way here when I saw an old man trapped in a gutter; it took me almost an hour to get him out."
His excuse got no angry response from the Genin. In fact, they all acted as if they had barely heard him.
"Um, right," said Kakashi uncomfortably, pocketing his book. "Let's get started on our mission…"
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Ah, that was a cute chapter, wasn't it? I sort of fleshed it out so that it would have some important parts in it, and further the plot. Now, the next arc can begin.
Quote of the Day:
"We are here on earth to do good to others. What the others are here for, I don't know."
- W.H. Auden
